#peacock!marinette

[redtippedfox]

Still obsessed with her design

[rosie-b]

I commissioned this breathtaking art from @sizzleissues! Look how amazing it is:

This is Bluewing, a version of Marinette from an AU I'm currently writing. You can click here to read it!

Sizzle's commissions are still open, so if you'd like some dashing art for yourself, click this link and show some support!

[bbutterflies]

what about peafowl marinette 👀?

YEAH! I know she’s been done before a lot so I wanted to try to go a different direction! I’m not sure on a name for her, maybe Pavo?

[corvid-gae]

Miraculous mix up wips

[hueynomure]

Marinette gaped at the creature. “A-A hero? Me? When- why- where- how?!” “Yes, you, now, because, here, and by wearing the brooch and gaining magical powers!” Duusu twirled on the spot and beamed at Marinette, as if expecting a treat for having passed a test. “I answered all your questions – can you let me explain now?”

[mimblizzy]

Found this A-fucking-mazing Jasonette ff on AO³ and it made me want to draw right away so check it out! :P

"It never reached him.

Instead, there was a white shield and the fleeting impression of a figure in front of him, arms spread in the face of the demon's attack. He got a brief flash of dark blue, and purple, and feathers, before it vanished just as quickly as it had appeared."

[lea-panthera]

And here's the sixth part!

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7

Chapter 15: The First Sentidemon

“You really don’t need to help, Marieta. I’ve got this.”

Marinette rolls her eyes and threads her needle with white thread. “I want to, Kit. You’ve done so much for us.”

Queenie comes into the living room with a platter of freshly baked macarons. Pollen sits on her shoulder, watching them with a prim but soft expression on her tiny face.

“Yes, you have,” Queenie says firmly, setting the platter on the carpet. She gently takes the needle and fabric from Kit’s hands. “And you’re going to relax now while Mari and I finish the outfits.”

Kit smiles tiredly and sits down on the ground. The kwamis land on her shoulders, head, lap, and neck, nuzzling her as they eat their macarons. Marinette grabs a macaron and passes another one to Queenie, careful to not get any on the fabrics.

"Are those cookies I smell?" Ajax's voice floats in from the kitchen.

Kit giggles. "Over here, Ajax!"

He walks in and promptly sits down beside Kit. He grabs multiple macarons and leans his head on Kit's shoulder as Plagg gulps down the rest of his cheese and lands beside Tikki on the arm of Marinette's chair.

"Avis and Philip are in the Multiverse Burrow," Ajax informs them. "They're trying to track the sentidemons that aren't in Sector 21."

"I wonder how Roi Paon managed to travel and export sentidemons between universes without the Horse or the Rabbit miraculouses," Kit muses aloud, running her fingers through Ajax's neon green hair. He hums, satisfied.

"He probably created a sentidemon to do so," Marinette says.

Suddenly, a portal opens up in the living room, and Chevalapin jumps out, startling everyone there. Queenie shrieks, Kit scrambles back, and Ajax and Marinette automatically jump up and assume fighting positions. They relax at seeing who it is, but then tense again at the panicked expression on his face.

"There's a sentidemon attacking the Paris in Queenie's universe," he says, and Queenie's eyes widen.

Marinette exchanges a glance with Kit. "This is going to be our first battle with a sentidemon," she says, turning to the now pale Queenie, "but I think we can handle it. This is like...an experiment. We'll try over and over again with this one and find what works for us. We can do this."

Queenie takes a deep breath, then nods, standing up. "You're right. Let's do this."

"Where's Zara?" asks Chevalapin.

"Napping in the bedroom," replies Kit, getting up.

"We'll get her. Get Avis out of the Multiverse Burrow and recharge your kwamis, Philip. We'll meet you back here," Marinette says, grabbing Queenie's hand and following Kit to the girls' bedroom.

"Please hurry!" Chevalapin calls after them.

Chapter 16: Brothers And Sisters

The two Adriens watch the three go, then Chevalapin enters the portal and comes back out with Avis, who’s dressed in an indigo tank top with silver cherry blossoms along the neckline and white capris.

“We’re going to battle that sentidemon,” Ajax tells her. “The other girls are changing in the bedroom.”

Avis gives him a nod and heads off in that direction.

Chevalapin closes the portal and detransforms. “You guys need to recharge and get ready for battle,” Philip tells the kwamis. They fly off to the kitchen.

Ajax notices that Philip’s hands are shaking.

“Phil,” he says, “you good?”

Philip shudders and covers his eyes with a hand. “This is going to be my first time battling a sentidemon after…after what happened,” he replies quietly.

Ajax places a hand on Philip’s shoulder. “It’s going to be okay this time around. Besides, we aren’t facing the entire army right now. Just one. We’ll be okay, Philip.”

Philip just shakes his head. "How will we be okay, Ajax? Only Zara and I have fought them before, and they defeated us with little effort. Everything we’ve practiced, everything we’ve done so far…it’s all theory. The real thing requires experience.”

“But we won’t gain experience if we don’t fight one ourselves, Phil,” Ajax cuts in. “Think about it: this one is on its own. We fight it, most likely defeat it, and then we can reflect and come up with a better game plan. If Mari can look through the grimoire and find something that can help upgrade our powers by then, then great! We’ll be much closer to defeating Roi Paon himself!”

Philip hesitates. “I just don’t want to see any of you get hurt. I dragged you into this. If I had just recognized who Roi Paon was-“

“You’re not the cause of this, Philip,” Ajax says sharply. “Don’t forget, I lived under the roof of my archnemesis, too. In fact, it was only after you and Zara revealed his identity to us that I realized that it was him.”

Philip says nothing.

“Phil, we’re ready to fight by your side. Zara loves you more than the sun and moon, and the other Marinettes consider you to be their brother. And so do I.” Ajax pulls Philip into a side hug. “We signed up for this ourselves, and we’re not backing down.”

Philip grins. “Okay, then. If you say so.”

Ajax grins back and holds out a fist. “L’Espoir…”

“Unite!” Philip cheers, bumping it with his own. The two laugh.

…

Marinette ties her hair back into a high ponytail with a red ribbon. Excitement and nervousness bubble up in her stomach.

Queenie has already changed into her combat suit and is pacing the length of the room, muttering under her breath in a mixture of panic and anger.

“I can’t believe this. The audacity he has to attack my universe and steal the Ladybug-OH NO! THE LADYBUG MIRACULOUS IS WITH CHLOÉ! Oh, this is bad, this is so, so bad! And Adrien’s there too! Oh, if the sentidemon so much as touches him, I’ll send Roi Paon to hell!”

Marinette gives Queenie a hug from behind, trying to stay optimistic. “Whoa, whoa, calm down there, bee. It’s going to be just fine. We’ll kick this sentidemon’s butt, and then Roi Paon’s. Got it?”

Queenie giggles.

Avis dangles upside-down from her bunk. “And you get to see Tortue~.”

Queenie blushes hard as Marinette and Avis roar with laughter. Kit comes in from the bathroom wearing her combat suit and looks at them.

Avis jumps down from her bunk, bounds over to Kit, and throws an arm around her shoulders. “Sing along with me, Kit. Queenie and Tortue, sitting in a tree…”

Kit smirks and joins in. “K-I-S-S-I-N-G!”

Marinette clutches her stomach, wheezing as she tries to control her giggling.

