Here is the 35th oneshot in my Miraculous Revelations series. I am so sorry that this is over a week late and that I took an unannounced week off from writing. Real life and the stresses of it caught up with me a few weeks back and I had to take a break from work. There will come a time in about a month when I will have to place this story on hiatus as I have actual class papers to write, so soon it will be writing for school and not for pleasure unfortunately. I will make it up to y'all with my additional bonus oneshots, 3 of which have been slotted into the list of prompts I have (that list stands at 21 suggested, 7 bonus, and the last two special oneshots), and an addition, special bonus oneshot is in the list for when the time comes. Anyway, this oneshot is another in the long line of oneshots suggested by the same reader who has been as critical to this series and its success as I have been. That is all for now so sit back and enjoy the latest oneshot in this series, Emotions.
Disclaimer: I own nothing related to this show.
Emotions - Marinette gets a notification for the latest post on the Ladyblog and decides to check it out. What she sees is the updated list of akumatized villains. Instead of feeling pride in what she has accomplished, Marinette realizes that she has been the root cause, directly or indirectly, for more than a dozen of the akumas she has fought. This causes Marinette to get very upset because she doesn't understand why she has caused so many akumas. That is until Tikki explains that it is due to the nature of Marinette's miraculous. This mollifies Marinette a little but she has a patrol with Cat Noir in a few hours and is still emotionally raw. That won't cause problems when she sees him, will it?
Emotions
Marinette was sitting at her desk working on an assignment for one of her classes when she got an email notification on her phone. Glancing at it, Marinette smiled at what the email would entail; it was a notification that Alya had just uploaded a new post to the Ladyblog.
Deciding to take a break from her work, Marinette clicked on the email link so that she could view Alya's latest post. Despite Alya's never ending quest to learn who Ladybug was under the mask, something that made Marinette constantly guilty that she couldn't tell her best friend the truth, Marinette still liked to support Alya's passion for citizen journalism. Today was no different as Marinette looked at what Alya had published. However, Marinette was not expecting what Alya had published.
What Marinette had been expecting was a summary of the latest akuma fight she and Cat Noir had had with Frozer, or more likely an analysis of the latest changes in hers and Cat Noir's outfits that happened due to the ice power ups. Instead, Marinette found an updated list of people who had been akumatized, their abilities and powers, the akumatized object, and how they were defeated in the end. It was a long, and in-depth, list of the 50 or so akumatized villains that Marinette had faced during her time as Ladybug.
Normally Marinette would have been intrigued by the list and used it to remember her many fights and triumphs over the evil that Hawk Moth had inflicted upon innocent civilians. However, as Marinette looked down the list, she realized that she was responsible for a shocking number of akumatizations in Paris. It was a lot more than Marinette had thought she had been responsible for.
Feeling bad, Marinette decided to look through the list of akumas and figure out exactly which ones she was responsible for, either as Marinette or as Ladybug, and either directly or indirectly caused them through her actions. Marinette also want to see just how many she had been responsible for because surely she couldn't be responsible for that many? Right? Chloe was the queen of creating akumas after all.
There were of course the akumatized villains that Marinette knew and accepted that she was responsible for. She had allowed her feelings for Adrien and the chance to spend alone time with him get the better of her and had screwed Max out of his dream to represent the school in the Mecha Strike III tournament. This had led to villain known as Gamer, a villain that Marinette accepted full responsibility for creating and had apologized to Max to after they had won the tournament together.
Marinette also accepted that her jealousy had caused her to destroy Lila in front of Adrien because the bitch was lying and trying to steal Adrien from her. That time, Marinette's emotions had gotten the better of her in that instance and that had created Volpina, arguably the most hate filled villain she had ever faced. Regardless, Marinette felt no remorse for what she had done to Lila or in creating Volpina. The girl had deserved to be taken down a peg and if that meant the creation of a powerful and hate filled akuma then so be it. So long as Marinette didn't fall for Volpina's illusions she could defeat that lying bitch anytime they faced each other, should they face each other again that is.
Marinette's love for Adrien had always been an easy way to cause an akuma, something that Marinette had long accepted as an avenue for getting her classmates akumatized. In addition to Gamer and Volpina being caused by Marinette's feelings for Adrien, Riposte too had been a victim of Marinette's feelings for her oblivious classmate. She had been forced to decide who won a close fencing match between them and had subconsciously allowed her feelings for Adrien to influence her decision, which had caused Kagami to become depressed enough to be akumatized.
