#adriens cowboy boots | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

mlwritersguild · 7 months

Text

Fireflies in a September Sky, by @chai-ki

AO3 link; No powers AU, Not set in Paris, Childhood friends, Adrien and Felix are siblings, Marinette and Chloe are best friends, enemies to friends, minor bullying, 6 year-old angst

Summary:

It's the first day of first grade and Adrien is super excited. This year he gets to be the 'big' buddy for the incoming kindergarten class, and he can't wait to find out who he's going to be paired with. Maybe it will be his brother or perhaps a new kid. He's determined not to let anything, or anyone ruin this day. Not even silly little Marinette.

But maybe, Marinette isn't as annoying as she seems?

—

There was no one who drove Adrien crazier than Marinette Dupain-Cheng did. Marinette, with her silly pigtails all wrapped up in large, pale-pink bows and matching sparkly cowboy boots that he swore she lived in. The girl was tiny and never could keep up. Being the oldest, he was always the one stuck helping her instead of keeping pace with his brother and Chloe.

By the time he’d be finished helping her climb some tree, or cross a creek, Felix had snagged the best role in whatever game they were playing. This of course left Adrien to be something he thought dumb. One time they’d made him be the dog of all things! He liked cats way more than he liked dogs, and they knew that. Marinette had only giggled and offered to be the cat herself, as if she’d orchestrated the entire thing. On top of all that, she was always around. Everywhere he looked she was right beside him, like a second shadow.

Marinette was never mean, and she hardly spoke, but he wanted to be able to have choices in the games his brother and Chloe played, and he couldn’t with the bug around. On the lucky chance she wasn’t around, he was getting scolded by his mom about leaving her behind and excluding her. Which he didn’t of course!

Sometimes he just got so involved in a game they were playing that he lost track of her. She was so impossibly small! Felix was almost a year younger than Marinette and he was already taller.

The one thing Adrien had been looking forward to all summer was the first day of school. Sure, he loved summertime as much as any kid, swimming, exploring and riding horses was something he would never ever be tired of doing. But when school started, he would be free of the clingy bug, and he couldn’t wait. He just had to get through the rest of this morning, then he’d meet his buddy for the year and be blissfully Marinette-free. First grade was going to be awesome!

“Adrien! Felix! We need to head to the bus stop now, get your shoes on please.”

“Okay mama!” Adrien gleefully skipped into the mud room and slid on his brand-new light up shoes – complete with laces since he knew how to tie them now.

Felix burst into the room huffing. “I’m. Here. Ready. Mama.”

“Sweetheart, your shirt is on backwards. Here, let me help.”

Adrien giggled at his brother, always so chaotic. Felix stuck his tongue out at him in response.

“Now you two, be nice. Adrien, it’s your brother's first year at school and I need you to be your wonderful self and look out for him, okay?”

“I will!” He wrapped his arms around Felix, causing the younger boy to groan and stick out his tongue again in contempt. “We always got each other!”

“Mamaaaaa. I don’t need Adrien to watch me. Chloe will watch me just fine, she promised!”

Adrien watched as his mother shook her head with a smile on her face. Clearly knowing something he didn’t. “Of course, she will dear.”

“Plus, Adrien has to help Nette!”

“Moommm, do I have to?”

“Adrien, she’s your friend, isn’t she? It would be the kind thing to do.”

He simply huffed in response. Marinette, his friend? His mom had clearly gone crazy. But she expected him to be kind, so, as annoying as it was, he would help Marinette… a little. Once he was in his class with his friends though, she was on her own. She would have Felix anyways since they were in the same kindergarten class.

“Well, shall we? Sabine will be meeting us at the end of the driveway with the girls.”

They wasted no time bursting through the door and down the porch steps. Though it was nearly September, summer was trying to hang on and the morning was already heavy with heat. Their mother followed them both into the yard and the three began strolling up their long driveway that led to a dirt road which began at the end of a paved cul-de-sac. About halfway down the driveway, they could see Sabine, Chloe and Marinette. Felix took off running to meet them while Adrien remained behind to enjoy the peace with his mom. Moments like this were rare and he thoroughly enjoyed them.

“Good morning, Sabine, girls! Are you excited for your first day, Marinette?”

“Yes, m-iss Em-ile.”

Oh. He’d forgotten about that. Her stutter. She always stuttered and it drove him crazy!

“It’s going to be so fun! I’m happy you and Felix are in the same class this year.”

“M-me too. A-a-drien, a-are you exci-t-ted?”

“Mmhmm.”

He watched as she smiled, clearly pleased with his wordless answer.

“Alright kids, let's head on up to the mailboxes.” Sabine addressed them all before turning to Marinette. “That’s where the bus will pick you up and drop you off, remember Marinette?”

“Yes, m-ama.”

“Miss Sabine, will you pretty please remind my mama to meet me at the bus after school?” The hopeful look in Chloe’s eyes made Adrien sad. “She said she would try to leave work on time.”

“I absolutely will, sweetheart.”

The group began the rest of their walk towards the mailboxes. Felix and Chloe walked, hand in hand ahead of the group while he and Marinette remained next to their mothers who were happily chatting about something to do with the ranch and their dads.

Adrien was curious to find out who would be in his class this year. Last year he had made friends with a couple of the boys, Ivan and Nino, but he had hardly seen them over the summer. Nino’s family owned a large ranch on the other side of the county and while Ivan lived in-town, his family liked to travel during the summer. They were the three musketeers though and he really, really hoped at least one of them would be with him.

As they waited for the bus to arrive, Adrien watched a few birds hop around in the grass on the other side of the road, searching for a morning snack.

“I l-like you-r back-kk-pack.” Of course, she did. It looked like a cat, with ears and everything.

“Thank you.”

He took a moment to look at her for the first time that morning and was not at all surprised to see the light-pink, sparkly cowboy boots on her feet. How she wasn’t dying from being hot he had no idea. He supposed it was because she was wearing a dress. Her backpack was a ladybug and like his had cat ears, hers had antennae. Her whole getup was so her that he momentarily forgot she was super irritating, and he smiled in her direction. The moment she returned it he snapped back and looked away.

“Mooommmmm! Chloe said she isn’t sitting with me on the bus!”

“Felix, Chloe can sit wherever she likes. You aren’t her only friend.”

“But mommmm! Marinette can sit with Adrien!”

“Mari is my bestest friend, I’m sitting with her Felix!”

“But you promised me.” Tears began to pool in his brother’s eyes and Adrien had to hold back a giggle. He always did this when Chloe chose Marinette over him.

“I promised I was gonna play with you at recess! I promised Mari I was gonna sit with her on the bus, so she wasn’t scared.”

Felix sniffled and squeaked out a small “oh.”

Marinette for her part looked shaken. Neither she nor Adrien were strangers to the other two’s shenanigans, but this seemed to really bother her.

“I-I w-wil-l b-be ok-kay.” Marinette’s voice was a small whisper.

Both his mother and Sabine looked at a loss for words, unsure of how to handle the situation. Adrien wasn’t all too sure what to do either. The bus ride was supposed to be the beginning of his Marinette-free day! Still, he was a big kid now and big kids sometimes did what they didn’t want to do because it was the right thing, so he spoke up.

“I’ll sit with you Mar.”

“R-real-ly?”

He nodded.

“T-thank y-ou A-drien!” She came up and wrapped him in a hug, making him stiffen. He saw his mom smile and knew he had done a good thing even if it was annoying.

“Yay! Chloe, you can sit with me now!”

“Felix, you were mean. But I’m nice so I’ll forgive you. Plus, we’re birthday buddies so I don’t like to be mad at you.”

Felix beamed. Adrien rolled his big green eyes like he’d seen his mom do to his dad before. Marinette, thankfully, let go of him and went back to holding her mom’s hand. The bus arrived a few moments later and they were off.

Adrien decided to let Marinette have the window seat so she could wave goodbye to Sabine, and he sat near the edge, so he didn’t accidentally bump her. He tried to ignore her for most of the ride but found it hard to do as she kept fidgeting with the tabs on her backpack and it was driving him crazy.

“You don’t have to be scared. School is fun.”

She nodded.

“Kindergarten is really, really fun too. You have Mrs. Caline, right?”

Another nod.

“Chloe and I had her last year. She’s really nice. And you’re going to get a buddy from first grade who will help you. My buddy last year was named Max. He was really cool.”

“Max?”

“Yep! He is super smart. He sat with me at lunch and played with me at recess sometimes. He knew where everything was, so he showed me. Your buddy will do that with you too.”

She stopped fidgeting. Yay!

“T-thank you.”

“You're welcome, Mar.”

🖍️🖌️🖍️

Adrien couldn’t remember a time when his brother had ever been timid but when they arrived at the school the boy withdrew and for once, chose him over Chloe. Since Felix and Marinette had the same class, the older two led the younger pair to Mrs. Caline’s classroom.

“Okay Felix, here you are! You get to meet your buddy today, remember?”

“I remember, Adrien. But what if my buddy is mean?”

“Then they’ll have to deal with me!” Chloe stood tall, her fisted hands on her hips like a superhero. This seemed to pull Felix out of whatever funk he had been in.

“And me!” He hugged his brother. “We have to go to our class now. Stay by Marinette!”

“Okay. I will. By Adrien, bye Chloe!” Felix waved excitedly.

Marinette simply stood there, wide eyed and watching him retreat. She would be fine though, she had Felix and she’d get her buddy today too. Adrien was finally free to not worry about her and he was so excited that he practically skipped down the hall to his classroom. Chloe rushed up to him, having fallen behind from hugging Marinette.

“I’m worried about Mari. She’s so small. What if she has mean kids that pick on her like that stupid stinky Sharon from last year?”

Adrien was tired of hearing how Marinette might not do well. He wasn’t supposed to have to worry about her while at school!

“She will be fine.”

“But how do you know?”

“I just do Chloe. I can’t always be the one to help her, okay?!” Chloe froze and just stared at him for a moment.

“What?”

“You’re mean.”

“Am not.”

“Are too!” She stuck her tongue out for good measure.

He didn’t get to retort as they each reached their classes. This year they were separated and for once, he was happy about that. He didn’t spare her a second glance as he headed into the room.

“Adrien! Guess what!”

“IVAN!” Adrien practically ran through the classroom in excitement over seeing his friend in the same class.

“I went to a different country this summer!”

“Woah. That’s so cool!”

“I know! Look, I got you and Nino matching bracelets with this cool leaf on them!”

Ivan dug through his Batman themed backpack before procuring something. He then handed Adrien a squishy, flat bracelet that was mostly red with a small white square. Inside the white square was a red leaf.

“This is awesome! Thank you!”

“Buds! YES!”

Ivan and Adrien both whipped their heads towards the door to see Nino walking in their direction.

“Nino!” “I got you something!” Both Adrien and Ivan said in unison.

“The three musketeers together again!”

“Yeah!”

“Ninoooo! Look what I got us!” Ivan shoved the matching bracelet in Nino’s direction.

“This is awesome!” He slipped it on.

The three of them did their secret handshake before surveying the rest of the classroom. It seemed meanie Sharon wasn’t in his class so that was awesome. The teacher, Mr. Armand, had even placed him, Ivan and Nino at the same table. Adrien just knew that this was the start of what would be the best year ever!

---

The first part of the morning had been so much fun already. They had done letter tracing worksheets, a refresher from the year before, and then had gotten to draw a picture about their summer. Adrien had gotten better at writing short sentences over the summer, he had practiced of course, and he was really happy that he was able to tell the story of his summer in two or three of them. (Drawing was secretly his favorite part.) He had been so busy that the morning flew by, he and his best friends chatting about their summers while doing their work.

“Alright class, we will be going to meet your buddies just before recess, which is in about fifteen minutes. As first-graders I expect you to be good friends to your buddies, just like your buddies from last year were to you.”

Adrien was incredibly excited to meet his buddy. He just knew they were going to become the best of friends. Maybe Adrien could even teach him to use the monkey bars if he didn’t know how, just like Max had taught him last year.

“I am going to come by and give you a name tag with a color on it. Your buddy is going to be wearing the same color tag so that you will be able to find them when we head over to Mrs. Caline’s class.”

Mrs. Caline? Marinette’s class. Adrien had a hard time repressing a groan but he could be paired with anyone, she was just one person anyways! A very small, small person.

“Nino, your color is lime green.” Mr. Armand handed Nino a sticky name tag that had a big bright green circle colored on it.

“Cool!” Nino immediately peeled off the backing and slapped it to the center of his chest.

“Ivan, your color is gray.”

“Borringgg.” He copied Nino’s movements, though much less enthusiastically.

“And Adrien, your color is sky blue.”

Like Marinette’s eyes.

The thought momentarily stunned him, and he could only nod in response as he placed the tag on his shirt, just over his heart.

“I hope my buddy likes music!” Ivan mimicked drumming on his desk with his index fingers and rocked his head up and down.

“I hope mine likes to climb really high!”

“I hope mine likes to do the monkey bars so I can teach him like Max taught me!”

The three of them were definitely hyped.

“I hope our buddies like each other!”

“Me too.” And Adrien really hoped they did.

“Of course, they will! And if they don’t, then we can teach them how to be friends. We got our big buddies to be friends last year, remember?”

“You’re right, Nino!” Ivan stopped his drumming for a second to fist-bump Nino.

“Alright class, time to head out. Please line up at the door.”

Adrien and his friends stood next to each other in line, with himself standing last. This was something they started last year to be silly. Mrs. Caline liked to have her students stand in alphabetical order by last name, aside from the line leader, of course. So, the three of them would stand backwards just for fun whenever there wasn’t a rule about it.

While the rest of the class was excitedly chattering about their buddies and what they might be like, Adrien thought back to last year and how nervous he had been as a kindergartener. At least he’d had Chloe, who was equally terrified. He was for once thankful for Marinette because that meant that Felix wasn’t alone.

Everyone quickly quieted down as they made their way through the hall so as not to disturb the other classes. He saw Chloe’s class lined up outside of Ms. Olga’s room, a letter each written on the sticker they wore on their chests. Chloe saw him and waved. At least she didn’t seem to be mad at him anymore.

“Alright, let's head on in. Line up in the front of the classroom and Mrs. Caline and I will introduce you to your buddies for the year.”

This was it!

🖍️🖌️🖍️

Walking into the room, Adrien could see how nervous the younger kids were. He saw Felix sitting near the door and waved. Felix held out his shirt and pointed to the big gray circle on his tag. Adrien was super excited that he and Ivan would be paired together, now he really didn’t have to worry about his brother!

The kindergarten room had tables that were set up in a ‘U’ shape with kindergarteners themselves seated along the outside edges. Inside of the ‘U’ there were chairs that had been brought in especially for today (Adrien remembered from last year) where the older kids would sit opposite their buddy after being introduced.

He scanned the room a little more as he took his place in the front with his class attempting to try and find the student with the match to his tag. Unfortunately, he was only able to see a handful of them and none matched his. During his observation he noticed a lanky looking boy with dark hair and light eyes along with a girl who could rival Marinette in height or lack thereof. She had light yellow, very curly hair and dark eyes. Next to the small girl was Marinette. She kept her head down and hardly acknowledged his class though she stole a peek at him. He turned his head immediately when she caught his eye.

“Is everyone ready? Okay!” Mrs. Caline clapped her hands together. “First up, Felix! You will be buddies with Ivan, can you please stand-up Felix?”

Adrien watched as his brother stood with a huge grin on his face and waved at Ivan. Ivan returned the wave as he walked over to the empty chair in front of Felix. They both sat down and instantly began a quiet conversation.

Mrs. Caline worked her way around the tables and as more and more of his classmates went to sit down without his name being called, Adrien began to worry. There were only four kids left. ‘Dark-haired boy’, ‘Light-haired curly girl’, another small-ish girl who sat on the other side of Marinette, and Marinette herself.

“Kim, please stand-up. Your buddy is going to be Nino.”

Nino was paired with ‘dark-haired boy’. Adrien wasn’t upset that he was going to be paired with a girl, he was friends with Chloe after all! He just wanted anyone but Marinette. Dejectedly, he watched as the last girl of his class was paired off with ‘light-haired curly girl’. As Marinette stood up, his heart began to thump harder in his chest. It was just him and a boy named Nathaniel left.

Adrien looked everywhere but at her, willing Mrs. Caline to call Nathaniel’s name. He couldn’t hear anything over the roar of his heartbeat and thus he didn’t hear his name being repeatedly called. It took a gentle tap on the shoulder from Nathaniel for him to come to his senses.

“Adrien, you are buddied up with Marinette, please come take your seat.”

🖍️🖌️🖍️

So much for the best year ever. How could he have gotten saddled with her again? Wasn’t it bad enough he babysat her when they were at home? Maybe he could request a change, though he didn’t know if he’d be allowed.

Marinette sat across from him and fiddled with the un-tied ribbon on her dress. She wouldn’t look up, as though she was nervous. They’d be leaving to go outside shortly and a small part of him actually felt bad for her. She was a quiet kid, he knew, but this seemed different.

“Mari?”

No reply.

“Why aren’t you talking?”

She shrugged her shoulders, eyes still downcast. He huffed.

Mr. Armand announced it was time for recess, effectively ending their conversation. They both stood and lined up next to each other to head out the door and he noticed she stood a little ways away from him which was even more strange because usually it was him that had to move. Marinette had never been scared of him before and the thought made him worry because his mom would surely be mad if she found out he had upset her somehow.

Adrien’s worries were quickly washed away as they all rushed onto the playground. Nino and Kim met right up with them along with Ivan and Felix. ‘Light-haired curly girl’ came up with his classmate Lucy to join their group and introduced herself as Mylène. The eight of them walked over to the jungle gym, Marinette trailing behind slightly.

“What should we play?” Ivan asked as he stared intently at Mylène with wide eyes.

“Nothing scary please. I don’t like scary.” Her voice was soft and hard to hear.

“I’m gonna climb higher than all of you, watch!” Kim immediately began climbing up the side of the gym.

“No way you can beat me!” Nino followed suit.

“Where’s Chloe? She promised to meet me!”

“She’s probably with her buddy, Felix.”

Adrien felt an incredibly soft tap on his arm.

“A-adr-rien-n. C-can you p-please t-teac-h me t-to do the mon-nkey bar-rs?”

He really didn’t want to but he didn’t want to hurt her feelings either and relented with a nod before following her over to them. Ivan, Felix, Mylène and Lucy began playing a game of some sort, one he wished he could have been included in, while Nino and Kim raced all over the play structure. Marinette stumbled up onto the platform and reached for the first bar. Her fingertips barely brushed the first one but she managed to catch it and grasped it with both hands. Adrien remained on the ground and slightly behind where she hung so he could watch her from below and help steady her if needed, at least he hoped he could, her legs were all he could reach. Marinette looked back to him for guidance.

“Okay, reach one hand forward and grab on, then bring your other hand to the same bar!”

She did as instructed and her arms were stretched as far as they’d go before she brought the second to meet the first. She repeated the process again and again squealing with glee as she made her way nearly to the middle. Adrien couldn’t help but smile up at her because she was doing something on her own without him!

“I see London! You see France! Adrien see’s Mari’s underpants!” A kid he knew as Tucker chanted. He was in Marinette’s class and must have remembered Adrien’s name from introductions.

Marinette lost her grip then and slammed into him, knocking them both onto the ground in a heap. Tucker ran off laughing with some other boys. Adrien pulled himself out from underneath Marinette and helped her stand up.

“S-sor-ry.” She looked like she might cry.

“I’m okay. Did you get hurt?”

She just shook her head to say no.

“Good. You can try again if you want?”

“N-no t-thank-k you-u.”

“Oh. Okay. Well what do you want to pla…” He was cut off by Felix’s voice.

“CHLOE! YOU’RE FINALLY HERE! Look! Adrien’s best friend is my buddy!” Said best friend was standing next to Felix along with the other two girls from earlier at the top-most part of the playground.

“Hi Felix! This is Sabrina, she’s my buddy for the year!” Chloe gestured to a red-headed girl with glasses who timidly waved.

“HI SABRINA!” Felix was really into yelling today.

Forgetting about Marinette for a moment, completely by accident, Adrien went over to introduce himself.

“Hi, I’m Adrien. My brother, Felix, is the loud one.”

“Nice to meet you, Adrien. Felix is funny. Chloe talks a lot about him.”

“Of course I do! He’s my birthday buddy. I’m going to marry him some day.”

Ivan, Mylène, Lucy and Sabrina all stilled at the comment, looking at Chloe like she was crazy.

“Yepp! And we’re gonna have five hundred cats and two-hundred dogs and a thousand horses!” All eyes snapped up to Felix who was now perched at the top of a slide getting ready to come down.

“That’s right!”

“You guys are crazy.” Mylène spoke up, louder than he’d heard her since meeting her.

“Right?” Ivan suggested. “They should have two-thousand horses!”

“He’s right Felix. We’re going to have two-thousand!”

“Okay!”

“Adrien, where is Marinette? Is she with her buddy?”

Oh no, Marinette! He quickly scanned the area and didn’t see her.

“Adrien is her buddy!” Felix, who had made his way down the slide, leapt off of it and landed next to Chloe.

Chloe narrowed her eyes at him and Adrien felt a chill run down his back. “Where is she?”

“I, uh… I don’t know? We were by the monkey bars and she disappeared when I came to say hi.”

“Ugh! I have to do everything for you!” Chloe threw her hands up in the air before stomping off, Sabrina hot on her tail.

All but his brother simply looked confused and went back to playing. Felix shrugged and joined Ivan leaving Adrien to follow Chloe. So much for having each other’s backs!

They searched the entire structure and didn’t see her.

“You lost her! She’s been scared about school and you lost her!”

“I didn’t lose her! If she had just…”

“W-what are y-ou guys-s yel-lin’ about-t?”

Adrien stilled.

“We were just worried about you Mari! I want you to meet Sabrina!”

“Hi.” Marinette gave a small wave.

“Hi Marinette!” Sabrina hugged her and Adrien watched Marinette stiffen.

“Where did you go Mari?”

“T-to look-k at t-the flowers-s.” She pointed to the field beyond the playground that was decorated in an array of white clover flowers.

“Those are pretty! Sabrina, we should make wildflower crowns next recess!”

“Yeah!”

Adrien groaned and thankfully the bell rang to go back inside. He and Marinette walked silently back to her classroom though she hung behind him just a bit. He found it odd but didn’t say anything about it. Soon enough it would be lunchtime and he’d have to do everything all over again and he was already exhausted from this first recess.

🖍️🖌️🖍️

The room was abuzz with the chatter of small yet impeccably loud voices. Everyone seemed to have a story to tell about who they’d been partnered with and no one wanted to wait their turn. Adrien was the only one who remained silent. There wasn’t anything to tell about Marinette that his friends didn’t already know.

“Get this! Kim climbed all the way over the top of the rail next to the tall slide and onto the other side!”

“Woah.” Ivan’s eyes were as big as saucers.

“He said he’s already broken his arm once!”

“That’s crazy!”

“He’s gonna break his leg soon I bet. He’s so much fun!”

“Who would want to break their leg?” Adrien was genuinely confused. Pain wasn’t exactly fun.

“KIM would! He isn’t afraid of anything. Plus then everyone gets to sign his cast. They all did that at his preschool last year.”

Seemed sketchy but who was Adrien to judge?

“Adrien, your brother is a lot of fun!”

“I wouldn’t know.” He grumbled mostly to himself.

“What do you mean? You’re brothers.” Nino apparently heard him.

“It’s nothing.”

Adrien folded his arms across his chest and slumped in his chair, a scowl on his face.

“You look mad.”

“Yeah.” Nino agreed. “Is it because you got paired with Marinette?”

He didn’t know if he should tell them how upset he was. They wouldn’t understand.

“She’s so super nice though! I bet she would go along with whatever we wanted to play!”

“Nino is right! Felix said she is really super fun.”

“Super fun? Marinette? No way.”

“But Felix said…”

“Felix gets to play with Chloe all the time. I’m the one who has to play with Marinette. She can’t keep up with them so she can’t keep up with us. It’s hopeless.” His shoulders sagged in defeat. He didn’t truly want to leave her out, he just wanted to not have to follow her everywhere or have her follow him.

Both Nino and Ivan pondered Adrien’s words for a bit as the three of them continued working on some addition problems together. Finally Nino spoke up.

“Why don’t you trade buddies or something for next recess?”

“Trade buddies?”

