#by alexseanchai

[alexseanchai]

it occurs to me that probably the most plausible explanation for why Victor and Yuuri didn't trade phone numbers at the Sochi banquet, and why Yuuri himself has no photos or videos of same, is Yuuri just didn't bring his phone

fic prompt, free to a good home: what if he did

#yuri on ice #yuuri katsuki #victor nikiforov #victuuri #fic prompt #by alexseanchai

[shanastoryteller]

Happy Solstice, Shana! more Lady Mo or something else genderbendy?

Tony's spent her whole life proving she was good enough to make it in a man's world. Her own father had written her off as a debutante, but he'd let her spend time in his workshop and look over the papers spread over his desk, on his lap or a safe distance away from all the sparks. He probably thought she liked the pictures and the lights.

She builds an engine when she's six years old, her dress torn and stained with grease and and burning with pride as she grins up at her father.

It's the first time Howard ever sees her and, she thinks, when he stops loving her.

Existing in a man's world is different than being a man. She's not allowed to forget, to indulge, she can't ever be anything else any other way than a performance.

Her whole life is a performance, so maybe there's no real difference.

She can wear broad silhouettes and make sure no one calls her Antonia and keep her hair in it's iconic pixie cut have her employees call her sir - ma'am was her mother, she says with a laugh, and god knows she took more after daddy dearest - and she spends so much of her time having dick measuring contests with generals and business rivals and every man that thinks he can put his hands on her that sometimes it's a shock to remember she doesn't have one of her own.

It's not that she doesn't like being a girl, that she doesn't get a thrill out of outrageous dresses and all her soft curves, that she doesn't like at least seeing something of her mother in her mouth and her nose.

It's just that she thinks that she could be something more. That she is something more.

But that sort of things belong to someone who doesn't have her life, her job and her responsibilities and the eyes of the world watching her every move.

~

She doesn't even think about the fact that the armor is a man, narrow hips and broad shoulders and nothing feminine about his cold curves of metal, until Pepper sees it.

Pepper is quiet after, pressing ice to her bruises as she sits by Tony's hips. Her eyes stray to the arc reactor, a diamond of light glowing between her breasts. A circle would have been a more solid matrix but would have required her to get a mastectomy to make it fit.

She's thought about having a smooth chest before, but in the moment when it was an option that she could reasonably provide to the public - a medical device, for her health - she'd balked, and lost a day to redesign to make it something less, something that would fit and not require her to change to too much.

It had felt like a metaphor, or a sermon, as she'd beat sheets of metal until she bled.

Pepper asks, "Is it to protect your identity? So they don't think it's you?"

Tony stares, caught off guard, her mouth open in answer that she hesitates to give because she knows it's a lie. She doesn't like lying to Pepper.

She softens. "Or is it the opposite?"

Tony is sore and exhausted and Obie is acting strangely and Rhodey isn't talking to her (he calls her and he'll call again and again until she picks up, but he won't say a word, will just listen to her breathe to make sure she still is and then hang up like a fucking a coward) and she just killed sort of a lot of people and her weapons are where they shouldn't be and every defense she's built up around this question feels like it's crumbling around her.

"Pepper," she says, then can't bring herself to say anything else.

She doesn't want to lie to her.

"I like the paint job," Pepper says, hand soft where it's gripping her shoulder. Tony hasn't had soft hands since her father loved her.

"I like red," Tony says and Pepper's cheeks turn the same color as her hair.

#identity shenanigans and gender fuckery #my two favorite things #tony keeps her identity as iron man a secret #which totally works #for a while #prompt answers #prompts are closed #asks #alexseanchai #avengers

[suzukiblu]

WIP Wednesday: YJ accidental baby acquisition?

"How urgent?" Bruce asks.

"You need to come personally, as well as Wonder Woman and the Flash," Tim says, then pauses before adding, "And you should probably bring Superman." 

Kenley scowls. Tim notices, but doesn't understand why. Kenley likes Kon more than any of the rest of them so far; shouldn't they like Superman by extension? Or at least be curious about him, if nothing else?

#alexseanchai #wip: yj accidental baby acquisition

[coffeebanana]

Trick or treat!

(fwiw I plan to schedule all my trick-or-treat ask replies for Oct 31)

i have this random akuma concept i saved from a project that got scrapped. i don't know if i'll ever use it, but i thought the concept was fun!