Once they all calm down(and Queenie’s face no longer resembles a tomato), Kit says, “We should probably wake Zara up.”

They somber up as they remember the task at hand.

Marinette strides over to Zara’s bunk and sits at the edge. She places a hand on the sleeping girl’s hip and shakes her slightly. “Zara?”

Zara moans into her pillow. “What?”

“We need to go fight a sentidemon.”

Zara bolts upright. “What?”

“A sentidemon managed to travel to Queenie’s universe,” says Avis. “We’re going out to fight it.”

Zara trembles. Marinette places a hand on her shoulder, concerned. “Zara?” she asks gently. “You don’t need to come if you don’t want to.”

“We understand,” Queenie says softly.

“No! I mean, no, I-I’ll come,” Zara replies. “It’s just that…” She places a hand over Marinette’s and squeezes it. “…I don’t want any of you to get hurt.”

Kit’s lip quirks up. “It’s fine if we get hurt. We’re superheroes. It’s kind of an occupational hazard.”

Zara shoots her a glare. “You’ve been spending way too much time with Ajax.”

Avis snorts, then walks over and hugs Zara. “Don’t worry about us, Zara. We can take care of ourselves.”

All of the Marinettes crowd in for a group hug, Zara crying tears of gratitude. When they part, she wipes her tears and stands up, a determined glint in her eyes. She looks at the four girls, all identical to her, standing in front of her.

Her alternate versions. Her sisters.

“Alright, girls,” Zara says. She winks. “Let’s go kick some sentidemon butt.”

Chapter 17: The Skirmish

L'Espoir stand in a circle in the living room, their kwamis sitting on their shoulders.

"So, once we enter the universe," debriefs Marinette, "Zara will act as bait while the rest of us try to find the amok gem. Once we find it, we'll regroup in the alley behind the bakery and come up with a plan."

"What do we do about Tortue and Red Lady?" asks Zara.

"Avis, Queenie, do you guys mind explaining everything to Tortue? It's likely he won't believe us completely, but just let him know that we're there to help," Marinette says. The pair nods their assent, and Marinette turns to the rest of the group. "I'll handle Red Lady."

"What about Hawkmoth? Are we going to go after him?" Queenie asks.

Zara, Philip, Ajax, and Kit look at each other, then Zara sighs. "I'll take care of him. We know his secret identity because it's the same , so I should be able to catch his civilian self unawares and steal the miraculous from him."

Avis crosses her arms. "You know the identity of Roi Paon, and you didn't tell us? Don't you think we should know?"

"Hey!" Roaar exclaims from his holder's shoulder. "Don't scold Zara!"

“I think we have a right to know,” says Queenie, hurt.

Marinette bites her lip. She feels just as affronted as Avis and Queenie, but she can understand why keeping it a secret might be necessary.

She herself knew all about secrets.

She sighs. "Let's not go into this now. There's not time to waste. But we will want answers later."

Zara nods, then transforms into Tigris. Philip transforms into Chevalapin and Ajax transforms into Chat Nuit. Kit transforms into Vixen and looks at the remaining three Marinettes expectantly.

Avis transforms into a peacock-themed superhero. Her wavy bob becomes longer and dark blue, fading to purple at the tips. The scleras of her eyes become purple, and the irises magenta. Her skin becomes a light shade of blue. Kohl lines her eyes, and the mask around her eyes is dark blue with small pink beads on the rim and silver lace on the exterior. She wears a dress similar to Mayura's, minus the fluff around the neck and wrists. Instead, her hands and forearms are magenta, giving the illusion of long gloves. The material on her legs is also magenta, but the short high-heeled boots she wears are the same dark blue as her dress. The rim of her boots are decorated with magenta and silver swirls.

"I am now Bluebird," she says.

There's a flash of yellow light as Queenie transforms. Her suit is similar to Marinette's in that it's simple and tightly fit. It's highlighter yellow, with black fuzz around the ankles, wrists, and neck. The area around her hips is black, with diagonal yellow stripes. She sports two black stripes on her biceps, forearms, forelegs, and abdomen. The ones on her abdomen meet at her middle, forming two V's, one on top of the other. Her hair forms a ponytail that looks like a stinger with its black and yellow stripes and curled tip. Her mask is black with three gold stripes running through it horizontally.

"I'm Honeybee," she says.

Marinette transforms and says, "And I'm Ladybug. Let's go!"

"Is everyone's earpieces still on?" Kit asks, tapping her ear. There are sounds of assent from around the circle.

Chevalapin opens the portal to the Multiverse Burrow. They all go through the portal to find Chevalapin holding the globe of light that represents Queenie's universe.

"Is everyone ready?" he asks.

Ladybug looks around and nods.

Chevalapin says, "Paris," and lets go of the ball of light as it shows them a vision of a destructive sentidemon ravaging their city. Ignoring the horrified gasps of his comrades, Chevalapin makes the ball bigger by pulling on it and dives into it. The others follow suit.

The next thing they know, they're hurtling out of the sky toward the sentidemon. Ladybug wraps her yo-yo around a statue and her arm around Bluebird's waist and swings the two of them to a nearby rooftop.

"Thanks," Bluebird mutters. "See the amok gem yet?"

Ladybug scans the scene. The destructor is wreaking havoc on the once peaceful city. People are running around, screaming, and many buildings have been crushed.

The destructor itself is about the same height of the Eiffel Tower and is an inky black humanoid, hulking figure with enlarged fists that are out of proportion with its body. It has two glowing red eyes on its face. There's no gem in sight.

"No sign of it," replies Ladybug. She turns to Bluebird, whose attention is directed elsewhere.

"Look, it's Tortue and Red Lady," she responds, gesturing to their right with her chin.

Ladybug turns there to see the heroes standing a few rooftops away. Tortue is doubled over and panting with exhaustion, while Red Lady is yelling at him.

"We need to separate them," Ladybug says, her lucky vision highlighting the Eiffel Tower. "Tortue may hate Red Lady, but he'll probably view a threat to her as a threat to him, too."

"I'll talk with Tortue." Honeybee's voice comes out of Ladybug and Bluebird's earpieces with startling clarity. "I'll try to explain as much as I can to him with the time we have."

"Okay, great," Ladybug replies. "Vixen, we need a distraction."

"On it."

"Chat Nuit, I need you and Chevalier to examine the destructor up close and find the amok gem. Has he recharged yet?"

“I’m ready to go,” says Chevalier.

“Perfect. Tigris, I assume you’re on Hawkmoth’s tail already?”

“Tracking him down as we speak.”

“Okay, let us know when you get his Miraculous. I’ll take care of Red Lady,” says Ladybug, muting the microphone on her earpiece. She sees Honeybee land beside Tortue and smiles as Tortue immediately embraces the bee heroine.

“Bluebird, keep an eye on the fight. Chat Nuit and Chevalier might need help,” Ladybug tells the heroine crouching beside her.

Bluebird gives her a nod. "Got it. Good luck with Red Lady."

Ladybug smirks. "I don't think it'll be necessary."

She swings towards where Red Lady is yelling at Honeybee. Standing between them, arms crossed and glaring at Red Lady, is a defensive Tortue.

Without saying a word, Ladybug picks Red Lady up, slings her over her shoulder, and swings toward the Eiffel Tower.