“Oh I think I know what he means! I’ll hang out with Marinette and you hang out with Felix.”

“Really?” He couldn’t help the hopefulness that entered his mind.

“Yeah! One sec, I wanna go ask Lucy something.”

Ivan got up and walked over to Lucy’s table, looking like he was asking for help on the worksheet.

“That’s a good idea, thank you, Nino.”

“Michelangelo, at your service!” He whipped his hands around pretending to swing a nunchaku, making Adrien laugh a little too loud. Mr. Armand gave them both a look before turning his attention back to the student he was currently helping.

“This is gonna be such a good plan!”

Ivan once again joined them.

“It is! Freedom will be so nice!”

“Yeah, that too.”

“Ivan, your cheeks are pink. Do you…” Nino gasped. “Do you like…” his voice dropped to a whisper “Lucy?”

“Nope! But she said she and Mylène would play with Marinette and I at recess.” His cheeks got pinker, and his smile got wider.

“Ooohhh.”

“I like her curly hair. It’s like my mommas.”

“Thank you, Ivan.”

“You’re welcome, Adrien! I’m excited and Marinette seems really nice. Plus I’m even taller than you so I can help her if she needs it.”

Adrien smiled in response. His only worry was that Marinette might be upset over the switch but then it occurred to him that she had been hanging back earlier. Maybe she would be happy to be away from him too? He supposed only time would tell.

🖍️🖌️🖍️

Lunch had come and gone in a flash, Adrien sat across from Marinette at the table and on either side of him were Nino and Ivan. She was sandwiched between Kim and Felix. They had explained the switch for recess to her and she had seemed excited. By the time recess had arrived, she was talking about the flower crowns Chloe was going to teach them to make. To his surprise, Felix had chosen to play a game with him instead of trying to hang around with Chloe.

They’d played pirates along with Nino, Kim, Nathaniel and the other small girl who he had learned was named Alix. The rest of the day was a lot of fun. They’d gone to the library as a group of two classes and Marinette had kept mostly to herself, not even asking for help reaching a book on the top shelf. She’d asked Ivan instead. Strangely, Adrien felt a little lost not helping her and he couldn’t make sense of it.

After the library, his class had an introduction party where they shared their pictures from the morning and told about their favorite part of the summer that year. Adrien’s had of course been riding the horses with his papa on the ranch. Nino’s had been going fishing with his brother and dad, and Ivan’s had been going to the cool country with the red leaf.

Finally it was time for their final recess and Adrien wasn’t exactly sure what to expect. On one hand, he wasn’t super upset that he had to go back to being Marinette’s buddy because he was grown up now and it was the grown-up thing to do. But on the other hand, he still wanted to play with the other kids and not have to worry about her being left behind because she couldn’t keep up. Maybe she would look to Ivan again for help now though?

They made their way to her class once more for the day before lining up to go outside. Marinette had taken her place right up next to him again and he grumbled internally. So much for Ivan then. When the doors opened the rest of the kids rushed outside while he hung behind just a bit. No need to rush when they weren’t going anywhere fast.

“So… what do you want to do?”

She shrugged before pointing to the flowers in the field.

“Flower crowns?”

“Y-yes p-please. Chloe sh-owed m-me.”

He sighed. “Okay.”

“You-u don’t-t have t-to.”

“You want to go make them by yourself? Are you sure?”

She smiled at him and nodded.

“But you’ll be alone.”

“T-that-ts ok-kay! G-go play w-with F-felix.” She hugged him quickly before running off to the field.

Adrien waited a moment, curious to see if she’d change her mind. When she didn’t he turned and ran off towards his brother who was already playing a game with the same group as last recess with the addition of Ivan and Mylène.

“What are you guys playing? Can I join?”

“Yeah!” Felix looked overjoyed to see him.

“We’re playing animal superheroes! I’m a bull!” Fitting for Ivan considering he was already tall and muscular at the young age of 6.

“I’m a goat. Because no one pushes them around, they do the pushing!”

“I’m a bunny because I’m cute!”

“Nino, you’re a turtle, aren’t you.”

“MICHELANGELO!!!!” He shouted. “Kim is a monkey!”

“What are you, Felix?” Adrien wasn’t sure what animal his brother wanted to be, though he had taken a liking to the wild turkeys that often frequented the ranch in the fall.

“Peacock. Because they have cooler colors than turkeys. How about you Adrien?”

“Cat, of course!”

Mylène squeaked. “But I’m a mouse, and cats chase mousies!”

“Not this one, I’m nice!”

She visibly relaxed and they all began playing. They had fun figuring out what powers they would have and showing them off. Nino of course was like a ninja, and Kim could climb anywhere. Mylène was super small and could get into any place by shrinking down. Ivan was strong, Nathaniel never lost a fight and Alix had super speed. For a girl with such tiny legs, she really was impressively fast. Adrien decided that his power would be destroying or breaking things since the cat that Marinette’s family owned seemed to like knocking things over to break them all the time.

They were just beginning to go on their first ‘mission’ when Chloe’s voice screeched behind him.

“Adrien! Where is Mari? Did you leave her?”

Uh o. He hadn’t thought about how angry Chloe would be for his not staying by Marinette.

“She wanted to go make flower crowns by herself.”

“But you promised to stay by her! I would have gone to be with her if I knew you would leave her alone!”

Chloe grabbed him by the arm and drug him away from the group who looked at him sadly before going back to their game. Sabrina came along with the two of them and Adrien was struck with a sense of deja-vu.

“I didn’t leave her. She said she wanted to go alone Chloe.”

“You always do this Adrien! Say you will help Marinette and then go away. You’re so mean!”

“I didn’t go away Chloe! And I am not mean! Stop saying that! She wanted to be alone and I let her because I am always helping her and I wanted to play instead!”

“See, mean!”

“If anyone is mean it’s you and her and Felix! You guys always run away and leave me behind and she takes all of the fun parts to play.”

“We do not!”

“Yes you do!” Adrien was full blown yelling now.

“Nuh-uh!” Chloe was yelling right back.

“Yeah huh! Marinette always takes the cat and you guys let her. You know cats are my favorite. Marinette likes ladybugs because she is one! A small annoying bug!”

“You’re being mean Adrien!”

“Uh guys?”

“No I’m not!!”

“Guys?”

“Yes you are! She is our friend and you need to be nicer!”

“She’s your friend, not mine. I just get stuck with her all the time.”

“GUYS!” Sabrina finally shouted.

“WHAT?” He and Chloe yelled at the same time, still staring daggers at each other.

Sabrina pointed to where Marinette was standing about a few feet away from them, a woven clover bracelet in her hand and tears silently running down her face. The bracelet fell to the ground and she turned around and ran.

“I’m so mad at you!” Chloe shouted before booking it after her.

Sabrina spared him a small glance before following them. Adrien stood helpless and wondering what had just happened.

🖍️🖌️🖍️

Guilt ate him up inside. He hadn’t meant for Marinette to hear what he’d said, and he really didn’t mean it. Not completely anyways. He was tired of being the only one stuck helping her but when he really did think about it, he cared about her. Seeing her hurt was something he had never wanted, and being the one who caused it made the feeling a million times worse.

Absent-mindedly he twisted the clover flower bracelet on his wrist. He had picked it up after the girls had run off and eventually put it on the same arm as the bracelet from Ivan. The bell had rung not long after and not knowing where Marinette had gone, Adrien made his way over to her classroom to wait for her.

It didn’t take long for her to join him in the lineup that was forming but she kept her distance and wouldn’t look at him. He had heard her hiccuping the entire time they stood there and even as they made their way inside. Before his class was ushered back to their own classroom, Adrien took one last look at her and something about her tear-soaked eyes that briefly met his had broken him.

He didn’t know how to make it right and he wanted to. He’d help her climb as many trees as she wanted if she never looked like that again. His mama would know, she knew everything. And she was going to be so disappointed in him for how he had acted.

The day had started out with so much anticipation and now all he wanted to do was go home.

---

Waiting for the day to end was agony. Ivan and Nino had tried to help him and had even come up with ways he could make the situation better but nothing felt right. They were great friends though and he was so happy to have them, especially because they weren’t mad at him like Chloe was. Hopefully she would forgive him too though he doubted it. She had always been incredibly protective when it came to Marinette.

Finally, the bell rang, and he and his friends said goodbye before leaving the building. Ivan’s dad picked him up on the other side of the school and Nino’s bus was on the other end of the long pull off.

He made his way towards his bus, looking at his feet while he walked. He wondered if he should try and save Marinette a seat or if he should just let her be. Maybe Chloe wanted to sit by her and he would sit with Felix. Maybe Felix was mad at him now too. Suddenly Adrien felt a shove to his shoulder and he fell forward towards the concrete, catching himself with his palms.

The impact stung and he winced at the pain.

“Whoops! Didn’t see you there.”

Adrien remained still for a moment, confused as to what had happened.

“Heard you made a girl cry today. That’s not very nice.”

He turned his head to look up and saw a bigger kid, probably in third grade, towering over him. Next to the large kid was Tucker, who had teased him and Marinette that morning. He went to stand up only to be shoved back down again by the large kid's foot.

“What do you think, Tuck? Should we make him cry too?”

“Yes!”

Adrien felt himself being raised by the back part of his shirt that was visible above his backpack and scrambled to break free, though his efforts proved futile. Just as he was about halfway up a figure came into view. The first thing he noticed were sparkly pink boots.

“Leave him alone!”

“And what are you going to do about it, pip-squeak?”

“Put him down or else I’m gonna make you regret it.”

Adrien was stunned. He had NEVER heard Marinette talk without her stutter.

“Johhnnnnn!” Tucker whined at the bigger kid. “That’s the girl he made cry!”

Adrien felt himself drop, this time his elbows and forearms caught the fall.

“She’s the one you like?”

“Johnny! Be quiet!”

“Haha, my little brothers got a cruuu-uushhh!”

Adrien decided he would stay down just to play it safe, though he stole a look at Marinette and what he saw made his jaw drop slightly.

She stood with her hands on her hips looking completely confident. There was a fire in her eyes that he had never seen before, and boy was it an incredible sight. He truly didn’t know how he should feel in that moment because he had just seriously hurt her feelings and she still stood up for him, the feeling that Marinette’s friendship was not deserved washed over him in waves.

“You two should g-go.”

He didn’t hear them respond but the fading laughter of ‘Johnny’ let him know it was safe to try and get up. Marinette held out her hand for him to grab which he accepted gratefully. The sudden shift in their dynamic felt odd but welcome.

“Y-you okay?”

“Yeah. Thank you.”

“A-are y-your hands hurt-t?”

“I’ll be okay Mari. Let’s just head for the bus.” In truth, his hands and elbows stung quite painfully.

She turned and walked ahead of him, only glancing back to make sure he was still following her once. They boarded the bus and she took a seat next to Chloe. Adrien sat next to his brother who looked irritated.

“I don’t get to sit by Chloe because of you.” He grumbled towards the window.

“I’m sorry.”

Felix looked at him, a small amount of understanding in his enormous gray eyes. The rest of the ride home was silent, at least between them.

---

As promised, their mothers were waiting at the Mailbox for them, including Chloe’s mom, though she looked bored.

“Welcome home! How was your first day?”

“Momma, it was awesome! One of Adrien’s best friends is my buddy!”

“That’s wonderful, sweetheart.”

“Mother, I made a new friend today, her name is Sabrina!”

A small hum of acknowledgement was all Audrey offered in response and Adrien watched intently as Chloe visibly deflated in her excitement. Adrien really did not like Audrey.

“How was your first day, my little ladybug?”

“It was g-good momma!” Sabine looked temporarily shocked at Marinette’s lack of stutter.

“I’m so glad to hear it!”

“Chloe t-taught me how t-to make f-flower crowns-s.” Marinette grabbed Chloe's arm and looped it with hers, brightening the blonde girl's features a bit.

“That’s wonderful. You two are so sweet. I can’t wait to hear about this Sabrina!”

Adrien hoped they would skip over his day. He really didn’t want to talk about it. Thankfully his mom must have seen something in his eyes because she invited the group to start making their way towards his house since their three families were having a back-to-school barbeque.

Audrey hopped in her expensive-looking SUV and drove up while the rest of them walked down the driveway much in the same way they had that morning, with Chloe and Felix holding hands in front and Marinette by Sabine’s side. His mother slowed down bit by bit so that soon they were far enough away from everyone else to not be heard.

“What’s bothering you bub?”

“Nothing…”

“Hmm. Are you sure? You seem rather gloomy this afternoon.”

He didn’t want to tell her; she’d be so disappointed in him.

“Adrien.” He turned when he realized her voice was further away than expected and saw that she had stopped, crouching down to his height. “Come here love.”

He ran to her arms and the instant hers wrapped around him the tears he had been fighting spilled freely. His mom held him as he let it out, never once letting go until he pulled away from the hug himself, still she held his arms in her hands to keep him steady.

“I wasn’t a good friend. I’m sorry momma.”

“Oh baby. Tell me what happened.”

“I got paired with Mari and I was just upset because I always have to help her at home and I wasn’t supposed to have to at school. Then we got teased and she seemed fine but then she walked off when I went to say hi to Chloe and Chloe got mad.”

His mom listened intently, never interrupting.

“Then Nino and Ivan had a good idea to trade buddies for lunch and I got to play with Felix and it was so fun! But then Mari was back to being my buddy for last recess and she wanted to go make flower crowns and said she’d be okay by herself! I made sure to ask Momma, I did!”

She nodded in understanding.

“So I went to play with Felix and my friends because Mari said she was happy to be by herself and Chloe came and got really, really mad at me because I left Mari alone. I got mad back at Chloe and we yelled. A lot. I said not nice things about Mari and even said she wasn’t my friend. But that’s not true! She is my friend but I was mad and sad that I didn’t get to play how I wanted because I have to watch out for her. I hurt her feelings, Momma. I feel really bad.”

“I see. Have you talked to her?”

“No… I didn’t know how to. And there were some mean kids who pushed me down because I made her cry. But she came and stood up for me. You should have heard her, she didn’t even stutter!”

“I think you should find time to talk to her when we get home. Apologize and tell her how you really feel.”

“But what if she doesn’t want to be my friend anymore?”

“She might be upset for a while, hon. Her feelings were hurt and she’s allowed to feel that way. Marinette is a very kind and smart girl; I am certain she will listen to you if you ask her to talk. And you need to listen to her too.”

“Okay. I’ll try to.”

And try he did but Chloe was glued to Marinette’s hip the entire evening. Anytime he would approach Marinette, Chloe would stare daggers in his direction and drag her away. Felix largely remained with them but every now and again would check in on Adrien, who had finally decided to busy himself with a puzzle at the table out on the back porch.

The sun had finally dipped behind the mountains leaving everything bathed in a light purple glow. He only had a few pieces left of the puzzle to do when the back door opened and Marinette stepped out, alone. She briefly glanced at him before hopping down the stairs and walking over to the large cottonwood tree at the far side of the yard, sitting down at the base.

Her movements stirred up a few rare fireflies in the yard and he watched as they danced around each other, slowly moving through the air. Fireflies were always a treat to see in Wyoming, especially this late in the summer. Their lights eventually stopped flickering and he brought his attention back to Marinette, who hadn’t moved but had been watching the lightning bugs as intently as he had.

It was now or never, so Adrien abandoned the almost-finished puzzle and walked over to her. No more fireflies emerged.

“Hey, Mari. Can I sit with you for a moment?”

She nodded and he sat next to her, up against the wide trunk of the tree.

“I’m sorry for earlier. I said stuff I didn’t mean.”

“I k-know.”

“You… know?”

“Mmhmm. You w-wouldn’t-t help m-me s-so much if I w-wasn’t y-your friend.”

“Oh.”

“It st-till made m-me sad t-though.”

��I’m sorry.”

“I f-forgive y-you.”

“Really? Just like that?”

She looked over her shoulder at him. “Yep!”

“But why? I was mean.”

“B-because you aren’t-t always m-mean. I knew y-you didn’t-t want-t t-to watch m-me at-t school and I want-ted t-to b-be a b-b-big kid t-too.”

“I just… it's hard sometimes I guess. I wanna play with Chloe and Felix too but sometimes we can’t because…” He didn’t want to insult her again so he cut his sentence short.

“B-because I am small.”

“Yeah… because of that.”

“I’m s-sorry. I don’t-t t-try t-to make us s-slow.”

“I know you don’t.”

“I only p-play the k-kitty b-because you love our k-kitty s-so much. He m-makes you happy a-and I w-want t-to m-make you happy t-to say t-thank you f-for al-ways-s helping m-me.”

He had never even thought that she would have done that to make him happy but knowing Marinette, it made sense.

“I didn’t know that. I thought you were trying to take it from me.” He chuckled a little, now the idea seemed so silly.

“Nope. I w-would rather be a ladyb-bug or h-orsey.”

“I’m sorry I wasn’t a good friend to you Mari. Can we maybe start over?”

“I’d l-like t-that.”

She leaned her head on his shoulder, relaxing against him and he rested his head against the tree. The fireflies from before began blinking and twirling around the yard again and he and Marinette remained there, enjoying the companionship and serenity that came with a true friendship.

There was no one who made Adrien happier than Marinette Dupain-Cheng, with her sparkly pink cowboy boots and pigtails adorned in matching bows. She was kind and smart and the best friend he could have ever asked for. He couldn’t wait to spend this year being her friend too.

#ml writers guild #mlb #writer spotlight #lovesquare #miraculous ladybug #ml fic #miraculous ladybug fic #miraculous #adrien agreste #marinette dupain cheng #felix fathom #chloe bourgeois #september event 2023

7 notes · View notes

verfound · 2 years

Text

@girlcat817 asked about Here in this Diary, which hasn’t really changed since the last time I talked about it (y’all I have so many here that I want to work on and keep getting pushed back for other deadlines 😂), so I offered another and she asked for Piggy Sue instead. 😁

So something the LBSCers have learned about me is I have zero willpower/self control and anything and everything will become a prompt - especially if it involves kids or animals or Australian dumbasses. 😂 My coworkers, most of whom are older and don’t fandom, have not realized this yet. So when Ms. B is telling us about growing up on a farm and that time she was riding a pig and it got spooked...

Y’all can’ tell me stories I WILL use them ok?

Dewey’s blue eyes widened when he saw the pink, rounded thing over the back of Papa’s truck. He heard Maman heave a big sigh and felt her shift. When he looked up from where he was clinging to her skirts, her hands were on her hips. The expression on her face was one all of the Couffaine kids were familiar with by this point: she was going to have words for Papa when he got out of that truck.

But Papa was grinning from ear to ear when he hopped down from the cab, catching the silly off-white cowboy hat he’d taken to wearing since the move and waving it at them. Dewey glanced up at Maman again and saw a smile flickering on her lips. So maybe there wouldn’t be too many Words.

“Go on,” she sighed, looking down at him and ruffling his black curls. His fists tightened in her skirts, and she nodded towards the truck. “I know you’re dying to see what Papa’s brought home this time.”

He bolted from the porch without another word, stumbling over the laces of his barely-tied boots as he went. He caught himself on the gate of the open cab, tiny fingers curling around the metal and plastic.

“Hey there, little man,” Papa greeted, locking his hands beneath Dewey’s armpits and hoisting him up onto the gate. Dewey’s mouth dropped open, his eyes going wide at the sight of the fuzzy, massive, pink pig lying in the back of Papa’s truck. The pig appeared to be sleeping, flopped over on its side with its back legs…where were its back legs? And what was the funny, wheeled thing beside it? Dewey’s head snapped up to stare at his Papa, who just reached down to ruffle his hair. His face scrunched at that – two ruffles in two minutes was two too much. He reached up to bat Papa’s hand away, and Papa chuckled before gesturing at the pig. “Meet Piggy Sue, Dewey. She’s gonna be staying with us for a while.”

Dewey knew how this went back in the city. A while could mean a few days or a few months. They’d kept Adrien, the one-eyed black cat who was missing a tail, for almost two years before someone adopted him. Animals – special animals (“Weirdo animals,” Huey liked to say) – were just a part of the Couffaine way of life. Papa was always bringing something new home (his favorite had been the asthmatic guinea pig, but Wheezey had only lived a month or two after coming home), and Maman was always telling him to stop it – until one day they’d told them they were moving, and now they lived on the Couffaine Misfit Farm (“Animal Rehabilitation Center – honestly, Luka!” Maman always groaned), and a lot of the animals seemed to be staying longer.

Dewey looked back at Piggy Sue, who snorted in her sleep and twitched an ear. He hoped a while meant a good long while this time. He had a feeling he was going to like Piggy Sue.

#wip ask game #wip hoard #wip dragon #miraculous ladybug #luka couffaine #marinette dupain-cheng #dewey couffaine #lukanette #endgame lukanette #lukanette endgame #house band #couffaine misfit farm #piggy sue

9 notes · View notes

carpisuns · 2 years

Text

emoji doodles!

#ml #miraculous ladybug #miraculous #this was so fun!!!#I’m trying to increase my Doodle Power and not worry so much about things looking perfect #so I asked for requests on Instagram #I wasn’t gonna color these but then I had to give adrien ugly orange cowboy boots🧡#mine #my art #ml art

1K notes · View notes

acadieum · 4 years

Text

just found out about a shop that sells dnd themed coffee brews and,, looks like i know what im spending my commission money on 👁️👅👁️

#adrien rambles #ive been thinking for a while what to treat myself to with this money im earning bc its been a minute since i got smth nice for myself #at first i was thinking of saving up for a nintendo switch.. and then i was thinking about getting some nice cowboy boots... b #*but this is also nice i think... i think itll be a fun experiment #if i do buy it- ill give a nice review about it!#its just a matter of finding out what flavors i want.... so hmm

79 notes · View notes

fridayfirefly · 3 years

Text

Two Birds [Part Two]

Read Two Birds on AO3

Masterlist [All Works]

Masterlist [Two Birds Series]

For Maribat March Day 31 - Reunion

The school trip to Gotham was supposed to be fun. It was supposed to be a reward to the class, a celebration of the recent defeat of Hawkmoth by Ladybug and Chat Noir. Marinette wanted to celebrate. She really didn't want to cry on the trip. Yet, as the plane touched down in Gotham, Marinette was staring out the plane window at the rain and the setting sun, rubbing her eyes, trying her best to brush away the tears before they formed.

"Are you okay, Marinette?" Alya looked over at Marinette, concern visible on her face.

Marinette nodded weakly, blinking away the wetness in her eyes. "I'm fine. I just... I have some bad memories associated with Gotham. One of my childhood friends... his parents were murdered on a trip to Gotham and I lost contact with him after that. It's always been a very raw subject for me."

Alya opened her mouth to respond, but before she could get a word out, Lila leaned across the aisle to interrupt the conversation. "Your childhood friend's parents were murdered on a trip to Gotham? It's okay to admit that you're scared of Gotham because of the supervillains. You don't have to come up with some outlandish story for why you're upset."

Marinette glared over at Lila, her eyes shiny from both her tears and her anger. "I wasn't talking to you, Lila, but for your information, I'm not making up a story. I wouldn't lie about the death of my friend's parents. I hate liars."

Lila flinched back, her eyes wide and innocent. "I'm sorry, Marinette. I just wanted to make sure that you knew that you could tell the truth. We wouldn't judge you for it."

Alya frowned, giving Lila a stern look. "Lila, Marinette is seriously upset. I don't think that this is the right time to lecture her."

"Oh, of course." As soon as Alya turned away from her, Lila's expression was murderous. Marinette could care less. She turned away and ignored Lila, not in the mood to deal with the liar's taunts. If she could just hold back her tears until they got off the plane, maybe she could pretend that it was the rain that was making her face wet.

It took an hour to get from the plane to the hotel room, and that hour was torture for Marinette, who spent the entire journey holding back tears. As soon as Alya shut the door to their hotel room with a click, Marinette finally let herself cry, curling up into a ball on the hotel bed.

Marinette felt Alya wrapped her arms around her in a hug. "I've got you, Marinette. It'll be okay."

Marinette didn't know how long she cried for. All she knew was that when the tears finally stopped, the sky had gone dark outside. "What time is it?"

"It's a little past eight. I texted Nino to tell Ms. Bustier that you weren't feeling well, so she won't be bothering you with any class president duties tonight."

"Thanks." Marinette shifted herself from lying on her side to sitting up. "Have I ever told you what happened to Dick?"

