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i-will-be-your-ace · 4 years

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How a cruel live changes us.

Send me asks and prompts

Marinette always thought about her future. How she would be a famous designer, how her friends would always support her, about having a happy family.

Maybe being Ladybug, the hero of Paris, changed it a little, but it wasn't something drastic.

Marinette still imagined being a famous designer, having a beautiful family with Adrien, having her friends on her kids' birthdays, seeing her parents' proud faces, how they would play with their grandkids.

Right now, Marinette would only laugh at this thought. She was a kid back there. A young, naive kid.

Her life took a different path. More ruthless, more hollow for her own liking path.

Being Ladybug, having Lila, Hawkmoth and Mayura trying to break her, having a lot of responsibilities and, recently, being a guardian.

She couldn't talk with anyone about this. Telling Chat wouldn't help. How could he help her with her life without knowing her identity? She couldn't risk it.

She took two weeks off, hoping, praying that it would help her situation.

But Lila played dirty. Lila made Marinette's friends believe that she didn't want to see and talk to anyone because she didn't reply to Alya's, to her best friend's, question about wellbeing and offer of help after a whole day.

At first everyone brushed off italian's comments. But the seed of doubt was planted. And slowly it grew while Lila watered it with even more lies.

But that seed didn't grew in some hearts. It quickly died instead.

Alya, Adrien, Nino, Kim, Nathaniel, and Juleka knew that their blunette isn't like that.

They visited her as much as they could.

Hawkmoth was stronger each day. And each day Ladybug became even more afraid.

She was afraid to give out more than one miraculi. The fear that the same thing that happened with Master Fu will happen with her.

The pressure of her civilian life was too much. She needed one part of her life disappear.

Marinette talked with all of the kwamis. Including Plagg.

All of them argued, one louder than other. She calmly said that she won't disappear as human being, only as Marinette Dupain-Cheng. She reminded them that after defeating Hawkmoth she'll still be a guardian. She will still have a big responsibility.

"It will benefit me if Marinette Dupain-Cheng goes missing. I didn't designed in a long time, and it became more of a hobby than a dream by now. And while it's painful to leave my friends and parents in the dark but I can't risk losing them to Hawkmoth or anything else. I know what I'm doing is stupid, cowardly and it's the worst decision I could take, but I still want to. I will be alright as long as I will be with you guys.".

By the end of her dialogue she and kwamis were crying.

This is how, during the summer, Marinette Dupain-Cheng went missing. This is a beginning of a story when Renee Desvormunds appeared.

Marinette is grateful to Master Fu. For all the things he done, for how much he helped her calm down. And for leaving to her his massage parlor and big amount of money for her to use.

Marinette changed her look with the help of kwamis. Now her skin was more pale that made her freckles stand out, her became eyes brighter, and somehow she grew in height. Her hair, now was white and wavy.

She was grateful that as Ladybug her look didn't change.

On the second day, when eighteen year old Marinette Dupain-Cheng didn't return home, everyone close to her tried to find her.

On the third day, it was police that tried to find her. Chat Noir helped too.

On the first week, all of Paris was informed about the missing girl.

On the first month, Tom and Sabine didn't know what to do.

On the second month, Tom and Sabine lost faith.

Mari studied all places where akumas were. Looked through all the videos of them. Observed everyone who was suspicious. All of this with help and thoughts from kwamis.

Chat was more quiet and sad each battle. She couldn't blame him and offered comfort whenever she could.

Each day Marinette, Renee, Ladybug was closer to finding Hawkmoth. And she will succeed.

The girl crossed out the people who were akumatized on Heroes Day because Scarletmoth was present during that event.

She looked through all akumas that weren't present.

Maybe Hawkmoth wasn't akumatized, but she needed to cross out as much people as possible. And what a surprise it was when she found out that her first suspect, Gabriel Agreste, was on the list.

Each small copy of Multimouse stayed near suspects.

At first everything seemed okay. Until she saw how Gabriel pressed buttons on the painting of his wife. Either he had a secret lair or was insane. Maybe both.

And what a coincidence that after he disappeared under the floor an akuma appeared.

On the next day each mini Multimouse was in his room. Waiting for him to put the combination so she could remember it.

Mari waited all day and he didn't go to the painting. And the fact that today no akumas appeared only fueled her suspicion.

On the next day fortune was on her side.

Mari memorized the code, and waited until Gabriel went to sleep.

And it was so boring. All day just looking at busy man and listening his and Nathalie's talk about business. She hated it.

Right now Multimouse pressed all the buttons, doing just like Agreste did. She was glad that she almost immediately went lower after the code, because she wasn't sure if this thing had an alarm in case someone failed to do it right.

Lowering all way down she indeed was in some lair. Suddenly there were a lot of butterflies flying around her.

Gabriel Agreste is Hawkmoth there's no denying it. Just like Mari thought in the beginning.

Now it was time to make a plan of how to get his and Mayura's miraculous.

But there was another problem. She didn't know how to get out from here. Damn it, now she had to wait at least eight hours. Great. Just great.

Mari detransformed and went to sleep. She didn't know what else to do, plus she needs to sleep either way. Even if she'll have hard time falling asleep on this hard, cold floor.

But when Mari was almost asleep, she remembered something really bad.

Gabriel will go here only to transform into Hawkmoth. And if Hawkmoth is present that means that there will be akuma and she will have to deal with it. But she can't transform into Ladybug when he's here, and Gabriel definitely will notice if someone leaves his lair.

" Mullo, Tikki?"

Both kwamis looked at her with tired eyes.

" Yes, Mari?"

" Could one of you bring Pollen and her miraculous?"

" I'll be quick." And with that Tikki was gone.

After what felt like a minute, Tikki appeared with a hair comb.

" It's good to see you, Master. How can I help you?"

" Pollen, just call me Marinette or Renee. I'll need to paralyze Hawkmoth and take his miraculous, even if it will be harder for me to find Mayura."

" But what if both Mayura and Hawkmoth will be here?" Tikki asked.

" I don't know Tikki. I think I will paralyze Mayura and take her miraculous as unnoticeable as possible. Right now I just want to sleep. Good night everyone."

Sleep came to her fast after that.

---

Marinette heard annoying sound of her phone alarm. She wanted to ignore it but three kwamis thought differently.

" Marinette! You need to wake up!"

" Noooo, Tikki, I want to sleep."

" Mari, what if Hawkmoth appears."

With that Marinette's eyes snapped open and she reluctantly sat up. Rubbing the sleep from her eyes she looked at kwamis.

" Are you ready?"

All three nodded. She transformed in Multimouse and divided. One minimouse transformed with Pollen, other with Tikki. Now, the only thing that was left is to wait.

All of her parts were scattered throughout the lair near the walls, and all of them were bored as hell.

But the sound of lowering platform made them concentrate on their surroundings. They saw how Gabriel and his assistant, Nathalie, transformed and used their powers.

Multibee slowly walked to Mayura, who fortunately stood behind Hawkmoth. She whispered venom and quietly stung her. Multibee quickly climbed to the miraculous and without any second thought took it off. And when a bright blue light appeared Marinette cursed and jumped from paralyzed body and also separating from Pollen.

Hawkmoth turned around and when he saw detransformed Nathalie rushed to her not understanding what happened with her.

Seeing a possibility, Multibug quickly grabbed her yo-yo and tied him. She wasn't sure if she'll be able to hold him for long so others grabbed the string too. The nearest Multimouse sprinted to the captured man. Getting to his miraculous was hard when he angrily struggled. But Multimouse still got a hold of the brooch. And when he tried to shake her off, the miraculous went flying with her.

Every Multimouse that was left ran to those who held the yo-yo. Gathering into one, Marinette pulled the string and made him fall.

And without knowledge of how to escape she jumped to the big window, breaking it in process.

Marinette felt as glass cut her skin but right now it didn't matter. A lot of white butterflies could be seen as they flew behind her.

None of the passing Parisians knew what to think.

Marinette detransformed in her parlor and put on both butterfly's and peacock's miraculous. Both kwamis were overjoyed about finally being free. Other kwamis were happy about finally seeing their friends after so much time.

Marinette for a moment observed as kwamis interacted and begun treating her cuts. They noticed it and started helping her, insisting that she needed to rest. Nooroo and Duusu were hesitant but she reassured them that they are part of the family.

Now to complete her mission she needed to inform Chat Noir and Paris about Hawkmoth and to take black cat's miraculous.

Mari sent a message through her yo-yo about meeting at Eiffel tower to him after she transformed into Ladybug.

At their meeting place, Chat Noir was a little bit disappointed that she never told him her plan, but still happy. And while he was sad about giving Plagg back, he understood. When Adrien revealed himself he was expecting her to do the same.

" I'm sorry Chaton, as a guardian I can't do this. Do you need a ride to your home?"

Adrien gave a small sad nod.

After that Marinette informed all of Paris about Hawkmoth and Mayura. Later that day Mayor held a big celebration.

Renee observed the party on the nearby roof with all kwamis near her.

" Our mission is completed. What now? Anything you would like to do?"

And immediately all of them started talking. Everyone listed what they wanted to see and do.

Marinette wrote everything in her notebook. They had a lot of places to see.

During night Mari wondered what she will do. While she knew what her little friends wanted, but she never thought about her wishes. Other thing that worried her, is that she could be easily killed. And then there will be no more guardian to protect the kwamis. She'll ask about this when all of them will wake up.

" Well, if you need a temporary solution we could teach you how to make spells that will help out. But if you want a permanent one..." said Wayzz after some thinking.

" I'd like a permanent solution. I want all of you to be safe."

Tikki sighed and looked her in the eyes.

" We can make you a half kwami. You'll be able to change between human and kwami form and transform with our miraculouses, even with your own. You won't need water, air and other things that are necessary to humans. You'll still need to eat something to recharge energy like we do and you'll also stop aging." She said with a hint of happiness.

" But the chances of success are always different." Wayzz added casting a look towards ladybug kwami.

" Will I die if it fails?"

Theirs eyes widened.

" No no, you'll just be tired for some time. Nothing bad will happen, don't worry."

Mari nodded and with determination in her eyes she said.

" Then, I want to try it."

The process was long and tiring. All kwamis concentrated on Marinette's soul, rebuilding it in something different, something powerful. Their quiet murmuring filled the room where Marinette layed.

And when they were almost done, they saw as white glow slowly covered her body. It became brighter with each second until her body disappeared and something else appeared in the air. It was a silver feathered heart locket. Slowly it lowered to the floor.

All kwamis just stared at it, surprised that they managed after the first try. Duusu was the first to snap out of it. Without any hesitation she came closer and slowly touched it's surface.

Immediately after that a white orb emerged. And when it stopped a snowy owl kwami levitated in the air. Faster than ever, Duusu hugged a newborn god and other kwamis joined them.

" How should we call you."

" Well, Renee is my human name and I want it to stay like this. I'd like to honour my first name somehow. Also I noticed that all of you have double letters in your name. So perhaps Maari?"

Tikki looked proud "Then I, the ladybug kwami and kwami of creation, gladly accept you Maari, the snowy owl kwami, as one of us and wish you luck with finding and training your powers."

After that their journey began. Renee and kwamis traveled everywhere, they met a lot of friends, and escaped from not so friendly people.

And almost six years later they finally thought about settling somewhere.

A lonely figure appeared on one of Gotham's street during night.

A lady in white and black with a wooden box in hands stood on the highest building waiting for kwamis, who were looking for a long abandoned house. Soon, a small horse flied to her with a smug expression.

" I found a mansion that was abandoned for a long time and it isn't visited at all for some reason. Perhaps people are afraid of the stray dogs that are always near it."

" A mansion?"

" Only the best for my sister and guardian!" Said a cheerful Kaalki. She was obviously proud of herself for being able to find something incredible.

Renee smiled gently and mentally told her siblings about Kaalki's discovery.

" A mansion. A big, abandoned mansion. Why am I not surprised?" Plagg looked at the small horss with paws crossed over his chest.

" I don't see anything bad in it. Only the best for the best." He facepalmed but a fond smile could be seen on his face.

" So what all of you think? Should we look for something different or everyone agree?"

Different agreements went from kwamis. With a nod from Renee Kaalki opened the portal to their destination.

The building was definitely abandoned for a long time. Different plants, that formed cracks in place where they grew up, surrounded the first floor. Everything was coated in dust, the furniture was barely holding.

Every kwami went in different directions.

Renee found a lot of strange, interesting, old things. Every room had something like that. One in particular had a beautiful table in front of fireplace. It looked like an office room as far as she could guess. Many books, plants and small animal statues adored the shelves along the walls.

The half-kwami liked the room. With another mental message she waited for everybody to fly over here.

The interior was adored by many kwamis. Others enjoyed that this room was hard to find.

In the end, the decision was made. The box would stay here with everyone, including Maari, inside the room. The protection spell, that will protect the box from someone with bad intentions, would be casted.

---

Somewhere in the Gotham

A lonely mansion stood

For a long time forgotten

But still looking good

Somewhere inside there was a place

That looked like a boredom

Where a lot of small gods rest

Waiting for the worthy person

---

One red vigilante was moving from roof to roof, searching for anything suspicious. The silence was interrupted by his comms.

" Red Robin, the patrol is over. Return to the cave."

" Be there in few."

With that, Tim jumped in the direction of his destination. After quite a lot of roofs he found himself at the unknown to him place. He stopped and started looking around hoping to spot anything familiar. Tim's eyes landed on the tall building of the Wayne Foundation.

But something else caught his eye. A lonely mansion. Tim felt as if something was pulling him there. Quickly looking around for anybody or anything strange, he made his mind and started crossing the distance.

The old looking gates were open, same with the front door. Stepping inside Red Robin noticed that this house was abandoned when he saw how ruined it was in some places. But the need to go somewhere still was present.

Tim found a lot of old things and paintings while walking through the hall. He continued exploring until he found a door. Unlike other doors this one was closed. The vigilante opened it and found a room filled with books, plants, small statues, a sofa, fireplace and an eye-catching table with a strange wooden box on it. Tim moved closer and saw a silver necklace shaped as a heart made from two wings near the box. Picking it up he examined it and found out that it was a locket. Tim hesitated to open it at first, but his curiosity won. He opened the two halves of a heart. Inside in the middle there was a small mirror, inside the right half was a miniature compass that looked like it actually worked. In the left half of the heart he saw a picture of a beautiful smiling woman. She had a midnight blue hair, that reached to her shoulders, freckles and blue eyes. Tim stared at her until his comms sounded again.

" Red Robin, we are waiting for you in the cave. Do you need help? Or is everything okay?"

" Yeah, don't worry. I just... got distracted. I'll be there soon."

Tim took a picture of the lady in order to research her and after putting the locket down he exited the mansion.

A white orb slowly emerged from the locket...

tag list: @vixen-uchiha

Locket inspiration (tap me)

#maribat #timari #timinette #ml x dc #mlb x dc #timmari #kwami mari

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snow-leopard-777 · 4 years

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In The Darkest Hour

Marinette Dupain-Cheng was not, despite what most would claim, a normal girl, nor did she lead a normal life. Chloè had once claimed that the bakers' daughter held more secrets than Fort Knox, whatever that was. Though she wasn't entirely wrong. Marinette did hold many secrets. Family, friend, random stranger, it didn't matter who talked to her. Unless you were a member of the conversation, not a peep was to be heard about it from Marinette.

As much as it occasionally annoyed them to be unable to get gossip from the girl, the entire class greatly appreciated the girl's talent for secrets. When Chloè, Kim, Max, Alix, Nathaniel, and Juleka needed someone to talk to about being LGBT, Marinette was their only pick. The group quickly became close, Marinette asking their permission to tell the other LGBT classmates to talk to them about it. None of their other classmates could figure out why the group was so close, for which they were extremely greatful.

Kitty Section was created under Marinette's careful selection, the girl gathering those that had shyly admitted to their preferred method of making music and introducing them, one on one, to Luka and Juleka for consideration of the band they wanted to create.

The one thing the entire class knew about the rest of their classmates was one thing that were in perfect agreement with: Marinette Dupain-Cheng was an odd individual, and no one wanted her to snap. Especially after the appearance of le Papillion. Many of her classmates worried about their secrets, as so very little was known about the girl. Though the class didn't realize it, the only students that did not fear Marinette's akumazation revealing their secrets were the LGBT kids, as Marinette had not only admitted to possibly being either ace or demi due to her lack of attraction to anyone, but they also knew she was keeping secrets before she knew how to talk.

As they gave the girl more and more secrets, she became more and more isolated. No one was willing to give up their confidant, but those that she didn't trust with a secret of her own began to avoid her unless they needed a conversation kept quiet. Marinette simply smiled a small non-committal smile every time they spoke to her while Madame Bustier nodded approvingly at the girl.

A delicate peace existed in the class. Marinette's friends were all extremely protective of her, especially after they learned just why the girl was so secretive. Everything came to a head when Alya suspected Marinette knew the identity of at least one of Paris's heroes after seeing Chat Noir enter a room at the end of his timer- and Marinette walk out seconds later.

In retrospect, Alya could have chosen a better place to confront Marinette than in the school classroom, interrupting Bustier's lesson so that the girl couldn't run away.

The bluenette, of course, denied knowing who Chat Noir was. Alya, however, refused to let up- her blog was at stake, after all.

"C'mon, Mari!" Alya whinned, ignoring the classroom's collective flinch. No one was allowed to call Marinette Mari, new girl or not. "Be a good friend! Do you know what you could do for my blog?"

Marinette glared at the girl. "It's always about what I can do for you, isn't it?"

"Marinette! That was too harsh," Caline scolded her student. "You're supposed to be the example, not the problem starter! She just wants a little help with her career!"

Marinette glared at the teacher. "I said that I don't know the identity of Chat Noir. She kept pushing, insistent that I did even though all she knows is that he entered a room shortly before I exited it. I remained in front of the door until Chat Noir let me know he was properly recharged and left. She wishes to know a secret he would die to protect despite his and his cousin's protests against her stalking them."

"That is highly uncalled for!" Caline scolded. "One should never be judged for curiosity."

"And one should never be judged for the keeping of ones secrets, so be they keeping their own or others'. She's lucky that they haven't filed restraining orders or complaints against her. She could easily be sued for invasion of privacy, charged with jail time for stalking, or have charges brought against her for posting un-consented photos, of minors no less, on a public forum without any kind of authorization- not to mention some of her theories could be considered slander and defamation of character." Marinette retorted, the majority of the class shocked by her sass. The quiet girl usually refused to speak when challenged about her secrets; she had never fought back before (Sabrina was surprised, but more because of Marinette's legal jargon. Perhaps she should attempt a friendship with the girl instead of fearing her closed-off mannerisms). Only a select few that remembered her as a child with no filter (Chloè, Kim, Alix, and Nino) or visibly held no regard to authority figures (Juleka) remembered the old Marinette. The Marinette from before her aunt and uncle's deaths. The Marinette that allowed people to call her Mari.

Irina Karasuma, neè Dupain-Jelevac, adoptive daughter of Gina, had disappeared off the face of the planet when Marinette was eight years old. Six months after her disappearance, the Russian woman was presumed dead- along with her husband. Karasuma Tadaomi was Marinette's favorite out of her adoptive relatives, and everyone knew it. He was the one that taught her how to fight, how to defend herself. He also taught her how to cuss someone out, in French or Japanese, and make them thank her for it. He was the one that taught her just how important secrets were from the moment she was born. Irina taught her, very reluctant, niece how to use her looks to her advantage, the art of flirting, and about seven different languages (plus how to flirt or cuss in many others). By the time her favorite family members vanished (not dead, never dead, they couldn't be dead), Marinette was able to speak nine different languages, not including her mother tongue, plus sing beautifully.

Two weeks after Bustier assigned her detention for standing up to Alya, Marinette found a strange box on her desk, a fox tail amulet and a strange little pocket fox contained inside.

🍯

Adrien Agreste hit record on his phone the second Alya interupted class. He didn't plan on being defended, had only hoped to get a good laugh to share with Felix, until Marinette spoke up. If he weren't so good at acting, Adrien wouldn't have been able to keep the tears from falling. He knew, without a doubt, that Marinette knew his identity- and Ladybug's as well. She hadn't quite managed to close her eyes in time when he detransformed in front of her. The girl had simply pulled out her lunchbox when Plagg mentioned Adrien forgetting his Camembert at home, offering the kwami her own.

"Let me know when your good to go." Was all the girl said before walking out of the room, the sound of fabric sliding against the door letting him know she was leaning against it. Several nerve-racking minutes passed before Adrien announced that he was transformed. He watched the door slightly shift forward as she got off it, though the door never opened.

He had waited days for the girl to spill. Yes, he was well aware of her reputation. However, he was almost positive that his was too big of a secret to keep. After seventy-two hours of nothing happening, Adrien tracked down his cousin and visited Master Fu.

Master Fu had frowned at him. "We will watch her and see how the situation pans out. If she proves herself enough, I may give her a Miraculous of her own."

The next day, Adrien walked into the massage parlor with the recording of an absolutely unaware Marinette verbally attacking a classmate for trying to pressure her into spilling the secret.

The Guardian had watched the video contemplatively, analyzing the girl. "I think I know the perfect match." He finally said once the video was over. "But I am unsure… it has been several centuries since a true match for her surfaced."

Adrien left more confused than ever, though forgot about the strange encounter once his cousin saw the video. All of Adrien's being was suddenly focused on keeping Felix from taking legal action as Ladybug against the blogger.

🍯

Marinette stared at the small goddess. The fox stared back, then smirked.

"Most kits freak out when they see me." The fox commented.

Marinette smirked back, "I'm not most kits."

"Hmm. We'll see. My name's Trixx, I'm the Kwami of Illusion. My main power is Mirage, we'll be able to see if you can use any other power after we work together for a time. You have five minutes after using my power before you transform… until your an adult."

"Okay. Does this come with a catch? Do I have to fight akumas?"

Trixx grinned ferally. "Nope. All you have to do is not use my Miraculous for evil."

"Good. I think Kitsune would prefer to take out human criminals and night akuma over missing school."

Trixx nearly purred at her newest holder's words, eyes sparkling with pride, "That sounds perfect." It was brilliant for her kit, this one might even grow to be a full fox, to use a name of different origin to mislead people. Who would think a half-Chinese girl would use a Japanese name?

🍯

Marinette transformed with Trixx for the first time that night, fiddling with her weapon before ever leaving her room. She had a flute, the mouth piece pulling out to reveal a sharpened blade on the end, barbs set strategically down the blade so that it would catch without letting go. She slowly pulled the rest of it apart, each one leading to a blade of some sort. The middle had two blades, one on each end, while the others only had one- lengths varying.

It didn't take more than a second to find the phone-like use, the girl calling Chat Noir to meet her at the Trodacero with Ladybug.

The two heroes beat her to the meeting spot, Huli Jinn joining them after learning how to move around as a Miraculous user. Her dark silver cloak settled around her, shifting and blending with the shadows.

Ladybug eyed her suspiciously. "Who are you and what do you want?" The blond demanded.

Kitsune smirked at him. "Call me Kitsune. I'm the holder of the Fox Miraculous. I thought it best to let you know I was active before you mistook me for an akuma." She lowered her hood and pushed the cloak back, revealing her appearance. Her dress was silver with blue ribbons and sleeves. The skirt had slits up both sides to prevent it impeding movement and the skirt and sleeves were removable- not that the boys knew that. A pair of loose silver pants and black combat boots hid under what most assumed to be a dress. Her Miraculous stayed tucked under her outfit, her mask matching her silver theme- excepting the orange curled fox tails on either side of her mask.

Chat visibly brightened. "So you're here to help us?"

"Not exactly. You two are heroes. You fight akuma no matter when or where they occur. I'm a vigilante- I'm focusing more on keeping the average Parisian safe. If an akuma occurs at night, I'll help you out. But you're on your own during the day. I have school, and I know you do too, but I'm already on thin ice with my teacher, and I have work I have to do. You guys can sleep at night while I keep an eye on things."

Felix eyed her. "Why is your name in Japanese?"

Marinette blinked at him. "My favorite uncle was Japanese. He taught me many things before he vanished a few years ago. I don't know if he's dead or not, I hope not, but I wish to honor his memory and all he taught me."

Chat grinned even brighter at her. "Are you a Honeypot?" He demanded. He only knew one of those, and if she was… "Master Fu said he might give you a Miraculous!"

The other two heroes eyed the cat. "How do you know who I am?" Marinette demanded.

Felix stared at the two. "You're the girl that knows who we are." He dumbly stated.

Marinette huffed. "Yes, I know who you are. Not that anyone would ever learn that for sure."

