Marinette, Adrien and the Guardian were seated in the dining room, going over the latest information and revelations in their possession.
"So your father is your enemy, right?"
"That's right," Adrien muttered, his jaw and fists clenching at the thought. "I didn't see it coming... I'm so sorry, Marinette."
She looked tenderly at him and stretched her arm over the table, reaching to the opposite side and laying her hand on her partner's.
"It's not your fault, Adrien. No one sees it coming. No one could have seen it coming."
"I should have. I knew for a fact that he hadn't grieved. He never accepted Maman 's death…"
"That's not unusual... Some people never grieve the death of their loved one. They don't go over to the dark side of the force though. You couldn't have known that you were Luke Skywalker and your father was Darth Vader ."
There was a silence settling in the room as she said this, and she realized it wasn't a wise move to joke around the current situation.
Which led to a short list of things Marinette wished she had a little more control over right now:
words coming out of her mouth.
lack of tact.
blush blossoming on her face (who turned on the heat?)
smitten and insistent look Adrien was giving her, as if he had seen her naked. (Wait...he had seen her naked!)
"I didn't mean to make fun of the situation...I...s-sorry. It didn't sound like that in my head," she whispered sheepishly.
In the meantime, Chat Noir had a growing list of things he was trying not to think about at this very moment.
much he wanted to kiss Marinette, Ladybug, Star Wars fanatic, surprising girlfriend, and love of his life.
much he wanted to kick his father's ass.
much he wanted to kiss Marinette (Yes, this thought occurred to him a lot).
the blood in his body was currently rushing; south.
"You're right. My father had the choice and… He chose... Now it's up to us to make the right decision and act accordingly."
"Are you sure you'll be fine with it? He's still your father, Adrien."
"As long as you are by my side, everything will be fine," he whispered tenderly, intertwining his fingers with hers. "Besides, we have a huge advantage over him. We know that he's Shadowmoth, and we can return before the moment when he handed us his identity on a plate. We've got the surprise effect on our side."
"Even better: we'll be healed, unlike him," Marinette added, turning her face to meet The Guardian's approbating gaze.
"I think the situation between you is clearer than ever. Clearer than we could have even hoped, given what I have heard whilst I was trying to write," Monsieur de la Fontaine said with a strange calm.
They had sex in the middle of the afternoon and the Guardian heard them! For the life of her! Marinette blushed crimson to the tip of her ears. He had heard everything! Although, thinking back on it, she had been quite vocal, indeed. No wonder he'd had a good earful of their lovemaking.
A quick look at her...boyfriend—Oh gosh, she was actually dating Adrien Agreste!—made her realize that he didn't care—not a single bit—about the man knowing how they had spent their time after the fight. What's worse, Adrien was looking like the cat who got the cream, and he was enjoying it without any discomfort. Damn personality change crisis!
They had to do that ritual quickly if she didn't want to jump over the table, draw him brutally against her lips, and kiss him senseless to make that shit-eating grin disappear from his stupid, excessively handsome face.
Marinette cleared her dry, thirsty throat, painfully taking her gaze off Adrien and turning toward the Guardian.
"Forgive us for this awkward and inappropriate situation," she apologized, sheepishly, before realizing that today they were really out of their usual personality.
It was time to act quickly.
"Do you think we're ready, Sir?" she eventually asked their host.
"Well, the masks have fallen off, your hearts have opened, your repressed feelings have been released, you are now one. Yin and Yang. But if you still have doubts, there is a very simple way to check the balance between your Miraculouses," he replied.
He gestured to Adrien, silently asking him to stand up. Then he motioned him to step towards Marinette.
She gulped, her mouth dry, and licked her lips, watching him almost doing the catwalk as his muscular shape moved in her direction.
"Please, put both of your Miraculouses against each other," Monsieur de la Fontaine commanded.
Marinette blinked, but before she could make any move to remove her earrings, Adrien smoothly cupped her cheek, his fingers slightly grazing her jaw and throat, sliding down to her earlobe. She felt shivers running through her whole body, but that was nothing compared to the indescribable, staggering, delightful tingling she felt when his ring made full contact with her Miraculous.
