I did it! It has been updated! Enjoy this angst/crack/fluff. You’re welcome.
Read on AO3
Chapter 6
Adrien fell backwards onto his bed with a sigh, arms spread out on either side of him. He’d really screwed up. Marinette would probably pick Luka over him after what he’d done, and he couldn’t really blame her. Maybe Luka did deserve her more; he certainly seemed more level-headed and knowledgeable about this stuff. Why was he so lame?
First Ladybug, now Marinette. Maybe he wasn’t cut out for love. Maybe he was just meant to be alone forever, locked in a giant house. Some boyfriend he’d make. He would probably arrange a date then his father wouldn’t let him go. At least Luka could actually show up.
His chest tightened at the thought, and the walls of his room seemed a bit narrower than usual, filling his stomach with a fluttery feeling of dread. His lungs felt tight, forcing him to take short, quick breaths until his head spun. He needed to get out for a while before this house suffocated him.
Once out on the rooftops, he took a deep breath, gripping his staff in one hand and letting the cool air brush his cheeks. He didn’t know where he was going, but he knew he didn’t want to be there right now, so he began wandering the city aimlessly, barely paying attention to which direction he was headed, just letting his feet carry him where they pleased.
One thing he did have in his favor was that he was Chat Noir, but he couldn’t exactly tell her that. It would make life a lot easier though. Then he could steal her away from her balcony and take her on her own private tour of the city, but if Hawkmoth found out, it could put her in danger. Sometimes he hated keeping secrets, but he knew why they were important. He’d never forgive himself if anything happened to her because of him.
Speaking of Marinette…
“So, you’ve really made up your mind?” He picked up Alya’s voice below, ears standing upright as he skidded to a stop above them. She and Marinette were chatting over coffee by the looks of it.
“Yeah, after I kissed Luka, it all became clear to me,” Marinette said, and Chat felt his stomach flip.
He shouldn’t listen in. He couldn’t listen in. As he vaulted off, his heart began to crumble piece by piece, eyes burning, hands shaking. She picked Luka. He really had screwed everything up. After putting a considerable distance between them, he stopped on a roof, leaning against the wall and biting his lip hard to prevent tears from spilling over.
What was wrong with him? Everyone else found love so easily, but he had failed twice now. He glanced over at a billboard of his cologne ad and let out a bitter snort, his perfectly doctored face seeming to mock him. Lots of girls went crazy over that face, his face, yet he still always ended up alone. He had so many admirers yet no one to love. Maybe it was just his lot in life.
Many people told him how fortunate he was to have a famous father. To have wealth and fame, popularity and possessions, but he’d never felt lucky. Not all those years he spent trapped inside. Not when his mother disappeared. Not when his father constantly stood him up or when he was forced to eat dinner alone. Not now as he sat crying on a rooftop because his heart was torn in two.
No, Adrien Agreste wasn’t lucky. He was completely and utterly alone.
His staff beeped, startling him a little as he flicked up the screen. An akuma near Notre Dame. Near Marinette’s house. Great. Exactly what he needed. At least he knew that she was across town, so he doubted they’d run into each other. Better get it over with.
“Doesn’t Hawkmoth ever take a break? It’s a school night,” Ladybug groaned as Chat landed beside her, and upon seeing his less than sunny disposition, she cocked a brow. “You okay, kitty?”
“Not really, so let’s hurry up and take care of this,” he said, springing into action.
Chat was in no mood to crack jokes or come up with witty banter, and Ladybug shot him worried glances throughout the battle. When she finally tossed her lucky charm, he didn’t bother sticking around. Ring flashing, he vaulted himself across the city, paying no mind to which direction he was headed. He didn’t care. He just needed to be away, but as it turned out, not paying attention to where you were going when you were leaping through open intersections came at a cost.
“Ack!” A high-pitched yelp sounded as he crashed into another body swinging through the intersection at the same moment.
His vision blurred red as they toppled to the ground, rolling over each other until they landed in a tangled pile of limbs and yoyo string. He sat up with a groan, locking eyes with her as the last pad on his ring faded.
“Oh no,” they said in unison as their transformations dropped before their eyes, unable to untangle themselves until Ladybug’s yoyo disappeared, and they were both left staring blankly at each other.