Alya shook her head. "You've mentioned him a few times, but only that you two were friends when you were younger, and then lost touch."

Marinette sighed. "It all started when I was nine years old. My Grandma Gina was babysitting me for the weekend. She was old friends with the ringmaster of a circus that was in Paris, so she took me there to stay the weekend. That was where I met Dick and his parents..."

Marinette told the story in bursts, stopping to cry every few minutes when she got too emotional to continue. "...And I never spoke to him again after that. Gotham's foster care records aren't open to the public, and I stopped myself from Googling his name a long time ago. It just hurts too much to get my hopes up."

Alya wrapped Marinette up in another hug. "I'm sorry, Marinette. I wish there was something I could do to make this better."

"I think this trip might be good for me. It hurts a lot now, but I think once it's over I might finally feel a little more at peace."

"I hope so. But if there's ever any time where you need to just stop and let it all out, I'll be there for you."

"Thanks, Alya. You're the best."

Alya was Marinette's best friend, even if Alya was friends with Lila as well. That was Marinette's one regret - when she unmasked Hawkmoth and Mayura as Gabriel Agreste and Nathalie Sancour, there was no way to unmask Lila as a liar as well. Gabriel refused to name Lila as an accomplice, aware that admitting to having manipulated a teen girl into performing acts of terrorism wouldn't look good for him. So Lila was free to continue her reign of terror, though at least now Marinette could be rightfully angry with her, without fear of being akumatized.

----------

The class trip was partially sponsored by the Wayne Scholarship Foundation. Usually, the Wayne Scholarship Foundation only awarded scholarships, given to students all across America to pay for college, but after Hawkmoth's defeat and the media coverage that followed, a rather large sum was awarded to Marinette’s class for their bravery on the front lines of Hawkmoths' attacks. The Wayne Foundation organized tours and shows for them all over the city, starting with a tour of the Martha Wayne Memorial Botanical Gardens bright and early on the first morning of their trip. Then the class would go on a walking tour of Gotham during the afternoon, ending at a high-end sushi restaurant for dinner, followed by a night exploring East Hills Park during one of their famous firework shows. The late May day promised to be warm and sunny, so Marinette put on her favorite red floral sundress with a jean jacket overtop to hide the thin spaghetti straps, and sturdy tennis shoes to handle all of the walking she would be doing.

"Marinette!" gasped Lila as soon as Alya and Marinette walked into the main lobby. "Are you sure that your outfit is dress-code approved?"

Marinette rolled her eyes. "Yes, Lila. With my jacket on, this fits the dress code. I wouldn't make something that I can't wear."

"Okay. I was just checking. Your dress seemed a little too short to me, but I guess I just prefer something more modest."

As Lila walked away, Alya placed her hand on Marinette's shoulder in comfort. "I'm sure Lila didn't mean to come off as slut-shaming. I think she's just lashing out because wants to make sure you don't get in trouble for your outfit." Even Alya sounded uncertain of her explanation, as not even she believed herself. Without the support of Hawkmoth, Lila was no longer a cunning and calculated mastermind of manipulation. Now she was just a scared bully, desperately doing whatever she could to maintain her power over the class.

"Whatever," Marinette sighed. "I won't let her ruin my trip."

"That's the spirit. Besides, anyone with taste would know that your outfit looks super cute.”

Marinette smirked. "Are you saying that you don't think Lila has taste?"

"Definitely not as much taste as you. You're the Queen of Fashion Trends. You always look good." Alya put her arm around Marinette's shoulder. "Plus, you know better than to wear cowboy boots to school."

Marinette giggled as she remembered the incident. Lila came to school showing off her 'authentic' cowboy boots from America, seemingly unaware that they were the ugliest shoes anyone in their class had ever seen.

"You'll have a great day today, I promise." Alya walked with Marinette to the bus waiting outside. They got a seat up near the front, by Nino and Adrien.

Adrien had been the most affected by Hawkmoth's unmasking, given that it revealed his Father as a terrorist and his Mother as a coma-patient. All seemed lost for Adrien, as a team of Paris's best doctors revealed that Emilie Agreste was braid-dead. They planned on pulling the plug on Emilie's life support until, Amelie Graham de Vanily revealed that by combining the twin rings she and her sister owned with Ladybug's power of creation, together they had the power to bring Emilie back to life. Marinette was skeptical, after all, Amelie seemed to have ulterior motives in everything she did, but how could Marinette refuse when it was the only thing that she could do to help Adrien. In the end, she decided to help, no matter the consequences. Miraculously, it worked. Emilie was brought back to life and Adrien had a mother again.

However, in the aftermath of her decision, Marinette realized one crucial detail. In all of the chaos of deciding whether or not to work with Amelie, when she based her final decision on Adrien, she did it because he was her friend, not because he was her crush. At that moment, she realized that the overwhelming crush she had on Adrien since the age of thirteen had faded. In its place was a beautiful friendship.

"Good morning," chirped Adrien.

"What's up, dudes?" chimed in Nino.

"I can't believe we're here in Gotham. I thought our class trip to London was cool, but this is just incredible. I can't believe that the Wayne Foundation organized all of this for us," Alya gushed.

Marinette smiled. She knew that her friends deserved the vacation. Alya, Nino, and Adrien (though his involvement as Aspik was brief) all helped in the fight against Hawkmoth, even though they never revealed their superhero identities to each other. "What are you all most excited about?"

"I can't wait to see the Superhero Museum," said Alya. "I can't believe we were invited to the ribbon-cutting ceremony of the new exhibition."

"It is a celebration of the defeat of Hawkmoth. I suppose they wanted some real Parisians there to see it."

"I'm excited for Super: an American Musical, with the original cast. Did you guys know that this is their last week in Gotham before the show starts on Broadway!" Nino cheered.

Marinette smiled. "That is cool. I've heard that it's a fan favorite to win a Tony this year."

When all eyes landed on Adrien to answer the question, he shrugged. "I just want to experience everything. And take a lot of pictures. I promised my Mom that I would send her some."

"How about we take one now?" Marinette suggested.

Adrien nodded and the group of friends squeezed together to take a selfie.

"How about you, Marinette?"

"The Wayne Foundation Fundraising Gala," Marinette answered promptly. "It's one of the most influential events in fashion. I've heard that celebrities wear their second-best outfits to the Met Gala and save their best for the Wayne Gala. I know that the Wayne Foundation is paying for a shopping trip to pick out an outfit for the Gala, but I made my dress own and brought it here."

Alya laughed. "I should have guessed."

Marinette smiled sheepishly. "I couldn't resist. This is the first opportunity I've had to wear my newest creation."

"Do you have pictures of it?" asked Adrien.

Marinette shook her head. "I'm not showing anyone until the Gala. I'm keeping it safe in my room. I don't want to jinx anything."

"Hawkmoth is gone. We're in Gotham, living it up. Life is good." Alya summarized, and the whole group chimed in their agreement. Life was good.

----------

"Is everything in this city named after the Waynes?" asked Nino as they stepped off the bus in from of the Martha Wayne Memorial Botanical Gardens.

"The Waynes are one of the oldest and wealthiest families in Gotham. When you're that rich, life is just a game of buying your name onto as many buildings as possible," Adrien answered.

"The Waynes and their extraordinary money are the reason why we're here, so I'm willing to forgo making fun of everything they put their name on," Alya decided.

Once they got through the doors to the Botanical Garden, Marinette was entranced. Flowers of every shade surrounded her, the sound of rushing water and the rustling of leaves was the only thing she could hear, the smell of pollen and fresh air filled her lungs. It was heavenly.

"I'm Olivia, but you can all call me Liv," spoke the blonde tour guide as she approached the class. "I'll be giving you a tour of the Botanical Gardens, the largest sanctuary for endangered plants in New Jersey. We're known especially for our orchid garden, which we'll walk through at the end of our tour."

As the tour continued, Marinette noticed that one hallway was blocked off by a sign reading: Hydrangea Exhibition Coming This Fall.

Liv pointed out the hallway. "Down that hallway is the upcoming Hydrangea Exhibition, which is replacing the old New Jersey Wildflower exhibit. Now, I know you're all from out of town, but if you're even in Gotham again, make sure you check out the Botanical Gardens. We're always getting new exhibits-"

Liv was cut off by the sound of shattering glass. One of the panes of glass making up the room had been shattered, and shards rained down on screaming tourists. Marinette's eyes widened as she recognized Poison Ivy, lowering herself through the now opened ceiling on her vines. "You thought you could destroy the native vegetation of this city and get away with it? Nothing escapes my notice. Now, I would like to have a little chat with whoever's in charge here."

Liv motioned for all the students to get down, whispering, "As long as we stay out of Poison Ivy's way, we'll be perfectly fine. Just stay calm and stay quiet."

Marinette watched as the Director of the Botanical Gardens came out to reason with Poison Ivy. He pleaded with the villain, "We won't destroy any of the wildflower gardens, I swear. I'll make sure myself that the wildflower exhibit will be moved to public parks all across Gotham."

Poison Ivy shook her head. "That's not good enough. You think you can wash your hands of these flowers so long as someone else offers to take them? How long do you think the wildflower gardens will last without any sort of protection?"

"We'll make sure that the gardens are protected, I promise."

Narrowing her eyes, Poison Ivy gave the Director a cruel smile. "I hope for your sake, Mr. Joseph Hoffman of 524 Shelton Avenue, that nothing happens to those flowers. Otherwise..." Poison Ivy let the threat hang in the air, using her vines to ascend back up to the ceiling.

The next few moments were so chaotic and full of movement that Marinette couldn't quite piece together what had happened. All she knew was that one second Poison Ivy was leaving the way she came and the next second, Batman and Robin were facing her down in the middle of the Botanical Gardens.

"Oh, hello Batman, Robin. It's so nice to see you. I was just leaving though, so unless you want to fight me where all these plants - and civilians, I suppose - could get hurt, I would step out of my way."

"Poison Ivy, we both know that I can't just let you go free after you threatened this man's life."

Poison Ivy sighed dramatically. "Oh well, I gave you a chance. Now it looks like I'll have to start getting civilians involved. The villain's eyes panned over the room, her eyes just happening to make contact with Marinette's for a split second before Marinette looked away. But that split second was enough. Marinette felt vines start to wrap around her forearms, yanking her forward.

Marinette was pulled all the way over to Poison Ivy, Batman, and Robin, until she was stopped in between the villain and heroes. "What's your name?" Poison Ivy asked, a menacing smile on her face.

"M-Marinette," she stuttered out, eyes wide.

Batman's expression was stoic and unyielding, while Robin looked at her with wide, stunned eyes. Batman spoke, "Why don't we move this outside where no one - plants or civilians - will get hurt."

Poison Ivy nodded. "I will require a head start, though, so I'll keep my vines wrapped around Marinette's throat. As soon as I'm out of range the vines will go slack and she'll be able to go on with her day. However, if you start to come after me before then, I'll tighten my vines and poor little Marinette might not make it."

Marinette stiffened as the vines grew around her throat, just loose enough for her to take shallow breaths. Poison Ivy disappeared from view, but Marinette continued to stay perfectly still, desperately trying to slow her breathing before she hyperventilated. No one made a move toward Marinette, no one willing to risk the consequences of making a move while Poison Ivy could still control the vines.

After what felt like hours, but was really only about five minutes, the vines relaxed and fell to the floor. Marinette collapsed to the ground, lowering herself into the seated position so she could breathe a little bit easier.

"Are you alright?" asked Robin, kneeling next to her. "Are you having any trouble breathing?"

"I'm okay. I didn't get hurt. I was just scared."

Robin got up and held out his hand to help her to her feet. "Why don't we get you back with the rest of your group. Are you here with your family?"

Marinette shook her head. "I'm here on a school trip."

Robin walked Marinette over to her class, handing her off to Ms. Bustier, who let out a sigh of relief as she gently placed her hand on Marinette's shoulder. "I know that was a very scary situation, Marinette. If you would like, I can take you and Alya back to the hotel."

"No way!" protested Marinette. "I didn't even get hurt. Plus, we have the walking tour of Gotham today. I don't want to miss it."

"Are you sure?" Ms. Bustier glanced over toward Batman.

Batman joined the conversation, saying, "If Marinette prefers to continue her day as normal, then I would advise following Marinette's lead. Often, the best way to recover from an encounter with a villain is to go on with your life as normal."

Marinette nodded. "I want to stay with the rest of the class and go on with our day."

Ms. Bustier still looked hesitant but conceded anyway. "Alright. I think our tour of the Botanical Gardens is over, though. I doubt that they would let us continue, what with shattered glass all over the floors."

Liv led the group out of the building, commenting with a sigh, "It's a shame that Poison Ivy came and ruined the tour. The orchid garden is such an amazing exhibit, and now none of you will get to see it. Unless..." Liv glanced around. "There's no broken glass in the orchid garden, so I don't suppose why we couldn't leave the Botanical Garden through the side-exit past the orchid garden. What do you say, Marinette?"

Marinette smiled. "That sounds wonderful."

As the tour group turned to enter one of the hallways branching off of the main room, Marinette glanced behind her one last time. She made eye contact with Robin, who was watching her leave, an expression of wonder on his face. Marinette turned back around self-consciously rubbing the back of her neck. She wasn't sure why Robin looked at her like that. It wasn't a look that one would give a stranger, and yet they had never met before. Marinette thought it was odd, but the thought was gone from her mind as soon as her class entered the orchid garden. I'm here in Gotham for a week to have fun, she reminded herself, so no more investigating every strange occurrence.

----------

The walking tour of Gotham was just as fun and informative as Marinette anticipated, packed with interesting facts and amazing sights. She got a bunch of high-quality pictures of Gotham, good for putting in the blog post that Marinette (as class president) was in charge of putting together to go on the school website. Best of all, Lila didn't bother her for the whole tour. Even Lila knew that she couldn't bully Marinette and get away with it, after what Marinette had been through the morning.

The sushi restaurant was amazing too. Marinette had eaten sushi a few times before, but never anything as high-quality as what was served in the restaurant. Marinette decided that if this was what a field trip funded by the Wayne Foundation was like, then she was incredibly excited for the week to come.

Aside from the unfortunate interruption at the Botanical Garden, the day was perfect. Yet, Marinette couldn't stop thinking about the strange look on Robin's face. Had she done something wrong? Was she really safe from Poison Ivy? The thoughts lingered in her head, pestering her every time she felt safe and content.

"Listen up, class!" called out Ms. Bustier. "You'll all have exactly two hours to explore East Hills Park. The firework show starts in approximately half an hour, and ends half an hour before you have to meet up here, which should give you plenty enough time."

Marinette followed Adrien, Alya, and Nino off the bus and into the park. The group of friends started to explore the park, stumbling upon the statues and fountains that were scattered about the grounds.

"I found another Wayne!" Nino shouted from a few meters away. "This statue was dedicated to Patrick Wayne, who was Mayor of Gotham City - this was before they changed the name to just Gotham - from 1896-1904. His most notable achievement from his time in office was that he built over thirty new schools and eleven new library buildings in the city. He was known for his dedication to educating the City of Gotham."

It had become an inside joke between the group to try and find as many things in Gotham named after the Waynes as they could. The task turned out to be much less difficult than they had anticipated, so the group quickly switched tactics and began looking up the various Waynes to see what they actually did with their lives, to determine whether they deserved their names on the various buildings and statues of Gotham.

"He actually sounds like he deserved a statue," said Adrien, looking down at his phone at the Wikipedia article he had pulled up. "Not like Augustus Wayne, who never had a job and gambled away nearly a quarter of the Wayne fortune, yet still has a bridge and a fountain in this park named after him."

Marinette chimed in, "My favorite is Georgiana Wayne. Apparently, a reporter was harassing her over the fact that she was a divorcee and Theodore Wayne was her second husband, and she told that reporter to, quote, 'Fuck off, you lousy son of a bitch. If my husband doesn't mind that I am a divorcee, I don't see why you should.'"

"I wonder if she has any statues in the park," said Alya.

"I doubt it. Her Wikipedia article is only four paragraphs long."

Alya frowned. "That's a shame. Augustus Wayne does nothing of importance with his life and gets a whole bridge named after him, but Georgiana Wayne is a total badass in the 1920s and gets nothing."

"We'll have to bring it up with Bruce Wayne at the fundraising Gala," joked Marinette.

"Good idea." Alya glanced down at her phone. "It's almost time for the fireworks show to start. According to the class groupchat, everyone is gathering on the south shore of the duck pond. There are benches there, and it should have a good view."

"I'll meet you guys there," said Marinette. "I just want to get a few more pictures before it gets too dark."

Marinette started taking pictures of the fountains and flowerbeds, wandering aimlessly through the park. She was busy getting the best angle to take a picture of a maple tree framed by the sunset when she bumped into someone walking behind her.

"Oh, I'm so sorry-" Marinette began to apologize, but as soon as she recognized just who she bumped into she was at a loss for words. "Dick?"

"Marinette?" Dick's voice was deeper than Marinette remembered, yet still hauntingly familiar. His wide blue eyes stared into hers.

Marinette couldn't hold it together. She burst into tears, launching herself into his arms. "Dick, I thought I would never see you again. What are you doing here?"

"I heard your name on the news when they were reporting about Poison Ivy's vandalism at the Botanical Gardens. I did a little googling and found out about your class trip. It took a little digging into the Wayne Foundation website, but I found the approved itinerary for the trip and decided to track you down at East Hills Park. I knew I had to see you again."

"You did that for me?" Overhead the fireworks started going off, extravagant flashes of color that Marinette ignored completely. She couldn't tear her eyes off of Dick. When she imagined her reunion with him, she never really considered that he would be all grown up. No longer was Dick the twelve-year-old boy that Marinette remembered from her childhood. Dick was now five years older and sixteen inches taller.

"Of course I did. Marinette, I've missed you so much."

"I tried to get back in contact with you but Gotham's CPS refused to release any information to me. I kept calling and calling but they wouldn't tell me anything." The tears returned with a vengeance, and Marinette started to sob. "I gave up on finding you and I'm so sorry."

"I don't blame you. You have to know I don't blame you. It's me who should be apologizing. I could have tracked you down but I never did."

Marinette sniffled. "Why didn't you?"

"I was a coward." Marinette opened her mouth to protest but Dick cut her off. "I was scared of losing another person I loved. I shut everyone out and by the time I was ready to let people in again, I was afraid that you wouldn't want to be a part of my life again."

"What made you change your mind?" asked Marinette.

"No matter how hard I tried, I couldn't forget you. It was stupid of me to think that I ever could in the first place. You were my best friend Marinette. You still are, if you'll have me."

Dick looked at her with such longing that Marinette knew she could never deny him. Her face softened. "Of course I will."

"Thank you." Dick held onto Marinette tighter.

Marinette closed her eyes and melted into his embrace. The fireworks show continued, bathing the park in beautiful colors, but Marinette felt no need to watch it. She knew that she already had the most beautiful thing in the park in her arms.

Taglist: @maribatmarch-2k21 @jayjayspixiepop @buginetye @ultimatetornshipper

#maribat #dickinette #maridick #Marinette Dupain-Cheng #dick grayson #miraculous ladybug fic #my work #MaribatMarch2021

145 notes · View notes

miraculouscontent · 3 years

Text

“Queen Banana” episode summary:

- The episode begins with the kwami watching Marinette finished a cape for the "superhero of creation," already done with one for the "superhero of destruction." Xuppu assumes she means Chat Noir and Ladybug, but Marinette explains that it's for a movie. Orikko asks if she'll become famous and Marinette replies that she's the costume designer and won't play along, though everyone will be on the news. She then panics that she's going to be late and hurries out while grabbing everything she needs.

- Later, Nadja is on the news, talking about the movie project, and Clara (a reporter, not Nightingale) is in the art club of the school, explaining that Thomas Astruc (an apparently "famous director" now) came thanks to the art teacher and he's supervising the students, who have made the script, storyboard, costumes, and chose to use their holiday time to make a movie. Marinette also comes into the art room in the background while the camera is rolling and trips. The reporter goes to give credit to the mayor's involvment, and he starts to talk about him directing a film, but she cuts him off to say that the film will release in the theater, thanking Bob Roth as he's the producer.

- Mylene is the villain of the story while Zoe is the hero. Chloe sees this over the news and throws a banana peel at the screen, angry that her half-sister is the star. Sabrina offers Chloe a bowl of bananas, asking if she wants another as "potassium lifts spirits." Chloe snatches one and rambles angrily about showing them how things are done in real life - her life - as she storms off. Sabrina follows.

- Cut back to the class, where Zoe (in character as her hero role) is talkng to Mylene (also in character as her villain role) and says that she (Zoe's character) loves her even if she (Mylene's character) hates her. Before she can finish, Chloe storms in and expresses how appaled she is that they gave the role to her half-sister "who came out of nowhere," and with her dad's money at that. Andre tries to say that it's the city's money, but Chloe insists that that's the same thing. She yells at Zoe and reminds her about the threats to send her back to New York if she got in her way, and now she's both in her way and on TV.

- Marinette encourages Zoe to stand up for herself because she deserves the role. Thomas says that it's too late to change things because they're meeting the translator tomorrow. The art teacher reminds Chloe that she turned down the chance to participate, including all the insults to people she threw, to which Chloe doesn't even remember. Still, she confirms that she still thinks that but won't let her sister have the role if the movie's going to the theaters and might make someone a star, as it should be her. She demands Zoe's role because everything Zoe has is hers. Chloe then leaves with Sabrina offering her another banana, and Andre insists he'll talk to her so everything will be fixed by tomorrow while nervously backing out of the room.

- Cut to later where Thomas is showing the students Bob Roth's office. However, the chair turns around to reveal a devious-looking Chloe. Marinette asks what Chloe is doing there and Bob Roth comes in with a nervous Andre, explaining that Andre said they wouldn't mind changing the script so Chloe could be in the movie as well. Marinette says that's impossible because everything's prepared already, and Bob talks about compromise and protecting one's interests, though corrects himself to say the movie's interest. Regardless, Chloe's going to be the lead now. Marinette talks about how perfect Zoe is for the creation superheroine and Chloe mentions that the next flight to New York is in 30 minutes. Marinette is seething with anger and Zoe grabs her shoulder, saying that she doesn't mind doing something different since there are other open positions in the crew. Chloe agrees to that so long as Zoe doesn't appear in the movie. Bob states that they've got a deal and they'll see Chloe tomorrow morning and Chloe tells the "losers" goodbye on the way out. Bob shoves them out the door, slamming it behind them. Marinette complains about the unfairness and Zoe sulks.

- Later in the park, things are set up and Andre is in the dressing room rambling about the movie he made (Solitude). Chloe complains that she's trying to concentrate, then yells at Marinette to stop with the "atrocious costume" Marinette's trying to put on her. Sabrina laughs at Marinette for Chloe's comment, then Marinette says that that's why it fits so well, which makes Sabrina laugh again until Chloe glares at her, at which point Sabrina awkwardly offers another banana.

- Nino is explaining that the whole population has been put into a deep slumber in the scene, hence all their extras. Marinette goes and lays down with the other students, but Chloe comes out and complains that they made her the supervillain while Mylene is the superheroine. Chloe insists she gets the main role - as she's "the good one" - but Nino argues that both roles are equally important. Chloe doesn't care and starts eating a banana. Marinette argues that they don't have time for changes, to which Chloe cries out for her father, who looks nervous. The scene quickly cuts to Nino revising the script and Thomas explains that it's not unusual to change the script last minute for production reasons. He goes to say what it's called when Marinette interrupts to say that it's nonsense, a waste of time, and giving up one's dreams. Thomas merely says that it's called "an update," while Nino tells Marinette that it's all in favor of the movie.

- They try to shoot the scene again, but Chloe throws the script away and starts talking about how they need a true superhero, baiting them with hints about a "black-and-yellow" superhero until Marinette interrupts to ask if she means Queen Bee, who she calls a "supercatastrophe" more than a "superhero." Chloe says that she wasn't talking about Queen Bee and rather a "more original character," then makes up the name "Queen Banana" by noticing the banana in her hand. Alix laughs and Chloe cries out for her father again, the scene quickly cutting to the script getting changed again.