She closed her eyes, surrendering to his touch and the thrill coming out of it. It was like an earthquake shaking her straight to the core.
A gasp made her look back up at Adrien, and from the corner of her eye, she saw a faint, white light coming from where his hand rested on her skin, where their Miraculouses touched. Soon, it became purple and she stiffened.
"Don't worry, it just shows that you're both connected on every possible level," the Guardian reassured them. "Purple is the color of spirituality."
As he explained that, the light halo became wider and turned dark blue.
"Indigo is the color of awareness. It's associated with the eyes and the sense of sight."
Following this, she saw Chat Noir's mask and cat's ears appearing in a blurred, almost ghostly way on Adrien's head.
"You now see each other clearly."
When she blinked it had disappeared, but she kept merging both of their images in her mind. She'd need a little more time to get used to it.
"Light blue is for communication," he told them, as the color of the light changed. It grew even bigger and turned green. "Green is for love healing, it's the heart chakra," he added.
Then, she felt her Miraculous suddenly throbbing like a heart, and she knew that Adrien felt it too. He looked absolutely stunned—and stunning. Somehow, their Miraculouses began to beat faster, harder, in sync. Hence, for a moment, she was brought back to their heated embrace of the previous night, and to the words of love that Adrien had long whispered in her ear. So many I love yous to make up for lost time. So many I love yous to heal the heartache. So many I love yous for the days to come. The best to come.
"Yellow is the color of wisdom," he said, voice gentling. "As well as orange for creative but also...sexual energies."
Marinette blushed, feeling the blood in her body rushing south. It was quite dizzying and exhilarating. So much that she had to close her eyes and hold back a moan at the sensation. When her eyes snapped open again, Adrien's face was all flustered, his lips slightly parted and his gaze darkened by the longing there. No doubt he had felt that too.
"Lastly, we've got the color red."
The circle of light had grown so wide that it fully wrapped their bodies, none of them really seeming to notice it.
"It's the base. The trust. Something you already had when you arrived here."
Flashes of memories filled her mind. Stone heart , Gorizilla ,—damn, stupidly reckless Agreste! He had jumped from the top of the Montparnasse tower, trusting her with his life!— Desparada ,—shoot, without even knowing it, she had trusted her Chaton once more, and he had saved her 25,913 times!—and many more fights, patrols and moments between the two of them.
Marinette felt a pull tugging at her, and she was soon brought back to reality, out of her memories, the red light around them slowly fading away. When she cast a glance at Adrien, he was out of breath, and so was she.
He was still cupping her cheek and she hadn't noticed that he had come dangerously closer as the minutes passed by, leaving only a tiny distance between them. His eyes briefly darted to her lips, before scanning her eyes again, silently asking her permission to fulfill the irrepressible desire which invaded him. An approving smile stretched her lips and she rose up on tiptoe, erasing a little more of the distance. His hand slipped to her neck, cradling the back of her head, and he slowly brought her face closer to his. She met him halfway and the world around them seemed to suddenly disappear as her lips touched his. It was tender at the beginning, but she quickly found in their exchange the passion which had animated them in their room, a moment earlier. The same passion that they had concealed and retained for so long—for as long as they knew each other—and that now imploded at each touch, at the expense of the self control that had so long held them prisoner.
They were making up for lost time and no one could blame them for their drunkenness.
As they parted, their eyes met briefly, smitten smiles stretching their lips, as an embarrassing heat engulfed Marinette: they were still not alone there.
She pursed her lips and gave him a shy look. "So... uh... did I manage to read your mind? That's what you were silently asking me?"
"No," he murmured, leaning in and claiming her lips for another kiss. "You managed to read my heart."
"This is so cheeeesy," Plagg exclaimed in a sing-song voice, interrupting them before they could begin the second act. "I'm going to be a party pooper and…I don't mind," he said, wincing at their overflow of emotional display. "Shouldn't we do the ritual before a crisis looms and turns your melty camembert heart into shredded cheese?"
Right. Fair point.
Marinette nodded with conviction and Adrien did the same: they were ready to move immediately to the final act.