And who else could his partner and first love be other than the one girl in the city he was hoping to avoid.
“You’re Ladybug? You’re Ladybug?” He repeated with increasing volume until Marinette clamped her hands over his mouth with a shush and pushed him up.
“Okay, okay, yes, I’m…” She glanced over at the animated movie promo and shrugged. “And you’re…Okay, this is not good.”
“Wow, I’m certainly happy it’s you too,” Adrien grunted, turning away with a scowl.
“No, no, no! That’s not what I meant!” She waved her hands frantically, crawling over on her knees to cup his face. “What I meant was this shouldn’t have happened. We aren’t supposed to know.”
“Too late for that now,” Adrien said sardonically, and Marinette covered her face with a moan.
“Okay, we need to talk about this, and…we also just need to talk,” she said, lowering her hands slowly to peek at him.
“Look, I already know you picked Luka. You can spare me the announcement,” he said, and when her eyebrows furrowed added, “I overheard you talking to Alya.”
“You eavesdropped?”
“Not on purpose! I was just out getting some air, clearing my head, and I heard you tell her that you picked Luka,” he explained, holding his arms out in a display of transparency. “I didn’t stick around after that. Trust me.”
“Adrien, you big, dumb, stupid, idiotic-” she punched his shoulders with each new adjective. “I didn’t pick Luka, you dummy.”
“But I heard you tell Alya that everything became clear as soon as you kissed Luka!”
“Yeah, became clear that I didn’t feel that way about him!” Adrien leaned back, eyebrows knit together in confusion.
“Wait, so you-”
“Picked you, you walnut!” She smushed his cheeks between her hands.
“Oh.” He said through fish-lips. “Well, this is embarrassing.”
“Adrien,” she sighed, sitting back and pinching the bridge of her nose with a laugh before punching him in the shoulder again.
“Ow!”
“That’s what you get for eavesdropping!”
“I’m sorry!” He dodged another punch. “Stop hitting me!”
Above them, thunder rumbled, and they glanced up as droplets began to fall. Marinette glanced around, spotting her umbrella a few feet away and crawling to retrieve it.
“Come on,” she opened it then offered him a hand. “We have a lot to discuss.”
Adrien accepted gently, twining their fingers as they walked which she allowed. Everything suddenly felt so surreal, his pulse quickened, his palms started to sweat, fingers tingling against hers. She’d really picked him. Him and not Luka. All of his worry and doubt seemed so silly now as she huddled closer to him as the rain picked up.
Marinette picked him.
Marinette was Ladybug.
The only two girls to ever steal his heart were actually one and the same, and she was holding his hand. They were probably going to makeout later.
“This is actually your umbrella,” she commented as they walked. “You gave it to me on your first day of school when it rained, remember?”
“Oh yeah,” he glanced up at the plain black umbrella.
“That was the moment I fell in love with you,” she said, and his heart lurched at the declaration. “There was this big clap of thunder, and all of a sudden, I just saw you. I’ve never been able to get my words right around you ever since.”
“Wait, so that’s why you always-”
“Yeah,” she pressed her lips together. “You must have thought I was crazy.”
“No,” he chuckled. “Just anxious and easy to set off.”
“Somehow that feels worse,” she said with a laugh, shaking her head. “All this time I wanted to be close to you, and all along you were always right beside me as the person I trusted most.”
“Well, am I everything you’d ever hoped?” He waggled his eyebrows.
“I could do without all the cat puns,” she said honestly.
“Me-ouch.”
“I’m home!” Marinette called as they entered through the back door. “Adrien and I got caught in the rain. Is it okay if he stays here until it lets up?”
“Of course, honey. You two go dry off. I’ll bring up some warm croissants,” Tom said with a smile.
“Thanks, Mr. Dupain,” Adrien nodded politely before Marinette dragged him up the stairs to the apartment.
“Sorry, we don’t have any Camembert, but will brie do?” Marinette offered Plagg a small plate with a wince.
“Oh, yes, this will do just fine,” he moaned, licking drool from his lips before digging in. She smiled down at him before pouring hot water from the kettle over their tea in cups.
“So, what exactly are our options here?” She asked, setting a cup in front of him.
