Marinette Salt Prompt: Moving On

Marinette Salt Prompt: Moving On

The last time Chat Noir tried to get Ladybug open up to him regarding the guardian stuff, she had pushed him away as always, with the glares of the other heroes leaving Chat Noir to nervous enough to continue. He never inquired about it again. In fact he never talked about anything anymore. Ladybug was upset he didn’t talk as much, but was satisfied that he stopped inquiring about it. It was the best for everyone.

2 years later, Ladybug and Cat Noir finally took down Hawkmoth. Marinette was happy that the battle was over. With Hawkmoth down, and all the miraculous recovered, she finally though it was time to reveal their identities to each other.

Calling Chat, they met up on the roof, though Chat noir didn’t seem all that excited when she suggested it, merely inquiring if she was ok with it (which she was). The suits finally fell, and Marinette was shocked to find that her partner was none other than her first love, Adrien Agreste.

But it was great! Chat had already said he loved her and Marinette loved him as Adrien. A bit weird to have a love square with only two people but its ok! Now they could finally be in love and….and…

Yet when, Marinette looked into Adrien’s face, she only saw recognition, but that was about it. They was no brightness in his eyes that she had. No joy, no mirth…just a disinterest, like he was waiting for it to be all over.

Marinette: So… you know who I am….(Nervous) W-What do you think.

Adrien: Well… its a shock I guess. I mean I never though you to be Ladybug but… I guess the magic is powerful huh?

Marinette: S-So…there’s going to be a party celebrating Hawkmoth’s defeat! I-I mean…I know your father was Hawkmoth and all that… but Me, Alya and Nino are all going to be there! D-Do you want to go to the party with me? A-As a date?

Adrien: ….No…no I don’t think I will

Marinette: Oh…I-I guess you are going with someone else then…

Adrien: I mean I’m not going to the party at all. I’m not going to be in Paris for much longer anyway….

Marinette: W-wait, what?!

Adrien: I was meaning to tell you…

Adrien told Marinette that over the course of 2 years, he ended up talking with a pen pal overseas down in America, who was a nice person and seemed interested in getting to know the real him. She had invited him over to study in America (Marinette had winced at the gender reveal), and given all that has happened here, he plans to go abroad to study. And the plane was leaving today…

Since he logically couldn’t bring the ring with him, Adrien gave a final tearful goodbye to Plagg before renouncing him, then placing the ring in her hand.

Marinette: B-But what about your friends here?!

Adrien: Marinette, Nino and I haven’t talked to each other because he spends more time with Alya. Speaking of Alya, I rarely talk to her as it is, and we haven’t talked to each other outside of costume as it is…

Marinette: B-But what about when we were heroes?

Adrien: We were partners then. Fath- Hawkmoth…is defeated. That partnership is over now. Job’s done.

Marinette: (shocked) H-How can you say that. D-did it all mean nothing to you?!

Adrien: It did, once… but that was years ago. You made it clear a long time ago that when you became the guardian, I was just another hero the amongst others that you called, the only difference being I was allowed to keep the ring between missions…when I tried to get close to you, to help you when you seemed stressed out about the guardianship, to help you with even minor stuff such as getting the miraculous to the right allies, you pushed me away, got angry at me, told me I was wrong for inquiring and that you would be better off with me not asking because it was “wasting your time”. I tried to push about it, but I eventually realised that you weren’t going to change your stance, and I wasn’t to waste my time on something that was pointless. Your words and your actions made it clear that I was at best just an ally, a person that was expected to come and help you to take down a villain, but then was expected to leave when all was said and done. True, I wanted to be genuine friends once, and perhaps…something more… but I realised the folly of it.

Marinette: But it was necessary to keep you away! Our secret identities…

Adrien: Should have remained a secret. But let me ask you this… what about the other secrets? The identities of the other heroes? The hidden stress you had from being a guardian? What about those ones? When was the last time you or I talked about something that wasn’t defeating a villain? That we just talked as genuine friends about our lives, as someone to lean on? We didn’t have to tell our identities to lean on eachother, but it seems you just chose to think that being friends in any sort of way would lead to something bad happening.

Marinette: I….I….

Adrien: It’s fine Marinette, you made your choice. But I made mine as well, and I decided to move on…plus with my father turning out to be my greatest enemy, there’s really nothing for me here. I need a fresh start.

Marinette: B-But….I love you!