- Chloe is now dressed in a yellow cowboy hat, boots, and a skirt, with her Queen Bee costume layered underneath (excluding the mask) and her hair down. Chloe talks about how her costume is way better than what Marinette had, but notes that something is missing: a vehicle. Marinette says that their superheroes fly, and Chloe asks what she even knows about superheroes. She cries out for her dad again, and then Chloe has a banana-themed car. However, she doesn't feel any desire to save any of the students, more a desire to throw them in the trash. Nino says they don't want to change everything again, but Chloe just says that she needs a bigger challenge. Andre sighs as Chloe cries out for him again.

- Brief moment of stuttering Marinette as Adrien (who hasn't shown up before now) is put into a cage for the part of the movie. Adrien assures her that his father said this was in the movie's favor, then is lifted up by a helicopter. Chloe is satisfied with this, as Adrien is worth rescuing, and Nino asks if they can film now. Chloe claims they need a new villain and Nino clams his head against the camera in exasperation. The students go back and forth on who the villain can be until Chloe cuts in to say that she wants a gigantic yellow gorilla who throws exploding bananas. Nino mumbles about the interest of the movie as he rewrites the script yet again.

- The villain is just a cardboard cutout with movable arms and legs. Chloe is insulted by the pathetic display, as she wants a real dynamite-throwing gorilla, but Marinette reminds her that those things don't exist. Chloe says that there's a gorilla who does something in all good movies and demands that they get some, then walks off after saying that she's had enough of them. She goes off to get beauty sleep (it's daytime), telling everyone to solve the monkey problem by tomorrow, and gets into her limo with Sabrina chasing after the retreating vehicle. Kim suggests that the zoo will lend them a monkey if they take good care of him, but Marinette rejecting the idea of actually looking for a gorilla. Max claims that it's in the interest of the movie, but Marinette snaps and yells that it's not; it's Chloe's fantasy. She says that they should get Adrien out of the cage, then she stands on the vehicle to say that they're going to film the actual story they made. Everyone cheers and there's a timelapse as the day passes by.

- Chloe arrives the next day and is confused why everyone's gone and her gorilla isn't there either. She approaches someone who's packing boxes to ask about it, but he explains that everything got filmed yesterday and the movie is probably playing in theaters now. The limo is shown hurrying to the theater and Chloe and Sabrina open the door just in time to see the ending of the movie, with Mylene as the villain and Zoe as the hero once again. The two are fighting onscreen while the class is in the theater seats (Kim in particular in awe) until Zoe manages to zap Mylene. The movie continues as on-screen Zoe then goes over to Adrien, who's unconscious, and she heals him (Marinette is briefly shown to be watching with extra excitement). Zoe's character then goes and heals everyone else in quick succession, using an imitation of Ladybug's line about freeing them from evil. Mylene's character is upset and talks about how people destroyed the earth and didn't deserve to be awakened, and Zoe argues that all of them have hope to make a better world. Mylene says that Zoe's just like them and that she hates her, while Zoe says that she loves her even if Mylene hates her, and she'll always loves her even if the whole world hates her. She also calls Mylene "sister" as the movie's plot twist and they hug as the civilians cheer.

- Everyone is clapping at the movie (barring Chloe and Sabrina), then Chloe storms down who demands to know what's going on and why none of what she wanted was in the movie. Adrien approaches with a tablet, where Gabriel explains that they convinced him to watch their first scene and he thought it was captiving; plus "Adrien was incredible," hence his supporting the movie's original script. Chloe cries out for her dad, who looks down awkwardly, and Bob Roth repeats what he said before about movies being about compromising. Marinette apologizes to Chloe, but says that it was for the benefit of the movie. Sabrina tries to offer a banana to Chloe, but Chloe shoves Sabrina away and leaves in a huff. Gabriel is then seen in his lair (the background was clearly his office earlier and there was no time transition so... ???), holding the tablet as he monologues about how this was part of his plan and Chloe is always an excellent source of "inspiration." He takes of his ascot (the disguised peacock is gold with orange accents) and unifies his two miraculous to turn him into Shadow Moth.

- Chloe is leaving the cinema when Adrien hurries after her, telling her to wait. Chloe says that it's nice of him to want to comfort her, but she's fine and she'll get her revenge in addition to sending Zoe back to New York. Adrien says that he actually was going to suggest that she apologize to everyone, which Chloe is apalled by as everyone "destroyed her movie." Adrien says that it was everyone's movie and reminds Chloe that she promised to stop being rude to everyone, adding that he told her they couldn't be friends otherwise. Chloe calls him "as ridiculous as the movie" and storms off, denying him of the title of her "Adrikins," then runs to her limo and gets inside to start crying. The amok and akuma enter the bedazzled banana clip on her hat and she gets akumatized. Shadow Moth does his usual speech about giving her what she wants and Chloe talks about wanting the gorilla she'd asked for. Shadow Moth insists that everything's prepared and goes to say what he wants in return, but Chloe handwaves it as she already knows. The limo transforms into a banana-themed vehicle, Chloe turns into Queen Banana, and her sentimonster is a giant yellow gorilla named Banana Boom Boom. Queen Banana pulls out a banana-shaped gun, shooting a civilian and turning them into a banana. The vehicle underneath Queen Banana then flies up and fits perfectly onto the sentimonster's head, and said sentimonster prepares to attach the cinema at Queen Banana's orders.

- Adrien is walking sadly through the threater when it shakes, knocking him down. The scene cuts to Adrien opening the door to the room where everyone was watching the movie, revealing that the sentimonster had broken through the roof. Queen Banana demands her half-sister, then commands her sentimonster to start attacking. Marinette and Adrien run off and Marinette grabs Zoe on the way. Adrien hurries into the boys' bathroom to transform.

- While Marinette is taking her upstairs, Zoe says that she might be able to reason with Chloe since Chloe is mostly angry with her (no, I don't get it either). Marinette points out that no one can reason with her, then tells Zoe to stay there while she looks for an exit. Marinette goes up to the roof and transforms from behind a wall.

- While the sentimonster is on a rampage, Queen Banana threatens to turn everyone in Paris into banana if she doesn't come out, adding that it'd be all Zoe's fault. Zoe looks guilty, repeating the line about it being her fault, and is shown starting at the door for the exit.

- Chat Noir shows up and mocks Queen Banana. She shoots at him, with her vehicle firing too, and Chat runs across the rooftops to avoid the beams, also twirling his baton as a defense. Ladybug then snags him with her yoyo, pulling him to her and briefly dipping him. She and Chat hide briefly as Ladybug explains that Shadow Moth was "very generous" with Chloe, Chat commenting that he's a little jealous of her armor. Ladybug talks about "nothing being better than Chat Noir and Ladybug" and Chat agrees by saying that they make a perfect duo. They go to face Queen Banana for a bit, then Ladybug decides to use Lucky Charm, transforming her into her Charm form and giving her a motorbike. She checks under the seat and finds helmets, glue, a cartridge, and an air bump. She peeks out to look at Queen Banana, her Lucky Vision spotting Queen Banana's weapon, then the glue, but nothing else. Something is missing.

- At that moment, Zoe shows up, and Ladybug has an epiphany; the missing piece is Zoe, of course. Zoe meanwhile, is giving herself up to Queen Banana, but only if she spares Paris. Queen Banana agrees, but then shoots someone immediately. Zoe accuses her that she won't keep the promise, which Queen Banana confirms and promptly commands the gorilla to grab Zoe. Ladybug saves Zoe just in time, both on her motorbike, and tells Chat Noir to protect them. Chat Noir goes for Cataclysm, but Zoe moves her vehicle out of the way and Chat Cataclysms the sentimonster, making it lose control. Ladybug facepalms and Chat Noir can only rub the back of his head sheepishly. The sentimonster pursues Chat Noir and Queen Banana is unphased, as he gorilla will just cause more destruction that way. She flies off in her vehicle after Ladybug, who rides off on her motorbike. They flee until Ladybug drives the motorbike into the subway area, where Queen Banana's vehicle doesn't fit. Queen Banana yells that she'll have to come out sooner or later, especially if she doesn't want a banana smoothie made out of "her kitten."

- Ladybug stops the motobike and tells Zoe that she needs her help. Zoe is surprised and Ladybug pulls out the bee miraculous from her yoyo. She gives the usual speech and Zoe grabs the miraculous, Pollen emerging and greets her with a bow. Zoe protests because Chloe will be mad since she was Queen Bee, and Ladybug points out that Chloe will never know since Zoe will keep her identity a secret. Zoe insists that she's not strong enough, but Ladybug grabs her shoulder and says that she knows Zoe can do it. Pollen tells Zoe the transformation phrase and Zoe pulls herself together enough to snmile and put on the miraculous. Zoe then transforms.

- Queen Banana, meanwhile, is waiting outside the subway, extremely bored. Ladybug then comes up suddenly and Queen Banana pursues. Zoe, as the bee, leaves outside another exit and runs across rooftops. Chat Noir is still facing the sentimonster, who manages to grab him when Zoe shows up just in time, making a quip about picking on someone his own size (missed opportunity to say "pick on someone of your own color" instead but I digress). She uses Venom and the sentimonster throws Chat off into the distant, causing him to splat ungracefully against a nearby surface. The gorilla throws large bananas at Zoe that poof into purple dust upon impacting with anything, but she dodges every one of them. It tries to punch Zoe in rage, but she runs up its arm and stabs it in its head, freezing it in place. Zoe lands next to Chat Noir, who calls her "Queen Bee" in a confused tone, but Zoe introduces herself as Vesperia. Chat Noir is in awe, but hears his ring beeping at him. Vesperia tells him that Ladybug needs them, and Chat Noir grabs her hand, telling her that it's nice to meet her, then kisses the back of her hand. He asks her to wait, then they both run off to recharge.

- Adrien gives cheese to Plagg, who compares Vesperia to Queen Bee using cheese metaphors, basically saying that Vesperia is sweeter, more refined, and nicer. Adrien then transforms again and meets back up with Vesperia so they can run out after Queen Banana.

- Ladybug is still fleeing Queen Banana, dodging all attacks. Queen Banana then fires at her heel, which somehow causes Ladybug to trip. Queen Banana monologues a bit, but Chat Noir shows up with his Cataclysm, hitting Queen Banana's car just as Queen Banana jumps away. Queen Banana lands next to Ladybug, grabbing her and pointing her banana weapon at Ladybug's neck, demanding that Chat give her his miraculous or else she'll fire. Vesperia then lands, asking about a fair fight versus the new bee miraculous holder, which enrages Queen Banana, who says that she's the only real Queen Bee. Vesperia smugly states that she was, but now Vesperia herself is the right Queen Bee, while Queen Banana is just the queen of bananas. While Queen Banana is watching Vesperia smacktalk her, Ladybug pulls out the glue her lucky charm had given her, pouring it into the slot where Queen Banana kept her weapon.

- Vesperia continues to taunt Queen Banana, saying that Ladybug chose her to defend Paris because Queen Bee couldn't. Infuriated, Queen Banana throws Ladybug aside and fires, Vesperia letting herself get hit and thus turned into a banana. Queen Banana steps on the banana (not squishing it or anything somehow) and taunts her, then slips her weapon back into the slot and turns to Ladybug and Chat Noir to say that that's what happens to people who have a different opinion to her. She demands their miraculouses and goes to pull out her weapon again, but it's stuck due to the glue. Ladybug talks about her glue being good - as good as Vesperia - and teasingly asks Chat Noir if he agrees. Chat Noir taunts Queen Banana and Queen Banana attempts to flee ("not again!"). Ladybug snags her leg with her yoyo ala "Miracle Queen" and trips her up, and Chat hits the banana clip off with his baton into Ladybug's waiting hand. The object is smashed, the akuma and amok are purfied, and Miraculous Ladybug brings everyone back.

- Ladybug and Chat Noir fist bump, then Chloe cuts in to say that she hates Ladybug and Vesperia, calling the latter a fake version of Queen Bee. Ladybug tells Chloe that she has to learn about controlling her anger, offering help with the amulet, but Chloe smacks it away before she sees it, not wanting anything from Ladybug and saying she doesn't exist for her (she earlier called Adrien "Adri-no one" and now calls Ladybug "Lady-nonexistent"). Chloe then runs off and Shadow Moth monologues in his lair about how "the script will be rewritten soon," sending another akuma.

- Ladybug suggests that they recharge before Shadow Moth akumatizes Chloe again. Chat Noir bows to the two of them and batons himself away, then Ladybug explains to Vesperia that the magical charm would've protected Chloe but she has to want it. Vesperia assures Ladybug that she knows what to do.

- Back at the cinema, Chloe storms in and demands her movie be made. However, Zoe shows up and tells Chloe that that's enough, and she won't play the supporting role in the family anymore even if Chloe sends her back to New York. Chloe cries out for her father, but Andre puts his foot down, saying that Zoe is right. He adds that Chloe can ask for a new phone or painting the limousine pink, but not hurting her sister. Chloe tells him not to call Zoe her sister, as she's less than a half-sister to her; she's nothing to her. She turns to Zoe and yells in Zoe's face that she hates her, but Zoe responds calmly, reciting the line from the moving about loving Chloe even if Chloe hates her and even if the whole world hates Chloe. She hugs Chloe, who looks confused, and Zoe tells her not to forget that they have the same mother. Marinette is shown watching from a hidden spot in front of the cinema as Zoe tells Chloe that their mother gave her a present, which she claims is the magical charm. Chloe demands it since she believes it's from Audrey and Zoe hands it over, saying that what's her is Chloe's since they're family. Chloe pulls away smugly and puts on the magical charm, which puts a shield around her that repels the akuma. Shadow Moth is confused, claiming that this is impossible.

- Chloe tells Zoe that she'll see that the real world is different from the movie, insisting she'll get revenge, then stomps off. Adrien passes by on Chloe's way out and he asks if she's okay, but she yells at him to leave her alone. Marinette, watching Chloe leave, talks to Tikki about how Zoe did it, and Tikki suggests that the charm may help Chloe be a better person. Marinette says "let’s hope so," and the episode ends.

#category: episode summary #episode: Queen Banana #other: ml spoilers #((Tried to slim it down by eliminating unnecessary information. Let me know if you guys like it or not!))#((I'll always make sure I don't leave out stuff I plan on complaining about.))

37 notes · View notes

p-artsypants · 3 years

Text

I’ll Handle This (12)

In Which Lila Learns about Skyrim

Ao3 | FF.net

Sorry for taking a bit with this chapter. It isn’t even very long. But I was in the hospital recovering from surgery. We’re coming up close to the end of the story, but there’s maybe two more chapters after this.

(Psst this chapter has hints to the next story I’ll publish after this one...as long as my ideas don’t change lol)

Lila was fired. It was immediate when they found out. Everyone sat in class, the lecture normal and lulling everyone into a soft state of sedation.

Then Lila screamed. The scream was the worst thing Marinette had ever heard. Immediately, everyone turned to look at her in horror.

She started bawling. Huge gasping sobs of someone who’d been shot.

“Lila?!” Miss Bustier gasped in shock and concern. “Are you okay?!”

“I’m so sorry, Miss Bustier!” She wailed. “I just wanted to peek at my email and—and—Mr. Agreste fired me!”

Plagg had to bite his tongue. He knew she was going to twist this somehow, but her sobbing was so beautiful to see.

“Oh Lila, I’m so sorry. It hurts a lot to lose a job. Especially when they don’t tell you to your face. That’s no fair.”

“He-he-he said that Marinette told him that I was making Adrien uncomfortable! She got me fired!”

Gasps, all around.

“What?!” Barked Marinette. “I had nothing to do with this!” Not exactly the truth...

“But that’s what Mr. Agreste said!”

Plagg stood, placing his foot on the seat, the spurs on his cowboy boots ringing with the motion. He put his cowboy hat back on (since Mrs. Bustier had asked him to remove it for violating dress code...again.) “well now. Sounds like we got ourselves in a gosh darn pickle.”

Nino snorted.

“Adrien! You never said I made you uncomfortable! Marinette must have lied to your father!”

He flicked the rim of his hat. “Now slow your roll there, Buckeroo. I know my old man, and even if Marinette was mentioned in his email, it’s likely that he just wanted to place the blame on someone else.”

Yes, throw the old man under the bus. He still deserves it, even with whole hearted apologies.

“But you know, I do feel awfully bad for you, Lila. Losing yer job and all. How’s about I make it up to ya? I’ll come sit by you for a while. Keep ya company and cheer you up. Cain’t have gettin’ all akumatized up in here, you reckon?”

Not that Lila getting akumatized was even a concern anymore. But the world wouldn’t know about Hawkmoth’s surrender until Emilie’s fate was resolved. Adrien’s family deserved that much at least.

“Oh Adrien!” Lila cried. “You really are such a wonderful friend. But I couldn’t bear to make you move on my behalf. You need to focus on your work.”

“A cowboy needs to be exceptional at multitasking. That is, as long as Mrs. Brassiere is okay with it.”

Miss Bustier pinched the bridge of her nose. Usually, she was a very calm and level-headed teacher, compassionate and understanding. But Adrien’s antics were stressing her out massively. “Yes, Adrien, I suppose it’s fine if you move to—what did you call me?”

“Much obliged, Madam. If’en you’ll excuse me...”

Marinette watched with fascination as Plagg gathered up his materials and moved to the back of the class to sit next to Lila. Then she glanced in her purse, where Tikki and Adrien were hanging out. They both shrugged.

Due to the retirement of Hawkmoth, Adrien was now allowed to spend time away from the Miraculous without consequence. Plagg assured him that once the final condition was met, no matter where he was, his soul would return to his body.

So he spent the school day with Tikki, and the evenings with Marinette. It was a sweet deal, and it really gave Adrien the time to bond with her without school or akumas in the way.

He had even spent the night with her the night before, curled up next to her on her pillow, and purring every time Marinette’s hand glanced his fur.

Nino leaned back in his seat. “Do you know what he’s up to this time?”

“No idea...but I am eager to see where this goes.”

Nino shook his head with a shrug. Two nights ago, when Plagg was arrested, Nino gathered all the money in his savings and went down to the jail to bail him out.

Only to find out he was already let go.

So he went back home, and called Adrien’s phone relentlessly, hoping for an answer.

Finally, in the wee hours of the morning, Chat Noir returned and explained that he was going home now, thanks for having him, he had to watch the mansion because his sort of repentant father was going to Tibet to resurrect his dead wife.

Nino gave up on logic and understanding, and just made sure Plagg had everything he had brought.

Now he would wait until the whole situation blew over, and hopefully Adrien himself, in his own body, would explain it all to him. Plagg seemed to oversimplify everything to the point it became vague.

Marinette, on the other hand, was very curious to see where this was all going. After all, Adrien’s previous tactic of being nice to Lila hadn’t worked. So what was Plagg hoping to gain from the same approach?

Wrassle her with his randomly appointed cowboy charm?

In science, two classes later, Plagg had elected to sit next to Lila still, despite her protests.

Marinette was close enough now to hear what Plagg’s master plan was.

“So there’s like several types of Mer, right? But not like mermaids. This has nothing to do with mermaids. These are mostly elves, but not all. So there’s Dunmer, right? Those are dark elves. And Bosmer, wood elves, and Altmer, high elves. The Falmer are snow elves, but they’re all twisted and savage, because of the Dwemer, which are dwarves!”

Marinette snorted a bit too loudly, drawing attention from the teacher.

“Miss Dupain-Cheng, is something funny?”

“No ma’am, I had a tickle in my sinuses.”

“Ah, I see. Anyways, as I was saying...”

Lila always sat in the back of the class, despite her many alleged disabilities. This was probably to get away with the fact that she rarely paid attention during class.

It was the ideal place for Plagg to harass her and not get caught.

Poetry in motion.

“So you get to pick what race you want to be, but you’re always the Dragonborn. Despite the description, you don’t look any different. So a Dragonborn is someone that can devour the souls of dragons so they don’t get resurrected by Alduin. Let me back up, Alduin is an evil dragon that used to rule the world, and he’s resurrecting dragons so he can take over. There’s another dragon though, named Paarthanax, and he’s a good guy. He helps out the Tongues on the Throat of the World. Or the greybeards. Some call them Tongues, but in the game they’re called Graybeards. And the tongues are the monks that teach you to shout. And different shouts teach you different things, right? The dragonborn and the tongues are the only ones that are supposed to know how to shout, but there’s this other dude named Ulfric Stormcloak, and he knows Unrelenting Force, that’s the Fus Ro Da shout I was talking about earlier? He used it to kill high king Torygg to start a war. Oh yeah, so there’s nine holds with Jarls, right—“

The day ended, and Lila stood quickly. “Well Adrien, thank you so much for keeping me company today. I’m feeling a lot better. You can move back up to your old spot tomorrow.”

“Well, you shore are welcome, Pardner. But sittin here in the back has been mighty nice. I think I’ll stay! You don’t mind, do ya? It’s awfully fun to have you as company!”

Lila’s eye twitched, but she was aware that most of the class was watching them. “Yeah. That’d be...great.”

“Darn tootin’! Well, you look like you’re in a rush, don’t want to hold you up!”

“See you tomorrow!” She chirped, before hurrying from the room. As she passed Marinette, a dark look came over her face. The look of someone seething with rage and hatred, but trying to hide it.

Marinette would have been scared, if Lila hadn’t been dealing with Plagg instead.

Marinette went home, Tikki and Adrien talking to her from her collar.

“I don’t know. Plagg was successful with the first two tasks, but I don’t know how he’s going to turn Lila over to the good side.” Marinette mused.

“I don’t know if he has to. The condition is to just get her to leave me alone. He said he was doing some Pavlovian Jedi mind trick on her.”

“Well, I sure hope it works. Speaking of, where is Plagg?”

Adrien’s ears flicked. “He left pretty suddenly after class. I didn’t see him go. Hopefully, he went back to the mansion.”

“Do you want me to call him?”

“No, I trust him. He’s got things under control.”

“Glad to hear it! Ready for snack time?”

“Oh heck yes!”

—

Lila had to actively stop herself from stomping all the way home. Frustration rolled off of her in waves, and she mildly wondered why she hadn’t been akumatized yet.

Adrien Agreste was the most annoying person she had ever met. And oblivious too! He never picked up on any of her subtle hints to get him to shut up! She really didn’t want to be rude, because his friendship looked great on her, but wow. No wonder he didn’t have any friends. No wonder Gabriel was so protective of him. If he wasn’t cute...his personality was like a wet sock.

And he was weird. Weird mannerisms, weird speech pattern, just weird. Hopefully she could either get used to it, or Adrien would get a clue to stop being so obnoxious.

Finally, she reached her apartment.

“Home mom!” She called.

There was laughter in the kitchen. Her mother had a guest. While not uncommon, there was just a hint of dread that hung in the air.

Lila walked to the kitchen, only to see Adrien sitting at the table, talking to her mother! How?! How did he beat her here?! How did he know where she lived?! What the hell was he doing?!

“Adrien?” Lila gawked.

He rubbed his head awkwardly. “Sorry for popping in uninvited. I just...I was worried about you! You’ve been akumatized twice, and I didn’t want it to happen again since you were fired.”

Lila’s face paled as her mother gave her a stern look.

“I think you’ve got some explaining to do, Missy. I didn’t know you were modeling. And you never told me about being akumatized!”

Adrien gasped. “Oh no! She didn’t tell you? I’m so sorry! I didn’t know that was a secret! I won’t say anymore!”

“Any more?” Mrs. Rossi asked. “There’s more?”

“Adrien.” Lila bit, in warning.

“Well...I mean, you knew she was meeting with my father right? Something about being his muse?”

Mrs. Rossi looked horrified. “What! You were talking to a grown adult man?! Were these visits supervised?!”

Lila opened her mouth to answer, but Plagg beat her to it. “I don’t think so. Father is a very private person.”

“Lila Giselle Rossi! You are sooo grounded! No offense to your father, Adrien, but meeting up with an adult man, unsupervised? And to what, be his muse? What does that even mean? It sounds gross!”

“I swear nothing happened! He just wanted my opinion-”

“On what? What reason would he have to ask a 14 year old’s opinion?”

Plagg winced and looked at Lila. “I’m so sorry, Lila. I came here to help, but...”

Lila shook with rage. Her mother was a complete pushover and believed everything she said. Now Adrien had sewn the seeds of distrust in her and she wouldn’t get away with any white lies ever again.

“You’re dead,” She mouthed at Plagg.

“Adrien, thank you for coming here and telling me all of this. I’m very grateful. But I think it’s best if you head home now. Lila has some chores to do.”

“I understand, Madam Rossi. Again, I’m really sorry...I just wanted to help.”

