And once again, no idea where I’m going with this but here’s another god knows how long it will be fic. Yes I’m still working on all my other’s they’re just not cooperating at the moment lol. 

TW - Suicide and suicidal thoughts

Next

Ladybug stood on what was left of the Eiffel Tower, eyes moving from building to building cataloging the damage. Total loss, likely no survivors. Structural collapse imminent. Roof caved in but structurally sound otherwise. Her brain took it in with no real understanding of the carnage. Her heartbeat sounded far too loud in her head. When she heard boots land behind her she didn’t move.

“The fight is over, why haven’t you cast your cure?” The gruff sound of Batman’s voice brought despair but she pushed it back as she turned to look at him and his team. Even though she couldn’t see their eyes she could tell none of them would meet her gaze except their leader.

“You knew.” Her tone was flat and the others flinched. She felt rage boiling under her skin but she was too drained to let it out. They knew Chat was working with Hawkmoth and hadn’t told her.

“We had our suspicions, but no concrete proof. We couldn’t risk you tipping him off if we were right.” If she had any energy left to spare she would have strangled the man with his own cape.

“You agreed to inform me of everything you found. You have no understanding of the magic in use here and that information could have prevented this.” She never should have agreed to let them into Paris. Never should have trusted that they would hold up their end of the bargain.

“Your cure will fix it. You took down Hawkmoth, that’s the important thing.” She really wished she didn’t have to start looking for survivors so she could shove that condescending attitude down his throat, but Paris still needed her.

“I already cast it, that’s why the city is no longer on fire. You meddled in things you do not understand and now Paris is paying the price.” The casualty count was going to be horrendous. Her eyes trailed along the buildings again, unconsciously coming to a stop on the bakery. Total loss, likely no survivors. Her parents never left the building during Akuma attacks. She couldn’t focus on that now. “I have to go help the rescue crews.”

“You’ve always been able to fix it before, why not now?” He sounded angry, as if she was withholding her full power out of spite. As if she would make Paris pay for his stupidity.

“The Ladybug and Black Cat Miraculous are not meant to work counter to each other. This is what happens when it does. Had you told me of your suspicions I could have benched Chat and taken his Miraculous.” Her tone still just sounded dead but she couldn’t do anything about it.

“If that had happened Hawkmoth would have been alerted and who knows what he would have done.” She was starting to crack, she could feel it. She needed to get away from them.

“Whatever it was, I would have been able to fix it. This is exactly why I made you swear to give me all the information you found. Paris lies in ruins and you had the power to stop it.” It was an exaggeration. The city was devastated yes, but it looked like maybe only one in twenty buildings had suffered significant damage. It could be rebuilt, but the people of Paris would take far longer to recover.

“This is not our fault.” She wanted to scream, or cry, or rage at the injustice of it all, but she couldn’t. She was Ladybug and her city needed to see her calm. They needed her to take care of them now more than ever.

“No. It’s mine for believing that I could trust you. It is not a mistake I’ll be making again.” She jumped off the beam without waiting for a reply, heading to where she was most needed to save lives. Away from her home, even though that’s where she most wanted to be. Later she would process the fact that her parents were gone. Now, she just went from building to building gauging the likelihood of survivors. She felt dead inside and couldn’t honestly bring herself to care.

———————————————–

128,356

The number was burned into her mind. The final death count from the last confrontation with Hawkmoth and Chat Noir. It seemed far too high until she realized that Chat had been targeting Akuma shelters. He’d wanted a higher death toll, hoping it would get her to agree to make a wish. She’d never had an actual number before. When everyone was brought back, no one seemed to care how many had died. Now it was just a constant reminder of her failure. Her arrogance. She should have seen what was going on.

The rebuilding effort was slow. It would have been nice if the Justice League had followed through on their promise to help in the aftermath, but there was some sort of emergency and they couldn’t spare the resources anymore. Ladybug did what she could to help. She hosted fund raisers and went to functions to try and keep spirits up. She went to every public wake or funeral she could to apologize to the families. Far fewer people blamed her than she felt should.

She held press conferences with the Mayor weekly to update everyone on the state of the city, and announce new projects or programs. Until one day she just couldn’t do it anymore. She used the forum to announce her retirement. The city was healing and they had most of the money they needed. They would be fine without her and she couldn’t be here anymore. She couldn’t take the guilt and the pain that just walking around Paris brought. Two months after the last battle, Ladybug was simply gone.

————————————————–

“Miss Dupain-Cheng!” Marinette groaned as she recognized the voice yelling her name. She knew it was a bad idea to come here but the university had one of the best business programs and a decent fashion curriculum as well. Audrey had suggested it because she thought Marinette would benefit far more from a business degree than having teachers criticizing her designs when she was already running a profitable commission business. She kept walking, hoping that the person who yelled at her would give up. She should have known her luck wasn’t that good.

Nightwing dropped in front of her and she debated just walking around him but she had a feeling that wouldn’t stop him. Last she checked, Signal was the only one normally out during the day which meant he’d likely come out here just to talk to her. It also meant they were monitoring her movements, and likely anyone connected to the Miraculous. Granted that was just her and Chloe who were not in jail, at least that they knew about. Nightwing’s grin faltered as she glared at him but he quickly returned to his cheery persona.

“Hello I’m-”

“I know who you are. What do you want?” He frowned at her.

“I see Ladybug poisoned the well. That’s rather unprofessional.” She felt her eye twitch and had to stop herself from punching him.

“Of course you would blame her. Obviously no Parisian would put together the timeline and realize the Justice League left them to fend for themselves in their time of need. Now, you stalking me on the other hand, that’s unprofessional.” He sputtered something that seemed to be a denial but there weren’t any words that she could make out. “Now if you’ll excuse me, I need to be going. My ride is waiting.”

“Do you know how to contact Ladybug? Or where she is?” Marinette blinked at him. What the hell? They had absolutely no reason to be looking for her.

“I wouldn’t tell you if I did. As far as I know, no one has seen or heard from her since that last press conference. Honestly I wouldn’t be surprised to find out that she was one of the almost two thousand suicides that happened in the months after that last fight.” A lot of people had lost everything in that fight, her included, and she’d definitely thought about it. If there was anyone else to take over as Guardian, she probably would have. Audrey and Chloe had convinced Andre to take her in once they found out about her parents and they were honestly the only thing that kept her from completely falling apart.

“She wouldn’t have done that.” He sounded like he was trying to convince himself more than anything but she still rolled her eyes at him.

“I apologize. I didn’t realize I was talking to an expert on Ladybug’s mental state. Since you know her so well, you should have no problems finding her on your own. Are we done?” he didn’t seem to be able to come up with a response so she walked around him.

“We’re not the bad guys here.”

“Yes, and Batman threatening our Mayor’s career and livelihood to force him to contact Ladybug was a really stand up thing to do. Especially since he never had a way to do it in the first place.” Nightwing froze for just a second, but it was enough.

