Miraculous Rising Tied Chapter 44: Playing Fields, a miraculous: tales of ladybug & cat noir fanfic

MIRACULOUS

Chapter 44

Playing Fields

Alya sniffed as she did her damnedest to stop herself from breaking into sobs. Nino, Luka, both Chloe's and Max were all speechless. Marinette had finally come clean about what she was and how she came to be.

"This has certainly exceeded everything I have had time to learn about…" Max observed. "I suppose it would also explain how you bested me on Mecha Strike despite not actually practicing professionally.

"Dude, like, all those contests you won?" Nino asked. "Not just gaming but those fashion contests, too?"

"Not to mention beating Adrien at fencing, never mind that you had never fenced before," Chloe added. "Did you know about this?"

"I do have some vague memories about that," Older Chloe admitted.

"Forget the contests," Alya wailed. She tried her best to control her sobs. As if she hasn't gone through enough already!"

"Babe…" Nino began but Alya ignored.

"When I first saw ladybug in action, when she took down Ivan's akumatized form then purified all those butterflies… I wanted to be her so much. But never in a million years…" she sat on her heels and buried her face and began to sob. Marinette rubbed her back.

"Hey, Alya?" she called softly. "It's… It's okay…"

"No, it's not…" Alya sobbed. "I… I always thought you were special, even before you told me you were Ladybug. But this? This is not what I meant!"

"Alya!" Nino urged. "Come on, Babe. We can't dwell on that."

"He's correct," Max agreed. "No good will come up lamenting something she had no control over. In fact, how she came to be makes minimal difference of the fact that she is here, she's our friend and chose a path to fight for righteousness."

"Max brings up a good point," Luka entered. "The fact that you didn't come into this world like everyone else and the nature of how you did must have been a tough pill to swallow."

"It was," Marinette confirmed. "When Lila spilled the beans about, I was so lost, confused, all my life with my parents in the bakery felt like it was a lie… Everything I knew came crashing down on me like I was thrown in a vortex to another reality where I lived a totally different life. And when Lila died before I could save her… That's when I felt utterly alone…"

"Anyway, that's not what I wanted to say," Luka said. "And you're not alone."

"Huh?"

"Look, I can only imagine how lonely when you're the only one who was created by some forbidden magic and no one else did," Luka assured. "But you have to know that no matter what, you have people who've got your back."

"You guys…"Marinette was moved by their words and everyone hugged her one at a time. There was still some doubt when it was Chloe's turn. Her older self patted her on the back. She hesitated and glanced at her. Older Chloe has her younger self a nod. With a few more steps the two gave themselves a sincere hug. It was the same legitimate warmth she felt when Chloe hugged her the time she went to school before leaving for Tibet. After a brief silence, Past Pollen spoke up.

"Now that we are on the subject of where Marinette came from, are you to the point to where you studied alchemy I presume. Did we reach that far yet, Pollen?" the bee kwami asked her present self.

"That's because we haven't got to it yet, but we eventually lay out the foundations for future practitioners to do it." Present Pollen revealed.

"How did you come into the concept, I'm actually curious," Max stepped in.

"It was actually something she and Kagami wanted to recreate that aforementioned beverage beyond their reach as well as the limited resources within the island."

"And what is it that you guys wanted?" Nino asked.

"A beverage, huh?" Luka asked. "That's interesting."

"Texas whiskey," Pollen confirmed.

…

"WHAT?!" present Chloe was baffled by what she had heard. Apparently, the only alcoholic beverage she would ever drink in her life was not European or even from the more high-class areas of America but in the center. On top of that, sharing it with Tsurugi, who would apparently study for centuries to recreate with?

"Random," Luka said.

"Agreed," Max seconded.

"So you're telling me that the reason I got into this whole studying with Tsurugi thing was because I wanted some booze?"

"Not exactly," older Chloe said. "Once I've resigned that I wasn't getting off the island I had nothing else to do. So once we discovered alchemy we tried to recreate the last thing we had from our old lives. Once we finally did it, it tasted just like I remembered it. Hell, maybe even better."

"So what happened when you finally succeeded in making the whiskey?" Alya asked, finally curious. Older Chloe blushed.

"We made as much as we could. We celebrated, danced around the fire, got drunk, and made love."

"Hell yes!" Luka shouted, raising his fist in the air. Everyone stared at him agape.