(also tumblr is doing such weird things to my ask box and it kept temporarily deleting your ask, so i'm glad i found it 😂)

“Her name’s Photovoltaia—you know, like a photovoltaic?” “Uh…” “Meow-ch M’lady, I’m starting to think you don’t even listen when I talk about physics.” She groaned. “This isn’t the time for a science lesson. Please just get to the point.” “Alright, alright. I can conduct you in the right direction.” “Chat Noir, I’m hungry. Please.” “Ok. She basically has the power to convert light—from any reflective surface around her—into electricity. Then she can release the electricity, which makes getting close to her...difficult. It doesn’t seem to be enough to hurt anybody when it hits them directly, but I think it essentially acts as a means of mind control. You know, since neurons act on electrical impulses too?” He frowned. “Except, sometimes she turns her powers on objects instead, and then those are painful if you touch them.”

#ask response #alexseanchai #miraculous ladybug

[ml-rarepairs]

Adrigami vs Marigami? I vote Adrigaminette

If the people make the poll 50/50, they'll go forward as a triad...good luck!

#ml rarepair bracket #ask #alexseanchai

[spotted-kittens]

Sometimes you find fanfiction so good that it literally consumes you. Sometimes you aren't even really attracted to the premise of the fic itself, but for some reason you give it a chance and it blows you away.

"where the firelight fades" by @alexseanchai is one of the best fanfics I have ever read (and I mean in general, not strictly in the Miraculous Ladybug fandom).

Deep, complex, varied, intense, never boring, researched, intelligent, full of references to art, history, linguistics, pop culture, science, the kind of fic that you just want to read and re-read to discover more and more.

I have never really been interested in the concept of akumatized Ladybug for many reasons, but this fic took all my preconceptions and flung them out the window.

I have already read this three times in full plus selected sections more times, but I feel I am not done yet with things to understand and discover, so I'll be back there again, if anyone wants to join me.

#miraculous ladybug #mlb #fanfic #fanfiction #akumatized marinette #akumatized ladybug #amazing fanfiction #alexseanchai #where the firelight fades

[gentil-minou]

I can't imagine anyone is getting as much engagement on Twitter as they did pre-Musk, with the exception of anybody who was getting no engagement on Twitter until Musk unbanned them

thats definitely true but also tumblr is being a mess too and im at a point where i don't want to be a lurker anymore so where do i go, if all the sites are trying to basically out do the other in terms of making themselves awful? where does that leave me?

#asked and answered #alexseanchai #idk ml is the only other fandom i like actively made content for and it was soooo different whe i did #now all fandoms are dying cause their sites are actively making the experience wrose #i just am at a loss of what to do #im not good at pretending to be humble i know my writing is good and i know my writing is good as well #i just dont know how to make others see it #and yeah write for yourself and all that but thats never been something i've been interested in #i write to make others happy as much as to make me happy #but if it feels like no one is reading...well then i might as well just spend my time doing something else #idk im just a needy person okay

[mlwritersguild]

murder face, by @alexseanchai

A fic inspired by the heliotrope flower

AO3; temporary character death, hawkmoth defeat, marinette needs a hug, angst with a happy ending

Summary:

shout from the hundred-square-femtometre rooftop — Yesterday at 8:21 PM please, I don't even need to be asleep to have nightmares source: I can hear my sister screaming like her cat just died my sister is two continents away save a vespa, ride the métro — Yesterday at 8:23 PM You hear it too? Everyone who was here on 1 Sep 2014 says it's Ladybug

Lady Noire storms inside Tour TVi, a dark blue blanket with two thin red stripes over her shoulder, a phone clutched so tightly in her hand she must be leaving claw marks on its case. Those few people in the lobby at this hour scatter away from her path at the first glimpse of her face: cold and pale as death.

"Warn Nadja Chamack I'm taking over as tonight's guest," Lady Noire snaps.

Somebody calls Arlette. Side by Side is live, but no one wants to find out if, with the Black Cat Miraculous, Ladybug's looks can kill.