There was a pause

Adrien: …I loved you too once. Ladybug I mean. And maybe even deep down I loved you as Marinette as well…but feelings change. I set those feeling free a long time ago… but its to late for me to think it was ever meant to be, even if they came back just now….goodbye Marinette.

Later on, as Marinette sat down at the celebratory party, Alya came by to check why Adrien was missing….and why her best friend was crying.

Train ride at this beautiful location | benedikt.hoehny

Obsessed

Warning: If u r a Maribug stan, get out. U could always disobey and h8 me ofc, but that's just wasting ur time.

Realistic, cannon (mostly), Su-han is the guardian, identity reveal, focuses on Ladybug's treatment of Chatnoir and toxic adrienette. ...

Marinette's P.O.V Marinette Dupain Cheng, a pretty, blue-eyed teenage girl, was slumped over her desk, snoring. A line of drool wet the pages of designs she had been working on. She hadn't meant to go to sleep, she never did- but when her computer turned on due to a sudden software update reminder, she had gotten sidetracked.

How could she not, when she saw those striking green eyes of her future husband, her perfect, handsome Adrien, on her desktop wallpaper? She'd sat there with her mouth open, drooling, as she got lost in his eternal glory, till she fell asleep.

...

"Aah! Tikki! This can't be happening! How could I fall ASLEEP!? OH NO, I'm half an hour late for school Tikki!" Tikki tried to get a word in edgewise but the girl rambled on, "Adrien's gonna know how much of an imperfect clutz I am and he'll hate me for the rest of his LIFE and we'll never go out on a date or marry in front of the Eiffel tower or have 3 kids and a hamster named-"

"MARINETTE!" Marinette fumed, why did she never get to say that she was going to name her hamster 'Goldybuns'? (Sry abt the cringy name btw) Goldy for Adrien's hair and 'buns' because Adrien's a cinnamon roll/bun, just like Goldybuns. Her attention slowly flowed back to Tikki.

"I know you're stressed out right now, but now is not the best time for a panic attack. I suggest you start getting ready, Marinette. The sooner the better."

Marinette sighed and smiled at her kwami. "You're right, Tikki."

...

Plagg's P.O.V

Plagg wasn't even eating as he sat in Adrien's bag. He was looking with hatred at the huge slices of Camembert in front of him as if it had been the one who wronged him when a hand reached in. It fumbled around the bag before finding his head. The fingers of the hand scratched him under his ears and he purred to show Adrien that he wasn't having a silent tantrum about how Ladybug had let Chat completely take the blame for renouncing his miraculous yesterday (causing him to change into Cat Walker to impress her). He was, he just didn't want Adrien to know. The poor boy had enough to worry about.

The hand got out of the bag as he heard Ms.Bustier say "Turn to lesson 5 of your history textbooks, class, and underline all the facts the story mentions about Joan of Arc's childhood." Deciding he couldn't listen to a lesson about a previous Ladybug miraculous holder (he was feeling pretty sore about that particular miraculous right now anyways), Plagg phased through the floor, keeping well out of sight, before reappearing in Marinette's purse. Tikki, as expected, began to panic, but Plagg ignored that as he pointed at him, Tikki, and the floor. He floated down, knowing Tikki would follow, just to keep him out of trouble. Not because she wants to listen. Not because she thinks what I've got to say is important, he thought bitterly as he entered Ms.Mendeleiev's class.

Tikki turned up two seconds later. "What is it, Plagg? You know you shouldn't be here, or talk to me at school! Remember what happened last time?" Plagg blinked twice. "With Kwamibuster! My holder had to make up a super complicated plan to convince Chatnoir that she wasn't-!" Bubbles escaped her mouth.

"For all the brain's she's got, you'd think she wouldn't be fooled by a simple 'elementary school' you know." He mumbled. He'd never admit it to Adrien, but he was very proud of the simple but successful plan his owner had come up with that day.

Plagg knew Tikki was reddening with anger, even though he couldn't see it under all that redness. "At least my holder doesn't throw a fit and give up her miraculous everytime Chat noir keeps something from her!"

"Pfft! You know that's just because he never keeps anything from her that's important for them to work together, and even if he does she doesn't notice cause she doesn't care!"

"Says the one who yelled at my holder just because she made a few little mistakes when she's under so much pressure!"

