Later
Day Twenty-Seven: Sidekick
“Of course I’ll be here to save the day,” Scarlet Lady says, tossing her hair behind her back dramatically. “I have to clean up after my mangy sidekick, after all.”
Sidekick, huh?
Chat Noir huffs, ring beeping loudly. He’ll deal with this later.
With this in mind, he hops away, searching for a place to detransform.
~~~~~
Later doesn’t come quickly. No, later is pushed off. Battle after battle, Chat Noir is stuck alone, fighting battles meant for two. He fights and is forgotten, fights to save Paris, only for Scarlet Lady to be adored. He fights and hurts and gets battered and bruised, and only one person even recognizes how much he works to keep Paris from becoming a chaotic mess.
Marinette Dupain-Cheng. From the very first fight, she’s been on the sidelines, cheering him on. Sure, she has a penchant for getting in the way of battles, but Adrien knows it’s because she’s truly a hero. She stands up for what’s right, she doesn’t let her lack of powers keep her from fighting against evil.
She’s the Ladybug Chat wishes he could have. Someone he could call a partner. But no, instead he gets Scarlet Lady.
Yet exhaustion feels okay when Adrien walks into class and sees her smile. The weight on his shoulders seems a little more bearable whenever she offers him coffee or a croissant, or just insults Scarlet Lady.
Yeah, later can be pushed off, because Marinette will wait beside him.
~~~~~
Chat Noir is used to being called a sidekick. For months, he’s dealt with battles alone, taken all of the pain and suffering alone, saved the day and been tossed aside alone. He’s exhausted, he’s beaten down and he doesn’t know how to get back up.
But just as he thinks the world can’t get better, it does. Because Marigold steps out of the shadows, and she protects him. She holds out a hand to help him. Together, they beat the Akuma. Together, they save the day. And the workload lessens. The struggle of every battle diminishes when it’s doled out between two heroes.
Finally, later comes. It’s after a pretty easy Akuma battle (or is he just getting better at working with Marigold?) and neither Chat nor Marigold used their powers. The reporters come, just like usual, and Chat doesn’t run.
But as he sees them coming, he notices something else. The victim, a young boy, maybe nine, sitting on the floor, looking sad and scared.
Chat pushes later away, going to comfort the kid. Marigold follows suit.
“Are you okay?” Chat asks, kneeling down. “You seemed rather upset, did something happen?”
The boy sniffles. “I, I failed a math test. My mom is gonna ground me for sure, and then my friends aren’t gonna talk to me because I can’t play games and I’ll be lonely and, and-”
“Hey,” Marigold coos, pulling the boy into a loose hug. “It’ll be alright. Your friends will understand, and I’m sure your mom will, too. Everyone has bad days, you know?”
“Even you?” He looks up at her with shock, and Marigold giggles. It sounds like bells to Chat.
“Even me. Here, I’ll even let you in on a little secret, but you can’t tell anyone, okay?” When the boy nods, Marigold whispers conspiratorially. “I’m awful at physics.”
“Really?!” He gasps, as if the idea is astounding.
“Really. But my parents understand, because I’m getting tutored. I have the sweetest friend, and he’s a genius. He teaches me about physics, and I’m doing better. Do you have a friend who’s good at math?”
The boy nods. “Alice! She’s really smart.”
“Maybe you could ask her for advice, then!” She grins. “And if not, I’m sure you could ask your parents for help.”
Chat nods with Marigold, then adds, “And if they won’t teach you, come hunt me down. I’m have you know I’m the purrfect math teacher!”
The boy giggles. “Thank you!”
“Of course. Now, little guy, do you need help getting home? I can give you a lift,” Chat offers, and the boy lights up.
“Yeah!”
So Chat leaves later behind, leaping away with the boy on his back. And, a short conversation later, little Thomas is hugging his parents, who promise to help him with math.
~~~~~
Later passes without Chat noticing. Time after time, he chooses comforting the victim over calling out Scarlet. Because that’s why he’s a hero. It’s not for recognition, it’s to help people. That’s why Marigold, too, has risen from wherever she was to fight by his side. It’s not about proving that he’s a partner, not a sidekick, because only he and Marigold need to know that.
But it’s this approach that causes later to spark. It’s this decision that proves the truth for all of Paris.