“We could invent a time machine and go back and stop us from bumping into each other,” he suggested with a smirk, but her expression was anything but amused.
“We need to be careful. I think it’s best if we keep pretending like we don’t know when we’re fighting akumas. If Hawkmoth finds out we know our identities he’ll use it against us,” she said cupping her chin. “And we need to be open and honest with one another. We can’t get akumatized, so we need to lean on each other for support whenever we need it.”
“You can lean on my shoulder any time,” Adrien winked, and Marinette suppressed a giggle.
“Speaking of, we should confine our relationship to our civilian life. No kissing in costume. Ladybug and Chat Noir must remain professional partners,” she said giving him a stern look. “That also includes interactions between civilian and alter egos. No balcony visits.”
“But-”
“None,” she quirked a warning brow, and Adrien bit back a teasing grin that grew wider as the corners of her mouth twitched. “You stay off my balcony.”
“Yes, ma’am,” he curled his shoulders and sipped his tea, casting her sad kitten eyes before they both broke into a fit of giggles.
Adrien flicked his gaze down to her hand resting on the table, walking his fingers over until they brushed her palm. She turned her wrist to twine their fingers together, rubbing her thumb across his knuckle.
“So, I can be as affectionate as I want with Marinette, right?” He asked, giving her hand a squeeze.
“Of course,” her cheeks flushed a little.
“So, I can hold your hand in public?”
“Yes.”
“Hug you from behind?”
“If you want.”
“Stare adoringly at you in class?”
“Only if you promise to pay attention to the lesson.”
He mulled over her answers a moment then flicked his gaze back up to hers.
“Me being you-know-who doesn’t change your mind at all?” He asked, cocking a brow, and Marinette pressed her lips into a firm line.
“No,” she shook her head. “If anything, it strengthens it. I know I can trust you.”
He smiled at that, biting his lip a little.
“I am a little offended by one thing,” he said, and her eyebrows furrowed. “You kissed Luka.”
“Adrien,” she rolled her eyes, shoulders relaxing. “If we’re being technical, I kissed you first.”
“Yeah, but I don’t remember it, so it doesn’t count,” he smirked as she let out an exasperated sigh.
Thunder clapped outside as their gazes locked, and Adrien leaned in first. Marinette tilted her head, breath hitching as their lips brushed. Adrien laced his fingers through her hair, her breath hot on his lips, but before they could release the tension, Tom burst through the front door. They jolted apart, cheeks flushing as her father waltzed in.
“I brought up some- oh, am I interrupting?” He paused, a giddy grin creeping over his lips.
“Papa!” Marinette growled, cheeks as scarlet as her Ladybug suit.
“I’ll just leave these here; carry on,” Tom smirked, setting the tray down on the table and tiptoeing out, and Marinette pinched the bridge of her nose.
“So, based on what you remember, who’s a better kisser? Me or Luka?” Adrien asked, and Marinette shot him a glare.
“You really want me to judge based on the one time I awkwardly kissed you while dodging your cataclysm to break a spell put on you by an akuma?”
“Fair point. I need a do-over,” he leaned in again, puckering his lips, but Marinette stuffed a croissant in his mouth before he made contact.
“You can have your kiss if you take me on a date,” she said, crossing her arms over her chest, and Adrien bit through the croissant, setting it aside as a smug grin pulled at his cheeks.
“Oh, you wanna go on a date with me?” He cocked a brow.
“Yeah, and you better impress me,” she shot back, jabbing his chest with her finger.
“Oh, I’ll impress you,” he said with a wink.
“Why do I have a bad feeling?”
“Just be careful what you wish for, m’lady,” he shrugged. “I’m young and irresponsible with a lot of money at my disposal and a lot of people willing to throw together anything I ask for at a moment’s notice.”
“Oh no.”
“Oh yes.”
“I have a hot pie!” Tom announced, reentering the room with Sabine in tow. Marinette knew those faces well. Embarrassing parent mode had been activated. She needed to act fast.
“Why don’t we all have a slice and talk about our day?” Sabine suggested.
“The rain is letting up now actually, so Adrien was just leaving,” Marinette said, pulling him to his feet, but the traitor seemed to catch on and enabled smug boyfriend mode.