“Oh don’t worry, you did. This is for Lila’s own good.”

He sheepishly looked to her. “See you tomorrow?”

Her eye twitched. “Yeah.”

And Plagg swiftly walked from the apartment, concealing his evil laughter until he got to the door.

—

The next day at school, Marinette, along with Tikki and Adrien in her bag, arrived at school just a few minutes before the bell rang.

Plagg was sitting at the front of the room, wearing a Pikachu onesie, and looking absolutely devastated. Nino sat next to him and had a hand over his face, doing his best to conceal whatever emotion he had.

Everyone else in the room was avoiding them like they had the plague.

Alya spotted her and came quickly, looping an arm through hers and escorting them out into the hall. “Girl, big news. I know you love Adrien, so this is going to be a blow. But here’s the thing...Lila told us this morning that Adrien came to her house yesterday and told her mom about her modeling job. Apparently, her mom didn’t want her working, and got upset that Lila lied. Adrien’s been insisting that it wasn’t on purpose, but everyone is kind of pissed at him anyway.”

Marinette said nothing, but bit her lip. She knew that this absolutely was on purpose.

“I’ll leave your actions up to you, but people are pretty mad at Adrien. Just letting you know.”

“Who’s side are you taking?”

Alya scoffed. “None. I’m staying out of this. Both people are in the right. Obviously Sunshine just wanted to prevent her from being akumatized. He was with her all day yesterday. It’s admirable, really.”

“It is.” Marinette said with a smile. Though she was smiling for a completely different reason. There were no akumatizations anymore. Everyone was safe now.

“We better get back in there, class will start soon.”

So they returned. Miss Bustier was in, and ready to begin the lesson.

Then Plagg raised his hand.

“Yes Adrien?”

“Before we start class, I want to say something.”

“Go ahead, Adrien. The floor is yours.”

He stood, and looked to Lila in the back of the room. “Lila, I know I apologized yesterday, but I’m really really sorry about outing you to your mom. I had no idea she didn’t know about your rendezvous with my father. I was just really scared that you were going to become akumatized, and I didn’t want that to happen. My friends are all important to me, and losing you would be like ripping out a piece of my heart. Could you ever forgive me?”

Marinette glanced Nino’s face, which twitched to hide a smile. Then she looked at Lila, who looked calm, but her hands were balled into fists.

After many breathless minutes, Lila smiled slightly. “I understand, Adrien. Of course you’re still my friend. I treasure you too! I’m sorry I got so mad.”

“Hugs?” Plagg raised his arms.

Lila could pretend to be happy and calm, but the paling of her skin could not be hidden. “Hugs!”

Plagg brought her in for a squeeze, and the class ‘aww’ed at their make up.

Except Nino, who let out the tiniest snort.

Marinette flicked open her purse to look at Adrien. He mimed a gagging gesture back.

And then Plagg took those last couple steps and joined Lila on her bench. No one tried to stop him. No one spoke up and said, “hey, maybe you should give her some space anyway.”

They just all let poor, socially awkward Adrien push boundaries and take his seat. Because he had apologized so earnestly for trying to help. And she had forgiven him. So everything was fine now.

Right?

As the lesson started, Marinette paid attention to the teacher. But occasionally, she’d hear the faintest whispers of Adrien’s voice (Plagg’s voice now).

“...so it’s commonly believed that the Nord’s came from Atmora with Ysgramor, but they believe that they settled Skyrim, so they’re kind of racist to everyone else. But also, the Empire came in out of nowhere and tried to upheave their way of life, and even told them which Gods they were allowed to worship. High King Torygg was playing cordial with the Aldmeri Dominion, and some of the other Jarl’s didn’t like that. So Ulfric Stormcloak, the Jarl of Whiterun shouted him to death. Just like the Dragonborn can. Though it’s never explained why he knows how to do this. So this started a whole civil war…”

Marinette chanced a glance behind her, and noticed that Lila had her head in her hands, and she looked absolutely miserable.

#ml #miraculous ladybug #adrienette #adrien and plagg #adrien agreste #marinette dupain cheng #identity reveal #chat noir #ladybug #fanfiction #I'll Handle This

44 notes · View notes

multibug · 4 years

Text

Passion Fruit Lip Gloss

AO3

HAPPY (late) BIRTHDAY MY LOVE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I LOVE U SO MUCH @emsylcatac

tags: identity reveal, fluff, kissing, aged-up characters, slight crack

Marinette adjusts the bedazzled party hat atop her head, the bright gold a stark contrast to her jet black hair. It doesn’t exactly go with her outfit of choice, though she’s not necessarily angry at it.

It was either that or the bedazzled green tiny cowboy hat.-

(“Green?!” she had asked Alya, when she was showing Marinette ideas about what to do for the hats.

“For our school colors, silly. We probably won’t use them anyway.”

Alya did end up using them in the end.)

Marinette’s wearing a peach-colored long-sleeve silk button up with thin red and white stripes vertically lining it. It’s tucked into a pair of black shorts with a leather belt.

In a moment of pure hastiness, she had chosen her tallest thigh high black heels, with a heel that raised her three full inches over her normal height.

A small beret keeps one side of her hair pinned back so her ear is exposed. She tied a thin choker around her neck to complete the look and a small touch of makeup with glossy lips.

It’s passion fruit flavor.

The clock hanging on the wall reads 23h00, giving Marinette a good hour and a half before she can beg off feigning tiredness as her excuse so Alya doesn’t call her a party pooper. It’s not that Marinette doesn’t like to party per say, it’s that she’s not exactly the third wheel type.

She’s had more than enough of it the last few days, thank you very much.

All of their friends are paired up with someone, whether it’s platonic or not. Alya and Nino, Kim and Ondine, Luka and XY—a big shocker to all of their friends with how much Luka despised him back in the day. There’s the obvious Juleka and Rose still holding strong, Kagami and Chloé, another eye-opener when they revealed it to their friends earlier last month.

Ivan and Mylène, who endured a long-distance relationship for a while before Ivan and his family moved back to Paris in August. Nathaniel and Marc, who sadly weren’t around a lot to cause Marinette much of a heartache, but enough nonetheless.

Even Alix and Max, two entirely platonic friends, were enough to make Marinette feel like she was third wheeling.

They aren’t doing it on purpose, at least Marinette thinks they aren’t, yet the longing to have someone on this chilly New Years Eve is almost unbearable. Almost.

A mix of something fruity and strong loiters in her hand long enough to help kick the feeling.

“Girl, what are you doing all the way over here by yourself?” Alya gently bumps her hip into Marinette’s, eyeing her over the top of her straw as she takes a sip of her drink. “You’ve been off all night!”

Alya’s cowboy hat is nearly slipping off her head at this point, though it looks as though the redhead hasn’t noticed.

Marinette stifles a giggle, shoving her half-filled drink into Alya’s free hand. She watches in bemusement as part of the drink sloshes to the floor and goes about fixing the small hat on top of Alya’s head. “There! All fixed.”

“Don’t think I didn’t notice you trying to avoid my question,” Alya remarks with a sharply raised eyebrow.

“Me? Trying to avoid your question? Alya, you must be drunker than you think!” Marinette quickly takes the drink back from Alya’s hand and downs the rest of it, throwing an overly enthusiastic thumbs up in its wake.

“I’m on my first drink, M,” Alya deadpans.

Pursing her lips together, Marinette shrugs her shoulder sheepishly. “Sorry?”

The song changes from a slower song to a more upbeat one, the accompanying lights Nino installed in his and Alya’s apartment changing to the tune of it.

Alya knocks back the rest of her drink and slams the cup onto a nearby counter, a devious glint in her eyes.

Oh no.

“Come dance with me, M!” Her hand encircles Marinette’s wrist, tugging her onto the makeshift dance floor whether Marinette wants to or not.

Marinette nearly trips over her heels in an attempt to keep up with Alya’s longer legs, knowing it's fruitless to argue with Alya when she has her mind set to something.

Out of the corner of her eye, a familiar tall blond squeezes past them with relative ease, Marinette briefly making eye contact with them. Time feels as though it slows down, Marinette’s lips parting slightly as she peers into the bright eyes of Adrien, who she hasn’t seen since Nino threw him a spectacular 19th birthday party in September.

A birthday party that Marinette still can’t remember to this day.

All she recalls is getting extremely plastered after seeing Adrien pictured with a girl in his newest edition of Vogue Paris. He hadn’t spoken about whether the girl was his girlfriend at the time, yet seeing them together had her feeling as though she was on fire.

Months of Marinette working towards getting over him just for her to realize it’s seemingly useless.

He’s always going to have a special place in her heart, she suspects.

His eyes soften as soon as he realizes it's her, his lips curving into a beautiful smile that outperforms all of his photoshoot pictures by a landslide. His hair’s grown slightly longer since she’s last seen him, curling around the back of his ear—a bit reminiscent of their collège days.

Adrien’s still just as gorgeous as she remembers.

“You look good,” she squeaks out over the bass of the music, inwardly screaming at herself to shut up.

“Thank you—” he cuts himself off as Alya drags Marinette across the room, his hand outstretched in reaching towards her.

Gosh, how she yearns to see if it’s as soft as it looks, even in the dim multi-colored lighting.

“Honey, I think the liquor is getting to you,” Alya whisper-yells into her ear, a tiny smirk lingering on her face.

Marinette rolls her eyes and shakes her head, the party hat sliding with the movement. “No way, Al! I haven’t been drinking like that. Only enough for some liquid courage, you know?”

Just then, she trips over the heel of her boot and nearly forces them to the floor from using Alya as leverage. Thankfully, Alya was standing close enough to the wall to support them before that happened.

“Sure, babe. I’ll make sure either Nino or I take you home later.”

Sticking her tongue out at Alya, she sets her empty drink onto the nearest flat surface and throws her arms around Alya’s neck, losing herself to the beat of the music. Her hips move in time with the songs, some she faintly remembers, and others she’s never heard of.

Alya’s close enough to her that she begins to feel a bit sweaty as the songs pass.

At some point while Hot in Herre by Nelly is playing, Nino saddles up to them with drinks in his hands.

“Babe, I think she’s had enough,”Alya all but snaps.

Nino shoots her a look that says relax without actually saying it.

“Thanks, Nino! You’re a real pal.” Marinette loops her arm through his and leans her head against his bicep, taking a sip from the drink he gives her. “Yuck, water.”

“Yeah, you are a real pal,” Alya says with a fond grin, pressing a slightly sweaty kiss to his cheek. “Thanks, love.”

Marinette huffs. “I take it back. You’re not my pal.” She ruins this statement by tightening her grip on his arm.

“Ooh, she’s clingy tonight. Are you drunk, Nette?”

“I’m not drunk. I’m just abnormally tipsy is all! I think it might just be hitting me now. Oh dear, maybe the water is a good idea.” Frowning, she sips at the water with her nose scrunched, a small pout forming on her face.

Raising her arm up to stare at the watch on her hand, she squints her eyes and is barely able to make out the time: 23h50.

Another New Years Eve, another kissless year.

“Hey guys! Kim is looking for you two. He said something about a major spill in the kitchen?”

It’s Adrien, dressed in a light blue—is that Givenchy?!—cotton button-up with yellow and green flowers scattered on it. The sleeves are rolled up to his elbows and the shirt itself is tucked into a pair of black skinny jeans and a pair of brown chelsea boots.

It suits him well, so much so that she clenches her jaw to stop it from dropping.

Snap out of it.

Marinette blinks owlishly at Adrien, the liquor causing her head to feel fuzzy.

“I don’t want to leave Nette alone—”

Adrien laughs softly, hands shoved into his pockets as he interrupts, “Nino, I can take care of Mar while you guys go help Kim, yeah?”

“I am not a child.” Marinette detaches herself from Nino and stands proudly, chin held high. “I can take care of myself!”

“I didn’t say you couldn’t,” Adrien replies gently, as to not spook her. “I’ll just be around to make sure you’re okay in the process, is that cool?”

He’s so nice. It warms her heart. “Yeah, sure.”

“Cool, let’s go.” He slings an arm over her shoulder languidly and smiles down at her.

Her heart races.

“Do you want to go onto the balcony to watch the fireworks? Nino and Alya said it’s off limits, but I’m sure they’ll make an exception for us, right guys?”

Alya winks over at Marinette as Adrien’s head turns away to glance at Nino, and she replies, “Yeah, go for it.”

A blush rises on her cheeks, heat stinging her face. She’s going to kill Alya.

“C’mon, Mar, we’re out this bitch.” Adrien steers them over to the balcony and easily has them through the sliding doors within seconds.

It drowns out the party lingering behind them.

Glancing down at her wrist, Marinette notes that her watch reads 23h55. Five minutes until midnight. Time feels as though it’s gone so fast yet so slow, strangely enough.

She shivers, though the sensation is mostly coming from her stockings as her shirt’s fairly thick. She’s surprised when she feels a weight on her shoulders.

Out of thin air, Adrien produces a heavy bomber jacket that warms her to the core immediately. Maybe he grabbed it on their way out without her realizing it? Whatever the case may be, she’s very grateful for the heat seeping into her body while they’re out in the frigid Parisian air.

“Thank you,” she murmurs in response, her arms crossing to grab either side of the jacket and hold it around her body.

“Of course,” he replies, shooting her the same smile from earlier.

It warms her more than the jacket does.

“You know,” he starts, hands twitching on the balcony railing, as he glances from the beautiful city view to her face. “I have so much to talk to you about. So much to say. Now isn’t the right time obviously, as you’ve been drinking—”

Her eyebrows furrow together. “I’m perfectly coherent, Adrien.”

“I didn’t say you weren’t,” he defends easily, his arm groping her elbow to ground her. “I’m just saying that I think this is a conversation where both of us should be completely sober and open to hearing the topic at hand.”

What does he mean by that? She’s not sure where she should be confused and worried or elated that he wants to talk to her about something serious. Either way, it’s puzzling her already fuzzy brain to the point where she bites down on her lower lip and lets out a huff unknowingly.

“Is it bad?” she finally asks, eyes flickering to her watch.

23h58.

“No, no! It’s not bad at all.” He squeezes her elbow reassuringly and smiles warmly at her, eyes glittering even in the dim light that shines above them. “I’m hoping it’ll be a good conversation, though I want you to remember it. That’s why I’m waiting.”

Waiting. Good. it’s good. For a good conversation. Ugh. Her brain hurts.

“Okay,” Marinette murmurs, blinking up at him slightly confused. She returns the smile once she notices his, it being too contagious for her not to. “Okay, I believe you.”

He hasn’t removed his hand from her elbow. She hasn’t shaken him off either.

Beyond them, miles and miles away, in the sea of twinkling lights and crowds of people, fireworks explode into the night sky as bright sensations. They light up the dark with their vibrant colors and intoxicating patterns, making it irresistibly hard to look away.

The second she does, her eyes are drawn to another light, this one alive.

Adrien, who is watching the fireworks with an expression of wonder. A tilt to his eyebrows and a small drop of his jaw, cheekbones dipping high with the shadow of the night.

“It’s beautiful, isn’t it?” she asks, rather than wishing him a Happy New Years. Rather than stare at the beautiful swirls and patterns happening adjacent to her. She’s too focused on the beautiful boy in front of her, whether he knows she’s talking about him or not.

It has to be said.

He lets out a small chuckle and nods his head, free hand rubbing at the back of his head as he whispers, “Yeah, it sure is.”

“Bonne Année, Adrien, “ she whispers, so gently that she’s unsure as to if he’s heard it.

Wonder-filled eyes flickering over to her helps in answering her question.. He grins impossibly wide, all of his teeth showing so it’s nearly comical, yet it’s so unabashedly Adrien that she can’t help but return it for a second time tonight.

Adrien leans in, and for a second, Marinette truly thinks he’s going to kiss her. Her heart starts stuttering and the color the cold had ripped from her returns to her body so fast it feels like whiplash.

He doesn’t kiss her.

And yet, that isn’t the exact truth either, is it?

Lips brush against the apple of her cheek, so light that the touch feels both hot and cold simultaneously. It sends shivers throughout her body and the spot on her skin that his lips linger on burns hotter than the temperature of the sun.

She can’t think. Her brain is complete mush.

The tip of his cold nose nudges against her cheek afterwards briefly as he leans in to whisper into her ear, “Bonne Année to you as well, Marinette.”

Her heart continues to flutter until she falls asleep minutes later, curled up in his jacket all while leaning on him.

---

Daylight shines in through the slits of her blinds faster than Marinette would’ve liked, considering the horrible ache in her head. Except, she can’t exactly remember how she made it back to her apartment, which is a weird feat for her.

She rarely drinks enough to where she doesn’t remember what’s happening—Adrien’s birthday party being an anomaly.

How did she make it home yesterday?

Hm, maybe it was Alya or Nino? They aren’t the type to abandon one another in their times of need. even in times of absolute peril. There’s no way they didn’t have some part in getting her home, even if it meant physically seeing that she made it into her apartment building before leaving.

The thought makes her feel all fuzzy inside.

It could’ve been any of their friends at the party, if she’s honest. She doesn’t remember anything after Hot in Herre played on the dancefloor; hopefully bits and pieces come back as time goes on.

Oh well, it mustn’t be that important.

Peeling open an eye has her glancing over at her nightstand, a bottle of paracetamol and a glass of water sitting neatly on her otherwise messy cupboard. She makes a move to grab the bottle and water when movement near her balcony door has her freezing in place.

Chat Noir is standing there, back turned to her—she can even recognize him in horribly-taken photographs—as though he’s trying to sneak out. He turns to glance back at her and she soundly slips her eyes shut, feigning sleep.

As her balcony door creaks, her eyes open and she watches Chat shut the door and bounce off the balcony with his staff.

“Tikki?”

Her small, red friend flies out from her little nest. “Yes, Marinette?”

“Was Chat Noir just in my room?” Her voice is thick with sleep and slightly hoarse.

Tikki’s eyes widen and she glances around the room nervously. “No? Were you dreaming? Chat Noir was most definitely not in here!”

Marinette’s eyes squint up at her. “Don’t lie to me. I just saw him!”

“Well, then why did you ask me?” Tikki whines, deflating a bit as she floats closer to Marinette. “Yes, Chat Noir was here. If you want to know more, I’ll tell you as you are the Guardian and it’s your decision, but if you don’t, I won’t utter a word.”

“Will it jeopardize me knowing his identity? I wouldn’t want to do that to him,” Marinette worries, using her thumb and forefinger to toy with her lower lip.

Stroking her chin thoughtfully, Tikki shrugs. “It may. I can’t say yes or no for sure. It would have to be a risk you’re willing to take.”

“Ugh, no. I’m not going to do that to him. It wouldn’t be fair.” Marinette sighs, finally opening the bottle of paracetamol and downing two with large gulps of water. “Though I am curious.”

“As they say, curiosity killed the cat!” Tikki replies with a giggle.

Face-palming, Marinette groans aloud. “Oh no. He’s rubbing off on you too!”

---

“Girl, I’m surprised you haven’t called me,” Alya tells her, a few days later, when the New Years resolution goals have already lost their momentum. “I figured I’d get a phone call as soon as you got home.”

“What are you talking about, Als? Sorry, hold on.” Marinette pauses, readjusting the phone between her ear and shoulder. Her classes haven’t let back in for the semester, yet she’s trying to get a headstart on pinning a new design she’s working on so she doesn’t fall behind. “Okay, go on. I have my brain screwed in now.”

Things aren’t going according to plan, obviously.

Alya snorts. “With you and Adrien, duh! Do you seriously not remember it? I thought you weren’t plastered.”

“I wasn’t plastered! I guess I was just more tipsy than I thought I was.”

“So, you were drunk?”

“Shut up.”

Letting out another round of laughter, Alya says, “Well, I can fill you in if you’d like. It’s pretty juicy.”

“I don’t know if I want to know,” Marinette groans, rubbing an exasperated hand over her face.

“Oh come on! It’s not even bad! You did pretty well considering the circumstances!”

A pin falls to the floor at Alya’s word, forcing Marinette to tell her friend to hold on again. Three minutes later, she successfully finds the pin that somehow hid under the mannequin stand where she couldn’t see it.

Lucky? Pft. Not Marinette.

“You were saying?” Marinette asks.

Alya fills her in on all of the details rather quickly, from Adrien whisking her away while still being a gentleman about it to them having alone time on the balcony. The story lasts all of a minute, even with Alya’s expertise in story-telling, and it has Marinette’s heart fluttering.

The puzzle pieces start to connect.

“Als, I just remembered what happened on the balcony,” Marinette says, eyes slightly wide.

“Bitch, you better tell me right the fuck now or I’m going to come over to your apartment and sit on you.”

“You say that as if it’s a threat.”

“Marinette!”

Marinette lets out a snort and slaps her knee. She sets the last pin before rolling the mannequin back into its temporary home for the night. “I’m kidding, I’m kidding. I’m just playing around, Als!”

“I love you, babe, but you’re killing me here.”

“Sorry,” she replies, though she’s really not.

“.....Marinette?”

“Oh! Right!” Marinette can hear Alya face-palming over the phone. “Well, all I remember is us talking and him telling me that he has to talk to me about something important. I don’t really remember much else but he kissed me on the cheek, Alya.”

Alya squeals—a sound Marinette’s never heard come from her mouth—and a jostling noise comes from her end. “Holy fuck, M! That’s amazing!”

“Right? At first I thought he was going to kiss me, but a cheek kiss is just as good nonetheless!”

“Babe, you were drunk. It’s a good thing he didn’t kiss you. That means he respects you, regardless of whether there’s any feelings or not there.”

Marinette lets out a small laugh, her heart swelling at Alya’s words. “You always know how to make situations better, don’t you?”

“It’s kind of my job,” Alya replies.

“And I love you for it.”

Alya blows a smooch over the phone. “Mwah! Right back at you.” She pauses, then quickly continues, “Oh! Did he say anything when he left your apartment after he dropped you off?”

Wait, what?

Marinette has no recollection of this happening whatsoever. She faintly remembers falling asleep against him—he was just so warm, okay?—but him taking her home? Alya has to be mistaken.

“He took me home? Are you sure? I don’t remember that.”

“Yeah, he specifically told Nino and I that he’d take you home and then sent us a picture of you tucked in bed that night to ease my worrying. You know how much of a motherly hen I can be sometimes.”

None of it makes sense. Even if he did take her home that night, why was Chat Noir in her room early in the morning?

Unless…

No. There’s no way. Absolutely no way that she’s been this blind. No way that Marinette’s this lucky.

She’d know if her two favorite people in the world—excluding Alya and Nino—were the same person, right? There’s no way that the miraculous could’ve hidden it that well from her that she wouldn’t have noticed.

Except maybe... It had?

It comes together like whiplash. All of their mannerisms. From the way both Chat and Adrien rub their necks when they’re nervous, or when they make jokes but immediately retract them so as to not hurt the person’s feelings. Both of them having a rough home life and awful dads.

Piercing green eyes that remind Marinete of a home away from home.

It reminds her of those times in collège and lycée when Adrien would disappear and reappear whenever she would. She had attributed it to him being afraid of the akumas and finding somewhere safe to hide that entire time. It’s not like it was her place to judge anyone’s ways to cope with what was happening!

The quirks that the both of them share. Two halves of a whole. They merge together beautifully in her mind, filling a void she hadn’t known existed until now.

Her heart is so, so full.

“Als. I think I just had the world’s biggest revelation,” she breathes out, sounding absolutely lovesick.

“What is it?” Nino’s yelling about something incoherent in the background, and Marinette can just faintly hear Adrien’s voice.

“I think I’m in love with Adrien.” Her stomach flutters at her words.

Alya splutters out a hearty laugh. “Oh, M. We’ve been knew.”

---

Three days. Marinette’s lived with her secret for three whole days and she’s losing it.

She begged off spending time with Alya, Nino, and Adrien to try and gather her thoughts. Adrien being Chat is the best possible outcome for a partner she could’ve ever dreamed of, but she wants to tell him how much he means to her without fumbling over her words too much.

It’ll probably still happen. He is Adrien, for crying out loud.

Earlier, Marinette transformed so she could write some notes down in her compact in case she gets too flustered. Adrien’s nice enough that he won’t judge her for it, so she’s not too worried.

After a quick application of her favorite passion fruit flavor lip gloss, she sets off for their patrol meetup point.

“Tikki, I’m so nervous,” she says.