“Your Mayor has a tendency to exaggerate.” He was trying to put on an air of indifference but his posture was ridged

“I was in the room at the time, but feel free to keep digging yourself a deeper hole.”

“There wasn’t anyone else in the room.” It was an automatic response and he seemed far more surprised at it than she did. Marinette grinned at him.

“There’s a reason for the phrase ‘quiet as a mouse’. Just because you, Batman, and Spoiler didn’t see me, doesn’t mean I wasn’t there, recording the conversation.” His mouth actually dropped open as she named the people who’d been there, and snapped shut when she mentioned the recording. She’d been all for using it to go after them in a public forum, but Andre had suggested keeping it until they needed it.

“I’m sure if it sounded like that it was just translation issues. Things get muddled all the time.” She raised an eyebrow at him wondering if he could hear how weak his argument sounded.

“That might be a good excuse if not for the fact that Batman is on record as being fluent in french. It was the main reason the Justice League sent you lot to Paris in the first place.” Watching Nightwing fumble for words should have been amusing but she just felt drained. “Look, just drop all this surveillance and stalking garbage and no one will ever know that recording exists. Leave me and Chloe alone because neither one of us will lead you where you want to go. If Ladybug is alive she obviously doesn’t want to be found and until she does nothing you do will make a difference.” She tried to walk away again but his soft voice stopped her.

“Do you really think she’s dead?” She wanted to say yes, just to get them off her back but she couldn’t.

“No. She wouldn’t just abandon all her responsibilities like that. No matter how much she wanted to.” And, oh, how she’d wanted to. All the Miraculous went back into the box after the last battle except hers. Even then she’d renounced Tikki anytime she didn’t need to transform. She couldn’t handle the guilt of her failure and the ultimate disappointment from the Kwami.

“She abandoned Paris.” Marinette’s rage began bubbling up but she forced it down. The Bats knew nothing about Paris.

“Believe what you want. Just leave us the fuck alone.”

———————————————

“It really does have the best business program.” Chloe’s words caused Marinette to groan and drop her head to the table with a satisfying thud. She knew that before they started talking about it, she was just hoping Chloe would have a different opinion. “I’ll go with you, it won’t be that bad.”

“How is you beating the shit out of any Bat you come across not that bad?” Chloe gave an amused snort but Mari was serious. She hadn’t told anyone she’d been Ladybug, or that she was still the Guardian, but Chloe was still overly protective of her. Not to mention what the Bats tried to pull with her father. When she’d mentioned that the Bats were obviously monitoring them she’d had to stop Chloe from going back to Gotham.

“You told them to stay away from us. If they don’t, they deserve what they get.” Marinette shot her a flat look. They both knew they weren’t just going to stop tracking them because Marinette said so. They were literally the Bats only lead to get to Ladybug.

“Chloe, you know damn well they’re going to be bothering us constantly. Not to mention do we really want to move to a city where people die in rogue attacks on a daily basis?” As a Guardian, Gotham called out to her to help restore the balance, but as the only Guardian she wasn’t certain it was a risk she should take. If something happened to her… If they were going to do this she was going to have to come up with a plan incase of death far quicker than she’d wanted.

“We’ll get a house outside of town and the university itself isn’t targeted very often for some reason. Probably because the size of the campus makes pulling together a decent amount of hostages difficult.” Marinette could only blink at her. Chloe must have started looking into this weeks ago, before Marinette even went to the school.

“You really just want to confront them don’t you?” She just continued tapping on her phone but Marinette saw a small smile form. “Honestly Chloe, do you really think it’s a good idea to piss them off on their territory? What I did was bad enough.” She should have been prepared for it but it hadn’t occurred to her that she would run across any of them in a three hour trip. She’d let her emotions get the better of her.

“What you said was not nearly enough. Especially if they still think Ladybug did anything wrong. The mighty Batman needs to be taken down a peg or two until he can finally admit he’s not infallible.” Well she wasn’t wrong, but Marinette still didn’t think them going on the offensive was a good idea. Maybe they would be content to continue monitoring them from a distance.

——————————————–

That hope barely made it through her first class. As she was trying to leave the building she was blocked by a man and when she looked up he was shooting her the same smile he had as Nightwing. Why could nothing in her life go right?

“Hi! I’m Richard-”

“What the fuck is wrong with you? Don’t think for a minute that you being in civies gives you a pass to follow me.” He just gaped at and she rolled her eyes. “Move.” He didn’t so she tried to go around him but he wouldn’t let her.

“Miss, I think there’s been a mistake I’m-”

“You’re Nightwing and you need to move and leave me alone unless you want Batman to be embarrassed on every news station I can find contact information for.” She managed to push past him while he panicked but before she could get clear he reached out to grab her arm.

“Hang on, I have no idea what you’re talking about. I’m just volunteering for the university to help new students get settled. Not everyone in Gotham is a vigilante.” Was he really trying to convince her that she was crazy? Coming here was such a terrible idea.

“That fake smile of yours is a dead give away.” He actually pouted at her.

“My smile is not fake. I-” A fist came out of nowhere and the man was on the ground with Chloe glaring murder at him.

“Keep your hands off my sister you creep.” She didn’t yell but the words were loud enough to gain the attention of students milling about. Murmurs started and the man looked even more panicked.

“Now hang on, this is just a big misunderstanding.” He was scanning the area but Marinette wasn’t sure if he was looking for an escape or a way to salvage the situation.

“Oh, so I didn’t just see you block my sister from exiting a building and then, when that didn’t work, you put your hands on her without her consent. What exactly am I misunderstanding?” The murmurs grew louder and his expression turned harder.

“Look I was just trying to help-”

“We don’t need your help. Let’s go.” Chloe wrapped an arm around her shoulders and tugged her away before she could say anything, not that she was sure she wanted to. She did take pleasure in the fact that there was already a bruise forming on the man’s jaw where Chloe had hit him.

“Good form on the punch, though I’m going to assume you didn’t give it your all since his jaw isn’t broken.” Chloe had been taking a number of martial arts and kickboxing lessons since the first time she became Queen Bee. She sometimes forgot exactly how dangerous Chloe could be.

“I figured you would object to me sending someone to the hospital on our first day. I also didn’t hear any of the conversation so I didn’t want to be accused of overreacting.” Given that Marinette had purposely kept her voice low she wasn’t surprised. She turned to look back at the crowd and found some whispering, a few were snickering at the man on the ground but one was outright laughing and Nightwing flipped him off. So probably another bat then. Her gaze went to the rooftops next and she caught sight of Spoiler. When the vigilante looked her way she offered a wave. The girl started and immediately backed out of sight but not before Chloe saw her as well. “Seriously? They couldn’t just leave us be for one day?”

“Well, you’ll at least be happy to know that you punched Nightwing in the face.” Marinette winced as soon as the words came out. Was she planning on telling Chloe? Absolutely, but she really should have waited until they got home. She had to physically stop the girl from turning back. “Now it would definitely seem like an overreaction. Don’t worry, I highly doubt this is the last we’ll see of them. You’ll have more than enough of an opportunity to beat the shit out of someone I’m sure.”

