Tenshi - Chapter 4
Holy crap! 50 kudos and 18 comments? You guys are too kind! It makes me feel so valid to know what I'm doing is liked 3
Here's the next chapter! Please feel free to comment questions and such, I'll definitely respond :)
PS: I hope y'all can appreciate the irony of the situation lmao
FRIDAY MORNING
Adrien kept his stare at the ceiling of the car as he contemplated the conversation with his father. He couldn't believe that he had been allowed to attend the party, and had voiced his surprise to his father. Gabriel's response was that he had been thinking about it, and believed Adrien was ready.
Adrien was pretty sure the only reason he was allowed to go to Marinette's party was because Ladybug was now in the equation now. Last night he had had a pitiful 4 hours sleep, attempting to come up with a plan on what to do.
The only certain thing he knew was that he had to confront Ladybug about it. There was no excluding that. Their next patrol was Sunday night - he would bring it up then.
Everything else was unknown. Should he ask Marinette about Ladybug? Did she know her in real life? The idea that his Lady had told someone that wasn't him her identity caused his being to rear in outrage. He tried to distract himself.
Should he scold Marinette for telling Ladybug about it? If they were such good friends, he mused, perhaps Marinette would have realised that she would do something so thoughtless. Perhaps they weren't good friends, and Ladybug had come across Marinette by chance?
The thought that Marinette had been upset enough that Ladybug would do this made his heart hurt.
A grunt from the Gorilla alerted Adrien to the fact that they had arrived, and with a quick word of thanks he was out of the car and in the fresh morning air.
The sun was high and the sky clear, reinvigorating Adrien's steps as he realised he got to tell Marinette that he could come to her party. Knowing this would make her as happy as it made him brought a bright smile to his face as he climbed the stairs and pushed open the heavy doors.
He began to make his way towards the classroom, hoping to meet Nino there early. He tended to arrive at various times, due to his habit of staying up too late the night before. The murmur of students meandering around the halls was comforting, and he entered the classroom with a chirpy "Good morning!"
The only other students present were Sabrina, who seemed to sleep there, and Marinette.
Marinette had had a rough night. Panicky about her conversation with Gabriel, she stayed up after she got back, worrying about the smallest details in the conversation. Tikki had been less than helpful - determined not to lie, she still tried to stay positive - but "I'm sure everything will work out" can only go so far.
Needless to say, when Adrien entered, Marinette was beyond nervous. Knowing Adrien thought she was none the wiser, she forced a smile and replied, "Morning, Adrien," Sabrina responded in turn.
Knowing Alya was less than 5 minutes away gave Marinette comfort, and she found herself asking about his evening as he took his seat in front of her.
"Yeah, it was good, but this morning was weird. My father changed his mind for once, if you can believe it." He laughed, bitterness barely there. Marinette laughed along nervously.
"Y-yeah?"
"Yeah, so it turns out I can, in fact, come to your party."
A relieved grin broke out across her face. "R-really? It's okay?"
"Yeah!" He gave her a genuine smile. "I'm looking forward to it!"
With that, Adrien turned around and gave a smile to Rose and Juleka as they walked in, pulling out some of the more difficult maths questions to work through before the bell rang.
Marinette resisted shrieking in happiness as she watched him. It had worked! She wanted to dance in excitement.
Tikki couldn't believe it. Marinette had… succeeded? With a wide smile, she closed her eyes and thanked every god and deity she could think of that the situation hadn't escalated.
奇跡的
よかったですよ
As soon as the bell rang for lunch, an ecstatic Marinette jumped from her seat and dragged Alya out the door, the two of them bound for Marinette's house. The entire way, Marinette babbled on and on about Adrien, and how kind he was, and how kind his father was, and how kind the universe was.
Alya was more than used to this and kept her quiet as she pondered what this would mean for the party. This would mean that Marinette would be sufficiently distracted on the off chance her and Nino talked.
She inwardly snorted. Talked. As if that would happen. At least Marinette would be happy.
And she would be, evident from the way she skipped along the cobblestone sidewalk leading to the bakery. Alya had to walk quickly to catch up.
Ducking into the back door, they ran into the house to grab a quick few things before heading towards the park; more specifically, the place the party would be held tomorrow. It was another gorgeous day, and Marinette prayed the weather would last until the party. She wanted it to be perfect.
Marinette continued to go on and on about Adrien and how perfect and gorgeous he was on the way. Tikki rubbed her temples. Alya must be a saint to put up with this, surely. While she was glad that the Adrien situation had gone as planned, she couldn't help but feel a little twinge of worry that this hadn't given her a chance to learn; to understand.
While she was Ladybug, she seemed to take her partnership with Chat Noir incredibly seriously. However, Tikki could tell that Marinette wasn't handling Chat Noir's adoration properly, which was incredibly upsetting to witness and listen to.
