#mlss 2019

[hakesbros]

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[miraculouspaon]

Imogene

Happy (very belated) holidays, @lorrainingart​! I was your secret santa for @mlsecretsanta​ this year. I’m sorry it’s a week late, but the story got a bit away from me and of course I wanted it to be perfect after the beautiful secret santa gift you drew for me. I’m very pleased with how it finally came out, though, and I hope you are as well. Enjoy!

Imogene

Open your eyes.

Emilie Agreste opened her eyes.

The sight before them confused her. Emilie didn’t recognize where she was at first, so different was the secret chamber her husband had built from the last time she’d seen it. It was dark and cold, and something unspoken hung heavy in the air she breathed.

There were four Miraculous holders standing before her, each one of their faces full of shock and disbelief. Two of them, Emilie didn’t recognize at all. The black cat, the red ladybug, they looked so young-but then, maybe Emilie had been that young once, when she found her Miraculous. The blue peacock… the blue peacock had been Emilie’s, hadn’t it? But then how-

“Emilie? Emilie, my love?”

Emilie turned to the final person before her, the purple butterfly, the man with a cold fire in his eyes. “Gabriel?”

Gabriel pulled Emilie into a tight embrace. “You know me? You remember?”

“I think so,” Emilie said slowly. She hugged him back just as tightly. “I remember I… oh, Gabriel, I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean to-”

“Shhhh. Everything is well now, my love. We’ve saved you.”

“Ladybug and Chat Noir have escaped,” the holder of the Peacock Miraculous said behind them.

Gabriel whirled around. “What? How? Why didn’t you stop them, Mayura?”

Mayura closed her eyes. “I was distracted by our victory. They must have grabbed their Miraculouses back and escaped while we were witnessing our miracle. Forgive me.”

Gabriel’s face softened. “Of course. It doesn’t matter, they’ve served their purpose.” Gabriel turned back to Emilie. “Nathalie was instrumental in saving you, my love. I could not have succeeded without her.”

“Nathalie?” Emilie looked again at the Miraculous holder. A moment later, she recognized her old friend. “Oh, Nathalie, thank you!” She pushed past Gabriel and embraced Nathalie warmly.

Nathalie put her arms around Emilie stiffly. “Of course.” She looked over Emilie’s shoulder at Gabriel. “Did you recognize either of them? While they were de-transformed, after we got their Miraculouses?”

Gabriel shook his head. “You?”

“No.” Nathalie tightened her embrace of Emilie. “Emilie, you must be tired.”

You are tired.

Emilie nodded. “Everything feels… fuzzy, I think, I,” she yawned mid-sentence, “don’t know if,” her eyes were heavy now, too heavy to keep open, “should…” Sleep claimed Emilie before she could even finish her thought, before she could feel Gabriel take her in his arms and carry her home.

  Emilie awoke slowly, in her own bed, in her own room, and for a moment she remembered nothing but that she was happy and safe and home.

“Emilie?” Long fingers brushed the hair from her eyes, and Emilie looked up at the concerned face of her husband. “How do you feel?”

Emilie frowned. “Strange,” she said slowly. “The air is too heavy.” She lifted one hand and studied it briefly. “It’s like I’m moving through molasses.”

Gabriel narrowed his eyes, then looked back over his shoulder. “Nathalie?”

“Emilie was asleep for over a year,” Nathalie replied. “Perhaps her muscles are stiff. I’ll stay with her until she’s feeling herself.”

Emilie smiled warmly. “Thank you, Nathalie.”

Nathalie looked away. “Of course.”

“I’ll be back soon,” Gabriel promised. “There are things I need to take care of, after your disappearance the police want to… but I won’t trouble you with all that. Just know everything’s finally all right.” He placed a gentle kiss on the back of Emilie’s hand.

“Adrien?”

“I’ll send him in when I leave, just for a few minutes. I don’t want you to get too overwhelmed just yet.” Gabriel hesitated. “He doesn’t know anything. I’ve told him you were sent away for medical treatment, that it was experimental and needed to be kept secret.”

Emilie sighed. “I hate lying to him,” she said sadly.

“It’s for the best, my love.”

Emilie nodded. “Of course.”

Gabriel pressed his forehead to Emilie’s, then kissed her cheek. “Get some rest,” he said, before leaving their room.

“Poor Adrien,” Emilie sighed. “This must have been so hard for him.”

Nathalie came to her side and sat next to her at the edge of the mattress. “Your son is overjoyed to have his mother back,” she said. “That’s all that matters. Here.” Nathalie lifted up a hairbrush, and Emilie turned her head obediently. Nathalie began to brush Emilie’s hair. “I’ll straighten you up a bit before Adrien comes in. You’ll feel like yourself soon.”

Feel like yourself.

Emilie nodded. “Yes, I’m sure I will.”

“Oh, before I forget, I found your brooch. I think it fell off when Gabriel carried you back here.” Nathalie reached around Emilie and pinned her favorite silver brooch to her blouse, right above her heart.

Emilie took a breath. The air felt clearer. Her limbs felt lighter.

There was a soft knock at the door. “Mom?” Adrien poked his head in cautiously.

“Oh, Adrien!” Adrien rushed to his mother’s side. “My darling boy, I’ve missed you so.” Emilie pulled her son down to her and hugged him with all her strength.

“Father said you were sick, that you’ve been away at some special hospital or something.”

Emilie swallowed. “That’s right,” she lied.

“But you’re all better now?”

Emilie smiled at her son. “Yes, I’m all better now.” She looked up at Nathalie. “Isn’t that right?”

“Your mother still needs her rest,” Nathalie told Adrien. Adrien’s face fell.

“Only a few more days, darling,” Emilie assured him. “Then I’m all yours, I promise.”

“Adrien, you’re going to be late for school,” Nathalie said.

“School!” Emilie beamed at Adrien. “Oh, you’re going to school now? That’s so exciting, I can’t wait to hear all about it when you come back.”

  Gabriel and Nathalie both insisted that Emilie spend a full week in bed. Adrien visited her daily. Emilie asked him a million questions, about school and fencing and piano, about his teachers, his friends, about every single little aspect of his life. Adrien was only too happy to tell her everything. Still, much as she adored his visits, Emilie was beginning to feel a bit mad with boredom. She practically cartwheeled out of bed, the morning Gabriel told her he thought she was well enough to join them for breakfast. 

“Oh, thank God, I’m starving,” Emilie said, the moment she entered the dining room and saw the enormous breakfast spread. She reached for a croissant and eagerly took a bite. She had almost finished it off when she noticed both her husband and her son staring at her. “What?”

“You hate croissants,” Adrien said, obviously confused.

“What?” Emilie laughed. “Of course I don’t. Everybody loves croissants.”

“Not you,” Adrien said. “You always said they were too rich.”

“But…” Emilie furrowed her brow, then looked at Nathalie. “I hate croissants?”

Nathalie pursed her lips. “I don’t remember you ever saying anything like that,” she said dismissively. She put a comforting hand on Emilie’s shoulder, then straightened Emilie’s brooch. “People’s tastes change all the time. Don’t worry about it.”

Don’t worry about it.

Emilie’s distressed expression cleared at once.

Gabriel frowned at his wife. “Perhaps you should stay in bed for another day or two.”

“Oh, Gabriel, don’t be silly,” Emilie said breezily. “People’s tastes change all the time.”

“Still, we should be careful you don’t overexert yourself.”

“Gabriel, I promised our son I would spend the entire day with him. I simply refuse to break the first promise I’ve made to him in over a year.”

“It’s okay,” Adrien said, clearly still perturbed. “We don’t have to if you’re still feeling sick.”

“Adrien, I have never felt healthier,” Emilie said confidently.

  “Adrien, look!” Emilie pointed at the sign outside the tropical greenhouse of the Paris Zoo. “It says there’s a live feeding in an hour. Is this the exhibit your science teacher wanted your class to check out?”

“Yeah, this is it,” Adrien said. “We’re doing a unit on the Amazon.” They entered the building. “I think the manatees are in here somewhere, and the dart frogs. Hang on, I’ll get the worksheet out.” He began to root through his bag.

“Oh!” Emilie gasped. “Look at that!” She rushed to the window of an exhibit, and it took Adrien a moment to realize what she’d seen.

“The anaconda?” he asked.

“Isn’t she gorgeous?” Emilie waggled a finger at the large snake, who could not have been less interested in her. “Look at that coloring.”

“Yeah, now that you mention it, it’s a pretty green.” Adrien looked at the sign next to the exhibit. “This says she’s pregnant. I thought snakes laid eggs?”

“Congratulations, mama!” Emilie said. The snake continued to ignore her.

“It also says green anacondas are the heaviest snakes in the world.”

“It’s rude to talk about a lady’s weight, Adrien.”

Adrien grinned. “You never liked the snakes when we came here when I was a kid,” he said.

“No?” Emilie asked. “I suppose I didn’t.” She frowned slightly at her faint reflection in the glass. “Maybe my perspective has changed a bit, after… well, after everything.”

“Yeah, that makes sense,” Adrien said. “I, um, I was looking up stuff on health scares and illnesses with high rates of… well, you know. Everything I read said nobody goes back to being exactly who they were before they get sick. It’s normal”

“Oh, Adrien.” Emilie put a hand over her heart. “That was sweet of you, to look those things up, but you don’t need to worry about me. It’s my job to worry about you, after all.” She hugged her son warmly, and felt a weight lift from her heart. The nagging sense she’d had since waking up, that something was off, wasn’t anything to worry about after all. Coming back from the brink of death simply changed people a little, that was all. Everything was normal.

“Adrien!”

Emilie released Adrien, and he turned around towards the sound of his name. A second later he waved eagerly. “That’s some of my friends from school,” he said excitedly. “I can’t wait for you to meet them. Alya!” A group of girls approached. “Are you guys doing the project, too?”

“That’s right,” the first girl, Alya, said. “My dad doesn’t work in this part of the zoo, but he said he might be able to get us an exclusive close-up look at some of the poisonous frogs, if you don’t mind staying past closing.”

“Oh, I can’t,” Adrien said, “I’m spending the day with my mom. Mom, meet my friends, this is Alya, and Rose, and Juleka, and Alix, and Marinette. Guys, this is my mom.” Adrien beamed at the girls, all of whom gave Emilie smiles and polite nods.

All of them, that is, except the last girl. Marinette, however, looked at Emilie like she was some kind of monster.

“It’s… it’s nice to meet you all,” Emilie said, momentarily thrown off by the young woman’s reaction. She offered her hand warmly, certain she must have imagined the girl’s expression, and the girl flinched and practically jumped backwards.

“Marinette?” Alya raised an eyebrow at her friend. “Girl, are you okay?”

“Fine!” Marinette squeaked. She shook her head, then forced a smile at Emilie. “I’m sorry, it’s so nice to meet you! But, um, I was just thinking about this other thing, I forgot, I’m so silly, my dad needs me to cake some bookies-I mean bake some cookies! So I have to go, I’m so sorry, bye everyone!” Marinette hurried for the exit, nearly tripping over her own feet in her rush.

“Oh, dear,” Emilie said. “I think I must have upset her somehow.”

“Oh, no,” Alix said, rolling her eyes. “Trust me, Marinette’s always like that. Right, Adrien?”

Adrien frowned. “She seemed upset.”

“She’ll be fine,” Rose said. “She was just nervous because she wasn’t expecting to see Adrien.” Alya elbowed Rose. “See him next to the snakes,” Rose added in a rush. “Because, um, because Marinette is scared of snakes.”

“Really?” Adrien looked towards the door. “That doesn’t sound like her at all.” He looked at his mother. “I’m sorry she had to leave so fast. Usually she’s really great. She’s the class representative, and she makes the best macarons in Paris, and...” Adrien began to give his mother a list of Marinette’s accomplishments, which Emilie only half-listened to. It was clear that Adrien had a bit of a crush on the girl, and that the other girls believed Marinette had a bit of a crush right back. But it was also clear to her that Marinette’s initial reaction had nothing to do with Adrien, and everything to do with Emilie.

  That night, Gabriel came to bed to find his wife sitting at their bay window. She was hugging her knees and gazing up at the stars, lost in thought and bathed in moonlight. He smiled. “You are so beautiful.”

Emilie started. “Oh! Gabriel, I didn’t hear you come in.”

“Lost in thought?”

Emilie hadn’t been able to stop thinking about the look Adrien’s friend had given her, or the way she’d instinctively recoiled at Emilie’s touch. “Something like that.”

