#finally I get to use the ladybug bun covers again

[your-art-is-gay]

Ever since I saw the original concept sketches for Ladybug, in the Mini Menace mock-up comic covers, I've been fascinated by the original Ladybug, Marietta. What would MLB be like if Marietta was still the main character?

And then I got to wondering further...what if Marietta and Marinette met?

So, kind of like the Twins AU with Marinette and Bridgette, I'm introducing my Mini Menaces AU, with Marinette and Marietta Dupain-Cheng.

(Plus, I'm just a sucker for tomboy/girly girl sister aesthetics).

[soulmate-game]

I was feeling angsty. Read at your own risk, there is very little comfort in this and a whole shit ton of hurt. Probably a bunch of emotional triggers, so seriously be careful guys.

—*—*—*—*—*

Liquid pain ran down her arm like poison, the slash in it burning hot and spreading it’s agony like an invisible waterfall inside her flesh. But she did not grip her bicep where the wound had been inflicted, her gaze blank as she forced herself to hide her turmoil behind glass eyes. Her brother’s snarling face was only inches in front of her own, his katana moving from her arm to her throat.

“Useless! To think we share any blood relation is humiliating!” He growled at her. She did not move, did not emote. Her blades fans, the weapon she was loved most, lay half-opened on the ground beside her. Abandoned. But she knew Damian’s sword would not kill her. Blood family was a bond that was not to be severed by murder unless ordered by Ra’s or justified by the murdered family member in question betraying the League. She had done nothing to betray the Shadows, and Ra’s would not waste time and energy, or the breath it would require, to order her death. Just as he would not waste the precious waters of the Pit to bring her back again. She would not die today, and she knew it.

Sure enough, it was only a few more insults in various languages before Damian Al-Ghul stepped back and scowled down at the blood on his blade. Her blood. “If you don’t even have the stomach for real combat, you do not belong here,” he spat.

“That is where we agree, Grandson,” Ra’s sharp voice echoed through the room, his beady eyes never once bothering to glance at his granddaughter. “Maria, you are hereby stripped of the name Al-Ghul. Banishment from the League is the only mercy you shall be granted for your dishonor on our blood. Be useful and use whatever is left of your mistake of a life to stay out of the League’s way. Shall I, Damian, or your mother ever see your face again, your burial will follow shortly after. Am I understood?”

“Yes Gr— yes, Ra’s Al-Ghul.”

—*—*—*—*—*

Maria Al-Ghul was seven years old when she was disowned and sent away from the League of Shadows without so much as a penny to her name. She was only allowed to take the change of clothes she carried, and one small backpack’s worth of items. Her mother— Talia— had watched vigilantly as she packed those items, assuring that Maria did not take anything of worth.

The girl traveled by foot, too small to get away with driving a vehicle. Unless she could manage to steal a motorbike— she knew how to adjust the seats and pedals on most models to accommodate her size. But she was far too far away from civilization for that.

She knew that most of the League expected her to die in the jungles that surrounded the temple. After all, there were ninjas scattered throughout it with strict orders to kill anyone who was not one of them. And Maria now fit that description.

But if there was one thing Maria knew better than anything else, it was how to hide. How to hide feelings, intentions, involuntary movements, or her whole body in almost any setting. She covered herself in mud, matted her hair with dirt and took off her shoes. Barefoot was always quieter, and her feet would be more sensitive to any change in terrain. She would have to move more slowly and be on the lookout for traps, ground litter that could harm her, or dangerous wildlife, but she would be much harder to track.

It took her a month, but she made it to her first Tibetan city alive and decently healthy. She begged for food for a day before snatching a child’s outfit off of some hanging laundry lines and stealing the first decent vehicle she found. It was an old moped, but it beat walking and was already built small. She made it work.

That was how she spent the majority of the next year. She traveled from town to town, stealing what she needed until she could earn money normally. She used that money to buy herself a fake identity, even if she had to use the skills she had hoped to never need again in order to afford it.

Marinette Shiwang was born when she was already eight years old.

It was only a year after her new identity was created when she bumped into a woman in a street market. That was nothing new, those places could get crowded. But when Marinette looked up and saw valuable bracelets and necklaces of gold and jade, she knew she needed at least one. The money she would get for it would have her living comfortably for a short while. So Marinette’s theft-experienced fingers darted out and unclasped one bracelet in a fluid movement. It took less than a second. She barely had the piece of jewelry in her hand before she started to take off, hoping to lose herself in the crowd.

But a small hand clamped around her shoulder, a sturdy thumb pressing against a very vulnerable spot right at the back of Marinette’s neck, at the base of her skull. A clear threat from somebody with experience.

The sweet voice that followed didn’t match the gesture at all.

“Oh, I need that back dear. It was a gift from my husband, you understand.”

Marinette did. She cared about survival more. The small girl twisted, knocking the hand away from her before it could do damage and darting down a side street. The woman followed. It took three hours, but Marinette decided she had finally lost her pursuer before slumping down in the tiny, closet-sized bedroom of her cheap apartment. Her eyes closed for only a second before the window opened, and the smell of newly-baked sesame buns filtered through.

It was the woman and a much taller, much more masculine man. He was practically a giant, reminding Marinette of a certain member of the League that she used to know. They were both smiling.

“My wife figured you would be more open to an exchange than just giving up the bracelet for free,” the man’s voice was deep and inviting. “You can eat as many buns as your stomach can handle, if you give it back.”

Marinette accepted. Mostly because of her fear for people who could track her to her home so easily, when she had been certain she had not been followed. The League has tuned her senses well, there was no way the couple had been close enough to see her when she made it to her apartment. Yet they were still there somehow. Then, it also had to do with the promise of food, and the heavenly smell of the food itself. And then, lastly, Marinette was tired. She didn’t like stealing, it was just a necessity. She would not hurt these people over a mere bracelet that she wished she didn’t have to take in the first place.

Useless, she thought. So much of a bleeding heart that she just gave up what could have paid for two months rent. Too soft to even protect herself. The Al-Ghuls has been right. She was a waste of space and time.

Marinette was ten years old when she became a Dupain-Cheng. Somehow, that strange, dangerous couple had become her new family. Not even she knew how. But she was grateful— they took her back to Paris with them and she didn’t have to worry about rent, or food, or money anymore.

She vowed, that day that she received her spacious attic bedroom, that she would repay them. She would make herself useful, for the first time in her life. She would stay out of their way, be the perfect most unobtrusive daughter ever. She would help in the bakery, keep a smile on her face so that they never doubted that they were doing a good job. So that they never wasted time worrying about her. She smiled, and laughed, and became successful for them. Competent and reliable even though her memories would sink into her dreams every day and make it near impossible to drag herself out of bed in the mornings.

And then, when Marinette Dupain-Cheng was thirteen, she was given a pair of magical earrings and a tiny fairy-god. And Tikki was thorough, at least. Diligent in her explanation. Marinette listened to every word, dread seeping in as she doubted her ability to carry out such an important task. Save a city? Defeat someone much more experienced and magically powerful than her?

Useless little Maria could never. Slightly less useless Marinette could never.

She was only ever meant to play a support role. Stay on the background and make everyone else shine, without ever succeeding in anything worth noting. That was who she was.

But then Tikki gave her the Warning. The catch that came with the Ladybug abilities, and Marinette felt the long-rusted determination in her begin to fire up again. Maybe she could be Ladybug. Maybe she could be useful, at least this once. At least for just this one scenario. She could fight and win the war against Hawkmoth, and that achievement alone could make her happy. Let her die knowing she did something worthwhile.

—*—*—*—*—*

Damian Wayne was seventeen when he and his family found out about the Paris Situation, and immediately went over to offer help. Damian Wayne was seventeen when he watched Ladybug stumble at the sight of him, and immediately run away. But the two of them were twins, and though twin telepathy might be a myth they always did have a certain instinct when it came to one another.

Damian Wayne was Seventeen when he said, aloud on the top of a random Parisian building and surrounded by his family—

“My sister is Ladybug.”

Damian didn’t wait for their reactions, having entirely forgotten about the existence of his father and brothers, before taking off after his spotted sibling.

—*—*—*—*—*

“I knew you were alive.”

In hindsight, those probably weren’t the best words for him to say when Maria clearly thought he was still an assassin.

Damian watched as Marinette spun to face him, her face so much more expressive than he remembered. He could actually see the resignation in the slump in her shoulders, he could feel the fear in her bluebell eyes. The eyes she was lucky enough to get from their father while he was cursed with their mother’s green irises. He used to envy that about her, especially after joining the BatClan. But now he only felt comfort when he looked into her eyes. Comfort that she was different than him, and always had been. In the best of ways.

He watched as his sister was enveloped by a bright flash of pink light, detransforming right in front of him. And without the mask, it was impossible to ignore the relation between them. She had their father’s eyes and nose where he had their mother’s, but other than that they were almost carbon copies of one another. Her blue-black hair was pulled back into twin braids though, something he noted distantly as oddly fitting. They suited her, he thought.

But all those thoughts instantly turned to dust as she dropped to her knees in front of him, head bowed in complete submission.

“Tom and Sabine are innocent,” she told him. “They adopted me out of nothing but goodwill, and they have been nothing but good to me. I never told them a single word about my origin, I swear it on our blood. They think I am just an orphan that was abandoned in Hong Kong—“

“Maria—“

“—so please, don’t harm them. I’m begging you. And there is no need for you to waste energy killing me. You are welcome to stay in Paris as long as no harm comes to Tom and Sabine, but just wait and watch. I know who Hawkmoth is, and our final plan is almost ready. I’ll have him taken down by next week. Just— wait until then, please. My death will take care of itself afterwards, but Paris deserves to be free, and killing me now will set this entire war against Hawkmoth back by at least a year. And I also need that time to pick my successor—“

“Maria! I am not here to kill you!” Damian had to yell to get her to stop babbling and begging. She froze, but didn’t dare to sit up or even raise her head. So Damian took the initiative and sat down on the ground with her, though he kept his distance so that he didn’t scare her too badly. He couldn’t blame her for her reaction, it had been ten years since they had seen one another and their parting hadn’t exactly been pleasant.

But he had changed a lot since then, matured a lot.

“I am completely disconnected from the League,” he admitted. Of the blurry memories he had of her, he did remember that being blunt was the best way to handle information with her. Beating around the bush had always done nothing but make her exceptionally nervous and jittery. Sure enough, his admission was enough to make her look up at him with disbelieving eyes. He risked a small grin. “I didn’t come in my old uniform, did I?” He gestured to himself in the bright Robin colors. Sure enough, Marinette’s rapid blinking proved his theory that she hadn’t even registered his clothing at all to be true. She had run as soon as she recognized his face.

But Marinette did not speak. She sat up a little, still eyeing him cautiously. But her silence helped him finally realize where they were— where she had led him.

The sounds of traffic and other big city noises were all muted, as if muffled by several layers of cloth. Shadows fell over them abundantly, and they were surrounded by dilapidated concrete walls.

She had brought him to an abandoned area far from any activity, where a body would take ages to find. She had then disarmed herself of her only weapon, her magic suit, and had gotten on the ground in total submission.

She had purposely given him the perfect setting to kill her, where there would be no witnesses and plenty of time before her body would be found for him to escape. That realization hit Damian square the chest, leaving him breathless for a moment.

“I am not here to kill anybody,” he reiterated, his voice noticeably much gentler than before. “Not you, not you adoptive parents, nobody. I left the league when I was eleven. Mother—“ he took a breath, but Maria deserved to know. “— she cloned me. Her clone killed me. He no longer exists, but that is of no consequence. She killed me, she and Grandfather disowned me when I made it clear I was not returning. Father— our father,” he was insistent as he leaned forward, not continuing until she met his gaze. “You remember who our father is, right? Bruce Wayne? Mother had dropped me off to be raised with him when I was ten, but of course it was all just one of her plots. It was her miscalculation though, because I ended up growing close to them. To Father and his adopted children. You would get along with Gra— with Dick, the best I think. Although T— Jason would also be a prime contender as your favorite brother, I think. He shares your love of motor bikes, if that hasn’t changed?” She just stared at him, clearly confused and experiencing a lot of feelings at once. He stayed silent for a moment to allow her to sort through them a little.

“I’m Robin now,” he made his voice quieter, but still easy for her to hear. “I’m a member of the Bats. I’m sure they would all welcome you, if you chose to meet them. Though be warned, they can be quite in—“

“Why are you doing this?” Marinette’s voice was barely above a whisper, Damian almost didn’t hear her. But he did, and fell silent. He watched as his sister licked her lips and tried to find the right words to say. “If what you say is true… you have a perfectly good family. Brothers, Father, a comfortable life. Why follow me then? Why offer me… any of that?”

Damian frowned. He didn’t remember Maria being so gloomy, but then again she had been raised to never show her emotions. Maybe, after years away from the temple like him, her true feelings were just easier for him to see now. Closer to the surface.

“I want to get to know you— to get to know my sister, again,” he told her. “Don’t tell them, but Father and the others have taught me to appreciate family. The way I treated you when we were children was not right, and though it was heavily influenced by Mother and Grandfather, I want to make up for it nonetheless. Maybe we can get to know the new us, together?”

Marinette’s eyes went wide with disbelief, but then she clenched her jaw and shook her head.

“We can’t.”

“... right, I understand if you do not forgive me. I didn’t even consider—“

“It isn’t that,” Marinette was quick to correct him. “When I said that my death will handle itself, I mean it, Damian. The Ladybug… the earrings that give me my powers, come with a price,” she absently ran her fingertips over the unassuming black studs in her ears. “If a Ladybug uses the miraculous for more than three years, the powers of Creation will demand to be balanced. Already, the Miraculous is powering itself on nothing but my life force now. Once I defeat Hawkmoth, there will be no need for Ladybug anymore. The moment I take the earrings off, they will cease keeping me alive.”

Damian’s face fell. No— no, that wasn’t right. He was finally able to find her, finally able to apologize and try to fix his past mistakes. This couldn’t be how the reunion went. This couldn’t—

“Not even the Lazarus Pits can bring me back from a Miraculous death,” Marinette went on. “So you and your family should go. You don’t need to be here when I—“ Marinette paused, gasping. “Damian, why are you crying?! Stop that!” Her voice became desperate, Marinette crawling over to him as quickly as she could and wiping away his tears as if they were something terrifying. Damian wasn’t sobbing or making any noise, it was just a silent stream of tears running down both cheeks as he stared at her wordlessly.

“I…” he finally managed to choke out. “I wanted to make up for everything. I wanted for us to be twins again, together.”

Marinette paused, worrying her bottom lip between her teeth. “I know a magic user who can erase your memories of me,” she offered. “But you don’t have to feel guilty for anything. You never said anything that wasn’t true.”

Damian’s green eyes widened. He had said nothing but cruel things to her, that last year they spent together as children. Did she really believe all of that? Did he and their childhood really affect her self worth this severely and irreversibly?

“Maria—“

“My name is Marinette, actually,” she corrected him with a small smile. “I’m not Maria Al-Ghul anymore. Marinette Dupain-Cheng is actually useful, Damian. I can actually do things right— I’m doing something right right now. Beating Hawkmoth will be the first worthwhile thing I’ve ever done, don’t you see? Once it’s all over, I will have brought honor back to our blood. I’ll have proved to you that I really am your twin, that I wasn’t a mistake. That I was born for a reason,” Marinette’s eyes got dreamy even as Damian just felt like he was impaled again, this time by a spike of ice rather than a sword. “And I’ll be able to die before I ruin it. It’s a perfect scenario.”

“A perfect scenario implies that nothing important is going to be lost,” Damian breathed. Marinette just blinked.

“Yeah, I know. That’s the plan. Defeat Hawkmoth, save Paris, and nobody dies.”

“But you’re going to die!” He growled. Marinette leaned back, bewildered by his violent reaction.

“Yeah, but it’s not like I actually matter. Nobody needs me. Tom and Sabine might be hurt for a while, but they will recover just fine. And it’s not like I have friends or any—“

“Stop worrying about other people, damnit!” Damian surged forward, grabbing her shoulders hard enough to bruise and shaking her a little. “Even back then! Even when we were seven, you threw down your blades because you were more worried about hurting me than you were about how Grandfather would react, even though you knew he would be tempted to kill you for what he thought was cowardice! You never put yourself first, and it’s finally starting to piss me off!”

“Damian—“

“No, listen to me!” He shook her again, his tear stained cheeks only making his glare all the more potent as he stared right into her eyes. “You are alive, and your life matters! You were never worthless or useless, you just didn’t fit what our abusive situation wanted of you. They wanted a cold hearted killer, a tool they could use, and you were always too warm hearted and clever to fit either of those goals. But I did, I was the killer they were looking for and the pawn they wanted. If anything, that makes you better than I ever was! I was too young and naive to see it back then, but I’m trying to make up for it now. You are my sister, whether you go by Maria or Marinette, Al-Ghul or Wayne or Dupain-Cheng, I don’t give a damn! And so help me, even if I have to surgically attach those earrings to your skin, I am not letting you die before you gain at least a modicum of respect for yourself. Do you understand me?”

A wet sniffle met his ears, and he pulled Marinette in for a hug. She returned it weakly, sniveling and sobbing into his cape.

“D-d-Damian?”

“Yes, Shaqiqa?”

Another sniffle.

“I-is it really o-okay for me to stay with you?”

“Of course.”

“I-is… is it really oka-ay for… for me to live?”

Damian’s arms tightened around her. “Always. Always, always.”

Marinette buried her face into his shoulder, taking a deep shuddering breath.

“Th-then… I wanna try.”

—*—*—*—*—*

Not sorry. Ha 😎

[yannowhatigiveup]

My One And Only - Chapter 10

Previous | Next

I might post this one shot I’m writing later. I really need to work on my angst but I just can’t bring myself to write it. I just love fluffity fluff Because... it’s fluff, my heart go melt. Also we’re starting to get into the longer chapters now, yAY

"So?" Alya asked. "Can you tell me?"

Marinette nodded. "So um, his name is D-Damian"

————————————————————

Marinette excused herself to go to the bathroom while Alya said she would wait for her by the school's entrance. Marinette already told her about her encounter with Damian and her crush on him too which Alya found to be sweet. Then she noticed Nino and Adrien enter.

"Hey Adrien is it ok if I steal Nino for a few minutes?" She asked.

"Sure go ahead" Adrien answered, amused.

"Thanks" she said while grabbing Nino's arm and dragging him away. "I did it" she whispered to him.

"Did what?"

"I found out who Mari's crush is! But I ain't telling"

"Whaaaat why not?" Nino pouted teasingly.

"I'll tell you when they get together" she kissed him on the cheek "You can go back to Adrien now. See ya!" She went back to the locker room where Marinette was waiting.

"Hey do you wanna join us later?" Marinette asked. "We're just gonna go for a walk around Paris"

"If you want me to" Alya replied with a smug face. 'But I don't want to invade the bubble you two will be in'

~~~

Damian was in his hotel room using a make shift punching bag when the sky became dark. He took down his homemade punching bag and took a look outside. The sky wasn't really the clear but it wasn't that dark either. The clouds became jet-black and shot large bolts of electric lightning. Damian took a step back as he notice a figure floating in the sky, shooting lightning bolts from her parasol. He decided to go into the roof of the hotel to get a better look. He remained in the shadows while watching the girl wreaking havoc. 'Is this what Angel meant?'. He was dumbfounded by how powerful this villain was but then he remembered magic was involved, magic was always powerful. Then the villain floated towards the hotel.

"Where is Chloe Bourgeois!?" The villain shouted, mainly to herself. Then Damian noticed a glowing butterfly mask appear on the akumatized villain. "Yes, Hawkmoth?"

'Hawkmoth...' Damian spat the name in his mouth. He disliked this man, such cowardice for targeting younger ones like he did.

"Don't worry Hawkmoth, they'll be here. I'm too big of a threat to ignore" the girl praised herself and as if it were a word of command, A boy in a black cat suit appeared. 'That must be Chat Noir'

"Back again huh Ice Queen?" The cat-themed superhero teased.

"My name is not Ice Queen! It's Stormy Weather!" She shouted back.

"For an ice queen, you really need to cool down" he fired back. Then the girl used her parasol to conjure a massive gust of wind but Chat Noir dodged it. Then Damian watched as a spotted yo-yo wrapped around Chat Noir and dragged him away. Damian then could've sworn he heard the sound of a flute but he didn't think anything of it when Chat Noir returned, this time with a spotted hero and a fox themed hero. 'Ladybug and...Rena Rouge I suppose'.

Stormy Weather then took a fighting stance only to have her eyes covered with a towel by a figure behind. 'That's....Ladybug but how-' Damian inwardly sighed. 'Magic I suppose'. He watched as the fake Ladybug disappeared while the real Ladybug grabbed the girl's parasol and smash it in half, intrigued to see a purple butterfly, fly out of the umbrella. Damian watched as Ladybug had snatched the butterfly into her yo-yo and then proceeded to 'de-evilise' it, as what Marinette said. He kept observing them. He watched in awe as Ladybug took the spotted towel used the cover Stormy Weather's eyes and threw it in the sky, many magical butterflies emerging and fixing everything that was damaged. From the sky to the nearby buildings. After they defeated the villain, they fist bumped and then Chat Noir took the now normal girl back to where she came from. Then Ladybug took Rena Rouge and they travelled in the opposite direction.

Now thinking it was safe to come out, Damian approached from the dark and went back to his hotel room via stairs. As he locked the door to his hotel room he realised something he had not noticed before, they all had a different specialized weapon. "How could I not have noticed that before?" He muttered to himself. He played through his memories. 'Ladybug has a Yo-yo, The cat had a retractable staff and Rena had...a flute was it?'. He decided to write some of this down in Arabic that way no one would know what it said even if they were to find the note. He dedicated the rest of his time researching the heroes.

~~~

"Alya" Marinette whined. "It's not a date"

"Even if it wasn't, I still gotta make sure you look good" Alya styled her best friends's hair into a bun with a few strands loose on either side of her face. The outfit she chose for Marinette was an ivory turtleneck sweater dress with brown knee-high boots, all MDC originals of course. The thing is, Alya still didn't know that Marinette was MDC. She hadn't told her yet so convincing her best friend that all these clothes were 'thank you gifts' was difficult to say the least. When Marinette looked at herself in the mirror she let out a tiny audible gasp. She looked great if she said so herself. "What did I tell you? You're best friend knows what looks good on you" Alya said proudly while patting herself on the back.

"Yeah, you did great" Marinette giggled. "Now come on let's go!" She grabbed her best friend's arm and dragged her to where they agreed to meet Damian.

Alya wasn't sure what she was expecting but it definitely wasn't what she saw. In the distance she saw a tall, muscular and handsome man. She wasn't attracted to him, in fact, the neutral scowl on his face was enough to send fear up her spine. Alya wasn't sure if this man was safe to be around, or if it was even Damian for that matter but the bright sparkle in Marinette's eye when spotting him confirmed that this was indeed Damian. Alya watched astounded as the once threatening scowl on his face turned into a naturally soft smile the moment his eyes spotted her best friend. 'This guy is totally in love with Mari. And I'm here for it'

When Damian noticed Marinette with a girl, 'Césaire probably', he smiled and walked up to them. "Hello Angel, nice to see you" he said in French. He turned to the other girl "Damian , nice to meet you" he said again in French while holding his hand out for a handshake.

"Alya, Alya Césaire" Marinette's best friend said while returning the handshake.

Marinette's eyes were bright when Alya and Damian had introduced themselves "So now that we're here, what should we do?"

"Didn't you say that you needed fabric for your designs?" Alya asked.

"Yeah b-"

"In that case we should go shop for the fabric needed" Damian replied.

"That's nice of you guys but we don't have too-"

"Come one I know a few shops!" Alya grabbed Marinette's hand and dragged her to the fabric shops in the area with great reviews without allowing her to protest. Damian tagged right behind, smiling at the two best friend's interaction. Alya then took the time to whisper into her best friend's ear. "He called you Angel" she said with smirk on her face.

"I-it's just a nickname" Marinette stuttered as she felt her face become hot. Alya playfully rolled her eyes while leading the bluenette to one of the best fabric shops in Paris with Damian in tow.

In the end they bought Marinette three different rolls of fabric. Damian was the one who paid, though it took a long time arguing before Marinette finally backed down. She was the one who wanted to pay but Damian kept insisting he should pay. He had also offered to carry all the rolls of fabric, not that he needed to ask because he carried them anyway, ignoring Alya and Marinette's protests. Soon they arrived at her parents' bakery and they met a surprised Sabine Cheng and Tom Dupain, they were mostly surprised at the boy who could carry three rolls of fabric single-handedly and look as if he could carry more. They watched, amused, as their daughter and this boy argued back and forth. Marinette saying that she could carry the rolls of fabric to her room by herself and the boy saying that he could carry it by himself. The argument didn't even last a minute before they came to a conclusion; Marinette would take one of the rolls while the boy would bring the other two. When they both left to go to Marinette's room, Alya answered a question that was in both the parents' head.

"His name is Damian" Alya said. "Marinette says he's an exchange student from the US"

"The US?" Tom said confused. "I thought he could've been from Bordeaux, there wasn't a hint of an accent'

"He must have been studying French for a long time" Sabine said, quite impressed.

Alya nodded. "Marinette's known him for a while, I just met him today and he's very smart"

Then both Marinette and Damian came downstairs. "Maman, Papa I'm going with Alya to make sure she gets hom-"

"I can go by myself it's fine" Alya interrupted. 'You and Damian need some time alone!' She inwardly smirked.

"Then I'll make sure Damian goes home" Marinette said without hesitation. They both said their goodbyes and walked out, leaving Alya and Marinette's parents.