It sneaks up on him. Never one for checking the news, he doesn’t see the exponentially increasing number of articles on him and Marigold, doesn’t see the shift in public opinion, doesn’t know how he and Marigold become favored over the once beloved spotted ‘heroine.’
Then he goes to school, and hears something that shocks him.
“You’re changing the name of the Scarblog?” Marinette asks Alya, right as Adrien enters the room.
Alya nods, glaring at her phone as she types rapidly. “Yeah. It’s about time. Scarlet Lady is awful, I can’t believe I didn’t notice earlier!”
Adrien can’t believe it. Finally, someone noticed other than Marinette! Finally, someone else understands. It feels like Christmas, it feels like-
“Yeah, she sucks,” Alix adds in.
Forget Christmas, Adrien is in heaven!
Quickly, all of his class is chiming in, insults thrown at the girl who only knows how to care about herself. Marinette seems just as ecstatic over the words being spoken, agreeing vehemently.
Then Chloé walks in, just as Kim shouts, “The only heroes we need are Chat Noir and Marigold!”
Adrien hears his old friend before he even sees her.
“What did you just say?!” She shouts, and Adrien jumps.
“If you must know, Chloé,” Max starts, adjusting his glasses, “we’ve noticed the trends of the battles. Statistically speaking, the chance of Scarlet Lady actually contributing to the battle and fighting the Akuma is zero point zero zero zero zero zero zero one perecent. There has been one battle where Scarlet Lady was said to have taken initiative, and that was during Copycat. According to Marinette, who was the only witness present, Scarlet Lady did not even act until Marinette mentioned that there would be two Chat Noirs present, with one of them adoring Scarlet Lady.”
Chloé scoffs. “As if Dupain-Cheng is a reliable source.”
“She is, actually, our most reliable source, having been involved in almost every single Akuma attack. But if her alibi for the Copycat attack is unusable, as nobody else can attest to it, other than Chat Noir and Scarlet Lady, then Scarlet Lady has never been useful, except for her Miraculous Cure.”
Rose gasps. “Marinette, you could’ve been Scarlet Lady! You would be an amazing hero!”
Chloé turns her glare on the petite blonde. “Dupain-Cheng could never be as great as Scarlet Lady! She’s too clumsy and foolish to be a hero.”
Adrien glares at Chloé. “Marinette is greater than Scarlet Lady could ever be, if she could manage to get her head out of her ass! Marinette does everything she can to help the heroes, she puts herself in danger to keep others safe. She already is a hero, which is more than I can say for Scarlet.”
“Guys, I-” Marinette tries to cut in, but Chloé interrupts.
“If it wasn’t for Scarlet, you’d all be surrounded by that stupid sidekick’s messes! The city would be in ruins! I don’t see Marigold fixing that.”
Adrien freezes, and he sees how Marinette stiffens behind him. Because nobody uses that tone when referring to him as a sidekick, no one except Scarlet Lady.
He cringes, remembering every single time Scarlet tried to claim his civilian identity was her boyfriend. Now it makes sense. Gross.
Marinette, behind him, becomes enraged. “You know what, Chloé?!” She shouts, stomping forwards. “Chat Noir is the greatest hero that will ever live, and you should feel blessed to know that he protects everyone! He puts his life on the line so that we can be safe, and he fought alone for months because his partner was too busy putting on lipstick! We never deserved Chat Noir, but god damn do we need him if we’re stuck with someone like Scarlet as our only other option.”
“And Marigold has more talent in one strand of hair than Scarlet has in her whole body!” Adrien shouts. “She should’ve become Scarlet Lady, not the incompetent idiot who put on the mask! In fact, I doubt Scarlet was meant to be the hero. I bet she got the Miraculous by taking it from the rightful owner!”
From the way Chloé winces, Adrien knows that he’s right. Chloé stole the Miraculous, but who would she have…oh mon Dieu.
She stole from Marinette, didn’t she? Marinette, the girl who is a real hero. The girl who is creative and brave and puts her life on the line to protect others. Marinette, the girl who always supported Chat Noir, the girl who always knew how awful Scarlet Lady is.
Adrien feels enraged by the love of his life. He wants to reach out and snatch the earrings from Chloé, wants to hand them to Marinette because she’s their rightful owner-
But he can’t. At least, not right now.
Sitting down for class as the bell rings, Adrien has never been more excited for an Akuma to attack. He can’t wait for later to come again.
