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#Black Writers Guild
denimbex1986 · 5 months
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'Writer and poet Benjamin Zephaniah has died aged 65, after being diagnosed with a brain tumour eight weeks ago.
A statement posted on his Instagram account confirmed he died in the early hours of Thursday.
The statement said Zephaniah's wife "was with him throughout and was by his side when he passed".
"We shared him with the world and we know many will be shocked and saddened by this news," it added.
Zephaniah was born and raised in Handsworth, Birmingham, the son of a Barbadian postman and a Jamaican nurse. He was dyslexic and left school aged 13, unable to read or write.
He moved to London aged 22 and published his first book, Pen Rhythm.
His early work used dub poetry, a Jamaican style of work that has evolved into the music genre of the same name, and he would also perform with the group The Benjamin Zephaniah Band.
As Zephaniah's profile grew, he became a familiar face on television and was credited with bringing Dub Poetry into British living rooms.
He also wrote five novels as well as poetry for children, and his first book for younger readers, Talking Turkeys, was a huge success upon its publication in 1994.
On top of his writing work, Zephaniah was an actor and appeared in the BBC drama series Peaky Blinders between 2013 and 2022.
He played Jeremiah "Jimmy" Jesus, appearing in 14 episodes across the six series.
Zephaniah famously rejected an OBE in 2003 due to the association of such an honour with the British Empire and its history of slavery.
"I've been fighting against empire all my life, fighting against slavery and colonialism all my life," he told The Big Narstie Show in 2020.
"I've been writing to connect with people, not to impress governments and monarchy. So I could I then accept an honour that puts the word Empire on to my name? That would be hypocritical.
He often spoke out about issues such as racial abuse and education.
When he was younger, Zephaniah served a prison sentence for burglary and received a criminal record.
In 1982, Zephaniah released an album called Rasta, which featured the Wailers' first recording since the death of Bob Marley.
It also included a tribute to the then-political prisoner Nelson Mandela, who would later become South African president.
In an interview in 2005, Zephaniah said growing up in a violent household led to him assuming that was the norm.
He recalled: "I once asked a friend of mine, 'What do you do when your dad beats your mum?' And he went: 'He doesn't.'
"I said, 'Ah, you come from one of those, like, feminist houses. So, what do you do when your mum beats your dad?'"
In 2012, he was chosen to guest edit an edition of BBC Radio 4's Today programme.
Zephaniah was nominated for autobiography of the year at the National Book Awards for his work, The Life And Rhymes Of Benjamin Zephaniah, which was also shortlisted for the Costa Book Award in 2018.
During a Covid-19 lockdown, Zephaniah recited one of his poems in a video for the Hay Festival.
"Benjamin was a true pioneer and innovator. He gave the world so much," the statement announcing his death said.
"Through an amazing career including a huge body of poems, literature, music, television and radio, Benjamin leaves us with a joyful and fantastic legacy."
A statement from the Black Writers' guild, which Zephaniah helped establish, said: "Our family of writers is in mourning at the loss of a deeply valued friend and a titan of British literature. Benjamin was a man of integrity and an example of how to live your values."
Others paying tribute included author Michael Rosen, who said: "I'm devastated. I admired him, respected him, learnt from him, loved him. Love and condolences to the family and to all who loved him too."
Actress Adjoa Andoh posted: "We have lost a Titan today. Benjamin Zephaniah. Beautiful Poet, Professor, Advocate for love and humanity in all things. Heartbroken. Rest In Your Power - our brother."
Peaky Blinders actor Cillian Murphy said in a statement: "Benjamin was a truly gifted and beautiful human being.
"A generational poet, writer, musician and activist. A proud Brummie and a Peaky Blinder. I'm so saddened by this news."
Broadcaster Trevor Nelson said: "So sad to hear about the passing of Benjamin Zephaniah. Too young, too soon, he had a lot more to give. He was a unique talent."
Singer-songwriter and musician Billy Bragg added: "Very sorry to hear this news. Benjamin Zephaniah was our radical poet laureate. Rest in power, my friend."
Comedian, actor and writer Lenny Henry said: "I was saddened to learn of the passing of my friend Benjamin Zephaniah. His passion for poetry, his advocacy for education for all was tireless."
Writer Nels Abbey said: "To call this crushing news is a massive understatement. He was far too young, far too brilliant and still had so much to offer. A loss we'll never recover from."
The X/Twitter account for Premier League football club Aston Villa, whom Zephaniah supported said everyone at the club was "deeply saddened" by the news.
"Named as one of Britain's top 50 post-war writers in 2008, Benjamin was a lifelong Aston Villa fan and had served as an ambassador for the AVFCFoundation. Our thoughts are with his family and friends at this time."'
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savagegood · 10 months
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Reader, it has happened already. Less than a month after it debuted, the Black Mirror episode Joan Is Awful has already become the unlikely figurehead of the strike. It's the story of a woman who, at the end of each day, realises with horror that her actions have been folded into a Dropout-style biographical drama, where all her bad traits and regrettable decisions are played out onscreen by Salma Hayek. Except, as the episode goes along, we learn that it isn’t Hayek at all; it’s an AI-generated likeness of Hayek, commissioned by unethical executives working for a monolithic streaming platform. It couldn’t be more timely. A sticking point of the Sag-Aftra strike is the potential that AI could soon render all screen actors obsolete. Chief negotiator Duncan Crabtree-Ireland laid bare the AMPTP’s so-called “groundbreaking AI proposal,” which holds the potential to wipe out an entire pathway to breaking into the industry, as well as a reliable source of income for many. The reported proposal hinged on the ability for background actors to be “scanned, get paid for one day’s pay” and for that company to “own that scan of their image, their likeness, and to be able to use it for the rest of eternity in any project they want with no consent and no compensation.” It’s a similar line to the one currently taken by the striking WGA writers. Eventually, they claim, technology will advance enough to make an AI-generated script that is indistinguishable from one created by a human. These scripts would be cheap and instant, and – even though they’re essentially composite jobs, made by scraping existing scripts – they would immediately put an entire profession out of work.
fellas, we're really in it (a black mirror episode) now
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kitty-pelosi · 10 months
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wild how like, immediately after Joan is Awful is released SAG bites to strike because producers proposed exactly that, basically - that they can scan actors faces and pay them for 1 day of work while owning their likeness forever
black mirror actually managed to pump out something exceptionally accurate i can’t help but wonder who was involved in Joan is Awful and what they knew
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feckcops · 10 months
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Joan Is Awful: Black Mirror episode is every striking actor’s worst nightmare
“A sticking point of the near-inevitable Sag-Aftra strike is the potential that AI could soon render all screen actors obsolete. A union member this week told Deadline: ‘Actors see Black Mirror’s Joan Is Awful as a documentary of the future, with their likenesses sold off and used any way producers and studios want. We want a solid pathway. The studios countered with ‘trust us’ – we don’t.’ ...
“If a studio has the kit, not to mention the balls, to deepfake Tom Hanks into a movie he didn’t agree to star in, then it has the potential to upend the entire industry as we know it. It’s one thing to have your work taken from you, but it’s another to have your entire likeness swiped.
