Who Needs You?

Episode 08

Befana: Candy Crushed

"Happy birthday, Marinette!"

Tikki flies over to her holder's face and hugs her cheek affectionately, making Marinette laugh. Today is Marinette's fifteenth birthday, and she really was blessed with Ladybug's good luck for it to land on such a beautiful, sunny Saturday. Marinette and her kwami are outside, the former sitting on a lounge chair she had set up on the balcony earlier that week. She inhales the fresh air, sighing in delight—her past two birthdays have unfortunately fallen on rainy days, so she's taking in as much sunlight as she can.

"There's a ritual us kwamis perform on our holder's birthdays," Tikki says.

"What kind of ritual?" Marinette asks with interest.

"A ritual that creates a precious gift for our holder!" the kwami exclaims excitedly.

"You have a birthday present for me?" Marinette asks, touched. "Aw, Tikki, you shouldn't have."

Taking a deep intake of breath, Tikki hums a melody and does a twirl in the air before spitting out what appears to be glowing, glittery goop into her holder's hands. Marinette gasps in surprise (and, though she hates to admit it, disgust) at the slimy substance before turning her attention back to Tikki.

"Miraculous birthday, Marinette!" Tikki exclaims cheerfully, throwing her little paws in the air. Upon seeing Marinette's awkward expression, she asks, crestfallen, "You don't like it?"

"It's not that—I'm just not quite sure what it is," Marinette says honestly.

"Oh! It's a Kwagatama!" Tikki exclaims. "It's a great symbol of friendship among us kwamis. We take a hair from our current Miraculous holder, and join it to the hairs of all the former Miraculous holders. And with them, we grow a magic resin for a few months. The resin takes the shape of a symbol that represents our holder!"

The goop soon dissolves, leaving behind a jewel in the shape of the Chinese symbol Yin; however, instead of being the color black, it's of the color crimson.

"I represent one half of Yin and Yang?" Marinette asks.

"Of course! Ladybug and Chat Noir represent Yin and Yang as a whole!" Tikki exclaims. "Despite their opposing natures, Yin and Yang complement each other. They are interconnected, balancing each other out when the time calls for it. Just like you and Chat Noir, your powers may be opposite, and you may be rivals, but in the end, you need each other. You're meant to be."

"If I had a dollar for every time you told me that we were meant to be," Marinette laughs, clasping the charm in her hand. "Thank you, Tikki. It's a really sweet gift."

"You're welcome, Marinette," Tikki says, flying over to her holder to hug her cheek once more.

Marinette urges Tikki to follow her back in her room, where she places the Kwagatama charm next to her cellphone before digging through her drawers. Tikki flies over to her holder's phone, sitting right next to it as she watches Marinette mumble things to herself.

"What are you looking for?" Tikki asks, tilting her head to the side.

"Just a little something to—aha! There it is!" Marinette suddenly exclaims, turning around to show Tikki a plain black string and a single jump ring.

"What's that for?" Tikki asks.

Without a word, Marinette grabs the Kwagatama and some nearby pliers before turning around to hide her project from Tikki's view. A few moments later, she turns around, presenting a necklace she put together, using the precious charm as a pendant. Tikki gasps at the reveal, grinning as she watches Marinette put it on.

"This way, I'll always remember you, even when we'll have to part one day," Marinette smiles.

Marinette's phone suddenly rings, making her dive forward and grab the item sitting next to her kwami. She unlocks her device with an excited look on her face, only for her to groan and pocket her phone in disappointment.

"You've been watching your phone all day," Tikki observes.

"I'm expecting a text from Alya," Marinette says. "I'm supposed to go to the dentist," she air-quotes, "with her and her siblings."

"The dentist? On your birthday?" Tikki asks incredulously.

"Not the actual dentist," Marinette says. "It's a cover-up for a surprise party they're throwing me."

"Why do you know when it's supposed to be a surprise?" Tikki asks.

"My friends are pretty obvious," Marinette laughs. "I saw Juleka carrying a pump, which is obviously to be used to blow up balloons. I caught Nino listening to my favorite songs when he accidentally played one out loud when he didn't fit his headphones in properly. I saw Rose pass around a textbook with a pen, where my card is most likely hiding between the pages."

"Maybe Juleka has a bike? Maybe Nino likes those songs, too? Maybe Rose just needs help with homework?" Tikki asks.

"You can argue that," Marinette says, urging Tikki to follow her down the stairs. They make it all the down to the bakery, stopping at the door. "Just watch their faces."

