#ml writers guild

[mlwritersguild]

Ho ho ho everyone!

We're waking up from hibernation to wish you happy holidays, and to announce our annual White Elephant prompt exchange event. This year, you can participate, by sending us festive prompts! Our participants will ruthlessly battle for them and follow their inspiration - who knows what the result will be?

We can't wait to see what you'll submit!

[hanaasbananas]

Not a Date

Summary:

nine years after Adrien and Marinette went their separate ways, they find their paths crossing again as adults. Deciding to catch up for old times sake, both are firm in their belief that it is not a date.

Or is it?

written for the @mlwritersguild February 2023 event. Prompts: "lost", "translate", "poetic", and the bouquet emoji 💐

AO3

It was a miracle that she heard him at all.

Once, long ago, Marinette might have called it destiny. She might have gushed about how the universe had conspired to perfectly time a lull in the music blaring through her headphones with a turn down into a quieter side street, away from the bustling town centre. 

She had outgrown such fantasies now, of course. But whatever it was–fate, luck or even just sheer coincidence–the result was that Marinette turned when her name was called…

…and promptly dropped her phone.

Adrien caught it before it could hit the ground. Handing it back to her, he rocked back on his heels, laughing delightedly as she gaped at him. “It is you!” he exclaimed “I knew it! How have you been?”

Marinette blinked. “ Adrien?” 

He looked…gorgeous, as he always had, but somehow her ex-boyfriend had managed to become even more devastatingly handsome with age. Gone was the perfectly styled hair and the spotless designer clothes that had been such a staple of their teenage years. In their place, was a well worn cable knit jumper, and hair so unruly Marinette had to clench her hands into fists by her side, resisting the urge to run her fingers through it. 

More than that though, Adrien looked comfortable in his skin, his eyes bright and smile genuine. The sight was enough to make her heart flutter in her chest and Marinette was suddenly very glad for the cold air that masked the reason for her flushed cheeks. 

As she watched, mesmerised, Adrien impatiently pushed up the glasses that were sliding down the bridge of his nose, his lips moving even though…

Marinette frowned, realising belatedly that he was still talking.

“–ong are you in town? We should get coffee or lunch sometime, really catch up properly.”

“Oh!” Marinette’s voice was high and almost breathless. “Yes! Definitely! I’m actually moving back to Paris so I’m staying with Maman and Papa right now. You should totally swing by, they’d love to see you as well–” Stopping abruptly, she forced herself to stop babbling, inhaling deeply before continuing at a much more sedate pace.

“I’m free this weekend if you are? We can go to…go to–” she hesitated, remembering the café   where they had spent so much of their time when they were younger. Would he think that it was strange that she suggested the place? That she was still hung up on a relationship that ended almost a decade ago? Would he change his mind about catching up or–

“Our old place, right?” Adrien interjected, cutting through her spiralling thoughts as if he knew exactly what she was thinking. At her hesitant nod, he grinned, almost blinding her with its brightness.

 “That sounds great!”

*

“It’s not a date.” Adrien exclaimed. Glaring at Plagg in the mirror, he continued. “We’re just old friends, meeting for lunch. Friends do that all the time. I had lunch with Nino the other day too, and that wasn’t a date either. Just like this isn’t.”

“Sure,” Plagg drawled, rolling over on the bed of toilet paper he’d made for himself and eyeing Adrien derisively. “but Nino isn’t your ex. And you only spent about five minutes getting ready to see him. How long did it take you to choose your shirt today?”

“Right, that’s it–” 

Plagg cackled as Adrien shooed him out of the bathroom and slammed the door behind him. “You know I’m right!” 

Rolling his eyes fondly at his kwami, Adrien picked up his razor to carry on shaving–this time in blessed silence. Really it was no surprise that Plagg was going on and on about him meeting Marinette for lunch. He’d never understood why they’d broken up in the first place, no matter how many times Adrien had explained to him that it had been for the best. 

Maybe he might have felt differently if the relationship had imploded. If it had ended in devastation, with anger and shouting and resentment to taint all the happiness they had once shared. Instead, it had ended quietly, with no one to blame but circumstances beyond their control. 

For that, he would be forever grateful, because while unfortunate, it had given him warm memories to look back on on the days that he had felt particularly lost in London. In fact…taking out his wallet from his pocket, Adrien flipped it open and pulled out the small strip of photos he kept hidden behind a family photo with his cousin and aunt.

The strip was creased through the middle from where it had been folded and unfolded many times, the once sharp corners curling and peeling back with age. In the photos, they were in a photobooth that Marinette had dragged him into–one they’d found in a clothes shop–and she was laughing delightedly, her arms wrapped around his shoulders as he kissed her neck, her cheek and finally her mouth. Their cheeks were flushed as they beamed at the camera in the last photo, and Adrien couldn’t help the smile that tugged at his lips before he put the photo strip away once more. 

It wasn’t a date, no. But he couldn’t wait to see Marinette anyway.

He really had missed her.

*

“It’s not a date.”

Behind her, Tikki rifled through the box of mementos on Marinette’s desk. “Then why have you got all this old stuff out?” she asked innocently, doing a terrible job of hiding the laughter in her voice.

“I was just…” Marinette paused with her mascara wand halfway to her eye. “Reminiscing.”

