This Calendars & Planners item is sold by JulieRameyDesigns. Ships from United States. Listed on 09 Sep, 2023
Trying something new!
I created a digital organizer that helps you break down larger tasks into smaller tasks and helps you plan for how to complete them on time.
Hope you're all enjoying your return to classes. My September has been going great :)
I’ve started my after the credits series for season 5.
https://archiveofourown.org/works/39815085/chapters/99681600
“So what now?” The young Alix asked her older self while eagerly looking around at the different portals. This was going to be so cool! The older Bunnix gave her a knowing look.
“I have a few things to explain and then I have to go back to my timeline.”
Alix’s eyes zipped away from a portal looking at the cretaceous period to stare at Bunnix. “You’re leaving me?”
Bunnix placed a hand on her shoulder and sank down to her level. “You’ll know where to find me if you need me but I know for a fact you won’t.” She winked. “Ladybug thinks you’ll be able to return once she defeats Monarch but she doesn’t know what I know. There are far more battles to be won before you can go back but now that you're here, I can finally go back to my timeline and so will you when your turn comes.”
Alix nodded along. She had felt this was going to be a long journey when she had said goodbye to her dad. Her heart ached. Bunnix was what? In her twenties? Was she not going to see her dad for a whole decade?
“Will you visit him?” She looked up at Bunnix.
“That’ll be one of the very first things I do.” Bunnix beamed at her, standing back up. “But first, I need to get you caught up on a few things.” She walked over to a nearby portal and placed her hand on it to rewind. “Are you ready to have your mind blown?”
Alix grinned. “Definitely.”
Bunnix chuckled and moved out of the way so that Alix could see the portal more clearly. “Good, because you’re about to enjoy quite a laugh when you find out who Ladybug and Cat Noir are.”
And laugh she most certainly did. This whole time. Alix shook herself and regained her composure. It was a good thing she wasn’t going back because she doubted she would be able to keep a straight face around Marinette for a while. Her mood quickly sobered however as Bunnix showed her how the timeline was meant to progress. She gasped at finding out Monarch’s identity and her stomach churned at what her two friends would have to go through before their victory.
“Can’t we-”
“No.” Bunnix cut her off. “This is how it’s meant to happen.” She fast-forwarded a bit. “And this is why.” She smiled fondly at the image.
Alix looked back and smiled as well. “You promise they get this happy ending?”
Bunnix chuckled. “As long as you do your job well, they will.”
“You can count on me,” Alix said with renewed determination.
Bunnix ruffled her hair. “I know I can. I’ve already done it after all.” She grinned.
“And so what will you do now?”
Bunnix blushed and smiled softly, her eyes sparkling. “That, I will let you discover for yourself.”
Alix frowned but nodded. She took confort in the fact that Bunnix looked happy, at least, that's what it looked like it.
“Alright, it’s time.” Bunnix walked to a different portal, it looked like a regular nighttime Paris and Alix wondered how Bunnix knew this was the right year. “Enjoy your travels.” Bunnix winked once more and stepped out of the portal and leaped away out of sight.
“Alright, it’s just me now I guess.” Alix looked around at all the portals again. Where to start? A completely black portal caught her eye and she grinned. Might as well start at the very beginning. Time to see if Georges Lemaître was right. She grinned and approached the portal, excited to learn the truth about the universe and everything in it.
*****
“We’ll get them all back m’lady. And when we defeat Monarch, Alix will come back.”
Cat Noir said it with such certainty, such hope. Ladybug smiled as her heart started beating out of control again. It had done this earlier when he had helped her up and had told her she could do this. That they could do this.
“You’re right. He lost the most dangerous miraculous today.” At least she didn’t have to worry about the timeline getting messed up. That and Monarch had no doubt learned that he can’t use that many miraculous at once again. This was a win. Not the quick victory she desperately wanted but still a win.
“Thank you.” She smiled up at Cat Noir again as she stood up straighter.
“What for?”
She grabbed his hand. “For being there for me. For sticking by my side.” She looked away. “For forgiving me.”
He squeezed her hand back. “Always.”
Her heart sped up again and she blushed as she looked into his kind eyes again. What would she do without him? He shifted uncomfortably and she realized that although he had forgiven her, she had still hurt him deeply over the past weeks. He probably didn't love her anymore. She wouldn't blame him if he didn't.
“Besides, for the number of times you’ve forgiven me, I think it’s about time I return the kindness.” He released her hand and stood smiling brightly.
She missed his touch but shook herself. She shouldn't want him to still love her. They had other business to attend to. She would deal with her stupid heart doing stupid things later.
“Before Bunnix showed up, I was going to tell you what happened.”
She pulled out her yoyo to open footage from the earlier fight with Strikeback. She paused upon seeing a message from Alya. She hadn’t even noticed her yoyo buzz. She swiped it away, she would call her later. For now, she wanted to go ask Felix a few questions. She pulled up an image of the boy in question as Flairmidable and prepared herself to tell Cat Noir everything. No more secrets, it was time they worked as a real duo again.
You know I heard that people who don't share leaks and unauthorized spoilers are really sexy. And they make lots of money. And everyone loves them. So yeah don't do that.
I think it was foreshadowed in robostus. This may have been pointed out already but when Marinette asks Master Fu what combining the Ladybug and Cat Noir miraculous would do, Master Fu says this:
"Universe must always stay in balance. For every action, there is a reaction. For every wish, a price to pay in return. Had your robotic friend asked to become a real boy, someone would have lost his humanity in return."
As we know, the last few episodes of season 5 are called "the last day" and then "action". This seems to imply the season will end with someone using the wish and the universe restarting in "action".
