#inkslingersworld

I have recently completed watching the animated superhero television show Miraculous Ladybug for the first time, and I have some thoughts.

Now, before I start rambling, I just want to say that I’m not trying to criticize anybody for their preferred ship in MLB. I’m just trying to encourage employing critical thinking when it comes to the show, the characters, and the plot lines. Even if I don’t convince you in this argumentative essay, it is my hope that you will at least perceive things a little more deeply regarding Miraculous Ladybug.

Okay, so for the most part, Miraculous was a decent enough show. I’m not going to go shouting from the rooftops “F*CK YOU, THOMAS ASTRUC!!!”, as some people are apt to do. He is the show’s creator and is at the liberty to do whatever he likes with it. 

However, that doesn’t mean I have to agree with him on everything.

Despite its best parts, the show has a lot of flaws, and even though I could sit here all day complaining about what’s wrong with it, I’m choosing for focus on a single aspect of it (for now): the illusion of the OTP.

The Love Square - which involves Marinette liking Adrien and Chat Noir liking Ladybug, even though Marinette is Ladybug and Chat Noir is Adrien - never made much sense to me, even from the beginning. These are the problems I’ve found with it.

1. THAT’S NOT EVEN HOW LOVE WORKS

Now, I could be wrong, but if you love someone - and I mean really love someone - that love wouldn’t be jeopardized because of the love interest simply wearing a costume. And yes, I understand that Marinette and Adrien’s civilian identities act differently than their superhero ones, but still. THEY’RE THE SAME F*CKING PEOPLE!!! I’ve shouted myself hoarse about this loophole more times than I can count. If they were truly in love, wouldn’t Marinette like Chat Noir as much as Adrien? And wouldn’t Adrien like Marinette as much as Ladybug?

2. THEY DON’T LOVE EACH OTHER

Riding on the back of what I just said, the Love Square only proves that it isn’t true love. If it were, they would love each other regardless of whether they were wearing their costumes or not! And there is simply nothing else I can add to this.

3. THE LOVE SQUARE FEELS SHOVED DOWN MY THROAT

The production team for the show has missed out on the chance of some excellent character-building scenes in favor of the Love Square. They’ve been trying to sell it to us ever since the show began. Sure, the Love Square has had its moments, but it ultimately would not suffice as an actual romantic relationship. One of the worst things the show has done is scrap Lukanette and Adrigami. I think deep down all of us knew it was the move they were gonna make, but they dated for like TWO EPISODES. Even if they weren’t gonna keep them, they should’ve at least showed the relationship on more levels, at least to show Marinette and Adrien maturing emotionally.

4. THE REVEAL WOULDN’T CHANGE ANYTHING

Some people take the side of “Oh, but once they find out their secret identities, they’ll love each other!” THAT’S NOT WHAT WOULD HAPPEN AT ALL!!! Marinette would only love Chat Noir because he was Adrien, and Adrien would only love Marinette because she was Ladybug! Even people who support the Love Square agree on this!! They try to present a solution in which Ladybug falls in love with Chat Noir first and Adrien for Marinette, but that too is unrealistic. In the show’s timeline, Marinette and Adrien have been superheroes for three years. I mean, COME ON. 

And 5. IT WOULD BE TOO DANGEROUS

We all saw what happened in Chat Blanc. Love Square = The End of Days. You can kid yourself all you like, but it’s the truth.

Maybe it wouldn’t unfold quite like Chat Blanc, but Marinette and Adrien becoming romantically attached would provide a vital opportunity for Hawk Moth. It’s not like he’s been the best at planning before, but this would be a hard one to miss. 

Perhaps these five reasons aren’t enough to sway you, but they’re good enough for me. And now I turn my attention to the benefits of Lukanette and Adrigami.

1. THEY LOVE THEM FOR WHO THEY ARE

Marinette and Adrien have not always been superheroes, but they’ve always been themselves, and that’s who they are at their core. Luka loves Marinette for who she is, and Kagami loves Adrien for who he is. It’s that simple.

2. FAR LESS CONTRADICTIONS

The dilemma involving identities is nonexistent in a Lukanette/Adrigami scenario. If Marinette and Adrien revealed their identities to Luka and Kagami, well, that would just be the sprinkles on top of an ice cream sundae. The love of my life is a superhero too? That’s so like them. Also, this type of reveal wouldn’t pose any threat Hawk Moth-wise. 

3. THEY CAN HELP EACH OTHER GROW

If the Love Square were to happen, I think it would be a den of awkwardness. Adrien has had very little exposure to the outside world, and if he began a romantic relationship with Marinette, a lot of the time it would be Marinette showing stuff and teaching things to Adrien, which might be nice in some cases, but does not sound particularly fetching to me. With Lukanette and Adrigami on the other hand, it would be the two of either couple teaching things and showing stuff to each other. Luka could show Marinette to play guitar, Marinette could teach Luka how to bake (one of my dream Lukanette scenes is one of Marinette passing on her fashion skills to Luka). 

I think this could work for Adrigami also. Both of them have been sheltered for all their lives, and I think it would be nice to see them discovering new things together. They could also teach each other the stuff they already know; Kagami could work on her art skills with Adrien, they could teach each other languages, maybe Adrien could show Kagami to play the piano (or whatever that video game was in Gamer), and so on and so forth. And obviously, at some point, one of them would say to the other, “It’s you and me against the world.”

For me, Lukanette and Adrigami are just more appealing, and I can’t see why the show runners don’t feel that way as well. If they’re refusing it in favor of conflict to drive the show, they can provide that conflict through Lukanette and Adrigami. I mean, seriously - Luka and Kagami would be dating superheroes. That doesn’t come without its side effects.

If their reasoning is “we’ve been alluding to the Love Square ever since the show started”, then scrap the Love Square! I think Marinette and Adrien work better in a friend capacity anyway! Besides, changing love interests is a part of life, and doing this in the show would add a bit more realism to a rather unrealistic television program.