"HEY!" Red Lady screeches. "PUT ME DOWN, YOU DISGUSTING WANNABE! WHO ARE YOU ANYWAY!?"

Ladybug reaches the highest platform in the Tower and deposits Red Lady on the ground. Before Red Lady can react, Ladybug pulls off her earrings. In a flash of pink light, Tikki flies out, staring at Ladybug, confused, and Red Lady detransforms into Chloé Bourgeois.

"HOW DARE YOU!" The girl yells, getting up and stomping her foot angrily. "WAIT TILL MY DADDY HEARS ABOUT THIS!"

She tries to charge at Ladybug, who dodges her quite easily.

Ladybug wraps her yo-yo around Chloé and stares at her impassively. "Till your daddy finds out that his daughter has been frolicking around Paris in a skin-tight spandex suit, you mean? I bet he doesn't know that yet."

"You're ridiculous," says Chloé. She narrows her eyes at Ladybug. "Utterly ridiculous."

The superheroine rolls her eyes. “Glad to see that you haven’t changed one bit,” she deadpans. “Now, you are going to stay right here while we defeat the sentidemon.”

“And why should I listen to you?”

“Let me put it this way.” Ladybug lets go of Chloé and spins her yo-yo, getting ready to swing away. “If you stay put, then you get your miraculous back. If not, then you can kiss your days of being Red Lady goodbye.”

“HOW DARE YOU-“

“Think about it.” Ladybug wraps her yo-yo around a distant chimney and throws Chloé a mischievous wink that would’ve made Cat Noir proud. “Bug out!”

She smirks as she swings away, Chloé’s incessant yells fading behind her. That smirk, however, quickly disappears when she sees the rest of L’Espoir minus Tigris struggling to battle the sentidemon.

Ladybug turns her muted earpiece back on. “Guys,” she says frantically, “I’ve taken care of Chloé. What’s going on with the sentidemon?”

“Oh, thank the kwamis,” she hears Vixen mutter.

“Ladybug, we need your lucky charm,” says Honeybee, her voice fearful. “We’ve checked everywhere, but there’s no amok gem!”

“What?” Ladybug breathes. “But how is it being controlled, then?”

“I don’t know, bug,” replies Chat Nuit, his voice tense, “but we need to figure that out as fast as we can.”

"Guys, I've dropped off the Butterfly and Peacock miraculouses with Master Fu," says Tigris. "I'm heading over to the scene now. What's the situation?"

"There's no amok gem, apparently," Ladybug replies, trying not to panic.

"What?!?" Tigris shrieks. Ladybug winces at the shrill sound coming through her earpiece. "Can Roi Paon control them from other universes?!?"

"Not possible," Chevalier replies. "There's a range limit as to how far a sentimonster or sentidemon can go before the owner loses control of it. Even if Roi Paon's range limit has increased, it most likely can't go as far as another universe."

"Let's search for it one more time," Ladybug says, "and then I'll use my Lucky Charm."

She hears their assent and turns to Tikki, who has been watching her silently.

"Tikki, take the earrings and hide. Get back to Chloé once the sentidemon's been taken care of."

The red kwami nods and takes the offered earrings. Ladybug watches her fly away, and then determinedly swings into the chaotic battle.

…

Ladybug breathes out heavily, wincing as she stands up and limps toward her fallen yo-yo.

They had been fighting the sentidemon for hours, trying to find the amok gem while attempting to reduce the destruction caused by the sentidemon. They had so far failed to do both.

"Ladybug...do...do the lucky charm." Chat Nuit's weak voice filters in through her earpiece. She spots him leaning heavily on Vixen and clutching his stomach. He looks up and makes eye contact with Ladybug.

"Chat Nuit's right. There's nothing we can lose at this point," Chevalier says gently.

"We can't keep looking for the amok gem, Ladybug, please," Honeybee urges.

Ladybug is too exhausted to argue.

"Lucky Charm!" she cries. She stumbles back in shock when a large red-and-black-spotted sword falls and lodges, blade first, into the ground beside her. She stares at it, then looks at the sentidemon terrorizing civilians in the distance. She can only see one solution, and her eyes widen in horror.

"Tikki wants me to...cut…the sentidemon," she says, her voice shaking.

There's a moment of silence, and then Honeybee yells, "WHAT?!?"

"Do it."

Tigris's voice is quiet, but it reverberates in everyone's ears.

"Not doing the deed will cause the loss of more civilians, Ladybug," she continues. "It must be done."

Ladybug looks out at the carnage around her. Dozens of civilians are dying, crying out for their loved ones. She swallows hard.

"Ladybug, this is Tortue."

Tortue's voice is a softer version of her own Adrien's. Ladybug holds back tears.

"I don't know if my words will carry any meaning to you, but Honeybee's given me the rundown of what's going on, and...I believe in you. You can do this. It'll be hard, but if you really are another version of Honeybee, then I trust you to save my city. Our city."

Ladybug stiffens.

This wasn't her Paris.

Or...was it?

It had the same people, but with different personalities, and fate had guided them in different directions.

A voice in her head speaks, unbidden.

But what if it was your Paris? Wouldn't you defend it with your life?

Wouldn't you defend it, even if it meant the loss of the guilty?

Forcing her hands to remain steady, Ladybug grips the handle of the sword and yanks it out with a grunt. It feels heavy, and she has to struggle to swing over to the sentidemon with it in her hands.

With a war cry, she bounds over to the nearest rooftop, attaches her yo-yo to her hip, and propels herself off, raising the sword high above her head. The sentidemon looks up at her, fiery eyes widening, and raises an arm in defense.

Time seems to slow down as the sword slices through the sentidemon's arm.

The sentidemon bellows, the weight of its other enlarged arm causing it to lean precariously on one side. Its foot suddenly slips, and the giant sentidemon crashes to the ground, causing the earth to shake.

Ladybug lands on her feet and stares at the gaping wound. Dense black smoke oozes from it, sinking to the ground in gaseous curls. Lying on the ground is a small blue sapphire that sparkles in the light. Ladybug picks it up and examines it. An amok is trapped inside.

"He's found a way to hide the amok gem inside the sentidemon," she murmurs in shock.

"What?" Bluebird says. Ladybug had forgotten her earpiece was still on.

Chevalier nimbly lands beside Ladybug. "He's made the sentidemon hollow and put the gem inside it," he says over his earpiece, his voice grim.

"So he's adapting," Tigris's voice is a low growl.

Ladybug looks at the sentidemon's pained expression as it tries to get up. Its remaining hand flails and smashes a couple of buildings. Chevalier nudges her, having already crushed the gem under his foot and released the amok within. Ladybug instantly captures it in her yo-yo and purifies it.

Instead of disappearing into dark blue bubbles, however, the sentidemon screams as it slowly disintegrates into black dust.

Ladybug gasps in horror and stumbles back, pressing her hands to her mouth. The others, save for Tigris and Chevalier, seem to be in the same state of shock as they approach Chevalier and Ladybug.

"Is that… is that supposed to happen?" Honeybee asks faintly.

"Yes," Tigris says grimly, looking like she wants to throw up. "It happens every single time."

Swallowing the dark emotions swirling inside her, Ladybug picks the sword up from where it had fallen and flings it into the air, shouting, "Miraculous Ladybug!"