And if the senti-Adrien/Felix theory is right then there are two boys who could wish to be real and cost someone else their humanity. Now Felix as a villain making this wish makes sense but doesn't neatly wrap up the story arc the way the show says it will. So I think Ladybug will make the wish on behalf of Adrien when she is close to loosing because he is working for his father who is controlling him.
And if Adrien is a real boy then Emily doesn't get sick from using the peacock and Gabriel doesn't become Hawk Moth. But someone else does. Cue season 6 and 7 with different story arcs.
Marinette would be lying if she said she never considered it before.
The Wish.
The ultimate power. Born of the unification of the Miraculous of the Ladybug and the Black Cat. Creation and Destruction. The ability to ask for anything—to even remake the world!
There had been times…a number of them, actually, where she had considered using the Wish.
Well here I go again starting a new fic idea to survive the (hopefully short) hiatus. Find it on AO3.
Ladybug didn’t love Cat Noir. Not when they met and he was funny and supportive. Not when she realized his flirting expressed a serious emotion. Not when she realized just how much she needed him and relied on him and not when she found out they had been a couple in an alternate timeline. Not when he had renounced his ring not once but twice and she had been a mess without him and not when he told her he loved her time and time again.
But in her darkest moment when she admitted to everything she had done wrong and he had extended his hand towards her not with anger, or disappointment, but with a kind smile, she realized that perhaps she could love Cat Noir.
When he hugged her and reassured her that he would remain her partner she couldn’t deny it anymore. She still shouldn’t love him but she couldn’t lie to herself any longer. The truth was that she had fallen for him bit by bit and this moment was when she realized just how far she had fallen.
“Shall we get rid of that eyesore m’lady?”
Her blush deepened. Worried about her mouth not forming words properly, she nodded instead and they leaped and swung towards the Eiffel tower. Once there, Cat Noir lost no time in cataclysm the protective shell around the akumas forming Shadow Moth’s face. Ladybug swung her yoyo, planning on capturing all of them when the whole thing disappeared.
“An illusion?” He must have used the fox miraculous. That made much more sense. Where else would all of those akumas come from?
The crowd erupted into a cheer.
“Our promise still stands.” Cat Noir said to the crowd, causing a hush to spread through it. “We’ll do everything in our power to keep you safe.” He lept away and Ladybug followed suit, the crowd cheering and already starting to disperse below them. They landed on a different rooftop, away from the eyes of the Parisians. Cat Noir detransformed and transformed back behind a chimney and then walked back to her.
“What do you think, too dramatic?” Cat Noir asked her with a smile. How could he be like this? Serious and confident one moment and then perfectly at ease the next. She blinked at him as the rain came down harder and thunder still rumbled in the background.
“There you are,” Su-Han spoke from behind them. They both whirled around to face him.
“No.” Cat Noir stepped in front of her. “Paris needs her. Didn’t you hear them? Didn’t you hear how much faith they have in her despite what she lost today? I won’t let you take her away from us.” He prepared his baton.
Su-Han lifted a hand and made a sign to stop. “Have you learned nothing from the last time we fought?”
“No one knows Shadow Moth the way we do. No one works as well together as we do. Give us a chance.” He lowered into a slight crouch, ready to pounce. Ladybug stood frozen behind him. Her heart beating erratically and her thoughts swirling with the possibility of losing her memory and the relief that could bring. The release from responsibility. The freedom from her guilt. But at the cost of memories too precious to part with. Even now, she did not want to give it up. She owed her city. She had to fix her mistake. Cat Noir was right, in moments that felt hopeless, he had always been there with her and they had won in the end. They would win again this time.
“Is it true you lost all the miraculous?” Su-Han asked, looking straight at Ladybug. She nodded.
“This is very grave. Shadow Moth is now more powerful than both of you combined. You have no hope of defeating him on your own.”
She gulped. Would she fight him again? Cat Noir clearly was about to but to what end? Su-Han knew where she lived. He could come and take her miraculous whenever he needed to.
“I admire your bravery Cat Noir but surely even you can see how dire the situation is.”
“No. I don’t. Ladybug always figures out a solution. I know she’ll fix this.”
“Ladybug?” Su-Han’s eyes shifted to hers.
“Let me at least try master. I owe it to my city.”
“Very well.” She gaped at him. “I will leave you two in charge of protecting the Parisians for now. I must return to the temple and inform the other guardians of what occurred. We have other miraculous boxes there. I will get help. A decision about your guardianship will then be made when the miraculous are back in their box.”
She nodded, a ball of stress forming at his words. This was a temporary truce but it was also a chance to prove herself.
“I will depart immediately. Whatever you do, do not let fear or guilt make you vulnerable.” He jumped away and Cat Noir eased from his stance.
“Well, that was easier than I thought.” Cat Noir turned to face her. She looked up at him worriedly, squinting against the rain. Really it was a surprise that she hadn’t gotten akumatized this night. Shadow Moth was clearly too focused on his theatrics to realize how close he could have come to defeating her.
“Are you alright?” Cat Noir’s face softened and he took a step towards her. He extended his baton above them and opened his umbrella. He raised his other hand tentatively and gently stroked the rain off of her face. “I won’t let him take your miraculous. Or your guardian title. I promise.”
She closed her eyes and leaned into his hand. It eased her worries and she felt like she couldn’t get akumatized as long as he was here with her, strengthening her with his steady confidence.