“Reminiscing on your relationship. I still don’t know why you broke up, you know.”

“We grew up.” Marinette huffed exasperatedly. “Long distance was never going to work so we figured it was better to end things when it was still good, remember. Before we had the chance to grow apart, you know? Anyway I’ve always been sentimental. You know that.” 

That wasn’t technically a lie. Marinette was very sentimental, keeping ticket stubs and receipts and anything with a good memory attached to it. Adrien had always teased her about it back in the day–until the scrapbook of their relationship had become hefty enough to hurt when she swatted him with it. 

Truthfully, she hadn’t thought about the scrapbook for a long time. But after seeing Adrien again, the first thing Marinette had done when she got home was dig the old box out. She’d spent hours poring over the pages, trying to translate her old illegible handwriting and allowing old memories to wash over her like a familiar blanket. 

That’s all they were though. Memories. 

“I guess…” Tikki said doubtfully. “So it really is just a friend thing?”

Marinette nodded firmly. “ Yes.”   It didn’t matter that her heart fluttered every time she thought about seeing Adrien again, he hadn’t said anything to suggest that it was anything else, and she certainly wasn’t going to. “Now come on,” she said, turning to grab the box “let’s put that away.”

Picking the box up in one hand, and attempting to put the lid back on with the other, Marinette swore under her breath when it tipped out of her grasp, scattering the contents all over the floor. 

“Damn it!” glancing at the clock, she swore again, staring down at the mess in dismay. There was no time to tidy it all up, not if she wanted to be on time. 

Decision made, Marinette opened her purse for Tikki to slip inside and then stepped gingerly over the small bits of paper littering the floor, making sure to watch her every step. It would just be her luck to slip and fall now and she wasn’t taking any chances whatsoever.

She was halfway out the door when something bright caught her eye. Bending down to pick it up, Marinette laughed out loud as she looked at the crumpled red packet in her hand,  jelly rings emblazoned across the front telling her what the packet had once contained. 

They had been so innocent back then, thinking that ‘always’ wasn’t just a word but something to believe .

Unbidden, the memory of that day came to her.  She thought of Adrien kneeling in front of her and presenting her with a jelly ring, his eyes glittering with mirth. It had been a cloudy day, she remembered, the sun breaking through the clouds at just the right moment to make Adrien’s hair look like shimmering gold. His proposal had been filled with sweet puns, neither of them able to hold back their laughter even as he’d slid the jelly ring onto her finger and declared them engaged.

Marinette shook her head, dispelling the memory, though she wasn’t able to get rid of the warm feeling blooming in her chest. That was all in the past. A memory to look back on fondly and nothing more.

Unless…

No. Marinette dismissed the thought. She was just going to meet a friend. There was nothing romantic about it.

*

Plagg was never going to let him hear the end of this. 

He’d felt his kwami sniggering in his pocket the entire time that he was in the supermarket trying to find the right flowers, so when Adrien knocked him with his wallet when it was time to pay, it was only slightly unintentional. 

It was worth it though, to see the smile on Marinette’s face as he presented her with the bouquet of pink lilies. 

“You remembered?” she asked.

“How could I forget?” Adrien countered. Bumping her shoulder as they entered the café   together, he resisted the urge to take her hand, shoving his hand in his pocket instead. “Of course I remembered.” 

Marinette blinked. “..oh.” 

Tone it down, Agreste, Adrien chided himself mentally when Marinette turned around abruptly, her cheeks red. It’s not a date. Still, he found his eyes lingering a little on Marinette’s face, taking in her flushed cheeks and windswept hair. It was longer than it had ever been when they were together, cascading past her shoulders in a dark waterfall and as he watched, she pushed a strand out of her eyes impatiently, scanning the café for somewhere they could sit.

In the days leading up to their meeting, Adrien’s biggest worry had been that their conversation would be awkward and full of silences. That the ease they’d had around each other in the past was just that–a thing of the past. 

He needn’t have worried.

They talked for hours, slipping so effortlessly back into their old dynamic that Adrien almost wondered if the last nine years had been a strange dream. 

Eventually, when they couldn’t justify any more refills– when Adrien’s cheeks hurt from smiling for so long and Marinette couldn’t speak without dissolving into fits of giggles–they got up to leave, too wrapped up in each other to care about the irritated looks other patrons shot their way.

Outside, the cool evening air was a welcome relief from the warmth inside the café, though as the wind ruffled his hair Adrien noticed that the sky was heavy with clouds threatening rain. Beside him, Marinette shivered slightly and zipped up her coat. 

For a long moment, they simply gazed at each other, neither willing to look away or be the first to move in a different direction, to let their time together end. Adrien had thought it would be easy to say goodbye again, but before he could stop himself, he found himself asking-

“You’re at the bakery right? I’ll walk you home.”

“Oh!” Marinette said. “No, you don’t have t–”

“Marinette,” Adrien interrupted her, stifling a laugh at the way her mouth clicked shut. “I want to. C’mon.” Holding out his arm, he raised an eyebrow expectantly until Marinette–hesitantly–threaded her arm through his. A thrill ran through him at the contact and he bit his lip to hide his smile. “Let’s go.”

*

They were much more subdued as they walked, their conversation quieter. Between them, the knowledge that their time together was coming to an end weighed heavily on them the closer they got to the bakery.