Hey people! Sorry about the hiatus, I just moved back to my hometown and things have been kind of hectic lately. Glad to be back to writing my Zusammen AU! In case you need to refresh your memory, links to the previous installments are at the bottom of the post. I’ve enjoyed all of Zusammen’s parts so far, but I had a particularly fun time writing this one. Have fun reading!

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Just as Gabriel had thought, Nathalie was furious when he told her about the situation with Adrien and his newfound interest in finding out about Emilie. Gabriel was certain that if he hadn’t sent Adrien out to spend time with Kagami, he would’ve heard everything.

“I can’t believe your behavior, Gabriel!” she cried exasperatedly, sounding very much like his mother.

Gabriel attempted to explain again. “Nathalie, you don’t understand! I had to make it seem like I was searching for Emilie, not hiding her!”

“And may I ask why?” Nathalie asked sourly.

Gabriel was struck speechless for a few seconds.

“Why?!” he repeated, a hint of mania in his voice. “Nathalie, you know damn well why! If I told Adrien what really happened, he would find out that I keep his mom in a glass coffin in a butterfly garden, and that I have a side gig as Hawk Moth!”

“Maybe it’s time he found out!” 

“No, it’s not time he found out!” retorted Gabriel. “It’ll be time for Adrien to find out once I gain the Ladybug and Cat Miraculouses and bring Emilie back!”

“Gabriel, open your eyes!” urged Nathalie. “You’ve been Hawk Moth for four years, and you’re no closer to getting those Miraculouses than when you first started!”

“Are you doubting my abilities to ensure the return of my wife?” Gabriel said through gritted teeth.

“Maybe I am!” responded Nathalie defiantly. 

Gabriel sighed. “Look - Adrien and I don’t have the most stable relationship to begin with, you know that. If he finds out I’m Hawk Moth, he may never speak to me again!”

“Give him your reasoning!” said Nathalie. “I’m sure if he knew why you started doing this, he’d understand!”

“That’s just it!” Gabriel shouted. “Adrien had too kind a heart for his own good! He’d never be able to justify threatening innocent people for the sake of one person, no matter who that one person was! He’s too... noble.”

“Well if that’s the case, you need to change your approach!” Nathalie said.

“How?!”

“I don’t know, find some other way to bring back Emilie!” she yelled.

“There is no other way to bring Emilie back!” Gabriel yelled in return.

“What about the Guardian?!” 

“The Guardian is Ladybug!!”

“So?!”

“So, I don’t think she’d be too keen to buddy up with Paris’s tormentor all of a sudden!”

“Maybe if you explained your reasoning!!”

“SHE’D NEVER LISTEN!! AND IF SHE DID, IT WOULD JUST BE THE SAME ISSUE WITH EXPLAINING IT TO ADRIEN!!”

“What do you propose, then?!” asked Nathalie angrily.

“I propose we continue doing what we’ve always done!!” answered Gabriel, kicking one of the chairs in Nathalie’s office out of frustration. 

“We can’t!” interjected Nathalie. “You’re getting nowhere and you’re alienating your son! I really wish you’d tell him yourself rather than let him find out by snooping around!”

“I told you, I’ve already destroyed all the evidence of Emilie’s disappearance being connected to me!” said Gabriel, his voice cracking.

“You can’t be sure of that!” said Nathalie. “You’ve slipped up before! I think you should be honest with Adrien and consider a different approach!”

“NO!” Gabriel screamed, his usually neat hair now frayed. “ADRIEN WILL STOP ME!! I WON’T LET ANYONE STOP ME!! NOT MY SON, NOT LADYBUG, NOT CHAT NOIR, NOT YOU!! I WILL BRING EMILIE BACK IF IT KILLS ME!! AND I WILL BRING HER BACK MY WAY!! I AM SICK OF YOUR SUGGESTIONS!! IF NOT FOR YOUR FOOLISH MOLLYCODDLING OVER ADRIEN BEING SAFE, I WOULD HAVE SUCCEEDED IN GETTING THE MIRACULOUSES BY NOW!! BRINGING EMILIE BACK IS THE ONLY WAY TO KEEP ADRIEN SAFE!! I - AM - DOING - ALL - THIS - FOR - HIM!!”

There was silence, only perpetrated by Gabriel’s heavy breathing. Nathalie’s eyes were wide and wet.

“You’re not doing this for Adrien,” she said softly. “You’re doing this for yourself.”

All of a sudden, Nathalie’s expression hardened into a glare - the same glare that Adrien had given Gabriel less than an hour earlier. Before Gabriel could say a word, Nathalie marched over to her desk, yanked open a drawer, snatched out a file of papers, and shut the drawer again before making her way back to Gabriel. She shoved the papers to his chest, giving him a death stare all the while.

“Nathalie, what are you doing?” Gabriel asked hoarsely.

“Gabriel Agreste,” said Nathalie, choking a bit on the words, “I hereby resign as your secretary.”

Gabriel scoffed. “Nathalie, you can’t be serious.”

As if seeing this as a challenge, Nathalie all but ripped off the Peacock Miraculous and announced, “Duusu, I renounce you.”

The kwami confused face transformed into one of shock before she disappeared. Gabriel’s hearbeat quickened - Nathalie wasn’t kidding.

“Don’t be stupid, Nathalie,” he said, trying to reason with the woman who, up until now, had been his assistant. “I need your help! I can’t do this without you!”

“I though that if not for my ‘foolish mollycoddling over Adrien being safe’, you would’ve succeeded in getting the Miraculouses by now,” said Nathalie acidly. 

Gabriel sighed. “I’m sorry I said those things. I want you to stay.”

“Haven’t you listened to The Rolling Stones, Gabriel?” asked Nathalie. “You can’t always get what you want.”