"I have a lot of ways to describe her so called 'mistakes', but 'few' and 'little' aren't two of them, Sugarcube!" He hissed. "And just so you know, my holder's under as much pressure as she is, he's just better at hiding it cause he's been dealing with that heavy pressure since before he even met me! Everything's not about you and your holder, Tikki!!!" Tikki floated back a few inches, he was obviously doing something scary, but he didn't care. "JUST CAUSE YOU ONLY KNOW YOU'RE OWN HOLDER'S STORY DOESN'T MEAN YOU CAN MAKE CONCLUSIONS ABOUT MINE!!!" He shrieked.

Adrien's P.O.V

The whole class was frozen in shock. They'd been hearing a commotion from Ms.Mendeleiev's class for a while but had chalked it up to a random student quarrel. Soon, however, it turned too loud to ignore. Ms. Bustier seemed to be wondering if she should go and see who it was or ignore it and tell the studnets to continue their Joan of Arc essay.

"At least my holder doesn't throw a fit and give up her miraculous everytime Chat noir keeps something from her!"

Holder? Miraculous? TIKKI!? Adrien's jaw fell open as he reached around inside his bag. Plagg wasn't there. No. No. No way. Not again! His lady would surely take his miraculous after this. And they were fighting about him and Ladybug!? Guess Plagg was more pissed off than he thought.

"You know that's just because he never keeps anything from her that's important for them to work together, and even if he does she doesn't notice cause she doesn't care!"

Adrien felt conflicted as he zoned out. Plagg should NOT be insulting his lady. He'd have to talk to him about it, but on the other hand, it was very sweet how he tried to defend him. Suddenly there was a loud bang and the floor shook a little. Marinette, who'd been on the edge of her seat, tumbled onto the floor, along with her books and phone.

"I should go check what the interference is, students," Ms. Bustier informed the class before placing the History book down and leaving.

The class looked at each other, and as one, got up and ran out of the class after Ms. Bustier, Adrien in the lead, followed closely by Marinette. Adrien went because he knew it was Plagg, but it was clear that the others were going because Ms. Bustier had gone, and they had enough faith in their teacher to know that she wouldn't run towards akuma dangers. He saw Marinette from the corner of his eye, and was surprised to see that she had the same look on her face that he probably had too. Just a bit more anger and a little less fear.

He couldn't wonder about it because at that moment, they met Ms. Bustier, who was still calmly walking, not running like them. She looked at her students, confused, before sighing and opening the door.

Oh man.

Tables were upturned, science equipment spilled over the floor, walls splattered with dirt and chemicals. The posters on the walls were blakened and burned, the books in the shelves had fallen off. He gulped. His lady would explode. Not just because of the destruction and his kwami threatening her kwami, but also because he'd let Plagg be seen by a whole class.

Plagg was floating in the middle of the destruction, black and green orbs floating around him, he turned around, eyes widening as they met Adrien's. The orbs faded. Tikki was clearly afraid and was looking at his classmates and then back at Plagg. It didn't take a genius to figure out that the two creatures were related to Paris' heores.

He noticed that he'd suddenly been pushed to the back of the group by his classmates who were eager ot get a look. He backed away, it was too much. He'd failed again. He'd dissapointed his lady.

...

Plagg's P.O.V

"I'm sorry, kitten," he whispered. "I didn't mean to."

"I t-told you not to get in trouble again." It was obviously supposed to be a scolding, but the tremble in his voice made it sound more like a whimper. It hurt. Plagg's powers got out of hand often. He'd controlled it unbelievably well around Adrien, but Ladybug was a new Guardian, she wouldn't know that. So Adrien would still be blamed for it. Like every other time.

He'd tried to talk some sense into Tikki, but as always, it didn't work (he should've known), and he'd regretted it the moment he saw Adrien backing away, eyes wide, obviously having an internal panic attack.

"I'm sorry, kitten. I didn't mean to," he whispered again.

"I know, Plagg." The golden haired boy extended his hand and Plagg sat on it. "I'm still going to scold you about insulting Ladybug thought. Later." He brought him close to his cheek and Plagg nuzzled him, purring. They passed a few more minutes in silence before Adrien got up from the boys' bathroom floor. "I should get back before Lunch ends cause-"

"Cause you need some food to deal with what you're gonna have to go through with Ladybug," Plagg interrupted, knowing full well that it wasn't what Adrien was going to say. "I agree. Food is the world's best healer."

Adrien chuckled as he headed out.

...