But, as always, she kept her quiet.
The spot at the park Marinette had chosen was incredibly beautiful: a view of the carousel beneath large trees, nearby to some benches should anyone choose to sit up there. Marinette was almost insufferably proud of this prime position: and anyone with any vague appreciation for aesthetics could see why.
"... And the picnic blanket could go here, and Adrien will sit here, and wrap his arms around me…" Alya would go insane if nothing was said to stop her. This was too close to -
"Marinette."
"What?"
"What are you doing, girl?"
"Huh?" Of course Marinette wouldn't understand, Alya had never been opposed to her insistent rants before.
"That won't happen if you don't talk to him." Alya tried to force a joking tone, but she could see Marinette's free expression contort into a grimace.
"What I mean is that he'll never do anything unless he knows how you feel. He's too kind that way," She said, now genuinely apologetic.
"But he can't know!" Marinette forced out the word as if it were poison.
"Marinette, you turn into an incoherent mess every time you're around him. I'm sure it's only a matter of time before he figures you out," Alya replied, kicking some stray leaves left from winter. "Not to mention the posters you have practically wallpapering your room."
Marinette's face hardened. "Well, let's go take them down."
Alya frowned. "I didn't mean that, I just meant -"
"No, let's go. You're right."
Tikki was shocked from her position in Marinette's purse. Of course, unbeknownst to Alya, she had been happy when Alya had interrupted the rant to question her and the logicality of her daydreams.
Was it ending? Did Marinette finally realise that in order for things to change, she couldn't keep doing the same thing?
奇跡的
よかったですよ
FRIDAY NIGHT
Alya decided that she was going to sleep over that night as the party was the next day at noon. Knowing that her rock would be there in the morning to help her organise was a humongous relief for Marinette; and as they walked to the bakery at the end of the day, they discussed and planned how things were going to run in the morning.
Sabine and Tom were as kind to her as ever, and Alya couldn't help but feel relaxed as Marinette flicked to the next episode of Steven Universe. Catching up before the newest season was a high priority.
Of course, being relaxed when Hawkmoth is on the loose is never a good idea.
Screams fractured the air outside the bakery, and Marinette was on her feet in an instant, Alya right behind her. "I gotta get this for the Ladyblog!"
"But…" Marinette trailed off as she watched Alya whip out her phone and immediately begin streaming.
"Hey everybody! Another akuma attack is happening right in the heart of Paris! This reporter will be on the scene ASAP!" She shut off her phone and would've run out the door if not for Marinette pulling her into a tight hug.
"Please, be careful, Alya," Marinette said, worry colouring her voice.
"Of course, girl!" Alya patted her arm before dashing out the door and down the stairs.
As soon as she was sure Alya had left, Tikki flew out of the purse. "Are you ready, Marinette?"
"Of course, Tikki! Spots on!"
Transforming into Ladybug gave Marinette a burst of confidence, every time. The rush of nobody recognising her made her brave, and that bravery was useful in fights.
Once she had transformed, Ladybug flung her yo-yo out the nearest window and flung herself forward, quickly making her way across the rooftops. The screams were coming from East of the bakery, and a quick glance in that direction saw Chat Noir's lithe figure land on the roof she was aiming for.
Landing on the platform, she shot him a quick grin. "Good evening, Chat Noir. What are we dealing with?"
Chat Noir didn't look at her. "Normal akuma - Wicked Blogger. Angry at the latest release of her manga chapter. Changing people to the characters, and they are now wreaking havoc. Akuma is in her phone. Let's go."
He shot away towards the screams, leaving a shocked Ladybug watching his back. "What…?"
Tikki, somewhere, winced. She had forgotten about that. Of course Chat Noir would be upset about her confronting his father. He may be smitten, but he wasn't stupid.
Inwardly sighing, she resolved to let Ladybug deal with it.
Ladybug immediately flew towards Chat Noir, wincing as he didn't wait for her in engaging the obviously upset teen.
"Ladybug! Chat Noir! We will take your miraculouses!" She cackled, her army of characters rising up behind her.
Ladybug decided not to waste any time. She had been causing mayhem long enough. "Lucky charm!"
A poster the size of a building fell out of the air, landing on top of Ladybug. Quickly scrambling out from underneath it, she deciphered that she needed to stick it up.
Hanging it up against something was truly a challenge - pinning it to the building took a lot of effort on Ladybug's part, and the fact that Chat Noir clearly saw her struggling but continued to taunt the villain was stinging.
Chat Noir's normally carefree grin was hard and barely concealing malice. "Why did you get so upset, huh? It's just a stupid chapter, of a stupid manga! Why do non-existent things matter so much to you?"
Hearing this, Ladybug almost stopped in shock. He had never attacked someone so personally before. Attacking their beliefs, their likes, their personality was taboo - they had never talked about it, but it didn't need to be spoken.