“You’re always there for me. Despite how I’ve pushed you away.” She raised a hand over his, hugging it to her cheek. She could so easily get lost in his touch. She opened her eyes and found him starring at her with wide eyes and his mouth slightly open. He was adorable. And sweet and determined and protective and- her lips were on his before she realized what she was doing. He dropped the umbrella and it clattered as it hit the wet roof. She pulled him closer to her and he finally kissed her back and wrapped his arms around her. It was blissful and it was right. Why had she fought this for so long? He had been right, they were meant to be. They were-
“Wait.” Cat Noir pulled away, shaking his head as if to clear it. Their arms were still around each other and she looked up at him, waiting to hear him say he had changed his mind about her. He didn’t love her anymore. She had pushed him away too much and he had finally moved on. “You’ve had a tough day, you’ll be mad at me for this tomorrow.”
She smiled at him. “No, I won’t.” Because her heart had finally realized what it had been fighting for months, years even. She closed her eyes and leaned towards him again but this time he stepped back. She opened her eyes and pouted. Seriously? After all the times he had tried to kiss her and now she finally wanted to kiss him back.
“Just- let me understand what’s happening here.” He seemed to shrink before her, looking vulnerable and worried.
She tried to smile reassuringly at him. It was a fair ask. “You weren’t wrong about us being perfect for each other. I’ve known it for a while actually but refused to believe it could be true for us. It was too dangerous.” She gave a weak laugh. “It’s still too dangerous but as long as we don’t know each other’s identities then maybe… maybe we can make this work.”
He blinked at her, his eyes showing just how confused he was. “Why would it be dangerous?”
She told him everything about his akumatization in the other timeline. About what he, the Cat Blanc him, had told her. He was pale and silent as she finished her story. “And so I came back to this timeline and fixed everything.” She finished.
He started pacing and ran a hand through his hair. “When did this happen?” He stopped and looked at her.
“A few weeks before I became the guardian.”
He blinked and walked back towards her. “Ladybug that was- that was months ago!”
“I know, I’m sor-”
“No wonder you pushed me away. No wonder you’re so scared of revealing our identities. Of one of us getting akumatized. Of those sentimonsters getting my cataclysm.” He was starting to panic. “I- I killed you. I killed everyone.”
“Hey.” She walked towards him and lifted a hand to his cheek. “It wasn’t you.”
“No, but it was a version of me. Do you know what caused it? My akumatization?”
She shook her head. “You said everything was fine until Hawk Moth had found out everything but you also said that it was our love that destroyed the world." She hesitated. "You said that I broke your heart.”
Cat Noir looked at her with a heartbroken expression.
“But I won’t break your heart Kitty. Maybe we can-”
Cat Noir shook his head. “No, you were right to push me away. Bunnix might not even be in the future anymore to come back and save us this time. If Shadow Moth has her miraculous, the future could be all different now.”
She gulped. “What are you saying?”
“That you were right all along m’lady. Until we defeat him, we can’t risk anything.”
Her heart ached but she could see he was probably right. She had gotten caught up in the moment but if she had learned anything today it was that some risks weren’t worth it.
“You’re right. Of course you’re right. I’m so sorry Kitty. I never should have kissed you.” She picked up his baton and retracted the umbrella, more just so she could have something to do while she reeled in her emotions. She then handed it back to him, finally seeing the sadness in his eyes.
“I’m wishing I hadn’t cut it short now.” He forced a smile.
She propped herself up on her tippy toes and kissed him on the cheek. “We’ll pick up where we left off when we defeat Shadow Moth.” And they would. She was doubly motivated now.
“I look forward to it.” He hugged her and she let herself feel the full warmth of it. “Do you think it’s safe to go home for tonight?” He asked her as he pulled away.
She nodded. If Shadow Moth was going to try something tonight they probably would have realized it by now.
“Good, there’s something I need to take care of.”
“I should get back home as well.”
They stood there, staring at each other for a moment, neither making a move to leave.
“Goodnight Ladybug.” Cat Noir finally said and leaped away.
“Good night Cat Noir.” She smiled at his retreating form and made her own way home.
Final chapter snippet from my after the credits series on AO3.
“You, the greatest superhero there is, them the people of Paris, and me, your faithful partner.”
He said it with such certainty, such hope. Her face flushed further and her heart was beating out of control. Shadow Moth’s bubble blinked out of existence and the crowd quieted. Cat Noir walked over to the edge of the roof and stood tall.
“Let me make this promise to you.” Cat Noir projected to the crowd. “No matter what he tries next, Ladybug and I will do everything in our power to keep you safe.” The crowd erupted into a cheer and he walked back to her, offering his hand. She took it without fully realizing it, mesmerized by his confidence in them. In her. “Come on, let’s get you somewhere less exposed.” He carried her away as he catapulted from one roof to the next until they were on a roof overlooking the Seine. The one he had once prepared a candlelight evening for them. The one so close to her house. “There, we should be left alone here.” He let her go and relaxed by the rail overlooking the river. She joined him, not sure what to say.
“Thank you.”
His gaze stayed fixed on the view as he responded. “I made a promise to you. I intend to keep it this time.”
“That was a big promise you just made to all of Paris.”
He chuckled, his face finally losing its previous seriousness. “You don’t recognize it?” She shook her head. “It’s the one you made after we defeated Stoneheart. I thought it might ease their worries to remember everything you’ve done for them so far.”
She blushed anew. “I’m surprised you remember that so well.”
He looked at her softly, her heart sped up as a result and she desperately wanted it to stop. It had no business doing this. None at all. “I’m unlikely to ever forget that moment.” He didn’t explain why but she knew the reason. He had once told her that was the moment he had fallen in love with her. He shouldn’t still love her. Not after everything. Not after today.
“I don’t deserve your forgiveness.”
“I didn’t deserve yours. You gave it to me countless times anyway.”
“You never lost 15 miraculous in a day.” Her fists balled up and tears threatened to fall again. How could she have not known it had been Felix? She had known last time. Had it been him the whole time? Even back at the train station?