“The issue is already creeping in from the peripheries. The latest Indiana Jones movie makes extensive use of de-ageing technology, made by grabbing every available image of Harrison Ford 40 years ago and feeding it into an algorithm. Peter Cushing has been semi-convincingly brought back to life for Star Wars prequels, something he is unlikely to have given permission for unless the Disney execs are particularly skilled at the ouija board. ITV’s recent sketch show Deep Fake Neighbour Wars took millions of images of Tom Holland and Nicki Minaj, and slapped them across the faces of young performers so adeptly that it would be very easy to be fooled into thinking that you were watching the real celebrities in action.
“Unsurprisingly, Sag-Aftra members want this sort of thing to be regulated, asking for their new labour contract to include terms about when AI likenesses can be used, how to protect against misuse, and how much money they can expect from having their likenesses used by AI.”
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sestrahulk · 1 year
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Tatiana Maslany stands with the Writers Guild of America via her instagram stories
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thefirsthogokage · 11 months
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More Strike Solidarity!
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(link to post) (link to article)
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(link to tweet)
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And Outside the US:
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(link to Variety article)
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(that "info" link)
It's more than Canada and the UK joining in on showing support on June 14th:
Under the banner of “Screenwriters Everywhere,” solidarity events are planned in Canada, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Germany, France, Poland, the Netherlands, Argentina, Italy, Belgium, Bulgaria, Colombia, Denmark, South Korea, Spain, Mexico and Israel. Even war-torn Ukraine’s Guild of Screenwriters of Ukraine will take part in the day of international solidarity.
Here's The Black List's Twitter Thread On This:
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For better viewing:
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(link in tweet: blcklst.com/strike)
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Malcolm & Marie (2021, Sam Levinson)
08/03/2024
Malcolm & Marie is a 2021 film written and directed by Sam Levinson.
It was the first film to be completed after the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic.
After the preview screening of his latest film as director, Malcolm returns home with his girlfriend Marie; here the two begin to reveal facts to each other that will put their relationship to the test.
The film was shot in secret in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic between June 17 and July 2, 2020 in California, within a single thirty-three-acre property with the approval of the Writers Guild of America, Directors Guild of America and Screen Actors Guild unions.
The black and white film was shot on 35 millimeter film.
The first trailer of the film was released on January 8, 2021.
The film was distributed starting from February 5, 2021 on the Netflix platform, which purchased the rights to the film for thirty million dollars.
On the aggregator Rotten Tomatoes the film receives 57% of positive professional reviews with an average rating of 6.3 out of 10 based based on 245 critics, while on Metacritic it obtains a score of 53 out of 100 based on 42 criticisms.
Charles Bramesco of Little White Lies gave the film a score of 1 out of 5, calling it a "clumsy, horribly over-the-top talkathon"; David Ehrlich of IndieWire gave it a C+; Empire touts the film as a "great sentimental drama"; for BBC.com "Levinson recalls many dramas about bad relationships, such as Scenes from a Marriage, Story of a Marriage and above all Who's Afraid of Virgilia Woolf?, giving a restyling to the genre thanks to the great performances, going as far as including new themes such as racism and Hollywood."
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Join us for our first ever OPEN MIC WEEKEND featuring members of the Adventurer's Writing Guild & Poetry Orchard communities!
🍍Friday, May 5 @ 6:30 PM EDT | 11:30 PM BST hosted by @nashira 🍓Saturday, May 6 @ 2:00 PM EDT | 7:00 PM BST hosted by @shylovrs
🍊Lineup subject to change ⚔️Sign ups close May 4
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mlwritersguild · 2 years
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For the march writing : "No. No more coffee. Now just go to sleep already!" (submitted by @thesandman1991)
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I Must Espresso My Concern, by @ladybugs-and-black-cats
AO3 link; Post-Reveal, Aged-Up Character(s), Pregnant Marinette Dupain-Cheng, Tired Adrien Agreste/Chat Noir, Sleep Deprived Marinette Dupain-Cheng, Designer Marinette Dupain-Cheng, Late at Night, Late Night Conversations
Summary:
Marinette asks Adrien to make her a cup of coffee so she can continue her late-night work on her fashion designs. Adrien, however, is tired and just wants to go to bed…and to convince Marinette that she needs sleep too!
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“No. No more coffee. Now just go to sleep already!”
Adrien Agreste was starting to regret agreeing to make his wife a cup of coffee to help her stay awake to work on her latest designs. That had been almost four hours ago and Marinette had requested several more cups of coffee since. It was now approaching 2:00 AM and Adrien just wanted to go to bed. 
It was a busy time of the year for the Agreste Brand, where both he and Marinette worked. As the Head Executive, Adrien knew well about the extra workload and had tried to delegate accordingly, splitting the work as evenly amongst his designers as he could. Although, he could admit that he’d given Marinette less than most of the designers because she did not need the added stress right now. Marinette was working extra hard, trying to get everything finished before her leave began in a few months.
“You don’t understand, Adrien!” Marinette replied back to him without turning away from her designs. She clearly was not happy with her husband cutting off (or, attempting to, anyway!) her caffeine intake for the night. “I need to get these designs finished and time is running out! There’s still so much left that I have to do before—“ She paused, her hand moving down to her stomach to soothe the area where their daughter was growing. Emma must have made her physical presence known (and a bit forcefully if the slight grimace on Marinette’s face was any indication).
Adrien came up behind Marinette and wrapped his arms around her so that his hands could also rest on his wife’s stomach. As he’d anticipated, Emma was quite restless tonight. “M’lady, your cups of coffee seem to have stimulated Emma,” he chuckled, but he knew the joke had fallen flat thanks to his fatigue.
“You sound tired,” Marinette told him. “Really, you should sleep. I’ll join you soon…ish.”
Adrien stifled a yawn. His eyelids were heavy, but he knew that he would not be able to sleep, regardless of how tired he was feeling. “As great as that sounds, M’lady, it’s impossible. I would just end up tossing and turning until you came to bed. Trust me, I tried already. That’s why I’m awake now.”
Marinette shifted to kiss her husband’s lips. “So, maybe you could make us both a cup of coffee?”
Adrien frowned and pulled away. “No. You don’t need any more coffee.” He was resolute in this decision. There was absolutely no way that he would let Marinette convince him against it.
Marinette pouted and Adrien had to admit that her expression was super cute. “If I get these designs finished, I’ll be able to relax, especially if…” she trailed off, running her hands along her baby bump again.
Adrien knew what Marinette was thinking. She was constantly worried that Emma would make an early grand entrance into the world. Well, that might be the case if Marinette kept drinking so much coffee! “M’lady, I promise that everything will be fine. You do need sleep, though, for Emma’s sake. If you don’t get enough sleep, that could negatively affect her development. Remember, the doctor said that recently?”
