More Immortal AU - I'm still calling it Primary!AU for lack of a better name xD
I’m going to mostly be talking about the Kwamis, but a little bit more on Marinette first xD
Marinette is a permanent hero once she reaches Primary and, unlike most of the other miraculous holders that reach Primary who are allowed some flexibility when it comes to doing their job, Marinette is Ladybug. She is literally half of the representation of Order and Freedom. So basically, she is required to get involved in wars and revolutions when they crop up or aid other Primaries when necessary.
It’s kind of ironic, that she represents freedom and peace, but gets little of either.
I’m also making the Kwami’s less innocent and victimized in this AU. They are literally one of the most powerful beings on Earth, I refuse to believe that some small items of jewelry are powerful enough to subjugate them to the will of humans.
Let’s start with Tikki:
She appears sugar sweet, but she can be pretty manipulative and conniving when she wants to be.
She cares about her chosens a great deal and wants the best for them but; above all, she kind of wants to not be stuck in the Miraculous for literal centuries.
She adores Marinette, one of her noted favorites. Initially, she had thought her a bit too old for having just received the Miraculous (Tikki was used to being given to younger holders and helping them grow up), but found that it wasn’t a problem and that her chosen trusted her implicitly.
Tikki has lived a long time and her views are kind of skewed in that sense. She knew Marinette would be mad at her for a while for not telling her about coming into majority, but they both had hundreds of years to come and Marinette couldn’t stay mad at her forever.
Plagg:
He has issues. Plagg has emotionally closed himself off over the years of losing so many kittens. It’s one of the reasons he’s initially perceived as selfish and full of himself.
He doesn’t bother telling his chosens about the whole primary business because they usually either die before it begins or give up the miraculous because of the side effects.
As the years pass, him and Marinette come to an understanding and it quickly becomes clear that Plagg is much more sensitive and caring than he was originally pegged to be.
Him and Tikki love their chosens, but they both love very differently. Tikki loves in a general “I love everything” kind of way. Plagg loves in an all encompassing way that borders on worshipful adoration and vengeful wrath when said loved one is hurt. It’s part of the reason Adrien fell so hard and quickly for Ladybug. When the Cat falls in love, that’s it for them.
Nooroo:
I’d like to think that Nooroo has been largely used for what they’re meant to be used for, but gets stuck with a user every once in a while that does things that make them ponder their existence.
Nooroo is, in general, tired and stopped caring a long time ago. Let Nooroo sleep 2k19.
Empathy is an exhausting ability and it resulted in Nooroo blocking it out for the most part because it just got to be too much after a while
They could probably have left Hawkmoth if they’d really been invested in it, but they didn’t feel it was overly necessary and saw a greater purpose in Hawkmoth’s existence.
They owed Tikki one for messing with France’s medieval period.
I really adore the idea of Ladybug and Chat Noir having the potential to be immortal and the angst that goes with it. If y’all lurk on AO3, I’m sure you’ve seen a few fics.
I’m playing around with the concept of the miraculous so some(most) things are pure canon deviance/non-compliance (immortal au already does that so I suppose xD). I’m going to divide this into sections
******If anything is not understood or you’re confused about some terms, Vocabulary/Footnotes is the last section******
World Building
In this setting, when a Miraculous holder reaches Majority (adulthood), they unlock the rest of the miraculous’ powers. Also, they’re essentially stuck with the Miraculous until they die (*1). I’m trashing the “adults can use their power infinitely” because it’s dumb and underdeveloped.
Instead, once a Miraculous wielders hits majority [Primary(*2)], their stamina increases ten fold, allowing them to stay transformed for much longer than previously so and, at first glance, it seems as if they can use their powers infinitely. What this would look like differs depending on the Miraculous and the ability. In the Ladybug, this would mean being able to use up to 10-20 lucky charms before needing to turn back or using Healing Light(*3) 10-30 times (depending on the severity of the wounds) before needing to detransform.
Another difference between pre-primary and post-primary is the following: as a Primary, they are not forced to detransform and must do it themselves. If they get to the point of needing to detransform, the individual becomes extremely weak and may collapse while the Kwami essentially “feeds” off of them to recharge instead of getting energy from an outside source.
For the Cat Miraculous, abilities include: Full range of enhanced movement and physical prowess, Jinx (*4), Shadow Claw (*5), and the full scale of Cataclysm(*6). They can use their abilities multiple times, but doing so wears down their transformation.
I personally headcanon that the Cat is more powerful in the beginning in comparison to Ladybug for... reasons... (I have an explanation I swear).
