Chapter Text
Nino adjusted the headphones over his ears, and hit play again, listening to the track he had so far. He was finally making some progress - or at least was starting to get what he had in his head. The bass line still still didn’t quite land the way he wanted it to, but what he had now was light years beyond what he had before, which was nothing. Now, it was mostly just a matter of getting the music in his head into the sound editor.
Which was a lot more challenging these days for some reason. A group of kwamis were throwing bouncy balls on the other side of the wall between them and him. He couldn’t see what they were playing, but judging by the cheers and groans, they were trying to one up one another in some kind of stunt.
Then Ziggy and Roaar floated ominously over his laptop with Fluff trailing behind.
Nino yanked the headphones from his head. “Guys… what are you doing?”
The other two looked at Fluff, who whirled around in the air at being addressed. “We’re flying through your room.”
“But what are you going to do?” Nino asked.
Fluff frowned and cocked his head. “Who can say? There’s so many different possibilities.”
Nino groaned. Talking to Fluff about anything outside of the exact moment was a headache. He turned to the other two kwamis, but they had already phased through the wall, which likely meant they were all up to no good, and he would most definitely regret it if he didn’t follow them.
His phone buzzed in his pocket.
Alya:
[10:04] Can we talk?
[10:04] Preferably today.
He sighed. He really didn’t want to have another conversation about picking a new Ladybug. But he knew from experience that putting Alya off only ever made things worse.
Nino:
[10:05] If you can come here, sure. Have a gig tonight. Working from home all day before that.
[10:05] Come by anytime before seven.
He did a quick walkthrough of his apartment, counting each kwami as he went. They didn’t seem like they were into anything they shouldn’t be. There were a handful fawning over a pokemon game on his Switch, Orikko and Mullo were tearing through his pantry in search of snacks, Daizzi was giggling happily in a bathtub of bubbles, and the rest of them, including the wayward trio that had just flown overhead were involved in the bouncy ball challenge in his bedroom.
So, nothing too crazy assuming the balls didn’t break any of his lights or windows.
He settled back into his chair, and managed to eke out another four notes in the bass line that he almost liked.
His front door swung open before he got any further. None of the kwamis bothered to hide, so it was Alya.
She hadn’t wasted any time.
He pulled his headphones from his ears and turned to her with a smile. His eyes caught on the faint dancing flames that always emanated from her now. It was easier to be around Alya than most people as her aura wasn’t nearly as blinding, which didn’t make any sense. If anyone was burning passionately with the brightness of a thousand suns it was Alya.
“Hey,” he said.
“Hey!” She plopped down on his couch. Trixx flew from under her hair to join the other kwamis. Nino watched him go warily. Trixx liked to play pranks or perform magic tricks. Nino was hoping for the latter today.
“You okay?” Alya asked, her voice soft with genuine concern.
His eyebrows arched in surprise. “You’re here to check up on me?”
She nodded. “I’ve been worried about you.”
“I’m…” he was going to say fine not because he was actually fine, but because it was just automatic. “I’m exhausted,” he corrected.
“Yeah, I’ll bet. Guardian and hero stuff aside, you could give Adrien a run for his money with how full your schedule has been lately.”
Nino laughed. “Who woulda thought that would ever be a thing?”
She smiled, but then her expression turned serious. “How is the Guardian’s mantle settling on your shoulders?”
He shrugged. “It’s a lot. But I think I’ll be fine once the dust settles.”
She smiled back. “Any prospects on a new Ladybug?”
“Tired of being in the lead role already?” he teased, trying to deflect.
“Honestly, I enjoy being Ladybug, but I’m not as good at it as I am at the Fox. The Ladybug needs to give hope, be seen, and provide direction and leadership. While the Fox needs to remain hidden, observe, and distract. The two roles are not compatible.”
“Can’t you just make an illusion of yourself as Ladybug doing those things while you’re actually being the Fox?”