Gabriel crossed the room and sat next to her. “Do you know what I thought of when I saw you here? Lit only by the light of a full moon in that white dress, your hair flowing down over your shoulders?” Emilie shook her head. “I thought of our honeymoon. Remember?”

“Nassau,” Emilie said immediately. “We went to the beach. We swam with the dolphins. It was like paradise.”

Gabriel blinked, momentarily taken aback at his wife’s flat tone. “I meant, do you remember that one night? You woke me up, hours after everyone else at the resort had fallen asleep. You led me back to the shore. We were so in love, and you were so excited to be…” Gabriel trailed off. “Don’t you remember?”

Emilie frowned. She knew they’d gone to the Bahamas for their honeymoon. She knew it had been magical. She knew it had been the trip of a lifetime. And yet… she knew it the way she knew that the Earth was round, or that water froze at zero degrees Celsius. She knew it like it was a fact she couldn’t remember learning. Her memories of the trip were just vague, shallow impressions. She didn’t remember the night Gabriel was talking about at all.

“Don’t worry about it, my love,” Gabriel said quickly, seeing that his question had upset Emilie. “It was a long time ago. It doesn’t matter.”

“Of course our honeymoon matters, Gabriel,” Emilie whispered. Gabriel wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close. “I think I came back wrong.”

“What? That’s absurd.”

“I can’t remember our honeymoon. I can’t remember not liking croissants. What else can’t I remember?”

Gabriel tightened his embrace. “Your memories will return in time,” he said confidently. “We just have to be patient.”

Emilie sighed and leaned back into her husband’s arms. “Maybe you’re right.”

Gabriel leaned over enough to kiss Emilie’s cheek. One hand caressed her shoulder, and the other fingered her brooch idly. “All that matters is that we love each other.”

You love each other.

A sudden surge of desire shot through Emilie. She twisted in Gabriel’s embrace to face him, and kissed him passionately. After a moment of shock, he kissed her back. Emilie’s hand came up to Gabriel’s ascot, and she pulled it off without slowing down. She pushed him back, pinning him against the windowsill, before getting on her knees so she could straddle her husband, so she could-

“Emilie.” Gabriel swallowed visibly, then took Emilie’s hands and gently but firmly removed them from his person. “I don’t want us to rush into anything you’re not ready for.”

Emilie was breathing hard, and it took her a moment to catch herself. She pushed herself backwards, off of her husband. She didn’t know where that had come from, why she’d been overcome out of nowhere. The second she’d stopped, the impulse had fled. She didn’t know why she felt only relief now, that Gabriel had stopped her. She didn’t know why the thought of being with Gabriel, as his wife, now broke her heart.

“You’re right,” Emilie finally said, unable to begin to put into words what had just happened. “There’s no rush.”

  The next morning, Emilie stayed in bed until the house was empty. Adrien was in school, Gabriel was at work, and Nathalie had finally been persuaded to leave Emilie’s side and join him.  The three people who loved Emilie best in the world were all convinced she was perfectly fine.

Emilie was not fine. She didn’t know how, she didn’t know why, but she knew something was terribly wrong.

Emilie pushed herself through the motions of her morning. She got up, she showered, she dressed herself, she ate breakfast. All the while, a plan was forming. Maybe it was reckless, after everything Emilie had already been through. Maybe it was crazy. But it wasn’t as crazy as Emilie was going to be if she didn’t get some answers, and soon.

Emilie made her way to her husband’s home office, pushed aside the portrait concealing the safe, and punched in the security code.

There it was, waiting for her. The Peacock Miraculous. With a steady hand, Emilie picked it up.

There was a flash of light, and Duusu appeared. “Emilie? Why do you have my Miraculous?”

Emilie gave Duusu a wry smile. “What, you’re not happy to see me?”

Duusu looked away. “Of course I am.”

Emilie frowned. Duusu had always been a terrible liar. She wore her emotions on her sleeve, just like Emilie did. It was what had made them such a good match for each other, before the damage of the Miraculous caught up to Emilie. “Duusu, did something happen to me? Something that Gabriel’s wish didn’t fix?”

Duusu shook her head, but she still wouldn’t meet Emilie’s eyes. “No, his wish worked perfectly. Everything’s all better now.”

“No,” Emilie said. She was certain now, and furious. “No, everything is not all better, and you know it, and you’re hiding it from me!”

“Please, Emilie,” Duusu whispered. “Put the Miraculous away. Go back to your husband and your son. Be happy.”

“I can’t. I have to know the truth.” Emilie took a deep breath. “Duusu, spread my feathers!”

Emilie felt the familiar magic wash over her. She’d missed it, even though it had nearly cost her everything. Once her transformation was complete, she looked around Gabriel’s office and quickly found an ordinary pen. Picking it up, Emilie focused her power on her own emotions, her own desperate need to learn the truth, no matter how terrible. Wisps of black began to gather before her, twisting and writhing, until it formed into-

A ferret.

Emilie blinked, then crouched down and gave the creature a gentle pat. It chirped happily and went up on its hind legs. “Hey, little guy,” Emilie cooed. “Are you gonna ferret out the truth for me?”

The sentimonster gave her another happy chirp, then promptly disappeared. Emilie frowned, confused. Sentimonsters were supposed to help their charges, not abandon them. Well, no matter. The creature was bound to the pen, so for as long as Emilie held it she could order the creature back to help her. Clutching her talisman, she concentrated. Come back to me, she thought, directing her will at her sentimonster.

“Mayura!”

Emilie whirled around to see Adrien standing behind her, staring in shock and horror. “Adrien? What are you… oh, no, no, I’m not Mayura,” she said in a rush. “You don’t have to be afraid. I’m sorry, you weren’t supposed to… I don’t know why…” She looked down, and saw the ferret biting Adrien’s pant leg. The creature released Adrien, then looked up at Emilie and almost seemed to beam with pride.

Adrien looked at Emilie warily. “What’s going on?”

“Nothing,” Emilie said quickly. “Just a little-ow!” Her sentimonster had bitten her. Not hard, not enough to do any real damage, but still, a sentimonster turning on their charge? And on the wielder of the Peacock Miraculous, too? Emilie had never seen such a thing. “Ferret out the truth… oh, no.” She looked up at her son. “Adrien, I’m so sorry.” She sighed, defeated. “Duusu, feathers in.”

Adrien’s eyes widened. “Mom? Why do you have the Peacock Miraculous?”

“I was trying to use it to find out the truth. There’s something going on, something wrong, but I don’t know what.”

Adrien’s face went a shade paler. “You’re sick again?”

“No!”  The ferret growled softly. “Well, maybe. I don’t know. This thing,” Emilie gestured to her sentimonster, “was supposed to find out the truth for me. Instead, it’s making me reveal the truth to you.” She took another deep breath. “My sickness, it wasn’t what your father told you. It was caused by this.” Emilie held up the Peacock Miraculous. “It was damaged. We didn’t realize until I’d used it too many times, and by then there was nothing anybody could do.”

“But you’re better now,” Adrien said slowly. “You got better. Somebody did something.”

Emilie nodded, bracing herself. “Yes.”

Adrien narrowed his eyes. “Father’s grimoire. It had pictures of Miraculouses in it. It wasn’t just for fashion inspiration, was it? He was studying it to figure out how to save you.”

“That’s right,” Emilie said. “And he learned the only thing that could save me was the combined power of the Ladybug and Black Cat Miraculouses. Together, they can grant any wish.”

Emilie could see it on his face, the moment Adrien put everything together. “Hawkmoth. Father is Hawkmoth.”

“I’m so sorry, baby.” Emilie blinked back tears. “It’s all my fault, everything was all my fault. Your father only did what he had to to save me.”

Adrien shook his head slowly. “You’re not responsible for his actions,” he said. “I… I need to think.”

Emilie nodded. “Of course, my darling.” Adrien took a step towards the door, but the ferret sentimonster quickly blocked his path and hissed. “Stop that,” Emilie scolded. The sentimonster held its position. “Let him go,” Emilie ordered. “I told him my secret, what more do you want? Anyway, you’re supposed to be finding out secrets for me, and Adrien doesn’t know anything about Miraculouses, do you?”

“Of course not-ow!” Adrien pulled his hand away, but not before the ferret nipped him.

Emilie’s heart skipped a beat. “Adrien? Do you know something? Something that might give me a clue about what’s happening to me?”

Adrien eyed the ferret warily. A moment later his shoulders sagged in defeat. “I know Father couldn’t have made the wish you think he made.”

Emilie frowned. “You think he wished for something else?”

“No,” Adrien said. “I know he couldn’t have made any wish. Because he would have needed Chat Noir’s Miraculous to do it.” Adrien held up his hand grimly. “And Chat Noir’s Miraculous hasn’t left my finger for over a year.”

Adrien’s meaning hit Emilie like a ton of bricks. “No. No, no, no, you can’t be Chat Noir.”

“I am,” he said miserably.

“I saw Chat Noir. I saw him, right when I woke up, right before he and Ladybug escaped. I saw him!”

Adrien laughed humorlessly. “I think I’d remember my arch-nemesis stealing my Miraculous to wake up my missing mother.”

Emilie looked at her sentimonster and let out an irritated huff. “I still don’t know anything, and now I have more questions than I did before. I need answers.”

The sentimonster tilted its head, then promptly vanished.

“What’s it doing now?” Adrien asked.

“I don’t know,” Emilie said. “It’s not acting at all the way I expected.”

There was a sudden loud pop, and three more people appeared in the room. Gabriel and Nathalie, Emilie was hardly surprised to see. The third, however, Emilie had not expected, although perhaps she should have.

“Marinette?” Adrien said, confused.

“Adrien!” Marinette looked around in shock and confusion. “What’s going on?”

“Emilie.” Gabriel was at her side in an instant, his arms around her. “Are you hurt? Whatever’s going on, I’ll keep you safe.”

“Gabriel.” Emile gave her husband an apologetic smile. “I’m what’s going on.”

“What?”

Emilie gestured to her sentimonster in the middle of the room. “Something’s wrong, Gabriel. I used the Peacock Miraculous to find out what. That ferret is a sentimonster, and it won’t let anyone leave or lie until the truth is revealed.”

“You used the Peacock Miraculous? Are you mad, Emilie? After we almost lost you to that thing?”

“There’s no danger anymore, Gabriel, and I have to know what’s wrong.”

“Nothing’s wrong!” Gabriel insisted. “You’re awake again, you’re healthy, everything is perfect.”

“He believes that,” Adrien said softly. His parents turned towards him, and he gestured to the ferret. “That thing didn’t bite him. For everything he’s lied about, he’s not lying now.”

Gabriel frowned. “Adrien-”

“We can talk about it later,” Adrien interrupted coldly. “Right now we need to figure out why Mom thinks you used Ladybug and Chat Noir’s Miraculouses to wake her up, when I know for a fact you couldn’t have.” He held up the hand with his ring pointedly, then turned to the other two people in the room. “If Father doesn’t know what’s really going on, one of you two must.”

“There’s nothing we can tell you, Adrien,” Nathalie said firmly. She managed to keep from crying out when the sentimonster bit her, but only just.

“Want to try that again?” Adrien asked. Nathalie pursed her lips and remained silent. “Fine. Marinette?” Adrien softened noticeably as he turned to her, but his tone remained firm. “You’re not going to lie to me, are you?”

Marinette blinked back a few tears. “Oh, Adrien,” she said miserably. “I had no idea, you have to believe me, I had no idea the woman Hawkmoth wanted to save was your mother!”

“Quiet,” Nathalie snapped at Marinette. “They don’t know anything. For heaven’s sake, stop talking.”

“She made a sentimonster!” Marinette snapped right back at Nathalie. “You said it would be foolproof, that it would work forever, that nobody would ever find out. It’s only been a week and she’s already making sentimonsters! Is she even supposed to be able to do that?”

“How should I know?” Nathalie asked defensively. “You’re the Miraculous expert, not me. I’ve never done this before.”

Marinette scoffed. “That’s not exactly true, is it?”

“I told you already, the second Ladybug only seemed sentient because you were holding her talisman when you wanted her to be sentient, she was just acting the way you wanted her to act. This is completely different, this is…” Nathalie looked back at Emilie and fell silent once more.

Gabriel looked back and forth between Nathalie and Marinette. “You two seem to know each other quite well,” he said dryly.