Panic seeped its way into Gabriel’s mind as he watched Nathalie descend the steps towards the front entrance. She opened the door on the left, but turned back to him before walking through it. A few tears travelled down to her chin.

“I’ll consider coming back once sort out your life, your supervillain alter ego, your handling of Emilie’s current state, and your relationship with your son,” she called out shakily.

And with that, Nathalie Sancoeur departed Agreste Mansion.

Gabriel did not move - Nathalie was sure to return any second now, admitting to her idiocy of abandoning him and Adrien.

After ten minutes had passed, Gabriel still hadn’t lost hope - even if Nathalie wasn’t coming back because of him or Adrien, she’d left all her stuff there! Surely she’d at least come back for her stuff!

It took Gabriel Agreste half an hour of staring at his own front door to realize that Nathalie was never coming back.

He was alone.

Part 5 of my Zusammen AU! 

Hi guys! This here short story is my first participation in Adrigami Week! I was planning on posting it yesterday, seeing as it’s following the “Alternate First Meeting” prompt, but the time got away from me. Idk if it’s still eligible for the official reblog or not, but I still had a blast writing it all the same. Enjoy! (Contains very mild profanity)

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Her lip was bleeding. For whatever reason, Kagami chose to focus on this minute aspect out of all the other injuries she’d sustained. She dabbed it with a paper towel.

Kagami couldn’t recall how she’d gotten like this. There was so much she couldn’t recall, and the staggering immensity of all her forgotten experiences had weighed down on her for so long that when she found herself in a bathroom without a clue as to how she’d gotten there, she was able to handle the newfound situation better than someone who hadn’t been through what she had.

The only thing that confused Kagami was that her clothes were in perfect condition, despite her face being bloody and streaked with dirt. In fact, they looked as though they’d just been sewn by a master tailor. 

She brushed the puzzlement aside - she couldn’t linger here in this mysterious bathroom. Lingering got you killed.

The door opened easily at her touch, and Kagami examined the bedroom that it led into. The walls were painted in an eye-catching shade of purple, but the bed itself was small and plain. Kagami also noticed that there was no furniture other than a small nightstand and that the window was broken. It framed the outside world in jagged glass.

This aforementioned outside world was cloudy and bleak. Based on how damp the street appeared, Kagami concluded it must’ve rained recently. The buildings matched the clouds in their shade of gray, with windows just as broken as the one Kagami was using as an observation point. No street signs were visible. No vehicles, no animals, no people. Not even wind.

Kagami couldn’t care less about the lack of other individuals; her attention was pinpointed on the crowbar leaning casually against the building opposite. Without a second’s hesitation, she kicked away the rest of the glass and crawled expertly out of the window.

She didn’t know how she knew there’d be a fire escape, but resolved not to ponder on it, because every second she didn’t have the crowbar was a second where it could fall into the possession of someone else. Crowbars were tools; tools were extremely helpful.

By the time Kagami had raced down the stairs leading to the ground, she could notice how old and rusty the crowbar was. In retrospect, it probably wouldn’t be much use against some of the more contemporary weapons others owned, but in times like these, Kagami would take anything she could get.

In no time, she had dashed across the street and grasped the crowbar in her right hand. Flakes of deceased metal fell to the ground like rotten snow as she twirled it experimentally. Even if it fell apart in combat, it was nevertheless pretty maneuverable. 

“Drop it.”

Kagami turned around instead, searching for the voice’s master. She found the man in question stepping out the adjacent alleyway. His face was hidden under an old halloween mask, but Kagami could see he was wearing a green rain jacket and pointing a pistol in her direction.

Was it a pistol? Further examination led Kagami to realize it was no such thing; it was a water gun, and she almost pitied the hopeless idiot who brandished it at her.

“I said drop it!” the man shouted, though not very loudly.

“You know that’s not a real gun, right?” Kagami asked nonchalantly, deciding to break the truth to him.

The man lowered the toy firearm and hung his head. “Damn it.”

“Wait, you already knew?” said Kagami in disbelief. “Why on Earth would you use a water gun instead of, I don’t know, an actual one?”

“I’m a pacifist,” admitted the man, sounding guilty. “I’m a believer of nonviolence.”

“I don’t know if you’ve heard, but nonviolence fell out of fashion a while back,” said Kagami, not knowing where she’d heard it from.

“Well, I always favored the old styles over the new,” the man said. “You hungry? I’ve got some food.”

Kagami’s mouth fell open in spite of herself. Who did this airhead think he was? You didn’t just go around offering people food. But before she’d even responded, he started walking over to her, removing his mask in the process.

Based off his recent actions, Kagami was expecting him to look innocent and tame, and she was not disappointed. However, she hadn’t foreseen blond hair and green eyes. She hadn’t expected him to look this... well, attractive.

“I’m Adrien, by the way,” he said, plopping his butt on the pavement and taking off his previously concealed backpack. “What’s your name?”

“I’m not about to tell you my name!” Kagami cried exasperatedly. “I know nothing about you!”

Adrien, who’d previously been busy unpacking, looked up at Kagami closely for the first time. His eyes widened after locking with hers and he dropped the box of Ritz crackers he’d been taking out.

After a few uncomfortable seconds, Kagami demanded, “What?”

Adrien flinched violently and faced the ground, blushing. “Nothing.”

“Why were you staring at me for so long?” persisted Kagami.

“N-No reason!” Adrien stammered embarrassedly. 

“Then why were you doing it?”

“I don’t know!”

Kagami decided not to push the topic and begrudgingly sat down; she hadn’t realized how hungry she was until now.

“So...” began Adrien slowly, seeming to regain some of his previous placidity. “I never did learn your name.”

“We’re not there yet,” Kagami grumbled, snatching a plastic-wrapped sandwich out of his hands.

“Well, what are you doing ‘round these parts?” Adrien asked curiously, putting his chin in his hands.