“I could go for some pie,” he said, flashing her a knowing grin.
“It’s getting late. What if the rain picks up again?” She countered, giving him a warning look.
“A little rain never hurt anyone,” he shrugged.
“You could get sick and then you wouldn’t be able to come to school, and you’d fall behind, and-”
“You could help me catch up.”
“Yeah, but you have so many extracurricular activities that syncing our schedules might be hard, so better not chance it,” she shoved him toward the door.
“I’m so lucky to have someone who cares about my health and well-being so much,” he sighed, pressing a hand over his heart. “I’ll definitely come over another time, Mr. and Mrs. Dupain-Cheng.”
“Yeah, yeah, I’ll see you at school tomorrow,” she said, pushing against his rock-hard abs, but he dug his heels in stubbornly.
“See you tomorrow,” he leaned down to press a purposeful kiss to her cheek then tilted his chin up to whisper in her ear, “lovebug.”
Her cheeks burned red as she watched him smugly round the corner of the stairs, eyes locked until he disappeared. He was so dead, and she was so not keeping that nickname. Mangy cat.
We will call this place our home,
The dirt in which our roots may grow.
Though the storms will push and pull,
We will call this place our home.
Let the years we’re here be kind, be kind.
Let our hearts, like doors, open wide, open wide.
Settle our bones like wood over time, over time.
Give us bread, give us salt, give us wine.
Made this for Adrinette April Day 24:Piano
Yes i know im late, when im on time with this events?
‘You look like sunshine,’ Marinette mumbled, eyeing his dry and as always perfect blonde locks, and the blue scarf framing his beaming face.
‘You look like rain,’ he chuckled.
‘Thanks a lot’, she sniffled and brushed her bangs away from her eyes, just in case she would need to scowl at him.
‘Rain is beautiful, Marinette,’ he said all of a sudden, turning to her. ‘There are thousands of songs in the rain, if you know how to listen. There are thousands of stories,’ he whispered. Rain gives life.’
It gives love too, she thought, recalling a different rain and a different umbrella. Suddenly her eyes felt wet again. Adrien was staring at her expectantly, but what did he expect, she had no idea.
Welcome to Adrinette April, the month dedicated to nothing but Adrinette! Pictured above is the calendar of daily prompts, however! Considering a lot of people are busy (including myself) I have opted for an alternate system as well. You’ll notice that each week his highlighted a different color, and each of those responds to a different weekly theme which are as follows:
Week 1: Just Friends (yellow)
Week 2: Falling in Love (green)
Week 3: Reveal (purple)
Week 4: Dating (pink)
You may either create daily content for each prompt as you please, or if you are short on time you can just create one thing a week following the weekly theme. If you want to participate on hard mode you can even follow the weekly theme as you do the daily prompts. (week 1, each prompt depicts them as just friends, week 3, each day is a different reveal, etc) Your entries can all be related or all complete separate entities; it’s totally up to you! You are welcome to participate in any way that you like. Art, fic, gif, cosplay, interpretive dance, whatever your craft is! Just be sure to @ this blog and use the tag #adrinetteapril2018 (make sure that is aDRINette and not aDRIENette) so that I can see it and reblog it here! If I fail to reblog something within 24 hours of you posting it, please feel free to message me! I won’t intentionally skip over anyone, so if I missed something please let me know! Hopefully everyone has fun, and Happy Adrinette April!
Adrien jumped at the sound of his father’s voice, face going red as he turned away from the large family portrait at the end of Gabriel’s office. “I was, um...”
“Save both of our time and don’t bother with a lie, Adrien,” Gabriel sighed, moving further into the room. “Were you trying to get into the safe?”
He straightened, squaring his shoulders. “Yes.”
“Why?”
“I’d like to see the jewelry you have in there.”
Gabriel’s jaw clenched. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
Adrien fished his phone out of his pocket and pulled up the photos he’d taken of Marinette’s drawings. “These. I want to see these.” He expected Gabriel to go cold and tell him to leave so when his father let out a heavy sigh, Adrien blinked in surprise.
“I guess I knew this was coming,” Gabriel murmured. “I don’t know that I have the strength to keep fighting it anyway.”