He knew that his wife was likely to spiral out of control, believing that she was creating a disaster. Normally, Adrien would try to prevent Marinette from having a panic attack, especially now that she was pregnant, but he was tired and he really needed her to understand her need for sleep right now. Adrien could see, in Marinette’s eyes, that she was worrying. He did regret making her feel this way, but it seemed to be the only way to get her to understand. “Please, M’lady, just come to sleep. There’s plenty of time to finish your designs, I promise.” 
Adrien could see that his begging was starting to wear down Marinette. The effects of her most recent cup of coffee were fading and her eyes looked to be as heavy as Adrien’s own. “But…” she started, glancing back at her design.
“Everything will be fine,” Adrien encouraged her. “Emma won’t come early. You’ll finish your designs and they will look amazing as always. A little sleep won’t hurt, I promise. In fact, getting some sleep will help. If you work like this, when you’re tired, there’s more chance that you will mess up and have to start over again.”
Marinette made a noise that sounded a bit like an “eep!” and Adrien knew that she understood what he meant. “Okay, okay, I understand,” Marinette moaned, looking back at her designs again and probably imagining all the mistakes that she could end up making if she worked on them while she was tired. “Still…just one more cup of coffee, please, Adrien? I promise this will be the last one!”
Adrien had to bite back a groan. “Marinette, you said the same thing last time when you asked me to make you a cup of coffee.”
“Um…I really mean it this time. One more, that’s it! Then I’ll go to bed!”
“You said that last time too,” Adrien pointed out to her. “I stand by what I just said. No more coffee for you tonight, Marinette. You need your sleep.”
Marinette pouted (but Adrien knew that she wasn’t actually that upset with him) as she looked back at her designs again. Then, Adrien saw her perk up a little bit.
“Wait, don’t you dare do what I think you’re going to do! Marinette!”
Of course, Marinette didn’t listen. She turned to Adrien and gave him the puppy dog eyes face that she had learned from Manon. Adrien hated when Marinette did this because it worked. It didn’t matter what she wanted; Adrien would cave every time when she pulled out that look. Marinette used to bemoan about how she could never say no to Manon when the girl would give her the puppy dog eyes but then Marinette tried it on Adrien and realized how effective it was. Why did that look have to be so stinking cute? When he would look at that face, Adrien felt bad for even thinking of denying Marinette what she wanted; he didn’t want to disappoint her.
“F-Fine, one more cup of coffee. That’s it, okay! Promise me, that, Marinette. One more cup of coffee for you and then you’re going to come to bed.”
The smile that broke out on Marinette’s face gave Adrien the instant gratification that he craved. He’d do anything to see her face light up this way. 
“Yes, of course, I swear on my Miraculous!”
Adrien knew the bargain that he had just made. It was an endless cycle. Marinette’s “promise” would be forgotten again as her mug emptied. Eventually he would get some sleep and so would she, but Adrien knew also that there was no convincing Marinette when her mind was made up about something. So, with this in mind, Adrien walked back to the kitchen to brew the coffee that he’d promised his wife. This time, I’m making it decaf!
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interstate40 · 10 months
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just read a list of the 90 TV shows cancelled so far this year and almost every show I kept up (or my friends kept up with) was cancelled.
I think literally the only shows spared that I keep up with are Star Trek: Strange New Worlds and Big Brother 😔 (for fucking now, who knows atp)
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liminalweirdo · 11 months
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[image id: three screenshots from writers_guild_of_canada on instagram in black text on a white background. Each image has the red Writers Guild of Canada logo at the bottom.
"We can't rely on the goodwill of these behemoths from the south to come up here and keep our industry afloat. We have to have regulations that protect our production sector from the whims of the executives in Hollywood.
Defining Canadian content is not an exercise in the abstract. It has a function, which is to determine the eligibility for tax credits, funding and regulatory obligations, all of which have public-policy objectives to support Canadian creators, Canadian jobs, and Canadian culture.
[Orphan Black] was made by a Canadian production company that benefited from the success of the show and is continuing to invest in the Canadian production sector with new Canadian programming. The money isn't just flowing out of the country... That's the way this business is supposed to work. You're supposed to grow your talent, and keep the money and the opportunities and the jobs in the country."
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reachartwork · 6 months
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How exactly do you advance AI ethically? Considering how much of the data sets that these tools use was sourced, wouldnt you have to start from scratch?
a: i don't agree with the assertion that "using someone else's images to train an ai" is inherently unethical - ai art is demonstrably "less copy-paste-y" for lack of a better word than collage, and nobody would argue that collage is illegal or ethically shady. i mean some people might but i don't think they're correct.
b: several people have done this alraedy - see, mitsua diffusion, et al.
c: this whole argument is a red herring. it is not long-term relevant adobe firefly is already built exclusively off images they have legal rights to. the dataset question is irrelevant to ethical ai use, because companies already have huge vaults full of media they can train on and do so effectively.
you can cheer all you want that the artist-job-eating-machine made by adobe or disney is ethically sourced, thank god! but it'll still eat everyone's jobs. that's what you need to be caring about.
the solution here obviously is unionization, fighting for increased labor rights for people who stand to be affected by ai (as the writer's guild demonstrated! they did it exactly right!), and fighting for UBI so that we can eventually decouple the act of creation from the act of survival at a fundamental level (so i can stop getting these sorts of dms).
if you're interested in actually advancing ai as a field and not devils advocating me you can also participate in the FOSS (free-and-open-source) ecosystem so that adobe and disney and openai can't develop a monopoly on black-box proprietary technology, and we can have a future where anyone can create any images they want, on their computer, for free, anywhere, instead of behind a paywall they can't control.
fun fact related to that last bit: remember when getty images sued stable diffusion and everybody cheered? yeah anyway they're releasing their own ai generator now. crazy how literally no large company has your interests in mind.
cheers
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sidekick-hero · 24 days
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I'm a fool (for you)
Written for the Stranger Things Writers Guild daily drabble, prompt was 'meet ugly'. I don't know what happened here. warnings: implied cheating (not steddie) | tags: meet ugly, hurt Eddie, emotional hurt/comfort, love at first sight with the worst timing, hopeful ending | 1.2k | AO3
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April is Eddie's favorite month.
Winter is finally over and spring is breathing life back into the world. With the colors of spring, happiness seeped back into people's hearts.
As Eddie walks home from work, whistling his favorite tune, his heart swells with it. The sun still shines brightly, a gentle breeze carries the scent of cherry blossoms from the nearby park, and tucked in his pocket is his very first bonus check. He can't wait to tell David, the exhilaration of a beautiful day gives him hope that maybe they can have a nice evening with some wine and dinner before falling into bed together. It's been a while, and he knows it's partly because he works so much, but lately he feels like he and David are drifting apart.
Determined to surprise David with some quality time together, Eddie plans to come home early. Perhaps they could even use the extra money for a vacation, he thinks with a smile on his face.
Filled with hope and happiness, Eddie opens the door to their apartment, only to be greeted by a sight that shatters both.
A stranger, clad in nothing but black boxer briefs, stands in their bedroom doorway.
"I'm such a fool," Eddie murmurs, blinking at the unexpected sight of an almost-naked Adonis standing in the doorway to the room he shares with the man Eddie thought loved him.