“None of your business,” snapped Kagami, losing some of her intimidation skills to a mouthful of grilled cheese.

“How’s the food?”

“Awful,” Kagami replied, even though it was delicious.

Adrien laughed hard. “You’re funny!”

“No, I’m not.”

“Oh, but you are!” 

“What’s your problem?” asked Kagami sternly. “You know nothing about me, I could’ve killed you without hesitation as soon as you came over here!”

“And yet you didn’t!” Adrien pointed out cheerfully.

Kagami took a deep breath, trying to keep her temper in check. “Adrien, wasn’t it?”

Adrien nodded and smiled, seeming delighted that she’d remembered his name.

“Adrien, I don’t know what miracle allowed you to survive for this long, but in our society’s current state, you might not be around much longer. I suggest you drop this puppy dog attitude and learn to fend for yourself.”

“Why learn to fend for myself when we can fend for each other?” asked Adrien earnestly.

The sincereness of this question, contrasting with the playfulness Adrien had exhibited, caught Kagami off guard for a moment, though she soon regained her bearings.

“Adrien, no offense, but you’d be dead weight,” she stated. “Even if I wanted to stick around with you, my memory kinda wipes itself clean every six hours or so, only holding on to the most treasured information - my name, my personality, how to speak, how to read and write, knowing what stuff is, and the like.”

“No way!” exclaimed Adrien, before Kagami could continue. “I have the same thing! That’s why I started a diary!”

He zipped open his backpack again and retrieved a worn leather-bound book. Adrien opened it and showed Kagami its messily written contents.

“I originally didn’t remember how to write,” he explained, flipping through some pages to get to the beginning, “but I was able to relearn! It took like a year, though.”

Kagami peered at the even messier scrawl of a younger Adrien. She was shocked to see his name spelled incorrectly with crayon.

“How long’ve you been on your own?” she asked uncertainly.

“About twenty years, I think,” Adrien answered dismissively. “I can’t know for certain, I didn’t relearn how to understand a calendar until someone took me in when I was... fourteen, maybe?”

“Someone took you in?” inquired Kagami.

Suddenly, Adrien’s face began filled with sorrow and loneliness. “Yeah... yeah, I don’t like thinking about that.”

Noticing how sympathetically Kagami was gazing at him, Adrien quickly plastered his old smile back on. “That doesn’t really matter. Now I’ve got you!”

Kagami hesitated. One of the instincts her memory’d held onto was avoiding people, but Adrien seemed different. He in the same situation she was in, and he’d shown her kindness. Besides, it’d be nice to have a companion, and Adrien’s diary probably contained scores of valuable information to help the duo survive. 

Even if not for all those reasons, there was something else, though Kagami wasn’t sure what it was yet. For whatever reason, Adrien made her feel relaxed, happy even. She didn’t know why, but he did.

“Okay, Adrien,” she said resignedly. “You can stick with me.”

Adrien’s face lit up with gratitude, and before she knew it, Kagami found herself buried in a hug. It was warm and comforting.

“Thank you so much!” Adrien said happily. 

“No problem, Adrien,” sighed Kagami, already having her doubts.

Adrien released her and scooped up his backpack. They both stood up.

“Where are we headed?” he asked.

“West,” responded Kagami mechanically. “It won’t make too much of a difference, but we need all the sunlight we can get.”

The two started to walk. After trekking for about a minute, Adrien spoke again.

“You never did tell me what your name is.”

Kagami smiled softly and rolled her eyes. “It’s Kagami.”

“Kagami,” repeated Adrien thoughtfully. “I like that name.”

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Hey everyone! I’m spending some time off from my Zusammen AU to flesh out the storyline, but in the meanwhile, I’ll be posting a daily Miraculous poem! I plan for most of them to be based around Adrigami, but I’ll probably switch it up now and then with Lukanette. This one here is an Adrigami one from Adrien’s POV. Happy reading!

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Was the world always like this? I don’t 

believe it was.

I don’t believe that the world was always so

bright and colorful before you arrived.

Before you came, the sun was never quite as

warm as it feels today.

Before you came, my life was one of 

endless repetition and pointless logistics;

one of gray clouds and an eternal barrage of

stinging anxiety. 

I was drowning, choking, screaming at myself

time after time after time,

pleading for everything to right itself.

It never did, and I see now that it never had to,

for you repaired my world.

You cradled it in your arms and pulled out the

stress and the hurt and the teetering tower of 

roles I had to fill, expectations I needed to meet.

With a gentle caress of your hand on my face,

you made me smile as I never had. You made the

difficult responsibilities manageable;

they even transformed into enjoyable ones.

Your love is a lens, and my vision isn’t

tainted any longer.

I feel such tenderness towards you that it

grows wings for me and allows me to

sail weightless into a technicolor sky.

No, I don’t think my world was anywhere

near as wonderful as it is now

before you walked into my life.

I don’t think anything was ever so amazing

This story is for the LBSC Spring Challenge, following the prompt “Marinette gets a well-deserved nap”. Hope you enjoy!

By the time Ladybug had army crawled across the neighborhood and onto the deck of the Liberty, she’d lost a lot of blood and her vision was blurring. The boat seemed empty, which was both a good and bad thing: she wouldn’t be seen by Juleka or Anarka, but she wouldn’t be seen by Luka either.

Ladybug was halfway through forming a backup plan when she heard the sound of someone tuning a guitar. She sighed a breath of relief - which brought her a lot of pain in her state - and struggled down the stairs to below the deck.

As she’d expected, Luka was in his room. He jumped at the sound of Ladybug slamming against the floor. 

“Mom? Dad, is that you?”

He turned and yelped in surprise.

“Marinette?!”

Ladybug was fluttering in and out of consciousness, but was able to choke out a few words.

“Need... surgery...”

“What?!” Luka exclaimed.