Marinette slams the door open, startling Tom and Sabine, who drop what they're holding and throw the cake into a nearby cupboard.

"Good morning, my lovely parents!" Marinette exclaims. "Any news about the surprise party Alya's throwing me?"

"Party? What party?" Tom asks, looking around to avoid eye contact. "Is there a special occasion today?"

"Ouch, Dad," Marinette teases, giving Tikki a wink.

The doorbell suddenly rings, making her flinch in surprise.

"Well, I wonder who that is," Marinette says, turning on her heel to make her way over to the door. She opens it up slowly, saying out loud, "Could it be? Alya picking me up for that dentist appointment? Or maybe—Grandma?!"

Standing outside the Dupain-Cheng's home is an older woman with short, stylish grey hair and pair of gold-framed sunglasses covering her eyes. Her attire is rather young and sporty; a black rocker shirt underneath a black leather jacket, black fingerless gloves, red jeans, black boots, and several studded accessories around her thin wrists. Her lips are painted a bright red, and a matching red motorcycle helmet rests between her arm and waist, the black vehicle parked right next to her.

"Mom?!" Tom asks in surprise, walking over to the entrance door with his wife.

"Gina?" Sabine asks, surprised as well at the unexpected visit.

"I've missed you! It's been so long!" Marinette exclaims in delight, jumping into her grandmother's arms.

"Marinette! You've grown so much!" Gina exclaims, hugging her grand-daughter tightly. "Did you get my letter from Patagonia?"

"I did!" Marinette exclaims, letting her in. She grabs Gina's arm and hugs it tightly as they walk into the bakery. "And the ones from Australia, Bali, and Estonia, too! You're so lucky you get to see such amazing sights all the time!"

"Travel is my life! There is more to life than staying in just one place forever!" Gina grins.

Tom slides over to his mother, whispering, "Mom, it's Marinette's birthday today, remember?"

"Of course I remember! Why do you think I'm here?" Gina cackles, taking out a little gift from her inner jacket pocket. She excitedly presents a slightly flat, square-shaped gift to her grand-daughter, "Happy birthday, my darling! My Inuit friend knitted it especially for your tenth birthday!"

"She's turning fifteen today," Tom whispers.

"Fifteen?! Oh, how time flies," Gina says, pressing a hand to her chest.

Marinette unwraps the package, laughing awkwardly as she holds up a crocheted yellow shirt with a unique design at the front that's a few sizes too small. "Uh…" Marinette starts.

"It seems to be a little too small! Forgive me, I'll ask my friend to make another one," Gina shrugs, trying to take it from her.

"No, no! I have an idea," Marinette says, hugging the shirt. "It's perfect, Grandma! Thank you!"

"Your Nonna has also brought you your favourite candy!" Gina smiles, placing a round silver tin in her grand-daughter's outstretched hands.

Marinette almost gags at the sight of the tin—awful childhood memories come rushing to her mind. These candies, aptly named Befana, are black coal-like treats that despite being pure sugar, taste absolutely awful. She recalls pretending to like the candies so as to not upset her grandmother who adores them, and while she hasn't had them in years, she can still remember the odd taste.

"Oh! B-Befana…" Marinette laughs nervously.

"You still love them, right?" Gina asks excitedly.

"Yes… of course…" Marinette gulps.

"That's not all, my dear!" Gina says, placing her motorcycle helmet on Marinette's head. "I have our whole day planned! We'll go on the merry-go-round, the zoo, get some gelato—or ice cream if you prefer—!"

"Uh, Mom?" Tom interrupts. "Can I just have a word with you?"

"What, Tom? That I don't know my Marinette anymore because I'm always travelling?" Gina asks in a snarky tone. "Just because I'm here and there doesn't mean I forget my family!"

"It's not that, it's just—" Tom tries.

"You think she doesn't want to spend time with her Nonna, is that it?" Gina asks in a dramatic fashion.

"No, no, of course I want to spend time with you, Grandma!" Marinette says to save her father. "I may have to leave at four, but that's still hours away, so—"

"Then, it's settled! We will spend time together until then!" Gina says, dragging Marinette out the door and onto her motorcycle. She revs her engines, exclaiming, "Get ready, Marinette! It'll be a birthday you won't be able to forget!"


Marinette spits out yet another Befana candy.

Her morning consisted of participating in childish activities, including riding the carousel by the Louvre, petting animals at the zoo, and watching a street performance intended for audiences between the ages of three to six.

She's fifteen.