The stranger mirrors his shock. "You're not David.”
A mirthless laugh escapes Eddie's lips. "No, I'm Eddie. His boyfriend. Or rather, ex-boyfriend. Guess he forgot to mention me, huh?"
When the man just buries his face in his hands and groans, "I'm such a fucking fool," Eddie almost feels sorry for him.
Almost, because it's his heart that's just been broken.
"Looks like we both are," he agrees with the stranger. He really is beautiful. Eddie can see why David went for him, he just wishes he hadn't.
"I swear, I had no idea David had a boyfriend or I never would have gone home with him. I'm so, so sorry."
The guy looks sincere and Eddie believes him. After all, it was David who decided to trample on their relationship. It must suck to be drawn into the drama of Eddie's imploding relationship, less cause and more casualty.
Closing the door behind him, Eddie steps fully into the apartment. "I believe you -" he pauses here, waiting for the man to tell him his name.
"Steve."
"I believe you, Steve. Where's David, by the way?"
"Buying condoms," he admits sheepishly, and Eddie rubs his hands over his face.
"Of course. How awfully considerate of him." Steve winces at Eddie's tone, but he's too tired to care. He takes a moment to think about what to do next. "I think it's best if you get dressed and leave now, I doubt you'll want to be here when David gets back. To be honest, I don't want to either, but I guess there's not much of a choice."
Steve looks at him silently for a second before turning and going back into the bedroom, presumably to get dressed. Eddie sighs and heads over to the kitchen to make himself some coffee. He's going to need it.
He's thinking about where he could stay tonight when Steve comes into the kitchen, now dressed in tight, light-washed Levi's and a white shirt that looks painted on. Eddie can even see the dark chest hair through it.
It's hard not to hate Steve for making Eddie feel even more inadequate.
"I know you want me to go, but if it's okay with you, I'd rather stay? Just to make sure you're okay. I've been cheated on before and I know what it's like to feel like the rug has been pulled out from under you. You shouldn't have to deal with it alone."
It's hard to hate Steve when he's so kind to Eddie.
"Do I look so pathetic that I need the man my boyfriend cheated on me with to comfort me?" He spits, more out of self-preservation than anything else. Anger is so much easier to deal with than heartbreak.
Steve's response, however, is gentle. "You look like someone just broke your heart and you could use a friend. It doesn't have to be me, I can take you to one of your friends. I just don't think you should be alone right now." With that, Steve walks over to the coffee machine and pours out a cup. "Sugar? Cream?"
Eddie plops down on one of the kitchen chairs in defeat. "Both. More sugar."
Steve prepares their coffee and then they wait for David to get back. When he does, clearly shocked to find his boyfriend and his hookup in the same room, they both confront him. Steve has Eddie's back the whole time and gets downright mean to David, while Eddie is mostly tired and disappointed. After their confrontation, Steve waits for Eddie to pack some of his things and, as promised, drives Eddie over to Chrissy's apartment.
They park in front of her building and Eddie thanks Steve for everything he's done for him, but before he can get out, Steve takes Eddie's hand and squeezes it.
"I'm really sorry, Eddie. Nobody deserves to get cheated on and I hate that it happened to you. I can understand if you want to be mad at me or forget I even exist, but if you ever need to talk, even if it's just about how small David's dick is, I'm here, okay?"
In the palm of his hand, Eddie feels a piece of paper, and he's pretty sure it's Steve's number.
"Why?"
Steve reaches over and tucks a lock of Eddie's hair behind his ear. "You'll probably think I'm weird, but I feel like I almost know you. It sounds crazy, I know, I know. I can’t explain it. I just want you to be happy, and I can't help but want to be the person who makes that happen."
At Eddie's stunned silence, he hastily adds, "Oh God, I sound like a crazy person. Or worse, a psycho stalker. I promise, I'm neither. And that's exactly what a psycho stalker would say, for Christ's sake. Please say something before I put my foot any further in my mouth."
This makes Eddie laugh again, and this time it doesn't sound bitter. Just a little confused, but mostly fond.
"Thank you, Steve. Really. I appreciate it. You... I have no idea what I'm feeling right now, or what I'm going to do, but you've made this totally fucked up evening suck less, and for that alone I don't want to forget that you exist or be mad at you. I just need some time, y'know?"
Steve's smile is warm, if a little sad. "I do. You should. Take your time, I mean. I really wish we'd met differently."
"Me too. Believe me."
Eddie starts to get out of the car again, and this time Steve doesn't stop him. Just watches him, his hazel eyes shining brightly in the light of the street lamp.
"Take care, Eddie."
"You too, Steve."
As Eddie climbs the stairs to Chrissy's apartment, he saves Steve's number in his phone.
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nkjemisin · 8 months
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Me, scrolling tumblr reading a good strike for screenwriters thread
Also me: HUGO THREE TIME AWARD WINNER AND FAMOUS AUTHOR NK JEMISIN?!?
LOL. Well, yeah. I wrote a script last year (before the strike) for "The Fifth Season" film that Sony/Tristar is currently developing, so I'm now qualified to join the WGA. (Haven't done it yet bc of the strike, but I will when I can.) And even if I weren't qualified, writers are writers, and I'm always gonna show solidarity with my fellow creatives when they're fighting The Man.
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(ID: A rainy sidewalk. N. K. Jemisin stands in the foreground holding a picket sign that reads WRITERS GUILD ON STRIKE! Handwritten underneath: Book Writers Stand for WGA. Jemisin is wearing shorts and a black shirt that reads "PENCILS THE F*CK DOWN". In the background are several other people carrying picket signs, text blurry.)
Also. ::cough:: It's, uh. Five Hugos. 😅
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(ID: Photo of a glass trophy cabinet. Visible are 5 Hugos, a Nebula, and the top of a BSFA.)
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wormdebut · 8 months
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Growing Pains
A little Drabble for the Stranger Things Writers Guild.
Rated a hard T (we all know where this is going let’s be so for real.) | Word Count 242 | Prompt growing pains
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In retrospect, Steve should be scared. He should be terrified.
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He had settled into bed tonight, content to stare at his blank walls as he does every night, since—everything.
He found himself zoned out, thinking about the myriad of ‘what ifs’ that so frequently plagued his mind these days.
What if he hadn’t left Dustin and Eddie alone? What if he had never gone back to help Nancy and Jonathan in the first place? What if he had said what he wanted to say to Eddie before he left having said nothing?
He had been stewing on that last one, as he was wont to do, when something crashed through his god damned window.
He should be scared, probably. He should be annoyed by the glass that’s now covering his floor.
He’s none of that though, because he’s staring at Eddie Munson crouched and curled in on himself, perching on the balls of his feet. He’s staring at Eddie, who looks up at him with red eyes and fangs, which—he’s not even gonna unpack what that’s doing to him.
“W—where have you been?” He breaths. Trying to process any of this as Eddie stands.
Steve feels like the world is crumbling beneath him as he watches Eddie unfurl wings. Big, black things. Sorta feathery, sorta venous, entirely hot—which—Steves not gonna unpack that either.