“What are you talking about?”
Gabriel held up a finger as he crossed the room. “You’ll listen to what I have to say and then if you still think you should take the jewelry, I’ll let you.”
Adrien frowned but nodded, following his father’s lead and taking a seat at the desk.
“What is in the safe isn’t just jewelry; they are items of immense power and magic. I used them to create this world.”
Adrien stiffened. “I don’t understand.”
Gabriel nodded. “I know. That’s my fault as well.” He leaned forward. “Adrien, in another life, we lost your mother.”
“No...”
“It wrecked me. You know how much I love her. I did things...” He trailed off, pursing his lips. “I did things that I’m not proud of now, but at the time, I was desperate to get her back however I could.”
“But she’s not gone.” Adrien looked towards the office door. “I just saw her when I got here.”
“Now,” Gabriel nodded. “She exists here. When I brought her back, it rewrote our lives as if she had never been gone.”
“The memories.” Adrien swallowed hard, looking down at his hands. “You made me see so many doctors.” He glared across the desk at Gabriel. “You made me think I was crazy.”
“I’m sorry. Adrien, I’m so sorry.”
Adrien stood, the chair screeching across the marble floor. “Give me the jewelry.”
Gabriel sagged in his chair. “I’m not sure what will happen if you put the ring on, son. We could lose her all over again. Is that something you’re willing to chance?”
“I don’t...I’m not...” Adrien sank back down.
Gabriel shook his head. “I knew the moment I heard Marinette was in the building that it would be over soon. I’ve kept you away from them as much as I could. I wanted to leave Paris but your mother wouldn’t have it. She loves it too much here.”
“Do you remember the other world? The one without Mom?”
“Clearly,” he nodded. “Things are finally starting to blur because this would be around the time when I changed everything. Hopefully I won’t have two sets of memories anymore soon.”
“What about the rest of the world?”
“What do you mean?”
“What did bringing Mom back affect?”
Gabriel blinked. “Outside of us, nothing that I’m aware of. The business has been more successful so I suppose there could be ramifications for someone else because of that, but I doubt anything big has changed. No one would remember it if it had.”
“Does everyone have two sets of memories? No one talks about it. Until Marinette, Nino, and Alya, I thought I was nuts. You let me think I was nuts,” he accused.
“The four of you had recently held Miraculous when everything changed. I believe that saved your memories somehow.”
“Me, Marinette, Nino, and Alya wore the jewelry?”
“Well, and Chloe Bourgeois,” Gabriel added with a grimace. “I suppose perhaps that didn’t go well but still worth the cost to have your mother.”
Adrien felt a rush of anger. “Chloe?! Chloe, who has been institutionalized on and off our whole lives?!” He stood again and slammed a fist on the desk. “No one affected?! Give me the jewelry, Father, now.”
Gabriel stared at him and then nodded, standing and crossing the room to the safe. “You could be taking your mother’s life away.”
“You took five lives away,” he spat back. “I’ll go talk to Mom. When she finds out what you’ve done--”
“No.” Gabriel turned sharply. “Whatever you do, you can’t tell her about this. No matter what you think of me now, it would destroy her.”
“Fine.”
Gabriel opened the safe and pulled out the glass box that held seven pieces of jewelry. “Please take some time to think about it,” he said, carefully handing the box to Adrien. “And read these.” He gently placed two books on top of the box, one thick and obviously very old and the other a leather-bound journal.
Adrien took them and left the office without another word.
______________________________
Marinette paced the length of Nino’s living room as Alya and Nino watched her.
“He’s on his way,” Alya offered.
“You didn’t hear the way his voice sounded,” Marinette said quietly. “It’s been days since he talked to his father.”
Nino stood. “Maybe we’ll finally get some answers. Do you guys want me to order in some food?”
“I’m not hungry.” Marinette turned on her heel and began to pace the other way.
“Well, you’re eating,” Alya replied. “Thanks, babe. Food would be great.”
A knock on the door grabbed all their attention and suddenly Marinette was suddenly wrenching it open. She couldn’t put her finger on what it was about seeing Adrien that instantly made her feel better but it was as if a weight had been lifted off her shoulders. A weight that seemingly stayed on his.