"I think I'm going to be sick…" Present Chloe croaked. Older Chloe decided to ignore her and pressed the subject.

"Anyway, Kagami and I took it upon ourselves to pass what was left of the Altean era to you guys and trust it onto the modern era… Simply put."

"I get it, so a let everything of what we knew of life as we knew it," Max added.

"Not all of it of course," she said. "Again, a huge chunk of what you guys know was figured out throughout time."

"Fascinating…" he said.

Everything after that was a blur to present Chloe as it was now her turn to have an existential crisis. She couldn't believe what she was hearing. At first, she couldn't believe what she would become. A privileged girl who had such a luxurious life of riches become this dirty, barely clad, yet wild and untamed. She had already known what would become of her, which she found appalling but now it appears that reality is really sinking in. The thought has come time and time again but always managed to put aside everything going on. As everything died down, the threat of this inevitable path quickly crept up to her as she struggled to breathe.

"Chloe?" she heard someone say. "Chloe!" the voice was clearer, it was Luka.

"Hey, you ok?" Nino asked.

"No…" Chloe replied. "I'm not…" she finally collapsed and landed on her older self's arms. She tried to raise her hand to touch her face. "I… I will become you, aren't I?"

"Yes," older Chloe confirmed once again. She finally realized that this far cry from who she is or what she wanted to be was her inevitable outcome, no matter what. A tear fell through her temple as she finally succumbed to unconsciousness.

Older Chloe looked very depressed as she laid her younger self on the pavement floor and got up and looked down on her bare feet again. She thought about how her younger self's feet wouldn't stand the heat of the floor and how now she can walk around the hot pavement on her bare feet like it was nothing.

"I'm getting Ms. Tsurugi," she said.

Meanwhile… Hole in the Wall Pizza Joint…

"This is where you worked?" Nathalie asked.

"Just like I remember it," Gabriel said. "This takes me back."

"I'm amazed you managed to get into such a prodigious school while this is the way you paid for your tuition," Nathalie observed.

"I'm good in money management," he said. "It was a tedious process, I won't lie. But in a long process, I managed to gather to pay my tuition by my career's end."

"That must've taken a sheer amount of discipline," Nathalie suggested.

"Indeed it did," he said. "Shall we?"

"Of course," Nathalie blushed as they entered.

The place was as humble yet cozy as he remembered. They could see why it remains popular among young people even today. As if breaking the moment, an adult, yet raspy and somewhat childish man was shouting for what appeared to be newly hired.

"You losers better not screw this up," he said.

"Speaking of remembering things," he said.

"Hey, Gabriel!" and an obese man yelled from the kitchen yelled. "Long time no see!"

"Nice to see you too, Mitch," Gabriel greeted as straightforward as he could, despite still being taken aback by Mitch's demeanor.

"Still the high and mighty talker I see," Mitch said.

"And you just as raunchy as ever. I thought you went back to Ohio," Gabriel said.

"I did," Mitch admitted. "But Skips sent me back 'cause some Japanese guy claim ownership of the restaurant and Skips sent me to keep an eye on something.'"

"Oh? New owners?" Gabriel wondered. "Speaking of which, how are old Skips?"

"Into some superhero shenanigans as always," Mitch said. "I gotta say, the timing was whack I mean I had just married a girl and I get the feeling more came of that."

"Oh, so you're married now."

"Speaking of which, who's the dame?" Mitch asked, noticing Nathalie.

"Nathalie Sanceur," she introduced herself, giving him a lady-like curtsy.

"Pleasure Nathalie," Mitch greeted bowed back.

"Pleasure's all mine," she said. Mitch then turned to Gabriel.

"Sharing your favorite with the miss?"

"You know me all too well," Gabriel grinned.

"A Chicago classic coming right up! Whooo!" He raised his and ran his way to the kitchen.

"He's… surprisingly quite a gentleman," Nathalie complemented as they took a seat.

"I believe I should have not been surprised he actually got married," Gabriel added. "Though I can't help but wonder why would Walks would send him back. This man doesn't really come off as someone to travel aboard."

"He did say he wasn't happy about coming as apparently he suspects his wife is expecting a child."

"All the more suspicious," Gabriel agreed. "But let's not allow this to get in the way of our day."

"Of course, sir," Nathalie blushed.