"Why don't you just tell your grandma that you're too old for these things now?" Tikki asks, poking her head out of Marinette's purse. Her holder then places the silver candy tin on the bench, slamming it shut with its matching cover. "And that you don't like the candy?"

Marinette waves at her grandmother, who's excitedly exchanging stories with Andre, whose cart was located on the Pont-des-Arts that day.

"I don't want to hurt her feelings. We don't get to see each other very often," Marinette says, taking her phone out to check for any notifications.

Her eyes suddenly widen at the two missed calls from Alya, causing her to panic and call her best friend right back. She was so afraid of upsetting her grandma that she refused to take her phone out until now.

"There you are! I've been trying to reach you since earlier!" Alya laughs.

"Alya!" Marinette exclaims. "I'm so sorry, I didn't see your calls, and—"

"Hey, it's no big deal," Alya says. "I just wanted to let you know that I'm running super late. Meet me halfway at say, Hotel Jeanne d'Arc le Marais?"

"Got it, see you then!" Marinette grins, ending the call. Her grin soon turns into a look of shock when she turns to find Gina holding two parfaits with a shocked expression on her face. "Oh no, Grandma, I'm so sorry. I have to go to the dentist with my best friend, Alya—"

"But it's only three-thirty," Gina says. "And surely you're not going to the dentist on your birthday? I still have to take you to see the trains at Gare de Lyon Station!"

"No, no, when Alya means dentist, she actually means a surprise birthday party, and—"

"I understand," Gina interrupts. "Don't worry about me. Run along now and go meet your friend."

"Are you sure?"

Gina nods.

"Oh, thank you!" Marinette exclaims, hugging her tightly before running off. "You really are the best grandma in the world! I'll see you later!"

She fails to see the heartbroken look on Gina's face.


Marinette's jaw drops when she makes it to Hotel Jeanne d'Arc le Marais, and finds not Alya there, but Adrien.

"Adrien?!" Marinette exclaims. "What are you doing here? Where's Alya?"

"Nice to see you, too?" Adrien huffs. "Alya went on ahead because you took too long. She was already running late, she couldn't afford being any later, so she sent me here to let you know."

"And why didn't she call me?" Marinette asks.

"Her sisters pulled the good old, got any games on your phone?" Adrien explains. "You know how they are."

"Ah, of course," Marinette nods. "I'm guessing you're taking me to the dentist, then?"

"You're kidding, right?" Adrien laughs. "I have a photoshoot today. I'm just on break while my photographer's out to get another SD card. Did Alya tell you which dentist she's going to?"

"Clinique Dentaire, Dentiste Fritz," Marinette answers.

Adrien takes out his phone and enters it into the Maps application, showing them an eight-minute walk from where they are right now.

"Well, isn't it your lucky day," Adrien says. "My photoshoot's at Place des Vosges, so you get to drop me off on your way there."

"Any other directions available? I'll gladly take another route," Marinette says flatly.

"Nope, looks like you're stuck with me," Adrien grins, pocketing his cellphone. "How happy does that make you?"

"Very. I'm truly over-joyed," Marinette says sarcastically.

Adrien leads the way and Marinette rushes over to his side, eyeing the blond suspiciously. It isn't exactly a stretch for Alya to call Adrien for some last minute help (the whole Kung Food fiasco is the first thing to pop up in her head), but she really does doubt that Adrien would help out with her birthday preparations.

"So… this supposed dentist appointment…" Marinette begins. "It's actually a cover-up for my surprise party, isn't it?"

"Surprise party?" Adrien asks, raising an eyebrow. They stop at a crosswalk, patiently waiting for the light to turn green. "For what? Did you win something?"

"Very funny," Marinette laughs. "Don't worry, I won't let them know that you told me."

"…Seriously, am I missing something?" Adrien asks in confusion.

Marinette's teasing smirk turns into one of surprise when she finds no hint of playfulness on Adrien's face. His emotions portray nothing but confusion, and this alone is enough to make Marinette feel an uncomfortable twist in her stomach.

He doesn't know that today's her birthday?

Surely, someone must have told him. Even if no one did, Madame Bustier announces the names and dates of the birthday celebrants at the start of each month. Does he not remember because he just doesn't care about her?

Marinette hides her eyes behind her bangs. Sure, they pick fights with each other all the time, but Marinette hoped that deep down, he considered her a good friend as much as she did. She asks herself if she's being a little over-dramatic, but when she remembers that Adrien's greeted and given gifts to all their classmates whose birthdays have passed since he transferred does she feel a little betrayed. When she recalls seeing drawings of balloons and stars next to Nino and Alya's birthdays on his school journal does she feel her anger and jealousy rising.