“Marinette?” Emilie said gently. Marinette looked at her, the guilt written across her face plain as day. “Please.”

Marinette took a deep breath and began to speak.

   Three weeks earlier…

 Ladybug landed without a sound on the rooftop and looked around. She couldn’t see much in the dark of the night, but the shadows of one corner were deeper than the others. Ladybug crossed her arms and fixed the darkness with a stare. “Well?”

Out of the shadows stepped Mayura. “Thank you for coming.”

“You have five seconds to hold my interest, and then I’m leaving and not coming back,” Ladybug snapped. “You’re lucky I agreed to come at all.”

Mayura nodded. “I think there’s a way for all of us to get what we want.”

Ladybug let out a sharp laugh. “You’re never getting my Miraculous. I would never let someone like you-”

“Please,” Mayura interrupted, holding up a hand. “You don’t understand… he doesn’t want it for himself, if you only knew him like I-”

“Talk faster.”

Mayura pressed her lips together. “Fine. We can’t win, I see that now. But he’ll never give up, not until he’s saved the woman he loves.”

Ladybug straightened. “The woman he… you mean, you two aren’t-”

“Of course not,” Mayura said defensively. “All of this is to save his wife. She wielded this Miraculous before I did. We didn’t realize it was damaged, not until it was too late. She’s locked in eternal sleep now.”

“If the Miraculous is fixed-“

“We tried that,” Mayura said impatiently. “Your Guardian revealed enough to us and we repaired it. Hawkmoth’s wife remains asleep. The only thing that will wake her now is the combined power of the Ladybug and Black Cat Miraculouses.”

Ladybug shook her head. “That won’t work. I wish it could, but the law of equal exchange means I can’t save anyone without losing someone else.”

“It’s a price either of us would have happily paid,” Mayura said bitterly, “but I won’t waste my breath trying to convince you to sacrifice either of us for her. I know what heroes are like.” Mayura spat the word ‘hero’ like a curse. “There’s another way. With the Fox Miraculous, you could create an illusion that Hawkmoth believes. You could trick him into believing he has defeated you, used the Miraculouses, and brought back his wife.”

Ladybug was silent for a while. “You’re talking about betraying him.”

“I’m talking about saving him from himself before he loses everything.”

Ladybug studied the woman in front of her. “You love him,” she finally said. “Maybe he’s still in love with his wife, but you’re in love with him, aren’t you?” Mayura said nothing. “Your plan won’t work. The illusions of the Fox Miraculous are temporary.”

“They are,” Mayura agreed. “My sentimonsters, however, are not.”

  The being who was not Emilie could feel the stares of everyone in the room as Marinette finished her story. She could feel everyone looking at her like they’d never seen her before in their lives. And why shouldn’t they? She wasn’t Emilie. She wasn’t Gabriel’s wife, she wasn’t Adrien’s mother. She wasn’t a woman, she wasn’t a human, she wasn’t anything at all.

It was Adrien who finally broke the heavy silence. “You tricked me?” he asked Marinette, his voice breaking a little.

“I’m so sorry, Adrien,” Marinette said tearfully. “I thought I’d just be tricking Hawkmoth. I had no idea he had a son, or that it was you, or that you were Chat.”

“Perhaps you knew nothing,” Gabriel said icily. He turned to his assistant. “Nathalie, however, knew exactly who she was betraying.”

Nathalie squared her shoulders and looked her boss straight in the eye. “We were losing, sir,” she said plainly. “We were always going to lose. You kept calling yourself a man with nothing to lose, but that wasn’t true.” She nodded towards Adrien. “I did the only thing I could think of to get you back your wife before you truly lost everything.”

“You didn’t, though,” the sentimonster who was not Emilie said miserably. “I’m not his wife, am I? I’m not even close. I don’t remember the things I should remember, I don’t feel the things I should feel. I’m just some vague approximation, some combination of what you thought Emilie was and what you wanted her to be.” She laughed bitterly. “Oh, no wonder my heart twists a little every time Gabriel kisses me. It’s because your heart twists, doesn’t it? Because you went and fell in love with the man whose wife you were trying to save.” Not-Emilie shook her head. “Everything about me is just a cruel joke.” She reached for her heart and quickly unclasped her brooch. “Well, it doesn’t matter. Just one little snap and everything’s fixed.” She grasped the brooch between her two hands and took a breath, bracing herself.

“No!” Adrien darted forward and snatched the brooch from not-Emilie’s hands. “Stop!”

STOP.

Not-Emilie froze, still as death. It took Adrien a moment to understand why. “Oh, God, no, I’m sorry,” he said frantically, shoving the brooch back into not-Emilie’s hand. “I didn’t mean to… I just had to stop you from breaking it, that’s all, I didn’t think-”

“Do you have any idea,” not-Emilie said quietly, examining the brooch, “what it’s like to be controlled by this thing?” She sighed. “I should have realized from the start, heaven knows I’ve had enough experience with the Peacock Miraculous… except no, I suppose I don’t have much actual experience at all, do I? But I have the memories of it all the same.” She traced a finger over the silver petals. “It’s like drowning,” she whispered. “It’s like being smothered in the will of another person. It digs into you, down to the marrow, until you can’t tell it apart from yourself.”

“I won’t touch it ever again,” Adrien said desperately. “You don’t have to feel like that ever again. Just keep it, lock it away somewhere safe, and nobody will be able to control you.”

“Why?” not-Emilie whispered. “What’s the point? Why shouldn’t I just break it and be done with it? I’m not your mother. I can’t ever be her.”

“I don’t want you to be my mother!” Adrien exclaimed. “I just want you to be you, whoever that is!”

Not-Emilie shook her head. “I’m not anybody, Adrien.”

“That’s not true!” Adrien insisted.

“Who am I, then?” she asked desperately.

“You’re… you’re someone who likes croissants!” Adrien said. Not-Emilie stared for a moment, and then she began to laugh. “I’m serious!” Adrien protested, but he, too, began to smile. “You like croissants, and anacondas, and… and you’re pretty reckless, I guess, doing all this, but you’re clever, too, and you’re kind, and you care about me.” Adrien gulped. “And I really don’t want to lose another person who cares about me. Please, I’m so sick of losing people.”

The being who was not Adrien’s mother looked at him silently for a moment, then nodded. With shaky fingers, she pinned the brooch back to her blouse.

  Adrien carried a giant cage up the steps of an apartment complex, through the door to the newly rented unit, and around unpacked boxes and shrink wrapped furniture. He finally made it to the bedroom and placed it carefully down before collapsing dramatically onto the bed. “All done, Aunt Imogene!”

“Oh, thank you darling, you’re the best,” came his aunt’s chipper reply from somewhere in the kitchen. Adrien heard the clicking of her heels grow steadily louder, and then she entered the room. “Oh, who’s a good boy?” Imogene cooed. “Are you happy to be finally home? Do you want to come out?” Imogene opened the cage and gently lifted her ferret out, then gave his nose a soft kiss.

“Are you sure you want to keep him?” Adrien asked. “I don’t think he’s actually alive. Not like you are, anyway.”

Imogene hummed thoughtfully. “I’m not so sure that’s true,” she said lightly, stroking the sentimonster. “Anyway, having a lie detector for a pet might come in handy one of these days. Does he want scratches? Yes?” She sat down on the bed next to Adrien and gently scratched her ferret’s belly.

Adrien reached over and gave the ferret a gentle pat. “You know, Father would have gotten you a bigger place if you’d wanted one. And maybe one closer to the mansion, too.”

Imogene shook her head. “No, this place is perfect,” she said happily. “I just need a place I can make completely my own. And maybe a little space from your father and Nathalie, just for a little while.”

Adrien snorted. “Join the club.”

Imogene gave him a searching look. “Do you need to be away from them for a while, Adrien? You’re welcome to stay here. Of course I understand if that’s difficult, too, but maybe I could-”

“No, no,” Adrien said quickly. “I mean, I’d be happy to stay with you, thanks for offering, but… no. Father and I need to work through a lot of things. And he’s actually trying, which is nice.”

“I’m glad to hear that,” Imogene said. “How has he been?”

“He’s…” Adrien paused for a moment, collecting his thoughts. “He’s finally letting himself mourn Mom, I think. He didn’t really do that the first time we lost her. So that’s hard, but it’s healthy. He’s not ready to let her go yet, but he gave Marinette the Miraculouses. I think he’s going to get there this time.”

“Oh, good.”

“He’s still not speaking to Nathalie,” Adrien added, “but at this point I think it’s not even about being mad at her anymore. It’s just easier than dealing with how they feel about each other.” Adrien rolled his eyes. “They’re both so closed off, they’re perfect for each other. They’ll figure it out eventually.”

“And how have you been?” Imogene asked gently.

Adrien was silent for a while. “I miss Mom,” he said. “Losing her the second time hurt more than the first, I think.”

“I’m so sorry, love.”

“It’s not your fault,” Adrien said softly. “Marinette, um, she’s looking into what exactly happened to her. She’s pretty new to being the Guardian, but she’s got such a knack for it already. If anyone can figure out a way to save Mom, a real way, it’ll be her.”

“I hope she does,” Imogene said sincerely.

“Oh, before I forget.” Adrien sat up, then pulled some things from his pocket. “Your ID, passport, birth certificate. Aunt Amelie sent it all over this morning. I’m not sure what crazy Graham de Vanily strings she pulled, but they work fast.”

Imogene took the documents and looked through them carefully. She blinked back a few tears, but there was a smile on her face. “Imogene Graham de Vanily,” she read. “She’s a real person now. Thank you, Adrien. And thank Amelie for me, too. I doubt she’s ready to talk to me herself just yet. It’s going to be difficult for her.”

“Maybe not,” Adrien said. “Her exact words when I told her everything were, ‘Oh well, what’s one more identical sister?’” Imogene chuckled. “I think she’s looking forward to getting to know you.”

“Is that right?” Imogene stood up and stepped towards the window. She looked out at the city below, the sunlight dancing across her face. “Yes, I think I’m looking forward to getting to know me, too.”

[justawanderer]

Happy Holidays @lovegeek1215  I’m your Secret Santa! I had a lot of fun writing this. I hope you enjoy it! @mlsecretsanta

AO3

The blare of the Akuma alarm had Nino jumping out of his skin. The new alarms are posted in every hallway and are awkwardly angled down toward the students. Nino makes a mental note to talk to a teacher or Mr. Damocles about the hallway acoustics and maybe dampening the tone so as to not harm the ears of the student body. He lets his eyes dart all over the seemingly empty hallway he was walking in, and then ducks into the first empty classroom he sees. For good measure, he closes himself in an supply cubby at the back of the room with a grate at eye level. The grate allows for him to keep a visual on the door incase the akuma comes around, and he is proud of himself for thinking in such a safety first LadyDude manner. Not seeing or hearing anything other than the slightly muted Akuma Alarm, Nino busies himself with silencing his phone and music and shooting Alya, Adrien, his mom, and the school alert system a text that he is safe in a classroom.

  The creak of the door opening sends him jumping again and it takes everything in him and all his Carapace training to not make a racket in his hiding spot. He takes deep breaths to try and steady his racing heart and looks through the thin slats to examine his neighbor. The familiar blonde hair and white shirt have him pushing open the cubby door and opening his mouth to call out to his friend when he sees what can only be a kwami fly out of the model’s shirt pocket and then get sucked into the ring his friend wears every single day.

  It takes approximately 1 minute for the image before him to sync with his brain and the reality of his best friend being Chat Noir draws an involuntary swear out of him before he can control himself.

  “What the Fuck?!” Senses returning to him, Nino slams a palm over his mouth and slams the cubby door shut in one fluid motion. A black cat ear flicks and Nino struggles to breathe as Chat Noir’s eerie green eyes focus on the cabinet.

  “Who’s there?” Hearing Chat’s voice again sends Nino reeling. The disconnect of having Adrien’s voice come from the hero is arresting and Nino finds himself frozen in place. His mind racing to connect all of the clues that were in front of him the whole time. That Adrien has never been akumatized, that the boy has an uncanny ability to completely disappear during an attack, that he has feline like grace when fencing, or really any sport he attempts, and that the dude is always exhausted. As the shock dwindles away, Nino keeps as still as humanly possible and his eyes locked on the ears he can see through the slats on the door.

