#my only adrienette fic

[96coccinelle96]

I couldn’t stop myself from drawing Adrien and Mari from Chapter 29 of Honacats’ fic; Spots, Whiskers, and Ballet Slippers. This story is so good, she worked so hard on it, and she deserves more recognition, GO READ IT PLEASEEE!!! summary:

Marinette Dupain-Cheng's dream is to join a prestigious dance company. To do that, she needs to earn a spot on the next biggest French dance show, train a celebrity in the art of dance, and win.

All Adrien Agreste wants to do is stop being on house arrest and attend an actual school. Who knows, maybe he could make an actual friend despite his father's insane demands. When Adrien meets Marinette, he thinks maybe he's found one-that is, until Chloe ruins it.

Marinette ends up forced to dance with none other than backstabbing Adrien Agreste who had almost tricked her into believing he was a decent guy. If that wasn't enough, she's also Lady Noir, a new super heroine whose presence in Paris has been seen as anything but pawsitive.

Things may not be purrfect, but at least she has her loyal and handsome partner of the Ladybug Miraculous, Aphid, to depend on.

[mlbigbang]

2023 Adrinette Fic Rec List

It’s the end of the year which means it’s finally time for the ML Big Bang’s yearly fic rec lists! We’re really excited to bring you our contributors’ favourite fics started this year to supply you with plenty of reading material while you’re waiting for the Big Bang fics’ publication in January.

Fate, Destiny... A Hamster by @mostmagical

After finally moving into his very first apartment per Ladybug’s suggestion, Adrien discovers something no movie or TV show could have ever prepared him for: someone else's hamster. Marinette was so excited to have her first pet. If only it would stop escaping! At least now there’s an excuse to talk to the new neighbor. (Adrinette Never Met AU)

This fic is peak adrinette identity shenanigans! Adrien and Marinette star as the next door neighbors losing and finding the titular hamster, falling in love, and avoiding an identity reveal like the plague.

If I Let Myself Love You by @uptoolateart

It’s hard to be a normal girl with a normal life when your mother has terminal cancer. And when fashion model Adrien Agreste moves back to Paris and wants to be Marinette’s friend – or maybe even more – her life is turned upside down again. How can she risk opening her heart to love when her whole world is falling apart? Especially when Adrien is hiding a dark secret of his own…. - COMPLETE FIC – updates on Sundays *** No kwamis AU - 100% Adrinette. About half of it is fluffy and half heavy. Please read tags for trigger warnings. ***

It is such an incredible balance of beautiful, heart-wrenching and funny! I adored the relationship between Adrien and Marinette, how it developed throughout, how natural it was, how they both helped each other through their grief. Just beautiful.

hearth by @asukiess

Because how do you describe a dream once you wake up, when it’s fleeting and slipping through the cracks in your mind like it’s a sieve? You can barely wrap your lips around the concepts and words before you realize it has slipped through like water, and what lay in your hands is just a pang in your chest? When every moment away from it clouds your mind just a little more, until the memories are threadbare? or: Adrien understands what it means to have a home.

call it even by @sha-nwa & @anna-scribbles

After a year of dating, there is one thing Marinette knows for certain: it's her and Adrien against the world. Through it all, Adrien is kind, patient, and endlessly understanding—even as she tries her best to keep her secret superhero identity hidden from him along with the rest of the world. Nothing could ruin it, not even the supervillains of Paris: Hawkmoth and Chat Noir. (adrinette dating // ladynoir enemies au)

A really well-written Adrienette fic featuring Ladynoir as enemies.

All the Missing Pieces by @uptoolateart

At 14, Adrien stepped into the time burrow and saw the truth no one could have guessed. When he came out, he was changed forever. And after defeating his father, he was finally free...or was he? At 37, Adrien has everything he ever dreamed of – married to Marinette, three kids, the hamster – but none of it has turned out as expected. Marinette’s career is such a success that she’s never home, Hugo is an angsty difficult teenager, and Adrien is still struggling with his secret identity as a sentimonster. And now, Lila Rossi is back after more than 20 years. But has time changed her? Or is she up to her old tricks?

It's my actual life (except I'm not good looking lol), and I vouch for how WILDLY accurate its treatment of the emotional issues of stay-at-home-dad stuff. I just cannot recommend highly enough how it handles jealousy, isolation, parenting struggles, etc. Not me in the comments every chapter telling the author how she got the feels so perfectly right.

If I Let Myself Love You by @uptoolateart

It’s hard to be a normal girl with a normal life when your mother has terminal cancer. And when fashion model Adrien Agreste moves back to Paris and wants to be Marinette’s friend – or maybe even more – her life is turned upside down again. How can she risk opening her heart to love when her whole world is falling apart? Especially when Adrien is hiding a dark secret of his own…

So absolutely sweet. So emotionally devastating. Gets meta by taking advantage of how AO3 works at one point. Next level in every way. I loved the developing Adrienette friendship. I loved Marinette and her father. I loved Marinette's feelings about her sick mother. Please everyone read this fic your face will melt with emotion, and you weren't really using your face, were you?

Our Tales are Endless (That's Why I Tell Them) by joonapeach

Marinette lives a simple life - one surrounded by pretty dresses, fresh macaroons, and the calming view of Paris. It's a life she thinks she has always fit in. And yet sometimes, when a certain boy comes by her shop with a flower and a new adventurous story, she can't help but wonder if there's something else she's missing.

you don't even know me at all (but i was made for loving you) by @ladyofthenoodle

They didn’t remember each other. The hospital told them there’d been an accident—brain damage—but Alya had told them the truth, later. Who’d they’d been to each other. What they’d given up, and why. But even with their memories of each other gone, Adrien and Marinette are still inextricably tied together—by law, by their social circles, and by their hearts. And in the apartment they share, there's only one bed.

If you like amnesia AUs, angst with a happy ending, married adrinette, and only one bed scenarios, you need to read this fic! It's beautifully bittersweet and will break your heart before putting it back together.

[flightfoot]

Miraculous movie review

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

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

What I liked about the movie:

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

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

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

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

---

What I didn't like about the movie:

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

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

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

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

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

Were the fart scenes with Plagg really necessary?

---

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

[d1g1k1tty]

I keep thinking about this, and I don’t remember if I’ve already said this on here, but Miraculous Ladybug is the only fandom where you will have four very distinct and unique ship dynamics from the same two people.

Like, I adore Adrienette. It’s the classic, dare I say, the OG. It’s just two awkward kids who kinda have crushes on each other. It’s cute and it reminds me of a simpler time. They’re both kind-hearted and shit. It’s just-- akfaljaf;ajfk They were my favorite in middle school and I’m attached. I used to watch that timeskip comic video on Youtube. You probably know the one. I’m not even going to explain it. You know what it is. But, I will say that my favorite panels from that video were the ones were Marinette tells Adrien about her pregnancy by putting a bun in the oven, and he doesn’t get it at first. But anyway.