It was strange, Marinette thought. How many times had they made this exact walk–shyly at first after their first date, and then more confidently as they learned to navigate the change from friendship to relationship . They’d both been so nervous –stealing glances at each other and blushing when they were caught but carrying on anyway. 

Marinette almost felt the same way now, as if she were a teenage girl again, giddy with joy at being on a date with her crush.

Adrien, on the other hand, didn’t seem nervous at all. But then, he’d always been good at hiding things. She remembered what an incorrigible flirt he’d been–especially when he was Chat Noir, but that had been a facade more often than not; a fragile mask put up to keep his distance from others. It had been a long, slow process to peel away the mask and expose the boy behind it, but Marinette would never regret it.

Not that she had reason to.

Because now… Adrien was so much more self assured. He carried himself with a confidence that only came with age, no longer afraid to hide his sincerity but embracing it instead.

As if sensing her gaze, Adrien looked down at her.  “Penny for your thoughts?” he asked.

Marinette shook her head. “Don’t waste your money, they aren’t as interesting as you’d think.”

“Oh I think I’ll be the judge of that .” Adrien grinned and her breath caught at the teasing glint in his eye. 

It seemed like some things never changed. 

“Wellll…” Marinette drew out the word, looking down at the ground. Scuffing the toe of her boot on the ground she shrugged. “I was just thinking about how much we’ve changed.”

“For the better, I assume?”

“Well I know I have,” Marinette said jokingly, “but I’ve been trying to come up with a way to bring it up nicely all evening and there isn’t a way, really– you’ve become quite insufferable since we last saw each other.”

“Ah,” Adrien sighed. “That’ll be Félix’s influence, I’m afraid.”

She sniffed in mock derision. “Yes, I thought so. I–” Marinette’s lip wobbled when she looked up at Adrien, struggling to hold back her laughter at the sight of his solemn expression. “I–”

Adrien was snickering to himself now too, and Marinette clapped a hand over her mouth just as a loud guffaw escaped her mouth and echoed around them in the quiet street.

“Oh my god.” 

“What?”

“ Oh my god.” Marinette marched ahead of Adrien, her cheeks burning with mortification. Hearing him catch up behind her she sped up, calling over her shoulder. “You didn’t hear that. You did not hear that.”

“I totally did,” Adrien’s voice rumbled with laughter. “ Stop,” he grasped her by the wrist. “ It was cute!”

Marinette whirled around, incredulous. “It was not!”  

Adrien was grinning at her. “It was adorable.”

“Shut up.”

“Not until you admit it.”

“I will admit nothing.” Marinette snapped, though she felt her embarrassment fade a little–replaced by a warmth in her chest– at the fondness in his expression,  “change the subject.”

“Alright.” Adrien pretended to think for a moment. “Tell me what you were really thinking earlier.”

“Wh–I did!”

Adrien shot her a look that said come on, now , his eyebrows raised. Well. She did ask for it.

“I’d just been thinking, you know,” she began slowly, as they carried on walking side by side again.  “I know we didn’t want to break up, back then before you went to London, but…I’m glad we did. It did you good, I think.” Seeing his surprised expression, Marinette hurried on, practically tripping over her words. “Unless living with your aunt and cousin really sucked and  was a terrible experience and–”

“No,” Adrien cut in before she could spiral into a tangent. “You’re right. It was the right thing to do…at the time.”

At the time . Marinette’s breath caught at the words. What could he mean, at the time ? Without really meaning to, Marinette found herself turning to him and asking, almost in a whisper:

“And now?”

“And now…” Adrien echoed her. Scratching behind his ear nervously he stepped forward and reached out to her, tucking a stray lock of hair behind her ear. Adrien’s fingers lingered for a split second–just enough for her to feel the warmth against her skin–before dropping to his side. “Let’s just uh…” he hesitated. “Let's just say I’m glad to be back.”

“I–” 

“We’re here,” Adrien said softly, nodding to something behind her,  and with a start Marinette realised that they were standing at her doorstep. Warm light from the bakery spilled out into the street, illuminating Adrien's face and Marinette was reminded once again of the countless other times he had walked her home before. 

And what had come after.

“Oh.” Marinette exhaled the word. “Well, um…thanks for walking me,” glancing up at the overcast sky she said just as a fat raindrop landed on her forehead, she laughed. “I was gonna say you should hurry before it starts raining but…do you want to come inside and wait it out instead?”

“No, it’s fine,” Adrien shook his head quickly. “I should be able to make it back before it really gets going.”

“Okay!” Marinette tried to hide her disappointment “yeah okay if you’re sure. Um.” Before she could stop herself, she strode forwards, enveloping Adrien in a hug.  She had to reach up on her tiptoes to wrap her arms around his shoulder as he held her around the waist.

It wasn’t a date. She knew now that a part of her had wanted it to be, but she would content herself with this hug instead, and the time they had spent together. It was more than enough.

Pulling away, Marinette smiled up at Adrien who looked down at her, his green eyes blown wide with surprise. “I’ll see you soon.” She smiled ruefully, pecking him on the cheek. “Let’s not leave it as long this time.”

*

Adrien made it halfway down the street before he turned around.

What am I doing? He asked himself. His cheek was still tingling from Marinette’s kiss, and he could feel her gaze, watching him still from the front step of the bakery. 

