#mlb truth

[justminawrites]

Of Ribbons and Other Lost Things - Chapter 2: Help Wanted

AO3

1 | 2 | 3 | TBC

Luka Couffaine hadn’t meant to end up at the Dupain-Cheng Bakery on purpose.

He’d bombed his first three interviews, for a bartender (too young), beekeeper (they seemed to be allergic to him) and bassist (he took one look at the bloodstained chipmunk costume and refused to get in), and found himself with a some time to kill before the final one at Le Grand Paris hotel. 

So he aimlessly cycled around the cobblestoned pathways of Paris instead, following musical notes scattered all around city like a giant melodic puzzle, before traitorous muscle memory kicked in, taking him to the one place he was sure he’d be turned away from. 

The bakery was right in the heart of the city; a beautiful, five-story building fortified with an eggshell-white composite of brick and wood, the delicious aroma of bread weaving in and around the neighbouring streets. 

Luka felt his insides curl, the twang! of a broken guitar string, as he stopped his bike outside its freshly-painted doors, and tried to pedal back the way he came.

But his legs stalled as he caught sight of a girl on the rooftop balcony of the building, pacing back and forth in her trademark pink jeans and grey blazer, exaggeratedly waving her arms as though she was in an argument with herself. 

Luka bit his lip to keep from smiling at the sight.

Now, it was no secret Marinette Dupain-Cheng was avoiding him. 

He’d deduced as much when she noticeably stopped coming to Kitty Section’s rehearsals, started pitching her new designs on the group chat instead of actually showing up to their meetings, and even having The Girl Squad deliver the first draft of the clothes she’d sewn. 

But what was a secret was that he’d been avoiding her just as much. 

No one knew besides Jule (because no one knew anything about him besides Juleka), but Luka had found himself taking every precaution to avoid the Dupain-Chengs, from cancelling inner-city deliveries to pulling admittedly dangerous 180s on a busy Parisian street, just because the light hit just right and the girl walking his way could’ve been Marinette with extensions (it was not).

He knew the strain of avoiding both his father and his ex-girlfriend was bound to put him in a tight spot eventually, and karma reared its head one fine day when Luka heard the inevitable click of a door opening and found himself face-to-chest with the broad-shouldered Tom Dupain. 

“Luka,” if Tom noticed how he’d turned three shades whiter, he didn’t say anything, “You must be here for Marinette. Marine–”

“NO!” He yelled hastily, before clamping his mouth shut, much to Tom’s bewilderment.

“Uhm, I mean–” Luka held up his hands in surrender, resisting the urge to glance up at the balcony, “This isn’t.. about Marinette.. at all.”

“Then, did you come to buy a croissant?” Tom asked, arms crossed, curiously casting a glance at the several HELP WANTED flyers filling up his bike’s wicker-basket.

“Uh,” He swallowed, uncomfortable with lying to this hulk of a man, “You wouldn’t happen to be hiring?”

It was a deliberate trap. Luka already knew that the Dupain-Cheng’s bakery was a family-owned business, and as a result they almost never outsourced any work, not even for national holidays like Galette’s Day. So it was a pretty safe bet that the next few moves would proceed like this: they’d kindly (they did everything kindly) offer him a rejection, he would graciously accept it, promise to return for a galette in a few weeks, and cycle away, never to show his face here again. 

“Oh no, we’re not–“ Tom looked ready to refuse, but a strange look came over his face, “–actually, hold on, Sabine’s going to be busy for a few weeks and Marinette’s always drowning in schoolwork these days..”

But it seemed like karma wasn’t done with him quite yet.

“Riiight,” Luka leaned back, not liking where this train of thought was going, “I’ll get out of your hair then, sir.”

Tom opened the door wider with one arm, placing the other on Luka’s shoulder before giving him a vaguely threatening smile.

“Why don’t you come in for a bit, son?”

He paled.

...

“That was way too close, Marinette!”

“I know, Tikki.”

“You know no one can find out about you being Ladybug!”

“I know, Tikki.”

“Were you actually going to tell Alya?”

“I don’t know, Tikki.”

“What do you know, Marinette?”

