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ilikekidsshows · 3 years

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Hi! I loved the Adrinette analysis you made...do you think you could make a similar one for Ladybug and Chat Noir over seasons 1 to 3?

I knew I was leaving myself open for this ask, and I kinda dreaded it, because 80% of Ladynoir screen time is dedicated to defeating an Akuma, meaning the characters have something else to focus on rather than progressing their relationship, and most the relationship stuff is just Marinette being really stubborn and refusing to properly look at her partner. In other words, there's significantly more screen time, but also proportionally less stuff going on in Ladynoir than in Adrinette because the characters are superheroes on the job and one party is actively resisting any development happening. It's also a very different kind of arc and relationship to Adrinette where the goal is just the two of them getting closer and more comfortable with each other. Ladynoir has that as well as all the trust issues and superhero team dynamics. Basically, this post is definitive proof that Miraculous has had plot development before season four, and it has had a lot of it. I got almost dizzy with it while compiling this.

Once again, I’m trying to go in a somewhat chronological order to properly track the relationship.

In 'Origins', we only get one-sided Ladynoir stuff. Marinette is new on the job and completely focused on solving the Akuma problem and nothing else. Meanwhile, Adrien actually takes note of his partner. He sees her flounder but ultimately put together a clever plan. He sees her lose faith but ultimately pick herself up and deliver a really badass speech at Hawk Moth. It's really no wonder he fell in love. The number one thing he learned about Ladybug is that she can fail and the second thing was that she could pick herself up again and grab the win anyway. I've brought up earlier in the Top Adrinette Scene discussion that Adrien is very scared of failing, because his father does not forgive failure, so Ladybug being someone who can turn a failure into a win understandably makes his heart go pitter-patter.

Meanwhile, Marinette barely noticed her partner. As I said, she was fully focused on solving the problem, but she was also getting distracted by her own insecurities. Marinette's first experience with Cat Noir was that he was kinda smooth and seemed to be much more confident than Marinette. Her second experience was that he tended to leap before he looked, but was perfectly willing to listen to her say-so. We have a very brief attempt at flirtation from Cat Noir, that Ladybug barely seems to even notice.

In 'Bubbler', Cat Noir actually gets to flirt with his Lady. He's clearly intent on getting her to notice what he's getting at, but Ladybug seems mostly exasperated with him. At this point their partnership is new and Marinette is most likely thinking back to their first case, when Cat Noir was so patient and supportive and not this...much. She still doesn't tell him to quit it, though, meaning she’s trying to accept him being a lot.

'Stormy Weather' has Cat Noir continuing in his attempts to get Ladybug to notice him and this time she responds playfully when they're not right in the middle of a tense situation. She's getting used to this being Cat's way of interacting with her and keeping the mood light.

'Lady Wifi' has the pair discussing the secrecy between them, with Adrien actively making the decision that honoring Ladybug's wishes concerning keeping their secret identities is more important than knowing the identity of the girl he's in love with, that doing so is the proper way to love her. 'Lady Wifi' is also the first time Marinette panics at the idea of something romantic being suggested about her and Cat Noir, when Alya says Adrien might be Cat Noir, that Cat Noir might be the boy she's repeatedly told Alya she's in love with.

'Copycat' shows us for a fact that Ladybug has no idea that Cat Noir's flirtations with her are genuine, and Cat Noir is growing tired of his feelings going entirely unnoticed.

Because of his growing frustration over not being able to communicate his feelings to Ladybug in a manner that she'd take seriously, Adrien goes the extra mile to write her a love poem in 'Dark Cupid'. When he receives a response that appeared with no sender, just a ladybug, he entertains the thought that Ladybug answered his poem and does in fact return his feelings (not realizing that Ladybug would need to know his identity to deliver such a note to him specifically, but Adrien does generally worry less about secret identities than Marinette). 'Dark Cupid' is also the first occasion of Marinette's by-now patented plan "Pretend to be in Love with Cat Noir" to solve problems, except that she was absolutely certain that a True Love's Kiss could occur between them, so there isn't even much room for pretending, but Marinette's denial is so powerful, she'll try.

In 'The Mime' we see Cat Noir actually testing Ladybug's receptiveness to a date, by suggesting that they could have gone to the play together if they didn't have to detransform. Ladybug replies that she has other plans before zipping away, and Cat Noir merely smiles after her. His feelings are growing, and he might still be remembering the love note he got. In fact, this is probably why he says "We are meant to be," in 'Gamer'.

In 'Animan' Ladybug actually does some of her own flirting with Cat Noir by giving him chin scritches. We also see a very straightforward gesture of affection from Cat Noir to Ladybug, when he hugs her in relief after the battle. Ladybug smiles softly at him, seeing that her partner cares about her well-being, while Cat Noir jumps back, embarrassed over his own reaction, or perhaps even afraid of censure. Adrien isn't the type of person to suddenly grab people in a hug, most likely because such "overly emotional" displays are discouraged in the Agreste household. This is the first occasion of Adrien projecting his father's supposed reaction to a thing he does on Ladybug, so he runs away from her.

In 'Simon Says', Cat Noir clings to Ladybug when faced with Gabriel looking at him weirdly (he's trying to figure out if he's Adrien, but Adrien himself never realizes his father was suspicious of his identity). At this point, Ladybug has started to become something of a security symbol to Adrien specifically against his father.

'Reflekta' is the episode where Cat Noir reminds Ladybug that he doesn't just deliver quips and he is actually a hero in his own right, even with diminished capabilities, in response to Marinette almost leaving him behind because he couldn't use his Cat Noir powers, because he'd "just slow (her) down", and then it turns out she couldn't have won without him. However, with the scene of Cat Noir taking the hit, Ladybug also starts on the process of realizing exactly how important her partner is to her success. Noticeably, it's while they're plotting together that Ladybug responds to his flirtation by flirting back, even if not very well (protip, Marinette, demeaning someone isn't funny to anyone but the person doing the demeaning, the other person is not suddenly lacking a sense of humor). Cat Noir is also a bit softer with his overtures in this episode, his cheeky flirtation gaining a bit more intimacy.

In 'Antibug', we can see the lessons Ladybug learned in 'Reflekta' sticking, with Ladybug listening to and valuing Cat Noir's input, unlike how the last time he tried to give her advice in a Chloé situation in 'Evillustrator', when she acknowledged he was right but couldn't bring herself to follow his advice. She also flirts with Cat Noir of her own volition, when she rings his bell. Cat Noir also keeps showing genuine warmth towards Ladybug instead of being just cheeky, when Ladybug compliments him. They affirm their bond after taking down Antibug.

The events of 'Reflekta' and 'Antibug' together influence what happens in 'Volpina', where Marinette is very suspicious of a new superhero showing up, without ever suspecting she could have been an Akuma in disguise. Cat Noir is her partner, and Cat Noir is her only partner. She’s not only learned his value, but has grown possessive over him. There's no need for any outsider. This jealousy over Cat Noir is actually something Marinette doesn't get over during the first three seasons the way she learns to deal with her jealousy over Adrien.

By the time 'The Collector' happens, Adrien has developed enough trust in his partner to ultimately believe her over her suspicions about Gabriel being Hawk Moth. This episode also has the first time Marinette voices concern over Cat Noir's emotional well-being instead of merely physical, who, of course, can't tell her what's wrong because it would break the secret identity clause.

'Prime Queen' has some very nice mutual Ladynoir flirting at the start of the interview. However, they're both mortified when Nadja comes out with the pictures. Cat Noir is confused, because he had no idea that their relationship could even give that impression, he must have been feeling like he hasn't been making much progress in getting closer to Ladybug. Meanwhile, Marinette goes defensive for the first time since 'Lady Wifi' only, this time, even more so. She even runs out on Cat Noir when he, very understandably, wants an explanation why he head to learn from a reporter that she'd planted one on him instead of from her. The episode confirms that Marinette will refuse to, in any way, discuss anything romance-related in relation to Cat Noir, even when there's an innocent explanation, like breaking an Akuma's spell. She's so defensive it's suspicious.

We also have another occasion of Marinette "pretending" to be in love with Cat Noir to solve a problem. While Cat Noir purrs either over the confession, having her close, or both. Marinette also jumped at the chance to "pretend" to confess her love so eagerly, that it left Prime Queen unimpressed. Still, Marinette refused to commit to the "ruse" enough to kiss Cat Noir while he's actually conscious and aware of it, because then she'd have to deal with the aftermath of kissing him.

'Dark Owl' has the first true test of faith between Ladybug and Cat Noir, when both of them have to trust the other not to look while they have to recharge. Although, considering 'The Collector', this is actually the first test only for Ladybug. At the end of the episode, Adrien also genuinely asks Ladybug out on a date for the very first time when they unexpectedly have free time from Owl-sitting, but Marinette preferred to skip off to spend time with Alya since she hadn’t gotten to see her while being so busy with The Owl's antics for so long.

'Glaciator' has Cat Noir planning an actual outing for Ladybug. The thing is, before 'Glaciator', Marinette's response to Cat Noir asking her out has always been that she has other plans, no can do. However, in 'Glaciator', she specifically says: "We'll see," and then she ends up ghosting him because she forgot to even send him a message that she didn't feel like going anywhere. At the same time, Gabriel purposefully stands him up for dinner, causing Adrien to project onto the Ladybug situation so hard that he doesn't think Ladybug even sees him as a real friend. Considering Adrien was under the same impression about Marinette in 'Puppeteer 2', it is typical for Marinette to send these kinds of mixed signals (which is fitting, considering how clear communication seems to be the biggest bullet point in her character development agenda).

On the upside, Cat Noir's compromised emotional state led to him being more frank about his feelings to first Marinette and later to Ladybug, finally making Marinette understand that Cat Noir is actually in love with her and how sensitive her partner can really be and that she can hurt his feelings. Notably, in this episode, Marinette particularly enjoys employing her "Pretend to be in love with Cat Noir" gambit, this time even going as far as kissing him, after finding out he's actually in love with her. Indeed, at the end of the episode, her rejection to Cat Noir is entirely focused on her having feelings for someone else (as well). She never once said she doesn't love him, and, in fact, never claims so in the English dub.

In 'Sapotis' we also see a brief glimpse of Marinette's jealousy over Cat Noir when he welcomes Alya onto the team so warmly but, because Rena Rouge was a teammate Marinette herself chose and trusts, she doesn't feel threatened enough to express it more than by merely keeping an eye on their interaction. 'Sapotis' also starts the arc of Cat Noir starting to lose faith in Ladybug having his best interest in mind when Rena Rouge appears out of nowhere and he's expected to just accept that no-questions-asked.

'Gorizilla' notably has Marinette repeatedly voicing her belief that Cat Noir will show up, something Adrien appreciates a great deal, going as far as blushing over something so simple. He's astounded by the fact that his Lady has faith in him, but it seems he still believes it despite the notion being strange to him.

'Frightningale' really drives home the arc going on in this season. 'Riposte' was the first time we saw Ladybug and Cat Noir seamlessly working together to neutralize an Akuma, but in this episode, they move in perfect synch while fighting Frightningale while handcuffed together. Cat Noir and Ladybug's teamwork has reached phenomenal levels.

I've repeatedly said that 'Syren' is less about Cat Noir and Ladybug's relationship and more about Fu's relationships with his two chosen. Still, this is the episode where Marinette gets put on the spot and comes through for her partner and Cat Noir learns that Ladybug keeping secrets from him wasn't of her own volition, but because of Fu, restoring his faith in her completely.

It's most likely because of the trust Ladybug showed towards him in 'Gorizilla' and their perfectly synchronized teamwork in 'Frightningale' that Cat Noir tries to confess to Ladybug again in 'Frozer'. These two episodes could give Cat Noir hope that he might be winning Ladybug over, especially since, as I said before, Ladybug has not said she doesn't have feelings for him. But she, of course, rejects him, although it's notably with more wistfulness than the last time, especially when she comments how she doesn't think it's possible for the "other boy" to not be a concern. 'Frozer' takes place during the arc in season two that covers Marinette's growing frustration at her inability to progress with Adrien the way she wants to and the discontent shows in her interaction with Cat Noir as well.

The change in how Marinette regards Cat Noir's input in fights between season one and two is especially noticeable in 'Style Queen' and 'Maledictator'. Both times Cat Noir is absent in a fight and this influences how Marinette approaches fighting the Akumas. In 'Style Queen' Marinette tries to play it sneaky but also needs to be saved by Plagg's intervention in his holder's absence. In 'Maledictator', Marinette's plan involved siccing the brainwashed Cat Noir on the Akuma's goons. Cat Noir has become necessary to Marinette, which is why he's able to galvanize her during 'Heroes' Day' by reminding her that the two of them against the world is what's always worked.

Season three as a whole revolves around Adrien losing faith that Ladybug could ever return his feelings the way he wishes and Marinette getting several warning signs about how she could lose Cat Noir. I might even go as far as saying that this season has negative Ladynoir development (in that their relationship grows more frayed and brittle instead of stronger).

A big reason for this new development direction is 'Reflekdoll', which, according to the production codes, happens early in the season. In this episode, Ladybug and Cat Noir learn the worst possible (false) lessons about themselves and each other and they carry those lessons for the rest of the season. In my 'Reflekdoll' conflict analysis, I wrote that Ladybug basically "learns" that Cat Noir is fae-like in that he isn't bothered by mortal things like stress or heartbreak. Cat Noir, meanwhile, "learns" that, while it doesn't matter if Ladybug makes a mistake because she can always fix it, him making a mistake makes him fundamentally less worthy as a hero and a person, so he could never be as valuable as Ladybug even as a person and not only strategically.

'Weredad', meanwhile, is the quintessential evidence episode for Marinette being both possessive and in denial about Cat Noir. She's literally pretending to be in love with him to him, while totally denying to herself that she feels anything for him, all the while she's feeling jealous over him seemingly moving on from her to be in love with her. The reason it's so important that no one but Marinette herself and Tikki know what went down in this episode is that Marinette's denial would never last if someone actually questioned this whole mess.

This is also an episode where we can clearly see the aftermath of what 'Reflekdoll' did to Cat Noir. He's once again projecting his situation with his father onto someone else (this time Tom), but he's also blatantly refusing to fight Tom at full strength, because he feels that it's his fault he got Akumatized, allowing himself to get hurt severely because he feels he's not that important, that he might even deserve it.

'Oblivio' has Ladybug once again do the whole: "How dare you say I'm in love with Cat Noir I am quitting this conversation right now!" routine. Cat Noir also got actual confirmation that something about him made his Lady want to kiss him when their memories had been wiped.

'Desperada' has the semi-infamous scene of Ladybug saying she doesn't need Cat Noir and, while she learns the valuable lesson that yes she flipping does, this is also the episode where Adrien repeatedly fails to use the Snake Miraculous correctly, having to give it up to someone else, feeling like an undeserving failure *turns to look at 'Weredad' and then at ‘Reflekdoll*.

'Kwamibuster' is an episode where everyone keeps telling Ladybug not to trust Cat Noir and she believes it to the degree that she sees him as a bigger threat than a Kwami-targeting Akuma. In other words, Cat Noir being treated like a part-time hero again in season four is because of 'Kwamibuster'.

'Gamer 2.0' is actually an important episode for the Ladynoir dynamic. This is the episode where Marinette takes on way too much responsibility (voluntarily) and is really stressed about it, while Cat Noir dismantles that stress with his good humor and positive outlook. This episode enforces the lesson that was stated outright in 'Reflekdoll': "Everyone has their role", and Cat Noir's role is to be the jokester who makes Ladybug feel better. Also, Cat Noir doesn’t even hesitate to make a sacrifice play for his Lady, because he’s less important.

'Timetagger' foreshadows that Marinette's words of affirmation are losing their effect. She repeatedly says things like "I trust Cat Noir", "You're irreplaceable", "You know you're the best", but she doesn't know how to express her regard to Cat Noir in actions. And it's important to note that Adrien was raised among liars and manipulators. Even if he doesn't doubt Ladybug's intentions, he might doubt the depth and truth of her feelings for him. Because Ladybug is so nice, she might lie about valuing him to make him feel better. Words aren't enough when words are the only thing between you and your insecurities. This is also an episode that feeds into Cat Noir's worthlessness arc, with Bunnyx repeatedly insisting that Ladybug in the future is just awesome, while Cat Noir broke her Miraculous. Even Ladybug shoots him down at the end of the episode when he tries to ask for extra affirmation, claiming he "already knows he's great".

In 'Puppeteer 2', Cat Noir's hope from 'Oblivio' that Ladybug might be starting to be won over by him comes back to bite him when the wax Ladybug gets close to him by pretending to be coming onto him. He only realized she was a fake because she smelled wrong, something that comes back to haunt him in 'Ladybug', when he's faced with a perfect copy, whose only difference to the original is that she's apparently in love with him. The villains clearly know he’s so in love with Ladybug it sometimes blinds him.

With the villains using this clear weakness as an in, it's no wonder that Cat Noir finally makes the decision to move on from Ladybug in 'Heart Hunter'. He tries one more time to test her interest to see if she'd be jealous of him dating and, when she's merely overjoyed, he decides to finally move on to Kagami. However, when faced with the actual reality of Cat Noir giving his attention to someone else instead of her (instead of in addition to her), Ladybug actually finds herself hurt and questions the lack of "My Lady" in Cat Noir addressing her, but she instantly denies it when Cat Noir notices. Denial denial denial...

Aaaaaand that's a wrap! Putting this together made me realize just how interconnected the show really is but no one notices because there aren’t any secret identities being revealed, people getting together or lore being revealed. Even something that seems like a breather episode like 'Gamer 2.0' has a larger role in the arc of developing the relationship between our main heroes.

#miraculous tales of ladybug and chat noir #miraculous ladybug #ladynoir #lovesquare #marinette dupain cheng #adrien agreste #ml meta #long post #REALLY long

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iwasbored777 · 2 years

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"He was noticeably unhappy with Kagami, she wasn’t much of a gf, it’s like she needed to be in charge of everything without taking his feelings in consideration." Imagine that there are people that salt on Ladybug for being "too controlling towards Chat Noir", whie simultanously shipping Adrigami

I didn't expect to write analysis on this so quickly but here it goes cuz I can't let people in my inbox down. Also this is kind of a salt take, so I want to warn you before you open it:

First of all, THANK YOU!!!!

But let's make it clear - my thoughts on Adrigami are like my thoughts on Love Square - Marinette and Kagami are not obligated to deal with Adrien's trauma and all that, but Kagami is unable to understand other people's needs and feelings and she brushes them off quickly. I had a best friend like her and I know people like her - they are cool when you start spending time with them but eventually you learn that they can't put themselves in other people's shoes and you lose your interest. Their attitude is entertaining but it soon push you away even when those people don't intend to push you away, you just don't feel welcome. It was up to today that I couldn't understand why I never liked Kagami as a standalone character and then it hit me - I had a person like her in my life and even though I still love that person she did more damage to me than actually helping me. She wouldn't notice when I was sad, when I was lonely, when I was stressed, she wanted to be in charge of our friendship, she wanted to start fights with everyone - even me when we were bffs, and she was treating all her boyfriends like she treated me. I really tried in our friendship, until I couldn't take it anymore, it ruined my mental health. When we were kids she was popular but now no one likes her, everyone got tired of her. I still love her, because she was still better than other kids in my class, but I'm grateful for not having her in my life anymore.

Marinette is complicated, but you know she will try to understand a person, when she's angry she's not hiding it and she'll tell you off, she'll make wrong choices, she'll get carried away with her emotions, but God knows she'll help you if she knows you need it. Kagami tried to kill Lila for taking a picture with Adrien, out of context. And Kagami hated Marinette just like Marinette hated Kagami, I don't know why people only talk about Marinette's jealousy, actually I do.

But with Adrien, there are so many scenes: NY special when he was sad because he couldn't go with his friends and she told him that she's "happy for them because they have more time to practice", when he didn't want to kiss her and she still went for it, when she didn't let him go out with his friends and he wanted to (he's not your son, he's allowed to spend time with his friends if he wants to), and all that...

And while Marinette's journey was realizing she should be friends with her love rivals and be the bigger person in arguments plus supporting Adrien's feelings even if that means she can't have him, Kagami's journey was kind of another way around - she got Adrien because she let her only friend down, broke up with him and hated him for it, she told Marinette that "he let her down" and never understood that she was wrong. For Kagami Adrien was "worthy of her" until he wasn't. I know Marinette idolising him wasn't good but Kagami never saw him as actual person, more like a match for her, and she's is apparently better than him, and when she thought he wasn't, she told Marinette to go for it. I don't find it respectful at all. I wouldn't be happy if my friend told me "this boy is no longer good for me, he's perfect for you now".

Just like I'm sick of Marinette always apologising, I'm also sick of Adrien apologising to Kagami when she should actually apologise to him for once.

This is where I mentioned the difference between Marinette and Kagami talking to Adrien in Risk. While Marinette was understanding, Kagami was more blaming him than actually helping him - which was also what Félix did to Adrien in the same episode. And it had the effect on him just like Félix's words - Adrien wanted to do something but he couldn't. And when Marinette didn't push him, just told him how she understands him, he was feeling better because he didn't need anyone to tell him what to do - he knew what to do, but his father wouldn't allow that to him. I never needed my friend to say anything, just be there for me and be gentle, but she couldn't even do that.

Marinette salters can try to sell a lot of things but I never understand the "Kagami is better for Adrien than Marinette" take, because if that's true you can just chop my head off and use it as a tennis ball. I volunteer.

Kagami was more unready for a boyfriend than any of those three (Marinette, Adrien and Luka). She really needs to take Marinette's advice and hang out with her friends more.

#miraculous ladybug #Ml analysis #adrien agreste #kagami tsuguri #marinette dupain cheng #Adrigami analysis #Adrigami salt #Adrien deserves better #Kagami salt #Just in case #Ml ask #ask and answer

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messymessyml · 3 years

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This fic idea haunts me:

So Damian canonically dies and is brought back to life with a chaos shard, and this process grants him some powerful abilities before he uses them up in a fight orchestrated by Bruce/the JL (from what I understood, Bruce was concerned Damian wasn't able to control them and his ego combined with the new powers was concerning, so he staged a mecha fight to have Damian save the JL and the mech was just powerful enough to require everything Damian had to give). This was a very entertaining plot as a reader, but a pretty horrifying and manipulative way of dealing with Damian.

This got me thinking; if I was Damian and had just been revived and developed powers and my father had manipulated me into losing them, I'd be angry but more than that I don't know if I'd trust any of the adults in my life if they were willing to completely lie their way through a plot to take away a new advantage (one that allowed me to literally fly and be on par strengthwise with my best bro Superboy) that I'd gained after having died because I was too slow. A death that happened as a result of being betrayed by my own mother and my aged-up clone. I decided to give my all to save the adults in my life at the cost of my powers (powers that might protect me the next time my mother decided I was less than useful to her schemes yet again) only to realize the entire fight was staged. I was lied to. The gratitude I received from the big three, two of which are father figures and one of the most powerful women in the world, a family friend, all decided to lie to my face and manipulate me.

This, on the tail end of my very traumatic revival where my father and a lot my my family almost died trying to bring me back. Everyone was so relieved I'd survived that they forgot to help me cope with the fact that I still died. In my teens. After a year in the ground, most people had processed my death but i felt like i had just died and seemingly woken up with my father stabbing me in the same place my clone brother had impaled me mere moments ago.