---

shout from the hundred-square-femtometre rooftop — Yesterday at 7:43 PM I can stay up past 03:00 if I want, it's Labour Day, we're closed no dying on this hill — Yesterday at 7:45 PM Irrelevant. Zoé is correct: schedule your system maintenance or your system maintenance will schedule you. shout from the hundred-square-femtometre rooftop — Yesterday at 8:21 PM please, I don't even need to be asleep to have nightmares source: I can hear meimei screaming like her cat just died meimei is two continents away save a vespa, ride the métro — Yesterday at 8:23 PM You hear it too? Everyone who was here on 1 Sep 2014 says it's Ladybug

Ladybug speaks softly, carries her partner's stick @CometHeliotrope Bonjour Monarque. C'est après minuit. Sais-tu où est le Prince Charmant ? Oh regarde, c'est ton alliance. Translated from French by Googol Hello Monarch. It's after midnight. Do you know where Prince Charming is? Oh look, it's your wedding ring. [image: Lady Noire sitting on one of Paris's slate rooftops, toying with a platinum wedding ring and glaring into the camera.] 9:13 PM · 29 Apr 2017

Alya Césaire, photojournaliste citoyenne de la Ville miracles @ladyblog_paris This is legit. Source: personal communication with Ladybug. 9:17 PM · 29 Apr 2017

Lady Noire storms inside Tour TVi, a dark blue blanket with two thin red stripes over her shoulder, a phone clutched so tightly in her hand she must be leaving claw marks on its case. Those few people in the lobby at this hour scatter away from her path at the first glimpse of her face: cold and pale as death.

"Warn Nadja Chamack I'm taking over as tonight's guest," Lady Noire snaps.

Somebody calls Arlette. Side by Side is live, but no one wants to find out if, with the Black Cat Miraculous, Ladybug's looks can kill.

---

Zoé runs up the spiral staircase and skids to a stop outside the Césaire apartment. Nino opens the door at the first sound of the doorbell. "Comrade Moutarde de Dijon!" he exclaims. "Good to see you—have you heard from Comrades Mayo, Bechamel, or Sweet and Sour?"

"Comrade Bechamel is going to strangle me enough already without inviting Comrade Sweet and Sour," Alya calls from the living room, where she, Max, Kim, Rose, Juleka, Ivan, and Mylène are gathered around the television, currently playing the latest advertisement for Alliance rings. At second glance, Zoé does recognize the person hovering awkwardly near the dining table: XY Roth.

"I may mean that literally," Alya adds. "She might wring my neck with her bare hands."

"…What's wrong? Should we be heading for the TV station?"

Alya's group text didn't say. All Zoé knows is it's a problem for the Resistance.

---

"Don't be bemused, it's just the news! Hi, I'm Nadja Chamack, and this is Side by Side. Today, I'm joined by our own Ladybug!"

"Lady Noire," she corrects Nadja, who is far too familiar with interviewing akumas to flinch. Well. To flinch much.

"…This is the third time you two have swapped Miraculouses, I believe?"

Lady Noire nods, a stiff, sharp motion. "The question you should be asking is, where is my partner?"

Nadja gulps. "Yes. Where is your partner?"

"The same place as Prince Charming."

It's a Tsurugi brand phone, from the sound it makes when turning on. Lady Noire blows on the screen, angled so only she can see the display, and zips her knuckle tip through an unlock pattern. "No missed calls," she tells the Side by Side camera. "A couple of text messages from friends, but not one from family. Most of them may be asleep at this time of day. Monarque might be too busy trying to magic his hand back on to pay attention when I'm talking about his son."

Silence rings through the room, through the city, as piercing as her earlier sobs.

"I will be more generous to Monarque than he has been to my partner and me," Lady Noire says, her voice shaking with rage. "You have until midnight to contact me to arrange the handover of every Miraculous you have. Every note and every artifact that you have even the slightest inkling might be of interest to me or my team. Every name you know of someone else who has chosen to help Monarque, or who has known his secret identity and kept silent. If I have any reason to believe that you are withholding something, if I have any reason to believe that you are trying to escape, you will not like what happens to Monarque's son."

Nadja shudders. Breathes. Asks, "What happens after midnight?"

"At midnight," says Lady Noire, "I name Monarque on air."

---

"I have no proof that will satisfy a court of law," Lady Noire tells Mme Chamack, Paris, the world. "But the man he is in the rest of his life does have a… professional reputation to protect. Perhaps I am framing the man I will name. Why would I do that? Paris wonders. What skeletons might they find in his closets, if they try to figure out what this man has done?"

Her arms are wrapped around the bundle of fabric she brought. Possibly only the fact that her claws can't pierce her armor is keeping her forearm from bleeding.

A ringtone. Mylène reaches for her phone, only to stop when Lady Noire thumbs the phone she's holding, silencing the sound.