Then there’s Ladynoir. Again, a bit of an OG. It’s the casual banter, the partnership on the battlefield, the complete and utter trust they have in each other. I love them, and I miss them. I need the flirty Ladynoir dynamic again. 

Now, Marichat. I love Marichat, too. They’re just so goofy. It’s like when you meet someone who seems really cool and then you find out that they’re actually a huge dork, and they try to impress you the whole time. That’s the dynamic that they have and I live for it. And also, Chat is just,, so sweet with Marinette. And on the other side of the coin, it’s almost like the secret lover trope. Like, for God’s sake he literally can come in through the balcony in the middle of the night. I love the fics where he’ll just check in on Mari.

And finally... Ladrien. I’ll admit. Out of each ship in the love square, I really, reallly dislike Ladrien. It gives me the vibes of when celebrities get together with their fans... They distract each other too much, and not in the silly goofy way. I just don’t think it’s cute. That’s it. I think I’m done. 

[red-balloon12]

Everybody Hates Lila (And Why It’s Concerning Sometimes)

Lila Rossi is not a stranger in the Miraculous fandom. In fact I’d argue she’s more infamous than Gabriel in some cases. She’s despised by nearly everyone and while some reasons are more justifiable than others, she’s all around not a good person and a mid at best character.

But here’s my deal with it. The fandom hates this girl to I’d like to say an….unhealthy degree. Like the amount of salt this character gets is unmatched. And I feel like the causation of all of this salt doesn’t really live up to the response.

Lila is a liar who causes characters to act out of character very often. And not only that but she also is Marinette’s main rival now and is a jerk to her. She’s underutilized and her lies aren’t that convincing and yet the story wants to convince us she’s more important than she really is pre butterfly miraculous.

This is Lila’s character summed up. At the most I’d expect is frustration mixed in with mild dislike. Reasonable but not over the top. Instead though, I see SEVERAL people make so many salt fics and talk so much shit about her that I just have to sit down and say….y’all need to chill. You all seriously need to chill.

The fandom talks about this character like she’s the spawn of Satan, something we’ve been criticizing Astruc for doing with Chloe, all because she doesn’t have as many redeeming traits as her. Did we forget that they’re BOTH kids? Both of them still have room to improve on themselves.

And I’ll admit it, I was one of those people who kept on saying “Why demonize Chloe when we have Lila” but thinking on it now, neither of them deserves to have that fate. If we REALLY need a character to do the whole “people don’t change” thing, why not Gabriel?

It’s so much better to have this lesson taught to adults to not be like Gabriel, to accept change and loss and to be better. To teach how heavy the impact of a lost love can be and how old age isn’t an excuse to be “stuck in your ways”.

Plus the lesson works better for someone who’s older than for teenagers who’s literally at the stage of their lives where change is everything. And I’m not saying Lila needs to be redeemed or she isn’t allowed to be a villain. What I’m saying is that the over salting on her character, a character that can be easily fixed and patched up, is kinda dumb and kinda annoying to see…especially when some people do like Lila.

SPEAKING OF WHICH, don’t think I’ve forgotten what happened years ago with that one fan that claimed that they loved Lila. That’s what happens when you take salting on a character WAY too far. And I can say that it’s only gotten a little better.

I just don’t understand why people can’t spend their energy talking about how to make a character better instead of salting on them 24/7 and this goes for all of the characters in ML.

I’m gonna be in the minority when I say this but Lila doesn’t deserve to be salted in as much as she does. She deserves reevaluation and a true villain arc. The constant bashing and insulting her at any chance ain’t it.

But you wanna know the thing that frustrates me the most about the Lila salt? How she started getting salted on in the first place. Aka, her being another barrier to Adrienette.

If y’all don’t know already, I don’t like the lovesquare and even back then I didn’t like it. And when I started seeing people hate Lila for this reason, I got very annoyed. It’s the same reason as to why people hated Kagami and it’s a stupid reason (imo). At least the other reasons why she’s hated had some foundation and sense.

TLDR: Lila is a mess but she’s not a mess that’s beyond repair but the constant salting on her and her character isn’t going to do anything. (If you really wanna salt on someone, salt on the writers for making her writing so subpar)

[theerurishipper]

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

Anon, it's like you read my mind.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Thank you for your ask!

[iamsosmaug]

Miraculous Fic Recs

Recently I've been complaining a lot on the internet how sucky the recent seasons of ML have been, and how much better the old fanfics are; I'm going to prove my point by sharing my tried-and-true rec list. Here we go.

Back To Us - Written in 2017, so some things are inaccurate. Basically Marinette, as Ladybug, kills Gabriel Agreste on accident by pushing him off the Eiffel Tower and Adrien moves to Milan. Seven years later Marinette is a rising fashion designer, her long-lost partner comes back seven years later but hot, and a new Hawkmoth shows up on the very day Adrien comes back. Suspicious. INCLUDES: Antihero!Chat. Alternate superhero names for Alya, Nino + there are only seven miraculouses which honestly I like a lot better than Ladybug just busting another one out whenever she feels like it. At one point, it was the longest fic in the fandom but now it's not even close. 446k. Requires an Ao3 account to read.

Second Chances- Again, written fairly early in the fandom. Adrien is a single dad and Alya volunteers Marinette to be his daughter's nanny - the premise sounds like it could turn out really weird but I promise it's not. Adorable adorable. INCLUDES: Past ChloexAdrien and MarinettexNathanael, and Adrien never went to school. Reverse best friends (Alya + Adrien, Mari + Nino). 105k.

Whose Woods These Are (I Think I Know) - Ladrien Cinderella AU. Super well-written in a kind of fairytale style. I honestly love this fic. 105k.

Spotty Connections - Adrienette texting fic (no miraculous AU, but does incorporate LadyNoir). Tikki & Plagg are M&A's cats. One of my favorites ever. 66k.

Film It - Adrien is a youtuber! Soon all of Twitter ships #adrienette. INCLUDES: Gabriel Agreste's A+ Parenting. Endgame Adrienette. Superheroes exist, but LB & CN aren't a huge part of this. Also worthy of note: #thatfoursome and a decent amount of Twitter formatting. This has pretty much everything I want in an Adrienette fic. 56k.

Chasing The C/h/atwalk - Project Runway AU. Marinette is a designer and Adrien... is her model. Shenanigans ensue. INCLUDES: Some LadyNoir, mostly after the identity reveal. #MarinetteInDenial. 100k. I love this fic.