I could definitely see the trauma and betrayal and non-existent coping skills driving a wedge even further between my family and I and dissolving any bonds of trust I had with the outside adults in my life. Driven mad with nightmares and the uncanny feeling that you're behind the times and life is moving too fast to heal from, I'd definitely decide to do something rash.

Maybe even move to Tibet rash.

What's interesting is that in one of the storylines, Damian goes and learns from a Buddhist monastery at one point. What if, Damian does this after losing all trust in his support network and decides the best way to protect himself is by leaving.

Here's where The crossover happens. I'm getting tired so I'm switching to bullet points:

Damian moves to Tibet

He finds his way into the mountains on a soul searching journey and stumbles upon the Temple of the Miraculous

The kwami here have free reign and more direct action abilities, which, in this case, means they can turn into animals and act as independent guardians when their miraculous are not in use

Marinette had had longer to train with the kwami and is not the direct grand guardian, she's just a guardian in training with a true Ladybug soul

Marinette portals back and forth from Paris to Tibet with Kaalki and on one of her visits meets Damian

Hawkmoth is still at large but Marinette had more backup this time around

Dami and Mari kick it off

Damian wants to help Marinette and ends up joining in guardian training

Idk if he's a true cat soul or not, but they aren't soulmates in that sense of the word, he just matches Marinette and can tell he could grow to love her

Again growing tired, but eventually, through meeting and helping each other (Mari with tactics, Dami with healing) they fall for each other

Damian starts a new life with Mari and ends up being a full guardian

Unclear if Damian would forgive his family in this one

Damian may or may not have been involved in Hawkmoth's defeat but he definitely keeps Mari stable and Plagg in a good mood

Idk this idea refuses to write itself even though it's already written in my head. Good luck me. I have some written out but I've been hesitant to post about it as transitions have been very hard for this one.

#maribat #daminette #ml x dc #ongoing #fic idea #idle thoughts

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diamaker-moon · 3 years

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Moving Forward - Chapter 3

Chapter Three

nervous gut feelings

—————

The last thought that ran in his mind before he drifted to sleep was, why did she transfer? Was she unsatisfied with her progress in her old school? Or maybe something happened?

'Who really are you, Marinette Dupain- Cheng?'

— previous chapter... —

Despite being the Kwami of Destruction, Plagg has his moments. And today he had one.

His chosen, Adrien Agreste, a famous model for his father's brand: Gabriel, is ranting. More likely whining.

Plagg was in disbelief when he heard about his chosen's ridiculous advice, which was to take the high road. he didn't like that sausage-haired girl from the beginning, sure he was proud that his kid did something to get the young guardian back to school, but only to bend her morals and stay quiet.

Plagg looked at his chosen who was busy skimming through the book they had found before that got his deadbeat of a father, akumatized, together with a tablet.

He was sad that he'll lose his Camembert stash, but he had already gave word to Tikki. If the Cat Miraculous stayed with him, he might turn his back on Ladybug and Paris, and they can't have that. Besides those gooey cheese in bread were delicious in Plagg's opinion.

"Hey, kid? Why don't you sleep already? You kept rambling earlier that you were tired remember?"

Adrien stopped before looking at his computer's clock. He was shocked that it had gotten so late. He was so engrossed in what he found in his father's office. His thoughts wandered back to a certain pigtail girl. He was disappointed in her for not following his advice and pitied her when her sketchbook got torned up by their classmates due to a misunderstanding. But Marinette was a talented girl, she can re-do it in no time! That was his belief.

And then there's the other pigtail girl in his life, Ladybug. He didn't attend patrol tonight, he was giving her time to decide between being in denial to herself or finally admitting she loves him. They were Yin and Yang, they were destined.

He sighed before making his way to his bed, and immediately falling asleep.

Adrien didn't sense a kwami moving towards him and removing the silver ring on his hand that turned black with a paw print once it was in the kwami's paws. Wayzz then places it far from him, before he returned with a silver ring, it was similar to the camouflage cat miraculous but was only a plain silver ring replica and placed it where the miraculous used to be. Picking the real miraculous once again, Wayzz saw a book and a tablet on top of each other on the kid's desk. When he took a closer look, he immediately went to Ladybug, hiding in a nearby roof, trying to calm herself after finding out that her partner was the same guy who left her to the pack of wolves in Dupont.

Wayzz gave the miraculous to the young guardian, who stored it in her yo-yo in the meantime, then alerted the girl about the Grimoire and the previous Guardian's missing tablet. Ladybug panicked but immediately made her way to the young Agreste's room. She was lucky that the window was open, she quickly spotted the book and tablet on the desk, grabbed them, and gathered a bunch of Camembert, per Tikki's request for Plagg, then she left the room not even looking back.

It was a lucky night for the Guardian. But an unfortunate one for the young Agreste.

When Adrien woke up in the morning, he was shocked that there was no Camembert smell wafting around his room, when he opened the mini-fridge cabinet for Plagg, he saw it empty and reminded himself to refrain Plagg from eating all the Camembert in one go.

While showering, he felt nervous. He didn't know why.

Even after he finished showering, there were no kwami who approached him. No Plagg around. It irked him, but he pushed it aside and thought that the kwami must be lazying around and hiding. But he was in a panic when he didn't find the book and tablet on his desk, soon he calmed himself down, then he reasoned with himself that maybe Nathalie had gone inside his room and saw it, grabbed them and returned them to his father.

It was the most logical reason in his head.

It was eerily quiet that day, and the nervous feeling he had hadn't gone by. There was still no Plagg. But when he looks at his hand, the ring of the black cat miraculous was still there. There's nothing to worry about.

Yeah. Nothing. Nothing at all.

—————

The weekends have passed, and there was still no Plagg. Ever since he gave Marinette's advice, his friendship with his kwami has been strained, but he paid no mind.

When he was about to go to school on a Monday morning, he assumed that Plagg had made his way towards his bag. He didn't check. The moment he arrives in front of the school, he noticed some of the students, looking at him before whispering to each other than leaving. There was another gut feeling. He ignored it.

He climbed the school's front steps and saw Nino and Alya talking to each other.

"Nino! Alya!"

The two of them looked at him, smiled and waved.

"They still have the audacity to smile?!"

"I heard the student council was in trouble! The reservations made by the Akuma Class' deputy were never reserved!"

"So we won't have a school event?!"

Those were the few whispers Adrien heard while walking near his friends. He tried so hard to ignore the ominous feeling in his guts. Looking around the courtyard, most students were glancing at them then whispered to each other while leaving. It made Adrien wary, even Alya kept glancing at the other students while her brows are furrowed, and Nino was confused by his schoolmates' current attitude towards them.

The trio ignored them, Alya started dragging Nino towards their classroom.

"Hey, guys! Aren't we going to wait for Marinette?" Adrien asked.

"Why would we?! She kept bullying Lila! She won't even be civil around her!" Alya shouted back.

She ignored Adrien's wince and kept going on their way. Adrien looked behind him towards the bakery across the street. He tried to wait for her but when it was only five minutes before the bell rang. He sighed and made his way to his classroom.

When he entered the room, he saw their homeroom teacher sitting on her desk with piles of paper on top of the desk. She looked stressed. Lila on the other hand was spinning her lies in her seat next to his supposed seat.

He sat down unenthusiastically.

'This is going to be a long day... I'd rather have Plagg complain about camembert right now!'

—————

Collège Françoise Dupont was in a frenzy, after finding out that Marinette has transferred schools due to the situation in her class.

They were saddened by the news that because of someone's incompetency to reprimand properly, the victim had to move on with her life. They sent her a private message on her social media accounts wishing her the best of luck at her new school.

When the bell rang indicating it was time for lunch, the other students of Dupont were purposely ignoring the reason for the Collège Françoise Dupont dilemma at the moment.

The whole Student Council was a mess, after finding out that the Deputy of the Akuma Class— Alya Césaire, hasn't made any reservations for the venue, catering, entertainment etc. for the school event. There were also no preparations for the venue's decorations. They were empty-handed.

The Drama Club was worrying about costumes for their play, some are wondering to do DIYs but others suggested going to Marinette's website and commission it. The website was created during her week's absence, in preparations for her career, she chose to hide her identity and be known as MDC the designer for MDC Designs. Only a handful from the drama club know about it and chose not to expose who the designer was outside the club, and most of the drama club members agreed and will look at the website then plan if it is fit their budget.

The Art Club was wandering the whole week when will Marinette come to the club and bring a bit of happiness inside the room, even their art teacher, was feeling down.

Some won't admit, heck even Chloé, was missing the ravenette.

Adrien was confused why everyone was ignoring them as if they were a bunch of pariahs in Collège Françoise Dupont. So he asked one of the other students what was happening. And due to his luck, he asks her— Aurore Beauréle.

"Uhm... Hey, can I ask why's everyone ignoring us?"

Aurore deadpanned at him. Everyone can see that Aurore was clearly annoyed just by looking at him, but the blonde clearly didn't get the memo.

"Haven't you heard?" She asked back in a cold tone.

"Heard what?"

"You're class... drove Marinette to transfer schools. All because of you guys." She said in an icy tone before passing by him then rest left him in the locker room— gaping.

Chapter 2 — Moving Forward: Masterlist — Chapter 4

#miraculousladybug #marinette dupain-cheng #moving forward #AO3 #class salt #adrien agreste

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alyasgf · 3 years

Text

Everything Is Gonna Be Okay

mlb fic master list || part 2

Summary- Adrien has known Ladybug’s identity since kwamibuster, but she worked so hard who was he to ruin it?

Or alternatively kwamibuster but Adrien isn’t fooled, realizes who Ladybug is but doesn’t say anything. He helps her by becoming her close friend. He may have also accidentally fallen in love with her. Oops? Ft. Ladynoir, Adrinette, and Marichat (mostly Adrinette )

Notes- Getting to all the prompts I have building up that I haven’t had time for so enjoy! I might come back to this for another chapter with Ladrien and possibly a full reveal we’ll see.

Word Count- 1660

AO3

Begin

Adrien knew it was Marinette. Common sense was that if she had all the miraculous on, she’d probably have the fox. She would’ve gotten away with it, but Chat Noir could clearly the difference. After the Volpina scandal he’d noticed how flat the illusions could look, so when the tiny Multimouse seemed just a bit lackluster, he simply connected the dots.

Still, she’d put so much effort into the whole thing, so who was he to ruin it for her? He’d simply play along.

Ever since he found out Ladybug’s identity, he tried to get closer to Marinette, but she always seemed to be uncomfortable around Adrien. It disappointed him, but he understood. Adrien came with high expectations, while Chat Noir was free of these standards.

He’d visit Marinette as Chat Noir every chance he got. At first, he was worried Ladybug might reprimand him, but Marinette seemed to enjoy the company.

Unlike Ladybug, sometimes Marinette would entertain Chat’s antics (probably because they weren’t in the middle of battling an akuma.)

They’d play video games, watch anime on her terrace, and eat goodies he wasn’t allowed at home. He considered her his best friend, in and out of the suit.

Unfortunately, he let this slip while hanging out with Alya, Nino and Marinette.

“Surely your friend Marinette will help you with the notes you missed.” Alya said, raising her eyebrows and directing a look towards Marinette.

“You mean best friend Marinette.” Adrien replied lightheartedly.

Marinette turned bright red, while Nino gasped in offense.

“Well who am I then? I thought you and I were closer!” Nino pouted.

“I- uh,” Adrien was at a loss, before deciding to play it off. “I can have more than one best friend Nino don’t get too jealous.” He laughed.

Marinette was still red as she handed Adrien her notes to take a picture of. They were all in the park after school, as they did sometimes when Adrien’s schedule would allow it.

Alya whispered something into Marinette’s ear that made her blush harder. Adrien couldn’t help but notice how cute she looked. He couldn’t believe the girl that threw herself at akumas with no fear could hardly look him in the eye without stuttering. He couldn’t help but tease her.

“Everything ok Marinette?” He leaned closer and put his hand on her forehead. She froze and looked up, cross eyed at his hand. “You look like you’re heating up.”

She practically fell backwards trying to scoot away from his hand. “Yeah yeah! You feel great.” She said in a daze. “I mean I feel great!”

Adrien let out a laugh, and everyone joined in. Marinette even seemed to giggle a little. Adrien took that as a win.

————————————

He kept up this rouse for months, visiting her at nights after patrols or whenever he missed her. As he did this, he began to fall in love with her as Marinette. It wasn’t all at once though. At first when he’d discovered her identity he had trouble seeing the two as one person. But as he spent more time with Marinette he could see all of Ladybug’s characteristics in her, and in turn, Marinette characteristics in Ladybug.

Anytime Ladybug would doubt her plans, she’d get the same face Marinette would make when she proposed something to Adrien. The determination Marinette had when it came to her friends was the same attitude Ladybug had toward all Parisians.

And with that Adrien was hopelessly in love with her. Still, there was Luka.

She mentioned there was an other guy as Ladybug, and before he knew who she was he assumed she and Luka already had a thing. Before, he could accept this, but after knowing everything it hurt a little more.

He put this all aside though, because Marinette was his friend and partner first (and romantic interest second.)

But as he got lost in her eyes one night while talking and sharing snacks he had to ask, had to hope maybe he was wrong.

“So I hear a certain boy has caught your heart Marinette, care to share?” He asked casually, looking away after a particularly vulnerable moment.

“Yeah he has.” Marinette said with a sigh as she started off into the distance, lovestruck.

Adrien couldn’t help but feel disappointed. “What’s he like?”

“God Chat, he’s just perfect. He cares so much about everyone, and despite everything the world had thrown at him, he’s still so kind.” Marinette gushed.

Adrien had heard about how Luka’s father had abandoned him and Juleka when they were younger. He knew how it felt to feel like there was a piece of your family missing, but not ever knowing them must be unbearable. He could tell Marinette thought the world of Luka.

“How do you feel about Ladybug?” Marinette ventured.

Adrien laughed, knowing who she was, it was funny when Marinette asked about herself. She did it often, as though she couldn’t believe anyone could think so highly of her.

“Well, what can I say that isn’t already obvious? She’s determined, kind, funny, and a bit of a klutz.”

Marinette pouted. “No one calls Ladybug a klutz.”

“Well no one else spends as much time with her as I do. At least in costume anyway.”

Marinette begrudgingly agreed.

“Although she could entertain my amazing puns.” Chat teased.

Marinette laughed. “In your dreams kitty.”

If Chat hadn’t already known she was Ladybug, the way she delivered that line would’ve gave it away. There was a certain fondness to it that only his partner could use with him.

————————————

At some point after Marinette became the guardian, something changed.

They communicated if he could come over by her leaving out a cup of milk or her sitting outside around 9. Lately that came less and less.

Ladybug started to miss more and more patrols. She said she was busy, and with the way Marinette no longer had time to hang out with her friends he could tell that was true.

He tried to distract himself and change targets, but that blew up in his face. Kagami was starting to believe his excuses less and less. It was no suprise when she broke off whatever they had.

What was surprising however, was when he heard from Nino, who heard from Alya, who heard from Juleka, that Marinette and Luka had broken up.

She was always tired, and this was evident through her red eyes with dark bags beneath them. Adrien felt so helpless. He wasn’t sure how he could help without telling her what he knew.

He started with little things, like giving her notes she missed without her asking, letting her know it was really okay if she had to miss a patrol here and there, and leaving her little treats on her terrace to find whenever she went up.

One night as he passed by her room to leave a gift, he found the trapdoor cracked open and could hear her crying in her bed. He could hear the kwamis trying to comfort her, but it wasn’t working.

He made a show of dropping down so she’d have time to hide the kwamis before he knocked on the edge of the open trapdoor.

“You ok Marinette?”

When she lifted the trapdoor fully open a minute later he could tell she had tried to make herself look better. Her eyes looked freshly wiped and she had a forced smile on her face.

“Hey Chat. I’m fine just a little busy. Sorry we haven’t hung out in a while.”

Chat could still hear the sobs in his head that had been coming from her not even 5 minutes ago.

He threw his arms around her and she pulled herself into the ledge before crumbling into him.

She sobbed so hard, he was worried she’d break.

They stayed like that for at least half an hour. Chat rubbed her back and whispered affirmations into her ear.

“Shhh, it’ll be okay. You’re okay. You’re doing great.”

He didn’t know how she hadn’t been akumatized, but with him there, there was no way he’d let that happen.

When she finally calmed down, she pulled from him to look him in the eyes.

Her eyes were puffy and red from crying, there was a bit of snot coming from her nose. Still, she looked beautiful in the moonlight.

“I’m sorry Chat. Sometimes it’s just too hard to hold it in.” She said with a hiccup.

Chat pulled her back in. “Everyone needs to let it out every once in a while Marinette. There’s nothing to be sorry for, I’m just glad you chose me to be here for you. Do you wanna talk about it?”

Marinette shook her head. Chat sighed. He wouldn’t push her to say anything, no matter how much he wished she’d tell him.

“What can I do?” He asked.

“Stay with me until I fall asleep?” She whispered into his shoulder.

Chat nodded and she got up and climbed into her bed. Chat followed and left the trapdoor open.

There he laid, her head on his chest until her breathing evened out. He really didn’t want to leave. She was so warm and vulnerable. He was so in love with her.

But he knew he couldn’t stay, so ever so reluctantly, he lifted her from him softly and he left.

————————————

The next day when he saw her, he could see for the first time in what felt like forever she looked like she got some rest.

He ran up to her and hugged her tightly. She stiffened before relaxing into his touch.

“Marinette, I know if I ask you’re gonna tell me you’re okay, but I want you to know I can tell you aren’t. I’m here for you. We’re all here for you. Please don’t push us away.” He said into her hair. It smelled like strawberries and sweets, like always. It was comforting.

“O-okay.” She stuttered out. “Thank you Adrien.” She said softly. He felt her hold on a little tighter.

End Notes- Feel free to send in prompts! Also I wanna write more reveals where only one of them knows so look out for that. Reply your favorite part and leave a like and reblog if you liked this it makes my day ;)

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lady-literature · 4 years

Text

for us to collide (part 4)

anyway who actually expected me to end this thing in 4 chapters lol

rip me ig

After the not-so-impromptu interrogation courtesy of her friends (because there was no way they hadn’t planned that, it was too coordinated) Robin doesn’t stop by for two weeks.

Which is… fine. Marinette is plenty busy anyways. The extra time she has free now that she isn’t entertaining a bratty vigilante, goes to more productive uses of her time. Like watching bad horror movies with her friends and jeering at the horrible acting and special effects.

(Red Hood stops by in the middle of watching Grizzly Rage and proceeds to rant for twenty minutes about ‘shitty, unrealistic blood splatters’. Marinette has long since passed the point of being worried about it.)

So, yeah. She doesn’t see Robin.

But Damian, oddly enough, seeks her out.

It’s early, and there isn’t anyone else in the studio right now which means Marinette has her music blasting and she’s humming along as she hand paints silk for Clara’s dress. It’s loud and she’s in her zone, so it’s only by Tikki warning her that she realizes someone entered her sanctuary.

Her eyebrows raise when she sees who it is.

“Uh, bonjour Damian," she greets confusedly, reaching over to lower the volume on her speakers. "I hadn’t expected to see you here. Is there something you need?”

He stops before her workstation, only slightly bigger than the ones the rest of her staff use due to the sheer amount of open commissions she normally has. She has an actual office on this floor, but Chloé uses it more than she does. Marinette likes the open space and being around her designers more than she likes the privacy.

His eyes catch on the two bouquets of flowers she’s yet to take home, neither of which have even begun to wilt—and likely won’t. (She’ll have to take them home soon before people start asking questions.)

“I was called here by Father, but he’s currently indisposed. I’ve been told to wait.”

She waits a moment for him to continue, and when he doesn’t, she asks, “So you came to visit me?”

“Yours is the only tolerable presence to be found.” His lips purse, and he crosses his arms. “And that includes that imbecile Drake who is no doubt still in his office like the pitiful insomniac he is.”

Her tongue is already halfway around a joke about excuses—she didn’t befriend Felix for nothing, okay? She knows how people like Damian work—when she realizes what he just said.

“Wait. Tim’s been here all night?”

Damian snorts. “He certainly didn’t return to the manor.”

She’s out of her seat in an instant, frowning and muttering up a storm as she rummages through the storage cubes pushed up against the far wall. She has a blanket, pillow and plain cotton shirt in her hands before Damian registers that she even moved.

“I’m going to kill your brother,” she says simply. “Would you like to come with?”

She’s gotten closer to Tim since working in Wayne Tower. He’s a notorious recluse and rarely leaves his office when he’s in the building, but Marinette makes it a point to visit him during lunch and before she leaves for the night.

He isn’t one of her Waynes, but he is a Wayne and her Waynes love and care for him so there’s not much of a difference really. She does like to think they might be something close to friends at this point though. And if the way Tim comes down to visit whenever he ventures out of his office means something, she might even be right.

Another thing that should be noted, is that Marinette is very much a ‘ride or die’ kind of person when it comes to the people she cares about. She will ruthlessly bully her loved ones into taking better care of themselves on threat of death because she is the semi-hypocritical mom friend and damn proud of it.

Damian looks her up and down, eyes lingering on the items in her hands and the determined set to her jaw and says, “Of course.” Then he’s plucking her things from her hands, offering her his arm and saying, “Shall we?”

Marinette laughs as she loops her arm with his. “We shall.”

***

She spends ten minutes scolding Tim before wrangling him onto the couch in his office and wrapping him up in the blanket so tightly he’d need to be an escape artist to get out of it. He tries to struggle anyway, but Marinette has too much practice at this and he doesn’t stand a chance in hell.

Damian stands at her shoulder and smirks the entire time, eyes dancing with amusement as she forces the CEO of Wayne Enterprises to take a fucking nap. Then, she’s treated to the sound of his surprised laughter as she begins switching out all of Tim’s regular coffee for magic-decaf—not that Damian knows it’s magic.

(By the devilish smirk playing at his lips, she’s starting to think that maybe Damian really is just as sadistic as Duke and Jason say he is.)

***

Damian starts dropping by more often after that (read: starts dropping by at all). Not that Marinette minds. She quite likes his company, actually.

He normally stops by first thing in the morning when Marinette is the only one in the workshop, walking in like he owns the place. For the first couple days, he asks about Ladybug and the rest of Paris’ Court, claiming that he’s curious about them.

She answers them, but only as far as she’d answer them for any reporter and is careful not to give away any sensitive information not known to the public. He gets a bit frustrated at one point, complaining that she must know more, but she stays stubbornly silent about it and, sometimes, steers the conversation deftly to the Great Bat and his Flock instead.

He eventually stops asking about the Parisian superheroes and instead their morning conversations turn to a thousand random things. Complaints and anecdotes and a silly back and forth between the two.

Marinette’s never been much of a morning person but having Damian there to keep her company is… nice.

She almost finds herself looking forward to mornings now.

***

When her Waynes learn that she’s started a food kitchen and makes a habit of spending her weekend there, they immediately insist on joining her, despite her protests.

“You guys really don’t have to do this,” she says even though the three of them are already in their aprons and Cass is eyeing the boucher, Vivian, and her collection of knives with glittering interest.