"You… really don't know what today is, huh?" Marinette asks, voice barely above a whisper.

"Is there a holiday I'm forgetting?" Adrien asks.

She snaps her head up to look at him, eyebrows furrowed. "You're a jerk."

"Huh?! Where did that come from?!"

"From the bottom of my heart."

"Geez," Adrien scoffs. "I don't know what got you so mad all of a sudden, but you're seriously—"

The two are interrupted by an opera-like singing voice that rings a bit too familiar to Marinette. They look up, gasping in surprise to find a green-skinned woman with fuchsia hair clad in black biker attire riding a flying motorcycle.

"Grandma?" Marinette asks aloud.

"Marinette!" akumatized Gina exclaims, hopping off of her vehicle and landing in front of her. "You lied to your grandma."

"What?" Marinette asks.

"You said you were going with Alya," her grandmother says, turning her attention to Adrien. "But you ran off with your boyfriend instead."

"Uh, excuse me, ma'am, but I'm not her—" Adrien tries.

"Ah, ah, ah!" she interrupts, waving a finger. "Don't you know it's rude to interrupt elders?" She then turns her attention back to her grand-daughter. "And you, haven't I told you since you were a little girl that lying is bad? What of those candies you were pretending to eat?"

"I'm sorry, Grandma," Marinette apologizes. "It's just that I didn't want to upset you!"

"I'm not your grandma anymore. From now on, I am only Befana!" the woman exclaims, unclipping her weapon from her belt, which appears to be a gun. She points it at Marinette, smirking, "And I'm going to punish you for all those lies!"

Before she could pull the trigger, Adrien kicks it out of her hand, sending it flying a few feet away.

"Why, you little brat!" Befana thunders, diving forward to retrieve her weapon.

While in the process of doing so, Adrien grabs Marinette's hand and sprints off, leading them both to a nearby alleyway. He pushes Marinette against the wall, pressing his forearm against the bricks near her head, while using his bigger body to hide her tiny frame.

Being this close to Adrien, Marinette can smell the sweat on his skin and his cologne, a combination so dizzying it nearly knocks her off her feet. She takes a glance up at him, wondering when he got so tall that he's almost a whole head taller than her. Her breath gets caught in her throat when he gets closer to her when the sound of footsteps get louder, and a few seconds later, Marinette hears him relax and makes eye contact with him when he looks down at her.

"We're safe," he breathes.

It only takes a moment for him to realize how close they are before he pushes himself off of her, face burning red as he makes awkward hand gestures.

"D-don't go around thinking I wanted to get close to you. It was the only hiding spot I could think of," Adrien says, looking out to see if the villain is any where near.

"Yeah, yeah," Marinette says, peeking over his shoulder. "Do you see her anywhere?"

Adrien and Marinette gasp in horror when they see Befana shoot an innocent bystander with her weapon, turning them into a black statue made of coal. She then presses a few buttons on her gun before pulling the trigger, this time turning a civilian into a white winged being.

"Marinette! Marinette's boyfriend! Where are you?" Befana sings as she turns more and more people into coal statues or winged guardians.

"You stay here," Adrien says as he turns back around to face her. "I'll drive her as far away as possible from here, and I'll go get some help. If we're lucky, Ladybug or Chat Noir will jump into the scene."

"Right…" Marinette laughs nervously.

"Don't go anywhere, all right?" Adrien says. "I'm seriously going to freak out if I get back to an empty alleyway."

"I'll be here," Marinette nods, cursing her luck. Guess today's point will have to go to Chat Noir—if Adrien somehow manages to return with one half of Paris' superhero duo, the both of them will surely get a heart attack.

"I'll be back for you," Adrien promises before running out of the alley. A few moments later, Marinette hears him shout, "Hey, Befana! Over here!"

"Ready to transform?" Tikki asks, displaying surprise when Marinette shakes her head.

"I have to trust Adrien," she says. "He'll be back with some help, I know it. The tally marks don't even matter at this moment, I just can't risk worrying Adrien or Chat Noir with my disappearances."

Moments later, a thud resounds above her, and Marinette freezes in place, fearing the worst. If she were to turn into coal at this moment, Hawkmoth will have succeeded in acquiring the Ladybug earrings, and she'll have no one to blame but herself for causing this akumatization.

"A little scared, are we?"

Recognizing the voice, Marinette turns around and practically beams at the sight of Chat Noir crouched and balanced on his silver staff.