Tikki's P.O.V

"That lousy cat! Why can't he just control his kwami!? Everyone will know about you guys now! All because of him and his kwami!-"

"I was there too Marinette. It's not just his fault," Tikki interrupted meekly, but Marinette ignored her. Sure Tikki didn't approve of Plagg's recent behaviour much, but she didn't want him getting the whole blame.

"I can't believe it. I'll bet you anything he'll try to laugh it off when I call him out like he always does-"

"I don't recall that ever happening, Marinette-"

"And Adrien was there too! He must've thought Ladybug was so stupid that she couldn't even keep Chat noir under her control!"

Her control? "Chat isn't really your sidekick, Marinette-"

"Well, he can hate Ladybug but not Marinette. I won't let that happen!" She pulled out his schedule. "A-ha! Right now he has his fencing lesson, but in half an hour he'll be going for a photoshoot at the Seine. That should last till 7pm because it's an evening shoot. Then he'll be going home. If I manage to catch him right after his fencing lesson it should turn out all right."

Marinette dug into the chest full of Adrien's presents and grabbed the box wrapped in a red paper with a black bow on top. "This is the present I prepared for him in case he starts to hate Ladybug!" She clarified for Tikki.

Tikki winced. "I'm pretty sure he doesn't hate Ladybug, Marinette. Besides, Ladybug- uh, I mean you, have saved Paris hundreds of times! This is just one tiny mess up!"

"Just in case, Tikki. Now come on!"

Marinette's P.O.V

Tikki dove into Marinette's purse as she ran out of her house, present tucked under her arm. She neared the school in less than two minutes, thanks to her house being so close, and sat down on the front steps. She should be able to see Adrien coming out from here. Now, time to practise what she was going to say.

'Hey Adrien, I noticed that you seemed upset after the whole kwami-' uh, no. Adrien doesn't know about kwamis. 'I noticed that you seemed upset after the whole floating creature fiasco.' Yes, that should work. 'And I was worried that you might hate Ladybug because she couldn't stop that happening. So I wanted to give you this, to remind you that Ladybug's a great super heroine and that it's totally not her fault if her partner messes things up all the time.' She cringed. No, that wouldn't work. Adrien seemed to like Chat noir, and besides, it seemed like she was accusing him of hating Ladybug unjustly, when it was perfectly reasonable for him to hate her because she was imperfect and unworthy of his greatness.

'Hi Adrien, don't you think Ladybug's amazing? I'm sure she's feeling horrible about that floating creature fiasco earlier, don't you? Anyways, I wanted to give this to you because you totally deserve it. And...Adrien... I love you...' That should work.

Adrien's P.O.V

Adrien gulped down a bottle of water before slinging his bag over his shoulder and heading out. He was actually looking forward to the Seine photoshoot. The title was 'Floating in the sunset', so he'll be sitting on a boat in the river Seine for a few hours. That part was pretty boring, but the amazing thing was that a ginger tabby cat was going to be part of some shots too! He'd met him yesterday and almost died from all that cuteness. He really wanted to keep him. Too bad his father was allergic to cats. And dogs. And hamsters and guniea pigs and mice and rabbits and birds and even lizards and turtles and fish. The only thing he didn't seem allergic to were insects.

He was brought out of his thoughts when he noticed Marinette sitting on the stairs, mumbling furiously to herself.

"Hey, Marinette! What are you doing here?" His car pulled up in front of the school as Marinette jumped up to face him, her arms flailing.

"A-a-adriennn! I'm sorry I didn't kiss you- I mean see you there!" She giggled nervously as Adrien adjusted his face into a worried-for-your-sanity-in-the-politest-way expression. Why did she never manage to talk to him? It wasn't as if he looked threatening or anything. Nino, Chloe, Alix, and Alya have even said outright that he looked like an innocent cinnamon roll.

"Don't you think Ladybug is amazing?"

He was surprised she'd managed a whole sentence without stammering, so he gratefully answered, "Yeah, she's wonderful! And so brave and confident! Amazing, yeah." He rubbed the back of his neck with a dreamy look in his eyes.

"I'm sure she's feeling horrible about letting Chat noir ruin everything-" Wait what?

"Uh-ahh I mean, about that kwami- uh- floating cr-creature fiasco this morning- uh I mean afternoon- in class!" Marinette knows about kwamis? Oh right- she was multimouse. "Aanyways, I wanted to bite- ahhh- I mean kiss- I mean give-"

His car honked three times, which was gorilla's way of saying that his father would be pissed if he didn't get in now. "I'm so sorry ,Marinette but I should get going. Maybe tomorrow?" he gave her one of his magazine cover smiles as he waved goodbye and ran down the steps. Nino would notice that was a fake smile immediately, but Marinette just blushed and waved her hand too.