What am I doing? The voice in his head repeated, louder this time and Adrien had no answer for it except to turn on his heel and walk–no, run back down the street.

The rain was coming down in earnest now, soaking him through in seconds, plastering his hair onto his face. Adrien squinted as he ran, struggling to see through the rain lashing down. Twice, he stepped in an unexpectedly large puddle and found himself with trousers plastered uncomfortably to his legs.

As he approached, he saw Marinette turn to enter the bakery and went faster, ignoring the squelch of his shoes.

“Marinette!” Adrien called out loudly, just as she began to close the door behind her. She turned in surprise.

“Adrien! Wh–”

He came to a stop in front of her, breathing heavily. “Marinette,” he said again, quietly. “I’m going to kiss you now. Is that okay?”

Marinette’s eyes widened. “Yes,” she whispered.

Adrien grinned. Surging forward to cup her face in his hands, he captured her mouth in a kiss. It was familiar and unfamiliar all at once as her hands flew to his neck, pulling him closer and Adrien felt her lips curve in a smile against his. He hadn’t realised just how much he’d missed this, how much he’d forgotten until he was forcibly reminded–what a fool, to think that this could have ever been anything but a date!

As the rain poured down on them, she set his body ablaze with her touch, fingers tugging at his hair as they kissed and kissed and kissed as if making up for lost time.

How poetic, he thought, distantly, in the part of his brain that was still capable of it. Our first kiss was in the rain too.

[ladybugs-and-black-cats]

New Oneshot Alert!

Anyone else still processing Season 4 of Miraculous? I took a short break from Tumblr because I had so many emotions and, even though I want to write many posts about the season finale, I just can’t form a fully cohesive thought about it right now.

In the meantime, though, I bring you a new Oneshot for your reading pleasure (and it’s not canon compliant)! This oneshot was written for the December event of the @mlwritersguild (I know it’s super late…life, ya know…)

Title: Guardian Of Her Heart

Summary: Marinette wonders about her future as Guardian of the Miraculi and all of Paris. Luka is there to guard her heart in the meantime.

Word Count: 2397

Link To Story: https://archiveofourown.org/works/37946239

An Archive of Our Own, a project of the Organization for Transformative Works

[buggaberry]

life is a little sweeter when I’m with you

This is for the @mlwritersguild October Event! It’s from Team Ladybug’s fic Floured Faces, Frosted Lips by @deinde-prandium, @sukker-sugar, and me ♡

[team-leo-v]

It's Streamstress, y'all

Well, this isn't their first time fighting as a team, so this should be easy...

Finally, something for my sblnau 😭 It's been a long time since I made art for it 🤡 This is both for the October event over at @mlwritersguild and Day 6 - AU over at @mlcorefour ! Thought I should strike two birds with one stone:D

So the akuma name is Streamstress, like I said earlier, and her name is streamer (the party ribbon kind), stress, and well, seamstress. She's basically ribbon dancer Spiderman who walks kind of like Vexana from the other ML. She can trap people with her ribbons and/or sew their body parts together, and suffocation is... not very fun.

She's an intern at those party planning organizations whose boss basically overloaded her with work. She had to redo the decorations for the ceiling and the tables, and when she got fed up, she went over to a break room and an akuma fluttered into her rings (which is where the streamers materialize from!).

I originally made her for my groupchat fic (which is currently sadly dead) but scrapped the chapter. She's too cool not to resurrect tho. Drawing her was awesome, her design is so blocky and I love it

And as usual... we have Scarabella, Lady Noire, Carapace, and Goupil (name to be decided) battling her! yay

[maggies-scribblings]

Yarning For Her

Adrien is smitten with the girl who's always been there, in the row behind him. But when his plans to ask Marinette out unravel, a secret throws him for a loop…

Written for the Miraculous Writer's Guild April Event 2021: Followers sent five emojis as prompts to the @mlwritersguild Tumblr for the writers to pick one to write for. I chose the emojis sent by @ladycat1: ✨ 😊 👀 👩🏻 🧵

Canon compliant up to Season 4, Episode 4: M. Pigeon 72.

👩🏻

It was finally happening. The event everyone was waiting for… well, everyone except the main protagonist of said event.

Marinette could feel it, though she could hardly believe it. She noticed Adrien looking at her with more intensity, when he thought she wasn’t looking. How he had trouble finding the right words when talking to her. All the tiny gestures of attention, like offering to help with a difficult subject or a complex art project, or praising her outfit every day, even if she’d worn it several times before.

Nino could tell, too: questions about Marinette and her favourite colour, food, flower, or whatever else were whispered in his right ear all day.

Actually, the whole class noticed Adrien’s marked change in behaviour. His cheerful hellos were now stuttered in Marinette’s general direction. His head hid on his shoulders whenever Marinette sighed or yawned, as if his neck couldn’t handle her fresh breaths. Even his athletic skills were now replaced with an unexplained jerkiness. The fact that the weather was warmer and the girls’ gym suits gave way to short shorts and strappy tops might have had something to do with it.

In short, Adrien fell in love with Marinette. Hard.

👀

When it started, Adrien couldn’t exactly tell. Ever since that first day of school, Marinette had held a special space in his heart (most of which had been stolen by Ladybug the previous day). She was one of his first and dearest friends.