Even the negative aspects of love for Adrien had caused an akumatization. Marinette's frustration at her unrequited feelings towards Adrien, and of dealing with Cat Noir's feelings for her that she didn't reciprocate, had led to her taking it out on Andre the Ice Cream Man and that had led to him being akumatized into Glaciator. One of the few akumas that Marinette knew she had created and had regretted doing so. Andre hadn't deserved to pay for her frustration that day.
Remembering Glaciator, Marinette realized that frustration and an excessive, uncontrollable, emotional outburst had also been a factor in creating akumas as it had led to Chloe getting akumatized, twice. The first time had been the Antibug incident when Chloe had been trying to help and Marinette had allowed her personal dislike for the spoiled brat to blind her to Chloe's help with Vanisher and that had caused Antibug to be created.
Similarly, she was a bit harsh, because she knew that it had been her fault that the Bee Miraculous was temporarily lost, and that had allowed Hawk Moth to akumatized an actual miraculous and create Queen Wasp. While the first time was all Marinette's fault, a fact that she accept, she knew that the second time Chloe had been akumatized had been both hers and Cat Noir's fault, even if Marinette felt that she had taken the lead in that incident.
This kind of frustration at citizen helpers who had tried to aid her and Cat Noir but had caused more harm than good in the past. Just as with Antibug, Marinette had allowed her frustration at her Principle's actions as The Owl that she had ended up ensuring, along with Cat Noir, that he would be akumatized and become Dark Owl. That had been a costly mistake as she and Cat Noir had been forced to almost reveal their secret identities to one another and it had been the first of only 2 times that an akuma had dislodged one of her earrings.
As Marinette studied the list she realized that frustration was an emotion that had caused a lot of problems for her as Ladybug. Her frustration with Nadja Chamack during the interview, and the reporter's continued attempts to confirm that she and Cat Noir were a couple, was what had led to the creation of Prime Queen. Similarly, her frustration with her out of touch and slightly odd grandmother had led to her facing off against Befana, while her frustration, and humiliation, with the events of "Fill My Shows" had caused her to play a part in creating Troublemaker.
Frustration and love weren't the only emotions that Marinette had allowed get the better of her and had in some way helped create an akuma. Her curiosity had caused Adrien to lose that strand grimoire of the Guardians of the Miraculouses that his father had. Her actions that day had led to the creation of The Collector. More importantly, it had almost caused Adrien to be withdrawn from school and then she would have never seen her love again.
Marinette's own anger, coupled with frustration again, had caused her problems as well. That had come when Chloe had caused Marinette to almost be akumatized and though she had been calmed down by Ms. Bustier, the akuma had scared her teacher into being akumatized so Marinette took credit for that one. Zombizou was the akuma Marinette was most ashamed of creating because Ms. Bustier had taken the akuma that had been meant for her.
Then there was her competitive streak and desire to aid her friends. That was what had led to her messing with the arm wrestling contest between Nino and Alya's older sister and thus to Anansi, all because Marinette was selfish enough to want to be able to go outside with Nino and Alya. Furthermore, Marinette's desire to help Marc and Nathaniel collaborate and create a comic book had caused her to be vague about the situation and the subsequent misunderstanding had caused Marc to get akumatized and become Reverser.
Of course, it wasn't always Marinette's emotions that had been a problem, sometimes it had been her clumsiness and irresponsibility. She had been clumsy and irresponsible when Alix had trusted her with her watch and had broken it, and Alix's trust, while Alix and Kim were competing in one of Kim's many bets. That had caused Alix to be akumatized into Timebreaker, another akuma that Marinette knew that she was responsible for.
As Marinette looked over the list, she realized that she was responsible in some way for a shocking number of the akumas that she had faced. By her count, Marinette had been responsible for no less than 15 of the 50 or so akumas that she and Cat Noir had faced. By contrast, Chloe, who had a reputation for causing people to be akumatized, was responsible for 13 directly and a 14th indirectly if Marinette counted Chloe's part in akumatizing Ms. Bustier into Zombizou.
Marinette realized then that after a rash of akumas that she had been responsible for, she had overtaken Chloe in the akuma creating department, an honor that Marinette did not want to have. Chloe was a spoilt, selfish, spiteful, brat, while Marinette was supposed to be the good, kind and selfless one and yet it was her and not Chloe who led the city in akuma creations. That revelation caused Marinette to slam her head down painfully onto her desk and groan at how she had caused so many problems for Paris in general and herself and Cat Noir in particular.