Eddie smirks, those red eyes glinting, running a tongue over his pointed teeth. “Sorry baby, growing pains.”
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flightfoot · 2 months
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Adrien Angst Fics and Series that finished in 2023
So I love some good Adrien angst and hurt/comfort, and I figure a bunch of other people do as well! Hopefully these fics scratch that itch! They're all from the collection I set up earlier for the fics from 2023 that I recommend! I've got 31 fics in here. It's a popular genre that I like a lot, there are a lot of fics for it!
home is where the fight is by @rosie-b
Nadja Chamack’s voice greeted Adrien as he sat up straight, wiping his clammy hands on his pants and ignoring the black kwami floating by his shoulder. “—shocked to see our heroine fall in battle today, taking a direct hit from the akuma just as she detransformed. Parisians are torn between blaming Hawk Moth and Cat Walker for their roles in this tragedy, which ultimately revealed the civilian identity of Ladybug, Marinette Dupain-Cheng.” Adrien turned off the TV and lowered his head as his vision blurred. Written for Ladrien June Day 7: Injured
I adore this fic! Which shouldn’t be a a surprise, it’s no secret that I love Sentiadrien Enemies AU. Adrien’s so worried about Marinette getting hurt, and wishes that he could help keep her safer, could tell her what’s really going on or get rid of the ring or something, but he can’t. Still, he IS able to find clever ways around some of his father’s more problematic orders. Loopholes for the win!
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Guilty by Association by @rosie-b
Marinette respected Adrien’s strength and courage more and more every day. No matter how many times people threw nasty words or literal tomatoes at him; no matter how many companies refused to work with him anymore; no matter how clear it was becoming that he would never be forgiven for his father’s crimes, he chose to greet new people with a smile and hope that this time, someone would recognize the kind heart hidden behind his hated name. She wished she’d had the chance to meet him before she’d accidentally ruined his life. Written for the Ml Writers Guild September event ‘back to school’
I love how Marinette keeps reaching out to Adrien, trying to protect him, even if it doesn’t always work. To let him know that she’s in his corner at least. Hawk Moth had to be taken down, but the consequences for Adrien… she never wanted anyone to get hurt in the process. 
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oh, look now, there you go with hope again by @ladyofthenoodle
After the defeat of Hawkmoth and his accomplice, Chat Noir, Marinette is ready to return to her normal life, but she can’t escape Adrien Agreste, who was sentenced to a fate many consider worse than prison: public school. Specifically, her public school. Still, that doesn’t mean she has to interact with him, does it? Except, if she doesn’t… who will?
I love a good enemies au, and seeing the aftermath of an enemies au… that’s rare. She’s wary of Adrien, but with how he’s being bullied, and how he’s just taking it in the hopes of being accepted, she can’t help but reach out to him.
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Disintegrated Pancakes by @scribeofrhapsody
Adrien had started expecting the family breakfasts. He had NOT been expecting his father to collapse in the middle of one.
I’m shocked I haven’t seen more of this sort of thing, with Adrien finding out his father’s Monarch via seeing the Cataclysm wound. I love that Alya gets involved in this, being the person Adrien runs into after fleeing the room, and then Adrien getting to talk things out with Gabriel and Nathalie. Thankfully Gabriel is at least not completely incapable of being reasoned with here, or things could have gone worse than they did. It’s a nice little read, though with an ambiguous ending (at least at the time when I write this).
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with this ring by @thelibraryloser
She thought “you and me against the world” had sounded like lopsided odds before, when she hadn’t even dreamed “you against me” was a possibility. Or maybe she had dreamed it, but at least in those dreams he’d had cold blue eyes and a stark white mask. The villain she’d fought today had looked at her through her partner’s own bright green eyes. It wasn’t meant to be this way.
Short and sweet Sentiadrien enemies canon divergence fic here! I adored Marinette finding out why her kitty seemed to have “betrayed” her, and the righteous anger on his behalf once she figured out that it wasn’t of his own free will. Her comforting Adrien about it was just… really good. It’s a Hawkmoth Defeat fic too, so the immediate aftermath gets covered as well. Adrien needs a hug.
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Nothing Else Matters by LiquefiedStars
Marinette couldn’t figure out Chat Noir. He was supposed to be her partner, but instead ended up working for Hawk Moth. Still, her heart betrayed her and when a strong connection forms between them, Ladybug goes to Chat looking for answers, finding out more than she bargained for.
Sentiadrien enemies AU fic! He never wanted to fight against her, but Gabriel caught him before he could transform for the first time, and with his father using his Amoks against him, he had no choice. 
I like that there’s a solid explanation for why Fu let Adrien keep his Miraculous even though he’s been working against Ladybug, I don’t often see explanations for that that I’m satisfied with.
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Slowly Fading (from my misery) by @wehadabondingmoment
“You’re looking awfully deep in thought today, minou.” Ladybug’s gloved hand stroked over his hair and Chat Noir closed his eyes with an unstable breath. He got like this sometimes. Lately, it had been getting worse. Or: Gabriel likes using the rings to order his son around. After a while, it starts having effects on Chat Noir as well. (The more often Gabriel commands Adrien to act a certain way, the more it gets ingrained in his mentality. He suffers because of it.)
This is a gorgeous fic. Adrien’s been puppeted around, forced to obey orders for reasons he doesn’t understand, for so long, so often that a lot of times his own body doesn’t even feel like his. A lot of residual orders keep on bubbling up and stopping him from doing what he wants to do, and he just… doesn’t understand why. Considering how Adrien looked in Pretension when Gabriel forced him to go to his room so he could talk to Marinette alone, and how desperately Adrien tried to head back there but couldn’t make himself open the door, how terrified and confused he’d seemed, I think his feelings here, his mindset, is pretty close to canon.
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all of your flaws and all of my flaws (are laid out one-by-one) by @coffeebanana
Ladybug and Marinette have both been acting strangely since Monarch’s defeat, and Chat Noir would give anything to know why—to be able to help them. He just…didn’t expect his answers to come when Ladybug drags him to his father’s statue in the middle of the night along with a bag full of spray paint.
If you felt unsatisfied with Adrien being left in the dark about Monarch, with Ladybug lying about Gabriel being a hero, this is a great fic to read. Marinette’s breaking down keeping this secret, seeing people treat Gabriel as the hero she told people he was, until she finally snaps and has to do SOMETHING, has to tell SOMEONE the truth. 
Which Chat takes pretty well! He knows how persuasive his father could be, and he’s mostly just relieved at finally hearing someone say that Gabriel wasn’t a hero. It’s still a lot to cope with though.
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Falling (sick) with you by @chocoluckchipz
Nothing would be easier than taking a pair of earrings off an unconscious Ladybug. Doing so would bring his mother back and end their decade-long strife. He shouldn’t be hesitating when a chance of a life time presented itself to him. He should not be looking for excuses and reasonings as to why spending another twenty or so years fighting this woman rather than pleasing his father and giving his mother another chance at life was not such a bad idea after all.