But now… after getting to know Marinette, her loving and kind nature, after seeing her helping others without asking for anything back, after finally noticing how pretty she was… he wasn’t so sure.

That day at the pool was definitely a turning point.

First there was that unplanned double dive. During those milliseconds when they were falling, Adrien’s thought process went something like this:

Danger!—Why is Marinette here?—Protect!—Wow, she looks so cute in that swimsuit!

As they hit the water, their arms instinctively reached out to the other as they sank, swirling back up to the surface in a soft embrace — just like that night in New York, when they had danced floating in the air, under the full moon.

And when they were leaving the pool, Adrien was so happy and surprised to see she still had the umbrella he’d given her way back then! Sweet as always, she offered to give it back to him, even though it was raining and she had to walk home.

She was standing next to him (she linked her arm in his!) when that pesky umbrella decided to close on them, and they were pulled even closer for a few seconds. Very close. He could smell the chlorine in her hair mixed with the scent of sweets that always surrounded her. He thought he felt her heart beating faster and faster. Maybe it wasn’t. His heart certainly was. He could feel her warm breath through his shirt, and it drove him a little crazy.

When they said goodbye that day, he could hardly take his eyes off her. He even bumped his head on the car door frame. Ladies and gentlemen, here’s the charming, elegant model Adrien Agreste, unable to enter a car (come to think of it, he seemed to have a bit of a problem with doors whenever Marinette was around).

✨

The few weeks that went by did nothing to sort out Adrien’s feelings about the two black-haired girls in his life. His days were mortifying, his nights restless. On one such night, Adrien tossed and turned, but sleep wouldn’t come. The full moon and bright stars shining through the window frames painted his room with grid patterns, a constant reminder of his confined life.

Adding to that, his mind was racing with memories of his (now frequent) clumsiness and embarrassment at school. He recalled the fumble of the day: going into the classroom while trying to look cool, he managed to snag his bag strap on the door handle, causing him to jerk back and hit the ground on his butt in front of the whole class.

Adrien groaned and turned again. Worst thing was, he had no idea how she felt for him. She kept sending mixed signals. Her behaviour towards him wasn’t as weird as it had been, but that didn’t mean a lot. He’d even asked her a couple of times. He remembered the time they visited the wax museum, when she said she didn’t like him like that.

“What’s the matter, kid?” Plagg yawned from his side of the pillow, annoyed by his bearer’s restlessness. “Who is it this time? Spots or bakery girl?”

Adrien didn’t bite, going back into his musings instead.

His mind turned to Ladybug… These days, Spots occupied a much smaller part of his thoughts. He still got the occasional butterflies in his stomach when he saw her, or when she praised him and his humour. She would always be his first love, and not an easy girl to forget… but she was right, of course — she was always right — as long as they had enemies, they couldn’t reveal their identities, much less deepen their relationship. Back when Bunnyx first showed up, they found out that there would be a new Hawkmoth and countless akumas in the future, and who knew when that would end?

Plagg was still grumbling about sleep and cheese. Adrien playfully flicked his kwami’s ear.

“Shut up, Plagg! I’m trying to sleep!”

“Very unsuccessfully, I might say,” Plagg flew out of his reach. “You sighed four-hundred and fifty-eight times in the last hour.”

“Come on… can’t you see I’m in turmoil here?” Adrien turned his back to the kwami. It was no use arguing with a deity, no matter how minuscule.

“Four-hundred and fifty-ni—” Plagg’s teasing was interrupted by a pillow hitting him.

😊

This wouldn’t do. Adrien couldn’t stand his own indecisiveness any more. He decided to ask Marinette out, that very day. After a reviving shower, he got dressed and looked in the mirror. The dark circles around his eyes were evident, but he hated wearing concealer to school. He might as well add a couple of details to his usual get-up: a pair of Gabriel’s new collection sunglasses and his favourite blue scarf.

He arrived at school early, and while most of the class was either chatting in the courtyard or going into the classroom, Marinette was nowhere to be seen. Adrien went into the locker room, and lurked behind the last row of lockers while students got in, got their things and left.

Finally, the hurricane that was late-for-class-Marinette thundered in, scolding herself for oversleeping as she got her books for the morning. When she closed the door, there was Adrien, leaning against the cabinets with his best Chat Noir smirk as he looked over the rim of his sunglasses and greeted her.

“Good morn—”

He didn’t have time to finish his line, as a very startled Marinette squeaked and grabbed his free arm to spin him around and pin him to the lockers with an elbow to his throat.

It took a few moments for Adrien realise exactly what had happened, before she released her hold.

“I’m sorry, I… panicked,” Marinette said, as she stepped back and continued to gesticulate wildly and mumble more awkward apologies.

Still frozen in place, Adrien managed to adjusted his crooked sunglasses.

“Marin—” he had to clear his throat. “No, I— It’s o-ow!”

Adrien tried and failed to step forward, as he heard a ripping sound — his scarf was caught in Marinette’s locker, and the momentum slammed him back into the metal doors with a loud bang.

The proverbial stars that blurred his vision cleared up to show Marinette very close to him, fumbling with the lock to release the scarf.

“Sorry, so sorry, I’m such a klutz!”

“It’s okay, no harm do—”

Adrien stopped talking when he saw that the scarf had a large rip, disappointment obvious upon his face.