"Marinette, what is the problem?" Tikki asked, her kwami flying over to see what was up and leaving whatever it was that she had been doing to check on Marinette. "You normally only act this way because of Adrien but he hasn't done anything too oblivious lately, has he?"
"No it's not Adrien. The problem, Tikki, is that I am responsible for several people being akumatized in Paris." Marinette wailed, a little over the top. "More than even Chloe, she's only been responsible for 13 or 14 if you count Zombizou, I have caused 15. That makes me a terrible person."
"Marinette, you and I both know that that's utter nonsense." Tikki said a little reproach in her voice. "You are a great person. You are kind, caring, considerate, selfless, and you always put others before yourself. You were chosen by Master Fu to be Ladybug and that means something. Only a good person would be trusted with the power of the Ladybug Miraculous."
"Thanks, Tikki." Marinette said giving her cute kwami a sad, small, smile. "But that still doesn't help me feel better. I got 15 people akumatized one way or another. Some directly, others indirectly. Even though a few of them aren't fully my fault, it's not good Tikki."
"Who Marinette?" Tikki asked flying into Marinette's face and looking her in the eye. "Who are you responsible for?"
"Directly I have caused Volpina, Riposte, Befana, Anansi, Glaciator, Antibug, Dark Owl, and Gamer." Marinette said listing off the akumas she was responsible for. "Then indirectly or partially I am responsible for Reverser, Queen Wasp, Prime Queen, The Collector, Zombizou, Troublemaker, and Timebreaker. That's more than Chloe. While I accept that I have caused them, I didn't realize how many I had caused until now. I am a huge reason why Paris is constantly being attacked."
"Marinette, it isn't as bad as you think." Tikki said after a moment's thought. "Yes, some of them you are responsible for, but you are only human so it can be expected. Gamer and Volpina there is no question. Your frustration at those who sought to join the superhero game without training and doing more harm than good also caused Antibug, Queen Wasp, and Dark Owl to be created. You are also responsible for Anansi, Befana, and Glaciator because various emotions that you are not in control of were to blame. As for Riposte, that was an honest mistake, and Reverser was an honest misunderstanding. The other 5 weren't your fault."
"Of course, the other 5 were my fault." Marinette said sadly. "I was supposed to be target for the akuma that akumatized Ms. Bustier into Zombizou. I refused to play Nadja's game and caused her to get fired and thus become Prime Queen. I took the grimoire from Adrien that was the reason for his father becoming The Collector. My clumsiness and irresponsibility led to Timebreaker. Lastly, it was my idea to allow Jagged Stone to fill my dad's shoes and my anger at what happened that caused Penny to snap and become Troublemaker. See Tikki, I am responsible for all of them."
"I still count 10, the other 5 weren't fully your fault." Tikki countered. "It's a lot, more than anyone but Chloe, but it's not a bad thing Marinette."
"But it is." Marinette said, not convinced by Tikki's logic. "I am responsible for creating many of the problems that I have had to solve. It makes me question whether or not I am cut out to be Ladybug. Is there something wrong with me Tikki? How could I have created so many akumas?"
"It's not your fault Marinette." Tikki said before the kwami sighed heavily and added. "It's mine."
"What?" Marinette asked, her confusion temporarily abating her despair. "How is it your fault?"
"It's a side effect of the Miraculous." Tikki said with another heavy sigh. "I was hoping that I wouldn't have to tell you but Alya has forced my hand in this regard. Usually these things happen gradually but given the frequency of use due to Hawk Moth's activities, you, and likely Cat Noir, have accelerated the issue. It isn't a bad thing, it is what makes you Ladybug but given how this has made you feel, you should know the truth."
"The truth?" Marinette asked with a hint of worry. "Tikki, what is going on?"
"Ok, have you noticed how most of the akumas you are responsible for have been the recent ones?" Tikki asked and Marinette just nodded at her kwami. "That is because of a side effect of the Miraculous known as the Bleeding Effect. The early akumas you are responsible for cannot be attributed to the Bleeding Effect but on your own clumsiness or love for Adrien. However, the recent ones are mostly, if not entirely, because of this side effect."