“Sh-Shrapnel...” stuttered Ladybug. “Tikki, s-spots off.”

Where Ladybug once was, Luka now saw his girlfriend lying in a puddle of blood. Marinette’s kwami hovered over her worriedly. 

“She needs to get the shrapnel removed and the wound stitched!” cried Tikki. 

“The hospital is only a block away!” said Luka urgently.

“N-No,” interjected Marinette feebly.

“Mari, I know you’re a ‘take-care-of-it-yourself’ kind of person, but this is serious!” Luka shouted. “You need a medical professional!”

Marinette gave a weak smile. “All... I need... is you.”

Luka let out a small sob. “You need to get to the hospital.”

“That’ll... draw too much... attention,” gasped Marinette. “Do you... remember... what... I... taught you?”

“But - but I’ve only practiced, and only four times!” protested Luka. “I could make it worse!”

“I... have... the utmost... faith... in you,” Marinette breathed. 

Her eyes slid closed. 

“Marinette?!” Luka called frantically.

“She’s unconscious,” said Tikki. She turned to look at Luka. “Can you remove the shrapnel?”

“I-I don’t know!” cried Luka exasperatedly. “Marinette taught me how to fix wounds in case she or Chat Noir came to me for help! It was one of the first things she taught me after she told me she was Ladybug!”

“SO WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR?!” screamed Tikki.

“I’ve only practiced, and not much!” Luka yelled.

“Luka, listen to me - if we do nothing, Marinette could die!”

And suddenly, the scenario flashed before Luka’s eyes - Marinette’s parents and friends weeping, burying her beneath the tree she’d always sit under to sketch designs, himself lingering behind at the funeral to stare blankly at her headstone. 

“Okay,” he said shakily, wiping the tears from his eyes. “Okay, I’ll do it.”

()()()()

Marinette awoke feeling like she’d been put through a juicer. She groaned and felt her abdomen, which was wrapped in gauze. It stung as if she had been attacked by a vicious insect.

“Mari!”

She turned her head, but her vision was instantly blocked by Luka’s shirt. His arms wound their way around her back and the kiss followed after.

“How are you feeling?” he asked after their lips parted.

“Better.” said Marinette, nodding. “You did amazing.”

“I was a nervous wreck the whole time,” Luka laughed tearily. “What even happened?”

“I’m gonna tell you everything,” Marinette sighed, “but I’m beat. I think I need to get a little sleep first.”

Luka smiled. “Of course.”

He kissed her lightly on the forehead and went back to his seat across from her bed. 

The setting sun illuminated the city of Paris with a warm orange glow, and although the rest of Adrien’s friends had gone home already, Kagami had made the proposition that the two of them should take a walk along the Seine before night fell. Adrien felt inclined to agree, seeing as he had canceled several of their previous dates for superhero reasons, and even though he’d since told Kagami of his identity as Chat Noir and she’d acted as though the date cancellations didn’t bother her, Adrien could see beneath the happy facial expression she put on to find the disappointment. 

It was only fair to partially make it up to Kagami by taking a walk with her - besides, the weather was fantastic. There weren’t many people out. They’d stopped by a little cafe they enjoyed going to and purchased coffees for themselves. The atmosphere was near-perfect.

Kagami didn’t say anything until they approached the Eiffel Tower.

“Adrien?”

He turned his head towards hers. “Yeah?”

She opened her mouth, but then closed it again. “Never mind.”

“What is it?” Adrien asked.

“I don’t want to intrude upon your privacy,” said Kagami flatly.

“Kagami, anything you want to ask me, I’ll tell you the answer.”

Kagami stared into his eyes and sighed. “What happened to your mother?”

This was not what Adrien had expected. It was now his turn to sigh.

“I wish I could tell you,” he said, “but the truth is, I don’t know myself.”

“She just disappeared?” asked Kagami. 

Adrien sighed again. “Not exactly.”

He stopped walking. Kagami stopped as well, gazing at him with a concerned expression. Adrien looked back gravely.

“What I’m about to tell you, I haven’t told anyone,” he said solemnly. “Not Nino, not Marinette, not any of my friends. I’m not ready for them to know yet, so you don’t repeat this to anyone, okay?”

Kagami nodded. Adrien sighed a third time.

“I was at a photoshoot with Nathalie. Father said he couldn’t make it, said he had some important business to attend to. After we’d wrapped up, we returned to see police cars outside my house. Someone had tried to assassinate my father.”

Kagami let out a small gasp. 

“He was fine,” Adrien continued, starting to walk again, with Kagami joining him. “He’d knocked out the would-be assassinator and took his gun, tied him up so he couldn’t escape.”

“Who was it?” Kagami asked fearfully.

“A mentally disturbed fan of his,” said Adrien. “I never did learn his name, but Father had apparently had experience with him in the past. The fan started getting paranoid, said my father was stealing his designs. Anyways, according to my father, the fan opened fire on the house. Father told Mother to run, and so she ran.”

After ten seconds of silence, Kagami said, “That’s all you ever found out?”

Adrien nodded. “She never came home.”

A few more seconds passed.

“I’m so sorry,” said Kagami. “I really am. Nobody ever found out about the assassination attempt?”

“Nope,” said Adrien, sniffing. “It was gonna be on the news, but Father made a few deals to keep it from going public. Said that someone trying to shoot him was bad publicity. All anybody ever found out was that my mother had vanished off the face of the Earth.”

“Did you ever, like, hate the shooter?” Kagami asked softly.

“Strangely enough, no,” said Adrien contemplatively. “I felt sorry for him, actually. I mean, yeah, I did kinda loath him, cause he was indirectly responsible for my mother’s disappearance, but you should’ve seen the guy. Most pitiful person I’ve ever seen. At his criminal trial, he actually asked to be put on death row.”

“He what?”

“I know, right?” Adrien said. “In the end, he received a fifteen year prison sentence.”