“Oh no!” Marinette covered her mouth as she saw the damage. “Your scarf! I ruined it!”

At this point, Adrien would usually smile and say something like ‘it’s okay’ or ‘no worries’, but he couldn’t lie: he really loved that scarf. It was his favourite colour, warm and cosy, yet light enough to wear on a spring day, and a rare thoughtful gift from his father. He pouted a little as his fingers traced the tear.

“I can fix it!”

He lifted his eyes to Marinette as she got on her tiptoes to unwind the scarf from his neck.

“I can make it look as good as new. I know you’re worried, after all it’s your dad’s birthday gift,” she rambled as she delicately folded it, “but I have leftover yarn— I mean, I think I have the same colour, and it’s a simple pattern.”

There was something odd about the way she worded that, but Adrien dismissed it. He must have made a weird face, because now she had a concerned expression.

“I mean, if you trust me with it… I wouldn’t blame you if you didn’t after I destroyed it. ”

“No—I mean, don’t be silly, it was an accident… I shouldn’t have sneaked up on you like that!” He managed a relieved little smile. “Still, my father might be upset if he saw I ripped it. Are you sure you can fix it?”

Marinette’s eyes averted his for a moment, as she returned the folded up scarf.

“I’ll do my best! I’m not a pro like your father, but I’m sure I can make it as good as new in no time at all!”

They agreed to go to Marinette’s place after school so that she could start working on it right away, then ran off to class as the second bell rang.

Not exactly the way I planned it, Adrien thought as he scrambled onto his seat, but I guess it worked!

🧵

Adrien reclined in the chaise-longue and looked around Marinette’s bedroom. It was the total opposite of his, huge and aseptic and cold. On the contrary, these walls had warm colours and pictures everywhere, and it smelled amazing, fruity shampoo mixed with glue and ink from her many design projects, mixed with sweets from the bakery, and everything about it was so welcoming and cosy and so… Marinette.

“Yes!” Her delighted voice interrupted his reveries. “I knew I still had it!”

Adrien chuckled as he saw Marinette triumphantly holding a ball of light blue yarn, then get several needles from her yarn basket and sit at her sewing station to start working. He switched seats to her desk chair and rolled close to her.

“Can I help?”

“Sure! Let me just…”

Marinette picked up a long, thin knitting needle and started to thread it on the scarf, just above the tear. She was so concentrated and her movements so careful and precise, she might as well be defusing a bomb. Adrien noticed her tongue sticking out the corner of her mouth and wondered what her kisses would taste like.

“There. I have the brakes on, now let’s get going.”

Marinette found the end stitch at the corner of the scarf and cut it. Giving Adrien the end of the yarn, she continued.

“Hold this. Make a ball while I unravel it.”

“Huh? Un-what?” Much as Adrien trusted her skills, he panicked. “Won’t you make it worse?”

“No, because I’m holding the knitting with this,” she pointed at the longer needle she had threaded through the scarf.

Marinette turned her chair, so they were sitting face to face, knees almost touching, and started to quickly unravel the bottom part of the scarf, while he rolled up the thread in a ball, both enjoying the comfortable silence. He noticed a small piece of fabric falling from one of the edges and bent down to pick it up.

“What’s this?” Adrien thought out loud while examining it.

As soon as Marinette lifted her eyes from her work and saw what he was holding, her eyes went wide and her cheeks red.

“Oh, it’s nothing—” she tried unsuccessfully to snatch the fabric from his hand. “Probably just the washing inst—”

It was not an ordinary washing instructions tag. It was tiny and had been woven into the knitting, so discreetly he’d never noticed it before. He turned the fabric over to see a recognisable signature.

Marinette

“Wait— you made this?” Adrien picked up the other end of the scarf from her lap and examined like he’d never seen it before. “Wha—? How? D-did my father buy it off your website?”

So that’s why she was so confident about fixing it. He searched Marinette’s face for an explanation, but she just shook her head and kept looking down, unravelling the loops one by one.

“No— of course not— your site wasn't set up back then, we only took those photos later…”

Adrien thought back to the time Nathalie handed him the present, neatly packed in a box with a ribbon. He’d never seen that kind of care in his father’s presents, just standard gift bags with expensive pens, straight from a corporate catalogue. His train of thought was broken by a couple of tears falling on his hands.

“Marinette…” he murmured, lifting her chin to look into her misty eyes. “Did you make this for me?”

She nodded with a tiny smile. He moved his hand from her chin to cup her cheek, wiping her tears with his thumb.

“Was this supposed to be your present for me?” Another nod. “How did this mess happen then?”

“I…” Marinette had to clear her throat and finally looked at him. Something in her eyes changed from avoidance to determination. “I wanted to give it to you personally, but I couldn’t gather the nerve… then one thing led to another, and I left it in your house, and I even signed it, but…” she shrugged.

“Why didn’t you tell me?”

“I just… couldn’t. You were so happy with the present from your dad. I couldn’t ruin it for you.”

Adrien made a mental note to find out exactly what had happened, then set all his negative feelings aside. His heart was too full of love to think about anything other than the girl in front of him.

“Oh, Marinette…” he softly chided as he hugged her. How could this girl be so selfless, on top of everything else? She cared for him, really cared for him, even back then. “I wish you’d told me.”