“Master Fu made an even bigger mistake once. The guardians made a mistake in how they trained future guardians and Su-Han nearly made a mistake when-” Her gasp cut him off.
“Su-Han!” She frantically looked around, expecting him to show up any minute. “He’s going to take my miraculous away from me. Take away the guardianship. I’m going to lose everything I have left.” He knew where she lived, knew where the box was. He had no reason whatsoever to trust her anymore. She couldn’t defend herself like last time. She had been far from an exceptional superhero today.
Cat Noir placed his hands on her shoulders and crouched so he could look into her eyes. It was not dissimilar to how Adrien had helped her through her last panic attack.
“It’s going to be ok. He’d be insane to take your miraculous now. There’s nothing else for us to lose. We know Shadow Moth best, or whatever bad new name he comes up with this time. I won’t let Su-Han take away Paris’ greetest hope. I'll stay with you until he shows up if I have to.”
There went her heart again. She took deep breaths. What would she have done without him? She launched herself into his arms and hugged him desperately, tears falling down her face again. “I’m so sorry for not letting you help me more sooner. For not telling you everything.” She could tell him now. He deserved to know. She should have told him a long time ago.
“Let’s worry about that another day. You can tell me when you’re ready.” He held her closer.
She relaxed at that. She was so tired. So exhausted. Physically, mentally, emotionally. She slumped against him, letting him support her. Why had she been so afraid of this? Of letting him inside her heart.
“Cat Noir-" Her bugphone rang and she jumped away from him in surprise. She blushed and grabbed her yoyo. It was Alya. She was probably worried sick for her.
I'm with Cat Noir, I'll call you back. She texted and then put her yoyo away.
Cat Noir eyed her curiously but didn't ask. This much at least she could share tonight.
"That was my backup. She's worried about me."
"Scarabella?"
She nodded.
"Sounds like she's a good friend then. Do you need to go?"
She shook her head and grabbed his arm instead. Resting her head on his shoulder.
"Not yet."
"That's perfectly fine with me." He rested his own head on hers and they lapsed into silence, both observing the clouds part to reveal the rising moon allowing its light to dance off of the river. And with every passing moment that remained quiet, Ladybug worried a little less. If Su-Han hadn't shown up by now perhaps he wouldn't take away her miraculous. And if they were still here, then Shadow Moth hadn't traveled in time and changed the past right? At least not yet. Besides, that wasn't the plan he had stated. He had taken the box once. She had gotten it back. Cat Noir was right. They would get each miraculous back. One by one.
“Hey girl, where did you disappear to? You didn’t even stick around to congratulate Adrien.” Alya found Marinette as she walked out of the change room, Kagami just behind her. “Didn’t you want to- oh, hey Kagami.”
“It’s ok, Kagami was just helping me with something.”
“With what?” Alya blinked.
“She was trying to help me confess my feelings to Adrien but I think I’m still too nervous.”
“She was helping you with that?” Alya’s eyes widened.
“No need to be so surprised Alya. Adrien and I weren’t meant to be but I believe he and Marinette would be very well matched.” Kagami said.
“That is if I could ever even tell him how I feel.”
“Uh uh. So what was the plan this time?”
“Oh uh…” Marinette fumbled
“Not a good one in the end. Right, Marinette?”
“Right.” No need to embarrass Kagami beyond how much Marinette had already laughed at her.
“Alright well in that case can we finally talk about that other thing now?”
“What other thing?” Marinette blinked.
Alya grabbed her arm and started leading her away. “Sorry, Kagami but I need a moment with my best friend.” Her voice turned low and accusatory when she spoke to Marinette again. “You know exactly what. You ignored all of my texts last night and showed up late this morning so I couldn’t ask you. You can’t avoid me this time.”
“I wasn’t ignoring your texts, I had to help my dad last night with-”
“It doesn’t matter. Now I need answers.” She pulled out her phone, revealing a picture of Marinette and Cat Noir leaving the cinema under his umbrella.
“Oh, that?” She made a dismissive hand gesture. “That was nothing, he was just helping me with- something.”
Alya raised an eyebrow. “By watching a movie?”
“It was just to help me clear my head because I was - I was just having a bit of a hard day.”
“Oh?” Alya finally eased.
“I had seen Adrien looking upset at the park and I tried to give him a gift and tell him how I feel but I messed it up again.”
“Adrien was upset? Why?”
“I- I don’t actually know but he seemed happier today.” Why hadn't she asked? She should have. Her friend must have noticed she was spiraling because she put a comforting hand on her back.
“Let’s ask Nino, perhaps he knows.”
*****
Adrien happily scrolled through his pictures of Ladybug. Perhaps he was kidding himself but it wouldn’t hurt to try. Marinette loved this buttercup guy because he was gentle, generous, and honest. Maybe if he was like that with Ladybug, she would finally love him. At least she was ok with him expressing his feelings in some ways. It would have been difficult to stop calling her his lady again. He liked their new arrangement. He would just stop doing the stuff that she said to stop doing. Really he should have done that a long time ago. Now he just have to find acceptable ways to tell her how much he cared for her.
“Adrien, your phone is buzzing.” Plagg interrupted his train of thought.
“Nino?” Adrien said surprised upon grabbing his phone. “Hello?”
“Adrien! Good I hum, I was asked- no no I wasn’t asked. I just heard that you were upset the other day and wanted to check in on you.”
“What?”
“Yeah Mar-” He heard some shuffling noises. “Hum someone saw you looking upset. Is everything ok?”
Adrien smiled at the Ladybug pictures on his screen as he leaned back in his chair. “Yeah, everything is fine now.”