Marinette Dupain-Cheng stopped her pacing to raise an eyebrow at the red and black-spotted bug’s uncharacteristically hostile tone, which she quickly felt guilty for. 

Tikki was just being cautious; losing Master Fu had a visceral effect on all the kwamis; some more intense than others (Wayzz hadn’t come out of the box once), and she could hardly fault her closest companion for being stiff with her when she didn’t exactly tell her what she was planning on doing.

“I’m sorry,” Tikki said first, flying up from her perch on the balcony railing to nuzzle Marinette’s face, “If you think Alya can be trusted with this kind of secret, I won’t stop you.”

“I know it was hard for you to lose Master Fu,” Marinette sighed accepting the apology with a gentle poke between her antennae, “And I’m nowhere ready to being as good of a Guardian he was, but I need you to trust me, okay?”

“I can’t do this alone, and I can’t tell Chat Noir, in case one of us gets akumatised. I can’t be a full-time Guardian and Ladybug, Tikki. We need a new permanent hero, and Alya is my only choice.”

“But didn’t she reveal her secret identity to you a little too quickly?” 

Marinette pursed her lips at that; her kwami had a point. 

Alya had told her she was Rena Rouge not just with excitement and some air of false pride– like she was a veteran in a field that Marinette had only just been exposed to, but also with resignation. Like she’d given up on Ladybug visiting her at all.

“Well I guess.. if she can’t be Rena Rouge anymore, I’ll just have to give her another miraculous!”

“Won’t she be just as likely to rely on you as before, Marinette?”

“Hmm..” Marinette narrowed her eyes. When she and Chat Noir had first gotten their miraculouses, it was without the safety net of being a ‘temporary holder’. They were forced to make their own decisions, learn their own lessons, and keep their own secrets close to their hearts; from friends, even from family. Master Fu had only joined them when it was clear that they’d fallen into their own rhythm of doing things, and once he was sure they weren’t going to quit on him anytime soon.

“You know, Marinette,” Tikki began, catching onto the idea that was already forming in her holder’s mind, “Nobody knows that Ladybug is the new Guardian of the Miracle Box... or that there is a guardian in the first place.”

It was true; thanks to Queen Wasp’s city-wide akumatisation a month ago, no one had been spared to cover the highlights of Master Fu’s sacrifice in HD clarity. It was as close to a blackout as the city’d gotten to since.. its last mind-wiping akuma?

“You’re right Tikki.. but what if she just tries to return the miraculous to me when she’s done with it?”

“You can always fib a little.”

Marinette gasped exaggeratedly, and the kwami rolled her round, blue eyes. 

“I don’t mean lie, Marinette. You can just tell Alya that if and when the Guardian of the Miraculous decides to hand out a new one to a permanent hero, it’s not your business to interfere in the matter.. or to know their identity.”

“You’re a genius, Tikki!” She said with a smile, “That way, Alya can decide wether or not to accept the miraculous on her own terms, but if she chooses to quit, I’ll still be able to get it back from her!”

As Marinette reached into her sling bag to give her kwami a macaron as a reward, she heard a sudden shout come from below her. Before she could reach over to see who was making a fuss at the bakery so early in the day, Tikki flew into her line of sight to give her a strict look.

“But ShadowMoth knows Alya’s identity now. What if he’s tailing her to see if you give her the miraculous again?”

Marinette felt the grimace before it twisted her mouth. Of course. She’d been so focused on keeping the miraculous safe, that she’d forgotten to consider keeping their temporary holders safe too. And for all she knew, ShadowMoth might just be hiding more information he’d stolen from Master Fu and waiting it out to surprise her in some way. She couldn’t take any unnecessary risks.

“You’ll have to find some way to slip it into her bag in your civilian form,” Tikki continued, “But Marinette, are you really, really sure she can be–“

A buzz interrupted the kwami’s heartfelt warning, and she looked down to see her phone flash with a new message from her bff:

@alya.ladyblogger: guess who’s already waiting for u downstairs??

@alya.ladyblogger: (totally not trying to get u to come faster or anything)

@alya.ladyblogger: hint - he’s vv hot and vv into superheroes (like u!!!)

Marinette ignored the twist of dread in her stomach as she headed down to her room to grab the bee miraculous from a black, egg-shaped slot in the miracle box. 