"The ritual has already begun. It was required that you were both aware of that special bond between you, but also that you realized you're more balanced than ever. Now, take a seat young heroes. I will be right back for us to keep going." The Guardian motioned to the couch with a satisfied smile, before heading out of the room.
"Dude, cinnamon and—" his nose skimmed the edge of the porcelain cup, taking a sharp inhale of the sweet and spicy scent. "Dried apple, seriously?!" Adrien protested as his eyes widened. "That's all we had to do to counteract the overdose? drink some kind of Christmas-like herbal tea? Are you kitten us?" Adrien muttered, exasperated.
"Adrien!" Marinette winced and gave him a pointed look.
"Sorry. I couldn't control it. But seriously, Marinette, it's just…tea!"
The Guardian's laughter echoed softly in the room, surprising the two heroes. "Don't worry. It's just that the ritual can be a bit long. I thought a good brew would help to soothe the spirits before starting and completely focusing on the task."
Adrien's lips brushed the cup as he gingerly blew on the hot beverage. He cautiously took a small sip, warmth spreading through his mouth. It tasted good and it felt heartening, like cuddles under a downy blanket, in front of a wood fire on a rainy, or snowy winter day. Maybe the fire that the Guardian had lit and that crackled in the fireplace, intoxicating the room with a divine smell of smoky wood, had something to do with it
Somehow, he felt relaxed, and ready to get it over with.
The Guardian stood in front of them and held out his hand to Marinette, palm up, ready to receive. "Can you give me the Peacock and Butterfly brooches, as well as your earrings, Damoiselle Marinette."
She put a hesitant hand on her Miraculous, but a quick glance to her right, where Adrien was sitting, reassured her and strengthened her choice. She removed her earrings, giving them to the Guardian and the brooches followed suit.
Adrien then did the same, handing his precious ring to the older man.
"Kwamis back in their jewels, please. You know the rules. They can't know the incantation," he kindly reminded them.
Plagg pouted, but Tikki dragged him towards the Guardian and they quickly returned inside the jewels that he was still holding in his left hand.
In his right hand, he held the Butterfly and Peacock Miraculouses, Nooroo and Duusu already inside since the beginning of their journey.
"Now, hold hands, please," the Guardian commanded, as he opened the grimoire and placed them on the page where the incantation was written. "And close your eyes."
As they held tight to each other's hands, fingers intertwining and squeezing, their gazes met, some apprehension palpable there, before they shut their eyes.
Adrien felt Marinette's hand shaking slightly in his and he squeezed it tighter, showing her he was there for her. He'd always be there. He took a deep breath, inhaling sharply and noisily, then exhaled slowly out from his mouth, encouraging her to do the same. "Just breathe calmly. Everything's gonna be alright, Milady."
The Guardian cleared his throat, warning them he was about to start and they both remained silent and attentive.
"Om mani padme hum; repeat this mantra after me, until you feel a burst of energy spread all over your body. It will purify what is stagnant as emotions or negative energy inside your Miraculouses and you, and create, thus, space to welcome what awaits you."
They both repeated it. For a long time.
What they couldn't see was the lightning bond forming between their Miraculouses and those of their enemy. A black, almost smoky light came out of the Butterfly and the Peacock, heading towards the Ladybug and Black Cat's. Aftera few minutes, halfway through, the light turned gray, and ended up white around their Miraculouses, while those of Shadowmoth remained surrounded by a black, negative aura.
That very white light surrendering the ring and the earrings, also slowly wrapped Marinette and Adrien, shining brighter as the minutes passed by.
Through his eyelids, Adrien could see the emanation of light. Something was happening, he knew it, and he started to feel it running inside his own body, a shiver running down his spine.
"What's going on," Adrien asked, feeling Marinette squeezing crushing his hand. "Is this normal?" he inquired, goosebumps rising on his arms as he struggled to keep his eyes closed, the burst of light becoming too strong to bear.
"Indeed, it's quite normal. Everything is back in its proper place. Good is cleansed of the evil that was done to it," the Guardian explained.
As he said that, the light suddenly exploded brighter than ever before, making Adrien and Marinette's eyes snap open in a blink, before it smoothly faded away.