"The Bleeding Effect?" Marinette asked, Tikki wasn't making any sense to her at the moment. "What is that?"
"It is when the magical nature of a miraculous bleeds into its owner thus imparting a small amount of its nature into you." Tikki said slowly so that Marinette would understand what her kwami was talking about. Marinette appreciated Tikki doing this because what her kwami was saying was making very little sense to her. "An example to help explain this effect would be Master Fu's age. He's in his 180s and still going strong, though he can no longer physically transform, and that is because he wears the Turtle Miraculous. The primary Bleeding Effect of his miraculous is that it imparts the longevity of the creature it is modeled after. It also hardens his skin and makes him more resilient to damage the same way a turtle's shell does."
"Doesn't Master Fu claim to be so old because of his lifestyle?" Marinette asked. She understood the basics of what Tikki was going on about but it was still hard to believe it.
"He does but that would only play a part in his advanced age." Tikki said simply. "The rest is his constant wearing, and former use of, the Turtle Miraculous."
"Ok I am kind of getting it." Marinette said slowly as she digested what Tikki had said. "And what does this have to do with me?"
"The primary Bleeding Effect of the Ladybug Miraculous is that it effects your emotions." Tikki said automatically. "This is because, while there are some ladybug-based side effects like being more averse to cold or needing more tasty sugar, for the most part the Ladybug Miraculous effects your emotional state. It also effects the emotional state of those around you."
"How?" Marinette asked. She was both curious and a little worried at what Tikki was getting on about.
"For the Ladybug Miraculous holder, the Bleeding Effect causes you to experience a greater depth and range of emotions, as well as making you much more empathetic." Tikki said. "As a result, you exude a magical pheromone that causes people to have heightened emotions of their own. By contrast, the Black Cat Miraculous causes those around the holder to feel muted emotions while the Bleeding Effect mainly affects him internally with the heightened senses, and mannerisms, of a cat. Trust me, never let Cat Noir near catnip, it is not a pleasant sight. Anyway, all of this is part of the balancing of the two original and most powerful miraculouses. It is why they both have to be in circulation at the same time to be effective, and why both have to be issued to a man and a woman. They are the embodiment of balance and as such the holders must balance each other out."
"So you're telling me that my emotional state affects those around me?" Marinette asked, worry coming back into her voice. "All because of my miraculous."
"Yes, haven't you noticed that when you are happy you bring out the best in the people around you." Tikki said with a little nod. "And because you are human, when you are feeling negative emotions you have a negative effect on the people around you. So, when you are frustrated you tend to vent it on people and they are more sensitive to it, which in turn will cause a greater negative, emotional, reaction and thus make them more susceptible to Hawk Moth's akumas. Also, because of the Bleeding Effect, sometimes your actions can cause a greater emotional reaction from someone than otherwise warranted, as was the case with both Anansi and Kagami."
"Yeah I was confused as to how both of those got akumatized just because I tried to help Nino and may or may not have made a mistake with Kagami's match against Adrien." Marinette said as she realized that Tikki's explanation was starting to make sense. "But this would explain it."
"The Bleeding Effect explains a lot." Tikki agreed. "And speaking of Adrien, the Bleeding Effect also applies to your love for Adrien."
"I just thought that was normal when you are so madly in love with someone." Marinette said as she looked lovingly at a photo of Adrien on her desk. "You get a little irrational at times like with Max or jealous when some lying bitch is trying to trick your love into dating her."
"True, you do, especially when Aphrodite is involved." Tikki said with a note of annoyance in her voice when she referenced a mythical goddess. "But with Max and Lila you let it cloud your judgement because of the Bleeding Effect and your actions caused both of them to be akumatized. Though that wasn't fully the Bleeding Effect's fault as you were only just starting to feel it when you caused them to get akumatized, mainly it was your love for Adrien and how love can make people irrational."
"Well Lila deserved it." Marinette grumbled. "Lying bitch that she is. Adrien deserves much better than her, even if that person may not be me in the end."
"Yes, well, partially because of the Bleeding Effect causing Lila to be more emotional at the time, and partially because of the very direct nature in the way you caused her to get akumatized, you made her into one of the the most powerful akumas." Tikki said with a sigh.
"I'm not sorry about Lila, but I am about the others." Marinette said sadly. "If it wasn't for me then they wouldn't be akumatized."