"Come on, dude, pick up," mutters Nino into his Alliance ring.

The ringtone again. This time Lady Noire answers. Someone turns up the TV volume, but it doesn't pick up the phone call audio.

"You must be Mayura!" Lady Noire says, cheerfulness ringing painfully false. "It's good to know you're alive. Chat Noir was afraid something had happened to you after we stopped seeing you around—you know him, such a bleeding heart."

She taps something. "—do with him?" snarls the caller on speakerphone.

Nino growls, "Mayura."

"What do you think I did with him?" Lady Noire shouts. "I told Monarque I'd make him regret this. He took my partner away from me!"

"Where is my son?" Mayura demands.

Lady Noire blinks twice, opens her mouth, and closes it again. Then shakes herself and drags in a breath. "You know him," she says, voice softer now but no less terrifying. "If I told him he needed to jump off a bridge to help stop Monarque, do you truly believe he'd hesitate?"

"She's bluffing!" shouts Monarque. "My son, come home at once, do—"

A strangled sound. "She may be bluffing," Mayura says. "I'm not. Nooroo, wings rise!"

"I thought so," Lady Noire says. To the TV crew, she adds, "Cut to commercial."

Adrien's latest perfume ad plays.

Mylène is the first to speak. "You don't…really think Ladybug would hurt someone, just because he's Monarque's kid. …Do we?"

"I think," says Alya, typing furiously with one hand shielding her Alliance projection from view, "Monarque thought that if something happened to Chat Noir, Ladybug would lose control. Marinette, pick up your fucking phone."

---

The original guest on tonight's Side by Side is back on the sofa, almost managing to act as though whatever movie she's starring in is still the headliner of the episode. Or so Nathaniel says. Kagami is mostly not paying attention to anything but which way to the bakery and how fast to jog so she doesn't leave him, Marc, and Sabrina behind. A beep signals a new notification on her Alliance: an email from Nathalie Sancoeur, which can wait until Kagami has spoken to Marinette. She thinks highly enough of Chat Noir that tonight must be frightening.

"She's out with Adrien," Cheng-san tells them. "Is it something I can help with?"

"Maybe?" Marc glances at Nathaniel's Alliance projection and winces. "If she's with Adrien, she's probably okay but she won't be coming with us. So the next part of our plan is to head to Tour TVi with paint guns, in case Lady Noire needs backup—"

A car turns the corner. Adrien's car, specifically. Or not Adrien's, of course. Kagami starts toward it; Adrien's bodyguard gets out, alone. Kagami catches a glimpse of the interior: no people, only suitcases and messenger bags and reused grocery boxes.

Cheng-san hurries outside. "You're not with them?" she asks.

Adrien's bodyguard hands Cheng-san a locked tablet and holds out an unlocked phone. " 'Sign here to verify receipt of these documents'," his Alliance's digital Kagami doll reads aloud. " 'Review these documents at your leisure. If neither of you sign these documents, nothing will change. I believe it is in Adrien's best interests if you both sign; if either of you do, they will go into effect at the time of receipt.' "

Cheng-san narrows her eyes. "Is it in Marinette's best interest? Does your idea of Adrien's best interest agree with Adrien's idea of Adrien's best interest?"

Adrien's bodyguard signs the phone with a swipe of his own fingertip, locks it, and gives it to Cheng-san.

"This had better not be a trick!" shouts Cheng-san at the departing car.

---

"Sorry to interrupt," Ladybug says, reentering the camera's field of view entirely unapologetically. (It is Ladybug, now with the blue blanket draped over her shoulders like a cape; while out of sight, it seems, she switched back. There's going to be an akuma at the studio any moment now, and Nadja is very glad she called Lila and spoke to Manon while Ladybug and Mayura were negotiating terms.) Ladybug holds up Monarque's son's phone. "Mayura will be arriving momentarily, with a few people whose names and faces you'd love to be the first to publish. We're waiting on a signal from a third party before we reveal those—Monarque's son is not the only one in danger, and we're making sure the others are safe—"

Half the studio lights go out. The starlet Nadja is in theory interviewing bolts for cover. Nadja scurries over to one of the cameras, ready to flip to breaking-news-reporter-on-the-scene mode.

The other camera operator swivels that camera toward the opening door. Only two of the eight people who enter have any identifying characteristics at all: her Butterfly armor resembles a purple evening gown, and he must be the man under the Monarque mask, akumatized and vaguely familiar. The other six are different sizes of blur, with a superficial resemblance to Oblivio; two flicker between blue and green, and four between purple and red.