Adrien looked down at the Miraculouses resting on the coffee table, a faint, dark, gray smoke was coming out of the Butterfly and the Peacock. His brows furrowed and he looked up at Monsieur de la Fontaine . "What about my father?"
The Guardian shook his head. "His Miraculouses work individually, unlike yours. These are not connected to each other," he noted, taking the Butterfly and the Peacock's brooches in his hand. "We've been able to balance yours by fixing the misunderstandings, communication and the heartache between both of you," he grabbed the Ladybug and the Black Cat in his other hand and handed them both to Marinette. "As for your father, the only way to balance his Miraculouses is to stop using it to do evil things. He must be apprehended and make amends for his faults. It's the only way for him to balance both his Miraculouses, access the ritual and be saved," Monsieur de la Fontaine finished his explanations, handing Gabriel Agreste's Miraculouses to his son. "I'm sure you'll succeed in showing him the right way."
Adrien sighed. Everything was finally back to normal.
At last.
Almost.
Except for one thing.
Shadowmoth. Gabriel Agreste. His father.
Ladybug, or rather, Lady Bunny, put a hand on his shoulder and he turned around, meeting her determined gaze. It was enough to give him the strength, courage and determination he needed.
"Ready to go back to the present, Chaton ?"
"Ready as I'll ever be, Milady," he nodded with conviction, before transforming.
Hand in hand, just as it had begun a few weeks before, they hopped down the rabbit hole.
But this time, they had a plan.
They had time working in their favor.
They had knowledge on their side.
They had better luck than they had ever had before.
But before anything else, they had each other. Their perfect symbiosis. Their unshakable chemistry.
It was them. Against the world.
Together.
And nothing, no one, could stop them.
Epilogue:
Lady Bunny and Chat Noir stepped into the burrow, going back right to eight years after they'd been entrusted with their Miraculouses. So they were four years after their current time. This was when they had borrowed the Butterfly and Peacock's Miraculouses from their older selves.
They stepped right onto the terrace that they now knew was from their future apartment.
Marinette obviously waited for them behind the window, a half smile stretching her lips.
They had won and she should've been happy. Shadowmoth was defeated. But during the fight, Nathalie had escaped with the Butterfly Miraculous. Well, the Butterfly brooch from their timeline, not the one Lady Bunny had borrowed, and had come to give back to their owners.
"Are you okay?" Marinette asked.
"Yes...well, you know...we lost the Butterfly Miraculous of our time." Lady Bunny mumbled. "But yours are safe. Both of them."
"Yes, I know," Marinette whispered. "But as you can see, there will be a time when you will put your hand on it again," she reassured her and recovered the brooches of the Butterfly and the Peacock that she had lent her, those of their future.
"And then lose it again afterwards," she sighed.
Marinette put her hand on her shoulder, squeezing it gently. "Sometimes, being a hero is complicated, but…you've got each other. It's your strength. Our strength."
At those words, Chaton Noir wrapped his arm around Lady Bunny's waist, and pulled her against his side, kissing her temple.
"She's right. We went through all this together, and we'll always do so," he whispered against her skin.
Nothing would ever change, he'd always be the more optimistic of the two.
"Yes. By the way…" she pointed to her older self. "You knew the ingredients to heal us. You even knew where we could find a complete Grimoire and someone to help us!"
Marinette raised her hands and smiled. "Of course I knew. But I couldn't tell you. This journey was important for you two. I couldn't risk changing the future, and losing what we have so carefully built over time."
As she said that, a voice raised in the apartment behind them. A small, high voice. And it wasn't Tikki.
A blond haired head suddenly popped outside, chased by another blond head, and a black Kwami cat.
"Emma, no! Come back inside now, you sneaky petit chat !"
"Is she there? Mummy bunny! Bugs Bunny! Wanna see her!" The aforementioned Emma, maybe 3 years old (or maybe slightly more), bluebell eyes, blond hair. The irresistible sweetie pie ran into Lady Bunny's legs, holding tight to them and laughing playfully.
Mummy? She blinked. Was she...their daughter?
"You're bunnyful maman!" The little girl giggled.
She was punning. Emma was punning!
Damn Agreste! Silly Cat! He was teaching their daughter how to pun!