She shook her head. “You know that I can’t. An illusion takes concentration to maintain. It doesn’t have a mind of its own. If I’m focused on what I need Ladybug to be doing and saying, I’m not focused on what I need to be doing as the Fox. I literally can’t do both, Nino. You need to pick a new Ladybug and you need to do it soon.”
Nino shifted. It wasn’t that easy.
“Surely, there’s a candidate for Ladybug within the city.”
“The problem is not finding someone suitable to hold the Ladybug,” he explained. The Ladybug really just needed a spark of creativity. Most people had that in at least some capacity. There were dozens of Ladybug candidates just on his usual commute to a club.
“Then what’s the problem?”
“The problem is you have to find the Ladybug and the Black Cat as a pair . And the Black Cat is already taken. So I need someone who is suited to working with Adrien and someone who is suitable for the Ladybug and someone I can trust to not abuse their powers or try to steal the miraculous.”
And the main roadblock in all of that was still that it was hard to find a partner for Adrien when he still couldn’t see Adrien’s aura.
Why couldn’t he see Adrien’s aura?
“Then pick a temporary holder.”
“Like who?!”
“If Marinette hadn’t left for New York, I’d recommend her.”
Nino didn’t laugh. He wanted to. “I imagine she would have kicked ass as a holder.” He was lucky Alya was worked up. She was the best at seeing through his bullshit. She rarely let him get away with anything.
“But since she’s gone, I would give it to Chloé.”
Nino jolted in surprise. “Chloé?! You can’t be serious.” Chloé had become a friend. That didn’t mean he trusted her to keep her head in a fight. She was far too volatile and reactive even if she definitely had that spark of creativity. Plus, she still had a strong selfish streak.
“She’s someone I know we can trust. And she and Adrien would work super well together.”
“She wouldn’t necessarily know it was Adrien,” he countered.
Alya shrugged. “But he would know, and he would be more comfortable with someone he knows and cares about and trusts, and he wouldn’t be put off by her being a bitch.”
Nino shifted, looking for another argument and finding none. It wasn’t the worst idea, except he didn’t always get along with Chloé. “What about Kagami instead?”
Alya shrugged. “Sure! Anyone who is not me is great!”
Nino glanced away, worrying his bottom lip. It would be a neat solution even if only temporary, but Nino still wasn’t sure Adrien was ready to see someone else wearing the spots. They were holding pretty steady for the moment. Surely, they could last in their current configuration for another week or month.
“Oh my god! You still won’t do it,” she realized.
He opened his mouth to object, but she beat him to it.
“This is about Adrien!”
“What are you talking about?” He knew exactly what she was talking about.
“It’s always about Adrien.”
“It’s not always about Adrien!” This very much was.
She leaned forward, and grabbed his arm. “Nino, I know this is hard for him. And I know that makes it hard for you, too, but Adrien knows we need a new Ladybug. He would prioritize all of Paris over himself.”
Adrien would prioritize everyone over himself and Nino hated that.
“But he fucking trusts you when you say you haven’t found someone,” Alya said.
“I haven’t found anyone!” Nino insisted.
“Are you even looking?”
“Of course I am!” If only he knew what he was looking for. And maybe he should have been reading more of Marinette’s notes on auras, but he was swamped with work in every spare moment.
Alya scoffed. “Ladybug always chose her duty over her personal feelings.”
And look where that got her.
“You have to live up to his trust, Nino.”
“Look! I hear you. I swear, It’s not just about Adrien,” he defended. “The Ladybug is so important. I’m definitely scared of choosing wrong. It’s a lot.”
She sighed. “I know, but there’s consequences from not choosing as well.”
“I’ll choose someone soon and if I can’t find someone, I’ll give it to Kagami.”
Her flat eyes told him she was unimpressed and didn’t believe him. He wasn’t sure he believed himself either.
…
Adrien scribbled notes onto his tablet almost faster than he could write. His thesis advisor had sent him the paper on how gravitational waves resulting from the spin of a binary black hole system might lead to the detection of ultralight bosons.
This was the first burst of progress he had made since Ladybug had resigned and moved across an ocean, and he was trying to ride the wave as far as he could.