"He's good husband material" Sabine said the moment her daughter and the boy left. Both Alya and Tom chuckled while nodding. Then when Alya turned to leave, Sabine and Tom went back to decorating some cupcakes.

~~~

Adrien kept looking through all the fan-mail he got, it was a lot but he wanted to read each and every one of them so that his fans knew he cared. But there was still something at the back of his mind, something nagging him. It was about when Plagg went to talk with Tikki about what he described as 'Kwami Business'. Adrien knew it was private conversations between kwamis but he could help but be curious as when Plagg had asked for permission to go, he was much more serious than he probably has been his entire life. "Plagg"

"Yeah Adrien?" The kwami replied, biting his aged Camembert.

"The day you went to talk with Tikki, what did you have to talk about?" Adrien watched as Plagg stiffened. Surprisingly, he put his cheese aside. 'Uh oh, this must be serious'

Plagg sighed, "It about the side effects of the miraculous"

"Side effects?" Now he was getting worried.

"The side effects only a true miraculous holder could get" Plagg mumbled hesitantly.

———

Taglist: @little-bluestar, @miracleofadisaster, @frieddonutsweets, @jjmjjktth, @genderfluidmoma, @starlitdreaming, @icerosecrystal, @lolieg

[flufflepuffle296]

Heathers au: Beautiful Songfic

This is more centred around Veronica/Marinette so not really any mentions of Heather/Heather/Heather. Sorry if someone’s done this before I apologise I just got into Heathers like two days ago. Also I changed some lyrics and took others out to make it more “realistic”. Sorry I suck at endings, it’s 5:30am rn and this is my first fic so be nice please! (I’m on mobile so I can’t add the keep reading tag so sorry if you don’t like this) xxx

I brushed down my dress: I couldn’t give them anything to criticise me over. Everything had to be perfect. I had to be perfect. Chloé sat next to me, my beautiful fiancée, slipping on her kitten heels. She may be 3 months pregnant but no Bourgeois woman would be seen wearing flats. I was in a red floor length a line dress — I grew out of my childish pink years ago, before it even went out of fashion! My hair was twisted into two plaits that were knotted together into a stylish bun at the back. Chloé meanwhile had stuck to her white and gold aesthetic, currently in a slim fitting white dress, showing off her small baby bump, decorated with gold jewellery. I rummaged through my drawers, trying to find a lipstick, when a thin book toppled out. I picked it up, and laughed fondly when I saw what it was.

My old Collège and Lycée diary.

I flipped through it, landing on the page that stuck most clearly in my mind. It was the day my class reminded me of my current reality at that time, shocking me out of a bubble that had surrounded me during the summer holidays that year.

September 1st, 1989.

Dear Diary: I believe I'm a good person. You know, I think that there's good in everyone, but—here we are! First day of senior year!

And uh... I look around at these kids that I've known all my life and I ask myself—what happened?

I bit my lip. What happened? I knew darn well what happened. Lila Rossi. She came in, flaunting her friendships and connections, a new disability every other week to cry about, another rumour about me coming out every 3 days.

Alya ended our friendship, Adrien continued to cry about Lila’s feelings. Lila just kept doing what she did best. The class gave up on changing my mind and instead decided that calling me names would be better. Because logic?!

“Freak!” “Slut!” “Burnout!” “Bug-eyes!” “Poser!” “Lard-ass!” Were the insults they liked to yell daily. Yeah, they weren’t the most creative...

We were so tiny, happy and shiny. Playing tag and getting chased. Singing and clapping, laughing and napping. Baking cookies, eating paste.

Nino and Kim used to come over to the bakery when we were kids, where we’d gorge ourselves on sweets, before celebrating our sugar rushes by chasing each other in the park and then crashing on my sofa, cuddled in blankets and laying on top of each other.

Then we got bigger, that was the trigger. Like the Huns invading Rome. Welcome to my school, this ain't no high school: This is the Thunderdome. Hold your breath and count the days, we're graduating soon. College will be paradise, if I'm not dead by June!

But I know, I know, life can be beautiful. I pray, I pray for a better way. If we changed back then, we could change again. We can be beautiful...Just not today.

I scoffed at my optimism back then. Them changing? They never did, I don’t know why I bothered trying at that point. I should’ve moved on but hey! We all make mistakes. It’s just that sometimes you make 11 friendships worth of mistakes.

“Freak!” “Slut!” “Cripple!” “Homo!” “Homo!” “Homo!”

I cringed as I read their old “insults”. They would write homophobic messages across my locker, getting Alix to spray paint a few slurs across my work after I came out as bisexual.

Things will get better soon as my letter comes from Harvard, Duke, or Brown. Wake from this coma, take my diploma. Then I can blow this town. Dream of ivy-covered walls, no smoky French cafés. Fight the urge to strike a match and set this dump ablaze!

I had purposefully sent out applications to universities far away from these people, from Paris. All three schools accepted me, something I can’t say about my classmates, most of whom were rejected for essays on false information (sourced by Lila) and a quick scan over the Ladyblog meant not a single newspaper would even consider my ex-best friend. Gabriel Agreste, as I later found out through my internship in America, had to bribe several schools with double tuition to get even one to accept Adrien, after he got exposed as sexual harasser and disgraced hero “Chat Noir”. I turned back to my diary, having to peel off rock hard gum from the page that someone had smeared in “revenge”.

Le Chiên Kim. Third year as linebacker and eighth year of smacking lunch trays and being a huge dick.

“What did you say to me, skank?” He would yell, his fist raised in the hallway.

“Aah, nothing!” I then cowered. I may be Ladybug, but he was 150lbs of pure rage. No one can compete with that!

But I know, I know... Life can be beautiful. I pray, I pray, For a better way. We can be beautiful...

“Marinette! Wide load! Honnnnnk!”

He was the smartest guy on the football team. Which is kind of like being the tallest dwarf.

“Hey! Pick that up! Right now!”

“I’m sorry, are you actually talking to me?” He used to snarl, his hands covered in sauce from knocking my tray.

I stood my ground, I had been practising for this moment. “Yes, I am. I wanna know what gives you the right to pick on me. You're a high school has-been waiting to happen. A future gas station attendant.”

Kim then smirked, crouching down to eye level and pressing a finger to my forehead. “You have a zit right there...” he pointed out, causing the cafeteria to laugh at my expense.

I used to ask myself “Why... Why do they hate me?”

And hear Adrien whisper “Why don't I fight back?”

Watch as Max Googled “Why do I act like such a creep?”

Listen in on Lila stamping her feet in the bathroom asking “Why won't he date me?” Clearly frustrated.

Kim panicking as he wondered “Why did I hit him?”

And Chloé sob down the phone “Why do I cry myself to sleep?”

I would stay up late, screaming, begging. At my lowest points I would cry out “Somebody hug me! Somebody fix me! Somebody save me! Send me a sign, God! Give me some hope, here! Something to live for!”

I remember when I first met my real friends. The famed trio had gone into the bathroom and I followed after them, clearly my throat.

“Who are you?”

“Uh... Marinette Dupain Cheng. I crave a boon”

“What boon?” Chloé asked, filing her nails.

“Um. Let me sit at your table, at lunch. If our class think that you guys tolerate me, then they'll leave me alone...”

Chloé threw her nail file out and began circling around me, running her hands through my hair, commenting that “For a greasy little nobody, you do have good bone structure!” Before coming to a conclusion.

“And ya know, ya know, ya know? This could be beautiful. Mascara, maybe some lip gloss, and we're on our way. Get this girl some blush; and Kagami, I need your brush. Let's make her beautiful.” Sabrina and Kagami, chimed in, echoing her words.

“Let's make her beautiful...”

“Let’s make her beautiful...”

“Make her beautiful...Okay?” Chloé ordered, dragging me out with Kagami and Sabrina, driving me to her hotel. They sat me down, taking my hair out of its bunches and brushing it out. Kagami painted my nails a deep navy with surprising precision, manning my cuticles. Sabrina twirled my hair into a high bun, leaving a few pieces at the front to frame my face. Chloé came back from her wardrobe, throwing a blue blazer and grey skirt at me. I changed into my outfit for them, to which they clapped their hands in glee. They dragged me back to school, taking in everyone’s reactions to the new and improved me. This became my new daily outfit for the rest of the year — the class couldn’t find anything bad about it, and even if they did Chloé would threaten them with her father’s power.

I was happy with my squad. Kagami taught us Japanese and Chloé taught us American English that she’d picked up from her mother. I taught them self defence, under the guise of learning it from my mum, unknowingly training them for the day I would rip Chat Noir’s miraculous from him, before slamming it into Kagami’s palm. I needed help that day, so thrust them bee and the fox miraculous at Chloé and Sabrina respectively. They became permanent heroes, Kagami under the name “Noirette”, Chloé under the new guise of “Buttercup” and Sabrina “Renard Rouge”. Akuma attacks have never lasted more than 15 minutes since we got rid of that alley cat, and we’ve been closing in on Hawkmoth recently.

I shook my head, snapping the crude book shut, throwing the diary in the bin. Today was going to be the day I made peace with all that happened, our 10 year school reunion. Doesn’t mean I’m gonna make up with anyone, just that I will finally leave everything behind. I found my lipstick and smeared on the crimson lip, smacking my lips together. I grabbed my clutch and helped Chloé stand up, though she wobbled a little in her heels. I slid her miraculous into her updo, blowing a kiss at her as to not ruin her makeup.

We met up with Kagami and Sabrina in the hallway, Kagami in a wine red suit with gold jewellery, and Sabrina was in emerald green to compliment her red hair. We stepped into the limo awaiting us outside and set off, arriving at the school 10 minutes later. We walked up the steps, hitching up our dresses and arrived in the courtyard. It had been lit up with fairy lights, with stands of food and drinks scattered around the court. Our old classmates were huddled in small groups, whilst Mlle. Mendeleiev’s was in a large group, enjoying each other’s company after 10 years apart.

No one noticed us, until Rose pointed at me and whispered “Who’s that with Chloé?” The group turned to stare at us, trying to place my face. Adrien looked up from talking to Lila, who seemed to be flaunting a rather tacky Gabriel engagement ring, and whispered,

“Marinette?!”

The class began gossiping amongst themselves, “Marinette? Marinette? Marinette?!”

I ignored them, their childish ways were behind me, and walked up to Aurore and Mireille, fawning over their relationship. They turned Kagami, asking her about her life and squealing over her Olympic medal for fencing. I grinned as I watched my old class, happy that they had moved on from each other — well apart from Alya and Adrien, who were still hooked on Lila. I was finally, content! I thought back on my diary, one particular paragraph standing out to me at this time.

And you know, you know, you know, life can be beautiful. You hope, you dream, you pray, and you get your way! Ask me how it feels, lookin' like hell on wheels...My God, it's beautiful! I feel so beautiful... And when you're beautiful...It's a beautiful frickin' day!

Chloé boasted my achievements, my business, my awards, and the entire of Mendeleiev’s class started chanting “Marinette! Marinette! Marinette!”, much to my embarrassment. I boasted her’s in return, Sabrina revealed how far she’d come as a lawyer, Kagami swung her prized sword from side to side as she listened to us all catching up, laughing at the memories.

It really was a beautiful day.

[hateswifi]

No More Second Chances: Chapter Four

So as I promised, here it is. I’m a person of my word... enjoy. salt and chaos

Master: Master List

No More Second Chances 

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

She was woken up to multiply phone calls from Adrien. “You realize I’m five hours behind you, why are you calling me this early?” Marinette said groggily into the phone.

“I sent you a video, I’m going to be in my room if you want to,” Adrien said before hanging up. Marinette sighed, and opened the link. She proceeded to cry. Not even thirty second later, Jon appeared in the doorway. He found Marinette in full tears, her phone playing a video on her bed, and her digging through her draw.

“Marinette, are you ok?” Jon asks, looking at the girl in bewilderment.

“I’m sorry for waking you, but I have to go!” Marinette says, quickly opening the Miracle Box.

“What’s that?” He asks, approaching the distressed girl.

“I’ll explain everything later,” Marinette said, standing as she placed the box on her bed beside her phone. She opened the smaller box she had taken from the big box. As she opened it, a blinding light emitted throughout the room.

“What the actual-”

“Miss Marinette, are you ready for action,” Kaalki said, looking at the young guardian earnestly.

“What the heck is that thing!” Jon asks, taking a couple steps forward.

“I am no thing! I am a demi-godess!” She says, looking down on the boy.

“Like I said Jon I’ll explain later, I have to go to London and Paris, I’ll be back by lunch! Kaalki! Transform me!” Marinette said, letting the familiar feeling of the transformation cover her. She picks up the Miracle Box.

“One normal person, that's all I ask,” Jon sighs before snapping out of stupor to watch his unofficial sister open a portal. Before he knew it, the portal closed, leaving her in the dark. He looked over at Marinette’s phone, which was playing a video. He picked up the phone and restarted the video. It was of a big mustache man and petite asain woman they were talking to in french before the video cut to a dark pink room. There was a flash of light similar to the one that just happened but in pink.  “Mom! Dad!”

In London with Marinette, she broke down crying into Adrien’s hug. “I’m such a mess up, I first revealed myself to my parents, then to Jon, and now everyone knows,” Marinette cried.

“They’re doing an interview later if you want to bomb it,” Adrien smirks, as he rubs her back. “You could finally reveal everything, you could clear your name, and right the wrongs that were made against you.”

“Noir what even was that wording?” She sniffles with a little giggle.

“It’s early, ok? Hey at least I got a laugh out of you,” Adrien said, with a groan.

“Adrien it’s time to leave,” Felix said,opening the door. “Marinette.” He nods. 

“I’ll be out in a minute Fe,” Adrien says. “Their interview is at the tower, it starts at nine, stay here and get ready if you need to. I have to go to school, but remember I’m proud of you, you’re strong, and we are partners through this all.”

“Will you come to the interview as Chat Noir?” Marinette sniffles, looking up at her blonde friend.

“I’ll have to talk to my aunt, but I think that can be arranged,” Adrien says, leaving the room. A minute later, she heard the door reopen. 

Marinette wipes her tears, and says. “That was fast, what did she say?” She then looked up, it wasn’t Adrien, it was Felix. 

“I heard the video earlier, I’m sorry for trying to force myself onto you,” Felix says, sitting beside her.

“Apologizing doesn’t make it right, but I accept your apology. Did you learn not to do that again?” She asks, he nods his head. “Then we’re good.”

“Marinette I got permi--,” Adrien says, opening  the door. He looks to the bed and pauses. “Do you guys need a minute?”

“No we finished our conversation,” Felixa said, standing. “Good luck with the interview today.”

“Thank you, Felix,” Adrien said with a nod. “Do you need to do anything?”

“I need to wash my face, and maybe wear something that isn’t pajamas,” Marinette says with a laugh.

“I'll go ask Aunt Emelia if you can look through her closet,” Adrien said, leaving her to compose herself. Next thing she knows, she is looking through a closet of clothes, most of them appropriate for a fancy setting. She found the closest thing she could dress down in, a white fitted blouse, and a black tube scalloped skirt. She washed her face and tied her hair up in a princess bun using a red ascot. She took one last look in the mirror as Adrien said. “Ready to go? It’s eight-fifty.”

“Yes, I want to make a dramatic entrance so we're gonna wait a bit ok?” Marinette says, putting on her glasses. They walk through the portal and Marinette transforms into Ladybug and watches the interview on Adrien’s phone.

“So where is your daughter today?” Nadia asked a couple of minutes into the interview.

“She’s in the states doing an exchange program,” Sabine said with a smile.

“Do you know if she likes it there?”

“I don’t know, we haven’t talked to her since we told her about it,” Tom says, sheepishly.

“Did she want to go?”

“I mean we told her that she had the option to stay here in Paris,” Sabine said.

“Are you trying to say that Ladybug no longer wanted to be in Paris?” Nadia asks, shocked. Before Sabine or Tom could answer, Chat Noir and Ladybug land on set.

“I feel like that question is more directed to me,” She says walking into view of the camera. 

“Someone get them seats!” a shout came off screen. Marinette drops her transformation, Tikki immediately hiding. After seats were taken, Marinette decided to answer the question.

“I, originally, didn’t want to leave and thought it was unfair because of the reason I was being sent to America,” Marinette pauses, her parents’ eye watering. “Some of my old classmates decided to approach my parents and tell them that I was bullying a girl. Sabine and Tom believed them over me and didn’t bother to listen to my side of the story. They only asked me to stay once they found out I was Ladybug.”

“We still want you to come home,” Sabine said, tears falling down her face.

“Mom you took away the only place I felt safe, you believed someone you didn’t know over me and ridiculed me over it,” Marinette said quickly. “I’m going home, it's just not here in Paris anymore. Now that’s everything I wanted to say, I’ve got to get to school, I promised someone I would be there.” She said, standing. “Also Lila Rossi, I’m not your best friend, never have, never will be. You made my life hell, I was almost akumatized because of you. I hope you enjoy your sheep, I don’t want them. Let’s go Chat.”

“Wait! What’s your relationship status?” 

“Seriously? He’s like a brother to me, Noir, its now or never,” Marinette said, looking at her partner.

“I wasn’t in your corner when you needed me, but I’m here now,” Chat said, detransforming. “Umm… hi!” 

“This amazing sunshine is the closest thing I have to family now,” Marinette says, firmly. “Don’t give him crap over his father. His father is not him. Adrien worked his butt off to get to where he is today. If I hear otherwise, you’ll deal with me.” 

“Let’s go.” Adrien said, leaving behind chaos.

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

Hope you liked it, wanna join the tag list? Just ask!

Tag List:

@sturchling @maribat-is-lifeblood @sonif50 @thestressmademedoit @myazael @mochinek0 @messymessyml @amayakans @weird-pale-blonde-person @animalgirl05 @justafanwarrior @kalianoble @mewwitch @elmokingkong @noirdots @itsmeevie01 @colorfulmongerpsychicranch @tis-i-beanbandit @thetinymoonflower @whats-she-gonna-post-next @alwaysnumberonetruth @hauntedwintersweets @not-annoying @wargraymon0709 @tired-butterfly @heldtogetherbysafetypins @literalfantrash @toodaloo-kangaroo @feliciakainzofspades @lozzybowe @imnotfluffy @moonlightstar64 @angelofmusickaterinapetrova @pirats-pizzacanninibles @sassakitty @dawnwave16 @brokenwordsarehard

Permanent Tag:

@ash-amg @bee-wrecker @damianette-is-life @mjisntme @i-will-be-your-ace

[starshine583]

Crossing a Line (19)

(so this was actually supposed to be the last chapter, but it got long so I had to stop lol enjoy!)

Part 1 / Part 18 / Part 20

Felix held his ground next to Marinette, worried and terrified at the same time. He thought telling his Father about the wish would discourage him from using it, but his Father only got angry, instead, spouting nonsense about “sacrifices” and “family”. Why was he angry? There was still a cure. There was no need to fight! Why wouldn’t he listen?

Marinette stepped forward and confronted his Father’s true intentions, which only made him angrier. Felix tried to calm the situation as it escalated, but Marinette promised to get the miraculous back, while Gabriel promised not to let that happen. It wasn’t until she pulled out his peacock miraculous that Felix realized compromise and negotiation weren’t options anymore.

“Duusu, spread my feathers!” Marinette cried, quickly pinning the miraculous to the lower front of her shirt. The familiar blue light he’d gotten used to seeing flash over his skin washed over her body, and Marinette’s casual outfit disappeared. The miraculous replaced it with a royal blue dress that faded into different colored feathers such as purple, dark blue, and indigo. Her gloves and high-heeled boots, which extended to her knees and mid-biceps respectively, were also royal blue, and the ends of each were covered in a dark blue, feather-shaped pattern that trailed up to the navy blue part of the suit, such as her collar bone, neck, and thighs. A short shawl made entirely of purple feathers wrapped around her shoulders as well, connected by a small, indigo pearl. It brought out the sparkling fuchsia that lined the front and back of the royal blue dress perfectly. If it weren’t for the circumstances, Felix might have been tempted to stop and study the fabric in all its magnificence. 

Gabriel’s expression twisted with rage. “How did you get that?”

Marinette unclasped one of her fans from a metal button on the back of her dress and held it in front of her, showing the sharpness of the curved tip. “Let’s say it was a present from your son.”

Felix grimaced at the look of disdain his Father shot him.

“You gave her your miraculous?!” He fumed.

“No, I-!” 

“Don’t talk back to me!” His Father growled. “I should have known not to trust you from the beginning!” 

Felix flinched back as Gabriel lunged forward in a fit of rage. Before they could collide, though, a feather-shaped knife sank deep into Gabriel’s shirt sleeve, pinning him to a bookshelf. Felix looked to Marinette, who was already pulling another throwing knife out of her hair. He had thought the feathers that decorated her spread out bun were simply that, a decoration.

“Felix, run!” She ordered, throwing the second knife to pin Gabriel’s other arm to the bookshelf. “Go find my miraculous!”

“I’m not leaving you!” Felix argued, taking a step back from his struggling Father. The whole reason he took her miraculous in the first place was to protect her from this exact encounter.

Marinette stepped in front of him, but glanced over her shoulder as she said, “I’ll be fine. I have Duusu. Now go!”

Felix clenched his fists. He hated the idea of leaving her alone, but he didn’t have a miraculous. Anything he tried to do now would only get in her way.

Fueled by adrenaline, Felix stumbled to the other end of the aisle and sprinted towards the Library’s entrance. He almost ran into Gorilla on his way out. Earrings, Earrings- where would Father put Marinette’s earrings if he had them? This house was enormous. They could be anywhere!

He started with the office first, checking the only hiding place he knew Father had: the safe. Felix pulled open his Mother’s painting, and.. They weren’t there. He checked behind the smaller pictures, under the books, and practically pulled everything else out. There was nothing.

“Where are you?” He grumbled to himself, lifting up another pile of books.

“So you finally show your true colors.”

Felix froze, slowly turning around to see none other than Nathalie. She stood in front of him, wearing a crap-eating grin. He should have known she would appear eventually. Nathalie was always eager to be Father’s back up.

“I always knew you weren’t worthy of Gabriel’s trust.” She said, tilting her head up with all the poise of a condescending twit. 

Felix heaved a tired sigh. “And I always knew you’d be the first one to lay down and let him treat you like a dog once I came to my senses.” 

He didn’t want to believe what Marinette said about Father wanting power instead of Mother, but the proof was right in front of him. If Father truly cared about their family and Mother’s well-being, he would let Marinette try to cure her! And if family wasn’t what Father cared about, what else was left but power?

Nathalie let out a snooty little laugh. “Of course you would think that. You don’t understand anything. Your Father is a loving man who is doing the best that he can to raise you two and heal your Mother!”

"Raise us?” Felix scoffed. “He barely talks to us! And right now, he’s the one standing in the way of healing my Mother. So tell me where the earrings are!”

Nathalie tisked and tilted her head slightly to the side, just enough for him to catch a glimpse of the black, circular earrings she was wearing. “They’re safe. Much safer than they were in your hands. Unlike you, I won’t be handing them back over to the enemy so easily.”

Felix shifted into a fighting position. “We’ll see about that.”

“Oh, you want to fight me now?” She asked, a smirk reappearing on her lips. When Felix didn’t answer, the smirk widened. “Good. I’ve been wanting to punch you in that perfect face of yours for years. Tikki, spots on!”

Felix’s eyes widened as Nathalie transformed in front of him. He hadn’t expected her to actually use the miraculous!

The red, magical light that covered her took away her professional suit and exchanged it with a red and black spotted costume. Black colored her forearms- save for the palms and fingers -and bottom half of her legs, acting as boots and gloves. A bit of black covered the sides of her waist as well.

“Well, Felix?” Nathalie taunted, taking one of the two yo-yos that hung on the utility belt around her hips. “You said you wanted the earrings. Why don’t you come take them?”

Felix grit his teeth. “Fine with me. Using Marinette’s miraculous will only make it more embarrassing for you when I get them back.”

Nathalie growled and slung her first yo-yo forward. Felix dodged and whipped around to grab the yo-yo string. Nathalie barely got a gasp of surprise out before he yanked on the string, causing her to fly forward. He hadn’t spent months as Le Paon lying around doing nothing. (Though that might have been part of it) No, he’d been fighting. Specifically against Ladybug and Chat Noir. He knew how her miraculous worked, and he knew it’s weaknesses. Most importantly, he knew that Nathalie knew none of that. 

Nathalie hit the ground with a harsh grunt, but Felix didn’t have time to revel in her struggles. She cried out in rage and twisted her body to kick him in the legs. Felix fell forward, landing on top of Nathalie. She gasped, as he’d landed on her back, and struggled to get him off.

“Didn’t go as planned, huh?” He grunted, moving to grab one of her earrings. 

Unfortunately, his attention was briefly diverted before he could. The library doors were thrown wide open when someone fell through the doorway. Upon closer inspection, Felix realized it was Hawkmoth who had gotten thrown out. Did Father transform? Where was Marinette?

Just then, Marinette jumped out of the doorway as well, still transformed and shouting for Gabriel to give up. 

Felix’s thoughts were once again redirected when Nathalie bucked her body upwards, causing him to fall back onto the floor. She lifted herself to her knees a moment later and reached for her yo-yo again. Felix twirled on the floor to start getting up as well, but kicked her hand to stall the drawing of her weapon.

Nathalie drew her hand back and hissed. “Infernal child!”

“Only for you.” Felix shot back, pushed himself to his feet. 

Nathalie was up a second later, and they got back to switching between chasing and hiding. She finally managed to unhook both of her yo-yos and started hurling them at Felix as fast as she could. Felix dodged them with the best of his ability, all the while jumping around the room for cover. She finally got one yo-yo wrapped around his left arm right when he reached the desk. Felix grappled for the desk chair in a desperate attempt to avoid being dragged back, but being a rolling chair, it only rolled back with him. Nevertheless, that didn’t stop him from using it to his advantage. Felix used the friction from his shoes to slow himself down right in front of Nathalie and swung the chair around with his free hand, smacking her in the side with it. Nathalie held up her forearms to block the blow, but flew to the side anyway. She slid to a stop, unfortunately still on her feet, and before Felix could detach the yo-yo from his arm, Nathalie yanked him forward once again and kicked him in the stomach.

Felix skidded across the floor, rolling to a stop at the office doorway. He sucked in ragged breaths to compensate for the air that had just been sucked out of his lungs. That was.. a decent move.

“Payback, brat.” Nathalie huffed, staggering back to regain her breath as well.

Felix lifted his head up to snap back at her when something made the words die in his throat.

“..My lady?” 

Felix turned on his side to look through the office doorway, praying that he’d misheard something. 

There Chat Noir stood, his cat ears flat against his head as he warily glanced between Marinette and Father, who had paused their battle to look at him. When did he get downstairs? Was Marinette trying to explain the situation?

“A- Chat Noir!” He called out. “Get back!”

He wanted Marinette to have help, but Adrien didn’t have the emotional stability to get involved. Father already had Ladybug’s earrings. If he found out who Chat Noir was, it would be nearly impossible to keep him from getting the ring.

Chat Noir’s eyes snapped to Felix’s, growing wide with surprise and worry. “Felix?”

Father followed Chat Noir’s gaze and raised a brow. Felix grimaced as he watched the gears turn in his Father’s mind, watched them click into place as Father realized how the hero knew where they were or why he seemed so worried about Felix.

“So.” Father began, turning back to Chat Noir. Felix couldn’t tell if he was delighted or angry. Probably a morbid twist or both. “My own son has been fighting against me.”

Crap.

“What?” Marinette and Chat Noir said in unison, though Marinette’s surprise was more directed towards the implication of Chat Noir’s identity.

“No wonder Felix decided to betray me as Le Paon. He must have been worried for your sake. It had nothing to do with this girl!”

Chat Noir furrowed his eyebrows. So much emotion was swirling across his brother’s features- hurt, confusion, denial. Felix could barely stand it. 

“Wait..” He faltered, looking at Felix with a torn expression. “You’re Le Paon?”

“Don’t listen to him!” Felix begged, pushing himself to get up. He had to stop this. Adrien learning about Mother’s true condition was already a fragile subject in and of itself. Learning about Felix and Gabriel’s identities as the terrorists of Paris was bound to be too much. It would overwhelm anyone.

Before Felix could intervene, however, Father did the unthinkable. He detransformed. Right there. In front of everyone.

Felix couldn’t see his face, but Father’s tone was disturbingly pleased as he said, “Would I lie to you, Adrien?”

Chat Noir collapsed to the floor, staring up at their Father in horror. “No..”

“Adrien?” Marinette blanched. The surprise was a tad out of place considering the emotional turmoil that Adrien had to be going through, but Felix understood.

Unfortunately, so did Father. Saying Adrien’s name wasn’t merely for dramatic effect. He knew that Marinette and Adrien were friends in civilian form. That kind of reveal would knock her off her feet just long enough for him to detransform like he did.

Gabriel smiled at Chat Noir’s reaction, and Felix knew right then and there that he’d been played for a fool. This miraculous search was never about family. No father who truly cared for their family would smile at their child’s suffering.

Gabriel transformed again as Chat Noir was on his knees- on his knees! -and created an akuma. Felix jumped forward to stop it or get in the way, but Nathalie wrapped her yo-yo around his waist, planting him to the spot. Marinette was still too shocked to react quickly enough, so the akuma flitted forward, unbothered, and merged with Chat Noir’s bell.

“No!” Felix yelled. He jerked his body forward, pulling at the yo-yo string and pushing ahead with all of the strength he had. “Adrien, don’t do it! Resist him!”

His shouting finally snapped Marinette out of her trance, and she rushed to Chat’s side. 

“Chat, it’s okay!” She tried to console despite the panic leaking through her voice. “We can get through this! Just fight it!”

“Against my Father?” Chat Noir whimpered back.

“Chat Blanc.”

Felix and Marinette held their breath when the purple outline appeared on Chat Noir’s face. Marinette threw one of her fans at Gabriel, but he easily dodged it as it twirled around the room to come back to her.

“Your brother is trying to decieve you, and your partner has misled you. I am trying to revive Emily, but to do that, I need your miraculous to do that.”

Chat Noir squeezed his eyes shut and drew his knees close to his chest, trying to drown out the words. 

Marinette wrapped her arms around him. “Adrien, Minou, Kitty, please! Don’t listen to him! Come back to me.”

“Help me fight for you Mother, Adrien.” Gabriel persisted. “We can bring her back together. We can be a family again.”

“We can.. We can bring her back?”

Felix’s heart sank. “Adrien, no!”

“Don’t do it!” Marinette pleaded.

“All I need is your cooperation.” Gabriel promised.

A tear slipped down Chat Noir’s cheek, and his purple mask dropped long enough for him to look Marinette in the eyes. “I’m sorry.”

“No!”

“Adrien!”

Black and purple bubbles swallowed Chat Noir whole, and Marinette scrambled backwards. When the bubbles disappeared, Chat Noir was gone, and Chat Blanc was left sitting there. His suit was the same as Chat Noir’s, except it was stark white and his green eyes were replaced with a chilling, ice blue. 

Felix tensed as Adrien slowly stood up and lifted his hand towards Marinette.

“My lady..” He said, forming a ball of light at the end of his finger tips. Felix didn’t want to see what that did. “Please.. stand down and give me your miraculous. I have to save my mother.”

Marinette held up a hand as well, but it was in a calming gesture. “Adrien, I’m trying to save your mother! I have the power to heal her, but I need my miraculous back!”

Chat stalled, proving he had some of his sense left. “You can?”

Felix jerked forward again, but Nathalie kept him in the same place. “It’s true! Gabriel won’t give us Ladybug’s miraculous back because he wants to use the wish instead of letting Marinette heal her by herself!”

Gabriel glanced at Felix when he didn’t call him ‘Father’, but Felix kept his gaze on Adrien. If Gabriel thought that Felix would consider him anything close to family after this, he was more demented that Felix thought.

Chat turned his ball of light to Gabriel. “Is that true?”

“Of course not!” Gabriel spat. “They’re lying! They only want the earrings back to keep us from the wish!”

“No!” Felix protested. “The wish has a curse to it! If we use it to heal Mother, someone else will take her place and become comatose just like her! M- er -Ladybug can heal her without that consequence!”

“Everything they say is a lie!” Gabriel yelled. “They’re only trying to manipulate you!”

“Adrien, you know me!” Marinette tried again. “We’ve been partners for months, confided in each other, and risked our lives for each other. Please, I would never try to manipulate you, Minou.” 

Chat Blanc turned his ever-increasing ball of light from Felix, to Marinette, to Gabriel. His face grew more conflicted and grieved with each statement. They were all shouting at him and making it worse, but Felix couldn’t help pleading. He didn’t want Adrien to do something he would regret, and Marinette was so close to him..

Felix’s blood ran cold when Chat Blanc finally broke from the pressure.

“Stop it, stop it, STOP IT!” He screamed, jerking his hand downwards. In his loss of concentration, the ball of light shot from his fingertips, slamming right into the floor. It broke a hole straight to the basement within seconds, but the decay didn’t stop there. The rust spread to the rest of the main floor, covering every inch except the steps, the library, and the office that Felix was standing in. The ground crumbled beneath them, taking Gabriel, Marinette, and Adrien with it. 

“No!” Felix yelled, his heart stopping in his chest. His last fight with the slime monster flashed through his mind, when the debri and dust from the rooftop fell on top of him before everything went dark. How far was the main floor from the basement? Would Marinette survive the fall? Would anyone survive the fall? Would they live through the debri that came after?

Felix whirled around and swung his foot through the air, catching the yo-yo string and stomping it to the ground. Nathalie, shell-shocked from seeing Gabriel fall, fell forward again, and Felix took that lenience in grip to slip out of the yo-yo string and run for the opening. 

Dust was flying everywhere now. He could hardly take a breath without coughing, let alone see clearly enough to find survivors. That didn’t stop him from kneeling on the ground and shouting for Marinette, though. She had to be somewhere. She would call up to him, perfectly fine, and everything would be alright.

So why couldn’t he hear anything?

Felix’s throat tightened as he screamed. He screamed her name over and over again into the abyss and didn’t hear a darned thing. It was silent, save for the occasionally crumbling of the debri below, and he was terrified. Where was she- Where was she? No, no, no, no-

“MARINETTE!!”

Panicked and sick to his stomach with worry, Felix shot to his feet and turned to Nathalie, who had just started to recover from his sudden escape. She was the only one left that had a miraculous. The same miraculous that might be able to save Marinette and Adrien if Felix could get his hands on it in time. 

Nathalie barely caught a glimpse of his fist flying towards her face when he lunged at her.