For the Ladybug Miraculous: full access to Ladybug’s weapon artillery (*7), Healing Light, and extended use of the Lucky Charm/Miraculous Ladybug ability. They can use their abilities multiple times, but doing so wears down their transformation. Also, did I mention they get WINGS.
Despite how great all of that sounds, there are a few... problems with the above. One, they have to physically live through reaching majority aka they have to wear the Miraculous through their formative years for the Miraculous to fine tune itself (or, vice versa, really) to the holder’s body. Before Marinette (and well after her), this typically meant being given or trained to be given the Miraculous at ages as young as 5. For the Kwami, the age for Majority ranges from 15 to 20 years old, depending on the culture and time period their chosen comes from.
In the show there is only one temple shown for the Miraculous, but it’s been implied (or maybe said explicitly, I don’t remember) that there are Miraculous from different cultures as well, so I’m going to say there are multiple temples around the world that function as foundations of knowledge as well as protectors of their particular set of Miraculous (i?). For the purpose of this AU, we’ll say that animal Miraculous are mostly universal (and are the ones depicted in the show) though they may have originated in different parts of the world (Ladybug in Egypt, Cat in Greece, and Butterfly in Japan).
Oh... and I really didn’t like the Feast episode so I’m changing the method of death for the monks. First of all, they don’t get a second chance in this. I’m not sorry. The temple itself survives and goes on to rebuild, but the existing monks do not.
I mentioned before that some holders are chosen very young. In the case of most chosen, they are taken from a pool of existing families that have been proven trustworthy or had previous Miraculous wielders in their line. Like in the show with Fu, they take children who show promise from their families or, in rare instances, orphans and train them to be Miraculous Holders.
Training
*This is all in ideal situations. Obviously, it doesn’t always happen.
Miraculous Wielder (Temporary): This training consists of both physical and intellectual training with the guardians of the temple. This typically takes 2-5 years depending on different factors. Once an issue arises, they are paired with an experienced Miraculous holder or Primary to deal with it. At the time the issue is dealt with (as much as it can be, in some situations), the wielder is taken back to the temple (sometimes by force) to relinquish the Miraculous back to the Guardians. Individuals who end up temporary wielders are often monks in the temple who are not quite Guardian material yet.
Guardian: Similar to above; however, the initial training lasts much much longer (10-20 years depending on the individual’s progress) and the training itself is much more brutal and severe. Once in temple training is done, they’re sent out with select Miraculi to take on the role of a mentor. All Primaries are Guardians, but not all Guardians are Primaries. Guardians who are not Primaries are not supposed to be Miraculous holders themselves and instead function at the side of temporary miraculous wielders.
Primary: Primaries are trained, primarily from birth to take on their future roles and usually only in response to long term problems. They’re paired with the Kwami as early as 3 to form a bond and trained for the specific purpose of becoming what they are. Primaries often function separately from their respective temples unless necessary.
Characters in the Show
Master Fu:
Is not actually a guardian, but he IS a Primary. I would like to say he probably hadn’t been an apprentice for a year before the temple was swallowed by the Feast (and, again, changing it).
His backstory:
Fu, angry with the people who took him away from his family and his family for not fighting against the decision, held a great deal of animosity towards the temple and it’s inhabitants. He’s downright miserable when he meets someone who actually listens to him and is sympathetic to his plight. Fu is... so young in the flashbacks, 9 or 10?
This person promises that they would give him what he wanted: his family, his friends... everything he had lost in becoming an apprentice guardian. In exchange, this mysterious figure wanted something in return. It seemed innocent enough. They wanted a book, something from the private collection that Fu had only just earned the right to have access to.
However... when everything was said and done... the temple had been set ablaze and the monks and everything they had protected destroyed (almost everything).
Fu is under the impression that the temple was irreparably destroyed and everyone died when, in reality, it had been secretly rebuilt over the decades by the few remaining members.
Marinette
Her timeline is the most extensive of all the characters I got in this AU, if I’m being honest. Out of all the Miraculous holders, she is one of the only individuals that becomes a Primary along with Alix and a few others I’m NOT NAMING RIGHT NOW. I’m going to go into depth on her character in another post. For now, I’m just gonna say that Marinette goes through some serious hell and give a very basic overview.
Hawkmoth... sort of wins, but loses at the same time? He ends up capturing Marinette but is not able to take her earrings and ends up sort of... locking her away like Rapunzel minus the long hair. They’re both utterly miserable, but Marinette can’t transform into Ladybug and he can’t bring himself to kill her so they’re both at an impasse for literal years. When she hits Primary, she finally escapes only to find herself in a world that she just doesn’t belong to anymore.