He was only distantly aware of the front door, and slightly more aware of the click of Chloé’s heels through his studio. But he could not ignore the designer coat suddenly draped over his laptop.
He dropped his stylus. “Hi Chloé,” he said drolly. “Sure, I can talk. I definitely wasn’t doing anything important.”
She didn’t say anything. She was clutching either side of her head.
“Chloé?”
“I’m gonna screw this up,” she said.
“Did something happen? I thought things with Cassandra were going well.”
“They are! Too well! That’s how I know I’m gonna screw it up.”
He softened. “You are not. You’re doing fine.”
“I screw up everything!” she screeched.
He grabbed her hands and pulled them from her face. “That hasn’t been true in a long time. And it’s definitely not true now.”
“She’s it, Adrikins. I know she is. I’m so scared. She’s going to figure out that I’m not worth it.”
He smiled at her. “You are worth it. Now, go tell her that you love her.”
She looked up, her eyes startled and scared. “You don’t think it’s too soon?”
He shook his head. “I have it on good authority that she loves you too.”
“Whose? Did she tell you that? Are you and her talking?” she demanded almost faster than Adrien could process.
Adrien shook his head. “No, nothing like that. Nino watched the two of you interact. He said you were in love.”
She scoffed. “Nino’s an oblivious moron! Worse than you!”
“Hey!”
“I don’t know why I talk to you.” She turned on her heels and strutted towards the door.
“Good luck, Chloé!” he called after her. The door clicked closed a moment later.
He turned his attention back to his paper, a smile stretching across his face. Chloé was in love with an amazing girl and even willing to admit it.
Adrien managed another page and a half in his thesis. It was rough. He needed to add more than a few citations and a few diagrams, but it felt good to actually make progress.
Several hours into his work, his phone buzzed on his desk.
Chloé:
[15:38] she said it back. Adri-kins!! DHE SAID IT BACK!!!!!
Adrien smiled at the text.
Adrien:
[15:41] I told you.
[15:41] And congratulations!
[15:42] When’s the wedding?
Chloé:
[15:42] klssfiejgh
[15:42] Stop.
[15:43] Actually. I can’t even be mad. I’m so happy right now.
Adrien:
[15:44] your welcome.
Adrien smiled at his phone. Chloé had been through a lot in the last few years between her parents and a few ex girlfriends. She deserved to finally be lucky in love.
At least one of them was.
His smile faded, his thoughts turning to Marinette. He wondered how she was settling into her new apartment.
He really should text her. He wanted to know how she was, but his fingers seemed to spasm, hovering over her contact in his phone.
Even the idea of talking to her like nothing had happened made his chest clench.
He called Nino instead.
“Hey mec! What’s up?”
“Do you have time to chat?” Adrien asked, his throat suddenly tight.
“I always have time for you.”
Adrien smiled even as his eyes burned. Nino always stood in his corner. And sometimes that just hit Adrien in the chest.
“What’s up?”
He swallowed over the lump in his throat before speaking. “Nothing really. I just— Chloé told Cassandra that she loved her and apparently Cassandra reciprocated, and I’m really happy for her. I am! I just—“ he trailed off, tears breaking past his defenses.
“What do you need?”
“Can you just distract me?”
“Umm, sure! I was actually just about to call you. Nat called me earlier. She wants to know what she’d have to bribe you with to get you to take an extra modeling contract.”
Adrien needed a second to process that. Nathalie called Nino already? His father must be far more desperate than he realized.
“Do you know which one they actually want me to do? They’re trying to get me to take on three.”
“The Aubert Spring line. You could ask for something big.”
“I literally can’t! I have no spare time because I’m so far behind on my thesis after being useless for the last few weeks.”
“Then don’t. I'll tell Nathalie where to shove it.”
And Nino would. Quite colorfully if Nathalie’s dry comments about his best friend over the years were anything to go by.
“Please keep it civil.”
Nino laughed. “I will if she does. Trust me.”
Adrien smiled, warmth blooming through his chest. It never ceased to amaze Adrien how Nino could make him feel so cared for in so few words.