She wasn’t making a mistake.. right?

...

“You couldn’t have picked a better place! This is the best bakery in Paris– my kids adore their croissants!”

Zoé Lee stepped out of the hired cab, letting the doe-eyed look she’d given the driver, slip off her face to reveal a sly smile. 

The best bakery in Paris, huh? Of course, anything less for the newest Bourgeois princess would be ridiculous.. utterly ridiculous, to quote the saying her mother and Chloé often butchered. 

She knelt down, adjusting the laces on her colourful sneakers so they’d conveniently trip her up when the time came, running a finger over the slightly smudged red-and-black letters she’d scribbled onto the left one last minute. 

I ♥ U. 

What a joke.

But self-deprecating enough to tug at the heartstrings of anyone who had a semblance of sympathy– and there were a few people in particular Zoé planned on tugging. Into her own orbit, or out of Chloé’s, she wasn’t really picky. But her plans began with these sneakers and one delightfully oblivious baker girl. 

Marinette Dupain-Cheng. 

Zoé Lee-Bourgeois pushed open the bakery door with a soft chime. Her half-of-a-sister couldn’t even begin to guess what was coming her way.

______________________________________________________________

END NOTES:

Luka: The risk i took was calculated, but man.. am i bad at math.

NEXT CHAPTER ->

#ao3 #ao3 writer #justminawrites #ao3 fic #lukanette #pro lukamari #mlb lukanette #miraculoustalesofladybugandcatnoir #miraculous fandom #mlb truth #mlb luka #mlb season 5 spoilers #mlb fanfic #mlb spoilers #luka x marinette #luka couffaine #marinette dupain cheng #mlb marinette #fluff and angst #lukanette endgame #miraculous fanworks #miraculous ladybug #miraculous season 4 #miraculous les aventures de ladybug et chat noir #miraculous memes #mlb tikki #marinette and tikki #miraculous alya #alya cesaire #ORAOLT

[ozzo-the-wozzo]

the fandom is in absolute agreement to the point where its essentially canon on adhd marinette and nothing makes me happier but also everyone sleeps on autistic adrien in this essay I will

#saw a gif of him wearing earbuds in the movie and wrote this in a cold sweat #obviously my reasoning behind this headcanon isn't due to that but I saw it and got reminded of the blinding truth #first hit post after being back (the brain rot is consuming me whole) #miraculous ladybug #ml #mlb #adrien agreste #mine

[sidsinning]

Man

girl rlly said "why would we invite you- you aint special?" and she was DEAD serious 😭😭😭

#kagami the type to be like but why is it considered shade if im just telling the truth #ml #mlb #miraculous ladybug #ml emotion #kagami tsurugi #lila rossi #sidrabbles

[miraculousfanworks]

Writing Prompt

Truth alternate ending:

Truth: Tell me the truth! What’s your deepest secret Ladybug?!

Ladybug: I…I…am…

Chat Noir: Don’t do it Ladybug!

Ladybug: …am in love with Adrien Agreste

Truth: …

Chat Noir: …what…

Ladybug: It’s true…

Truth: Ughhhh you got to be KIDDING ME!!!! First Marinette, my girlfriend btw, is in love with Adrien and now you?! Is everyone in love with Adrien?! SMH…

Truth: mumbles I’m just gonna die alone

Chat Noir: WHAT!?!

Prompt by Mickeyfan1

#miraculous fanworks #miraculous ladybug #ml #mlb #lovesquare #adrien agreste #writing prompt #prompt #marinette dupain cheng #fluff #truth #ml truth #Alternate ending #ladybug #chat noir

[ninadove]

This is how their conversation went, right?