"No, they were akumatized because Hawk Moth is abusing the Moth Miraculous." Tikki said sternly. "If the wielder of the Moth Miraculous was good, then the Bleeding Effect that affects you would be advantageous in creating hero allies but because it is in the hands of an evil man, the creations are villains. In the past, Nooroo and I have worked well together to create many a hero, this has never happened before as it so rare for a miraculous to fall into the hands of a villain."
"Still, it is my fault that some people have been akumatized." Marinette said as her sadness returned, despite Tikki's attempts to cheer her up.
"Marinette, listen to me." Tikki said in a serious tone that Marinette had never heard before. "If the Moth Miraculous wasn't active and you were either facing another Miraculous Holder or a different threat, normally some war or revolution based on the times that I have been activated, the Bleeding Effect would have no noticeable consequences other than to make people either like or loathe you more than usual. Well, no super villain ones at least. You would still bring out the best or worst in people depending on your emotions while the Black Cat holder balanced it out to a point. Lila and Chloe would still not like you to the degree that they do because of the Bleeding Effect just as Alya, Nino and Adrien would still be a loyal and true friends to you. Trust me Marinette, this is normal and you are Ladybug, you can do anything."
"It's still a lot to take in." Marinette said but she gave Tikki a small smile. "But this has helped a little."
"Just think of all the positive things that you have done as Ladybug." Tikki said with a broad smile. "Remember, you were chosen because you are the best person to wield the Ladybug Miraculous. This is a lot to take in and your emotions are always going to be deeper than average, just think of things that makes you happy and it will be good."
"I will, thank you Tikki." Marinette said to her helpful little kwami. "I'm feeling a little better now that I understand the situation more, you can go back to whatever you were doing before all this, I have a little work to get done before my patrol tonight."
Tikki just nodded, smiled at her, and went back to doing her own thing, which turned out to be learning the latest dance moves from Clara Nightingale's most recent music video. Marinette smiled at her kwami, closed the Ladyblog on her phone, put her phone down, and returned to her homework.
Marinette tried to do her work but her heart wasn't in it. She just couldn't focus on the task at hand. Tikki's explanation of the Bleeding Effect had at least clarified why Marinette had been responsible for so many recent akumas, but it had only slightly mollified her. Despite the excuse, Marinette still felt bad that she had caused so many people to be akumatized and as such, regardless of the valid excuse, Marinette couldn't help but feel guilty for what she had put 15 people, many of them her own friends, through just because of her emotions and how her miraculous affected them. It was going to take a while to get over this, hopefully the Bleeding Effect wouldn't have any more adverse effects than it already had.
Marinette had tried to focus on her work but after a few hours of trying she had barely made a dent in her homework. Instead, she had been thinking about the Bleeding Effect and how she had been responsible for the akumatization of so many of her classmates, friends, family, and Lila. Regardless of the reason, Marinette still couldn't bring herself to regret what she did that led to Lila's akumatization.
Unfortunately, Marinette couldn't stew in her emotions alone as she wanted. It was almost 9 in the evening and her phone's alarm went off to let her know that it was time for a patrol with Cat Noir. Groaning, Marinette stopped her work, got up and stretched, it was almost time for another patrol.
After the recent spate of akumas, and in particular after Sandboy showed that Hawk Moth was willing to akumatize someone who had a nightmare, she and Cat Noir had been stepping up their patrols and doing them at later hours. Sandboy was one of the few akumas that no one had been responsible for, and one that no one could have predicted, but now that Marinette knew that she had been responsible for a large portion of the recent akumas, she felt even worse than she had earlier.
"Come on Tikki, it is time for our patrol." Marinette said calling her kwami over from Tikki's nightly snack of fresh, very sugary, cookies.
"Marinette, you know that you can cancel this patrol if you aren't feeling up to it." Tikki pointed out. "You are probably still very raw, emotionally speaking, after earlier. It might affect you more than usual. There is no shame in calling off tonight's patrol."
"While I appreciate your concern, I'm fine Tikki." Marinette said with a forced smile at her kwami. "Trust me, nothing bad will happen. Besides, I have to do this, especially after what I learned earlier. I owe Paris an even greater debt and I will repay it. I will be fine, don't worry Tikki."
"Ok, I trust you Marinette but be careful." Tikki said with concern in her little voice. "Don't do anything stupid."
"I won't." Marinette said with a smile. "Tikki, spots on!"