No response. Yes,. Marinette’s aware that her kwami can’t hear her or speak to her while she’s suited up, yet the hope still lingers for some absurd reason.

Marinette wholeheartedly blames the nerves.

Spotting Chat—Adrien is difficult. He blends into the shadows so easily that Marinette nearly falls off the building when he blinks his eyes open. She’s lucky that he has fast reflexes to catch her by the waist, because with how out of it she’s been today, she might’ve forgotten to use her yo-yo.

“Bug! It’s so nice of you to drop in.”

Oh no. His jokes just make him more attractive. She’s fucked.

Marinette’s hands fall to his biceps, and she’s unsure as to if she wants to tug him closer or push him away at that awful joke that has her heart racing. A look of surprise crosses his face and she squeaks, ducking out of his grip.

“Thanks,” she replies quietly.

“You didn’t make fun of my joke. Are you okay?” Concern etches its way onto his face. Out of the corner of her eye, Marinette sees his fingers twitch in her direction. He stops himself as soon as he notices, choosing instead to idly twist the ring on his finger.

Taking a deep breath, she places her hand over his restless one. “Relax, kitty. I’m okay. Just nervous, because I have to talk to you about something.”

His eyes widen at her words, lips parting as he exhales a breath. She faintly feels it on her face as he says, “I have something to tell you too. It’s kind of urgent.”

“You can go first, okay? I can wait a little while longer.”

Adrien nods, tilting his head to the side with a cute smile on his face. “How much do you trust me?”

“With my life,” Marinette responds instantly.

It isn’t a lie, either. She genuinely trusts him with her life. Transformed, detransformed, heck, she trusts him blindfolded at this point.

He nods his head at her words and starts towards her, arms outstretched. Even as he scoops her up into his arms, her trust in him is unabated. “Hold onto me tight and don’t open your eyes until I tell you to, alright?”

“Alright,” she echoes.

Then, Adrien’s off, running over rooftops at speeds that seem unimaginable when it isn't of her own doing. Her ponytail whips about in the frigid air, Marinette using his neck as a shield from the harsh wind.

She’s thrown back to Glaciator, where she and Adrien spoke about misfortunes and missed opportunities. He ended up showing her a beautiful scene atop a nearby rooftop, as both Ladybug and Marinette. Thinking back, her racing heart should’ve been a sign that her feelings for Chat weren’t platonic, yet it took years of walking on eggshells for one of them to finally crack.

“We’re almost there. You good down there?”

“I’m fine,” she says, laughing into his suit. “This isn’t where I find out you’re going to drop me off a building as a prank, is it?”

He scoffs, softly landing on what she assumes to be another rooftop. “Hardy har har, Bugaboo.”

The sound of a door opening and closing lets her know they’ve arrived—apparently it wasn’t a rooftop—and the temptation to look around is higher than she expected. She waits for his approval, wanting him to trust her as much as she trusts him.

“I’m going to set you down now, okay?”

Marinette nods into his neck, extending her legs so she can place them on the floor as he lowers her. Her arms stay wrapped around his neck, while her eyes continue to stay closed.

“I’m going to step back and then you can look.” Adrien lingers for a brief moment, breath fanning over Marinette’s face.

As he shifts away from her, her arms drop to her sides. Her eyes blink open seconds later and she peers around the bright room a little dazedly.

They’re in her shared apartment with Alya—in her room.

Younger Marinette would be freaking out about having Adrien Agreste in her room.

(Older Marinette isn’t faring much better.)

For some strange reason, Adrien knowing her identity never popped into her head when he said he had to talk to her. She had no clue as to what it could’ve been—especially not that.

“Oh,” Marinette breathes.

“Please don’t be mad,” he rushes out, hands shaking about in front of him in a nervous manner. “I couldn’t figure out how to tell you that I know. And I didn’t mean to find out! I swear! It kind of just happened? I can’t even tell you how I found out unless you’re willing to know my identity too—gosh, I’m going to stop talking now.”

Seeing him so jittery helps to calm the rattling of her heart.

Marinette wordlessly grabs his hand and brings him over to the fluffy rug in the center of her room. She flops on top of it and criss-crosses her legs so he has enough room to do the same opposite her.

He follows, albeit a confused expression lingers on his face.

Their hands stay joined together, a nice weight resting on her knee. The tip of his claw is rubbing small circles into her palm, whether he notices it or not.

“I’m not mad,” she says, the softest of smiles spreading onto her cheeks. “I could never be mad at you, kitty.”

Adrien lets out a sigh of relief and squeezes her hand, her heart flipping at the fond look he gives her. “Good, good.”

They stare at one another for a moment too long, before Marinette murmurs fuck it under her breath and detarnsforms.

His suit is oddly cool against her bare knee, his eyes flickering to their hands then back up to her face. He licks at his lips and breathes out, “Oh.”

“Hi,” she greets, with a small wave of her free hand.

“You’re so beautiful,” he blurts out.

Marinette lets out a surprised laugh, red peeking out under the dip of his mask. Her voice is teasing as she says,“Thank you, I can’t tell if you’re trying to make me blush or not.”

“Marinette, please.”

Hearing him say her name has her heart fluttering, and she detangles their hands to push up onto her knees, crawling towards him. She nudges his legs apart so she can fit between them, arms wrapping around his neck. Her cheek presses against his, the cool material of his suit helping to soothe her burning cheeks.

Even with the suit protecting him, she can feel the thumping of his heart against her chest.

“You wanna know my secret?” she asks faintly, as his hands move to settle on her back.

“Yes, tell me.” His claws rest lightly against the fabric of her shirt.

Her nose brushes against the tip of his ear and she feels him shudder. “I think you’re really, really cute, Adrien.”

“Plagg, claws off.” The transformation light has her eyes slipping shut briefly. When she reopens them, Adrien’s sat in front of her with a blinding smile on his face. “Hi.”

For some reason, she’s brought to tears by the situation. She holds them back the best she can. “Hey.”

She’s just so happy.

“I’m so glad it’s you, by the way,” Adrien professes, blinking back his own set of tears. “Like I know I’ve known for a while and all, but this still feels like finding out for the first time.”

“Are you trying to make me cry? You asshole,” she whines, tears sliding down her face.

Before she can reach up and wipe them away on her own, Adrien’s hand is there to do it for her. His touch is so gentle, and instead of returning to its previous position on her back, he tucks her hair behind her ear.

“I’m so glad it’s you, Adrien. You mean so much to me. And to know that two of my favorite people are the same person? How could I be so lucky?”

“Two of your favorite people?” His head tilts to the side cutely, his hand idly stroking her jaw.

A blush returns to her face as she replies, “Yeah, I’m shocked you didn’t know, if I’m honest. I was so obvious about it! I’ve liked you as Adrien for so long, and then as soon as I realized that you’re Chat, all of my feelings for Chat were brought to light.”

“That’s the cutest thing I’ve ever heard,” he murmurs, licking at his lips.

“Oh, shut up. Don’t tease me!”

“I’m not teasing you, Mar! You’re just really cute!”

Oh god. Her face hides in his shoulder as she emits a small groan, gripping the fabric of his sweatshirt. “I’m going to pass out if you keep talking about me like this.”

Adrien lets out a laugh that vibrates against her chest. “Well, I don’t want you to pass out, but I need you to know how much I like you.”

“Adrien,” Marinette squeaks, face digging into his shoulder.

“Marinette,” Adrien echoes.

Slowly, she raises her head to shoot a pouty look in his direction. “You’re mean.”

“You don’t think I’m mean,” he starts, a devious glint in his eyes. Uh oh. “You like me.”

Marinette’s heart flips as his words, her lip only jutting out further. She tries to maneuver out of his arms, yet he doesn’t budge, his hand rubbing soothing circles against her back. “I take it back.”

“No, you’re not allowed to do that. I will cry again!” He widens his slightly bloodshot eyes to prove his point.

“How did you even find out?” she asks, smoothly changing the subject.

“You told me. At my birthday party. You were drunk, so I sat with you for a while and you started rambling about things that didn’t really make sense—”

“Oh no.”

He sends her a small smile, then says, “Yeah, I hadn’t really believed that you were Ladybug at that point because you were really drunk, yet you mentioned our patrol meeting spot for the week and called ‘Chat’ your annoyingly hot partner that has a nice ass and it clicked.”

“That’s it. I’m leaving and never coming back. Why am I so embarrassing? Annoyingly hot partner that has a nice ass? I could’ve lived without knowing I said that to you!” Her forehead drops to lean against his cheek.

“It was cute! You’re cute and I like you so much, yeah?” His head turns so he can make eye contact with her, their noises brushing with how close they are to one another.

Marinette really wants to kiss him.

“Can I kiss you?” she asks, chewing on the inside of her cheek as she awaits his response.

“Of course. You really didn’t have to ask, because I’d let you kiss me any day of the week, but I think it’s really nice that you did ask—”

She cuts off his nervous rambling by kissing him, her hand sliding up into his hair at the base of his neck. Her heart feels like it’s about to burst out of her chest.

He tastes like flavored lip balm, hand moving from the dip of her back to her hip to hold her steady.

He tastes familiar.

It’s weird to think of. She kissed him when Kim became akumatized. According to the picture Alya showed her after hers and Nino’s joint akumatization, they had kissed for whatever reason.

Their almost kisses come to mind and she feels a different type of heat rise on her cheeks.

Marinette pulls back with a groan, nearly squeaking as Adrien follows her blindly to press a chaste kiss to her mouth. He lets her slip out of his arms and shove her face into the carpet, a hand trailing gently over her back.

“Was it that bad?” he jokes, sifting his other hand through her hair.

“No, oh my gosh. It was everything I’ve ever dreamed of! Your lips are really soft! I just thought of how I tried to kiss you when you faked being a statue all those years ago and now I’m embarrassed!”

“You’re the cutest ever,” he says, flopping onto his side to lay next to her. He brushes his lips over the shell of her ear and nudges at her cheek with his nose. “Don’t be embarrassed! I’ve said and done so many things in front of you that could be considered embarrassing, but because it’s you, I don’t care.”

She turns her head and shoots him a look. “You never tried kissing a statue version of me!”

“And I like you even more for that! Look at us, Mar! We’re 18 and 19 respectively, and we’re laying on your fluffy rug around midnight! Everything about this could be considered embarrassing, except it’s not! Because it’s us.”

Adrien’s words only make Marinette more attracted to him at this point.

“We’re allowed to be embarrassing, but only when it’s us?” she asks.

He nods, lips quirking into a big smile. “Yes, exactly. I won’t be embarrassing with anyone else but you. You’re my embarrassing person, Marinette.”

“My heart shouldn’t be fluttering at you calling us embarrassing,” she whines, laying her hand on his chest.

“Embarrassingly in love idiots?” he whispers, finding her hand to tangle their fingers together so he can bring them up to his lips and brush his mouth over the back of her hand.

Marinette exhales a quiet laugh and says, “Very embarrassingly in love.”

They fall asleep like that, his arm wrapped around her waist while she lays her head on his chest, breaths mingling together.

It’s the best sleep she’s had in ages.

---

Marinette’s phone buzzing wakes her up the next morning.

She fumbles around for the device, letting out a small aha as her fingers grip the electronic. It’s hard for her to open her and stare at the small screen, yet when she notices it’s a message from Adrien, her eyes snap open.

Wait, when did she get in her own bed?

Quickly opening the message, she reads it with increasing vigor as the message goes on.

Adrien: Hey, Mar. I couldn’t stay long after you fell asleep because I had a photoshoot this morning and you looked so cute that I didn’t want to wake you. I feel like I did a poor job at letting you know how I felt yesterday, so I’m going to say it here so it’s clear and you know, okay? (Don’t judge me!!!)

I like you, Marinette Dupain-Cheng. You have such amazing qualities that I admire and adore. You’re a leader who isn’t afraid to stick up for what she believes in, whether you’re in the suit or out of it! You make the world a better place just by being you. I couldn’t think of a better person being Ladybug, and it makes me so happy that it’s you.

I’d love to get to know you more. I think we both know that we click really well at this point, but I want to do this right with you. We’re a team, Bug. You and me. So, what do you say?

Her hand groggily slaps the call button, wiping back a few tears that slide down her cheeks from his works.

The phone rings three times before he picks up.

“Hey, Mar. Did you get my message—”

“You stupid cat! I’m sitting here at eight in the morning crying because of you! I loved every second of it.”

He lets out a soft chuckle, and she can hear the smile in his voice as he asks, “So does that mean it’s a yes?”

“We should go to the museum and reenact our statue scene as our date,” Marinette suggests, a large grin making its way onto her face.

Adrien nearly chokes. “Of course. I wouldn’t want it any other way, little bug.”

#miraculous ladybug #adrien agreste #Marinette Dupain-Cheng #miraculous ladybug fic #chat noir #ladybug #adrienette #ladynoir #i don't know whether to tag theo thers so ill just kepe it at them OKKOHGDKAOYERAO #IHOPE U LIKE IT EMSY I LOVE U

447 notes · View notes

pr1ncemax · 4 years

Text

Hi I just woke up and no I’m not over this

Asstruc really thinks he was being like ,,, diverse and accurate and a good writer

While white washing the black girl, also making her literally not human, and giving her the only sole purpose of “I help other people”, and naming her uncanny valley

Giving the Native American girl the eagle miraculous, designing her in such a way that she looks almost like a cowboy, and making her fit the stereotype of “Indian who doesn’t care about others” & the “magical indian” stereotype to boot

Also implying that there are so many more adult super heroes out there just leaving two teenagers on their own to fight a super bad guy

The implication that adrien would be okay cheating on kagami

The fact that the poc characters only purpose is to get adrien and marinette together

The fact that he doesn’t even fucking care that his audience is upset because once again we have absolutely no progress in anything and it doesn’t even matter

I’ll be honest I could go on with how much I hate him and things that are wrong with this special

Ps: Alya is a shitty friend, and nino is a shitty dude in this episode

#ml salt #why do I even watch this show anymore

138 notes · View notes

saltymiraculer · 4 years

Text

Dragon’s Wrath (pt. 4)

Previous // First // Next

The Occidere’s effects were, as of then, officially starting. The first ones were so brutal, so mean, that Marinette almost felt the teensiest bit sorry for her classmates–but she knew this was just the tip of the hypothetical iceberg.

Tikki had told her that it would start with public humiliation, then spread to their relationships, then slowly drive them so insane that they would resort to attempted suicide–but the Occidere prevented them from succeeding.

A little overkill, if you asked her.

But when a frazzled-looking Lila walked in dressed in a sparkly yellow dress, cowboy boots, and a fedora? She had to laugh. Alya had a strange expression on her face, wondering whether to sympathize with Lila or giggle.

Plagg peeked out of her bag ever so slightly, and immediately burst into raucous peals of laughter, only stopping when Marinette kicked the bag under her desk.

“Uh...girl...are you doing all right?“ Alya asked.

Lila shook her head slightly. “Oh. Not really.”

“Uh...what’s with the clothes? Is it the new trend somewhere?“

“Hm? Um, these were the only clothes in my closet–I mean–I couldn’t find anything else.“

“O-kay,“ Alya said suspiciously. “And what’s with the hat?“

Marinette vaguely wondered whether Lila was going to blame her for this. Lila’s eyes go wide and she shakes her head frantically, looking around, raising her hands in defense. Without waiting for an answer, Alya yanked the fedora off of Lila’s head to reveal a shiny bald spot on the top of her head.

Alya’s mouth drops open, as does everyone else’s. “Okay. Wow–uh...what happened?”

Lila looks like she might cry–her bottom lip is trembling and her eyes are glistening. “The truth is...” she starts. “It-it’s all Marinette’s fault–hnnggg!”

Just as Lila yells Marinette’s name, another chunk of hair falls out. Marinette snorts, unable to stop herself. Alya glares at her. “Girl, you need a major vibe check. What the hell is wrong with you, you monster? Look what you did to Lila! I’m surprised she hasn’t reported you yet–in fact, I’m gonna go do that now.” She turns her nose up and stomps out of the classroom.

Marinette suddenly finds herself under quite the spotlight until there is a piercing shriek from outside the classroom. She rushes out, only to find a very offended Alya and defiant Damocles.

“Suspended?“ she yells. “What for?“

“Online defamation of another student, Miss Cesairé!“ Damocles yells back, red-faced.

“What do you mean, you old coot?!“

“That’s it, Cesairé! You will be coming to my office.“

Alya stops, her mouth gaping open-and-shut like a fish. There are gasps from behind Marinette–she realizes the whole class had accumulated behind her. “You.“ Alix says hotly. “You probably made up some story to get Alya in trouble, didn’t you! And we thought you were her friend!“

“Monster!“

“I can’t believe you, Marinette!“

“The fuck is wrong with you?“

As soon as those three statements were uttered, all three of the offenders’ phones dinged simultaneously.

“Grounded? No, no, no, no, no, no!“

“No phone for a month? Why?!“

“My watch broke? H-how? When?“

Marinette was shocked. Just how much power did the Occidere have? the class looked unnerved. “Let’s go!” Lila’s voice rang shrilly, leading the class in a stampede back to Bustier’s room.

“Nice one, Plagg!“ Tikki said once the coast was clear.

“The electronic age is really growing on me, isn’t it?“ Plagg asked, obviously very pleased with himself. Tikki nodded sagely. “I have a prediction that cookies are nearby. Care to get some? It’s pretty obvious there won’t be any teaching today.“ Marinette smiled and started the walk back to her house.

As she was strolling casually, she looked t the left and immediately bumped into something. “Sorry!” she said, carefully stuffing Tikki and Plagg away.

“Oh, it’s all righ–Marinette?“

“Adrien?“ Marinette asked in disbelief. W-was that actually him?

@elmokingkong @smolplantmum @iggy-of-fans @enchanted-nerd @kuroko26 @dawnwave16 @chocolatecatstheron @throneoffirebreathingbitchqueen @more-or-less-human-i-guess

457 notes · View notes

vln-vibes · 4 years

Text

Unwanted, Unreliable, Unstoppable

Yeah so this thing is crazy long so I’m dividing it into three parts. Anyways this is very self indulgent but I hope you like the content.

Summary: They were tired, they were so so tired. This fight has been going on long enough, this war was getting harder and harder to fight as the years went on but no one ever helped; Not the citizens of Paris, not the French government and certainly not the Justice League. But what is they received help from a man that was practically a myth himself; the Batman. Is this exactly what the Miraculous Team needs or will this lead to their falling from grace?

🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫

“I’m so tired of this!” Ladybug scratched at her head feverishly. Currently she was standing at the second most top of the Eiffel Tower with her team: Chat Noir, Ryuuko and Viperion.

“I know m’lady” Chat sighed, letting his cheerful mask take a break as he stood next to her, leaning into the railings.

“Those— Those assholes that call themselves the Justice League just keep ignoring us; it's like they just don’t give a shit about us” Viperion rolled his eyes. They had tried, time and time again, to get help from older, more experienced heroes with their situation in Paris; they were fucking teenagers thrust into an adult’s war. One they didn’t even care for anymore.

“They don’t care for Paris… Why should we?” Ryuuko spoke up, cold fury clear in her eyes. “If they cannot find the need to handle the Paris situation themselves then why must we be the ones to? No one even appreciates out efforts, its like they just want us to have everything handled”

It was true.

At first the Parisians praised the Dynamic Duo, Ladybug and Chat Noir, for stepping up and saving the city from the terrifying Akumas they had no way of handling. They even got the heroes to help out with things not in their jurisdiction; suddenly any crime, as minor or major as it could get, required their attention, any fire could not be handled by the fire department alone, schools needed the heroes to make guest appearances, they were wanted in television interviews, everyone needed to know everything about them. It was fine, for a while, they didn’t mind helping out.

Then Heroes’ Day happened.

Suddenly they were pathetic.

If they were supposed to be so strong then how come other heroes had to come to help? It had never occurred to them that they were chosen by Ladybug and Chat Noir, all they knew was that the duo was not as strong as they once believed.

After all it was just one criminal,

How hard could it be?

Sometimes, Ladybug wishes, she had just let Alya keep the stupid earrings. She was sure the girl would have taken them immediately at the time but, given her brashness and temperamental nature, she would have already lost to Hawkmoth.

Plus she didn’t blame the small kwami or even Master Fu all that much: She resented the man but still respected him very much and knew he went through the same thing as she did at an even younger age with absolutely no way out. She was aware that if she truly wanted to all she could do was just give the earrings to someone else or even hand them over. But Ladybug was stubborn and the earrings were her’s now, just like the ring was Chat’s, the choker was Ryuuko’s and the bangle was Viperion’s.

That didn’t mean this battle was theirs to fight.

“... Why don’t we leave?” Viperion asked, disturbing their silence. The trio looked at him curiously, as though he broke an unspoken rule.

“Why would we?” Ladybug responded, knowing fully well that Viperion didn’t tend to speak up unless he was certain of his words.

“Because they’re running us dry, this city is killing us” Viperion raised his voice, aware that they could already, “Adrien and Kagami are living shitty home lives with abusive assholes that want to call themselves parents. Mari, you’re being burdened with too much responsibility by that bitch Bustier and that class full of sheep! I hate seeing you all kill yourselves for people that will never appreciate it because they think they’re above it!”

At the end of his rant Viperion’s eyes were nearly glowing, his breathing a bit more rough than normal, looking away from his teammates knowing he stepped too far. “Sorry, but I don’t want my friends to die on me when I can do something to stop it”

Ryuuko, Chat Noir and Ladybug understood where he was coming from but it was like a slap on the face, a reminder of what civilian life was like for them. Ryuuko could feel the sting coming from her leg, where mother had hit with her shinai after failing to be in proper form. Chat Noir still felt the ache of having to do photoshoots all day and then staying up at night to have to do his make-up work; not that his father cared with his disregard of child labor laws. Ladybug still had some redness from bruises Alya had caused by tripping her on her way to class.

“... Okay so these are the sad gang hours” the group turned back seeing Roter Fochs land, Roi Singe and Pegasus landing behind them. The Parisians were really only aware of ‘The Core Four’ as they’d rather have some aces up their sleeves; not that the three were ready to confront the Parisian backlash just yet. They didn’t want to deal with anymore bullshit than they had to in their civilian lives.

“Is everything alright? Or is it just Life™?” Roi Singe asked, leaning onto his bo-staff next to Viperion.

“It takes 60 euroes to go to therapy but no money to say it just be like that sometimes” Roter Fochs shrugged, much to the dismay of Viperion, Roi Singe and Pegasus.

“Can you please stop joking about your mental health” Pegasus found himself groaning. A small hovering screen appeared next to him, a cowboy hat firmly attached to the top with an antenna sticking out.

“Yes studies show that LGBT youth have a higher percentage to suffer from depression, some even to the point that they𑁋”

“Thanks for the concern CowBot but, really, I’m fine; let me have my fun” Roter softly tapped the little robot. It was nice having people, well sentient beings, still concerned with his well being.

Suddenly the group tensed, their artificial ears and enhanced senses picking up a light clink, the sound of something quickly winding up followed. Two male figures landed in front of them, quickly surrounded by the Parisians. The taller one of the two quipped:

“Well aren’t you a merry bunch”

“Who are you and why are you here?” Chat Noir kept an icy cold edge to his voice, emulating how his father would talk to employees that weren’t Natalie.

“They’re not Akumas, no magic radiating off of them” Ladybug analyzed, looking closely at the duo but she couldn’t recognize them at all. The male that had spoken had a lean and relatively tall body, he couldn’t be more than four years older than her team, so around his late teens early twenties. He had long raven hair, his bangs framing his face perfectly, even in the moonlight she could tell he had a pale complexion though the black domino mask he sported helped hide most of it and his eyes. His uniform wasn’t one she recognized from any superhero from the League; black kevlar, if she had to guess, made up nearly the entirety of his suit, from his boots, pants and even gauntlets, heck she wouldn’t be surprised if his cape was bulletproof. One of the only things to bring color was his crimson chest piece, with two belts across it holding up a golden bird symbol, the same one on his canary utility belt.