~~~~~~

The room swayed in the darkness. Debri crumbled around her, yet it sounded distant, similar to an echo. Marinette drew in a breath, but immediately coughed it back out. The air was thick with dust, too thick. 

She opened her eyes, hoping to make out her surroundings amidst the tan clouds around her. A large stream of light poured down on her from the gaping hole in the floor above her. Unfortunately, it was too clouded for her to see anything past the hole.

A voice floated down from above, but it was too faint to make out. She laid there for a moment, waiting to hear it again. 

Nothing.

Marinette sat up despite her body’s aching protest and scanned the room again. A few chunks of debri were scattered around her, but she had thankfully been untouched, aside from hitting the ground, that is. She curled her fingers together, feeling the gaps and patterns of the metal walkway underneath her. Where was she? Had they fallen to a basement of some sort?

“Felix?” She called out, a mix of hopeful and concerned towards what she might hear in response. Did he get caught in the fall too? He didn’t have a miraculous to protect him like they did. What if he’d gotten seriously injured?

“Adrien!” She called next. It might not be the smartest idea, but akumatized or not, she wanted to make sure that her partner was alright. There was also the possibility that the fall broke his akumatized item.

Her calls were only met with silence. 

Beep! Beep!

Marinette looked down at her miraculous, barely catching sight of the last feather leaving the fan before she detransformed. 

Duusu fell into her lap, looking absolutely exhausted. “Sorry, Miss Marinette.. Keeping you safe from injury takes a lot of work.”

Marinette offered a smile and softly petted the top of the kwami’s head. “It’s alright, Duusu. You’ve done plenty.”

Cupping the kwami in her palms, Marinette pushed herself to her feet and looked around. The dust was finally starting clear a bit, just enough for her to make out the room she’d fallen into. A grated, metal pathway led from the piled debri behind her to a small, garden-looking area up ahead. A flickering light above revealed some sort of casing in the middle of the greenery, also untouched by the caved in floor.

Curious, Marinette wandered towards it. The sides of the case shone as bright gold under that flickering lights, and the glass on top gave a white glare, making it hard to see through at first. 

It’s strange, She thought, to put such a large and beautiful case in a basement where no one will see it.

Why go through the trouble of making it at all? Was it simply not finished? 

She cupped her free hand on the glass and peered inside. Whatever this held- if anything -had to be extremely important. The flickering light didn’t help her to identify anything. It only allowed her to gather bits and pieces at a time. Something white was inside.. An outfit? It looked like a manikin was wearing it. But then she noticed hair. Golden hair that looked exactly like Adrian’s. And the face..

Marinette almost dropped Duusu from shock. 

“Emilie!” She gasped, not wanting to believe what she was seeing. Had Mlle. Agreste been here this whole time? Who keeps someone locked up like this? 

“Well, Mlle. Dupain-Cheng.”

Marinette whipped around, pushing herself against the case from reflex. Gabriel stood in front of her, somehow still transformed, and he had a horribly malicious grin on his lips. 

The debri must have missed him too.

“Now you truly know all of my secrets.” He mused, gesturing to the glass coffin behind her. “But I see it has cost you.”

Marinette held Duusu closer to her chest. She scanned the room behind Gabriel, but didn’t see Chat Blanc anywhere. “Where’s Adrien?”

Gabriel raised an uncaring brow. “I’m sure he’ll find his way back to the fight soon enough.”

Marinette shot him a glare. “How can you say that? He’s your son! Don’t you care about his well being at all?”

What if he’s hurt? Or worse, dead! She doesn’t have her miraculous to bring him back this time!

Gabriel scoffed. “The sooner you stop resisting, the sooner he will be healed with the miraculous. It’s ludicrous to care about injuries when they are easily reversible.”

“He still goes through the pain!” She couldn’t help yelling. “What about that?”

“He’ll forget the pain.” Gabriel snapped back. “After all, it’s only temporary.” 

Marinette grit her teeth, but when she opened her mouth to reply-

“You would think that.” A voice took the words right from her mouth. 

She looked up just in time to see someone swing in from the main floor. Although she couldn’t make out the face, Marinette recognized the voice immediately.

“Felix!” She cried, relief filling her chest. He must have avoided the fall. And he had her miraculous!

“Marinette.” He replied almost instantly, pure relief leaking through his tone as well.

Gabriel scowled at the boy as he entered their vision. A black and red costume indeed covered his body, signifying the fact that he was the new wielder of the Ladybug miraculous. 

“Where’s Nathalie?” Gabriel barked.

Felix pulled one of the two yo-yos off of his waist- why didn’t she ever think of having two yo-yos? -and smirked. “Safe. And out of your reach.”

Marinette smiled at the mocking comment, but Gabriel was less than amused. He sprang forward with a growl, causing Felix to jump back so he could keep the distance between them. Marinette remembered having to fall back to use her weapons properly. She always hated leaving Chat at the front lines, but long distance was her best vantage point when it came to yo-yos.

Felix swung both yo-yos in two perfect circles at his side as he moved backwards. As soon as he got the chance to pause in his movements, he threw the first yo-yo forward and latched it onto Gabriel’s staff, easily wrapping around it in a tight hold. Gabriel smirked at the supposed attack and yanked back on the staff to draw Felix forward, but Felix, expecting the reaction, immediately let go of the first yo-yo and threw his other yo-yo forward, quickly wrapping it around Gabriel’s arms and rendering them useless. He then dug his feet into the ground and pulled as hard as he could. 

Gabriel yelped as he flew towards him, and with the new momentum, Felix literally swung Gabriel in a circle around the room. Marinette watched with wide eyes as the man crashed into a few debri piles. If she didn’t know any better, she might have thought that Felix had been using the Ladybug Miraculous all along. His movements were planned and meticulous. Even as he threw Gabriel back onto the metal walkway right in front of her, Marinette stood still, not feeling the need to flinch. It was glaringly obvious that Felix knew what he was doing.

“Give up.” Felix ordered, pulling the yo-yo string tighter around Gabriel as he stepped closer. “This battle is over.”

Gabriel, through coughs, looked up to sneer at Felix. Marinette thought he was going to go on a rant about disloyalty or vengeance, but, strangely, his head only cocked to the side slightly. 

“Yes, I believe it is.” He replied, his voice bone-chillingly gleeful.

Marinette’s gaze snapped upwards, just behind Felix where Gabriel was looking. A white figure had appeared in the dust and debri, standing with their arm raised directly at her and Felix.

Her eyes widened. 

“FELIX, LOOK-”

It was too late. The white blast of light hit the metal grate directly to their left, causing a destructive blast that pushed all three of them back. Gabriel took Felix’s imbalance as an opportunity to escape his bounds and scramble away from them. Marinette, however, groaned from the backlash of the blast and rubbed her head. Was there supposed to be a high-pitched ringing in her ears?

Through squinting eyes, she tried to search for a way out, all while fighting back a fresh headache. With Chat Blanc on his feet and fighting again and with Duusu still resting in her hand, Felix had no chance of winning this fight, especially now that Gabriel was free.

A hand gently grabbed her shoulder, and she looked up to see Felix next to her.

“Marinette.” He whispered, looking her over for injuries.

“Felix.” Marinette sighed in relief, putting her hand on his. He’s okay.

Felix glanced over at Chat Blanc, who was quickly approaching. “I need to get you out of here.”

Marinette’s grip on his hand tightened. “I’m not leaving you.”

“Yes!” Gabriel cheered before Felix could reply. 

Maniacal laughter erupted from the man as he spread his arms out wide. “Well done, Adrien! Now, help your Father bring our family together again and get their miraculous!”

Marinette pulled Felix closer, preparing for the worst. If she was to truly die during this battle, at least his face would be the last thing she sees.

Chat Blanc, who had walked fully into the light at this point, stopped a few feet from Gabriel. His eyes bore into the man, blank and soulless. 

Marinette’s hand dug into Felix’s, and they exchanged glances. Something wasn’t right. Before the fall, Adrien had been showing the most conflict and emotion she’d ever seen in her life, but now he looked.. He looked empty, hollow.. gone.

Slowly, Chat Blanc raised his hand again, this time aiming his blast right at Gabriel. “I have no father.”

A shiver ran down Marinette’s spine, and Felix sucked in a breath next to her. Whoever stood in front of them now, it wasn’t Adrien.

Gabriel staggered back a step, pure terror in his voice as he stuttered, “W-What?”

Chat Blanc stepped forward, the ball of light growing in his hand.

“Don’t worry.” He remarked, his tone completely devoid of emotion. “After all, ‘Pain is only temporary’.. Right?”

The ball of light shot from his fingertips, hitting Gabriel directly in the chest. Gabriel opened his mouth to scream, but the decay swallowed him whole before his voice could even reach the air. Marinette gasped, watching Gabriel’s ashes fall to the floor. Did that really just happen? 

Chat Blanc stared at the pile of dust, not an ounce of regret on his face. Marinette noticed that there wasn’t any satisfaction in his expression either. 

He looked up, locking eyes with her, and Marinette tensed. Felix leaned forward enough to put a protective arm in front of her. Chat Blanc, noticing the shift, glanced at Felix as well. Then he started to move towards them, his steps slow and dragged out. 

“Easy, there..” Felix muttered, bringing his yo-yo forward. 

Marinette held her breath. If he could kill Gabriel- gosh, he killed him! -then he could get rid of them just as easily.

Chat Blanc stopped in front of them, his eyes still focused on Marinette. She met his gaze, not daring to look away. 

If you’re anywhere in there, Adrien, please.. 

Suddenly, Chat Blanc dropped to his knees, rattling the metal walkway. Marinette flinched, but didn’t back away. In fact, she found herself reaching forward. He looked so broken, so lost..

“Please..” He croaked, a single tear streaming down his cheek. “Save me.”

Marinette’s heart shattered at the words, and she brushed his tear away. “Of course, kitty.”

She looked to Felix, who nodded and stood up. He quickly called his lucky charm, and on queue, Marinette broke the bell around Adrien’s neck. The akuma fluttered out, and Felix slung his yo-yo forward to capture it.

“Oh, wait one second.” Marinette spoke up, grabbing his arm before he could throw the miraculous cure.

Felix gave her a questioning look, and she gestured to the pile of ash behind her. 

“I have to get something.”

With a quickness, for Chat’s sake, Marinette hopped over to Gabriel’s- er -remains and knelt down next to them. She cringed as she reached forward, pushing through the uneasiness to move the ash around. It had to be there somewhere..

“Ah- hah!” She sat up, taking the butterfly miraculous with her. Master Fu had mentioned a while back that the miraculous were indestructible, and Marinette didn’t want Gabriel to keep his powers when he was resurrected. That would be like falling into a torturous loop of fighting, especially since Chat won’t remember anything when the cure is cast.

“Okay.” She said, jumping back over to Felix with the miraculous in hand. “Do it.”

Felix nodded and threw the lucky charm into the air. Marinette closed her eyes as the Ladybugs washed over her, allowing a small smile to spread across her lips. She’d always wondered what it would be like to be on the other side of this.

“Don’t worry.” She whispered to Chat Blanc, running her hands through his snow white hair during their last moments together. “I promise you’re gonna be okay.”

We all are.

Tag List:  @im-here-for-the-content @novicevoice @mewwitch@minightrose @starlit-winter @multishipper1needshalp@unabashedbookworm @unholykrow @trubel43@kaydenth3gayden @stardustrevoutionx @legendaryneckjudgestudent @aurordraws @crazylittlemunchkin @uwuteamleader @chocolatecustarddanish @iambi-thilla-meena @corabeth11 @asianfrustration13  @chrismarium @agumon1123 @luciferge @yue-caelum @persephonebutkore @constancetruggle @make-the-stars-stay @johnlockfeelz @imfreakingmagical @tinybrie @procrastinatingrightnow @bee-wrecker @dontcallmecedge @shadowhex99 @daminette-is-life @thethirdwheelfriend @myazael @sizzling-fairy-oil @sparkle9510 @chaosace​ @the-navistar-carol​ @sannsibarr​ @grumpy-vixen-kitten​ @hauntedfreakdeputyhero​ @utcaro​ @more-or-less-human-i-guess @mlbutatbspofsalt @dawn-the-rithmatist @artcart0n @mermaidreject @tori-mmm  @fifaanayd  @novicevoice  @dreamykitty25 @mischief-not-managed-posts @amayakans  @arsaem  @athena452 @pink-and-bunny @wannajointhecrabcult @theymakeupfairies

[chrwrites]

Drunk Talks (and Sober Confessions)

this one was written for the previous @lovebugs-and-snakecharmers Sprint Fic Challenge prompt: “I love you.” “Tell me that when you’re sober.”

It became longer than it was supposed to be so it’s not a sprint fic anymore, but I enjoyed writing this a lot even though it took me longer than expected :)

read on ao3

When Luka saw Marinette enter the living room of the Liberty that night, he choked on the drink he was having, and his best friend next to him had to clap on his back until he recovered, his face still red.

What a perfect beginning for the night, he thought.

It didn’t help that Ruby had mixed his drink a bit too strong for his liking and his throat was burning when he turned his gaze back to Marinette.

Why did he let his sister organize a Halloween party on the boat, anyway? He didn’t even like big parties, he could have just said no, but then Rose had pleaded him with her signature puppy eyes and there was no way he was saying no to that.

Not to mention that he really wanted to see Marinette. He had been busy between work and university and her last year of lycée had her stressing over the BAC ever since the beginning of the school year. They hadn’t been able to hang out properly in a while, and… he missed her. He had been looking forward to seeing her again, he just didn't expect her to look like... like this.

Now that she walked in the room, Luka felt breathless. It was like he was looking at someone else, even though he could still see all her sweetness under a costume he would have never imagined seeing on her.

Her blue eyes looked a shade darker under the purple eyeshadow that merged with black at the side of her eyelids, and her usually pink lips were tinted purple to match. Luka took another sip from his cup before bringing his attention to the rest of the look.

Marinette’s black hair was tied in a half bun, and the free strands fell on a black crop top that sported a purple skull in the middle. A checkered black and green skirt wrapped around her hips, ending a few inches above her knees, and her legs were covered by a thin layer of purple fabric. Where did she get those combat boots?

Okay, breathe Luka. It’s not like your crush has dressed up as your first fictional crush. It’s fine, it’s fine. You can go to her, tell her how much you like her costume and how much you wish to-

“You’re drooling”, Ruby’s amused voice called him back to reality, and he almost snapped his neck as he turned to look at her, hoping that the heat he felt on his cheeks wasn’t visible, but the knowing glint in her eyes told him the exact opposite.

Didn’t they watch Danny Phantom every time they had sleepovers when they were younger? And as Ruby said how cool Sam Manson was and how she wanted to be like her, he ended up telling himself that he was going to marry someone like her, and she’d scold him because “We’re besties and I’m not marrying you, that’s gross”. Luka grew out of his punk-girls-can-step-on-me phase – or at least he thought he did until now – after his first break up, and then he met Marinette and decided that pink was his favourite colour because it was cute and soft and Marinette.

Despite knowing that she could pull off anything, Luka didn’t expect her to look so good in darker colours.

Okay, let’s face it, he just wasn’t ready to see her like this.

“Who would’ve guessed that the cute baker’s daughter would have gotten you all worked up within five minutes in being in the same room as you. That’s a record, Lu”, Ruby snickered and grabbed a bottle from the table beside them, filling his cup again, “You need another drink”.

Luka didn’t protest and brought the cup to is lips as he looked back at Marinette, taking another good chunk of his drink and not caring for the burn he felt in his throat this time.

She was talking to Adrien and complimenting him for his Ladybug inspired costume, and if she blushed it was only because she felt flattered and not because of that huge crush she used to have on him.

If this had happened a year ago, she would have been gushing about the fact that her crush was dressed up as her superhero alterego and would have been freaking out, but now she just laughed. She didn’t even stammer around him anymore, and she was glad that she could finally cherish their friendship now.

There was someone else in her heart, someone with a bright smile and the sweetest voice and the deepest blue eyes she’d ever seen, and she had finally gathered the courage to tell him how she felt. That was the perfect night, she had dressed up for him, her parents were away for the weekend so she had no curfew to think about, and that meant that she could enjoy Luka’s company for as long as she wanted. And she had been preparing for this moment for a while, too. From the dress to the words she would have said to him, and she had to do now was hoping not to be rejected.

Luka had always been there for her, and now that she was finally ready to face her feelings for him, she hoped he’d still be there, in a different but better way.

Marinette’s eyes wandered around the room looking for him, and among some unfamiliar faces – that she supposed were his friends – she found him, standing in a corner of the room and smiling to a girl that was sticking out her tongue at him. Wait, was he blushing?

Of course he was, she was gorgeous.

Crimson hair, green eyes framed by a thin line of eyeliner, and the red on her lips didn’t look obnoxious. A plain black choker decorated her neck, and the long-sleeved crop top she was wearing left her stomach exposed, the ripped skinny jeans only helped accentuating the curves of her body.

She was the perfect mix between punk and stylish. And she was tall, not as much as him, but enough that she didn’t have to pull herself on her tiptoes to kiss him. It’s not like Marinette had thought about it, anyway.

Now that she looked at him having fun with someone that was just like him, she felt pathetic.  Marinette was ready to tell him how she was in love with him, and all her hopes were shattered. Gone. She had missed her chance.

Whoever she was, she was a much better fit for him, anyway, beautiful and cool and just perfect. And Marinette was just… Marinette, trying to fit in clothes that weren’t meant for her just to impress him. She was young and stupid, and she had dressed up while both Luka and the other girl were in low effort costumes. Luka was wearing his everyday clothes but wore the black eyeliner he usually put on when he performed and brought out his eyes, and the red-haired girl managed to pull off cat ears without looking awkward or dumb.

Marinette felt stupid for hoping that Luka would have answered her feelings and cursed herself for not being able to speak up sooner. She sighed, deciding to deal with how much of an idiot she was the only way a mature and responsible person of age could deal with their problems, “Shots, anyone?”.

Alya gave her a cup to drink from, and Luka found himself staring at Marinette’s painted black nails from where he was when Ruby called his attention, passing him another full cup of liquor mixed with juice.

“Are you going to talk to her?”, she asked.

“I’m not sure I can talk to her while trying to control the impulse to jump her”, Luka sighed, fiddling with the cup in his hand. He felt breathless just by looking at her, how could he expect to talk to her? He hadn’t gathered enough liquid courage to walk to her just yet.

Besides, Marinette was with her friends, and he couldn’t just walk to her and tell her how he thought that she looked great and he couldn’t take his eyes off her, just the way she smiled and her lashes fluttered under the lights they had set was making him weak, and how that look fit her was just… incredible. But he also thought that her clothes would look better on his–

“Woah, when did it go from “She’s the music in my heart” to this?”, Ruby snickered, raising one eyebrow at him.

“Oh, shut up”, Luka groaned, downing part of his drink to drown his thoughts.

He shouldn’t have been thinking about her sister’s friend in that way in the first place, but he couldn’t really help himself when she was the most gorgeous girl he had ever seen.

“Really, though, I don’t think staring at her like a creep is the way to go”, Ruby said.

Luka sighed, focusing his attention on the drink he was holding, and reprimanding himself for thinking about her in that way.

Maybe avoiding her was the best idea, but just as the thought of moving to a less crowded room to not see her crossed his mind, Marinette’s happy voice called his name, “Luka!”.

He looked up, and all he saw was the bright smile Marinette was giving him.

He felt his heart miss a beat when he noticed that the pick he had given her the first time they met was dangling from the choker she was wearing. Luka brought his cup to his mouth again, chugging some of his drink, hoping that some more alcohol would have helped him to at least spit out some words and kill the wild thoughts forming in his mind. But all Luka could focus on was the way the purple and white piece of plastic fit perfectly in the middle of her pale neck and the curve of Marinette’s exposed shoulders and how he wanted to–

“You’re wearing an amazing costume! Don’t you think so, Lu?”

Luka straightened up as soon as he felt something hit his foot, and Ruby was giving him a tight smile and nudging her head at Marinette begging him with her eyes to speak for goodness' sake. Luka winced, but was grateful that she had opted for canvas shoes instead of combat boots that night.

He looked at Marinette again and it didn’t take long for him to get the same awestruck expression he had been sporting since she walked into the room. He was too distracted from the vision that she was in that moment that all his stupid mouth had managed to choke out was a “It’s... very good”, that earned him a disappointed pout from Marinette, and a very exasperated sigh from his best friend.

“Just good?”, Marinette giggled, and tried to twirl around but ended up tripping on her feet. Luka promptly leaned forward to catch her and Marinette let out a happy intoxicated laugh, clasping her hands on his shoulders, “I’m mad at you now”, she said, faintly trying to put some distance between them. Luka waited until she straightened up before letting his hands leave her waist, and he couldn’t control the small chuckle that left his lips.

Marinette grinned and took one step closer to him, raising one finger to his face, “I can’t really be mad at you now, can I? You have the prettiest smile”.

Luka gulped, feeling his cheeks heat up at the compliment, “You’re drunk, Mari”, he stated, more to himself than to her.

“I don’t know, maybe? I feel so good, Luka! And I need to talk to you”, she said, the alcohol in her body giving her the confidence she didn’t have sober.

Luka shook his head as he fought the fond expression forming on his face, “Let’s go grab some water first”.

“But I want to talk now!”, the girl in front of him whined, and closed the distance between them placing her head on his shoulder. Luka’s breath hitched and he had to force himself to focus on something different than the very drunk Marinette that was clumsily wrapping her arms around him.

Luka sighed, looking down at her as she nuzzled her face on his neck, “You smell so nice!”.

“Marinette”, he called, trying to gently pull her away from him enough to fill a cup with water and give it to her.

“Yes, that’s my name!”, she chirped, taking the cup he offered and chugging it down. A drop of water fell from the corner of her lips, and she wiped it away with the back of her hand. Luka had to look away from her, trying to hold back the thoughts forming in his mind.

“Water is so good!”, she laughed, tumbling towards him again, this time Luka placed his hands on her bare arms to steady her.

“Ah, Luka! Have I ever told you how great I think you are? You never fail to catch me”.

The surprised look on Luka’s face turned into a soft expression rather than a concerned one, but he still couldn’t manage to say something to her, or at least thank her for the compliment. And as he stood silent, Marinette suddenly grabbed his hand, pulling him with her and walking away with him. Where did she find that strength?

He tried to pull away from her and looked back at his friend for help, who grinned and raised her cup to him, winking. She winked. Marinette was going to kill him and Ruby didn’t even raise one finger to help him.

Traitor.

If he got through that night without doing something he could regret in the morning he was going to reconsider all of his friendships. A friend doesn’t let you leave with your crush hand in h– okay, maybe he was overreacting, but having Marinette’s hand intertwined with his didn’t really help with thinking straight, especially when he had knocked down a few drinks, too.

“Marinette what–”, he called, trying to remain as calm as possible as she dragged him through the corridor that led to the bedroom he shared with Juleka. She tripped on her feet more than once, and Luka decided it was safer for her to be carried than to walk, “Oh Luka you’re soooo strong”, Marinette laughed, wrapping her arms around his neck. He could feel her warm breath on his skin along with the cloying smell of peach vodka, and he forced himself not to focus on that and instead worked on opening the door to his room without making Marinette fall.

When he managed to get inside and shuffle to his bed, Marinette didn’t seem to want to let go of him and she pulled him down with her when he tried to lay her down.

He ended up laying on top of her for a split second before he quickly moved to sit up on his bed. Marinette's giggles died down and she was looking at him, eyes glassy and cheeks a deep shade of pink.

Luka looked away from her and inhaled a deep breath before suddenly feeling her shift and wrap her arms around him. Her laughter was way too cheerful and he forced himself not to think about the way her hands touched his skin or how her hair tickled his neck or how she was sitting on his lap. Shit.

“Luka, you’re really amazing”, she raised her head to look at him, getting way too close than necessary, and he had to put his hands on her shoulders to put some distance between them.

“Marinette, please, don’t make it harder than it already is”, he said, trying to catch his breath.

“Why, is it hard?”, she asked innocently, and tilted her head, “I’m just saying the truth”.  

Oh God, now he really needed another drink as strong as those Ruby made.

Marinette blinked slowly, and brought one hand to his cheek, slowly tracing his features with her fingers, “You’re so gorgeous... And talented... And kind... And caring... And I love the sound of your voice... And when you play for me...”, her voice was low as the words tumbled out slowly from her mouth.

She looked sincere, almost like she knew what she wanted to say and it wasn’t the alcohol talking for her. The giddy smile wasn’t leaving her face as she traced his lips, and Luka felt his skin burn where it had been graced by her touch.

