An Archive of Our Own, a project of the Organization for Transformative Works
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: Miraculous Ladybug
Rating: General Audiences
Relationships: Luka Couffaine/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug
Summary:
She’s a sunrise, a beginning. He’s a sunset, a comforting end. They’re opposites - but there’s a whole sky that bridges them.
Written in collaboration with @alto-tenure for the @lovebugs-and-snakecharmers Round robin Sprint Fic Challenge! It was awesome collabortaing with you, River! Looking forward for future collaborations <3
@miraculousfanworks
"I feel like the Grinch. My heart has grown three sizes. It's 21 inches and 7 pounds." Luka's reaction to his and Marinette's first child for the drabble requests, please? :cnooo:
Five hours.
It had exactly been five hours since Marinette had gone into her labor. Four hours and thirty minutes since she, in all her pained glory, had rushed to the Police Department to get his sorry self out of the jail. Four hours since they had rushed her to the hospital and got her in the maternity ward. And since then, Luka had been pacing outside the room, every passing minute making him more jittery, more anxious.
He tapped his fingers on his bicep in anticipation, letting out a small hiss as a sharp pain shot through his arm. He looked down to find small crescent marks left by Marinette’s nails on his skin.
God, an angry, pregnant Mari was sure a fiery Mari.
Luka bounced on one foot and another, watching the second hand complete yet another round around the face of the clock. It was 6.01 A.M.
Five hours and one minute since his wife had gone into labor, and there was yet no sign of their little bundle of joy.
Mentally, he ran the list of do’s and don’ts post-deliveries. Sabine had already brought Marinette’s maternity bag, so that was not an issue. And Luka had double-checked with all his acquaintances to make sure that there was no confetti, no cake, no party involved. (No, Jagged, a concert in the air with rain of flowers does count as a party and hence is totally out of question).
He had google searched and memorised all complications that could occur during delivery. There could be the cord problems, or the baby could have a high heart rate, or wait… was that Marinette screaming? What if Marinette lost too much blood? Oh gosh, he was O-positive, but what was Marinette’s blood type again? If he remembered well, it was O-positive, right? Or was it the rare AB negative? Oh dear, what if it was AB negative…
“Luka, idiot, breathe.”
The young man drew in a sharp breath, immediately to cough and splutter on the air. Brielle thumped on his back as he wheezed, bringing him back to normalcy. “Gosh, you are dumber than Dingus.”
“Don’t compare me to that platypus,” Luka choked out as he straightened his clothes. “He was the reason I was in jail today.”
“And Marinette’s sure not going to let you off the hook for that,” the brunette smirked. “Speaking of Marinette, it seems like… WAIT, where are you going, Couffaine?!”
Thank you to everyone who participated in our Secret Santa Sprint Fic Challenge! We had a fantastic turnout for this event and it was an absolute joy to see the fics all popping up on the reveal day! We look forward to doing more special events in the coming year.
The next Sprint Fic Challenge will take place on Wednesday, December 23. Be sure to follow us for the announcement! You can still join the discord between now and then if you have questions or just want to say hi, or feel free to leave questions in our ask box. Challenges take place on the 2nd and 4th Wednesday of every month.
And now, here’s the list of all our secret santa sprint fics! We have a couple still outstanding so we’ll add those links in a reblog when they’re posted.
From @bloody-writes for Snugglebuttkitten: About weird exchanges, scarf and accidental revelations
From ChromeMist for @chrwrites: Lessons Learned
From @chrwrites for nonbinarynino: Worth the Wait
From @crescent-woods for @mamanabeille: the dupain-couffaine-cheng christmas
From @fandomsilhouette for theriveroflight : unravel me in parts (entwine these frosted hearts)
From @fenheart87 for @fandomsilhouette: Home Is where You Are
From @ladycat1 for @nerdypanda3126: It’s Holiday Time!
From @livrever for @fenheart87: Textures of Love
From @mamanabeille for @verfound: A Very Dingo Christmas
From MiniNoire for @pointless-ness: A Christmas Magical & New, ‘Cause I’m With You
From @nerdypanda3126 for @livrever: A Game of Snake and Mouse
From nonbinarynino for @quickspinner: i watched it begin again
From @pointless-ness for @eat0crow: Time, mystical time
From @quickspinner for @piscesangelina: Little Treasures
From Snugglebuttkitten for MiniNoire: The Twelve Days of Love-Mas
From theriveroflight for @bloody-writes: like the darkness is the light
From @verfound for @chromemist: Winters Hold the Longest Nights
If you find something you like please like/reblog the original post, or leave kudos/comments, to let the author know you enjoyed their work!
These works and previous challenge responses are collected here on AO3, and can be found under here on the blog under the lbsc sprint fic compilation tag.
Thank you anon!! Fun thing is, I was working on a Soulmate AU (ViperBug + Lukanette) when your prompt came in! I hope you like the story, read under the cut to find out!
“What do ya mean ya don’t want to eat this, lad? It’s a celebration day for us and above all, it’s yer favorite.”
It had started the night of the music festival.
Luka glared at the plate of Italian Beef, a frown marring his features. Ma was right, the dish was his favorite. In fact, any dish with onions in it was a simple delight. But for some reason, he now had an urge to throw the damned beef in the trash and never see it again.
Pushing his plate away, Luka sighed. “I dunno, Ma. I just… where’s the nearest basin again?”
“But it’s onions. You like onions,” Juleka spoke up.
“Correction: liked,” Luka replied, before pushing the dish further away and leaning back in his chair. “Right now, the very sight of them is making me want to throw up.”
“Laddie, it's celebration day! We always make Italian Beef, and you relish it.” Anarka spoke up in an authoritative tone, causing Luka to look up. “And y’know we don’t tolerate wastage in this house. So right now, you eat what you got on yer plate.”