  Nino muses that Chat is infinitely more terrifying than any akuma or villain around as he has all the hunting instincts of a cat, the lethal skills of a superhero swordsman, and the ability to hyper fixate. Nino is not sure what would happen if the hero found him in the cubby but he doesn’t particularly care to find out. While at worst it would probably be a dressing down from LadyBug, he really wasn’t ready to talk to the model/super hero yet. He watches as Adri-no Chat!- opens his mouth to say something and takes a vague step forward when an explosion sounds from outside of the classroom. Chat’s head whips towards the sound, then back to the cubby and Nino sees the the hesitation on his friends perfect features.

  One last look toward the cubby and Chat calls out, “If there is anyone in here, you would be wise to wait a minute after I leave the room and do your best to find your way out of the school. I’ll go first and try to draw the akuma away.” The teen hero leaps away out of the door not looking back and Nino waits until he can’t hear the sounds of battle before emerging from his hiding spot.

  His phone vibrates in his pocket and he checks to see a message from Alya telling him to be safe and stay inside as the akuma causes people to grow roots in sunlight. Not needing to be told twice, Nino hunkers down in the cubby to wait out the attack to think through the scene he just lived through. His mind was almost blank with shock but with concentration he was able to focus on the things he knew to be true.

  His best friend, model and heart throb, was also Chat Noir, hero and heart throb of Paris, and Nino knows somewhere deep inside himself, that he is probably one of 2 people to know. He knew, based on LadyBug’s lectures, that knowing put both him AND Adrien at risk of manipulation from Hawkmoth and Nino vowed in his tiny cubby to start joining his mom in her morning meditations.  

  Nino zones out lost deep in thought about secret identities and akumas and emotional control when he is woken by the all clear alarm. Fishing his phone from his pocket, he logs a note about the alarm volume in his phone and is interrupted by a text from Alya. He opens the attachment to see a low res picture of Adrien with his arm around Marinette seeming to prop her up. Alya has captioned it with hearts and stars and Nino finds himself conflicted as he makes his way towards the lunch room, which was where he had been heading before the attack.

  He thinks about it, and he knows that he really wants Adrien to get a girlfriend. He knows that a relationship would be good for his friend in terms of socialization, but he’s never really been super invested in Adrien’s love life. He likes Marinette and thinks that she would help teach Adrien about unconditional love and family, but he also thinks that Kagami is super cool and super talented and Nino always figured that when the model made his choice, that would be that.

  Now though? Now Nino knows that Adrien is in love with LadyBug (whoever she is) and that convincing Chat Noir to give up LadyBug has been an uphill battle for the red spotted heroine. Although Nino secretly thinks that LB may have feelings for his friend as she always seemed more affectionate with the cat hero when carapace was around to see them interact. And now Nino cannot just recommend his buddy give up on the coolest girl any of them knew.

  On the other hand, LB has zero interest in Chat and how would a relationship between a super hero and a teen model work were he to woo her as Adrien? Nino can’t really see any of it working until they know each other’s identities. But Marinette and Kagami? Those girls were real and they were right in front of Adrien every day.

  Arriving at the cafeteria, Nino watches the way Marinette flushes head to toe at Adrien’s attention to her well being and knows that the most important thing is maintaining Adrien’s happiness, and protecting his secret at all cost.

  Lunch passes with little incident, and the class makes their way to Ms. Bustier’s room, Nino cannot keep his attention off of Adrien. Its shocking to know his secret and see him just hanging out with the class as if he didn’t place himself in danger every day. He enjoyed Adrien’s enthusiasm for his new mixes and how Adrien always wants to know everything a person has to say when they speak to him. He also looks closer as sees a teenager, a guy his age, with more muscle than body fat. Kim may be more athletic and stronger, but Adrien was solid muscle and it wouldn’t have seemed weird to Nino until he heard a disturbing gurgling. At the second instance he trained his eyes on the sources and watched as Adrien flushed in embarrassment.

  The blond wrapped an arm around his stomach and apologized for the sound. The truth hit Nino like a ton of bricks, Adrien was kept on a super strict diet. Every bite of his food was calculated and all of the calories accounted for, or at least they would be, if Adrien was NOT a teenage superhero running parkour all over Paris all week burning god only knows how many more calories.

  Nino reached into his bag and slid Adrien the almonds he never got around to eating at lunch when a sound behind him drew his attention. Marinette was sitting focused on her sketch pad and softly humming. Nino looked between the bluenette and his friend and devised a plan, a small smirk painting his face.

  While not necessarily caring which of the girls Adrien could go for, Nino could at least help his buddy out and possibly Mari too if his plan worked. Waiting for the class to end, Nino packed up slower than Adrien and watched him run out of the door to go to a photoshoot. Nino waited until he was sure the model was gone before turning to Marinette, still absorbed in her sketch.

  “Sup dudette! How’s it going?” Nino tried for his best charming smile.

  Startled from her work, Marinette looked up at her friend and narrowed her eyes. “I’m good Nino, how are you?”

  “Ahh I’m good dudette, I’m good,” He said while awkwardly rubbing his neck and fiddling with his hat brim. “I, uh, actually wanted to ask you a favor. If you don’t mind.”

  Marinette’s eye widened with concern, “I would love to watch Chris this week Nino, but I am afraid that I have over booked myself this week with watching Manon, finishing commissions and class rep stuff.”

  Nino waved his hands as if to clear the air between them, “No Marinette, no, I don’t need that kind of favor. Actually its about Adrien.”

  Marinette turned a shade of red Nino had only ever seen on LB’s suit and  wildly flailed her arms about. “Wha-T Adrien about? About Adrien what?” She took a deep breath and centered herself, “What about Adrien, Nino?” The love and concern on her face was enough for Nino. He told her everything. Well, he told her everything he had been observing about Adrien, and today in class, was proven right, that the boy was not eating right. He watched Marinette’s eyes go from glassy embarrassment to filled with concern. He left her with a plan to help Adrien in place and the hopes that they would be able to accomplish their mission without interference from the adults.

  Sure enough the following morning, Nino smiled to himself as he watched Marinette present the blond with the assorted box of pastry Nino suggested the day before. He watched as Adrien was filled with joy over the gift, and how quickly he wolfed down the treats. Watching Adrien laud praises on Marinette filled Nino with a certain joy as he hoped he was doing enough for his friends.

[pakcricwiz]

MLS's Alejandro Bedoya calls out Congress over mass shootings during game

Philadelphia Union captain makes statement after scoring goal

29 were killed in mass shootings in US over the weekend

Philadelphia Union captain Alejandro Bedoya brought attention to this weekend’s mass shootings in Ohio and Texas when he called out Congress after scoring for his team in Washington DC.

The USA international scored his team’s opening goal in their 5-1 win over DC United on Sunday. After Bedoya scored he ran over to a TV microphone and shouted: “Hey Congress, do something now. End gun violence. Let’s go!” The comment could be heard on Fox Sports’ coverage of the game.

Continue reading... from Blogger https://ift.tt/2YGg3oY

[star3yed]

The Chat Who Stole Christmas (MLSS 2019)

Hi @mizuminojosei​ I’m your @mlsecretsanta​ this year! I’ve had this story ready for a while and just wait until christmas to finally post it! I saw you liked the Antihero AU and I decided to jump a lil outta my comfort zone a write you one with action! This story has everything from frienship, to a lil angst and lots of fluff. I hope you’re having a happy holiday season and you enjoy!

Also thanks to my betas @sadrien​ and @tombombadilcankickyourass​ for making my ramblings coherent!

Summary: 

When Ladybug thought of how she would spend her night before christmas eve, she never would have suspected robbing a bank would be on top of her list. When Chat Noir had to buy presents for his Lady, he never suspected he'd have to break and enter. Follow them in their adventure being teenagers and antiheros. Antihero AU.

Ao3

Word Count:7268

————————————————————–

Ladybug was a heroine, she’d been put in many different situations, many of them difficult, yet none of them compared to the nerves she felt in her stomach doing this. She never once imagined she would end up in this position; her partner so quiet she could hear his accelerated heartbeat. He was nervous too. Ladybug’s head was flush flat against the cool metal surface, her eyes closed, and her hands otherwise occupied. 

“Are you sure about this bugaboo?” her golden-haired partner asked; bless his heart, always making sure she was ready before going ahead with something new.

 “Well, we wouldn’t really be in this position if I wasn’t 100 percent sure,” she retorted, her nose scrunching up. His concern was appreciated but she didn’t need his worry alongside her own 

“I just want to make sure you’re comfortable, this could really be a game-changer if we aren’t safe.”

“Everything we do is a game-changer if we aren’t safe enough.”

“My lady, I would never be able to live with myself if you ever felt unsafe. Unless, of course, it was with my hands.”

“Are you implying you’re dangerous Kitty?”

“Did you fur-get? I’m purr-haps the most dangerous cat on this side of the Seine.”

“Are you two done flirting or should I get the hose?” A voice cackled from behind them. “Al-” Ladybug stopped herself before exposing the secret identity of her best friend. “I want to make it clear that this is not flirting.” she grumbled as Rena Rogue laughed. Ladybug frowned and bit the inside of her cheek to avoid making it a bigger deal than what she knew it could become.

“My lady, we should let the cat out of the bag” Chat Noir purred “We should tell them about our history, how we are pawsitively more than fur-riends”

Marinette wrinkled her nose and opened her eyes long enough to give him a look, so he’d understand the excruciating pain he was putting her through with his dreadful puns.

“I think that would be a cat-astrophic idea, Kitty,” she teased, before closing her eyes and focusing on the task at hand. Had she kept her eyes on him she might’ve seen his cheeks brighten up.

Although they had been partners for the better part of 4 years Chat Noir couldn’t help the way his heart skipped a beat when Ladybug would rarely return his puns, or whenever she still called him kitty. He admired the blue-eyed heroine, and as time passed his feelings for her only increased, and even though through the years he had other girls he dated or was involved with, he never really got very far; his feelings for the polka-dot clad superhero prevented him from forming any real romantic connections, until he had met Marinette that is. The other blue-eyed girl had captured his heart and only her smile could make his heart skip a beat the way Ladybug’s did.

 Yet, as suave as he had become over the years he quickly quipped back.

“What is that Feline? Am I fortunate enough that purrhps the pawsibility has arisen that my purr-incess is finally warming up to my claw-ver puns?”

“Ugh, unless you want to do this Chat, I require the utmost silence!” Ladybug groaned, finding it impossible that Chat could find a cat twist to every other word, still a small smile found its way onto her face.

“Ladybug give me the word and I’ll shut him up for you!” Queen Bee exclaimed, with genuine enthusiasm. Although Chloe had grown closer to the team, she still couldn’t help herself with the dig at the leather clad boy. She was a tough cookie and her mean girl spirit never seemed to leave.

“Hey! What do you mean by that?” Chat cried before Queen Bee hit him with her spinning top. 

“She asked for silence!”

 “I KNOW I HEARD HER!” Chat spat back as Carapace laughed at both blondes while they fought about Ladybug.

Ladybug tuned out the rest of her team members, focusing on the task at hand, twisting the dial and slowly changing directions with every click. 

‘Crap, I might not be able to actually crack this’ she thought before letting out a loud sigh. If she didn’t concentrate, she wouldn’t be able to open the safe and their whole plan would be ruined. The last thing she wanted to do was use Chat’s cataclysm this early in the plan. Master Fu had been fairly certain that this individual possessed a miraculous and all the other places he could’ve stored the miraculous were empty. This was the last public place he could’ve hidden it, so if it wasn’t here, they’d have to break into his home. 

The vault door clicked three times, and suddenly it was unlocked.

 “Are you sure about this Chaton?” she asked, opening her eyes and stepping to the side. Blue eyes met green, and her companion smirked.

“You realize this will be the biggest one yet, right? I wouldn’t miss this for the world!” 

She smiled and let out a breath she didn’t realize she was holding in. Running around, stealing stuff and wreaking havoc was fun, sure, however Ladybug always feared that her partner would someday get tired of running away from the law. Although Chat Noir was far from a saint, he had a certain softness to him. She feared that softness would someday over take him and he would regret all the criminal activity.

She let the vault door open fully, exposing the white cold room, transparent shelf upon transparent shelf piled with gold bars in the center of the room, security deposit boxes of different sizes lining the other three walls, which contained precious jewels, euros, and documents. Unlocking those security deposit boxes was much easier than unlocking the vault door; they were all well versed in picking locks after all. 