“I’d fucking better.” The words came out in a growl more than anything else. She was going to be in a foul mood the rest of the day.

“Maybe we should just skip the rest of our classes for the day and go home. You’re not in the right frame of mind to learn anything and I just want to not be stared at for a while.” She’d felt eyes on her since they got to the campus and it was making her skin crawl. Even when she knew where it was coming from it didn’t help the paranoia. Chloe turned from murderous to concerned in an instant.

“We’ll look into switching as many of our classes to online as possible. That will cut down on the time we have to be somewhere they can watch us.” It seemed like running away but at this point Mari was fine with that. She wasn’t here to socialize or make connections. She had more than she needed already. She was here to get her degree and get out. The sooner the better at this point. “Maybe we should just drop out and try somewhere else.” She had no idea what Chloe saw on her face but it couldn’t have been pleasant.

“No, it’s fine. We’ll go as much online as we can and everything will be fine. And we can always head back to New York for a couple weeks if we need to. I’m not going to let a furry and his menagerie keep me from getting the best education I can.”  Chloe let out a bark of laughter.

“There’s the snark I know and love. Come on, let’s get home and call Mom. She’ll know what we need to do.”

———————————-

Marinette couldn’t quite get a handle on what she was seeing. She’d been in their garden, sketching and minding her own business, when voices dragged her back to reality. Upon looking up she found Gotham’s Sirens gathered in front of her, studying her. Because that wasn’t creepy. And they just continued to stare at her, so now it was awkward. She was about to say something when a thought hit her. Marinette turned to glare at Catwoman. She looked taken aback but the other two were sniggering to themselves.

“You’re dating Batman.” The woman looked confused but nodded. Before she could actually say anything Marinette broke into a string of curses that had all of them looking at her like she was possessed. “You can tell that egotistical, stalking piece of trash to go to hell. I’m so tired of this bullshit! I should be able to have privacy in my own fucking home and he sends you here. Sending his team to surveil us as civilians didn’t work and he thinks this will? Chloe! We’re going to dismember a flying rodent!”

“About damn time!” Chloe rushed out of the house only to jerk to a stop when she spotted the Sirens. “What the actual fuck?”

“Okay, wait, I think there’s been some type of misunderstanding. I have no idea who you are and Batman definitely didn’t send me here.” Chloe cocked her head studying the woman.

“She’s not lying.” After growing up around politicians and business owners who were always looking to benefit themselves, Chloe had developed an impressive ability to tell when people were being truthful. “But why exactly are you here then?”

“That would be because of me.” Marinette just frowned at Poison Ivy as she stepped forward. “The plants in the area have suddenly started thriving far beyond what they normally do in or around Gotham, other than the plants I tend to myself. I wanted to find the source and they led me to you.”

“Me?” She couldn’t help the disbelief in her tone.

“Yeah that makes sense.” Her head whipped around to Chloe only to find that she was completely serious.

“How does that make sense?” Chloe just rolled her eyes.

“You’re a nurturer Mari. You take care of everyone and everything around you. It was literally your entire personality before…” She grimaced and looked away. “Before shit happened. It makes sense that they’d be drawn to that energy.” Poison Ivy gave a thoughtful hum.

“I can sort of feel what she’s talking about. The plants are very fond of you and more than a little upset that you’re in pain.” Mari felt her eye twitch and focused on a point beyond all of them.

“Not exactly thrilled about that myself.” Her mumbled response brought concerned looks from all the women and Mari started feeling like the air was too thin.

———————————————

Chloe could only sigh as Mari ran into the house. She wasn’t ready to open up or be comforted yet and nothing anyone said or did was going to change that fact. Everyone else just chalked up her attitude to survivor’s guilt but Chloe was certain there was more to it. As much as she wanted to know what it was, she wouldn’t push. It wouldn’t do any good anyway. Catwoman let out an awkward cough.

“So what’s your beef with the World’s Greatest Detective?” Chloe sneered at the words, she couldn’t help it.

“Greatest Detective my ass. If he could do his job he wouldn’t be stalking us.” None of the women seemed to know if they should be amused or concerned. “He’s trying to find Ladybug and hit a dead end that he thinks we’re the answer to. It’s pathetic really.”

“Ladybug? You mean that Parisian hero that blames him for what happened?” Chloe felt her spine stiffen and she wanted nothing more than to either follow Mari or go find a Bat to rip apart. How dare he make this about him.

“If that’s what he said he’s a liar or delusional. The only person Ladybug blames for what happened is herself. She doesn’t even blame that stupid fucking cat for what he did. She should have figured it out sooner, she should have prevented it, she should have been a better hero.” The hero was with her father constantly to help with everything and Chloe had heard every self condemnation that she threw at herself. No matter what anyone else said, she ‘knew’ the blame lay with her and there was no getting through to her. “If he’s looking for an apology he can go straight to hell. There’s no way I’d even attempt to find a way to contact her just so he can pile on to the shitstorm she already suffered. Assuming she can even be found.”

“You think she gave up being a hero?” Chloe winced at Catwoman’s question. She really hadn’t meant to say that last part out loud.

“Given that she hasn’t been seen in over a year I’d say that’s obvious.” The women shared a look she couldn’t decipher before Harley Quinn stepped closer to her.

“What did you mean then?” The question was soft, almost as if she was worried if she was too loud it would stop Chloe from answering, or make her run away.

“In public, Ladybug forced herself to be perfect. She never faltered, never broke down. After that last press conference, she had a meeting with my father and I ran into her as she was leaving.” That entire encounter was burned into her brain. The guilt she carried for not saying more was useless and she knew it but it didn’t stop it from gnawing at her. “The look in her eyes… it was the same look my friend Sabrina had the day before she killed herself… the same look Mari has everytime she thinks about Paris.” That was why she stuck to Mari like glue whenever possible. She didn’t blame Sabrina. That final battle had been bad enough but she’d watched Chat Noir literally rip her father apart on live TV. Finding out it was actually Adrien had broken what little control she had left. Chloe hadn’t understood what that dead look in her eyes truly meant until after the fact.

Harley pulling her into a hug interrupted her thoughts. She hesitated before returning it. Her mother had gotten better but she still wasn’t physically affectionate and she tried very hard not to lean on Mari emotionally given everything that had happened. This was really nice. When she looked at the other two, Ivy was staring worriedly and the house and Catwoman was glaring in the direction of Gotham proper. The seemed to both shake off their thoughts at the same time and began whispering while Harley continued to hug her and rub her back in a soothing manner. She felt like that should worry her but she couldn’t muster the energy for it.

Next

Beginning Previous   Next

They had only been in the gardens for fifteen minutes when they lost sight of Marinette. Selina had no idea how it was possible that a group of trained vigilantes, heroes, and a bodyguard had lost track of her at all let alone so quickly. They had worked out a rotation so that Mari would never be left alone and this still happened. The really sad part was that it’s not like she was even trying to get away from them, she likely just caught sight of something interesting and took off. But still, none of them had seen it and that didn’t sit right with Selina. Something was wrong, she could feel it.