“Oh ok… hum, did you want to hang out with me, Alya and Marinette anyway?”
“That sounds fun, what are you guys up to?”
“Just a video game sess at Alya’s.”
“I’ll be there if I can.”
****
Alya glared at her boyfriend. He could be so awkward sometimes.
“He said he’d come over if he could.”
She grinned. Thankfully, Adrien was just as clueless as Nino was tackless.
“Perfect!”
Marinette worried at her lip.
“Don’t worry girl, we’re just going to cheer him up with some friend time.”
“Actually he said-”
“And that way there’s no pressure. You’re just there for him and you can build a stronger friendship that can eventually become more, ok?”
“Ok,” Marinette said with newfound optimism and determination. Hopefully, her friend could hold on to that while they waited for Adrien to show up. Alya managed to distract her with a few rounds of her favorite game until the expected freak out at the knock indicating Adrien’s arrival occurred.
“Remember, just be cool.” She reminded her friend before getting up to open the door.
“Hey guys. I have a bit of free time until my Chinese lesson so my father let me come.”
“That’s great dude!” Nino joined her by the door.
“Yeah come on in, we just finished the last round so you can join in,” Alya said, grabbing an extra remote and giving it to him. The oven beeped and Alya’s stomach leaped for joy. Finally, the pizza was ready. “I’ll sit this one out, you guys play.” She said, already walking over to the oven. Her phone pinged and she quickly pulled out the pizza to let it cool so she could check her phone. It was an article from one of her favorite reporters. Her excitement quickly turned to unease as she read it.
“Hum, Marinette, can you help me with something?” She asked, trying to keep the worry out of her voice.
“Marinette’s winning, but I can help.” Adrien got up.
“Hum no that’s ok, I’ll wait.”
Marinette looked up at that and gave her a questioning look.
Alya waved her over, hoping her friend would realize this was important.
“That’s ok, I can just beat you guys next round.” She said and got up. Alya was impressed at how cooly she was able to deliver that line around Adrien. Apparently, all it took for Marinette to be suave was being sufficiently distracted.
“What’s wrong?” Marinette whispered.
“This.” Alya shoved her phone in Marinette’s face. She watched her face go white as she read the article explaining how over a dozen of the Cat Noir and Ladybug billboards had disappeared and all that remained was a pile of black rubble.
“What-”
“Seems like the work of a certain cat don’t you think?”
Marinette nodded.
“Did you guys fight or something?”
Marinette bit her lip. “Not exactly.” She said, blushing slightly.
Alya waited patiently for an explanation.
“I may have yelled at him for annoying me with all that couple of the year stuff.”
Alya winced. Marinette had been incredibly angry at that tabloid piece. Poor Cat Noir, he must have been heartbroken at how annoyed Ladybug had been when she first heard about it.
“But we talked it out and everything is good now.”
Alya nodded, believing that Marinette was ok but doubting that Cat Noir felt the same way.
“Poor boy.” She whispered.
“Don’t worry, he’s fine now. Sure I was a little harsher than necessary but he finally listened to me this time about toning down his bad jokes so maybe it was necessary, you know? But I’ll ask him about the posters next patrol.”
Alya nodded. Despite the time she spent with those two, she still didn’t fully understand their dynamic.
“What’s going on?” Nino approached, grabbing a slice of pizza.
“Nothing, just gossiping about this,” Alya said, showing her boyfriend the article.
“Missing billboards?” Nino said confused, as Adrien walked over to join them.
“Not just missing, cataclysmed.”
“What? Why would Cat Noir be going around destroying stuff.”
“That’s what we were discussing.”
“It’s a shame that he didn’t get rid of the one right outside my balcony.” Marinette gave a small chuckle before abruptly stopping with a look of surprise on her face.
Alya raised an eyebrow. If she didn’t know any better then she would guess that her friend had just figured something out.
“I didn’t think the billboards were that annoying,” Adrien said. “It was your picture right Alya? Did you get any money from the tabloid magazine?”
Alya blinked. Money? “No.” She never copyrighted any of her work. How much could she have gotten? And not just for this image but a lot of the others that she took.
“Oh, sorry I asked.” Adrien blushed. Alya didn’t mind though, she was definitely going to look into this now.
“I read that Ladybug and Cat Noir were having a love spat,” Nino said.
“No, they’re not!” Marinette reacted. Alya refrained from rolling her eyes. She was certain that the real reason she got so worked up over this was because of her Cat Blanc nightmares. Either way, her friend needed to chill.
“It was never confirmed that they were dating in the first place,” Alya said, hoping to help her friend out.
“Yeah, I doubt it’s true. Ladybug has made it pretty clear that she doesn’t love Cat Noir.” Adrien said seeming upset by the fact.
“I guess he’s finally moving on then. Good for him. He deserves to be happy.” Nino said. “He’ll find a lucky girl who appreciates him the way he deserves.”
“Ladybug appreciates him.” Marinette crossed her arms.
Oh, girl. “I think Nino means in a romantic way.” She nudged her friend.
Nino jumped as Alya’s phone pinged in his hand.
“Woah, speaking of which!” He opened the link to show it to Alya. It was an article about how Cat Noir had been spotted on a date with a civilian. Alya immediately grabbed the phone before Marinette could see it.
“It seems Cat Noir has already found his new crush.” Nino smiled at Marinette. Ugh, she was going to kill her boyfriend.
“What?” Adrien was the one to respond.
“Apparently Marinette here went on a date with him.”
“It wasn’t a date!” Both Marinette and Adrien said at the same time and then blinked at each other.
Alya watched both their faces, wondering how Adrien had even heard about it.
“I mean, that’s what I read somewhere,” Adrien said.