"The matters you don't wish televised are being delivered to someone I know you trust," Butterfly-Mayura says, brisk and businesslike. "These two are minors. I cannot imagine Chat Noir will want their lives destroyed; I am certain my son does not. These four have known about our Miraculouses for twenty years or more; though Monarque has been threatening their children in order to keep them silent, I cannot imagine either of you or my son will think that is enough to forgive them their silence." She pauses, considering a drawstring bag in her hand. "My son's mother will not."

Ladybug exhales. "I was wondering if this was for her," she says, very soft, but registering clearly on the audio pickup nonetheless. "If she's half as much like—your son—as his father says… No, she wouldn't think her life is worth the price."

The akumatized Monarque glares sullenly.

Monarque's son's phone rings.

"Lucky Charm!" Ladybug exclaims, hurling her yo-yo into the air and catching a magazine in a red-and-black plastic sleeve. "Mode, Septem—very funny," she tells the air, unamused. The phone rings again. "Heeeey there, friend!" Ladybug answers, bright and awkward, not unlike Manon lying through her teeth. "He can't come to the phone right now, we're a little busy—"

"I bet you are—"

Alya Césaire's voice stops.

"Please do not tell me this is that signal," Alya says faintly.

Ladybug rolls up the magical copy of Mode, takes five strides, and breaks Monarque's nose.

"Oh my god Gabriel Agreste is Monarque."

Alya sounds horrified. Manon adores Adrien; Nadja doubles her hope that Ladybug is bluffing. Or that Alya is wrong.

"Ladybug, where's Adrien?"

"Heh heh heh, funny story—" Ladybug hangs up.

"Madame Chamack," calls Butterfly-Mayura, getting Nadja's attention just in time for Nadja to catch the drawstring bag. "One for each of these seven; break it to remove the mask. Perhaps wait until Ladybug and Chat Noir have left?"

Nadja swallows and nods.

The purple butterfly slides out of the akumatized Monarque's visor and flickers to white. Violet-black magic bubbles over him, leaving a seventh blob, blood-red.

"Miraculous Ladybug!"

She whisks the blanket-cape off her shoulders to hide the person her magic brings her. He takes it as an attack—of course he does, the last thing Chat Noir remembers must be fighting for his life—

"Stop thrashing or I'll tell your girlfriend you want to PvP her in Ultimate Mecha Strike!" Ladybug hisses. "Twenty-five thousand nine hundred and thirteen to eleven is clearly not thrashed enough!"

The boy under the blanket goes statue-still.

"What did you just say?" asks Chat Noir.

"I said put your mask back on, kitty."

"That's what I thought I heard," Chat Noir mutters. (From the look of the audio meters, the audience didn't catch that.) One pale hand emerges from the blanket; Ladybug slaps something into his palm; with a flash of green light, Chat Noir reappears in living color.

Ladybug grabs him by the jingle bell and drags him down into a gasping, sobbing kiss.

"—My lady, I have a girlfriend," Chat Noir reminds her the moment he breaks free. "I will be telling her someone kissed me—" He stops, taking in the rest of the room. "What are you calling yourself now, Mayura, la Papillon Reine?"

"I believe I'm calling myself a poor excuse for a second mother," Mayura answers. "Ladybug. Our agreement."

"I believe I said it's his decision whether he even ever wants to think of you again," Ladybug retorts. To Chat Noir she says, "Or of me. I did kind of just convince all of Paris I did the same thing to Monarque's son that Monarque did to you. I've got six Miraculouses and two Alliances in my pocket, Carapace just got delivered a bunch of interesting things including at least seven more Miraculouses, I don't think either of those green blobs is Argos so it's probably only seven, the Ladyblogger has all sorts of fascinating documents to dig through, and Nathalie Sancoeur will be handing over the Butterfly Miraculous any moment now."

That all came out in one breath.

"…What," says Chat Noir.

Ladybug tilts forward and faceplants into Chat Noir's chest, mumbling something. He softens, holding her close.

Then stiffens up again. "Nathalie Sancoeur?" He snatches the yo-yo from Ladybug's waist, captures Mayura—she makes no effort to resist—and plucks the Butterfly brooch from her bodice.