“Ohhh, shiny!” Queen Bee gasped from behind them. Out of instinct, Chat Noir held his arm out and stopped his impulsive teammate from entering the room. Ladybug sighed and analyzed the room. Obviously, the room would have some backup sensor and if they didn’t want a quick interruption from anyone, they would have to be careful. Although part of the fun was kicking some private security details ass, if they could prevent any more notoriety than what they already had, it would be great.

“Rena, what’s the status on this vault?” Ladybug asked her companion. Say what you want about Alya, she was a tenacious reporter and very good at finding the dirt on everything and anything.

“The floor is pressure-sensitive, light lasers that will trigger an alarm if the connection is interrupted between their two plates and there is a door sensor on each security deposit box. You have about 5 seconds before an alarm is triggered.”

“Basically, don’t touch the floor or the lasers and don’t open doors. Chill,” Nino responded squatting as he looked at the vault. He knew that the lasers wouldn’t show up with another light source on. “Is there any way we can, like, turn off the lights inside the vault to see the lasers?”

“We can try to fry the power box but we risk getting locked inside this bank and alerting authorities that way,” Alya responded, “but if we fry it we have about three minutes of uninterrupted snooping before all the backup security comes back on.”

“How big of a possibility is it that we get locked in?” Marinette asked, trying to decide if it was worth it. 

“About fifty-fifty. They are between changing security systems because this one is faulty. We can get unlimited access as the backup security warms up, or it might already be on and the vault closes up again.”

Marinette exhaled loudly in frustration and looked at her partner. Although she called all the shots, Chat usually had good insight.

“I think those odds are good. Worst comes to worst I’ll just cataclysm our way out of here.” 

Marinette looked inside the vault; all three walls were filled with security deposit boxes. There was a light fixture she could swing upon, but once he used cataclysm, they would have to find a different place to swing on. 

“What’s above this again?” she asked the others and Queen Bee pulled out some blueprints from her jacket handing it to the girl in red. Being the mayor’s daughter had its perks. The blonde girl pointed to where they were, “Okay, so like we’d have to get past 2 floors of stairs to reach the front of the bank, but most likely police will have arrived.” She tapped her chin. “But I know helicopters take a bit longer to come so if we manage to find the stairways that lead to the rooftop, we can escape through there.“ 

“But won’t they use floodlights to illuminate every side of the bank?” Carapace injected, looking at the girls before Chat Noir smiled. 

“Not unless we escape down,” he offered.

"You mean through the sewers?” Rena asked.

“No offense cat, but aside from that being ridiculous and gross,” Queen Bee huffed crossing her arms, “it would also limit our escape route and if they decide to go through the sewers, they will immediately catch us. Besides it will probably take longer for them to set up floodlights anyways.”

“Look, there’s a mall right across the street and behind it is the Seine, I think going through the roof is best since we don’t have any map of the sewers or know it. It feels like we could be exposed if we get lost, especially if any of us end up using our powers.”

Queen Bee smirked as Ladybug spoke, happy Ladybug was on her side. The rest of the Antiheros agreed, “But I think if time is just too short, we might have to go through the sewers. But we don’t have much more time to change the plan.” She beckoned the others towards her and the blueprints on the floor

All five huddled around as she laid the blueprints on the floor. “Ok so where exactly is the power system?” Marinette asked.

The team managed to pull the robbery almost miraculously. Having lady luck on their side, things went better than expected. Carapace was able to cut the wires of the vault, and banks’ power grid. Luckily the backup generators weren’t up, so the bank was completely unarmed for a good few minutes, giving the Antiheroes some time to snoop around and take some souvenirs. Although they had very little time, they were able to open a good portion of the wall security deposit boxes, and they took some very valuable documents, cash in different currencies and jewelry. As Queen Bee, Carapace and Rena Rouge were distracted with the gold bars and Chat Noir seemed deep in thought while looking at something in a security deposit box, Ladybug slipped something in her yoyo. Then suddenly an alarm blared above, signaling that something was amiss. They decided to cut their losses and get out of there before any more attention was brought to them. With everything secure in their miraculous tools, they ran towards the roof of the building, and saw the lights of the patrol cars closing in, they were about to cross the busy highway when suddenly they saw a huge iron man grow from one of the patrol cars. 

“An Akuma!” Carapace called out.

“Well crap.” Ladybug groaned. “Let’s get rid of it.”

⛄❆❅☃⛄❆❅❄☃⛄❆❅❄☃⛄❆❅❄☃⛄❆❅❄☃⛄❆❅❄☃⛄❆❅❄☃⛄❆❅

Adrien threw his backpack into his room and collapsed in his bed arriving home after a long fight with an Akuma. This one had been rough. The steel man had been the bank director,  and he had previous boxing experience so it was a doozy. He groaned as Plagg started to complain next to him, how many times he had gotten hit as Chat was uncertain but Adrien lifted his shirt and saw an angry purple welt forming near his ribcage. He was certain it had been way too many for comfort. Another of his concerns was a certain blue-eyed girl’s reaction to seeing his bruises. Although the antiheroes were always careful to never get hit in the face or anywhere visible, an Akuma had once hit Chat straight across the face, leaving a nasty black eye. Marinette berated him about being reeekless and not putting his own life before Ladybug’s and the team’s. He felt her love but at the same time it was too much. Marinette’s reaction was really overkill for him, he knew his girlfriend cared but not to this extent. She took care of him, was so gentle and kind, Adrien felt a bit uncomfortable not getting that at home. She worried, and he was very touched that she did, but it also made him worry about not worrying her. 

His girlfriend had obviously known it was Chat who was hit, but Adrien had to make an incident happen at home so his black eye was explained as well. Luckily there were cameras in every crevice of his house, so him slipping and hitting himself on the bannister was more than enough of an excuse. He sighed and put his shirt back down. Plagg floated next to him holding a piece of cheese bigger than his entire oddly shaped head. “Worrying about baker girl?” he offered. 

“If my shirt rides up and she sees this, I’ll be toast.” He sighs.  

“Then wear a girdle,” Plagg said nonchalantly inhaling the cheese, to Adrien’s dismay. 

“I should really lower your cheese intake for the amount of sass you give me.” He narrowed his eyes at the cat god, before laying back down in his bed. 

“Don’t you even joke about that lover boy. Remember I am the god of destruction and I might feel inclined to destroy some of your favorite anime DVDs.”

“I can download them again online.”

“Not your limited edition, uncut Naruto DVD, signed by the voice actors in Japan.”

Adrien sat back up and looked at his Kawamii “You wouldn’t dare do that.”

“Don’t test me.” Plagg laughed before flying back to his cheese.

Adrien groaned and threw himself back on his bed, putting an arm over his eyes and sighed. “I bet Ladybug’s Kawamii wouldn’t threaten me as you do.”

“Sugarcube? HA. She would’ve killed you by now because you wouldn’t be able to give her sweets so readily like cheese. Might I remind you of the long-standing sugar ban in your house?”

“Might I remind you I have a baker girlfriend who’s parents own the best bakery in all Paris.”

“Of whom you’ve been dating for less than a year. How long have you been Chat Noir?”

Adrien groaned in exasperation, knowing the kawamii made a good point. He decided that instead of fighting with his Kawami he should focus his energy on something else, like the present for his girlfriend. He walked over to his desk, where he had already put all his gifts in a box, yet he still hadn’t wrapped. He looked over everything when his eyes landed on a small blue box. He had bought Marinette a bracelet, from that really expensive store Chloe always gushes about, yet it felt impersonal, and wrong to some degree. His girlfriend wasn’t much about jewelry and fancy things, and he knew she appreciated when he made things himself, much like he enjoyed her handmade gifts. He had the feeling that she would still wear the lucky charm he made her more than the fancy bracelet. He let out a long exhale and looked up at the ceiling. What else could he give her? It was too late to buy something at a store, and he definitely couldn’t gift her something he had stolen from the bank yet suddenly his eyes landed on the picture of his mom.  Why hadn’t he thought of that before? His dad was away in the USA, making sure the Agreste line was sold overseas and wouldn’t be back until after Christmas. Nathalie was with his father and Gorilla was fast asleep. He snuck down the hall, careful to avoid any of the camera’s and stood in front of his parents’ bedroom. He hadn’t been in his parent’s bedroom for the longest time, and it seemed his father hadn’t either, as he slept in one of the various guest rooms around the house. He took his unlocking tools from his pocket and worked the keyhole, and quickly stepped inside the dark and dusty room, glad that the door hinge hadn’t made a sound after all these years of neglect. He was surprised to smell his mothers’ perfume amidst all of the dust. The hairs on his arm went up as he realized he wasn’t alone in the room. 

“You okay kid?” He heard Plagg’s voice whisper to him, and Adrien calmed down.

“Thanks, Plagg” Adrien whispered back and smiled, feeling somewhat better after the assault on his sense. Plagg landed on Adrien’s shoulder, nuzzling next to his chosen neck, to give the teenager some sense of calm. He knew how hard it was for Adrien to remember his mother, even after all these years, the boy couldn’t get over the presumed death of his mother; Plagg realized once Adrien left where he was going and followed him, just to make sure the boy was okay. Adrien let his eyes adjust to the darkness before venturing further into the room. He could see the fine layer of dust on his mother’s vanity, where albeit organized had some things out of place where she used them the day before she was gone. He smiled and ventured closer to their closet, a huge walk-in with a variety of colors. He went towards his mother’s side, remembering how she used to go through her things, him sitting on a bench in the middle of the closet. He knew exactly where to go. He opened one of the drawers and found many scarves yet carefully pulled them out, to find a small safe. Even his mother kept some secrets from his father. He put in his birthday as the safe combination and the light turned green and he heard it unlock. He smiled and opened the top of the safe to find an assortment of jewelry boxes, documents, and pictures. Deciding he would never be able to come back, he took the documents and pictures with him, putting them next to the scarves before looking at the jewelry boxes. He found delicate yet fine jewelry that he knew his mother had a sentimental attachment to, her favorite pieces she only wore around places she knew, with the fear of losing them. He opened a small box and smiled brightly. His mother mostly wore what was in the box when it was just the two of them. His father didn’t let either one of them out of the house much and his mother made the most out of their time together. He was suddenly flooded with memories of her; his mother in jeans and a t-shirt the jewelry she wore catching the light and reflecting as she played the piano in their living room, his mother laughing with him as they cooked in the kitchen together, his mother running around the house looking for him as they played hide and seek and then hugging him when she found him, his mother singing him a song about kitties on rooftops following childhood nightmares, his mother hugging him goodbye before a photoshoot promising her son tea later that day before he never saw her again. 

He felt plagg purring on his shoulder bringing him back from his sudden memories, wiping a tear from his eye. He pets his kawami, took the box and put it in his pocket, before closing the safe and putting the scarves back as he found them. He grabbed the documents before heading out, the memories of his mother too much for him. 

He sneaked back into his room, careful to lock the door again and leave everything as it was. He put all the papers in a random drawer in his desk and put the jewelry box inside the gift box for his girlfriend. Plagg, floated away from Adrien as he went back to his bed, flinging himself on it, belly first and buried his head on his pillow. Plagg brought a blanket from his chosen’s sofa and draped it over him, before laying on Adrien’s head in complete silence. He had more experience with his chosen and learned when Adrien needed to be distracted and when he just needed support, this occasion was the latter. They stayed in silence for a while before Adrien lifted his head, pale face red and warm, eyes also red and his cheeks wet. He sighed before going to the bathroom to wash his face. 

The holidays have always been a hard time for him, yet seeing all his mother’s stuff was putting more of a damper on him. He let the sink faucet run before letting the cool clear liquid splash onto his hands. He looked at the water, seeing how it flowed freely, given no pressure, and the sound it made cascading from the faucet onto his hands and then trickling down onto his porcelain sink, carefree. He splashed his face to clear his mind. Reminding himself of things that made him happy. The way Nino moved around when the beat was ‘way too good bro’; the way Alya’s would smile mischievously whenever she had a lead on whatever case she was researching, the way Chloe would buy small things for Sabrina because it was ‘totally out of fashion’ for her, but her best friend would love jt; how ladybug would always pound his fist when they defeated an Akuma; Finally he thought of Marinette the way her blue eyes sparkled brighter than any star in the Parisian night sky and the melody of her laughter when she let herself be carefree with him, the way her body moved with fluidity and confidence when sewing details on her commissions, the curve of her lips when she joked around with him and the unwavering strength of volition in her voice when she spoke those three words that he could hear her say over and over again. He smiled, water dripping from his chin, his miraculous might have been an omen of bad luck, but he felt like the luckiest boy alive. He turned off the faucet feeling much better and dried his face with a towel. He walked towards his desk when he suddenly felt his pocket vibrate. He tapped his phone unlocking it with his face before smiling at the text he received. 