In seconds Marinette was transformed into Ladybug. It was nice and comforting to be back in her magical costume. The power coursing through her was familiar and reassuring. It reassured her that no matter how big her fuck ups were, no matter how many akumas she would eventually create before they finally took down Hawk Moth, Marinette was still Ladybug, one of the heroes of Paris. She protected Paris from those akumas and she always defeated them, saved Paris, and made amends for her many, many, mistakes. She could do this, she could keep her emotions under control.
Marinette pushed her trapdoor open, made sure that the coast was clear, and swung away into the night. She and Cat Noir had agreed to meet atop one of the many rooftops that they used to start their patrols. It was one that was far enough from her home and the school that there was no way that Cat Noir could connect her to either. While what they did would be classified as trespass, they were the heroes of Paris so the authorities and the people often didn't mind that she and Cat Noir used private property for their patrols.
The swinging through Paris helped calm Marinette's troubled mind. She loved the freedom of using her yo-yo and the power and enhancements her suit gave her, it was freeing in a sense. All her worries from earlier disappeared as she enjoyed her travel to the roof top rendezvous with her crime fighting partner and the power that her miraculous imparted to her whenever she was transformed.
Of course, Cat Noir was already there when she arrived, he always beat her to their meetups. As soon as Marinette landed and saw her fellow superhero, all the worries and guilt from earlier came back in an instant.
"M'lady, always a pleasure to see you and may I say that you are looking as gorgeous as ever." Cat Noir said with a dazzling smile as she approach but the smile faltered as she approached, clearly, she was not as controlled in her facial expressions as she thought she was.
"What's the matter bugaboo?" Cat Noir asked as Marinette reached him.
"Nothing and don't call me bugaboo." Marinette snapped but she knew that her response had given away that something was clearly wrong with her. All Cat Noir did was raise and eyebrow at her. "Fine, if you must know, I am not in a great mode at the moment."
"Do you want to talk about it." Cat Noir said seriously but with a kind, sympathetic, tone. "Remember you can talk to me about anything, right?"
"Well other than our secret identities." Marinette pointed out with a small, only slightly strained, smile.
"Other than that, of course." Cat Noir replied with a smile of his own. "So, what is the matter? You can trust me, you know that."
"I know." Marinette said then gave a sad sigh. Maybe it would do her some good to vent to Cat Noir, hopefully he could help her and balance her out. "Very well, I am not feeling great today because I realized something earlier and after talking it over with my kwami I was able to confirm it. I have been responsible for 15 of the 50 or so akumas that we have faced, that is more than Chloe has caused, especially the recent string of akumas that we have had to deal with."
"You have?" Cat Noir asked confused. "I didn't think that you were responsible for that many. I know that together we are responsible for Prime Queen, Dark Owl, and Queen Wasp at least, while I admit that I am responsible for Copycat. However, I can't imagine you being responsible for any on your own."
"Well I am." Marinette said sadly as her feelings began to bubble up to the surface, she knew the dam was about to break and she didn't care. "Many have been in my civilian form but there have been a few that I have caused as Ladybug. I learned today it is because of something called the Bleeding Effect where traits of the miraculous bleed into me and cause me, and those around me, to be more emotional than we should be. It was a lot to take given that I am responsible for so many of the akumas that have tried to take our miraculouses over the last 2 years or so."
"Does the Bleeding Effect affect me as well?" Cat Noir asked and Marinette quirked a smile at that.
"Yes, yes it does."
"Oh." Cat Noir said with a wide-eyed look. "That explains why my sense of smell and sight is above average when I am in civilian form, good to know. Anyway, even if you are responsible for so several akumas, you are still Ladybug, you still stop them from achieving Hawk Moth's goal and save Paris in the process."
"But I shouldn't be causing all this to begin with." Marinette said and she felt the damn that she had built up around her emotions begin to burst. She was going to vent to the person she trusted the most and get it all out of her system, nothing could come of this after all, he didn't know her civilian identity. "I am responsible for so many of my friends and classmates getting akumatized."
"How so?" Cat Noir asked.
"Well..." Marinette began.
"I let my emotions get the better of me, a lot." Ladybug said in a rush as she began to tell Adrien what was bothering her. "And it never ends well. As you know, my frustration, and at times yours, helped akumatized Chloe into Queen Wasp, Principle Damocles into Dark Owl and Nadja Chamack into Prime Queen. Antibug was all me, I accept and take the blame for that akuma."