Duke grins at her, “We know, M. But we want to.”

Jason finally turns back to her from where he’s been staring at the kitchen with something just shy of awe on his face. “You’re downright incredible, you know that?” he waves a hand out at the seating area, and then at the people in the kitchen assembling the healthiest and cost-efficient meals she and Felix could find after days spent researching. “I would’ve killed for something like this when I was on the streets.”

“It’s not just me who’s got this up and running-” she tries protesting but then Fiona, the woman Marinette actually put in charge of this place, is at her side and all but shoving the four of them into stations.

Marinette ends up by the pastries, like always, and she can see Jason making sandwiches. Duke's been roped into making eggs and bean casseroles and Cass, by some grace, actually ended up by Vivian and is having a blast cutting up all the meats as fast as she can.

They don’t stop until lunch, all four of them helping prepare meals for the upcoming week in bulk. After, they all go out for ice cream by the pier and Jason smears chocolate on her nose and Duke carries her around on his back when she complains about being tired.

Cass takes pictures of it all and later, Marinette gets them all printed out.

It ends up being a really good day.

***

The buzz from the charity gala and all the press regarding her and Damian’s non-existent relationship had calmed down weeks ago. There was still the odd article about Marinette being seen with her odd assortment of Waynes and the newspapers still called her ridiculous names when they got a picture, but it was about as close to normal as she gets.

The quiet lulled her into a false sense of security.

Ice Prince and Sweetheart Finally Seen on Date: Fairy Tale Romance or Publicity Stunt?

The ‘date’ in question was a coffee and lunch run for her designers and also Tim (because kwami knew he'd work through lunch if allowed).

Damian normally didn’t stay past Lilliane arriving in the morning (the poor dear was chronically late and always the last to arrive) but he hadn’t shown up until after she came that day and overcompensated by hours—which she hadn't minded. He kept to the fringes of her workspace and didn't distract her, instead focusing on his own thing. She wasn’t quite sure what he was up to, but she knew he was switching between his computer and sketchpad every so often.

(She's pretty sure he was hiding from Dick for some reason. He’s the only Wayne brother who doesn’t visit her at work, seeing as they have their bi-weekly gymnastic sessions; recently, with the addition of Mar’i, who still calls her ‘twin’ and whom Marinette still adores.)

And then lunch had rolled around, and it was Marinette’s turn to go out so she brought Damian with since he was still there.

They were out together for forty-five minutes. Tops.

“Why me?” she whines into the surface of her desk.

Damian, the asshole, just laughs at her and she can’t even be mad about it because he’s only just started laughing around her and not hiding behind so many of his walls. He laughs and Marinette knows it's precious so instead of shooting him the glower he deserves, she finds herself having to hide the smile slowly creeping on her face.

***

They’re splashed across the papers again less than a week later, only this time she has her Waynes there too.

Marinette's wearing her bright red sundress and she's somehow convinced Damian to wear a jacket with elaborate crowns and snowflakes embroidered up the sides. Because, as Chloé says: if you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em.

They see the camera this time and the photo splashed across the page the next day is of Marinette laughing with Jason’s arm slung across her shoulders as both he and Damian flip off the camera. Meanwhile, Duke and Cass stand just far enough in frame to capture their expressions of pain and amusement respectively.

(Marinette makes a mental note to order apology gift baskets for the PR department.)

There are a lot of headlines the next day about Marinette’s ‘harem of Waynes’ and how she’s a ‘horrible influence on such bright children’. She spends about ten minutes trying to decide whether she should be horrified or laugh at the sheer ridiculousness of it and eventually decides on both.

Adrien, the little shit, sees the headline and immediately prints it out to hang in her kitchen.

It reappears every time she tries to take it down.

***

Gotham does not smile upon daytime heroes.

Not to say that Gotham really smiles on anyone, but it’s especially vicious to those that think they’re owed anything. She’s heard the way Gothamites talk about Superman and The Flash—it’s not exactly what one would call adoring.

But Ladybug's been a daytime hero her entire career and it is not difficult to see that there's something distinctly different about the way daytime heroes and Gotham’s vigilantes operate.

Something more vicious, maybe; something more restrained.

Without the light of day and without the people’s eyes watching them at every moment, the Gotham Bats have become something else entirely.

Signal, their Daytime Protector, is especially strange.

A bat who's meta, straddling the line between day and night. The Day Patrol, trained by the night.

Sometimes, when she and Signal talk about heroing, there is such an odd type of disconnect that it throws her. Nothing horrible or major, but little things she’s sure she wouldn’t notice if she wasn’t so intimately familiar with it all herself.

They don’t always talk about heroing though. After two months, Ladybug is proud to say she seems to be worming her way past his outer shell nicely. He tried so hard to keep his distance from her, but Ladybug’s always liked a challenge, and it isn’t long before she has him relaxing around her.

Well, for a definition of relax anyway. He's still a bat after all.

But then, it’s pretty easy to get past Signal’s barriers when she’s already had practice breaking through the more stubborn bats like Robin and, to an extent, Hood. Not that Signal, or any of the bats, know that.

Which, speaking of the bats, isn’t it a bit weird she’s only met three spread across two of her alter egos? As Ladybug, she’d expect to be hounded by a few of them but the only one she’s met is Signal. She can’t decide if it’s because he’s the only one that operates in the daylight, or if they just don’t want to spook her into running or something.

Either way, they’re going to start giving her a complex. She’s heard so much about the rest of the Batfamily, and not one of them even wants to meet her? Either her?

(Maybe Marinette should ask Robin and Hood what’s up with that? The way they talk about how nosy Red Robin is, she’s surprised he didn’t drop by months ago and- is it weird that she’s offended by vigilantes not prying into her private life?

…Probably.)

***

Marinette blinks, stopping dead in her tracks.

Damian's on her fainting couch, sketchpad in his lap as he waits for her.

“Why are you wearing a beanie?” she blurts out instead of greeting him like a normal person. "You never wear beanies."

Luckily, Damian scowls at her question rather than at her. It’s a subtle but very important difference.

“Sorry,” she apologizes anyway, putting her bag down. “I haven't had coffee yet.”

He hums, then nods to her desk where she finds a steaming to-go mug. Her face lights up and she quickly snatches it, breathing deeply the lovely aroma. “You’re a godsend.”

That brings a quirk to his lips, closer to a smirk than a smile, but progress nonetheless.

After a moment, where she sips at her overly sugary monstrosity—just the way she likes it, when had Damian even noticed that?—and he continues sketching she asks again. “Okay but, I actually am kinda curious. What’s up with the hat?”

He sighs heavily, closing his pad. “It’s… better than the alternative.”

Marinette snorts. “Alternative to what? A top hat?” But instead of snapping back like she expects, he just continues to frown. Immediately, her lips turn down into a concerned frown. “Is there something wrong?”

“Yes,” he grounds out and Marinette puts her coffee down. She’s just about to open her mouth and say something else when he reaches up and rips the beanie off his head.

For the second time in less than five minutes, she stops dead.

Marinette opens her mouth. Closes it. Blinks, but the scene doesn't change.

His hair is still blue.

Damian Wayne's hair is blue.

Damian Wayne’s hair is vibrantly electric blue.

Her hand shoots up to cover her mouth as she tries to stifle her giggles.

Damian’s scowl deepens. He moves to shove his ridiculous beanie back on his head but her hand snaps out before he can.

“No! No, I’m sorry I just-” she giggles again. “You looked so upset by it and you took me by surprise. I like it!”

He glares up at her, still sat on the fainting couch so it’s her who has the height advantage for once.

“Don’t patronize me.”

She rolls her eyes, the hand that wasn’t settled on his arm reaching up to touch the bright strands. It's slow enough that he can stop her, but he, surprisingly, makes no move to.

His hair is a lot softer than she expects it to be. But she supposes he didn’t use that gel stuff today, planning on keeping his hair under a hat the whole time.

“It looks good on you,” she says softly.

He snorts disbelievingly and she smacks his shoulder lightly. “It’s true! I swear you could look good in any color.” She clicks her tongue longingly. “I wish I had your skin tone. I’m too pale to wear pastels like I want.”

He wrinkles his nose at her. “Pastels?”

“Oh you hush,” she quips, finally pulling her hand from his hair. “Anyway, if you don’t like it, why’d you dye it blue in the first place?”

“I… lost a wager with Todd.”

She laughs, starting to move around and get ready for the day. She doesn’t have any meetings scheduled, which means she gets the whole day to create. She’s pretty excited about it.

“I should’ve guessed it was Jason’s doing.”

Damian shrugs, settling back into the cushions. He drapes himself across them in a way that’s effortlessly elegant and like he’s ready to be photographed for a magazine cover or something. Must all her friends be so pretty? It’s playing hell on her self-esteem.

“But blue is your favorite color, right? So there’s that at least.”

Damian hums. “Todd had threatened to dye it pink or some other equally garish color.”

“Hey!” she exclaims in mock outrage. “What’s wrong with pink? I’ve been wanting to dye my hair pink for ages.”

“Nothing. It’s just simply not a color I appreciate.” He makes a face. “Like orange.”

Marinette huffs, but there’s a smile on her lips. It's quiet for a moment, for long enough that she thinks the conversation's been dropped. But then-

“Why don’t you?”

“Huh?”

“Why haven’t you dyed your hair?” he repeats. “Your friends—Couffaine and… Kubdel? They both have colored hair.”

Marinette shrugs. “I dunno. Never got around to it I guess. I suppose I could do it now. Dye mine in solidarity,” she jokes. “Oh! We could match even! Wouldn’t that be fun?”

“I thought you wanted pink?”

“Well, yeah. But blue is nice too. Besides,” she smiles wryly over her shoulder, “you just said pink was ‘garish’.”

Damian frowns slightly, shaking his head, “On me, perhaps. But I think you’d look very fetching in pink.”

“Oh,” Marinette pauses, feeling her face grow warm at the sudden compliment. “Well- Uh, pink it is, then.”

***

(Damian watches the blush rise on her cheeks as she turns away to try and hide it. Yes, he can’t help but think, fetching in pink, indeed.)

***

Luka insists on being the one to dye her hair, citing that he’s the one who had dibs all these years, but Alix and Jason both all but demand to be there too.

Her bathroom is not big enough for all four of them to sit in.

Not a single one of them cares.

Cass and Duke ask for progress pics along with Uncle Jay, and all her Parisian friends cycle through standing at the bathroom door to see how it's going.

The constant stream of people looking at her makes her feel not unlike an animal at a zoo. (When she wryly tells this to Alix, all she gets is her friend cackling on the ground.)

But, after all the bleaching and conditioning and waiting, she stares into the mirror with soft pink hair the color of bubblegum and thinks, yeah, it was worth it.

She thinks it again when Damian walks in the next day and almost trips over his own feet.

(She’s also wearing her Robin themed sundress, complete with hood, matching boots and personal touches not found on the mass-produced version—but Marinette doesn’t know why that would be relevant.)

Her favorite reaction to her new hair color though is, by far, Mar’i’s.

Marinette doesn’t see the young Grayson until a week later when she’s invited to the monthly family dinner Alfred insists all the Waynes attend—which includes her now, apparently (she tries not to show how pleased she is by that).

She arrived with Damian, who was kind enough to pick Tim and her up from work, and Mar’i takes one look at Damian and her standing next to one another before she starts babbling excitedly about Lilo and Stitch and Angel. A character who is—apparently—Stitch’s girlfriend and the complimentary pink to his blue.

Marinette is momentarily surprised, but Mar’i’s enthusiasm is contagious and it isn’t long before the rest of the Waynes are teasingly calling them Angel and Stitch. Marinette thinks it’s all very funny and adorable.

Damian, on the other hand, most certainly does not and threatens everyone who calls him that ‘ridiculous nickname’ with graphic depictions of bodily harm.

‘Angel’, oddly enough, sticks for Marinette. She finds she kind of likes it.

***

Later, Damian asks her about nicknames.

Well, he calls them ‘asinine titles’ and doesn’t so much ask as demand she explain why she allows anyone to call her by them seeing as she has a ‘perfectly serviceable name,’ in his opinion.

Ignoring the fact that she’s heard Dick call him multiple nicknames he hadn’t protested to, she says, “Well, I guess it’s that everyone uses Marinette. A nickname is something… special. A little more personal, I guess. And, I dunno. My parents named me Marinette, but it’s nice to share something between other people. And it shows they care.”

Damian looks confused after she’s done, but also thoughtful. He doesn’t say anything to that and Marinette doesn’t really expect anything to come of it.

She's proven wrong when, a week later, Damian calls her Starling instead of Marinette.

(And the transition from Dupain-Cheng to Marinette had been enough to make her beam—this is just ridiculous.)

***

When Robin disappears a second time, Marinette doesn’t get the chance to notice his absence on her own. He’s only stopped showing up four days ago—which is longer than normal, but not unheard of—when she hears unfamiliar voices on her balcony.

Looking out, she finds three semi-familiar individuals clustered around the plate of treats she leaves out for Robin and Hood.

Nightwing and Red Robin are both stuffing their faces full of the fruit tarts she had made while Spoiler glares at them and seems to be cursing the fact that her mask covers her mouth the same way Hood always does when she makes those raspberry scones he likes.

The scene is… odd. For many reasons but most pressingly that their arrival has come out of nowhere.

“Well,” Nightwing explains when she asks, “We wanted to visit ages ago, but baby bird threatened to stab us all if we tried.”

“He’s very… particular about you,” Red Robin tacks on while Spoiler nods sagely like she hasn’t crafted some strange straw monstrosity just so she can drink tea while still wearing her mask. Red Robin has one too, but his for the aesthetic rather than out of necessity.

Marinette stares at the three of them. “That… does not explain why you are here now.”

“Robin can’t stop us now, obviously,” Red Robin says casually, like he hasn't just kicked her heart into high gear with a few words.

“What? Why?” she demands, trying very hard not to sound panicked. “Is he okay? Was he hurt?”

Red Robin blinks, going quiet in that way Hood and Robin do when they’re judging her just a bit. She hates this family.

“No, he’s… fine.”

“B’s just benched him for the time being,” Nightwing helpfully supplies, amusement flickering at the edges of his lips. “He’s a little too… conspicuous at the moment.”

Marinette’s shoulders relax even as her brows furrow. Conspicuous? What in the world is that supposed to mean?

“Does that mean he won’t be coming around for a while?” she asks before she can think better of it.

The three vigilantes in front of her share a look before Spoiler says, “Probably. But the gremlin’s never been one to sit still so who knows?” she smiles, eyes crinkling at the corners as she leans toward Marinette conspiratorially. “But don’t worry. We can keep you company in the meantime!”

“We’re much better company than the demon anyway. Certainly less insulting.”

“Oh, he’s not that bad. He’s an ass, for sure, but you can tell when he means it and when he’s just stumbling over himself.” Marinette smiles fondly, “For someone so dignified, he trips over his tongue quite often.”

Now the vigilantes are really staring at her. She’s starting to feel pretty uncomfortable about it all when Nightwing beams at her, jumping up from his seat to sweep her into a hug. It startles her, but she doesn’t push him away, instead laughing at the sudden affection.

“Oh you really are perfect!” he exclaims, setting her down and still grinning like an absolute lunatic.

She’s smiling, because Nightwing’s joy is infectious, but she's even more confused than before. And then, before she can ask what he means, Red Robin’s wrist computer lights up—and damn, isn’t that cool? Marinette wonders if Tikki could do something like that for the Ladybug suit—and the three are moving to swing back out into the night.

She waves them off and they all promise to visit again.

Marinette shakes her head before going back inside with the empty pastry plate and four empty mugs.

***

Damian knows of Marinette’s friends of course. It'd take more effort not to when she talks about them every chance she gets and tells him all the wild stories about their escapades and misadventures.

(They also all came up in the background check he ran on her when they first met.)

Most of her friends are exceedingly normal oddly enough. Well, they’re all mildly famous and the leaders of their various fields, but they’re just civilians.

The only exceptions being, Bourgeois, Agreste, and Graham de Vanily.

Bourgeois is a former hero like Marinette, only she doesn't seem to still be in contact with the Parisian Court. All the articles he could find spoke about how Queen Bee was deemed unfit for her mantle and later replaced by the new bee hero, Ambrosia. Agreste was caught up in the scandal of his father being Hawkmoth, but he was found innocent and ignorant of his father's crimes (something Damian made sure to confirm). He now works at and is being groomed to own the bakery Marinette's parents run, seeing as their daughter has little interest to do it herself.

And finally, Graham de Vanily, Agreste's cousin, has a history of causing trouble wherever he goes. Nothing villainous, and rarely even malicious, but there's something about him that makes the hair on the back of his neck stand up. Not everything is as it seems with the Graham de Vanily heir.

Besides those three outliers, Marinette's friends seem to be untouched by the vigilante life. Which means he thinks they must be utterly boring.

Only, when her friends start coming around to visit and drag her out for lunch or some other random outing, Damian keeps finding himself baffled by each of them.

They act strangely and with a dangerous air none of them should possess, except for Tsurugi. The questions they ask him are strange and the jokes they make have no sense. He's been warned about how he better treat Marinette so many times, he's started to lose count. (Which is ridiculous. He treats her just fine and would never intentionally harm her. What are they trying to insinuate?)

But, by far, his most memorable encounter is with Lahiffe. A veritable wolf in sheep's clothing.

Marinette is excitedly babbling about her newest idea for her summer collection, pressed up against him on the chaise and practically shoving her sketches in his face as she demands his critique and thoughts.

Her hands are waving every which way and, on more than one occasion, he has to quickly lean back so she doesn't hit him in the face.

He’s focusing on what she’s saying so much—because she has a habit of forgetting things if she doesn’t write them down and needs someone to remind her of the ideas she had at a later time—that he doesn’t even realize Lahiffe is there until he clears his throat.

Marinette jumps, almost elbowing him in the stomach. “Nino!” she shouts, springing up and flinging herself at the other man who catches her like this is something she does often.

“Heya, Nettie.”

“Wait- what are you doing here? You’re not-” she jolts back to look at Lahiffe’s amused expression. “Oh kwami, is it time already? Shit. I wasn’t paying attention. I’m so sorry! I have to give this one thing to Publishing but then I promise we can go, okay? Like, just five minutes!”

She's already moving before she finishes speaking, sweeping up papers and rearranging files and putting things away with all the swiftness and agility of a speedster. Damian watches her go about her routine, occasionally handing her something she’s dropped or pointing out a thing she’s missed, weaving around her chaos with practiced ease.

Then she’s sweeping out of the office with a distracted “be right back!” and he’s alone with Lahiffe.

The second Marinette leaves, the man’s attention swings onto him with a strange weight. For a long moment, he doesn’t say anything and Damian’s hackles raise with every passing second.

He doesn’t snap at him though, because he’s one of Marinette’s friends. Insulting him would only serve to make her upset and that’s something Damian's been trying to avoid causing as of late.

“Man,” Lahiffe says at last. “Alix wasn’t kidding about the whole besotted thing, huh?”

Damian rears back, straightening up to his full height. “I beg your pardon?”

Lahiffe laughs and waves his hand about like that’s supposed to mean something. “Ah, no need to be embarrassed about it, dude. You’re far from the first of us to fall for her charms.”

“What.”

“Yeah, we've all been there. I think over half of the Paris crew crushed on her at some point, including myself. None of us are into her like that anymore, so as long as you treat her right, you got nothing to worry about."

“I’m not- I'm not interested in Marinette,” Damian tries to protest but Lahiffe just calmly steamrolls over him.

“Nah. Everyone loves Nettie. It’s universal law or something. First, there was me and Adrien, then Luka—who she actually liked back for a while there but are now practically siblings. Chloé liked her in collége, but she hadn’t really come to terms with that at the time. Alix might’ve, but she’s pretty grey-ace and fluctuates on the romance points, so who knows.

“Oh! And Nath. He also snagged a date with her, but he was an Akuma at the time so I’m not technically sure that it counts. And he’s with Marc now anyway. Thinking of adopting a kid, last I heard. Anyway- my point was: everyone loves Nettie. And don’t bother trying to fight it, because it only makes her pull of gravity worse.”

Lahiffe then claps him on the shoulder like their talk amiable and not the most confusing speech Damian’s ever heard.

And then he doesn’t even get to say anything to that because Marinette is sprinting back through the door, grabbing her jacket and bag, telling him goodbye, and dragging Lahiffe out to who knows where.

Damian stands there longer than he cares to admit trying to make the world make sense again.

***

A week and a half after she learned Robin was benched, Damian catches her staring off into space as she doodles tiny robins in the margins of her sketchbook.

He gives her an odd look when she scrambles to hide them, blushing hotly and babbling about how she’s “Just fine! Nothing to worry about! I’m just, maybe, perhaps, a little worried for a friend even though I shouldn’t be, because his family says he’s just fine and-”

He looks contemplative when he leaves that day, but he didn’t ask about her outburst, so she extends the same courtesy to him.

***

That night, Robin returns.

“What,” she says around the laughter threatening to bubble out of her throat, “are you wearing?”

Robin scowls from behind the full cowl he has on that she’s pretty sure belongs to Red Robin. It makes him look a whole ten years older and she can’t get over how ridiculous he looks. If he keeps doing stupid things with his face while wearing that monstrosity, she is definitely going to laugh at him.

“What are you wearing?” he shoots back petulantly.

She blinks in confusion, then realizes she’s still wearing her Red Hood inspired jacket right now. Tan colored fake leather with fuzzy, red inner lining, done with all the same pockets, buttons, and zippers Red Hood has on his own jacket. It looks almost exactly like the jacket she fixed for him all that time ago, except she's also added a soft, crimson hood and his own personal bat symbol stitched across her shoulder blades.

As far as things she's designed goes, this is one of her simpler ones. It's nothing like the elaborate creations she makes for the Ambrosia or Ryuko themed items.

But Red Hood was a simple kind of person, and she likes that it’s reflected in her work.

Robin doesn't seem to agree if the poorly concealed disdain on his face means anything.

“What?” she asks teasingly, “You jealous?”

He scoffs and looks off to the side. “Of course not. I simply do not understand why you’d want anything to do with that simpleton. Especially not when I know you have clothing articles referencing far superior individuals.”

She snorts good-naturedly, "What 'individuals'? You mean you?"

The way he raises his nose self importantly is answer enough, and she can't stop herself from rolling his eyes. "Well, it's certainly a start. But I'm not the only one."

"Oh, yeah? And who else is marvelous enough to stand on the same level as you?"

"Multimouse."

Her mouth goes dry, and she can tell Robin is pointedly not looking at her.

“Come inside,” she blurts in lieu of all the things she really wants to say—which are mostly just embarrassing variations of I missed you. “I can, uh, make us tea. If you want.”

It's the first time she’s ever invited him inside and she can see the small bit of shock on his face—well, what she can see of it anyway—before he schools it.

“Yes,” he says in a tone of voice that implies it was his idea in the first place. “That sounds… good.”

She steps aside, allowing him to pass her by into the flat. Only instead of just walking past her, he stops halfway through the doorway and stares at her. She’s about to ask what’s wrong when he reaches out with his hand to gently grab a lock of her hair.

“Pink suits you, by the way.”

She quirks her lips, “Yeah? You don’t think it’s… too much?”

The corners of his mouth turn down, “Absolutely not. You look…” he trails off, mouth flattening into a line and dropping his hand.