Lucky Us - No Miraculous email AU. See Spotty Connections: LadyNoir incorporated without the actual superheroes. Fluff with a tiny bit of angst but still happy ending. 136k.

Secret Santa - fluff. Pure fluff; classic in the fandom. A bit cheesy and very outdated but very nice. Time for a reread. It has a sequel called New Year's Ball. 52k.

Être Majeur - horror, AU, fairly short, creepy and strange but really well-written. 24k. M for horror elements.

La Pucelle Et La Coccinelle - Absolute favorite. Explores Joan of Arc (Jeanne d'Arc in this story) with the Ladybug Miraculous. INCLUDES: Actual historical references, lore for the miraculouses, and a flashforward to the future at the end with Marinette. 38k. I have it printed out, I love it so much.

Pray For the Children You Lost Along the Way - Silent Hill AU (Emilie Anderson from the arcade game is Adrien's mom). It has been on hiatus since 2019, but is still worth a read because so many things tie together in a satisfying way. 86k. Rated M b/c of Silent Hill-type things.

Under Lock and Key - Huge classic also published on Wattpad. Author/artist collab with Maerynn & EdenDaphne - Maerynn passed away while the fic was being written and ED finished it. Very nice art by ED. I view this fic as the quintessential 2017 era Adrienette fic. Very sweet and fluffy. 34k.

Tripped at Fencing - Gabriel hits Adrien. INCLUDES: Gabriel Agreste's A+ Parenting. Accidental identity reveal (Marinette finds out first). Only 5k but a classic.

The Butterfly and Her Brother series (Generations Past and Future) - written c. 2016. Gabriel is NOT Hawkmoth; Gabriel is not a villian in the least so technically OOC. First couple are set in the 1990s, then a couple in ~2016 and the latest in like 2044. I haven't read the last one in the series but WHATHGAWAATG (Europe gets taken over), featuring the next gen of Agrestes, is really good as well. Many things are outdated/false as this was written based off of s1, but I honestly like this interpretation of the Miraculous much better than how the show does it. Mama Agreste's name is Adele (again, s1) and I quite like her character. I freaking LOVE this series. I have it downloaded to my phone and I reread it when I'm feeling sad. 340k in total, but the longest work in the series is about 166k. SO many kudos.

a fight that you were born to lose - "Adrien finds out that Gabriel is Hawkmoth, and Gabriel gets to bring his long-waited plan into action." TW abuse, emotional manipulation, forced dieting. Gabriel Agreste's A+ Parenting. Fairly short for how well-rounded it is - 17k.

An Impromptu Proposal - what it says on the tin. Reverse love square kinda: Ladynoir requited love bc Adrien never went to school. Includes identity reveal and Hawkmoth!Lila takedown. 33k.

On The Prowl - Criminal CN. Also on ffn.net. Good story and TOTALLY a classic, but also uses 'ravenette' and 'sapphire orbs' unironically. The writing is okay if a little melodramatic. 53k.

Chat Noir's White French Man Hit List For Feminist Purposes - pretty much what it says on the tin. Sentimonster!Adrien. 7.8k.

i think it's time i told you (i'm a fan of your universe) - ladynoir proposal. v v nice. Just 5k. Smidge of angst.

The Ladyblog Comment Section - what it says on the tin. 27k. Hilarity and crack.

spark - Tinder AU. Lots of Marichat. Angst with a happy ending. 49k. Slow burn w/ eventual identity reveal.

all dressed up and nowhere to go - No Miraculouses modern royalty AU - human Tikki and Plagg. Mostly DJWifi but a mild amount of adrienette and a smidge of chlogami. Includes arranged marriage Adrien x Alya but they don't end up together. "Twenty-five-year-old Marinette is a wedding dress designer, business blooming in her trusty shop, Ladybug Bridal. When the engagement of Prince Adrien Agreste and Ancient Princess Alya Césaire is announced, all she expects is an influx of work. What she gets instead is... a bit different." 35k.

tangled ribbons - Ao3. ballet/dance AU (no miraculous). Adrienette with some DJWifi and human Tikki & Plagg. "Marinette is a small studio dancer who wins a scholarship to a summer long ballet intensive. Adrien is a famous ballet dancer who would rather be at home than at said intensive. The end of the summer will bring about a showcase that could make Marinette's career, if she can ignore Chloé and focus on something other than Adrien." 82k. The slowest of burns.

Where timing is kind to us - Ao3. marichat discusses quantum physics. 4.3k. This is a beautiful one-shot with a one-sided reveal.

[mlsquaredance]

There's only one week left until the posting period of our remixes starts! From our dance writers, you can look forward to remixes to the following fics:

✮ you're all that i want (when you're lying here in my arms) by @jennagrinsoverml

✮ The right side of his face by @hamsternamedmarinette

✮ Mint To Be by @coffeebanana

✮ A Friend Like That by @trainsinanime

✮ A Miraculous Reveal by @kasienda

✮ dared not to remember your name (you found me anyway) by @chocoluckchipz

✮ cherry lip balm by @rosekasa

✮ Hamster (Adrienette April 2022) by @aanabear2803

✮ pretty lady, look at how he's smiling by @ladyofthenoodle

✮ Friendly Presents and Sickly Kisses by @wyomingparmesan

[bootsssss]

I'm excited to finally share my @mlbigbang illustrations for RaspberryCatapult's fic Outback Camp!

I had so much fun working on this project together, and the fic is super cute! You can check out the first chapter now on Ao3:

Summary:

It was official. Marinette was going to die. There was no way she was going to survive this camp – let alone manage to confess. Forget crazy Australian wildlife – how could she make it through alive with Adrien? Marinette, Adrien and their classmates go on a 10-day school camp to the Central Australian desert. Uluru (Ayers Rock), Alice Springs, Kings Canyon, Coober Pedy and more! For Marinette, it’s the perfect chance to confess to Adrien…if only she can muster up the courage. Adrien, meanwhile, is beginning to realise just how special Marinette is to him. Featuring lots of fluffy Adrienette, fun experiences, class shenanigans, and an identity reveal!

[sizzleissues]

Thoughts on conformation and recreation

Going to put heavy spoilers and theory stuff under a cut but just starting off saying I liked it. I do feel negative about certain aspects but I’m 90% certain that was intended. We’re supposed to be going ‘wait a minute’ about this ending.

The action was amazing and the animation gorgeous in parts. I really like BugNoire’s design.

Overall it didn’t disappoint me which I feel is the only thing and ending shouldn’t do. You can happy, mad, sad etc. about an ending but those emotions are most of the time intentional. But if it comes with disappointment then something has gone wrong. (Excluding minor stuff)

Anyway time to get specific

I love the mystery we still have with all that happened. I think it’s concluded what needed to end and left us with questions to answer in the following two seasons.