They had all split up to try and find her and Selina was going to the area that had some of Ivy’s more… aggressive plants. They knew her so she wasn’t likely to have issues but Mari hadn’t been around them yet so it was entirely possible one of them had grabbed her. What she didn’t not expect to see when she came around the corner was those same plants seemingly trying to comfort the girl while restraining a tiny asian man in a hawaiian shirt.

“The Kwami don’t spend enough time active in this world to have a good grasp of what is necessary. You need to turn the box back over to me.” Oh hell no. This was the asshole who’d basically ruined both Marinette and Adrien’s lives? She had expected someone more… imposing. This man looked like a stiff breeze would decimate him.

“The Kwami are only inactive because the Guardian’s were afraid of their influence, but they are not meant to be restrained that way. The world is out of balance because the Guardians and most recently you, have refused to listen to them and activate them when necessary. Leaving the Kwami that aren’t bound to Miraculous unchecked because you don’t want to risk Tikki and Plagg doing something you don’t approve of has already had devastating consequences that you won’t acknowledge.” Marinette was close to tears but Selina thought it was frustration more than anything else. The plants holding the man tightened their grip while the others just cuddled up to the girl.

“You don’t have any context for the things they’ve been telling you. You need to release me and give me the box back before you make things worse.” That actually got the girl to narrow her eyes at him.

“I’ve never had context for the things you tell me either but at least they’ve never abandoned me. They didn’t purposely leave me to deal with the consequences of their actions so they could run away. You knew how bad it was for me and you never once tried or offered to help. You didn’t even help Adrien when the world turned against him. You could have transformed and made a statement but instead you took our only means of protecting ourselves or clearing his name and disappeared.” By the time she ran out of words she was breathing hard. Selina honestly wasn’t sure if it was the anger or the beginning of a panic attack. The plants just hugged her tighter and she gave them a small smile. “And I can’t release you because I’m not the one holding you. I don’t know what is going on with these plants.”

“They like you sweetheart, and they know fertilizer when they see it.” Selina jumped at the voice behind her and then cursed at her own idiocy. Of course the plants would have alerted Ivy. She and Harley were both glaring at the man and Marinette just blinked at them in shock for a moment before smiling down at the plants and petting them the way you would a dog.

“Well I like you guys too.” Selina couldn’t help herself; she had to take out her phone and get a picture. Both of Marinette and the way Ivy had softened at the interaction. While the normally caustic woman had already had a soft spot for Marinette this probably just put her in Ivy’s list of favorite people. The moment was ruined when the man cleared his throat.

“Mari, why don’t you go find the others and we’ll handle this?” The girl looked relieved for a moment before letting out a sigh.

“As much as I’d like to, I can’t. This is something the Guardian needs to take care of.” The man’s eyes looked like they were trying to come out of his head at that comment.

“You’re already being reckless with your responsibilities. You already have one death on your conscience,  return the box to me before things get worse.” Mari just cocked her head with a quizzical expression. Harley look ready to murder the man.

“If you’re referring to my new fox, she’s not dead. No thanks to you and your secrets.” Her tone was bitter and the man let out an exasperated sigh.

“I told you what you needed to know. The rest would have only distracted you from what needed to be done.” His tone said he was explaining something to a petulant two year old and it took everything in her not to go after him. As it was Ivy had apparently decided she’d had enough because one of the vines moved to cover his mouth. Mari had tears in her eyes.

“You let me, at best, rewrite the timeline over and over again, causing who knows how much damage. At worst I was doing exactly what we were trying to prevent Hawkmoth from doing and you think that wasn’t something I should know?” She was getting angrier and louder as she went. She walked up to the man and took a deep breath before her face went blank. “Wang Fu, you have been deemed unworthy of being a Guardian by the Kwami of Creation and Destruction. As their Chosen Guardian of the Miraculous I also deem you unworthy. I revoke your ability to wield any Miraculous. I revoke your knowledge of everything relating to the Miraculous, Kwami, or the Guardians.”

As she spoke Selina could feel power radiating from her. The man looked panicked and struggled against the plants holding him but as soon as she finished he went limp and just looked confused. Marinette signaled to Ivy and she let the man go.

“Where am I?” Mari looked pained for a moment but her voice was considerably softer when she spoke to him.

“You’re in the Wayne Botanical Gardens in Gotham Mr. Fu. You wandered into a restricted area and some of the plants are less than friendly towards visitors. But you’re safe now.” Adrien, Chloe, and Bruce chose that moment to come around the corner and at the panicked look on the teens faces Selina moved to block them from getting closer. She had no clue what had just happened but figured it was best to let Mari sort it out.

“Do I know you child?” Mari winced but nodded before offering a smile.

“When you had your shop in Paris I came in a few times. I always felt better when I left. Were you thinking of opening a new store in Gotham? While it could certainly use your services I worry about how dangerous the city will be for you.” The man frowned in thought, obviously having no idea what he was doing here. “Or are you just passing through and decided to stop here? I remember you talking fondly about being able to retire.”

“Yes, that’s what it is. I left Paris to travel and this seemed like a lovely attraction. I’m headed to New York for a few days next and then probably back to Europe.” He sounded uncertain and Selina had a feeling his brain was working to fill in the gaps of his lost memory given what Mari had said to him.

“That’s wonderful. You deserve a break after all these years. Do you need help to get back to your hotel?” She sounded completely genuine and if it had been anyone else Selina would have thought they were a great actress, but it was Mari and it was obvious she was being sincere. This man had ruined her life and now she was worried about him. She honestly wasn’t certain if it was more endearing or concerning that the girl couldn’t seem to hold a grudge even when she should.

“You are a very considerate child, but I’ll be fine on my own thank you… what was your name?” Her expression didn’t change at all but Selina was certain she’d felt something in the girl crack.

“Marinette.” Her tone was a little flatter than it had been but the man didn’t seem to notice.

“Thank you Marinette, and I’ll try to stay away from unfriendly plants in the future.” as he walked around the corner Mari’s smile dropped and Tikki flew out to hug her cheek.

“It had to be done Mari.” The girl nodded but her expression didn’t change at all. Selina rushed to pull her into a hug. Whatever was going through her mind couldn’t be good.

“Are you ready to go home kitten?” All she got was a small nod as the girl burrowed into her. “Is it alright if Harley and Ivy tag along?” Another small nod. While she wasn’t expecting Mari to open up to Harley yet, she wanted to get her used to being around them so that it would be possible later. Ivy went over to the plants that had been comforting Mari and picked up a seedling. Selina raised an eyebrow at her.

“It wants to stay with her.” Having one of Ivy’s plants in Mari’s possession could certainly come in handy but Bruce frowned at them.

“It’s not poisonous is it?” Ivy rolled her eyes at him.