He knew that it was wrong. He knew it. And he knew that he had to stop her. So why was his body completely frozen? Why didn’t his mouth dare to open?

“And I really, really love you Luka”, Marinette closed her eyes and leaned in, pressing her forehead into his. Luka could feel the beat of his heart getting quicker, and he shivered as soon as the words left her mouth, his stomach twisting unpleasantly. That was too much.

He gulped, his trembling hands gently pulling her away and his body shifting further from her as much as the length of his bed allowed.

“T-tell me that when you’re sober”, he choked on his words, and he took a deep breath to gather himself.

Marinette didn’t seem to notice his change in behaviour and laughed, “But I love you now, too! And tomorrow I will be sober, but I will still love you! And I’ll tell you again. I promise!”, she blabbered, the glint in her eyes was killing him as she adjusted herself on his lap again.

“Marinette, please.”, Luka pleaded, trying to get her off him.

God, had they been in a different situation he wouldn’t have complained at all. If she had been clinging onto him sober, he would have happily carried her around, and he’d love it. And maybe he’d spend the rest of the night telling her how beautiful she was, how much he adored her costume and how dark colours suited her. Had they been in a different situation, he would’ve–

No, he wasn’t supposed to think about this now.

Luka sighed and made her settle down on his bed, taking off her shoes, “Why don’t you sleep it off? We can talk about it tomorrow”. If you still remember this.

Marinette looked at him, blinking through her long lashes, “Will you sleep with me?”.

Luka’s mouth went dry. He looked at her, her hair going in different directions on his pillow and his hand was reaching for her cheek before he realized what it was doing and pulled it away.

He looked away, trying to find something that he could do for her that didn’t involve her looking at him.

“How about I get you something more comfortable to wear?”, he asked, clearing his throat and walking to his closet.

“No, I like what I’m wearing! But if you don’t, I can take it off, you didn’t seem to like it anyway”, she said, sitting on his bed and reaching for the hem of her top.

“No no no”, Luka said quickly as he ran to her and put his hands on hers to stop her, his eyes wide.

Marinette raised her head, looking at him adoringly.

“Have your eyes always been this blue? They’re beautiful”.

Luka gulped as he felt heat rising to his cheeks, and turned his gaze away from her.

She’s drunk, there’s no way she means what she's saying. She’ll forget about it tomorrow and I can deal with this, I’m not leaving her alone.

“Wanna know something fun?”, Marinette sat back up and crossed her legs, “I really, really want to kiss you now”, her words were tangling on her tongue, but he wished he didn’t hear them since his chest started to ache.

No, he couldn’t handle this.

She was grinning at him widely, looking like she knew what she was doing, and leaned her chin on her hand, staring directly into his eyes, “Do you want to kiss me?”.

Okay, this was a bad dream, all Luka had to do was take a deep breath and ignore the beautiful girl sitting in his bed looking way too tempting for him. Then he’d wake up and everything would be fine and Marinette would still be the girl he was in love with, but she hadn’t told him that she wanted to kiss him like she really meant it.

Too bad it felt too real and he had to fight the need to kiss that stupid beautiful grin off her face for so many different reasons.

She is drunk and I would never take advantage of her.

She doesn’t really love me.

This is wrong.

Luka bit his lip until it hurt before speaking again, “You know what? I’ll do it if you tell me all this again when you’re sober”.

His eyes widened as his brain registered the words that slipped from his mouth and brought one hand to his face. That was probably the alcohol doing the talking for him as well.

The whine Marinette let out was adorable, and Luka tried to keep a straight face as she put her lips into a pout, “But I wanna kiss you now!”, she crossed her arms.

Luka shook his head, and that was enough for her to sigh and fall back on his bed, stretching out her legs on his lap after he felt safe enough to sit at the bottom of the bed.

“Fine, tomorrow I will tell you all of this, and I will tell you more! Like how I draw your face when I feel uninspired, and how I listen to you singing when I can’t sleep, and about the jacket I’m–”, Marinette stopped her rambling and brought one hand to her mouth before bursting into loud giggles, “Shhh… That’s supposed to be a secret!”.

When her laughter died down, she pressed her index to her mouth and looked at him through half-lidded eyes, “Aw, Luka, am I making you blush now?”, she whispered.

Luka let out a shaky breath and slid away from her legs, getting up.

Being alone in the same room with her had never been this hard, he pinched his nose with his fingers, begging himself to stay calm, and walked back to her. She was looking at him with tired eyes, seemingly out of energy.

“Sleep now”, he said patiently, his voice sweeter than he expected it to be as he tugged her under the covers.

Marinette let out a tired sigh as she closed her eyes, “Wait… I need to take off… Make-up”, she mumbled, and lazily waved one hand to her face.

Luka couldn’t help but chuckle at her, “Hold on, I’ll do it”, he reassured and walked to Juleka’s vanity to get the cleansing wipes for her.

He sat on the floor in front of Marinette before taking one of the wet wipes from the package and starting to remove the make up on her face with gentle strokes. She shrieked and suddenly turned her head on the other side, giggling, “It tickles!”.

Luka let out a laugh of his own as he moved the wipe to carefully clean her eyes. Marinette seemed not to be bothered by his movements and let out a content sigh, leaning towards his delicate touch and blabbering comments on how he was so nice and good and everything.

“I’m all ugly now”, Marinette whined as she watched Luka take another wipe from the package.

“You know that’s not true, Mari”, Luka said softly.

“Sei così dolce, Luka!”, she sighed happily, “Do you think I’m pretty?”

“I think you’re beautiful”, Luka couldn’t help but whisper, and if his hand lingered a little longer on her cheek, Marinette didn’t seem to complain.

“I think you’re beautiful, too!”, she chirped, but then her brows furrowed in confusion, “Wait, no… you don’t use that for men, you’re… what’s the word? Whatever, you’re very good-looking”, she laughed, “Very much good-looking”.

Luka had lost count of the times Marinette left him breathless that night, “Stay still now”, he breathed out before gently moving her face so he could take the make-up off the other part of her face. She nodded, and closed her eyes again, relaxing under his touch.

He had to use three wipes to take all the make-up off, and he had yet to remove the purple on her lips. He had avoided them carefully, knowing that if he touched them, he would have probably combusted on the spot.

Luka took a deep steadying breath before he started to wipe away the purple from her lips with a shaky hand, revealing the soft peachy colour he loved so much.

The hint of an intoxicated smile was still on her lips as he gingerly removed the last hint of purple, admiring how soft and beautiful she looked without any make-up, her bangs falling messily on her forehead only accentuated her beauty.

He switched off the light to the room with his free hand and kept his gaze on her. She hadn’t made any sound since he started taking off the make up from her lips, probably asleep by now, and Luka indulged himself in keeping the hand that was still on her lips there.

The city lights coming through the porthole made her seem ethereal, hell, she was ethereal. Luka felt at peace just by looking at her. He took a moment to memorize her features before he gathered himself and slowly pulled away his hand, but just as he did it, Marinette stuck out her tongue and licked the back of his hand.

“Marinette!”, Luka shrieked, rubbing his hand on his jeans as the girl in front of him giggled again, “Ha! I got you!”, she garbled.

Luka didn’t bother to fight the soft expression forming on his face this time, he got up and pulled the now dishevelled covers on her as her giggles died down.

“Sleep, Mari”, he whispered softly, and Marinette brought the covers close to her face, letting out a happy sigh, “’Night Lu, thank you for being soooo lovely. You’re the best”.

Luka stood silent for a moment as Marinette closed her eyes, finally drifting to sleep.

He got lost in studying her features again, and this time he wasn’t able to resist the temptation to brush her cheek with his fingers. Her skin was soft and warm and her lips were slightly parted. There was a part of him that wanted to stay with her all night, hold her and make sure that she was okay and had everything she needed. But he couldn’t, and he felt like he had taken too much from her already.

He shook himself from his thoughts and got up, heading back to the living room.

It was after he left his room that he noticed that the music wasn’t playing anymore, and the only people he found in the room were Rose and Juleka. How long did he stay in his room with Marinette?

Luka took a bag and started throwing empty bottles and cups in it, intentionally avoiding his sister’s inquisitive gaze. He stood silent as he helped the two girls tidying up, trying to force himself not to think about what happened earlier.

He was doing fine until Juleka and Rose decided they were done with the cleaning and he had to tell them that Marinette was sleeping in his bed and not wake her up. Both Luka and Juleka had to hush Rose’s excited squeals, and he had to repeat that it wasn’t how it looked like for countless times before she calmed down and stopped saying how “Alya was right!”.

Did Luka want to know what she meant with that? Not really, so he just invited his sister and her girlfriend to go to sleep. Juleka didn’t make any comment, instead took Rose's hand and pulled her away with her.

Luka kept cleaning up with the sole purpose to distract himself from the fact that the girl of his dreams was sleeping in his bed looking like a goddess and drunkenly told him that she loved him. If only that was true. He should have been feeling tired, but all he could feel was the giddiness Marinette’s words gave him.

I will still love you tomorrow

I listen to you singing when I can’t sleep

I draw you

I really want to kiss you

I love you

The sun was rising when he finally let himself collapse on the couch, not bothering to cover himself with a blanket or even check his phone for unread messages.

Marinette’s voice was still ringing in his head. There was a small part of him that hoped for her words to be true, but he knew from experience that a drunk mind didn’t always speak a sober heart. And with that in mind, he let himself fall asleep.

It took Marinette a while to understand where she was when she woke up that morning, and the comforting scent of ocean salt and musk hit her before the nausea and the headache did. And if that wasn’t enough, as soon as she realized that she was in Luka’s room, the memories of the previous night came to her mind and... Shit.

She got up from the bed and groaned when she felt her head spin so hard that she had to sit back. The tights were making her skin itchy and the skirt she was wearing had raised, leaving her legs exposed. She closed her eyes, trying to find enough strength to get up and leave. Maybe she could transform and get home, didn’t Tikki say that her powers could cure weakened bodies? That was perfect! She’d transform and she’d already feel better, then she could get home and forget about everything she did the night before and no one would ask questions.

She wouldn’t even have to confront Luka about what she said to him and he’d forget about her being stupid. She just needed to find the strength to get up and leave and– but that wouldn’t have been fair to Luka, and the least she could do was tell him that she was sorry for having been... the way that she was the night before. She took him away from someone else and he had the patience to stay with her even when she shamelessly tried to hit on him. He had been so respectful to her, he deserved at least to know that she was grateful for him taking care of her. She just needed to not look at him in the eyes and let her embarrassment sink in her stomach, she’d have the whole afternoon to loathe about it anyway. Did she really tell him that she loved him?

Oh, this was not how she planned to tell him how she felt about him! And there was someone else in his heart now!

Marinette cringed at the thought and squeezed her eyes, massaging her temples.

When she opened her eyes again, she found some folded clothes and a toothbrush on the nightstand. Did Luka leave them there after she fell asleep? She felt her cheeks heat just thinking about the way he took care of her the night before, how she leaned on his gentle touch, how he had been delicate and sweet... and how she, on the other hand, had been a complete mess.

God, she had been so stupid.

She took a deep breath before finally getting up, grabbing the clothes and going to the bathroom to change, wash her face and brush her teeth. She put on the pair of black leggings that were probably Juleka’s and the forest green sweatshirt. The sleeves covered her hands, so she had to roll them up while she tried not to focus on the fact that the sweatshirt smelled just like the bed she woke up in.

She tied her hair in a messy bun, but avoided looking in the mirror, too ashamed of the judgemental look her reflection would have given her.

There was already Tikki to do that, anyway, and just as Marinette thought about her Kwami, she appeared by her side, the glint in her eyes matching more the god of Destruction than her, “I’m glad you allowed yourself to loosen up a little”, she chimed, and Marinette groaned.

“Why didn’t you stop me? Luka probably hates me now!”, Marinette whined and sat on the edge of the bathtub, putting her head in her hands.

This was awful, and confronting Luka was going to be a complete disaster.

Tikki shook her head and floated next to Marinette’s ear, “Believe me, Marinette, he could never hate you”.

Her words didn’t seem to reassure her, and Marinette looked down, letting her hands fall on her lap. What could she say to him now?

Hey I’m sorry I love you and I had to tell you that while drunk because I can’t even look at you in the eyes for too long when I’m sober?

I’m sorry I’m stupid and you had to deal with me all night?

It wasn’t until Tikki leaned her paw on her cheek that Marinette raised her head and got up, hoping that whatever damage she had done could be fixed, or that Luka was understanding enough to give her another chance. She faced her reflection on the mirror, fixing the mess that her hair had become and taking deep breaths, mentally preparing herself for the worse. When she finally opened the door and walked to the living room, she heard music coming from the galley.

Like handprints in wet cement, she touched me it’s permanent.

Luka was standing with his back turned to her, his head was bobbing to the rhythm as he stirred something on a bowl, “I cannot hide these feelings, I'd give up everything for you”, he hummed, his voice soft and low. Marinette gulped as she looked at him moving swiftly around the galley, putting the flour away in the cupboard and cleaning the counter. His hair was mussed and the way his t-shirt stretched on his body made her blush for the thoughts running through her mind, as if the headache wasn't enough. He was still singing when he turned on the stove and the sweet smell of pancakes filled the room, and Marinette didn’t dare to make her presence known, he was too lost in the music and she was enjoying watching him more than she’d admit.

She kept admiring him as he sang along to another song and turned to put a plate full of pancakes on the table, “I swear to God, I never fall in love, then you showed up and I– Oh”, his eyes widened, and he scrambled to get the phone from his pocket to stop the music.

“You’re awake”, he stated as the room went quiet, and Marinette felt her cheeks burn. She nodded slowly and looked at her feet, biting her lip hesitantly, she couldn’t look at him in the eyes, afraid of what she could see.

“How are you feeling?”, Luka asked, there was care in his voice and Marinette wished she could disappear right in that moment.

“I’m fine”, she said, fiddling with the hem of his sweatshirt. Luka looked away from her, focusing his attention on his surroundings as he tried not to think how pretty she looked while wearing his clothes and being just herself.

“Do you feel like eating something?”, Luka broke his silence, and Marinette took a deep breath before turning her gaze on him. There was smudged make up under his eyes, and she felt her cheeks heat up again at the way he looked at her, “You’ve already done so much for me Luka, I don’t want to bother–”.

“You’re not bothering me”, Luka interrupted, and Marinette gulped as he pointed at the chair beside him and smiled at her reassuringly. She sat down and he moved the plate of pancakes to her before turning his attention to the stove, turning it back on and preparing his breakfast again. Marinette took one banana from the fruit bowl in front of her and started cutting it in slices, letting them fall on the food he’d prepared, “Eat it while it’s warm”, Luka said, putting a jar of honey and a bowl full of berries on the table.

Marinette nibbled the pancake slowly, giving Luka a grateful smile when he settled in front of her with his plate and a bottle of painkillers for her.

They ate in silence at first, and it was only when Marinette’s plate was half empty that she found the energy to speak, “Listen… Uh… About last night…”, she started, and Luka raised his head from his plate to look at her, “It’s okay, Marinette. You don’t have to say anything if you don’t want to”, he said, his voice as calm as ever.

Marinette swallowed and focused back on her plate, the silence that fell between them was uneasy and unnatural from what she was used to. It wasn’t right.

She emptied her plate in silence and took the medicine, downing it with some water before daring to glance at like again. When Luka finished his breakfast, he got up to take her plate.

“No, I’ll do it”, Marinette said, taking the plate before he did and getting up just as her head started spinning again. She stumbled in front of him, and Luka promptly caught her, putting his hands on her shoulders to steady her just as he did the previous night. Marinette felt her throat go dry as she looked up at him, she could feel his breath on her skin and it took more effort than she imagined to move to the side to put their plates in the sink.

Luka stood where she’d left him, keeping his warm gaze on her.

She couldn’t bear the awkwardness that came with staying with him, that wasn’t them. Being with him was so natural, it shouldn’t have been difficult now. She could tell him how she felt and then he’d talk and he’d be gentle even if he had to break her heart and Marinette would be okay eventually, right? Even if he wanted nothing to do with her later.

She felt her heart sink just at the thought, but it didn’t stop her from placing her hands on the counter, and taking a deep breath to gather herself. Then she finally turned to him, managing to look straight into his eyes, “I need to talk to you about last night”, she said slowly.

Luka nodded and walked to her, leaning his back against the counter and looking at her in the eyes, preparing himself for what he wasn’t ready to hear.

I’m sorry, I didn’t mean what I said last night.

He gulped, trying to focus only on her instead of what was going on inside his head.

“I–“, Marinette sighed, taking another deep breath before continuing, “This is not how I expected this to go. I mean, I never had the courage to talk to you about this until yesterday, and I thought I was finally ready to tell you everything, and I dressed up hoping to catch your attention because I wanted to feel… confident. I always feel confident around you, I just– I don’t know, this sounds stupid now. But I dressed up for you, and I hoped that you would notice me…”, she looked down.

“Marinette, I–”

“Let me finish first”, Marinette requested, “You didn’t even look at me, and I saw you with someone else and you kept avoiding me, so I thought that I missed my chance. And that if she makes you happy I don’t have any right to claim you. I just– I’m sorry for how I acted, and for being so stupid and for getting in the way. But… I need you to know that I meant what I said last night, it wasn’t the alcohol doing the talking. I love you, Luka”.

Luka’s eyes widened, and his mouth dropped open. That was too much information to register at once, and he had to take a moment to just look at her and ask himself if he was dreaming again. There she was, Marinette leaving him speechless again.

“Listen, if you don’t want to talk to me anymore, I understand. I just had to tell you this once…”

“Marinette, I would never not want to talk to you”, Luka said promptly, and her mouth twisted when he looked at her. There was confusion in his eyes, and his expression seemed thoughtful.

God, he had so many things to say to her. Like how he couldn’t believe that she meant what she said, how she didn’t have to change to impress him because she was gorgeous and he could never take his eyes off her. (Yes, yesterday she blew up his mind, but that was another story and it didn’t help that someone who knew his weak spots had been hitting them all night before Marinette came to him.)

He wanted to tell her that he was sorry for avoiding her but he couldn’t bare stay in the same room as her without staring at her and how much he loved her and why would she think that he had a girlfriend in the first place?

“Do you think that if I were seeing someone, which to be clear, I’m not, I wouldn’t tell you?”, he asked.

Marinette lowered her head, “N-no… but you’ve stayed all night with that girl and you were all flustered and she’s hot and she’s just like you and I just– I assumed that you were a thing?”, she didn’t dare to say the word “girlfriend” because just the thought of it made her heart ache.

Luka couldn’t control the laugh that escaped from his lips, and Marinette raised her head to glare at him, “I’m serious Luka!”, she said, pushing him away.

That was enough for him to calm down, and his hands reached for her face, he looked at her in the eyes, amusement still clear in his voice, “You’re talking about the girl with red hair right? That’s my best friend”.

Marinette’s mouth dropped open, and her eyes widened as her mind processed the information, “Oh.”

Luka chuckled, and Marinette felt her cheeks burn so hard she had to cover her face with her hands, “I’m so sorry”, she said.

Luka was still smiling when he let his hands reach for hers and he gently pulled them away from her face, “Let me look at you, please”, he whispered, making Marinette shiver. She gulped when she faced him, the soft look in his eyes making her blush again.

His thumbs brushed the back of her hands as he looked for the words to say and comforted her at the same time.

“She was teasing me because of you”, he said eventually, “I got all stupid because I saw you and you looked so different I couldn’t stop staring at you or thinking how good you looked that I thought avoiding you was the best idea. You were mesmerizing, you always are. And you don’t have to change for me to like you because I like you the way you are. I just never expected you to wear anything close to that style so I was struck, and I started acting dumb.”, he concluded, letting out a deep breath.

Marinette’s mouth formed a small ‘o’. God, now she really felt stupid. If he wasn’t holding her hands, she would have slapped herself.

The way Luka was looking at her was making her heart pound loudly in her chest as she registered his words. He likes me. Luka likes me. Oh my God, he LIKES me.

“So… you like like me?”, she asked, hesitantly.

“I thought it was pretty clear by now”, Luka stated, taking one step towards her.

A wide grin spread on Marinette's face, and she tried to bit it down unsuccesfully. Luka didn’t turn his gaze away from her this time. Instead, he raised his hand to cup her cheek, enjoying the warmth she emanated.

“Just to make sure... You’re not mad at me for trying to hit on you while I was drunk, right?”

Luka gave her a fond smile and thumbed her cheek, “I couldn’t be even if I wanted to. Besides, you meant everything you said, right?”

Marinette blushed as she remembered all the words she said to him, but nodded, “Y-Yes...”, she breathed out, and when she looked into his eyes and saw that all of her feelings were reciprocated, she didn’t hesitate to let the words fall from her mouth again, “I love you, Luka”, and Luka answered pressing his forehead on hers, “I love you too”.

They stood in silence, enjoying each other’s presence quietly until Marinette placed her hands on his shoulders and leaned closer, “Can I kiss you now?”, she whispered, her gaze dropping to his red lips.

A wicked grin appeared on Luka’s face as he closed the distance between them, “Are you sure you’re not still drunk?”, he teased.

Marinette gasped and tried to shove him away unsuccessfully since he promptly grabbed her waist and pulled her closer, "I'm just kidding", he said, the happy smile not leaving his face.

She shook her head, but her breath caught in her throat as their eyes met again, and when he leaned in to finally kiss her, all Marinette could think about was how good his lips felt on hers.

[thebookwormfairy]

Daminette/Maribat Fairy Tail Au Part 2

Part 1

As the months turned into years Marinette's bond grew stronger with her spirits and her guild mates

Durning this time she gained 2 more golden gate keys, Pollen spirit of subjection, and Kaalki spirit of teleportation

Kaalki was one of Damian's favorite spirit because most of the time she eliminated the need for long travel on vehicles that make him sick

Marinette was able to use star dress with Tixx and Pollen now, but Kaalki refused to do it so far, which Marinette respected

Damian, Marinette, and Jon's team became one of the top teams in the guild

Though they didn't have an official name a lot of the other guild members called them team Hatchling much to their chagrin

Marinette also noticed that Damian was very protective of her

He still let her fight and go on missions with other people, but he was also quick to shield her or step in front of her when facing off against dark wizards

Marinette acted like she was annoyed with it sometimes, but really she was flattered and couldn't help but feel a little flustere at his actions

Jon sometimes joked that he felt like a third wheel, but never made him feel left out or unwanted

They were a tight knit team so much so that when Marinette, the youngest of the group, turned 18 they decided to pool their money and buy a house together

They ended up buying a nice 2 story house close to the guild

It had 3 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms

It was decided early on after Damian almost burned down the kitchen that cooking would be left to Marinette and Jon and Damian would do any repair work that was needed around the house

About a month after moving in together Marinette started to wake up with Damian in her bed

Not like that you weirdos

Marinette would go to sleep alone in her bed and wake up snuggling with Damian

Not that she minded, but she did wish that he would at least ask before he snuck in

Damian claimed no knowledge in how he got in her bed

He says that he would fall asleep in his own bed and wake up in hers

When he told his brothers they all got the same smug look

Dick: oh you're growing up so fast hatchling

Jason: I guess we should be expecting wedding bells in the future now, huh?

Tim: Should have known, you wouldn't bring just anybody back to the guild with you

Damian: What are you morons babbling about? And I brought Marinette back because she's a powerful wizard

Dick: We're talking about how you are showing all the signs of a dragon slayer whi has found his mate

Damian: WHAT?!?!

Jason: That's right Demon Spawn, it looks like you found your mate

Tim: Dick acted the exact same way when he first met Kori

Damian continued to deny it until one day he found Marinette trying on her new white sundress that flowed around her like water

Something just clicked in his brain

Marinette was his mate no doubt about it

Now he only had to tell Marinette that

And he had every intention to tell Marinette there was just never a good time

As time past the Grand Magic Games approached

This is the first year that Damian, Jon, and Marinette were competing along with Dick, Jason, and Tim

This was also the first year that Marinette's old guild was competing

Their team consisted of Adrien, Alya, Nino, Lila, Natalie, and Ms. Bustier

Unknown to the Justice League guild Grabriel had a nefarious plot cooking up

Gabriel had ordered Lila and Natalie to try and get Marinette's keys no matter what

Marinette was the only person who stood in his way of attaining the final 6 golden keys

Once he gets those keys his wish can be granted and nobody will be able to stand in his way ever again

This wasn't the first time he tried to get the keys from the blasted girl

He sent wizard after wizard to get those keys and all were defeated and either sent back or sent off to jail

He even tried to send a dark guild after the girl and that led to her joining freaking Justice League!

He hoped that with all of the choas from the Grand Magic Games that getting the keys would be easy

Oh boy was he wrong

Marinette was nervous

This would be the first time Marinette would see her old guild in about 3 years

She hoped for the best, but new she wouldn't get it

And she was proven right as her, Damian, and Jon were making her away back to their hotel after exploring the city when they were stop by her old team

Alya: Oh if it isn't the weak little wizard that abandoned us

Marinette sighing: Hey guys how is it going

Lila: Great our team's status has gone way up since you left. We should have kicked you off the team way before

Marinette: You didn't kick me out I left on my own after you abandoned me with no way to protect myself from a dangerous wizard

Nino: Dont be so dramatic dudette. It's not like you got seriously hurt or anything.

Lila: In all honesty the only downside was losing that quick clean up your spirit did. You should have really left her and the rest of your keys with us.

Lila held out her hand like she actually expected Marinette to hand over her keys to her

Marinette stepped back covering her keys with her hands

Damian stepped in front of Marinette and Jon stepped closer to her side

Damian: You know compulsive rings are illegal. Luckily for us we were trained on how to spot those and other illegal rings right away, because their weakness is awareness

Lila growled under her breath

Why couldn't Marinette make this easy for her. It's not like she even deserve those keys

Adrien glaring: And who are you?

Jon: I'm Jon her guildmate

Damian: I'm Damian her...Guildmate!

Damian wanted to say mate, but he still hadn't had that talk with her yet about it and this was definitely not how he wanted her to find out

Alya snorting: Anothe rguild actually took you in? Who did you trick to pull that off

Marinette: I didn't trick anybody! I earned my spot in Justice League!

Marinette showed off her guild mark to her ex-friends

All their jaws dropped

Damian: That's right so unless you want to make some very powerful enemies you'll leave us alone

Damian wrapped his arm around Marinette's shoulder and lead her away from her ex-guild mates with Jon on her other side running her arm in comfort

The games started the next day full of different competitions and different match ups

Marinette hadn't had to go one on one against her ex guild yet until she was put up against Lila in a match up

The two girls stood across from eachother glaring

Lila in the taunting voice how about we make this more interesting Dupen-Cheng. If I win I get your celestial keys if you win I will admit every lie I've ever told

Marinette glaring even harder: NO WAY LILA! No decent celestial wizard would trade their keys away on a bet. My spirits are my friends. No, they're more than that they're my family, I would rather die then let you touch even 1 of them!

Lila with and evil glint in her eye: So be it. If you win it's not like it would actually count. You'll just hide behind you spirits the whole time

Marinette glared at the girl wanting to prove her wrong

The battle that followed was brutal

Marinette didn't call her celestial spirits right away she used her star dress to fight Lila

She would switch between her star dresses impressing the crowd

She switch from ladybug, to black cat, to turtle, which was a soldier looking outfit, to Bee, which was black overall shorts with a yellow off the shoulder crop top striped tights and yellow converses with her hair in a bun.