“I know, Ma. But I just don’t want to.” Luka got up from his chair and picked up his guitar. “I guess I will just go out and eat something. I’m sorry I ruined the dinner.”
Ignoring his mom’s calls, Luka climbed out to the deck of Liberty. As he got off the houseboat and onto the dock, he quickly worked his way up the footpath. His mind was in a turmoil. He couldn’t understand his sudden disgust for onions; he loved them like crazy. Dishes without onions had seemed so bland. But now even the smell of them made him gag.
Searching around for some affordable fast food joint, Luka found himself getting irritated with his stupid condition. The music festival had been one wild ride and with the adrenaline of the day finally subsiding, he found himself growing tired and hungrier with every passing minute. Fast food without onions was unheard of, and given his dilemma, he really couldn’t eat anything substantial off the menu. After a lot of calculations and internal cursing, he (or rather his hunger) finally managed to convince himself to dine on a big block of strawberry ice cream that night, hoping the sugar content could keep him going for the time being.
He dug into his ice cream, relishing the sugary delight despite its insubstantiality. Having something in his stomach made him feel better and energized, and Luka didn’t mind missing the festive treat. After all, ice cream could count as a treat too, right?
Eating the last scoop of the cold delight, Luka chucked the carton in the nearby trashcan and let out a sigh. And that was when his eyes caught sight of something colorful against the grey walls.
A flower.
The Couffaine boy peered at the tiny flower with curiosity, his hand coming up to feel its petals. The flower was soft, the flower was beautiful. The flower was a delight to see. It was colourful and looked absolutely… tasty.
Luka wondered how it would feel like in his mouth.
Looking around and finding no one, the boy weighed his chances. The flower was irresistible and Luka felt totally drawn to it. But was eating a flower actually something sensible?
Then again, sensibility and Boat Kid couldn’t exist in one sentence.
Plucking the flower, Luka shoved it into his mouth.
The flower was as soft on his tongue as he had imagined it to be. And juicy too. The nectar was the right amount of sweet and tangy, and the stalk wasn’t bad eith--
“THE HECK?! ”
Abruptly turning around, Luka found an astonished Juleka staring at him with eyes blown wide, jaw slack open. Her gaze dropped from his face to his mouth, causing Luka to gulp the now crushed flower.
Well, nearly gulp.
The tasty flower was too dry.
Luka coughed and choked and spluttered, causing Juleka to rush over to him and pound him on the back. As he recovered from his coughing fit, his sister pointed at her own mouth in astonishment. Luka reached over his mouth to find a leaf sticking on his lips.
Oh well.
This was going to be a fun explanation.
“Oh my god, that’s… that’s downright hilarious!” Ladybug wheezed in delight before letting out a small yelp as she overbalanced herself, nearly toppling off the roof. Viperion caught her just in time, helping her straighten up again. Muttering a small thanks to him, Ladybug let out another chuckle as she held her stomach, her other hand coming up to rest on the snake hero’s left shoulder.
“I-I’m sorry,” the heroine giggled, wiping the tears of mirth from her eyes before looking up at Viperion. “But I can’t help it. It’s just too funny! I just...I can’t even imagine Juleka’s reaction to that. How did you explain it to her?”
The snake hero chuckled, shaking his head lightly. “I didn’t need to. Turns out, she had already figured out something was fishy the moment I declared my hatred for onions. And my ‘hunting of an innocent flower’ just solidified her explanations.”
“Hunting of an innocent flower, good lord,” Ladybug let out another giggle before her stance turned slightly serious. “If I know right, onions are snake repellents. Do you think…”
Viperion shook his head in denial. “No. She didn’t connect it like that. Moreover, it was after a month or so that Viperion made his debut so..I don’t think it has to do with the Miraculous.”
“Then what does it have to deal with?”
Viperion remained silent for a moment. He didn’t want to tell the real reason, didn’t want to mess things up. However, seeing no way out, Viperion simply sighed. “Soulmates.”
Her silence served as an indication for him to continue.
Viperion kicked at the air, before turning his gaze to the city of lights that lay in front of him. “It’s some sort of weird rare connection that activated when I first met my soulmate. Apparently, I started liking what my soulmate loves to eat. And whoever she is, she started liking my favorite food.”
“You mean onions?” For some reason, Ladybug’s voice was highly guarded.
“Yep. And we both dislike what we earlier liked, so…” Viperion let out another sigh. “I miss eating onions. Like, I have thankfully developed some tolerance to the smell and can eat an onion ring or two, but I want to relish them like I used to.”
“Isn’t there any way to cure it?”
“Apparently, I have to kiss her,” Viperion mirthlessly chuckled as he picked up a hibiscus from the small basket he had brought, popping the flower in his mouth. He ignored Ladybug’s strangled sound; Viperion was too used to being looked at like some idiot whenever he ate them. A profound silence stretched between the two heroes, and Viperion tried his best to not break it with his munching.
However, the flower was too tasty to give a damn.
“Why do you refer to your soulmate as a ‘her’?” Ladybug’s voice completely shattered the remaining traces of silence. “I mean, they necessarily aren’t a girl, right?”
“I already know who she is.”
Ladybug stiffened as she looked at him quizzically. Viperion weighed the chances in his head. He knew what he was signing up for, and he didn’t want to mess up the friendship he had with the superheroine, but circumstances simply didn't seem to be in his favor. “I only interacted with two new people that day -- one was the girl I love and the other was you. Aaanddd--”
“And?”
Viperion paused, his hand stopping near his mouth, another hibiscus held comically in it. He looked at Ladybug, then at the flower in his hand, then back at Ladybug, eyebrow quirked up in a “are you serious?” expression.