"Chat Noir!" she exclaims.

With a press of a button on his staff, the weapon shortens and the superhero performs a graceful flip before landing in front of Marinette.

"At your service," he smirks, bowing to her teasingly. "Mind summarizing this whole situation for me?"

"It's my grandma," she begins. "It's my birthday today—"

"Today's your birthday?" Chat Noir asks. "I'm sorry all this is going down on such a special day. Happy birthday, Marinette."

Marinette's cheeks turn red. "O-oh! Thank you," she says. "A-anyways, I spent the first half of my day with her pretending that I still enjoyed the things we used to do when I was a child, then Alya called and told me to meet up with her, so I ditched my grandma, turns out Alya sent Adrien—oh no, Adrien!"

Marinette panics, looking out the alleyway to see if she can catch a glimpse of the blond.

"Adrien?" Chat Noir asks.

"You know the model, Adrien Agreste? He was with me earlier, but he took off to go get some help, but now you're here without him, and…!" she says quickly.

Chat Noir places a hand on her shoulder, eye apologetic. "I'm sorry… he turned into coal," he says. Cold as the lie is, Chat Noir figured it was the only way to get Marinette to stop worrying about his whereabouts for the rest of the mission. She can't risk her seeing a blond thinking that it's him and launching herself into danger.

"What?" Marinette gasps, eye wide. "No, no, no, this is all my fault."

"Don't blame yourself. And besides, I'm here, aren't I?" Chat Noir asks. "He sent me to you, so he kept his word. Right now, we have to stick together and defeat Befana once and for all so that we can bring Adrien back."

"You're right," Marinette nods.

Chat Noir crouches down, urging her to get on his back for a piggyback ride. When she does, he extends his staff, lifting them up onto the roof one of a nearby building. From where they're standing, they can hear Befana singing in the distance, and so Chat Noir takes off, following her voice.

"So, tell me about this Adrien guy," Chat Noir says as he jumps from roof to roof. "Is that the guy Befana's been calling your boyfriend?"

"Ugh, she's still saying that?" Marinette groans, burying her face in the back of Chat Noir's shoulder. "How embarrassing…"

"Ah, so he's not your boyfriend?"

"Adrien? He's just a friend."

At this, Chat Noir almost loses his footing.

While Chat Noir (or rather, Adrien) laments being trapped in the friendzone, Marinette blushes, hoping she made it clear to her crush that she and Adrien are not a couple.

Chat Noir lands on top of a roof near Place des Vosges, and Marinette gasps at the sight of the decorated park. A big sign reading, "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" hangs between trees, a small stage with a DJ booth sits under it, a table topped with snacks stands a bit further, and next to it is another table, this time topped with colorful gifts.

All her friends are at the party as well as her parents, but they each wear a terrified expression on their face as Befana points her weapon at them.

"It's the truth! We don't know where Marinette is!" Alya exclaims, hands up in surrender.

"You're lying," Befana sings, pulling the trigger.

Marinette gasps when her best friend turns into a statue made of coal. Some defend her, others spring into action to try to grab the weapon from the akumatized victim, but it's not long before they all turn into statues or angels. Befana then instructs all of them to split up and go around the city in search of her precious grand-daughter.

Chat Noir backs away slowly until he's sure they're out of sight before setting Marinette down on the roof.

"Ladybug's Lucky Charm would definitely help more than Cataclysm in this situation," Chat Noir mumbles, making a thinking pose.

He and Marinette take another peek at Befana, who has left the park on her motorcycle and is now going around the neighborhoods turning innocent civilians into whatever form she deems fit. Her face suddenly contorts in annoyance, and that's when she pulls out a silver tin and opens it up to drop what looks like candies into her gun.

"So, she doesn't have unlimited ammo," Chat Noir observes. "The akuma must be in that candy tin, too."

His face suddenly lights up.

"I've got an idea," he says, urging Marinette to get on his back again.

Chat Noir jumps onto the next roof and the ones after that, and Marinette follows his gaze to try to figure out where they're going.

"The Eiffel Tower?" she guesses.

"Bingo," Chat Noir grins. "I'm going to need you to be a distraction…"


Marinette stands beneath the Eiffel Tower nervously. She can hear Befana singing from where she is, and not too long after, the akumatized victim turns the corner and gasps at the sight of her grand-daughter.

"Marinette! There you are!" Befana exclaims, revving her motorcycle and rushing over to her. Marinette breathes out a sigh of relief to find that none of her henchmen are following behind her. Befana hops off her vehicle and hurries over to her, weapon in hand.