Nadja wouldn't necessarily recognize Nathalie Sancoeur if she passed her on the street. Neither, most likely, would anyone in the room, and if Nadja could get her breaking-news-reporter hat on instead of watching in stunned silence like the rest of the world—

Chat Noir takes a deep breath, clutching Ladybug like a lifeline. "Ah," he says, retracting the yo-yo. "Gabriel Agreste isn't planning on sending Adrien to London because he thinks that will keep him safe from the terrible influence of friends Gabriel didn't pick out for him and a girlfriend Gabriel can't intimidate. Though I'm sure he wanted Adrien to keep thinking that. It's because Adrien only has two living adult relatives, one lives in London, and the other committed suicide back in September and he expects it to finish killing him soon."

One of the red-violet blobs shakes. Chat Noir glares at his own Miraculous. Nadja has a sudden horrible suspicion that Chat Noir spent the months of Monarque's silence believing he'd killed a man.

"I would have handed that over myself," Nathalie Sancoeur says. "And this, to Adrien, so I know he's alive."

'This' appears to be the wedding ring on her own hand.

"Ladybug keeps her promises," Chat Noir tells her.

Sancoeur slumps and nods. "Tell Adrien I'm sorry I lied. This is what killed Emilie. And for what little it's worth, Emilie wanted none of this. Tell him the unlock PIN on her phone is the year she first heard her favorite song. When he watches her videos, he should have Marinette with him." She removes the ring. "When you give Adrien this—" She hands it to Chat Noir. "—tell him he is never to let anyone but himself touch either half of his amok."

Ladybug whirls on her. "Excuse me?" she and Chat Noir demand in unison.

"—You didn't know." She folds to the floor. "You didn't—how did you get Adrien's cooperation?"

"You know he threw himself off a skyscraper for me and you're still asking that?"

If Nadja can see Ladybug's about to fall to pieces…

"So did any part of your brilliant bluff involve Marinette thinking her boy-toy died?" Chat Noir asks, steering Ladybug out of the studio. Nadja doesn't catch her answer; Chat Noir sighs. "Well, we had a good run, my lady. I promise I'll take good care of the miracle box after she ends you."

The studio door slams shut behind them.

Nadja stares at the drawstring bag in her hand. It contains seven marbles, each colored to match one of the blobs and labeled with initials. CB and LR on the blue-green, GA on the deep red, and TT, AG, AB, and RR on the red-violet.

Then she remembers she's on the clock and on camera and has to figure out something to say about this.

"Don't be bemused, it's just the news!—"

---

"Marinette helped," Ladybug murmurs. Chat Noir's warmth is the only thing that feels real right now. "It turns out she's really easily bribed, in the right circumstances. All I owe her is your life."

"She is plotting your doom as we speak."

"She is trying to figure out how to get the love of her life to stop talking and start kissing. It will probably help if we catch Argos, since apparently it's possible for a senti not to know it, and if your cousin really wanted to help you—!"

Chat Noir stops on the nearest rooftop to set her on her feet and stare at her. Tonight feels like it should be a full moon, but there's a slim crescent nearing the western horizon, with a breeze flicking at her bangs and a few bold stars visible above the city lights.

"But maybe I am just going to sleep by myself and probably have nightmares about half your father's arm falling off when I grabbed him. I don't know. That's up to you, probably. Did you know his Alliance assistant looks just like your mother?"

"Marinette is with her boyfriend right now," Chat Noir says slowly.

"And my partner is with me. Keep up."

Chat Noir shakes his head and sweeps her back up in a princess carry, leaping to the next roof and the next. "Years I was trying to catch your attention. Years, Ladybug, and all I ever had to do was look behind me."

"I love you too."

Chat Noir misses a stick-hold and narrowly avoids smashing them both into a wall.

---

Zoé's mother is being arrested. For accessory before and after the fact to Monarque's hundred-mile list of magical terrorist acts.

She leaps up when Alya's apartment doorbell rings anyway. Zoé and XY are the only people here not enthusiastically digging through the small mountain Adrien's bodyguard delivered. Even Rose and Juleka are alternating between sitting with Zoé and trying to smash open the glass bubbles with their kwamis inside.

It's Adrien, with a sleeping Marinette draped over his back. "Hey," he says, sheepish. "Can we kick Alya out of her bedroom for a few hours? Marinette needs a catnap and I don't think she's planning to let me go, uh, possibly ever."

Behind Zoé, all sound halts.