Marinette couldn't move. Not because of Emma holding her in place, nor because she punned like her papa , nor because of her shocked boyfriend squeezing her side—almost squeezing the life out of her— but because she was taken aback by this sudden revelation.
It was their daughter. Their. Daughter.
She blinked, and only one thing came out of her mouth.
"You were lazily kissing on a rooftop last time we saw you! What the hell were you thinking? You've got a child!" Lady Bunny boomed.
Marinette and Adrien chuckled.
"How dare you take it so easy?" she protested, earning more laughter from them.
"Calm down, mon lapin, Emma is 3 years and 3 months. She's a big girl and sometimes, Auntie Alya comes here to babysit Eden and Emma as they play together."
"Eden?" Chaton Noir asked when he found the ability to speak again. But he didn't look at them, too busy looking fondly at the little girl. His little kitten.
"Alya's nephew, Norah's son. He's 2. Emma adores him," Adrien replied, trying to get his little girl back in his arms.
"Wait. You said Emma was 3 and...how many months?" Lady Bunny inquired, growing pale.
"3 months," Marinette repeated, locking gazes with her in a very persistent and meaningful manner.
The Ladybug-bunny heroine started to breathe heavily, inhaling as much air as possible to avoid fainting. "Oh boy!" She turned to her not-aware-of-the-situation boyfriend, and shot him a glare. "Did...you...you put a condom on each time we did it the first night, two days ago, didn't you?"
The cat themed hero narrowed his eyes, looking at her questioningly, then… oh! The lightning struck him.
"You…the third time...You told me, I quote: don't waste time opening this fucking condom or I swear —"
"Eeep!" she squeaked. "There's a child, watch your words, Chaton Noir!"
"You are...are you pregnant?" the feline inquired, looking at her with so much tenderness inside his lingering gaze, that she felt herself melting on the spot.
"She is," Marinette whispered softly. "Congratulations Mini me and mon Chaton Noir."
Well, now she knew why her future self hadn't said anything about how to cure them. To not put their family in danger.
Their. Family. Those words echoed like the sweetest melody in her mind.
Maybe it wasn't going to be always easy, but they were doing great and they seemed happy.
They could do it , she thought, as her hand moved to her belly, where Emma had probably just made her nest. Shoot! No surprise for the gender .
"Well, I think the future maman has enough emotions for today," Chaton Noir exclaimed, protectively pulling her closer, "let's go back home, mon Amour ," he whispered.
Marinette, snuggled into Adrien and watched their younger selves as they stepped into the rabbit burrow.
"You broke her, you know that?"
"I know. But that was meant to happen and you also know that. Besides, if I remember well, you didn't freak out because you found out you were pregnant. But because your daughter made bunny puns!" He chuckled, softly kissing Emma's forehead. "And I didn't say anything about that…" he whispered, slowly sliding his hand against Marinette's small, hidden, babybump.
"It's good to keep some things as a surprise, don't you think so?"
"You still don't want to know the gender, do you?"
"Nope," she answered, popping the 'p'.
He kissed her already puckered lips, but Emma quickly made them break the kiss, claiming her Maman 's arms.
"I don't mind, as long as you're both doing well, that's all that matters. I know the future still keeps some tricks up its sleeves for us but…we're Ladybug and Chat Noir," he grinned confidently. "We've fought until now and we'll keep fighting. Especially now that we have two new reasons for doing so," he whispered sincerely, cupping her belly, and caressing it tenderly, as he looked with undisguised fondness at the two women of his life.
There. Always so optimistic. Anyway, he was right. They had already defeated Shadowmoth and his successor.
She expected that they will defeat anyone who'd stand in their way.
And they will do so. Together.
The end.
I hope you really enjoyed this story! It was something fun to write, something different just an idea born after a silly discussion with my husband.
More is coming very soon. I have a sexy crack fic ready (very funny, with a lot of nsfw and shenanigans) as well as a second fic, more angsty/hurt/comfort, well a mix of all that, deep in emotions, but ending happily with a lot of fluff. (T rating).
I'll start to publish both of them pretty soon, before the finale of the season!
Feel free to leave me a comment. Thanks for all your support! Miraculous kisses!