Marinette finished Lila using her fox star dress creating a illusion of herself to lure Lila out and knocked her out with a blow to the back of her head

Marinette won

She felt a weight ahe didn't realize was there lift off her shoulders

She just proved that everything Lila had ever said about her and other celestial wizards wrong

She felt her teammates engulf her in a hug yelling congratulations before lifting her up and carrying her out of the stadium cheering

The rest of the games were just as exhilarating the final match up that will decide if Justice League or Miraculous Moth would win the whole tournament was between Damian and Adrien

Damian remember all the times Marinette cried over how her old team treated her and he wanted revengs

Nobody treated his mate like that and got away from it

The battle was brutal if one boy gained the upper hand the other would take it back quickly

But Damian won the match up and the tournament with a well time shadow dragon roar

Justice League piled into the stadium surrounding Damian as they cheered over their victory as Adrien was being carried out by medics

Marinette squeezed her way through the crowd reaching Damian

Marinette: Congregations Damian you did great

Damian: Thanks Ang-

Marinette cut him off with a kiss on the lips

Damian froze for a moment before wrapping his arms around her waist and kissing her back enjoying every second of it

The two vaguely registered that the cheering seemed to get louder but ignored it

The guild continued the celebrate throughout the night

Most of the guild was so hungover the next day that they had to put off leaving till another day

A decision they would soon regret as they were attacked the next day by Miraculous Moth

Apparently Grabriel was tired if waiting and decided to attack Justice League whe. He thought they would be at their weakness

Miraculous Moth wasn't as powerful as as Justice League, but they had more members

It was 4 to 1

But Justice League refused to give down without a fight

The battle that followed destroyed half of the town they were in

Luckily Barry, Wally, and Kaalki were able to work together using speed and teleportation magic to get the civilians out of the town

During the climax of the battle Marinette finally learned what type of magic her former guild master possessed

He was a celestial wizard just like her

He also had 6 golden gate keys

During the fight Marinette called put Tikki and Plagg while having Wayzz star dress while Gabriel called his own spirits

Gabriel: Give up you stupid girl! You're no match for me!

Marinette hiding behind her shield: Why are you doing this?

Grabiel: To bring back my wife and to gain power over the celestial king

Marinette: You're planning on using the 12 golden gate keys to form a key for the celestial king!?! That will destroy the other spirits! IT WILL KILL THEM!!! I CAN'T LET YOU DO THIS!

Gabriel: And what are you going to do about it?

Marinette darted her eyes around trying to think of a solution when her eyes landed on Damian and she remember a spell her grandfather taught her. One that only the most powerful celestial wizards could cast, and one that must only be used in emergencies.

Marinette closed Tikki's and Plagg's gates before yelling to Damian

Marinette: DAMIAN CATCH!

Marinette threw her keys to Damian who gave her a confused looked but trusted Marinette and her apparent plan

Marinette charged towards Gabriel not dropping her star dress until the very last minutes

Marinette grabbed his keys not letting go as Gabriel tried to claw them out of his hands: Scattered these keys to the four winds. Use the stars as their guide to lead them to partners. Let them shoot across the sky like falling stars and hope that they land within good hands!

As Marinette finished her spell Gabriel's key ring exploded sending his keys across the continent.

The shock wave from the explosion pushed Marinette and Gabriel back

The shock was just what Justice League needed to end the battle and win

Gabriel: NNNOOOOO!!! What have you've done?

Marinette: I've scattered your keys and I won't let you hurt any of them ever again.

With the battle over and Miraculous Moth in custody life was able to settle down

Damian was finally able to talk to Marinette about them being mates

They started dating and 2 years in after a sorcerers' weekly article (a/n: going to do a seperate ova post telling that story) Damian marked her as his mate showing everybody they were together forever

Team Hatchlings adventures continued on for many years

Through marriage, kids, and old age the team of three remained the best of friends, Damian and Marinette welcoming Jon's wife into their team with open arms

No matter what the friends stuck together and fought for what was not only for themselves and their friends but for the future.

@loysydark

@mikantsume

@doli09

@krissykat0207

@czgamz

@myazael

@renscorpio

@mochinek0

@daminett4life

@kuroko26

@vixen-uchiha

[p-artsypants]

Integrity-Part 3

Ao3 | FF.net

In the morning, Adrien awoke feeling lightheaded and dizzy.

“Hey, take it easy.” Plagg said softly.

“What…?” Nausea washed over him, settling unpleasantly in his tummy. “My stomach…”

“Yeah. Just take your time sitting up.”

This didn’t make sense. He had taken two ibuprofen before bed. Was this the after effects of shock? Or was there something wrong with Madam Cheng’s soup?

“What’s going on?”

“You don’t remember?”

Rubbing his eyes to wake up more and shake off the dizziness, Adrien sat up in bed…no. On the couch.

His room was trashed. All the books and movies were pulled off the shelves, his bedding was bunched up in the corner, and there were feathers everywhere from his pillows. The clothes from his closet were all over the bed and strewn on the floor.

Glancing towards the bathroom, it appeared to have been raided as well.

“What…?”

“Your father came back in after you went to bed. I left Ladybug’s house around 5am and came here. You and your father were fighting…but you were really…you were acting weird. I couldn’t understand what you were saying. Some of it was Chinese, and some of it was just garbage. You swung your fists at him, but he just kept tearing your room apart. I think he was looking for the Miraculous.”

“Ugh. I guess that trust wasn’t very deep.” He rested his head in his hands, and then winced. His face hurt.

Slowly and staggering, he made his way to the bathroom, only to find that his left eye was bruised.

“I think he…he gave you something.” Plagg said sadly. He was holding onto his tail, something he only did when he was genuinely scared or sad.

“What? Like I was drugged?”

“I think so. If you don’t remember any of that.”

“I...I remember you leaving and then going to bed. But that’s it.”

“Yeah. I think your father drugged you.”

Adrien combed his disheveled hair, taming it into something less chaotic. Then he walked back to sit at the end of his bed, staring at the chaos of his room. He hoped his father wasn’t expecting him to clean all this up.

“I don’t know why I expected better from a man who had Lila stalking me.” His voice was calm, despite the raging storm inside his chest.

His father was dead, the man known as Gabriel Agreste was just a husk full of garbage. Desperate, illogical, garbage.

“I’m glad I’m leaving for a while.” He stood, and picked through the clothes that were scattered everywhere.

He didn’t really want to be a model today. Though he didn’t own many clothes that his father hadn’t designed, but picking an outfit that was ‘so last year’ would be a start.

A comfortable cashmere creme cardigan, over a thin, black v-neck, and stonewashed jeans.

Comfortable, and boring. Perfect.

Adrien collected his book bag, making sure his homework was still in one piece. The bag had been upturned, but his tablet was okay.

Finally, he turned his phone off and left it on his desk.

“You’re up early,” Plagg commented. “If you leave now, no one will be at the school.”

“Then I won’t go to the school. Bakeries are open early.”

Plagg smiled, and zipped into a pocket on his cardigan.

Downstairs, he was unsurprised to be escorted by Nathalie into the dining room.

His father was there, waiting to have breakfast with him. For the first time in what felt like forever.

“Good morning, son.” Gabriel spoke, plainly and without shame.

How dare he. How dare he try to act like everything was peaches and creme. How dare he just sit there!

Adrien clenched his bag strap. “Father.”

“Oh come now, don’t be like that. Come and sit, there’s breakfast.”

Adrien glared at him. “So I’m just supposed to ignore my black eye?”

“No, of course not. We’ll put some cover up on it.”

Adrien shook his head. “I told you I trusted you. You said you trusted me. Apparently, you lied.”

“Adrien...”

Adrien took out his wallet, and took out the note he had written last night. He placed it on the table next to his father.

“I’m not hungry.” He stated, before leaving the room.

Even when his father called after him, Adrien kept moving. He couldn’t stop. Not until he was free!

The mansion doors slammed shut behind him, and he sprinted to the gate.

There was no stopping him now.

—

Marinette woke up at her first alarm. Not rested. Not really possible when you’re awakened in the middle of the night with the biggest news of them all.

“Good morning, Marinette.” Tikki spoke softly, as one would talk to someone with a hangover.

“Morning. You guys have a fun time last night?”

“Hmm...sort of. It was fun to have everyone together. But we spent a long time just talking with Nooroo. It was…emotional.”

“Oh. Gabriel didn’t treat him well?”

“Nooroo was only allowed to call him ‘Master’.”

Marinette scoffed in disgust. “When things are a little more under control, I’ll take him out and talk with him. As of right now, Chat and I are the only ones that know Hawkmoth is gone. I don’t even know how we announce it.”

“You should probably talk to Chat first. The man is still around. Or maybe not! He should probably go to jail.”

“If he hasn’t already left Paris.” Marinette stated as she rose from bed.

Oh.

But what about Adrien?

How was she supposed to explain this to him? ‘Hi, love of my life, your father is a terrorist, and I have to put him in jail! Hope this won’t put a damper on our relationship!’

Damn it all to hell. Adrien would never speak to her again. This would completely ruin him. Because how do you deal with something like that? The only parent you have left, put in jail by the girl you thought you loved. There was just no coming back from it.

Marinette rested her head in her hands. “What do I do, Tikki?”

“Talk. To. Chat.” Tikki pressed. “Don’t do anything until then! You don’t know the whole story!”

“Yeah…” She sighed. “Man, I thought defeating Hawkmoth meant less stress, not more.”

“Just different stress.” Tikki tutted, bringing her her hairbrush.

“Thanks.” She took out her hair ties and brushed her hair. “Ugh, and now I have to go to school and face everyone after that blow up I had yesterday. I can’t.”

“You have Nino and Adrien though!”

“I can’t bare to look at Adrien. I think…I might cry if I do.”

Tikki rubbed against her cheek. “I don’t think Adrien would hold it against you. His father brought this upon himself. And he will know that.”

“I just…I don’t want to be the one to tell him.”

“Let’s just worry about getting through the school day first.”

“Yeah. Okay. You’re right.”

Today called for a creme colored cardigan, over her favorite black t-shirt (the one that was a little worn and stretchy), and a pair of distressed jeans. She opted for a bun as well, wanting to distance herself from Ladybug for the day.    

“You know...” thought Tikki, as Marinette gathered her school supplies. “Now that Hawkmoth is gone, you really could tell your parents. It might clear up some lingering distrust, and they could be on alert for the Miracle Box when you aren’t home.”

Marinette considered it, shouldering her bag. “It would clear things up...”

“It’s your choice of course. Just something to consider.”

“Yeah. I think that’s a good idea! I’ll tell them at dinner! And they can be the first civilians to know that Hawkmoth is gone!”

Newly motivated, Marinette skipped down the steps to breakfast.

However, it wasn’t just her mother in the kitchen.

“Hey Marinette,” Adrien said shyly. He glanced her over. “I guess one of us will have to change.”

It didn’t even compute with her that he was talking about her outfit.

His eye. He had a black eye. And besides that, he looked like a crumpled mess.

“Adrien? What—what happened?”

“Uh...little disagreement with my father. Your mom said I could stay with you guys, but I wanted to make sure you were cool with it.”

“Me? Sure! Of course!”

“Good, because there’s no one I’d rather trust.” He furrowed his brows a little more. “I have to be able to trust someone.”

God. Like a punch in the gut. Sure, he trusted her now, when he knew she was Ladybug. But once he found out his father was Hawkmoth, and she put him in jail? Game over. Trust broken. Heart broken.

She sat across from him, and held his hand. “You can trust me, Adrien. I only have your best interests at heart.”

He smiled at her. The doom and gloom seemed to flit away as adoration took its place.

‘Talk to Chat first’ Tikki’s voice reminded her in her mind. ‘You don’t know the whole story.’

Oh god! What if the disagreement was over the Miraculous? What if Adrien suffered because of Chat?

This was unfair.

Damn Gabriel.

“Omelets!” Sabine sang, placing plates in front of them. “And for you dear.” She gave Adrien a cold pack for his face.

“Thank you Madam Cheng.”

“Of course sweetie. If you need anything else, just let me know. And you can call me Sabine, or whatever you’re most comfortable with.”

“Thank you, Sabine.” He smiled briefly.

“If you’re staying with us, do you need someone to get some clothes and stuff?” Asked Marinette.

“No, I snuck a bag out last night. It’s at school.”

“How did you manage that?”

Adrien bit his lip. “I got some help from Chat Noir.”

Her eyes widened, and she spoke quietly. “So...do you...you know, know?”

“Yeah. I promise I’ll tell you everything later, but...” he glanced over at her mom. “We have other things to deal with.”

Marinette understood what he was getting at, and decided to shelf the conversation. At least until she talked to Chat. Once she had all sides of the story, she could come up with a solution that benefited everyone. “I’m not really looking forward to school. Especially with what happened yesterday.”

He chuckled. “Oh my god, that was just yesterday. I had a long night.”

“I bet.”

“I didn’t mean to change the subject. I’m safe now, so let’s worry about you.”

“It’s okay, Adrien, really. We’ve got each other’s backs, okay?”

“Yeah.”

Marinette glanced at her phone. “Still haven’t heard from Alya. I don’t know if Nino didn’t get through, or if she’s waiting to talk to me in person.”

“Well, I know it sucks, but maybe just let her go?”

She shrugged. “I mean, maybe. Her manipulation tactic yesterday hurt really bad. But she’s the one that’s fueling Lila. Since she wants to be a reporter so bad, I want her to consider that she may get bad leads.”

“Wait, manipulation tactic? What did she say? There was a lot happening yesterday and I don’t know if I caught everything.”

“She said something like, ‘the way you are acting is really hurting me’ when I was the one that was really upset. Granted, Lila was the one that gave her that idea.”

“Why is that manipulative?” He asked, genuinely curious.

“She was trying to make me feel guilty because I was angry. I was upsetting her because I was upset. You see?”

It was like a lightbulb went on in Adrien’s head, as his eyes widened, before his head dropped on the table. “So many people have used that on me, and I’ve fallen for it every time.”

“Oh Adrien...”

“Thank you,” he said, sitting up. “I guess there’s still a lot for me to learn about social cues.”

“It’s okay! I can help you.”

“Hate to interrupt,” said Sabine, “but if you kids want to take advantage of being up early, you better leave now!”

“Thanks Maman! See you at lunch.”

“Have a good day, you two!”

As they passed Tom in the bakery, he gave Marinette a kiss on the cheek, and rubbed Adrien’s head.

Then they leisurely made their way to school.

“Can I hold your hand?” Asked Adrien.

Marinette raised an eyebrow. “Have you asked me out?” She blinked. “Wait, that’s not what the argument was about, right? With your father?”

“No, no Marinette, he actually thinks you’re fine. We had a good talk before everything went down...but still, I got some other loose ends. Not yet, but soon. But, close friends who will soon be dating can hold hands, right?”

“Especially if they’re both having a rough time.”

“Yes, especially then.” He took her hand, and intertwined their fingers.

Marinette gave a happy hum and had an extra bounce in her step.

“You got happy all of a sudden,” Adrien commented.

“I’m holding Adrien’s hand! If you would have told last week Marinette about this, she wouldn’t have believed you.”

“Last week Marinette is missing out.” He grinned.

She squeezed his hand.

At school, they had just cleared the door before they heard Lila’s pathetic wailing.

“Now what?” They said in tandem.

Walking closer, they got let in on the story.

“—told me if I ever told anyone, I’d be fired! But I just couldn’t take it anymore! Not after what Marinette did to me yesterday! I told Gabriel exactly what Adrien did! And he didn’t believe me! He called me a liar and fired me!”

Marinette and Adrien shared a look.

“I knew this was going to happen.” He lamented.

“And then Marinette’s mother called mine and told her I deserved to be bullied! That I deserved to be molested!”

Looking around the group assembled, some had looks of horror, while others held looks of disbelief.

“Sabine said that?” Asked Alix, one of the doubters. “I...I can’t even imagine that.”

“It’s true! My mom talked to her and everything! We’re getting a lawyer.”

And then, Lila noticed Adrien and Marinette standing in the back of the crowd, listening.

And of course, Adrien never covered up his bruise.

“Look! Just look at him! That’s where I punched him after he groped me!”

All heads swiveled to look at Adrien, followed by a round of gasps.

“Dude...” Nino stared at him. “What happened to you?”

“I already told you, Nino!” Lila bawled. “He touched me! He’s a sex offender! Please, you have to believe me!”

Nino have a long sigh. “Dude. We were just talking yesterday about how he and Kagami were together. I really don’t want to be a victim denier, but this whole story seems really fishy.” He turned back to Adrien. “What really happened?”

Not deterred by Lila’s story, Adrien covered his face. “I had...a little disagreement with my father.”

“Oh yeah? What about?” Asked Kim.

Adrien winced. “It’s not really anyone’s business. I don’t want to talk about it.”

“A likely story!” Said Sabrina. “But Chloe said you’re a bad liar!”

Ivan cracked his knuckles. “If you touched her, you’ll be dealing with more than a black eye when I’m done with you.”

Marinette rested a hand on Ivan’s fist. “Adrien didn’t touch Lila. She’s been the one touching him. Adrien finally told his dad last night, and that’s why she was fired. I was there when he called his dad.”

Adrien appreciated Marinette stepping in. He was having a hard time staying calm.

But no reason to worry about becoming an Akuma!

“Funny how you claimed she was threatening you, when you were the one threatening her. Now you’re the one claiming she’s sexually harassing him? That’s so stupid, guys can’t be sexually harassed!” Kim spouted this nugget of wisdom, and Adrien trembled.

“How would you like it, if every goddamn day of your life you had to let some girl hang off of you, no matter how mean or cruel, no matter how uncomfortable. And you just had to smile about it?” Adrien grit out, with thinly veiled rage.

“I’d count myself lucky. As a male model, you get to be surrounded by hot chicks all the time! How is that a bad thing?”

“Because I don’t want them!” Adrien shouted. “I don’t want Lila, or Kagami, or Chloe! I don’t want Eva, or Annette, or Marlina! I just want—“

My Lady.

He screwed up his face, swallowing back his pain. He didn’t want to talk about last night. He didn’t want to tell his classmates. He only wanted to tell those he trusted. And that was a very small pool right now.

“My black eye is none of your business. I don’t want to talk about it. But it has nothing to do with Lila. Yes, I told my father I was being sexually harassed by her, and I asked if I could not model with her anymore. Given that she lied to get Marinette expelled, I had a feeling she would lie about me too. He made the decision to let her go.”

“I didn’t lie to get Marinette expelled!” Lila protested.

“But you admitted to having a lying disease! And you took back all those claims to get me back in school! Why should anyone believe you right now? How are you all not considering if this is a ‘side effect’ of her ‘disease’?!” Marinette protested.

For the first time since their arrival, Alya finally spoke up. “The coffee was cold yesterday.”

Everyone looked at her, somewhat put off by the seemingly random subject change.

“The coffee that Marinette spilled on Lila that gave her third degree burns. Marinette poured the rest of it on my hand. It was cold.”

Lila sat in silence.

“Well,” Alix spoke. “I don’t know who to believe anymore. And frankly, it’s none of my business, like Adrien said. I’m done with drama.”

“Yeah, me too.” Said Rose, sadly. “I just want us all to get along.”

“Like we did before Lila?” Nino asked.

“Nino!” Lila gaped at him. “It’s not my fault Marinette got jealous! That’s unfair!”

“Sure dude.” He shrugged.

Then, blessedly, the bell rang.

Marinette, Adrien, Nino, and Alya lingered behind as the rest of the class wandered to class.

“So,” Alya began, “If I can be totally honest, I’m torn. I do think Lila has...something wrong with her. Whether she has some illness that makes her lie, or she’s a narcissist? I don’t know. I don’t know if I believe she’s doing this on purpose either. She’s been so nice and so sweet. She’s babysat when you had to bail last minute. I feel like I’m between a rock and a hard place. I don’t want to pick sides.”

Marinette nodded. “I understand. It is difficult when you’re in between friends. Do you trust me, Alya?”

Alya screwed up her lips in a frown, considering the thought. Then she looked over to the boys.

Marinette touched her shoulder and directed her gaze back over. “Don’t look at them. Look inside yourself. Just be honest with me. You know I won’t get mad. Do you trust me?”

Alya glanced down to her shoes. “I want to, but...”

Marinette just watched her carefully.

“You bail a lot. You disappear, you give really flimsy excuses. You forget about things. Most of the class hasn’t picked up on it, but I know you lie to me sometimes. You’re allowed to have your secrets, and I know you aren’t trying to hurt me...I just...” she clenched her fists. “I don’t know.”

Alya was observant and a reporter at heart. Of course she’d pick up on this.

“Alya, you’re my best friend. I do have secrets, and one day, I’d love to tell you. But right now, it’s safer for you not to know.”

That didn’t really instill Alya with faith. “I guess that’s fair.”

“I don’t want your blind trust, Alya. All I want is for you to do your own critical thinking, and check your sources.”

Alya rolled her eyes. “So everything Lila says is a lie?”

“I didn’t say that. But if several things she says are untrue, maybe you should double check her claims. You know that the coffee yesterday was cold. And you know my mother would never tell someone they deserved to be bullied. She did call Lila’s mom yesterday. I don’t know what she said, but I know it came from a place of concern.”

“It comes down to integrity, Alya.” Said Adrien. “Sometimes people fail and lie, but their character should still speak for them. Do I seem like the kind of person that would grope a girl?”

Alya actually chuckled at that. “You are probably the least likely. You’re a literal ball of sunshine.”

“My mother taught me to be a gentleman at all times. Especially when I’m famous and working with women. If I was creepy and skeevy, no one would doubt if a woman made a claim against me. And by being kind and a gentlemen, it’s least likely that someone would lie like that to take advantage of me in the first place. Fake rape and molestation charges are something males in our industry face a lot. They ruin our reputation, and make it harder for real cases to get justice. It sucks.”

“So, you never touched Lila?”

“I only touched what I was instructed to during shoots, like her arm or her waist. Never any more than that. I have zero attraction to her. But like I said, she had touched me...not anything that would be considered molesting, but she grabbed my arm and rubbed my chest. She grabbed my butt once. I told my dad I didn’t like it, and I feared that she’d pull this exact scenario if I crossed her. After all, she lied to get Marinette expelled. The only reason she double lied to get her back in school was because I let her model with me in exchange.”

Alya frowned harder. “Lila’s behavior yesterday gave me some red flags. How she had outed Marinette’s crush like that...that was cruel. I don’t care what kind of beef you have with someone, that’s against the girl code. I just...need some time.”

Nino wrapped an arm around her. “Let’s go to class. Later, let’s take a look at some of her stories you put on the blog. We’ll make a threshold of deniability. If she’s exaggerating, we can let things go, but if there are straight lies, we have to consider if a friendship with her is worth it.”

Alya nodded, rubbing her eye. “Yeah. That sounds like a good idea.” She managed a smile for both Adrien and Marinette. “Is there a reason you’re matching today?”

They hadn’t even noticed.

“Comfort clothes.” They both said, then chuckled.

Miss Bustier came out of the teachers lounge. “What are kids doing out here still? If you can beat me to the classroom, I won’t mark you tardy!”

The four sprinted up to the classroom.

@redheadeddemon16 @sturchling @fleur-de-jasmin-fdj

[brandstifter-sys]

The Tales of Rabidosa and Scylla Emerald

Word Count: 1207               (Ao3)

Pairing: Dukexiety

Rating: T

Warnings: Sex mention, coming out as trans, confusing pronouns, mtf!remus, ftm!virgil

Dukexiety Week: Bonus Day - Superheroes Virgil just came out to his girlfriend as trans and it could have gone better, luckily he’s got a miraculous and a crime-fighting partner who’s always got his back. But coming out to her leads to some unforseen consequences. Miraculous AU

@dukexietyweek

---

Rabidosa crouched on top of some old apartment building, staring off into the city in search of trouble. She was hoping that her patrol would give her something to think about other than her civilian life. Things were icky, and maybe telling Ree the truth about her gender could have gone better. Out of the skin-tight purple costume and mask, covered in black cobwebs, Rabidosa was a guy and Virgil was still getting used to calling himself that out loud. 

“Funny meeting you here!” A familiar voice laughed from behind her–yes her, costume on, she/her, the perfect secret identity–and Rabidosa internally groaned. 

“Scylla,” she huffed and rolled her eyes. She didn’t have to look to see the wily hero dressed up in a green pseudo-leather catsuit with her hair tied up in a partial bun, letting the majority of it fall down her back in eight distinct ringlets. Scylla was always trouble.

“Oh, not even a hello?” she said and sat on the edge of the building next to her partner, “Did your boyfriend do something stupid?”

“What?”

“It’s a little early for you to be out on patrol! Especially without any akumas! What happened?” Scylla questioned and shrugged, wiggling her upper lip in thought, as if she had a mustache under that face sleeve. Rabidosa sighed and sat down, unable to think up a decent excuse. 

“I came out to my girlfriend. And she just stared at me so hopelessly lost and confused.”

“Ace? Aro?”

“I’m a dude. And she’s into girls. I don’t want to lose her, but I don’t want her to see me as a girl, or to put herself in an uncomfortable position to be with me.” 

“If she really loves you, she’ll support you. My boyfriend stuck with me when I came out as trans, and he’s been the best. I kinda hate that I didn’t give him the right amount of support today when he told me something huge, not bad but bigger than my dick! I finally have my head wrapped around it, but I don’t know where he is or when he’ll get back.”

“You froze up?”

“I know, I never shut up, and I just froze! I was like Hannelore Schmatz, but with less decay. I just need to think of a way to let him know I’m okay with this thing and that I would set fire to the department of records for him if he asked.”

“Do that and I will have to take you down." 

"You can take me anyway you like if he ends it because I am such a herbo!" Scylla giggled, "I didn't even get to ask him what his name is—Can I ask yours?" 

"I didn't tell you my deadname, why would I tell you this one?" Rabidosa scoffed. 

"Because it's not on any records so I can't stalk you and who knows if you'll think a different name works better later. You can say no, I get it." 

"Might as well get used to saying it out loud," Rabidosa sighed and bit her lip, "My name is Virgil." 

"Virgil?" Scylla parroted, "I like it! It's the kind of name I'd love to moan and scream and whisper and sing, Spiderling. If things don't work out between you and your girlfriend and me and my boyfriend look me up! And down! Take in the sights!" 

Rabidosa snorted and shook her head. Scylla Emerald was always good at lightening the mood, just like Reina. It was an odd comfort and maybe, just maybe, she would take Scylla' offer this time. 

"I'll think about it. But for now, since it's quiet, I'm gonna go ahead and try to talk to my girlfriend. I want that relationship to work." 

"Good idea! My boyfriend might be home too!" Scylla laughed and pulled out a mace from thin air. She stood up and spun it over her head and flew off. Rabidosa wished she could move that fast. She shot a web from her wrist and swung off towards home.

.

Virgil got into the bedroom through the window and powered down. The magic that made him a spidery superheroine condensed in a puff of black fog and condensed in a web-shaped necklace hiding under his tee. The purple kwami that came out of it flew off to hide in the closet—Arie wasn't big on speaking, but Virgil didn't care much about that. He wasn't ready for a confrontation but he had to go into the main apartment and talk to her. 

"Scare Bear?" she called to him from the door, "Are you in there?" 

"Yeah," Virgil said, squeaking just a little bit out of nerves, "You can come in." 

The door flew open and before he knew what was happening, Virgil was being crushed against a strong chest and sandwiched between a pair of anime tiddies. Reina was big on physical contact.

"Scare Bear, I'm sorry for freezing up before! I was just surprised and processing it! I don't care what gender you are as long as you're happy as you! I love you so much!"

"Duchess, I love you too but I can't breathe!" Virgil gasped. Reina let go with a giggle and held him at arm's length. Her eyes were so bright, a perfect match for her smile. She wiggled her mustache and brushed his bangs from his face. 

"Do you have a name yet?" she asked, bouncing in place, playing up anime stereotypes.

"My name is Virgil," he sighed and looked at her hopefully. She froze again. 

"Virgil?" she squeaked as it hit her, "I like it. It's the kind of name I'd love to moan and scream and whisper and sing, Spiderling." 

"Scylla Emerald?" Virgil gasped. Reina nodded. 

"Rabidosa?" she squeaked. Virgil nodded and suddenly pulled her into a hug. He wasn't crying, not at all. 

"Virgil?"

"It's been you all along!" he laughed, "Holy shit it's been you kicking ass with me this entire time!" 

"Yeah, I guess it has!" she giggled, "Which means I can flirt with you without any restraint in costume! And I will because, boy, you look damn good in that suit!" 

"Look who's talking!" Virgil laughed, "the person I had a crush on in middle school has always been my partner!" 

"You had a crush on me? Aw babe, that's embarrassing!" 

"We're dating!" 

"I know but I was a mess! More than usual! I was so hot for Rabidosa too! And look at me now! I'm dating you and I've never been happier! Jug can suck it!" 

"Not until I do, Duchess," Virgil jeered, "If I even leave anything to suck." 

"Scare Bear don't tempt me!" Reina warned. Virgil smirked and pulled her into a kiss. 