She blinks at the odd behavior. “Nice?” she offers tentatively.

He nods, but it’s a little jerky and strange. But before she can ask about it, he’s already turning to enter her flat like he owns the place, remarking about her choices of tea and if she’s finally acquired an ‘adequate teapot’.

She shakes off the moment and goes in to follow him before he wrecks her kitchen in his careless search for tea supplies.

***

MinnieMouse: COME GET YALL JUICE

and by juice i mean me

I still do not have an american license

JaneAustenStanAccount: what do we get out of it?

MinnieMouse: ???

the pleasure of my company??

also youre literally the one that invited me to watch megamind

JaneAustenStanAccount: and??

daisyduke: shut up jay

we all know youre soft for M stop tryin to play tough

MinnieMouse: this is why duke is my favorite

he’s a living callout post

swanlake: :(

MinnieMouse: second favorite

im so sorry cass ily

swanlake: :)

daisyduke: i aint even mad

JaneAustenStanAccount: I AM

guys wtf

MinnieMouse: you brought this on yourself

maybe you should be nicer to me

¯\_(ツ)_/¯

daisyduke: ‘get fucked jason’ -marinette 2k20

btw im omw for you now

MinnieMouse: thnx ur the best

also im bringing scones as movie snack

daisyduke: noice

swanlake: !!!

JaneAustenStanAccount: FUCK YEAH!!!

MinnieMouse: you dont get any Jay

JaneAustenStanAccount: >:(

i hate it here

***

Marinette doesn’t know a lot about Robin’s past, which she assumes is by design. Secret identities don’t lead well to handing out details and concrete information about one’s personal life.

But, she thinks, one would have to be blind, deaf, and dumb to not see that whatever facsimile of a childhood Robin had was about eight different levels of fucked up.

It’s in the vague allusions to ‘training’ and the scorn filled way he says the word ‘mother’. It’s in the not-quite-confusion—because whatever family he has is better now, at least—of Marinette telling him about her own parents. About the happy memories she’s shared with them, of learning to bake bread and croissants and macaroons under the loving guidance of her father and practicing delicate designs and frosting techniques with her mother.

So, yeah. She knows he’s kind of messed up and definitely checks off the childhood trauma box that’s apparently one of the requirements for being her friend.

So when Robin suddenly decides to go against everything she’s learned about him up until this point and actually share something about himself—and when that thing he shares just so happens to be a story from his childhood—well… Marinette wouldn’t say she’s prepared, but she’s not- prepared.

He’s in her kitchen, because Marinette has learned her lesson about bleeding vigilantes on her couch, and she’s pretty sure he could’ve gone back to the Cave for this, but he came here for whatever reason. (Was closer, he said. Marinette doesn’t know if she believes him.)

She’s cleaning the knife wound on his arm, and she has his cape laid out across her island. There’s a hole in it she plans on sewing back up after she finishes sewing the hole in her reckless vigilante back up.

“You need to be more careful,” she scolds. “You’re lucky this didn’t nick something important.”

“It's hardly the worst wound I’ve ever acquired,” he tells her in a tone of voice that he probably thinks is reasonable. “At seven years old I had to dig a bullet out of my side in the middle of a Himilayan snowstorm while still making it back to base with time to spare after having successfully assassinated a Russian ambassador.”

Marinette pauses where she’s smoothing the gauze onto his bicep. Her eyes flick up to his, and she sees the exact moment he seems to realize what he just told her. He’s gone utterly still beneath her hands, with terror or worry or the effort it takes not to bolt out the window immediately, she doesn’t know.

“That’s horrifying,” she tells him as she finishes securing the obnoxiously bright bandage, “Never tell me that story again.”

She then drops a kiss onto his bicep, subtly imbuing it with enough luck that it will keep off any infection—the wound was filthy when he came in, seriously, was he in a sewer?—and pats his cheek warmly before moving to clean up all her supplies.

She feels his eyes on her the rest of the night, but every time she turns to him, she can’t tell what he’s thinking. All she knows is that he seems… softer, in a way.

***

Three days after Marinette’s unexpected look into Robin’s past, she finds a box on her desk. It’s a jewelry box, and the only reason she doesn’t immediately freak out is the fact that it lacks any of the miracle box markings.

Still, she opens it hesitantly, and inside, she finds a necklace. A completely normal, non-magical necklace that’s simple and pretty and very much shaped like a tiny toy mouse.

There is no note.

***

(Lahiffe was right.

The Earth spins around the sun. The sky is blue.

Everyone loves Marinette.)

***

The necklace is obviously supposed to be a reference to her Multimouse days, but that doesn’t exactly narrow down who could have left it for her.

Or well, it does, but all the people it narrows down to don’t make any sense.

Multimouse is a badly kept secret, but it’s still a secret. Most people outside Paris don’t know about her and the people in Paris didn’t exactly recognize her off the street either.

Her Court knows, obviously, and so do the Waynes and the bats. But her Court wouldn’t leave her mouse themed gifts, they tend toward ladybugs or their own animal motif as a gift (the amount of cat and bee themed items she owns is ludicrous).

Which leaves the Waynes and the bats.

But her Waynes wouldn’t leave the gift on her desk, and they certainly wouldn’t forget to put a note, so Duke, Jason, and Cass are out.

She must stand there thinking about it too long, because then Jeremy's walking in, just as bright and early as ever.

He sees her holding the box and his face turns a strange mix of curious and outraged. “Is it your birthday? I swear, Boss if you didn't tell us it was your birthday-”

“No, Jeremy,” she says, amused despite her confusion. “That’s not for a while yet. I found this when I walked in,” she shakes the box slightly for emphasis, “but there wasn’t a note.”

“Oh.” A smile slowly spreads across Jeremy’s face. “Oh?” he purrs, waggling his eyebrows at her. “Does the boss have a secret admirer?”

Marinette blinks and- what?

“What? No. I can’t- That doesn’t-” she splutters but Jeremy just laughs and walks over to his station to start setting up for the day, leaving Marinette to her breakdown.

Because this can’t have been left by a secret admirer. That’s just crazy.

There are exactly two people who could’ve left this for her and neither of them would be an admirer of any kind. And she wouldn’t want them to be anyway because that would be stupid and ridiculous and weird.

She doesn’t like Robin or Damian like that…

Right?

***

(It’s impossible not to love her, he realizes, mostly by accident.

She loves, wholeheartedly and unafraid and so much more than Damian had ever thought one person could. She loves with a ferocity and passion no person deserves or can match.

And Damian, foolishly, loves and wishes to be loved by her anyway.)

***

There are roses on her desk the next day, potted and still healthy.

The day after that, there’s a box of expensive chocolates. Like, the kind only Adrien, Felix, and Chloé buy without a second thought. The gossip has spread far enough that all of her designers know about the gifts and probably-admirer.

On the fourth day, there is a box full of high-quality pencils and a new sketchbook, one with nice thick drafting paper, but small enough to fit in her favored bag. Her name is embossed across the front, along with her personal motif of delicate apple blossoms.

On the fifth day, she shows up to find there is only a drawing, which should point to it being Damian, but drawing-her is holding a robin in her cupped palms which cannot be a coincidence. Drawing-her also looks serene and beautiful with her mouth curved slightly and her eyes gentle and soft and Marinette is as touched by the image as she is frustrated by it.

There are hair sticks on the sixth, and delicate pins shaped like flowers on the seventh. Another stunning drawing of her on the eighth, a bottle of wine older than Master Fu on the ninth, the softest cashmere blanket on the tenth, a basket of sweet floral lotions, a glass statue of a bird in flight—she gets so many gifts, Marinette has to stop keeping count.

It’s somewhere around day six that her designers must’ve ratted on her to either Felix or Chloé because it’s not long after that, that all of her friends learn about the gifts and start being terrifically unhelpful about the whole situation.

They each try to give her advice, which would be sweet if it wasn’t all equally terrible and conflicting.

They’re also placing bets on who they think her admirer is, Damian or Robin. They’re trying to be discreet about it—which means they’re failing miserably.

Marinette, admittedly, never expected any different from them.

***

Marinette begins watching Damian in the mornings with a newfound interest.

The gifts are always there before she arrives, which means they're also there before Damian arrives, so she’s in a prime position to catch his reaction.

Or, she would be, if he ever reacted. He barely glances at them and never says anything unless the gift is particularly obnoxious, like the giant stuffed mouse she found sitting in her chair last week. (It was almost as big as she was. Adrien, Nino, and Alix had ended up on the floor from laughing so hard when they’d seen it.)

Damian almost never comments on the gift she received that day, but whenever she uses or wears something that her mysterious admirer had gotten for her, he makes sure to compliment her. Which would be very suspicious except that Robin does the same thing.

It’s just- they’re both so frustratingly silent about it all! Marinette is this close to just grabbing one or both of them by the shoulders and just shaking until they tell the truth.

It’s driving her insane! Before the necklace appeared on her desk, she didn’t even know that she liked Robin and Damian.

And now she’s overanalyzing their nonreactions. She hates it.

It feels too much like she’s back in collège, trying to sort out her feelings for Adrien and Chat. (Who ended up being the same person—which was just very inconsiderate of him, really. The least he could do is let her angst have meaning dammit!)

And- ugh. What if she doesn't even like either of them? What if her mind is just making her think she does because the idea of them liking her was presented? What then? Or what about the fact that the two boys are also ridiculously similar when she thinks about it. What if she only likes one and is just projecting her feelings onto the other because her mind associates the two?

Oh, she doesn’t like that thought. That thought makes her feel upset and like she wants to cry into a tub of ice cream.

Nino happily indulges her and doesn't even complain when she eats her way through his stash of mint chip as she dramatically complains about stupidly confusing boys.

Honestly, she may as well be back in lycée.

***

(What Marinette does not realize in the midst of all her careful analysis of his reactions, is that it’s not the gifts he’s focused on.

When she wears the necklace and hair sticks, she misses the way his eyes linger on the slope of her neck. As she cares for her roses, she doesn’t notice the way he follows the easy nimbleness of her fingers. She uses her sketchbook and eats the expensive chocolates and doesn’t pay attention to the way he steals glances at her lips. She doesn't see the way his hands twitch when she ventures just near enough to touch.

(She exists next to him, in any form or light, and he is captivated by her very presence.)

Marinette looks, but it is in all the wrong places.)

***

Strangely enough, it’s Signal who helps her with her internal crisis—completely unintentionally and in a very roundabout way—but he helps all the same.

He’s taken an… interest, she supposes, in her magic. One that is entirely his own and has very little to do with that Bat from what she can tell.

His abilities and hers stem from different origins, but she would be lying if she said his weren’t oddly complementary to her own. His precognition abilities stemming from his photokinesis has been useful on more than one occasion regarding the experimental spell matrices she, Tikki, and Nooroo have been testing out.

The magic is normally invisible to people without a Miraculous, but Signal seems to have little trouble seeing what she’s doing, even if he can’t interact with it the way she can.

(There is also the fact that she seems… more when he is around. Days that he spends watching her do her work go by faster and smoother than when he is away. Her magic is easier, and her mind spins with ideas and creations faster.

It’s an odd phenomenon and Ladybug is looking into it.)

There has been more than one occasion where Signal had warned her of the matrix’s imminent collapse with enough time for her to prepare herself for its blowback.

The version she’s working on today is their fifth iteration. It’s supposed to pull the miasma out of the building, filter it through her and Tikki’s own magical energy, before flowing back into the brickwork. Marinette had thought of the idea while talking with Nooroo.

If she can get it to work, it will shift the misfortune into good luck and order and release it back into the environment. Then she’ll only need to cleanse strategic portions of the city in a lattice network, and the creative and destructive energies will mix from there, balancing themselves without much input from her at all.

Of course, that’s only if she can actually get it to work. It’s been almost a month and this is the fifth version and it’s already collapsed on her three times in the last hour. Signal must see the frustration on her face and has taken to trying to distract her with small talk.

She’s very thankful for it, actually. If he wasn’t doing that, she would probably start screaming right here and now, on this random rooftop in the residential district. Which would just be very startling and embarrassing for everyone involved, so. You know. Glad she doesn’t have to do that.

Eventually, she asks him, apropos of nothing, “You’re a detective right?”

He pauses, and blinks at her, likely trying to follow the train of thought that led her to that question. She assumes he did not find it because when he speaks, he still sounds confused.

“Yes? I guess that’s technically what I am.”

“So you’re good at figuring out who’s behind a crime?”

Signal only looks more confused. “Yeah? But Ladybug, what-”

“Great, so. Hypothetically, if you had two suspects for a—well it’s not a crime. A… thing? Situation. How would you figure out which one of them is actually behind the… situation?”

Signal’s lips quirk, just a bit despite his confusion. “I think I’m gonna need a little more to go on than just ‘a situation,’ LB.”

Ladybug purses her lips and stares down at the light weaving intricate patterns in the space between her palms. Slowly, carefully, she tells him, “There are items being left where a person can find them. But the identity of the person leaving them and their intentions are unknown.”

“Are the items dangerous?” he asks worriedly.

Ladybug shakes her head. “No. They're more like gifts.”

“Are the gifts unwanted or creepy? Unsettling? Threatening?”

Another head shake. “Just confusing and… thoughtful.”

“Someone is leaving you thoughtful gifts and you're worried about that… why?” Signal asks, slowly and disbelievingly.

“It’s because I- wait! I’m not the person!” she panics, causing the magic to spark dangerously in her hands but she barely notices. “The person doesn’t even exist. It was a hypothetical question!”

Signal stares at her. She can’t see his eyes or the top half of his face, but she just knows he’s raising his eyebrow judgingly at her.

“Stop that!” she snaps. “Stop being perceptive! I have enough perceptive people in my life so knock it off!”

Signal laughs like the horrible person he is. “But don’t you need me to be perceptive? That’s like, a requirement to be a detective.”

“Stop it,” she says again, mulishly and very childish.

And isn’t that an odd thought to have? Ladybug being childish.

How novel. Ladybug has never once been childish. She can’t afford to be, because when she is behind the mask, she is all the most important parts of herself. She is the Grand Guardian, is the one who must be in control at all times because she has an entire team to keep safe and alive.

Behind the mask, she’s all of her greatest responsibilities.

But here, in Gotham and with Signal, she is none of those things to him. She is simply another hero, that is his age and very much like him in ways so few are. Ladybug, in the moments she spends with Signal, is probably the closest she has ever been to carefree while in the mask.

It’s as comforting a thought as it is terrifying.

Signal raises his hands in surrender, but his lips are still quirked in amusement.

Ladybug regrets starting this conversation.

She regrets it even more when, five minutes later, Signal manages to pull the rest of the story from her… along with a name.

She realizes her mistake a second too late to stop herself, and then all she can do is watch.

She watches, with ever-growing horror, as Signal slowly puts the pieces together. She watches, as her whole secret identity starts unraveling around her for the first time ever. She watches, stricken, as Signal opens his mouth to speak.

And then she grabs both sides of his head and Orders him to sleep.

***

The second Marinette bespells him, she regrets it.

She was panicking, okay? And Marinette panicking is very different from Ladybug panicking and truly, she creates messes just by existing.

Nooroo flies out of his hiding place to make distressed noises at the now unconscious Signal with her, which is… actually kinda soothing, if not exactly helpful.

At least she knows she’s not the only one upset right now.

“Oh no, oh no, oh no!” Nooroo frets, flitting around her head with agitated wings. Hers aren’t much better, if she’s being honest. “What are we going to do, Guardian? He knows who you are! This is bad.”

Marinette worries her thumb between her teeth, shifting her weight from foot to foot. With a thought, she's back in her civvies and Tikki is perched on her shoulder, blinking at the scene she’s suddenly a part of.

“Well,” Tikki says, sounding far too calm for the situation. “This isn’t ideal.”

The laugh that escapes Marinette is on the edge of hysterical. “You think?”

“It’s not ideal,” Tikki repeats firmly, “But neither is it a disaster.”

Nooroo lands on her other shoulder as she kneels down beside Signal to rearrange his limbs to not be so uncomfortable. “But he's unpredictable!” he argues, curling into the side of her neck like she will hide him from the world. “We don’t know what he’ll do with this information!”

Tikki hums thoughtfully. “Then we will have to ask. There are far worse people we could have been revealed to. We're lucky it was a friend rather than foe.”

“You think so?” Marinette asks softly, voice barely louder than a whisper.

She knows the Bat’s flock are good people. Many of them are her friends, or people she hopes to call friends soon.

But she doesn't know if these people Marinette calls friends could be Ladybug’s allies.

The bats hoard secrets like black holes, and perhaps they would keep hers just as well, but they could just as easily use it against her. Batman barely tolerates her presence, she can tell by the way Signal talks sometimes, and it is no small stretch of the imagination that he would use this to try and kick her out of Gotham.

Marinette cannot, as a Guardian, leave Gotham.

But more importantly, she doesn’t want to leave Gotham. It’s… her home now. Her friends are here. Her family is here. Robin and Hood and the other bats are here. Damian and all her Waynes are here.

Leaving Gotham would not only make her sick and jittery at the imbalance, but it would break her heart.

If, when Signal tells Batman, he reacts poorly, there is so much that Marinette is set up to lose. And that terrifies her.

Some of that thought process must show on her face—or perhaps Nooroo has just picked up on the turmoil in her chest—because the two Kwami are pressed on either side of her face, nuzzling and hugging as much of her as they can reach.

“We’ll make it through this, Marinette,” Tikki says firmly, no room for argument. “Don’t worry so much. Both of you. Everything will turn out just fine, you’ll see.”

***

@bluesimani @how-to-fuction-properly @chocolatecatstheron @mystery-5-5 @nickristus-dreamer @mochegato @thenillabean @animegirlweeb @novaloptr @darkdaysandfakesmiles @optimistically-pessimistic0524 @clumsy-owl-4178 @g-arya @undecisioned @smolplantmum @blackmagicforever @i-wanna-be-a-ninja @wannajointhecrabcult @paintedhope7 @redscarlet95 @roselynfey @ira-sairain @lozzybowe @tumbling-down-hills-and-stuff @2confused-2doanything @pepelachanel @too0bsessedformyowngood @miraculouspenta @itsmeevie01 @corabeth11 @jalaluvsu

#maribat #daminette #ml x dc #my typewriter #for us to collide

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gwennavierre · 3 years

Text

So I was going to try drawing a mini comic for this but it was getting too long and typing is easier at the moment. This is my submission for Marichat May, Day 8: Princess and Knight au, but with a twist.

@marichatmay

......

Marinette wasn't scared, but she couldn't deny her nerves were on edge more than usual.

She had been hired by the King to protect the Prince about a year before, when the kingdom started being attacked by an unknown force which turned citizens into monsters.

Two vigilantes had shown up shortly after, who conveniently had powers to purify the effected people. No one knew much about them but a few were convinced they were responsible for the attacks. The gold and food and praise they got after defeating a monster was a very good incentive, after all.

The king himself bought into this theory, and had promised a hefty reward for the capture of Ladybug and Chat Noir.

Marinette scowled silently as she stood in front of Prince Adrien's large door. The king had made her and Chat's job that much harder. Trying to save someone who turns around and tries to trap you is frustrating.

Of course, the king didn't know the woman he hired to protect his son was one of the vigilantes he so mistrust.

Letting her mind drift to happier thoughts, Marinette made note of the shadows and noises around her. Nothing out of the ordinary. The little creature who gave her the ability to transform gazed up at her from a pocket on her waist, smirking at the love-sick sigh that escaped her chosen's lips from time to time.

Marinette was thinking about her past year watching over Adrien (while also protecting the kingdom from the unusual attacks). She had grown more than fond of the boy, but knew better than to entertain the idea of bringing her feelings up to him.

-----

Inside the room, Prince Adrien was pacing in front of his open window.

"It's a bad idea, kid."

"I know, but I'm tired of being cooped up in here!"

"You're only supposed to transform for an attack, and nothing is attacking right now!"

"Since when are you the responsible one?"

Plagg thought to himself that it was since he found out his chosen's knight was also his vigilante partner. If she came in to check on him and found him missing, she'd most likely transform to find him and then the kingdom would start to panic... he wasn't sure what else.

"Just... listen to me for one, ok kid?"

Adrien frowned at the magical being. For a moment Plagg thought he had gotten through.

"Just a short run then. Plagg, transform me!"

Plagg groaned in frustration as he was sucked into the magic ring on Adrien's hand.

A few seconds later, Chat Noir stood in Adrien's spot.

"Ha! I won't be gone long, and no one will see me since I'll blend in with the dark!"

He started for the window, intent on jumping out of it, when he felt his legs tighten and buckle underneath him.

"Wha-??"

A loud crash echoed throughout the room as he face planted onto the stone floor, his chin cracking unpleasantly. He winced in pain and tried to move his legs.

The belt around his waist that acted as a tail had tangled around his ankles, causing him to trip.

"Dang it, Plagg!" he yelled, just a bit too loudly.

------

Marinette could hear quiet muttering behind the closed door. She knew by now that Adrien had a tendency to talk to himself. She found the quirk... endearing.

Tonight, though, it almost sounded like he was arguing with himself? Then a muffled shout and a crash that sent the hairs on her neck to rise.

Grabbing her sword and sprinting the few feet to the door, she burst through it, ready to defend her pri... THE prince... with everything she had.

Looking around the room, she saw his empty bed, the empty chair by his desk, and... an open window! That must be how the intruder got in!

Her eyes continued their sweep of the room and finally fell on the last thing she expected.

Chat Noir, face down on the stone with his rear in the air, tail tightly wrapped around his legs.

He moved his head as best he could to meet her confused gaze, trying to work out some sort of excuse for this whole situation.

"CHAT NOIR??"

"The one and only." He tried to smirk, but his bruised chin and ego made it difficult.

Marinette didn't seem amused.

In her head, her thoughts raced... why was Chat here? Was there an attack from a monster? Was someone really trying to hurt the prince and he came to help? Does he have to look that pathetically adorable in that position?

But most importantly

"Where is the prince?"

Chat blinked. "What?"

"Adrien! Where is Adrien??" She knew her voice sounded desperate but she didn't care. If Adrien was hurt, she would be devastated.

Oh, also beheaded for failing to protect him, but that wasn't her main concern.

A sheepish look spread over Chat's face and she could see him pondering how best to answer, which made her even more nervous.

"Oh no... oh no oh no oh no... he's gone? Why didn't you help him? Did someone kidnap him under my nose? I have to get him back! I have to-"

Chat carefully untangled his belt and moved to a sitting position while listening to his faithful knight verbally beat herself up.

He knew her view on the heroes was favorable so wasn't worried she'd turn him in.

But could he tell her he... well, Adrien... was fine?

Standing up and gently rubbing his chin, he made up his mind.

"Marinette."

She continued rambling, looking out the window onto the countryside that stretched behind the castle, searching for any sign of Adrien. She never expected anything to actually happen to him!

"Marinette, hey. Look at me."

She did her best to meet his request, her eyes still darting over the room to the window. It was now or never.

"Adrien is fine. I promise."

"Then where is he?? He would just leave like that... not without telling me first or letting me come with him to protect him and oh, no, what if he got tired of me being around him and that's why he left and he actually hates me-"

Chat had placed two black gloved fingers on her lips to stop the spew of words.