The magic ladybugs fly through the practically flattened city, fixing all damage caused by the sentidemon, but Ladybug can see that it hasn’t fixed the injured civilians. It exhausts her more than usual, and she detransforms almost immediately. A winded Tikki hovers in front of her. Marinette hands her a cookie, which Tikki takes and nibbles on, watching the girl in concern.

“Are you feeling alright, Mari?” the kwami asks quietly.

The lights of the others’ detransformations dance across Marinette’s haunted face.

“This…doesn’t feel right, Tikki…” she whispers, wrapping her arms around herself. “This shouldn’t have had to happen…I shouldn’t have had to…” Her voice breaks.

Queenie hugs Marinette hard. “You did what you needed to do to save us, Marieta,” she says softly. “Don’t feel guilty.”

L’Espoir crowds in around her, a wave of concerned voices crashing over each other. It’s too much for Marinette. Too much sound, too many people, too much, too much, too much…

“STOP!” she yells. Everyone stares at her.

“Please,” she chokes out, “I need some time. Alone.”

She pushes past them and begins to run aimlessly. She keeps running, wiping tears from her eyes.

For how long she runs, she doesn’t know. Once she finally runs out of breath, she finds herself in an unfamiliar, narrow alley that ends in a dead end.

Marinette crumples against the wall, buries her face in her hands, and begins to sob. Huge, shuddering wails erupt from her throat as she lets out all of her emotions. No matter how much she cries, however, the image of the crumbling sentimonster and the sound of its dying scream are imprinted in her brain.

I did it. I killed it.

“Ma-Marinette?”

Marinette looks up to see Tikki hovering next to her. She sniffs and wipes her nose, looking away. “Go away, Tikki.”

There’s a small pause, and then Marinette feels a small warmth on the crook of her neck. She looks down to see Tikki hugging her neck and glowing softly.

“I’m so sorry, Marinette. I didn’t realize…I didn’t realize what effect this might have on you. I just found a solution and went along with it.”

Marinette’s heart melts. She lifts a hand and strokes Tikki’s small head with a pinky finger. “I don’t blame you, Tikki. It’s important that we defeat the sentidemon. It’s just…”

She sighs. “Sentidemons are beings, too, aren’t they? We don’t know much about them, but what if they have thoughts? Feelings? Just thinking about how I…I slayed the sentidemon makes me feel so…heartless.”

“Marinette, look at me.” Tikki floats up to look Marinette in the eye. “Feeling these emotions about what you just saw proves that you have a heart. Many see sentimonsters and sentidemons as things and not sentient beings. But you don’t. So no, you aren’t heartless. You regret the sentidemon’s death, which is okay. Someone had to do the deed, and it just so happened to be you. You just saved Paris…again!”

Marinette smiles tearfully. “I guess we did, hmm?”

Tikki giggles. “Yep!”

“Oh, how cute. A holder and her kwami, having a bonding moment,” a new voice says sarcastically.

Marinette and Tikki freeze and look toward the shadowed figure standing at the alley’s entrance.

“It would be a pity,” the voice drawls, “if someone interrupted it.”

Chapter 18: The Encounter

Marinette scrambles up. "Who are you?"

"Mari, behind you!" Tikki shrieks.

Marinette hears the low whistle of something approaching at high speed and manages to grab the staff and whip around before it connects with her head.

Her attacker is a woman in an orange suit with a light orange underbelly. The hands are blood red, and so are the lower legs. The mask the woman wears is also blood red, with orange along the border. Her cold blue eyes glitter dangerously behind it. Her pixie cut is red with orange tips. The thumb ring of the Rooster Miraculous shines on her right hand.

Marinette and the woman exchange punches and jabs until the woman manages to pin Marinette down. She makes a grab for her earrings, but Marinette manages to kick the woman off of her. Getting up and facing the two, she backs up against the end of the alley and removes her earrings.

"Mari?" Tikki queries, alarmed.

"Take the earrings to the team," Marinette instructs her. She clutches the earrings in her fist and dodges as the Rooster Miraculous holder takes another punch at her. Grunting, she delivers a powerful blow to the holder's jaw, knocking her out. She holds the earrings towards Tikki as the other figure advances. "Please, Tikki, there's no time!"

Tikki darts forward, grabs the earrings, and flies away, just as the other figure steps into the light. It's a tall man dressed in a blue suit with a dark blue cape. The bottom of the cape is shaped like peacock plumes. The suit itself is armored and fades to purple near the feet. Exquisite silver embroidery decorates the entire suit, giving off a regal air to the man himself. The Peacock miraculous's fan is attached to the silver belt around his waist. The miraculous itself is attached over his heart. His mask is plain dark blue, his magenta irises and light pink sceleras flashing evilly behind them. His skin is light blue, and his hair gleaming white.

"It's been a while, Miss Dupain-Cheng," the man grins. "You know what I want from you."

"Actually, I don't," Marinette growls, clenching her fists. That's only partially true: she'd easily bet any amount of money that this stranger was also after the Ladybug miraculous.

"Miss Dupain-Cheng, please think rationally."

"Think rationally? Fine, I'll think rationally! Let's see…you and your psycho girlfriend have just jumped me while I'm untransformed and tried to take my miraculous. Rationally, I think you and I are enemies."

"I'm doing it for Adrien, you insolent child! I'm doing this so I can bring back his mother and mend our family, so we can rule the multiverse together! Don't you want him to be happy?"

Marinette freezes. "Wh-what did you say?"

"If you really loved my son, you'd help me!"

She chokes. "You! Y-you're Gabriel Agreste!"

The man throws his head back and laughs as Marinette reels from the shock. "Quit the act of innocence, Miss Dupain-Cheng. This is the last chance I'm giving you. Join me. Help me bring my wife back. Help me bring the multiverse under my rule. My son shall be my heir, and you his consort!"

"You're insane," Marinette says, backing away. "I can't believe I ever idolized you."

A manic grin lights Mr. Agreste's face. "You'll regret this, Tigris. Don't forget, Roi Paon always wins. Scarlet Dawn, get her."

Marinette cries out in surprise when the rooster villain pins her to the ground. Fear courses through her.

This was Roi Paon. Roi Paon, who's the reason she had left behind her family and friends to live in a different universe. Roi Paon, who's the reason Zara screams in her sleep and Philip sometimes stares off into space, gripping whatever he's holding hard enough for his knuckles to go white.

Roi Paon, who has the capability to destroy her entire world and kill her friends and family.

Marinette frantically struggles against Scarlet Dawn's hold, but the villain is too strong. Roi Paon crouches over her.

"Turn her head to the side," he commands. Scarlet Dawn obeys. Roi Paon leans down to whisper in Marinette's ear. "I warned you, little girl, that if you stepped in my way then there would be grave consequences. Did you not learn your lesson the first time? I suppose I must get rid of you now."

He sits back up and plucks a razor-sharp feather from his fan. Its tip glows, red-hot. Tucking the fan back into his belt, he regards the defiant girl with a sneer.

"It wouldn't hurt to play with my prey a bit, would it? Any last words?"

Scarlet Dawn permits Marinette to move her head. Marinette looks up at the peacock villain and, to the best of her ability, spits on his feet. Roi Paon's lip curls in disgust.

"Fine," he snaps, lowering the tip of the feather to Marinette's cheek. "Let the fun begin."