"Yeah, I'll touch- uh, see you tomorrow! B-b-bye, Adrien..."

"Bye!"

Marinette's P.O.V

"Please don't tell me I messed up again, Tikki," Marinette groaned.

"You'll get there eventually Marinette. Besides, you did manage to ask him to walk home with you once. After you made a magical charm for Mr.Pigeon, remember?"

"Oh don't remind me, Tikki. Kagami totally blew up and called me a stalker because I kept his schedule memorised and carried a bag with things I might need when I bump into him. Me? A stalker? As if! Occasionally going through his trash and keeping 1007 photos of him and making presents and food for him and following him to protect him from other girls does NOT make me a stalker! It's not my fault she can't admit that me and him are made for each other!" She giggled dreamily.

"Uh..."

"And besides, Tikki," Marinette slumped over, getting over her hate speech, "I only managed to ask him out once! I've been trying ever since before my 14th birthday! I'm 16 in two months! That means I've been trying for two years and only managed to ask him out once! I'm hopeless, Tikki!"

She expected Tikki to comfort her but Tikki mumbled, "Maybe you should start by not putting him on such a high pedestal? It should make talking to him easier."

Marinette gasped. "A pedestal? Tikki it's not my fault he's handsome, kind, generous, beautiful, thoughtful, sweet, athletic, understanding, amazing, skilled, sympathetic, sporty, talented, smart, strong, gorgeous, calm, and just perfect all at the same time!"

"But he's human, Marinette! He can't be perfect! He has to have some flaw that you don't know of."

"Adrien? Flawed? Oh puh-lease, Tikki. C'mon we need to follow him to his Seine river photoshoot. I can find a time to give it to him then."

Marinette ran towarda the River Seine, present tucked next to her. After ten minutes she reached the Seine, clutching a stitch at her side.

"Oh no, Tikki, the boat's going to leave!"

"Relax, Marinette! You can talk to him after he's done."

Marinette sighed defeatedly, "Just this once."

...

Two hours later, Marinette watched as Adrien got out of the boat, a ginger tabby cat in his hands. He passed by her (she ducked so he couldn't see her. It wasn't the right time yet) and for a second Marinette was sure they were both purring. No, scratch that. It sounded like three voices were purring. What?

She wasn't left to ponder however, as Adrien came back, kissing and cooing at the cat (Marinette had a sudden urge to turn into a cat right then). He handed the cat over reluctantly to the photographer and then checked his phone as it beeped.

"My driver wants me to meet him at the Bistro de la Gare. I should get going. Bye!" Adrien waved at his photographer before kissing the cat again and going away. Marinette promptly followed.

They were halfway to the Bistro de la Gare (Marinette still hadn't plucked up the courage to talk to him) when an akuma lert sounded. Marinette groaned before ducking into a nearby alley.

"Why now? Argh!"

Adrien's P.O.V

Adrien looked around hurriedly. It didn't really matter if he didn't transform, Ladybug wouldn't care. Maybe she wouldn't even notice, but then he remembered what had happened at school that morning. Oh man. Plagg seemed to read his mind.

"C'mon, kid. It'll happen anyways. Get it over with quickly so we can go home and eat Camembert in peace!"

Adrien sighed. Turning around, he saw an alley a few meters back. He promptly ran towards it.

He almost yelled 'Plagg, claws out!' when he noticed Marinette with her back to him. Huh? How did she get here? He wondered if he should let her know he was here and that she should probably go somewhere safer or find somewhere else to transform. He didn't like hiding here while looking at her. It felt too much like spying, but he couldn't help it when a red blob floated up in front of Marinette. Tikki?

"I can put it off for a few more minutes, Tikki! Just till I give the present to Adrien! Then I'll go, I promise! The akuma can wait for a few more minutes without Ladybug! I deserve to go after the boy I love like any other teenage girl!"