~~~~~
Luckily for him, an Akuma attacks that night. Even more luckily, the Akuma holds nothing but hatred in her heart for Scarlet Lady. She calls Scarlet incompetent, a sorry excuse of a hero. She despises the girl, and wants to take the earrings so she can be a hero instead.
Chat Noir doesn’t intervene. He slips into the shadows, catching Marigold before she reaches the fight. He moves to whisper what he has learned of Scarlet, but Marigold speaks first.
“She’s in my class,” Marigold whispers angrily. “I hate her.”
Chat blinks at the information. Marigold is in Chloé’s class…
“Marinette?” He whispers, and she blanches.
“I, uh-” She sighs. “God damnit. How did that give it away?”
“Because I’m in her class,” Chat admits, and watches Marigold blush as she understands, “and I just realized it today.”
“It was the sidekick comment, wasn’t it?” She asks, and Chat nods. “So what’s the plan, partner?”
“We sit back and let her fight.” He does as he says, leaning against the chimney of the rooftop. “And when Scarlet Lass defeats Scarlet Lady, we swoop in.”
“I like the sound of this.” She smirks, and so does Chat.
The fight doesn’t last more than a minute. Scarlet Lady, panicking, calls for her Lucky Charm, but has no idea how to use it. She screams at Chat and Marigold, demands that they help her. They smile.
“Go off, Scarlet Lass!” Marigold cheers. “Show her what’s for!”
Scarlet Lass seems confused, then smiles sadistically. “As you wish, my future teammates!”
The earrings are off of Chloé Bourgeois in seconds. And then the heroes of Paris, the real heroes of Paris, leap into action.
“Venom!” Marigold shouts, and stuns Scarlet Lass.
“Thank you!” Chat says sweetly, taking the earrings from the Akuma.
Chloé huffs. “Good job, now give me my earrings so I can save the day.” She doesn’t expect to look up and be met by two glares.
“No.” Chat toys with the earrings, eyes still locked onto hers. “I don’t think I will.”
Chloé gasps. “What do you mean, ‘no?’ Those are mine, you stupid sidekick, return them at once!”
Marigold hums. “Now here’s the thing, Bourgeois. Your identity is compromised. Even if you were a good superhero, which you weren’t, we couldn’t let you continue. Because now Hawky knows your identity, so he could take the earrings at any time. So, no. Your reign of terror is over.”
She huffs. “Oh yeah? Well, good luck saving the day! You can’t fix damage without me.”
“No, we can’t fix damage without a Ladybug,” Chat corrects her, then turns to Marigold. “So, Marigold, I think it’s time we swap your yellow for red.”
Marigold’s eyes widen for a second, and then she nods. “I think you’re right, partner.” She pins the earrings to her ears, and Tikki appears before them. “Hey, Tikki, right? I need your help to save the day, if that’s alright?”
Tikki looks close to tears, nodding frantically. “Of course, Marigold! My transformation phrase is ‘spots on.’”
Marigold smiles. “Alright! Tikki, spots on! Pollen, buzz off!” A flash of pink and yellow covers Chat’s partner, and when it dies down, she’s changed. Gone is the yellow and black, now Marigold wears red and black. The spots resemble Scarlet’s, but she keeps the more sensible aspects of her Bee ensemble (cough no heels cough) on her person. Spinning her new yoyo, she says, “Let’s finish this, kitty.”
“Got it!” Chat breaks Scarlet Lass’s Akumatized object, a charm of Scarlet Lady, and the Akuma flies out. Marigold catches it immediately, then purifies it.
Once the damage has been fixed, Marigold turns to Chat. “Pound it!” She cries, just as she usually does. Then she asks, “Want to go get ice cream?”
Chat Noir blushes. “Of course, Marigo-”
“Ladybug,” she corrects, sweet and simple. “Let’s go with Ladybug.”
“Alright, Ladybug, let’s go have some ice cream. Think Andre is still around at this time of night?”
“I’m sure he’ll make an exception for a new hero!” Ladybug jokes, and the two leap away, leaving Chloé behind with a still-angry ex fan, who relishes the chance to insult the ‘hero’.
Yes, later feels wonderful.
(I wrote this for Inktober on my ao3 account, I hope you enjoy! -salthaven)
Edit: Submitted by @salthaven