…

"This is all my fault," Zara moans, pacing back and forth. She covers her face with her hands. "I shouldn't have brought you guys into this…this mess. I shouldn't have endangered you guys like this."

"Zara, it's okay," Queenie says softly. Her Adrien holds her around the waist, and she leans on his chest. "It's just… we're not used to seeing something like this. Usually fighting sentimonsters doesn't require the violence we just saw. Mari's just in shock."

"We're going to need some time to adapt," adds Avis, twirling a strand of hair around her finger, "but we'll be okay in the end." She strokes Duusu's head as the kwami chows down on an éclair.

Philip hugs Zara. "See? They're with us."

Before Zara can reply, a frantic Tikki zooms over.

"It's Roi Paon! He's here!" she cries, clutching the ladybug earrings to her petite body. "He's got Mari cornered in an alley!"

Zara pales. "What did you say?" she gasps.

Queenie squeezes Tortue's hand fearfully. Ajax and Kit stare wide-eyed at the ladybug kwami. Avis stops petting Duusu and gapes. Philip and Zara look at each other. Their expressions can only be described as "oh no".

"This is my fault," Zara says, shrinking into herself.

"No," Kit says sharply. She transforms into Vixen. "You couldn't have known that Roi Paon would be here, nor that he would ambush Mari. All that matters is that we find her and fight him."

Suddenly, a bloodcurdling scream pierces the air. Civilians look around, startled and confused.

Ajax jumps up from his seat on a park bench. "We need to go help her. Now!"

Vixen turns to Tikki, her mouth pressed into a firm line. "Lead us to Mari."

Tikki zips away, the others transforming and following her. Avis transforms into Bluebird and rests a hand on both Philip and Zara's shoulders.

"You two stay behind. No, please," she cuts them off when they begin to protest, "neither of you are in the right mindset to fight Roi Paon right now. Let us handle it. Please take some rest."

Zara looks like she's about to argue, but Philip entwines their hands, and she looks up at him. Understanding flows between them, then Zara turns back to Bluebird. "Okay. Be careful."

Bluebird hugs her. "We will."

…

Marinette can no longer sense what's going on. In fact, from the moment the burning hot feather touches her face, she has felt nothing but blinding pain. She’s pretty sure she’s screaming, and her eyes are squeezed shut and leaking tears. She fights against her restraints, but Scarlet Dawn has her pinned down well.

She feels the feather lift off of her cheek and opens her eyes. Her vision’s blurred by her watery eyes, and spots appear because of the pain.

“Good.” Roi Paon’s voice seems far away. “Let that be a message to my son.” He spits out the last word as if it were a curse.

Marinette cries out as he grabs her by the hair and lifts her head off the ground. He presses the tip of the feather to her neck.

“And so the great Tigris fell at the hands of Roi Paon,” Roi Paon sneers, “alone, defeated, and pathetic.”

This is it, Marinette thinks. This is how I die.

She closes her eyes.

Suddenly, something whooshes over her, and she hears Roi Paon shout in surprise. Her eyes shoot open, and she winces as the muscles in her throbbing cheek move.

Through her flawed vision, she sees Chat Nuit standing in a defensive stance between her and a fallen Roi Paon, his baton extended.

"Stay away from her," Chat Nuit hisses.

Roi Paon just smiles sinisterly and gets back up, swiftly grabbing a feather from his fan and creating a sentimonster shaped like a saber-toothed tiger. It growls and leaps at Chat Nuit, who braces for impact, but is knocked aside by another sentimonster, this one in the form of a hydra. Marinette can just make out Bluebird's outline from behind Roi Paon.

There's a yell of "Venom!" and a yellow blur flies out of nowhere and just misses Roi Paon. The green shield of the Turtle Miraculous's power appears around Marinette. She quickly turns her head around to see Tortue looking at her in concern, but instantly regrets it as her head pounds and spots appear in her vision.

"It's okay, Marinette," Tortue murmurs as he leans over and picks her up carefully. "I've got you."

Marinette manages to give him a faint smile before everything goes black.

-End part 6

[zoe-oneesama]

Why yes I'm still falling in love with the Viceroy/Dad Villain AU by @bigfatbreak, aren't you?

Ko-fi | Patreon

[buggachat]

Part 161 of my bakery “enemies” au!

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Kofi

[coribomi]

doodles i never posted

[redtippedfox]

All characters in this AU are aged up and adults

Well we can all guess who won the Poll! Here’s the new version of Celine Titania! I cleaned her up a bit and now she’s all ready to go! Now Celine Titania looks immobile and vulnerable but she isn’t, in fact she has more knives and sharp objects to stab you with than Titania does.

Also she has sharp long nails so be very careful when trying to attack, she can fight back. Just like Titania’s and Bleu Celines dress her bottom part can be torn off for combat. She can strangle you with her see through shawl and her shoes hurt when kicked with. She always has her fan covering her mouth as she speaks to her senticreatures or her champions, it also hides the mouth that knows all secrets of the future.

Also her roses are definitely a symbolism.

I’m gonna be honest, this was a small doodle that turned into something really pretty, I was a bit upset that Celine Titania’s original design had no Chinese aspect to it because I could never figure out how to design something that added both parts of both Miraculouses. But I took OG Celine Titania’s colors and mixed it with this doodle. I really like it and am FINALLY satisfied with it.

Not all Miraculous designs are going to be Chinese themed unless they are unified with the peacock and butterfly and we will definitely be seeing more main seven unifications since I’ve decided that those should just be the main Miraculouses Marinette uses instead of using the Chinese zodiac ones(Because we still have the power ups and that just is too much designing man). Don’t worry the rabbit, mouse, dragon, and snake will be seen and used but only those ones.

Anyway I’m home for Christmas break so chapter 4 will be updated soon!

[rosie-b]

True Blue

Chapter 8: New Brooch, Who Dis?

Marinette rubbed the paper between her fingers and opened her mouth. “M. Agreste, I...” 

Her voice trailed off as the absurdity of what she was about to offer hit her. Hey, M. Agreste, I was just wondering. Would you like me to risk certain illness and possible death to help you beat a couple of misled teenagers, heal your wife, and protect your son? Yes, I know nothing like that was covered in the agreement I signed, but I’ve given it a solid night’s thought and decided it might be the only way to make sure the fate of the world doesn’t end up in the wrong hands. Just putting that out there.  

You can read the chapter below or on AO3!

Marinette slept in the next day. 

It was completely accidental; she’d been so caught up in her thoughts the last night that she’d forgotten to set her alarm. Her parents, being busy in the bakery, hadn’t noticed anything was wrong until Adrien walked into the bakery fifteen minutes after the time when Marinette usually left by. 

“Marinette?” 

The first few times she heard her mother calling her name, Marinette didn't respond. She'd only just fallen asleep, after all, and she needed at least a few more minutes of shut-eye if she was going to function all day.

"Marinette!" Sabine called again. "Adrien is downstairs waiting to make sure you're okay and you're already late for classes! I know you're exhausted, dear, but you need to wake up."

Marinette swatted away her mother's hand as her brain begrudgingly turned itself on again. Blinking her eyes open, she stared at Sabine while her words slowly processed. Then she sat up in bed as a horrified look spread across her face.

"I'm late! Oh, no, no, no," she fussed as she got out of bed and started pulling on the clothes she'd laid out the evening before.