Ladybug looked confusedly at him for a moment, before her eyes literally bugged out as she let out an incomprehensible noise. Viperion immediately hurried to calm her down. “I mean! It’s just an assumption based on the qualities your miraculous gives you and you don’t necessarily like--”
“You!” Ladybug screamed out, causing the snake hero to flinch away. However, the heroine simply grabbed him by the collar and pulled him towards herself, her stormy bluebell eyes inches away from his terrified teals. “You are the reason why I moved from detesting onions to loving them!”
“I-what?!” Viperion squeaked out, before clearing his throat. “I mean, REALLY?! YOU DETESTED ONIONS?! ”
“I DID!”
“But whyyyyyy?!” Viperion let out a whine. “Onions are so good!”
“THAT’S NOT THE POINT! Why do I have to deal with morons?!”
“But why don’t you understand? Onions are so good!” If Viperion couldn’t eat onions, he would make others know the joy of eating that vegetable. “They are tangy, and flavory, and savory. And have you tried them in dishes? They taste so wonde -MMPH! ”
Only to be silenced by a pair of lips slamming on his own.
His eyes widened in surprise as soft lips moved over his own, and before he knew what was happening, Ladybug pulled away.
She let his collar go and grabbed the flower from his hand, popping it into her mouth. Viperion remained standing where he was, gawking at her like a stupid fellow.
“This is so messed up… I just… follow me.” Saying so, Ladybug swung off the roof.
Viperion just watched her retreating figure, his hands coming over his lips. He could taste the strawberry lip gloss and feel the heat in his cheeks. And he didn’t know what the hell had just happened.
The love of his life was Marinette. Soulmates or not, he had come to accept that Ladybug and him were just friends.
He was supposed to be someone filling up for Chat when the latter couldn’t show up on patrols. He was supposed to be Ladybug’s soundboard: talking to her when she needed him, whether it was sharing jokes or stressful events.
He wasn’t supposed to kiss her.
Well, technically, it was she who kissed him, but the problem still remained.
She wasn’t supposed to kiss him!
Ladybug and him were just friends. Friends do not kiss each other on the lips. And he was in love with Marinette, he could not return Ladybug’s feelings, no matter how much his heart broke at that.
What was he going to do?
His lyre chimed, causing him to jump in surprise. He picked up the incoming call from Ladybug and placed the device next to his ear.
That had been a mistake, for it immediately blared to life.
“ VIPERION! ” Ladybug’s voice boomed out of the communicator, and Viperion nearly threw the device off the roof. “Are you coming or should I drag you around Paris wrapped in my yo-yo?!”
“I am! I am!” Saying so, he cut the call and sighed.
It was time to face the music. Literally.
Viperion landed down on the darkened Dupain-Cheng balcony, totally confused. The GPS had shown him that this was the place, but why did Ladybug decide to land here?
Something soft hit him in the face. Surprised, he picked the thing up from the floor. It was a hibiscus flower.
“Glad to see you could make it here, Luka.”
Viperion immediately turned to the source of voice, his advanced senses detecting someone standing there. The sound was definitely Ladybug’s. However, whether she was suited or not was the question.
“Ladybug?”
The girl sighed. “Yeah, that’s me. Now tell me, can you eat that flower?”
Viperion looked down at the hibiscus in his hand. For some reason, he didn’t feel the urge to gobble up the entire thing in one go. He took a tentative bit of the petal and immediately spat the damned thing out.
“Yuck! It’s gross!” The hero exclaimed, spluttering. “No, I can’t eat it!”
“And the onion rings by your side?” came Ladybug’s question. Viperion looked around to find the same beside him.
There had been a plate of onion rings by his side and he hadn’t realised?!
He picked up one ring and put it in his mouth. And his eyes immediately filled with tears.
He could actually relish his favorite food after such a long time!
Grabbing the plate, Viperion popped the onion rings into his mouth, munching on them happily. Ladybug’s chuckle caught his attention, causing him to blush.
“I’m glad the kiss worked, Luka.”
“Thank you so much Ladybug! You don’t know how happy I am and-- wait,” he gulped the food down as he looked at the heroine inquisitively, “The kiss didn’t mean anything?”
There was silence on the other end, before Ladybug let out a sigh. “The day I started liking onions, I knew I had interacted with my soulmate. But who they were, I couldn’t say.”
Viperion put the plate aside, giving Ladybug his full attention.
“I knew it wasn’t my former crush: he loves passion-fruit macarons. I asked Chat, and turned out it wasn’t him either: Chat has a sweet tooth and he had started liking spicy things despite his low tolerance. And I don’t like spice so--”
“You weren’t his soulmate,” Viperion whispered.
“Nope.” Ladybug let out another sigh. “Going around asking for everyone’s favorite food sounded weird, so I didn’t do that. Plus, I missed my flowers and hated onions with my heart. I was eager to know who was the cause of this entire mess in my life. Turns out it was you...and I’m glad of that.”
Viperion could hear the smile in her voice, and he took one tentative step towards her. “I’m sorry for being the cause of your dilemma, Ladybug. But this still doesn’t answer my question. ‘Cause you see, there is someone else who has a claim over my heart.”
He heard her breath hitch, and that alone gave him his answer, Ladybug did have feelings for him.
“I-I see.”
Viperion felt absolutely bad for turning her down like that, and he racked his brains to find something, anything that could remove the heavy lull the conversation had fallen into. However, Ladybug saved him from the trouble.
“Luka?”
“Yeah?”
“It’s-it’s okay. I won’t mind us staying just… friends .” The sadness in her voice broke his heart, but he chose to stay silent. “I just… Can I know who she is? If you don’t mind?”