“I do.”
Adrien trusted Nino more than anyone.
…
“Race you to that tower!” Rena pointed to the horizon.
Chat Noir grinned, and took off without a word.
“Hey!”
Chat Noir laughed. He’d never admit it to Nino, but patrol with Rena Rouge was the most fun. She took so much delight in being a hero in a way that the others never had.
Ladybug had been a hero out of obligation and love for her friends and family.
Carapace did it to protect others, too. Specifically, to protect Rena Rouge, and only later, all of them.
But Rena just loved being a hero. She loved the powers and the freedom of it. They had that in common.
At the end of the run they settled next to each other.
“How do you think Carapace is handling everything?” she asked him.
“I think it’s been an adjustment. But honestly, I think he’s more stressed about work right now than anything miraculous.”
“Yeah, business just seemed to explode for him all at once.”
“The kwamis definitely drive him nuts, but he seems to be managing. He hasn’t said anything else to me. Why do you ask?”
She shrugged. “I just worry about him. Will you tell me if it seems like he’s slipping?”
Adrien nodded. “Sure, if he’s okay with that.”
“Thank you.”
They sat in silence for a moment.
“You care about him a lot, still,” Adrien said.
She side eyed him. “I never stopped caring about him.”
“I just… I don’t understand why the two of you broke up.”
“What has he told you?”
“Just that you realized you wanted different things.”
She nodded. “Yeah. I think the long distance really killed us. I just realized one day that I was super into my classes and into my career. And I was calling him every now and again not because I wanted to, but because I felt like I had to. But when I didn’t call him, it wasn’t like he missed me that much either. Like, don’t get me wrong. We enjoyed - still enjoy - talking to each other. It just… felt like we were going through the motions. So I didn’t feel like I needed to come back, and he wouldn’t have asked me to come back either, so… does that make any sense?”
Chat shook his head. “Honestly? No.”
She burst into laughter.
“I live for getting to talk to any of my friends and loved ones. For hearing from them. When I don’t, it drives me nuts!”
“So why haven’t you called Marinette then?”
“She told you that?”
“She did.”
“How is she?”
“Why should I tell you anything when you could just text or call her yourself?”
But Adrien couldn’t answer that. Alya didn’t understand, and Adrien couldn’t tell her. He couldn’t even tell Marinette.
“Because I’m her friend and am dying to know how she’s doing?” he said, trying to give Alya the most eager pleading puppy face he could manage.
“So why don’t you call?” she asked, unimpressed.
His shoulders slumped and he turned away, staring into the distance. “I didn’t want her to go. I know why she did, and I’m proud of her for doing it, but some part of me is still angry with her for leaving.”
“That’s not fair!”
“I know.”
“You can’t expect her to not follow her dreams in order to be able to drop by and make cookies.”
This was not about cookies. “You’re right. That’s why I don’t want to talk to her yet. She doesn’t deserve my anger, and I don’t want to make her feel guilty.”
“Is this why you broke her heart?”
He squeezed his eyes shut. “I broke her heart because she deserves to be free.”
“Not everyone wants to be free that way.”
But Marinette did. She just didn’t remember. And it was hard for him to think about her without thinking about Ladybug and it wasn’t fair to Marinette. He knew that it wasn’t. But it wasn’t fair to him either.
It was all such a mess.
He missed Ladybug.
But he also missed Marinette.
But all thoughts of Marinette were still painful. And he didn’t want to accidentally snap at her. She didn’t know how she had hurt him.
But he couldn’t say any of that to Alya. It wouldn’t be fair for Alya to know when Marinette didn’t.
“I get that you had a genuine relationship with Ladybug and that you’re still grieving her, but could you ever see yourself falling for Marinette?”
Adrien wanted to laugh. He had fallen for Marinette a long time ago. “It would be easy,” he said. “As natural as breathing.”
“Then why?!”
“Because I don’t want to hold her back.” And he didn’t want to drag her back. “I’m not ready. I would never want Marinette to be some rebound.”