The Black Cat
I didn’t label this Adrien or Chat Noir for a reason. Marinette reaches Primary but... the Black Cats, historically, rarely live that long or choose to be Chat Noir past what is necessary. There are multiple Black Cats that take on multiple names and Marinette has had a multitude of different relationships with them.
Vocabulary/Footnotes
*1. Primaries are incapable of dying naturally. This doesn’t mean that they cannot get permanent injuries. They can still be blinded, be in chronic pain, have a permanent disability, etc; however, the Miraculous does provide protection to these things so the holders do have less of a chance to get injured to that extent.
*2. Primary - When a Miraculous Holder reaches adulthood or maturity according to the Kwami and the culture/society the holder is a part of. Reaching the final form, or “Primary”, takes multiple years and once the process begins, there’s no way of reversing it or removing the Miraculous. The physical age one stops at can range from early twenties to late thirties. Some Kwamis; however, prefer their holders appearing younger, older, or give their chosen the ability to shift their physical age (Particularly, the snake).
*3. Healing Light - Ladybug is a miraculous made with purification in mind. This is less of a healing ability and more of a reversion abilities. The healing light reverts whatever is being targeted back to an earlier state. If a Ladybug gets this ability pre-primary, it can only be used twice per transformation.
*4. Jinx - An ability that curses bad luck onto an object or a person. The curse can range from mild to devastating (an example of the result of a curse being...the Black Death).
*5. Shadow Claw - Long ranged attack that is very versatile (can be used for grappling and rescue, among other things). The only attack that the Cat has that isn’t inherently unlucky and is typically given to Cats that don’t have a physically active background. Basically large projections of claws.
*6 Cataclysm - A full powered Cataclysm is TERRIFYING. Cataclysm has the potential not to just destroy, but to corrupt everything around it. It doesn’t just destroy objects, it makes the land uninhabitable for years after the fact.
*7 Ladybug’s Artillery - Just think of all the weapons that were shown in the video for the concept art of Miraculous Ladybug (the “yoyo” that extended into a staff, the wing shield but on a larger scale, the smoke bomb)
More from Immortal!AU. Just wanted to get this down and thought to post another concept for this AU.
The Cat and the Ladybug miraculous aren’t necessarily what I consider Yin and Yang in my Immortal!AU. I consider them both important parts of the elements of Order and Freedom.
For their to be Order, their must be Chaos; so, essentially, the Cat is an agent of Order.
For their to be Freedom, their must be those in Chains; so, the Ladybug is an agent of Freedom.
Superficially, they are separately representative of the two elements, but on a more fundamental level they represent both equally.
The Cat will always be in a position where they are free to choose which side they support, whether it be morally good and/or bad. This Chaos is necessary for it promotes Order.
The Ladybug will always be in service (in “Chains”) to her duty as an agent of Freedom. She exists in her service to free others from theirs.
For Canon relevance, Marinette exists as Ladybug to free Nooroo from his corrupted owner and Paris from Hawkmoth’s tyranny. Adrien exists as Chat Noir because he has chosen to take on a protective role to save Paris and follow Ladybug.
I’m loving and hating everything and I needed a distraction so I’m writing. This one will be a short drabble.
--x--
The slightest of movements echoed off of blank walls, clinically white and void of warmth or any life that they may have held at one point (if ever). Furniture decorated the room sparsely, dark, contrasting, and visually sharp. Looking at it from a distance, it looked like a room you would find in a catalog: empty of personality and a mockery of the human condition.
Tired eyes dragged over the sickeningly familiar sight from where she sat against the door, back aching from long nights spent leaning against the hard metal.
“Marinette...”
With visible effort, she worked to keep her eyes staring ahead, resolutely not looking at the fae creature radiating misery (a spiteful part of Marinette flared in indignation).
“Please, say something... I’m sorry I never warned you about this - “
“Sto - “ her voice broke and she coughed violently, shoulders shaking as struggled not to cry from the pain in her throat. Many weeks of screaming to seemingly nothing hadn’t helped any.
Marinette couldn’t bear to look at the small being, not after everything that had happened. A fond gaze had quickly warped into a look you would give your pet when they were doing something particularly amusing. Disappoint laced remarks had become flat-out ridicule.
Of course, at this point finding the worst in Tikki had become a sort of daily routine, so there was no way to know for sure if the thoughts were a conjured figment of her imagination or if there was some hint of truth in her musings. It had been so long since she had seen either expression or exclamation from Tikki.