How could she have fallen asleep the minute before her alarm was supposed to go off? Why had she stared at the clock all night without setting the alarm as a fail safe? What was M. Agreste going to say when he found out that she'd been ten, no, fifteen minutes late to even get up that morning?

Sabine, who'd politely backed downstairs and closed the trapdoor once Marinette started changing, smiled at her daughter when she tore open the door and half fell, half climbed down the ladder.

"Make sure to eat something before you go," she reminded her. "We have some leftover pastries from yesterday in the kitchen if you'd like one."

"I'm already too late to eat breakfast!" Marinette blurted, her heart beating quickly as she rushed through the house, making sure she had everything she needed before heading to the bakery.

Adrien was waiting patiently by the counter, striking up a conversation with M. Dupain. For some reason, his forehead was creased, and he looked a bit sad, too.

“I have fencing practice after school,” he was saying, “And our lunches are at different times. I wish Père would allow Marinette to have lunch sooner so we could eat together, but it’s hard to change his mind about things like this.” 

“Hmm. Well, maybe you could ask your bodyguard to drop you off here a little earlier,” M. Dupain offered as Sabine walked down the stairs behind Marinette while quietly insisting that she ate something before she left. “We’d give you both free breakfast in return! And you and Marinette could spend a little more time together. How does that sound?” 

Adrien’s eyes strayed over to Marinette, and a soft smile settled over his features. “That sounds lovely,” he said wistfully.

Marinette paused on the stairs for a while as she watched Adrien. Sabine used the moment to stuff a pastry of some sort in her hand.

M. Dupain raised one hand to cover a smile. “Good,” he said, pleased. Then he moved to the back of the room, whispering something to Sabine, who also hid a smile as Marinette hurried over to Adrien.

“Adrien, you spy! I mean, so nice to say hi, er, to see you! I’m so sorry I overslept. Well, underslept, but overslept, too,” Marinette babbled as she chewed off a bite of the chausson aux pommes her mother had given her. “You didn’t have to make yourself late, too, just to make sure I was awake! What will your father say if he finds out you were tardy?” 

Adrien’s smile widened as he leaned on the counter and winked at Marinette. “Well, what kind of knight would I be if I left my princess waiting?” he asked. “Besides, you don’t have to worry about me being marked tardy today. I went in to class, and then I told Ms. Bustier that I had to take a call from my father. She let me leave the classroom, and I came straight here. Père won’t even find out!” 

Marinette hummed as she took another bite of the apple pastry. The initial rush of energy she’d felt on being woken by her mother was fading, and already her heart rate was back to normal. “That’s smart of you,” she said once she’d swallowed. “How did you know that would work?” 

Adrien grimaced. “I learned it from Chloe,” he sighed, stepping away from the counter while Marinette picked up her school bag and walked over to the door. “Please forgive me, ma Princesse, I won’t do it again! I hereby swear not to use my power for evil.” 

Marinette tossed the rest of the pastry in her mouth and chewed deliberately while she crossed her arms and waited for Adrien to start to squirm. 

“I guess one time won’t hurt,” she said after a minute. “I appreciate you caring this much about me. But since when am I your princess?” 

Adrien feigned confusion. “Haven’t you always been? Alas, it seems my devotion has gone unnoticed. I’ll just have to try harder,” he smirked. “Will you allow your humble knight to open the door for you, ma Princesse? As a sign of your knight’s loyalty and undying admiration for you.”  

He was acting strange. Adrien didn’t usually do anything that could fall under the umbrella term of ‘rebellious,’ but this was the least Gabriel-approved behavior Marinette had seen from him since his doomed attempt to run away to school the first week. 

“Did you get enough sleep last night?” Marinette asked as Adrien held the door open and waited for her to go through. 

“Huh? About as much as I usually get, I guess. Why, is the princess concerned for her knight?” He wiggled his eyebrows, and a cheeky grin plastered itself on his face. 

Marinette scoffed as she stepped outside. “Concerned for his sanity, at least! You’re not acting very... you, today.” 

She glanced at Adrien from the side of her eyes as he closed the door and stood beside her. 

“Well, there’s no akuma out here changing my personality, if that’s what you’re worried about,” he said. It seemed like it was supposed to be a joke, but his smile and tone were strained. 

“Even if there was one, it wouldn’t do much good,” Marinette murmured. 

Adrien blinked, and then he leaned closer to Marinette, his grin turning conspiratorial. 

“Right, because Golden Bug and his partner would protect you, just like they did before. They’re pretty charming, right? Do you have a favorite between the two of them?” His eyes glinted, but she was already moving away from him and didn’t notice. 

“Well, Chat Grise’s suit isn’t half bad. I like the stripes,” Marinette replied absently, slipping into the back seat while the Gorilla held the door open for her. 

Adrien frowned. “Okay, I admit Golden Bug’s suit is a bit boring for a fashion designer like you. But how is he personality-wise? Would you like to, I don’t know, go on a date with him if you had the chance?” 

Marinette looked up sharply. “Date him? I still can’t figure out if he even knows what he’s doing, why would I date him on top of everything else? You can have him, though, if you want.” 

Adrien seemed confused and almost wounded as the Gorilla closed the car door and went around to his side with an audible huff. 

Realizing that maybe that hadn’t been the right thing for her to say, Marinette leaned close to the window and gave Adrien an apologetic smile as the car pulled away from the curb. 

He offered a slow wave back, still just as confused as if someone had switched out his orange juice for embalming fluid when he wasn’t looking. 

Marinette sat back in her seat and shrugged off the guilty twinge she felt. It wasn’t her fault that Adrien still thought the heroes of Paris were all they were cracked up to be. M. Agreste hadn’t told him about the family secret yet, and it wasn’t her place to share it. 

Besides, she had far more pressing matters to worry about today. 

It had taken Emilie Agreste twelve full years to fall into a coma from the Peacock’s poison. Two others had died from it before then, but who knew how long they had spent transformed and forming their children through its tainted magic. And one other person had transformed, used the broken Peacock, and lived with only the loss of her vision to detract from her success. 

Marinette wondered how long she could last if she used the Peacock in battle. She’d been affected by wearing the brooch already, and her symptoms honestly hadn’t been all that bad. Just one pill had her back to normal in nearly no time, and as long as she kept taking the medicine, wasn’t it possible that she wouldn’t see any worse effects at all? 

The car pulled into the Agrestes’ driveway, and Marinette got out and entered the mansion on autopilot. 

“Good morning, Nathalie,” she said, walking past her with her hands clasped behind her back. “Do you have my pill ready for me?” 

Ms. Sancoeur blinked once or twice. “Yes, it’s waiting for you at your desk.” She hesitated. “Are you feeling all right?” 

Marinette snapped her fingers. “That’s what I should have asked him! No ‘worried for your sanity,’ just normal friend questions. I’m all right,” she added as an afterthought. “I got a whole fifteen minutes of sleep at the last second. It did make me late, though. Sorry.” 

Ms. Sancoeur made a few adjustments on her tablet. “No, that’s all right, Marinette. Your health is important to me. Try to get more sleep tonight, though. If you’d like, I could draw up a sleep schedule for you, and then you wouldn’t have to sleep in again.” 

Marinette walked into her desk, sending water splashing out of the cup sitting on it. 