"Grandma, I'm really sorry I lied to you," Marinette frowns. "I promise I won't lie to you again."

"Another lie," Befana scoffs, pointing her weapon at her. "You deserve to be turned into coal for repeatedly hurting your Nonna. Goodbye, my darling."

"Chat Noir, now!" Marinette suddenly yells.

"CATACLYSM!"

Befana turns her attention to the tower above her, gasping to see the first platform crumbling into debris. She looks towards her grand-daughter in worry, growling when she sees Chat Noir pick her up bridal style and dashing off to get her to safety. Befana dodges the incoming debris, and in a moment of desperation, shoots at them with her gun to see if it would offer any help to her.

Befana lets out a sigh of relief when she manages to get out of that madness unscathed, but she's quick to notice that she's run out of ammo. She takes her candy tin out of her pocket, gasping in surprise when it's suddenly knocked out of her hands with a silver staff.

Her eyes follow the tin to see it land perfectly in Marinette's hands.

"Sorry, Grandma," she apologizes before breaking the item in half.

Chat Noir paints the black butterfly white again, letting it fly free into the sky before performing his Miraculous Chat, bringing everything back to its former glory.

"Pound it?" Chat Noir asks with a raised fist, approaching his partner for today's mission.

"Pound It," Marinette grins, bumping her fist with his.

A black and violet cloud envelopes Befana, revealing a confused Gina once it all subsides. Chat Noir's ring makes a warning beep, and he takes it as his cue to leave.

"I better go," Chat Noir says. "Thanks for partnering up with me again today. It's always great working with you."

"Likewise," Marinette smiles.

"I'll see you later," Chat Noir grins.

With that, Chat Noir leaves the scene, and Marinette makes her way over to her grandmother.

"Marinette? What happened? How did we get here?" Gina asks in confusion.

"You were controlled by Hawkmoth," Marinette explains. "It's all my fault. I'm sorry; we don't get to see each other often, so I didn't want to hurt your feelings."

"That's sweet of you, my dear," Gina smiles. "But next time, be truthful to me. No more lies, all right?"

"No more secrets," Marinette nods.

Gina opens her arms, and Marinette jumps into them, hugging her tightly.


Later that evening, Marinette finds herself surrounded by all her friends at Place des Vosges, which is full of life despite the day's events, and all cleaned up again after Chat Noir's Miraculous Chat. Nino mans the DJ booth, playing the latest hits as they blare from the enormous speakers.

Marinette thanks each person she passes for showing up to her surprise birthday party, and soon enough, she makes it past the crowd to join her grandmother, who's standing by Andre's ice cream cart.

"Grandma!" Marinette exclaims, hugging the old woman from behind. Gina turns around when her grand-daughter lets go to plant a kiss on her cheek.

"Marinette! Oh, what did you do with the shirt?" Gina asks, pointing at her grand-daughter's cross-bag.

"I made a purse out of it, do you like it?" Marinette asks, lifting it up to show it off. "I've been sewing since the last time you were here!"

"You really grew up fast," Gina says with a smile. "You know what? No more merry-go-rounds or zoos; I'll take you on a trip instead for your next birthday! We'll go anywhere around Europe—no, the world! Think of where you want to go next, and I'll take us there!"

"Thank you, Grandma," Marinette says, hugging her once more. "But it doesn't matter where you take me. With you, it's always unforgettable."

"Let's blow the cake!" Alya hollers, riling everyone up.

All at once, everyone begins singing Happy Birthday as Tom and Sabine approach their daughter with an enormous, pink-frosted, three-tiered birthday cake. Noticing that Marinette is much too short for the cake, Kim and Ivan walk up to lift her up so that she can blow out the candles. At the end of the song, Marinette makes a wish and blows out the candles.

Marinette makes the first slice of the cake before handing it off to her parents, who insist nonstop on taking care of the cake so that she can enjoy her party.

While passing by one of the large trees, a hand grabs her wrist and yanks her behind a tree surrounded by tall bushes, making her let out a cry of surprise.

"Hey! What's the deal—Adrien?" Marinette asks when her eyes meet green ones.

"I, uh, have a gift for you," Adrien says, holding out a little box wrapped in cerulean blue paper. Cheeks tainted pink, he continues, "I thought I'd give it to you in secret. You know… so that there won't be any teasing from anyone."

"Good call," Marinette says, taking the box. "Can I open it now?"

"If you want to," Adrien says.