Marinette tried not to blush. She knew her kitty had a crush on her hero self, but her heart was for Adrien, even if she wasn't of noble blood.

Chat let out a chuckle, which only got louder as it made Marinette's cheeks darken with a combination of nerves and embarrassment.

"I'm fine, Marinette. I simply wanted some fresh air, but my kwami... that is, the creature who gives me my powers, had other ideas and tied up my legs."

He grinned devilishly as he watched her expression pass through a huge range of emotions.

Finally settling on relief, Marinette flung her arms around him, startling him into a blush of his own.

"Oh Adrien... don't scare me like that again!"

She felt him stiffen and quickly pulled arms away, her eyes avoiding his.

"Um, sorry, I was just... happy that you're OK. And shocked that you were Chat Noir this whole time." She smiled kindly at him and he returned it.

"Thank you for not turning me in." He laughed nervously. He wouldn't put it past his father to throw him in prison for being Chat Noir... or worse...

Marinette booped his nose with her index finger.

"Of course, chaton. And tell Plagg thank you for not letting you go out tonight for a joy run. The guards are everywhere out there and without a monster to distract them, you may have been caught." Her voice was lower, her eyes misty at the thought of losing her best friend and her prince in one fell swoop.

When she met his eyes again, she frowned.

"Chat? Adrien? Are you ok?"

"How did you know my kwamis' name, Marinette?" His voice was barely above a rumbled whisper, but her widening eyes told him she had heard the question.

"Oh! Your what? A cwonny? I.. I don't know anything a-about those! Ha ha!"

They both knew she was a terrible liar, but this took the cake.

"My Lady?" Voice hopeful, scared, shy... Marinette couldn't remember a reason why to try and deny him the answer anymore.

"Yes, Kitty. It's me."

Before she could finish the last word, Chat had wrapped his arms around her and pulled her into his chest. Now she was the one to stiffen at the unexpected contact, but she quickly relaxed and melted into him.

"I guess you really didn't need my protection after all, did you?" She giggled.

He laughed in response, running his claws through her hair, relishing the feel of her in his arms.

She looked up into his face, and like a magnet, he felt drawn to her.

His lips were a breath away from hers, his eyes closed in anticipation.

She moved to close the gap between them.

But her chin bumped into his where it had cracked onto the floor earlier and the next thing she knew, Chat was hissing in pain.

"OW! MY CHIN!"

#miraculous ladybug #ladybug and cat noir #miraculous les aventures de ladybug et chat noir #ml ladybug #tales of ladybug and cat noir #marinette dupain cheng #mlb knight au #marichatmay2021 #marichat #prince adrien #mlb fanfic #mlb au #marichat shenanigans

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legends-live-in-memories · 4 years

Text

“How Did All This Happen?”- A Memoire by one Marinette Dupain-Cheng 5

hi. im back. after slightly longer than usual (my usual was like everyday, not happening again) i have returned. :) this update is also slightly longer than usual too but who complains about that?

Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 6

without further ado

Did Marinette Miss Her Own Wedding? I

Constantine was having a horrible time, as far as Marinette could tell. His phone kept ringing, which he was pointedly ignoring, and he looked more and more frustrated as he skimmed through one of his many grimoires. He was also very sober. Maybe that had something to do with it.

After Marinette’s little excursion out with Plagg the previous night, Constantine joined her and her grandfather and explained the lore behind the Renlings and what they were capable of. Marinette was already over it. It’s one thing to be magical guardians of one set magical gods, but animal spirits that transform the wielder into the respective animal is borderline ridiculous. Utterly ridiculous. And Constantine wants her to find them. Why not the Justice League? Or their team of proteges? Well, apparently, Constantine has a healthy distrust of the Justice League and magic they are unfamiliar with. Something about a mystical house no longer existing because somebody was suspicious. They fucked around and found out, as Plagg so eloquently put it. She didn’t know how she felt about aiding Constantine in his paranoia.

Anyways, Marinette was now Constantine’s go-to whenever he wanted to keep things away from the JL. She would have said no like a reasonable person, but she was at least getting more magical training and could actually use some of the spells in the Miraculous grimoire. Speaking of which, the grimoire that Constantine was hunching over was supposed to help them in finding the other Prodigiouses. The Kwamis were surprisingly unhelpful as they have never heard of the Prodigiouses or Renlings.

After what could have been hours of grueling translating and spellwork, Constantine had finally figured out the location of the eight total Renlings and what their prodigiouses looked like. While Marinette and Master Fu began scheming appropriate retrieval plans, Constantine went to answer his many missed calls.

“What?!” Well that sounded concerning. Constantine looked ready to pull his hair out from scalp with tweezers. Whatever news he just received must have been awful for him to lose his composure like this. Good.

“You lot are planning to do what now?” Oh, was this JL business? Should Marinette be listening to this, albeit one-sided, conversation?

“And why do you all need to do this?”

“Don’t give me that attitude. I’m working on something important.”

“Yes it is important, Zatanna. Please don’t let that group of League Juniors do this.”

“You even got me saying ‘please.’ No I can not tell you why”

“Well what do you mean you can’t trust me?!” This was starting to sound serious. The popcorn that Wayzz brought was also making this ten times more entertaining.

“Zatanna-” Oh he got cut off. Serves him right.

“Fine, be that way.” Constantine forcefully ended the call and was pouting like a child.

Marinette didn’t know if she should ask anything but she had the feeling it was related to the prodigiouses and tracking them. Were the League getting involved? It would explain his desperation to not have them interfere.

“I can’t believe them.” Looks like Marinette didn’t have to make the decision after all. He was going to rant about it.

“What can’t you believe, Constantine?” Her grandfather appeared equally as curious.

“The Team are going to try and track down the prodigiouses. Luckily, they only think there are five rather than eight.” He paused to run his hands through his already disheveled hair. “I don’t know which five they’re tracking. Also, they probably know you have the Snake’s Fang.”

“Pardon?” Marinette doesn’t know what she would do if she was on the Justice League’s most wanted.

“Zatanna didn’t outright say it, but Kobra probably told them it was taken from him. That’s probably how they knew about the others too. Thanks for that.”

“First of all, I didn’t even know what these things were so don’t blame me. Second of all, this could have all been avoided if you just told them!” Marinette did not appreciate the blame being put on her for the League’s involvement. She wasn’t done ripping Constantine a new one yet either. “Especially considering the fact that you knew that their secondary team had a mission there. UN rules or not. But no! You wanted to keep all your magical secrets to yourself. So don’t blame me for the consequences of your own actions.” She was fuming at this point, probably overreacting, but she was tired of cleaning up after people who won’t so much as thank her.

The ensuing silence was deafening and eyes that weren’t on Marinette were on Constantine. He looked rather surprised at Marinette’s show of spine, probably forgetting that she was born and raised in the League of Shadows. He never will again if he keeps pushing his luck.

Fu cleared his throat, probably clogged from the awkward tension. “Well, now that that’s all dealt with, do you know what your next move is Constantine? Do we actively hinder the League for the sake of your own peace of mind or do you talk to them and work collaboratively with them?”

Constantine, who was still doing his best fish impersonation since Marinette—no, Mei Fu—dragged him for everything he’s worth, tried to string together an answer.

“I still think it’s best we don’t involve the Justice League with this. We should try to intervene and cut off their attempts of retrieving the prodigiouses.” He sounded like a child trying to convince their parents that they didn’t break the expensive vase. Very pitiful and very unconvincing.

“Fine.” Pardon? Did her grandfather just agree? “We’ll help you keep the prodigiouses and the Renlings away from the Justice League.” Wow. Okay. So he’s just agreeing with him. Three guesses as to who will actually be the one to retrieve them. Wonderful.

Groaning with the weight of a thousand suns, Marinette also voiced her consent. The Kwamis were silent throughout this, not expressing their opinions. Except for Trixx, who had periodically rolled his eyes so hard Marinette would have been concerned he had popped a few blood vessels, if he had any.

They spent the rest of the week planning and convincing her parents that she wasn’t in danger with her grandfather. They agreed that Marinette would retrieve the Dragon’s Claw first. Despite Brazil being closer, the Monkey’s tail would be harder to find in the dense forestry so they didn’t want to waste time on an extended search until much later.

If you were to ask Marinette, the week was not enough to prepare. She made arrangements to stay with the Tsurugi family and convinced Kagami to help her in the mission. Her mother would be providing them with non-miraculous weapons as a back-up. Lady Tomoe was too understanding of her daughter being a magic-wielding superhero in Marinette’s opinion. Not one to look a gifted horse in the mouth, Marinette did not make any comments about the very impressive artillery of weapons. She chose a pair of double broadswords while Kagami stuck to a katana. Kagami also had the Dragon and the Ladybug prepared while Marinette stuck to the Tiger and Horse. Plagg didn’t want to miss out on the action and planned to tag along again. Wayzz made an off-handed comment about Plagg’s sixth sense for chaos and his recent desire to accompany Marinette on these missions. Overthinking whatever that was supposed to mean had cost Marinette six hours of sleep.

While everything had been physically prepared, Marinette had yet to cope with the whole ‘going behind the backs of the Justice League because Constantine was paranoid’ thing. But this will not be the worst thing she has done. She also has the godsend, Kagami, to pull her out of any impending mental spirals. Now all that’s left is to actually get the Dragon’s Claw.

According to Constantine, the Dragon’s Claw was located inside the dojo of a martial arts master, O Sensei. Kagami, to be referred to as Tonbo, meaning Dragonfly, was to guard the perimeter for any individuals who could get in the way, while Marinette, codenamed Tigerlily with this combination of miraculouses, was to find the Dragon’s Claw, camouflaged by the tiger miraculous, and teleport them both back out. It was simple enough in planning and should be simple enough in execution. Even if the sensei of the dojo was to be made aware of their presence, They were expecting the element of surprise to give them an advantage. You know, outside of Marinette’s assassin training. So, yeah the plan was simple.

Except for the part where a group of the young Justice League heroes were already there negotiating with whom she assumed was O sensei. She recognized Kid Flash, Robin and Nightwing. The two women with them were unfamiliar. She also found the Dragon’s Claw in the sensei’s hand. She was positioned on a tree branch looking into a window in the room. If she timed this right, she could grab the necklace and portal out of the room to Tonbo and then portal back to the Tsurugi residence. That plan carries the risk of being seen but the pay-off should be worth it.

Poised to leap from the branch, Tigerlily steadied her breathing and prepared to call on the Horse’s Voyage. Still camouflaged, she jumped through the window and summoned the portal, about to grab for the necklace. Except she grabbed nothing and was suspended in the air.

Who she knew now was Ms. Martian was using her telekinetic abilities to suspend her. Kid Flash sped his way over and quickly tied her, the contact breaking the camouflage charm. They must have figured she would appear at one of the locations eventually and planned a contingency plan for her appearance. The martian hasn’t read her mind yet, so maybe they thought she was non-hostile. That thought wouldn’t last long however as Tonbo emerged from the portal and, using the Flame Dragon, took down Ms. Martian. Tigerlily used the distraction to undo the bindings and get in a fighting stance. Nightwing and Robin were protecting O sensei while Kid Flash and the other woman charged at the two.

Kid Flash was circling the two faster and tighter, corralling them together. Tigerlily drew for her broadswords and slashed the old floor boards. Kicking them in Kid Flash’s path, she knocked him off balance and thumped him the back of the head with the butt of her blade, knocking him down. Tonbo called for her Storm Dragon to subdue her opponent, who was also knocked down, then strung up both with the Ladybug yoyo. Tigerlily began a steady approach to the two batboys. She was ready to attack first but Nightwing got the upper hand. He drew his escrima sticks and swiped for Tigerlily’s head. She blocked with one sword and jump kicked to his chest, missing him entirely as he had crouched to sweep her legs from underneath her. Rolling out of the fall, Tigerlily slashed for his rising back but he intercepted with his other stick. He turned to face her and barrelled his full strength into her. They crashed into the nearby wall and at a standstill.

Tonbo was caught in a clash of katanas with Robin, neither side giving way to the other. If Tigerlily was more conscious of their fight than her own, she would have noticed familiar fighting techniques that were ingrained in her since birth. Alas, her attention was on the blue bird in front of her. Using his force that kept her against the wall, She double kicked him in the chest, forcing him away. Robin and Tonbo had broken away from each other and Tonbo aimed to stab Nightwing in the leg. Nonfatally of course, she wasn’t an ex-assassin as far as Tigerlily knew. Right?

Anyways, her attack switched up the fight as now Tigerlily tried to dodge under Robin's incoming blade. Sliding on her knees, she reached to where O sensei was situated with the Dragon’s Claw. Frustrated with the night’s turn of events and forgetting all sense of pleasantries, Tigerlily tried to grab for the necklace. The business end of a katana was swiftly placed under her jaw. One wrong move meant game over.

“What do you want with the Dragon’s Claw?” Robin sounded like he was holding back from saying something.

“An acquaintance of mine wishes for you all to not have it. I am merely doing him a favor, Tweety Bird.” Where did that nickname come from? She must have been internally catastrophizing more than she thought she was if she was actually trying to flirt her way out of this. Tonbo’s exasperation was made loud and clear with that answering sigh.

“Flattery gets you nowhere, Mei.” Robin’s arm twitched at that.

“Wait, you know her?” “You know him?” Nightwing’s and Tonbo’s voices overlapped but Tigerlily registered none of it as her ears were ringing with spiked emotions she thought she had buried years ago. Only a few people knew her by that name. Kagami, Chloe, Luka and Adrien were the only people outside of the League of Shadows who knew her by that name. Even then, there was only one person her age with the Shadows who knew her. But it couldn’t be him. He was supposed to be dead. There was no way in hell that the Boy Wonder holding a katana to her throat was—

“Damian?!”

Taglist:

@deathwishy @neakco @virtualreading @f-rget-lt @your-resident-chicken-nugget @nathleigh @toodaloo-kangaroo @irontimetravelflower @trippingovermyfeet @t1dwarrior-of-earth @tip-tap-tired @fidget-eep @thenillabean @officiallydarkgeek @mystery-5-5 @moonlightstar64 @just-an-observer-ignore-me @nightstarblue @certainmuffinbagelcalzone @fan-written @jjmjjktth @vixen-uchiha @zorua-adorable @nnon-it-up

#maribat #mlb x dc #daminette #badass!marinette dupain cheng #maridami #hdath #if you asked to be on the taglist but arent there let me know #hehehehe #i forgot to proofread oops #no beta we die like jason

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thewritewolf · 4 years

Text

What He Deserves

Summary: Not even a week has passed since Hawkmoth was revealed to all the world to be Gabriel Agreste. As Adrien sits in his truly empty house, unable to leave thanks to the crowd of people outside, he wonders if this is what he deserves for not realizing sooner.

But then again, not everyone has the same ideas about what he deserves...

Hello and welcome to another birthday fic! This one is for the ever amazing @leviaana, founder of my favorite discord group, fantastic artist, and occasional candy exchange buddy. She said she likes post-reveal hurt/comfort that turns to fluff and I aim to please!

Enjoy!

Read on Ao3

Adrien tentatively pulled back the curtains in the second-floor living room and peered outside, across the porch and over the wall that separated him from the outside world.

The news had broken only a couple days ago - only hours after Adrien himself found out. He wasn’t sure what he had been expecting at first, but it wasn’t long before the crowd started to form. Some were unquestionably reporters. His years as Chat Noir had made it easy for him to pick them out from a crowd. He even recognized some of their voices, which had long been chasing him for interviews.

Somehow, he didn’t think they were going to be asking him about his favorite flavors or the most interesting akumas now. Although they definitely would be interested in what he knew about Hawkmoth, now that his father had been unmasked.

Which is why he believed the other people in the crowd were here. Some just seemed curious. Others seemed... Angry.

Maybe that was to be expected. The fall of Hawkmoth was as sudden as it was unexpected. Just another routine akuma attack that had accidentally revealed his base of operations. A quick five on one fight later and the butterfly miraculous was in Ladybug’s hands, a battered Gabriel Agreste was taken into custody, and Adrien Agreste’s life had been left in shambles.

It meant that there wasn’t much closure for anyone - not yet, at least. While people waited for his father’s trial to start, years of building frustration had to find an outlet somewhere.

And who better than the last free, living Agreste?

Thankfully, nothing had happened yet, but the crowd had turned his home into more of a prison than it had ever been while his father was in it and that was an accomplishment all on its own. Without his parents, Nathalie, or even the Gorilla to take up space in the mansion, he had never felt so alone before.

The only company Adrien had Plagg and his own emotions, and neither were doing wonders for his mental health.

“Kid,” Plagg said with a tired voice. They’d had this conversation plenty of times before and Adrien knew they were about to have it again. “None of this was your fault.”

“Yeah?” Adrien closed the curtain just as people started to look his way, plunging the room into darkness once again. “I’ve lived under the same roof as Hawkmoth for years.” Adrien raised his voice and threw his hands over his head. “I’m Chat Noir! If anyone could have found Hawkmoth ages ago, it would be me!” His arms fell limply to his sides once again and he stared dully at his kwami. His voice dropped to just above a whisper. “So why didn’t I?”

Plagg shook his head. “He was good enough to hide it from everyone and he was a recluse, even with you. There’s no way you could have known without doing some serious digging.”

“Maybe…” Adrien stared at a massive family painting, saw the cold and calculating look his father had even then. “Or maybe I just didn’t want to even consider it. Maybe I was having so much fun being Chat… fighting alongside my friends… alongside Marinette, that I just didn’t care.”

“You know that’s not true,” Plagg replied quietly.

“Who knows? That’s probably what they think now. No wonder they haven’t tried to visit since the news broke. They don’t want to be anywhere near me right now, and I can’t blame them.” Adrien put his back to the wall and slid down it, taking a seat on the ground and pulling his knees up to his chest. “I don’t want to be near me right now. No wonder they feel the same way.”

“Kid-”

Whatever Plagg was going to say was cut off when there was a knock at the front door. With how quiet and still the rest of the house was, it sounded as loud as thunder as it echoed in the emptiness. Adrien shot a fearful glance toward his kwami - had people finally stormed the mansion? - but Plagg just shook his head and smirked.

Cautiously but now a little curious, Adrien went down the stairs. He watched the door all the while as soon as it came into view. There was another knock. Not violent or angry. Polite. Familiar. But definitely insistent.

Adrien peeked out the window next to the front door and his eyes widened at the sight of his friends loitering on the other side.

Nino and Alya were chatting as if this was nothing out of the usual. Marching up to Hawkmoth HQ, straight past a future angry mob, just to knock on the front door? Who doesn’t do that on a Friday afternoon, honestly? And there was Chloe, of course, checking her makeup in her compact, looking as fashionably detached from her environment as ever.

And standing right in front of the door, expectantly, happily… was Marinette herself. One hand was holding onto a big duffle bag that was thrown over her shoulder and the other was held at her side as she stared up into the sturdy wood door. There was no doubt in her eyes, no worry that he might not answer. Just complete and patient faith.

How could he even contemplate letting her down?

Adrien opened the door and it was like breaking open the flood gates. The first thing he saw was Marinette’s face, her bright blue eyes looking up at him as they shifted from quiet contemplation to soft affection. Their eyes connected in a moment that lasted forever and he could almost swear that his heart stopped beating as they stared into each other…

“Dude!”

The moment shattered when Nino bodily threw himself over the threshold and collided with Adrien, forcing him to stumble back a few steps or fall down in a heap.

The others quickly followed Nino’s example and soon Adrien was caught at the center of one big group hug. Marinette was the last to join since she paused to close the door. A few seconds into the hug, Adrien realized to his surprise that he was trembling - had he really missed human contact that much over the last few days?

All too soon they each pulled back until they were standing around the foyer, watching him. That’s when he noticed that it wasn’t just Marinette with an overstuffed bag with her. It looked like each of them had packed for a long trip.

Some of his confusion must have shown on his face since Alya grinned and said, “Better get used to having some roommates for a while, blondie. We’re not going anywhere.”

“But how did you get passed the-?”

“She knew the passcode for the gate.” Chloe jerked a thumb at Marinette. “The rest of us glared at the crowd until they gave us some space.”

“But don’t worry ‘bout that, dude!” Nino threw an arm around Adrien’s shoulder. “We’re here to have a chill time. You’ve got the space and we’ve got the fun, so let’s get this party started!”

Nino steered Adrien towards his room and they got started.

‘Bringing the fun’ hadn’t even been close to an exaggeration on Nino’s part. There were video games, movies, board games, all sorts of ways to keep themselves entertained. His room started off as the cold and sterile place that it had been for most of his life. But as the hours ticked past, it slowly changed into something else. Someone would go and grab more pillows. They’d push some couches and chairs together in front of the television. Tables would be pulled together for a huge game. Snacks and drinks were strewn everywhere.

It was chaotic. His room was a mess.

It was the most fun he’d had out of the mask in his life. The house was filled with light and life and love for the first time in years and he had his friends to thank for that. Or, as he slowly realized, Marinette specifically. She was the one who had planned it all, organized them, and got as much entertainment together as possible.

The day gave way to night and they were all camped out in front of his television, lost in a cozy den of blankets and pillows propped up against his couch. They were deep into a movie marathon. It could have been twenty two hundred at night - it could have been four in the morning. Time was meaningless at this point. Almost everyone was asleep, except for him.

Well… him and Marinette.

She was laying right beside him as they shared the same blanket, scooted close to each other as the winter chill began to set in. They weren’t touching, but he could feel her warmth radiating off her. His hand twitched ever so slightly as he yearned to move it just a few centimeters and take her hand in his.

The years had brought them closer together than ever, especially after their identities had gotten revealed to each other. They’d always teetered on the edge of a relationship, but with all the uncertainties of life and the tangled mess of revealed identities, they never could commit.

But now, as he glanced furtively at her, lit only by the pale light of the movie, he wondered…

Then he remembered the reason they were here in the first place and his mood crashed. He didn’t deserve her. He didn’t deserve any of them. He-

“Adrien?”

Her voice was soft - he could barely hear her over the television, even with the audio turned down to a low rumble so their friends wouldn’t be woken by it.

She was waiting on an answer.

“Yeah?”

“We’re all here for you. We love you.” His ears may have heard ‘we’, but his heart had heard the ‘I’ that was hidden beneath it.

She was braver than him. Her hand crossed the short distance between them and she intertwined their fingers.

The television became blurred as tears began to build, clouding his vision. He shook his head as he bit his lips to hold back a sob.

“I don’t- I don’t deserve- After everything-”

“You aren’t your father,” she said quietly but firmly. “You’ve proven yourself so, so much better than that.” Her thumb began to rub against the back of his hand. “We’re not going anywhere.”

She scooted closer to him. His arms wrapped around her waist, with his hands meeting up on her back, pressing her close to him as he buried his face into her shoulder as the tears that he’d been holding back for so long began to fall. He was worried he was holding her too tight, but she didn’t seem to mind at all.

“I’m not going anywhere,” she said as she held him back and kissed the crown of his head.

#Miraculous Ladybug #Adrien Agreste #Marinette Dupain-Cheng #Adrienette #Post-Reveal #Nino Lahiffe #Alya Cesaire #Chloe Bourgeois #ml fanfiction #birthday fics #my writing #What He Deserves

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chatonne-rousse · 3 years

Text

Lullaby and Good Night

When two-month-old Emma wakes up in the wee hours of the morning, Adrien employs the unique combination of purrs and piano to help his daughter fall back to sleep. His heartfelt song carries Marinette from dreams to reality and back again.