“Merde. That would be nice, but I don’t know how well I’d keep to it,” she said honestly, sliding around the desk and plopping into her chair. She dabbed at the water mess with her sleeve and Nathalie wrinkled her nose. 

“I’ll get a cloth for it; just leave it alone. Now, the plan for today was that we’d start with mathematics and go from there, but considering that it isn’t your best subject, and that you’re obviously not quite awake yet, and that the first thirty minutes of class are over already, we’ll skip the lesson for today. Be ready for a double lesson on Monday, though. Alternatively, I could give you extra work to do over the weekend.” 

Marinette pinched her arm and tried to get her brain back to the level of wakefulness she’d felt in the initial rush to get ready and leave. 

“I think I’d rather do it over the weekend, please.” 

Nathalie made a note on the tablet and set it down. “All right. Now, yesterday in history we were learning about—” 

Marinette squirmed in her seat. “Wait, shouldn’t I take my pill first, like M. Agreste wanted me to?” 

Ms. Sancoeur stared blankly at the far wall and took a deep breath. “Go ahead,” she told Marinette. “I’m sorry for starting the lesson early.” 

Marinette gave her an absolving, tired yet beatific smile as she struggled to open the orange pill bottle. 

Nathalie ended up having to get it for her. 

__*__*__*__*__ 

“M. Agreste?” 

Marinette had just finished her lunch, and Ms. Sancoeur had allowed her to visit Gabriel’s office. She knocked on the door after a moment’s pause, unsure if he had heard her. 

The muffled sound of footsteps reached Marinette’s ears, and she stepped back from the door as M. Agreste pushed it open. 

She swallowed and held the crinkled notebook page she’d been scribbling on a bit tighter. M. Agreste’s face was somber as he looked down at her. 

“Yes, Miss Dupain-Cheng? Is there something wrong you need to tell me about?” 

His voice was flat, as empty of emotion as it had been when she’d first been introduced to him. It was a stark contrast to the vulnerable earnestness he’d shown yesterday during the akuma fight. 

Marinette rubbed the paper between her fingers and opened her mouth. “M. Agreste, I...” 

Her voice trailed off as the absurdity of what she was about to offer hit her. Hey, M. Agreste, I was just wondering. Would you like me to risk certain illness and possible death to help you beat a couple of misled teenagers, heal your wife, and protect your son? Yes, I know nothing like that was covered in the agreement I signed, but I’ve given it a solid night’s thought and decided it might be the only way to make sure the fate of the world doesn’t end up in the wrong hands. Just putting that out there.  

Yeah, she sounded insane. 

But M. Agreste was still staring down at her, his impatient frown growing deeper. She had to say something. 

“I... just wanted to say that your son is really nice. He’s super polite and helpful, and you already know that since you raised him, so good job! And his haircut isn’t bad either, but I don’t know if that was his choice or yours because it looks professional, but his ears are hiding, like how the worst croissants in the batch are always at the back of the display shelf at home. Oh, and I’m sorry for being late this morning. I was up all night thinking about different ways I might die.” 

She punctuated her speech with a wide grin as she rested her arm on the wall and promised herself to stick to whatever bedtime schedule Nathalie came up with. 

Squinting just the tiniest bit, M. Agreste peered down at Marinette. 

“And you bothered me during working hours just to say this?” 

Crap.   

“I just have a lot of feelings?” Marinette offered weakly. She felt like she’d heard that before somewhere. Figuring out what from probably wouldn’t save her skin, though, she thought as she slowly straightened into a more natural stance. 

“Hm. Or perhaps you were going to say something else, but lost your nerve at the last moment. I see plenty of young interns suffering from that problem.” 

He raised one hand, and Marinette thought he might step back into his room and close the door, but he only fixed the button on his sleeve. Sighing, he continued, “I suppose I should say something to you, as well, so I’ll go first to give you the courage to say what you really meant. 

“I am... sorry for any possible discomfort witnessing the akuma battle yesterday may have given you. It was never my intention to make you feel like your position in this household depended on your willingness to do that; I just wanted to help you understand what akumatizations are really like. I assumed, since you’d been in an akuma battle before, that seeing another one wouldn’t be too much for you, but Nathalie reminded me that akumas used to make you very frightened. I apologize if that is still the case.” 

That was unexpected. It seemed like everyone was acting weird today. 

“It’s okay, M. Agreste,” Marinette said. “Seeing the battle first-hand helped me to understand what’s really going on in them, and knowing that it’s you behind Hawk Moth’s mask... I’m not all that afraid anymore. I just wish there was something I could do to help you and Nathalie get the Miraculous.” 

The corner of M. Agreste’s lips moved upwards. “Good,” he said in a pleased tone. “I am happy to hear that. As I said yesterday, there are times when I, too, wish there was someone else to help fight, but the fact of the matter is that it’s far too dangerous for anyone to risk themself like that.” 

That was the catch, wasn’t it? But still, “What if it wasn’t?” 

Marinette’s heart pounded loudly as M. Agreste considered her words. His eyebrows were slightly raised, and he seemed confused, but there was a slight glint in his eyes like he was excited. 

“What do you mean?” 

“W-well, the Peacock brooch is broken, but it’s only affected people who used it to make something— someone with it! What if that’s the difference, and it’s still safe to use as long as you don’t make a magic kid—” 

“A sentimonster,” M. Agreste interrupted. “That is the correct term.” 

Marinette’s eyebrows wrinkled. “Really? That’s terrible; we should change that. Anyway,” she said, waving her hands as her nerves spiked, “I wore the brooch for a while, and even if I needed medicine afterwards, we have medicine for it. Like, do we even know for a fact that with it, anything serious would happen to me? It’s not like Emilie knew to take a pill every day back when she made Adrien, right?” 

“She did not,” M. Agreste confirmed, looking almost amused as Marinette started pacing back and forth in front of his door while her rant continued. 

“Right! So theoretically, I could wear the brooch every day and be fine as long as I took meds for the effects. What about transforming? Does the medicine still work against those effects?” 

“Well, since they are the same effects, only heightened... Yes, it would.” 

Marinette brought a fist down on her open palm. “Right! Cool, that sets my mind at ease somewhat. Um. So, since we’ve made progress medically — medicinally — uh, I was thinking — you need some help, and the Guardian doesn’t like Adrien — gah!” 

Why couldn’t Marinette’s thoughts ever make sense once they wandered into her mouth? 

As M. Agreste looked down at her expectantly, she took a deep breath and started again. “What if I became the new Peacock holder? And helped you get the Miraculous?” 

A surprised noise came from M. Agreste’s throat. “You, the new Peacock? Marinette, that’s a dangerous, dangerous idea! The brooch is broken, you know that! Even if the medicine helps, it might not save you from the worst effects of the Miraculous. What you propose would have you risking almost certain death!” 

“Only if we fail,” Marinette said, her voice surprisingly steady for once. “And if I don’t make any sentis, wouldn’t I avoid the worst effects anyway? Of course, it’s a risky plan. But what plan isn’t? I’ve already risked a lot by studying fashion, and see how well it’s worked out! With a second fighter and a bit of luck, I think we can win this struggle. What about you, M. Agreste? Do you have the courage to do what’s necessary to save your wife and son, or will you lose your chance by choosing not to trust me?” 