"Duchess, if you don't want to that's fine but dammit I am so happy right now! You accept me, and you've been there the whole time! Maybe I want to top off all this miraculous stuff with something that's almost always miraculous." 

"Almost?" Ree teased, "You know every time is miraculous! I get to see all of my boyfriend!"

“I’m gonna have to get used to hearing you say that,” Virgil giggled, “but I love it, almost as much as I love you.”

“I love you too, Spiderling!”

----

Okay so, spiders are good luck, like ladybugs, how could I not? Rabidosa rabidosa is the scientific name for the rabid wolf spider. Scylla is a sea monster from ancient Greek mythos, not exactly bad luck like a black cat but it fit the Duchess.

[soulmate-game]

Well that happened.

B!dbwm 2020

Day 6: Meeting the Justice League

Marinette paced in her bedroom in Wayne Manor, running her hands through her hair as Damian laid on her bed and played animal crossing while completely ignoring her freakout. 

“Dami, how did I get myself into this mess?!” she asked, frantically pulling at her pigtails. Her brother snorted, rolling his eyes unsympathetically. 

“You never use your brain until after you’ve already made important decisions,” he responded ruthlessly. “All of your mental capacity goes towards planning out completely inane things like birthday parties and actually caring about what our even more idiotic class thinks about you, so when you actually need it you don’t have any intelligence left to spare.” 

Marinette turned her eyes on him, the blue lightening to an icy color in her panicked annoyance as she glared at him. “Gee, thanks. I can always trust my darling brother to have my back,” she said sarcastically, to which Damian only smirked. 

“When it matters? Of course. But in this case, watching the fallout will be entertaining and not at all dangerous to your physical safety.” 

Damian and Marinette had been sent to live in Paris a few years back, about a year after Damian had come back to life. Marinette had been far too attached to the twin she had thought she had lost for good, and had nearly driven him crazy with how overprotective she had gotten. Right alongside that, Damian had started to become even more stifled by Bruce’s own protectiveness and distrust of him, so he quit being Robin and they were sent to PAris to try and “recover” from their “trauma” somewhere “safe and peaceful, under the jurisdiction of the JLE.” 

Yeah, that was a great idea. Up until they found out the hard way that the JLE had up and abandoned the Paris headquarters and taken up unofficial residence in England somewhere. And then Hawkmoth showed up. And of course, of fucking course, an old chinese man from the pacifistic organization that acted as a direct foil to the League where they grew up somehow decided that they, out of everyone in Paris, were the best people he could find to wield the power of tiny gods to save the city. 

Sure, he was right, but Damian chewed him a new asshole as soon they met for trusting complete unvetted strangers with the gods of creation and destruction. 

And now Marinette had finally managed to leak to Tim, who then spread the calculated slip of information to Bruce, that Paris had had a supervillain for the past few years and the JLE had been neglecting their jobs. Which turned into Batman setting up a meeting with Ladybug and Chat Noir (Damian had tried to tell everyone his name was Chance Noir, Dark Luck, NOT ‘chat noir,’ since the last thing he needed was to be associated with Selina in any way. Nobody listened, and now he was stuck with being called Chat Noir). They had a lovely discussion about all the shit Hawkmoth did, their lack of resources, and the lack of assistance/straight up refusal to believe their word that came from the JLE. 

Which led to Batman inviting Ladybug to meet the Justice League to debrief on the Paris situation. Damian had been invited as Chat Noir, but had taken the smart path and opted out. Now Marinette had to not only go to the Justice League as Ladybug, but also as Batman's daughter Hummingbird, who was being brought in for consultation along with Damian as Robin. 

“I’m gonna die again,” Marinette continued her catastrophizing, Tikki and Plagg sharing a glance at once another from their spot on her writing desk. “I’m gonna die of total embarrassment. Don’t bother resurrecting me Dami, I’m just gonna die all over again once Dad finds out who we are and kills me.” 

Damian snorted. “Hah. Father killing anything, good one,” he snarked back blandly. “You’ll be fine. Remember, you’re the planner and I’m the one with actual skill. You have the strangest ability when it comes to getting out of situations like these by the skin of your teeth,” Damian grinned at something on the screen of his Switch before continuing. “You’ll be fine. And if you sell me out, I’ll bury you myself.” 

Marinette stuck her tongue out at him. Neither of them wanted their dad to find out that they were LAdybug and Chat noir, especially since they had already explained to him the basics of the source of their powers. They were both certain that Bruce would completely ignore how well they had been handling the situation on their own for almost five years and jump straight to the “my murderous children should not be left with the powers of destruction and creation at their fingertips,” line of thought. Bruce had never trusted them alone before, why now? 

“At least help me, shaqiq?” Marinette asked, walking over and plopping onto the ground next to her bed, so she could look straight into her twin’s bright green eyes. At first, he refused to even look at her, completely unmoved. Marinette hummed mischievously, a habit that was the source of her Gotham codename. “If I go down, I’m taking you with me.” 

Damian finally huffed, scowling. “Fine.” 

He knew better than to doubt her. Marinette always got her way when she decided she was wronged and needed to even the score for something. Always. 

—* — * — * — * — *

Hummingbird. The smallest Bat, by far, and the fastest when it came to natural speed. Hard to spot, with the sole giveaway that a short playful hum could be heard if she thought she had her prey cornered. She was hardly ever wrong. 

She had also been temporarily retired as she and Robin moved to some undisclosed location to get away from the vigilante life for a while. Or so Batman said. And for the most part, aside from the occasional League gathering here or glimpse that they got of the two’s civilian personas if someone visited the manor while they were there, Robin and Hummingbird stayed retired. Heroes who knew them wondered if Robin had finally given up and settled down somehow, if he was even capable of it. And they all speculated that Hummingbird was so scarred from Robin’s death that she wouldn't ever be able to leave his side again, retired or not. 

 Seeing Hummingbird in her navy blue and black uniform, almost identical to her brother’s but for the thick navy blue scarf that covered her neck and lower face, everyone in the Justice League who knew her thought they were right. She stood there, older and only a little taller, never leaving Robin’s side as they traded secretive glances and hand signals only they understood. They didn’t make any attempt to stray from one another’s side. 

But Jon Kent, superboy and Damian’s oldest friend, was of a different mind. He had been by Marinette’s side after Damian died, and by both of theirs when he was brought back. This was not the same terrified dependence he had seen back then. His eyes narrowed. 

The twins were scheming, and nobody else would notice until it was too late. 

Quicker than they could blink, he was by their side with his trademark smile. “Hey guys! Long time no see!” 

They gave the half-kryptonian identical deadpan expressions, sighing in tandem. “You facetimed us last night. And you flew to Paris to visit us last week,” Damian pointed out with a raised eyebrow. “Despite us expressly telling you not to.” 

Jon shrugged. “If I listened to everything you two said all the time, we’d never have any fun. So, excited to meet this Ladybug girl? Dad says that your dad won’t tell him anything about her until she shows up.” 

Hummingbird and Robin traded looks before Marinette answered. “Not really. We see Ladybug in action in Paris all the time—”

“She even saved Marinette from an Akuma who was obsessed with wanting to date her,” Damian interrupted with an insufferable grin. Marinette elbowed him hard, making her brother wince before chuckling at her red face. 

“I could have saved myself just fine! It’s not my fault we have to lay low, or we might get kicked out of Paris for being past vigilantes!” Marinette argued, voice high as she protested how helpless Damian had made her sound. She puffed her cheeks out in annoyance. Damian’s grin widened into a predatory smirk that showed off teeth.

“Oh? What about that one time that Tsurugi got akumatized, and Chat Noir had to save you because she wanted to duel you for the right to date me and you were cornered?” 

Marinette growled, throwing up her hands in frustration before smacking Damian’s shoulder angrily. He only laughed at her. “I’m leaving! Come find me when Ladybug finishes explaining the things we already know!” with that, a fuming and embarrassed Hummingbird stormed out of the room. 

“Huh,” Flash remarked, leaning against the wall. “She looks a lot better than the last time I saw her. And she actually left your immediate vicinity. Willingly,” he remarked to Robin, who glared at the speedster. 

“It’s been almost six years. If you think my sister is weak enough to be that thoroughly encumbered by the past for so long, you are greatly underestimating her,” he looked around to see almost all of the gathered League members staring at him. He grit his teeth and looked over at his father. “When is this woman going to arrive, anyway? You’d think she would actually be on time.” 

Just then, a portal opened in the middle of the room and Ladybug walked through. Quickly shedding the brown costume that allowed her to teleport in, she was left in just her black and red-spotted combat suit. Seeing as they finally found out how to alter the costumes the Kwami gave them, Ladybug’s hair now sat in a braided bun on the crown of her head and her costume was made to look more like Nightwing’s with the ladybug symbol on her upper chest and between her shoulder blades on her back, with black gloves that reached up to her elbows and black knee-high boots with red stripes up the sides. 

The brightly colored heroine smiled, seeming to light up the room with cheer that nearly put Jon to shame (it took her awhile to perfect that particular smile. She actually based it off Jon himself, and Damian was impressed by how accurate she had been able to make it over time. Not that he would say as much out loud). 

That was when Diana started choking on thin air, and Damian and Marinette both realized that they had overlooked something rather major. 

Hippolyta had been a Ladybug. Diana had met Tikki. Diana knew how to see past Tikki’s glamour. 

At first, Ladybug tried to play it off. Maybe Diana would catch on and help her out. So she walked over, holding her hand out for Wonderwoman to shake and putting on another wide smile for good measure. 

“Oh my Kwamii! It is so good to finally meet you, Wonderwoman, Tikki told me so much about you and your mother! Would you like to talk later—”

“Marinette Wayne, how in Zeus’ name did you become the new Ladybug?” Wonderwoman instantly yelled, making Marinette wilt. Damian tried backing away slowly, only for Diana’s eyes to then shoot over to him and narrow dangerously. “And you! I knew I felt something weird, but now I can pinpoint it. You are wielding the Black Cat! One of you explain what is going on. Now.” 

Ladybug and Robin instantly looked away, getting ready to make a quick escape right as their father walked up behind Robin, putting a firm hand on his shoulders. As always when Batman smiled, it sent a shiver down everyone’s spine. Marinette gulped a little. 

“I agree. Marinette, I forgot to tell you that we changed the locations of the League security cameras last night,” shit they were so busted. Bruce must have suspected them of something from the very beginning, stupid world’s greatest detective instincts— “But now that we have confirmed that my suspicions were correct, we can save that discussion for later. First, let’s debrief on the Paris situation like we agreed. Then, you two will explain why you decided not to tell me while you help each other clean the entire Batcave tonight.” 

Damian didn’t open his hand for the entire meeting. He and Marinette made eye contact as soon as everyone sat down for a suddenly very uneasy debrief, silently agreeing that they would not let their father take away their Miraculous. They finally had names and reputations of their own, away from the Batclan and their father’s influence. They had learned more about themselves and what they were capable of in those past years as Miraculous wielders than in all the years of the rest of their lives combined. They wouldn’t give it up, not even for Bruce’s approval. 

But when they got back to the Manor and began cleaning up the batcave as they had been ordered, they were surprised when Bruce made no mention of taking their jewelry back at all. And he stayed up with them, silently reviewing things on the Batcomputer as they cleaned. It could almost be considered family bonding. 

By the time the twins were done cleaning the sun was about to rise, and finally their father spoke up for the first time since they had begun their punishment chore. 

“I watched days worth of your Paris battles before going out to meet Ladybug and Chat Noir in person,” he said without ever turning around from his spot at the computer. “I was impressed. I still am. The teamwork was flawless, and the Parisian heroes never used deadly force. They even did their best to provide emotional support to the victims who were akumatized. I thought for sure at least one of you two would have been victims yourself, with all that you’ve been through. Anything can be a trigger for you, anything can make you vulnerable to Hawkmoth,” Bruce paused to take a sip of coffee. He didn’t have to look at his children’s reflections in the face of the Batcomputer to know they were drinking in every word he said. He did anyway, allowing a small smile that they couldn’t see to form on his lips. 

“I scoured through every akuma attack one by one, trying to find the one where one or both of you were the ones possessed. But I only found more reasons to be impressed by the heroes instead. By the time I was done looking through every scrap of video I could find, I had a feeling I knew who you were. Hearing your voices in person cemented it further, but I wanted video proof. So, knowing that Marinette would have forgotten about agreeing to accompany me to a JL meeting, I asked Ladybug to debrief us.” 

“You had us from the start,” Marinette sighed, shoulders slumping. But Damian said nothing, eyes wide as he picked up on the nuances of what Bruce was saying that Marinette was too tired to catch on to. 

“I’m proud of you two.” 

Then, even Marinette froze. The twins had identical expressions of shock on their faces, and Bruce finally turned around to look at them properly. For a long while, the three of them only made silent eye contact as dozens of emotions flew through the air silently, but understood. Then Damian and Marinette straightened up just and silently. Damian nodded to his father, Marinette gave him a vulnerable little smile, and then they both backed out and went to head to sleep. 

And once they were gone, Bruce sighed in content. Seems his meet-the-Justice-League plan worked out perfectly. He had finally managed to say something right to his two most troublesome children, for the first time. He leaned back in his chair, gazing up at the dark bat-infested cave ceiling as one more tiny grin played on his face, a little melancholy this time. 

Guess they never needed him to help them find their inner hero, after all. They had become even better at the whole hero thing than he was, and all on their own. Bruce closed his eyes, not noticing when Alfred draped a blanket over his body and left the Cave with a soft chuckle. 

--*--*--*--*--*

This sucked, but I wanted to give you guys something. So. here you go I guess? 

[powerdragonmoon]

❄️Keep Me Warm❄️

Another akuma attack, another afternoon spent drawing for Nathanael, this time with a special guest.

I’m @edendaphne ‘s secret santy claws! 🎅oh ho ho ho!!! Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays you wonderful bean!! and to everyone good night! Thank you @kuu-sama11 for the endless and amazing lukanath inspiration! ❤️❤️ 

(ao3 link)

Nathanael hummed quietly under his breath, reaching to push his hair back before returning his pen to his sketchbook. The soft strum of a guitar in the background made the soundtrack for his art, melding in with the sounds of the city outside as Paris was enveloped with snow. The power had gone out hours ago. Another snow-themed akuma of some sort had wreaked havoc on the city, encasing the university in an avalanche, leaving Nathanael stuck in the library. He found himself lost in between the bookcases, sitting on the floor, passing the time searching for inspiration… 

The guitar paused. 

“The acoustics in here are amazing,” came a calm voice, from across the aisle, followed closely by another strum of the guitar. “I think the snow is making the perfect sound absorber.” 

Nathanael glanced up at his only companion, the only person to have round up stuck with him during the akuma attack. His long legs stretched out into the aisle with his guitar on his lap.  

The snow covered windows allowed only limited light into the building, flooding the library in a cool and soothing atmosphere. The tall guitarist sat across from Nathanael, strumming notes on his guitar as the room grew colder with each passing hour. His bright blue eyes were intensified in the darkness of the library, sparkling like snowflakes and ice, however in their coolness, Nathanael could only feel the heat rushing to his cheeks. 

He had never been so conflicted over wanting an akuma attack to be over. 

Finally, Nathanael cleared his throat, still unable to find any words for a reply. Instead he nodded, smiling shyly in agreement as he pushed his hair back behind his ear, not able to meet Luka’s piercing gaze. He tried his best to focus on his drawing even as he heard Luka’s guitar pause once more. 

Over the years the two had grown closer, Nathanael was close friends with Juleka and Rose afterall. He even had assisted creating posters for one of Kitty Section’s final performances before the band broke up and then later assisting Luka and his new band with cover art for their album. And now they were attending the same art school. Even if they shared no classes, they still found time to spend together. They became fast friends, bonding over music and art and finding themselves in an easy symbiotic relationship, Luka’s music inspiring Nathanael’s art, and Nathanael’s art inspiring Luka’s music. It was good. 

And it wasn’t something Nathanael wanted to ruin. 

To admit to Luka how he truly felt for him would surely ruin their friendship, and so Nathanael tried his best to put his feelings aside. He tried to keep his eyes glued to his sketchbook and not on Luka’s shaggy blue hair. He tried to focus on his comics and not on Luka’s small, soft smiles. He tried… 

And yet he couldn’t help the skip of his heart as Luka settled down beside him, leaning against the same bookcase and propping his guitar back onto his lap. He leaned back, eyes closed and took in deep breaths. It had gotten so cold in the room that Nathanael could see each exhale in clouds of vapour from his mouth. 

…Nathanael tried not to focus on his mouth for too long. 

He was so tall that Nathanael could easily rest his head against Luka’s shoulder.

He tried not to focus on that either…

Luka’s eyes opened, meeting Nathanael’s for a moment before Nathanael ripped his eyes away, focusing back on his sketch and hoping Luka had not noticed him staring. Luckily, his long red hair fell from behind his ear, forming a barrier from Luka’s pale blue eyes and hiding Nathanael’s blush—

At least until cool fingers traced his cheeks, pulling his hair back behind his ear. Nathanael froze, turning to see Luka leaning down close, his fingers still tangled in Nathanael’s hair, black nail polish against red hair.  

“Your hair has gotten so long,” Luka remarked, and Nathanael felt himself shiver, unsure of whether it was the cold or the deep timbre of Luka’s voice. The white vapour from their breaths took up the space between them, and as if by instinct the two of them moved closer to one another, seeking warmth and heat. Nathanael hadn’t even noticed that Luka had put his guitar down. 

“Y-yeah,” Nathanael stuttered. “I really need to get it cut.” 

Luka’s hand ran down the length of Nathanael’s hair, his eyes tracking the movement and reaching down past his shoulders. He smiled, wide and bright, staring back at Nathanael, his eyes sparkled, “I like it. I think it looks great.” 

Nathanael quickly decided he would never have his hair cut again if it could get Luka to smile like that. 

“I, um… t-thanks,” he finally replied, blinking up at Luka. “I should probably wear it up more often… it gets so tangled and messy.” 

“Nothing wrong with tangled and messy,” Luka hummed with a wink and Nathanael sputtered. He was going to have to go open a window at this rate and fling himself out into the snow to dampen the heat rising to his face. 

“It’s kinda badass,” Luka continued and Nathanael balked that the association to such a word, shaking his head with a laugh. 

“Is it badass to have my hair always in my eyes when I’m trying to draw?” Nathanael remarked. 

Luka shrugged, “There are some amazing musicians that can perform with long hair. Makes the headbanging all the more awesome.” 

“I’ve never headbanged in my life,” Nathanael laughed. 

“Well then we should go to a concert,” said Luka, nudging Nathanael’s shoulder with his own. “I’ll take you to a real rager.” He smiled, raising his hands up with his pointer and pinky finger raised, sticking his tongue out for good measure. 

The two broke down into a fit of giggles, causing Nathanael’s hair to once again fall in front of his face. 

“Really though, do you want me to do your hair?” Luka asked once Nathanael had combed his hair back into place with his hands. 

“What?” Nathanael wasn’t sure if he heard him right. 

Luka shrugged, “I used to do Juleka’s hair all the time growing up, plus you remember my man-bun phase.” He smiled, grabbing an elastic from his wrist and untangling it from his many bracelets. “I think I can help you tame this mane.” 

Despite the rising heat to his cheeks, Nathanael managed a scowl in Luka’s direction. 

And yet, just a few moments later, Nathanael found himself sitting between Luka’s legs, blush beyond controllable as Luka’s long calloused fingers combed through his hair, gentle and well-practiced as he untangled knots and lightly massaged his scalp. Nathanael was in heaven, put even more at ease as Luka hummed a sweet tune under his breath. 

The cold was no longer a problem for Nathanael as he felt the warmth radiating from his proximity to Luka. And as far as he was concerned, Ladybug and Chat Noir could take their time. He was in no rush to leave and Luka seemed to be happy to keep him warm. 

[caffeinetheory]

Can I humbly request some fake dating Jasonette?

Okay fair warning I kinda went ham and this is long, it’s like ten pages but for you it was worth it, I hope you enjoy it <3<3<3 now without further adieu:

///

Jason was in dire need of a date for the upcoming Gala, why you might ask? Well someone wasn’t thinking and said they had a secret girlfriend, which didn’t exist. Now the whole family was happy he had finally found someone. Dick was the most persistent, the hopeless romantic he was. 

 Telling Diana about over lunch a 2 months before the big annual charity gala was either the best decision he made or one he would regret, only time would tell. 

 She laughed in his face at his stupidity, but was willing to help. She sent a text and rolled her eyes when she got a response a few minutes later, “My sister will do it, be prepared to meet her next week at your place,” and that was that. He wasn’t expecting to actually get a date from her but hey, if it worked then he’ll go with it. He had about 2 months to make it believable, but god why did it have to be an Amazon.

 A knock on his apartment door at 3 a.m. was now how Jason would be meeting who ever Diana had convinced to do this “fake date” thing with him, so a 5”6’ women pushing herself into his apartment when the door was opened certainly woke him up.

 “And who might you be?” the door closed behind him with a soft click, the woman was surveying the room with a judgemental look, ‘lovely’. She turned sharply to him, her distaste clear on her face, “Someone who lost a bet so I owe Diana a favor,” she visibly sighed and relaxed slightly, “I’m sorry, my name is Marinette Prince, but you can call me Mari, nice to meet you.” Mari held her hand to the bewildered Jason who hesitantly shook it, “Jason Todd but I'm going to assume you already knew that.”

 And that was the rocky start to their relationship. Mari had been living on Themyscira for the last few years so she needed some time to get used to living in the rest of the world. To say she was ecstatic to be able to wear more modern fashion would be an understatement. Their first ‘date’ was in the fashion district a few days after she made herself at home in his apartment. Six hours after they started Mari was finally satisfied, and Jason could no longer feel his arms. They decided to eat dinner at one of the hole-in-the-walls on their way back to Jason’s place. 

 Neither knew how the conversation had gotten on the different costumes of the various heroes and villains but it had sent Mari off on a rant. Despite himself Jason was enjoying every word she said, every critique and every praise. To be fair there wasn’t as much praise was there was critique, but to say his ego wasn’t inflated when “one of the rare acceptable ones” was the Red Hood would be a straight up lie. It was the first time Mari was acting with little to no filter, and granted they hadn’t known each other long he could tell this was rare for her. He was finding himself proud that he was the one to get her to be open like that, why he couldn’t tell you but it did nonetheless.

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

The two had fallen into domestic life pretty quickly, maybe to quickly, but that didn’t matter. When Jason came home to a clean apartment and dinner being made by his ‘girlfriend’ he was surprisingly okay with it.

 “How was your day?” Mari was placing two plates of something heavenly on the small table just outside of the kitchen. Was that table always there? “It was decent, yours?” he began to dig in while a drink was placed next to him and Mari took her seat across from him. “It was nice, I finally got around to cleaning this place up,” her hair was put in a pair of double buns as she wore some shorts and a tank top clearly having changed recently. 

 “You know you didn’t have to right?” 

 “I enjoy organizing and consider it a small thanks for helping me with shopping the other day and dealing with my rants,” she had a small smile on her face.

 The rest of the night was spent showing Jason where she put everything. The number of guns didn't faze her but living surrounded by weapons he supposed that made sense. The organized first-aid kit was a god send though, on more ruined towels to stop the bleeding. 

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

The next date Jason planned was a movie, it was Diana’s idea. He couldn’t figure out why taking Mari to an anniversary replaying of an animated superhero movie from almost ten years ago would be in her words “comedy gold”. That was until Mari saw the opening theme and let out a loud groan.

 An hour and fifteen minutes later the credits start to roll and Mari is practically dragging him out of the theater. “This was Diana’s idea wasn’t it?!” Jason couldn’t help the chuckle escaping him, Diana was right this was golden, the only thing she got this heated about what the costumes but this felt more personal. “I swear to the gods, I hate that movie! Nothing was right, He’s like my brother! And I may have been young but I wasn’t STUPID?!” Mari realizes her misstep and quickly covered her mouth dropping Jason’s wrist making him stumble, “Well, M’Lady,” he got punched for that, “I am inclined to believe the totally historically accurate animated film,” she rolled her eyes at him, “It does explain a lot though, and lets just say you're not the only one with red suits in their past,” a wink and another punch in the arm and they left the theater a laughing mess leaning on each other so they wouldn’t fall over. “Oh you arse,” “You know you love me,” another light punch, this one with very little behind it, “Worth it!”

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

Their third date was more impulsive than the last one. It had been a tough week. For Jason his family was hounding him for details about his girl and the last case he helped with took more effort than he thought it would. Mari on the other hand had been working all week on commission (how Bruce Wayne found out about her she didn't want to know) sketches, she had to make close to ten outfits for the Gala in a month and a half, sure she could do it but the perfectionist in her meant very little sleep. She still had hers and Jason’s to make, not that he knew that yet. 

 That Saturday they found themselves at a small coffee shop Tim liked to rave about. It was homey place, and they both needed to get out of the house. 

 “You know if the replacement sees us you’re gonna have to talk about how we met-” a finger shushed him, Mari looked more dead than Tim did, she needed her coffee fix, anything else could wait.

“Shhhhh Coffee now, annoying family later,” her words were slightly slurred, she hadn’t slept in two days but she finished the sketches to be approved so that was a positive. 

 Once the once the vanilla and cinnamon coffee hit her system she was her joyful self again. Jason had gotten himself a honey chamomile tea, it always helped with the stress. What was originally supposed to be a quick in and out ended up with them spending most of the morning just chatting. 

 They talked about anything and everything. They had been living together for about 3 weeks now so they were leaning the other’s quirks. She finally told him what she was working on, and laughed as his face scrunched up hearing his adoptive fathers name, she had to admit it was kinda cute. Mari also came clean about needed his measurements so they could have matching outfits, she showed him the designs. Jason had to admit he was impressed, and noticing how they looked like something MDC would make he learned another thing about the girl with him. She sure was full of secrets.

 The rest of the day after their lovely coffee ‘date’ was spent going to fabric stores getting the stuff she needed to make everyone's outfits. Each one had elements that hinted subtly to their alter egos and pasts while still have a consistent color scheme and accents that paired the couples. 

 Jason gained yet another layer of appreciation for the girl, what couldn't she do?

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

Turns out taking her to the Gotham Botanical Gardens was a way better idea than Jason had originally thought it would be. The plants seemed to grow and perk up as she walked by. Her smile brighten up the whole room; as she twirled in a pale green sundress inspired by the keeper of the gardens Jason couldn’t help but smile as well. She really looked like a goddess in this light. He couldn’t be happier he helped bring that smile and joy to her face, she deserved the world. When he started thinking like that he couldn’t tell you but the idea this would end soon was one he avoided thinking about. Maybe there wouldn’t be an end, but only time would tell wouldn’t it?

 Ivy sensed something was different in her precious gardens and went to investigate, her girlfriend followed to make sure on one got overly hurt. Both of them were shocked to see the plants blooming more than usual and just two people walking the gardens. The girl seemed to be making the pants so happy Ivy just had to talk with her, so she quietly made her was over to the young women hoping to not scare her. Harley made her way over to the former Robin, a little teasing was in order. 

 Yet another surprise from the former Ladybug he probably should have seen coming, Ivy adored the woman, insisting that she come more often to which Mari eagerly agreed complementing Ivy’s botanical knowledge the whole time. Suprisong himself he didn’t deny Harley’s tasing about his feelings for her, she really was something special wasn’t she?

-----------

When Mari found out Jason hadn’t seen all of the Star Wars movies she made him sit with her all weekend to watch them, he only agreed if they would watch all of Lord of the Rings and the Hobbit trilogy the next weeked. 

 Their next two weekends were now booked and snack runs were made. Jason made the Living room into a palace of blankets and pillows while Mari prepared snacks and drinks. They wouldn’t be getting up for awhile.

 When episode 3’s credits were rolling Mari made an offhand comment about how hot Anakin was and how she felt bad for his fate, well Jason felt a little envious. Something about misunderstood, dark haired boys was Mari’s type apparently. The subtle hints were lost on him but they enjoyed the rest of the films. They skipped the newer trilogy for time and so they had something to watch in theaters.

 Mari fell asleep on his arm mid way through episode 6 and Jason couldn’t bring himself to wake her, he fell asleep as the end credits rolled. Both had a content smile on their faces as they dreamed of fantasy worlds long ago and far far away.