With a nod, Marinette carefully rips off the wrapping to reveal a little white box. She lifts up the top, eyes widening when she finds a handmade charm bracelet sitting on black velvet plush. She takes out the bracelet and holds it up by its string, letting it dangle between them.

The charm is held together by a red string, and nine unique beads fall loosely from it. The first bead is of the color amber, edges coming together to form a parallelogram. The second bead is of the same color, but this time in the shape of a circle. Another parallelogram bead follows painted in cyan, a bird-shaped one in amber once more follows suit, then a cylinder one in midnight blue, and yet another parallelogram in cyan comes next. The last of the charms are a spherical bead the color of Marinette's eyes, a smaller spherical bead in marbled grey, and finally, a large bell-shaped bead in amber.

"I always carry around the Lucky Charm you gave me a few months back for the Gaming Tournament," Adrien says, taking it out of his pocket to show it to her. "It, uh… works pretty well. I thought I'd make one for you, too."

Adrien pockets his bracelet and looks away embarrassed, ready to get teased or mocked, but he gets none of those. Instead, Marinette softly says, "Thank you, Adrien."

He turns to her, surprise written all over his face. "I—uh, wha?" he bumbles pathetically. He eyes her suspiciously, "Who are you and what have you done to my klutz?"

"Please, I'm not in the mood to argue right now," Marinette says with irritation. "You really do love starting the arguments, don't you?"

"Of course. It's one of my favorite pastimes," Adrien grins. "But I'll lay off on the insults just for today, since it's a very special day."

"How kind of you," Marinette chuckles. She looks down at the charm in her hand, clasping it tightly as she says, "Thank you for this gift. I love it."

"Do you really?" Adrien asks, feeling insecure. "I'm not exactly the arts and crafts type, and I don't really have a good eye when it comes to accessories and things like that, so if it's actually awful-looking, you can let me know and I'll get you one of my father's upcoming catalogues instead or—"

"Woah, calm down," Marinette laughs. "I don't think it's awful-looking at all. You put time and effort into making it, and that's enough for me to consider it as something very precious. I guess I'll be carrying it around with me, too."

"I'm glad to hear that," Adrien smiles. "Happy birthday, klutz."

"Thanks, jerk," Marinette grins. "You're a good actor, you know that?"

"You're talking about my whole oblivious act this morning?" he chuckles. "You were so mad thinking I forgot your birthday."

"Who says I was?!" Marinette says almost too quickly. "I knew you were playing dumb, I was just trying to mess with you back!"

"Sure," Adrien laughs as her cheeks burn bright red from both anger and embarrassment. "Now, come on; we wouldn't want everyone wondering where we ran off to," he chuckles as they walk around the tree. "I'd hate for them to make a big deal… out of it…"

Adrien and Marinette are met with all their party guests either snickering, giggling into their palm, and Alya recording on her cellphone.

"So, this is where our two lovebirds were hiding," Alya smirks, making Adrien and Marinette's jaws drop.

"We are not lovebirds!" Marinette fumes.

"Mind explaining what you guys were doing behind the tree, in that case?" Nino asks while wiggling his eyebrows.

"I was just giving her the gift I got her," Adrien explains.

"Ooh, must be one heck of a gift if you didn't want her opening it up in front of everyone," Alya grins, making Adrien's left eye twitch.

"Come on, everyone," Tom laughs. "That's enough teasing for today."

Laughing, everyone scatters, leaving behind a blushing pair. Alya snaps a picture of the two before turning around to join her boyfriend by the snack bar.

"Nosy as always," Marinette comments.

"They'll never change," Adrien adds. A ding! resounds from Adrien's pocket, and when he takes out his phone to read the newest notification, his shoulders droop. "I've got to go."

"Already?" Marinette asks in disappointment.

"You know how my father is," Adrien says with a sigh. "Well, despite today's crazy turn of events, I hope you still enjoyed your birthday."

"Of course," Marinette smiles. "Thank you for coming."

A familiar black car turns the corner a few minutes later and parks by the sidewalk, honking to let Adrien know that it's time to go. Gorilla's on time as always, Adrien sighs—it would've been nice to stay for even just two more minutes.

"I'll see you at school," he says. "Happy birthday again, Marinette."

He turns away from her and walks towards the car, only to stop just a few feet away when Marinette calls his name. She rushes over to him, clutching the lucky charm in her hand tightly, fearing that it'll fall and shatter if she were to loosen her grip even just a tiny bit.

"I almost forgot," she pants. "I also wanted to thank you for earlier. Chat Noir said that you turned into coal. You really put your life on the line for a dummy like me."