"What are you going to do about sleep?" Felix demanded. He refused to be the cause of another person being irresponsible about school.

Kitsune waved her hand through the air. "I can exsist perfectly well by sleeping on the weekends and taking naps throughout the week. Foxes are at their peak at night anyways."

"Didn't you just say you're on thin ice with your teacher?" Ladybug demanded. Chat Noir simply looked highly concerned.

Marinette raised an eyebrow, though Adrien beat her to speaking. "Our teacher doesn't like her right now because she defended my hero persona against a classmate. Our teacher is all for Mar- sorry, Kitsune keeping secrets until those secrets could make someone else rise to the top. She got detention for protecting my identity and defending herself against the girl pestering her."

Felix narrowed his eyes. "So the teacher punishes victims for defending themselves against a bully harrassing them?"

"I wouldn't say that-"

"Yes." Kitsune interupted. "The teacher shows no care for the emotional state of a person being attacked, only for the well-being of the more agressive person. She has had several complaints filed against her, though no action has been taken. My allies and I are getting ready to go to the school board if nothing changes soon."

Felix nodded once in acknowledgement. "Good. I shall retire for the night, Chat, you should do the same. We miss enough sleep as it is." He turned around and muttered under his breath, knowing his cousin could hear him, "And you need to explain to me what a Honeypot is."

Marinette bit back her laugh, fully aware that Felix didn't know her Miraculous also came with heightened senses. "Goodnight, boys."

🍯

Adrien landed in Felix's bedroom, having laughed at the boy the entire way there. Their transformations fell even as Adrien teased his cousin. "Need me to explain what a Honeypot is? Didn't you say that I was the one who was sheltered? That I don't know anything if it's not in an anime?" Felix glared at his cousin. "Okay, fine! A Honeypot is someone who can lure their prey in by their looks and actions, and once they catch what their after, they can make their move. Marinette's aunt taught her how to be a Honeypot when she was little."

Felix eyed his cousin. "What anime did you learn it from?"

Adrien made several insulted noises before Plagg finally outed him.

🍯

Nearly a month later, Caline Bustier and Damoclès were told to pack their bags. The head of the school board called in a favor from an old friend in Japan. The principal had demanded to be allowed to bring one of his teachers with him. She quickly agreed. François-DuPont suffered a hit with the removal of the principal and a teacher for negligence. Hopefully their replacements would help nullify that hit.

Asano Gakushuu laid his phone on his desk before buzzing for Nagisa. He started speaking before Nagisa could even properly shut the door. "I know you were planning on moving to Paris with Akabane when he got shipped off as an ambassador. I'm not going to try to change your mind." The again went unspoken. They both knew exactly who his best teacher was.

Gakushuu was always surprised when Nagisa spoke to him- the boy had always been so silent. He hadn't learned until after they started working together exactly why Nagisa was the way he was. "Why did you call me?"

Gakushuu huffed. "Here's the deal. An old acquantence of mine called in a favor I owed her. She recently fired her principal and one of her teachers, and needs a suitable replacement for both. She asked me to take over, I agreed on the stipulation that I got to bring one of my teachers with me."

"Where at?"

"François-DuPont. It's a school in Paris. Instead of struggling to find a new teaching position in a country you are unfamiliar with, you can join me at this school. It's not far from the embassy, so you would still be able to meet Akabane for lunch or whatever."

Nagisa raised his eyebrow at his friend. "You do know that Karma prefers his first name for a reason. We're twenty-six, and have been friends since the end of cram school. Your rivalry should be dead by now." Gakushuu shrugged. Nagisa let out a heavy sigh. "What's my class like? How did the teacher I'm replacing run it?"

"I don't know how accurate my information is, all I have is what the superintendent knew. But the teacher and principal were terminated due to neglecting the students"

Nagisa facepalmed. "End Class bad? Paradise High bad? Or relatively alright?"

Gakushuu shrugged. "Possibly some combination of the first two. They did have one competent teacher for science and math. The terminated teacher was supposed to teach them almost everything else. We won't really know until we get there and assess the situation. They want us there ASAP."

"Of course. I'll tell Karma. Get me the school's address so that we can plan housing."

"I'll forward you all the information by the end of today. Use today to tell your students the news and pack. I'll begin the transfer paperwork. Do you have tickets to Paris already booked?"

Nagisa gave Gakushuu a bland look. "Karma and I leave for Paris this coming Monday. You need to focus more on your own paperwork, mine should be nearly completed."

Asano would never admit that he had been putting off Nagisa's paperwork for as long as possible in hopes that he would stay. Nope, not at all.

🍯

Marinette kept an eye on the new teacher as soon as he arrived. They had been stuck with different substitutes for nearly two weeks while waiting on him to arrive and all the paperwork to go through. The name Shiota Nagisa rung a distant bell in her mind, though she struggled a little with remembering where, exactly, she had heard his name.

"Greetings, everyone." His French was passable enough, though he had a noticable Japanese accent to Marinette's trained ear. "My name is Shiota Nagisa, though you can all call me by my given name. I hope we have a good year together." He offered them a small bow.

Marinette rose to her feet. "Greetings, Nagisa-sensei. I am Marinette Dupain-Cheng, class representative. Thank you for coming to teach us." She offered him a bow in return.

Nagisa gave her an approving grin even as Rose hesitantly spoke up. "Didn't he ask us to call him by his given name?"

Kim explained before Nagisa could. "His name's switched around, like mine! Last name is first and first name is last!" Kim boasted. "The new teach is like me!"

Nagisa hummed appreciatively. Le Chein Kim understood the basics, but not the proper terminology. "A little rough, but basically correct. Though I do not appreciate the interruptions. In Japan, a person's family name is given first and their given name second. It is considered rude to address someone by their given name or a nickname without permission. Dupain-Cheng-chan, please stay after school so that we can discuss the class."

"Yes, Sensei." Marinette acknowledged.

"Now, in Japan, different honorifics are used to address someone. Here you use madame, mademoidemoiselle, and monsieur. It's a bit more complex in Japan. If you were to speak to an adult, you call them by their family name followed by -san. For example, a friend of mine also lives here. You would address him as Akabane-san. You would address females your age or younger by adding -chan to their surname, males with -kun. People in the grades above you would be addressed as -senpai, which can also be used for someone with more experience. A teacher, doctor, someone in a roll ment to educate someone is addressed as -sensei." Nagisa spent the first day explaining to them the cultural differences between Japan and France, flashing back to Bitch-sensei's less than conventional methods proving their usefulness. Several of his new students seemed to understand the different cultures very well while others seemed to let everything fly over their heads.

The day finally ended, Nagisa ushering the students out so that he could finally learn just what he was dealing with. "Dupain-Cheng-chan, would you please explain to me how the class was run prior to my arrival? The principal and I were given minimal information about why we were being brought in."

Marinette slightly inclined her head. " Please, call me Marinette. My surname is a mouthful. Caline Bustier was our former teacher. She let bullies run rampant and punished the victims if they stood up for themselves. One of my classmates is obsessed with uncovering the identities of Paris's heroes. The teacher never warned her of all the legal action that could be taken against her for basically stalking underaged people. Césaire was convinced that I knew one of their identities and interupted the class to hound me about it. I denied any knowledge of who they were. She pressured me, insisting I knew and called me by a nickname I do not use. I told her off, the teacher scolded me and gave me detention.

"The former principal wasn't any better. He was easily controlled by people in a place of power, allowing bullies to rule the school even as he brushed an complaints about his teachers under the rug. I was chosen as class representative because my classmates trusted me to know better than anyone just what they wanted or needed without airing their secrets to the world. I am also one of the only students who was not afraid to tell Bustier and Damoclès that they were acting like imbeciles. My class is accustomed to not being able to rely on an adult in charge to handle a situation for them- especially if that situation is hostile. Now days they either handle it themselves or come to me."

Nagisa nodded. "If you wouldn't mind, I would like to began taking some of that responsibility off of you. It will take time for us to learn how to work together, but I assure you that I am not like Caline Bustier."

Marinette eyed the new teacher. "Anything my classmates tell me in confidence will stay with me. But I will attempt to speak with you about the class when needed."

Nagisa inclined his head. "That's fair. I would expect nothing less. What can you tell me about the class? I can't move at mach twenty, nor am I a verifiable genius, but I would like to be able to give all of my students what they need. I was under the impression that I am in charge of everything except mathematics and science?"

Marinette nodded. "Juleka, Mylène, and Nathaniel are all very reserved and shy. Juleka and Nathaniel prefer to hide in the background and let others shine. Mylène is okay as long as there's someone she's comfortable with nearby. Ivan is quiet and has a few anger issues, though he's pretty good at controlling himself as long as le Papillion is inactive. Kim has trouble focusing on class and retaining the information, he does better when he has something to do. I've been making him study with me, letting him practice sports, parkour, that sort of thing while I call out information and question him on the materials. He's not at the top of the class, but he is usually in the top ten. Alix can focus better than Kim, but also learns better when she has something to do. Césaire has a tendency to ignore the materials when the teacher is covering them in favor of working on her blog. She expects someone from the class to share their notes with her later on so she can pass. Sabrina takes care of helping Chloè study, since Chloè learns better with technical terms. Every now and then Sabrina calls me in for help for a particularly difficult subject because, where French sometimes fails, making Chloè learn the material in a different language works every time. Nino learns through music. Everyone else learns relatively well in the class and can mostly interact with new people. Adrien said his cousin's considering transferring in, he's asocial, not big on people, but smart."

"Thank you. I'll see what I can do about helping Le Chein-kun and Kubdel-chan have something interactive during class to help them. Do any of your classmates find music distracting?" Marinette shook her head. "Then I'll ask one of my former classmates for help with making a playlist to help Lahiffe-kun learn the material. What would you suggest to stop Césaire-chan from being on her blog during class?"

Marinette hummed contemplatively. "As long as she has an electronic, she's going to check it. Especially since she knows a few of our classmates will give her the notes."

Nagisa nodded. "I'll have her give me her phone before class. Would you do me a favor?"

Marinette eyed the teacher. "That depends on the favor, Sensei."

"It's nothing bad." Nagisa promised. "I'm just used to students being unwilling to help. I feel your classmates are more likely to listen to you right now than me. You have their trust, I do not. Would you be willing to ask them to stop giving Césaire-chan their notes? It would be different if she were missing class, but she's just not paying attention. She needs to learn that there isn't always going to be someone to cover for her."

Marinette blinked, surprised. "Of course, Sensei."

Nagisa considered the girl. "You have a Chinese and French heritage, yes?"

"I do."

"Where does the grasp on Japanese culture come from?" Nagisa questioned, deeply curious.

Marinette offered a small smile. "My family is very complex. My grandmother is the equivalent of an Italian gypsy and has a penchance for adopting people. My adopted aunt, Irina Dupain-Jelevac, married Karasuma Tadaomi. He taught me many things, including Japanese culture, before they went missing a few years ago."

Nagisa's mouth fell open. "You're related to Bitch-sensei? And Karasuma-sensei?"

Marinette snapped her fingers. "I knew your name sounded familiar! My aunt told me about her attempt at being a teacher and how much she struggled with it. She had a lot of pride in your class. Tadomi-oji-san did too, he was just better at hiding it."

Nagisa stared at the small girl. "They told you about us?"

Marinette shrugged. "A little, yeah. Is that all you needed, Sensei? I need to get to work."

"Y-yes, thank you. Have a nice evening, Marinette-chan."

"You too, Sensei." Marinette called as she walked out the door. She found something in her relaxing slightly with knowing that the new teacher was taught by her uncle. Though she did wonder how Adrien, and possibly Felix if he transfered in, would escape to fight daytime akumas.

🍯

Nagsia flopped on the couch once he got home, startling his husband. "Sup, Nagisa?" Karma asked. Nagisa smiled, even after over a decade his husband hadn't changed from the time they were at Kunikagawa. He even continued elongating his name.

"Guess who my class rep. is related to?"

Karma raised an eyebrow. "I literally have no idea."

"Karasuma-sensei and Bitch-sensei."

"What the fuck?" Karma lost all attempt at feignig disinterest, bolting straight up.

"She's French-Chinese, Italian grandmother. The grandmother adopted Bitch-sensei before she married Karasuma."

"How the hell did you figure all this out?"

"I had her stay after class to get a feel for the class. I was called in to replace a negligent teacher, so I wanted to know exactly what I was working with. After we were officially done, I asked her where she learned so much about Japanese culture, as she seemed to already know what I was teaching today. I was already thinking about Bitch-sensei and her teaching methods before she explained how she was adopted by Karasuma-sensei- as a niece. Apparently they talked about us."

"Holy fucking shit, talk about a full circle. How much does she know?"

"That's the problem, I have no idea. Nor do I know what they taught her." That was more worrying than how much she knew about their past.

🍯

Marinette texted Chloè as she walked. *Césaire's notes privileges have been revoked until further notice, excluding absences.*

*I was waiting on you to snap on her. 🙃*

*New teacher's rules for her. Former Class 3E- 🗡️*

*😮 …………… Trust?*

*With caution.* Marinette pocketed her phone as she walked in the bakery. She could give a good two hours in the bakery, design while cooking supper, and then take a quick nap before patrol.

#mlb #mlb x ass class #Assassination Classroom #Miraculous Ladybug #Shiota Nagisa #Akabane Karma #teacher Nagisa #Fox Marinette #Ladybug Fèlix #Good Fèlix #Félix Graham de Vanily #Adrien Agreste #Marinette Dupain-Cheng #In The Darkest Hour

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chronicallylatetotheparty · 3 years

Text

Scarlet Fever Ch.15 Emily Agreste (Part 1)

Summary: Endings and Beginnings.

Notes: Boy those were a lot of loose ends to tie up.

Ah, Emilie does Not make an appearance. It's more because she represents family.

------------------------

"I didn't realize you felt so overwhelmed until Princess Justice pointed it out."

"Yeah, but I didn't realize how much you were struggling until I found out who you were."

"It's not like I would have let you in even if you asked."

"I'm sorry I didn't ask."

"You were just following the rules."

"Lot of good that did, huh?"

"... I hate how much I failed you with the Snake."

"I'm sorry I put you in that position."

"I didn't say no."

"Adrien, if you showed up and said you trusted me with a Miraculous I would've jumped for joy!"

"Believe me. I was tempted."

"I never should've let you sacrifice yourself for me."

"From what I remember you usually didn't have much say."

"Exactly! You got hit because I couldn't get out of the way in time!"

"That's not how I see it."

"You getting hit was never okay."

"Better than the alternative."

"Not to me."

Adrien stared at the ceiling that still felt too close as the dream, or memories rather, faded. As tempting as it was to stay in bed and go back to sleep the blinds were pulled and sunlight was streaming in. And he was cursed, as his friends put it, with being a morning person.

Making his way to the restroom Adrien splashed water on his face and ran his wet hands through his hair to fix his bedhead. Combing it into his usual style. He paused, staring at his reflection in the mirror... At the model perfect look Gabriel had insisted on for years... Adrien ran his fingers through it, ruining it. Letting his locks fall in a decidedly Chat Noir-ish manner.

A knock on the bathroom door pulled Adrien out of his thoughts. "Bro, breakfast!" Nino called.

"Be right out!" Adrien hurried through the rest of his routine. His hair the only significant difference.

Plagg phased through the wall. "I dunno, Adrien," he started without preamble. "Turtle boy's kid brother is quite a handful."

Adrien smiled, scratching at the kwami's chin. "You're a handful too, Plagg."

"Yeah, but it's different when I do it!"

Chuckling, Adrien offered his pocket and Plagg flew in. Grumbling about tiny humans.

"Sleeping Beauty!" Nino exclaimed as Adrien sat next to him.

Pressing his lips together Adrien gave his best friend a mock glare. "That is not catching on."

"Oh, yes it is dude!" Nino stuffed his grinning mouth with baghrir. Butter and syrup almost dripping onto him.

Lips twitching into a smile despite himself Adrien reached for his own. "Where's Noël?"

"Folks took him to school," Nino replied around a mouthful.

"Yes!" Plagg flew out of Adrien's pocket and made a beeline for the fridge. "Camembert here I come!"

Shaking his head in fond exasperation Adrien ran a finger absentmindedly along the rim of his plate. M. and Mme. Lahiffe were kind enough to offer their home and let Nino take a few days off school. Nino insisted he think of it as an extended sleepover but... "I wanted to thank them for-"

Suddenly, Nino was leaning against him and wrapping an arm around Adrien's neck, pulling him close. "Dude, that's the fifth time you've said that."

"I'm just really grateful!" Adrien insisted, pushing him off.

"Believe me. They know."

Adrien swallowed the lump in his throat. The Lahiffe household was more than he could've hoped for. Especially with everything on the news. Gazing at Nino, the memory of a glowing purple butterfly came to the forefront. "To you too. For what you did."

Eyes widening for a moment Nino adjusted his cap, cheeks darkening. "What're best friends for?"

Adrien smiled softly. Tears prickling at the corners of his eyes. "You are the best. Y'know that, right?"

Nino wrapped his arms around Adrien in a proper hug. "Back atcha, bro."

Returning the gesture, Adrien held him tight as his heartbeat spiked. "Couldn't have done it without you."

"Flatterer," Nino scoffed.

"Always."

Clearing his throat, Nino removed his glasses to rub at his eyes. "Eat up, dude! Don't want to keep the Gorilla waiting. We got a big day ahead."

"...Yeah," Adrien agreed. "We do."

----------

"Don't be bemused! It's just the news! The trial of the century is coming to a close. Disgraced fashion mogul Gabriel Agreste, who's terrorized Paris as the supervillain Papillon for the past two years, will finally face justice. The crown court is expected to reach their verdict later today. His son, fifteen year old Adrien Agreste, could not be reached for comment-"

Marinette pressed mute and turned away from the living room television. She hated that they had to mention Adrien like that. Like being Gabriel's son was the only description that mattered. Still, maybe she should bake Nadja some pastries as a thank you for pushing back against the idiots who wanted to lump Adrien in with Gabriel.

As a parent, as a reporter, Nadja had torn into anyone that even suggested Adrien was anything except a victim of his own father. On live television no less!

Just the memory of the press conference Ladybug called for the specific purpose of vouching for Adrien made her blood boil. If only they knew. Ungrateful jerks.

Tikki looked up from her place on the table, brow furrowing at her holder's tension. "Are you alright, Marinette?"

Sighing, Marinette glanced back at the screen. Slowly unclenching her fists. They were showing footage of his testimony again. "I'm worried about Adrien."

"Of course you are." Sabine set a plate of macarons next to Tikki. Who took the liberty of grabbing one. "That young man is going through something terrible very publicly. No wonder you're worried about him."

"Maman!" Marinette covered her face with her hands. "Saying it out loud doesn't make it better!"

Sabine gave her daughter a bittersweet smile. "Beating around the bush won't help."

Marinette groaned into her palms.

"But," Sabine continued, placing her hands on Marinette's, "you and all his other friends are making sure Adrien doesn't go through it alone."

Lowering her arms, Marinette looked down. "I... haven't been doing much, really."

"Marinette!" Tikki scolded. "What you've done for Adrien isn't nothing! You've talked to him, listened to him, been there for him. You're doing everything you can, Marinette!"

Sabine nodded, taking a seat next to her daughter. Holding their hands in her lap. "Even Ladybug has limits."

Marinette's mouth twisted ruefully. "I know."

"You know it here." Sabine tapped Marinette's forehead. "But here," Sabine pointed at Marinette's heart, "still has to catch up."

Her eyes stung as Marinette let herself fall into her maman's embrace. "I wish I could do more."

"Oh, honey." Sabine kissed her forehead. "I am so proud of the compassionate young woman you are. But you can't fix everything. More importantly it isn't your responsibility to fix everything."

Marinette opened her mouth to protest but Sabine laid a finger on her lips.

"She's right, Marinette." Tikki floated up to nuzzle against her holder's cheek. "What you're doing is already enough. More than enough. You're so kind to everyone else. Be kind to yourself."

Marinette didn't know when her tears fell but it didn't matter. For the first time since she donned the mantle of Ladybug, Marinette let herself be a girl crying into her mother's arms.

----------

"Marinette!" Alya almost knocked them both over as she squeezed a little too tightly. "It's been forever, girl!" Noticing the red in Marinette's eyes she frowned. "You okay?"

Marinette nodded. "I'm fine," And it didn't feel like a lie. She smiled at Alya's familiar worry. "It's only been a day."

"Like I said, forever."

Tikki poked her head out of Marinette's purse. "Good morning, Alya."

Eyes sparkling, Alya restrained herself from gushing. "Tikki!" she whisper-shouted. Mostly. "Good to see you. Any chance we'll be meeting your friends again?"

All things considered Alya had taken Marinette being Ladybug rather well. She had been more concerned with why Marinette was akumatized and how she could help. It was a relief, really. That Marinette didn't need to lie to her best friend anymore.

"I'm sure Trixx would be happy to." Tikki smiled at Alya's enthusiasm.

"If Fu ever lets go of that box again," Sabine muttered. She waved goodbye to Tom who was left in charge of the bakery.

"Maman!" Despite weeks of her mother being very vocal about Master Fu's flaws Marinette was still scandalized by her critique of the Guardian.

"Don't 'maman' me. You know it's true. The only reason he didn't take back all of his fancy jewelry is because Oblivio helped us out." Sabine smiled at Alya.

Cheeks darkening, Alya smiled back. It felt odd to be praised for something she used to be ashamed of.

Marinette gently squeezed her arm. "Thanks for that."

"Hey, you used the Butterfly. Me and Nino just aimed." Alya wasn't sure how hard it was to tweak Oblivio's power so they could target specific memories instead of erasing everything at once. But she wouldn't have wanted anyone besides Marinette on the other side of the telepathic link.

There were a lot more people that needed their memories adjusted than Alya thought. Sure, Gabriel and Nathalie needed to forget who Ladybug and Chat Noir were. But there was also everyone in the locker room when the akuma swarm came.

Marinette bumped playfully into Alya, lips twitching into a smile. "Never thought I'd be glad to see Oblivio again."

Alya wrinkled her nose. "That makes three of us." Looking from right to left to make sure no one was in hearing range Alya leaned in close. "I can't believe you have a superhero therapist!"

"Eh, not the weirdest thing to happen this month." Marinette was just glad she didn't need to keep Ladybug a secret from someone else.

"Did you, y'know, use Ladybug for that?"

"Actually, it was Adrien that got us an interview with her in the first place."

Before Alya could respond Kagami's car turned the corner. The door opening for them as the driverless vehicle pulled up to the curb.

"Marinette, Alya, Sabine," Kagami greeted as they all piled in. "And Tikki," she added as the kwami floated out of Marinette's purse. "...Where is Anansi?"

"Kicking butt. She's a kickboxer," Alya elaborated at Kagami's confused look. "Can't reschedule this time. Has to fight or she forfeits."

Kagami nodded in understanding. "Your sister is smart enough to know that one does not back down without giving it your all."

Marinette straightened as Kagami's eyes landed on her. She thought that might be referring to something besides fighting but it was hard to tell. Reading Kagami was always difficult.

"I can't believe I'm finally going to meet the Guardian!" Alya exclaimed. Sabine's sentiments barely putting a dent in her enthusiasm. "You think he's up for answering a few thousand questions?"

Kagami smiled despite herself. Her phone chimed and she frowned at the text. "We have to make a stop first."

----------

Nino hugged Alya and fist bumped Kagami. His eyes were tense despite the smile he gave them. "Hey, Mari."

Marinette's brow furrowed. "Nino." She placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder. "Is he...?"

Nino nodded, pointing his thumb behind his back. "Up ahead."

Taking a deep breath Marinette stepped into the cemetery proper.

The Gorilla was standing guard as usual. Spotting her, he gave Marinette a nod and let her pass. Walking further away to give them some privacy.

Adrien was standing rigidly in front of Emilie's grave.

What should she say? What could she say? Marinette cleared her throat. "Nino says you didn't want to have a funeral?"

Adrien shook his head, the first sign that he noticed her presence. "We- I already buried her once. Mourned her once. It's... not exactly easy the second time but..." He took a breath. It was shaky. "Um, the lawyer read me her will." His voice shook too. "M-maman didn't want- Sh-she didn't want..." Tears built up in his eyes. "What Gabriel did to her!" They flowed freely down his face. "Maman wanted to rest."

Marinette rushed forward and pulled Adrien close, letting him bury his face in her shoulder.

"Sh-she wanted to rest!" His voice broke as he breathed out the words.

Pushing down the disgust she felt towards Gabriel, Marinette focused on the boy in her arms. Rubbing circles into his shaking back. Soothing him, being there for him. Letting him spill his tears without comment. His breathing slowly evening out.