In the exact same tone of stunned and dazed by the now obvious as when she realized who Monarque is, and with exactly as much explanation, Alya says, "Oh my god it genuinely is a funny story."

#ml writers guild #april event 2023 #alexseanchai #miraculous ladybug #miraculous ladybug fic #ml fic #mlb #ladynoir #ladybug x chat noir #lovesquare #lovesquare fic #ladybug #ladynoire #chat noir #miraculous tales of ladybug and chat noir #cn: death

[picayunearts]

ooo Adrinette Chinese lessons?

I sketched these well over a year ago when I was learning to use Procreate, so I'd want to redo them now, but here's some silly drawings about Adrien and Marinette learning Chinese together, courtesy of the Shanghai special:

(WIP ask game)

#Asks #alexseanchai

[skyderman]

WIP Wednesday: Story of Magus?

oops that's more than 3

“Not what you expected, I can tell. Don’t bother hiding it.” Before Carmen could decide whether he sounded offended or not, the cat lifted his haunches and dipped his head toward her, even extending one paw forward delicately in a bow. “Nevertheless, I am indebted to you, konyenon. It seems chance is on our side after all, in some way.” “You’re welcome,” Carmen muttered. “My name is Carmen.” The cat resumed its perfectly stoic posture. “Nikolai,” he said, with a blink of his bright blue eyes.

#answered #story of magus #wip wednesday #writblr #alexseanchai #skyewriting #thanks :D

[alexseanchai]

so on the one hand, Yuuko's massive nosebleed in ep 3 is an obvious example of the anime trope in which nosebleeds indicate sexual attraction and/or arousal, and the comically large volume of blood is equally obviously an indication of the strength of that attraction, exaggerated for effect

on the other hand, there's no scientific basis for sexual arousal to relate to nosebleeds:

and I'm not sure how to estimate the volume of blood Yuuko is shown losing, but it's plenty enough that Yurio shouting for help (in the English dub) or asking Yuuko if she's sick (in the Japanese dub) is an entirely reasonable reaction:

and after all, Yuuri and Yuuko would both be well aware of this anime trope, and there's no reason to think Yurio would be; it makes sense that neither Yuuko nor Yuuri would be concerned, but the fact Yurio is, and he's making no effort to pretend otherwise—Yurio, who until now has made such a point of growling at Victor and hurting Yuuri in order to not look like he cares about either—

and a week later, when Yuuko sees Yurio in what must be a costume from one of Victor's first two seasons as a junior, age thirteen to fifteen to Yuuko's eleven to thirteen at the time:

ah, so someone told Yurio about the nosebleed-indicates-arousal trope

fascinating characterization all around

...speaking of nosebleeds:

and I'll link to both these metas as soon as I find them again, which I'd appreciate assistance with since I'm blanking on who posted either:

one observed that Victor noticed Yuuri flubs his jumps when there's something on his mind, and that we don't hear Yuuri's thoughts for most of his free skate in ep 5, but we do see him screw up the last jump, and the final scene in the episode is Yuuri's love confession to Victor—which suggests Yuuri realized on the ice that he loves Victor, the mortal human he's been learning the past five months, even with all the ways Victor frustrated Yuuri earlier in ep 5

the other observed that Victor was wondering who Yuuri's defiance of his coach reminded Victor of, and he was surprised to realize it's himself, a thought he had only after Yuuri took his final pose—which suggests Victor was also surprised by Yuuri's final pose

connect those two dots and we get, Yuuri changed the final pose on impulse, same as he changed the final jump in ep 7 on impulse, because he realized on the ice he loves Victor

can't help but suspect, given the nosebleed and everything, that he's thinking of sexual as well as romantic love

(which yes also has the Watsonian explanation of he bounced his face off the boards, which might say something about Yuuri being ace or demi given Yuuko did not injure herself in ep 3 and was definitely banging at least one man as a teenager, but like)

#yuri on ice #nishigori yuuko #yuri plisetsky #yuuri katsuki #victor nikiforov #victuuri #yoi meta #by alexseanchai

[shanastoryteller]

Blessed Samhain, Shana! more Lady Mo or something else genderbendy?

a continuation of 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47

Lan Xichen hasn’t seen Wangji this upset in thirteen years and he has no idea what could be the cause. He guides him to A-Yao’s private garden, mind spinning. If Xuanyu were in some sort of immediate danger, Wangji would not leave her side. He’s sure of that and it’s all that’s keeping him from marching back to Jiang Yanli and demanding an explanation out of her himself. He hopes Sizhui hasn’t noticed the commotion, certain it will cause his nephew to worry, but he doesn’t spare too much thought on it because right now his first concern is his brother.