Are we supposed to think this was a ‘good/happy’ ending?

What’s up with Gimmi?

Will Marinette tell Adrien/ will Adrien find out and how will it impact both of them?

Is it Emilie or Amelie?

Who the heck visited Lila at the end?

What’s going to happen next?

Those are the questions I see people asking and trying to answer. None of those questions feel unanswerable and it’s plenty of fodder for speculation and fics in the coming year as we wait for season 6. I do want to know whether the special is pre or post season 5 because that will definitely affect things. I can’t see the reveal happening in a special but it’s certainly something to think about.

I think what made the finale special is the many layers it has, things that at first viewing you might miss. For example I saw someone in the last hour point out Marinette quite literally had a nightmare about what would happen if she reacted harshly (aka killed that motherfucker gabe) towards Monarch. Even though Marinette is shown to be an empathetic character and would probably try to talk it out anyway if she saw victory through it, that nightmare definitely pushed her to be more trusting.

In a way it worked. I believe that Gabriel’s wish was to trade his life for Nathalie’s and be able to join Emile. Marinette’s passion sort of proved to him that there were people who cared about Adrien still around even though he’d run out of time by the time he’d realised that neither Emile or Adrien wanted this.

He’s still a villain, he died a villain but that minor change of heart (as he said to Gimmi for his desire to simply read his heart) ensured Adrien would have Nathalie as a parental figure, maybe even bringing Amelie over to take more active care in her nephew and the freedom to be with Marinette, a girl who proved in Gabriel’s last moments that she would love Adrien no matter what. He’s still a villain in that his narcism demanded Marinette not to reveal the truth, remade the world to praise him for his sacrifice and probably a whole bunch of other issues that will unravel in season 6.

(In terms of him and Emile ascending, I don’t believe Gabriel got to go to ‘heaven’ or dragged Emile down to ‘hell’. He just got to be with her and got to have a peaceful death where they can be buried side by side. He isn’t getting an eternal reward for this.)

((If turns out to be Emile alive we’ll just have to see))

Whatever happened, there is obviously something wrong with this new world. It goes against all the motifs set up in previous episodes. I agree with the consensus that we are not supposed to feel entirely good about this ending. Uneasy for the future, nervous for Adrienette, curious about how it’ll unfold.

My feelings about the finale will probably change with season 6 coming out.

(Istg if when Lila-moth is taken down it’s not both Adrien and Marinette I will scream. Let them defeat her together. I get why they couldn’t be together for Gabriel, Adrien would still freak (especially with the nightmares) and he’s still under Gabriel’s control. I’d hoped they’d make it work but I think all the previous reveals/endings proved they couldn’t both take him down. Adrien would be made too fragile and Gabriel is difficult to reason with. I think the only thing that made him a little bit more able to listen to reason was because he was dying so the wish would have had to fix that too etc.)

[princess-of-the-corner]

Fanfic Recs

some of my favourite Miraculous Ladybug fanfics, in case anyone wants to read them. 

I would have put all of them, but I feel like recommending the author’s fanfic to the author is redundant.

Telling Lies? No Mama

Aishling

(My personal favourite long-form “Lila Exposed” fic. Portrays the class as flawed kids trying to do the right thing. Alya is far more supportive than in canon, and everyone is less of an idiot. Chloe even has a redemption - it can feel a little out of nowhere, but it is in-character for her, and I feel well-handled. Fair warning, Lila is very much portrayed as Evil, willing to work with a terrorist kind of evil, so it may not be for everyone.)

BURN THE WITCH

ChaoticNeutral

(My second favourite long-form “Lila Exposed” fic. Rather than the previous one, Lila is not portrayed as pure evil, but as opportunistic and manipulative, as well as impulsive and over confident. She’s so used to getting away with things that she doesn’t realize that there are some things she can’t lie away. It also has an interesting Akuma for the person manipulated by Lila, and some great characterization for all the characters.)

Threatened

Aki_Usagi

(yet another Lila Exposed fic, but one that changes things up a little. Marinette was all set to face Lila head on when she was the one being threatened, but what if Lila realized that? What if she didn’t threaten Marinette, but her friends?)

A Thief, a Thief

GalahadWilder

(Honestly, a super short drabble set just after Lila accuses Marinette of stealing - and it backfires hilariously.)

Double Monkey Dare

ChaoticNeutral

(a Lila Exposed fic that includes Kim at his most himb. one-shot)

Double Vision

dumbdpaus

(Marinette saves Lila’s life during an Akuma attack, and Lila is forced to do some examination of herself. One-shot)

Occam’s Razor

Flairina

(an interesting, alternative idea for why everyone believed Lila immediately - yes, magic was involved. No, it wasn’t Lila’s. Two-shot.)

what’s up danger

GuardianKarenTerrier

(A look at Miracuclass through the eyes of its teacher. One-shot. From the actual description on ao3:

“Caline Bustier has not seen a single one of her students come through the classroom door in a week and a half.

There would likely be more students on time if they weren’t all coming in through the windows or, in Juleka’s case, technically through the doorway- as much as going hand over hand along the ceiling counts. Caline’s not even sure how she’s doing that. 

She’s not even sure who to blame for this anymore.”)

If At First You Don’t Succeed

Leisey

(a long but hilarious one-shot of the Miracuclass - headed by Chloe - deciding to take the reins and make Adrienette happen.)

Restorative Justice

Kasienda

(Chloe sitting through an in class activity she hates with a passion, and realizing that the two of only people she cares about - Adrien and Ladybug - are drowning under their responsibilities, and deciding to do something about it. Honestly one of my favourite versions of Chloe.)

Crash and Burn

quicksilversquared

(“Everyone expected Hawk Moth to die in a dramatic fashion during some battle with Ladybug and Cat Noir.

No one expected him to die in a car accident on a week day afternoon.

Least of all his son.”)

What the Cat Dragged In

Kryal

(A pretty good crossover fic with the Avengers. Tony Stark, Clint Barton, and Natasha Romanov head to Paris, and encounter the local heroes, the villain, and some kids with fascinating insights on how this whole “Miraculous” thing works.)

Little Devil

angelofthequeers

(An interesting take on Marinette being Akumatized, and Chloe becoming Ladybug. Pretty enjoyable.)

-

I think I’ve read a good chunk of these lmao.

[snitchesnsneeds]

Bethany's Bizarre Miraculous Reviews Episode 3-5: Reflekdoll

I was slacking for a bit, but one fic I frequented updated and now I need to know if the characters Would Fucking Say That. Also,

Let's discuss the bad, the good, and the other stuff.

The Bad:

So this was a "swap places" episode. A pretty drab one at that.