"Yes, but what about the others?" Adrien asked. As always, he was concerned for his lady but this time he couldn't figure out what was bothering her, she couldn't be responsible for that many akumas, could she? Ladybug was too good a person to cause as many as she claimed. "I am sure that you couldn't possibly be responsible for that many akumas."
"I am because, well, you know how I am in love with someone who I know in my civilian life." Ladybug said with a little hesitation to which Adrien just nodded, it was too painful to say anything on the topic given his own feelings for her but he would put up with her mentioning his rival if it meant that he could help her.
"Well that love has caused me to do many things without thinking through the potential consequences to my actions." Ladybug continued after Adrien nodded to let her know that he was ok hearing about this mysterious boy that had stolen his lady's heart. "A while back he was selected to represent our school in the Mecha Strike III tournament alongside another student in our class. Because being on the team meant spending some alone time with him that I wouldn't otherwise get, I entered and showed my skills. I am very good at that game and as a result I unseated the other kid and he had been practicing for months for this, it had been his goal to compete for the school and I had selfishly taken that from him. As a result, he became so upset that he was akumatized, all because I wanted to spend time with a boy I am in love with but cannot tell him out of fear of rejection."
"Gamer, right?" Adrien asked to confirm his suspicion as to which akuma Ladybug was referring to. The way Ladybug had just phrased that incident was very suspicious to Adrien, mainly because he knew that Marinette had been responsible for Max's getting akumatized.
"Yup." Ladybug said with a nod and then continued her tirade before Adrien could say anything on that very precise piece of information. "Then there was Lila. That liar was hitting on the boy I love and well I knew that the bitch was full of shit so I called her on it, right in front of him, as Ladybug. I wanted to humiliate her and get her away from my love and while it worked, Lila was akumatized into Volpina. I don't regret that one, though I do regret looking so mean in front of him. Then there is my lack of patience and my frustration. Those got my grandmother akumatized and as such we had to face Befana, all because of me. It also caused Andre to be akumatized into Glaciator, a mix of frustration and unrequited love. There are many more and all but Timebreaker, who was caused by my own clumsiness and lack of responsibility, are because of my emotions and how they affect everyone around me."
"I doubt that." Adrien said sympathetically as Ladybug was getting more and more hysterical with every word. "It's not your fault that so many of our classmates have been akumatized, Chloe has created her fair share of akumas."
The information was too spot on, there were too many coincidences to be anything else. Adrien's friend, Marinette Dupain-Cheng, was Ladybug. Adrien knew that because of the Gamer reference, the Lila incident and the fact that Marinette's grandmother had been akumatized into Befana. It was obviously her, there was no doubt in Adrien's mind that he knew his love's secret identity.
There was another thing to all this. Though Marinette had not said his name, she had admitted that she was in love with him based on the context. That meant that his lady loved him back, all he had to do was tell her who he was. It also meant that he had been in competition, and jealous of, himself but Adrien could deal with that confusion later, he had more important things to deal with at the moment. However, Adrien's attempt to hint that he knew they were in the same class had fallen on deaf ears as Marinette continued to rant, verging on tears now.
"But they are my fault Cat Noir, and there are many more that I am responsible for." Marinette wailed. "My desire to get Alya out from under her overprotective older sister and come out with me and Nino created Anansi. My attempt to get Nathaniel and Marc to collaborate on a comic book created Reverser. My potential mistake and the way people's emotions are heightened around me created Riposte. My own near akumatization caused Ms. Bustier to become afraid of the akuma after she had calmed me down so she become Zombizou when that akuma had been meant for me. My curiosity regarding a strange grimoire that Adrien had caused him to lose it when I took it and his father got akumatized into The Collector as a result. My humiliation at my walls of photos of Adrien being broadcast on live TV played a part in creating Troublemaker. You see, I have been responsible for many of the akumas that have terrorized Paris, two more than Chloe by my count, one if you add Chloe to the blame for Zombizou. That makes me the biggest cause of akumas in Paris."
"My dad has caused his fair share too." Adrien said with one last attempt to reveal himself through hints and try to reassure Marinette that she wasn't as bad as she thought she was. "He got my best friend akumatized into The Bubbler when all Nino wanted to do was throw me a birthday party. He was responsible for Simon Says when that hypnotist failed to hypnotize him. His disrespect for Audrey Bourgeois caused her to become Style Queen. He was rude to that Santa Clause after he returned me home that his actions led to the creation of Santa Claws. So, you see he's had his own fair share of akumas. You're not always to blame for who gets akumatized. So you have caused a few akumas, you have always rectified your mistakes and besides, you have only created 30% or so of the akumas we have faced. That is nowhere near a majority."