That night… Agreste Manor…

Marinette untangled her hair as best as she could as she waited for Cat Noir. It would be the first time they spoke in private since her return from Tibet, and it may have been said that it was long overdue.

"You haven't been this nervous since your first photoshoot," Tikki added.

"I don't know Tikki," Marinette said, looking up. "These past few weeks we hit it off like Ladybug and Cat Noir as nothing had happened. Except he never flirted with me during that time…I… I actually missed that…" she hesitated but quickly continued. "I wrote on my diary that I would've given Cat Noir a chance if Adrien didn't exist. I immediately thought that a world without Adrien was inconceivable, so I shoved that at the back of my head as much as I could."

"Marinette…" Tikki began. "I can feel it too, your feelings for Adrien are fading."

"Oh," Marinette sobbed. She closed her eyes and slowly shook her head as if trying to shake off the thought. That last statement hit a nail as Marinette moaned wordlessly moaned as tears cascaded down her cheeks.

"But you're falling for him now, aren't you?" Tikki asked.

"I am," Marinette finally admitted. "I don't want to see him as some compensation prize, or some replacement. He deserves better than that."

"I don't think he would think that," Tikki suggested.

"You know him, right?" Marinette asked. "What is he really like?"

"I don't think he would mind," Tikki said. "Though he knows about your feelings for Adrien, I think he was giving you space, probably, why he hasn't flirted with you."

"Yeah, I think he was more sensitive than I would give him credit for," Marinette gave a small smile.

"Listen, Marinette," Tikki began. "I can't make all these choices for you and much less of this kind. All I can tell you is what I told every other Ladybug," Marinette turned to the kwami. "Listen to your heart. Just do what you think you desire the most. If you choose to pursue your feelings for Cat Noir, don't hesitate," Tikki concluded, Marinette gave a chuckle.

"Now you sound like Kagami," Marinette said and they both had a good laugh.

As if she sensed him, she turned to the big window where she saw Cat Noir descending to her view. She got up from her seat and smiled as she walked towards him.

"What up, Little Lady," he greeted.

"Hello to you, too, Little Kitty," she greeted back.

"Can I come in?"

"Actually," Marinette began, twirling her hair. "I was hoping if we could talk on the roof." Cat tilted his head a little but grinned and complied.

"Sure thing, my lady," He complied and dove into the widow, landing beside her and grabbing her by the waist. With a light yelp, she hung onto him. Cat swiftly made his way to the roof before Marinette had any sense of height or vertigo.

Marinette couldn't help but feel safe around Cat's solid grip on her. She could just grab onto his arm and beg him to never let go. She hardly noticed that they were already on the manor roof. She had hardly ever been the Agreste manor and the fact that she lived here now was so still surreal. She took a look at the skyline and finally got to see another angle of the Parisian horizon. She didn't get to see it from this position, even after all her times as Ladybug. She was now beside the man who had avoided like the plague yet the one person she wanted to be the most, she finally admitted to herself.

"So," Cat began. "Some month, huh?" he scratched his head and swung his arm awkwardly.

"Yeah," she agreed, softly. They both struggled to get this conversation off the ground. "Cat, I…"

"Listen, I…"

"Oh, I…" they said in unison.

"You go first," Cat said.

"Well, I…" Marinette began. "Well, how's Plagg?"

"He's doing fine, considering," he said. "I'm actually more interested in how Tikki taking it."

"She's not making it easy," Marinette said. "I guess this was the first tie her knowledge has come into question. Having such a firm way how she viewed the world as absolute for so many years and being called into question for the first time, it wouldn't have sat well with her."

"Is she here?"

"No, I told her to wait in the room," she replied.

They were in silence again, they sat down on the roof and glanced at the nightly horizon.

"How was Tibet, anyway?" Cat asked. "I don't think we ever talked about that."

"Scary," Marinette admitted. "My family was gone, I had no home and I had just found out that I was made by some sick experiment and not born from my mother. Imagine yourself having to go to a place you know nothing nor have any wish to be there."

"Yeah," Cat agreed. "Must've been rough." With a sigh, Marinette closed her eyes and lowered her head while hugging her knees. She quickly looked back up and spoke up.