--------

Mari had a surprise for Jason, “Come on Jay, get out of bed already,” she was pulling him out of bed on a tuesday, TUESDAY! 

 With much prodding and poking Mari was able to get them out of the apartment by 8, she had a surprise for him and refused to tell him what it was. “Just trust me it will be worth it,” she handed him his helmet and got on his bike. He found himself not minding someone else driving his bike for once.

 The wind was blowing fast as they left the center of the city, they were in the outskirts in a more smalltown area of the city. It was like a whole different world like they had gone to a place untouched by the corruption of Gotham propper. They finally slowed down and parked in front of an older building. Secret Cave the sign read, no way, did she really go out of her way to take him here. 

 Taking off her helmet she shook her head to loosen her ponytail, he took this chance to really look at her. She was wearing a red v-neck under one of his older leather jackets and some dark blue jeans. She had a small black bag what went with her combat boots, both had flowers embroidered on them, he had to admit she was beautiful. 

 “Come on Jay, I got a surprise for you,” she was pulling his hand now as they entered the spacious store, books covered every surface and there were rows upon rows of selves. It was almost hard to move, not wanting to disturb the books but they had made it to one of the small sitting areas, “Wait here I’ll be right back.” Jaso found himself obeying and looking at the books in the area, lots of classic literature in fancy leather bound editions and some of the quintessential plays everyone had to read at some point in their original language, this was heaven for a book nerd like him.

 20 Minutes later a hand covered his eyes, “Guess who,” her laugh melted his heart, “I don’t know, maybe… one Mari” he scooped her up in a hug, “I love you so much,” before he could realize what he had said, “I know you big nerd, I love you too.”

 When he finally put her down, the blush was on both of their faces at their confessions, ‘they didn’t really mean that did they’ she gave him a thick parcel. “Open it later big guy, but consider it a thank you for everything.” her blush seemed to get worse but so was his, maybe it was the room, yeah it had to be right? “I should be the one thanking you but okay…” he trailed off not quite knowing where to go with this conversation, there was so many things he wanted to say to her but he couldn’t get the words out of his throat. Unknown to him Mari was in the same boat, after a beat of silence, “Want to go to the café next door than browse some more?” “Absolutely.”

 They left the shop, hand in hand, and spent the rest of the afternoon together exploring the surrounding area and exploring the store, the gift still untouched for now.

 When he would eventually open it a few days later he found red leather bound copies of all his favorites with a J engraved into the cover. These were something he’d treasure for as long as he lived.

-----------

It was the last weekend before the Gala, all the outfits were done and fitted so mari had free time, and Jason had cleared the day to spend with his ‘girlfriend’, were the quotes still there? Were they something more now? Hopefully he’d find out tonight.

 It was Roy and Diana’s idea. A dinner at an upscale restaurant, the Ocelot came to mind so he got reservations for the two of them. Diana insisted on covering it, and Roy made sure he had the perfect suit. To say Jason was nervous would be an understatement but it only got worse when Mari stepped out of her room in a floor length dress that made her look like a straight up greek goddess, she was stunning and that felt like an understatement. Her hair was lightly curled and was flowing down her back, a small golden flowers rested atop her head in a crown shape, he was glad Roy had helped him get a suite that made him look mature but he felt he still paled in comparison to her beauty. 

 They had a lovely dinner, they had gotten a table secluded in the back. It started with nervous and awkward conversation that quickly melted away into the easy conversation they usually shared, it was one of the nicest dates they had ever been on. It felt like a real date with no pressures to fake something, somehow this fake relationship had turned into a real true and meaningful one. 

 The ‘couple’ was so engrossed with each other they hadn’t noticed the spying eyes that watched from different areas of the restaurant. There were at least 16 different people watching their date if not more but if they noticed they didn’t care. The only thing on their mind was the person in front of them. 

 As they were leaving the dining room they had eaten in, Jason finally found the courage to ask, “Does this mean-” Mari cut him off with a kiss on the cheek and a tighter grip on his hand, “Absolutely Jay, I wouldn’t trade this for the world.” 

 Small cheers could be heard in the room as they had left, it had been a success!

-----------

It was finally the night of the gala, Jason and his official girlfriend Marientte would be making their debut to the public. To say it was stressful would be putting it lightly, all the other outfits had been dropped off at the Wayne Manor the day before so that was at least taken care of. They had two hours before the Gala would start, so just over an hour to get ready. The apartment was a mess, making sure they had everything.

 Jason’s suit was a dark crimson color with a midnight blue tie to tie it in with the rest of his family. The intricate beading and embroidery shined and became seen when the light hit it right, his hair was fluffy as usual but more kept than usual, the white streak pushed to the side with the rest of his hair. He looked like a proper gentleman thanks to his lady. She had a floor length ball gown that made her look like a princess.  The bodice was the same midnight blue as his tie and had off the shoulder sleeves that were see through. The skirt that flowed from her his was made with the same crimson red with balck beading and embroidery in a variety of patterns. The apple blossoms were the most obvious and they traveled up her bodices in a blood red color that was made more clear in the right light, she wore black greek sandless underneath her dress and her hair was pinned to the side, a golden flower crown that Diana insisted she wore atop her head, if she looked like a goddess when they went to dinner, she was simply ethereal now, words could do no justice for how stunning she looked right now. To think she made this all by hand was beyond him.

 Hand in hand they entered the ballroom, all eyes were on them. The camera flashes made them sparkle as they made their way down the carpet. Every reporter wanted to know everything about them and their outfits, this was the first time Jason had been seen at one of these actually looking happy and not coming with his family. It was the talk of everyone there.

 “Thank the gods we finally made it inside,” Mari was already pulling him to a place she could get a drink. “You still need to introduce me properly to your family you know.” 

 “Thanks for reminding me, you know I’m sure you  have met them all already.”

 “That’s not the point Jay!” she hit his arm softly then picked up two glasses of champagne, “Cheers?”

 “Cheers” they clinked their glasses and chugged them down. It was going to be quite the night.

 They had finally made the rounds to  all of his family and the important people of the gala and 2 hours in they had a moment to themselves. 

 “This is why I avoided these for so long.”

 “I know right, to many fake pleasantries if you ask me.” 

 “At least we are in this together,” both said at the same time, causing them to burst into a fit of giggles.

 “God I could kiss you right now.”

 “Then why don’t you,” without giving Jason a chance to backtrack Marientte pulled him down to her and locked their lips in a passionate kiss. It was pure bliss, something they both needed and longed for and finally had. It felt right, like home. “Took you long enough,” Jason had a smirk as they pulled away, the applause didn't reach their ears as they pulled each other into another one this time less needy but soft, they felt whole in each others arms, this was what they had been missing for so long and now that they had it, they wouldn’t give it up for the world.

 ///

Asks are still open, don’t hesitate to ask!!

[trashystar420]

Babysitter Chapter 6 Maribat

It had been a few days since Marinette discovered the ‘villain’ that is Damien Wayne, or is that ReALLY his name. After all he IS a villain.... according to Trixx, which could be considered a reliable source. Fifty-fifty.

She couldn’t focus at the discovery Trixx found. Aparently he was looking in her history. Not a good thing. Especially if as the current guardian of rather powerful magical jewelry, must remain a secret from anyone and everyone. Especially from supposed supervillains.

“Why me.” The designer moaned to herself. Resting her head on her sketch book. Tikki just gave her holder a pat.

“Tikki what am I going to do? A random person. A villain is now aware of the existence of kwamis and will be looking around for them. And he KNOWS that I know.”

“Don’t worry Marinette, if there is anyone who can figure this out. It’s you! After all you are ladybug.”

“Was Tikki. Was. It’s been years Perhaps I’m losing my touch.” She thought out loud.

“Your not thinking of.”

“You know what Tikki. I think Ladybug needs to come out from the shadows once more.” For the first time in a while. She felt a spark. A feeling. It was like as though she were reborn into a new person. Tikki didn’t say anything.

“Tikki spots on!”

...

...

...

“Alright, Robin Jr., Red Hood. Get in position. Red Robin, on your signal.” BlackBird (aka Damien yes I know I said Robin a few chappies ago but screw that!) ordered. The two younger birds also stayed in position. Red hood’s guns and Robin Jr.’s batons at the ready.

This was it. They finally found Mr. Freeze’s hideout. Red Robin was currently drawing the crazed ice fanatic into a trap. That trap being Dick and Jason. Damien stayed on the sidelines. He wanted his younger brothers to gain some experience on their own, and if something were to happen, he could intervene.

“Alright guys he’s right on my tail, so make this quick before I’m frozen over.” Red Robin warned. Jason cocked his guns at the door. Dick above the door. Ready to jump the villain.

The door burst open. Tim tumbling out there. Mr.Freeze came soon after, and that was when Jason shot with 100% accurate precision. At his freezing tank,resulting in the tank to explode, releasing all the ice.

“Gah!”

“RB Jr. NOW!!!”

And the baby bird managed to land a solid hit on his noggin, rendering him unconscious.

“I-I did it!!!” Dick cheered. Jason swept him off his feet and spun him around, also proud of his baby bro.

“We did it! I’m so proud of you.” Jason told.

Dick shook his head.

“You were the amazing one Red Hood. You managed to shoot at his tanks without breaking a sweat. Your a real marksman!!!”

“Dawwww ya really think so lil D- AHEAM!” Damien interrupted. Jason reluctantly put down little Dick.

“What’s it to you?” Red hood spat out. Robin Jr hid behind Hood.

“Don’t yell your real names out loud, you never know who or what can hear.” The experienced vigilante breathed out. Much like his father, was also pinching the bridge of his nose.

“Oh sorry BlackBird.” Dick apologized. Red hood still gave him a look, well sort of. His mask basically hides his face, but Blackbird could bet all his money that Jason was giving him a withering glare.

“Alright now lets give the ice freak over to the police and get our butts home huh? I want to get in a nice warm bath.” Tim than pushes both his younger brothers out, letting BlackBird handle the cleanup.

“Why is it always me.” The oldest bird asked to himself. He dials for the police not long after.

...

...

...

Ladybug jumped building to building with the same amount of grace she had back when Hawkmoth and Hawkmoth 2.0 reined their terror down on Paris. With a practiced swing, she threw her yo-yo on a protruded ledge, and utilizing the momentum from the yo-yo swung herself up and far. She kept repeating the process for a few more times. The all too familiar cool breeze. The adrenaline. Marinette felt like the wind.

When Marinette transformed, she was surprised to find her hair much shorter, which wasn’t a bad thing. Long hair could get in the way during a fight and she DID not like ponytails. Perhaps a bun, but it just wouldn’t look good with the costume, or that is was the Bluenette thought.

She landed on top of an apartment, and sat on the ledge, her feet dangling off the building, without a care in the world. The heroine let the breeze hit her face again as her big blue eyes stare into the Milky Way. She just simply let herself get lost in the feeling of tranquility. Breathe in breathe out. Repeated breathing techniques taught to her by the previous guardian, Master Fu. Now deceased due to natural causes.

Her bittersweet memories interrupted by the blaring sounds of a robbery.

“Who robs a bank in the middle of night?” She bitterly spoke to no one in particular. Without a second thought, she jumped to the crime scene to find two burly men in typical black ski masks and all black clothing. Too occupied in carrying the heavy-looking sac of money and precious gold, Ladybug coughed to alert the two theives.

“Ah shit here another one of them!!! This time a spotted freak!!!” Theif one bemoaned.

“Shit Carlie should we just the goods and scram?” Thief two asked. Thief one warily gazed at the mysterious heroine, before reluctantly tossing the bag to her.

“Keep it, we want no trouble.” He gave in, thief two did the same. Mari gave a look.

“I don’t want stolen goods, I came here to stop you two!” Ladybug clarifies. Thief two made an ‘oh’ sound, while thief one nodded.

“You two gentlemen are smart, so why go through with this?” She asked. The two were taken aback by the question, but before thief one answered, thief two spoke up.

“We are desperate ma’am. Our mama is terribly sick and we got no bills to pay for her medicine. The doc said if she don’t get it she gonna...” and then proceeded to bawl. Thief one patted his brother and also began to shed some tears.

“Dammit Dyl, I told you not to cry- hic- your -hic- gonna make me cry....” and now Ladybug is comforting two burly men crying their sorrows out. The spotted heroine asked how much the treatment costed.

“Over $100,000.” He answered. Ladybug winced. Remembering that she earned over $100,000 over the last two weeks due to online commissions and her babysitting gig.

“How about you two show me to your mama first, after we put all the money back.” The two nodded and did just that.

...

...

...

“Dylan!!! Charles!!! Why are you two dressed like that?!?” Mrs. Bension asked.

“We’re sorry mama. We needed the money to heal ya.” Charles answered. That earned the two a hard slap.

And a hug. More tears ensued. Ladybug awkwardly stayed on the sidelines at the display. And then Mama Bension looked at Ladybug.

“You’re not gonna report them to the police are ya?” She asked with baited breathe. Ladybug looked. And really looked at the family before her. They looked so close together, and so happy. It’s not like they wanted to rob a bank to get rich, all they wanted was enough to save their dying mother.

Taking an exasperated breathe, she looks over to mama Bension.

“No ma’am. This secret stays with the four of us. I understand that they were in a terrible position that would’ve made anyone desperate. Now tell me, what is it that you have?”

She had breast cancer.

Ladybug pulled out a roll of money. Around $200,000. It will be over $100,000. That much Marinette knew.

“This should cover the bill. And if you need more or anything else”, she proceeds to take out a little bug, like communicator. It was smaller than her nail.

“Press this small button here” and the bug thing released its wings, displaying a monitor.

“It will alert me. Now I must go. Take care and good luck. And please. Don’t resort to thievery again.” And she took off into the night. The Benisons looked at the amount of money she handed to them. The brothers cheered with tears of joy, while the mom looked over the strange device she left.

“What a strange woman. Kind, but strange.”

...

...

...

“Well today’s the day.” Marinette spoke, while looking at the calender. The day being her scheduled babysitting day. She informed Bruce ahead of time if she could take the two boys out with her, and he agreed a bit too eagerly.

“Alright we are first going to the Gotham museum first, and then we will take a nice walk in the dog park. And finally, the amusement park. Hey guys did I miss anything?”

“Picnic basket check.” Tikki informed.

“First aid kit check.” Longg answered.

“Phone at 100%.” Pollen shouted over the counter.

“Are you ready Marinette?” Kalkki asked playfully. She just rolled her eyes at the sassy kwami.

“Alright let’s go you guys.” And off the five went.

Done! That was chapter 6 ya’ll enjoy!!!!

[quickspinner]

Killer Combo - Ch 3 Home-field Advantage

Chapter 1 | Chapter 2 | Chapter 3 | Chapter 4 | Chapter 5 | Chapter 6 | Chapter 7 | Chapter 8 Epilogue | Bonus Tidbits | ART inspired by this story! | AO3 | Fiction Master Post

Marinette spent the morning of the day Luka was supposed to come over working in the bakery, helping her mother pack up purchases and prepare orders for pickup, which at least had the advantage of keeping her too busy to fret over the cute boy coming to spend the afternoon in her room and the many embarrassing things that had happened the last time something like this had happened. She’d been so absorbed in what she was doing that she didn’t realize he’d arrived until she turned around, her arms full of loaded bakery boxes, and nearly screeched and dropped them all at the sight of him. 

Luka was quick, putting a hand on the top box to keep it from sliding off and catching a corner of the lower one to stop its dip towards the ground. He steadied the stack until Marinette got a grip, on both her wits and the boxes. “Woah, sorry,” he grinned. “Didn’t mean to startle you.” 

“You didn’t,” she blurted, and then winced, face burning. “Well. Obviously you did, but it wasn’t your fault, my brain was on another planet or something. Give me just a minute to finish this order and I’ll be right with you.”

“Sure.” Luka stepped back with a good-humored smile, and Marinette turned to set the boxes on the counter for her mother, who was ringing up the order.   

“Thanks for the help, dear,” Sabine smiled. “I can handle the rest. Better get your friend upstairs before your father sees him. You know how he is.” Sabine gave Luka an apologetic smile. “He gets a little, uh...enthusiastic, when Marinette brings new friends over.”

Luka chuckled. “He can’t be much worse than my mom.”

“Yes, he can,” Marinette groaned. “Thanks, Maman.” 

“Have fun, dears,” Sabine said absently, turning back to the counter. 

“Thank you, Madame,” Luka said politely, following Marinette through the back. 

“Sorry about the stairs,” Marinette said as they began to climb. “There’s kind of a lot. My room’s all the way at the top.” 

“No problem,” Luka shrugged. He glanced at her and then away. “You look nice.” 

Marinette rolled her eyes to cover the fluttering in her stomach. “Don’t get excited, this is how I always dress at home.” It was true, too, she was only wearing a simple sundress that she had made in crisp pink and white fabric, with black piping and bows around the collar and straps. Her room, being both above the bakery and on the floor most exposed to the sun, tended to be warm. She’d contemplated dressing Ladybug style but decided keeping up her tough image in front of Luka wasn’t worth being uncomfortable, and...she didn’t want to. She’d put her hair up into a bun covered with a piece of patterned cloth that matched her dress and tied with a lace ribbon, since she was working in the bakery. She looked nothing like Ladybug right now and she knew it, and she wondered very much what he thought about it. 

“Really.” Luka paused, glancing at her again as Marinette opened the door to the living area, and then followed her through. “Not what I expected, but I guess there’s a lot I don’t know about you.”

“Honestly I tend to keep the gaming part of my life pretty separate from the rest,” Marinette admitted as she turned and motioned him to follow her through the kitchen and up even more stairs. “I don’t hide it or anything, but, a tournament’s a tournament and when it’s over I go back to real life.” 

“Makes sense,” Luka agreed, following her up the stairs. Marinette fought the urge to tug on the hem of her skirt, even though she knew it was long enough to keep him from seeing anything. She did glance back as she opened the trap door of her room and Luka was staring at the step beneath his feet. “Here we are,” she said, popping through. “I don’t want to hear a word about the pink.” 

Once they stepped onto the floor of her room, he didn’t say anything for a moment and she glanced over at him. 

“It’s very…” Luka trailed off, still looking around.

“What?” Marinette asked, a little more sharply than she meant to. 

“Nice, but again, not what I expected,” he shrugged, chuckling. His eyes fell on the stack of gaming magazines stacked neatly to one side of her desk. “Except that.” He grinned, going over to lift one from the stack and turn it towards her. It was open to one of his interviews with his picture in the corner. “You been checking up on me?”

“Of course,” Marinette said, turning away quickly to get out the controllers—and so he wouldn’t see her blush. “You and everyone else I play regularly. As Max would say, the more data the better.” 

“He’s pretty scientific about it, isn’t he?” Luka said, laying the magazine back down on the stack, his gaze caught by the poster hanging above Marinette’s desk. “What’s this?” he nodded toward it, looking back at her. 

“Goal poster,” Marinette said a little shortly, feeling uncomfortably vulnerable. The poster had started out as the tournament advertisement. Marinette had added pictures of equipment and materials she intended to buy, a large printout of the logo she had designed for her business, and several handwritten cards with motivational quotes and encouraging words, all arranged around the UMS logo and the prize listings. “I do freelance fashion design and I’d like to get my business jumpstarted.” 

“I see,” Luka said, studying the poster. “Wow. So, wait, those hoodies you guys wear at the matches, did you make those?” He looked at Marinette, and she nodded. “Awesome. You guys always look great. Like a team, I mean, ready to take on the world.”

“That’s the point,” Marinette replied, feeling oddly vulnerable and defensive.

“That’s really smart,” Luka smiled. “I kind of lucked in to being niche-famous but you guys are prepared. That’ll really draw some attention if you make it to the finals.”

“ If ,” Marinette sniffed. “I hate that word.”

Luka chuckled. “Well then we better get started, I’d hate to hold you back.” 

Marinette grinned, tossing him a controller, which he caught with ease. “To answer your question,” she kicked a hot pink rolling desk chair over to him and turned the other around, falling into it, “Max is very scientific and very precise and he knows how to work his stats to get the maximum benefit. Buuut he’s not super flexible and sometimes gets a little overwhelmed when we need to think fast.” 

“That’s why you make a great team, huh?” Luka said, sitting in the chair and wheeling himself over next to her. “You think on your feet and outside of the box. You do things people normally wouldn’t think of and when you’re in a tight spot, that’s when you get really crazy.” He chuckled. “And somehow you make it work.”

“Usually,” Marinette grumbled, making a face, and Luka coughed, covering a laugh, she was sure. She wheeled up to the computer, silently horrified by how much she was blushing as she dialed up the video call with Max. All Luka did was compliment her game play! He did that all the time! Just not usually so...analytically. In fact usually he complimented her when she landed a hit on him. Of course it made sense he’d observe her gameplay and take notes, she did the same, and it was nothing to get excited over.

She really hoped Max couldn’t tell through the webcam. He looked terrible, but he’d insisted that she call him, anxious, she thought, over whether Luka could really pull his weight in a team competition. 

“Hey, Max,” Marinette smiled sympathetically. “We’re all set up on our end, are you good?” 

“Not even remotely,” Max muttered miserably. “But let’s begin. Viperion—Luka—I have some observations.”

“Okay, I’m listening,” Luka said, rolling a little closer. Marinette fought the urge to move away and tried to focus on Max’s laborious recitation, wincing a little at just how bad he sounded. He should be resting, she thought, but the only way to get him to rest was to listen, so they did. 

***

“This isn’t working.” Marinette sighed and put her controller down.

“I concur,” Max said reluctantly. “Your performance as a team has declined considerably since we began.” He sighed, which turned into a hacking cough that made Marinette wince. 

She put that aside for a moment and swiveled in her chair to face Luka, then grabbed the edge of his chair and turned it so that he was looking at her too. “Luka, you can’t keep doing this. Being a team player doesn’t mean blindly following orders. You need to take some initiative on your own.”

“Marinette is correct,” Max’s creaky voice came from the speaker. “Your willingness to take correction is appreciated but it is pointless if our advice handicaps you. You need to move more freely.”

Luka winced. “Sorry. I just don’t want to step on your toes, you guys clearly have a system and—”

“Just because we have a system doesn’t mean that—”

“Marinette,” Max interrupted. “Perhaps it would be best if you and Viperion work from here without my intervention. Vi—Luka, there is no need for you to feel bound to do things the way we do them. Our approach is optimized to our skills and relationship. You and Ladybug should formulate a unique partnership suited to you both rather than to me.” Both listeners winced as Max coughed again wetly. “And to be honest, I believe I could use a nap.”   

“Of course, Max,” Marinette said immediately. “Rest and get better. Don’t worry about us, we’ll figure it out.” 

“Feel better, man,” Luka added. “You take care of yourself right now.” 

“Thank you both. I have confidence you can work this out. I was hoping to be more useful to you, but...well. It appears the only advice I can give you both is—” he grinned weakly. “Adapt or die.” 

“That’s encouraging,” Marinette snorted, and then softened. “Go to sleep, Max. We’ll figure this out.” 

“Good luck.” 

There was silence for a beat after Max hung up. “I’ll go get us some snacks,” Marinette said, pushing back from the desk. “Maybe it’ll give us a little boost. Any allergies or preferences I should know about?”

“Nah, I’m good,” Luka sighed, falling against the back of the chair and staring at the controller in his hands before setting it down on the desk and raking both hands through his hair. “Whatever you’ve got works for me.” 

“Okay,” Marinette said, setting a hand on his shoulder as she passed. “Don’t get discouraged, Luka. We’ll work it out.”

“Yeah,” Luka attempted a grin, but it lacked the power of his usual smile. “I know.”

When Marinette came back with a platter laden with an assortment of sweet and savory pastries, Luka was holding one of the picture frames that lined the back of her desk.

“Hey!” Marinette pouted, glaring.

“Oh, sorry,” he said, turning the picture to face her. “I didn’t mean to be nosy. It’s just, that’s my sister, in the middle. With the dark hair. I didn’t realize you knew each other.” 

She looked at the picture and blinked. “Couffaine,” Marinette said, comprehension dawning. “I should have realized. I’d forgotten Juleka had a brother. I haven’t seen her since she changed schools back in middle school so I didn’t make the connection.” She looked him over, trying to think. “I could’ve sworn I’d met Juleka’s brother before,” she said thoughtfully, tapping a finger to her lips in thought. 

“I dye my hair a different color for tournament season,” Luka said, tugging one turquoise lock. “Usually I’m more ‘Lagoon Blue’” he grinned, pulling out his phone. He turned it toward her and showed her a picture of himself standing with Juleka, with a shaggy blue ombre instead of the turquoise on top. “I only just cut it this year, too, so it would’ve been longer back then.”

“Okay, yeah,” Marinette nodded. “You used to pick her up from school sometimes.” She giggled. “I remember now, you had way more of a baby face back then.”

“Yeah.” Luka grinned as he put away his phone. “It’s been a few years, I’ve grown up a bit. So has she. So have you,” he added, setting the framed picture back down. Marinette winced a little, trying not to look at the picture, at the skinny girl with the too-wide grin. “Juleka hated it when I picked her up after school,” Luka chuckled. “So I did it as often as I could.”

“How’s she doing?” Marinette asked, putting the plate on the desk between them before she sat down again. “I know it was rough for her for a while there, when she left.”

“She’s doing much better,” Luka smiled. “She still has difficult days, but it’s a process. She’s made huge strides from where she was back then.” 

“That’s good to hear,” Marinette smiled back tentatively. She handed him a napkin and waved him towards the pastries. 

They ate in thoughtful silence, Marinette trying to figure out a better approach, and Luka lost in his own thoughts. More than once she glanced at him and found his eyes on her, but each time he dropped his gaze to his food.

“What?” Marinette finally asked, blushing, not sure if she was annoyed or amused or something else entirely. 

Luka started and then shook his head. “I’m sorry, I don’t mean to stare. I swear I’m not a creep. It’s just you look really different at the matches with the clothes and the makeup—” He gestured around his eyes. “I guess I’m having trouble reconciling that with this.” This time he waved a hand that encompassed all of her. “Like I said, I get why you do it, the image, it makes total sense, but I didn’t realize underneath it all you were so…” He grinned. “Sweet.” 

Marinette’s face flamed red and he choked on a laugh, trying valiantly to keep a straight face though his twitching lips gave him away. Lips that she was really trying not to look at any more than necessary.

She looked down, smoothing her dress over her knees absently. “I don’t think you’re a creep,” she said, in as neutral a tone as possible. “You’re...you’re a good guy, Luka. I can see that. I know I haven’t always been the nicest to you so...well, I’m sorry if you thought I didn’t like you. Sometimes my competitiveness gets the better of me and things come out harsher than I meant.” 

“Hey, I love that about you,” Luka said so easily that she was sure that he didn’t mean anything by it, though it still made her face flame up again. “Both the way you don’t take crap from anybody, and the fire that you have for the win. There’s nothing wrong with being competitive. You still have fun, and that’s why you’re so much fun to play. You don’t give an inch but you haven’t lost sight of why you love the game, either.” 

What a thing to be embarrassed about, but Marinette could no more help her blush than she could stop the sun from rising. “And now here I am playing with the league poster boy,” she teased, not looking at him. 

“Ugh, don’t remind me,” Luka groaned. “It’s kind of embarrassing. I mean, I know I’m good, but I’m not—” he gestured at the stack of magazines. “I don’t even know what to think about it half the time. I mean, I get it, sort of, but…” He shook his head, and ran a self-conscious hand through his hair and down to his neck. “Why me?” 

Marinette gave him a flat look. “It’s because you’re hot, Luka. Don’t act like you don’t know. You’re hot and you’re ‘the cool guy,’” she made finger quotes. “And they think your image sells. You have a brand too, whether you did it on purpose or not.”  

To her mild surprise, he ducked his head a little at that, and the grin that spread across his face was goofy and embarrassed and not even remotely cool. Marinette giggled in spite of herself. “Don’t act like you didn’t know,” she teased him again.

“Yeah, well,” Luka glanced up at her. “There’s knowing it and there’s believing it and the two things are farther away than I’d like them to be sometimes. So maybe it helps to hear it out loud sometimes.” He winked at her and Marinette turned red as a cherry. 