Worryingly, when they come to a stop Wangji just continues to stare at him blankly.

“What happened?” he asks, resisting the urge to grab him by his shoulders and shake him. “Did you and Xuanyu get into a disagreement?”

Perhaps something to do with Jin Guangshan? Lan Xichen has long abandoned the idea that she’s some sort of spy, as has A-Yao, but that doesn’t mean her father can’t want things from her, can’t be trying to make things difficult for her. Perhaps Jiang Yanli was warning her and Xuanyu and Wangji had a fight about it? They fight often enough that he can’t imagine anything that would send Wangji running.

“I’ve done something terrible,” Wangji says tonelessly. “This is my fault.”

Wangji faced down forty Lan clan elders and received forty lashings all without admitting a single moment of poor judgement or regret. Punishments he accepts easily – culpability, significantly less.

“What are you talking about?” he demands, trying to keep the alarm out of his voice. “What did you do?”

“Xuanyu,” he starts, then presses his lips together and shakes his head.

He would not harm Xuanyu. Even that spar that set half the clan to breaking the rules about gossip was not about harm. He’ll fight her, argue with her, spar with her, but Wangji worries and watches over Xuanyu constantly, vexed and surprised by her at turns, and Lan Xichen had felt aching relief when the woman his brother had been coerced to marry had turned out to be someone that Wangji couldn’t look away from.

He forces himself to sound calm. “What about Xuanyu?”

Wangji wets his lips and has to clear his throat twice before he can make himself speak. “She’s pregnant.”

Lan Xichen stares.

The relief is enough to make his knees week and his grip on Wangji’s shoulder doubles as a way to steady himself. “Wangji! You nearly gave me a heart attack! This is wonderful-”

“Wonderful?” he repeats, looking at him like he’s grown another head.

Some of that relief drains away. “Is it not? Is something wrong with the baby? Or Xuanyu? I know she was a little weak when you married, but she’s gotten so much stronger.” A terrible thought occurs to him. “Is she – she’s happy about it, isn’t she? She said that she likes kids and she’s so good with Sizhui, she must be happy.”

“I,” Wangji blinks, “I don’t – I didn’t ask–”

“Well, what did you say?” he asks in exasperation.

“I apologized.”

A-Yao isn’t here, but Lan Xichen feels the familiar urge to turn to him. “You apologized.” Wangji nods. “Xuanyu told you that she was carrying your child. And you apologized. Then left.”

He nods again, slower this time.

Lan Xichen grips the bridge of his nose.

“LAN WANGJI!”

They both turn to see Jiang Cheng headed straight for them, sword unsheathed and Zidian sparking, although that’s not the most alarming part. The last time Lan Xichen saw that look on Jiang Cheng’s face, they were on a battlefield.

This, at least, likely is Wangji’s fault.

#prompt answers #prompts are closed #asks #alexseanchai #untamed

[sunfoxfic]

unwritten 13?

"Felix tells Adrien he's hiding from LB and CN"

I actually did start writing this one! The idea is that, post-Strikeback, Felix directly asks Adrien for help - or maybe support is a better word - dealing with the fact that he stole the Peacock Miraculous. Adrien realizes how terrified Felix is for his very personhood, and he can't bring himself to hate Felix for what he did, even if it was evil.

#asks answered #ask game #alexseanchai #felix fathom #adrien agreste

[coffeebanana]

okay i got more trick or treaters (asks) than anticipated and i don't have enough candy (snippets/ideas) to share at this time so i'll be scheduling the replies for halloween most likely 😂

#shoutout to alexseanchai for the scheduling idea #honestly some of my replies might be late too but i'll try my best! #also. i still have 3 more summary asks that i haven't gotten to yet kjasbfkjsdb i will do them some day i swear 😭

[mlcontentcreatorbirthdays]

It’s @alexseanchai ‘s birthday today!

Happy birthday, hope your day is filled with happiness!

#miraculous ladybug #birthdays #birthday alert #happy bday alexseanchai!

[rosie-b]

16. What’s an AU you would love to read (or have read and loved)?

It’s kind of specific, but I love reverse crush childhood friends Adrinette AUs! I can never resist reading them 😅

Thanks for the ask @alexseanchai!

#ask game #alexseanchai