He was definitely surprised, but as Marinette watched M. Agreste hopefully, she dared to hope that he was slightly impressed by her speech. He’d cocked one of his eyebrows, and there was a slight lift to his lips as he regarded her. 

“Well said, Marinette! I could hardly make a better argument myself. But you are aware it’s more than just your health we are risking, no? If you should fail in your mission, are you willing to see Adrien pay the price?” He advanced towards Marinette, the light from his room casting his long shadow over her as he spoke. “How far are you willing to go in this fight, Miss Dupain-Cheng? Just as I’d never hire a skilless designer, I would never pick an ally who can’t fight, who could cost us the entire battle through one misstep. You asked me to trust you. Are you positive that I can?” 

Marinette swallowed, drawing herself up as she stood firm. “I am. I would never do anything to risk Adrien’s well-being, much less the world’s. For a cause like this, I would never back down or change my mind. I might not be a skilled fighter, sir, but you can count on me to try my best. Only... if something happens to me because we’re wrong, will you tell Adrien what happened? It’s not fair to keep him in the dark so long.” 

Gabriel’s face softened as he lightly touched the brooch under his ascot. “Of course, Marinette. I’ll make sure he knows about your devotion to the cause. Now, we’re both willing to have you join the fight. But even so, we face a good many obstacles. Nathalie, for example. I don’t think she would go along with our plan.” 

Marinette’s mouth went dry. “What? She doesn’t think I’d make a good fighter, does she? It’s all the time I spent panicking in her class over akumas, isn’t it?” she chuckled. “I wish I would’ve known better.” 

“It’s nothing you can fix now, Marinette,” M. Agreste said kindly. “She knows I’m looking for a potential ally, but since you’ve already been injured by the Peacock, I do not think she would allow us to move forward with the plan if she knew what further damage you were risking. She means well,” he sighed, “But her heart is just too tender for this situation. Losing a pupil of hers... I’m sure you can understand why she feels uncomfortable with the thought of you on the battlefield. Never mind that you’ve already proved yourself in the fight with Evillustrator.” 

Marinette felt an odd surge of pride as she remembered the fight. She’d been on the wrong side that day, but she’d still earned M. Agreste’s respect! 

“Now, I know you aren’t a trained fighter, but I can help you in that regard. Fencing is something of a family tradition, and I know a thing or two about martial arts as well. But we can’t let Nathalie know...” Gabriel snapped his fingers. “I know! We’ll lengthen your apprenticeship hours, and you can practice then. And if you’re willing to take some time out of lunch break, like today, we can fit in even more time, either for akumas or training, depending on the day. Does that sound good?” 

Marinette’s fingers trembled slightly in nervous excitement. “I think so,” she responded. “So, you’re okay with me being the Peacock then? You’ll let me fight in battles and help convince Golden Bug and Chat Grise to hand over their Miraculous?” You’ll trust me with your son, with the health of your wife?  

An old wrinkle line showed as M. Agreste smiled. “Of course,” he purred. “You’ve shown yourself to be very dependable, Marinette. I’d be proud to work with you.” 

Marinette took a deep breath and let it out in a relieved sigh. “Me too,” she said. “When do I start? Is there anything I need to know before the next battle?” 

M. Agreste tilted his head in a nod. “Not as much as if you were creating... sentis, but yes, there is. You’ll need to know the transformation phrase, how to use your fan, and get used to the suit before joining me in a battle. You should begin today, after... well, how much time is left before lunch is over?”

Pulling out her phone, Marinette checked it and answered, “Fifteen minutes.” 

“Hm. Not much time, but it should be just enough for the first lesson. Head to the atelier and take the elevator to the attic. I will meet you there.” 

Marinette blinked. She hadn’t really expected M. Agreste to take her idea this soon, but she guessed it was for the best! 

“Okay,” she said as Gabriel turned back to his room and closed the door. 

It was an uneventful trip up to the attic, much like any other trip, but with the uniquely wealthy element of an elevator to make the trip shorter. 

With nothing to do while she waited, Marinette walked over to the large butterfly window, sniffing and rubbing her nose with one hand. Apparently, the attic didn’t get dusted often enough. 

She was going to be a Miraculous holder. Responsible for the fate of the entire world, along with the other holders, not all of whom seemed to be aware of that responsibility. Golden Bug, for example — he hadn’t lost a fight yet, but his cheerful, punster attitude seemed unsuited for the gravity of his role. Did he not care about what could happen if his Miraculous was abused? Was he abusing it, himself? 

If he knew the truth about Adrien, would he see him as any more than a glorified toy, or worse, a monster, like the sentis had apparently been dubbed for some time? 

Marinette made a pact with herself. She would not abuse her power, either by using it or failing to. She would not create any sentis — even ignoring the fact that doing so might kill her, it didn’t seem right to her that life could be made and disregarded so easily. She would never want to be responsible for someone’s whole existence or as completely in control of them as the sentis’ parents were. 

She didn’t want to be the Peacock holder. But she also didn’t have a choice. This was the only way to keep Adrien safe, to right the wrongs of the past before they hurt more people. 

As Gabriel stepped out of the elevator and walked up behind her with the broken brooch in his hand, Marinette promised herself that she would take up this mission, and she wouldn’t give up until she’d made sure that Adrien would be all right, that everyone who was dead would come back, and that no one would be hurt by the Miraculous again. 

“Here. Once Duusu comes out of the brooch, you can transform using this phrase — ‘Duusu, spread my feathers.’ That will be your first step.” 

Marinette took the brooch from Gabriel, glancing at its flawed beauty for a moment before pinning it to the center of her shirt. The same blue kwami she’d met before came spiraling out of it, shaking themself excitedly as they looked up at her. 

This was it. This was her last chance to back out of the mission and leave the responsibility to someone else. 

But she already knew she would never do that. There was only one path laid out at her feet, one fate hidden in the mists of the future. And Marinette was ready to face it, whatever it was. 

“Duusu,” she said in a solemn tone as M. Agreste watched from the side, “Spread my feathers.” 

The electric sensation of magic rushed over her, and Marinette transformed. 

[hurryglow]

"The Supreme & Apis" Emo Au

Some character sheets, headcanons, details of the story

Etc.

[yunyin]

Some sketches I've made for the (Fixed) Peacock AU! They're meant to be slightly aged up. I also gave Adrien a little brother (for plot reasons but also I love him)

[hueynomure]

Follow me:

Sentimonsters are seen as children of the Miraculous, in a sense, right? Felix calls one of them "my sister" in a very tragic scene. And we have two characters who specifically used the Peacock to have a child.

Now.

Imagine Marinette had been chosen for the Peacock because reasons.

What would be the odds she would end up naming her first sentimonster... Hugo?

And what would happen if Hugo died in an akuma attack

[ataraxianne]

I love how Felix put so much thought in his superhero name choosing "Argos" to reconnect it to the Argonauts, the army commanded by Jason, Hera's favourite hero. Hera, the Queen of the Gods, Mother of the Gods, whose symbolic animal was the peacock. So he literally presented himself as the hero of the creatures made with the power of the peacock because his whole intention in getting the miraculous was to protect the sentibeings created with it instead of seeing them being abused and exploited by others, and to be seen as herald in front of those who wanted to stop him.

And then we see the other heroes' names and they're like "Okay so the white rabbit is called Bunny(x), that purple tigress there is Purple Tigress and the black cat is called - wait for it - Black Cat"