Putting her nose in the air, she turned away from him and grabbed a pastry off the plate, shoving it in her mouth and ignoring Luka’s quiet laughter. God, had she really said that? Ugh, how embarrassing. And he was Juleka’s brother, too, that was a whole other level of weird. Poor Juleka, she’d had such a difficult time back then, suddenly targeted by the school bully for no better reason than Juleka had grown up a bit sooner than the rest of them, and her slender, elegant build and unique style were more competition than Chloe cared for. 

Not that Chloe would ever have admitted it, choosing instead to hammer away at all of the ways Juleka was different, and the naturally sensitive girl hadn’t stood a chance against Chloe’s unreasoning cruelty, and—

Marinette suddenly had a flash of insight and she blurted, “Is it because of Juleka? Is that why you’re so outspoken about the sportsmanship enforcement?”

Luka froze, and Marinette bit her lip, suddenly realizing that she was asking him a very personal question. She opened her mouth to take it back, but Luka was already speaking.

“I’d like to think I’d be that way anyway,” he said, his hands slowly curling into fists in his lap. “I’d like to think I’d do the right thing regardless.” He sighed gustily. “But we’ll never know, because all of that did happen, and let’s just say I have a special place in my hate for bullies who pick on people for being different. I still don’t like why I get so much publicity, but if they’re going to give it to me, I’m gonna use it, you know? Luka smiled ruefully. “Don’t thank me for it, though, I’m not a hero, just a guy trying to do the right thing.”

“You might be a little bit of a hero,” Marinette again spoke without thinking, and quickly covered her mouth, looking away, utterly mortified. She cleared her throat and then tried to cover. “I bet Juleka thinks so, anyway. Deep down. Where she’ll never ever admit it to you.”

Luka laughed. “Not if her life depended on it,” he chuckled. “Thanks, Marinette.”

“Don’t thank me, either,” Marinette sighed. “I should be apologizing, actually. I wasn’t very good at standing up even for myself back then, let alone anyone else. I should have done more for Juleka. Thinking back on it now I feel like such a coward.”

There was a moment of silence, and Marinette stared down at her hands.

“You guys were just kids,” Luka said finally, a gentleness in his voice that just made her feel more ashamed. “But If you owe anybody an apology, it’d be Juleka and not me. Okay? You and me, we’re good. Let’s just move on.” He put a hand out and squeezed her shoulder lightly. “So, how do we want to try this? Since what we were doing obviously wasn’t working that great.” 

Marinette blew out a frustrated sigh and slumped in her chair. “I just don’t understand,” she complained. “We did fine in the tournament. Why are we having problems now?” 

“I’m overthinking,” Luka admitted, tapping the controller on his knee lightly. “You guys are so—”

“Anal?” Marinette said dryly, and Luka gave her a sheepish grin. “It’s okay, you can say it.” 

“I was going to go with analytical, but that too. I’m just not used to it,” Luka admitted. “It’s too much information. I can’t keep it all straight in my head and I seize up.”

“That’s fair,” Marinette said thoughtfully, setting her chair in a spin as she considered. “Max is very logical, and you’re more intuitive. I’m somewhere in between. So...when we take away your flexibility, limit your thinking, it starts to be a problem for you. In the tournament, you just did your thing, and I worked around you, and we did okay. Not the level we needed, but if we start with that—” 

Luka reached out and caught the arms of her chair to stop her spin, and Marinette blinked up at him, his face suddenly much closer than she expected. 

“Marinette,” he quirked an amused eyebrow at her. “You’re making me dizzy.” 

“Right,” Marinette grinned, trying not to shrink back. “Sorry. Habit.”

“Obviously,” he chuckled, his breath fanning over her face. “So, you’re thinking we need, what...to work less like a team?”

“Kind of,” Marinette shrugged. “If we can work out a few combo moves that work at strategic moments, like last time, then maybe we don’t have to think so hard, and then the rest, learning how to move around each other and when to strike...that’s just practice.”

Luka nodded slowly. “Okay. So how do we do that?” 

Marinette shrugged. “We’ll stop trying to think every move through and just play, and hopefully let our strategy evolve naturally for a bit until we figure out the moves we can pull off together and that work the best.” 

Luka grinned right back at her with that saucy tilt to his smile that made her weak in the knees. “Now you’re speaking my language. Go on.” 

“Step one, we need to get you loosened back up again.” She grinned wickedly as an idea occurred to her and Luka’s eyebrows raised slightly.

“And how are you planning to do that?” he asked. 

Marinette’s grin widened, and she leaned forward slightly, a little pleased when he swallowed and leaned back just a hair. “How about a target a little closer to home?” Marinette asked innocently, and Luka’s eyebrows raised further. 

“What did you have in mind?”

Marinette tried not to giggle, but a few escaped her lips as she asked him, “Remember when you said my dad couldn’t be that bad? Are you willing to find out?”

Luka blinked, finally sitting all the way back from her. “Um, sure?”

Marinette got up, still giggling. “I’ll be right back.” 

It took pouting and begging and finally, the teeny tiniest hint that she might kind of like Luka a little bit, but Marinette managed to pull Tom away from the bakery. All of the work for today was long finished, she knew, and he’d just been prepping for tomorrow’s baking. She could help him tonight and make up the time. 

The look on Luka’s face when Tom swept exuberantly into the room was absolutely worth the time she’d be putting in later. She easily recognized the holy shit, he’s big shock on Luka’s face but it quickly gave way to slightly puzzled amusement as Tom carried on about how he was there to show you two how to win Dad style, and then you’d really take that tournament by storm, and have you seen Marinette play? When that drew an exasperated Papa! Haven’t you been listening, of course he has! Tom hastily corrected himself, booming on with of course you have, and she was amazing wasn’t she, and what was your name again son?

Tom cheerfully interrogated Luka as they got the game set up and Marinette handed her father her controller, unable to keep the grin off her face at her papa’s enthusiasm and Luka’s perplexed amusement. She grabbed a sketchbook off her desk and sat back to do a little loosening up of her own as she watched Tom and Luka go head to head. 

It quickly occurred to her that she’d never actually seen Luka play before. Up until now, they’d been in separate pods, and even when they played side by side she was focused on the game and not on Luka. 

Now, though, she had the leisure to sit back and observe, and she found her eyes on Luka instead of the screen more often than not. It was fascinating, the way competition lent a spark to his normally laid-back expression and threaded tension through his frame. She liked his relaxed nature but this energy suited him, too.

Or else she was just hopelessly smitten. What was it with her and incredibly attractive, emotionally unavailable men? 

Luka glanced at her at just that moment and gave her a grin and a wink before his eyes darted back to the screen, and Marinette sank down a little farther in her chair, hiding behind her sketchbook so neither of them would notice her red cheeks. 

You don’t know he’s emotionally unavailable, a voice that sounded a lot like Alya’s whispered in her head. Quit projecting your anxieties and woman up, girl!

Marinette shook herself and focused on her sketching, but that didn’t help much. The image taking shape on her paper was definitely Viperion-inspired. Circular, like her ladybug emblem, but this one was a snake coiled around and back in on itself, grinning around a mouthful of its own tail. Kind of a weird take on the ouroboros, maybe, but it seemed fitting for Luka’s gaming personality and style. Marinette wondered if he would like it.

Not that she was planning on showing him. She set the sketchbook aside face down on the desk as Tom and Luka both leapt out of their chairs, yelling over each other, until finally Luka threw his arms up with that deafening victory whoop Marinette remembered from the competition, and Tom mimed a dramatic death, falling back into his chair in a way that made Marinette wince for her furniture.

“That was awesome,” Luka laughed, reaching over to shake Tom’s hand the same way he always did Marinette’s. 

Tom accepted the handshake good naturedly and laughed, looking toward Marinette. “I can see why you’re obsessed with beating him. I almost had him!”

“Right?” Marinette exclaimed, throwing her hands up. “You think you’ve got him and then bam, something hits you that he set up ages ago and suddenly you’re the one in trouble!”

She paused, her eyes widening slightly as she looked at Luka. “He plays the long game,” she continued thoughtfully, and Luka was giving her that expectant look again, his eyebrows raised as he listened to her speak her thoughts aloud. “I’m good at thinking on the spot,” Marinette said, tapping her finger against her chin. “But you set things up and then just dig in and wait for them to pay off. It’s all about timing for you. It’s not working for us together because you’re trying to keep up with me and that’s not your style.” Luka’s grin was spreading slowly over his face as Marinette’s excitement grew. “That fits in with what we were saying before; why we did better when you did your own thing and I worked around you. So if we work with that...if you get them set up the way you do and create opportunities, weak moments I can take advantage of...Luka, we can work with this.” 

“Well, it sounds like I’m not needed anymore,” Tom said, putting a large hand on each of their shoulders. “I’ll get back to my bakery and let you two get scheming. But you, young man—” He shook his finger at Luka, but there was no malice in the gesture. “As soon as this tournament business is over, I want a rematch.” 

“I’d love that, sir,” Luka chuckled, and staggered as Tom pulled him into a quick half hug.

“Have fun, kids,” Tom told them cheerfully as he went back downstairs. 

Marinette giggled at the slightly dumbfounded look on Luka’s face. “Sorry about that. I know you said you’re a hands-on person, but if he’s too much, you can tell him. He won’t be offended.”

“Nah,” Luka chuckled, sitting back down. “He’s fine. My Dad hasn’t really been in the picture for years, so...it’s actually kind of nice.” He cleared his throat, picking up the controller that Tom had set down and offering it to Marinette. “So...ready to give this another try?” 

Marinette hopped into the chair, wiggling a little bit in excitement as she smiled and reached for the controller. The look in his eyes as she took the it from him made her freeze for a moment, but he just shook his head slightly and looked away, and she would really have liked to know what that smile meant.

Marinette turned hurriedly back to the desk to get them logged back in, hoping he couldn’t tell how fast her heart was suddenly beating.

At least while they played she could keep her mind focused. And they did have fun; so much so that Marinette was surprised when there was a knock on her trapdoor and Alya’s head popped up. 

 “Oh,” Alya stopped, blinking. “I didn’t realize you had company.” With a sinking feeling in her stomach, Marinette watched her check Luka out and turn her sharp eyes on Marinette, who was thankfully  not  blushing just at that moment, though it felt like she had been all afternoon. 

“No worries,” Luka said, smiling, looking up at the sunset light coming through the windows. “I didn’t realize it was getting so late. I should probably go.” He stood up and snagged his hoodie off the back of his chair. “No need to walk me out,” he said, waving Marinette back into her chair when she would have stood up. He slid the hoodie back on over the arms she’d been trying so hard not to look at all afternoon. “You ladies have a good day—or evening I guess, and Marinette, I’ll see you soon. My place next time?” 

“Sure,” Marinette mustered a smile. “Good session, Luka, thanks.” 

Alya watched him go, leaning down the trap door for reasons that Marinette was sure were not appropriate, and then straightened, turning wide eyes to Marinette. “Girl. Spill.” 

Marinette sighed. “He just came over to practice.” 

“Practice what?” Alya snickered, and Marinette rolled her eyes.

“I told you he’s filling in for Max in the tournament this weekend. He’s really good but we’ve only played against one another so he came over to practice and get a code set up so we’re prepared for the next tournament event.” Alya raised her eyebrows expectantly, and Marinette sighed. “And apparently I’m going over to his place in a few days to practice some more.” 

Alya squealed, and Marinette groaned. She turned her back on her best friend and picked up her sketchbook, staring thoughtfully at the serpentine design on the page and mentally thumbing through her stash of green fabrics for something suitable.

[tired-college-student-writing]

Beautiful Versions of Brokenness pt. 2

Summary: Marinette is different. There was no denying it, but none would have guessed that the true reason was soul deep

Continuation of Prompt: If you're into Black Butler, maybe something with that and Miraculous ladybug? Or Black Butler with Demon Bim? I just think you'd do a good job with the Black Butler characters.

Part 1

____________________________________________

Chat Noir reluctantly left so that Ladybug and Sebastian, shortly after, promised to meet up on the next patrol night so that they could properly discuss their unlikely reunion.

Instead of going home, Marinette leads them to the top of the Eiffel Tower. Parisians are used to seeing their heroine and a black figure at the top of the tower, no one would think twice if she arrived there. Sebastian follows as he always did.

“This isn’t my first life after Ciel then,” She hummed, once she arrived, deciding to deal with the first question on her mind.

“No,” Sebastian agreed, as her timer slowly beeped towards its end, “This is my 37th time meeting you since your contract was created. The 21st time you’ve awoken your Phantomhive memories.”

Her eyebrows rose, “it’s only been 130 years since Ciel died, how have I been reborn 37 times?”

The demon all but scoffed, “Really mistress? All these years with beings of heaven and hell toying with your life and you still believe we are playing by earthly rules?”

Marinette just glared, “You’re telling me Hell lacks linear time then? When I die, my soul just flies to any time period it pleases and becomes whichever child it can find?”

“Precisely,” Sebastian smirks, “There have only been a few rules your soul seems to follow, your eyes remain virtually unchanged, still the strikingly blue and purple hues they have been since our contract was sealed, your hair an inky black and your memories return within a year of the age you took your earldom, thirteen, or not at all. Other than that this is the eighteenth time you’ve taken a female form, fifth where you’ve been of mixed races, tenth of being Asian descent, you’ve been of African descent six times, middle eastern eight, Native American three times. You’ve been of peasantry or slavery six times, on three different continents. Though being enslaved has triggered your memories flawlessly every time and allowed for you to rise in the ranks of society with grace. Sixteen times you’ve been of noble birth in multiple different royal families across the globe. It’s been an adventure each time

“What about Lizzie?” She finally asked,” She never sold her soul, and yet Chat Noir is clearly my fiancé.”

Sebastian frowned, “To be quite honest, she’s never appeared before, or at the very least never awoken. Human souls are not supposed to be reincarnated so quickly, even by heaven’s terms we should not have run into Miss Elizabeth before the 30th century and I’ve never heard of the average reincarnation remembering their memories as vividly as Chat Noir did.”

“Who would know?”

The grimace was fleeting on the demon’s face but Marinette knew what he was getting at.

“The Grim Reapers,” She groaned, “Grell hanging around anywhere?”

“What makes you so certain that pest is still working off their debt?” Sebastian countered

Marinette glared, “Because I’ve seen a shockingly familiar red figure watching the Akuma battles before, but only the ones that might have high casualty counts if we had lost. Plus you’re always aggravated whenever I came back from those types of battles and she was the only one that I know that gets under your skin that badly. If she wasn’t so… open about her desires I would have loved to see her around more.”

The demon sighed, “Observant as always my lady. Grell Sutcliff, William T. Spears, and Ronald Knox have all been given special assignments to follow your reincarnated soul around as they are used to our unique brand of chaos. They are given time off when your soul is inactive, and this works counts as double time for their repayment… containing the destruction left in your wake.”

Marinette hummed, as her time finally wore out a Tikki appeared next to her.

“Sebastian,” Tikki greeted, cooly, drawing a wicked grin on the young girl’s face.

“Miss. Tikki,” He offered with his polite butler smile, the one Marinette knew meant he wasn’t happy, “A pleasure as always.”

“Oh, you’ve met then?” Marinette laughed with twisted glee “I haven’t seen you look so constipated since we had to do those Phoenix poses!”

She could practically hear the teeth grinding behind his forced smile, “I haven’t a clue what you’re talking about Mistress, I think the reincarnation process has scrambled your mind.”

She hummed, cheeky grin not falling as she passed Tikki her emergency cookie, “Either way, we need to plan. Obviously, we can’t play the butler and Earl roles as we once did so we must figure out new roles that we can play, and create a fake hero identity for you if you plan on continuing to help out during Akuma battles.”

The smirk he gave showed off far too many teeth, but instead of unnerving her, it filled her with a sense of comfort, “Allow me to handle everything, mistress. What kind of demon would I be if I couldn’t manage a simple cover story and superhero outfit.”

________________________________________

Marinette awoke the next day to find it starting off horribly. Not only had she overslept without the ever-present tapping on her balcony door Sebastian normally did whenever she slept through her alarm, but as she was rushing she tore her blue contact, only to find it was the last one she had in stock, her new order not set to arrive until later in the week. She decided to give the demon a pass just this once since he most likely was still coming up with proper identification and dwellings for him to stay at now that she required him to be more than just a bird.

Looking in her closet she paused at her normal outfits, plink blossoms, pink jeans, and ballet flats. It just… felt wrong with her new memories of the Earl rattling around her head. She wasn’t unhappy being a woman in this life, still feeling as comfortable as ever in her own skin, but the overly modern and feminine dress just didn’t sit right with Ciel’s memories so fresh in her mind.

Instead, she pulled out a peter pan collared button-down shirt with the collar and large buttons navy against the cream of the rest of the shirt, a forest green western tie clasped in the front. She also pulled on a pair of straight-legged green pants and a navy blazer adding a tan pair of thick heeled ankle boots.  For her final touch, she deep parted her hair, pinning it over her right eye and pulling it back into a bun securing a cream ribbon in a bow around the base of the bun once she was finished. Satisfied she grabbed her bag and took off at a run, bidding her parents goodbye as she attempted to make it class before the bell rang.

She arrived seconds late and found the room reorganized, seats had been moved and the open seat on her normal side of the room was right up next to Adrien. Well, she had to admit her previous actions around him had been overboard in retrospect, and while he was still cute but with Lizzie back in the picture it seemed almost like cheating on her old fianceé.

“Good morning, Adrian,” She greeted, choosing to stand in front of the desk instead of sitting down yet.  

The blonde turned to her and perked up, “Marinette! I’m loving the new look, very Victorian esque”

“Thank you!” She laughed, “I felt like a change, You look great too!”

She could feel the eyebrows around the room go up as she smiled gently at the boy, but it was a good change of pace for him, his usual sneakers, jeans, and T-shirt had been swapped out for shiny dark brown dress shoes, a fitted pair of emerald green pants, with a crisp dark blue shirt tucked in. When he turned she could see a silver lace embroidery cutting a wavy path from his left shoulder to his right hip shimmer. He even wore a simple silver ear cuff to finish off the look.

“I picked it myself,” He preened under the positive attention, “Father usually is so strict about what I wear in public but he said I did well with this one!”

“Well, I have to agree,” She hummed, “You should experiment more often, I’d love to give you critiques now that we’re desk partners.”

“Girl what?” Alya finally interrupted, “That’s not your seat, you’re sitting in the back now.”

She could stop her smile from falling into a stony blank look as she turned around, “Excuse me? Who made that call?”

“Well,”  Nino piped up with a slight weariness at her look, “She’s got hearing issues so we had to put her upfront, to make it work Ivan sat next to Mylène, Nate sat next to Alix, and she came up with the idea of moving me up here, so I could spend more time with my girlfriend.”

Marinette raised a brow making the majority of the room fidget, “Who exactly is she?”  

Before any of them could answer Ms. Bustier opened the door and started her normal classroom announcements, “Good morning, students. I'm sure you've all heard by now, but Lila's home from her trip to Achu and she's back in school with us again.”

The Italian girl all, but bounced into the room to greet everyone, receiving a warm answer back as Marinette’s mouth thinned.

The fox paid her little mind as she pretended to gasp in surprise at the empty seat next to Adrian and started gushing, “Oh, a seat in the front row! You all remembered my hearing issue! You're such sweethearts, all of you!”

Marinette tilted her head, “I didn’t realize you had a hearing issue, Lila.”

Green eyes flashed towards her as she painted on a self-conscious smile, “Oh Yes, I suffer from tinnitus, a constant ringing in my left ear. I've had it ever since the sound of an airplane engine burst my eardrum on the runaway when I was saving Jagged Stone's lost kitten,”

“Really?” Marinette questioned with a raised brow, “Well I am sorry to hear that, but I would like to know why your disability is ranking above my own.”

Lila froze as Bustier paled eyes widening with realization. The room grew silent before Kim slapped the desk, “Oh my god, we forgot Marinette can’t see!”

She laughed, shaking her head, “I’m not blind Kim,”

He waved her off, “You know what I mean.”

Nino groaned, slinking down, “You aren’t even wearing your contacts today!”

“I ripped one this morning,” She sighed in explanation, “My replacements aren’t coming until Wednesday. So I really can’t sit in the back of the room even if I wanted to.”

Alya’s face scrunched, “I’m missing something,”

Marinette stared up at her unblinkingly, “I have a severe vision problem that causes me issues with depth perception and distance, especially if I’m not wearing my contacts. As noted by my doctor I need to be sitting within the first two rows of the classroom, and to have a seat partner is willing to give me notes that I may have missed if my vision acts up. It has been on file since I was six years old.”

“Ivan and I can move to the back,” Mylene offered quickly, “I’m sorry for forgetting Marinette!”

She offered a soft smile, “It really is no issue, as long as it gets sorted.  While I must admit I believe the origin of Lila’s disability is fabricated, I am sympathetic to her for having said disability, but I refuse to not have my accommodations met just for someone else’s to be met.”

“Fabricated!” Lila gasped tears welling in her eyes, “How mean! You don’t like me, do you! You’re trying to make me look bad and have a hard time due to my disability!”

The ice that entered Marinette’s eye before she turned to the Italian girl sent a shiver down the class's spine, causing Chloe to shrink back and Adrian to sit up stick straight. Marinette felt an odd calm fall over her as the Phantomhive came out to play.

“You claim that you received hearing damage from being too close to an airplane because you ran onto an active runway to save Jagged Stone’s kitten from a jet preparing to take off,” Marinette repeated slowly, “ Not only does Jagged Stone despise cats, but he’s despised them since he was a child after one attacked and killed his parakeet, Juniper. This is an easy fact to look up as he’s mentioned it several times in multiple interviews. The pet he currently owns and has owned for almost twenty years now, is Fang, a freshwater crocodile that Jagged hatched himself. No one is stupid enough to forget the animal they heroically saved from a vehicle that’s accelerating an average of 32 meters per second squared, wasn’t even a mammal when I know that Fang weighs almost 200kg.”

Lila tried to break in but Marinette just straightened her back, and crossed her leg at the knee before continuing, “Furthermore, no airport in this day and age would allow for a teenage girl to make it to the runways where a plane was taking off without being tackled by security, nor do I believe that your mother, a diplomat, would be moronic enough to allow you to be placed in that much danger. If it did happen there would no doubt be multiple stories run by the media about it, internationally so since Jagged Stone is such a big name and you are the daughter of a diplomat, this would not be the first we would be hearing it.”

Marinette grimaced as she moved onto the next point, not even paying mind to the sputtering Lila was doing, “Based on these facts I’m going to assume the claims that he wrote a personal song for you that have been bouncing around are also false as if they’re not it does not paint a good picture that a famous man in his forties is writing and dedicating songs for you, a young teen fan. If these accusations were true, I'd be forced to believe that Jagged Stone is a hebephile or at the very least grooming you.”

Marinette simply crossed her arms as the room grew deathly silent, “Lastly, nothing suggests that sitting closer to the front of the room helps tinnitus, as the persistent ringing would not change and make little difference in a room this small. Most students with tinnitus require the student being given the option to move to a quieter location if the condition is triggered during class, groups the student is working with being given the option to move to a different area in case group work gets too loud during group activities and being placed near a low-level sound, such a small fan, computer, a heating element, or an open window, as complete silence can irritate the issue. I did enough research when helping Aurora fight for proper accommodations made in her own classroom on the subject to know that much. Or as by the way you are dressed and the fact you claim to have spent the last few months traveling the world, your family clearly has money so buying one of the many options of hearing aid out that that has been developed to assist and almost eliminate tinnitus would be overly easy. They sell them for around 270€, fairly cheap for accommodation products, and if your family truly took you on trips across the globe then you can’t convince me they don’t love you enough to shell out a few hundred euros to make your life easier. So tell me again why I’m making a big deal about making sure my own disability is taken care of?”

Lila sputtered, before bursting into tears, “I was too embarrassed to tell you the real reason! I didn’t want you guys to think less of me for taking a break with Prince Ali to go see a concert, I didn’t mean to get so close to the amps but… the hearing loss is so new I’m still adjusting”  

Marinette glared at her, “Save the tears. Lies are pathetic tools to use and earn you no lasting loyalty, and to accuse someone of being ableist for questioning the origin of your disability, not even the disability itself is vile. Not a single person in this room would have been upset at you if you told the truth instead of tried to force the issue of fake heroics.”

She sniffled, “I’m sorry Marinette, I didn’t mean to make accusations about you or your character. I’m still on edge from the whole situation…”

Marinette let her glare drop and gave a cool, “It’s forgiven this time, now can we please figure out the seating situation?”

“Well,” the teacher stepped in, “Since Adrian agreed to be Lila’s tutor to help her catch up-”

“Actually, Miss Bustier,” Adrian raised his hand sheepishly, “I was going to bring it up with you later in private, but I really don’t think I’d be a good option to tutor Lila given how full and sporadic my schedule is already, I really would hate for her to fall enough further behind.”

“Oh crap,” Alix swore, “We didn’t even think of that when Lila suggested you!”  

Adrian just gave a slight shrug, eyes not looking up from his desk, “It’s okay, I do want to help out the class as much as possible, I feel bad never being able to help out with anything after school.”

“Don’t sweat it,” Kim brushed off, “We get your dad is really on you about everything, we’ll just have to find stuff you can do in class instead!”

“Maybe,” Mylene squirmed a little in her seat as everyone turned to face her, “I mean just a suggestion… but maybe Adrian could be Marinette’s seat partner and help her take notes. You rarely miss actual class time for your activities and this way you’re helping out without committing to any extra time that your dad might not let you come for.”

Bustier clapped, a blinding smile on her face, completely missing how Lila’s face had twisted into an angry mask, “Excellent idea! Let’s all find new seats again, Marinette and Adrian stick together in the first two rows, Lila why don’t you sit on the left side of the classroom by the windows to see if that helps your tinnitus for now. I’ll call your mother in for a proper evaluation over the next few days and we’ll find a proper course to deal with your disability. If someone would like to volunteer to be Lila’s primary tutor please take the seat next to her. Everyone else please fill in!”

Slowly the room began shifting once again. Adrien and Marinette simply switched seats to allow her to better see the room as Alya, Nino, Chloe, Sabrina, Rose, Juleka, and Nathaniel stayed in their same seats. Ivan and Mylene did move to the back row together as Max broke away from Kim to sit in the second row next to where Lila ended up and Alix slid across the aisle to take his old spot.

Alya was still looking at Marinette as if she had three heads, “Girl, what on earth was that? You’re like sunshine personified, but you just tore Lila apart like she was tissue paper.”

Nino huffed a slight laugh, “Keep forgetting you’ve only been in the class for a year, babe. You’ve never seen a Marinette takedown before.”

Marinette smiled, “Do not lie and do not do anything that might have permanent consequences. If they can not follow those two simple objectives in my presence then I will gladly set them straight. Lila not only lied but accused me of being a bigot, I will not tolerate slander.”

“Well I think it was badass,” Adrian commented, causing her to smirk wickedly.

“Thank you. It’s always nice to know my skills are appreciated.”  

“Oh do you need any notes from the last few days,” Adrian asked suddenly, sliding his notebook between them as the lesson started.  

She gazed down idly, “Not that I can think of but thank-”

Marinette had to keep her eyes from bulging as her words faded off, because in the middle of the page, squished between two facts about the Roman empire stood a simple sentence in perfect English.

I didn’t think I would see you until tonight, Ciel.

“How on earth were we this blind,” Marinette mumbled in English, earning a laugh from his once betrothed.

“Excuse me?”

The pairs heads snap towards the door as a worryingly familiar voice sounds through the room.

There in the doorway was a tall teen with shaggy raven hair as he sheepishly held out a paper towards the teacher, “Are you, Miss. Bustier? There seemed to be a mix up with my transfer papers. Mr. Damocles told me just to head down and you should have all of my forms by tomorrow, but he didn’t want to prevent me from starting today as planned.”

“Oh I hadn’t realized I was getting a new student today,” She apologized, taking the paper and skimming it briefly before turning to the room, “Class it looks like we’re getting another new face today! I want you all to welcome him with open arms! This is-”

He was shorter, a little lankier and with a rounder face then they typically saw him, looking every bit the fourteen year old he was in no doubt playing, but there was no doubt who it was.

“Sebastian,” The demon introduced, mirth dancing in those burgundy depths as he grinned up at the reincarnated duo, “Sebastian Michaelis. I look forward to joining your class.”

___________________________________

Tag List: @lividdreams9