Ah, I love a good enemies au! Even when they’re enemies, Chat is unwilling to hurt Ladybug. Though honestly, he makes himself out to be more of a villain than he actually is, it’s pretty obvious to everyone that he’s not trying as hard as he could to get her earrings. There’s very good reason for that.
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adrien agreste and the consequences of tweets making fun of yourself by Anonymous
Well, Adrien thinks, what’s the worst that could come from a few poorly thought-out tweets lightly ribbing his own civilian identity?
I love the focus here on how people just assume what Adrien’s thinking and feeling and act on his behalf, without actually waiting to see what HE wants, and Adrien’s growing frustration. How they create a version of him in their heads, but don’t care to check with reality to see whether he actually wants their “defense”. 
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what makes a human (am I?) by GraceM_TheStoriedLife
Adrien comes to Marinette’s out of nowhere. Usually Chat is her rock. Tonight, it’s her turn. (Or, in which Adrien discovers some secrets he’s not prepared for and Marinette is as Marinette-y as always.
So Adrien discovers he’s a sentimonster and immediately runs to Marinette for support. It’s as cute and angsty as you’d expect. She is, of course, very supportive of him. Also some discussion of Gabriel being abusive, since both she and Nino had been trying to get Adrien to see that. Especially with how, exactly, Adrien found out he’s a sentimonster. He can relate a little better to Felix’s experiences now than is healthy, I’ll just say.
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Vengeance Noire by @phiellydinyia
After a horrific argument with his father, Adrien escaped from the mansion with his heart in pieces. In hindsight, it made sense why an akuma was sent his way. He shouldn’t have let his emotions get the better of him. But he never expected Plagg to be even more upset than he was. He never expected his own kwami to be akumatized. To become the threat of a city he swore to protect. And what’s worse is the fact that Chat Noir can’t jump in to save this one. But Ladybug can. And that’s why he has to find her as quickly as possible, suit or no suit.
I love some good Adrien angst, especially with a delicious side order of Plagg and Adrien’s bond with each other. Even as Adrien’s barely functional, though, he’ll do everything in his power to save Plagg, even if Plagg wishes he wouldn’t go quite that far. 
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This Distance Between Us by @coffeebanana
After defeating Monarch, the search for the Peacock Miraculous brings Ladybug and Chat Noir to a hotel room in London. But it’s hard to enjoy the victory when Ladybug can’t figure out why Chat’s been so quiet, why he seems so sad. How’s she supposed to help if she has no idea what’s wrong?
This is a great Sentiadrien fic, with Chat freaking out about it and feeling like he’s not worthy of Ladybug’s affections, but not telling her what’s actually wrong because he thinks she won’t want him anymore if she knows. Of course, he’s wrong about that.
Also there’s a pretty intense confrontation with Felix, pissing Chat Noir off is a bad idea.
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Rocking the Cat-Eyes by @buggachat
“I like being a girl.” “That’s the alcohol talking,” Marinette snorted. “I’ve always been a li’l jealous,” Adrien admitted. “… Of what?” “That you get to be a girl,” Adrien murmured, “and I don’t.” — When Marinette and Adrien host Girls’ Night at their apartment, Adrien is easily welcomed to attend as “one of the girls”… but has a bit too much to drink. Some drunken confessions are spilt, some assumptions are made, and most of all… Adrien is confused.
This is a great Genderfluid!Adrien fic. Marinette actually figures out that Adrien’s not entirely cis before he does, and tries to let him know she’s supportive… but unfortunately Adrien comes to some incorrect conclusions…
Anyway it’s a lot of fun, and Adrien rocks a dress and makeup!
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Family by @unecoccinellenoire
“You know,” Nino grins, “if you need advice on being a big brother in a year or two I’m sure I could help.” The bottom of Adrien’s stomach dropped out. — Adrien struggles with the concept of his father and Nathalie having children.
So this is a world where Adrien and Marinette managed to defeat Gabriel, taking his Miraculous, with them giving him an ultimatum: they won’t out him as being Hawk Moth so long as he doesn’t cause any more trouble and does right by Adrien. Gabriel does, in fact, move on finally to Nathalie, giving Adrien a lot of mixed feelings to deal with. He still loves them both despite everything, but he’s also angry at them and he definitely does NOT want them to have children, both because he thinks they’d like any biological child they had more (he’s also harboring guilt from indirectly being the cause of his mom’s death), and because frankly, they screwed up too much with Adrien for him to want them to inflict that on another child.
And then there’s also Adrien dealing with the realization that he’s a Senti on top of that and wondering why he and Felix look the way they do, what Emilie’s reasons were.
It’s mostly just Adrien getting to talk things out, navigating this emotionally fraught situation he finds himself in now that the dust is settled.
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When Secrets Come Undone by SortaArtsy
Ladybug promised not to tell Adrien… but she never promised not to confide in Cat Noir. What happens when Ladybug unintentionally vents to the one person who wasn’t meant to know any of it? ****MAJOR SEASON 5 SPOILERS WARNING! **** May not be season 6 compliant when it comes out.
This is a “Adrien finds out what everyone’s been keeping from him post-S5″ fic, and I think it’s handled really well! He feels very hurt, betrayed, and disbelieving initially about being a Senti and his father being Monarch (…mostly being a Senti, it ain’t that hard to believe that Gabriel was a supervillain), and is angry at everyone who kept it secret from him, but he still handles it well, going and talking to the people involved, getting their reasoning and perspective. 
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Wanted: Catnap by SortaArtsy
Adrien Agreste has barely been sleeping, trying to be everything expected of him. What happens when he spreads himself too thin? Sick!Adrien/ Cat Noir
Adrien’s just pushing himself so hard, trying to do his regular duties, until his illness forces him to rest. I love how concerned everyone is over him - even GABRIEL eventually relents and wants him to rest. It’s just cute and nice and fluffy.
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a winter so warm by @rosekasa
winters were hard for even the best of vampires, but at least adrien had marinette to keep him warm with her cuddles. december was going to suck without her. so it was only to be expected to get extra cuddles in before she left, right? (well, not really, considering those heating supplements he was taking, but she didn’t need to know about that).
This one’s mostly just cute cuddly adorableness! It’s basically like all those “Marinette gets the Ladybug trait of needing to cuddle up to someone for warmth”, but with Adrien instead. And of course featuring Marinette being a very talented witch who just wants to help Adrien stay warm when she isn’t there XD.
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and I thought I heard you sing by @into-september
When Hawkmoth has been defeated and unmasked, Marinette is left with two problems and no solutions. First, that Adrien is further out of her reach than ever before, and no-one can tell her how to get to him. Second, that Cat Noir is far more troubled than she knew, and the only thing she can do is wait for him at the place they agreed to meet.
It’s your classic “Hawkmoth’s defeated and taken into custody but that means Adrien’s in for a rough time” sort of fic. Everyone’s worried about Adrien and wants to give him what comfort and support that they can, but he’s being hidden away from everyone (which I mean, honestly that’s a good move), so that’s not really possible. Plus, Ladybug’s noticed that Chat’s having a tough time in his civilian life, which worries her.