They walked in silence for a while, letting Adrien’s tale soak in. After a couple minutes, Kagami spoke.

“Would you like to hear about my father?”

“Sorry?”

“My father,” repeated Kagami. “You told me about your mom, so I should tell you about my dad.”

Adrien had a bad feeling that the story of Kagami’s father would be a sad one indeed, but got the impression that Kagami wanted to tell him. So, he voiced that.

“Do you want to tell me?”

Kagami took a deep breath. “It might be nice to get it off of my chest, but I wouldn’t want to burden you with the story if you’re not willing.”

“I wouldn’t be burdened,” said Adrien quickly. “In fact, I was curious as to why I’ve only seen your mother.”

“I used to live with my father,” Kagami said sorrowfully. “He was a painter. When I was four years old, he took me to an art museum in Sapporo, which was where we lived in Japan. I remember my feelings of awe at the sight of such beautiful artwork, and I asked him whether we could go there every day. We did not end up going there daily, but the two of us would head there every Tuesday, because they’d have a guest speaker there on that day of the week.”

They were crossing the Pont Marie now. The sun was only a half-circle in the distance.

“When I was nine,” Kagami went on, “he experienced his first psychotic break. He was convinced that he was on a boat that was sinking, and he was admitted to a psychiatric institution the following day. The doctors told my mother that my father possessed a previously unknown psychological disorder, and that he may need to stay at the institution permanently.”

“Is he still there?” Adrien asked worriedly.

Kagami shook her head. “No, um, he stayed at the institution for another five years. My mother and I visited him regularly. Most of the time, he didn’t recognize us and mistook us for someone else. Sometimes he didn’t see us at all. His last night at the institution, he recognized me. He let me ride piggyback on his shoulders, like he used to. While we were walking, he said to me, ‘Gami, look at those sculptures! Aren’t they exquisite?’”

Kagami let out a shaky breath. “There were no sculptures.”

“Then what happened?” asked Adrien.

A single tear slid down Kagami’s cheek. “Our visit ended, we went home, and the next morning, he hung himself with his own clothes.”

“Oh my god,” Adrien said, horrified. “I’m so sorry.”

Kagami wiped her face. “The last words he said to me were, ‘Tomorrow’s Tuesday. I hear they’re going to have a very prolific photographer at the museum. Won’t that be fun?’”

More tears spilled out of Kagami’s eyes, and she hugged Adrien at the same time he hugged her. They stood there for what felt like days.

When they finally parted, Adrien asked, “Is that why you moved to Paris?”

Kagami nodded.

“How did you survive something like that?”

Kagami gave him a watery smile. “I met you.”

Adrien could almost hear his heart go ping. He smiled back and placed his lips on hers.

“I’m never going to leave you,” he whispered into her mouth.

It was nighttime now. The stars were unusually bright in the sky as Adrien and Kagami made their way through the streets of Paris. They were nearing the Louvre when Kagami pointed to their right.

“Look!” 

Adrien turned. She was pointing at the Pont des Arts.

“Do you want to go that way?” he asked her.

Kagami nodded. 

As they crossed the bridge, Kagami said, “Did you know couples used to attach padlocks with their initials carved into them on this bridge?”

“That does sound familiar, yeah,” said Adrien. “Wouldn’t they throw the key into the Seine?”

“Yep,” said Kagami. “Too bad all those locks posed a safety hazard due to extra weight on the bridge and the city prevented other people from doing it. Otherwise, I would’ve brought one with me.”

Adrien stopped walking. “Hang on.”

Without warning, he trotted off in the opposite direction.

“Adrien?” called Kagami. “What are you doing?”

“Just hang on a sec!” Adrien called back.

Kagami saw a flash of green light. Another flash came about five seconds later, and she saw Adrien come running back.

“What was that?” Kagami asked.

Adrien only smiled. “I’ll tell you in the morning. It’s late now. Let’s go home.”

===========

Long after Adrien and Kagami had returned to their respective dwellings, just as the sun was preparing to rise after a good night’s sleep, a woman decided to walk across the Pont des Arts. She was used to getting up early in the morning and enjoyed picking up any litter night owls had left behind. However, when she got to the bridge, she didn’t see any litter. She saw something quite different.

Someone had carved something into the bridge’s wood. The letters weren’t particularly large, but passersby would have a hard time not seeing them.

A+K.

The woman frowned. She wondered who those two were.

An Adrigami piece for the end of monday. Hope you enjoyed it! (For those who don’t know, “zusammen” is German for “together”.

Hi again! I’ve decided to build on this for my own AU! 

Hey guys! This is my second work for Adrigami Week, following the “Power Couple” prompt. I was originally going to write this following its own self-contained storyline, but after finishing Crowbar for Adrigami Week’s “Alternate Meeting” prompt, I realized the story that I’d started there hadn’t really finished. So, with that, I bring you Crowbar 2! Happy reading! (Contains some profanity)

As they trekked into the evening, Kagami learned some things about her new companion, Adrien:

He was very talkative and sociable, providing information about himself without Kagami having to ask any questions.

He was respectful and attentive; even though he did virtually all of the talking, Adrien seemed genuinely interested in Kagami, and asked her questions about herself despite Kagami refusing to answer.

Adrien not only remembered how to read, write, and tell time thanks to his diary. While they were walking, he told Kagami that he remembered how to cook certain recipes, mimic the sounds of different songbirds, tie his shoes, and give himself a haircut. Kagami was envious - although she didn’t hate her long hair, it was excruciatingly uncomfortable during the summer months.

He relished bad jokes. The only reason that Kagami had laughed at his doctor joke was because it hadn’t made an ounce of sense. 

His backpack contained several helpful items: some food, cookware, extra clothes, a flashlight, batteries, matches, night vision goggles (Kagami nearly squealed in delight at the sight of those), binoculars, a hatchet (Adrien said he only used it for chopping wood), toiletries, sleeping bags, and a tent. 