Sooner than she expected Adrien straightened, wiping at his eyes. "Thanks, I... I needed that."

Marinette swallowed. "A-anytime."

Adrien had cried more in the past few weeks than he had in the past year... That probably wasn't healthy. Something else to tell his therapist. "God. One of these days I'm going to stop crying on you!"

"I hope not," Marinette's mouth said before her brain could overanalyze it. Her eyes widened. "I mean- I don't want you to keep crying! That is- You can cry however much you want! Wait, no, I mean-"

Adrien smiled fondly at the familiar sound. The vise in his chest loosening its hold.

"Don't laugh at me!" Marinette pouted.

That only made his gaze soften further. "I missed you."

Pink dusting her cheeks, Marinette turned to avoid looking at him directly. "I missed you, too."

"I've just been so busy," he began.

"With the trial," she nodded.

"And therapy."

"And figuring out the next step with Master Fu."

"And it felt awkward, y'know?" Adrien gestured vaguely.

"To text or something," Marinette agreed.

Adrien blinked as he realized something. "Has it really been a week since we saw each other?"

"Eleven days," Marinette responded immediately. "But! Uh, who's counting?"

"It's odd not fighting akuma with you." Adrien fiddled with his ring.

Marinette's hand instinctively went to one of her earrings. "Not as odd as you being out of school for so long."

Adrien gazed up at the sky, thoughtful.

"... Are you coming back?"

"... Yes." The decision came to him easily. "All of you guys are there. My therapist thinks it's a good idea to be close to my support network. And Chloe's already offered to pull some strings so I'm not swarmed by paparazzi every day."

"So weird for Chloe to use her evil powers for good," Marinette muttered.

Adrien's lips twitched. "I'll be sure to tell her you said that."

"She probably wants to attach a helicopter pad to the school roof," Marinette joked.

"I talked her out of it."

Marinette choked a bit at that. Glancing at Adrien, she could see the tension he had when she first walked up to him was all but gone. His smile came easier. But... "If you needed to come here you could've said so. You made Nino worry."

"Ah." Adrien rubbed the back of his neck. "I didn't know I needed to until this morning."

Ignoring the little voice in her head that panicked at the thought, Marinette grabbed Adrien's hand. His fingers curling around hers. "So you're not just avoiding the meeting we have with the Guardian?"

"Well," he finally grinned. "That too."

"He's not going to take Plagg away, you know. Maman won't let him."

"Ha! No, I don't think she would." Adrien gazed at Emilie's name carved in stone. "... You go ahead. I'll catch up."

Reluctantly, Marinette squeezed his hand before letting go. There was something else she wanted to say. But the words wouldn't come. Not taking her eyes off him until she passed the Gorilla.

Adrien turned back to his mother's grave with a bittersweet smile. "That's her. Ladybug. She's incredible, you'd like her. Stubborn, driven, intelligent. Couldn't ask for a better partner..." He placed a hand on the stone. "I wish you could've met her."

Floating out of Adrien's pocket Plagg laid his paw on top of the boy's hand.

"This is Plagg. He's a smug little troublemaker but that's part of his charm."

Plagg might've commented on Adrien's own troublemaking tendencies if this were any other circumstance. As it was Plagg just nuzzled against Adrien's hand.

A thought took root in Adrien's mind. "...Plagg?"

Ears twitching, Plagg looked up at his kid.

"Can... Can she hear me?"

Oh. Oh.

Plagg hated that question. The answer was never enough. Never as simple as yes or no. Over the centuries he'd lied through his teeth to ease his holders' burdens.

Adrien waited for his answer with trusting, patient eyes.

He swallowed the easy falsehood, burning his throat as it went. "I'll make sure she gets your messages," Plagg promised, ears drooping.

And for the first time in ten thousand years Plagg's holder simply nodded. "Thank you."

"...C'mon, kid," Plagg urged when Adrien didn't say any more. "They're waiting for you."

Sniffling, Adrien rubbed his eyes. "Y-yeah. Right."

Nino hugged Adrien tightly, practically squeezing the air out of his lungs. Kagami was little better. It was impressive how threatening she sounded while prompting Adrien to take care of his mental health. Sabine, by comparison, gave soft hugs and gentle encouragement.

Adrien loved all of it.

-------------------------

#ml fanfiction #adrien agreste #marinette dupain cheng #ml #miraculous ladybug

17 notes · View notes

gabriel-agreste-has-no-rights · 4 years

Link

Rating: G

Summary: When Marinette has to cook for her family reunion, Adrien offers to help. Only one problem: he has no idea how to cook. With Plagg's help, Adrien proposes a Disney-inspired solution that will either keep him from making a fool of himself, or backfire terribly. (Spoiler alert: it backfires terribly.) A university-aged Adrinette reveal fic.

Word Count: 6437

XXX

“Plagg, what am I going to do? I don’t know how to cook!” Adrien pulled at his hair as he paced circles around his apartment.

Plagg, meanwhile, lazily hovered with his paws crossed behind his head. “Maybe you should’ve thought about that before you tried to swoop in like some kind of superhero.”

“I am a superhero.” Not that it mattered, because his superpower was destruction. Maybe his Lady would’ve been able to help Marinette cook dinner for her family reunion, but Adrien was … well. Even though the cat miraculous didn’t actually make him more disaster prone, he had enough bad luck in the kitchen on his own. He’d survived on spaghetti and takeout since moving into his own apartment this semester.

“Why don’t you just tell her you can’t do it? Something came up. You fell headfirst into a pool of cream cheese. You got zapped by an akuma and all your hair fell out.”

“That hasn’t happened in at least a month. Besides, I can’t flake out on Marinette. She needs me.” He stood up straighter.

“What she needs is someone who won’t turn soup into an explosive. What about your friend Alya? Isn’t her mom some kind of chef?”

“She’s out of town for Christmas. Nino too, or I’d ask him to help me.” Did he know anyone else who could teach him how to cook in one night? Kagami was back in Japan, Chloe wouldn’t touch an oven to save her life, Luka was on tour with XY… Ladybug was pretty much his only friend still in town. She would probably be willing to teach him, but on their last patrol she’d mentioned she’d be busy the next few days with her own plans.

“You need to get some more friends, kid.”

“It’s kind of late for that,” Adrien murmured. Too many people in his classes were more interested in the Gabriel name than in him. Besides, he might not have made a lot of new friends, but he’d gotten much closer to Marinette and his old friends now that he had more control over his schedule.

“Well, as your very first and best friend—”

“Chloe was technically my first friend.”

Plagg glared. “As your first and best friend, I will help you for the low low price of two wheels of Camembert.”

Adrien stopped pacing. He only realized he’d ended up in the bathroom when he caught a glimpse of his reflection.

“Wait. You know how to cook?”

Plagg scoffed. “I’ve been alive since the dawn of time. I’ve picked up a thing or two.”

Adrien raised an eyebrow. “You also thought that my blender was a jet tub for kwamis.”

“Okay, so you humans have invented some fancy new gadgets since I was last out, big deal. I still know more about cooking than you.”

Unfortunately, he was probably right.

“Alright. Deal.” Adrien held out a finger, and he and Plagg shook on it.

“Alright, loverboy, let’s get cooking.”

XXX

“No, not like that! What are you trying to do, knock someone out with that thing?”

“At least I wouldn’t do it with the smell!” Adrien instinctively waved the frying pan in front of his nose, and the burned remnants of roux glopped out onto the tile.

“Coward. It’ll taste good once you put it all together.”

Adrien wasn’t convinced. But then again, he hadn’t followed Plagg’s instructions exactly. Plagg never gave him quite enough time to pour the ingredients in the pan or measure the spices with the little spoons.

“I wish you’d be able to help me while I’m there.” Adrien sighed. “I’m going to forget all of this as soon as I leave.”

“You can’t be good at everything, I guess.” Plagg shrugged. “You can still always call your girlfriend and say you gave up.”

“She’s a good friend. We’ve been over this.” He’d promised not to call Marinette ‘just a friend’ on the grounds that she deserved better than that. But she still wasn’t his girlfriend. Which was fine, so why did his stomach sink slightly? Probably just nervousness about the task ahead of him.

“And I’m not giving up. What if you just … hid in my hair and whispered advice?”

Plagg tapped his chin. “Maybe if you wear a hat …” A grin suddenly split his tiny face. “Hey, what if you wore that ug—uh, that beret Ladybug gave you? You know, from your fan club?”

“Great idea!” Adrien bolted out of the bathroom and towards his closet. He wore the hat every once in a while—its ridiculous energy was too good to leave hidden like it had been in lycée. He made a special point of wearing it to every meeting with his dad, though he did feel a little bit nervous of wearing it around Marinette. She was in their university’s design program; she’d probably think it was tacky.

Oh well. He’d probably been tackier around her before.

“You sure you’ll fit in here?” Adrien squinted at the underside of the beret before pulling it over his hair.

“Looks cozy enough to me.” Plagg slipped under, and Adrien felt him shuffle around. Unfortunately, his voice was too muffled for Adrien to make out after that.

“Plagg?”

“Blegh.” The kwami scrambled back out and scraped his tongue with his paws. “Your hair tastes like shampoo. I can’t talk without getting a mouthful of it.”

“Guess that isn’t going to work …” He pursed his lips as he adjusted the beret. “It’s too bad real life isn’t like Ratatouille. You could just tug on my hair and do all the cooking for me.”

Unless …?

“Oh no, don’t give me that look.” Plagg crossed his arms. “That’s just a movie. Though it would be nice to show you what it feels like to get dragged around for a change …”

“It’s worth a shot, isn’t it?” Adrien didn’t really think it would work either, but Plagg was magic.

“Fine. But I’m upping my price to three wheels.”

Plagg slipped back under the beret, and Adrien felt a tugging sensation on his scalp. But nothing seemed to happen.

“Guess that was a pretty dumb idea,” he admitted sheepishly.

Then green light crackled from his ring.

His arms flung into the air.

“Ack! Plagg, did you do that?”

Adrien heard a muffled cackle from under the hat. Then his legs started walking towards the refrigerator.

“Okay, so this is … working? This is working!”

Plagg missed a few times before guiding his hand to pull open the fridge. Of course, his next step was to reach for a wedge of Camembert and hold it up to his head.

“The sweet taste of victory,” Plagg said while popping out to swallow the wedge whole.

“More like the rotten taste of old cheese.”

But Adrien still grinned. However Plagg had pulled off his puppeteer trick, Adrien wasn’t going to make a fool of himself tomorrow.

XXX

“Adrien!” Marinette threw her arms around him as soon as she opened the door. “Thank goodness you’re here. My parents just called and they got a last-minute order and—eep!” She sprung back, her eyes wide as she stared at his beret.

“Come on, it’s not that bad.” He rubbed the back of his neck, trying not to feel embarrassed. Marinette wouldn’t judge him based on what he wore. “It was an old gift. I like that it drives my father crazy.”

Plus, Ladybug had hand-delivered it, but she probably didn’t care about that.

“W-well then, it’s perfect.” She grinned too wide. “I just don’t think I’ve ever seen you in a hat before.”

“You’ve definitely—”

“Anyway, no time for that! There’s only five hours before Uncle Wang gets here. Nonna is already at my parent’s, and my other grandma and grandpa are coming for the first time since Mom moved here. Not to mention fourteen of my cousins I’ve never met and their parents!” Marinette rushed towards the small kitchen, which was already full of steaming pots and used pans. She threw on her pink oven mitts and pulled a tray of golden-brown pastries out of the oven.

Adrien swallowed. Marinette’s kitchen might look like a war zone, but she clearly knew what she was doing. What if he just got in the way?

“How did you end up in charge of the food?” he asked while throwing on a mint-green apron from inside the pantry door. Her great-uncle was a world-class chef, and her parents owned a bakery. Her grandpa Rolland had even taught mice how to bake.

“I’m not in charge. I just need to help a little since Uncle Wang is running late, and the reunion starts tonight, and Grandpa won’t bake anything in bulk because ‘that’s not how it’s done’’—she used a gruff imitation of his voice—“and my parents have so much bakery work to do. I’m just trying to do what I can.”

She sighed as she stirred a pot of wonton soup. “Unfortunately, I can’t do a lot.”

“What are you talking about? It looks like you could feed an army with all this.”

He carefully dodged Marinette as she scrambled in a drawer for a fork. She tested the rice noodles boiling behind the soup, then grimaced and slumped against the counter, fork nearly slipping from her fingers. Her hair was falling out of her bun, and flour smudged her pink apron, contrasting with the splatters of dark sauce.

“I hope so. There’s just … so much to live up to, you know? Everyone on both sides of my family cooks. And now I have to merge styles from two different cultures in a way that will please everyone …”

Her gaze swept across the counter, where dumplings and quiches, brothy soups and thin crêpes—even ratatouille, ironically—lay in various stages of completion. The savory and sweet fragrances somehow melded together in harmony.

“I know I can’t understand how hard that must be. About trying to bridge two different sides of your family, I mean. But you’re amazing, Marinette.” He stepped closer to her and brushed a streak of flour off of her cheek. “You’ve already worked so hard on all this; I can’t see how anyone wouldn’t love it. May I?”

He gestured to a spoon sitting in one of the soups, and she nodded. He raised it to his lips and sipped the tangy broth. A bit of crunchy bamboo shoot added texture to the savory liquid. He didn’t want to eat too much—it was for her family, not him—but if it weren’t for that, he could’ve downed the whole bowl. He could practically taste the love and care she’d put into it.

“See? Amazing.” He grinned. “Just like the rest of the food we’re going to make.”

At least, the food she made would be amazing. He just hoped that what he made with Plagg’s help would be edible. And not offend her family.

Her lips parted before curving into a smile. “Right. Thank you, Adrien.”

She paused, staring for a moment, until one of the shallow pots started bubbling over.

“Ack! The filling!”

She rushed to switch off the burner and remove the lid before sighing loudly. “I think it’s still alright. Now I just need to fold this into the dough …”

“Can I help with that?” he asked, feeling like a rock in the middle of a river as Marinette flowed between the cooking stations around him.

“Huh? Oh—um, why don’t you work on filling the crêpes instead? This baozi is a Chinese dish, and it’s my first time making it by myself. Not that I don’t appreciate the offer! You were so sweet to come at all, and—”

“Marinette.” He squeezed her shoulder gently, wishing he could relieve some ot the tension there. “I’ll do the crêpes.”

She let out a breath. “Thanks. I was going to do a pear-hazelnut filling, if you’re okay with that? The pears are in the bottom right drawer of the fridge, and the hazelnuts are on the middle shelf in the panty. All the spices are up there.” She pointed to the cabinet above the sink.

“Sounds perfect,” he said with the fake confidence he usually saved for his modeling jobs.

Before he could ask for a recipe, she went back to work, leaving him to his own devices in front of a stack of unfilled crêpes. A mixture of the rich smells and his own nerves started to turn his stomach.

“Are you ready, Plagg?” he whispered, adjusting his beret.

In response, his scalp twinged, and then his hand rose and formed a thumbs-up.

“Well, here we go.” He cracked his knuckles.

He rinsed out a pan that it looked like Marinette had previously used for some kind of stir fry. That wouldn’t be a problem, would it? It looked like every other pan in the apartment was in use already.

Marinette didn’t stop to correct him. Then again, she seemed to be in ten places at once, adding spices and stirring and adjusting dials and rummaging through cupboards, all in between filling her baozi. Watching her work was so mesmerizing it was almost too easy to ignore his own job.

Until Plagg started tugging his hair again, anyway.

This is going to be weird, he thought while Plagg directed his hands to chop the pears. He was pretty sure he could’ve done that himself—he didn’t want his kwami chopping off one of his fingers. But resisting at this point would just increase his chances of accidentally getting stabbed.

Besides, Plagg was fast. He diced the five pears in the time it probably would’ve taken Adrien to cut up one. Granted, he also left a juicy mess on the counter, but it sounded like they were on too much of a deadline to worry about that.

Plagg tossed them into the pan, cores and all. Adrien frowned at that.

“I hope you know what you’re doing,” he muttered.

“What?” Marinette asked from where she was stretching out dough.

“Um, nothing! I just, uh, talk to myself while I cook.”

“Oh, me too. I was just trying not to do it in front of you. You know, in case I sounded crazy.” She laughed, seeming to release a little bit of tension. “I think I picked it up from my mom. She always says the steps out loud as she does them so she doesn’t forget which one she’s on.”

He smiled at the image of her doing this with Mrs. Cheng. “Did you cook with your mom a lot?”

“I don’t think I’d say a lot. I was pretty busy in lycée, and I didn’t appreciate her culture as much as I do now. I wish I would’ve learned more.”

“It looks like you learned a lot if you can put all this together.”

She brushed a strand of hair behind her ear. “Thanks. That means a lot.”

He retrieved the hazelnuts and tossed them into the pan. She still had her back to him, the baozi taking up most of her attention. Should he ask her to check his work so far? Plagg didn’t hesitate to nab some spices from the high cabinet and start sprinkling them into the pan.

“Wait—not that one!” he hissed, trying to drop the shaker that read chili powder before Plagg could add it.

“Adrien? Is something wrong?”

He spun, quickly shoving the container behind his back. “No! Everything’s just peachy—er, pear-y.”

She giggled at his joke, even though it had to be one of his lamest puns yet.

“Okay, but you can let me know if you need help. Sorry I just kind of threw you into this.” Her arm gently brushed his as she dialed back the heat on the noodles. “Um—is there a reason you’re holding chili powder?”

“I was just moving it so I could reach the, uh…”

Plagg helpfully directed his arm towards a different spice.

“... garlic salt?”

Marinette blinked, and he hastily shoved the garlic salt back, selecting cinnamon instead. He should’ve known that trusting the kwami who liked eating rotten cheese would be a mistake.

“You’re so funny, Adrien.” She laughed again. “But, um, you might want to double check your pears. I think some of those still have the cores in them.”

His face flushed. Thanks a lot, Plagg.

He picked out the cores with a pair of tongs, hoping that his kwami wouldn’t try to take over again. Adrien might be bad at cooking, but at least he wasn’t going to try and poison Marinette’s family.

Unfortunately, he didn’t have much idea of what to do next. He’d turned the burner on high, and the pears were starting to sizzle. How did nuts cook? That didn’t make a lot of sense to him. He probably needed something liquidy to go with them, right?

Aaaand the pears already smelled like they were burning. He quickly flipped back the knob while he searched for something to turn into a sauce. Milk? That would make it nice and creamy, right?

He grabbed the half-gallon from the fridge and splashed a bit into the pan. Drops splattered the counter, and he winced.

That was when Plagg again decided to take over. Adrien grit his teeth as he selected the block of muenster from the cheese drawer. That definitely didn’t belong in the crêpe filling, but Adrien couldn’t get him to stop without making a scene in front of Marinette. Who would then wonder why he was yelling at himself, and either think he was insane or find out his secret identity. Both of which would be unacceptable.

He growled, hoping Plagg would get the message. If he did, he didn’t show it. At least Marinette didn’t hear over her own soft humming.

The sliced cheese went into the pan, plopping wetly in the milk. Maybe the finished product would surprise him, and cheese and pears would create a tasty sweet-savory combo, and Marinette would be super impressed by his originality, and she’d invite him over to cook with him again, and they’d make a cute romantic dinner together …

He banished that daydream before he could think too much of it.

By that point Plagg was using his arm to whisk the milk and melting cheese together. The pears and hazelnuts had settled to the bottom of the pan. He frowned as the whisk failed to unstick them.

“This isn’t working,” he said under his breath. “We might need to start over.”

He swore he could hear Plagg’s irritated sigh. But the kwami jerked the pan up, taking it towards the sink.

“Hey, what are you—Plagg!” he shouted before he could stop himself.

Plagg dropped the pan in the sink, spraying hot milk-cheese-pear slime all over the backsplash. And all over Adrien’s apron.

And, most importantly, all over his face.

“Adrien!” Marinette dropped her unfinished dumpling back on the counter. Filling spilled out as she rushed to his side. “Are you okay? What happened?”

He hurriedly tried to splash cold water on his face, but spilled it more down his shirt than anything. She offered him a damp hand towel, which was much more helpful.

“I’m so sorry.” His face still burned, but not from the hot food.

“It’s okay! Accidents happen—trust me, I would know.” She smiled before her eyes widened. “Oh no, your beret!”

“What?” He slapped his hands to his head, prompting a tiny yelp from Plagg. So he was still there. Under his hat. Which was still on his head. Phew.

“It’s got milk on it.” Marinette reached up like she intended to take it off.

“No!” he shouted, and she stepped back, startled.

“S-sorry! I just thought I’d help you clean it off, since it seems so, um, important to you.”

“I like it with the milk on it. It adds, uh, character?”

He heard Plagg snicker from beneath the beret.

“Are you sure you’re okay?” she asked. “If you need to take a break, or, um, get a new shirt … n-not that I want you to take off your shirt! Uh—forget I said that.”

She shook her head, and more strands fell out of her bun.

He frowned down at his shirt. Unfortunately, the splatter had made it under his apron, and his shirt was pretty gross. He even felt a slimy pear sliding down under his collar.

“I’m okay,” he said. “Finishing all the food for your reunion is more important.”

“No, don’t worry. I can handle it. Just having you here to keep me from freaking out has helped more than you know.”

She took the towel back from him with a smile. Frankly, he was still surprised she wasn’t angry with him. He’d come to help, and all he’d done so far was waste her time.

“I’m really not bothering you?” he asked, rubbing the back of his neck. Bad idea. His hands were still a bit wet and sticky.

“You could never bother me, Adrien.” Her cheeks pinked before she turned back to fiddle with the soup.

“Really? I thought …” He bit his lip, remembering how many times he’d startled Marinette before. How many times he’d seemed to make her uncomfortable, or awkward, or … he wasn’t really sure what. There had always been something keeping them apart, no matter how close they became.

Maybe it’s just your little crush, Plagg would’ve teased. Thankfully, he wasn’t going to talk while trapped under the beret.

“Thought what?” she asked once she’d added some seasonings to the soup.

“I thought I’d be your last pick for cooking help,” he said, which wasn’t quite a lie. “I didn’t want to tell you, but I … well, I don’t really know what I’m doing.”

Best to just admit it now, rather than after he’d ruined her family reunion.

Marinette blinked before covering her mouth. “I’m so sorry. I should’ve known you probably never cooked at your house. And here I am just asking you to throw together a crêpe filling!”

“It’s okay! I’m the one who’s sorry. I should’ve told you, I just … I wanted to impress you.”

Maybe he shouldn’t have admitted that much. He was sure he heard Plagg laughing from under his hat.

“You … wanted to impress … me?” She pointed to herself, as if there was anyone else in the kitchen he might have been talking about.

“Is that really so surprising?”

“Uh—yeah, actually.” Marinette stared at him like he’d grown a second head. Plagg hadn’t peeked out, had he? “I might be able to cook, but you’re good at everything. Fencing, basketball, Mandarin—which took me ages to get halfway decent at—not to mention you’re drop-dead gorgeous—”

His heart stopped. Her eyes nearly bulged out of her head.

“I mean—you’re a model; of course you’re gorgeous! It’s literally your job. I bet people call you gorgeous all the time.”

“Not when I’m covered in slimy food, though.” He grinned. She thought he was drop-dead gorgeous! Maybe he hadn’t made too much of a mess after all.

“Well—you would be a lot more gorgeous if you took off that stupid beret!” She pointed at his head.

“W-what?” He pulled it down over his ears. “This is my emotional support beret. I can’t take it off or I’ll cry.”

“Why did you have to pick that one, though? It’s so—I don’t know!” She gestured vaguely. “It looks like a fourteen-year-old made it!”

He pouted at her. “Hey, be nice. It was probably fashionable in Brazil at the time.”

It did look pretty silly, but that was its appeal. Fashion-savvy Marinette probably wouldn’t understand that.

“R-right. In Brazil.” She shook her head. “Why do you like it though?”

He blushed. Aside from spitting in the face of the Gabriel brand, it also reminded him of the day Ladybug had appeared in his room. That serendipitous event had never happened before or since.

“How embarrassing does it sound if I say my old crush delivered it to me?”

“Your—your crush?” She blinked. “But then—you had a crush on Ladybug?”

The soup started bubbling again, but she made no move to quiet it.

“Of course I have a crush on Ladybug. I’m pretty sure all of Paris has a crush on—wait, how did you know Ladybug was the one to deliver it?”

Marinette’s face went pale. “I—um, well, I … I think the soup is burning!”

She rushed to stir it again, but Adrien caught her hand.

“Wait, Marinette, please.” His heart beat faster. He’d never told anyone about Ladybug’s visit. She hadn’t been surprised when he mentioned Brazil, either.