Chat Noir almost missed the hurt flashing in her eyes before it was replaced with real anger. "How dare you!" She flung her hands in his direction, light exploding from her fingertips.
Dodging had become second nature to Chat, and maneuvering out of the way was simple. Less simple was dealing with the guilt that had lodged itself in his throat.
"Yoo-hoo! Wicked Blogger!" Ladybug had managed to wrap her yo-yo around the building enough times that it stuck. "What do you think of this?"
The poster showcased a couple, one with dark hair and another with blue hair, kissing passionately whilst in a beautiful field of flowers.
The girl started crying, screaming something about "canon", and Chat Noir took advantage of her hysterics to grab the phone attached to her waist and break it in half, releasing the akuma.
Cleansing the butterfly was almost done subconsciously; thoughts Ladybug's mind were scattering on the idea that Chat Noir might be mad at her. She held up a fist. "Pound -"
Completely ignoring her, Chat walked over to the girl. She was cold and confused, and as Chat went to help her up, she ripped her hand away. "Why… What…"
"You were an akuma. I said some… not kind things to you. Please accept my apology. It is not you I am upset with."
Ladybug heard this and frowned, trying to remember if she'd done something to make him angry. Not recalling anything, she started to get upset. "Hey, Chat Noir -"
"Ladybug!" Alya's voice instinctively made her turn, and as the young reporter ran up to her, Chat Noir grabbed her waist and they shot away.
"Chat Noir, please, this really is unnecessary -"
"Please be quiet." His short tone struck a nerve, and she subconsciously shut her mouth. "I have to talk to you."
Once he believed they were far enough from the reporters, he dropped her to her feet. "I know what you did."
Ladybug frowned. "What are you talking about?"
Chat Noir stared out at the Parisian skyline. The night was clear, and a few stars were visible, dotting the sky. "I know you talked to Gabriel Agreste about his son going to a girl's birthday party.
"I won't ask what possessed you to do that, but I will remind you that it is our duty to keep the people of Paris safe." His face hardened as he turned to look at her. "Actively putting Marinette Dupain-Cheng and Adrien Agreste's family in danger was something I could not overlook."
Ladybug was silent, feeling awfully small as she was criticized by who she thought to be a carefree person. Keeping her hands behind her back as she stared at the cold roof tiles, she contemplated how to respond.
"I didn't mean to put anyone in danger," She said quietly. "Marinette really likes him. She wanted him at the party,"
Finally showing emotion other than distaste, sympathy etched itself into Chat Noir's face. "It doesn't matter. She would have gotten over it. You still shouldn't have put them in danger."
And with that, the realisation that she had put Adrien in danger crashed into her. "I…"
Feeling sick, she covered her mouth with horror. Who else knew about this? Did Hawkmoth? Was he after her friends now, too? Wasn't this the one thing she always tried to prevent?
Angry tears formed in the corners of her eyes.
Chat Noir looked panicked. "No, don't cry, I'm sure nobody else knows…"
That stopped her short, and her watery eyes narrowed. "How do you know, Chat Noir?"
"Uh - well - that's because I'm very good friends with Adrien and he happened to overhear your conversation, and - ah - well, he told me he had seen you. But don't worry! I told him to stop telling people he had seen you, and he said he had only told me, ha…"
Ladybug seemed to accept this as she said no more on it, and he breathed an internal sigh of relief. Footsteps were approaching on the ground below them, and she rolled back her shoulders.
"Well, no point in crying." She gave a wry smile. "It's my birthday tomorrow, after all."
Chat Noir snapped his fingers, remembering something. "That's it! I knew I was forgetting something. I'll have something for patrol, okay?"
Ladybug shook her head, a chuckle leaving her lips despite her internal turmoil. "That's okay, kitty." She readied her yo-yo. "I'll see you then."
"Wait! Ladybug!" Alya's voice reached her from below. "Your birthday is tomorrow?"
Wincing, she went to drop down before Chat Noir grabbed her arm. "You go. I'll deal with her."
Giving him a thankful smile, she threw her yo-yo and disappeared.
AAAAAND DONE. Thank goodness! I started this chapter ages ago and only just felt inspired enough to sit down and finish it.
Happy New Year, everyone! I hope you're all safe and relaxed somewhere.
Speaking of new, what do you guys think of season two so far? I think Rena Rouge is my idol *-*
Next chapter: One of the summary moments happen! More Alya and Nino! Hooray! I think the next chapter's gonna be a short one, so I'm sorry for that. I also managed to lose my sheets of paper in which I'd written the entire plot, which is annoying as heck. At least I have the majority committed to memory.
Also, if any of you feel like being a beta for this, PM me! I've already got the plot, but just someone to read over some housekeeping issues would be awesome.
Love you guys! Thank you!