Chat felt kinda OOC in this episode too, especially at the start. Are these characters really getting on each other's nerves or is this just a setup for the episode?

Alya, Marinette is here to do a job, not possibly get a date with Adrien. No matter, she is right that Adrien knows his way around fashion shoots.

The worst akuma is back because Alya wanted to do an Adrienette photo shoot. I'm starting to see what the non-Chameleon salters were saying about her. I know Marinette was also interrupting Juleka, but she definitely cared about what was happening with Juleka and wanted to find a solution to the problem.

The Good:

Ohmigosh Juleka looks soo cute with her hair up!

And modeling Marinette's clothes too!

And a Julerose kiss even if it was on the cheek!

And a slight thing where Rose was the only one that was unscathed from the akuma's antics! I'm pretty sure the twin sister stuff was to fuck with her. Either that or Hawkmoth is homophobic/lesbophobic.

The alternate outfits were good too! Arguably better than the main outfits, too.

The Other Stuff:

So Tikki and Plagg can stay in the material world even with no one wearing their Miraculouses now? Is this something the Miraculous holders can set up?

So is this the episode that establishes life created by the Peacock Miraculous loses control when cataclysmed? Because the creation here was a mecha more than anything, and it could just be explained as the mecha's inner works malfunctioning because the cataclysm didn't fully destroy it.

On a conceptual level Reflekta makes no sense to me. People aren't looking at her, people are looking at themselves and others turned into clones of hers. And what's with that look? The fashion stuff I get, but does Juleka have a desire to go join the circus or something? That would be cool, actually. I like the circus.

It got to the point where I had a redesign concept for Reflekta. Make her the human version of light pollution; cover her in holiday lights; sirens; glowing neon sign parts; all of it, and make the beams she shoots force people to look at her constantly without even blinking. Now she has people looking at her, a better design still screaming 'look at me,' a threatening ability outside of fan works I want to erase from my mind, and plenty of hostages on top of that!

[literaphobe]

no pressure but I’m sooooooo looking forward to tvl you have no idea. I just know it’s gonna be my jam 50000% I love fumbling idiots in their 20s and Ladynoir being jealous of their civilian selves. The snippets you posted are amazing, take your time to write this fic exactly as you imagine it ❤️

oh anon please know that this ask MADE my day and i felt so so so special princess about it ^_^ I LOVE BEING ASKED ABOUT TVL ACTUALLY and it gives me MOTIVATION so tysssssm 🥺 ur so right ladynoir DOES get jealous of their civilian selves by accident. sometimes it’s random other stuff and not only their civilian selves. its so funny tbh. OH and adrienette get jealous of their superhero selves too. here’s a snippet of marinette feeling insane for free bc adrien pretended to have a gf as a panic response (this is so out of context but WHATEVER i hope u like it anon)

[flightfoot]

I know fandom wank has always existed, but do you see an upswing in people being obsessed with character accountability and purity of character? I'm a fandom old and I could be wrong, but it seems to me that fandom in the last 5 - 8 years has been on this strong accountability/morality obsession.

Like there has been so much Alya hate popping up lately. I saw a thread on another sm site where they were ranting about how horrible she is for her pushiness in Reflekdoll and how she was not held accountable for it. Someone said that the writing for her is all over the place because she behaves as she does in Reflekdoll and then is a good friend sometimes.

My response to that is "Have you met PEOPLE?" People who have positive traits and negative traits and demonstrate them on a regular basis? Human beings with flaws?

The defenders feed into this purity of morality obsession too. When 'Targeted Character' is besmirched, the defender of that character will jump to say "No actually that character is not to blame. Blame this other character I like less instead!" or "Targeted Character did nothing wrong!"

Well, sometimes 'Targeted Character' was wrong. Alya is a bit pushy in Reflekdoll. She could have done some things differently.

So what?

Alya has also demonstrated bravery, determination, loyalty, intelligence and restraint. Flaws are often a dual side of a strength. Alya can be pushy because Alya is brave and initiating. But I guess all her strengths go out of the window when she displays a flaw. Especially if it's a flaw where no accountability was shown in episode.

But writers don't just write characters demonstrating flaws with the intent to show accountability later. Sometimes they write characters demonstrating their flaws to further the plot and/or show off the character's personality. There is nothing wrong with this, especially not for side characters. Not every minor problematic thing a character does needs to be addressed. Even Marinette and Adrien have shown their flaws in several episodes to further the plot or embellish them with no in episode accountability.

I just don't get what these people want. A super sanitized cardboard-scape where no one does anything problematic ever unless there is a pointed lesson to be learned? That sounds extremely boring and I'd hate to read these peoples' writing. They seem to want to suck the humanity out of characters and story. I get it's a kid show, but is it necessarily smart to teach kids that "good" people are never to show their flaws ever? That everytime they step one toe out of line, the waiting hand of justice will strike? Fandom discards much easier than they used to.

Yeah people tend to go WAY overboard. I dunno if this is a recent phenomenon? I didn't run into it in my older fandoms, namely Digimon and Kingdom Hearts (mostly Kingdom hearts), but that might have more to do with those specific fandoms than a trend over time (especially since Kingdom Hearts is a remarkably peaceful fandom, considering its size).

Funny thing about Alya in Reflekdoll, I actually wrote a fic several years back called Divergent Points - Reflekdoll specifically addressing her behavior in that episode in order to use it to develop her character, to explore her more and use it as a learning opportunity.

“Adrien? Marinette? Where are your Miraculous?”

They both looked slightly uncomfortable, patting their bags.

Ok. So they weren’t wearing them right now, but they were close by. This would be fine. It was only going to be for a little bit, less than an hour. Surely Hawkmoth wouldn’t attack during this tiny little window of time.

Right?

…Maybe she should call for back-up. You know, just in case.

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

Alya just wanted to help Marinette with getting some good modeling photos for her website. Getting carried away with Adrienette shipping, accidentally neglecting one of her friends, and donning the FIRST Miraculous Marinette had attempted to give her had NOT been part of her plans.

Here's the thing: there are a lot of cases where I agree that a character (and this comes up for Alya in particular) demonstrated some kind of flaw.

What I do NOT agree with is the response to exhibiting that kind of flaw. I can agree that a character wasn't perfect and messed up in some way without making them a terrible person - like you said, human beings have flaws, and if everyone in the show was always perfect it'd be boring and the characters would feel less like people. Now I'd like some more development concerning some of the flaws, but callouts aren't required for every little thing, and something like "Alya was so caught up in trying to wingman for Marinette that she didn't realize how badly Juleka was taking the situation" is not something she deserves to be raked over the coals for.