But what could he say? Come out and ask her if she was Ladybug? That would be too good to be true, right? Marinette couldn’t be Ladybug; he’d seen them together once. But he’d pulled crazy stunts to protect his identity too.

She bit her lip, but didn’t pull her hand from his.

“I can’t answer that question, Adrien.”

It wasn’t a confirmation. But it wasn’t a denial either.

It had been five years. Five years, and he still didn’t know who his partner was. If she was here, in front of him, after all this time …

… he’d still respect her choice not to tell him. As much as it hurt, he’d do it.

“Alright.” He sighed. “I get it.”

An uncomfortable silence pushed between them, punctured only by the bubbling soup and beeping oven. The first batch of Marinette’s baozi was done; she removed them without speaking.

Why couldn’t they go back to five minutes ago, when she’d called him gorgeous? He was already thrilled to hear Marinette say that. But if she was his Lady too? He’d melt just like that cheese in the pan.

It was going to drive him crazy if he thought about it too long. He turned on the faucet, hoping that the loud water would drown out his thoughts as he did the dishes. At least that was one task he could accomplish without ruining any more of Marinette’s food.

“I’m sorry,” she murmured, barely audible over the running tap.

“What for?” He was the one pushing the boundaries between them. If she was even Ladybug at all. Maybe he’d managed to misinterpret everything, but he couldn’t see how.

“For not being honest with you. I wish I could, I swear.” Her hands squeezed her dough, and it oozed out between her fingers.

“I’m sure you have your reasons,” he said with resignation. Ladybug was the Guardian. She couldn’t risk revealing her identity. Even if it felt unfair, he should be used to it by now.

But before, you didn’t think Ladybug was one of your best friends.

Even more than that, if he was honest with himself. He’d wanted to be closer to Marinette for a long time now. What if he was just deluding himself with wishful thinking?

“I wish I didn’t, sometimes,” she murmured.

He switched off the faucet and turned to face her. Maybe some things needed to stay secret, but not everything.

“Marinette?” He swallowed.

She looked up from where she’d been absently rolling the dough again. So much for not wasting her time.

“Y-yeah?”

He didn’t expect to confess to her while standing in her kitchen, with Plagg hiding under his old beret, with his clothes covered in the ruined crêpe filling. But it was important, and if he could finally admit it to himself, the least he could do was admit it to her.

“I don’t just have a crush on Ladybug.”

“You—you don’t?”

Was it just his imagination, or did she deflate a little?

“She’s still very important to me. I know she always will be. But I’ve come to realize how important you are to me, too.” He watched her face as he spoke, but her wide eyes were impossible to read. Hopefully he wasn’t ruining everything with what he was about to say.

“I like you, Marinette. As more than a friend. And I would never want to make you uncomfortable. All I’ve ever wanted is to be closer to you.”

For a moment, her face didn’t change. She just stood there, staring blankly, like someone had pressed a pause button. He would’ve thought Bunnyx had stopped time to reset his screw-up if it weren’t for the soup continuing to boil over.

“Marinette?” he prodded, his stomach beginning to bubble as nervously as that soup.

She jumped. “Yes, I—comfort you me make—yike lou—”

A stream of incoherent noises followed that. Oh no, he’d broken her! Why couldn’t Plagg have taken over and stopped him from talking?

“—ugh! I thought I dopped stewing this years ago!” She dropped her burning face into her hands.

Adrien reached out to touch her shoulder and then thought better of it. His arm fell limply to his side.

“I’m so sorry. You can just forget I said anything. I’ll—I’ll let you finish up the food and get out of your way—”

“No!” She waved her hands, startling him so bad he stepped back—and slipped in a puddle of spilled dishwater.

“Adrien!” She caught the front of his apron as he fell, but that just meant she was pulled down on top of him.

He yelped as his head cracked against the linoleum. At least she landed on his chest, his arms cradling her.

“Oh my gosh, I’m so sorry—AAAAAH!”

“What, what!?” He sat up as she scrambled off of him.

That was when he caught sight of the striped beret lying in the puddle next to him.

Oh no.

Plagg laughed nervously from where he was tangled in Adrien’s hair. “Hey, Pigtails.”

“Chat?” Marinette smacked her hands to her cheeks. “You’re—you’re Chat Noir?”

“Surprise!” Plagg wasn’t in Adrien’s line of sight, but he could hear the grin in his kwami’s voice.

“Where’s Bunnyx when you need her?” Adrien groaned. Not only was his confession a total bust, but he also ended up giving away his most important secret.

And he still didn’t know for sure that she was Ladybug.

“You’re Chat Noir.” Marinette plopped down into the puddle beside him. “Adrien is Chat Noir.”

“Yeah, yeah, we got that,” Plagg said. “Are you gonna put the poor kid out of his misery or not?”

“Huh?” She blinked.

“He’s in love with you. Hopelessly, stupidly in love with you. He loves you almost as much as I love cheese.”

That was a pretty big point in favor of Marinette being Ladybug. He guessed he should count himself lucky, but that also meant he’d just slipped and fallen in dirty dishwater in front of not only Marinette, but Ladybug.

He closed his eyes. “Plagg, please let me die in peace.”

“... Adrien?”

He felt her breath fan over his face, and his eyes back snapped open.

Her gray-blue eyes were hovering right above him. Well, he had said he wanted to be closer to her.

“Y-yeah?”

“Please don’t die,” she said softly. Her hand came up to cradle the side of his face—or maybe she was just trying to make sure he hadn’t bruised himself. “I l-love you too.”

Every one of his brain cells fizzled out. She. Loved him?

“I think I am dead.” He smiled, reaching his arms around her. “I’m pretty sure I just went to heaven.”

Her face flushed. “You’re always going to be that cheesy, aren’t you?”

“Are you really surprised, Princess?”

“No.” She leaned in, brushing her nose against his. “I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

“Ew, gross.” Plagg gagged. “This isn’t the kind of cheese I signed up for.”

“You’re the one who said she should put me out of my misery.”

“Yeah, well I think you both need to put this food out of its misery. The soup’s burning.”

Marinette sprung up, eyes wide. “Oh no! We still have to get everything ready! And the crêpe filling isn’t done and I haven’t finished the baozi—”

“It’s okay! We can still get it all done … somehow.” Adrien winced as he stood up. Now they were both covered in a mix of dishwater and crêpe filling. “Just keep Plagg away from it all. He’s the reason I ruined the pears. Oh, and he’s the reason I was wearing that beret, too.”

She went back to work as if nothing had changed between them. It was honestly kind of amazing how quickly she had the noodles and soup under control, like she hadn’t just been freaking out moments before.

“He’s got as awful taste in fashion as he does in food?” she asked.

“No—well, probably, but that’s not important. The beret was to hide him so he could help me cook. Like in Ratatouille.”

She blinked. “That works?”

“It would work better if my kwami knew how to cook, but yeah.”

“Hmm …” She tapped her lips—lips he would hopefully be able to kiss once all this was taken care of, he thought with a giddy grin—before snapping her fingers. “That’s it! I can’t believe I didn’t think of it before!”

“What’s it? Wait—Marinette, where are you going?”

“You’ll see!” She winked before disappearing behind her bedroom door.

He gave the soup a careful stir while waiting for her to come back.

“You’re welcome.” Plagg crossed his arms and smirked irritatingly.

“For what?” Adrien scowled. “All you did was give away my identity and embarrass me in front of the love of my life!”

“Love of your life?” Marinette appeared behind him.

He nearly knocked over the pot of soup. It was what he deserved for startling her so much back in lycée, he guessed.

Plagg snickered. “Bold words coming from the guy who called her a good friend earlier.”

“She is a good friend! And the love of my life! She’s Ladybug, Plagg!”

He pointed to the giant red-and-black egg in Marinette’s arms. The Miracle Box. She was Ladybug!

“You didn’t know that when you said it five seconds ago,” Plagg pointed out.

“Yeah, well—I guessed it,” he huffed.

It had been the only answer that made sense. And it was true. Hopefully he could blame the tears pricking his eyes on the onion in the soup. If not, though, crying over his amazing partner (who loved him!) was probably still the least embarrassing thing he’d done today.

Tikki poked her head out of a cookie jar. By now he’d been startled so many times that her presence hardly registered.

“Don’t worry, Adrien. Marinette has said way more embarrassing stuff than that.”

“Which we won’t repeat in front of him,” Marinette said dangerously.

His head was still spinning from all the revelations. Of course, he wasn’t too surprised—who else but Marinette was amazing enough to be Ladybug?—but it was still a lot to take in at once.

“While I definitely want to hear about that later, what’s the Miracle Box out for? Is there a kwami of cooking? Or do you think Sass could give us a Second Chance on all this mess?” he asked, trying to bring his focus back to the problem at hand.

“What you said about Plagg gave me an idea.” She punched in a code on the spots, and the egg cracked open to reveal the miraculouses. “He might not know how to cook, but I’m sure some of the other kwamis do. And if not, I’m sure they can follow directions.”

“Great idea, Marinette!” Tikki clapped. “Wayzz and Pollen are pretty good at cooking, from what I remember. Orikko is too, but you shouldn’t cook chicken in front of him.”

“Makes sense.” Adrien nodded before turning to Marinette. “You think they’ll be enough to make up for how badly I messed up?”

“Of course they will. We’re Ladybug and Chat Noir; there’s no mess we can’t fix.” She smiled as she equipped the bracelet and hair comb, then passed the Miracle Box to him. “Have Tikki help you pick out a few more kwamis. Together we’ll get this done in time. I know it.”

Relief washed over him, and he smiled back.

“As you wish, My Lady.”

XXX

“You’re sure I won’t be intruding?” Adrien asked as they pulled up to her parents’ bakery.

“Of course not. There’s no way my family would leave out my boyfriend.” She shifted her tupperware to her other arm and reached up to adjust his (newly cleaned) beret. “Even if he has terrible fashion sense.”

“It’s a Marinette original! There’s nothing more fashionable than that!”

“An original from when I was fourteen!” she pouted.

“It’s too late, Bugaboo. I’m never taking it off.” He kissed her forehead.

“I’ll make you a new one. Anything would be better than mixing lacy hearts and stripes.”

“I guess that’s fair. But I’ll still treasure this one forever.”

She rolled her eyes affectionately as she pushed open the bakery door.

Not long after, Adrien, Marinette, and her family were settled around the dining room table, a feast of French and Chinese cuisine in front of them. The two sides of her family mingled, mixing as seamlessly as the dishes. Rolland was deep in conversation with Wang about traditional cooking techniques in France versus China. Gina (who’d insisted he just call ‘Grandma’) was regaling two of Marinette’s cousins with tales from her travels. More of her younger cousins ran around the table, barefoot soles slapping against the hardwood floor, their hands occasionally reaching up to snag a dumpling or croissant. It was a tight fit, but Adrien didn’t mind. He was thrilled to be included at all.

While they ate dinner, he kept catching her looking at the hat. But every time she did, he’d make eye contact with her, and then she’d blush and smile bright enough that it was worth every glare.

“So, what are you up to these days, son?” Tom asked over his bowl of wonton soup.

Son. Already, Marinette’s parents felt more like family than his own. He would love to be part of her family for as long as she would let him.

Hopefully forever.

“Oh, not much.” He put an arm around Marinette. “Just learning how to cook from your amazing daughter.”

He winked, and she blushed again. Red was her color in and out of the suit, it seemed.

“He needs all the help he can get. You should’ve seen what he almost put in the crêpes today.”

Tom laughed. “Well, it looks like it all turned out perfect. Thanks for your help, both of you.”

Under the table, Adrien and Marinette shared a fistbump. This wasn’t the first adventure they tackled together, and it wouldn’t be the last.

#miraculous ladybug #fic tag #adrinette #adrienette #reveal #adrien agreste #marinette dupain cheng #tali writes #ml

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tired-college-student-writing · 4 years

Text

Tim’s Secret Weapon Pt.7

I’ve been slightly obsessed with @ozmav ‘s Damian Wayne/Marinette Dupain-Cheng pairing as of late, and just saw a post that has inspired me more than anything else has in months, so I felt the need to write it

Summary- Tim has always seen the numbers floating above people’s heads, been able to perceive their threat levels with a single glance. After being a hero for so long he thought he was desensitized to seeing high numbers above people’s heads until Damian brings a new friend home.

Part 1 Part 6 Part 7 (HERE) Part 8

This is out earlier than expected because my procrastination sucks ass

____________________________________________

The battle was fascinating to watch, to say the least. The team worked together like a well-oiled machine, making their acrobatic plan flawlessly after Marinette called for her ‘Lucky Charm’ and used the white paint she received along with Ryoko’s water powers to break the connection The Queen of Hearts had with her guards. This gave Abeille the chance to sneak in dive in and freeze her with her venom sting as Chat grabbed her bracelet and turned it to dust. Viperion seemed to not have an outright offensive move associated with him, but his time travel ability seemed infallible as he effortlessly redirected his teammates around attacks yet to come.

The Bats were left watching with respect as Ladybug caught the dark purple butterfly in her yoyo. From the second she had left them on the roof to when she tossed the paint can in the air, allowing her magic to fix all the damage done by the fight, only fifteen minutes had passed.

The five heroes grinned at each other, fist-bumping with a chorus of “Pound it!” before Chat and Abeille went up to the woman in her early 30s that had been the victim of the fight, and the other three turned to take off, Ladybug making a clear path back to the hotel, with the Bats on her heels.

They passed through the window they had left not long before just in time for Ladybug to flash bright pink once more. Tim flinched slightly as her number reappeared and slowly fell back to her normal 15. Alfred looked up from the chair where he was reading.

“Welcome back, Shall I call for refreshments?” He asked, placing the book down.

“Yes please,” Dick answered, “I feel like we’re going to be here for a while.

“Of course,” He hummed standing up to go to the phone, “Aw and Miss. Marinette, what food does your Kwami favor?”

The young girl jumped, eyes wide, “What!”

“Your Kwami, I saw the battle on the news, and assumed your Kwami will be famished after that much magic being used.”

“I don’t-”

A small red fairy-like creature flew out from Marinette’s jacket.

“It’s okay, Marinette,” The creature reassured before turning to the men in the room, “Hello I’m Tikki! I’m glad to finally meet all of you.”

Alfred’s face became unbelievably soft as he held out his index finger to the small creature, “Hello Madam Tikki, it’s lovely to meet you as well. What can I get for you?”

She giggled as she shook the offered finger, “No need to be so formal with me, Alfred, but I’m partial to cookies if you don’t mind.”

“Not at all, Tikki,” He said before striding over to the room’s phone, raising an eye at the still costumed Bats, “I would suggest getting dressed in something more appropriate before room service arrives gentlemen.”

“You dropped her title,” Jason countered instead of moving to change, “You never drop titles when asked!”

Alfred let out an amused huff, “Arguing with Kwamis over respect is a futile endeavor. Now do not make me tell you again. This is a conversation best suited for the Waynes, not the Bats.”

The Bats ducked into one of the adjoining bedrooms, as Marinette just blinked in surprise at the exchange.

“You’ve had experience with the miraculous before?” She asked as he hung up the phone, Tikki settling in her hair.

“I do,” He confirmed, “For several years I was a hero known as Emrys with the help of a very good friend named Duusu.”

Tikki gasped, “You’re a peachick.”

Alfred’s eyes misted slightly, “Yes, and I must admit I never thought I would be able to converse with another Kwami after losing the peacock brooch. I was devastated to hear that the butterfly had fallen into the wrong hands,”

Marinette was biting her lip as the Bats reentered the room, now in their civilian clothing.

Damian raised an eyebrow, “Is everything okay, Angel?”

“I just…” She looked at all of them, “This is a lot, how did we get here?”

The room glanced at Tim as he sighed and stepped forward and began his explanation once more.

Marinette took the information on how his powers worked really well, humming at certain parts as she looked deep in thought. Tikki was looking at him strangely, by the time that he had finished.

“You’ve been able to do this since you were born?” She questioned lightly, nibbling on one of the cookies that had arrived during his explanation.

He gave a nod, “As far as I’m aware. Why?”

The Kwami shook her head, “Just making sure.”

“Well that’s cryptic,” Jason drawled from where he was laying on the floor.

Marinette giggled, “Welcome to Kwamis, they give the most helpful cryptic insight you could ask for.”

Tikki stuck her tongue out at her user before both broke down into giggles.

Tim looked between them before finally asking, “Do you know the other Paris’ heroes secret identities?”

Marinette cocked her head, sitting up slightly from where she was snuggled under Damian’s arm, “All but Chat Noir’s, as when I took over the Guardian position I was the one that had to pick those that would receive the Miraculous. I’m guessing your powers gave them away?”

He gave a sheepish shrug, “It’s kinda hard to see a 12, 13, 14, or 15 over someone’s head and not put together their identities. Viperion is the only one I don’t know because I didn’t see him out of his mask.”

Dick raised a brow from his upside-down seat on the couch, “Was that why you were so weird at the school?”

“There were six people with 12s or higher,” He snapped, “And that creepy chick that called Damian ‘Dami-Bear’ was a 9.”

Jason gave a low whistle, “Damn, that’s a lot.”

Marinette looked surprised, “Six? But there’s only five miraculous out permanently on our side…”

“Yeah about that,” Tim said, “I’ve seen other users online, have Max or Kim from your class ever held a miraculous?”

“How did…”

“It’s rare to see people with the exact same shade of a color, even less so when they have the same number,” He explained, knowing his family was hanging onto his every word, “And yet Kim and Max both had a pure white 12, the exact same pure white 12 as Alfred. I think the miraculous might permanently affect the user’s danger level.”

“You only asked about Kim and Max,” Marinette put in, “But Alya and Nino also held miraculous before, what were their numbers.”

“Alya was the girl that started recording right? And who was Nino.”

“Yeah, and Nino was the boy with the bright blue headphones around his neck, red cap, and glasses.”

“She had an obnoxious orange 5, and He had a mossy green 4.”

“Why wouldn’t they have 12s then…”

Tikki was the one to answer, “Alya and Nino weren’t true holders, but Max and Kim are both true holders so I imagine that would affect Tim’s powers.”

All eyes fell on the small goddess.

“True holder?” Marinette asked.

She gave a small nod, “The Kwamis are much older than the human race and the miraculous, but when we began using humans to regulate our powers each Kwami blessed a handful of souls. As they go through the reincarnation cycle we can find our true users, who will always be more intuned with our powers than anyone else that could use our miraculous and our true users usually showcase abilities that go along with the concept the Kwami represents. After a true holder transforms for the first time Kwami’s can feel them, and recognize them as one of the blessed souls, though we don’t know what Kwami blessed their souls on that feeling alone.”

“So the 12s saw were true users that don’t have their miraculous,” Tim summed up.

“Most likely,” Tikki confirmed, “The others would be the ones that still hold their miraculous.”

The conversation goes on for a while as Marinette asks questions of Tim and he asks them right back. The rest of the family remaining silent as they soak in the information, all making mental notes on where to go next.

Bruce finally claps his hands startling the pair out of the intense debate they had gotten over whether his ability could be used to detect a potential Akuma victim before an Akuma got to them or not as the sunset.

“As insightful this discussion is,” He comments, “I believe it is time that we contact the rest of the League and make a plan on how to out Hawkmoth.”

“We should change and head for WE,” Damian suggested, “No one would be on the executive floor at this time so we can do a conference call without risk of being disturbed.”

When Bruce gave a nod all the Bats rose and headed to the bedroom.

“Before we call the league,” Marinette said quietly making them pause, “I need to do two things.”

Bruce nodded, waiting for her to continue, her city, her rules.

“Firstly I want to call my team, they should be there when we contact the league,” She said, turning towards Tim, “I would also like to inform them that you know who most of them are, and how you figured it out since it’s their secrets.”

“I’m willing to share with them,” He told her, “It’s only fair that they know the facts before we form.”

“Thank you,” She breathed.

“Now what else did you want to do?” Jason asked.

“Alfred,” She turned to the butler, “There’s something you should know about who we’re fighting.”

“Nooroo and his user?” He questioned with a raised brow.

She shook her head, “No, Hawkmoth may have been there from the start but a little less than a year into the fight another miraculous user joined him. Mayura and… her Sentimonsters.”

His strangled gasp sent a stab of pain through all the hearts in the room, “Not Duusu…”

She gave a grim nod, “Mayura is the current holder of the peacock miraculous. Though at first, her appearances were few and far between due to the brooch being damaged, they learned how to repair the damage shortly after I became Guardian allowing for her to make more regular appearances.”

None of the Wayne’s had ever seen Alfred look so pale, so worn out, so… old.

Bruce wrapped an arm around the butler’s waist pulling him towards the couch, making him sit gently.

“It’s okay, Alfie,” Bruce breathed as the others remained silent. Alfred was shaking slightly, unable to find his voice as he slowly held out a hand. Bruce clasped it tightly, sitting with the man that raised him in reassuring silence.

“Master Bruce,” Alfred’s voice was quiet as he continued to stare at their clasped hands, “I don’t normally ask anything of you except for you and the young masters to stay safe, but if I might make a request?”

“Anything, Alfred,” The man answered without a second of hesitation.

“Find Hawkmoth and Mayura and free Nooroo and Duusu as quickly as possible. Rescue them, please, no matter what it takes.”

“I promise,”

Alfred finally raised his eyes, a hard steely gaze flashing over his ward’s face, “Go.”

Bruce was on his feet and in the bedroom ready to change within a second, his sons not far behind him.

“I’m sorry Alfred,” Mari breathed only to be rewarded a shaky smile.

“It’s not your fault, Marinette,” He reassured, professional mask struggling to raise, “I believe it is time to call your team.”

“Tikki, spots on.”

____________________________________________

Thirty minutes later Ladybug found herself staring at her whole team in the art room of her school with the blackout curtains pulled tight over the windows, able to feel their buzzing energy overflowing the room.

Abeille was looking at her imploringly, knowing slightly what the meeting was about, but the fact that Ladybug had contacted not just the regular team, but the reserve members, Pegasus, King Monkey, and Bunnyx, as well had them all on edge.

“Is everything okay, bugaboo?” Chat finally broke through the nerves to ask.

She nodded slightly, taking a deep breath, “Earlier today before the Akuma, Abeille came across two foreign heroes.”

The rooftop stilled, eyes wide.

“Who was here,” Vipieion asked first.

Ladybug gave them all reassuring smiles, “Nightwing and Red Robin, and after making contact with Abeille, I met with the Batman, Nightwing, Red Hood, Red Robin, and Robin. They wanted to offer their help.”

“They finally answered!” Chat cheered causing the gathered heroes to break out in celebration, even Ladybug couldn’t stop a grin from spreading her lips.

Finally indeed. Three days after Stoneheart the original duo had tried to contact the Justice League, and then again a month later, and again, and again...

A year and a half into the fight against Hawkmoth they finally got a response, telling them the contact was for real emergencies, not for pranks. The response wasn’t even signed past the official Justice League seal.

For League associated heroes to be here in Paris, and willing to talk, it filled them all with the hope that the fight wasn’t going to last forever.

Ladybug let them enjoy the feeling for a few minutes before she called them back to order. The bright smiles pointed at her made the nervous twist in her stomach lessen slightly even as she readied herself for the next announcement.

“Before we met up with the League and determining a game plan, I think it is only fair to have us all on the same page,” She told them, “After speaking with the Gotham heroes they informed me that they figured out not only my civilian identity but, Chat Noir, Ryuko and Abielle’s as well.”

“What!” Bunnyx roared, “How dare they! The sneak sons of-”

“Stop!” Ladybug cut her off with a glare, “They did not go digging into our backgrounds to figure it out, and while they will explain in more depth when we go meet them, I can tell you that they discovered our identities because Red Robin is a Metahuman with an ability he can’t physically turn off, it was the same way he figured out who Batman and other heroes were long before he was Robin, and he’s never given away an identity without express permission.”

The room quieted down but still looked uneasy, She just sighed.

“That brings me to the next point. With the League finally answering us, I think we need to not waste the opportunity. If we’re going to finish this, we need to use every advantage we have against Hawkmoth and Mayura, which means we need to be able to work at all hours of the day.”

The room was silent as all the heroes tried to decide where she was going with this, but she just stared at her partner.

Chat maintained her eye contact, and she could see the exact second he put together what she was saying.

“Ladybug,” He spoke slowly, “Are you serious?”

She gave a nod, “I’ve spoken with my Kwami and I’ve decided that if all of you are comfortable with it, I think we should tell each other our identities.”