Ladybug’s breath hitched, and he sensed her take a step towards him. “You-you mean Marinette? Marinette Dupain Cheng?”
“Yes.”
Ladybug walked towards him slowly and steadily, until he could practically feel the heat radiating off her. He looked down to find her bluebell eyes sparkling at him. Bluebell eyes that didn’t have a mask covering them. Bluebell eyes that, for some reason, had him completely floored. As if he never wanted this moment between them to break.
“Can you… can you please detransform?” She spoke in a voice so soft, Viperion nearly missed her words.
“Scales rest,” he whispered, afraid to shatter the unknown bubble he was trapped in.
Teal light filled the area, and that was when Luka heard Ladybug’s soft whisper to Tikki, asking the kwami to turn on the lights.
The fairy lights slowly came to life, illuminating the balcony the duo were on. And underneath the stars and in the ambient glow of the lights, Luka found himself staring at the love of his life.
His melody.
“Marinette?” He breathed out, his heart thudding in his ears.
“Luka,” came her soft reply.
“Where did Ladybug go?”
“I-What?!”
Luka couldn’t help himself from breaking down into a fit of chuckles.
“Oh my lord, that expression is just… priceless! Marine-OUCH! OUCH! SORRY!! Stop hitting me!”
“That’s for being a jerk!” Marinette wailed, before pulling him by the collar and kissing him full on the lips, catching him by surprise. “And that’s for the confession.”
For the second time that night, Luka was caught by surprise. As Marinette pulled away, he was staring at her with wide eyes, his hand automatically coming up to touch his lips. He could taste the strawberry lip gloss on his lips and felt the heat in his cheeks. Once again he didn’t know what to do.
“Luka? Are you okay?” Her voice broke him out of his trance.
“Marinetteeee,” Luka whined, “You kissed me two times without any warning and you expect me to be okay?”
She giggled, before taking a step towards him, her lips lifted in a smirk. “Well, don’t they say that third time’s the charm?”
He blinked at her, before smirking as his arms wrapped around her waist. He took the hibiscus from her hands and tossed it away. She knocked over the plate of onions in retaliation. Luka chuckled before pulling her close.
“Well, shall we test that out then, My melody?” He whispered against her ear, causing her to let out a breathy chuckle.
Soft lips pressed against his for the third time that night, catching him by surprise yet again. Not by the spontaneity of the kiss, but by how unique it was. Sweet as sugar, fruity as her lip gloss, tangy (and a little weird) as the hibiscus she had earlier had, yet completely Marinette . He sighed against her lips, feeling complete, and she let out a breathy giggle. He chuckled along with her, breaking the kiss.
“Wow,” Marinette let out a relieved sigh, catching Luka’s attention. “It was so... different!”
“Different as in?” He curiously asked, eyebrows quirked up in interest.
“Fruity, citrus, with that slight weird tinge of onions.”
“Onions are not weird, Marinette Dupain-Cheng.”
“Fight me on that, Luka Couffaine” she countered, cutely sticking her tongue out.
Luka laughed as he pulled her close to himself once again. She laid her head on his chest, giggling excitedly. Letting out a happy sigh, he gently crooked a finger under her chin, tipping her head up and finding himself lost in the lights and stars that danced in her eyes.
“You really want to fight on it, Viperion?” Marinette whispered in a tone that sent tingles down his spine. He let out a breathy laugh, looking at her through his bangs as he drew close to her.
“I might just make you understand my point with a night full of kisses, Ladybug.”
The fairy lights and the stars above them were the happy witness of her jovial affirmation.
An Archive of Our Own, a project of the Organization for Transformative Works
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: Miraculous Ladybug
Rating: General Audiences
Relationships: Luka Couffaine/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug
Characters: Luka Couffaine, Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug, Juleka Couffaine, Anarka Couffaine
Summary:
“It’s some sort of weird rare connection that activated when I first met my soulmate. Apparently, I started liking what my soulmate loves to eat. And whoever she is, she started liking my favorite food.”
“Isn’t there any way to cure it?”
“Apparently, I have to kiss yo-I mean her! Kiss her, yeah."
So, it has been a hectic month and I properly checked Tumblr yesterday evening to find I had crossed 200 followers! Thank you so much for your love and support!!
In regards to the same, I am opening my ask box on both, my main blog @mininoire and my writing blog @noirewrites for one shot prompts!
Information regarding the same:
Length of one shots: From a few hundred words to 1k+
Ships: LoveSquare, Lukanette, Marigami, Adrigami, Lukadrien, Lukadrigaminette, Lukadrinette, Adrigaminette. I can also try my hands on Chlonette, Felinette (PV Felix), DJWifi, MariBlanc, MissBlanc.
Not Willing to Write: NSFW, gore, rape/non-con, graphic descriptions of violence, any major triggers.
SFW, angst, fluff, humor are always welcome!
Prompt submissions are open till Dec 15! So what are you waiting for? Drop a prompt in the inbox and I hope I will be able to make your story come to life <3
For any questions, the inbox is open :D
Thanks once again, and looking forward to your prompts <3
An Archive of Our Own, a project of the Organization for Transformative Works
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: Miraculous Ladybug
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug, Alya Césaire/Nino Lahiffe
Summary:
Alya pushed her spectacles up on her nose, her eyes narrowed at the door through which her two friends had exited. “Those two are totally suspicious. Being a fox, I know something’s fishy. And I’m sure I'm going to get to the bottom of this.”
What's up with Marinette and Adrien? When did they start dating? And the bigger question, how does Alya not know?!
The LadyBlogger is determined to get to the bottom of this, but she discovers something that was supposed to be a closely guarded secret...