A lot of times people jumping on the characters for not being perfect, for having some kind of flaw, for Miraculous, and for Alya ESPECIALLY, tends to go way overboard. If people were just saying that there are some traits she has that can cause difficulties and it'd be good if there was a storyline addressing them and having her grow past them, I'd be on board with that. Heck, I've WRITTEN that, as you can see above.

But taking a microscope to anything even minorly grating that she has done, while ignoring all the good she's done as well, just to bash and demonize her as a horrible person and try to justify writing her as some horrible human being, in order to justify then having her get some extreme comeuppance? On a regular basis for the past several years?

No. Just...no.

[cassarilladraws]

Sorry for the salty Miraculous post. I should really just completely ignore canon. Mostly, at this point, I do. I’m having more fun with AUs, and a ship that is definitely never going to be canon. But I said a long time ago that I would hate it if Adrienette were to date pre-reveal. This was even back when I was obsessed with the lovesquare. (There’s a reason I only drew them together post-reveal or for DTIYS stuff. Adrienette does not appeal to me without a reveal first. At. All.) This is a show, with a lovesquare, where superhero identities are involved. But for some reason, they decide to have these characters start dating as... civilians? Not both of them as a heroes who know the other’s burdens, not one of them as a hero, but just civilians. (It is so boring to me, along with all of my other issues with it.) Also, bonus, they are both completely fine with abandoning their partner and Paris, in the toughest stage of their fight against evil. Their commitment to each other as superhero partners? Nah, that is not important. Just give up on that and don’t tell the other one! Who cares?! Obviously, what is important is that Adrien and Marinette can date.

I guess we’re supposed to like that because “omigosh the lovesquare is finally happening!” or something... but honestly, they are both being awful to their partner and whoever is suddenly having to jump in and protect Paris without any of the experiences that Ladybug and Chat Noir have had that have made them stronger and better suited for the job.  There are so many amazing ways for the lovesquare to happen. It’s such a good concept. That’s why there are literally THOUSANDS of amazing reveal fics of this ship where they finally realize they are in love with each other. It is NOT HARD to write this well. They’ve had the set up for it going since season 1. But I guess the show will throw every other side of the lovesquare, even as partners and friends, under the bus to make Adrienette happen. To be completely honest, I can’t help but wonder if they have written it this way to try to “not be like the fanfics” and not do it the way people might expect. After a 7+ year wait, it’s just such a disappointment. The way things are happening doesn’t even feel in character for them. I get that this is a romance centered show at the end of the day, but it’s been such a long wait for.. this? I know they are going to take their Miraculous back and realize some things at least. But it’s still Adrienette without a reveal, they still abandoned each other. I still hate it.  With that, I’m going to dive back into fanfics, AUs, and ships that will never happen in canon. It’s much more fun over here.

[inner-sakura]

Theoretically Forever

[Adrien POV sequel to Hypothetically Ever After, childhood friends AU, adrienette, fake/pretend relationship]

Adrien Agreste has had a crush on Marinette Dupain-Cheng for as long as he can remember.

Unfortunately for him, however, she’s only ever had eyes for his older brother Félix, who’s never so much as looked her way.

But when an opportunity suddenly presents itself to turn the tables and rewrite the script on their relationship, Adrien finds himself hard-pressed to turn it down… Especially when it means getting to date the love of his life.

Even if it is only fake.

AU where PV Felix is Adrien’s older brother. inspired by the novel “the boys next door” by jennifer echols. hello and welcome back to the brothers AU fic series that no one ever asked for yet i remain obsessed with. 

read it here

chapter one

Adrien Agreste had been in love for as long as he could remember.

Or at least since the age of five, which was practically the same thing.

It may have seemed a bit excessive, or perhaps even absurd to most people. But he’d always been considered mature for his age—more advanced than most of his peers, according to his tutors—and he had a pretty solid grasp of what love looked like, thanks to his parents.

Although his father wasn’t the most demonstrative with his affections, it was clear that his mother and father were crazy for one another. It was there in the way they gazed at each other when they thought no one was looking; in the way his father’s eyes seemed to find his mother the moment she walked into a room, and the way her face lit up when she found him in return. And most of all, it was clear in the way they loved and cherished him and his brother Félix: dearly, wholeheartedly, and without reserve.  

Still, five was pretty early for romantic love by most standards.

But Adrien didn’t care. He knew it was real. Even if no one else seemed to believe him.

“Maman, when I grow up, Marinette and I are going to be married,” Adrien declared proudly, beaming up at his mother where she sat on the edge of his bed.

Émilie paused, her hands hovering above the blankets that she was tucking around him. Her lips stretched into a smile.

“Is that so?” She said, smoothing the covers over him with one hand while the other reached out to softly card through his hair.

Adrien nodded emphatically, his hair falling into his eyes and obscuring his vision.

“Uh-huh. And we’re gonna have a big house with a waterslide and live together with you and Papa and Félix forever.” He wiggled under the covers, his body filling with excitement at the thought.  

“Oh really?” His mother pushed the hair back from his forehead, laughter clear in her voice even though he couldn’t see her facial expression. “And what if Félix wants to marry someone and live with them instead?”

His vision now clear thanks to her ministrations, Adrien gazed into his mother’s warm green eyes; the same eyes he saw reflected back in his own face every time he looked in the mirror.

“Well, they can live with us too,” he decided finally, his mind made up. “It’s going to be a big house.”

“And what if Marinette wants to marry someone else?” Émilie asked, one brow raising in question.

Adrien didn’t even bat an eye.

“She won’t, Maman,” he assured her, his lips pulling back in a sneaky grin. “I'm a real catch, you know.”

At that, his mother burst out laughing, her eyes sparkling as she leaned down to kiss his forehead.

“Yes you are, my love. But for now, why don’t you focus on catching some sleep... It’s quite late, you know.”

Adrien snuggled down into his pillows, satisfied at having made his mother laugh, and assured in the knowledge that there was no way Marinette Dupain-Cheng could possibly wind up marrying someone else.  

They were made for each other, after all.

Even if no one else knew it yet.

-x-

Present

-x-  

Adrien had been dreaming about this summer for the better part of the last year.

It had been a warm light on the horizon, and the only thing that helped to carry him through some of the bleaker winter days in Paris. The days where everything outside his window had been cold and grey, and there was no solace to be found inside—the frigid air chasing him through the empty halls of his perpetually silent home.

On those days, especially, he’d clung to that light, letting the warmth strengthen him even when it felt like the darkness might last forever.

But now they were finally here, after so many long days and nights.

Adrien took a deep breath in, savouring the clean, fresh air in his lungs.

It smells like home.

His moment of gentle introspection was brought to an abrupt end by his older brother, who rudely hip-checked him out of the way, nearly running over his toes with the wheels of his rolling suitcase in the process.