____________________________________________

Taglist: @vixen-uchiha @iggy-of-fans @mewwitch @roseinbloom02 @worlds-tiniest-spook-pastry @mochinek0 @royalchaoticfangirl @09shell-sea09 @mystery-5-5 @derpingrainbow @aloha-posts-stuff @hauntedfreakdeputyhero @maribat-archive @blue-peach14 @kae690 @zazzlejazzle @vincentvangoose @be-happy-every-day-please @xxmadamjinxx @celestiacq @peculiarlylostdreamer @dani-ari @melicmusicmagic @themcclan @nyctamaximoff @nataladriana9 @drama-queen-supreme @miraculousbelladonna @urbanpineapplefarmer @graduatedmelon @lexysama @hecate-hallow @ki117h3dr4g0n @vinerlover @interobanginyourmom @bluefiredemon @imanerddealwith @tinybrie @clumsy-owl-4178 @shizukiryuu @whogavemeaninternet @schrodingers25 @lunar-wolf-warrior @urbanpineapplefarmer @xxmadamjinxx @crazylittlemunchkin @littleredrobinhoodlum @rougemme @dur55 @phantommeow12 @kand-roo @silvergold-swirl @officiallyathiana @completelypeccable @redhoodsdoll @nataladriana9 @mariae2900 @northernbluetongue @sturchling @thesunanditsangel @reyna-avila-ramirez-alreanaldo @bobothyross @taoiichii @magnitude101999 @magicalfirebird @nataladriana9 @panda3506 @aquariusrunes @woodland-queer @sayarock121 @mindfulmagics @magic-miraculous @my-name-is-michell @naoryllis @slytherinqueen2432

#miraculous ladybug #batman #maribat #marinette dupain cheng #Tim Drake #meta!tim #Damian Wayne #dick grayson #Jason Todd #bruce wayne #Alfred Pennyworth #Alfred was a miraculous holder and you can't change my mind #chloe bourgeois #Adrian agreste #Kagami Tsurugi #luka couffaine #miraculous team

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2sunchild2 · 5 years

Text

Daminette au: When Karma bites back

Au created by the one and only Ozzie Osbourne @ozmav this is dedicated to you ♥️♥️♥️

Tags ûwû: @realrandomposts @slytherinsheashire @kelelamentia @justatempo-writes @maxdark158 @maribat-archive @mindfulmagics @chloe-bourgeois-is-big-gay @jaynintodd @miraculous-mangoes

===================================================

“Are you nervous?”

Marinette looked at her husband through the bathroom mirror. He was leaning against the doorframe of the hotel bathroom, looking at her with concerned eyes. She sighed and put her hairbrush down and turned around.

“About what? They already have their deluded opinions of me, I’m just going to see if they acquired any brain cells since high school.”

He said nothing. He simply chuckled and strolled towards her to embrace her in a comforting hug and tucked her head under his chin. They stayed like that for a good minute before he released her and cupped her face, “You’re a terrible liar, Angel.”

She pouted and pushed him away, “Shut up, I have to fix my hair, shoo.”

Damian smiled and walked out.

Marinette looked back at herself in the mirror and sighed.

“Tikki, would you mind helping me out?”

The kwami only let out a giggle.

$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$

“We can always back out you know,” she looked at her husband, “You don’t have to see them again.”

“Yeah I know, but I want to. I’m gonna the bigger person here.”

They drove quietly to the school, though the silence was interrupted by Damian’s laughter. Marinette’s eyebrow twitched. He was mocking her. She hated being mocked. Keeping her eyes on the road, she calmly asked him, “And just what, is so funny darling?”

“How can you be the bigger person if you’re so short?”

Marinette scoffed and parked the car, “I can kick your ass.”

Damian stared back at her lovingly, “I know.”

&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&& &&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&& &&&&&&&&

If you ever told eighteen year old Marinette she would come back to François-DuPont for a high school reunion, she’d laugh at you and would proceed to make fun of you.

As soon as she graduated from that hell hole, she attended Regal Academy to pursue her career as a designer, and she managed to find a tight knit group of friends. Felix joined her in designing, specifically men’s fashion, Allegra became a musician, Claude became a famous theatrical artist and Allen was a composer working with Allegra. She had other friends too, she was a social person after all. Luka, Chloe and Kagami. She cherished those idiots and loved them with all her heart. She and Chloe put their differences aside and turns out, they actually have quite a lot in common. During her last year of high school it felt like it was just her and Chloe against the world. And then Kagami and Luka came.

Her heart warmed at the thought of seeing Chloe again. She hadn’t seen her since the wedding five years ago. Yes, she was married. At twenty two she had accepted Damian Wayne’s proposal and they got married the next year. Sure, she married young, but when you and your fiancé are already doing very well in life you don’t need to worry about anything.

She felt Damian squeezing her hand for reassurance. She looked at him briefly before looking back at the gym doors.

Here goes nothing.

@@@@@@@@@ @@@@@@@@@ @@@@@@@@@ @@@@@@

Lila was a lawyer, a very successful one at that. She was rich, she lived a lavish life and she had a rich husband. Being Lila Agreste was amazing. That didn’t stop her from spewing lies fro her lips.

Her old classmates, except a few who didn’t care for her anymore, hung onto every word she told.

“Why yes, I did meet MDC. We didn’t get along at first but we managed to put our differences aside.”

It was no secret MDC was Marinette Dupain-Cheng. But the raven haired girl was far more successful than she was and she wanted people to know she still has connections to famous personalities.

Alya lightly flinched at the name, “Didn’t you and Marinette used to hate each other? You told us she used to bully you.”

Lila knew this question would come up so she smartly replied, “yeah well, we’re adults now. She apologized and we made up. We’re like this.” She crossed her fingers.

A loud scoff was heard and she, along with a few others, turned to see Chloe of all people standing there. Kim let out a low whistle and Alix elbowed him. She stood there in a gold dress that hugged her figure beautifully and she was dripping in jewels a champagne glass in hand.

“What do you want Chloe?” Alya rolled her eyes and put a hand on her hip. “Shouldn’t you be crying to your daddy about someone getting dirt on your tote? Oh wait— daddy’s in jail now for being a fraud right?”

The blonde only glared at the other girl and gripped her glass tightly. She took a deep breath, “I’ll have you know I no longer that connections to that spineless coward. I moved to New York with my mom and studied to become a human rights activist. But you wouldn’t know that, would you Alya? And just what are you doing now? Filming more gossip for your tabloid?”

Alya got predictably angry and wasbkut to hell at her before being stopped by Nino. He merely shook his head, telling her it wasn’t worth it, when she tried to defend herself.

“Chloe? Is there a problem?”

The rather large group turned to see none other than Kagami Tsurugi walk up to them. Chloe simply smiled, “No darling, everything’s fine.”

“You... you guys... are a thing?” Alya managed to spit out after the shock.

“Yes, is there a problem?” Kagami glared at the other girl who flinched and looked away.

“Kagami, don’t you think that’s a little rude?”

That voice gave Alya and Lila a sense of relief. There he stood, looking as good as he did in high school, just a tad bit more mature. His blond hair was cut short and his green eyes seemed to pierce through everyone’s soul.

“Adrien! Darling!” Lila yelled and jumped to hug him.

Chloe stepped back, eyes widened when she caught sight of a ring she realized what happened between those two. He got married. He got married to that lying bitch no less. He got married and... and he didn’t even tell her. He didn’t even invite her.

“I was just telling everyone how I met up with Marinette. I did give her the inspiration for her latest fashion line, after all.”

Chloe and Kagami opened their mouths to tell her off, knowing that Marinette got her idea when one of her employees told her how hard it was to find nice clothes in her size.

“You know,” a cold voice called out, “ I would appreciate it if you didn’t talk about my wife as if you actually know her.”

All heads turned to see a brooding man with black hair and the scariest green eyes they’ve come to know. He wore a fitted designer suit and stood tall, with the aura only a business man could have. And by the looks of it, he seemed to be a pretty successful one at that.

And right there, holding his hand was Marinette Dupain-Cheng. She looked stunning in the dark red red she wore. It was a simple backless halter top and the skirt of the dress had two long slits on each side that showcased her legs. She held herself with pride and most importantly dignity.

She scanned the room, ignoring the many eyes looking at her before they stopped on one couple. Her eyes widened with excitement and she could’ve squealed like a school girl.

“Chlo! Mimi!”

She grabbed her husband’s arm and dragged him across the room while she sped to her two friends and engulfed them with a hug.

“Oh I’ve missed you guys so much! How’ve you two been? Are the preparations going as planned? Do you still want me to make your dresses?”

A million questions were asked and the girls couldn’t answer any of them with how quickly Marinette was going.

“Angel,” her husband called her, she stopped and looked back at him, “Let then breathe a little. They’re won’t be able to answer any of your questions if you’re going a hundred miles per hour.”

Marinette smiled sheepishly, “I guess you’re right.”

There was a cough and the raven haired girl turned to see none other than her former best friend, Alya Césaire. Or Lahiffe. She was not invited to the wedding, but she was requested to make the dress. She only agreed because she was getting paid. Thought Alya did throw a fit for pay because “girl we used to be friends!”

Funny.

“Aren’t you gonna say hi?”

Marinette looked at her, genuinely confused, “Now why would I do that?”

“Aren’t you friends with Lila? You could at least eat civil and say hi to the rest of us.”

Marinette slowly blinked. Realization dawned on her quickly. Lila lies about her. She told them they were friends. They were far from it. If anything, Marinette hated that girl with every fibre of her being.

“I don’t recall saying I was friends with Lila,” she turned to Chloe and Kagami, “Do you girls remember me saying that?”

They shook their heads.

“Honey,” her husband looked up from his phone, “Do you remember me saying I was friends with Lila?”

“What? No. You told me you hated her ever since she threatened you in the school bathroom.”

Now it was Lila’s turn to flinch.

Her husband seemed lost in thought for a moment before snapping his finger, “And I remember you telling me how she told you she’d alienate you from the class, when she lied about napkins somehow being dangerous? Knowing Prince Ali. I know the man, he doesn’t know of a Lila by the way. Saving Jagged Stone’s cat, which he never had and being Clara Nightingale’s emergency contact? Don’t those two treat you like family Angel?”

“Damian, sweetheart,” she put a hand on his shoulder to stop him, “that’s enough.”

Lila glared at the man, “Who do you think you are?!”

He gave her a bored look, “A Wayne.”

Conversation stopped. Now everyone looked at the couple in the middle of the room. A Wayne. A fucking Wayne.

Shitshitshitshitshitshitshitshitfuck

“Hey now, let’s not argue about this,” there he was, trying to solve conflict like the fucking saviour he thought he was. Marinette scoffed and looked away.

“Mind your god damned business Agreste.”

“This is my business, Wayne. Especially if my wife is involved.”

Ah yes, another dress she was requested to make. She had charged extra for that dress because she was asked to make it a month before the wedding itself.

Damian simply glared at the blond boy, “You’re acting as if this doesn’t concern my wife either.”

“Damian, love, don’t bother. You’re better than this,” she put her hand of his chest and when he turned to look at her she smiled, “how about we get some champagne and sit at one of the tables yeah? Chloe? Kagami? Will you be joining us? “

“In a minute hun, we need to talk to them first,” Chloe replied dismissively and Marinette nodded.

“You have a lot of nerve trying to lie about her,” Kagami started, “ you know damn well she doesn’t want anything to do with you. And I’m sure you’ve made it clear you don’t like her, so why bother lying about it?”

Lila fidgeted. The classmates watched her expectantly. Fifteen seconds later Alix yelled out in frustration and dragged Max and Kim to the table to apologize.

“I... I.. um..” she started, not being able to form a proper sentence.

“You... you...” Chloe mocked. Adrien gave her a dark look but she didn’t flinch. She gave him a blank stare in return.

“You don’t actually know Jagged Stone, do you.”

“Was Spielberg a lie too?”

“Why’d you lie about everything?”

“Was it really all a lie?”

Lila, who couldn’t work this fast under pressure, walked away to the girls’ bathroom.

€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€

The couple watched the mess unfold and waited while several people came towards them with apologetic faces.

“Don’t you think that was a little harsh?”

“Angel, it was well deserved.”

They laughed together for what seemed like forever. She was happy where she was. She had accepted their apologies naturally because she was a kind person. The same couldn’t be said for Damian but it didn’t matter to the rest of the class.

Adrien watched her. She looked so happy. She smiled like that when they were younger. She smiled like that when they were running on rooftops on warm Parisian nights.

He traced the finger where his silver ring used to be. He missed those times. He missed being with her. Maybe if he stopped Lila when he could, things would have been different. Maybe he would’ve been on the receiving end of that smile. Maybe he would’ve been the one to embrace her like that. And maybe, just maybe, she would look at him the way he looked at her. But she didn’t. All because of his passive stupidity.

He caught her husband’s eyes, who immediately glared at him and sucked in a deep breath. He whispered something in her year and she looked back at him. And all he could do was look away. She didn’t spare him a second glance because she turned around and gave him a peck on the cheek.

££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££££

the end? maybe I’ll continue? This was getting long anyways. Should I make a part 2?

🤷🏼‍♀️ yes or no

#maribat fic #maridami #marinette x damian #marinette dupain cheng #alya salt #lila salt #adrien agreste #adrien salt #ml salt fic #miraculous ladybug au #miraculous ladybug

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xhanisai · 4 years

Text

Speak Now, Regret Later.

A/N: OKAY! So this anon sent an amazing ask to the terrible-akuma-ideas blog and I was instantly inspired to write something related to it- I legitimately burst out laughing and oh god I hope you all enjoy this! I think we all need a little breather from the Chat Blanc teasers. Without further ado, read on~

(Co-Posted on AO3 and FFN) ~(x)~

The silence has never been so loud. Not even a pin drop was to be heard in the park across the Dupain Cheng Bakery. The bespeckled couple along with their blonde companion stood as still as statues, arms stretched out and mouths gaping with fear and failure. They were too slow to save their friend...if only they were a second faster...if only one of them was even a smidge closer to the raven haired girl... Marinette could have sworn that her heart stopped beating, hands clamped against her mouth and eyes close to bulging out of their sockets. The cackling akuma before her, dressed in the most hideous attire ever since Le Bubbleur made his debut. The akuma's hands stop glowing in its sinister, gold colour along with Marinette's body. "Heh, now I wonder what interesting inner thoughts will escape you now, Class President!" The akuma- also self-claimed as 'Unprivatiser', cocked his head to the side in mock innocence. The akuma's power seems to have control over Marinette's hands as well from the way they were slipping down from her mouth despite her iron will. "Will they be as embarrassing as mine? Will they humiliate you just like the way everyone else humiliated me? Will we finally see if Miss Perfect of our collegé really is perfect?"

Marinette naturally sunk her teeth into her lips, shaking and attempting everything to keep her mouth shut. One wrong move and she could blurt out her secret identity, dooming Paris along with her normal life and fail her partner. "Leave her alone!" Adrien bellowed, finally getting his legs to move and formed a human wall between the akuma and Marinette, arms spread wide. Nino and Alya yelled in agreement, forming the wall with him to protect their girl. "Why did you shoot her when she's the one who helped you back up? I thought you'd go for Chloe first!" The emerald eyed boy made subtle gestures to Alya and Nino, indicating that they take Marinette away whilst he stalls Unprivatiser for some time. Unknowingly to them, he was risking his secret identity too and judging with how Plagg's claws were digging into his chest through the inner pocket, he doesn't have much time and he better not mess this up. "That's the thing! Just because she helped me back up doesn't mean she didn't have any nasty thoughts running through her head. I want to know what she really was thinking when she supposedly helped me up. Did she think I was pitiful and gross? Did she think I was a tramp? It feels too good to be true for the school's sweetest girl in the world to help out a boy who pissed himself without any judgemental thinking, right?" Suddenly, Marinette's will completely shattered and her mouth opened without consent. "Oh my God, oh my God! If anyone finds out that I take bites out of Kit Kats, they'll have my head!" The girl grasped her hands back towards her mouth, oblivious to everyone else's dumbstruck faces and internally begged her body to listen to her mind. Her hand and mouth seemed to think otherwise. "I also like drinking ice cold water straight after brushing my teeth because the sting helps wake me up better than coffee!" Was the next thing Marinette blurted out. The only thing she could do was pace and her hands tugged on her twin tails. Nino and Alya exhaled in relief, thanking heaven for not ruining Mari's day. "Hey- Le Papillon? What the hell is this?" The butterfly silhouette appeared over Unprivatiser's face, irritation pumping through his veins. Thus, a one-sided argument was heard and Adrien took the opportunity to usher his friends out of the danger zone. He kept his hands behind Marinette's shoulders and nodded towards the others to follow him so that they can hide elsewhere. Much to his dismay, Alya had her phone whipped out to livestream the villain whilst Nino slumped to his knees in hopelessness. Once his girlfriend makes a decision, she sticks to it, no matter what. Shaking his head, he supposed that with them two out of the way, it would be easier to find a secluded place to transform. First, he needs to get Marinette to safety. "We'll head to your bakery, how does that sound?" Adrien asked gently and squeezed her shoulders reassuringly as he sped them towards her home. "N-N-No! Ack! Your father is supposed to be a fashion designer so what's with the revolting candy cane, white mocha frappuccino, whipped cream looking ass clothes he wears on a daily basis!?" The girl snapped her hands back against her mouth in horror, wishing for the ground to swallow her up. "White...mocha...frappuccino...?"

That's it... Forget about secret identities... She's clearly going to be hated by Adrien forever, never get married with him and have their three kids and a hamster, also get blacklisted from every fashion industry in Europe and die ALONE- "Pffft-" Her pitiful monologue within her chaotic mind was halted by an uncharacteristic snort from the blonde. That soon turned into laughter despite Adrien holding a fist against his lips. Before they knew it, he burst out laughing like no tomorrow, hooting against the wall and clutching his stomach. Tears streamed out of his eyes as he kept repeating what she said over and over again. Marinette didn't know whether to be embarrassed or savour this moment; it was the second time she's ever heard him laugh so freely ever since he gave her that umbrella in the rain. "W-W-White mo-mocha frapp-frappuccino! Oh man! I can't unsee that now! Hahahah!" He collapsed on the floor, ignorant to any passerbyers' worried glances or mischievious expressions. "I can't believe it! Pffft!" "If you keep laughing like that, you'll make the sun envy you because of how much you shine compared to it..." Her tone was soft and loving at first but Marinette quickly gritted her teeth to prevent herself from saying anymore. Damn akuma...damn Adrien and his beautiful laugh! The boy appeared to be awestrucked from her words, clearing the laughter away from his system and butterflies erupted in his stomach. He lowered his eyes sweetly with a chortle, cupping one of her hands with his and beamed. "Thank you, that's very sweet of you, Marinette," He didn't mind the way his heart richotated against his chest like it usually does around Ladybug. He's already had his freakout from his sudden discovery of his growing feelings for his shy classmate, months ago. Or perhaps they were there all along? He's not going to admit it out loud to avoid a smug, insufferable kwami though. "Not as sweet as the three containers of sugar I devoured when I was five." The poor girl smacked her forehead and growled, cursing the akuma whilst it continued to argue with Le Papillon in the park. Adrien bit his lip to avoid laughing again. Though it was oh so tempting to tease her... It wouldn't harm anyone, would it? Just to let a bit of his Chat Noir side seep out? "Is that so~?" He smirked. Marinette instantly grasped his game, a cute scowl took over her face as she took a step back. Adrien took a large step forward in retaliation. He should go and transform right now...but teasing Marinette is so fun! Surely Ladybug won't mind if he's late for a minute or two, considering how harmless the akuma is? "When I first saw snow, I thought it was icing sugar and proceeded to try and eat it." Mari sucked her teeth in, walking backwards, trying to get away from the devious blonde. "How adorable, do tell more," He followed her steps, arms behind his back. He didn't care that they were headed to some random direction instead of the safe destination he wanted Marinette to be at earlier on. "Grrr- I freaked out when I visited a farm a couple of years ago because some chickens stole my crisps. They were roast chicken flavour and I thought they committed cannibalism!" "Oho?" "Turns out, they were only artificially flavoured." "Thank God for that," "I wish God was nice to me for once and allowed me a day where I don't embarrass myself." She systematically glared at the sky before back at the snickering model. "I wouldn't say that this is embarrassing," "Yeah you're right, not as embarrassing as when I accidentally called Monsieur. Damocles 'Papa' last week," "I think that's also very cute." Adrien's grin broadened when Marinette's back hit a lampost, leaving her no room to run now. The cat and mouse game has finally come to an end- an inside joke he sadly couldn't say out loud despite how fitting it was for the situation due to secret identities. "Not as cute as that little baby with its parents over there, I hope one day my kids look as cute as them," Marinette was distracted by the family scurrying away from the park, a subtle smile rested on her lips. Adrien felt his heart skyrocket and let out an inaudible gasp. He leaned into her face, prompting her to flush and look away. She so was going to kill him after the akuma is purified. "They definitely will be since their mother is so beautiful," Boldly, Adrien brushed his knuckles against her fringe, gazing into her with such strong intensity that Marinette could have sworn that she was looking at... Chat Noir. "You remind me of a certain feline who made himself home with half of my heart,"