Adrien would occasionally gaze at her for enlengthened periods of time, but always looks away upon realizing that Kagami noticed.

The duo had reached a lazy river by the time the stars appeared. Adrien gave an overdramatic yawn and smacked his lips.

“Well, no point in trying to cross it this late. I say I make us some dinner and we camp here for the night.”

“I think we should keep going,” Kagami disagreed.

Adrien raised an eyebrow. “Why?”

“We’re too exposed,” said Kagami. “This location’s too out in the open; settling here makes us an easy target.”

“For who?” Adrien asked.

“For anyone! Not everybody’s as accepting as you and I are, Adrien!”

“Kagami, come on. We’ve walked at least ten miles, and we haven’t seen a soul. I think we’ll be safe.”

“We’ve walked at least ten what?” asked Kagami.

“Miles. They’re units of distance. I can teach you about them after dinner.”

“We have to keep moving!” Kagami objected. “Even if we weren’t in imminent danger in this spot, my memory is! My memory resets whenever I fall asleep!”

A brief silence followed this information, during which Adrien looked confused and downtrodden. However, his face brightened up soon after.

“I know!” he said eagerly, removing his backpack and unzipping it. “You can start your own diary! That way, you can record everything that transpired during the day!”

He unearthed a journal similar to his own and tossed it to Kagami. She turned it over in her hands.

“This still doesn’t counteract outside threats,” she said seriously.

Adrien groaned. “Kagami, just trust me on this. Nothing bad is going to happen while we’re at this riverbank!”

Kagami’s eyes widened. “You jinxed it.”

“Kagami, please -”

“You jinxed it!” she cried exasperatedly. “Now something bad’s definitely going to happen!”

After a brief pause, Adrien said, “If that’s the case, don’t you at least want it to happen after you’ve eaten?”

“You know what?” said Kagami, giving up. “Fine. Let’s see how good you are at cooking, Adrien.”

Adrien beamed. “You won’t be disappointed.”

In no time, Adrien had gotten out his cooking equipment and started mixing ingredients. 

“What are you making?” Kagami asked, trying not to sound too interested.

“French onion soup,” responded Adrien. “I’m afraid we only get a serving each. Don’t be too disappointed when you crave seconds.”

He winked at her; Kagami felt her face warming up and pointedly looked away. 

She was later thankful she did, or else she might’ve never spotted the tips of someone’s fingers withdraw from around a solitary tree.

“Adrien!” she whisper-shouted.

“I’ve only just started, it won’t be ready for another half hour,” he complained.

“No - there’s someone here!” she hissed, eye-pointing at the tree.

Adrien turned to stare at the tree and shrugged. “Looks fine to me.”

Of course, that was the moment when the hooded figure jumped from the shadows and punched Adrien in the jaw.

Kagami reacted quickly, springing to her feet and waving her crowbar in the intruder’s direction, making them jump back. They sprinted headfirst at Kagami, grabbing her by the wrist and slamming her to the ground. Kagami rebounded by curling her foot around her opponent’s ankle and sending them crashing into the cooking equipment. Adrien let out a moan of despair.

“Guys, you’re making a mess!” he shouted. “Can’t we set our differences aside and just talk it out?”

“There is no talking it out!” yelled Kagami, who was trapped in a headlock. “I could really use your help right now, Adrien!”

Adrien grabbed the closest object within reach (a frying pan) and took a swing at the opponent. The hooded figure released Kagami and backflipped out of the way of the pan. 

Kagami retrieved her crowbar from the ground and tried to ram it into the intruder’s shoulder, but he swiped left and took a jab at her ribcage. Adrien flung himself on top of the intruder’s arm, effectively keeping Kagami’s ribcage intact, and kicked the intruder in the stomach, sending the hooded figure reeling back in agony. Kagami seized the moment of the intruder’s distraction to grip Adrien’s pan and slam it as hard as she could onto the intruder’s foot.

The intruder made no reaction to the impact of a frying pan on their foot.

“The hell?!” Kagami vented. “What type of boots is this guy wearing?!”

She soon found out; the intruder accomplished an acrobatic spin into the air and landed a kick across Kagami’s face. It felt like someone had thrown a brick at her. 

For a moment, all Kagami could focus on was the immense pain. Feeling her cheekbone, she deciphered that nothing was broken, but the blow had certainly drawn blood, as she examined her hand stained liquid red. Kagami was brought back to reality by the force of the intruder toppling into her.

“Sorry!” apologized Adrien, evidently having caused the intruder to collide with Kagami.

The intruder got up quickly, but instead of going for Adrien or Kagami, he dashed towards Adrien’s backpack. Realization dawned on Kagami - this person was here for their stuff.

“Hey! That’s mine!” exclaimed Adrien, rushing at the intruder as they grabbed his packpack and made a mad dash for the river.

Adrien was able to tackle the intruder before he got to the water’s edge. Kagami ran over to join the wrestling figures on the ground. She lifted the intruder to his feet by the crook of his neck, allowing Adrien to reclaim his backpack, and shoved the hooded figure as hard as she could into the river.

The river was deeper than Kagami had assumed, and neither she nor Adrien saw him for a few seconds, but then they spotted him further along the bank, being carried downstream by the powerful current. Within ten seconds, the attacker had disappeared from view.

“Who was that?” Adrien asked, sounding out of breath. 

“A bandit,” replied Kagami shortly. “Someone looking to get lucky from robbing anybody they find. There are tons of them.”

After a temporary silence, Adrien said, “That was scary.”

“Well, it’s over now,” said Kagami comfortingly, giving Adrien a pat on the back.

“I’ve never fought anyone before,” admitted Adrien, picking up some of the cooking equipment.

“You did decently well for your first time.”

Adrien gave Kagami a half-smile. “Thanks.”