“Tt, we just came here to talk” the smaller male scoffed, his posture not looking any more tense or relaxed, just attentive. His build was also lean like his taller partner though she could tell his body would be able to build more muscles with his broader shoulders. She assumed they were around the same age, his jawline defined but not to the same extent an adult’s would be. His hair seemed almost darker than that of his partner’s and was slicked back though maintaining most of its volume, a naturally tan skin was found beneath a green domino mask, much like his companion’s. His uniform was definitely more colorful, almost as if he was meant to garner attention(and boy wasn’t that concerning); black seemed to be the main color in his suit with the outer cape, pants and sleeves being that color, ruby red tunic that went beyond his belt with dandelion accents on its edges and a golden R over his heart, pine boots and gauntlets matching the shade of his mask with dandelion yellow covering the inside of his cape and hood as well as his own utility belt.

She had no clue who they were.

“And why should we trust you?”

“Because we don’t like the Justice League any more than you do”

🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫

One Week Ago

“Hey B, we found something interesting while reading the League’s data” Barbara Gordon’s voice echoed in the BatCave. Currently she and Tim were doing the weekly check-in on the League, something those heroes never seemed to notice. Not that they were surprised.

“What did you find?” Bruce asked, telling Duke and Damian to take a break from combat training while he did.

“There’s an alarming amount of distress calls from France, specifically Paris, that the League has been either ignoring or not receiving” Tim showed him the graph of all the history, going back at least three years closer. It was small at first, once every two months at the beginning, once a month when the second year began, every two weeks bordering on weekly near the end of it, by the start of the third it was daily until some time three months ago they just stopped.

Well wasn’t that cause for concern?

“Can we get any audio of the calls?” Bruce’s detective side coming up as Barbara was able to bring up a few that hadn’t been automatically deleted by the Justice League’s system. The first one was the very first from three years ago, a video call.

“Uh hello!” the girl on the video said awkwardly, clearly nervous but determined to get her message out, “My name is Ladybug”

Her costume looked like it was simply made by spandex, a rather plain design of red with black spots around, a domino mask with open lenses was the only thing really concealing her identity.

“Paris has a supervillain, his name is Hawkmoth and he feeds off of negative emotions. His power can turn anyone into his enslaved champion and we- my partner and I are the only ones really fighting this. I- I know you’re all really busy saving the world and all that but- but we’re just kids! We have no experience and well, we were hoping you can send someone to help? We’ve only confronted him three times now but well, we were just pushed into this”

Bruce could feel his blood growing cold, she couldn’t have been older than thirteen when this was recorded. He knew no Leaguers went on missions to Paris for the past five years… He told them to play the next video, from two years ago.

“Hello Justice League” Ladybug still wore her simple spandex though now standing tall next to a boy with a black cat leather outfit. Behind them was a girl with a bee themed outfit, a girl with a fox themed outfit and a boy with a turtle theme.

“We just came out of this Heroes Day disaster”

“No thanks to their help” the bee girl snapped before looking away.

“Look, Hawkmoth is getting more and more dangerous. He was able to transform half of Paris into his minions, they took over Paris and nearly won”

“What is it going to take you for you guys to finally help?” the cat boy growled much to the surprise of the others.

“Chat Noir!”

“Oh please we can totally handle Hawkmoth without them; you two should be enough already. With us three helping you, defeating him should be easy, power of teamwork and all that” the fox girl waved off, much to the surprise of the turtle.

“Rena did you seriously not remember what just happened. We were compromised, we nearly let Paris fall. We’re not trained for this, not even LB and Chat, and they’ve been doing this for the past year”

“Whatever”

“What was the last transmission?” Bruce found himself asking as the cave suddenly grew silent, all eyes on the monitor as their last transmission played.

“Why are we even bothering with this?” a new male voice asked, the video was shaky before finally pointing at the Parisian streets. If you could even call what was essentially a river of water, reaching to the top of most rooftops streets anymore. Items were floating about, bodies littered around them.

“They’ll never listen, they never did” another female voice agreed, they assumed it was the girl at the corner of the screen, looking down on the streets in what could be described as pity.

“I know” Ladybug’s voice sighed from behind the camera. “But they should at least see the consequences of their actions”

“If they even bother watching these, I wouldn’t be surprised if they just delete these as soon as we send them” Chat Noir entered the screen, eyes cold and calculating.

“Paris should be thankful that Lucky Charm is able to bring them back” the male with the snake themed outfit shook his head. “This is probably the 1,000 time most of Paris died with an akuma, second with Syren”

“Super lucky” the dragon female rolled her eyes “It’s not even worth trying to save citizens since all they do is cretique us”

“And the officers; Apparently we should be able to deal with city-destroying being and protect the people at the same time while officers just stand behind the lines waiting for us to do both” Chat Noir hissed

“What's done is done. This will be our last call for the Justice League; I hope you’re all happy, knowing that you’ve forced children to grow up and fight in a man’s war. Bug Out”

“There are no records of these videos even being played, or even of these events happening as far as Parisian government records say. But there’s clearly a lot of cover up going on, most of Paris’ emergency broadcasting doesn’t make it out of its borders, heavy encouragement of tourism even though there have been complaints by the people about… akumas?” Tim reported as soon as the video finished playing.

“There’s even records of a city-funded statue being made for Ladybug and Chat Noir yet no indication of where it is or what its for” Barbara continued “This blog keeps coming up, it used to be called the Ladyblog before it switched to Fox Tea. Look at these videos”

The screens were suddenly filled with shots of these Akuma; one that froze the city over, one who controlled the weather, one who began dropping adults from the sky, Syren, Heroes’ Day… All of them had to be handled by scared children.

“These look too real to be edited” Duke said in awe. He was very aware of his children all surrounding the screens, looking at the countless destruction of one of the major cities in the world.

And none of them had ever heard of them or these children who were forced to deal with it.

Ones who seeked out help and were never given the time of day.

“Red Robin, Robin” his two sons standing in attention “I want you to investigate the matter and offer our help; convince them that we’re on their side on not aligned with the League”

“We’re on it, Batman”

🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫

“So you just want us to believe you found out about us and suddenly want to help?” Roter Fochs looked at the duo skeptically.

“We wish to assist you with this whole… situation. No one has heard of Akumas or of Parisian heroes before, we concluded that it may be the government attempting to keep tourism up” the shorter male, Robin, they later learned, spoke up while keeping his hands in the air.

“Though that doesn’t excuse the League, who we know you personally sent distress messages” Red Robin echoed the message “We understand the incompetence of the League better than anyone else. Did you know they never bothered to even open most of those messages?”

Red Robin was surprised by the sudden animalistic growling coming from the group, some of their eyes glowing while others looked disappointed.

Ladybug looked hurt.

“Who do you work for?” Ryuuko asked, curious but not letting her sword lower from its position.

“We’re Robin and Red Robin”

“Like the food chain?”

“.... Yes. Anyway we’re vigilantes sanctioned in Gotham, New Jersey in the United States; we’re both proteges of the Batman” Red Robin held back the need to roll his eyes at the monkey boy’s statement.

“Never heard of him” the French heroes turned to each other, trying to see if the name rang any bells.

“According to the internet the Batman is almost a folklore for Gotham; people claim to see him and his array of birds and bats but none could ever get clear photos” CowBot replied after a quick search.

“If the League never saw our messages then how do you know about them?” Chat Noir stared right at them, as though he’d know they were lying, which he couldn’t but Roter Fochs could and would.

“Because we’re better than the League” Robin said with the same certainty one would say the grass was green.

“Why should we believe you?” Ladybug asked skeptically, if they were so good then why didn’t they handle what the League wouldn’t? Why didn’t they just try to take over the Hawkmoth situation without their input? Why didn’t they just take down the League by themselves?

“You shouldn’t, “ Robin shrugged once more “But we’ll actually help where the League wouldn’t”

Ladybug stole a look from Chat Noir, both turning to Roter Fochs, who shook his head softly indicating the duo wasn’t lying.

“If you really want us to talk then give us the coordinates to meet with the Batman” Ladybug demanded, Robin looked outraged at the implication while Red Robin nodded.

“Alright, but how will you know if we’re lying to you?” he asked curiously, typing something in his communicator, the center of his utility belt, before handing it over to her.

“Trust me, we know when you’re lying plus we’d know when we get there” Viperion smirked, “Also you can stand down now Bunnix, MultiMouse”

The duo were not surprised to see two figures standing behind them, one male with a mouse theme and rope wrapped around his hands, and a petite girl with a bunny theme and a sharp looking umbrella pointing straight at their backs. They were just surprised that they hadn't sensed them before.

“Did you get those coordinates, Pegasus?”

“Yes Ladybug, waiting for your signal”

“Well then birdies, we better hope you weren’t lying or you’ll find Hawkmoth won’t be your biggest problem”

“Voyage!”

🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫

“Why don’t you guys like the League?”

The meeting between the Bats and Team Miraculous had gone much better than any of them had expected; it had certainly helped when they found out one of their own, Agent A as they called him, was once a wielder.

They had both been surprised by the amount of members each team had: The Bats had expected Ladybug, Chat Noir, Ryuuko and Viperion; Roter Fochs, Pegasus, Roi Singe, Bunnix and MultiMouse had been a surprise.

Meanwhile Team Miraculous had only heard of whispers of Batman and many Robins, even a theory on a bat girl of sorts from their brief research; having Batman, Robin (V), Nightwing, Red Hood, Red Robin, Signal, Batgirl, Batwoman, and Black Bat not to mention Oracle and Agent A; they had almost thought it was an ambush.

They supposed they each knew how to keep certain secrets tight.

“The Justice League, though still consisting of some of the most powerful people in this Earth, are too high and mighty; none of them really consider the consequences of their actions and are too reliant on their powers to be able to resolve all their problems. None of them have any contingency plans if their enemies find out their weaknesses and exploit them. Not a single member is a ‘normal human’”

He pulled up a hologram in the middle of the meeting table, every person who's worked with Justice League showing up, each showing their array of powers and abilities before showing their membership status.

Batman, Green Arrow, Speedy, Robin, Artemis; Non-Members

Two Green Lanterns, Captain Marvel, Black Canary, Bumblebee, Rocket, the Atom, Blue Beetle (II), Superboy; Reserve members with clearance.

“That does seem pretty discriminatory” Viperion hummed as he thought of the people on the list, those on the Non-member list had no power or enhancement at all while those on the reserve, with the exception of Captain Marvel and Superboy, had powers or suits but the vulnerability of humans.

They weren’t considered strong enough, or maybe even reliable enough.

“We’d probably be considered in the same capacity as a Green Lantern” Pegasus concluded “Take away their ring and their powers go away”

“Which brings us to the next question” Batgirl chimed cheerfully “What is it exactly that you’re facing off against?”

“The Miraculous are ancient artifacts that lend you the powers of certain godlings named Kwami. Kwamis are the essence of concepts and ideas: The Ladybug who represents Luck and Creation, the Black Cat who represents Misfortune and Destruction and Horse who represents Transportation and Innovation are just some examples” Ryuuko explained for them

“Hawkmoth is in possession of the Butterfly Miraculous of Metamorphosis and Desire along with the Peacock of Emotion and Will” Ladybug paused briefly as she saw the look of surprise on Agent A’s face, wondering if she’d feel that way if she found out Tikki was being used for evil in the future. “Both were thought to be missing, possibly destroyed, when the last Master of the Order was able to salvage them from the attack to the Temple of Miracles. He was only a child when the Temple was attacked, thus he was able to escape without being detected by the enemy”

“If I remember correctly,” Chat Noir interrupted “I believe Master Fu said their name was “The Shadows” or I think he said they now go by𑁋”

“The League of Shadows” Nightwing softly added, the air tensing immediately.

“You know of them?” MultiMouse was weary considering the Shadows were very keen on keeping to, well, shadows. That had to mean that the Bats had confronted them.

“Intimately so” Batman growled out.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Bunnix’s brows furrowed underneath her mask, feeling as though they wouldn’t like the answer.

“The Shadows have been a pain in Gotham’s ass in the past” Batgirl explained before turning to Batman “Especially since the Demon’s Head was interested in having Batman as a Son-in Law, though his daughter is sometimes an ally”

“Batgirl!” Red Robin admonished

“Don’t forget the little demon over here” Red Hood joked, missing the look of shock in the Parisian heroes.

“Or the fact that it sometimes seems like he wants to get on Red Robin’s dick and have his babies”

“Batgirl, Red Hood that’s enough” Batwoman sternly looked at the duo.

“You’re saying Robin is related to the Shadows” the Parisian heroes in the Reserve Team looked at them suspiciously while the Core Four just patiently waited to see what the Bats would say.

“That’s in the past” Nightwing steely stated “He was born into that lifestyle, but his mother let him chose to leave and live a different life”

“We had no choice of who our parents were” Black Bat reinforced, the team taking a mental note that she was once a shadow as well.

“Noted” Chat Noir said cooly “Though you must understand our reluctance when hearing the Shadows; like we said the Shadows destroyed the temple that was meant to safeguard the Miraculous and killed off every Guardian in the process”

“It would be foolish of us to not be on guard when hearing of them being so close to us again” Ryuuko explained “Though we will give the benefit of the doubt”

And so was the beginning of their partnership.

🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫

“You’re all skilled fighters for not having any proper training” Oracle commended, looking at the statistics of the spars they all had, by far the Core Four had the strongest stats but it wasn’t because of the others’ lack of skill.

“Thank you, Oracle” Ryuuko bowed after finishing her match with Robin, an intense sword fight having just finished. If she had truly wanted to she could have ended it by cutting Robin’s katana but she found it both dishonorable and the easy way out considering they were testing skill sets. On the other side of the room was Red Robin and Roi Singe’s fight, bo-staff against bo-staff, being monitored by Black Bat.

“Oh kwami” Ladybug whispered as she and Chat Noir were called for the next match… against Batman and Batwoman.

“This is where we die Noir”

“It’s been an honor m’lady”

The fight had been entertaining, each side coming in with an array of attacks. At first the Bats had played offensive with the Miraculous duo playing defensive, dodging Batarangs and all their little gadgets. The Bats hadn’t expected just how durable the simple looking yo-yo and staff would be or any of its features.

At some point there had been a flash bomb, Chat Noir blocking it from Ladybug and getting temporarily blinded, Batwoman had planned on attacking while he was disoriented however the attack amplified his enhanced hearing, extending his staff and tripping her in the process.

In the end the Bats had won but it had been a close victory considering the Miraculous Team had not bothered to use their special abilities during any of the fights.

As they were taking a breather, resting and getting drinks, Robin spoke up.

“How are you allowing your city to step all over you?” Team Miraculous looked at him briskly before Red Hood, of all people, continued for him.

“We’ve seen the reports and the Parisian news, they’re relying on your team of four, considering they aren’t aware of the others, to be there to solve all their problems”

“It’s okay for your people to put so much trust in you but it's gotten to the point where they expect it of you” Robin concluded.

“I’ve tried telling them” Viperion sighed, facing his group “We really should be leaving Paris to handle their own problems, we’re busy enough in civilian life and akuma fights as it is”

“How do you suppose we do that when we already face scrutiny for not dealing with Akumas fast enough?” Chat Noir asked, his tail flickering behind him.

“You could always stop patrolling in broad daylight if you don’t want to leave the city altogether” Red Robin suggested, “Hiding in the night is easier to avoid any authority or anyone trying to get interviews. Plus this way it's less predictable where you’ll be certain hours of the day”

“He does make a good point” Ladybug said, mostly to herself, before nodding “I think it's a good idea”

“You heard her team,” Chat Noir turned to face the others “All for stopping daylight patrol?”

All of them nodded in agreement, the beginning of a long list of necessary changes in their lives.

🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫

“My father is planning a press conference to talk about his ‘concerns’ with the lack of your appearances” Chloe rolled her eyes. A year ago, after the Heroes’ Day Disaster, she and Carapace had chosen to stand down while Rena was ultimately retired. She’d found out about Adrien when she went for a visit only for him to jump in through the window.

It was awkward between the two of them before they called for Ladybug.

She gave her neutral face of disappointment first before making a plan.

They were all aware that Lila must have been the one to start the disaster, being Volpina was the only explanation, as Ladybug confessed that Lila had a vendetta against her. Chloe also figured she must have been lying, something she had already suspected before, about being in another country considering Hawkmoth’s attacks only stayed in Paris.

Due to Chloe’s secret identity being out in the open they realized Hawkmoth wouldn’t be above targeting her family again. Thus Chloe became Ladybug’s spy.

Meanwhile in civilian life Nino was getting tired of Alya and Lila’s antics, especially the ones against his bros Adrien and Marinette. Well more against Marinette and more sexual harassment/getting together with Adrien. That’s not even touching on their newest content on the blog which was just criticizing the Miraculous Team for all their weaknesses and shortcomings, in the guise of offering “suggestions” on how to get better.

They thought it’d be good to have an inside man, someone who could warn them of anything Lila and Alya might come up to.

They were both the secret members of Team Miraculous.

“Holy shit are you serious?” Nino exclaimed in Chloe’s room. They’d all come in secretly and by different entries to meet up in case certain nosy classmates had spotted them.

“Yep, I may or may not have threatened my father with a lawsuit against his violation of child labor laws and me not receiving my paychecks” Adrien said excitedly.

Chat Noir had made an off-hand comment on how his father had tired him out with a packed work schedule. This resulted in prodding from the mother hen known as Nightwing asking for details which ended in Chat Noir confessing that he works for his father’s company, had been homeschooled most of his life and often had a packed schedule full of extracurriculars, including up to around 12-hour work days sometimes. Turns out with that brief information Oracle informed them that his father was violating child labor laws due to the fact that he had worked more than thirty five hours a week since he was fourteen.

“Holy shit” he’d say in awe at the moment “My father is rich though… who knows if this would even go through with his influence”

“No man is truly above the law” Nightwing had given him a reassuring pat on the shoulder, “But… is everything alright in your home life?”

“I- I shouldn’t say anything that reveals my identity… '' the usually chaotic boy said solemnly, his cat ears downcast.

“Chat Noir,” the group turned to Ladybug, the one who’d help introduce her team to the life of masks and magic “Your own safety is much more important than keeping your identity safe. We both know the kind of person your father is… I’d rather you have the best options possible to face this”

“How come you’re so fast to trust us?” Robin asked, surprised but keeping a stern face.

“You do realize that she has the coordinates to this place, right?” Viperion smirked “She’s known who you are for a while and never mentioned anything. We just expect you to return the courtesy”

“That seems about right” Red Robin sighed before taking off his mask, the others of the Bat Clan following suit. Team Miraculous gave Ladybug one last look before dropping their own transformations, some of them looking familiar to the Gothamites.

“Marcus is that you my boy?” Agent A, otherwise known as the family butler, Alfred Pennyworth made his way to MultiMouse who nodded shyly.

“I actually go by Marc now great-uncle Alfred”

“Wait what, Al has siblings?” Stephanie exclaimed, Jason was whispering for Tim to write it down in The Book.

“Yes, an older half-sister” he said with an impeccable raised brow “I would have never thought you’d follow after my footsteps Marc”

“I guess it does run in the family”

“Adrien Agreste! Like son of the fashion mongul Gabriel and late actress Emellie Grande de Venily?!” Stephanie exclaimed as soon as she focused on the blonde teen.

“Yep” was all he could find himself saying, taking comfort in Marinette’s presence next to him.

“Don’t worry Adrien,” the boy looked up to the slightly intimidating looming figure of Bruce Wayne “We’ll help you deal with your father”

🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫

“Boys” Bruce had said as soon as he entered the living room, where the group had devolved into a video game competition. “Remember tomorrow is your monthly therapy session”

“Already?” Damian groaned, his brothers, with the exception of Dick, looking like they would rather not go.

“Timmy isn’t prepared to face his inner demons”

“And it seems Timmy hasn’t slept in some time again, hasn’t he?” Luka teased, continuing to run his hand through Tim’s hair, the boy practically purring in response.

“You have a therapist?” Marinette asked Bruce skeptically.

“We’ve all… gone through things growing up. Alfred made me realize that we were all in need of some help”

“And do you umm… talk about your nightly activities?”

“They’re trustworthy and confidential, yes”

“Do you think you could give me their information?”

That’s how Team Miraculous found themselves on the day after another akuma attack, in a private room within Wayne Tower, each waiting their turn to see the doctor.

“You’ve been through alot Luka” the teen was lying on his back, facing the ceiling as the psychologist who worked with Bruce talked. “Losing what you’ve come to accept as your family, watching your friends die, even though you knew you could change the outcome. Doing it over and over again in order to save the city… It's not something anyone could be expected to handle, let alone a child your age”

“I… I know Dr.Quinzel. But I can’t allow myself to feel guilty over everything or even get overly emotional. If Hawkmoth found out it’d be a disaster, especially because Marinette trusted me with the miraculous… the first for her to assign full time as the Guardian…. I can’t let her down” Luka gave her a lost look, one rarely seen on the charming boy before.

“Keeping all of that inside… It could fester up and explode if you’re not careful Luka”

“So you’re telling me that you are perfectly fine with how your life at home is going, Nathaniel? Even after everything we’ve discussed”

“Look I’ve tried telling my parents they were wrong but they just keep saying I’m confused, not to mention think my art is a joke… and maybe they’re right”

“Those are important parts to who you are. Saying that would be like considering yourself a mistake… Do you feel that way Nathaniel?”

“I…”

“I think I have pretty bad taste in girls, though my friends usually call me a himbo for not really thinking things through. Maybe I should think before acting more?”

“I’ve known I was going to become Bunnix ever since I was fourteen, it was always just a matter of when. So when I was finally called to action I was so excited but… I can’t help but wonder if I’m cut out for this”

“My mother has groomed and taught me to be perfect at all I do. It was something ingrained to me since I was a child; It wasn’t until recently that I learned that is impossible to achieve. Why was mother so pertained to me being it?”

“I know I’m the smart guy but I shouldn’t be expected to have all the answers, especially for my classmates who refuse to look at evidence as it is. Seriously, if I had known they would have taken my comment about how dangerous a napkin can be as pure fact then I would have not said anything that day”

“Sometimes I feel like I’m not enough for my grandmother. She’s getting older, she’s starting to forget a lot. I help by telling her things like stories but I’m not sure how long that will last… She’s the only family I have left in Paris, I don’t want to leave my friends or boyfriend behind”

“My father has always been a distant man but ever since my mother… I’m not sure if he even sees me as his son at this point. There are some days I’m treated as nothing more than a trophy boy or a regular employee. I wonder if this would have happened regardless of my mother’s passing”

“I am Ladybug, I am also the last Guardian. But I’m just a teenager! I have a life I want to live outside of Paris… I want to be a designer, start my own brand, find love and have my own family… But Hawkmoth is in the way of all that”

🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫

“Are you sure about this LB?” Nino asked from the terrace of Chloe’s penthouse. They’d been talking strategy when an Akuma attacked, given the chaos displayed by the news via LadyBugOut livestream, they could only assume it was another Volpina attack.

Unfortunately Volpina had a Sentimonster to help, Reality Check. A glorified 3D printer who could temporarily make Volpina’s illusions tangible and real.

It had proven to be a difficult battle, especially since Luka and Adrien had been caught up as civilians and couldn’t help Ryuuko and Ladybug. The others still had to wait for Ladybug to give the signal before they’d consider going out to help in broad daylight lest their hidden cards be revealed too soon.

In the middle of the fight the two heroines had made a strategic retreat, one the Fox Tea blogger did not hesitate to call the coward’s way out. Suddenly the two appeared at Chloe’s along with Roter Fochs. The scarlet hero had taken out two familiar boxes with extremely familiar jewelry inside.

“I’m certain of it” she said with a determined smile, “Besides this could finally get Hawkmoth and maybe even Alya off your backs if I introduce new heroes; Of course your costumes will have to be different, as will your codenames, but I trust that you’ll know what to do”

“Hello my queen!”

“What’s up dude”

Paris was in uproar when they heard of the new heroes; Abeille and Anselm.

Abeille’s costume was much more armored than that of Queen Bee’s; the whole suit had a honey yellow bodysuit with black armor pieces, her chest piece in the shape of a bee’s face, black elbow length gloves with some honey stripes, thigh high black boots with honey kneepads. Her own mask was different from her former as it changed her eyes to royal blue like Pollen’s while being honey colored with black v shaped lines. The golden gauntlets on top of her gloves would be able to send out small shocks, capable of stunning enemies for small intervals at the time, nowhere near as potent as Venom.