“If any of these were poisonous that man wouldn’t have walked away, not with how protective my babies were over Marinette.” Bruce still seemed wary of the idea but Mari peeked up at him with a hopeful expression and he caved.

“As long as you take proper care of it. We don’t need a plant wandering the house strangling the boys.” That actually got a giggle and Selina felt like she could breathe again. Today was supposed to be a no stress, fun with the family day. Granted those are normally interrupted by a Rogue attack, but for Mari this was probably worse.

“Let’s get going then. It’s still early so what do you say to teaching those of us that want to, and Alfred will allow into the kitchen, how to make something sweet and then maybe family movie night? You get to pick the movie, or pick another person to choose one though or they’ll all just spend the entire night fighting.” That got an amused huff.

“Sounds nice.”

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When Chloe had said ‘efficiency apartment’ Selina had assumed it would be a bed/living space, small kitchen and a bathroom. Given that she was dating Bruce Wayne she should be used to the fact that rich people had very different standards. It still didn’t prepare her for the fact that she was pretty sure the bathroom was bigger than her apartment in Gotham.

Chloe set Marinette on the bed gently before dropping the transformation and handing the glasses back to Tikki. She stared at the other girl for a minute, Selina couldn’t read her expression at all, before pulling out her phone and sending a flurry of texts. Tikki was watching from her shoulder and didn’t object to whatever she was doing so Selina took the time to really study Paris’s hero. What she saw worried her to no end.

The circles under her eyes were so dark it looked like she’d been punched repeatedly in the face. More specifically it looked like the time Jason had managed to nail Dick in the face with a beanbag gun, except for the fact that Dick had a broken nose as well. She was pale and not just in an ‘I don’t get much sun way’. She bet everything she had that the girl was anemic at the very least. Then there was how thin she was. Transformed, her suit seemed to hide the worst of it, probably to stop people from thinking she was weak, but now she could see the bones sticking out where they definitely shouldn’t be.

“You said she’d been missing for six months?” Chloe nodded absentmindedly, not looking away from her phone. “What exactly happened to her parents?” That got a flinch and a wary look. After a moment she just sighed.

“I guess it can’t hurt to say, especially since it’s public knowledge. How those rejects didn’t hear about it I’ll never know. Even as enamored with Lila’s idiocy they were, I would have thought their parents had seen it on the news.” She muttered something else that Tikki scolded her for before actually answering the question. “It was their anniversary and Mari wanted to do something special so she got them a private charter plane to take them to a romantic destination. One the way back… the plane went down. The pilot survived somehow but… I’m sure she blames herself for it. I wouldn’t be surprised if that’s partly why she hasn’t tried to get help.” That was so much worse than what she was thinking. She couldn’t even imagine the guilt the poor kid was living with.

“She did reach out but all of her friends wouldn’t even let her talk before telling her they didn’t have time for her drama. I told her to try contacting Jagged but she didn’t want to bother him while he was on tour. She ditched her phone not long after because she didn’t want to be able to be traced. Then Adrien just had to spring the whole identity crisis on her and suddenly she felt like there was no one on her side. Like she didn’t deserve anyone on her side.” The amount of rage in Tikki’s voice was unsettling even for her. Ivy was looking at the window like jumping was a viable option.

“If she’s willing to open up about it I should be able to help, but it might be best to do it outside of Paris so she can actually work through emotions instead of repressing them.” Harley’s voice was soft and Selina could see her worry. They’d all seen people self-destruct under far less pressure than this poor kid was under. “But I certainly don’t expect that to happen right away.”

“No it won’t. Marinette has always kept everything to herself. I’m not sure if she just doesn’t want to bother people or is worried about them judging her.” Chloe sounded like she was talking to herself, and she was still typing away on her phone, but both Tikki and Plagg were giving her appraising looks.

“I assure you there’s nothing she could have done that one of us hasn’t done worse” Chloe finally looked up at Ivy’s words.

“That won’t matter. Other people are allowed to do bad things. Other people are allowed to make mistakes and get second chances. Other people are allowed to have breakdowns and bad days. She is not.” None of them knew what to say to that. Plagg looked annoyed but didn’t disagree and Tikki just looked guilty.

“She’s always been too hard on herself. I’ve never had a permanent holder so young so I didn’t realize the damage I was doing by preaching duty above all else. Now, nothing I say to the contrary seems to get through. I never intended for her to give up her life, none of us thought it would take this long.”

“It’s not like you were the only one setting unrealistic expectations for her. Pretty much everyone in her life put her on a pedestal and expected her to be perfect. As soon as she started acting human they all turned on her.” Chloe pitched her voice in obvious imitation of one of someone else. “‘What do you mean you can’t drop everything to make me an outfit for an event I have to go to in an hour? That’s just selfish.’ Ridiculous, utterly ridiculous.” Ivy just had a horrified expression on her face while Harley scowled out the window like she was thinking of going back to where the attack happened to see if there were any stragglers she could take care of.

“We should probably be focusing on a plan for what happens next rather than a past we can’t change.” They really did need to discuss it but honestly Selina didn’t know how well any of them would be able to keep their emotions in check if they kept talking about this. “We’ll get rid of the threat then we can deal with the trauma.” Harley gave a grudging nod but Ivy didn’t even seem to be paying attention.

“You’re going to be her new black cat for starters.” She blinked at Plagg in confusion.

“Okay?” They let out an amused scoff.

“Not as you currently like to work. You’re going to use my Miraculous and help her maintain balance.” They frowned at Chloe. “Tikki and Wayzz will decide what to do about you. The green one will attempt to find Hawkass by feeling for a Miraculous. And as for you,” they flew up to Harley and studied her for a moment while Ivy tried to hide her annoyance at how they’d addressed her. “What do you think Surgarcube? Mullo hasn’t had a physical holder in a while. They’ll certainly add to the chaos.” Tikki rolled their eyes.

“That would be the first thing you think of, but I think you’re right about the pairing. It’ll be interesting to see how they adjust to one another. Ivy should take Trixx so she can use either the transformation or just their powers to blend in better.” Both Kwami were frowning at Chloe now.

“Look I know that I screwed up and don’t deserve another chance. I’ll just make sure Mari gets what she needs to do her job.” Plagg let out an annoyed huff, but Tikki smiled.

“Wayzz it is then. You can be her shield.” Other than the Ivy’s roll, Selina still had absolutely no idea what they were talking about but at least someone had a plan. Chloe just looked like her brain had shut off. “Until she can transform again I’ll go with you myself to cleanse the Akuma’s and cast the cure.” That at least got a reaction.

“Is that a good idea? Won’t Hawkmoth figure out something’s wrong? Wouldn’t it be better to use the Fox Miraculous to make it look like she’s there until she recovers?”

“New holders will make him suspicious anyway. We’d rather have Ivy out looking for him than hide the fact that Mari isn’t there. Since we’re the only ones that even know where she is it’s not like he can connect the absence to her civilian identity.”

“She’s not going to like this. At all.” Plagg’s annoyance at the girl finally seemed to give out.