"Marinette! You're willing to risk the life of civillians to follow Adrien?" Adrien heard Tikki take a deep breath (it was surprisingly loud, considering her size). "I'm sorry, Marinette- but I think I agree on Kagami on this one. You're too obsessed with him for your own good, and his own good too! Think about "Operation Sad Adrien" or whatever, you were happy when you saw him crying in the park! You gave him a present, not to make him happy, but to show that you're definetely girlfriend material and 'hey, you should totally date me cause I'm so caring'!" Adrien had never heard Tikki talk like this before. "Do you think he'd be happy to know that someone keeps his entire schedule without telling him? Or that someone follows him secretly?"

"It's to protect him from other girls, Tikki!"

"He doesn't need protectin, Marinette! He isn't your property! He doesn't need protecting from Lila because he already knows she's a liar! He doesn't need you to team up with Chloe to almost publicily humiliate Kagami just because they were talking with each other at a party! This isn't healthy, Marinette!"

Marinette groaned. "I already told you, Tikki. Just because I keep 1007 photos of him, go through his trash now and then, and make food and gifts for him till his 50th birthday doesn't make me an obsessed stalker!"

"But it DOES, Marinette! Can't you see-"

"Tikki, spots on!"

Ladybug replaced Marinette and pinched the bridge of her nose "I should've done that earlier," she moaned before swinging her yo-yo and dissapearing, leaving an unnoticed Adrien with his jaw hanging open.

Plagg floated out of his shirt and waved two tiny paws in front of his face, "On second thoughts, let's just head home."

Good idea, Adrien wanted to say, but no sound escaped his mouth. His lady is Marinette? Marinette has a huge crush on him? Marinette stalks him? Adrien rubbed the back of his neck nervously. He was dissapointed- not because Marinette was Ladybug, he would've been delighted about that, usually- but the fact that his lady rejected him, all the while obsessing over his civilian identity was, to be fair, kinda gross.

And how was he going to tell Ladybug that he knew her secret identity?

"Hey, kid! Earth to Adrien. Let's go home. Now! I have a plan, kit!"

As Plagg expected, Adrien awoke with a start. "You do?"

"Totally. Let's just go to my camem- uh, I mean home, first."

Adrien raised an eyebrow suspiciously, "You sure you got a plan, Plagg?"

"Since when have I lied to you, Adrien?"

"Uh, let me think, on my third akuma fight when you literally said you were sleeping? And yesterday when you said you saw Ladybug outside so you could distract me and steal my cheese?"

"Oh c'mon, don't be so pouty. Now let's go!"

Adrien sighed and pocketed Plagg as magical ladybug's flew through the air.

...

"It's perfect, Adrien!" Plagg exclaimed, waving around his tiny paws. "Sure he won't open up to Chat noir but he will to her crush! You can talk to her about everything!"

"I doubt she'll talk about her crush on Adrien with Adrien, Plagg."

"But she doesn't have to tell you that her crush is Adrien!"

Adrien held up his hand, motioning Plagg to stop. "Plagg, did you know about this? This- obsession?"

Plagg giggled nervously. "Well I knew about her crush, and I admit, I thought it was hilarious, but I didn't know it was this, you know, toxic."

Adrien sighed and slumped onto his couch. "Let's get this conversation over with. Plagg, claws out!"

Chat Noir's P.O.V

Chat noir checked his baton. Ladybug was on the Eiffel tower. Purrfect. He jumped out of his window and ran over the beautiful Parisian rooftops. It was night time now, the time when, in his opinion, Paris looked the best.

A cool breeze ruffled his hair as he ran past windows, behind which were happy families playing games, watching TV, or just talking around a dinner table. He has everything these people could wish for- money, fame, games and books of all sorts, and yet he didn't have the one thing all of them did have, love. He thought he found love in his lady, but she'd just been a fan girl, rejecting the real him. Sure Chat noir wasn't 100% the real him, but he liked being that side of him better. It felt more real, somehow.

He neared the Eiffel tower and looked up. Sure enough, two black and red feet were swinging over the edge casually. Chat climbed the tower from the back, so that she wouldn't see him, and detransformed behind a pillar. He motioned for Plagg to hide before quietly walking towards his lady.

Plagg's P.O.V

Plagg could almost hear how tensed Adrien was as he fidgeted a few meters behind Ladybug.

"Oh-hey, Ladybug," he said in an oddly high pitched voice. "Fancy seeing you here! Are you, um, waiting for someone?"

Ladybug turned around, eyes wide, before visibly relaxing, though the redness in her cheeks remained.

"Oh, hey! A-adrien Agreste, right? I mean obviously, I've even saved you a couple of times. That was a dumb thing to ask." She gave a slight giggle.