In all honesty, it had been even longer since she’d looked at the Kwami.
“I d-don’t want to hear anything you have to say,” she croaked, voice scratchy as she dropped her head into her bruised knees, not willing to catch a hint of red.
For a color she had loved so fiercely once upon a time, she was surprised at how much she had come to loath the color. It had taken over her life, slowly but surely, prevalent in all aspects and shades. It appeared in her designs, and slowly took over her jackets and dresses. Burgandy, rose, crimson, and ruby; Scarlet, carmine, and so many more shades had overflowed her field of vision and she had embraced it so whole-heartedly that some days she wondered how she had gone without.
The color had been her pride and confidence. It had been her proof of purpose.
She didn’t think to question how she changed over the year she had received her Miraculous. Marinette had trusted Tikki to tell her what she needed to know and believe that the Kwami would always look after her best interest.
Looking back, perhaps Tikki had been a bit too invested in her “best interest”. Scolding her and shaping her aspirations while disapproving of others. Always, Tikki made sure to carefully press back against her when Marinette toed the line that the Kwami had drawn around her.
A bright red apple rolled into her sights and she grimaced at it. Multiple trays and similar fruits in varying states of decay sat untouched a league away from her. The one closest was still unblemished and reminded her too much of the poison apple from Snow White’s fairytale to so much as touch it.
“You can’t starve Marinette.”
At one point, the comment would have been taken as a well-meaning push to eat something as she had spent all day fixated on a design or pattern, going without eating. Now, she heard it in a far more literal tone.
She couldn’t starve. She physically could not starve. Her body would grow weaker and weaker, but she would not die. There was no point in the rebellion when it wouldn’t amount to much.
Yet, she wouldn’t eat. She wouldn’t look up. Not even when she heard footsteps approaching the locked door.
I don’t think you understand how important it is for you to know that Marinette has had to deal with multiple Chat Noirs in her lifetime with varying levels of dramatics and she is t i r e d.
Others: Worldbuilding (1) , Kwamis (2), LB and CN Philosophy (3), Ficlet about how it began (4)
I actually do have a rough pic of how Marinette looks as she gets older when she’s transformed. Due to the fact that the cat miraculous isn’t active much during war times (due to both Plagg and Marinette’s personal morals and trust issues), to the ever annoyance of the Guardian temple, Marinette is forced to take on a more offensive role than a ladybug would usually have to take when with her companion.
This is not to say that previous Ladybugs haven’t done similar or worse things (they did, but the Cat always took the brunt of the dirty work). Things that changed:
Outfit shifts to mostly black, especially around World War III
Typically relies on a staff versus the yoyo as it’s main purpose (grappling for mobility) was mostly taken over by having wings
Over the years, she becomes more closed off, but is genuinely still an incredibly compassionate and caring person. She just shows it very differently nowadays
Ladybug’s fighting style is far more physical than canon. Close combat is a particular specialty of hers.
I explained this before in one of my earlier posts, but Guardians who are also Primaries typically had training from when they were very young. In Marinette’s case, she’s held captive for roughly 5-6 years before escaping and being found by a fellow Primary (Bunnix).
(( Speaking of Bunnix: Alix, for the sake of this AU, has subtly been trained to be a Primary of the Miraculous of Time by her father who was a Guardian from a different temple. Over time, she becomes Marinette’s closest friend and they make it a point to check up on one another when possible (more so Alix to Marinette because, well, Alix is a lot harder to track down). ))
Following that, she spends roughly 15-20 years at the temple in Tibet training and studying everything Ladybug pretty much (past wielders, origins of kwami, training of artillary and hand to hand combat, etc). She also spends an extra few years training with the Cat miraculous due to her assignment.
The assignment being to find a wielder of the Cat miraculous (training them to be a primary). This pretty much means that Marinette is RAISING most of the wielders (a few of them being older or in their teens, but still compatible for the Miraculous).
She also takes possession of her own miraculous box with a select number of kwami and takes on the role of mentor or back up when involving herself in foreign politics.
Ty p ic ally (can you hear my sarcasm), people from other countries don’t take well to foreigners messing with things they don’t know anything about. As a rule, Marinette only involves herself when its clear that Moral standards are being violated or a Civil War is on the horizon .
Again, she takes on a role similar to Fu in canon (A wealth of knowledge to contact or an ear to listen to when necessary). She hands out Miraculous the same way he did (much to the other Guardian’s annoyance and disapproval - but she doesn’t care xD).
Ladybug is only visible (out in the open or a public figure) in European counties such as France, UK, Italy, etc. Otherwise, she acts from the shadows.