Sapphire orbs and emerald orbs widened simultaneously with matching gasps, inducing the former to dash off with a squeal and bidding goodbye to any potential romantic chances she had with Adrien. After all, who on earth compares their best friend to their crush when he's flirting with you? Why was he flirting with a klutz like her in the first place?! "You have terrible tastes in women!" Marinette cried out mournfully, not looking back to see Adrien's reaction. If she did, she would have seen how his face took on a raspberry hue, one hand grasping his face and eyes still wide. His heart thundered and his body shook ever so slightly. "Plagg...? Does that mean...she's still in love with Chat Noir?" The lazy God popped his head out of his safe pocket and narrowed his eyes with a smirk. "Ooooh? What's with that face? I thought Princess was 'just a friend' to you, kid." This caused the blood to flare up in Adrien's cheeks again. He could feel the vibrations of Plagg's quiet laughter for goodness sake! Swallowing down his pride, Adrien shook his head. "Don't tease me now...you're the first to point out my crazy crush on her anyways..." Plagg didn't get a chance to retort back as the sounds of the akuma yelling and the crowd scattering filled the air. "Anyone who disagrees with the fact that mayonnaise and pizza is a Godly combination, deserves to face my wrath! Especially the pineapple-stans!" "If I have to suffer with the fact that our intestines are basically eels in our body, so do you!" "I can't break the habit of dipping my fries in my milkshakes..." "My boss still hasn't realised that I'm the one who stole his donuts!" "I feel like pissing on the moon." "What is love~! Baby don't hurt me! Don't hurt me! No more~" "I don't know whether to be horrified or amused with how similar Gabriel Agreste's hair looks compared to a duck's ass- oH SHIT HIS SON HEARD ME-" Stifling another laughing fit, Adrien darted off to a remote alleyway to finally transform. Contrary to popular beliefs, everytime someone makes a dig or jab at his father, Adrien can't help but agree most of the time. There is no justification for such horrendous hair after all- and his daily clothing now that he thinks about it. "Heheh...mocha frappuccino though Plagg..." His snickers started to build up, regardless to his kwami's groans. Thankfully, he composed himself in a matter of seconds and transformed. ~(x)~ "Long time no see, My Lady!" Chat Noir performed a perfect acrobatic flip, landing elegantly on his feet and grinned with his iconic cheshire smirk. It was wiped off after Unprivatiser dodged another one of Ladybug's yoyo swings whilst she tried to clamp her mouth shut with her free hand. She leapt back so that she was by Noir's side, smiling painfully before smacking her hand back on her lips. Chat suddenly realised the severity of the issue, letting out a colourful swear for wasting time earlier on and was about to clasp his hands against her lips when her hands fell. Ladybug CANNOT reveal her identity! "It took you long enough you slowpoke! Any second later and I'd have blurted out how I fell asleep in my bowl of cereal this morning!" Well, too late for that. "Where were you? Busy flirting with other girls? Hmmph!" It was literally killing the boy to not laugh right now. "Just the one, Bugaboo~ You remind me of her a lot so I suppose I have a type?" Chat mused out loud, dodging the beams that Unprivatiser threw. Whilst the villain shrieked for their miraculouses, the black cat continued. "Jealous?" He twirled his baton to deflect more of the beams, in sync with Ladybug twirling her yoyo. "I shouldn't be but I bloody I am," Just like that, Chat Noir's whole world came to a halt and Ladybug's pride was finally tattered to smithereens. "W-What?" "Don't make me say how you've already infected half of my heart with your stupid gooey kitty eyes and dumb affections and annoying power of turning my heart into a jackhammer every time you're near!" The blonde teen couldn't believe his ears. "Holy shit..." He whispered softly. "This isn't real..." Their distraction costed them dearly. The duo was instantly engulfed in the akuma's golden beam, the boy admonishing for the jewels once again and made his displeasure of their 'flirting' clear. "Just hurry up and gimme! I have the most dumbest power ever and if I get those jewels, butterfly man will give me an upgrade so that I can finally teach Bourgeois a lesson!" Unprivatiser ignored the old villain's muttering of "It's Le Papillon you brat..." in his mind, getting ready to tackle the heroes. "I'm already a bit of a stereotypical blonde dummy and I don't need your dumb powers to dumb me down even further! Though to be fair the amount of anime I have watched has stunted my view on social norms-" Chat spluttered out without control, close to slapping his hand against his lips by instinct. However, he processed his words and hummed. "This isn't too bad, right Lovebug?" He cheekily elbowed her side with a wink, heart fluttering from her sudden confession and mind still trying to process that. "At least you didn't have to make a fool out of yourself in front of the two boys you love," She dragged them both away to another rooftop with the swing of her yoyo. She really wanted to just get rid of this akuma and run back home without a word but her mind was already combusting to the brim with unsaid words that desperately wanted to be spilled. "You love me too?!" Chat almost lost his footing. "B-B-But I think I love the other girl too-" "FANTASTIC! Perfect timing! The moment I lost my chance with the other dumbass and finally confess to you after so long-" "That long!?" "MISS WONDER GIRL decides to show up and now you're smitten with HER!" "To be fair, I was crushing on her ever since I met her-" "REMARKABLE! I really am destined to be alone! All cos I told him that he reminded me of you!" "Wait- WHAT-" Chat Noir didn't get a chance to comprehend the puzzle he's accidently solved. "JUST. GIVE. ME. YOUR. MIRACULOUSES!" Unprivatiser shot himself against the building the heroes were standing on like a bullet, demolishing it into pieces. He was fast but they were much faster. Ladybug and Chat Noir landed on the barren street. Their bodies seem to be on attack mode but their minds were still in a huge mess. "OhMyGodOhMyGodOhMyGodOhMyGodOhMyGodOhMyGodOhMyGodOhMyGodOhMyGodOhMyGodOhMyGodOhMyGod-" Was all that Chat was able to muster, never letting his lovestruck eyes leave his Lady's form as she summoned her lucky charm. "I knew it, I called it, I KNEW THAT YOU'RE- wait...is that Lucky Charm..." . . . "...White mocha frappuccino? Like Gabriel Agreste's ugly clothes?" Neither her nor Unprivatiser were able to exchange anymore words as Chat Noir abruptly collapsed into a puddle of guffaws and laughter. His fists slammed against the floor and he was unable to stop the words from spilling his mouth over and over again. "Oh man...it was only ever one guy I made myself a fool of..." Ladybug sighed out, albeit fondly. She'll freak out later but for now, she's got a job to do. "N-Now, now! I recall mentioning that it was cute a few time, Princess," Chat heaved himself off the floor, leaning against his Lady's shoulder for support so that he doesn't fall into another laughing fit again. "...It's not fair that you've barely said any embarrassing things despite getting hit by the beam," Ladybug puffed a cheek out, tossing the frappuccino at the akuma's lower midriff when he tried to attack again, soaking him instantly. "That's because I am the incarnate of embarrassment anyways. Plus, I always say what's on my mind regardless. Like that one time I asked what Pere and Mere were doing in the dark when I stumbled into their room- I think I was five? Maybe four-" He softly cataclysmed the cloak that Unprivatiser wore, replaced by ashes and a fluttering corrupted butterfly. The magic wore off and in place was a timid looking boy wearing the spare clothes that the school gave him after his accident. "Weren't they hugging? That's what my parents always tell me every time I enter their room after hearing weird noises." She purified the butterfly and performed the miraculous cure. "Oh my God...are you really that innocent?!" Chat only received a confused blink from her. A blush took over his face and his need to protect her increased by tenfolds. ~(x)~

The dynamic duo comforted the poor boy for a bit, giving him an extra confidence boost before leaping away as their final minutes beeped in their miraculouses. Naturally, Ladybug and Chat Noir chose a deserted classroom in their school as their destination, considering how lunch time was almost over. A heavy silence was left in the air and the two couldn't help but look anywhere else but at each other's eyes. Their transformation crackled away in sync, leaving behind two astonished teenagers and their hungry companions (the kwamis dived into Marinette's purse to ensure that their charges had some privacy). It was one thing to know. It was another thing to see. Marinette connected her two pointer fingers, looking down at them as her cheeks pinkened into a delightful sakura shade, tempting Adrien to kiss them. The boy in question had a hand itching the back of his head but couldn't help but let a silly smile grow on his lips. One look at his face had Marinette's follow suit. They snickered at first, trying hard to stay composed but one more glance at each other caused them to break out into giggles. What an eventful day! "I can't believe I got outed by a frappuccino- heh!" Adrien joyfully opened his arms, inviting Marinette to step into them so that he could wrap her in an embrace. The girl wrapped her arms around his waist, sighing happily into his chest. "Don't know if it beats me getting outed by confessing that I confessed to you that I liked you...?" Her nose scrunched up charmingly. "That makes no sense." "You rejected me, for me, I rejected you, for you but fell in love with you despite you and you fell in love with me despite me, yes, ten out of ten sense in the romance department." Marinette rolled her eyes at Adrien's dramaticness. "All of this drama and heartache could have been resolved if it weren't for the identities, Chaton! Ugh!" "Please...my brain hurts too much already from all of this." "I want to go home and scream into my pillow, or devour every single pastry at the bakery...anything to keep my mouth busy," "Oh?" Slowly, Marinette pulled away, only getting as far as a few centimeters away due to the way Adrien's arms locked itself around her body. He didn't seem to intend on letting her go anytime soon. "You could..." She bit her lip, not missing the way his eyes flickered down there for a second. "Kiss me instead?" Adrien's eyes darkened at her request and brought his hands to cup her cheeks and tilt it upwards so that their eyes could meet. He moved closer with a careful procision. He tilted his head at a perfect angle and his fingers dug into her dark tresses. Their foreheads were now touching, letting their hair entangle with one another and their chests were pressed against the other. Marinette let her eyes flutter shut the moment she felt his warm breath hit her lips whilst her heart was close to exploding in anticipation. Their lips brushed every so softly and then- "You know, we still have to talk about your unlawful ways of eating a Kit Kat." The moment was gone. . . . ~(x)~ A/N: It's almost five in the morning... I hope you're all h a p p y .

#my writing #my fanfiction #ml #mlb #ml fanfic #miraculous Ladybug #miraculous Ladybug and chat noir #ladybug #chat noir #adrien agreste #marinette dupain cheng #alya cesaire #nino lahiffe #gabriel agreste #plagg #tikki #i'm gonna sleep so goodnight #well more like morning

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zekroudon · 4 years

Text

The Song of our Hearts (Lukadrien June 2020)

@lukadrien-june

Day 29 & 30: Hand-holding & I love you

After many trials, many bumps, and hiccups on his road, Luka has finally reached his big day; the wedding day where he gets to proclaim his love for the whole world to see. The day where he gets to say I do. You can read it on Ao3 as usual here.

To be honest, my original idea for the I love you prompt was to have Luka looking at Adrien and Marinette being a happy couple together while he wonders what could have been like if Adrien had chosen him. I felt horrible for ending with such angst, so I'm glad I had the idea of their wedding, even though it's more cliché and straight-forward.

It feels surreal to have finally reached the end, the last prompts. When I started writing this back in May, I had no clue how far it would go, since it is my first themed month prompt. I feel like it helped me grow as a writer. Thanks to the amazing people on APS who supported me along this journey. A big thank you for the people who organized this event, it was really awesome to be a part of it. A big thank you also to all of you who read along and left kudos/likes/reblogs and commented, it means a lot.

Life in Paris is slowly returning to what it used to be before the madman terrorized the city for years. People are now allowed to feel, to cry, to be hurt and angry, to be human without fear of purple butterflies or world-ending craziness happening every day. Deep down, Luka saw the wedding as proof that love always wins in the end. That love allowed them to defeat Hawkmoth and it would allow them to rebuild themselves. It is surely still not perfect, but in the end, nothing is really perfect.

Except for the wedding.

Everything had been overseen by their usual team, except with a change in leadership, but instead of fighting akumas, they had been planning a wedding. Luka couldn’t be prouder of what they had accomplished. Nino prepared multiple playlists and remixes based on the fiancés’ requests. Alya took charge of the news and media part, being the only journalist allowed, and the meal along with her mother. Chloe handled the reservations for the park and the different pieces of equipment needed, and though she didn’t admit it outright, Luka knew she had pulled a few strings to get what she believed was best. She may have changed for the better, but she was still her Chloe self. They had chosen a small park in the less crowded suburbs of Paris. They still had to hire some security guards for Adrien’s crazy fans as well as for the people who threatened him for his father’s actions. Adrien got to choose the pastries with the Dupain-Cheng, but he had been forbidden to see the cake. Tom and Sabine wanted it to be a surprise for their “adoptive son” and his fiancé. Kagami helped Marinette decorate and kept her on track, as the fashion designer also took care of the suits and dresses for the couple, best man and maid of honor. Luka chose the band, to no surprise, he chose his own group, Kitty Section. Adrien had rolled his eyes, but he put up no fight against Luka’s smile. He also took care of coordinating everyone and kept an eye on the budget.

As the sky slowly turns to dusk, the guests slowly arrive at the park, the rows of seats filling up rather quickly. Luka spots some of Adrien’s old classmates and fellow ex superheroes, as well as their families. Juleka walks in wearing a beautiful black and purple dress that reminds Luka of the night sky with galaxies. Rose is by her side, in her pink puffy summer dress. Juleka keeps tugging on their mother’s arm so she doesn't bother Nino for his lack of enthusiasm by putting the volume so low. Chloe enters in typical fashion, trying to catch everyone’s attention. She wears a yellow dress, one of Marinette’s newer designs. Alya kisses Nino’s cheek before he exits the park to go help Adrien prepare. The small crowd’s cheers and intermingling voices create some sort of unharmonized melody, though it makes its beauty in Luka’s opinion. So many people, all with different songs, different stories, though all their paths crossed to bring them all here to celebrate love.

Someone lays a hand on his forearm and tug on it lightly. Luka looks down and dives into the bright blue eyes of a little girl. “Just like her mother’s”, he thinks. She wears a beautiful light green dress that reminds him of Adrien's emerald eyes. He crouches so they’re at eye level.

‘’Is there a problem, Emma?’’ He asks. ‘’Mamma is waiting for you. She says that if you don’t hurry, she’ll marry uncle Adrien herself.’’ She replied looking worried. ‘’I’m sure Kagami wouldn’t be happy, but let’s go. Things tend to get ugly when your mothers are mad.’’ ‘’Also Mika and Mamma lost the rings but Tikki and Trixx found them. Uncle Adrien was so worried that he ate camembert. Mika did too and threw up.’’

Now definitely worried, Luka took the little flower girl in his arms and ran towards the tent where the maid of honor waited for him with the ring bearer.

‘’It’s so high up here, I hope I’ll be as tall as you when I grow up!’’ She tells him, looking at the sky.

Luka chuckles as he reaches the tent and sees Marinette with her wife, both small in stature, but incredibly strong, determined and fearsome. Flashbacks to the final battle against Hawkmoth and Mayura and how relentless they had been with Nino, they never stood a chance. They learned the hard way that you do not hurt Adrien.

‘’Even if you do not grow as tall as me, I know that you’ll be as strong as your mothers, my little harmony.’’

He gently lays her on the ground and she goes running to Mika trying to tackle him into a hug.

“EMMA! I’m cawwying the rings!” “Mika! I want a hug!”

Marinette stands between them to keep another catastrophe from happening again. She gives her daughter the flower petals basket.

“You’ll get plenty of hugs later, Emma. I’m sure everyone will want to hug you.” She tells her. “Not me! I do not want hugs, they are so bleurgh!” shouts Luka’s son.

Marinette looked into the man’s eyes, clearly showing that a certain kwami spent too much time with him. Luka shrugs as he knows full well that Mika and Plagg are nearly inseparable, his purrs lulling him to sleep every night. His jet black hair and sparkling green eyes made him look like Luka and Adrien’s son, but it also made him look like a human version of the cat kwami. Her eyes softened as she took his hand in hers.

“Are you ready for your big moment?” She asks. “I guess so, I’m just super nervous. What if he doesn’t like what I prepared for him?” “Luka, Adrien would love anything you did, even if it was just being there. Don’t worry.” “Don’t worry Daddy, Papa will love your song! If he do not, I will throw his ring in the hole thewe.” Mika says while pointing to a nearby manhole cover. “It’ll be okay, kitty, Papa will like it...” “I’m going to see Plagg!” he declares as he runs off, the rings still safely pinned to the cushion in his tiny hands.

---------------------------------------------------------------------

“Papa, you have to love what Daddy has pwepared for you! He thinks you won’t like it! Where is Plagg? I found a shiny stone for him.”

Adrien chuckles as his son enters the tent where he was preparing with Nino and the Gorilla. He’s glad that most people at the wedding knew about the kwamis or it would have been a nightmare to keep the secret when this little guy ran everywhere calling for his magical friends. He pockets the stone and takes Mika in his arms. He resists the urge to ruffle his hair or Juleka would have a word with him.

“Are you ready?” He asks him. “Yes, Papa!” “Alright, is everyone here?” “I think so? Alya just texted me that the last guests sat down at their spot.” Replied his best man.

Just as Nino finished speaking, the music started, indicating the start of his last few minutes as a fiancé.

“Okay, I can do this!” Mutters to himself Adrien.

Nino walks out with Mika to follow Marinette and Emma while Adrien waits for Luka to reach the stage at the front with his mother. He wipes his sweaty palms on his pants. What if Mika trips and they lose the rings again? What if an angry lawyer from Gabriel comes in to deny the wedding because of some stupid contract he would have signed when he was a child? What if Lila shows up and tries again to mess things between him and Luka? Maybe he would trip and tear his suit, ruining Marinette’s amazing design. A strong hand gently shakes his shoulder, bringing him back to Earth. He looks aside to see his bodyguard smiling at him reassuringly. He may not say a lot, but his presence has long been a reassuring one in Adrien’s life and the blond is happy to have him stand as his father at his wedding, he deserved it.

Plagg flies through the fabric of the tent. He is wearing his usual mask of indifference, but Adrien knows that he’s just as excited if not more than Tikki.

“You’re up, kid. Tikki wants me to tell you that she loves you and that she is happy for you. Also, do you have any camembert, I’m hungry and there is no cheese!" ”Here, I brought some for you. Mika gave me a rock to add to your collection…” “Ohh, it’s sparkly! I’ll add it to my box of precious things…” “Don’t you mean your pile of dirty socks and rotten cheese?”

The kwami glares at him before leaving with his piece of camembert to meet back with his friends.

Adrien closes his eyes and inhales deeply before stepping out of the tent. His ex-bodyguard walks next to him as the entrance to the small clearing where everyone sat grows nearer. The white decorated screens hide the crowd from him, but he hears their cheering and Nino’s music. A fond smile graces his lips as he realizes that it’s the song Luka wrote for them, the combination of both their heart songs. He would never stop to amaze him, whether it be by being such a good father to Mika, an amazing future husband, a great listener with good advice, and one of his best friends who kept by his side no matter what.

The blond steps forward to the entrance, the sight of everyone looking at him barely a small bass compared to when he catches sight of Luka. He nearly stops in his tracks, too amazed by the man he is going to marry. It is as if a full orchestra is playing in his body, entrancing him.

Luka’s aqua blue eyes are filled with fondness and love, enhanced by some eyeshadow and eyeliner that melts Adrien’s legs. His hair is placed in a man bun, though it is classier than his usual, a few strands of hair remain free, keeping the look he loves so much. He wore a black waistcoat with teal blue lines embroidered on the side, reminding Adrien of snakes with staffs and notes. His white shirt gradually turns to a teal-ish blue on his sleeves, which he rolled up to his elbows, exposing his toned forearms and his snake tattoo. There are a few bracelets on his wrists, including the one he and Mika made for when he leaves on tours so they can be with him anywhere. The fairy lights hung in the trees over him make his engagement ring shine and give the park a magical vibe. Marinette could not have made anything that would be more Luka for their wedding and Adrien was impressed by his friend and superhero partner once again.

Wiping the tears that started to gather in the corner of his eyes and trying not to ruin his makeup, Adrien starts to walk towards the man of his life once again.

----------------------------------

Luka's mouth forms a perfect “o” when Adrien steps in front of him. Even though he has seen so many of his old and more recent photoshoot pictures, he never looked as angelic, ravishing, and handsome as he does walking towards him between the rows of guests. Contrary to what that horrible man who was once his future husband’s father, Marinette had managed to design something for him that was simple, fancy and so Adrien at the same time. His fiancé wears something similar to him, a black waistcoat with a white shirt. The waistcoat has little cat paw prints embroidered on the sides in light green. He even spots a small cat among them on his back playing with little stars. His white shirt fades to green on his sleeves, making Adrien’s emerald eyes pop. Juleka also graced him with eyeliner and eyeshadow. His blond hair has been cut in an undercut and Lukas’s breath is taken away when his fiancé smirks, happy of the effect he has on him, though the dark-haired man sees the happy tears in his eyes.

Adrien reaches him on the stage and all the sounds and voices around them are deafened, only focussing on each other. The blonde takes his hand with the engagement ring in his hand and kisses his knuckles. Once they are done, the officiant starts her speech about weddings, hardships, and how love conquers all, but the two future husbands only have eyes for each other, smiling and communicating without a word. When the time comes for the vows, Adrien takes Luka’s other hand and bites his lip looking down nervously. The taller man caresses the other man’s hands with his thumbs, reassuring him. The blond looks up into his teal eyes before starting to speak.

“Luka. We met nearly ten years ago on the bridge of the boat you called home, the Liberty. I joined your band when you said that you needed a pianist. A few weeks later, we went on a double date with our friends Marinette and Kagami at the ice rink, though things were still complicated back then. During those many nights spent chatting away from the bars of my old bedroom, I slowly fell in love with you. You helped me when I was shattered because my life was thrown upside down by people I trusted. You helped me pick up the pieces and to be myself again. You have always been there for me in the good times as well as the lowest ones, whether it was as a friend or as a boyfriend, and I know I will always be able to count on you. Back then, I had no idea of how important you would be in my life, but here we are, proclaiming our love to the whole world. I love you so much Luka Couffaine, you have no idea. I might be the melody that plays in your head, but you and our son are my entire world.”

Luka smiles fondly at his fiancé, the temptation to kiss him senseless so strong, but now is not the time. They will get to kiss later, and more. He was thankful Nino and Alya agreed to babysit Mika for the next few days while they go on their honeymoon. Marinette walks behind them and hands him his guitar. He sees Chloe roll her eyes, but she is still smiling, happy for Adrien.

“Adrien, all those words you told me touch me deeply. If you don’t mind, I prepared a small melody to accompany my words…” The blond nods so he continues. “I once dropped my guitar in the Seine to catch you and I'd do it again in a heartbeat. When I met you, I didn’t notice your song right away, I was too blinded by someone else’s, just like you were. As we grew closer, I got to know Adrien with his complete melody. I got to help you when you doubted yourself, I got to be by your side when you shone your light on the people you cared about. You are so loyal and full of love, I am lucky to be on the receiving end of it. You keep saying how much of a great father I am, but you are the amazing one. You are always caring for Mika and helping him. I know that you were afraid to turn into your father, but I can assure you that it will not happen. Your melody completed mine and fills my heart with happiness. I’m not as good as you with words, but what I wanted to say is that I love you, Adrien, with my whole being.”

Adrien and a few people in the crowd wipe their tears as the celebrant continues for a few words before it’s time for their vows. She nods to Luka to start.

“I, Luka Couffaine, take you, Adrien Agreste, to be my husband, to love and cherish you under storms and sunlight, and to continue our melody for as long as my heart beats. You may have slithered your way into my heart, but I will make the perfect catch by sliding this ring on your finger if you’ll have me.” “Yes.” Answered the blond.

The celebrant gestures Adrien to continue.

“I, Adrien Agreste, take you, Luka Couffaine, to be my husband, to love and cherish you no matter the distance between us or the rocks thrown on our path, meow, and fur-ever. We were mint to be and my heart purrs knowing that I’m getting meow-ied to you. Will you take this ring, the sign of our love?” “Yes.”

He smirks when he sees Marinette facepalm at his puns, but his eyes quickly return to Luka’s. He knows that no matter how often he sees it, the sheer fondness and love in those seas of teal always overwhelms him. Mika steps forward, steadily holding the small cushion with both rings resting on it. He blushes under the attention of the crowd but continues his path to his fathers with determination. Once he reaches them, he smiles brightly and raises the rings to them.

Luka takes his fiancé’s right hand. His ring finger, no longer occupied by the black cat miraculous, now on his left hand, feels empty. Luka takes his ring, a light silver with a gold line in the middle. A blue topaz rests on top, a color that reminded Adrien of Luka’s eyes when they bought the rings. He slides the ring on the blond’s finger. Adrien repeats the same with the other ring, a darker silver with an emerald. When he’s done, he ruffles his son’s hair, no doubt earning daggers from Juleka.

“I now pronounce you husband and husband! You may kiss the groom.” Cheers the celebrant.

Luka closes his eyes, leans in and Adrien meets him halfway. The crowd explodes in cheers and happy tears. Luka’s hands caress the blond’s cheek and hold him close by his waist, while Adrien’s arms snake around his husband’s neck. Their slow tender kiss turns into a passionate one. His chest starts to vibrate, but the purrs are swallowed by Luka. The two husbands part their lips to catch their breaths, foreheads pressed together as they look into their loved one’s eyes.

“I love you…”They whispered in unison, only heard by the other, but that’s what really matters in the end, that they love each other.

#Lukadrien June 2020 #lukadrien #adrien agreste #luka couffaine #day 29: hand holding #day 30: I love you #zekroudon's fics

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thewritewolf · 4 years

Text

In Due Time Chapter 21: Fireworks

Marinette and Adrien get ready for Alya’s New Year’s Party

@marichatmay

Enjoy!

First Chapter | Previous Chapter | Next Chapter

Read on Ao3

“Hey, listen up, everybody!” Plagg yelled as he entered the room in front of Adrien. “The kid is going to a party! And no,” the kwami quickly added as a few others tried to ask questions all at once, “it’s not one that rotten ol’ Gabe is making him go to!”

Adrien entered the living room to cheers and applause from all the kwamis under his care. The only thing stopping him from rolling his eyes were his own nerves. Soon, many of them were zooming and swirling around him as he walked through the room, checking and double checking his attire.

“What’s the matter, bucko?” Stompp said, a frown gracing her face. “I’d thought you’d be chompin’ at the bit to go wild outside your papa’s watch.”

“I am, but…” Adrien rubbed the back of his neck. “The only one I’ve actually hung out with in person has been Marinette. And most of the time, that wasn’t Adrien exactly.”

“Kid, it’s just a mask. I don’t see what the big deal is. Plus,” Plagg said with a teasing grin, “I know you’re looking forward to seeing Tikki’s kid today. Hm…?”

Adrien gently pushed Plagg aside when he leaned close into his face, but Adrien refused to meet his eye. The cat kwami snickered as he floated away. Adrien might like Marinette, but he had no idea if she felt the same way or if he could even afford the luxury of having a girlfriend right now. Necessity had forced romance out of his life a long time ago.

“Besides Marinette,” Adrien said, trying to get back on topic, “I don’t know anyone there. I’m meeting all these people for the first time!” He put a comb through his hair for the third time that night. “What if I just end up lurking next to the food table and being a downer to the rest of them?”

“I’m confused,” Mullo said, scrunching up their nose. “Haven’t you been talking with them using the aether for a while?”

“The device he usssesss is called the internet, Mullo,” Sass corrected gently. “Not the aether.”

“Still. Does the Guardian not already know these other humans?”

“I mean… yes, I suppose,” Adrien conceded. “But-”

“Not buts, kid,” Plagg said definitively. “You’re going to go out there and have a great time instead of slacking here with these guys. Do you understand me?”

“Oooh, the time for another year has already come?” Orikko clucked happily, dancing in midair. “I’m so happy to hear I haven’t missed it!”

“Don’t worry, Orikko, I set an alarm to let you know when midnight hits,” Adrien said as he scratched beside the rooster kwami’s beak.

“Speaking of not worrying, that same thing but to you, kid.” Plagg was tugging at his sleeve. “C’mon, let’s go. Sass has got it handled here.”