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Betrayal by @jennagrinsoverml
MAJOR EPHEMERAL SPOILERS!! Ladybug planned to use Viperion’s power of Second Chance to get Chat’s identity to Su-han without Chat knowing or agreeing. Of course, then the world went crazy, and she didn’t go through with it. But when an akuma exposes Ladybug’s plan to Chat, he doesn’t know that. He just knows that his Lady betrayed him. He deals with his feelings in the best, most mature way he can think of. He disappears.
So I, like a lot of others, wanted more follow-up on Ephemeral, and particularly on the betrayal of trust it was for Marinette to try to trick Chat Noir into giving up his identity to a third party without his knowledge or consent (I wrote my own take on that at the time, called Transcient, that I’m proud of). This fic did a good job of exploring that, with Adrien reacting in a manner that made sense to me (repressing his negative feelings about the situation as much as possible and trying to justify it to himself, but still feeling terrible despite his own best efforts), and how Marinette realized that she messed up, since Luka keeping it secret that he knows hers and Chat’s secret identities caused her to be upset as well. It did a great job of exploring those negative feelings and letting everyone talk things out, explain their viewpoints, and rebuild their relationships afterwards, which is something I really value.
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I’ll give myself a name (something stupid and pretentious) by @bbutterflies
Nino looked at the number and didn’t recognize it. Usually he wouldn’t answer, but he had nothing better to do – and could still really use a distraction – so he did. “Hello?”
“Hey, Nino.”
Nino stood up quickly, chest tightening. He knew that voice. He’d been waiting to hear it again for over two years. “Adrien?” he whispered.
“Yeah. It’s me."
-
When Monarch is defeated (and revealed to be Gabriel Agreste), Chat Noir immediately goes missing. Adrien disappears not long after. When Adrien finally shows up in Paris again, Nino would do anything to make sure he doesn't disappear again.
Ah this is lovely, Adrien’s been in a lot of emotional turmoil since Monarch’s defeat, convinced that everyone would hate him, SHOULD hate him, for not realizing that his father was the villain, and should hate him even more for disappearing like he does. But slowly Marinette and Nino get through to him, convince him that they just want him back. 
And also Adrien and Nino smooch. Multiple times. So that’s a bonus XD.
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Two Steps Back (One Step Forward) by @buggachat
Sure, Adrien hadn't been texting her as often as he used to. And sure, Nino noticed it too. But just because Adrien had struggled with depression in the past, didn't mean he was struggling now. Surely, he'd tell her if something was wrong. Right?
Marinette just missed him, and she had a tendency to catastrophize. Surely, he was fine.
But if he wasn't... well, she wasn't above hopping on a flight back to Paris to make sure.
—————
Marinette's at an internship in New York, and Adrien has a depression relapse.
Once again buggachat comes out swinging with a fic centered around Adrien being super depressed and his friends charging in to help him, despite him not wanting them to because he feels like a burden. It’s not easy and Marinette goes through a lot of emotional turmoil, especially since his apartment is in bad enough shape that it can’t be changed to something that a human should be living in without also going shopping, but gradually she helps drag Adrien out of the hole he’s gotten himself stuck in. The emotions are on point and just... if you want to read a hurt/comfort fic with Found Family helping one of their own who’s struggling and doesn’t think they deserve it, this is a great fic to read.
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If only I could break free by megetstoread
It started with Adrien being upset about going away, but led to a lot of revelations.  
Another Sentiadrien fic here! After telling Adrien that he’s being sent to London, Gabriel takes advantage of Adrien being distraught to akumatize him. Luckily Ladybug’s right there and deakumatizes him before he can even do anything, but it shakes both her and Chat, leading to her allowing him to tell her a lot more about his home life than usual, and for her and Adrien to investigate to see whether there might be more to Adrien’s inability to stand against his father than just psychological abuse.
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Dr. Walker & Kitty Hyde series by @pearl484-blog
Summary of the first fic, Rain Falls, Everybody Lies:
Chat Noir loves the rain. He loves the danger. He loves the excitement, and he especially loves how much Catwalker hates it. 
Jekyll and Hyde AU
Adrien AUGreste Entry 3: Rain
So like the summary says, and the title indicates, this series is inspired by the popular conception of Dr Jekyll and Mr. Hyde - not how the book actually goes, but how it’s portrayed in popular media, with Jekyll splitting himself in two, with a “good” side and a “bad” side. 
During Kuro Neko, instead of just changing his appearance through changing his mindset, Adrien took more extreme measures, sealing off his “undesirable” characteristics, his anger and sadness and all his sharp edges, into the ring so he could assume a more placid, genial persona that’d be more accepted - Cat Walker. 
But Chat Noir’s still there, taking over whenever Adrien gets too testy, and desperately trying not to be pressed out of existence entirely. With embodying Adrien’s sealed anger and snappishness and rebelliousness, he’s not too kind to the other heroes - he already felt looked down upon and ignored before this, and seeing them accept Cat Walker while he’s fighting for his life doesn’t endear them to him either.
The series isn’t unfair to them - this isn’t a case where one party is entirely in the wrong and another’s entirely in the right. Marinette, Zoe, Nino, and all the others - they did wonder about what was going on with Chat, but he wasn’t in a position where he could see it, and he did have legitimate questions about how much Ladybug would budge on things, if he’d told her what he was going through. It’s a series that emphasizes characters hurting and lashing out in some terrible ways, but that hurt still being respected, and working things out, trying to get everything to a better place.
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The Parable of the Caller by @nemaliwrites
A week after Hawk Moth’s identity has been revealed, Adrien finds himself with nowhere to go, nothing he can do, and worst of all, strange gaps in his memory he can’t explain. In a stroke of luck, he stumbles upon a burner phone filled with voicemails from one of the Saviors of Paris: Chat Noir himself, who disappeared following Hawk Moth’s arrest.
But with each new voicemail Adrien listens to, he’s forced to confront the fact that there might be some kind of connection between himself and Chat Noir — and discovering it might leave him more broken than before.
I absolutely adore this fic, it’s a fantastic character study for Adrien! Basically in this universe, Ladybug and Chat Noir talked about who should be Guardian, with Chat eventually convincing her that he should be the one to take it on, primarily due to the whole “the Guardian gets amnesia about Miraculous-related matters” situation, and wanting to protect Ladybug from that. Then he finds out Gabriel is Hawk Moth, they take him down, and he relinquishes the Miracle Box and his guardianship to Su Han - all without having a Reveal with Ladybug, since well, he’s not in the greatest shape mentally at the time.
It’s a real treat to see Adrien’s thoughts and feelings about one of the Heroes of Paris leaving him all these voicemails, treating him like this close friend for reasons he doesn’t understand, and just seeing Chat Noir as this outside person. He’s got a very different viewpoint on Chat when looking from the outside than he would from the inside, with being able to see his heroic and good qualities far more easily when he doesn’t know that he is Chat.
Also Marinette’s struggling in the background of the fic with the loss of her partner and guilt over sending Adrien’s father to prison. It gets touched on at various points, and you can tell that she’s having her own story off to the side that we’re just not entirely privy to, what with this tale being told entirely from Adrien’s perspective.