“No she won’t, but it’s our job to do what is necessary. She needs all the help she can get on both sides of the mask and you, for all your faults, are part of her support system now.”

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So despite all the things I should be working on this idea decided it needed to take precedence. As of right now there are no plans to continue it. (Yeah I know, wishful thinking) The idea for this was a spin off of Persuasion by Jane Austen. In this AU there are no Miraculous. Given that I don’t want to spoil anything, I’ll leave it at that for now.

TW - Mention of attempted suicide.

Chloe was just leaning on the railing, staring into the Seine. Her face was wet but she wasn’t sure how much was tears and how much was spray from the rushing water. She was fairly certain she’d stopped crying an hour or more ago. At this point she wasn’t certain how she had tears left at all.

It was closing in on full dark on her twenty seventh birthday and no one had even acknowledged it. That in itself wasn’t unusual, or enough to cause her current mood. No, today was the tenth anniversary of the best day of her life and a reminder of all the pain she’d caused and felt since.

“If you’re thinking of jumping, I wouldn’t recommend it. The height isn’t enough to kill you and the water’s bound to be freezing.” Chloe groaned. This was just what she needed, some comedian laughing at her and all the mistakes in her life.

“I’m not in the mood for your nonsense so I suggest you-” She cut off abruptly as she turned and caught sight of the person who’d spoken to her. Her chest tightened and black spots tried to cloud her vision but she pushed them down. She had to be hallucinating. Spending the entire day dwelling on the past, specifically the person standing in front of her, could explain that. Right?

“Happy Birthday Chloe.” Marinette spoke softly and had a gentle expression on her face causing every nerve in Chloe’s body to go haywire. This couldn’t be happening. Not today of all days. Her mind was screaming at her to say something, anything, but her mouth wouldn’t move. So she did the only thing that she could. She ran.

By the time she stopped she was only a couple blocks from the hotel. It took her a moment to realize she was crouched in an alley desperately trying to get her breath back. What was wrong with her? It was the first time she’d seen Mari in over nine years and that’s how she reacted? She’d already caused her enough pain, why did she have to add to it now? She was such an idiot.

As she became more aware of her surroundings she cursed at herself under her breath. Of all the places, why here? She glared at the nightclub across the street as noise and smells spilled out. It used to be one of her favorite places to unwind and it felt like it was calling her, taunting her. It was her birthday, didn’t she deserve a break? She stalked away at the thought, walking briskly back to the hotel. Those thoughts were dangerous and she’d been fighting them all day.

She nodded to the various employees as she made her way to the elevator, grateful that none of them seemed to have problems that needed her attention. She waited until the doors closed to sag against the back wall. She could feel tears stinging her eyes again and felt an urge to just scream out her frustrations. But that would be juvenile and prove everyone right. She was a mature adult. She didn’t need to throw a tantrum. She didn’t need alcohol or downers to cope with her shitstorm of a life. She just really wanted them.

When the elevator stopped she had her key card in hand and once the door was open she practically ran across the room to get to the balcony. She couldn’t breathe and didn’t know why. As soon as she took a deep breath she collapsed into one of the chairs and flung an arm over her eyes with a sincere wish that she could fall asleep so this shit day could just be done already. Then her phone rang with a very distinctive song and she seriously considered jumping off the balcony.

She took a few steadying breaths before answering with it on speaker. It’s not like anyone would hear it and she was honestly worried she’d end up throwing the phone if it was in her hands. Her mother’s voice came over the line before she even had a chance to say hello.

“I’m coming to Paris on Wednesday and staying for a week so you need to get my rooms prepared.” Because that was just what she needed. “I have a full schedule so if you or your father need to speak with me you’ll have to set up an appointment with my assistant.”

“I’m surprised they aren’t the one calling me about this.” She winced once she realized she’d muttered that out loud. This day was never going to end was it?

“I’m giving you the professional courtesy of calling you as the manager of the hotel. Obviously you’re still too much of an irresponsible child to understand that. I’m amazed you haven’t run that place into the ground yet.” Chloe grit her teeth and told herself not to engage. There was no way for this to end well for her but ending the day being yelled at by her harpy of a mother was still avoidable.

“Of course. I apologize for the comment. I was simply surprised you had the time to handle something so insignificant yourself.” She heard the woman huff but she didn’t comment and Chloe felt some of her tension ease.

“Yes well, that’s not the only reason I’m calling.” Chloe felt a moment of hope and cursed herself for it. There was no way the woman remembered her birthday. No way this was going to be anything but another problem. “I’ve been told that Mlle Dupain-Cheng is visiting Paris. You need to stay away from her.” Of course that’s what it was. God forbid she taint the amazing Marinette. As much as she wanted to explode and vent her frustrations at the woman it would be worse than useless. She really needed a drink.

“I wouldn’t dream of sullying the golden child with my presence.” She did try to keep the sarcasm out of her voice. She failed miserably but given the day she’d had she didn’t think anyone with reason would blame her for it.

“Don’t take that tone with me. She’d done exceedingly well without you dragging her down all these years which proves we were right to separate the pair of you. The fact that you’ve done absolutely nothing in the time since simply proves you were never good enough for her in the first place.” Chloe had to bite her cheek in order to not say something to make this worse, or possibly just scream out her frustrations. “I don’t have time for your sulking right now, just have my rooms ready.”

When the woman hung up she had to do some breathing exercises to calm herself down. It didn’t help much but it did allow her to text her father and all the staff that needed to be notified of her mother’s impending arrival. If she was lucky she’d be able to avoid the woman entirely on this trip. It was honestly tempting to check herself back in rehab just in case but, whether her mother admitted it or not, she was needed here. Her phone rang again and this time she did groan out loud when she saw the number. Could this day get any worse?

“This is Chloe Bourgeois, how can I help you?” There was a noticeable pause at her cold yet professional tone. The woman was probably debating if Chloe had lost their number.

“It’s Sabine dear. If you have a moment I need to speak with you.” Even though this conversation was sure to be better than the one with her mother, she still didn’t want to deal with it. Unfortunately that wasn’t an option. If she blew Sabine off she would call Audrey and all hell would break loose.

“Of course Mme. Cheng. What can I do for you?” Same tone. Apparently that was the wrong move.

“There’s no need for the attitude Chloe. I’m just trying to help you.” Chloe rolled her eyes but didn’t comment. She knew she wasn’t the one any of them were worried for. Marinette was the one they all cared about. What pissed her off was the fact they’d used her feelings for Mari to guilt her into doing what they wanted. “Marinette decided to visit and I just wanted to warn you so you don’t come here and bump into her.”

“Mme. Cheng, I haven’t been to your establishment in at least four years so there’s no reason to think I would suddenly show up. What do you really want to say to me?” She was just done with this day. Done with everyone who only thought of her as a problem.

“You and Mari have always done better apart. I’m just asking you to remember that.” Chloe tried to hold it in but after everything else that happened she just exploded.