He released the hug and pulled her closer, into his lap. Marinette set the scarf on the sewing table and put her arms around his neck. Her tears were gone and a hint of a smile played on her lips.

“That way,” Adrien caressed her nose with his, “I would have thanked you properly.”

“Oh yeah?” Marinette breathed, her lips very close to his. “You can thank me now.”

They closed the distance between them, their lips melding into a sweet kiss, then another, and then a few more. Adrien’s heart was beating so fast he could hardly bear it. Then he remembered he should probably breathe at some point.

“Wow.”

“Wow.”

“If that’s the way you thank a person for a present, I’ll start giving them more often,” Marinette joked.

“Not anyone.” He pecked her lips. “Only you.”

They kissed again, this time more passionately. He kissed her eyes, the tip of her nose, her forehead, her neck, then back up to her lips…

The scarf was left forgotten on the sewing table. It could wait a few more hours before repairing.

Fin

Thanks to @hari-writes and @deinde-prandium for the beta read! ❤️

Constructive criticism is welcome and appreciated. English is not my first language and I tend to use UK English. If you catch any inconsistencies, please let me know.

My AO3. My Twitter. My Instagram.

[multimousenette]

meet a brand new cast of (not so) miraculous villains! these are half created for my fic and half created for the October event over at @mlwritersguild​

Rogue, aka Nirina Miawenys, is a half elf rogue… wait. Nirina is a character school girl Désirée Belin created in the hopes of joining her family D&D game. However, despite being a self-proclaimed feminist, Désirée’s father didn’t step in when her three older brothers laughed at her and refused to let her join because D&D “isn’t for girls”. Hawkmoth sympathised, and transformed Désirée into Nirina, bestowing upon her all of Nirina’s skills, so long as Rogue put her newfound talents in stealth and sleight of hand to good use, and retrieved Ladybug and Chat Noir’s Miraculous.

Queen of Hearts, aka Sophie Langlois, was snubbed for the lead role in her university production of Alice In Wonderland. Hawkmoth understood that she was capable of being a fantastic Alice, and transformed her into a combination of her role and the role she deserved in order to exact her revenge on the clueless director. As the Queen of Hearts, Sophie can use her set of magical -- or perhaps, miraculous -- playing cards to summon an army of loyal soldiers. With the help of her army, surely the Queen of Hearts can capture Ladybug and Chat Noir, and take their miraculous... or their heads.

Funfair, aka Bernard Perrot, works at the Museum of Fairground Arts at the Pavilions of Bercy. He’s good at his job, interested and loyal, but after being overlooked a promotion for the third time in a row, in favour of management’s favourite slackers, he’s almost ready to quit. Hawkmoth knows this is unfair; he works harder and cares more about Fairground Arts than any of his colleagues! Really, he should be the one in charge. Perhaps, if his bosses could see the true nature of the others there, they’d finally give him that promotion. With the ability ‘Hall of Mirrors’, Funfair can trap people and reveal the ugly truth within. In return? It should be easy enough to trap Ladybug and Chat Noir, and he can report back to Hawkmoth with their miraculous.

Kyuaso, aka Stephen Petellier, was excited for his holiday to Japan, where he planned to reconnect with his culture and visit all the beautiful sights of Kyushu. First, his trip was delayed by an emergency at work that cancelled all annual leave, and now Mt Aso has erupted, cancelling all flights for the foreseeable future. He’s furious. Hawkmoth understands -- he too adores the scenery of Japan, and has been burnt (figuratively) by fallout from natural disasters. Transformed into a creature of semi-solid lava, Kyuaso can wreak havoc across Paris, and spread the anger and misery he’s feeling. In return? Just a few miraculous trinkets from heroes Ladybug and Chat Noir.

Greenfinger, aka Lucille Randoin, is an environmentalist and civil engineer who has been dismissed time and time again when she points out the problems with her team’s plans. Her boss wants them to build a high speed motorway across the whole of France to improve traffic flow, but his path will destroy hundreds of habitats and green spaces. Worst of all, he plans to start with Paris, and an enormous bridge over the entire city, which will devastate bird migration patterns, not to mention damaging the few green spaces and parks left. Hawkmoth, too, cares about the environment. Like Lucille, he sometimes thinks everything should go back to how it was centuries ago; we should let Mother Nature reclaim what is hers. He’ll help Greenfinger grow forests and wildflower fields wherever she thinks best, provided she retrieves the powerful miraculous of destructive ‘heroes’ Ladybug and Chat Noir. With those, Hawkmoth can permanently return Paris to the wild, and stop her stupid boss and his stupid bridge.

[halcyyonn]

This is my October Event Fic for the @mlwritersguild!

Mind’s Eye was an OC I made for Villains Not Heroes, written around 2017-2018. It was the first long fanfic I wrote and looking back, it wasn’t great. But, it did make me want to write more fanfic and here I am.

Fic and art below the cut

After hours of work, everything was perfect. The picture staring back at her from the screen was indistinguishable from any other real photo. No one would be able to tell it had been edited, and no one would ever find out. Addy grinned; this was her chance to become a part of the Ladyblog, and this picture would catapult her into the limelight as one of the best hero journalists in Paris. 

Quickly switching back to her article document, Addy added a few more details. 