Adrien glanced at the snake kwami, who nodded. “Pleassse enjoy yourssself, Massster.”

“Trust yourself!” Mullo said, floating up to Adrien’s face height. “I am sure they will love you just as much as we do!”

“See?” Plagg motioned a paw toward Mullo. “Now come on, I don’t want you to sit here until you give yourself cold feet. And I’m not about to let you pass up the opportunity to hang out with people born in the same geological era as you!”

“You’re right.” Adrien took a deep breath and let himself get a little excited. “Come on, Plagg, let’s go.”

“‘Course I’m right,” Plagg muttered as he flew into Adrien’s coat pocket. “When am I ever not right?”

The sun had already set by the time Adrien had gotten into his car, but there was still plenty of time before the main event of the night. It was a long drive to the part of Paris where Alya lived, long enough to let Adrien think about how time had changed him. Eight years ago he would’ve jumped at the chance to go to a party and make friends.

But having one thing after another ripped out from underneath him had changed his perspective. Being stopped from going to public school. The many parties thrown by coworkers his father had prevented him from seeing. Not to mention all the stuff he’d been forced to bail on because of an akuma attack. Isolation thanks to his family and his duties had done well to keep him from having friends.

But tonight… maybe tonight would be different. The old embers of optimism burned bright inside him, despite what the years had done to extinguish them.

He found a place to park his car and walked up to the apartment. His hands were stuffed into his pockets to ward off the chill and he was still lost in his thoughts by the time he arrived at the front door. His hand touched the door knob at the same time as someone else.

Startled, he looked to see who he had bumped into only to get lost in big, blue eyes.

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“Marinette, I promise you look fine,” Tikki said patiently as her chosen ran a brush through her hair nervously. Tikki smirked. “I’m sure Adrien will love what you’re wearing.”

Marinette fumbled her brush, dropping it. “Don’t just say that!”

“Why not?”

“Because I’m not getting dressed up just for him!”

“Oh?” Tikki said innocently. Far too innocently. “Are you expecting Chat Noir to make an appearance too?”

A blush spread across Marinette’s face as she groaned. “Don’t even joke about that. I don’t know what I’d do if both Adrien and Chat Noir were both at the party.”

“I wouldn’t be too worried about that if I were you,” Tikki said with a knowing smile. She floated off of the desk where she was sitting and toward Marinette. “You know, this might be a good chance to spend some quality time with Adrien, if that’s what you want.”

“To be honest? I don’t know what exactly I want.” Marinette sighed and sat down, smoothing her skirt as she did so. “It’s been a while since I’ve felt this way about someone, so to have it happen with two people almost at the same time…”

“Did you not have any crushes growing up? I’ve heard that’s pretty common for young humans.”

“I mean, some I guess. Definitely nothing that I’ve acted on. And before you ask, yes I have dated. But never anything serious.”

“But you want something serious with one of them?”

“Yes? Maybe? I don’t know,” Marinette said, burying her face in her hands and groaning. “I don’t like to rush into things, but… I haven’t felt a connection like this before.” She waved her hands around. “And now I’ve got two of them!”

“I’m sure you’ll figure something out! I’ve had a lot of chosen, but never one as clever as you.” Tikki landed on Marinette’s shoulder. “Why don’t you tell me about your friend’s party? To help get your mind off it.”

“Well…” Marinette said, calming down now that she was switching tracks in her mind. She grabbed her purse, which Tikki rushed into. “Alya got a taste for throwing parties back in university, so they’ve gotten pretty big sometimes. Like the Halloween one where I met Chat - she was selling tickets to that through the Cat Chat.”

Marinette left her apartment, closing the door behind her. She didn’t live that far from Alya’s place, one of many reasons she lived here in the first place. A few minutes of walking and she’d be there.

Tikki frowned. “Are there going to be a lot of people at this one too?”

“No, no,” Marinette said, waving her hand dismissively. “The New Year’s party is usually pretty small. There are usually about ten of us, mostly her and Nino’s friends. It’s nice.”

“So what do you do there?”

Marinette shrugged. “Same thing most people do at parties, I guess. Play games, drink, dance, talk. Although New Year’s is a little special because her apartment has a great view of the fireworks show the city does.”

“Wow! That does sound fun!”

“Right? Anyway, I’m also pretty nervous because Adrien said he’d try to make it. Nino and Alya have been dying to meet him, but…”

“But?”

“Well, they tend to worry too much about me. Which makes me worried that they’ll scare him away by trying to get us together.” She entered the building through the backway, a little shortcut she’d learned over the past couple years.

“Hm…” Tikki hummed, a ghost of a smile at her lips. “That’s definitely a dilemma. Be a shame if they got the two of you to really hit it off with each other.”

“Tikki,” Marinette whined as the door to Alya’s apartment came into view.

“I’m just teasing, Marinette. But still, it wouldn’t be too bad, right?”

Before Marinette could respond, her hand touched the doorknob at the same time someone else’s did. She jumped and was about to apologize when she looked up into bright green eyes.

Both of them stood staring at each other for much longer than Marinette would care to admit. This was the first time they’d seen one another since when they had first met at the fashion show, even if they’d talked plenty of times online.

Eventually, Adrien rubbed the back of his neck and said, “Hey-”

Naturally he was cut off when the door flew open, Alya standing on the other side. Now, Marinette had known her friend long enough to notice the tell-tale signs of being tipsy and right now Alya checked off all those boxes. Clearly either Marinette and Adrien were the last ones to arrive, or Alya had gotten a head start on the night’s festivities.

That likely contributed to how Alya grabbed them both by the arms and practically dragged them inside, although Marinette wouldn’t put it past her to do that even stone cold sober.

“Come on you two, stop standing outside the door like a couple of weirdos,” she said, laughing. She turned her head toward another part of the apartment and raised her voice. “Hey, babe! Your buddy is here! Come on and meet him!”

Nino poked his head from around the corner, where Marinette knew their living room and therefore game consoles were, and saw his face split into a grin when he spotted Adrien.

“DUDE!” He rushed forward and gently punched Adrien’s arm. “I can’t believe I finally get to meet you! Come on, let me show ya around my crib. It might not be what you’re used to, but me casa es tu casa!”

Nino chuckled and threw an arm around a confused Adrien’s shoulders. Adrien glanced back at her and gave her a slightly worried smile and a wave before he disappeared.

“So,” Alya said, dragging Marinette’s attention back to her. She was looking awfully focused despite the handful of drinks Marinette knew she must have already had. “Let’s talk about you and blondie, hm?

Marinette groaned. It was going to be a long party.

#Miraculous Ladybug #Adrien Agreste #Marinette Dupain-Cheng #Adrienette #Marichat #Plagg #Tikki #Sass #Mullo #Stompp #Orikko #Alya Cesaire #Nino Lahiffe #Aged Up AU #MarichatMay2020 #my writing #ml fanfiction #In Due Time

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zebrabaker · 5 years

Text

Pain, Loss, and Recovery; Part 6

Ashente! Here we go!

The ride to the funeral home was silent, Marinette having slipped her hand into his. It wasn’t long, but it felt like an eternity.

" Malaki,” Damien called, gently squeezing her hand. She looked up at him, eyes glazed. “we’re here.”

“Oh. Okay.” She opened her door and slid out, gently shutting it behind her. He jogged around the car and slid his had around her shoulder, guiding her up the stairs. He nodded to Dick, who was holding the door, ready to welcome people and hand out roses to lay in front of the urns. Tom and Sabine had made it clear in their wills they wanted to be cremated, with their urns placed into the Dupain family mausoleum. Damien walked Marinette inside, and sat her on one of the couches next to the entry to the viewing room.

“Do you need anything?” He asked.

“Could you grab me a glass of water? Then we can start checking that everything is perfect.”

“No need.” A voice called. They turned to see Chloe standing there in a loose-fitting t-shirt dress with a handkerchief skirt and a pair of black pumps. “The catering is dealt with, the florist has been payed, the organist is ready and warmed up. The pall bearers are prepared, and your grandparents are here and ready to give their eulogies. There’s a chair up front between the urns for you if you need to sit, along with a pitcher and a glass of water. I have tissues and make-up wipes, along with your foundation and mascara in case of emergencies.” Marinette bolted from where she was seated and tackled Chloe in a hug.

“Thank you!” She chanted, over and over, sobbing a little.

“It’s what friends are for. Besides, as the bee, it is my job to keep the hive in balance. The balance is off because of that damn alley cat, so helping you is the least I can do, since you won’t let me handle that damn liar.” The blonde was refusing to look at them, glaring into the distance with red cheeks.

“Still, I can’t thank you enough. I don’t know how I would handle this without your help.” Chloe scoffed.

“It’s nothing, seriously. Now, do you want to go over everything one more time? People will be arriving any minute.” Marinette nodded, sniffling. “Let’s start in the buffet area.” Marinette nodded, smiling weakly when Chloe took her hand. Damien watched them go, before checking the time. In all reality, they had about five minutes, but he knew Marinette needed something to do.

“Damien.” His father called from behind him. He turned to see Father and Alfred were wearing black suits, his father in a black tie and Alfred in green. “How is she?”

“She’s mainly disassociated. I’m not sure if that’s good or bad, but Chloe is distracting her with the preparations.” He sighed and ran a hand through his hair, a bad habit Talia had never managed to stop.

“I have double checked the guest list, anyone not invited will be escorted out by the guards hired for the event.” Alfred said. “I refuse to allow such rabble to pollute this day and upset miss Marinette.” Damien nodded, grateful. If he saw and of his angel’s classmates, he would likely not be in control of his actions.

X0X0X

They were a half an hour into the funeral when it happened. Gina had just finished her eulogy, and Roland was getting ready for his. Luka was on Marinette’s other side, with Chloe standing by the door as a greeter.

There was a scuffling from the door, and Damien was torn. He could leave his angel alone and deal with it, or he could stay here and trust his family to deal with it. His choice was irrelevant when he saw one of Marinette’s classmates burst in. It was the one who tried to race a panther, K-something. He came running up the aisle, only to be tackled by Tim, who flipped the boy onto his stomach and pinned his hands. Tim looked up and nodded, making brief eye contact with Damien before dragging the boy to his feet.

“Lemme go!” The boy yelled, thrashing pointlessly.

“Nope.” Tim said, scowling. “You would have made a big scene and just upset ‘Nettie. You need to leave, now.”

“You can’t make me! You’re a dumbass for falling for Marinette’s lies! She’s just making this up for attention, her parents are on a cruise!” Damien saw red. He prowled down the aisle, and grabbed the slightly shorter boys collar, before dragging him behind him and slamming him into the wall.

“Insinuate that she is lying again and I will eviscerate you.” He growled, before dropping the boy. The boy scrambled for the door, where he saw Dick was using himself as a human barricade, trying to keep out nearly a dozen teenagers.

“MARINETTE!” The one who had harassed his angel earlier called “MARINETTE GET OUT HERE! YOU”VE LIED ABOUT SOME DUMB STUFF BEFORE BUT THIS IS TOO FAR!” He felt a soft hand on his arm, only to find Marinette standing next to him, looking furious, with Chloe behind her.

“Malaki,” he asked, gently grabbing her wrist. “do you want me to handle this?” She shook her head.

“I need to do this myself.” He scrunched up his nose.

“If you’re sure.” She nodded and walked slowly for the door.

“Dick, let Alya in.” He shot her a look, before grabbing the creole girl and shoving her into the room, before blocking the angry looking class again.

“Seriously, girl?!” Alya scoffed. “Hiring a bunch of body guards for a fake funeral? How low can you go?” Marinette took off her black wrist length gloves and handed them to Damien. “And is this a fake boyfriend? Seriously? I cannot believe you! Especially when Lila was just telling us about her boyfriend! I know you’re a greedy bitch, but- “Alya was cut off when her head snapped to the side. Marinette shook out her hand and carefully took her gloves back from Damien, tugging them on. “did you just-?”

“Slap you? Yes, yes, I did. I was prepared to listen, Cesaire. I was ready to hear you ask questions, or maybe even apologize. But I will not allow you to come here, to my parents funeral, and disrespect them and their memory by calling me a liar and an attention whore. I want you gone. All of you. If I see you here again, I will call the police. In case you’re forgetting, my parents were close with the chief, seeing as his daughter worked in the bakery for four years before she went of to college. If you have anything nice to say, say it before I have security drag you out.” Alya was stunned, one hand on her rapidly reddening cheek.

“You’ll get hit by karma soon enough.” Alya spat, before spinning on her heel and marching out the door.

“I don’t think so.” Marinette sighed. “I’m afraid it’s time for her Judgment.” The kwami nodded from Marinette’s hidden pocket. It was about damn time.

X0X0X

Alya stormed out of the funeral home, clutching her cheek. Marinette had to be lying! No way was she telling the truth! That would mean Alya had just stormed into a funeral and yelled at someone who just lost everything. She bumped into someone, and looked up to see Nino glaring down at her. They had broken up a few months ago, when Lila had opened up her eyes to how little time, he really spent with her, and how he spent hours every day working on his music or hanging out with Marinette.

“I don’t know what I ever saw in you.” He said, and shouldered past her, nodding at the guy guarding the door, who let him pass no problem. Alya kicked a post, and cursed when she hurt her toes. She jolted a little when she heard a voice that she knew too damn well in her head.

“Truth seeker, my name is- “

“Yes.” She hissed, and let the darkness consume her.

#plar #daminette #maribat

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flightfoot · 4 years

Text

Ladycat Ch. 4

AO3/FFN

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Marinette bounded through the city, running over rooftops, falling to ground level to duck and weave through the city, then jumping up to roof level again when convenient.

The wind in her fur, the agility and grace in her feline form - she’d experienced it before while chasing after Chat, but couldn’t truly appreciate it with the cat brain she’d had.

Running over rooftops and swinging through the city had always been some of the funnest parts of being Ladybug (not counting getting to spend time with her partner of course). Getting to do it in an even more naturally graceful and acrobatic form was a real treat.

Not that she could do anything too crazy - not yet anyway. She was all too aware of the box clenched between her jaws - and the consequences if she lost it. Best not to repeat the Style Queen incident.

She hadn’t been the only one to lose a Miraculous that day at least, Chat had also lost… his Miraculous…

Wait.

WAIT.

Chat was Adrien. Adrien had been statuefied pretty much immediately.

He hadn’t lost his Miraculous; he just hadn’t had the chance to use it.

That little furball lied!

Oh she was gonna have some word for Plagg later! ...Once she could speak.

But that would have to wait another few days. Right now, she had more important things to attend to.

Nudging open one of the windows of the Cesaire residence, she crept inside.

Luckily the twins weren’t around, they would’ve been hard to avoid.

She padded up to Alya’s room, headbutting the door a few times. She’d mew, but she didn’t particularly feel like letting go of the box with the Fox Miraculous, not until it was safely in Alya’s possession.

“Would you two not-”

Alya opened the door.

Looked down.

And blinked.

“A cat?” she raised one eyebrow. “What’re you doing-”

Marinette could tell the exact moment Alya noticed the box holding her Miraculous. Not that that showed any special understanding of her; her face practically breaking in half with her grin and squealing just within the human hearing range (she assumed at least. Being a cat made things like that harder to judge) were pretty good signs.

Alya knelt down. “Is- is that-?”

Marinette gently set the box down and nodded.

Picking it up, Alya opened the lid.

Immediately a light shot out, darting around.

OOH LIGHT. PRETTY LIGHT. MUST CATCH LIGHT.

YOU WILL BE MINE.

“HEY, woah, stop it!”

NO. NO HUMAN STOP ME. MUST CATCH…

She froze, shaking herself.

“I guess her cat instincts are still pretty strong.”

Marinette looked up at the voice.

Trixx looked back at her, bemused.

“She’s not actually a cat I’m betting, is she?”

“Nope!”

“Then…”

Alya held out her arms. Marinette jumped into them, purring.

She looked more closely at Marinette’s neck. “That green pawprint… Chat Noir?!”

Marinette let out a startled meow. She guessed that made sense, but no. Just no.

Alya’s brow furrowed. “I’d’ve thought he’d be black though, not gray.”

“That’s because that’s Ladybug, not Chat!”

“WHAT?! Wait, that actually makes sense. So THAT’S why no one’s been restored!”

Glancing down, she noticed something on the floor. “Uh… Trixx? Could you maybe retrieve that piece of paper?” she asked, chagrinned. “My arms are kinda full of Ladycat here.”

Trixx chuckled but complied, holding it up so Alya could read it without needing to dislodge Marinette.

“Ladybug got turned into a cat and isn’t gonna be turned back for three more days,” she read out loud. “Which is bad enough, but we’ve got other issues. I know who Hawkmoth is, but he’ll also find out who I am very soon. I can’t go home, and… well, we’re gonna need Rena Rouge’s expertise for what comes next. Follow Ladycat, she knows the way.”

Alya blinked. “The way? The way to what?”

Trixx grinned. “The way to the Guardian of the Miraculous.”

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Marinette darted through the streets, occasionally pausing to allow Rena Rouge to catch up. Technically they both COULD have run across the rooftops to get to Master Fu’s place even faster, but that would’ve attracted a bit too much attention. She was pushing it before doing that as a cat, but with Rena in tow? Best not to risk it unless they had to.

Rena would arguably have attracted even more attention than that on the ground… if she had actually LOOKED like Rena Rouge. Before leaving she’d cast an illusion on herself, making her look like just another resident of Paris and definitely NOT Alya or Rena Rouge.

Unfortunately, that also meant sticking to plausibly human speed. She’d had to detransform twice already to feed Trixx, but hopefully this would be the last time.

She jumped onto Alya’s shoulders while they waited for Trixx to finish eating. With how small she was, she had plenty of room to perch on.

Alya laughed. “You know, you might call Chat a ‘silly kitty’ sometimes, but I don’t think you’re far behind him.”

She chuffed at that. That may be true, but she didn’t need to call her out like that.

She shifted slightly, brushing herself against Alya’s neck.

Alya let out an impulsive laugh.

Marinette’s eyes sparkled. REVENGE.

Quickly she brushed herself all over Alya’s neck, making sure her tail brushed just so, along with nuzzling into her neck.

And then had to quickly move as Alya sank to the floor giggling. “You- you win,” she gasped as she got ahold of herself after Marinette’s impromptu tickling. “You’re not nearly as much of a silly kitty as Chat. You’re sillier.”

Okay she should have expected that.

Brushing herself off, Alya got to her feet. “Hey Trixx, you almost done?”

The fox kwami looked down on them, bemused. “I finished eating half a minute ago, I was just waiting for you two to finish up.”

“Well, what are we waiting for? Trixx, Let’s Pounce!”

---------------------------------------------------------------------------

Rena knocked on the door of the small shop. Didn’t exactly look like somewhere a ‘Guardian of the Miraculous’ might live, but that was the idea, wasn’t it? If Hawkmoth got his hands on this ‘Guardian’-

She shuddered. She may not know what this ‘Guardian’ did, but Hawkmoth getting anything or anyone Miraculous-related would be very, VERY bad.

A familiar face greeted her. She blinked.

“Adrien? What’re you doing here?”

“Uuuuuh, I’m not Adrien, no sirree, absolutely not!” he said hastily waving his arms. “I’m-”

Glancing around the room, his gaze landed on a teapot.

“I’m- I’m Earl. Just helping out my great-grandfather, you know how it is. Buuuut we’re busy, and closed, nice to see you please drop by some other time!”

Wow. He was not the best improv liar.

Not to someone who actually knew him, at any rate.

She caught the door before he could close it all the way - just long enough for Ladycat to slip through.

“Ladyb- Lady!” He cried out, obviously catching himself before he could blurt out her full name. “What’re you doing with this person - wait is he Rena Rouge?!”

She chuckled, releasing her illusion as she closed the door behind her. “The one and only. Also, that story’s not likely to work when you look exactly the same as usual. What’re the odds of you having a doppelganger?”

“I’ll have to show you pictures of my cousin some time.”

“Who?”

“Never mind.” His expression darkened. “He’s not the family member we need to worry about.”

“Can I punch your father? I’d really like to punch your father.”

Adrien - or Adrichat she guessed - grimaced. “You might need to, but I’d like to avoid a fight if we can.”

He stared at his hands. “I know he’s done a lot of terrible things, but… he’s still my father. He’s almost certainly going to go to prison, I can’t see him getting off for what he’s done as Hawkmoth, but I don’t want to hurt him if we can avoid it.”

“Plus there’s your mother to consider.”

She’d been pretty shocked when he sat down and explained everything - his secret identity (HA! She was totally right!), how he’d followed Ladycat into his father’s secret lair, and everything that’d happened there.

Emilie being alive, his father being more of an asshole than she’d ever conceived - this had been quite a day for Adrien.

Something that Ladycat sought to help with, purring in Adrien’s lap like a mini lawnmower, nuzzling him every time he started looking especially downcast.

She wished she could help Adrien more, but… well, they hadn’t really talked that much, one-on-one. Most of the time she was helping Marinette to try to win Adrien over or just chatting with him along with Nino - they were part of the same friend group, but they didn’t actually interact that much. When they did, it was usually because they wanted to help Marinette somehow.

No wonder Adrien’d never been able to decipher Marinette’s attempts at telling him how she felt! Knowing how up front Chat was with his affections, how over-the-top? Marinette’s mixed signals wouldn’t be the easiest thing to disentangle, if his normal perception of how-to-flirt was that blatant.

Plus, well… he already had his eyes on someone.

She smiled as Ladycat stood up and brushed herself all around Adrien. Didn’t need to be a cat to see what she was doing; letting him know she was there, she wouldn’t leave him, just giving him the physical affection he needed.

The bond between those two was hard to deny. It might not be romantic on Ladybug’s part (at least that she would admit; she’d noticed Ladybug being a little softer, a little gentler, giving him certain looks) but on Chat’s side? He seemed ready to melt into a puddle.

Though the looks he was giving Ladycat right now, those partly lidded eyes, that gentle smile - on Chat she may not have been able to draw the connection. But on Adrien?

They were just like his expression when he looked at Marinette.

And Marinette had been missing ever since Catwoman’s attack.

If Marinette and Ladybug turned out to be the same person, she wasn’t sure whether to laugh, cry, or scream about the universe’s ironic sense of humor.

The more she thought about it, the more certain she grew.

Strong sense of justice? Check.

Creative and good at thinking on her feet? Check.

Kind and willing to give second chances when need be? Check.

Not to mention her selecting Alya as the first temporary miraculous holder, and securing Alya that first-ever interview with Ladybug.

With herself.

No WONDER she’d been able to do that when no one else could!

Ooookay, calm down Alya. Still don’t know that for sure. It could still all be a coincidence.

...Probably not, but she didn’t actually need to know Ladybug’s identity right now. Chat’s identity coming out couldn’t have been reasonably avoided, not with needing to confront Hawkmoth, to confront his father, and him almost certainly knowing Chat’s identity.

She’d play along for now.

She really, REALLY hoped she was right though. Knowing that on all those missions they’d had together, every time she’d hung out with Ladybug, she’d been hanging out with her best friend? That she’d teased Ladybug about boy troubles, had slumber parties with her, had kicked her butt at Dance Dance Revolution (and gotten her butt kicked in turn at Ultimate Mecha Strike III)?

Just… knowing who she was as Ladybug, who she was as Marinette, and putting it all together?

It cemented Ladybug as human, as being a person and not some far away idol. She may not be perfect - far from it - but she tried her best. Sometimes she made a mistake, sometimes she got flustered and did something foolish, sometimes she made bad decisions, and sometimes she let her emotions get the better of her, like any other teenager.

But ultimately, she was still a hero. Still a Hero of Paris.

She didn’t need to be some godlike figure. She just needed to try her best.

Welp.

There went any hope of convincing herself that Marinette and Ladybug might not be the same person.

Hopefully Adrien figured it out soon too. She could keep a secret if she needed to, but if she had to watch those two moon around each other for much longer she’d be tempted to shove them in a panther cage until they figured out they liked each other already.

Hey it’d worked for her and Nino!

“Alya? Alya!”

She startled at Adrien’s worried tone. Even Ladycat (or maybe she should say Marinette? ...she’d stick with Ladycat for now, no need to remind herself of her revelation more than she already had) padded over to her and meowed, pawing at her face to get her attention.

“I’m fine, I’m fine! Just zoned out a bit. What were you saying?”

He gave her another worried look, but continued. “We’re gonna sneak back into his lair. I’ll distract Father and Mayura if she shows up while you cloak yourself, Fu, and Ladycat in an illusion to make yourselves as inconspicuous as possible - invisible preferably, but you’ll need to be careful not to trip over each other.”