Anselm’s own attire was not so different from Carapace; Anselm still kept the hoodie his predecessor did though beneath it is where the differences began. Anselm wore a pine green helmet, yellow tinted goggles on top of his red eyes, with pale thin daffodile lines going from the top to the bottom of his hood. The hoodie and his undersuit was sacramento green, bordering on black, though the majority of the suit was also armored with pine pieces like the hexagonal chest piece, shoulder, thigh, shin, knee and elbow pads. He also had much thicker gauntlets than Abeille’s along with armored gloves and reinforced sneakers.

Of course, Chloe Bourgeois and Nino Lahiffe were quickly off of the suspect list when the two were spotted separately looking for shelter amongst the Akuma attack during Fox Tea’s livestream.

🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫

“So you’re part of the OG Team huh?” Stephanie asked as she gave a once over to the two newcomers.

“Deep undercover missions, you know how they go” Abeille scoffed, her honey blonde hair swaying along with her five black streaks around it.

“What she said. We couldn’t help as Queen Bee and Carapace anymore, compromised identities, so we helped as civilians before covering our tracks and coming back” Anselm tried to keep back Chloe’s prickly personality.

“Like what?” Cass’ appearance startled the two, though both looked like they were about to draw out their weapons.

“Well I get them intel from what’s happening in the mayor’s office that Max and Markov can’t get out from the computers, daddy is a bit of a pushover and squeals pretty easily”

“While I get intel from Fox Tea’s disastrous dude duo. I’m usually among the first to find out about anything their plotting… though I’ve had to drop that. It was getting too much for me to continue being with Alya so we broke up”

“So you kept dating Cesaire just to gather intel? Doesn’t that seem manipulative?” Duke asked from his seat on the monitor, the two Parisians looked at one another before beginning to laugh.

“Not compared to what those two are capable of”

🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫

“Are you sure about this?”

Currently Viperion, Ladybug and Bunnix were on the Gotham rooftops, shadowing the Bats for the night. The three were honored to be trusted with the responsibility but still felt foreign in the much darker environment, literally and metaphorically.

“It’ll be a good experience” Oracle said in their ears, their comms being synced to those of the Bats “And you won’t be alone, I’ll be here and so will your partners”

Right on cue Robin, Red Robin and Black Bat landed on the same rooftop. The plan was for the six to cover the patrol for the night, the others would be getting rest or doing specialty training with their abilities. It was a surprise for the Miraculous gang when it was revealed that Signal and Red Hood would be joining them as fellow trainees. Alfred and Black Canary, a metahuman who often worked together with Green Arrow in Central City, would be in charge of the training while Bruce also oversaw their progress.

Honestly they hadn’t known what surprised them more: the fact that Batman had metas on his team or that he trusted other heroes with the training of his children.

“It should be a regular night; standard mugging, gang fights and possible robberies should be all that happen tonight”

Of course that was not what happened.

As it turned out Riddler had escaped Arkham, no surprise, and had gone too long without his medication. Edward Nygma was usually a pretty tame man, if a little eccentric with his love of riddles and his brilliant mind.

He decided to hold Gotham Grand Terminal hostage.

Ladybug was decidedly trying not to panic as she saw the very obvious bombs spread across different sections of the terminal. There were too many for them to deactivate in less than three minutes and there were probably more hidden around.

“Riddle me this; What is Joan of Arc made of ?” Ladybug and Robin were the first to arrive at the scene, Viperion and Red Robin being the closest to coming as back up. Robin seemed as confused as she felt but decided to really think about it…

This was so stupid.

“Maid of Orleans” the look Robin gave her, like she just made the most foolish decision of her life, was seen spread across the faces of hostages before Riddler began to laugh.

“Why you are correct, little red” he wiped a tear from his eye “Bats would never think of something so punny like that!”

“Yeah well I’ve had a lot of experience with annoying puns”

“What’s colorful, loud and is a mess to clean up?” Ladybug’s eyes widened as he pressed the big red button on the remote control, Robin bringing Ladybug down and shielding her as the hostages began to scream.

BOOM!

“...Confetti cannons” Ladybug muttered, her whole body covered in the colorful paper pieces with glitter in the mix.

That son of a bitch!

It was April 1st.

🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫

“So what is it that we’ll be doing?” Bunnix asked as Black Bat silently leaped through the Gotham rooftops, camouflaging effortlessly with the shadows unlike her because of the white and baby blue costume she had on.

“You two will be checking up on Red Hood’s sector for the night, Crime Alley” Oracle’s voice responded for her.

“Right, so is this just a standard patrol?”

“Something like that”

Bunnix was admittedly a bit nervous about being with Black Bat, Cass didn’t really talk much and was kinda hot. Bunnix had just dutifully shadowed her, staying as quiet as she could even if she did more parkour than necessary, when they stumbled upon a drug deal. Bunnix was about to go down to smack some people around with her umbrella when Black Bat shook her head.

“One of Red Hood’s men, let’s wait to see the deal go through”

Bunnix wasn’t sure what to think as she watched the deal go down. Weren’t they supposed to be the ones to stop this from happening and not helping them? It was a bit confusing and against her moral code…

“We do this to keep the kids out of the involvement” Oracle seemed to read her mind, explaining their reasoning “Before Red Hood decided to get involved with drug trafficking Crime Alley was full of children who would be taken advantage of by dealers; whether it meant getting them addicted or becoming their messengers and delivery boys. He made it very clear to his ‘allies’ that no child from Crime Alley was getting involved in their plans again or else the deals were off. Those who tried going above him… well they’re no longer around to try and take him down”

Still that did not help ease Alix’s worries as the night continued on. Black Bat came to a sudden stop on top of a warehouse, gesturing for Bunnix to follow behind her, and climbing in through a shattered window. Inside were dozens of wooden crates, each with cameras pointed at them and only one with an open lid. Black Bat walked towards the open crate with ease, going inside and taking out three duffle bags from inside. She placed two on her, criss-crossing each other before handing the other one to a reluctant Bunnix.

The tow then headed to a hidden tunnel underneath one of the empty crates, making their way in a closed (?) Gotham sewer. It didn’t smell as disgusting as Alix imagined it would be, musky at best, though she thought that it may be due to the fact that there was no dirty sewage water there. They walked in relative ease, essentially walking for what had to be at least 15 minutes in numerous twists and turns before reaching a ladder. The two got out, Bunnix recognizing it as part of Crime Alley with how run down the area looked.

Black Bat knocked on a rusting steel door, three times, five, once and then a tap with her palm.

The door opened up, a boy no older than 12 being the ones to greet them.

“Where’s R.H?” he questioned, he looked disappointed but not alarmed, clearly he had met Black Bat before.

“Was busy. This is Bunnix, she’s helping for the night” The boy was clearly unimpressed with her but he closed the door and led them down the long hallway. She noticed the few scattered toys along the way, with some open doors showing mountains of writing supplies and even a little library.

What was this place?

“This is Red Hood’s sanctuary for the kids of Crime Alley” Black Bat whispered next to her “Batgirl and Red Hood are usually the ones to come here though all of us have come at some point.” they entered the large room showing children of all ages, some as young as infants and others looking close to early adulthood. They dropped the duffle bags in front of what she thought was the leader of the pack when Red Hood wasn’t around.

They were filled with non-perishable food, wads of money that will probably be used to provide for the group of 30 or even more for the next month, toys, books and some new clothes.

As the children gathered around, each a little dirtier than Alix remembered ever being as a child, lining up to get a new something that Red Hood got for them she couldn’t help but think;

… Maybe things were never so black and white.

🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫

“I know it may seem frightening, even unnerving, to let go of your control but if you keep your powers bottled up it may prove to be disastrous in the future” Black Canary told the group of teens.

“With abilities bestowed to you like those of the Miraculous are left untrained then it may prove to lead to your downfall” Alfred nodded along to Dinah’s words.

“As capable as Ms.Lance and I are, we have realized that we would need further assistance to properly be able to train each of your abilities”

From one of the Batcave’s entrances they could hear the screech of tires before a slick black car parked next to the Batmobile and Hoodcycle.

“Sorry, we’re late” a red headed woman said as she stepped out of the car, her pale freckled skin slowly gaining a green tint to it as she removed her lab coat and glasses, “Selina here thought she could make a quick steal on our way here”

“Oh c’mon Pam, you know you love the rush as much as I do” a tanned woman laughed, twirling around a golden necklace with one of the biggest rubies they had ever seen in its center.

“Now, ladies; Pam-a-lamb has a class of powered kids to teach” they recognized Dr.Quinzel belatedly as she was missing her glasses and uniform. She was now wearing a much more colorful array of clothes with the consistent theme of red,black, and white. Her skin seemed paler than they remembered and her blonde hair had red tips on one side and blue on the other.

“Hey girls” Barbara came down the elevator at the same time as Stephanie and Cass, seemingly cutting their conversation when she saw the newcomers”

“Babs!” Dr.Quinzel exclaimed, making her way to the other girls after giving a quick kiss to the green skinned woman.

“Well you’re right on time Pam” Dinah sighed, cocking her hip before pointing at the newcomers “These are Dr.Pamela Isley otherwise known as the Gotham Rogue Poison Ivy, Selina Kyle a more vigilante type thief Catwoman, and, of course, you know Dr.Harleen Quinzel or as she prefers to go by Harley Quinn”

“Hey kittens” Selina waved at the group “By the way it's been too long since we girls have hung out; how’s about a Birds of Prey raid? You in?”

“Only if Oracle agrees”

“Oh pleasepleasepleaseplease!” Stephanie and Harley’s persistent pleading could be heard immediately afterwards. A polite cough interrupted the chaos.

“As enthusiastic as you ladies are for your plans, may I remind you that we have prior plans to care for first. Namely the training”

“Sorry Alfie” Harley said, chastised, “We’ll get out of your hair. C’mon ladies!”

“...So training?” Marc asked

🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫

“What happened to you?” was the first thing Kim laughed out as the duo stepped into the cave, leaving a trail of confetti and glitter behind. Marinette looked back at her team, unimpressed, in their own state of disarray.

Chloe, Max, Marc and Nathaniel seemed to be nursing their own cases of migraines; most likely having pushed the limits of their own new abilities which relied on mental fortitude. Chloe and Jason’s powers were the most similar to Alfred’s which involved manipulating and projecting thoughts and ideas to the people around them or to specific targets. Nathaniel was developing the power to create illusions that only his target would be allowed to see. Marc could create intangible clones of himself but could still project what they were seeing and hearing to him. Max could teleport objects a few meters away from or towards him.

Kagami, Kim, Adrien and Nino seemed the most physically exhausted. Kagami was beginning to have slight control of fire, wind and water but not yet conjuring it; given her slight burn marks, wet clothes and messy hair Marinette would guess that she still hadn’t fully grasped the manipulation aspect outside of being Ryuuko. Kim’s own face was dirty and slightly bruised and matched that of Adrien’s. Kim had begun to use his chaotic energy to make the wackiest things happen but to have the outcome he wanted while Adrien could suck the luck out of people for small intervals lest he want to have the misfortune backlash cling on him. Nino’s was more tame though he now had to focus on two things since he could now use his energy to both heal and to create a shield that encompased his body like armor.

“Oh god you guys look like messes!” Alix laughed along with Luka, the only two that looked fine as they had a fairly tame patrol with Cass and Tim.

“Next time I see Riddler remind me to throw a glitter bomb” Marinette grumbled as she made her way to the showers.

“Not before I stab him with his stupid cane” Damian growled heading for the male showers.

“So how long till Daminette guys?” Adrien asked

“Definitely before the end of the year” Duke concluded, the others not being sure if he used his power or not.

“I’ll take you up on that. I’ll bet we make more money than with Red Scales” Stephanie laughed.

“Red Scales?” Luka asked curiously before the others yelled out.

“Nothing!”

🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫

“Okay how come no one warned me about that!” Jason yelled as he came out of the Cave’s entrance. The group either gave questioning or amused looks.

“Oh, so you saw that too?” Alix asked, perched from one of the sofa’s armrests.

“You assholes could have given me a heads up” he complained before groaning into a sofa “God, someone get me some bleach”

“What’s Jaybird talking about?” Dick asked, coming in from the kitchen with an array of snacks for the rowdy bunch of teeneagers.

“Oh just Timbers getting some with the big bad snake boi” Stephanie sang, causing Jason to groan and Dick to choke on his own spit.

“More like trying to eat each other’s tongue out” Nathaniel responded in disgust.

“Timmy, no!” were the words the oldest yelled out before heading into the Batcave in record time.

“Anyway,” Stephanie began “It’s time to pay up bitches. Marinette and Cass get the loot”

🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫

“Hmm, so I guess that’s what fresh blood splatters looks like” Chat Noir said in morbid interest.

“Well it's certainly more noticeable than dried blood” Viperion nodded along, watching as Red Robin and Red Hood carried out the interrogation from a one-way mirror. There was a new gang who specialized in child trafficking, most of the kids coming from Crime Alley and therefore not getting reported to the police; luckily they had Red Hood looking out for them.

“Yes, well we are here to see how they carry out their investigation and get used to all the squeamish things” Ladybug gave a calculated look, as though she herself were in there and what she would do to get the information out of the man they captured earlier that night.

“Do you guys think this sort of thing is going too far?” MultiMouse asked curiously, he was beginning to grow a bit uncomfortable with the amount of blood the man had begun to lose.

“I mean this asshole deserves it” Roter Fochs glared “I don’t think it's too much if it means saving all those kids”

“Standing on the edge of what is seen as a hero𑁋”

BANG

“Let’s you see all the things you can’t from the center” Ryuuko watched as the man was forcibly being held back up by Red Robin after Red Hood slammed his face on the interrogation table.

“World is not black and white” Black Bat spoke from next to them “Many shades of gray in between; We are in the gray”

Ko-Fi

240 notes · View notes

botherkupo · 4 years

Text

Once Upon a Yeehaw

I asked for a crack prompt and @marinoodles delivered. Cowboy Adrien lives again.

Summary: Sunshine Boots Agreste was the sweetest cowboy of the Wild West. Still, Five Pistol Felix has crossed him for the last time. The stage has been set, the duel is about to begin, but who will come out alive? And just who is this mysterious cowgirl, Little Red? (aka, the ML Western you probably never should have asked for.)

AO3, FFN

Two cowboys stood facing each other on a dusty street in Paris. Texas Paris, that is. Sunshine Boots Agreste, the one on the left, had blond hair, green eyes, and a smile sweet enough to charm the socks of all the saloon girls. The other was Five Pistol Felix, who also had blond hair and green eyes, but his smile was more like shady oil slick … because shady.

"Wait," Banana Man said, holding up one yellow hand and peering at said shady cowboy. "Why is your name Five Pistol Felix?"

Five Pistol Felix blinked. "What?"

"I mean you don't have five arms, so it ain't like you're firing five pistols at once. And wouldn't you then be called Five-Armed Felix?"

The other people who had gathered to watch the duel (which was obviously being held at high noon) began to mutter among themselves. Even Five Pistol Felix's posse looked confused. This was a very odd thing, to be sure.

"Oh, I get it," Krazy Kim the Kid said with a grin, slapping his fist to his palm. "It's cause this four-flusher of a cowboy takes five pistols to kill his man."

Max nodded. "That is statistically more likely than him being able to fire five pistols at once."

Krazy Kim the Kid gave thumbs up to Sunshine Boots Agreste. "You got this in the bag, partner!"

Sunshine Boots Agreste frowned. Five Pistol Felix, on the other hand, went an alarming shade of red. Redder than the reddest of apples. Redder than emotionally charged sunsets where you exchange deep and meaningfuls with your cowbros. Redder than Marinette, the baker girl, when Sunshine Boots Agreste tips his hat and says howdy to her. Redder than—

Oh, you're tired of red descriptions? Well, sorry about it.

"It does not take me five pistols to kill a person," Five Pistol Felix declared. "It only takes me one shot."

"One shot?" Krazy Kim the Kid repeated.

"Yes, one shot! I never miss!"

Max pursed his lips. "According to my calculations, that is statistically unlikely. The word 'never', after all, implies that—"

"I don't care about your calculations!" Five Pistol Felix snapped, and probably would have stamped his foot if it wouldn't have ruined his shady, slick cowboy vibe. "My point is it doesn't take me five pistols to kill someone, alright?"

More muttering and exchanged glances from the gathered crowd.

Banana Man scratched his banana head. "Well, maybe that's so, but then why is your name Five Pistol Felix? You don't even carry five pistols."

"He's got a point," Sunshine Boots Agreste said reasonably, because he was reasonable and nice like that, even to people he was planning to duel.

Five Pistol Felix let out a frustrated growl. "I thought it sounded cool, okay? Why does it matter? Shouldn't you all be more concerned that there is someone dressed like a banana here?"

Everyone looked at Banana Man and his frozen, bananary smile. A few cricket's chirped. Come to think of it, why was there a banana man in the Wild Paris, Texas West? Every other cowboy worth his grain of salt had his hat, vest, boots and spurs, and then there was this ... banana.

"Stay peachy," Banana Man said, complete with finger guns. Then he sidled into the background and was never seen again.

"That was weird, wasn't it?" Alya said to Marinette.

Marinette sighed happily. "Isn't Sunshine Boots Agreste so dreamy? A real cowboy of the first water."

Alya facepalmed.

"Anyway," Five Pistol Felix said, narrowing his eyes back on his lookalike and rival. "Enough beating the devil around the stump. This burg ain't big enough for the two of us. "

"That's my line," Sunshine Boots Agreste said in a not-very-sunshiny voice. "You've caused enough trouble trying to impersonate me."

"Then there's only one thing for it. We duel."

Krazy Kim scratched his cheek. "Uh, why is he acting like he's only just now suggesting a duel? isn't that why we've all gathered?"

"Indeed," Max said. "The duel was established in the first line. I believe the author—"

"Would you two shut your big bazoos!" Five Pistols Felix snapped. "No one needs you going meta."

(His posse might have backed him up, but Felix had no real friends, just bribed ones, and all the posse were actually paid to do was to stand there and look menacing. One was a literal slab of wood with a face painted on it, and it had a little name tag hanging from its neck that said "Planky McPlankface".)

"There's no need to get mad at them," Sunshine Boots Agreste said. "Your bone is with me, cousin."

"Not cousins for long. I'm about to become an only …" His brow furrowed. "Well, I guess I'm already an only child."

"Er, do you need a second to think of a better retort?" Sunshine Boots asked politely.

"Yes, actually. That would be swell."

Alya facepalmed again. So did Nino Dynamite Lahiffe.

"Sunshine Boots," Nino said to his friend. "You know you'll always be my best cowbro, but we have got to work on your duel manners."

"But my manners are excellent."

"Yeah, they are. That's the problem."

Sunshine Boots Agreste pouted. It was hard work being a cowboy of the Wild Paris, Texas West.

"Aha!" Five Pistol Felix said, pointing his finger triumphantly. "I've got it! You'll no longer be able to call me cousin because you'll be dead!"

Alya raised her eyebrows. "That's it?"

"That's what?" Felix said.

"That's all you could come up with?"

Marinette giggled. "It is kind of … lacking."

Snorts and outright laughs echoed around the street. Only Planky McPlankface didn't crack a smile. (But as his frown was painted on, this didn't mean much.)

"Maybe we should call you Comeback Fail Felix," Alix Hellrider suggested.

"Or Few Minutes Felix," Krazy Kim said, "cause he takes a few minutes to think of trash talk."

Sunshine Boot's teeth gleamed in a grin. "Yeah, and his trash wasn't even stinky."

Alix blinked. So did Kim. So did Nino. So did everyone, in fact. (Except Planky McPlankface. He just glared through painty eyes.)

"Huh?" Alix said.

Sunshine boots rubbed the base of his neck. "You know, trash. Trash talk. Bad trash is extra stinky, but what he said was kinda weak, so …" He flushed at the disbelieving stares he received. "It's a pun and it was better in my head, okay? Can we just move on?"

"Cowbro," Nino said, shaking his head in sad despair.

"I know, I know, but my cousin's was still worse!"

Max whipped out his abacus. "Let's see. Five Pistol Felix had to think about his comeback. If we say that each minute he paused is one point for uncoollness, plus add on the lack of originality, then that makes it seventy percent worse than your pun. Then again—"

Pink crept over Five Pistol Felix's cheeks. "You hobble your lip!"

Max blinked.

More crickets chirped.

"What does that even mean?" someone whispered.

"Dunno," their neighbour replied. "I don't speak that foreign Wild West slang."

"It means," Felix gritted out, "you all should shut up so my cousin and I can duel!"

"Oh."

This having been decided, the two cowboys once more locked eyes in standoff, their hands lingering near their guns. Dust swirled in the wind. A kazoo played the traditional standoff music.

"Oh, for the love of—" Felix cried, steam practically bursting out of his ears. "Who is playing that kazoo?"

Luka, aka Kazooka, raised his hat. "Just trying to set the mood."

"With a kazoo?" Felix demanded.

"Is that even possible?" someone asked, scrunching their nose. "Should we have kazoos?"

"Dunno, partner," responded the neighbour. "I mean we had a man in a banana suit and we're breaking the fourth wall right now. I don't think our author cares about historical accuracy. Or any kind of accuracy."

"Fair point."

Felix sighed and tapped his foot like an irritated rabbit. "Are we done with all the interruptions?"

Everyone nodded.

The standoff began again. The kazoo set the duelling mood. A tumble weed went past and hit a small girl with blonde hair in the face. (But no one cared because she was Manon 2.0 and cursed.)

"Wait!"

This time it was Sunshine Boots Agreste who sighed—until he saw a familiar figure with her face hidden by a red bandana come closer astride a horse. In other words, the toughest, most beautiful cowgirl in the West.

"Little Red," he breathed, starry-eyed. (Plagg, his horse, was also starry-eyed because it quite fancied that mare.)

"Butt out, Little Red!" Five Pistol Felix said. "This doesn't concern you."

"It does since it concerns Sunshine Boots Agreste," she retorted. "He's going to be my husband and we'll have two kids and a pet hamster, so I can't let you potentially hurt him or the future I've planned."

Sunshine Boots's face warmed all over. "Y-you want to marry me?"

Little Red's blush matched her bandana. "I, um, yeah … yeah I really do."

"Aww," Rose said, clutching her hands to her heart. "Isn't it romantic?"

Juleka said something in response, but no one heard it. Lila the Liar then tried to disrupt the happy turn of events by claiming there was a snake in her boot, but no one much cared about that either. Even when Chloe fell over (because her monstrosity of a Texas mum, with all its bells and ribbons, was too big) could not spoil the moment. Interrupted duels and marriage proposals were more interesting than Texas mums and snakes.

Speaking of duels, Little Red dealt with Five Pistols of Failure with embarrassing swiftness by throwing a yoyo at his head and knocking him out. She was amazing like that. Then Sheriff Rogers took him off to the calaboose where he'd be stuck in a cell for identity theft. (This, my friends, is only acceptable during the Jarlpocalypse.)

Anyway, order was restored and Sunshine Boots was spared any hairs on his golden head being hurt. Then he and Little Red kissed (and kissed even more when she later, in private, pulled down her bandana to reveal that she was Marinette the blushy baker girl.)

"Marinette," he said, holding her close. "I'm so happy it's you."

"Oh, Adrien," she sighed. "From the first howdy you gave me, I've loved you."

Then they kissed again and lived happily ever yeehaw after.

Bonus

"I made you a gift, Adrien," Marinette said, cheeks pink.

"A gift?"

She held up a lovingly crafted … thing that was decorated with multi-coloured stripes of ribbons, bells, and hearts. It kind of looked like a shield. A really ugly, huge shield that could be strapped to his arm.

Of course Adrien "Sunshine Boots" Agreste's heart melted at the sight. "You made this for me?"

She nodded. "And I have a mum to match."

He smiled. "That sounds perfect. We'll be the best dressed couple at homecoming."

Creases formed on her brow.

"What?" he said.

"I just … should we have homecomings? And mums?"

"There's a pun I could make right now, but I'll refrain. Instead, I'll just say that I love you, Marinette Dupain Cheng."

Her cheeks went pink. "I love you too."

(the end. Really this time)

Notes:

What a ride. It's 3:44am. I have no excuse for the sheer crack here except I got asked to set it in Paris, Texas and I rolled with it.

Thanks to @thatkillervibe for giving me the name Five Pistol Felix. Also, Kazooka is a nod to @bugaboo-n-bananoir's headcanon.

#miraculous ladybug #ml au #ladrien #western #once upon a yeehaw #my writing #crack crack and more crack #cowboy adrien

68 notes · View notes