Plagg grabbed some camembert and prepared for a long wait. It'd take a long time for her to warm up to him.

"Mind if I sit?"

Yes! That was sooner than expected, though Plagg didn't see how Adrien could sit on a railing.

"Oh yeah sure! How did you get here, by the way? I thought the tower was closed now? And it's so late!" She suddenly looked down at her yoyo. "Half past 1am. What are you doing out here by yourself at this time of night?"

"I just, um, wanted to- clear my head a little- you know. And, not all of us has the priviledge of being a superhero- I mean, not that I think it's not exhausting or stressful or anything, but, well, you know." He rubbed the back of his neck. "As for the first question, well let's just say being famous has its advantages." He cautiously leaned on the railing next to Ladybug.

Ladybug laughed, "Guess it does."

Plagg heard Adrien take a deep breath, preparing to dive right in, and he panicked. It was too soon! But Plagg shouldn't have worried. Adrien had lots of experience talking with strangers and getting them to do what he wants.

"I noticed you aren't with Chat noir. He didn't show up to today's fight either, right? Did you two have a- a disagreement or something? I don't mean to pry!" He held up her hands as if proving his innocence, "I was just wondering. It's just that I haven't seen you two hanging out lately. You don't have to tell me if you don't want to! I'm just a random civilian so I totally get it if you don't trust me enough to tell me about your private affairs." And then he gave her his downcast puppy eyes.

"Oh no, it's fine! Of course I can tell you, Adrien."

Damn he could play her like a barbie doll.

"It's just that I don't want to, you know, encourage his feelings. He should be able to get over me by himself, but he can't so I thought I'd just give a little push."

"What if he doesn't and it just ends up hurting him?"

She sighed. "Well, you can't really blame me. I told him to back off because i love another boy-" she paused and looked at him before saying "But he keeps chasing me so."

"Maybe he's wondering what that boy has that he doesn't?"

Ladybug looked at him weirdly.

"I'm not saying what he does is right, but I mean, he does make you laugh a lot, and he's made it clear that he adores you, not to mention literally risking his life more than once for you. Can't go further than that." He shrugged non chalantly.

"That doesn't make me obliged to love him!" Plagg was totally surprised she was actually arguing with her worshipped god. Guess she doesn't like being encouraged to love someone else by her celebrity crush.

"Sure it doesn't," Adrien answered smoothly. "I was just pointing out why he deserves you."

"Look he's done other things, ok? Things you don't know about."

"Tell me then. You know asking and listening are the best mindsets for learning."

She was obviously irritated now. Good. More likely she'll yell all her thoughts out.

"For starters he's always pouting about why we can't reveal our secret identities when he knows perfectly well that it's not safe."

Adrien took a deep breath. "Well, before Rocketear, Nino told me about him being Carapace and Alya being Rena Rouge. They knew each others' identities and you were fine with it, apparently," he blurted in a rush.

Ladybug's jaw fell open, but she closed it again. Plagg couldn't help thinking that she looked a bit like a fish.

"Wha- well, that's not all! He keeps making puns in the middle of akuma fights with super bad timing."

"Maybe it's to get you less stressed?"

"But it doesn't work! It just gets me mad at him instead!"

"Well that's still a win, right? It destracts you from the intimidatingness of the villian. I think I'd be pretty glad if I had a partner who takes my mind off all the end-of-the-world-if-I-lose stress."

She actually glared at him. Oh this was going to be spicy.

...

Adrien's P.O.V

Adrien rolled over on his bed groaning. "I shouldn't have done that, Plagg! She'll make me giveback my miraculous next time I see her!"

It was one hour later, and Adrien had just come home after a heated argument, which had ended with Chat noir revealing his identity and the fact that he knew she was Marinette. They'd argued some more about why it was (or wasn't, in Marinette's case) unhealthy for her to obsess over him and how he shouldn't be kept out of everything when they were supposed to be equals on the battle field.

"That won't happen, don't worry. I'm feline like you'll get a visit later on that'll fix everything." Plagg grinned at him, happy as cheese.

Adrien raised an eyebrow suspiciously.

"But he won't visit you in your room, so transform and get out already!"

"But what if Lady-"

"If Ladytrash barges in? Don't worry about it. She won't. Now get out!"