Ladybug and Chat Noir had been spotted flying over buildings on the eastern side of Paris, evidently in a hurry. Onlookers speculated that there was an akuma attack somewhere nearby, though there were no other signs to confirm it. Hours later, sources saw Ladybug and Chat Noir arguing but none were close enough to hear what was being said. Only Addy had managed to capture an image seconds before the duo realised there were civilians around and left.

Everything lined up perfectly. The photo showed an angry Ladybug and Chat Noir, carefully constructed from images of previous akuma fights and civilian sightings, shadows of an alley falling over their faces as they tried to remain hidden. It all looked so real, and who wouldn’t want to hear about a possible fight between Paris’ beloved heroes? The viewers on the Ladyblog would skyrocket. People would be clamouring for the latest scoop, which only Addy could provide them. 

With a grin on her face, Addy spun and fell onto her bed, falling asleep to images of journalistic fame and success.

The next day rolled around in the blink of an eye and Addy was sitting back at her computer, ensuring everything still looked as perfect as it had the night before. Nothing had changed. She quickly printed everything off and got ready for school, hoping to find Alya Cesaire before classes began. Once she saw these pictures, she would have no chance but to publish them. Not even she was discerning enough to notice that they were fake. 

Addy nearly skipped the entire way to school. She arrived just as Alya was about to walk through the doors into the courtyard, madly typing on her phone. Maybe it was another Ladyblog update. Whatever, no matter how good it was, it wouldn’t be as attention-grabbing as Addy’s article. 

“Alya! Wait up!” She called out and ran up the stairs, dodging people as she went. “I have a scoop for the Ladyblog! I was walking last night and saw Ladybug and Chat Noir arguing.” The paper was shoved in Alya’s face with a crinkling noise. 

“I see…” Alya took the paper and examined it, reading the article a few times before turning her full attention to the picture. The longer she looked at it, the more Addy’s anticipation grew. Her editing was holding up perfectly. 

“It’s an interesting article, isn’t it? I wonder if we can really trust Ladybug and Chat Noir to protect an entire city if they’re arguing in public like this.”

“This is fake.”

“What? It’s not fake, I took the photo myself.”

“You didn’t take the photo. It’s clearly edited, and the article is full is misinformation. I know that Ladybug and Chat Noir weren’t fighting last night because Ladybug was giving me an interview at the same time you say this photo was taken. I don’t know where Chat Noir was but you can’t have an argument with someone if they’re not with you.

“Also, this photo is clearly edited. Ladybug’s arm is pixelated at the edge on one side, but the rest of her is a far higher quality photo. Chat Noir’s hair is blurry, and he’s looking in two different directions. I don’t know why you thought this would fool anyone.” Alya paused to hand the paper back to Addy. “If I published this, I would ruin the credibility of the Ladyblog and destroy my own reputation in the process.”

“No one else would see any of that! Most people don’t go around examining pictures to see if they’re fake!”

“Those aren’t the only problems, and the rest are even bigger. Ladybug’s hand is disproportionate to the rest of her, and the wall behind their heads warp in a weird way. Even if this photo wasn’t completely faked, it looks weird to edit it at all. People also don’t want to see heroes fighting. When Ladybug and Chat Noir are the ones that have been protecting us since the first day they appeared, writing articles questioning whether they’re still doing their jobs is horrendous. This entire article lacks journalistic integrity and has no place on the Ladyblog. Maybe if I ran some cheap tabloid that doesn’t care about the subject of its articles or reputation, I would publish this. But not on the Ladyblog.”

“What if I have more photos that are genuine?”

“I don’t want to see them. After this,” Alya gestured to the paper, which Addy was gripping to the point of scrunching, “there’s no way I could trust you for real photos or information. I don’t know what you were trying to gain by this, but it hasn’t worked. Have a good day.”

Alya turned on her heel and left, leaving Addy surrounded by everyone pointing and whispering about her. When had they all arrived, and how much had they seen? It was unfair of Alya to treat her like this! How dare she? Addy turned and stomped back down the stairs. There was no way she could go to class after this.

She wanted revenge. She wanted Alya to see that rejecting her article like this was the biggest mistake she would ever make. And she would get her revenge. Somehow. She just needed a plan. Maybe a competitor to the Ladyblog? Maybe an expose about Alya and how cruel she was?

Or… was there a better way to get revenge?

"My article would have made more people view her dumb blog than ever before. She should have published it and then she would be thanking ME!" Addy shouted, kicking the closest wall to her, not caring about the pain in her foot. 

She was so caught up in her anger that she didn't notice the purple butterfly fluttering towards her until it had already landed on her hairclip.  "Mind's Eye, how would you like to get revenge on Alya and her Ladyblog for not publishing your article?

"I will give you the power to do so if you bring me a couple of little things, a ring belonging to Chat Noir and a pair of earrings belonging to Ladybug. Do we have a deal?"

“Yes, Hawk Moth.” Addy stood straighter as she was consumed by purple smoke. When it cleared, she had changed. Addy was gone, leaving only Mind’s Eye in her place, a gleam in her eye that promised trouble for anyone that stood in her way. 

If she could defeat the heroes and take their miraculous, there would be nothing for Alya to write about. Her entire blog would crumble and all the work she had put in would be for nothing. It was the perfect revenge plan. And she was the perfect one to accomplish it.