A little story of sleep deprivation, the power of music, and two hearts overflowing with love for their family of three.

Read it on Ao3 here.

*****

The dream is lovely, but clearly a dream. There's no reason, much less space, for a grand piano to be situated on a rooftop, gleaming in the city lights and the nightly glow of the Eiffel Tower, but here they are.

Ungloved fingers glide across the keys, filling the air with a melody she feels in the depths of her heart. It's more than pleasing to the ear, far more than just a beautiful tune, though every stroke of the keys is perfect. This is his heart speaking to hers through music, pure love in every note. Tears spring to her eyes unbidden and she wipes them away quickly, the feel of her suit cool against her skin.

She gently places her hand on his leg, red and black against the green and grey plaid of his...pajama pants? His muscles flex beneath her fingers as he deftly works the pedals and she closes her eyes, letting his closeness, his scent, the feel of him beside her, right where he belongs, wash over her in a heady rush.

Words are unnecessary in this halcyon moment. I love you echoes all around them in the night air.

As dreams always do, this one drifts away on tendrils of contentment, leaving Marinette with a smile on her face even before her eyes open. Warm and cozy under the duvet, she reaches for her husband, ready to snuggle close and chase a few more hours of sleep - or, at least, as many blessed minutes as the adorable alarm clock they created would allow them.

Expecting warm skin and the body she knows every inch of by heart, it's a surprise to find the other side of the bed empty. Well, it's a momentary surprise. One or the other of them leaving the bed in the middle of the night has become commonplace in the past few months, but Emma will be sleeping through the night before it ever becomes normal to be alone in bed without him.

Wakefulness comes quickly from that point. Figuring she’d been awakened by Emma’s fussing but hearing no sound from the crib nearby, she takes several long moments to blink in the darkness and orient herself to time and place.

A soft melody reaches her ears when she sits up, and there's no stopping the smile that crosses her face.

In all these years, hearing him play the piano has never lost its magic.

With rarely a sour note, the technical prowess gained through years of grueling practice is evident, but his genuine enjoyment for the instrument shines brightest.

His life has long since been his own, happily shared with his beloved family on his own terms, with infinite support to chase dreams he would never have entertained in his youth. When he works the occasional modeling gig, it's because he chooses to do so. When he fences, it's because he enjoys the sport. When he plays the piano, it's because the act of creating and sharing music brings him joy. Simple as that. The latter is one last vestige of connection to his mother, a way to escape a difficult day for a little while, a method of bringing beauty into the world that doesn't involve smiling for a camera.

Marinette knows all of this, knows that when her husband sits at the piano he requested to be placed in their living room, that it's an extension of the man she loves, a precious gift that he gives of himself every time he plays.

She pads silently to the crib and peeks in, finding it empty.

A picture is starting to form. She hurries into the living room, bare feet silent on the hardwood floor.

It's another surprise, then, to find someone other than Adrien at the piano. She'd expected him shirtless and clad in those green and grey plaid pajama pants, with sleep-mussed hair and a tired smile. Instead, she finds Chat Noir, holding their daughter in one arm as the other hand plays a soft lullaby.

When she slides in next to him on the piano bench, the smile he sends her is indeed tired, but also full of tenderness and a touch of wonder. That's common - his awestruck joy at becoming a father, at seeing the love of his life become a mother, has left him with a permanent soft shine in his eyes. Marinette would have said she couldn't love him more, but he's proven her wrong at every turn. It's a good thing the heart has an infinite capacity because, between Adrien and Emma, hers seems to grow daily.

"Not that I mind," she murmurs, reaching over to caress the back of her daughter’s head and marveling as always at the fine softness of her wispy hair, "but why is a superhero in my living room playing the piano in the middle of the night?"

He chuckles quietly. "You know how much our kitten loves my purr. I thought it would soothe her back to sleep."

Our kitten. It makes her emotional every time he says it.

"It does, Minou, but we both know you can purr without the suit." She shakes her head. "Because that's a thing in our lives, for some reason."

The laugh he stifles shakes his chest and the infant held against it, but, Marinette notices suddenly, Emma's eyes are wide open anyway. She doesn't make a peep, simply gazing up at her daddy, with one tiny hand curled against his suit, directly over his heart. Limned in moonlight from the balcony's double doors, they're an ethereal vision, almost too beautiful to be real. Even as she laughs quietly with him, she's helpless against the tears that finally spill down her cheeks and wet the front of the old t-shirt she sleeps in.

He's used to the spontaneous tears by now, and presses a kiss to her cheek.

"To answer your question, My Lady, I can purr louder and longer transformed, and she loves the feel of the suit." He gently touches the back of his daughter's hand at his chest and meets her silent gaze. "Don't you, my precious girl? You love your Daddy Kitty, yes you do."

That startles a laugh that Marinette doesn't even try to hold back now that she knows Emma is awake. "Let's revisit that name later, Adrien."

At this point, the half-delirious laughter they share is that of two exhausted parents awake for the second time between midnight and dawn.

"These claws make playing a total pain, though." He lays his free hand gently on top of the keys with a little scale of five successive clicks. "Worth it for my favorite kitten, though."

Emma looks so peacefully comfortable in his arms, Marinette hates to separate them, but— "Was she hungry?"

"Dirty diaper," he says, patting Emma's bottom. "She wasn't crying, I just happened to hear her fussing a little. Didn't want to wake you up since you were just up with her—" he glances behind him at the clock on the wall, squinting at it to make out the time in the dimly lit room. He gives up trying to calculate and looks at Marinette with a wry smile, "—a very short time ago. We've been hanging out for...a while."

She wonders what "a while" means, but she's beyond grateful to have a partner so willing to get up and tend to their little one in the middle of the night. His thoughtfulness is never really a surprise, but she has yet to find its boundaries - his kindness and care are seemingly infinite. Marinette can't imagine a better husband, father, partner.

Aaand she's crying again.

"You sure you're okay, Mari?"

She nods and smiles at him, sniffling. She reaches for the baby and he hands her off with practiced ease. Within a moment, Emma roots against her chest and Marinette lifts the hem of her t-shirt to let her nurse.

Adrien slips away but returns immediately with her nursing pillow, which she takes with a grateful smile, sighing in relief once it’s in place between her lap and the baby cradled in her arms.

Taking one look at Emma, Adrien puts his hands up in mock-surrender. "Fine, fine, I get it. I've got a cool suit and strong muscles and I can purr, for heaven’s sake, but mommy wins every time, because I can't do that."

"Darn right," she says with another laugh, before her expression softens. "And...thank you, my love. I slept just long enough to get in one nice dream."

The eyebrows he raises are hidden, but his mask moves with them, big green eyes alight with mischief. "Dreaming about a certain cool cat?"

"And his strong muscles? Maybe."

He hums. "We should...recreate it."

"You don't even know what I was dreaming about, you tomcat!"

"Ah, but you were there and I was there and it was nice, so whatever it was, it sounds great."

She shakes her head and grins at him. "I would love to recreate it, Chaton."

Green light fills the room as his transformation falls, leaving the tired, shirtless dad with sleep-mussed hair and plaid pajamas she'd originally expected to find at the piano. He catches Plagg and gives him a scratch between the ears.

"Thanks, buddy. I appreciate your help."

Plagg's huge yawn morphs into a sleepy half-smile that shows one fang. "No problem, Kid. But I'm going to bed...after a cheese break."

"Good plan. You've earned it." He smiles after his kwami as he zips off toward the kitchen.

Alone once more with only the sound of Emma nursing and Adrien rubbing circles on her back, sleep creeps back in at the edges of her consciousness, darkening the corners of her mind and making her eyelids droop.

Adrien shifts next to her, reaching over to brush the back of his fingers against Emma's cheek; the movement brings Marinette back from the precipice of sleep. She blinks several times at her daughter, perfect and beautiful in the pale pre-dawn light - a miracle created without magic, Ladybug's ultimate lucky charm.

She's halfway to tearing up again when she hears a jaw-cracking yawn beside her and gives him a watery but sincere smile. "You can go back to bed, Minou. We'll be right there."

Though his eyes are half-closed, he shakes his head. "It's okay, I can wait for you."

Marinette repositions Emma to the other side and latches her before placing a hand on Adrien's plaid-pajama-covered leg. Unlike in her recent sweet dream, the hand is ungloved and they're in the quiet of their apartment instead of a rooftop, but the feeling of being blissfully happy and loved beyond imagination is identical. If she's just a bit more tired than she was in her dream, well, that's life with an infant, isn't it?

"Will you play for us, Adrien?” she asks, quickly adding, “if you want to."

The radiant joy that lights his face makes her heart soar, and she falls just a tiny bit more in love.

"For the two ladies I love more than anything?" He bends to kiss Emma's head, then meets Marinette's lips for a soft, lingering kiss. "The world."

"A song will do, Kitty. I'm too tired for the world right now."

He nods sagely. "Right as always, My Lady."

She giggles when he straightens his spine and theatrically flings nonexistent coattails behind him off the piano bench. Exaggerated for show, he places his bare foot above the pedal and positions his hands over the keys as though he's playing to a packed concert hall. He flashes a brilliant grin over his shoulder at her just before his fingers meet the ivory.

The song he begins is soft and plaintive, neither a lullaby nor a romantic epic but a heartfelt mix of the two. Gentle and lovely, the melody he coaxes from the keys reflects his own heart in vivid detail. She hears his devotion to his beloved partner in the deep, solid chords that anchor the piece, his effervescent delight at being a father bubbling over in the tinkling trills at the top of the scale that he plays softly so as not to rouse Emma. With a sweeping glissando, he returns to the center of the scale and lets each note tell Marinette how truly, deeply, eternally he loves her.

It's one of the most profoundly beautiful things she's heard in her entire life, a gift of love for her and for their daughter. It's overwhelming.

Emma's eyes have closed as she drifts off, her lips fluttering occasionally against Marinette's skin. When she's sure Emma is asleep, she lets the hem of her t-shirt fall to her lap again and brings the baby to her shoulder. Cradling her close, she lets her eyes slip shut and sways languidly with the melody. The tears that wet her cheeks are inevitable at this point, her chest so full of emotion she could burst.

Adrien's impromptu moonlight concert concludes on a quiet arpeggio layered over a lingering chord, fading into silence when he finally lifts his foot from the pedal.

He takes a deep breath and turns just as Marinette surges up to meet him, her lips moving against his with her heart's own echo of his song.

I love you. Emma loves you. We're so lucky we have you. You're the best dad. You're the best partner. My heart is yours forever.

When they break apart - gently, of course, so as not to wake the currently-sleeping baby - she imagines his expression of lovestruck exhaustion is mirrored on her face.

"I love you so much."

"Mmm. I love you, too."

A pause.

"I'm so tired."

The laugh they share is one of pure commiseration.

"I know. Let's get back to bed and see how much sleep we can get before our kitten wakes up again."

Adrien carefully takes Emma from her before he stands and starts up a quiet purr, reaching out his free hand for Marinette to take. She lets him help her up and lead her back to their room, watching as he settles Emma back in her crib with the utmost care. When he joins her beneath the duvet once more, she finally snuggles up to him as she had intended a half hour ago, before she found the bed empty and Chat Noir in her living room.

She smiles against his chest and listens to his breathing even out. Chasing precious sleep herself, Marinette lets the memory of his song fill her mind as she drifts off, hoping for another dream as beautiful as the last.

#miraculous ladybug #ml fanfiction #ml fic #domestic fluff #new parents #baby emma #piano and purrs #my writing

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dessarious · 4 years

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Misconceptions, Miscommunication, and Misinformation Pt94

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Marinette could honestly say she hadn’t been this relaxed since before she became Ladybug. She was leaning against Chloe as they sat on the couch while Selina asked them and Luka questions about themselves. At least when she and Damian weren’t trading barbs. It was so… normal in a way. She didn’t have to worry about saying the wrong thing and outing herself. She wasn’t waiting for the next Akuma attack or worrying about keeping everyone around her calm so they weren’t the next victim. She wasn’t hiding anything from the people in this room and that made all the difference.

“Oh I assure you there is nothing more entertaining than watching Tim try and explain a cold case to the toaster at three in the morning.” Selina’s eyes were shining with repressed laughter but Damian rolled his eyes.

“If by entertaining you mean pathetic. But if that’s your gauge for entertaining I vote the time Todd shot himself because he was doing target practice and forgot to switch out his rubber bullets with live ammo.”

“I think I missed that one.”

“I still have the tape if you want to watch. Watching him fire off five rounds and then scream like a little girl as they come back at him is well worth the time.” Selina was still laughing when there was a knock at the door.

“It’s probably Daddy coming to lecture me about something.” Chloe sounded resigned and Marinette’s temper flared.

“I’ll handle it. He won’t risk pissing off Bruce Wayne’s fiance.” Selina jerked the door open before blinking in surprise at the person on the other side. “Can I help you?”

“I’m here to talk to Chloe.” Marinette looked at Chloe in confusion and saw a matching, slightly more pissed off, expression as she recognized Adrien’s voice. As far as she knew they hadn’t talked since Chloe transferred. When Selina looked back and raised an eyebrow Chloe hesitated before nodding. Marinette could feel the tension radiating off of her. Adrien stepped past the woman and stopped immediately. It was obvious he hadn’t expected so many people.

“What do you want Agreste?” The open hostility in her tone caused Marinette to wince. Even if it was his own actions that ultimately led to the rift she still felt bad that she was the focal point that made them both lose their oldest friend.

“Can we talk in private?” He wouldn’t look anyone in the eye and his tone was off. Chloe must have heard it too.

“Anything you have to say to me can be said in front of everyone here.” He looked like he was going to argue, but ended up letting out an irritated sigh.

“Fine. I need your help to get in contact with Ladybug.” Marinette tensed and she felt Chloe’s arms tighten around her.

“Absolutely not.” Adrien actually glared at her.

“Why do you want to contact Ladybug?” He transferred his glare to her and Marinette could feel a growl starting in Chloe’s chest. She pinched the other girl’s arm as a warning. She had no idea who Chat Noir had been and Marinette didn’t want to risk Adrien recognizing Plagg’s influence.

“It’s personal.” Marinette actually shuddered. She honestly didn’t think she could deal with him coming on to her without physically assaulting him at this point.

“If you won’t say what you want I’m not going to bother Ladybug about it. She’s got more than enough to deal with without your nonsense.” Chloe’s imperious tone was a front and Marinette studied Adrien as he pouted at the floor. It wasn’t what she expected though she couldn’t say exactly why.

“Look, I get that you all hate me because my father turned out to be Hawkmoth.”

“No one here hates you because of that Adrien.” She tried to make her voice gentle but she could hear the strain in it.

“No, we hate you because you are a self serving asshole with no real concept of empathy.” Everyone in the room frowned at Damian. He wasn’t wrong, it was just a bit hypocritical for him of all people to be pointing that out.

“I need to talk to Ladybug to see if she can help my mother. For some reason when Nathalie told her about my father she forgot to mention that my mother was never actually missing. She’s in a secret room, in a coma because of the Peafowl Miraculous. She only told me after she was certain Father wasn’t going to get out on bail.” He mumbled the words to the floor and just about everyone inhaled sharply at the information. Yeah, all she’d told them was that Gabriel was trying to get his wife back.

“So what, you think Ladybug will let you make the wish your father wanted?” Chloe sounded more confused than hostile at least.

“No. I’m well aware she won’t risk that. She might be able to help her though since it was a Miraculous that caused the damage. That or she might know someone who can. Either way I have to try.” He sounded so… lost. For all he’d made her life miserable, on both sides of the mask, she couldn’t help but feel sorry for him. He’d lost everything.

“We’ll make sure your message gets to her.” Marinette felt Chloe tense behind her again and started rubbing soothing circles into her forearm. This was something she needed to do, and not for Adrien. The truth was that Mme. Agreste didn’t deserve to continue to suffer because of the things her husband or son did.

“Thank you. And Damian could you have your father contact me when it’s convenient?” Damian just scowled at him.

“Why?”

“My mother was never declared legally dead and she has her own shares in Gabriel. Given everything, if she wakes she’ll likely want to sell them. If she doesn’t they’ll go to me and I certainly don’t want anything to do with the company.”

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#maribat #marinette dupain cheng #chloe bourgeois #Selina Kyle #Damian Wayne #luka couffaine #adrien agreste #bffmaridami

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katiechat · 4 years

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At that Moment

A fic I wrote a while ago for October- Dark Month in the Miraculous Fanworks server! Thank you for my wonderful beta reader @inkjackets for helping me and to all my friends who supported me!

This was inspired by prompts from @miraculousfanworks server! 😊

Tagging @fallsofnoir @ange-lica-3 and @swiftieanimecat in case you’re interested. Once again, please let me know if you want to be taken off the tag list! <3

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Ao3

Summary: There was something about Marinette that transformed Adrien's world; something that always made him turn to her whenever he was down. When Luka's birthday rolls around, Adrien realizes what it is.

Warning: Post Miracle Queen. Also, fluffy angst! ;)

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If there was one thing most boyfriends didn't do, it was spend more time with their girl friends than their girlfriends .

Adrien knew it was strange. He heard the whispers running through the school; caught the curious stares every time he talked to Marinette. It made him entirely self-conscious, but somehow his best friend always managed to ease his tension. Her words were enough to help with his lingering worries, and her laughter was the perfect medicine for his aching heart.

No one else held that much power over him. Not even Kagami, the girl who’d won him over; not even Nino, the first friend he’d ever made.

Something about Marinette just felt… unique. Ever since she entered his life, he couldn’t imagine his days without her. She was the sun that lit his day and the stars that shone so bright.

Adrien knew friendships didn't always last. He’d heard plenty of stories about close friends who slowly grew apart. Some lost contact because of the changes in their life, like a different school or new romantic relationships. Others, because of a lack of common interests. And for some, it was simply because of the toxic nature of their friendship.

But those situations always felt far away, like a distant dream that could never touch him. Adrien took the warnings to heart, but never let them process in his head. Some part of him believed that his friendships would last his entire lifetime. How could something that bathed his world with light not live as long as the sun?

Yet things still changed: Nino and Alya started spending more time alone, resulting in Adrien always feeling like a third wheel; his relationship with Kagami grew unsteady, like a boulder just about to fall; and Marinette… transformed. Her stutter had gradually disappeared and her designs grew bolder, revealing a side of her he’d never seen before.

There was nothing wrong with this new girl. She was just as astounding as the girl he gave the umbrella to. Her eyes still lit up his world; her laughter still brightened every room. She was more confident, more outgoing, and livelier than she was before. In a way, she reminded him of the girl he first fell in love with.

That wasn't to say he preferred the new Marinette. He loved all sides of his best friend; whether past, present, or ones he’d only caught glimpses of. She was the only person he could be himself around, the only one who truly understood him. There was something about their friendship that nothing else could compare to.

Adrien glanced down at the floor. From behind him, Nino and Alya’s voices talked animatedly, their banter as entertaining as what he shared with Ladybug. Marinette watched them from the seat beside him, a small smile on her face.

His friends seemed so happy in these moments , while he just wallowed in guilt. The conversation from the previous night haunted his mind, echoing the same sentence again and again.

I’m getting tired of this, Adrien.

He clenched his fists as pain ran through his heart. He hated the effect he had on Kagami; seeing her forced smile, the constant emptiness in her eyes, broke him more than he could say. She was hurt, suffering silently inside, and he was the cause of it.

She deserved better than him.

A warm hand woke him from his cold thoughts. Adrien turned to meet Marinette’s concerned gaze, her worry making her brilliant blue eyes even deeper.

“Adrien? What’s wrong?”

He blinked before the words left his lips. “It's... about Kagami.”

Marinette’s eyes flicked to their best friends. Nino and Alya were still deep in conversation, their casual banter now a heated discussion. She sighed before tightening her hold on his shoulder.

“Do you need to talk about it?”

He turned his gaze. “I…”

Marinette moved back, taking away all his comfort with her. She didn’t look away from him, a deep understanding in her eyes. "I get it. Do you want to talk about this later? Preferably when we’re not surrounded by all our friends?”

Adrien nodded. “Okay.”

A smile gradually spread across his friend’s lips, igniting in him a hope he didn’t feel for too long. “Let me know when.”

Adrien squeezed her hand. “Thank you.”

She winked. “That's what friends are for.”

***

Adrien smiled as he studied the contact on his phone.

Marinette ❤️

Just that: Marinette. Marinette, his best friend; Marinette, his confidante; Marinette, the only person who could transform his world with one smile.

“What are you thinking about, kid?” Plagg peeked out of his shirt pocket.

Adrien glanced at the front seat. A breath escaped him as he saw Gorilla didn’t hear the little creature, his eyes focused on their surroundings.

Seemed safe enough.

“It’s about Marinette.” He couldn’t help the grin that rose to his lips.

The kwami huffed. “Marinette again? Your thoughts are better spent on Camembert. It gives you much less trouble. Only sweet gooey goodness.”

Adrien chuckled. “Plagg, Marinette is better than cheese.”

The Gorilla’s grunt cut off Plagg’s answer. Adrien waited for the kwami to hide once again before he turned his attention to his bodyguard. The burly man motioned toward the window, and Adrien obediently turned his gaze outward.

His nerves reemerged as he glimpsed a familiar white building. Its height set his heart to a rapid pace and its dark windows enhanced his fear. The only comfort he held was the sight of Marinette behind the glass, her movements gentle and carefree; like a dancer with the power to ignite the hope in anyone she meets.

And just like that Adrien’s worries melted away. He could suddenly feel the warmth of the sun on his skin; smell the sweet scents of baking from inside; and taste the sugary pastries waiting for him. There wasn't much certainty in his life, but there was one thing Adrien was sure of: in a world where Marinette danced with so much happiness, nothing could ever hurt him.

He glanced back at his bodyguard. Gorilla just stared ahead, his hands gripping the steering wheel.

“I’m going out,” he announced.

Gorilla nodded.

Adrien pressed down on the handle of his car door. Just as he was about to leave, he turned back to the man who drove him all this way. “Thank you for bringing me here,” he whispered.

They locked gazes. Gorilla took in Adrien’s beaming smile, powerful confidence and utter ecstasy. The surprise on the man’s face gradually melted into adoration, and Adrien felt his heart grow lighter.

“Of course. Have a good time.”

Adrien’s grin widened. “Thank you.”

With a wave goodbye, he left the car. Once again, he set his sights on Marinette’s house and strode toward it, whistling a happy tune.

The jingling bell announced his arrival once he opened the door. Adrien’s grin widened as he took in the tiny shop, his eyes searching for the only girl he ever needed.

He froze when he saw her.

Adrien always loved the way Marinette’s hair looked outside of her pigtails. It reminded him of a waterfall cascading down her shoulders, pooling up inside his heart. She seemed so much more energetic like this, as if the troubles of the world had no effect on her. She sang, she danced, she laughed. And he just watched her, awestruck at the way her presence lit the room.

She was beautiful.

Marinette didn't notice his gaze. She continued rummaging through a cabinet, her back to him. From the noises she was making he assumed she was searching for something, but Adrien had no idea what it was.