Adrien sighed, wondering what this outburst was about. Plagg was almost always in his sight. He even insists on following him into the bathroom to torture him with his stinky cheese. In the moments when he can't see him, he always feels him, tucked deep in his shirt, so it was a surprise to learn that he'd been communicating with someone from the outside world. Besides, who else even knew he existed?

"Are you gonna sit there frowning at me for the next ten minutes or are you getting out already?"

Adrien blew a raspberry- and got an enthusiastic reply from Plagg- before yelling, "Plagg, claws out!"

...

He landed on a rooftop close to his house, but far away from Stalkernette's (as Plagg had nicknamed her) house and the Eiffel tower, then he sat cross legged, and waited.

He felt dumb, to say the least, sitting there waiting for he didn't know what, so he gladly pulled up his baton phone when it pinged.

"Don't be bemused! It's just the news!" Nadja Chamack's voice echoed through the rooftops. He lowered the volume in case someone heard. "I'm Nadja Chamack reporting live from the news studio! Paris' two beloved heroes have been seen having a heated argument on top of the Eiffel Tower. Though the reason behind this unexpected dispute remains in the shadows, the citizens of Paris are troubled by the fact that they did not leave the tower together. Chat noir left the scene first, soon followed by Ladybug who, sadly, left in the opposite direction. Is this the end of Paris' young superhero duo? Will Paris fall for its doom at Shadowmoth's hands? Will-"

Chat scoffed and placed the baton on his belt. What a load of rubbish.

"I was listening," a voice told him from behind.

Chat turned around, instantly on defensive mode, before seeing that it was Su-Han.

"You," he acknowledged bitterly, before turning back. "If you're here for my miraculous, forget it." He wondered briefly what he choice he had, if Su-Han actually did demand the miraculous.

"Ladybug was told to resign her position as Guardian of the Miraculous and wielder of the Ladybug miraculous." Wait what?

"Huh?"

"I heard how you have been made to miss fights for some reason, and how she no longer treats you as an equal. This is not tolerable. If it continues it might be fatal. The miraculous of the Black cat and the Ladybug's should remain equal. One cannot exist without the other."

"Wait, so you'll find another Ladybug?"

The old guardian shook his head. "No. You will hand over your miraculous as well. No miraculous will be activated. Over time, Shadowmoth will understand that, so he will stop akumatizations as they are pointless."

"Wait, but, but, Plagg?"

"Plagg has- communicated- with me, and he made it very clear that he will not leave you. Therefore, I have made the dangerous decision to let him stay in your house, though I will have the ring in my possesion. It is very risky, therefore I warn you. One mistake, and Plagg dissapears."

"Yes, sir," he breathed, glad that he won't be seperated from his long term friend, but he still had another problem. "And, about the damage-"

"I will transform when an akuma arrives and call for a lucky charm. When Shadowmoth eventually tires, he will call of the villian, and I will do the Miraculous Ladybug, clearing all the debris."

Chat blinked.

"You know how the miraculous works, surely? If I call a lucky charm with the purpose of defeating a villian, it will clear the damage the villian caused, even if I don't use it. You've witnessed it before, no doubt?"

"Yeah...in New York, and a few other times..."

"Then everything is clear, and we may part ways."

Adrien called of his detransformation and renounced Plagg, who dissapeared and reappeared after the miraculous was placed in the miracle box. He hid in Adrien's shirt and he said goodbye to Su-Han.

A barely recognizable smile, slipped over the guardian's features- it would've gone unnoticed had Adrien not grown up with a very expressionless father.

"You were a great Chat noir, Adrien. Perhaps I will return the ring soon. After Shadowmoth's fall." Then he dissapeared.

...

Author's note: I am currently going through puberty+ recovering from a spinal surgery so I was feeling pretty down. A.k.a why I was going through a serious Maribug hate period. I'm over it now so you probably won't see me updating any more Marinette salt. I'm sorry if the end felt rushed or lane, but I was so out of it and just wanted to get it out of the way. If you like this please ❤, follow, and reblog. Thanks! Have a nice day!

Stardust in Cepheus

Ryuusagi and Bubbleman gets to take a break as I discovered Countryballs and LGBallT on Reddit… they’re just flags shaped like balls. 

If you’re unfamiliar with the flags:

Nr 1 is a homosexual man. Nr 2 is a lesbian. Nr 3 is Aromantic Nr 4 is Asexual. Nr 5 is transgender (Specifically a transwoman) 

Melody: Pinky and the Brain.

The gays don’t have an agenda…but the Aro-Aces might.