"Mom always had macaron sales for the bakery every Christmas," she said. "When I was 5, on Christmas morning, my mom had me to try the cream stuffed, French toast croissant. It became my favorite since then. Every year in school, Alya always stood up for me against Chloe whenever she gave me a hard time. I never imagined I would be the one not only protecting her but Paris, too. We could never afford to travel, we barely kept our heads above water to keep the bakery open. Every summer I worked full time at the bakery until the next school year. I made deliveries, I baked sets myself. Everything I could to make ends meet, while my fashion dreams have taken a back seat for so long. But it was home."

Cat already knew a lot of what she had told him with some details he never considered. He merely let her talk, knowing how much she needed this.

"Then, came Adrien," she said. "I thought he made a prank on me and I thought he was just as bad as Chloe. But before I knew it, I couldn't imagine a world without him. I had everything planned out. But then I became Ladybug and well, you know the rest…" she concluded. "I thought I was just an ordinary girl who was also the luckiest. I may not have had the luxury I have now, but I had my parents and I had Adrien." She didn't have to say anymore, Cat could piece together why it seemed more than she had now. "Cat, you know everything about me yet I know nothing about you."

"My Lady…"Cat began but was cut off.

"Could you tell me a little?"

"Huh?"

"Please, don't tell me who you are," Marinette clarified. "Just give me a memory. Please keep it vague."

"Oh," Cat thought for a moment. "I was 7 when I was walking amongst the playing fields with my parents. I was pretty shy for my age and I still wanted for my parents to walk with me while each holding both my hands. My dad tried to encourage me to get social yet I just wanted my parents to stay close. My mom always pampered me and I always let her. They would sit on a bench and I only played the rides the nearest to them while far away from the other kids whether it was the slide or the swings. I always wussed out whenever another kid got close and I ran back with them. Dad kept saying I should've manned up while my mom spoiled me with her hugs and bought me ice cream to make me feel better. Dad always caved with a sigh, he was always pretty quirky, talking all high and mighty like he taught himself to talk with a dictionary or something," he said and both started to chuckle.

"So cute," Marinette said.

"Anyway," Cat continued. "I'm sorry about Adrien. Before I knew who you were you have told me you have your sights on another boy. It was only when I found out, I understood that it was him."

"Adrien was the sweetest boy I have ever known," she said. "So pure, any girl would've been so lucky to have him."

"You really must've loved him," Cat said. Marinette gave a light gasp and hugged her knees tighter.

"No, I didn't," she said. "I didn't love him." Cat's eyes widened and stared at her.

"You didn't?"

"I thought I did," she clarified. "But now I realized that I was chasing an illusion, a smokescreen. I didn't love him, I merely liked the idea of him. Given how I came to be, what I am, what my life will inevitably take, our relationship wouldn't have lasted. I'm taking a path I will never escape from and he didn't deserve to be dragged into with me. It would have never worked out."

"My lady…"

"But he was my friend," she said, leaning her head on her knees. "He didn't deserve this. He deserved his own life, have his own family. His death will be with me forever and I have no choice but to live with that." Marinette sniffed and wiped away a tear.

"I…" Cat hesitated. "I really don't know what else to say. I already know who you are and told you how I still felt about you."

"Yet you haven't flirted with me on our missions."

"Yeah, well it's not like I can say; 'Hey now that Adrien is gone will you give me a shot now?' I just wanted to give you an opening until you were ready."

"I thought so," Marinette said. "But it has been like what, half a year?"

"Feels like it's been longer," Cat said. Marinette hugged her arm. She quietly approached him and placed her head on his shoulder.

"My lady…"

"Is this wrong?" she asked, cutting him off.

"What do you mean?"

"Cat, I…" Marinette hesitated, she shut her eyes held him tighter. "I want you."

"Playing Fields (Original Mix)" by Chicane plays.

"My Lady," Cat began. "Are you sure? I mean it wasn't that long ago…"

"I know but I can't help it."

"I just want to make sure everything is ok…"

"Stop, just, stop," she cut him off. "Please, just do something to get my mind off him…please."

Cat was taken aback by this but smiled sadly and placed an arm around her waist and carried her bridal style. He gave her a reassuring smile and hopped to another rooftop. With a yelp, Marinette smiled back and clutched back at him.