An Archive of Our Own, a project of the Organization for Transformative Works
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: Miraculous Ladybug
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Summary:
Juleka cocked an eyebrow in surprise. “You mean you’re singing at the wedding? Her wedding?”
Luka didn’t answer her, but simply turned to rearrange his already clean desk.
An Archive of Our Own, a project of the Organization for Transformative Works
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: Miraculous Ladybug
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Relationships: Luka Couffaine/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug
Summary:
“Till death do us part? We never covered undeath.”
An Archive of Our Own, a project of the Organization for Transformative Works
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: Miraculous Ladybug
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Ivan Bruel/Mylène Haprèle
Characters: Mylène Haprèle, Ivan Bruel, Mullo (Miraculous Ladybug), Bruel kids (OC), Coco (OC)
After Hawk Moth's defeat, Ladybug allowed some of her holders to keep their Miraculous, "just in case". Ivan and Mylene married, settled down and had kids. The Mouse Miraculous became a thing of memory for Mylene, safely hidden away, until her small child discovered it on a particularly difficult day for the frazzled mother of three.
Salvaging the powerful jewel from the grubby fingers, Mylene considered its purpose. She knew that the Miraculous were not supposed to be used for personal reasons, but amidst the chaos of parenting a preschooler, a toddler and a newborn, she was sorely tempted to reconsider. Surely those old monks in Tibet hadn't known what a warzone that could be. Mothering was a daily battle, and years of living in survival mode had pushed this young mother into desperation.
Every mother wishes she could clone herself. This one can.
Written for @miraculousfanworks anniversary event!
An Archive of Our Own, a project of the Organization for Transformative Works
Chapters: 5/?
Fandom: Miraculous Ladybug, Detroit: Become Human (Video Game)
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapter 5: Summary:
“Why? “Why do you pity me? Why do you stick with me? Why do you care?”
As he repeated the question in his head again and again, he discovered that he really didn’t have an answer.
1| 2| 3| 4| 5
An Archive of Our Own, a project of the Organization for Transformative Works
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: Miraculous Ladybug
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Luka Couffaine/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug, Juleka Couffaine & Luka Couffaine
Series: Part 1 of Mini's Spin The Record Challenge
Summary:
Mindless of the long shadows that the buildings outside cast in his room, Luka strummed at his guitar absentmindedly, no specific song escaping his skilled fingers. However, his mind remained numb to the unsynchronised collection of notes that the instrument in his hand produced. All he could hear was muted silence.
A Guide to Making iOS Text Messages on AO3, Miraculous Style
(This is a contribution to @miraculousfanworks for formatting tips in AO3)
Writers like to experiment with different fanfiction types. And one of the most popular types are the text fics.
A text fic resembles a log of two or more characters texting each other. It may be written entirely in the form of text messages, or it may contain narrated passages. Writers often prefer to include texting between characters in their stories, for it gives the readers a deeper insight into the characters’ lives and personality. And no doubts the level of personal interactions associated with texts is what makes text-fics a popular type amidst the readers.
A story can be written entirely in texts, or even contain a minor scene where the characters text each other. Often, writers have different ways to distinguish the texts from the rest of the narration, to enable the readers to easily differentiate between the two parts.
One of the most common ways is formatting. Aligning, boldifying and italicizing the texts is a common way to highlight them in the story. However, many a times, the formatting fails to give off the necessary vibes. To rectify the same, a few writers use screenshots of text conversations between the characters in their stories.
But what if there was a way to present the text messages in the story, WITHOUT using the images?
Something like this:
“Wait, when was the last time you slept, Marinette?”
“A few days. Haven’t slept... for a few days... Work to do… Black coffee… Monster drinks... Caffeine in blood…”
“I am totally sure the last thing was other way round."
@miraculousfanworks Fulfilled for a prompt in @mlwritersguild!
Read the story under the cut!
“Marinette, it’s 4.30 A.M. in the morning! You need to sleep!”
“Just one more stitch, Tikki,” the girl mumbled to her kwami as she focused on the dress she was trying, trying to get the golden embroidery completed. Kagami’s birthday was in two days and Marinette wanted to give something to her new friend. Hence, she had decided to make the fencer a nice red jacket with black accents, and with a beautiful golden dragon embroidered on it. And she really wasn’t in a mood to mess her hard work up.
“But Marine--”
“Just a second, Tikki…” the girl gritted out before letting out a whoop of joy. “There! It’s done! How does it look like?”
The designer turned the mannequin to show her little friend the final result. The red jacket with its black trims and buttons looked pretty simple. However, it was the majestic dragon that gave the jacket its signature look. It started from the left breast pocket, occupied most of the jacket’s behind and ended with its tail curling near the right hip.
“Wow Marinette, it looks just as if the dragon is embracing and protecting the wearer of the jacket!” Tikki commented, running her hand along the jacket’s embroidery. The golden thread glimmered under the kwami of creation’s touch.
“Thanks Tikki, and now,” the girl let out a long yawn as her eyes drooped. “I guess it’s finally time for a good nap.”
“Yes Marinette!” The kwami chirped, flitting around her chosen’s head in concern. “You haven’t had a proper sleep for a few days. That’s not good for you!”
“I know, I know Tikki, but…” the girl paused as she tried to get her bearings, her hand on the railing to hold herself steady. “There have been just so many commissions for Jagged and Kitty Section, and then the class presidential duties, and let’s not forget Hawk Moth--”
“Along with which you also took it upon yourself to make Kagami a birthday present and babysat Manon for a day, I know!” Tikki completed her statement for her. “That’s why I’m saying, you need to sleep.”
“Yeah yeah, I’m just going to do that,” Marinette sleepily chuckled “Gonna climb the stairs and just flop down on my bed and--”
The moment she lay her head on her pillow, she immediately shot up, eyes bugged out in horror.