“He was just helping me with something.”
“What was he helping you with?” Oh, how Alya wished she could kick Nino and get him to stop asking questions.
“Why don’t we go back to playing the game,” Alya said, grabbing a slice of pizza and moving to the living room.
“Sure.” Marinette immediately jumped at the suggestion. The boys also followed suit and thankfully neither was curious enough to ask Marinette about her outing with Cat Noir again.
Alya eyed Adrien as they played the game though. He seemed pretty quick to believe that Marinette hadn’t been on a date with the superhero. She smiled, perhaps the boy was feeling a little jealous? She didn’t know who to root for anymore amongst all this mess. She looked at Marinette again who was deep in concentration as she pulled ahead of all of them in the game. As long as her friend was happy then she was happy.
*****
Cat Noir quietly made his way towards Marinette’s house. It was just a bit past sunset so he wasn’t sure if she would be inside or on her balcony so he only got so close before checking with his staff camera to see if she was out. He let out a sigh of relief when he couldn’t see her anywhere and leaped more quickly towards the billboard facing her balcony.
Funny, he had just been about to get rid of this one right before she had called him over. If she had waited two seconds then her wish would have already been fulfilled. “Cataclysm.” He whispered and then touched the billboard. He didn’t know why she hated the picture so much or perhaps it was because it ruined the beautiful view she usually had. Either way, Marinette had unknowingly helped him and so this would be a small thank you. He nodded proudly at his work and turned around, freezing a the sight of Ladybug leaving Marinette’s room. She spotted him and froze as well before making a beeline for him.
“What are you doing here?” They both asked at the same time.
“You first.” She said.
“Oh hum.” He glanced at the pile of rubble next to him and when he looked back at her, Ladybug was staring at it wide-eyed.
“I heard you had been going around town doing this.” She stated simply.
“Right, you just seemed so annoyed by them that I figured I would… help.” He said lamely.
“That’s… thoughtful.”
Gentle, generous, and honest, Cat Noir repeated to himself. “Alright and because I couldn’t stand them either.” He answered truthfully.
“Really?” She narrowed her eyes at him.
“Yeah they-” He hesitated, how much would she want to hear? “They were a reminder of what couldn’t be.” He said quietly, avoiding her eyes.
He was startled when she put a hand on his shoulder. What surprised him even more was the kindness in her eyes instead of the anger he expected.
“I’m sorry if I hurt you.”
He shook his head. “No, you were right to get angry.”
“You know I care about you right? Even though I got mad.”
He nodded. It would have to be enough. That she cared even if it wasn't the way he wished.
“So what about you?” He asked.
Ladybug blinked.
“What were you doing visiting Marinette?”
“Oh, that.” Ladybug tensed. “She saw me when I was out and about and waved me over. She was actually worried about you and wanted to talk to me about it.”
Cat Noir blinked, his heart melting a little. “She was worried about me?”
“She heard you had been around town destroying stuff and asked me about it. It’s actually how I found out about it.”
“Oh.” He said, blushing a little. “Maybe I should go speak to her myself.” He said, preparing his staff.
“No, she’s getting ready for bed. Besides I already told her I would talk to you about it and make sure you were ok.”
Cat Noir’s insides turned to mush. She wanted to make sure he was alright. After all the annoying things he had done in the last 24 hours. He smiled fondly at her. “Well then, shall we go on a patrol together since we’re both out m’lady?”
Ladybug laughed. “Sure but no more destroying billboards ok. Apparently, they cost a ton of money.”
“Good, that tabloid shouldn’t be in business anymore anyway.” He joked.
Ladybug rolled her eyes. “Come on, let’s go.” She said, swinging away. He was quick to follow her and smiled at this unexpected pleasure. A whole evening together. It wasn’t a date but it was amazing all the same.
Adrien was not the biggest fan of the new Ladybug movie script.
I haven’t posted in a while but since episode 5 aired, I’ve been able to continue my after the credits series. Here’s a snipit from the latest chapter. Full series on AO3.
“I can’t Rena. My heart belongs to Ladybug.” Adrien said into his microphone. At least this line he could say properly. They had had to do many takes of the scene leading up to the kiss between Rena Rouge and Cat Noir. He was still angry about it but at least the rest of the movie would somewhat make up for it.
Elena, the teenage girl they had found to voice Rena Rouge, sighed into her microphone in the other booth. They had thought that having them hear each other’s lines may help him with his delivery. It hadn’t.
“One day, you’ll realize you love her more than she loves you and you’ll want more. Find me when you do.” Elena read. She was good. She hadn’t needed the extra takes to deliver the words with believable sincerity. She, along with everyone, must be so frustrated with him.
“You just don’t know her the way I do.”
“Maybe you don’t know her as well as you think.”
“Cut.” The director, Steve, said after a beat. It was the end of the scene and Adrien hoped they could move on to the next one this time. “Let’s take a break.” That worked too. Adrien let out a long exhale in relief and removed his headset to go out into the main room where the food table was. He made a beeline for the cheese but was stopped by Elena.
“Hey Adrien, you seemed off your game today with that scene. You ok?”
“I’m sorry. I’m just having a hard time figuring out what’s going through Cat Noir’s head.”
“What do you mean?” Elena blinked. She was kind. He shouldn’t let the fact that she was playing Rena the way the director wanted impact how he viewed her.
“He just lets Rena kiss him, he cheats on Ladybug. I just don’t see him doing that.”
“He doesn’t know that that’s what Rena was going to do. He stops it the second it starts.”
“But why all this doubt about him and Ladybug? Why is she treating him like this?” He gulped. Some of the stuff in the script hit a little closer to home than others.