Alya softened beside him. “Okay. I can respect that. But for the record, she asks about you all the time. She misses you.”
He smiled. “I miss her, too. You can tell her that.”
Alya shook her head. “Yeah, I’m not telling her that. That’ll make everything worse. You can tell her that.”
She looked at him.
“When you’re ready.”
He swallowed before he could cry. “Thank you. I will.”
When he was ready.
…
Nino was done. He was done with his phone ringing off the hook filling up every night of the week for he didn’t know how many months, done with the kwamis’ particular brand of chaos, and he was done with this particular remix.
He needed a break. From all of it.
He leapt out of the window as Carapace, and let himself run, but he didn’t really have anywhere to go, but he didn’t want to go home.
He landed on Adrien’s balcony ten minutes later, slipped inside, and let his transformation fall.
Adrien was at the piano. The song cut off when Nino came in.
“No please, keep playing,” Nino said. “I’m only here for relief from life. The piano is perfect for reordering my head.”
Adrien smiled and started up again.
Nino laid back on the coach and let his eyes fall closed. The music washed over him like a gentle waterfall, cool and fresh along his skin. How long had it been since he just enjoyed music for the sake of enjoying it?
The song ended, and Adrien moved on to another piece, the melody danced in the air, more lively and playful than the song before, but the harmony line stole Nino’s attention. It was clearly the thread that kept the piece in constant motion. It was that dynamic interplay he was trying to achieve in his current remix.
He bolted upright. “Stop!”
Adrien stopped played in an instant, looking over at Nino in concern. “What’s wrong?”
“Go back like three, maybe four measures,” Nino ordered as he took a seat next to Adrien on the bench.
Adrien grinned and did as he was told.
“Only the left hand.”
“You got it.” He repeated the sequence of notes.
Nino pursed his lips. It still wasn’t quite right, but he could use it.
“Here and here,” he pointed towards two notes on the page. “Bump this up to the sixth, but make it flat, and double the tempo here.”
“You want me to just play it in harmonic minor?” Adrien asked.
“Dude, you know I barely know what that means.” Nino could read music, but he hadn’t learned much beyond basic chord progressions.
Adrien shook his head, still smiling. “To this day, I have no idea how you can compose and edit music with almost no music theory! It boggles my mind. Here’s what you asked for.” He played it out, and yeah, it didn’t quite work. Several notes sounded clearly out of key.
“And here,” he played through it again, “It is in harmonic minor.”
“Yes! That is much closer! Okay, this note here still isn’t quite right.” He pulled out his phone and pulled up the song in question. “Can I play you the part I’m thinking of and you can help me with my modified bass line?”
It took only another twenty minutes before they had whatever it was in his head on the piano. Nino frantically transcribed what they had figured out into his phone for his own reference later.
“Thanks man! You have no idea how long this particular remix has been giving me grief.”
Adrien smiled that soft smile. “I’m honored to serve as your muse today.”
Heat bloomed across Nino’s face. “Yeah, maybe we should collaborate like this more often.”
“I’d like that.”
Nino would too. Any excuse to spend more time with Adrien.
…
Adrien arrived home just in time to watch Nino drop a stick of butter into a bowl of flour based on the puff of white that shot into the air. The whole kitchen was a mess. Broken eggs shells littered the counters, flour dusted the counters and the floor, and various baking ingredients lay haphazardly over the counter while the cupboards were left open.
“You don’t have a gig tonight?” Adrien asked. Adrien wasn’t sure, but lately it seemed like Nino had a gig every night.
“Wedding got canceled!” Nino explained gleefully.
“What are you doing?” Adrien asked, watching Nino drop another cube of butter into the flour.
“What’s it look like?”
“It looks like you’re making a mess,” Adrien teased.
“I’m making cookies. I got the recipe from M. Dupain.”
“But you’re just dumping all the ingredients together,” Adrien observed.
“Yeah, isn’t that what I’m supposed to do?”
Adrien sighed. “Baking is a science, Nino. You have to cream the butter with the sugar first. The other dry ingredients come way later. If you just dump everything together, the texture doesn’t come out right.”