“What happened, Marinette?”
The frantic girl yanked at her pigtails as a crazed look appeared in her eyes. “Tikki, I forgot to complete the Literature homework due today!”
*************************************
“Cesaire, Alya?”
“Present!”
“Dupain-Cheng, Marinette?”
There was a silence in the room.
“Dupain-Cheng, Marinette?” Ms. Bustier called the name out again, looking up from her register.
Alya raised her hand. “Um, Ms. Bustier, Marinette’s still not here and--”
“Present!”
Immediately the classroom door slammed open as someone dropped on the classroom floor with a yelp. Papers went flying by and the students in the classroom got up to find Marinette sprawled out on the ground, grumbling something incoherent.
She quickly sat up and started to assemble her papers. Adrien and Nino got down to help her as the others went back to what they were doing. Thanking the two guys quietly, Marinette marched up to Ms.Bustier’s desk and slammed the papers down on her table.
“The homework that was due for today, Ms. Bustier. Complete with detailed analysis of the scene that we studied yesterday.”
The teacher took in Marinette’s appearance and tentatively nodded in response, immediately to cringe a bit at the maniac smile that the girl gave her. With a skip in her step, Marinette walked over to her desk and plopped down in her seat beside Alya.
As Ms. Bustier continued taking the attendance in the background, Alya leant into Marinette’s space, holding her hand up in a whispering notion. “M, what the heck? Your hair’s a bird’s nest, your eyes bloodshot and the dark circles make you look like a ghost. What the hell have you been doing?”
Marinette hummed distractedly as she dug into her backpack, before pulling out a big can of Monster energy drink, causing her best friend’s eyes to bug out. “Oh nothing much, just homework,” she nonchalantly spoke, waving her hand as she took in a big gulp of the drink.
“Just…. Homework, you say?” Alya eyed her friend as she continued to drink. Clearly Marinette needed some help, for no normal teenager should be drinking that .
“Yeah, and a bit of designing. Woke up a bit late but thankfully managed to get a croissant and two cups of black coffee.” Marinette put the drink down and wiped at her lips. Alya peered into the can. It was half-finished.
“Girl, are you sure you don’t want to have a heart attack?”
“Mhmm,” Marinette grinned at her manically and Alya decided then and there that her best friend did not need just some help.
She needed some serious help.
***********************************************
“Okay class,” Ms. Bustier clapped her hands, gaining the students’ attention. “Since today’s lecture was based on stress management and relaxation, I want you all to write something about your life. It doesn’t have to be long: a short paragraph or poem also works!”
The children scrambled to get their supplies out and started working on the task assigned to them. Satisfied with having kept the students busy, Ms.Bustier sat down at her desk and started going through her paperwork.
Five minutes later, a paper was put on her desk.
The teacher looked up to find a weary Marinette looking at her expectantly. Smiling at the student, Ms. Bustier took the paper and turned it, letting out a gasp.
“Marinette, what is the meaning of this?” She asked the girl, pointing at the random squiggles and scribblings that filled the paper.
Marinette shrugged as she swayed a bit. “You asked us to write something about our life. Well, that’s me, a total sleep-deprived mess.”
“You haven’t been having proper sleep, dear?” The girl responded with a small shake of her head.
“Okay.” The teacher immediately signed a note and handed it to Marinette. “Take this to the nurse and she will give you the permission to rest for the day. Grab a proper sleep, it is important for your health.”
Marinette gave her teacher a small smile of gratitude and a thumbs up before grabbing the note and moving out of the room. Sighing in relief at having helped a student, Ms. Bustier started to get back to grading the homework.
The thudding sound of someone falling down the stairs made her run outside the class, to find Marinette staggering quickly (and wearily) in the direction of the nurse’s office.
****************************************
Being in bed was a wonderful feeling, Marinette decided that day.
After having completed the homework, she had gotten to sleep at 6.00 A.M., only to be rudely woken up by her alarm at 7. The dark coffee and the Monster drink had got her through the first half of the day, but by the time Ms. Bustier had suggested them all to write something about their life, Marinette had been done with.
Her brain had come to an abrupt stop and she couldn’t think of anything except squiggled and wiggled and incomprehensible stuff. So when Ms.Bustier had granted her the permission to actually gain some rest for the day, Marinette had been very excited.
A bit too excited to not look where she had been going and end up tripping down the last set of stairs.
But having a bruised ankle only solidified the reasons for her rest, so she wasn’t sorry.
She closed her eyes and curled into herself, waiting for sleep to kick in. Given her state, sleep could ambush her any time. And she was very much willing to invest this time in her favorite pastime.
Dreaming of emerald eyes that twinkle in mirth. Cologne that made adrenaline rush through her bld. And blond hair that shone like the sun.
Right now she hated the sun.
Sadly, she ditched the dream in a dark corner of her mind and started to focus on her breathing, waiting for sleep to grab her in her embrace.
Just in a moment.
Just a moment more.
...
Maybe one more moment?
Marinette tossed in her bed with a groan. Why was she not sleepy?
The can of Monster energy drink winked at her from her backpack.
Stupid energy drinks, kicking in at the wrong time.
Marinette wanted to sob and cry and wail at her fate. Why did the universe hate her?
As if answering her pleas, the nurse turned on some soft music in the room. Music that was soft and sweet and serene and calming and relaxing.
Relaxing and soothing like the music that accompanied the smell of the ocean. Ocean… that reminded her of deep blue eyes. Framed by a mop of dark hair.
Darkness was welcomed, for it made her totally drowsy .