"It was nothing," Adrien says.

"No, it was definitely something," Marinette says. "I wish I could repay you for it someday."

"Am I crazy or are you offering a favor?" Adrien smirks.

"Don't go all smug on me," Marinette grumbles. "It's my birthday, and yet, I'm giving you a gift. Cherish this rare piece of kindness I'm offering you."

"I'll take any," Adrien grins. "Thanks, but get ready because I have a feeling I'm going to be using it very soon."

"Why am I already regretting this?" Marinette groans. "Do your worst."

"Foot massage? Gopher for a day? Free baked goods? The possibilities are endless."

"Can't you just give me the old do all my assignments for a week?"

"Nah. I can't have you messing up my perfect scores."

"Wow."

With a laugh, Adrien bids her farewell. "I'll think about it," he says. "See you, klutz."

"See you, jerk," she grins.

Adrien shuts the door and the car drives off, leaving Marinette to wave goodbye as she watches it disappear around the corner.

A few feet away, Alya and Nino give each other a knowing look before calling Marinette over to rejoin them in dancing the night away.


A little past midnight finds Marinette leaning over the rails of her balcony, the lucky charm Adrien made her in her hands. She may have gotten bigger gifts like the newest Jagged Stone CD from Nino, a new set of satin and cotton fabric from Alya, and a big brand sketchbook and stationery from Nathanael, but the simplicity of Adrien's gift somehow makes it so unmatched.

"Boo."

Marinette jumps in surprise and turns around, cheeks puffing at the sight of Chat Noir laughing.

"That wasn't funny, Chat!" Marinette huffs. She then asks, "What brings you here?"

"I did say I'd see you later," Chat Noir grins, making his way over to the empty spot on her right.

"When you said see you later, I didn't think you actually meant it," Marinette laughs.

Chat Noir leans over the railings, a glimpse of something colorful in her hands catching his eye.

"What's that?" he asks, pointing at her hands.

"It's a Lucky Charm," Marinette answers, showing him the precious gift. "My friend, Adrien, gave it to me as a birthday gift. I gave him my own homemade Lucky Charm a few months ago, so he made his own to give to me."

"That's really thoughtful of him," he says.

"It is, isn't it?" she smiles.

"I wish I'd known it was your birthday," Chat Noir says. "It would've been nice to get you something, too."

"Your company right now is enough for me," she says. "After such a hectic day, it's nice to let loose and talk to someone."

"Good to know that all it takes is my presence to make you smile."

"Oh, quit it, you big flirt."

Chat Noir laughs at her response, and Marinette soon joins in, finding his laughter too contagious.

"Happy birthday, Marinette," Chat Noir smiles once their laughter subsides.

"Thank you, Chat Noir," Marinette says, clutching the lucky charm in her hand tighter.

For the first time ever, she can feel her heartbeat slowing down for the boy next to her, and instead speeding up for the boy who gave her the lucky charm.

end card


A/N: "Adrien? He's just a friend." HA. SORRY ADRIEN.

Fun Fact: In Who Needs Love?, Adrien also started realizing his feelings for Marinette on his birthday, which was during the events of The Bubbler.

Apologies once more for the slow update. To be honest with you, I started watching Season 4, and I was honestly so disappointed in many of the choices the writers made that I fell into a Miraculous Ladybug slump. But I picked myself back up, and managed to write this whole chapter and 45% of the next one in just three evenings!

Since I still believe that Chloe deserved better, next chapter is big on Chloe development. We're also going to meet a new character, any guesses?

Also, I've read your reviews, so I'd like to announce the Season 3 episodes that I'm going to be adding to this story:

Reflekdoll
Silencer
Miraculer
Oblivio
Desperada
Feast
Ikari Gozen
TimeTagger
Ladybug
Chat Blanc
Loveater (Finale Part I)
Miracle Queen (Finale Part II)

I've decided to only write the ones that have appeared three times or more in reviews and PM's. Any less than three, and I'd be writing the whole Season 3! I hope at least one of these is an episode you're excited for!

And since I've decided I won't be writing for future seasons once I've completed this fic, I'm thinking of changing this story's title. Any of you have any ideas? I feel like Who Needs You? doesn't sound as nice as Season 1's title, or maybe that's just me.

Thank you for the kind reviews and favorites! It warms my heart to see people reading my works.

Thank you for reading!

Akuma Capture:
Ladybug: 3
Chat Noir: 6

Next Episode: Frightningale