#miraculous ladybug #felix graham de vanily #argos #kagami tsurugi #feligami #mlb spoilers #mlb representation #ml representation #representation spoilers #nina draws #OBSESSED with how Adrien and Marinette WANT to tell each other the truth but can’t #While Felix and Kagami spend their time spilling their souls to each other #It’s how they bond

[i-was-today-years-old-when]

i learned that playing just one day in the MLB gives players lifetime healthcare coverage while 43 days secures them an annual $34,000 pension (x)

#today i learned #facts #truth #mlb #baseball #healthcare

[feelingtheaster99]

Marinette Dupain-Cheng deserves like an EPISODE LENGTH apology from the whole class for not believing her about Lila

Honestly especially Alya for constantly GASLIGHTING her about Marinette’s dislike and disbelief of Lila purely stemming from jealousy when the WRITING WAS ON THE WALL

#full disclosure #I did not finish season 5 so I am unsure about this #but I don’t believe ANYONE even apoligizes to her for a second #this whole Lila plot literally makes my blood boil #because it makes no sense whatsoever #and I know it’s a kids show but that doesn’t mean I can’t be mad about giant plot holes and poor choices for characters #cause Alya is supposed to be her best friend #the person she trusts with her secret identity before anyone else #and Alya is a either a TERRIBLE and/or a STUPID friend to Marinette when it comes to Lila #like you believe that Marinette didn’t steal or cheat or push Lila down the steps #but you don’t believe Lila is lying??? #and you know marinette is LITERALLY Ladybug but you don’t question Lila saying Ladybug is her best friend??? #make it make sense #alya cesaire #marinette dupain cheng #miraculous ladybug #miraculous class salt #THE SCENE IN WHICH ALYA AND NINO DENY BOTH MARINETTE AND ADRIEN ARE TELLING THE TRUTH BECAUSE ADRIEN IS “too in love makes me so mad #lila rossi #mlb #miraculous season 5 #ml revelation #ml class salt #ml salt #Alya should have an episode length apology to marinette like by HERSELF #the LYING DISEASE plot hole also grinds my gears #makes zero sense

[grahamdefamily]

Truth be told 🦚💍

“Adrien.”

Against every instinct in his body, against the howl in his mind and the boiling in his veins, Argos ripped the Miraculous off his chest.

“I need you to take the brooch.”

📚 Read from the beginning!

#Well there you have it folks we did it again #We’ll get to the Ladynoir part when we get to it #miraculous ladybug #adrien agreste #chat noir #felix graham de vanily #argos #senticousins #duusu #writing #mlb au #truth be told 🦚💍

[wield-the-mighty-pen]

If the person in the end of the episode turns out to be Amelie instead of Emilie, can I just say how much more messed up that would make the ending?!?!

Gabriel at the end, talks a big game about how much he regrets his past actions, about how he lost himself. But then after all this, he still makes the wish, a wish that we aren’t made privy to the exact nature of.

Gabriel, practically during the entire show, has spoken of how he misses Emilie, of how he wants her to return. However, the way he behaves right before he makes the wish seems to imply that he wish would be made for Adrien’s benefit.

The show purposely makes it ambiguous as to whether or not Gabriel wished for him to replace Emilie or for him to join Emilie, with Nathalie taking his place.

The very fact that Nathalie does come back would seem to implicate the latter, as her life would have needed to be exchanged for something as well.

If it is Amelie at the pool party and Gabriel did indeed make a wish to join Emilie, that would only prove further just how selfish and negligent of a father he really was. All Gabriel was looking out for was his own interests. He didn’t care if Adrien still had someone around to care for him, he couldn’t even bother to try to fill the role himself.

If Gabriel didn’t bring back Emilie, all the ending showed was that he learned nothing, he’s still an awful and abusive parent, and he received a redemption from Paris that he didn’t actually deserve.

#truth be told i still think that last point is true even if he did bring emilie back #but i think the writers know this and are planning something with it #for the next season #i have underestimated them before and have been proven wrong #so i think well all just have to wait and see #miraculous ladybug #gabriel agreste #gabriel agrestes a+ parenting #emilie agreste #adrien agreste #amelie graham de vanily #ml recreation #ml the last day #ml theory #ml spoilers #ml season 5 spoilers #ml season 5 finale #ml season 5 #mlb #miraculous #ml #ml leak free #miraculeakless

[miraculously-incorrect]

Mrs. Bustier: what do you think, Marinette?

Marinette: i wasn't listening, but i strongly disagree with Lila

#she's so real for this #sorry for not posting for a while i wish i had a great excuse of why i've been inactive #but the truth is i forgot to post lmfao #miraculous #miraculous ladybug #ml #mlb #incorrect miraculos quotes #incorrect quotes #incorrect miraculous ladybug quotes #marinette dupain cheng #lila rossi

[jheqiawrites]

The day has come! Are you ready?