“Given that I was so depressed I overdosed on alcohol and sleeping pills then spent six months in rehab I’m curious how much worse you imagine things would have been if we’d stayed together.” Nothing. Not that she expected an answer. Considering the effort her parents had gone to to keep it quiet, this was probably the first Sabine had heard of it. “I’m well aware all of you think I will be the ruin of Mari’s career should our paths ever cross. You can stop pretending to be concerned about me. I will take what you said under advisement. Have a nice night Mme. Cheng.” She hung up before the woman got her bearings back, hoping she wouldn’t call back. Or worse, call her mother. When she looked at the time on her phone she let out another groan. There were still two hours left in this incredibly shitty day.

“Why didn’t you tell me?” Chloe let out a yelp as she spun around to find Marinette in her room. What the hell?”

“How did you even get in here?” She winced at her own tone. She must be stressed if she was reverting to her adolescent attitude.

“I was worried when you ran and followed, then your door wasn’t closed all the way. I’m sorry, I should have knocked.” Great. She’d managed to make Mari feel guilty in under a minute.

“It’s fine. I just… How much did you hear?” Mari was fidgeting and wouldn’t look her in the eye. So all of it then, wonderful. “Look, they were just concerned about you and everyone agreed I’d be detrimental to your future. I was trying to do the right thing for once instead of being selfish.” It sounded so stupid now but when they’d all sat her down and explained exactly why Marinette was too good for her, it made sense. Given the way things had turned out it was obvious that Mari didn’t need her anyway.

“Define everyone.” Mari’s tone was flat. That couldn’t be a good sign. She deserved an answer though. Chloe had to hug herself tightly so she wouldn’t break down just thinking about that week. God, she wanted so badly to drink and forget about everything.

“Your parents, my mother, your friends… hell they even got notes from your teachers saying that your grades began slipping once we started dating. I was hurting you.” The way she’d broken up with Mari was absolute shit and she deserved to be hated for that if nothing else. At the time it seemed like the only way to nudge her towards all the opportunities she hadn’t been focusing on. At least that’s what she’d told herself.

“They ambushed you.” The fury behind those words caused Chloe to start babbling about them just being worried until Mari grabbed both sides of her head and forced eye contact. When had she gotten so close? “Don’t defend them. They all got together and decided what our future should look like without once asking us what we wanted. They went after you because they  knew they could guilt you into doing what they wanted. Nevermind how much pain it would cause both of us.. They weren’t trying to keep you from hurting me. They just wanted me to conform to their view of how I should live my life.”

Chloe wanted to argue. Surely everyone at least had Mari’s best interest at heart. No one really cared about Chloe’s future, but that was completely normal. As ambivalent as they were about her future Mari’s parents wouldn’t have been so sure, so insistent, if it wasn’t in her best interest. They wouldn’t have made her hurt Mari for no reason. Right?

“They were right though; you’re better off without me.” The words were barely audible but given their position Mari had to have heard her. Mari’s career had taken off when she was in her second year of university. Even then, she’d managed to handle school and launching her own line with no drop in her grades. Chloe’s mother had made sure to tell her all about it, in detail. That was the night she’d accidentally almost killed herself.

“That is the dumbest thing you’ve ever said to me.” Chloe opened her mouth to respond but froze as Mari pulled her into a kiss. Her brain just stopped. Her body reacted on instinct and by the time thought returned her arms were wrapped around Mari and the kiss had deepened. What the hell was going on? Before she could figure out what to do Mari pulled back until their foreheads were touching. “Just because I’ve been successful without you doesn’t mean I’m better off. Us being together wouldn’t have destroyed my talent or ambition. And the next time I see my parents I’m going to ask them how they could have had so little faith in me. They had no right to treat either of us like that.”

“You were talking about turning down so many opportunities just to stay near me… I was distracting you.” Mari’s expression tightened.

“Is that what they told you? Chloe, there were a lot of reasons I wanted to stay in Paris. You were certainly one of them but I also wanted to stay near my parents. I wanted to spend time learning from fashion houses here before I went abroad. My parents were fine with that before we started dating.”

“My mother must have gotten to them. You know how badly she wanted you in New York.” She really was an idiot to not have seen it at the time. Chloe had never expected her mother to approve of their relationship, but to have Mari’s parents side with her had completely destroyed her confidence. “I’m so sorry, I should have seen it. Should have realized my mother was behind everything. I thought I was doing the right thing.”

“The right thing would have been talking to me.” Mari’s voice didn’t have any anger in it but Chloe still flinched. She’d screwed up the best thing in her life because she hadn’t thought. It never occurred to her to wonder why everyone was suddenly telling her she was bad for Mari. After all they were just confirming the things she worried about constantly.

“You deserve so much better than me. You always have.” Mari’s expression softened and the hands still on Chloe’s neck started moving in soothing patterns.

“I’ve spent years trying to stay mad at you. Years forcing myself not to contact you because I didn’t want to be the one to come crawling back. I concentrated on my career because that’s all I had. In the beginning I thought being successful would show you how wrong you were to break up with me. It obviously backfired tremendously. In all that time, I was never happy. I deserve to be happy, and so do you. Forget everything else. Our parents, our careers… none of it matters. I was happy when we were together, and I think you were too.”

Chloe’s immediate reaction was to deny it. She had spent so long with everyone telling her that she shouldn’t be in Mari’s life she felt compelled to lie just to keep her away. But she couldn’t. Mari had always known when she was lying, even when they were kids. She’d only managed to break up with her without her radar going up because she’d stuck to generalities. She also didn’t want to. She honestly wasn’t certain she’d survive sending her away again.

“It’s the only time I can ever remember being happy.” That wasn’t what she meant to say but once it came out she realized it was true. When she was younger she’d thought she was happy, at least with just her father, but once she and Mari had actually started to get along her perspective shifted. It was like everything she’d felt before was muffled somehow. It was fine when she didn’t realize it, but once the comparison was there it was like night and day.

“Then let’s go.” Judging by the way Mari was looking at her expectantly she was supposed to respond.

“What?”

“Let’s go. Just pack a bag and go wherever we want.” Chloe was certain those words were supposed to make sense but she could only stare blankly at Mari. “You never wanted this life Chloe. I remember you talking about studying history and traveling so you could see the cultures and get the stories from the source. So pick a place.”

“What about your work? What about the hotel? We can’t just-”

“Yes, we can. I can work from anywhere and your father can take over the hotel again, at least until he hires some people. Because despite what your mother thinks, it will take more than one person to do your job.” There was a bit of a growl in her tone that Chloe couldn’t help but smile at. She’d always been extremely over protective. But could they really do this? Could she let Mari give up her life like that?

“Mari I… what if this doesn’t work? We spent most of our childhood at odds with each other and only a few months getting to really know one another. What happens if I turn back into a bitch? You’ll have pissed off everyone close to you for nothing.” She couldn’t come between Marinette and her family. She’d screwed her own life up enough, she wasn’t about to do that to someone else. Marinette actually rolled her eyes.