‘Hope the Akuma didn’t interfere with you Iron Man fanfiction.’

‘My princess you underestimate my love for my Iron Man self insert fiction.’

He didn’t have to wait long before his girlfriend texted back and his phone vibrated once again in his hands. 

‘Damn I don’t know if you are a weaboo

or a nerd.’

‘I haven’t mentioned anime ONCE

… Since our last convo.’

‘Nope, I was mistaken you ARE a dork.’

‘Working on my body pillow girlfriend as a Christmas present?’

‘Ah…

I suddenly have something else to do than participate in this conversation’

‘😿‘

‘😂 JK Dorkzilla

But hey are you okay?

Did the Akuma do any damage?’

‘ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cMESRatAG04 ’

‘That cat looks terrified

But are you okay? Are you injured?’

‘ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5R5jG_5N5ZU ,

but if that doesn’t convince you then you can come over 😽’

‘Alright

I’ll take it Dorkus Suprimious

I do have to sleep tho

Love you Chaton

Sweet dreams.’

‘Thanks for checking up on me Princess

Rest well and see you tomorrow

Love you bunches’

“Well, you seem to be in a better mood.” Plagg teased, hovering in front of Adrien again. 

“Thanks, Plagg,” Adrien said, putting his phone down. “You helped me back there.”

“It was nothing kid.” 

Adrien smiled and pet his Kawami, deciding that this was all he needed for the holiday season.

“Well, are we going to unpack what you stole from the bank or what?” Plagg asked and Adrien laughed.

“You realize curiosity killed that cat right?”⛄❆❅☃⛄❆❅❄☃⛄❆❅❄☃⛄❆❅❄☃⛄❆❅❄☃⛄❆❅❄☃⛄❆❅❄☃⛄❆

The following night Chat Noir ran across the rooftops in the quiet cold Parisian night, Christmas joy felt pouring out of their house, the dreams of children asleep with the hope presents delivered the following day. He glanced among the lights until he found the one he was looking for. There on the corner, on top of a small bakery, was a balcony emitting a soft glow. He ran with more vigor, feeling almost entirely carefree. There stood Marinette wrapped in a blanket looking at the night sky, deep in thought. 

To think that it was just yesterday that they had pulled the biggest heist to date, fought an akumatized bank director, stole about 6.2 million euros in combined assets of gold, jewelry, and cash. As Marinette stood there deep in thought, in her hand she held the most prized possession from the heist. An inconspicuous seeming black pendant. When she found it inside one of the safety deposit boxes, hidden behind more precious jewels, she knew it was the miraculous she was looking for. The mouse miraculous. She hadn’t had time to properly admire it and let the kawami free of its holding. Now that she was the Guardian, she was a bit more lenient with the kawamis than Master Fu had been, letting them free of their confinements. 

Chat Noir shot his staff from a rooftop over so he could walk over to his lady. “Penny for your thought Princess?” he asked, sauntering over. Marinette blinked and looked at her sudden companion. 

“Damn and I thought that buying that Valerian plant would keep you away,” she smirked, gesturing toward the flower. Chat smirked and walked towards the tall pink plant, bending over to smell its sweet aroma. Something inside him felt even more blissful if that were possible. 

"Princess, whoever told you that was way wrong. I’m pretty sure this plant is calling me more towards here. Oh, I’m so attracted to this plant, Mari, I could just about leave you for it.” This brought forth laughter from the girl and he couldn’t help but smile. 

“To think that it would only take a plant to get rid of you! I would’ve bought it years ago.” 

“Oh, you wound me princess! Would you really get rid of this amazing body and even better puns?” 

“I might’ve just kept the puns.”

 Chat Noir held a hand to his forehead and sighed dramatically. “Your words are like daggers tonight!” 

Marinette laughed again and opened an arm covered in a blanket, inviting her boyfriend to join the warmth. “I have to keep you alley cats on your toes.” She giggled as Chat Noir took her invitation, wrapped his arms around her torso and resting his head on her shoulder. She took this as an opportunity to pull the blanket over his shoulder and kiss his forehead. They remained in silence for a while, admiring the view from her balcony before Marinette felt Chat Noir shifting, the height difference between them finally getting in the way of their cuddling. “Too uncomfortable Kitty?” she asked as he pulled his head from her shoulder.

"Nothing is more comfur-table than your arms,” he purred. 

“I swear if you start with those cat—” Marinette was suddenly cut off as he moved his arms from around her and swiftly lifted her into the air. 

“Chat!” Marinette exclaimed as the blanket fell from their shoulders, her frame hovering a good foot off the floor, nestled between black claws and a leather-clad chest. Thankfully she was holding the pendant tightly in her other hand, if she hadn’t been, it would have surely dropped onto the floor, or worse, off the balcony and onto the street. He wordlessly carried her over to the loveseat she kept near the trapdoor leading to her room. 

He gently dropped her onto her side before going back to get the blanket. Marinette took advantage of this to slip the pendant in her pocket. “You know there are easier ways of shutting me up.” She said, moving her legs over the side of the bench to give the leather-clad criminal some space to sit. 

“I know of at least one other good way,“ Chat retorted, looking at the girl and wiggling his eyebrows. She threw a pillow at the laughing cat, her face bright red. "Okay! Okay! Truce! Damn, my girlfriend has a pretty strong arm,” he said chuckling a wide grin on his face. She stuck out her tongue in response. He picked up the pillow she had thrown at his head as well as the large pink wool blanket. “You know I’m glad you agreed to change your chair to this bench,” Chat said walking back towards it, but instead of giving her a chance to respond he put the blanket on her head. He smiled as he watched the petite girl struggled to find her way out of the blanket. 

“You realize I’m the cat, here right?” He laughed as Marinette pulled the cloth away from her face. With a newfound determination, she stood from the couch and walked up to the tall leather-clad superhero with a bit more sway to her hip. Chat smirked; green eyes focused on her entirely. 

“Oh, I know you’re the big cat here,” she said, flicking his bell with the tip of her fingernails. Chat swallowed loudly. “Which is why I am the strong bug here.”

 Chat looked at the girl quizzically yet had no time to really think as Marinette shoved him towards her trap door. He fell with somewhat of muffled thud onto her bed. Marinette laughed as he stared up at her from his position on the bed, wincing in pain get quickly changed his face to not worry his girlfriend. 

“Long live the king I guess,” he said, making the girl laugh with more vigor. Chat groaned and turned around trying to get up, his foot getting caught on one of the many pillows Marinette had on her bed and proceeded to fall face-first onto the bed again, prompting the girl on the balcony to howl with even louder laughter.  He groaned with pain, why was his little lady so adamant on hurting him today?

“You wish you were Mufasa,” she said, between gasps of air, bent over holding her stomach. in the time she had been distracted he popped his head through the trap door looking taking in the beautiful sight that was his girlfriend. 

"Why don’t you come here and say it to my face?” he quipped ducking back into her bed. 

She smiled and grabbed the blanket off her bench and went down her trap door stairs before closing it to keep the winter air out. She put the blanket over her boyfriend before settling on her knees as she heard the words, “Claws off” come from inside the blanket. She pulled the blanket off and There sitting on her bed was Adrien Agreste, holding his hands behind his back and a Santa hat perched on his head. “Ta-da” he whispered. 

She smiled and blushed, still not used to the model being her actual boyfriend.

“Hey Chaton,” she said softly, before he grinned.

“Nice to know you can practice magic princess.”

“I could say the same,” she said, gesturing towards the hat on his head. He had bought one with a small bell at the end and she dinged it with her fingers. “How is it you go around the world all in one night spreading presents?”

“Well you see princess, as you know I am a world-renowned criminal, infamous even, you might say, so I know my way around breaking and entering,“ he said with a wink.

She couldn’t help but roll her eyes a little. "Without you being a renowned,”- she put air quotes around the last word- “criminal, you always seem to be able to break into my house." 

Adrien couldn’t help but laugh, a faint blush gracing his cheeks. "Don’t you mean I break into your heart?” he said before moving closer to the girl. 

“Humph,” was all her response, her cheeks tinged a bright pink. 

“Merry Christmas, Mon Amore,” he said kissing her cheek before producing a box from behind his back. He had hidden it inside his baton and taken advantage of the amount of time it took her to get down to retrieve it. 

“Chaton, thank you,” Marinette said, eyes widening. She gently took the present from his hands. It had been hastily wrapped, and obviously contained more than one object inside. “I see you still are terrible at present wrapping,” she chuckled. 

He laughed, taking it lightly. “It took about three tries to get it looking not so bulky. Why are the corners so hard to fold?” he mused. 

“It takes years to become a master at gift wrapping!” she replied, winking. “Although I am more surprised you managed to contain yourself and get me only one box.”  

“I knew you wouldn’t let me give you more than one present, after what happened the last time I tried showering you with celebration gifts” he said sheepishly rubbing the back of his neck. A few months after they started dating, Marinette had to make Adrien stop with the grand gestures every other day and limited him to only one present for celebrations. One time he went overboard and got her 50 presents, one of every kiss they had given each other since they started dating.

“I’m glad you know me so well kitty,” Marinette said as she started to unwrap the box and gently take the top off. She took out the tissue paper from inside the box and found three objects, a jar, a jewelry box and a picture frame. “Adrien…” Marinette trailed off as she took a good look at the frame. It was the picture Alya had taken of them on the train ride to London years ago. She had only heard of the infamous picture, never actually getting to keep it, her red-headed friend vowing it would be a great wedding present when Marinette would finally get the guts to confess to the blonde. “How did you get this?” she asked picking up the frame gingerly. 

“I have my ways,” he said, winking. 

In reality he had broken into Nino’s phone to get it, since no one could know they were dating. Even though Marinette knew his secret identity, finding out only after she helped him escape from one of their many heists, it was better if no one else knew. And to keep Marinette safe he had to make sure no one knew who he was really dating. Being a criminal for so many years only made Chat Noir, along with all the other Miraculous holders, more notable. And even though they lived their civilian lives normally, there was still a risk if they were ever unmasked, and he could not have any of the various enemies they have stolen from even catch wind of Marinette. It was also particularly risky given the fact that Adrien was a public figure, so it wouldn’t be hard to pinpoint the people he cared about. That meant he had to keep their relationship out of the public eye and from their friends, with the risk of them being akumatized. Thankfully Marinette understood and was a bit too on board with it, he had his suspicions as to why. 

She smiled and put the frame down on her bed and took out the jar. The sound was enough to shake Adrien from his thoughts. “Take one out whenever you miss me, or you feel angry or sad,” he prompted after she looked up at him quizzically. It was full of paper stars, and she suddenly realized he probably wrote little notes on them and then folded each slip of paper. He really was the most thoughtful boyfriend. 

Finally, the small jewelry box stared back at her. “Wait!” Marinette exclaimed, suddenly remembering something. 

Adrien looked taken aback as the girl scrambled down her lofted bed and disappeared underneath the bed, towards her desk. She returned towards the steps of her bed holding three neatly wrapped presents. She tossed them on top of the bed, nearly missing Adrien’s head and ran back up the loft stairs. She collected all of them and gave them to her boyfriend, with a small smile on her face as he had a wide smile on his face. 

“I think there was an easier way of doing that princess." 

“All the best things happen spontaneously and in threes.” 

“The best thing that happened was that you managed to do all that without tripping,” he teased his girlfriend.

She rolled her eyes. “Joyeux Noël, Cherie,” she said as he tenderly accepted the gifts. Although he adored his girlfriend he was still surprised whenever she gave him gifts. 

He took the top gift and unwrapped it viciously, excited to see what was inside. He found a pair of knitted gloves, with four accompanying smaller ones. “Wait you made this for plagg too?” He said with wide eyes. She nodded. 

“And he’s probably busy with the camembert croissants I made for him,” she said, lying to cover that Plagg was probably with Tikki and the other Kawamis. 

“God you really are amazing,” he said leaning over to kiss Marinette, making the girl blush red. 

“It wasn’t such a big thing…. But open the rest!” 