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call it even by @anna-scribbles and @sha-nwa
After a year of dating, there is one thing Marinette knows for certain: it's her and Adrien against the world. Through it all, Adrien is kind, patient, and endlessly understanding—even as she tries her best to keep her secret superhero identity hidden from him along with the rest of the world.
Nothing could ruin it, not even the supervillains of Paris: Hawkmoth and Chat Noir.
(adrinette dating // ladynoir enemies au)
This is one of those fics where Adrien and Marinette are REALLY going through it emotionally, with them starting off with wildly different perceptions of each other when untransformed, and then reckoning with the person they love the most being someone they think of as a villain, with all the betrayal and doubt that involves. Especially with Adrien having been lied to extensively by his father, and not knowing who or what to believe.
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drowning (in plain sight) by @buggachat
Everybody had expected Monarch's defeat to be a moment of triumph. Nobody had expected Gabriel Agreste, unmasked and mind frayed from continual abuse of the miraculous, crying out to all who would listen and making Paris certain of one thing:
His son, Adrien Agreste, is one of his sentimonsters.
And now he's missing.
Nobody can find him— not even the superheroes, and not even his closest friends. But Marinette, Nino, and Alya aren't ones to give up so easily. They'll find him, no matter what it takes.
(But, geez, would it kill Chat Noir to lend a hand?)
I’m sure everyone saw this one coming. If there’s one thing buggachat’s good at, storywise, it’s capturing raw, tumultuous emotions, frantic breakdowns as the characters desperately try to navigate bad situations. This was a real treat to read, as I’m betting most people reading this will agree, given just how popular the fic has been. It also has a ton of fanart, both by buggachat and by random fans, if you go looking for it (there’s a drowning in plain sight tag which I’d advise perusing). 
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Eventually by @lucid-ao3
Adrien’s life has been dictated by rules, monitored, and controlled for years. He has learned to compartmentalize. It’s not that bad. It always gets better, eventually. Doesn’t it?
Recovery can be an unexpected obstacle when you didn’t realize you were being hurt in the first place.
OR: How Adrien lives and copes with the emotional abuse inflicted on him over the years, and how he ultimately could overcome it.
If you want a good “Adrien doesn’t realize how abusive his father is but slowly buckles more and more under his tyranny, until things come to a head, and he actually gets the HELP HE NEEDS” fic, this is a good one!
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Not a Monster at All by @book-sandwich
Adrien Agreste overhears a conversation he shouldn't, and a revelation sends him falling onto the terrace of the only person he can trust: his good friend (?) Marinette Dupain-Cheng.
Takes place sometime after the first two episodes of season 5!
As you can probably guess from the title, this is a Sentimonster Adrien, Monarch takedown fic. Adrien’s going through a tough time, and Marinette’s just trying to be there for him as his whole world’s collapsing around him. Unfrotunately, they still don’t know what the object is, or how likely Gabriel would be to control Adrien if he hinted that he knew the truth, which leaves Adrien in a precarious position - still not having done an identity reveal doesn’t help matters.
It’s a really solid fic for the genre, though since it started up before the later parts of season 5, there are a few things that don’t match up with the canon information we obtained later on. 
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Awaken by InkyIbis
The previously white butterfly, now oozing black and purple as a conduit of the butterfly miraculous powers, flutters softly within the silvered-gloved hand.
It sits there for a long time.
"Go, my akuma," The soft sigh pushes the butterfly, the akuma, out towards the despair of a love not returned. The same ache within his chest. On a level so great that he's willing to sacrifice the city to mend it.
It's okay if he's the villain for now. He'll force the miraculous of creation and destruction to be revealed, and once he gets his hands on them, none of this pain, none of his loss, will ever happen.
This is essentially a canon rewrite for Miraculous (specifically seasons 1 and 2, with a bunch of the events mixed around) that focuses primarily on Adrien, with his relationship with Nino being the main driving relationship of the fic. (Don’t worry, Marinette’s still treated fine, she’s just not the focus). This is the best “rewrite Miraculous with more of a focus on Adrien” type fic I’ve seen, with it reworking the plots of the episodes so that they’re different enough to be their own distinct thing - it’s not trying to just rewrite the canon episodes but from Adrien’s POV, there’s a lot of lore changes going on as well, and things occur in different orders.
Like lorewise, Chat’s given a more important role in cleaning up the mess the akumas leave, with his power helping to cleanse akuma victims and he and Ladybug needing to use their powers in tandem in order to cast Miraculous Ladybug. There’s also no Miracle Box holding the kwamis. Instead, Chat sometimes surpasses his limits and ends up summoning kwamis, which is dangerous to him, but very useful.
What really makes this fic great though, is its focus on Adrien’s emotions. You really get a feel for Adrien’s insecurities, especially when it comes to not feeling like he’s good enough for Nino, with not wanting to bother him when he absolutely should, with feeling like he’s not a good enough friend to him, and then there’s dealing with all of Gabriel’s usual abuse on top of that.
Speaking of Nino, this is an Adrino fic (though several characters get crushes on Adrien, Nino’s the one who matters most for this), though a slowburn one. Nino’s clearly head-over-heels for Adrien, but Adrien has like, no context for what a romantic crush feels like and is basically viewing Nino the way he viewed Marinette in canon prior to season 5. He clearly cares for him a lot, including romantically, he just... doesn’t get it.
Anyway, if you want an interesting canon rewrite fic from Adrien’s perspective with Adrino as the main pairing, this is a good story to pick up!
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one does not love breathing by @wackus-bonkus-maximus
All of Paris watched as Hawkmoth murdered Chat Noir, taking the Black Cat Miraculous for himself. Ladybug swears revenge, but her enemy—and every miraculous in his possession—disappear without a trace.
Six years later, a new team of villains launches an attack for the last remaining Miraculous: Volpina, armed with new powers; Queen Bee, with questionable loyalty; Argos, the new holder of the Peacock Miraculous; and Cat Walker, who Ladybug hates the most.
Takes place after S4 - Strike Back.
This is a simply phenomenal fic. You get to explore a lot of different perspectives, like Felix, Kagami, Marinette, and Adrien’s, just to name a few, and see their different thought processes and plans and priorities, and how it can cause their plans to collide with each other, even when they all ultimately are aiming for a good outcome for everyone. The characters are pretty complex and can mess up at times, even when they’re doing things (or not doing things, looking at you Luka) with the best of intentions. It was a joy to read and a real nail-biter the whole time, I actually wrote a fic for it halfway through just to resolve some of the tension for myself, One Does Not Love Shadows.
It also features the version of Luka I’ve connected best with to date, as he feels like Luka, but also is a lot more fleshed out, and can make some major errors while simply trying to avoid missteps. It’s helped me get a better handle on a character who I’ve generally had a lot of problems with really understanding.
It is an M-rated fic, though I think Wackus is being overly cautious on that front. There’s no sexual content and I wouldn’t put the violence or gore above a T-rating, so I wouldn’t let the rating scare you off.
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