Once she was sure she was safe, she glanced out and saw Paris below the moonlight in a way she never had realized before. Despite the numerous times she oversaw Paris like that as Ladybug, her current vulnerable state made how she saw Paris that way feel like a whole new world. She leaned her head on his chest but kept her eyes on the skyline. She couldn't get enough of the thrill, almost as if she was Ladybug for the first time.

They both had a laugh together. In light of what both had gone through they sure enjoyed this moment together. Both knew full well that reality would return to hit them hard. But for now, all that mattered was each other. Upon reaching the top of Arc de Triomphe, Cat stood on top of it. Cat offered her down, but she just gazed back at him. With a smile she merely held him tighter and leaned her head on his chest, eyes closed this time. Cat never let her go and lightly leaned his head on top of hers for a minute.

Cat later went back to the manor to drop her off. He entered her room and finally let her down on her feet. Neither said a word, they stared at each other for what was a full ten minutes yet it felt like seconds to them…

And then… it happened…

Song cue 4:38

Marinette went for it. She pressed her lips onto Cat's. His eyes widened but quickly closed them and hugged her, kissing back. Both their arms were savoring each other's backs but not as much as what's happening on their lips. All their worries were completely wiped and they wished they could stay in each other's arms forever as there was nowhere they would rather be. They could live out their lives like this if they could. But alas…

An explosion, fire, and even some faint screams reached Cat's ear.

Song ends.

"Cat…" Marinette whispered. She pointed at the fire in the distance.

"It was a matter of time I suppose," Cat lamented. Little did Marinette know is that Cat said that more to himself than to her. "Time to gather everyone."

"Tikki!" she called.

"I'm here, Marinette," Tikki affirmed.

"SPOTS ON!"

Kamarocho Champion District, Tokyo, Japan.

"Lost in the Rain" by Satoshi Okamura plays

A Bunnyx like portal appeared between the narrow pathways on a rainy night. A young Japanese woman with long hair came in, she looked exhausted and fell on the ground rolling and the portal closed. She wasn't wearing much. She wore a blue loincloth and a necklace of dark-colored feathers, which barely covered her chest. She felt the rain coming down on her and the cool nightly breeze but didn't seem to faze her. She slowly got up on her feet and looked around the neon signs as a smile slowly crept on her face.

"Is this where you're from, Kagami?" Longg asked, emerging from his hiding place.

"Yes, Longg," older Kagami replied. "This is my past and your future."

Meanwhile… Yokohama…

Yagami seemed to close in on Akane as she's already within sight as he hid. He became wearier and wearier as the following mission went on. It was only when they were in a dark alley, and the two were completely alone when Yagami realized something was amiss.

"Did Saori san send you?" Akane asked, nonchalantly. Yagami wasn't all that surprised that she discovered him. He put his hands on his pockets and walked casually within view.

"You're pretty good," Yagami complimented. "But actually it was your husband who told us you were here. But yes, Saori is involved in this case.

"How is Junpei doing?"

"Pissed," Yagami replied. "Not to mention that you're still going with his name."

"Saori still on the case, I presume she's still confused," Akane said.

"There is more than that," Yagami revealed. "I see you're after the Blue Mustang as well."

"And what would you do if I was?"

"I get the feeling your intentions aren't as pure."

"Saori knows me well," Akane conceded. "Pinyin!"

"Yes, mistress!"

"OVERSEER!"

"TORA, ROAR!" Yagami transformed as well.

Song Ends

Author's Note

And that's another chapter down, God knows how many more to go. Wish I could update more often. -_-

Anyway, here you go; I have finally been able to get to Marichat. I wanted to spare you the shipping drama as I would have like to believe that Marinette always had Cat Noir into consideration and she's sure Adrien would want her to be happy.

So this is it, the final battle against Emilie/Lux is upon them and I think we all know this will not result in a happily ever after for everyone and there is little Adrien can do but to do what is best.

Crossover Character Report

Mitch a.k.a. Muscle Man from "Regular Show"- I know, Muscle Man is not the guy who would be interested in working abroad as he pretty much complained that he was forced to leave his pregnant wife back home. Skips can pull a few strings as he's pretty deep into this whole thing. Anyway, there are good reasons for him to be there as it will be key for the next arc.

Takayuki Yagami and Saori Shirosaki from "Judgement" – Like Muscle Man, their current subplot will connect to the following arc. Since things will start to stir up in Japan I feel it's only natural for the Yagami detective agency to be on the case.

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