“You’re in the way,” Félix said, making his way toward the house without sparing so much as a glance at the natural beauty around him.

Adrien withheld a sigh, refusing to let his brother’s early morning surliness dampen his euphoria.

Summer was here, they were finally back at the lake, and all was right with the world. Or at least it would be shortly.

Fishing his phone out of his pocket with one hand, Adrien dialled the number he’d had memorized since almost before he knew how to count to ten without relying on his fingers.

“Hello? Hi, Sabine, it’s Adrien. Is Marinette there?”

-x-

After getting settled in and unpacking his things in record time, Adrien found himself with both time and energy to spare.

He was too amped up to play video games or sit down and watch something, and he didn’t want to wander too far from the house for fear that he might miss Marinette’s arrival.

And so he made his way to his brother’s room, content to dedicate his efforts to his third favourite pastime:

Annoying his older brother.

Bursting into Félix’s room without knocking, Adrien bounded across the floor, throwing himself onto the bed with a dramatic sigh.

“Yes, do come in,” Félix intoned without looking up from his book. “Make yourself at home. You’re not disturbing me at all…”  

“Brother, have you no compassion for my poor nerves?” Adrien cried, slinging an arm across his forehead with enough melodrama to bring his acting coach to tears. “Don’t you know what today is?”

“It’s Thursday.”

“No! I mean, yes, technically it is Thursday, but that’s not what I meant. Today is a much more important day. I’m finally going to be reunited with Marinette, after nearly a year of not seeing her!” He grabbed a pillow, hugging it to his chest and repressing the urge to squeal like an infatuated schoolgirl.

The intent must have been clear in his posture though, if Félix’s disgusted scoff was anything to go by.

“A most auspicious occasion, to be sure.” His brother’s tone was glacial.

Adrien lay on his back, staring up at the ceiling ponderously.

“I think I’m in love with her.”

“Uh-huh.”

“She doesn’t know I exist.”

There was the sound of a page turning. “I find that particularly hard to believe when considering the fact that she’s been your friend since you were in preschool.”

“No, I mean, of course Marinette knows I exist physically,” Adrien said, struggling to find the words. “I meant like…mentally. Romantically.” He fell silent, pouting up at the rafters.

She’s never looked at me because she’s been too busy mooning after you, Adrien thought resentfully in his brother’s direction.

Oblivious to his internal grumbling, Félix sighed, closing the book he was reading with a snap.

“If I tell you what you want to hear, does that mean you’ll give me my bed and my peace and quiet back?”

Adrien rolled over, shoving his face into the comforter and letting out a pathetic groan.

Félix sighed again.

“If you want her to consider you seriously, then you’re going to have to step up your game,” Félix said at last, his words brusque and business-like. “Make your intentions so clear that there’s no way she’ll be able to misinterpret them.”

Lifting his face from the comforter, Adrien shot his brother a suspicious look. “Okay, but how?”

Although to the untrained observer, Félix’s expression may have appeared impassive, Adrien was easily able to pick up on the glint in his icy blue eyes.

“…I can think of a few ways.”

Adrien bristled, his face reddening.

“Pervert,” he muttered, pushing himself up and off the bed, no longer interested in continuing the conversation if Félix was going to insist on being so unhelpful. Besides, what did his iceberg of a brother even know about relationships, anyway? Theirs really was a textbook case of the blind leading the blind.

Adrien shook his head, heading for the door.

Before he could reach it, however, the intercom in Félix’s room buzzed, which could only mean one thing.

Someone was at the front door.

Adrien’s heart leapt straight into his throat.

“Oh my god, she’s here!” He lurched forward, only to double back at the last second, wanting to check his appearance. He fussed with his hair, pushing it back behind his ears and straightening his shirt until he was satisfied that he looked half decent.

“You look like a twat,” Félix said, his version of a compliment.

Adrien eyed his reflection, his face twisting with disgust.

“You’re right. I look like you.” He shook his hair out again.  

When he caught Félix rolling his eyes in the mirror, Adrien stuck his tongue out playfully.

“You’d better hurry, otherwise Father is going to be the one to greet Marinette at the door, and we both know what his idea of a welcoming committee looks like…”

At his brother’s not-so-gentle reminder, Adrien bolted, single-mindedly focused on subverting disaster and making sure that his father didn’t do anything horrible that might scare Marinette away before he’d even gotten the chance to say hello to her.

Unfortunately for him, however, disaster seemed intent upon finding him that morning.

Throwing the door open with a bit more force than was strictly necessary, Adrien all but catapulted himself forward, oblivious to any perils that awaited him. Which meant that he’d barely set one foot over the threshold before he was immediately colliding with another fast-moving body.

Well, he had time to think before the inevitable descent began, I don’t need to be a physics whiz to know how this is going to end.

With nothing to grab onto to steady himself, and plenty of g-force behind him, Adrien practically flew through the air, landing on the floor with an inelegant thump, successfully and quite spectacularly knocking the wind out of himself.

He was given very little time to contemplate the cruel nature of gravity, however, because suddenly a high-pitched feminine voice was speaking in his ear, causing his breath to catch for an entirely different reason.  

“Adrien!”

And then he was on his back, two slim arms wrapping around his torso and squeezing tightly.

Adrien’s head spun, the combination of a lap full of soft teenage girl and her titanium grip—which was slowly cutting off his air supply—doing funny things to his brain.

“Can’t—breathe, Mari—” he wheezed, his vision going spotty at the edges.

“Sorry!” Marinette laughed, the sound echoing in the quiet of the hallway. “I’ve been working out more lately and I guess all that weight training is finally making a difference.”

She began to pull away, and Adrien felt a rush of panic.

Oh no, she’s getting up, a little voice in his brain cried in alarm. Don’t let her leave—!  

He quickly tugged her back down, his grip tightening as he cradled her against his body, inhaling deeply. How was it possible that she smelled even better than he remembered—sweet and smooth, with an undercurrent of spice that made him want to dig his nose into the point where her neck met her shoulder and drink her scent in from the source.  

Ashamed at the direction his thoughts had taken, Adrien turned his face away, trying to ignore the burning in his cheeks.

“It’s okay,” he said eventually, his next words coming out far more earnestly than he’d intended. “I’m glad to see you.”

Marinette didn’t respond, but Adrien felt the way she softened in his grasp, melting into him just that bit more. His heart fluttered.

“Ahem.” Félix cleared his throat, shattering the tenderness of the moment with the impact of an atom bomb.

Oh my GOD, has he been there this whole time?? Adrien grimaced, trying not to be offended by the way the sound of Félix’s voice sent Marinette scrambling out of his lap like his pants had just caught on fire.