“One second!” she called, “I'm just…”

Marinette let out a triumphant cry as she held out a measuring cup. With renewed energy she set it on the counter, right next to a collection of baking tools and ingredients. She then turned to Adrien, and a smile bloomed on her face at the sight of him.

“Adrien!” She chuckled. “I told you to let me know when it’s you!”

Adrien blinked. His mind felt all muddled, as if he just woke up from a dream. “Sorry,” he cleared his throat. “I was just… distracted.”

Darkness reemerged as the smile disappeared from her face. “Is it about what bothered you at school? Something with Kagami?”

Marinette approached him, stopping only inches from him. Adrien backed away, ignoring the comfort of her proximity.

He didn't know how to explain it. At that moment, Marinette’s warmth was like a fire: scorching to the touch, yet calming all the same. There was nothing to explain his instincts, yet Adrien still felt guilt gnawing at his insides.

He came here for advice about Kagami. His girlfriend. He doubted she would be very happy with the thoughts running through his head.

Adrien shook his head. He needed a distraction.

“What are you doing?” he blurted out.

Marinette's brows furrowed, but she decided not to comment on the sudden change of topic. “Well, Luka's coming over in a few hours. He has a birthday today, and I wanted to surprise him. So… I was just about to start working on a cake.”

She motioned toward the counter. Adrien silently studied the array of items, trying to piece together which cake she had planned.

He jumped when he realized Marinette was watching him the whole time.

“It's citrus cake,” she explained. “Luka loves that sweet tangy flavor.”

Adrien nodded. For some reason, he couldn't find his words.

“I’ve also thought of using fondant, which is why I took that out too.” She pointed to a side table, where the sugary topping lay in a stack of colors. “You see, there's lots of blue, but I also managed to come up with a bit of pink and purple.”

Adrien listened attentively as Marinette dove into more explanations. The words left her mouth in barely-contained excitement, lighting her eyes with a lively glint. He watched her silently, taking in every sound that left her lips; every twitch of her mouth.

The situation was so achingly familiar, Adrien felt his heart fill with happiness.

That was, until he realized what Luka’s birthday meant.

Marinette stopped the moment Adrien’s face changed. Her worried voice filled his mind, awakening in him something he didn't know he needed. “Adrien? Is everything okay?”

He couldn’t look at her. “I didn't know you were busy today,” Adrien choked. He knew she had other things to do, and he didn't want to ruin Marinette’s surprise with his troubles.

Her brow furrowed. “What do you…”

She gasped as the realization hit her. Before Adrien could say a word, Marinette gripped his hand and dragged him to an empty seat. Her hold was tight, her warmth like tongues of fire.

And yet Adrien didn't want her to let go.

His best friend backed away the moment she saw him seated. She narrowed her eyes at him, her gaze burning with powerful determination. “Adrien, listen to me.”

He gazed into her eyes and nodded.

Marinette’s face softened. “I am busy today, and I’ve known I would be for a while.” She sighed and leaned on the table he sat at, close enough for him to smell her perfume. “But you're my friend. One of my best friends for sure. And you're just as important to me as I am to you.”

Her voice grew gentle before the final words left her mouth. “You’re not a burden, nor will you ever be. You're a gift, Adrien, and don't ever forget that.”

Adrien froze. His mind flooded with questions, as if Marinette just unlocked a hidden door in his mind. What did she mean by “friend”? A friend you talked to only at school, like he and Nino were? A friend you shared your deepest secrets with, like Ladybug was to him? Or maybe, a friend who would take your hand and whisper all the reasons they loved you with all their heart?

He wasn't sure he wanted to know. Heck, he wasn't sure what he wanted to say.

So instead he lowered his gaze to the floor. “Thank you,” he said weakly.

“You don't have to thank me,” she replied.

But that wasn't enough. As if on instinct, Marinette headed toward Adrien, her feet leading her past the table in her path. A softness lit her eyes as she stopped inches from him, before her arms wrapped around him in a powerful hug. Adrien froze in surprise before he gradually relaxed, letting her hold encase him in a protective shield. A wild warmth melted his heart, as if there was no safer place than in her arms.

It had been so long since he’d received such a hug.

Tears pricked Adrien’s eyes. A familiar pain reemerged, but he forced it back down. Instead, he let his arms wrap around her torso, and pulled her even closer.

Marinette didn't say a word as he leaned his head on her chest. She tightened her hold on him, bringing him even nearer to her heart. Her breaths were slow and steady, giving him all the confidence he ever needed.

A gradual smile spread across his lips. How was this girl everything he needed?

Adrien lost himself in the moment. He forgot about his worries with Kagami; about the cruel thoughts running through his head; about the instinct warning him to run. All he could think about was Marinette’s scent—perfume mixed with cookies and sugar and a tinge of sweat—and Marinette's warmth. He basked in her touch like a boy starved for love.

He never wanted her to let go, and he wasn't sure why.

Adrien didn't know how long they stayed like that. Neither seemed in a rush to let go, but eventually they forced themselves apart.

Marinette looked at him, a pure happiness lighting up her eyes. “Help me?”

She pointed once again at the ingredients for the cake, gazing hopefully at him.

“I-I’ve never baked a cake,” Adrien admitted. He’d never had the chance.

She squeezed his shoulder. “I can teach you.”

A slow smile spread across Adrien’s lips. “Then of course.”

There was nothing else he could have said.

They started working on the cake slowly and gradually. He followed her instructions like the beginner he was, taking heed of her warnings and paying attention to her suggestions. A warm pride swelled inside him, lighting the world in a wonderful myriad of colors.

He felt invincible.

It was strange for him to know the cake was for Luka. He was friendly with Marinette’s boyfriend—they both shared many interests—but something about helping with his cake felt strange , as if it wasn't his place.

And he wasn't sure why.

“Done!” Marinette called half an hour later. She took the batter from Adrien and walked toward the oven, humming a gentle tune. “Now we wait.”

She inserted the cake before walking back. A wide smile lit her lips, one full of happiness and ecstasy. “Luka will love it. Thank you, Adrien.”

She squeezed his hand. Adrien’s pulse jumped and a strange current passed through his skin—almost as if he was just shocked with lightning.

“O-of course,” he found himself saying.

Marinette laughed. She leaned closer to him, her wonderful smell wafting toward him. “How was making your first cake?”

“It was…” Adrien searched for words. There were so many possible answers, and he didn't know what was most befitting.

But he forgot it all when he looked into her eyes.

“Wonderful.”

His friend laughed. He lost himself in the shining blue of her eyes, like the color of the clear blue sky. His heart rose to cloud nine, filling his world with the brightness only Marinette gave him.

Adrien didn't know what pulled him away from her gaze, but somehow he found his eyes trailing over Marinette’s face. He took in every inch of it, letting his mind fill with thoughts of the girl across from him. She was so beautiful, it was almost impossible to compare her with Kagami.

His thoughts evaporated as he noticed a speck of flour near her lips.

“Marinette.”

She straightened. “Hmm?”

“Y-you have something here.”

Adrien hesitantly pointed to the corresponding place near his mouth.

She frowned. “Where?”

“Here.”

Without a second thought, Adrien cupped her cheek. Gently, he wiped the flour away, feeling his skin heat at the touch. A strange need suddenly rose inside him, forcing his eyes to drift to Marinette’s lips. He swallowed as his thoughts entered unfamiliar territories, awakening a deep longing inside him.

He hadn't felt this for so long. Not since he got over Ladybug. Not even with...

Kagami.

He froze as horror encased him in its claws. He scurried away like a frightened mouse, suddenly feeling like it was hard to breathe. What was wrong with him?

Marinette couldn't look at him either. Her cheeks were tinged pink with embarrassment, her forced smile evidence of her crumbling facade.

Adrien's heart broke. She looked so uncomfortable, and he was the cause of it. What had he done?

“Marinette, I-I’m-”

She shook her head, a weak smile to her lips. “I-it’s fine, Adrien. I know you didn't mean it. Just think again next time, okay? That isn't something friends do with each other.”

And with a soft smile, she turned back to the oven.

***

It didn't take long for the awkwardness to thaw. Adrien still felt horrible over the incident, but Marinette forgave him immediately.

“I know you’d never do something like that. Or think of me that way. It was just a misunderstanding.”

Marinette perked up as the oven dinged. A wide smile graced her lips before she ran to it, squealing enthusiastically.

“Let's see our masterpiece!” she laughed.

She carefully peeked inside before smirking at Adrien. “I couldn't have done it better myself. You’re a natural!”

Adrien lowered his gaze. From Marinette’s giggle, he knew she noticed his heated cheeks.

“Don't be shy! It was a group effort!” Marinette teased. “My impeccable instructions helped guide you along the right path!”

Adrien chuckled. “Right.”

He didn't know how Marinette always brought out the best in him. She gave him the courage to learn new things and expand his horizons. She was everything he needed in order to face the world.

“And our cake has risen to the occasion!” she announced, “ Muffin is batter than it.”

She met his gaze, a mischievous twinkle to her eyes. Adrien frowned as he processed her words, before a deep, powerful laugh escaped his lips. “Did you just pun?!”

“I did!” Marinette smiled proudly. “Ever since I started dating Luka, I’ve been very sharp with my puns. Wouldn't you agree?”

Adrien shook his head. ”I…” he couldn't help the wonder in his voice. “Wow, Marinette. You're really astounding.”

“You have no idea,” she smirked. “This is only the beginning.”

She glanced at her phone before a wide smile lit her lips. “Oooh listen to this!”

She unlocked the device, and seconds later a calm melody drifted through the room. Marinette hummed along, smiling as if that music was the one key to her heart.

“It's a Kitty Section song. Luka wrote it for me. It’s…”

She paused as she sang along to the next few words. Adrien watched her silently, taking in every movement she made. She was so beautiful, like an angel from above. And yet watching her hurt .

“He kept it a secret until I had a really bad day,” Marinette uttered. “Hearing it made my whole day turn around.”

She gazed far away, as if watching the memory unfold. A dreamy smile lit her features, as if Luka was everything she could possibly need.

Adrien tore his eyes away. His heart ached, as if the music awoke a hidden pain he never knew about. It was a beautiful song, but why did hearing it hurt so much?

He should be happy to see her like this. All he wanted was for Marinette, his best friend, to smile every day. And yet Adrien still found himself wishing he was the cause of her happiness. That he meant everything to her.

Just like she meant the world to him.

He didn't know what made him ask the question on his mind. He knew it was pointless; he knew it would only hurt, yet he still found the words leaving his lips.

“How did it feel?”

Marinette met his eyes. Adrien’s heart stopped at the pure love radiating from her. It was breathtaking, like all the good in the world united in that one look.

A strange, deep longing rose inside him, filling his thoughts with only one word.

Marinette.

Adrien knew something was wrong with him. He couldn’t possibly think so much about a girl who wasn't his girlfriend. And yet… and yet…

He couldn’t resist the voices of his heart.

“It felt…” Marinette searched for words, her voice soft and gentle, “like he just handed me all the happiness in the world. Like he was the instrument, and I was the tune. Like… nothing, no one , could ever compare.”

She looked away, her cheeks tinged with a rosy pink. “At that moment, I realized I loved him.”

The song suddenly disappeared from his mind. Adrien stared at his friend, a strange, unfathomable pain drowning his heart. He experienced hurt before—Ladybug rejected him plenty of times—but this pain was so profound, he couldn't help himself any more.

“I feel the same,” he whispered.

Marinette’s eyes widened. She studied him, her gaze taking into account every inch of his face. “You do?”

Adrien nodded.

A strange sound left Marinette's lips. She rushed to hug him, her warmth the perfect cure to the pain in his heart.

“Does Kagami know?”

Adrien shook his head.

Marinette scanned him, her face growing even softer than before. “Are you worried she won't feel the same about you?”

He frowned. With Marinette so close, it was hard thinking coherent thoughts. “Who?”

She smiled gently. “Kagami.”

“I—”

Adrien backed away. The weight of the situation suddenly hit him, and he couldn't think. He didn't know what made him confess so thoughtlessly. He was over Ladybug. He was dating Kagami. And yet the words still left his lips.

He didn't know what prompted them. If there was one thing he was certain of, it was how these words weren't about Kagami. Yes, he was fond of his girlfriend, but he didn't love her.

Then who….

He startled when a warm hand touched his arm. Adrien met shining blue eyes, so deep he felt like he could sink into them and never leave.

“It's okay,” Marinette smiled, “I know you’ve been having problems. You can tell me, Adrien.”

And he didn't even have to think as he opened his heart to her. If there was one person he knew he could trust, it was Marinette.

“I-I try to give her everything,” he said weakly, “But we’ve still drifted apart, and I don't know why. It's like… she doesn’t see it.”

Marinette squeezed his shoulder. “Your heart?”

He silently nodded.

A slow smile crept across Marinette’s mouth. Adrien felt a familiar tingling reemerge at the sight. He loved basking in her light.

“Adrien, I know Kagami, and I know you. I promise you she sees more than you think. She knows your heart isn’t yours anymore.”

She winked, before a powerful burst of laughter escaped her lips. Adrien smiled as he lost himself to the sound. It was as if it was the only music he ever needed in the world.

Somehow, her company always managed to close the gaping emptiness in his heart.

“Thank you, Marinette.”

She turned, still grinning in a beautifully wild way. “What for?”

“For…” he searched for the words to convey it all, “this.”

He motioned to the whole expanse of the room, eliciting another soft look from Marinette. “Of course.”

Just as Adrien opened his mouth, her phone rang. She ran to it, squealing, before answering the call.

“It’s Luka,” she mouthed.

Adrien forced a smile as Marinette turned to the call. She hummed as she listened to Luka’s voice, before giving a final “Okay, see you soon!”

The moment she hung up, Marinette’s calm facade disappeared. She ran to the oven and took out the cake, talking rapidly to herself.

Adrien frowned. “Marinette? What's wrong?”

“Luka’s here!” She squeaked. “Or almost here. He’s on his way here! And the cake isn’t even… ahh!”

Marinette ran to the table with the colorful fondant. She murmured to herself frantic sentences as she grabbed the sugary topping and started decorating the cake.

Adrien hesitated. “Marinette?”

“Help me!” she cried.

He laughed as he approached the table. Marinette was already deep in the decorating stage, her brow furrowed in thought.

“So how do we do this?”

“I don't know!” she screamed. “Just take a random color and make a decoration with it!”

He watched as she continued working, her hands frantic with speed. Adrien slowly imitated her, frowning in concentration.

“I don't even know if he’ll like it. It looks so boring and brown right now and nothing will be ready by the time he comes in,” Marinette ranted. “And then Luka will hate me and think I'm the worst girlfriend ever and we’ll never have a house with a picket fence and three kids and a hamster called—”

“Marinette.”

She met his eyes.

Adrien smiled. “He’ll love it.”

“He will?”

He nodded. “I would.”

Marinette gasped, before pulling him into a hug. “Thank you, Adrien,” she said with a sniff.

Just as he was about to answer, Adrien heard an engine roar. Marinette squeaked with surprise and fright before grabbing the cake and running outside. “It's Luka!” she called.

Adrien chuckled as he followed after her. He felt so weightless in these moments, as if all he ever needed was Marinette in his life.

He froze as he saw her approach her boyfriend. She held the cake out meekly, an adorable blush to her cheeks. Luka laughed, said something, and then set the cake on the sidewalk.

That was all the warning Adrien got before her boyfriend turned around, pulled Marinette to him, and put his lips on hers.

Adrien's friend let out a strange high-pitched sound before she closed her eyes and melted into the kiss. She wrapped her arms around her boyfriend, smiling as if that was the only song she needed. Luka pulled her closer, leaning in so he could give her everything she deserved.

And Adrien felt the truth finally tear into him, more powerful than any kiss he’d ever shared.

‘I feel the same.’

He wasn't in love with Kagami. He wasn't in love with Ladybug.

He was in love with Marinette.

His best friend.

And the way she looked at Luka, with eyes so full of love, told Adrien the truth he’d known all along.

She will never feel the same.

#miraculous #miraculous ladybug #ml #adrinette #ml fanfiction #lukanette #angst #adrinette angst with lukanette endgame #my writing #adrien agreste #Marinette Dupain-Cheng #luka couffaine #mentioned adrigami #I KNOW THIS HURTS OKAY #I love Adrinette too #But I needed to write this angst lol #adrienette #miraculous fanfiction #finally posted this lol

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chicoriii · 3 years

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Season 4, Episode 1 - Vérité (Truth)

I still block spoiler tags, and I don't plan to unblock them at least until I watch the Shanghai special (then we will see), so I might not know things you know and I haven't read others thoughts about the episode.

In my opinion it was the weakest start of the season. It wasn't completely terrible episode (still better than the other one with akumatised Luka), it just wasn't my thing. Stormy Weather is one of my S1 favourites (I love fighting scenes!), The Collector is just perfect as the start of a season, and I even enjoyed Chameleon more. It's one of the most salted one in the fandom and I don't think it would be in my Top 10 S3 episodes, but it still feels much better as the first episode than Truth. It would be better if it wasn't the first episode, in my opinion. Especially because of almost completely lack of Adrien. I miss him a lot now, also since he was absent in Furious Fu as well.

People who read my posts know that I'm not fond of Luka and Lukanette, so I can't get invested in an episode focusing on him and this ship. But I don't dislike him and the ship only because they exist or they are messing up with the Love Square (I love Kagami and don't mind Adrigami the way it is, though I'm not shipping it and I prefer them being friends), I dislike them because of the way how they are portrayed in the show. And while Luka himself got some things I wanted to see, I didn't change my opinion about Lukanette anyway.

Despite avoiding spoilers, I've seen few screenshots of this episode before seeing it, including the end card, so I expected that Luka would be akumatised because of discovering that Jagged Stone is his father. But no, that was again because of Marinette. But at the very least he wasn't completely happy that she’s missing their dates. It was the first time when he has shown being negatively impacted by Marinette herself. Finally he has shown normal human emotions.

But it doesn't change that Luka is still overly glorified by the show's writing, he is still portrayed as a perfect boyfriend cliché. He knows that she prefers Adrien over him, but he is ready to wait for her forever. Sweet and I'm sure many girls, especially the teens, are very charmed by him, but I don't think it's healthy. He should let himself to give up on her, as she will never like him as much as Adrien, and be open for a girl who would love him truly, not treating him like a rebound.

In this episode we've seen Marinette regularly forgetting about their dates or being late or leaving him too soon, because of her superhero and guardian duties. But could you imagine her forgetting about a date with Adrien? I can't. I don't blame Marinette at all, but I can't see her duties being the only reason why their relationship doesn't work to which the narration tries to convince us. She still has the wall full of Adrien's photos and she doesn't seem to treat Luka seriously as her boyfriend. I think it should have been addressed in the episode that she doesn't like Luka as much he deserves (I dislike him as a character, but he is a very good human being) and this is one of the reasons why they need to break up. I don't like that it's portrayed like her being hero and guardian is the only problem.

I feel bad for Lukanette shippers because almost the whole ship has been reduced to a unfunny joke. I'm not mad about it because I don't ship it anyway, but if I was I would be angry. Even Frozer episode was much sweeter for this ship than the only one in which they were in a relationship. There was no real romantic moments (maybe instead that one on the bridge), and even their interrupted kiss felt rather cringy. Thank goodness I'm not Lukanette shipper.

It's not that I'm surprised as I expected something like that, but really what's the point of the rival ships if they are breaking up in the first (and second, I suppose) episode? I have never thought the show needs rival ships, but they seem to be even more pointless now.

In my opinion the episode with Luka akumatised should have been focusing more on him discovering that Jagged Stone is his father. Since it's the start of the the season it was necessary to how to the audience how Marinette is dealing with Kwamis and the first action of Shadow Moth. Another reason why it should not have been the first episode of S4. Also since Lukanette was an important thread of the episode, there was no enough room for father-son issues. So it was portrayed very shallow. Well, maybe we will see more of it later.

The beginning scene with Kwamis was so sweet and quite entertaining. Tikki wearing hats was so adorable (Is it just me or her French voice is even more squeaky than before? Definitely the weakest voice in the French dubbing). But I think Kwamis act too much childishly (it bothered me in Furious Fu as well). They weren't like that in Sandboy. I understand that they are excited to be out of the Miracle Box and see the real life, but it was a bit too much for me. Okay, I think they should calm down later and they were like that in Furious Fu because of Master Fu. Still I enjoyed the beginning of the episode the most, including the process of fixing the peacock Miraculous. Thought I agree that Shadow Moth's designs is ugly and feels off.

I'm also not a fan of Chat Noir acting like a clown, so I quickly got tired of it in the episode. But I liked that Ladybug was forced to say she likes his jokes, so salters can't say she hated it anymore. Not that they could even say it before, but now he have a hard proof that she has always secretly liked his sense of humor.

#miraculous ladybug #ml season 4 #ml truth #ml spoilers #chicoriii about S4 episodes #ml spoiler #chicoriii #original post #ml season 4 spoilers

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xhanisai · 4 years

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Wo Ai Ni !

AO3 / FFN

Summary:

Plagg thought that having his holder moon and squeal about Ladybug this and Ladybug that was utter hell. . He should have realised from day one that it was absolutely nothing compared to his babbling adoration for the heroine's civilian identity and now, his waxing poetry for the raven haired girl as he finally shattered the whole 'She's just a friend' delusion and accepted his feelings for her.