“It sounds like you’re not sure what Ladybug is thinking. Which is exactly what Cat Noir would be thinking too I think.”
He didn’t know what to say to that so he opted for no reply at all.
Elena smiled at him. “Or maybe you’re over-thinking things, it’s just a movie after all.”
“Right.” He forced a smile. She turned away from him to get to the food and snuck Plagg some cheese. She was right. It was just a movie and sure, the real Ladybug kept secrets from him and maybe he felt a little underused these days but Ladybug had said she needed him. He made it more fun. She appreciated him. He repeated her words to him again in his mind and got back into the recording booth.
“Let’s try it one more time. From the moment Rena arrives.” The director ordered.
i revisited some previous episodes to get my senti facts straight lol. (some of this is very obvious at this point but my brain was hurting so i wanted a masterlist)
sentimonsters are emotions transformed into a living creature by a peacock holder
peacock holders can use their own emotion or someone else's to create the senti (mayura)
a peacock holder can sense an amok, even when the holder is not currently transformed (feast)
any peacock holder can release the amok of any senti, even if they aren't the original creator (feast)
if the senti's amok object is broken, the amok is released and the senti disappears (feast, reflekdoll, etc.)
anyone in possession of the senti's amok can control the senti, even if they aren't the senti's creator (ladybug)
this applies to peacock holders too—even the one who created the senti. they must have control of the object in order to control the senti (feast)
a senti in possession of their own amok has complete autonomy (ladybug)
if a senti is cataclysmed, the link betwen the senti and its amok holder is broken and it can no longer be controlled (reflekdoll)
some stuff that wasn't necessarily in an episode but was confirmed by thomas:
stuff i am assuming based on the episodes:
a senti has autonomy unless it is being overridden by the amok holder (sentibug seemed to go kind of inactive as soon as mayura wasn't telling her what to do anymore, but i think that's just because she was created so recently and didn't know what to do if she wasn't receiving orders. she looked kind of shocked? but if ladybug had just been holding her amok but not giving commands or if it was just sitting there with no one holding it i assume she could do what she wanted)
a senti can be whatever the creator intends and will believe whatever its told—meaning that a senti might not know they're a senti if they were told something different
so applying this to felix and adrien, here are some facts and possibilities:
adrien and felix must have different creators
presumably, emilie created adrien, and that is why she got sick (using the broken peacock miraculous)
the emotion she used to create adrien (probably love) could've been her own but it also could've been gabriel's
it would also make sense for felix's father to be the one who created felix, since he died around the same time emilie did
the emotion used to create felix could have been his own or amelie's
the twin rings are pretty clearly the amok objects
felix is aware that he is a senti—he either figured it out somehow or was been told by his father before he died (which explains amelie's comments about how his dad isn't around to keep him out of trouble and adrien's excuses for his behavior—he is acting out because he just learned he is a senti and is upset)
felix stole his amok object in felix and offered it to amelie, but she let him keep it, so he is now in complete control of himself
gabriel has adrien's amok
but adrien was cataclysmed in "miraculer," so his link with his amok should be broken
as the current peacock holder, gabriel can release the amoks of either adrien or felix at will
nathalie's gotta be in the know about the senti business—if she was not previously aware that adrien is a senti, she would be able to sense his amok once she became the peacock holder
stuff i am still unsure about lol:
if gabriel had felix's amok this whole time why didn't he use it to control felix and make him stop being a little turd in felix
maybe bc the control would be too obvious and amelie would be pissed??
if gabriel can control adrien with the ring why didn't he do that in chat blanc or any other time adrien was being disobedient
if adrien's link with his amok is broken then why is gabriel seemingly still able to control him in ephemeral and possibly other times after that?
how does the emotional core affect a human senti? if adrien was creatied to be the embodiment of love, does that mean he is incapable of performing any acts that are not ultimately motivated by love?
was gabriel wearing adrien's object the entire time or was it on emilie's body? or possibly somewhere else? in felix we see him polishing the twin rings and then putting one ring on emilie's finger and one on his finger, but we don't see where they were before that
did gabriel put on felix's ring as a precaution since felix was visiting? so he could control him if needed? (but then he didn't? lol)
was emilie actively controlling adrien while she was alive? since adrien's childhood dream was to be what his parents wanted him to be, it seems that he was not granted much autonomy by his amok holder(?)
does the amok holder have to be knowingly giving an order to the senti for it to be effective? like, if gabriel has had adrien's ring this whole time and has commanded chat noir no less than 10 million times to hand over his miraculous, why wasn't adrien forced to do that?
what does "possession" actually entail in terms of the amok? does the amok holder have to be physically holding/wearing the amok object in order to control the senti? or if gabriel was keeping adrien's ring on emilie instead of wearing it himself, does that mean adrien was not being controlled at all between the time of her disappearance and the episode felix? (magically at least—clearly still a lot of manipulation by gabriel)
why did gabriel even have both rings? wouldn't amelie have had felix's ring from the beginning?
amelie said she wanted the rings back but also seemed weirdly chill about someone else being able to physically control her child? lol
does amelie know that felix knows he's a senti? in felix when she let him keep the ring she winked at him, so i'm assuming that she does. which also makes it significant that felix offered the ring to her first, like he trusted/loved her enough to keep it but she gave him the gift of his own freedom instead
why does she care about having both of them if one of them is adrien's?
when was the peacock miraculous broken? was it already broken when emilie used it, or did she break it by using it? like, maxing out its power somehow by creating such an advanced senti?
is it possible that an advanced enough senti can live even if their amok is released/destroyed?
why are adrien and felix identical? was it just because emilie and amelie are identical, so the children created in their image are identical?
or was either felix or adrien a "copy" of the other? maybe felix was a "scrapped" version of adrien made by gabriel and then emilie made adrien and gave felix to her sister? if felix found this out, that would explain the resentment he seemed to show toward adrien in "felix" and would also give these comments additional meaning:
MAN this is long, sorry...i've just had so many Thoughts buzzing around in my head lol but i think im done, feel free to add
with all the craziness happening in this show lately, i made a handy dandy list of what information each character has/doesn't have as of "Wishmaker" (S4 Ep18)
Marinette:
KNOWS the identities of every miraculous holder except Chat Noir (and maybe King Monkey?? did she ever find that out???)