He eyed his older brother distrustfully, taking in the look of smug superiority he wore. It was clear by his expression that Félix knew exactly how much Adrien had been enjoying that impromptu embrace, and how much he was currently cursing him out in his head for interrupting it.

“If you’re both quite finished, I’d prefer it if you moved your tearful lovers' reunion to a location that isn’t the middle of my bedroom doorway.”

Adrien flushed, shooting daggers at his brother behind Marinette’s back.

I know where you live, he mouthed silently.

Félix merely smirked.  

“F-Félix!” The soft breathlessness in Marinette’s voice made Adrien’s stomach clench, even more so than the elbow in the gut he received as she clambered to her feet.

Here we go, he thought, resigning himself to invisibility as his childhood best friend proceeded to make goo-goo eyes at his brother.

Silently, he watched as Marinette threw herself all over Félix, her arms snaking around his torso as she hugged him tightly. And Félix—the traitorous bastard—even went so far as to override his programming and return the embrace (!), patting Marinette once on the back in what was basically his equivalent of an enthusiastic double cheek kiss.

When Marinette pulled back, her face was an adorable shade of pink, her blue eyes shining as she gazed up at him.

A sour taste filled Adrien’s mouth. The image of the two of them embracing would almost certainly revisit him later in his nightmares.

After what felt like an eternity, Félix finally extricated himself from Marinette’s clutches and left, but not before throwing Adrien one last loaded look for good measure.

Your move, little brother. His expression seemed to say.

Yet Adrien remained seated on the floor, stewing in his resentment and jealousy.

He was so preoccupied with glaring after his brother, in fact, that he almost missed the hand extended towards him.

Adrien blinked at Marinette in confusion. Was she… trying to help him up?

How adorable.

“What?” She snapped after a moment, bristling when he didn’t immediately take her up on her generosity.

Adrien raised an eyebrow.

“I’m bigger than you.” And as much as I enjoyed having you in my lap the first time, I think I’ve had enough crashing to the floor for one day, thanks. This part he had the presence of mind not to say out loud.

A twitch of the eye was the only warning he received before he was suddenly being hauled upright and unceremoniously plunked back on his feet. Adrien staggered, shocked at the ease with which she’d lifted him.

“And I’m stronger than I look,” Marinette replied smugly, her expression radiating satisfaction as she gazed at him, her arms crossed in a way that inadvertently showed off muscles he hadn’t known until that moment she’d even possessed.

Holy shit, that was hot. Adrien gawped at her, quickly glancing away before she could catch him staring like a buffoon. Even though he knew the floors were immaculate, he busied himself with dusting off his clothes, just to give himself a minute to regain his composure.

As he was doing so, he heard Marinette gasp.

“You grew. Again.” She appeared outraged by the notion, as though growing was some sort of illicit, sinful activity.

Adrien puffed up with pride.  

“A whole eight centimetres,” he confirmed, pleased that she’d noticed. Now he was finally on eye level with his father and Félix, a fact which brought him no small amount of glee. Gone were the days of being the baby of the family in both the figurative and literal senses of the term. At the rate he was going, he might even outgrow both of them by the time he reached his twenties. The concept was thrilling.

“Eight centimetres? How—?” Marinette gaped up at him, her blue eyes bright with incredulity. “What kind of freak body grows eight centimetres in a year?”

Adrien leaned towards her, his lips quirking when he realised just how far he had to bend over to be on eye level with her now.

He rested an elbow on her shoulder, marvelling internally. She’s so tiny!

Outwardly, he decided to do what he did best, which was tease her relentlessly for her shortness. “I’ll have you know that it’s perfectly normal. Most people experience these things called ‘growth spurts’ during puberty. Where they actually get taller!” He lowered his voice as though he was divulging some great secret.

Then he blinked.

“Oh right,” he pretended to take her in for the first time. “I forgot who I was talking to for a second.”

Marinette’s eyes flashed, her nostrils flaring.

“You’re hilarious,” she deadpanned, elbowing him in the side roughly as she slipped out of his grasp.

Adrien grinned, his lips pulling even wider when he noticed the way her mouth was twitching, her efforts not to laugh obvious.

She’s still as easy to read as ever, he thought fondly, gazing at her out of the corner of his eye as they made their way to his room. He chatted her ear off the whole way, practically buzzing with excitement now that she was finally here. The prospect of spending two weeks of uninterrupted quality time together had him so euphoric, in fact, that he didn’t pick up on Marinette’s uncharacteristic silence, or notice that anything was amiss until she was hauling his loft’s ladder up behind her.

And by then, of course, it was far too late.

“Woah, woah, woah, what’s this about now?” Adrien asked, his eyes widening. There was only one reason that the ladder ever came up.

Marinette’s response did little to reassure him of her intentions.

“Top secret.” Was all she said as she fiddled with the hatch, seemingly determined to ensure that it was properly closed.

Once she was satisfied with her efforts, she turned to face him. The look she wore was enough to make Adrien recoil.

This must be a new record, he thought, taking a step backward instinctively. She’s only been here for ten minutes and she’s already up to no good.

“I know what that look means… You’re either about to rope me into something dangerous—and quite possibly illegal—or you’re about to tell me something that I’d really rather not hear.” Adrien said, his mouth going on autopilot as he tried in vain to halt her advance. He could feel himself losing ground, both physically and metaphorically, yet he remained helpless to stop it.  

When the backs of his knees met his bed, Adrien merely allowed himself to fall, landing on the mattress with a final sounding thump.

Marinette gazed down at him intently, looking like the cat that got the canary.

“Adrien,” she said, her voice nothing but saccharine sweetness as she leaned into his space. At this distance her scent was nearly overwhelming in its intensity, filling his senses and leaving his mind hazy and punch drunk. “I think it's time to take things to the next level.”

Adrien’s heart was pounding so loudly now that he was almost certain Marinette would be able to hear it if she listened closely.  

His voice came out strangled as he repeated. “The next level?”

Marinette drew even closer and Adrien swayed forward, all of his rational, higher-thinking processes abandoning him as his gaze darted between her eyes and her lips.

If I just leaned up ever so slightly…

They were so close now that he could practically feel her inhalation more than hear it, the warmth of her breath fanning across his face.

Yet, instead of kissing him as he’d hoped, Marinette opened her mouth to speak. And when her words finally registered, Adrien couldn’t help but wish that she hadn’t.

“I need you to help me seduce your brother,” she said, blissfully unaware that she’d just dealt him the verbal equivalent of a killing blow.

Well, it’s official, Adrien thought, staring at her in disbelief as he felt his fantasies sinking faster than the Hindenburg.

God hates me. That is the only plausible explanation for any of this shit.

-x-