He complied with her request putting the smallest box aside and opening the other one that accompanied it, being just slightly bigger than the previous one he just opened. He smiled and tore the wrapping paper again. “Mari…” he trailed off as he looked at the picture. It was a collage of pictures, both from his Instagram as well as candids that seem to be taken by Marinette himself, framed in a beautiful frame. He smiled a bittersweet smile as he saw she had included a picture of him and his mother. “This is just… it so thoughtful I don’t think my present can ever compete with this,” he said looking at his girlfriend. She hugged his frame and laughed 

“Kitty, you can’t ever compete because this isn’t a competition. Just having you here beats this whole thing,” she said reassuring leaning over the gifts to hug him. “Besides you had to do some serious hacking to get this picture so if it is a competition you have me beat, because even I wouldn’t go behind Ayla’s back.” He kissed the top of her head, deciding not to argue, but looked back at his hand and the collage. 

“Wait you haven’t opened my last present!” he said as she took her arms away from his shoulders. 

“That you are about right,” She said. “And you need to open mine.” She said gesturing to the large rectangular box.

 He nodded and started to unwrap his as she gingerly took the velvet box out of the present box. He stopped unwrapping and looked up at Marinette wanting to gauge her reaction. She opened her mouth as she opened the container. “Adrien, this is too much. I can’t accept it,” she said, looking up at him worriedly. 

“It used to be my mother’s,” he started to explain, taking the gift out of her hands. He looked down and saw the small golden heart pendant, lined with diamonds, a smaller heart shaped ruby right inside, with the accompanying stud earrings. “I saw it buried hidden with all her other jewelry; I know she would have loved for you to have it,” he said smiling brightly.

“You really do love me, don’t you?” she whispered in disbelief. To have given her something that special, that meaningful it meant Adrien saw a future with her, with Marinette, clumsy and normal Marinette.

He smiled sheepishly rubbing the back of his neck in a nervous way. “I do love you Mari, I just hope it wasn’t too much…” he trailed off. She shook her head and took the box from him. “I just saw it had studs and you always use those black ones and it looked like something you would really like…” he trailed off as he saw her gingerly take the necklace our of its packaging. 

“Can you put it on?” He smiled as she handed him the small necklace. He nodded as she turned around and lifted her hair. He clasped it on and kissed the back of her neck gently. “All done my lady.” He smiled, wanting to see if the name would bring forth a reaction from his girlfriend, yet she was too enthralled with the earrings. 

She couldn’t take off her miraculous, but she also couldn’t not put on the earrings, it would hurt him. So, she decided to change tactics. “You still haven’t opened my present, even though it isn’t as beautiful as yours…” she said putting her hair back down and moving away from her boyfriend. 

He smiled. “Anything you give me, my darling, is so special to me,” he said, ripping the neat wrapping paper almost instantly. 

“Sure you don’t need a cataclysm with that?” Marinette joked, trying to lighten the mood as she played with the pendent with her fingers. It felt expensive, no doubt since both Adrien’s parents were loaded it was probably real gemstones, she most definitely could not wear it every day. 

He laughed before opening the box. “A leather jacket?” he exclaimed, ecstatic. He had always wanted to wear one, yet it wasn’t in accordance with his public persona according to his father. 

“I made it myself, I thought it’s time to show the world how good Adrien Agreste looks in black leather.” She winked. He kept looking at the jacket dumbfounded when Marinette suddenly started to explain, nervous she had done a bad job stitching, “I know it’s not your dad’s brand but…”

“I love it! Marinette it looks incredible! It’s a Marinette Original.” He took the jacket out and immediately put it on. 

“How did you get my measurements?” he asked, "it fits like a glove”. 

“Seamstress magic!” she replied not wanting to admit she snuck into his room as ladybug, measured one of this tailored suits in his closet and then left. “I made it incase you ever felt you need a boast of Chat Noir in your day to day life,” she said smiling “And I was this close to making you kitty ears,” she said holding her fingers up very close together. He laughed and pulled Marinette towards him. “How did I get such a great girlfriend?” he asked her, peppering her face with kisses. 

She smiled. “I don’t know, kitty, how did you?” she teased back. 

Adrien pushed their presents to the side so they could lay down on her bed. He hugged her tightly and kissed her head before looking at her smiling. “Marinette, I’m so happy we are together, you really are the most open and kind person in my life, you are my everything.”

Marinette couldn’t help the weight that fell on her, the pendant in her pants felt almost burning, she had a whole side of her that Adrien didn’t know, and she had to find a way to tell him, she couldn’t keep that a secret from her companion, her best friend and her boyfriend. “And you are mine,” she replied smiling.

“Merry Christmas, my Lady.” 

“Merry Christmas, my Kitty.”

[ao3feed-ladynoir]

MLSS 2019 Gift Nino Knows

MLSS 2019 Gift Nino Knows by LaViaggiatrice

Nino gets a shock while hiding from an akuma attack in an empty classroom.

Words: 1861, Chapters: 1/1, Language: English

Fandoms: Miraculous Ladybug

Rating: Teen And Up Audiences

Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply

Categories: F/M, Gen

Characters: Nino Lahiffe, Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir, Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug

Relationships: Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug, Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir & Nino Lahiffe

Additional Tags: ML Secret Santa, Identity Reveal, Best Friends

Read Here: http://archiveofourown.org/works/21938335

[ladysunamireads]

MLSS 2019 Gift Nino Knows

MLSS 2019 Gift Nino Knows by LaViaggiatrice

Nino gets a shock while hiding from an akuma attack in an empty classroom.

Words: 1861, Chapters: 1/1, Language: English

Fandoms: Miraculous Ladybug

Rating: Teen And Up Audiences

Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply

Categories: F/M, Gen

Characters: Nino Lahiffe, Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir, Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug

Relationships: Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug, Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir & Nino Lahiffe

Additional Tags: ML Secret Santa, Identity Reveal, Best Friends

Read Here: http://archiveofourown.org/works/21938335

[worklabournewsresearch]

What to Know When Comparing Data on Women and Men’s Work

"How many men and women were employed last week? How many hours did they work in their main jobs? And how many hours did they work in unpaid activities such as caring for children? These are seemingly straightforward questions but measuring paid and unpaid work through household surveys is anything but straightforward. This holds true especially for women in developing countries, who are more often engaged in informal activities such as microenterprises or small-scale farming — activities that can fall through the cracks of traditional surveys."

"To improve the measurement of women’s work and provide guidance on good measurement practices, the International Labour Organization (ILO) and the World Bank collaborated with the Sri Lanka Department of Census and Statistics (DCS) between 2017 and 2019 on a multi-stage pilot study. The study compared the outcomes of two types of household surveys: the labor force survey (LFS) and a multi-topic living standards survey (MLSS). ... This difference in outcomes can be concerning for users who can often assume that an indicator carrying the same label – such as unemployment – should amount to approximately the same thing regardless of the source."

"[W]e highlight three findings:

Different types of surveys won’t always give the same results, but gaps between them can be reduced

Women’s work is at greater risk of mismeasurement

Good translation matters"

International Labour Organization, October 12, 2021: What to Know When Comparing Data on Women and Men’s Work by Kieran Walsh, Summary (12 pages, PDF), Full Report (68 pages, PDF)

World Bank Group, April 2020: 'She Helps Me All the Time': Underestimating Women’s Economic Engagement in Rural Honduras, by Miriam Muller and Liliana D. Sousa (32 pages, PDF)

Photo Source: Ackley, J. (2018). [Photograph]. Unsplash. https://unsplash.com/photos/1hxgFZ68xZ4

[hakesbros]

Homes For Sale In Las Cruces New Mexico

The metropolis of Las Cruces supplies water, sewer, pure gasoline, and strong waste services, including recycling facilities. El Paso Electric is the electrical energy provider, CenturyLink is the telephone land line supplier, and Comcast is the cable TV provider. The metropolis operates a small transit authority known as RoadRUNNER Transit. RoadRUNNER Transit operates a complete of eight routes, and two Aggie routes working Mondays via Saturdays.

Each 12 months near the start of November, Old Town Mesilla hosts a two-day Día de los Muertos or “Day of the Dead” competition on the Plaza. The celebration is customary in Mexico and is broadly known by families who gather to rejoice and keep in mind handed loved ones. Altars are constructed and decorated with objects similar to candies, sugar skulls, marigolds, and trinkets. One of the more popular group occasions inLas Cruces is the Farmer’s Market hosted downtown most Saturdays.

There are 733 energetic homes for sale in Las Cruces, NM, which spend an average of eighty days in the marketplace. Some of the most well liked neighborhoods close to Las Cruces, NM are Bear Ridge, Valley Creek North, Kohlberg, West Valley, Cooperstown. These constructing homes for sale las cruces are by far one of the best I’ve seen and experienced with yet. Going to Covington dealers they've greatest customer support and make clients feel as like they're shut household.

The market added 240 new home listings in May, compared with the 248 added in May 2021. The market ended the month with some 606 listings of homes for sale. The knowledge relating to real estate for sale on this website is obtainable in part from the Internet Data trade program of the Southwest Multiple Listing Service.

The listing information on this web site is available in half from a cooperative data trade program of the multiple itemizing service in which this actual estate Broker participates. The detailed listing page about such properties includes the name of the itemizing Brokers. The New Mexico Association of Realtors and its cooperating MLSs don't create, control or evaluate the property knowledge displayed herein and take no responsibility for the content of such records.

Find out how you can create the perfect home base for 55+ senior residing in Washington DC and discover all of the activities out there for active adults. A 2-year-old lady is recovering after being attacked by a coyote in front of her house in a Los Angeles neighborhood. A 7-year-old Texas lady has been discovered dead two days after being reported missing.

The common household measurement was 2.46 and the typical family size was three.05. Estimates for 2019 say that Las Cruces had a population of 103,432. Its demographics have been 32.5% Non-Hispanic White, 2.8% African American or Black, 1.4% Native American, 1.8% Asian, 0.0% Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander, 2.9% Two or extra races, 60.5% Hispanic or Latino of any race. There were 39,925 households with a mean homes for sale in las cruces new mexico household measurement of 2.fifty one individuals per family. Median household earnings was $43,022, and the percentage of individuals in poverty was 23.6%. Winters alternate between colder and windier weather following trough and frontal passages, and warmer, sunnier durations; gentle freezes occur 69 nights on common.

Login to save tons of your search and get further properties emailed to you. That intently match your search criteria, or modify your search to find home builders in las cruces matching properties. Blue Listings from CoStar are offered to dealer professionals such as you.

[28northgroup]

Patience Is the Key to Buying a Home This Year

The question many homebuyers are facing this year is, “Why is it so hard to find a house?” We’re in the ultimate sellers’ market, which means real estate is ultra-competitive for buyers right now. The National Association of Realtors (NAR) notes homes are getting an average of 4.8 offers per sale, and that number keeps rising. Why? It’s because there are so few houses for sale.

Low inventory in the housing market isn’t new, but it’s becoming more challenging to navigate. Danielle Hale, Chief Economist at realtor.com, explains:

“The housing market is still relatively under supplied, and buyers can’t buy what’s not for sale. Relative to what we saw in 2017 to 2019, March 2021 was still roughly 117,000 new listings lower, adding to the pre-existing early-year gap of more than 200,000 fresh listings that would typically have come to market in January or February. Despite this week’s gain from a year ago, we’re 19 percent below the new seller activity that we saw in the same week in 2019.”

While many homeowners paused their plans to sell during the height of the pandemic, this isn’t the main cause of today’s huge gap between supply and demand. Sam Khater, Vice President and Chief Economist at Freddie Mac, Economic Housing and Research Division, shares:

“The main driver of the housing shortfall has been the long-term decline in the construction of single-family homes . . . That decline has resulted in the decrease in supply of entry-level single-family homes or, ’starter homes.’”

When you consider the number of homes built in the U.S. by decade, the serious lack of new construction is clear (See graph below):

The number of newly built homes is disproportionately lower than the rate of household formation, which, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, has continued to increase. Khater also explains:

“Even before the COVID-19 pandemic and current recession, the housing market was facing a substantial supply shortage and that deficit has grown. In 2018, we estimated that there was a housing supply shortage of approximately 2.5 million units, meaning that the U.S. economy was about 2.5 million units below what was needed to match long-term demand. Using the same methodology, we estimate that the housing shortage increased to 3.8 million units by the end of 2020. A continued increase in a housing shortage is extremely unusual; typically in a recession, housing demand declines and supply rises, causing inventory to rise above the long-term trend.”