KNOWS that Alya knows her secret identity
KNOWS that Alya is permanently keeping the fox miraculous
KNOWS that Rena Rouge is still active as Rena Furtive
KNOWS that Chat Noir likes her
DOES NOT KNOW that Alya told Nino she was still Rena Rouge
DOES NOT KNOW that Nino told Adrien that he and Alya were Rena Rogue and Carapace and that they know each others identities
DOES NOT KNOW that therefore Chat Noir knows Rena and Carapace's identities and the fact that they know each others
DOES NOT KNOW that Chat is upset with her and feels like she doesn't need him anymore
DOES NOT KNOW that Nino told Adrien that Ladybug thinks Chat Noir is annoying
DOES NOT KNOW that Luka knows her or Chat's Noir's identity
Adrien:
KNOWS the identities of Ryuko, Viperion, Pigella, and Pegasus, and he recently found out Carapace and Rena Rouge (he could also easily piece together Tigress Pourpre's identity in theory)
KNOWS that Ladybug allowed Alya and Nino to continue using their miraculous despite knowing each other's identities
DOES NOT KNOW that Rena Rouge is still active as Rena Furtive
DOES NOT KNOW that Ladybug told someone her identity
DOES NOT KNOW about Chat Blanc and the reasoning behind Ladybug's insistence on the identity rule
DOES NOT KNOW that Alya is permanently holding onto the fox miraculous
DOES NOT KNOW that Ladybug never told Nino that Chat was annoying and that Nino was just speaking out of hurt
DOES NOT KNOW that Marinette likes him
DOES NOT KNOW that Luka knows his or Ladybug's identity
Alya:
KNOWS that Marinette is Ladybug
KNOWS that Nino is Carapace
DOES NOT KNOW that Nino told Adrien about her and Nino being Rena Rouge and Carapace
DOES NOT KNOW that Chat Noir is upset with Ladybug because he feels like he's no longer needed (which her behavior in "SentiBubbler" unknowingly contributed to)
Nino:
KNOWS that Alya is Rena Rouge
KNOWS that Alya is now operating secretly as Rena Furtive
DOES NOT KNOW that Alya knows Ladybug's identity
DOES NOT KNOW that Adrien is Chat Noir, and was therefore hurt by the comments Nino made about Chat Noir being annoying
Luka:
KNOWS that Marinette is Ladybug
KNOWS that Adrien is Chat Noir
KNOWS that Marinette likes Adrien
KNOWS that Chat Noir likes Ladybug
KNOWS that Ladybug and Chat Noir don't know each other's identities
so uhh. to sum it up. this is gonna be messy when everything comes out
She didn’t know how long she spent ruminating. What drew her out of those thoughts was the sudden shouting from behind her and the exclamation of Bustier ordering Ivan to go to the Principal’s.
…wait…
Yes! Yes, this was it! This was the start of Stoneheart, the first akuma!
This was the start of the previous Ladybug’s debut!
And it would be the beginning of her own!
Chloe was almost squirming in her seat as Ivan was ordered to go to the Principal’s office. She watched eagerly as he stormed out of the room.
Can we talk about the music in THAT scene in Mr.Pigeon 72?
Adrien says “Wow, that girl is truly miraculous.” Ok he doesn’t say wow but his face does. The says ‘that girl’ as in “Whoever’s underneath that mask, I love that girl.” He’s talking about Marinette not just Ladybug here.
Cut to Marinette outside in the rain with Kagami. As they talk, we hear this part of the melody of the theme song as sung by Cat Noir/Adrien:
Oh no you’ll never know (1:53 of https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LJtUy6-Aaio)
My love can only grow
And when I see her smile
That’s when she becomes
We know it’s this part because of the length of the chorus that follows. As Adrien walks out and sees Marinette, he says “wow” just as the melody (as he continues talking) goes:
Miraculous, simply the best.
Up to the test when things go wrong. (Only the key goes down instead of up)
Miraculous, simply the best
The power of love always so strong.
Miraculous, simply the best
Up to the test … (the melody changes and ends)
And then the music complete changes as they cutely get closed over by the umbrella and she asks him to walk with her (which by the way I am so proud of this girl for that!). I think it may briefly return after he hits his head trying to get into the car but I’m uncertain. It definitely is similar to it if nothing else.
This means two things. One, I am now obsessed with the theme song in a way I wasn't before. Two, the place they decided to cut the melody is very interesting to me. They purposely leave us feeling that the melody is unfinished by where they stop it. In the episode, there is no music for a very short amount of time after they end it. They could have completed the melody of the sentence but no, they end it before it could finish with "when things go wrong" as in, things are not going wrong here, for the first time, they are going right.
I think this is Adrien’s coup de foudre moment for Marinette obviously paralleling hers for him in Origins. It could just be Marinette realizing once again (because she already did this in the New York special) that yes, she likes him but I don’t think so. I think this music is for Adrien. They could have reused the ‘in the rain’ song from the umbrella scene in Origins. But they didn’t. They used this and right before they did, Adrien called Marinette miraculous both in words and then with the melody.