Marinette sighed in relief. Yeah, she could dream about soft music and ocean and deep eyes and mysterious smiles and--
The alarm on her phone blared suddenly, causing her to shoot up in bed as she spoke in a language so colourful, it would have made a real sailor blush.
The akuma news feed flashed on her phone in a deep red.
Marinette vowed to herself to not rest till she kicked some moth butt that day.
********************************************
“Watch out Ladybug!”
The warning came a bit too late. The pink beam hit the red and black spotted heroine square in the chest, and immediately she felt a wave of drowsiness crash over her.
The akuma, Sleeping Beauty, stole people’s sleep or made them drowsy, depending on the rested state of their mind.
Ladybug was totally done.
Done with the stupid akuma, done with the old looney toon of a butterfly supervillain, done with the ever-conspiring universe.
She just wanted a wink of a peaceful sleep. One that was not akuma-induced. Could she not even get that?
She simply wanted to get over with this quickly.
“Lucky Charm!”
A big carton of Monster Energy Drinks dropped into her hands.
Sadly, the cans were sealed tight and not meant for drinking purposes, as the notice on the top of it said.
She looked at the carton and at the rampaging akuma. The carton shone first, then the akuma’s head.
Such a nice plan.
Simple.
Easy.
Executable.
She hauled the carton over her head.
“Take that, you mangy akuma!”
And summoning all her strength, she yeeted the heavy box at its target.
The carton flew. Chat followed its line of motion with his eyes.
A resounding thud.
The akuma dropped. Ladybug fell to her knees.
“You okay, Ladybug?” Chat was by her side immediately as she panted in exhaustion.
“I am f-fine,” she managed to grit out.
A Cataclysm later, Ladybug tossed the carton once again, this time weakly, into the air with a cry of “Miraculous Ladybug!”.
The magical ladybugs fixed everything. Everything except Ladybug’s exhaustion.
She really wanted to drop dead from exhaustion right now.
“Milady, are you really sure you are okay?” Chat asked once more, looking at his ring worriedly as it beeped.
“As okay as a sleepwalking zombie,” she said with a thumbs up.
Chat stayed a little longer by her side, before vaulting away.
Ladybug gathered all of her strength and pushed herself up on her feet. She trudged forward and finally broke into a sprint.
She had to scale that gap in the buildings in front of her. She crouched. She leaped.
Her Miraculous beeped the final time before the magical suit faded away.
Oh darn.
**********************************************
Luka came up from behind the dumpster, brushing dust off his jacket. He made a way for his bike, when a yelp from above caught his attention.
The next thing he knew, Marinette was in his arms. And he was breathing as heavily as her.
“Marinette? What were you -- wait, how did you end up THERE?!”
“I-I-” she looked around with wide eyes, before letting out a breathless chuckle. “I was parkouring!”
“In the midst of an akuma attack? From that height? What were you thinking?!” He asked worriedly, his tone going an octave higher.
Marinette gripped his denim jacket and looked up at him with teary eyes. “I just...I--I am sorry!”
“Hey hey, don’t cry, oof calm down Melody,” Luka awkwardly shifted her a bit in his arms, patting her back slowly. He started walking towards where he had parked his cycle.
She curled into him, gripping his jacket as she snuggled.in deep. ‘I wanna sleep,” came her muffled voice.
That was when he took in her bedraggled state, her messed up hair and the dark circles that had been visible in her eyes. “Wait, when was the last time you slept, Marinette?”
“This morning?” Her answer was immediately followed by a yawn.
He got his cycle of the stand with one hand, balancing the vehicle and the girl in his arms awkwardly. “I meant a proper, nice sleep, Mari.”
There was silence from her side and Luka looked down to find her eyes screwed shut.
Oh well, she had fallen asleep.
Carefully, he mounted himself on the cycle, all the while trying his best not to disturb the girl in his arms. He adjusted his grip, and after making sure everything was secure, pedalled off in the direction of his home.
A few moments in the ride, and he felt Marinette fist his jacket as she mumbled something.
“What was that, Mari? I didn’t catch you,” he asked softly.
“A few days. Haven’t slept... for a few days.”
Luka was totally concerned. “But why? And how did you even function?”
“Work to do… Black coffee… Monster drinks... Caffeine in blood…”
“I am totally sure the last thing was other way round,” Luka grumbled as he continued to cycle.
Marinette didn’t speak anymore, just drifted off to sleep.
Once he reached home, he gingerly picked the girl in his arms and got aboard the boat. He walked quickly towards his cabin, all the while praying his mom would not see him (for heaven knows her boisterous congratulations would freak the sleeping Marinette out).
Luka gingerly put Marinette down on his bed and pulled the sheets over her. He picked up his guitar and moved to go to the deck, but found himself stuck in place.
For Marinette had fisted his shirt tight in her little hands.
Sighing partly in realisation and partly at the sight of her cute, sleeping face, Luka bent down to get his shirt free of her hold.
However, as soon as he made a move to loosen her hold, Marinette’s face scrunched up.
“Stay?” came her soft mumble, and Luka’s heart melted.
With no other alternative visible, the boy sighed before pulling his phone out of his pocket. Shooting a quick text to Juleka about Marinette resting at the Liberty, he gingerly sat down on his bed, leaning on the wall.
Marinette immediately shifted herself a bit, giving him room to adjust as she put her head in his lap and dozed off again.
Smiling down at the girl in his lap, Luka gently threaded his fingers through her hair, before pulling the hair ties out. He didn’t want her to get up with heavily knotted hair, after all. Plus, it just provided him more of an excuse to play with her soft locks.
Marinette snuggled herself to him, and Luka shifted his legs a bit to make her more comfortable. He hummed a lullaby, letting himself relax as the love of his life slept near him in pure bliss.