"But I am to blame for so much." Marinette said as the tears began to form in her eyes. "I am responsible for 15. Whoever your father is, he is only responsible for four. I am the worst in Paris."
"Marinette it is not all your own fault." Adrien said with a little force. It seemed that he would have to reveal that he knew who she was. "You said it yourself, this Bleeding Effect thing is what is responsible, not you. Besides, who the fuck cares? You always save the day in the end. We are still here and Hawk Moth still hasn't managed to get our miraculouses."
"Yes, but I am not supposed to be the one who creates that many in the first place, I'm supposed to be a hero, not the person who creates so many villains." Marinette said as the tears began to fall. "A few I can accept, but 15 is too many, we are supposed to stop akumas not create … wait what did you just call me?"
"I called you Marinette." Adrien said with a smile, it seemed he had finally gotten through to her, she had even stopped crying to stare dumbfounded and open mouthed at him so Adrien continued. "Your rant gave you away because I am in your class, I am part of several of those situations, situations that only I and Marinette would know about. You aren't thinking straight; your emotions are running wild so I am trying to calm you down. At the same time, I am trying to reveal to you who I am because I know who you are and it will put you at ease on more than one issue that you are worried about."
"What, no don't tell me who you are." Marinette said as fear crept into her eyes. "My emotions may have caused me to reveal myself but don't tell me who you are, don't take that risk Cat Noir."
"To late, m'lady." Adrien said with a smile. "Trust me, you will be happy when you see who I am, it will be ok. Plagg, claws in."
"NO!" Marinette yelled but she didn't have the time to cover her eyes before Adrien was standing in front of her, a very bored looking Plagg floating over his shoulder, taking in the situation with an experienced eye.
"Ah, the Bleeding Effect has caught hold of her at last." Plagg said as if it was nothing. "I will have to have words with Tikki about this, she never explains it well to her holder. This has to be like the 6th time this has happened."
"You're not helping Plagg." Adrien whispered to his kwami. "Just go eat your cheese."
"Will do!" Plagg said enthusiastically as he flew into Adrien's jacket to get his stinky food.
"A-Adrien?" Marinette asked. "You, you're Cat Noir?"
"Yes bugaboo, I am." Adrien said with a smile as he took a few steps closer to his lady. "And I love you Marinette, just as much as you love me."
"Oh." Marinette said softly. "Tikki, spots off."
With that Marinette let her transformation fall and then she fell into Adrien. Instinctively he held her close, it was clear that Marinette had succumbed to her emotions and collapsed.
"I, I love you too." Marinette said into Adrien's chest as she began to cry.
"I know." Adrien said softly as he stroked her hair softly as he held her close to him. "I know, and I will always be here for you, no matter what."
Marinette didn't say anything as she just sobbed heavily into his chest. Adrien could tell that it had been an emotional day for Marinette and that she had to let it all out, which is what he was going to do right now. Adrien may not be great with emotions but he knew that right now all Marinette needed was to be held by him while he poured all of his love into her on that rooftop.
There was a lot that they would have to talk about in the days and weeks to come but for now he was just content to hold his lady close to him. The time for talk tonight was over, right now all Adrien wanted to do was hold the girl he loved close to him and do whatever he could to make Marinette happy again. Adrien knew that their love would overcome this, for the moment though, they just held each other under the stars of Paris. They were finally with the person that they loved and for now that was all that mattered.
Again sorry that this is so late, there will be at least 2 bonus oneshots over the next few weeks to make up for this. I hope y'all enjoyed the return of the Bleeding Effect, it seemed to work well in 'Scent' so I felt that it would be useful to use again. Next week's oneshot should be on time (I hope) and will be a Simple Class oneshot at best so a little easier to write then the longer, Complex Class ones (there is at least one Epic Class oneshot coming up as well). That's all for this note. As always please keep your suggestions coming, without your suggestions I could not keep this series going as I personally believe that I am terrible at coming up with prompts but I am my own harshest critic. As always, keep letting me know what you think of my work in your reviews. Until next week.
Stringdog