She frowned. “You’ll take Hawkmoth and Mayura on by YOURSELF? You sure that’s a good idea?”

He grimaced. “No, but I’m used to handling myself while Ladybug figures out and implements a plan. I can manage for a little bit. And anyway, it’s only just long enough for Fu to examine my mother and figure out what he can do for her, if anything. Then we can retreat and regroup.”

Glancing down at the kitty in his lap, he smiled. “Besides, I’ll still have my partner there. She may not be able to fight quite like normal, she’s still Ladybug, and she still has superpowers. We don’t need to be able to talk in order to fight together.”

Considering the videos she’d seen of the Frightingale fight, with Chat and Ladybug dance-fighting in synchrony while RHYMING? No doubt about that.

Oh hell, Adrien’d been forced to dress up as Chat and Marinette volunteered as Ladybug.

“HA!”

She quickly got ahold of herself, but not before Adrien looked at her worryingly again. “Uh… you sure you’re alright, Alya?”

She waved him off. “I just thought of something funny, that’s all.”

Seriously, Marinette and Adrien could change their body language so heavily that even though they looked practically identical to how they did as Ladybug and Chat (minus the masks, which she suspected they ‘lost’ on purpose), no one else had a clue they were one and the same, even with seeing Ladybug and Chat Noir minutes later? She’d never make fun of Clark Kenting again.

She softened her voice. “You ready to face your father now?”

He took a deep breath, letting it out slowly. “...Yeah. I think so. Let’s do this.”

#miraculous ladybug #ml fanfic #alya cesaire #adrien agreste #ladycat

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sentient-stove · 4 years

Text

more, more, more, more, you get the drift by now

Hellhound au!

I buckled down and put my fic first and finished the chapter I was working on! Yay me!

Chapter six- Phone Call

Ladybug jumped from building to building, carefully navigating to her family’s bakery as she tracked over the city that she called home.

She was on the phone-- yo-yo -- while running and it wasn’t exactly the best plan as she tripped, muttering curses as she skid to a stop.

“Girl, you good?” Alya’s voice came from the other side and Ladybug sighed.

“Don’t run and call people. It’s never a good idea.” She laughed as she sat on the edge of the roof, legs swinging as she continued to talk.

“I wish I didn’t have a hangover.” Alya groaned from the other end. “Marinette, where did you go after we talked? I spent ages looking for you!”

“I had some work.” Ladybug pulled an apple from her pocket and took a bite, lips puckering at the sourness.

“Really? Nino told me that you ran after Adrien.”

“What? NO! We just used the same exit, I totally didn’t see him.” She blushed, despite her friend not being there.

“Oh come on, you’d totally tell me if you did.”

“Definitely wouldn’t.” Ladybug finished her apple and tossed the core down, bouncing off a car roof and into a garbage can way down in the street below.

“If you ever kiss Adrien Agreste, you will tell me.”

Ladybug sighed and relented, quickly finishing her call with Alya and standing, jumping down into the alley.

“Spots off.” Marinette shook her head, pigtails bobbing as she caught Tikki and slipped her a cookie before hiding her in the coin bag by her side.

It was ironic, she was able to control her transformation, had kick ass abilities and tech that came with the job, a reputation that exceeded her name and loving parents. Meanwhile, Adrien got stuck with a kwami that was borderline abusive, a father that was borderline neglectful, abilities that made it painful for him to function as a human and to top it off, he smelled like cheese unless he drowned himself in sage and lavender.

She walked quickly to the locale’s police force and entered the building, stepping around a passed out man in the front office and making her way to the front desk.

“Hey, can I access the annex?”

“Are you in the police force, an intern, or a Hunter/Huntress? We don’t allow kids in the files.

“I have a licence.” Marinette slid the silver card across the desk, watching it get scanned and handed back to her.

“I think that they’re letting kids do the dirty work. It’s going to get someone killed.”

“That’s why I’m here actually.” Marinette tucked her card away and walked slowly to the annex, fiddling with her phone and the spare key that had been given to her so she could get it.

The annex was dusty, full of boxes and boxes of records that stretched back over hundreds of years, from when the catacombs were first built until now. Marinette grabbed the nearest box and sat on it, quietly pulling out her yo-yo and slamming the bottom against her palm.

The yo-yo opened and expanded out to her polka dotted laptop, a few pages still open to the news reports from last night.

“Okay, where would I find the reports for Emilie’s disappearance?” She muttered as she started to go through the box next to her.

“This is from thirty years ago, is there any organization here?”

“I could help?” Tikki stuck her head from out of Marinette’s coat pocket, before flying out the rest of the way. “I can just phase through boxes until I find the one with her stuff in it.”

“Tikki, we don’t even know if Emilie was a Chein d’enfer. But if she’s not, Adrien’s might be and that’s a whole box of worms I don’t want to open right now.”

“Isn’t the phrase can of worms?”

Marinette sneezed and a plumage of dust floated up, making her cough even more. “Fine, but be quiet, you know that I can’t stand the dust.”

Tikki squealed happily and zoomed off, on her own personal search for a mysterious box in the dust. Marinette stayed where she was, digging through old and obscure deaths that had never been cataloged, Cheins that had been killed in turf wars and serial killers that hunted minorities.

She pulled a book out of the box and dusted the cover off, trying to read what the cracked leather said.

“Tikki? Have you found anything?”

“No, have you Marinette?”

“I think so? But even if I didn’t, we have to go soon, the bakery is about to hit the five o’clock rush, so Mama and Papa will need me.” Marinette slid the book into her backpack before standing and dusting off her pants.

Tikki soared from her hiding spot and landed back in Marinette’s pocket, before curling up and closing her eyes. “Back home.”

“Back home.” Marinette agreed wearily.

#hellhound au #miraculous ladybug #marinette dupain cheng #tikki #adrien agreste #plagg #miraculous fanfic #miraculous au #ladybug #alya cesaire #chapter six

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chronicallylatetotheparty · 4 years

Text

Scarlet Fever Ch.14 Marinette Dupain-Cheng

LoganLight, AO3

Summary:

Healing hearts.

------------------------------------------------------

Falling.

Adrien remembered falling.

Green bubble bursting as his Cataclysm touched it. The Eiffel Tower rushing past them. Her hand in his. Yo-yo whirling. Excitement.

Blue hand releasing him. Tour Montparnasse reflecting his descent. Plagg telling him to transform. Her arms wrapping around him. Trust.

Wind howling in his face. Earth's curve bright against the sun. His arms wrapping around her. Ladybugs swarming. Relief.

Papillon stood in front of him, Nathalie unconscious and detransformed at Gabriel's feet. Grey mask twisting as his so-called father sneered condescendingly. "You think they'll accept you? I am the only one who gives a damn about you!"

Shadows swirled at the edges of his vision but the rage pushed them back. "You cared more about your precious butterflies than you ever cared about me!" Opening his yo-yo he pointed the white void at the villain. "So, here! Take them!"

Thousands of white butterflies blasted out of his yo-yo and slammed into Papillon, disorienting him. Launching himself forward, Adrien's fist connected with Gabriel's jaw in an uppercut. The Butterfly Miraculous sent flying as darkness pulled him under.

Adrien jolted upright, heart pounding and lungs gasping for breath as the dream clung to him. Hands wrapping tightly around the sheets of the bed he found himself in. He wasn't falling. The ground wasn't racing up to meet him. Gabriel wasn't there. Papillon wasn't there. Adrien was safe. Safe...

Glancing around, Adrien's mind slowly placed him in one of the suites at Le Grand Paris. Outside, the sky was the deep blue of predawn... Dawn? The sun was setting. It should be setting!

Shoving the sheets away, Adrien scrambled to his feet. Prompting his vision to darken as he became lightheaded. Nearly falling, Adrien knocked a bedside lamp off its cabinet as he attempted to steady himself against it. Willing his limp, shaking limbs to cooperate, Adrien forced himself upright.

The double doors of the bedroom banged open as a large man rushed in. Adrien's heart jumping into his throat as he dropped to the floor... Before the Gorilla's face came into view. His bodyguard's strong arms lifted Adrien back onto the bed.

"Wh-what... ?" Adrien's thoughts jumbled together. Too muddled to settle on a single question.

Easy, he signed. There was something odd about the Gorilla. He didn't have his perpetual scowl as he knelt down to look at Adrien eye to eye. You've been asleep for a while.

Sleeping? No, Adrien didn't have time to sleep he had to save- "Marinette!" Trying to stand, Adrien's head swam and he fell against the bed. The Gorilla caught him by the shoulders as Adrien's heartbeat hammered against his chest. "Let go! I have to save Marinette!"

"Kid, relax!" A black blur zoomed into his face and stared at him with worried, green, catlike eyes. "Marinette's safe! She's safe! You did it. You saved her, Adrien."

"Plagg..." Breath steadying, Adrien cupped his hands and Plagg settled into them. His eyes watering as the kwami's words sank in and his memories caught up with him. It was over. Everyone was de-akumatized. The only emotions in anyone's head were their own. Only emotions in his head were his own. "Plagg." Voice wavering, Adrien held the little kwami to his chest as his tears fell.

Shifting awkwardly, the Gorilla sat on the bed next to Adrien and tentatively placed an arm around the boy's shoulders. Adrien all but melting into the embrace.

Did Adrien's scarlet nightmare really only last a day? It felt much longer. Plagg purred and Adrien's fingers curled gently around him. Eyes stinging as the frustration, fear, and stress of yesterday rolled down his cheeks. A drop or two landing on Plagg, much more soaking the Gorilla's shirt. Neither complained.

So many questions crowded his head. But they could wait. There was time. Adrien let the warmth surrounding him lull his anxiety and confusion away, until his tears were spent and the sun was painting brighter colors across the sky.

Blinking, Adrien sat up slowly and wiped at his eyes. The Gorilla slept in a chair with his chin on his chest.

"Up again?" Plagg yawned as he roused himself.

Nodding, Adrien was suddenly aware that his Miraculous was back on his finger. Reaching a hand to his ears Adrien felt nothing but skin. "Where's Tikki?"

"Back with pigtails, of course," Plagg informed him.

Clearing his throat, Plagg floated in front of Adrien. "Don't know about you, but I could go for a whole buffet of Camembert!"

Adrien smiled briefly at Plagg's attempt at normalcy but his brow quickly furrowed. Marinette was with her family again. Kagami, Nino and Luka too, probably. They were all with their parents. Parents who didn't terrorize the city and didn't keep their not-actually-dead spouse a secret from their kids and didn't try to brainwash their ONLY SON and didn't-

"Good... That's... good..." Thinking about Marinette made his chest clench and his stomach churn. He didn't quite understand. Sweat beaded on his brow and his heart sped up. Even as he felt a great burden lifted off his shoulders...

"Adrien."

Adrien's head snapped toward Plagg, uncurling his fists. Taking deep breaths, Adrien tried to blink the tears out of his eyes, wiping them away when that didn't work. "I... Where's Gabriel?"

Plagg's fur bristled in rage at the mention of that name but it faded quickly. Eyes softening with concern for his holder. He wasn't sure how Adrien would react... "A nice comfy cell next to Nathalie."

"Good!" Eyes stinging, Adrien willed himself to stop crying. Dear old dad didn't care about him! Gabriel -Papillon- made that perfectly clear! ...So, why did his heart ache? Why couldn't he stop caring about that sorry excuse for a human being?

"A-and Maman?" Adrien asked tentatively. "What about her?"

Ears flattening, Plagg moved closer. "She's still down there. Tikki and Nooroo told us what Gabriel did... Adrien?"

No more crying. He'd done enough crying. Stop crying! His vision blurred. Great.

"She was right there, Plagg." Adrien's voice broke. "She was right there and he... Do you know how much I wanted to see her face just one more time? How I begged him to explain what happened? I could've visited her every day. Talked to her. Told her about meeting all of my friends. I could've had my mother, Plagg! Even if..." Adrien took a shuddering breath as his voice rose. "Even if she couldn't hear me... Even if she couldn't wake up! I could've been there!"

The Gorilla jumped to his feet at the yell, instantly awake, stance ready to defend, chair toppling to the floor. Adrien flinched at the sudden movement.

But Plagg focused solely on Adrien. Floating closer, he placed a paw on Adrien's cheek and gazed into his eyes, the boy leaning into his touch. Ten thousand years of loss and he still couldn't find the right words.

"...I know you would have." Because that was the only thing Plagg could say.

Nora was growing tired of the tense silence between the old man and Baguette's maman. Baguette herself shifting uncomfortably between them. When the runt came in she practically threw herself into a hug with Hawaiian Shirt. Muttering apologies for being akumatized.

----------------------------

Stupid. Wasn't her fault Mothman went all sudden death on them. The supposed adults agreed on that at least.

They talked for a bit about things Nora didn't quite get until one of them mentioned Sleeping Beauty. One of the things she didn't understand was why Bug Boy was such a touchy subject. He saved them, after all. Baguette spoke intermittently with a little bug-like creature that floated around, like the one that gave Nora her Bee powers but red.

Mind drifting back to the mansion, she remembered how the Royal Runt had called her an amateur. Amateur! Her! The regional champion -once she mopped the floor with that one girl- called an amateur by a shrimp with years less fighting experience! Well, Nora showed her who the amateur was!

... At least until Peacock Lady and Cat/Mouse Girl showed up. Relief at having the Royal Runt's 'evil monologue' interrupted quickly turned into confusion as a weird dark fluid filled up the entire mansion's considerable space. Cat/Mouse Girl practically dragging her into one of the many holes in the floor.

"You're gonna go up there by yourself? You got guts Bug Boy."

And Cat/Mouse Girl but still. Nora helped distract the akuma victims at ground level so the others could go help Bug Boy with his plan. Some of Cat/Mouse Girl's duplicates backing her up. She got about half of those akumatized lightweights with her Venom before the ladybugs swept through.

Nora didn't like how little she actually got done as Piqûre D'abeille. Even if Alya's boyfriend said otherwise. The main job was all Sleeping Beauty.

Everything going back to normal.

The door clicked open as Sleeping Beauty and his best friend walked in.

Baguette jumped to her feet at the sight of him. Multiple emotions crossed his face before they seemed to settle in his gut. Alya's boyfriend squeezed his hand reassuringly. Baguette's maman walking up to give both boys a hug while the old man looked down. A tiny floating cat came out of Sleeping Beauty's overshirt and zipped toward the red bug.

Oh, thought Nora as realization dawned on her.

"... I'm sorry." Marinette finally ventured.

---------------------------

They were by themselves in one of the side rooms. Plagg and Tikki spoke with Wayzz on the balcony. Sabine and Fu giving them some privacy as they spoke about... other matters. Oppressive silence filling the too large room for too long moments.

Eyes widening slightly, Adrien turned to face her from his inspection of the blank wall. "What are you sorry for? It wasn't your fault."

"I-I said some... terrible things to you and I..." Marinette curled her arms around herself. "I didn't mean it."

Adrien stared. "You... remember?"

Marinette looked down. "Not... exactly. It's like a dream. Th-the harder you try to remember the more it slips away. But..." Her eyes burned as intense and unpleasant emotions boiled up from hazy half-forgotten memories. "I'm sorry... Chat."

"Hey..." Adrien hesitantly placed his hands along her arms. Tensing at his touch, Marinette's tears fell despite her efforts. Arms itching to wrap around her, Adrien's heart ached at her distress. "It wasn't... It wasn't you. It was Papillon. Gabriel." Adrien's hold tightened protectively.

Adrien stiffened. "No! I-"

Marinette pulled her head up so she could look him in the eye. Cheeks stained with tears.

"... I-is that why you can barely look at me?"

"... It wasn't you!" he repeated, meeting her gaze.

"But she hurt you." It wasn't a question.

Letting his arms drop, Adrien stepped back, averting his eyes. Although she was gone Princess Justice still invaded his thoughts, her accusations echoing in his mind. "Do you... really think I abandoned you?"

Marinette blanched and her breath caught, eyes widening with horror. "What?"

Wincing, Adrien's hand gripped his other arm, shoulders hunching. "That wasn't fair. I shouldn't have said that! Shouldn't have-"

"You never abandoned me!" Marinette gripped his hands in hers. "You were always there for me! As both Adrien and Chat Noir! You-" Her voice broke. "You saved me..."

Stomach churning with guilt, eyes downcast and hands trembling slightly, Marinette thought of everything she couldn't remember. Everything her akumatized self might have done to her friends. Her family. To Adrien. Oh goodness, he hated her didn't he!? Everyone hated her! And they should, she was a lousy excuse for a hero! Couldn't even control herself enough to fight off Papillon's control like Chloe! Hurting her partner, her friend, her crush-

"MARINETTE!"

Snapping out of her downward spiral Marinette found Adrien's eyes right in front of her, staring into her soul with barely restrained panic, cradling her face in both hands. Seeing her expression clear, Adrien's eyes blazed as his worry made way for something else.

"I don't hate you." Adrien enunciated every word. "No one hates you."

A sob escaped Marinette's lips, realizing she had spoken aloud.

"You saved me countless times!" His eyes watered as her's did the same. "You saved Paris countless times!" Yellow smoke intruded into his thoughts, helpless to stop the cycle no matter how many Second Chances he got. "It-" Shame choked his throat and he swallowed it back, averting his eyes. "It's about time I started pulling my weight..."

Frowning, Marinette placed her hands over his. "Who... said you weren't pulling your weight?" His silence was answer enough and the guilt cut at her.

Piecing Adrien and Chat Noir together was surprisingly easy when she let herself consider it. Virtues and flaws that made a terrible sort of sense together. Once Marinette understood that he felt just as alone as she did. And Princess Justice threw it all in his face.

"Well, she was wrong!" Marinette snapped. Gripping Adrien's hands firmly as they trembled.

Grimacing as his chest tightened, Adrien refused to look at Marinette. He knew that. He knew that! Didn't he? So why did Princess Justice's words still feel like the sting of her whip? Leaving him raw and flayed? Why was he still... afraid?

Legs giving out, Adrien all but collapsed to the floor. Dragging Marinette with him. He stared blankly at the wall as his reddened eyes released their tears. Fingers instinctively returning her grip.

"Adrien?"

"I... I feel so useless." Adrien choked out. "E-every time I think about it I go back to how you could've done it better. How you wouldn't have made my mistakes, how you wouldn't have needed more than one miracle cure, how-" Adrien pulled his legs to his chest and buried his face in his knees. Marinette releasing his hands as he wrapped his arms around his legs. "How it would've b-been better... i-if I got akumatized... instead of you..."

Despair seemed to pool inside her, pressing against her chest, her gut, her throat. Making it hard to breathe. It came off Adrien like a thick cloud. Marinette remembered this feeling. Though her despair came from a different source the symptoms were similar. And neither responded to logic. "... I don't think it would've been better."

"O- Oh..." Was all Adrien could manage.

Tentatively, Marinette wrapped her arms around Adrien's shoulders, like he did for her. Body shuddering, he took uneven, gasping breaths. As Marinette pulled Adrien close he released his legs, covering his face with his hands in a futile effort to stifle his sobs. Holding his head against her shoulder she stroked his hair soothingly.

Eventually Adrien straightened, wiping at the tear stains on his cheeks as he fidgeted. Embarrassment coloring his features. A chill blew across Marinette where his warmth had pressed against her.

She didn't say anything, no words felt adequate, as his tears were spent and his breathing slowed. So she offered as much reassurance through her presence as she could. Being his friend like he always was for her.

"God," he sniffled, rubbing at his eyes. "Why am I so weak?"

Marinette wasn't sure if it was the way he said it or what it implied but his words filled her with an angry protectiveness. "Adrien Agreste!" His eyes snapped towards her in surprise. "You!" She pointed a finger at his chest. "Are the strongest person I know!"

Eyes widening at the glare she gave him, Adrien stared. Her earnest statement ringing in his ears. She meant it.

Ignoring the rising heat on her cheeks Marinette pushed forward. "You always protect people in danger! When you fall you get right back up again! Even with Aspik-" Adrien flinched and Marinette reached out, holding his hand firmly. "You didn't hesitate to be Chat Noir. To come back. You stood up to Papillon! You stood up to Gabriel! Being hurt after everything you've gone through doesn't make you weak, if anything it shows how strong you are."

The vise squeezing Adrien's heart loosened as he gazed into her eyes. Marinette's untainted words drowning out the akuma's echoes. His hand felt warm in her's. "...I'm supposed to be comforting you."

"Maman and Papa did talk to me before coming here but..." Marinette looked away. "I... I shouldn't have gotten so angry-"

"No." Adrien turned to face her and grabbed both of her hands, holding them together. "You have every right to be angry. No one can bottle up their emotions forever." I should know. "She attacked you." His voice lowered dangerously as he thought back to Lila's scheming. "I'm angry at her, I can only imagine how you feel!"

"What do you mean?"

Taking a deep breath, Marinette spoke evenly. "Alya said a bunch of our classmates that didn't get akumatized heard Lila's confession. One of them even got video. It's likely she'll get expelled so..."

"You don't seem very happy to hear the news," Adrien noticed, her fingers tightening in his grasp.

"I... I hate her, Adrien!" Shame and rage bled into Marinette's voice at the admission. "I hate her so much but I... I didn't want it to be like this!"

"Well..." Marinette blinked back tears as a knot in her stomach untied itself. "I guess it's a good thing we won't have to deal with her anymore."

Adrien glared at the absent girl that hurt his friend. His crush. "You don't have to feel guilty over her, Marinette. You-"

"But that's the thing!" Marinette's gaze bored into Adrien's eyes as she fumbled for the right words. "I don't feel guilty that I hurt her! I feel guilty that I'm not sorry!"

Adrien blinked in surprise.

"I'm Ladybug," Marinette stated, disheartened. "I'm supposed to be better than this."

"You're human." Adrien reminded her gently. "And you're a girl who's selflessly put other people over her own needs for far too long. It's okay to... to not be perfect." A growing awareness pushed at Adrien as he slowly continued. "To put yourself first. No one-" His voice broke and Adrien cleared his throat. "No one will love you any less."

Swirling thoughts that pounded on the inside of Marinette's skull quieted down to manageable levels. Her rapid heartbeat slowing until it no longer roared in her ears. Allowing her to listen to the revelation in Adrien's voice.

Taking one hand out of his grasp Marinette cupped his face as she wiped a stray tear away. Leaving her hand there. "You know that's true for you, too. Right?"

Vision blurring, Adrien's lip trembled as he nodded. Throat refusing to cooperate in forming words.

Suddenly, Marinette let out a hiss of discomfort.

"What? What is it?" Adrien asked worriedly.

"Nothing! It's just... My foot's asleep."

Looking down, Adrien realized Marinette had been sitting on her leg for a while. He couldn't help it. A laugh escaped him. Freeing the lump in his throat and the tension in his chest.

"Wh-what's so funny?" Marinette protested, but the sound was welcome, bittersweet.

Adrien shook his head. "Nothing! I just... here." Lifting her up by the arms he stepped toward the bed. However, he miscalculated how asleep his own limbs were and they both flopped onto it with a yelp of surprise.

The cool sheets felt calming against their heated skin. Adrien and Marinette lying beside each other. Reddened eyes fixed on the other as they wiped their drying tears. Trying to make sense of everything.

"... I think," Adrien began, fiddling with his ring. "Th-that if we never held anyone else responsible for what they did while akumatized. Then we're not gonna start with Marinette Dupain-Cheng!"

Brow furrowing, Marinette placed her hand over his to stop his fidgeting. "Okay. Then we're not going to criticize Mister Bug for taking a while to beat up an entire army without his partner!"

Lacing his fingers with hers, the crease in Adrien's brow mirrored hers. "I..."

"Especially since you won!" Marinette's grip tightened slightly, eyes softening. "You. Won."

Adrien stared at her. Vulnerable and small. "... H-h-how many times are you going to repeat that?"

Marinette smiled gently. "As many times as it takes."

Returning a tentative smile of his own, Adrien closed his eyes. Taking a deep, slow breath. There were still doubts he needed addressed, memories that lacked context, questions going forward. But now Adrien knew he wouldn't be dismissed out of hand. Knew he could ask and Marinette would answer.

And the same was true for her. Marinette had so much on her shoulders, now she didn't have to carry it alone.

If it was the only good that came out of this scarlet chaos, Adrien was glad they could finally be honest with each other.

Ch.1 Ch.2 Ch.3 Ch.4 Ch.5 Ch.6

#adrien agreste #scarlet fever #adrien angst #emotional hurt/comfort #ml hurt/comfort #ml angst #ml fanfiction #ml fanfic #ml fic #plagg #adrien and plagg #the gorilla #nora cesaire #marinette dupain cheng #adrien and marinette #ml au #ml #miraculous ladybug

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