Sleep came to him discreetly, and he found happiness in dreams of pink cherry blossoms, the scent of chocolate and bread and the beautiful smile of the music of his heart.
************************************
Anarka entered the small cabin, looking for her son to get some groceries. However, the sight that met her caught her off guard.
Luka was leaning by the wall, his head tilted to the side as he dozed off, a content smile spread on his face. On his lap lay the sleeping form of the girl who designed for Kitty Section. Luka’s one hand was in the girl’s hair while the other was draped over her back protectively. The girl herself had a peaceful smile on her face as she used the boy’s legs for her pillow, while her one arm fisted his jacket and the other was near her waist, interlocked with Luka’s.
Smiling, the Captain of the Liberty simply pulled out her phone and discreetly clicked a picture of the two sleeping kids, before smiling and walking out of the room.
An Archive of Our Own, a project of the Organization for Transformative Works
Chapters: 4/?
Fandom: Miraculous Ladybug, Detroit: Become Human (Video Game)
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
1| 2| 3| 4
@miraculousfanworks @art-the-f-up
I have finally tagged all asks, story updates and fanarts on my main blog (@MiniNoire) using the #2043 ml dbh au tag so feel free to check it out!!
Insight into chapter 4 below:
She didn’t know why she was here. And she couldn’t help but stare at the glass that contained her strong Manhattan and wonder about what had dragged her to the bar in the first place.
She half blamed the guilt that had accompanied her for ignoring Kagami earlier. The hot-headed Tsurugi may not have known it, but her insult had hit Marinette right in the heart.
It reminded her of what she had lost in her two-year seclusion. The joy, the comfort, the happiness of friendship.
After all, the loss of her only source of comfort had been the reason for her seclusion from the world. And what hurt more was that this time, there was no one to comfort her at all. She had neither shared her pain with anyone then, nor with anyone now.
“Loneliness doesn’t suit you, you know.”
She chuckled mirthlessly at the comforting voice in her head, shaking the bangs out of her eyes as she smoothed down her ponytail. “Yeah, but I’m not alone.”
“I hardly believe you.”
“Heh, I hardly believe myself either. But—” she picked up her cocktail glass, twirling it lightly by the stem, “—I’ve this beaaaautiful Manhattan to keep me company, the feeling of loneliness itself, and….” Her voice trailed off, as she held back a sob. Finally, she managed to let out a broken whisper, “...your voice. It’s comforting, y’know?”
“Aww dear, don’t be sad now.”
“I-I can’t help it, I-I really can't.”
“Not even if I say pretty please? Just a smile? At least for me? Okay, how about a hug?”
“You know that...” she snivelled a bit, her conscious coming back to her for a fleeting moment. “... that I could always use a hug from you, right?”
An expectant part in her waited for the warm, soothing embrace, of the smell of fresh pine tickling her senses. But when the feeling of emptiness followed her statement, Marinette felt like someone had pulled her heart out and stomped on it, crushing every shred of hope it held, right in front of her eyes.
But she didn’t let her emotions win. She wouldn’t. She couldn’t.
She had been a god damned Sergeant, she knew how to control her emotions.
Even when they ate her alive from within. Even when they made her talk to thin air, and made her seem like a drunk idiot.
Slamming her fist on the table as she took a swig of her drink, Marinette looked around the bar. People were dancing, drinking, chatting, and some were making out in the dark corners.
She sighed, turning her attention back to the empty spot in front of her. She neither knew anyone here, nor was she interested in getting to know anyone.
Suddenly, a yelp caught her attention. She turned around to find a petite brunette fallen on the ground, quivering away from a clearly annoyed man.
Ah, the usual bar shenanigans.
Marinette would have recluded back to her own small bubble, ignoring the commotion like the other people had. However, her blood boiled on seeing the burly man raise his hand to hit the woman.
Slamming her drink down, she marched over to the scene and twisted the man’s arm behind his back, catching him and the brunette by surprise.
“Tch tch, mister Burly,” she said in a voice laced with fake pity. “It’s 2043. Still using ya good ol’ strength against weak women? How pathetic.”
“Mind your own business, woman!” the man hollered.
“I would, but sadly, this is my business. So, I ask ya… very civilly... to leave that girl alone and get the fuck outta here.”
“You drunk bitch!” He screamed, turning his head towards her. His breath stank of alcohol. “Who the hell do you think you are?!”
Marinette did her best not to gag. “Would you really like to know…" she growled, getting herself together as she twisted his arm a little more and elicited a slightly feminine yelp from him, "...at the cost of your bones?”
The man shook his head fervently, causing Marinette to finally leave him. Massaging at his bones, he staggered away from her, before glaring at the fallen brunette and scampering off.
Marinette turned to the young woman, offering an arm to lift her up.
“I-uh, thanks a lot. Really,” she said, her olive eyes tearing up in gratitude.
The ravenette flashed her a small smile. “No worries, Missy. Though for future references, bumping into people in bars and falling in love….that’s something happening in movies only. In real life, you’re opting to get your ass handed to ya on a silver platter. Hopefully decorated,” she added with a wink.
The woman laughed. “I will surely keep it in mind for future. Thanks for saving me again. And uhh…” She fiddled with her fingers a bit, before asking, “Would you like to have a drink with me? I’ll pay! And no, don’t worry, it’s not some way to make you fall in love with me or something…”
Marinette chuckled lightly. “Well, if it helps ya feel comforted, I guess one more drink won’t do any harm.”
The woman beamed at her. “Lila Rossi. Nice to meet you!”
Marinette glanced at the extended hand, then at the woman’s face, then back at her hand. Slowly, she placed her hand in Lila’s, feeling the comforting warmth that emanated from the human skin.
“Marinette Dupain-Cheng, The pleasure’s all mine.”