He moved past her with barely a smile and set the box and books on Nino’s coffee table. “It’s all there. Everything about why we have different memories.”
Nino immediately picked up the old book, eyes widening. “I remember this.”
“Yeah, I think it was yours,” Adrien sighed, dropping into the armchair. “The other one is a journal my father kept about everything. Things he did in the other timeline, the Miraculous we held, things he wishes he could’ve changed.” He shook his head. “It’s all there.”
Alya brushed her fingers against the glass over the foxtail necklace. “And he just gave these to you?”
“If you read towards the end of the journal, it makes more sense. He’s exhausted. I guess having two timelines in your head for almost forty years really does a number on you.”
Marinette stood by the armchair. “How are you though?” she asked softly.
He looked up at her with a broken look in his eyes. “I don’t know what to do,” he whispered.
Giving in to her every instinct, Marinette dropped into the chair with him, wrapping her body around him as much as she could in a hug. Adrien’s arms were instantly around her, his face buried in her neck.
Everyone stayed silent for a while, Alya and Nino reading while Marinette and Adrien held each other.
“So one of us could bring the Ladybug and Black Cat together and try to change the world back, but you would lose your mom,” Nino finally said.
“And our lives here would be over. We can’t know for sure what has happened here also happened in the other timeline,” Alya pointed out. “Our family, our friends, the experiences that made us who we are, those could be gone, or at the very least, too different to make the same impact.”
“Yeah,” Adrien sighed. “That’s the problem. There’s also a friend of mine who held one of the Miraculous. She’s been in and out of institutions our whole lives. I never really knew why because no one talk about it, but I’m going to bet it has to do with all this.”
“Do you think getting the Bee back to her could help?” Alya asked.
“It’s not going to erase the last twenty-five years even if it does.” Adrien scrubbed at his face with the palm of his hand. “No one really wins either way.”
“Except your father apparently,” Marinette muttered.
“I don’t know.” Alya held up the journal. “He seems pretty miserable.”
Nino leaned back against the couch. “I don’t think we should try to undo this timeline.”
“Why?”
“There’s no way to make it exactly the same. What if we all end up with three sets of memories. We really will be insane, no offense,” he nodded to Adrien.
“None taken.”
“So Gabriel just gets away with what he did?” Marinette sat up. “Who knows what he took away from us, what we could be missing out on. It’s not right.”
“I know, but there’s nothing we can really do, Mari,” Nino winced. “We can’t take this to the police and have him arrested. No one would believe us.”
“Do we just leave them in the box?” Alya stared at the necklace. “I don’t know if I can.”
“What if we out them on and try?” Marinette suggested. “You said it would take the Ladybug and the Black Cat together to change things so they should be safe enough apart, right?”
“It’s worth a try, I suppose,” Nino nodded. He opened the box carefully. “Let’s give it a shot.”
______________________________
Chat Noir crouched on the wall outside of the Agreste mansion, watching Emilie move around the office through one of the large windows as she straightened things and laughed at something her husband said while he worked at his desk.
“She’s still here.”
He turned to see Ladybug standing behind him. “Yeah,” he said softly. “I was worried.”
“I told the others to go ahead. They’re going to attempt to see Chloe.” She sat down beside him on the ledge. “Do you remember?”
“It was kind of a rush of memories when I transformed. Sorry for running off. I really needed to know if she was okay.”
“I understand.”
“We were...we were together,” he finally said.
“Yeah, I remember,” she nodded.
“How does that make you feel?”
Ladybug bit her lip and smiled at him, cheeks burning. “How does it make you feel?”
“I asked you first, my Lady.”
Her breath caught at his words. “It makes me angry that your father caused us to forget a second of it,” she admitted, glaring at Gabriel through the window. “It’s not fair that he doesn’t get punished for this.”
“I know.”
“But I don’t want to lose any more time.” She took his hand in hers, resting her head on his shoulder.
There were more words that needed to be said. There were actions that needed to be taken. There were questions and complications and so many issues that needed resolution. But for now, for this small moment at the beginning of their new lives, they simply sat together and enjoyed their time together.
Thanks so much to everyone who has been reading this month! I hope you enjoyed the story. <3