“The fact that you’re so worried about it tells me it won’t happen. Not to mention that if my parents, or anyone else, suddenly decides to hate me because of who I want to spend my life with I don’t need them in my life anyway.” Chloe sucked in a sharp breath, trying to figure out if she was hallucinating. There was no way Mari said what she thought. She’d been fighting the urge to drown herself in alcohol all day, maybe she’d actually broken down and this was just some drunken fantasy. It seemed like the most reasonable explanation.

“Spend your life with?” She hadn’t meant the words to come out at all and if Mari weren’t still so close it would have been too soft for her to hear. Chloe saw her expression soften and felt her breath hitch in her throat. God, she’d dreamed about having that look directed at her again but she’d never believed it would happen.

“Chloe, I’ve spent nine years failing to get over you. Now that I know you were coerced into breaking up with me in the first place… this feels right doesn’t it?” Between the words, the pleading in Mari’s tone, and the hands still running through the hair at her nape, the last of Chloe’s resolve just shattered. Denying herself was easy enough but she couldn’t say no to Marinette. She’d only managed to break up with her because she truly believed it was best for Mari. With her here, having all the information, and still not walking away there was only one option.

“More than right, it feels like home.” It wasn’t a concept she was very familiar with but it was the only thing that seemed to encompass the way being with Mari felt. The bright smile she got for her words relaxed her in a way she hadn’t felt in years. “Do you really just want to take off like that though? Of the two of us, you’re the one who has something to lose.”

“I wasn’t kidding when I said I can work from anywhere. Worst case scenario your mother comes after me and I lose one of my brands. Given that it’s the one I enjoy the least it’s really not a big deal.” Her eyes were filled with amusement and Chloe could only blink at her for a moment.

“You have more than one brand? And couldn’t she go after all of them?” That was exactly the type of thing she’d do. Threatening her livelihood if she dated Chloe seemed like the perfect revenge on both of them.

“She can’t go after something she doesn’t know exists. You know I’ve never liked Audrey and you’re the one who taught me to be paranoid about what I told her. Literally no one knows about my other brands except my clients and they’ve all signed non-disclosure agreements. She can’t hurt me I promise.” The certainty in her tone was enough to convince Chloe. Marinette had always been clever and careful. She was glad she’d instilled a cautiousness when it came to her mother. The woman was a vindictive bitch so the less information she had the better.

“That’s a relief. You know she’s not going to take it well or just let it go. She’ll get my father involved too which means I won’t be able to work in this industry ever again. It wouldn’t do to have us both be unemployable.” Mari giggled and Chloe felt herself smile. She couldn’t remember the last time that had happened.

“Your lessons in politics stuck. I know better than to leave myself vulnerable to untrustworthy people. Are you okay with being blacklisted by your parents?” She sounded worried but Chloe just rolled her eyes.

“It’s not like my relationship with my mother could get any worse. As for Daddy… if he’s willing to completely write me off on her say so, we don’t have much of a relationship do we?” She couldn’t remember the last time she’d have a discussion with the man about anything other than work. The thought of losing contact didn’t hurt nearly as much as it should have. “I’ve spent my life trying to be what they want me to be and all it did was cost me the one thing that mattered. I’m not making that mistake again.” Mari’s smile was near blinding, especially this close.

“I’ll help you pack anything you want to take. You tell me where you want to go and I’ll have a private jet fueled and ready. We can wait until my parents are sure to be asleep and I’ll grab my bag from the house. We’ll be on our way to anywhere else before morning.” It sounded so simple, so easy. It sounded perfect. She leaned in to kiss her, putting as much emotion as she could into it since she couldn’t find the words. When she pulled back she glanced at the clock on the wall and saw it was five minutes to midnight.

“Best birthday ever.”

Ko-Fi

Inspired by this post

Miraculous Ladybug and Chat photo shoot

Photo: Silver Kraken Photography

Inspiration based on art: chaaaaha

How did Chloe go from being a superhero to threatening to have Gabriel retire Adrien from school?! She’s straight up evil in season 4, even worse than she ever was in season 1. If the writers hate her so much then why even give her a redemption arc in the first place, what was the point of it?

My first crossover wooo :D Chloe as Conny of the anime “The Promised Neverland”.

I am of the firm belief that the real reason Thomas Astruc retconned Chloe’s development is not because she is simply mean and resistant to change, but because he knew that if she became an actually decent person, people would start to root for her more than they did Marinette.

I mean, even when Chloe’s being an absolute monster, there’s still a pretty substantial group of people who are fans of hers. And I’d imagine that if she went through some meaningful development and used her power and privilege for good, that her fanbase would only grow (as it did in the short amount of time during season 3 when she did actually get some positive development).

Whereas, Marinette is already widely regarded as a terrible person and a shoddy excuse for a main character. Especially in older audiences, who sees her creepy, narcissistic, and generally problematic behavior as exactly that. I can only imagine how big of a hit her fanbase would take if they no longer had Chloe to be her polar opposite; the mean bitch to Marinette’s supposed sweet angel. If the show no longer had Chloe to Juxtapose Marinette’s “sweetheart” persona, a lot more people would see Marinette as the absolute problem that she is.

Thomas knew that. And instead of making the effort to make them both better people, he instead took the lazy route, and reverted Chloe to her season 1 persona; a bully without a cause. ATLA stands as proof that even the most stubborn and amoral characters can go through positive development if said development is written well. So unless Thomas is inadvertently admitting that he and his team are all shoddy writers (which I highly doubt considering the size of his ego), he has no legitimate excuse for this, other than he just didn’t want his (probably self insert) main character to look bad.

Ml x Bnha AU

Chloe and Sabrina

Marinette and Adrien

Alya and Nino

Lila

Luka and Kagami

Alix

So I haven’t watched the newest episode so correct me if I got the wrong impression (I’m going based on the posts I’ve seen here but this is what seems happened)

Thomas: this child who’s kind of mean because she’s been abandoned and forgotten by her mother who she adores, and was not raised properly but is learning and growing, is not redeemable.

Also thomas: look at this grown man who consciously chose to abandon his children and despite living right there, never chose to visit them or get to know them or even bother telling them he’s their father, now years later after being FORCED by his child (because he can’t just choose to do the right thing) to admit that he is in fact the father, now hugging his kid as if nothing happened! Look how cute!

Also also thomas: this grown ass man abandons his son, and emotionally abuses him, isolates him, can literally feel his sadness and does nothing, oh and is shocked when their is happiness in his house. Is willing to murder children and knowingly makes his son miserable and emotionally manipulates him for his own selfish reason and even seems to take joy in watching his son suffer (never forget chat blanc.) Isn’t he so redeemable!!

So according to thomas, children, CHILDREN, can’t learn and grow and change but grown adults, specifically horrible father’s who abandon their children, and sometimes are down for murder, are totally redeemable.

Also what’s up with shows like these always reedmeing the horrible father?? Especially children’s shows. Like no. Stop telling children to forgive shit parents that abandoned them.