A/N: I am sick and tired of all the work I've been doing for finals and honestly need my break. Anyways, here's a sweet, fluffy fic to get the stress out of my system and hopefully make your day a bit better :) The fic's title is inspired by Hitomi Takahashi's song: Wo Ai Ni (which most of you would find familiar as ending 14 for Gintama) Aaaand special thanks to @Word_Devourer for giving me the idea for the operation's name and thanks to @gale-of-the-nomads for giving me the push to write this~ Takes place after Party Crasher/ Trouble Fête, enjoy! ~(x)~ . . . Plagg thought that having his holder moon and squeal about Ladybug this and Ladybug that was utter hell. . He should have realised from day one that it was absolutely nothing compared to his babbling adoration for the heroine's civilian identity and now, his waxing poetry for the raven haired girl as he finally shattered the whole 'She's just a friend' delusion and accepted his feelings for her. Mm-hmm, there are no words in the french vocabulary that could even describe half the agony that Plagg's enduring right now, right this second as Adrien floated around in his room, hugging the gift that Marinette gave him earlier on at school with a disgustingly hopeless grin plastered on his stupid blushy face. 'Is it too late to go back to napping for a few more centuries or so? Cos I am way too old to be dealing with this fuckery again.' Plagg scowled, feline eyes almost like slits as he slouched on his pillow. He didn't even get a chance to take a bite out of his beloved Camembert! Why was he always the one stuck with the lovesick kittens again...? "-and our hands touched when she gave me the gloves! TOUCHED! I am never washing my hands again~" Adrien wiggled on the spot, nuzzling the soft present against his cheek and hungrily memorised the delectable vanilla scent that lingered on it. "Oh Plagg...did ya see the way she smiled at me? That soft, pretty, beautiful smile? Her lips so glossy and kissable AND mon dieu! I was tempted to just gather her up in my arms and kiss the living daylights out of her!" The blonde teen let out another high pitched squeal that sounded quite close to a kitten's meow and flopped on the bed, his weight causing Plagg and his pillow to bounce up and send the yowling kwami flying. Plagg. Had. ENOUGH. Darting towards the boy's face, fur sticking up making him look like a fuzzy ball, Plagg grabbed Adrien's collar and yelled. "CAN YOU JUST SHUT UP AND GO ASK HER OUT ALREADY!?" The force of the little God's voice caused Adrien's fringe to blow back comically, surprising the teen in which he merely blinked back like a kitten. After realising what he's done, an apology was quick to make way on Plagg's tongue for snapping like that only to disintegrate immediately when Adrien's reaction turned into one of a typical, shoujou, love struck schoolgirl. "I can't just ask Marinette out! She's too amazing...too cool...so awesome...oh man I love her so much! I have to get cooler and be at least half as wonderful as her before I could even dream of asking her out." Adrien was blind to Plagg rolling his eyes like it's the end of the world and kept on rambling, gloves pressed to his lips. "Besides, she doesn't even love me that way...she's always so jumpy around me..." Just as Plagg was about to scold him for being so self-deprecating and maybe give a boost of encouragement, Adrien suddenly shot up from the bed with his fists pumped up in newly found determination. "Which is why I should get better at wooing her! I'm gonna call the boys and come up with a plan to get Marinette to fall in love with me! It will be called: Operation Marry-Nette. What do you think?" Adrien looked genuinely proud of his plan like he's just won the lottery and Plagg couldn't help but sigh endearingly at him. Maybe for the last time, just for him, just for Adrien, Plagg will humour his holder through their terrible love schemes. Who knows? It could be quite entertaining and finally end this tiring love square that has lost its charm many months ago. "You were never this obsessed when you were claiming about how Ladybug and you were meant to be. Were your feelings not deep enough for her?" The kwami settled back on his pillow, stroking his wedge of cheese and glanced at Adrien through his peripheral vision who looked sheepish for a split second. "Don't get me wrong, I do love Ladybug still- but because she's my bestest friend and I admire her so much. It's just not as romantic anymore and a guy can only pursue for so long before it starts to grate on the pursued. I must have annoyed her quite a bit..." "Just a bit~?" "...okay a lot. I deserved all those bops to the head by her yo-yo and I already did apologise to her for being so obnoxious. Anyways, the point is that even though Ladybug is amazing...Marinette is Marinette. Marinette was always there for everyone, there for me. It's like my feelings have been building up for her throughout the whole time and my feelings for Ladybug was the dam. The dam's now broken and all my pent up love for Marinette is flooding all over the place...and I don't regret it one bit." Adrien hugged the gloves again with his standard, warm smile that the God always spotted when Marinette was nearby. "It wasn't easy, keeping those feelings away to avoid feeling guilty about loving another girl. Now, I don't have to worry about that. I can love Marinette all I want...if she wants to have me." Plagg rolled his eyes fondly this time, cuddling into the crook of the boy's shoulder with a fanged grin. He couldn't wait to see the delight and happiness when his chosen finds out that he's been in love with one girl all along and that his feelings were absolutely mutual. ~(x)~ "Oh! A-A-Adrien!?" "M-M-Marinette! You there- I mean hey there! Hahah...longtimenosee-" Not too far away, Alya and Nino watched the scene before them with exasperation as Marinette and Adrien started their daily stammering ritual for the umpteenth time. The model being the new addition. Sure, the first few times watching the two of them become a flustered mess when coming across one another was an entertaining prospect. Now it was absolutely painful seeing the two beloved idiots so stupidly in love with one another, blinding them from the fact that it's in fact requited. And what answers were they given when they attempted to convince said idiots that they should ask each other out? "Ah! Alya-aaa! You know I can't do that yet. Adrien still sees me as a friend so don't get my hopes up. But that doesn't mean operation secret garden is finished. I will get him to fall in love with me!" "Nino!? How many times do I have to tell you? Marinette's more interested in my clothes than in me! She's yet to fall for my suave, meow-tastic self~ Also, operation Marry-Nette is now a go-go. You, Agent Best Man have to make sure that the rose petals are ready as soon as she steps into the art room." Needless to say, Adrien's scheme failed catastrophically. So bad that not even the nerdy model took the opportunity to make a pun about it since they ended up jamming the large fans for a 'wind' effect with the rose petals and thus causing a fire. All the boys from the class ended up with a week's worth of detention much to their dismay and the girls' curiousities. Did Lahiffe even need to mention how Agreste begged for them to keep their shenanigans in helping him woo the girl he loves a secret? Despite the fact that the whole school pretty much caught on? So that's how the bespectacled couple felt like they've aged for like a decade or so thanks to their oblivious best friends who were still exchanging word soup and frazzled gestures. "-no no! You're beautiful- not that you're not beautiful everyday! Oh- erm- agh-" Adrien bit his tongue by reflex and shoved his hands inside the pockets of the designer hoodie he threw on this morning. His cheeks matched the Asian girl in front of him in a raspberry tinted flush. "YOU THANKS! I mean...thank you..." Marinette took a deep sigh before determination settled on her face. She gently clutched one of Adrien's sleeves, letting her dainty fingers brush against the back of his hand and smiled sweetly. "You're beautiful too," She flashed a toothy grin and then immediately speed walked away, leaving behind her gaping friends. A high pitched kettle like sound escaped from Adrien's throat and then he immediately shoved his hood over his head and used the drawstrings to fasten the hole in order to hide his discombobulated face. Alya and Nino carried on gaping as the usually cool model chanted 'Mon Dieu' over and over again, clutching his fabric covered face and wiggling on the spot. "Either things will get much more interesting or we're about to hit the peak of idiot one's and idiot two's stupidity." Alix quipped from the background, joined by a mutter of agreement from the other students. "Oh Marinette just hurry up and marry me already~" Adrien swooned, ignorant to the chuckling crowd as he was still stuck in his bubble. The bubble was mercilessly popped by Kubdel. "THEN GO PROPOSE TO HER ALREADY LOVER BOY!" This snapped Adrien out of his daze in an instant, prompting a feminine squeal from him and his body launching up in the air like a scaredy-cat. Heaving, he clutched Nino who was the closest to him and glared at the short girl before scoffing and scurrying away. His hand covered his face in embarrassment throughout the whole time as the students in the vicinity guffawed at him. Adrien decided that he was going to hide his face for eternity and avoid everyone who's not Nino. Representing the Gabriel brand be damned! ~(x)~ Adrien.Exe has stopped working. No, really. His soul pretty much abandoned his jelly like body and his brain has turned to mush. 'Adrien Agreste has unfortunately stopped working for the time being. Please leave a message after the meow.' Was the only comprehensible sentence that ran through the teen's mind. Marinette was sleeping on him. Sleeping on him! Again!!! Her soft, pretty, serene face hid in the crook of his neck, causing him to inhale the lingering bakery scent of vanilla and strawberries every time he dared to breathe. One of her hands latched onto the front of his shirt adorably, knuckles against his chest and Adrien could swear that the erratic beating of his heart would disturb her slumber. Yet, by some miracle he remained calm and cool on the outside despite his inner turmoil. Inhaling sharply, Adrien willed for his heart to calm down as he bravely rested a hand on the girl's waist before allowing his cheek to lean against Marinette's smooth, silky locks. He took this as an opportunity to study her up close. Marinette had her hair loose today. The long, petal thin strands fanned just below her shoulder and her fringe tickled his neck pleasantly. Her long lashes created a subtle, curved shadow on her cheek bones and had Adrien been an ordinary boy, he would have missed the expertly applied concealer below her eyes. She seemed to get more and more exhausted everyday. His poor princess... "I wish I could just hold you in my arms and keep you safe and happy forever..." He mumbled into her hair, placing his free hand on top of Marinette's which was still grasping his shirt and squeezed gently. Gathering what's remaining of his courage, Adrien puckered his lips and pecked her head, face flaming throughout the whole time. It lasted no more than a moment. Yet it was a moment that Adrien will cherish for the next few decades to come. CLICK. Reflex kicked in rapidly and by muscle memory, Adrien shielded Marinette's body with his, wrapping his arms around her and was quick to flash a dangerous glare at the intruder that dared to make an appearance. The sight of a cheeky Alya and the rest of the cooing girl group, all waving their phones and giggling on the spot drained his wrath and replaced it with shyness. "How much did you see!?" Adrien rasped, unconsciously holding Cheng closer to him, not realising that she was starting to stir. "All of it~ but don't worry Sunshine, we won't tell or show her a single thing." Alya winked slyly, wriggling her phone for emphasis. "It's just going to be in our collection for the amazing album we'll be showing you on yours and Mar's wedding day," Adrien stumbled on his words next, ears and cheeks redder than Nathaniel's hair before hiding his face in Marinette's locks as the girls snickered louder. Thoughts of Marinette in various wedding dresses, floating down the aisle with a loving smile on her face, slipping a ring on his finger as she recited her vows, leaning up as he leaned down to kiss her, all ricocheted within his mind without mercy. It was then that the boy noticed that Marinette was fidgeting in her sleep and panic started to settle in his body. "You evil people...you're waking her up." He hissed tiredly but without any venom and made soft shushing sounds to lull the designer back to sleep. The girls had other ideas however and without wasting a second, they made their moves in sonic speed. Juleka was the first to strike, lifting Marinette up bridal style whilst Rose firmly pushed Adrien back against the library's beanbag in a more comfortable way before the tall girl gently placed the snoozing girl on the boy's lap. Alix and Alya struck next, positioning Adrien's and Marinette's arms so that it looked like the former was cradling the girl protectively against him and the latter snuggling up to him with her arms around his neck. Throughout the whole time, Mylène recorded the entire endeavour with a happy hum. "You should have involved us in Operation Marry-Nette. Look how much more successful we were in a matter of minutes compared to the painful weeks you guys went through with your schemes. I still can't believe that one of them involved you acting out a stunt in order to impress her only for you to fail terribly and bruise your ribs. You should never listen to Kim." The chubby girl smiled, grin only widening as Adrien's blush deepened when Marinette cuddled closer to him in her sleep. The raven haired girl's lips were brushing against his collarbones. It took everything for him to not combust. "Nino blabbed didn't he?" The blonde teen accused. "My babe is terrible at keeping anything from me, boo. But to be fair, it was super obvious from the start. Don't be mad at us~?" Alya pressed her phone against her lips, batting her eyes cutely, prompting the boy to roll his eyes and look away but the way he squeezed Marinette closer to him didn't go unseen. "...m'kay...just send me the pics afterwards please?" Adrien's question was answered with a cheer from the girls. . Nino on the other hand was chased around the school by Adrien with his sabre for ratting out the plans to Alya. "Bro! I'm sorry! PLEASE STOP TRYING TO STAB ME- SOMEONE HELP!" "You broke the bro-code Lahiffe! Now you must suffer the consequences!" "BRO!!??!!" ~(x)~ "...Are you okay Chat Noir?" As soon as Marinette placed a tentative hand on the hero's shoulder, he leapt up as high as his namesakes before quickly composing himself with an awkward laugh. "Kine...I MEAN- FINE! I'm fine...hahah..." Chat's faux ears plastered themselves against his unruly locks as he gripped his tail in front of him with both hands. He internally thanked the Gods (more reliable than Plagg at the very least) that his hair was covering his human ears otherwise Mari would have seen that they were as red as Ladybug's suit. The heroine in disguise raised a brow in worry, lips pursed with confusion. The silly boy has been acting very odd for the past few months. In fact his behaviour right now was starting to resemble a certain blonde sweetheart in her class- 'No! Snap out of it Marinette. Don't start comparing them both again!' The girl warned herself in her mind, shooting down the blush that tried to fight its way to her cheeks and then plastered on a polite smile. "Thank you for saving me and sorry for being in the way. I was trying to get away from the akuma, honest." Marinette fibbed, hoping that her partner would simply tease her with a few puns before vaulting away. Instead, the black cat stammered incoherently. "Oh hahah! N-N-No! You weren't in the way. You can never be in the way, it's never too much of a big deal- NOT THAT I'M SAYING YOU'RE NOT A BIG DEAL! You are one heck of a deal haha- oh the akuma is going that way. Stay safe pretty girl whose name I don't know- IMEANGOODBYE! ADIOS! Gahhhhhh..." Snapping his jaw shut, Chat Noir zoomed away with his staff in hand, hitting himself on the head repeatedly as he muttered 'Stupide!' over and over again. Marinette was left blinking owlishly at the boy's strange antics. The familiar feelings that has been gnawing on her mind for the past half year or so simply grew, causing her to nibble on the tip of her thumb. Yet, she couldn't identify what it was for the life of her and it was driving her insane. "Tikki, first Adrien has started to act like me when I'm around. Now Chat Noir? Have I done something to offend them both?" Marinette pouted at her kwami cutely which elicited a giggle from the tiny Goddess. "Oh no, no no no. I think they've fallen for you Marinette- isn't that exciting? The two boys you love? Flailing around you because you make them so shy and nervous? I can't wait to see how this plays out!" The knowing smile that Tikki had on annoyed Marinette. "What do you mean 'the two boys I love'? I'm not in love with Chat Noir! And them loving me? Impossible. Chat Noir loves Ladybug and Adrien hasn't shown any interest in me other than being 'just a friend'." The face that the little Ladybug wore was drier than the Sahara desert. "Marinette. Are you really going to argue with a being that has existed before time itself about this?" The designer only stared back stubbornly before answering. "Tikki, transformer-moi!" "You know I'm ri-iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiight-" Was the last thing Tikki managed to say before encasing Marinette into her standard suit. Ladybug snorted, hands on hips as she tried her best to ignore everything that has happened prior. "Liking Chat Noir as well doesn't make this any easier dammit..." ~(x)~ Adrien tripped over his shoes and fell on his face as he was too preoccupied in watching Marinette (with a dopey smile etched on his lips) chatter with Marc and Nathaniel. He was rewarded with the love of his life helping him back up on his face and cupping his face tenderly as she worried over him and checked for any injuries. Chat Noir pestered Ladybug over and over again about allowing Marinette the mouse miraculous once more or even letting her try a different one as he tenaciously believed that she would make an excellent part time hero like Rena Rouge and Carapace. The silly cat ended up receiving a playful chop to the head and a 'I'll think about it' from his Lady. He never noticed how she was oddly flustered as he was too busy doing victorious acrobatics and dances during the rest of patrol. A student from the nearby lycée took interest in Marinette after seeing her a few dozen times since he was a local at the Dupain-Cheng bakery. His attempt in asking her out however was sabotaged by a group of peculiarly dressed, short 'tourists' asking for directions to the nearest Parisian attraction in their painfully broken and accented English. The boy missed his chance to seek her out when she skipped out of his sight with Alya and co and then gave up entirely as Marinette ended up going off on a heated rant about how she was getting sick and tired of strangers going up to her and asking her out when she's never really acknowledged them. He missed the way the supposed tourists removed the disguises from their faces, revealing Adrien, Nino, Kim, Max and Ivan as they 'Ho ho ho'd away. During his patrol, Chat Noir spotted Marinette conversing with both Luka and Kagami near La Seine, the latter two sporting a fond look towards the short designer. Fonder than usual...Noir didn't like it at all. It didn't help that he knew that the musician harboured some feelings for Marinette and the fencer has mentioned numerous times how cute Marinette was. So, with his usual dramatic flair, Chat vaulted towards them, staff slamming between Marinette and the other two friends and then slid down to their level. His body slightly shielded Dupain-Cheng from Couffaine's and Tsurugi's view as he exchanged pleasantries with a slight bite to it. The trio happily conversed back instead, sending guilt down Chat Noir's spine for acting a bit bratty in the beginning. The guilt transformed into second hand embarrassment as Luka and Kagami admitted that they started to casually date and was asking Marinette for advice on where to go for a proper date to make it official. There was no need for the green cat to make its appearance to start with! ~(x)~ Marinette gave Chat Noir a pleasant kiss on the cheek, thanking him for escorting her home and her warm smile never wavered when he went through his customary babbles. The kitten ultimately gave up speaking, gathering back what's left of his dignity and grasped Mari's fingers, kissing the knuckles chastely before saluting and leaping away. The heroine in disguise let out a happy smile, a soft blush flared in her cheeks as she leaned against the top of the balcony and perched the side of her head with her fist. A few stars twinkled in the dark, clear sky and the breeze was soothing enough to clear one's mind. "Oh Adrien, you poor kitten...now what am I gonna do with you?" Marinette's quiet giggles were joined by her kwami who flew out of her purse and nuzzled her holder's cheek. "Told you he's in love with you. You owe me those tasty triple chocolate chunky cookies with your Maman's special tea." "Oh well. A deal's a deal. I still can't believe he's my Chaton- no, wait. I can believe it. Who else would be my silly, dorky, wonderful partner? Did you see how jealous he looked when he saw me with Luka and Kagami? And I thought I was bad! Hahah!" "At least he didn't get them akumatised like he got Theo once." Tikki chimed. "Oooh! Can you believe that he wrote 'Adrien Dupain-Cheng' on your notebook a few times without realising it wasn't his? And then proceeded to steal it for a day so that he could get rid of the pages he's written on? Plagg almost choked on his cheese laughing about it!" "If he hadn't missed that one page, I'd have never known why he stole it in the first place. Makes that time I borrowed his phone for the day to delete the voicemail seem minor in comparison." "He has a folder in his phone dedicated to pictures of you and another folder dedicated to you and him! His current lock screen is of him and you~! So cute~!" "We're both so horribly obsessed with each other. How is that cute- hey! Stop laughing!" "And his name for the operation to make you notice him; absolutely adorable~" "Pfft. I'll give him that. It's not too bad." A comfortable silence settled between them as they happily stargazed. For once, Marinette didn't feel exhausted or being pulled apart in numerous directions. Figuring out that her crime-fighting, pun loving partner was none other than the shy, sweet boy who sat in front of her in class soothed her heart and eased her mind. Accepting that he was head over heels for her to the point where he turned into a nervous, stammering, hot mess did nothing but fill Marinette with giddiness and perhaps be less harsh on herself when she was in his shoes. He fell for her twice. Twice! Just like she did! How could she not be floating on cloud nine after that? For once, her hectic life ever since she received the magical earrings has hit a calm and Marinette couldn't wait to see what adventures would follow next as she and Adrien would face them on unmasked, without anymore secrets. Speaking of secrets. "Hey Tikki? When should I come clean to him? There's no way that I could keep this hushed. I have a feeling that Maître Fu is aware of everything too with how I've seen him lurking left and right with that stupid knowing smile you both always seem to have on. So it should be alright, right?" "Since the Guardian has given you and your partner more freedom with your secret identities now, it's up to you when you want to tell Adrien everything. Bu-uuuuut...I kind of want to see him confess to you. Maybe figure it out himself. It's more fun that way, no?" Tikki's grin widened at Marinette's rosy cheeks, the former looking away bashfully, eyes sparkling with joy. "Do you think he'll figure it out?" "Plagg told me that he figured it out the day Mme. Mendeleiev got akumatised but ended up having to scrap that idea when he saw that illusion you created to throw him off. Adrien was so sure that Ladybug was you and seemed pretty down when you disproved that theory." 'So he did know it was me...' Marinette thought with awe, recalling how much happier and excited Chat Noir was during the battle, thinking that his Lady was his Princesse. "I'll give him a couple of days to confess or figure out my identity. Otherwise I'll just grab him by the collar and smooch his stupid face like no tomorrow." Tikki kissed Marinette's cheek in response, delighted with the girl's answer as they made way back into her room. ~(x)~ This was it. He was going to confess. Adrien has had enough of the way Marinette's lips would taunt him with the way they glistened under the lights and he couldn't escape the sweet scent that wafted from her every time she moved. It was so much more easier to deal with her when she was flighty and shy! Now? She was so much more sure of herself, bold, coy, dare he say...flirty. It went from squeezing his fingers to reassure him to smoothly kissing his cheeks as a thank you for whenever he's helped her out or did something she thought was 'adorable'. The tight hugs, the hair ruffles, the lip biting, the cheeky smirk that eased its way to her face whenever someone mistook them as a couple and the lack of denial or correction she gave in response. If he didn't confess at the end of the day, he was going to explode! With the help of the founding members of Operation Marry-Nette along with the new members, they have arranged a successful scenario. One that was working way too smoothly compared to the previous hundred or more plans that went haywire in an instant so Adrien kept a look out for anything strange or bizarre. Knowing his lack of luck, Le Papillon would strike now. Luckily, this didn't seem to be the case as he found Marinette waiting for him by the Arc de Triomphe. The place where he asked her to meet him. "Marinette! Hey!" Adrien jogged towards her, mentally patting himself on the back for not stammering. That thought process was quickly wiped away when he realised what she was wearing and how beautiful she looked. Dupain-Cheng was decked up in a simple but stylish red blouse with a high waist, short black skirt. Following her long legs were black tights and black ankle boots that had a red ribbon on the zippers. Her hair was kept up in space buns, also adorned by red ribbons, making her sky blue eyes pop. Lastly, her lips were glossed in a cherry red tint. The urge to kiss them increased by ten folds and all the words that Adrien has taken months upon months to plan and say turned into goop. 'What the fuck!? This isn't fair. This is so not fair. Why the hell did she have to dress up so prettily and look all cute and innocent now of all times? Why now!? Fuck! It should be illegal to be this beautiful! Damn you!' "Hey there Handsome! You said that you needed to tell me something?" Marinette peeked below her dark lashes and fiddled with the gold necklace that adorned her neck. A necklace that he gifted her a few weeks ago. She was going to be the death of him. "...Adrien? Are you okay?" Her hands reached up to cup his red cheeks only to be intercepted by his in an iron grip. "Adrien?" The boy squinted his eyes shut, blush never leaving and finally blurted out his feelings: "Wǒ ài nǐ!" . 'I love you!' . . . A few seconds of silence went by. The sounds of the chattering crowd in the background faded into nothing as all the boy could hear was the harsh pounding of his heart. Fearing the worst, Adrien refused to open his eyes and his ears and cheeks burned with both shyness and embarrassment. Dread began to build up in his heart when he felt Marinette wriggle her hands out of his grip and his shoulders sagged, awaiting the rejection that was clear to follow. His spiralling thoughts were halted by the contact of Marinette's fingers brushing his cheeks, slipping through his hair before getting tugged down sharply so that his lips crashed into hers. Adrien's eyes snapped open for a split second in surprise as a shocked mewl escaped his throat but then the warmth and softness that was Marinette's lips took over and he couldn't help but shut his eyes again. Without missing a beat, he wrapped his arms around her, pressing her small frame tightly against his and he couldn't help but smile into the kiss. Before Adrien could deepen the kiss, Marinette parted much to his dismay but her lips still brushed against his. He got an eyeful of her cheeks turning as rosy as his and her lips darkened into a kiss bruised state. An image that burned into his mind pleasantly. "So...d-does that mean you love me too?" Adrien couldn't help but whisper, lips tingling as they brushed against hers. "Silly Chaton. In China, we don't outright say that! But...wǒ zhǐ shǔ yú nǐ." "My Lady!? Mmph-" The boy was silenced with another kiss and this time, Marinette's words played in repeat over and over again in his mind. Wǒ zhǐ shǔ yú nǐ: I only belong to you. . . . ~(x)~ A/N: I'll proof read tomorrow. N I G H T. And Ramadan Mubarak~

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