To catch up to current demand, Freddie Mac estimates we need to build almost four million homes. The good news is builders are working hard to get us there. The U.S. Census Bureau also states:

“Privately-owned housing units authorized by building permits in March were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,766,000. This is 2.7 percent (±1.7 percent) above the revised February rate of 1,720,000 . . . Privately-owned housing starts in March were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,739,000. This is 19.4 percent (±13.7 percent) above the revised February estimate of 1,457,000. . . .”

What does this mean? Lawrence Yun, Chief Economist at NAR, clarifies:

“The March figure of 1.74 million housing starts is the highest in 14 years. Both single-family units and multifamily units ramped up. After 13 straight years of underproduction – the chief cause for today’s inventory shortage – this construction boom needs to last for at least three years to make up for the part shortfall. As trade-up buyers purchase newly constructed homes, their prior homes will show up in MLSs, and hence, more choices for consumers. Housing starts to housing completion could be 4 to 8 months, so be patient with the improvement to inventory. In the meantime, construction workers deserve cheers.”

Bottom Line

If you’re planning to buy this year, the key to success will be patience, given today’s low inventory environment. Let’s connect today to talk more about what’s happening in our area.

[grantreidproperties]

Patience Is the Key to Buying a Home This Year

The question many homebuyers are facing this year is, “Why is it so hard to find a house?” We’re in the ultimate sellers’ market, which means real estate is ultra-competitive for buyers right now. The National Association of Realtors (NAR) notes homes are getting an average of 4.8 offers per sale, and that number keeps rising. Why? It’s because there are so few houses for sale.

Low inventory in the housing market isn’t new, but it’s becoming more challenging to navigate. Danielle Hale, Chief Economist at realtor.com, explains:

“The housing market is still relatively under supplied, and buyers can’t buy what’s not for sale. Relative to what we saw in 2017 to 2019, March 2021 was still roughly 117,000 new listings lower, adding to the pre-existing early-year gap of more than 200,000 fresh listings that would typically have come to market in January or February. Despite this week’s gain from a year ago, we’re 19 percent below the new seller activity that we saw in the same week in 2019.”

While many homeowners paused their plans to sell during the height of the pandemic, this isn’t the main cause of today’s huge gap between supply and demand. Sam Khater, Vice President and Chief Economist at Freddie Mac, Economic Housing and Research Division, shares:

“The main driver of the housing shortfall has been the long-term decline in the construction of single-family homes . . . That decline has resulted in the decrease in supply of entry-level single-family homes or, ’starter homes.’”

When you consider the number of homes built in the U.S. by decade, the serious lack of new construction is clear (See graph below):The number of newly built homes is disproportionately lower than the rate of household formation, which, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, has continued to increase. Khater also explains:

“Even before the COVID-19 pandemic and current recession, the housing market was facing a substantial supply shortage and that deficit has grown. In 2018, we estimated that there was a housing supply shortage of approximately 2.5 million units, meaning that the U.S. economy was about 2.5 million units below what was needed to match long-term demand. Using the same methodology, we estimate that the housing shortage increased to 3.8 million units by the end of 2020. A continued increase in a housing shortage is extremely unusual; typically in a recession, housing demand declines and supply rises, causing inventory to rise above the long-term trend.”

To catch up to current demand, Freddie Mac estimates we need to build almost four million homes. The good news is builders are working hard to get us there. The U.S. Census Bureau also states:

“Privately-owned housing units authorized by building permits in March were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,766,000. This is 2.7 percent (±1.7 percent) above the revised February rate of 1,720,000 . . . Privately-owned housing starts in March were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,739,000. This is 19.4 percent (±13.7 percent) above the revised February estimate of 1,457,000. . . .”

What does this mean? Lawrence Yun, Chief Economist at NAR, clarifies:

“The March figure of 1.74 million housing starts is the highest in 14 years. Both single-family units and multifamily units ramped up. After 13 straight years of underproduction – the chief cause for today’s inventory shortage – this construction boom needs to last for at least three years to make up for the part shortfall. As trade-up buyers purchase newly constructed homes, their prior homes will show up in MLSs, and hence, more choices for consumers. Housing starts to housing completion could be 4 to 8 months, so be patient with the improvement to inventory. In the meantime, construction workers deserve cheers.”

Bottom Line

If you’re planning to buy this year, the key to success will be patience, given today’s low inventory environment. Let’s connect today to talk more about what’s happening in our area.

Content previously posted on Keeping Current Matters source https://www.simplifyingthemarket.com/en/2021/04/28/patience-is-the-key-to-buying-a-home-this-year/?a=489032-35f51ed32012ea2b41c9407612018119

[futuremarket]

Process Analyzer Market Upcoming Trends, Growth Drivers and Challenges, Forecast to 2023 (SARS-CoV-2, Covid-19 Analysis)

Process Analyzer Market  

A new market study, titled “Process Analyzer Market” has been featured on Market Research Future.   

The global process analyzer market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 6% over the forecast period from 2017 to 2023, according to the latest research report published by Market Research Future (MRFR). The report studies the global process analyzer market in detail in order to reveal actionable insights regarding the major drivers and restraints operating on the market, the key players operating in the market, and the market’s leading segments. 

More Information@ https://www.marketresearchfuture.com/reports/process-analyzer-market-5788

Process analyzers are used in various industrial processes to examine the physical contents involved in the processes. This is necessary for enhancing the quality of the product as well as complying with environmental regulations, which have become a major factor for industrial entities in recent years. The global process analyzer market is mainly driven by the growing demand from the wastewater treatment industry as well as the oil and gas industry. Wastewater treatment plants rely on process analyzers to eliminate waste products from the wastewater stream and achieve adequate separation of all components for further processing. The oil and gas industry has also emerged as a major end user in the global process analyzer market due to the growing need for process analyzers in petrochemical refineries. 

The growing government support to the wastewater treatment industry is likely to be a major driver for the global process analyzer market over the forecast period. Wastewater treatment has emerged as a key issue due to its importance in public health management and disease prevention. This has led to increasing government support in developed as well as developing countries for the adoption of more advanced and refined treatment processes in the wastewater treatment industry. 

Competitive Analysis:

Leading players in the global process analyzer market include Yokogawa Electric Corp., Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc., The Emerson Electric Company, Teledyne Technologies Inc., Mettler-Toledo International Inc., Honeywell International Inc., Hach Lange GmbH, GE Analytical Instruments, Endress+Hauser AG, and ABB Ltd. Leading players in the global process analyzer market are likely to focus on product innovations in the coming years, as coming up with a well-developed product catalog and technologically advanced products has emerged as a major recipe for success in the process analyzer market. 

In May 2019, PerkinElmer launched a new NIR analyzer for the food and beverage industry, especially producers of meat and olives. The food and beverage industry could also play a major role in the growth of the global process analyzer market over the forecast period due to the growing government intervention in the food and beverage industry to ensure food safety and the growing demand for packaged food. 

Segmentation:

The global process analyzer market is segmented by type, service, end use, and region.

Based on the type, the global process analyzer market is segmented into pH/ORP analyzers, conductivity analyzers, near-infrared analyzers, turbidity analyzers, dissolved oxygen analyzers, chlorine analyzers, liquid density analyzers, MLSS analyzers, TOC analyzers, aluminum analyzers, ammonia analyzers, fluoride analyzers, and others. pH/ORP analyzers are likely to exhibit the fastest growth over the forecast period due to the growing demand for this type of analyzer from the oil and gas industry. 

Based on service, the process analyzer market is segmented into pre-sales and post-sales. The pre-sales segment is further classified into start-up & commissioning services and technical support services, whereas the post-sales segment is further classified into parts & spares services, preventive maintenance services, and on-site training services. 

Based on end-use industry, the global process analyzer market is segmented into oil & gas, petrochemical, pharmaceuticals, water & wastewater, power generation, food & beverages, semiconductor processing, pulp & paper, metal & mining, and others. 

Related Article@  https://icrowdnewswire.com/2020/07/30/process-analyzer-market-2020-2023-global-trends-industry-segments-key-vendors-study-import-export-revenue-sars-cov-2-covid-19-analysis/

About Market Research Future: At Market Research Future (MRFR), we enable our customers to unravel the complexity of various industries through our Cooked Research Reports (CRR), Half-Cooked Research Reports (HCRR), Raw Research Reports (3R), Continuous-Feed Research (CFR), and Market Research and Consulting Services. Contact: Market Research Future +1 646 845 9312 Email: sales@marketresearchfuture.com

[ericfruits]

The cost of buying and selling homes is too high

Time for disruption in the property market The cost of buying and selling homes is too high

Ending America’s real-estate racket

Feb 15th 2020

THE STAKES are high. Along with getting married and choosing a career, buying or selling a home is one of the biggest decisions most people make. In America, especially, the sums are vast. In total the country’s residential property is worth $34trn—as much as the value of all its publicly listed firms—and last year people traded properties worth $1.5trn. Yet compared with other industries and other countries, buying and selling property in America is cumbersome—and extraordinarily expensive. In an industry crying out for technological disruption, the only revolutionary change over the past decade has been the rise of celebrity estate agents who star in reality TV shows including “Million Dollar Listing” and “Flip or Flop”.

The scale of the commissions extracted by the real-estate industry in America is jaw-dropping. Fees run at 5-6% of the value of a property, three times the average level in other developed countries (see article). In total they amounted to $75bn last year, or 0.4% of GDP. Other marketplaces—for shares, groceries, advertising and romance—have been transformed by technology. But in property the old ways persist. America still has 2m realtors.

Although online platforms such as Zillow and Redfin have made some inroads, allowing buyers to do much of the searching themselves, fees have not budged. An inefficient property market has knock-on effects on the economy. In the 1950s, 20% of households moved each year; today only 9% do. The slowdown in labour mobility has many causes, but in a country where most people own homes, high fees do not help.

At the heart of the problem is a knot of obsolete practices that seem to favour insiders rather than the buyers and sellers of property. Unlike the practice in most countries, the seller usually pays fees to both their own agent and the buyer’s. Agents acting on behalf of buyers thus have an incentive to steer their clients away from properties with low fees—one study has found that such homes are 5% less likely to sell, the opposite of what you would expect in a healthy market. Most transactions are listed on 800-odd common industry databases, known as multiple listing services (MLS). The government worries that their rules and tacit codes of behaviour might muffle competition, by prompting agents to search for homes based on how high fees are, or by restricting the distribution, sale or licensing of data. (The National Association of Realtors, a lobbying group, argues that the industry is competitive and MLSs benefit consumers.)

What to do? America’s trust-busters last looked into the industry in depth in 2008, when they tried to ensure MLSs were open to internet-based firms. Now, after a decade in which fees have not fallen materially, they are investigating again. The Department of Justice has subpoenaed some of the private firms that help run MLSs to establish whether agents operating on them are puffing up fees or steering clients towards properties with higher fees, and whether access to MLS data is being unfairly restricted. Two big class-action lawsuits are under way against the industry.

Boosting competition is a complex problem, but the antitrust policemen are right to intervene. They should seek to enforce two principles. First, that agents are genuinely free to compete by lowering commissions—or by abandoning the practice of requiring sellers to pay two sets of fees. Second, that any firm which wants to gain access to industry data can do so freely at reasonable prices. The best tests of whether regulators succeed are whether commissions fall towards levels in the rest of the rich world and the market share of new entrants rises.

Plenty of entrepreneurs are keen to get involved. Some $6bn of venture capital flowed into “prop tech” firms in 2019. Opendoor and Zillow have algorithms that crunch data to determine the value of a home, and allow them to make “instant offers” to sellers that are all cash and can be paid within days. Other firms have developed tools to lift agents’ productivity, such as automatic home-tour booking systems. Competition can make America’s property market work better. If regulators lower the barriers to entry, they will be knocking on an open door.■

This article appeared in the Leaders section of the print edition under the headline "The cost of buying and selling homes is too high"

https://ift.tt/2Sncp3q

[celestinehall]

2019 was the year of the Multiple Listing Service

It was a big year for MLSs — pocket listings, bombshell lawsuits and the relentless march of technology all dominated MLS news. Here are the most noteworthy trends. 2019 was the year of the Multiple Listing Service posted first on https://www.inman.com/

[margartspencer]

2019 was the year of the Multiple Listing Service

It was a big year for MLSs — pocket listings, bombshell lawsuits and the relentless march of technology all dominated MLS news. Here are the most noteworthy trends. 2019 was the year of the Multiple Listing Service posted first on https://www.inman.com/

[bestpennystocks]

Will These 3 Penny Stocks Head Higher in November? Over the years…