It took a long time for Adrien to clean the cooking materials and fix dinner - since the French onion soup had been lost in the scuffle, they ate tamales instead. 

“You know,” Kagami munched, “these are actually incredible. You’ve got a gift, Adrien.”

Adrien smiled broadly for the rest of the meal.

\\\\\

The police station was a relatively unimpressive brick-clad building wedged in between a free medical clinic and a store that sold clothes made from recycled materials. Adrien found it strange that he’d never been to the station before, although he’d visited the establishments sandwiching it - to the health clinic for a routine checkup, and to the clothing store to buy Kagami a Christmas present.

The place was also rather quiet for a police station. It was inhabited only by a handful of officers, none of whom Adrien knew (Lieutenant Raincomprix was stationed in a separate arrondissement). The building’s ambience made him nervous, and his uneasiness only increased when he became aware that every person in the room was staring at him. Kagami opened her mouth to speak, but she was cut off by one of the officers.

“You’re Adrien Agreste!” he declared excitedly. 

Adrien wracked his brain for a possible response. Should he deny it? Should he pretend like he’s Felix? Should he and Kagami run off? Should he make no reply at all? 

“Yeah!” said Adrien uncomfortably. “It is I!” 

My god, what’s the matter with me? he thought to himself as he watched the officer’s face light up with anticipation.

“I knew it!” the man cried. “I’d recognize your face anywhere!”

And because he was experiencing major brain damage, Adrien replied, “Good!”

Fortunately, Kagami swooped in and saved him from more embarrassment.

“Excuse me, sir? We’d like to speak with some of your detectives regarding the Emilie Agreste case.”

“Of course!” said the police officer. “Anything for the excellent Adrien Agreste!”

If he hadn’t known better, Adrien would’ve thought he’d heard Wayhem talking. 

The officer led them into the back of the building, where some offices were located. He stopped outside a door marked Chief Inspector Joseph Beaumont. 

“Here you are,” the policeman said. “As far as I know, Beaumont was the one in charge of the Emilie Agreste case.”

“Was?” asked Adrien worriedly. The officer’s smile slowly faded.

“Listen,” he told them, “I don’t know all the details about the case, so I’m not sure where it currently stands, but neither me nor any of my fellow officers have heard about any new developments regarding Emilie Agreste. Beaumont can explain the situation more.”

The officer gave both Adrien and Kagami firm pats on the shoulder before striding back to the front room.

Adrien turned to Kagami. “Was?”

“It could be nothing,” said Kagami, though to Adrien, she didn’t seem sure.

They both knocked on the door at the same time. They stole a quick glance at one another before it opened, revealing a tall man with dark brown skin and a goatee. 

“May I help you?” asked the man inquisitively. 

“You’re Inspector Beaumont, right?” asked Kagami.

“Yes, that would be me,” said Beaumont politely.

“Good,” said Kagami. “I’m Kagami Tsurugi, and this is my boyfriend, Adrien Agreste.”

Adrien gave Inspector Beaumont a little wave, which the detective returned. 

“What can I do for the two of you?” he asked.

“We have some questions about my mother’s disappearance,” said Adrien, as confidently as he could.

Beaumont’s brow furrowed. “The Emilie Agreste case?”

Both Adrien and Kagami nodded.

“Why?” asked Beaumont. “Did you find something?”

“Find something?” repeated Kagami. “What do you mean, find something?“

“I ask if you’ve found something because I haven’t,” explained Beaumont. “The Emilie Agreste case went cold a month after Agreste vanished.”

Adrien’s heart sank.

“It went cold?” asked Kagami. “A month after she disappeared?” 

“That’s fast, I know,” Beaumont sighed. “But we didn’t have any starting material. No clues, no information, nothing. We picked up a few leads from people who had claimed to’ve seen her, but it was all false. It always ended up being someone else, or the sighter had made up the story in hopes of some kind of reward.”

“B-But...” stammered Adrien desperately, “but my father said that you didn’t think she’d left the country! That she might be near the Riviera!”

Beaumont’s face wrinkled with confusion. “Did he? Why on Earth would he say that? Unless he hired a private detective... but no, I have connections to Paris’s independently operating detectives, news would’ve reached me.”

“Do you at least have people on the lookout?” Kagami asked.

“Well, of course!” said Beaumont immediately, appearing slightly offended. “If there’s somebody missing, I’m going to have my detectives on alert until they’re not missing anymore, but so far, we’ve covered almost the whole country and haven’t found a thing.”

“What about neighboring countries?” suggested Kagami. “Spain? Germany? Belgium? She could’ve somehow crossed the Channel and made it to Britain or Ireland!”

“Listen,” Beaumont said in a low voice, “I share your concern, and I wish to find Emilie Agreste as well, but we can’t just go picking apart the whole of Europe in the absence of any clues whatsoever.”

Upon seeing the duo’s downtrodden faces, he added, “Don’t worry! I’ll heighten the search, get more detectives on the case, scour for any leads! Regarding your father and his words about the Riviera, you’re gonna need to ask him about that. Maybe find out what Emilie was doing in the days up to the assassination attempt?”

Beaumont opened the door. “I’m sorry I couldn’t’ve been more help.”

===========

As Adrien and Kagami walked back in the direction of Agreste Mansion, Adrien asked the question that had been gnawing at him ever since they talked with Inspector Beaumont.

“Why’d he lie to me?”

He abruptly ceased walking and collapsed onto a park bench, with Kagami joining him moments later.

“Hey,” she said, curling her right arm around his waist. “I’m sure there’s some very reasonable explanation for all of this.”

“H-He said that they thought she was at the R-Riviera,” Adrien stuttered. “He s-said that.”

“I don’t know,” said Kagami, rubbing Adrien’s back. “Perhaps he just didn’t want you to worry.”

“Yeah, look how that turned out,” laughed Adrien humorlessly. 

Part 3 of my Zusammen AU!