#miraculous ladybug #miraculous fanworks #mlb fandom #adrien agreste #marinette dupen chang #miraculous fanart #miraculous fanfic #adrienette #the truth behind the lie #The Rings of Fate

[justminawrites]

Summary:

For as long as Luka Couffaine could remember, he was a half. It was only when he turned fifteen, watching the dying sun set over the Seine, did he realise that the other half of him had only ever been other people’s secrets.

#ao3 #ao3fic #ao3 writer #fanfic #lukanette #luka my son #luka couffaine #marinette dupain cheng #lukabug #wishmaker #miraculous season 4 #mlb marinette #mlb luka #mlb lukanette #viperion #viperbug #viperinette #jagged stone #mlb truth #truth #miraculous ladybug #miraculous ladybug: tales of ladybug and chat noir #lukanette deserves better #angst #angst with a sad ending #angst with feels #mlb season 5 spoilers #mlb season five

[geekgirles]

LMAOOOO THEY'RE FINALLY GATEKEEPING LILA

#ml spoilers #miraculous ladybug #ml leaks #ml #mlb #ml season 5 #ml season 5 spoilers #ml s5. 05 #illusion #marinette dupain cheng #Adrien Agreste #alya césaire #nino lahiffe #lila rossi #now all I need is Alya mentioning she knows the truth about her and I'll be happy

[sidsinning]

still miss them dearly sometimes 😭💔

#them just peacefully smiling at each other alone under the bridge #dammit #lukanette #ml truth #ml #mlb #miraculous ladybug #luka x marinette #luka couffaine #marinette dupain cheng #sidrabbles

[ninadove]

It’s going to be a decent while until the finale airs, so I’m writing this in advance, but I want to address something I already know will come up:

Do NOT talk shit about Marinette.

The basement scene in Re-creation was beautiful, and I don’t mean that just because it plays into my love for the humanity-being-its-own-form-of-magic trope. Marinette has been working through her trust issues throughout the season: overcoming her trauma from Derision and communicating with Adrien, relying on Chat Noir again, becoming more trusting of people in general. Her offering Gabriel a helping hand was the logical culmination of her arc.

It isn’t dumb. In fact it has worked in the past:

And it is also motivated by love. Love for Adrien, who she cares enough for to give her oldest enemy a chance. Love that Gabriel clearly does not have for his son, despite what he claims, or he would have finally made the right choice in this instant.

So even though I knew right away it was trouble, I’m glad they went for it. It truly goes to show how much our girl has grown, and how different she is from our now DEAD (🎉) main villain. I love her even more after this finale.

#miraculous ladybug #marinette dupain cheng #ladybug #gabriel agreste #hawkmoth #monarch #adrien agreste #chat noir #love square #felix graham de vanily #argos #mlb spoilers #mlb leaks #mlb recreation #ml recreation #recreation spoilers #re-creation spoilers #random ramblings #Is she perfect? Heck no!!! She still hasn’t told Adrien the truth! #But she’s TRYING!!! She’s FOURTEEN and do you know who SHOULD tell Adrien about everything? EMILIE #Also as funny as it is please don’t blame her for conveniently forgetting Gabriel = Hawkmoth #This is a writing issue not a Marinette issue #They wanted both Felix and Mari to have their moment and ended up messing up their own storyline #It has happened before and it WILL happen again

[glitterizedocean]

The "Adrien/Cat Noir-deserves-better" speech starts from arguments that make sense and turns into spiteful criticism towards the female protagonist just because SHE IS the protagonist. If you think Adrien is the one writers hate/underestimate, I'm sorry, go rewatch the show.

#miraculous ladybug #miraculous lb #marinette dupain cheng #ladybug and chat noir #mlb fandom #mlb marinette #mlb adrien #ladybug #chat noir #there is someone the writers hate #and be sure its not a male character #adrien agreste #miraculousladybug #tales of ladybug and cat noir #marinette sugar #no hate towards adrien #he is one of my favorites #but some truth has to be spoken #venting