Nino smirked and took a step back, and gestured for Adrien to take over.
“Stop it!”
“Stop what?” Nino asked.
“Looking so smug.”
Nino grinned. “I told you, you know how to do this.”
Adrien didn’t argue as he started a new bowl with butter and sugar. Making the dough was easy. He almost didn’t even have to look at the recipe at all. He even knew most of the amounts for each ingredient. He just didn’t trust that he knew and kept triple checking everything.
But the actual baking turned out to be an entirely different story. Marinette had always done the baking part.
When he followed the directions from Nino’s recipe the bottoms of the cookies burned by the time the top was done. But if he took them out when the bottoms were perfect the center was still goo.
“Still tastes good,” Nino insisted through a mouthful of undercooked cookie.
“It’s not right!” Adrien snapped. “I’m never going to have these cookies again.”
Nino frowned. “Dude! Chill. They’re just cookies.”
He dropped the mixing spoon. “I wish Marinette was still here.”
“She’s not dead, you know. You could just call her. I’m sure she’d be thrilled to hear from you.”
Adrien’s teeth pressed into his lower lip, unable to say anything.
“But she kind of is to you, isn’t she?”
Adrien didn’t answer immediately. Ladybug had no memory of Chat Noir. He couldn’t ever really talk to her again.
“Marinette is not dead,” Adrien conceded. “It feels like Ladybug is, and I know they’re the same person, but I only knew that for like a week and then Ladybug was gone. And sometimes, I think I would have been better off not knowing because now it feels like everything I have with Marinette is off or something. But I’m still glad she told me because if she hadn’t I would have wondered forever. Now, at least I know she’s still in my life.”
“Or she could be anyways.”
Adrien sighed. Nino was right. Alya was right. Adrien knew that they were. “What time is it in New York?”
“Like two or three in the afternoon.”
Adrien bit his lip holding his phone uncertainly.
“Just call her, dude. She’ll seriously be thrilled.”
Adrien hit the video call before he could overthink it.
It took a second to start ringing but then Marinette answered immediately. Her smile was positively delighted, her hair was tied up in a single bun, and her blue eyes sparkled.
She was so beautiful.
“Adrien!” she greeted, her voice filled with warmth. He found himself smiling in spite of everything.
“Hi Marinette. Is this an okay time?”
“I’m on a bus for an errand. This is a great time! What’s up?”
“I’ve been craving some chocolate chip cookies, and I’m trying to make them.”
“You’re making cookies without me?!” She sounded scandalized and thrilled all at once.
“Trying. The dough seems right, but I can’t get them to come out of the oven done all the way through.”
“The bottoms are burning?” she instantly guessed.
And he grinned. “Yes, or the tops are not done.”
“When you have a giant oven in a bakery you can follow the recipe straight. But when I’m using some tiny oven, it helps to shave two minutes off the bake time and then broil them for like 45 seconds. But the time also depends on the size of the cookies. So I usually set a timer for less than I think it will take and then just hover. When the bottoms are just starting to turn golden at the edges I flip the oven to broil, and watch them the whole time. Then when they’re golden on the top, which often takes less than a minute, I yank them. You also could just make the cookies a lot smaller and then the original directions will work better.”
“That makes so much sense! I’ll try it and let you know how it goes.”
“I wish I could try some!”
“I can ship some to you.”
She made a face. “Adrien Agreste! Have I taught you nothing? Chocolate chip cookies are meant to be eaten fresh from the oven or not at all.”
He laughed. “Okay okay. Next time you’re in Paris I will make you a batch.”
She grinned. “Thank you.”
“How are you doing?” he asked.
“Amazing!! I miss you all of course, but I’m learning so much. And I like living on my own. I don’t know. I feel strangely free.”
He smiled again. “I’m glad.” And he was.
“Well, I’ve arrived at my stop. Gotta run, Adrien. Thank you for calling me. I was worried I had made things weird.”
He shook his head. “Any weirdness was definitely on me. It was good to talk to you, Marinette. I promise I won’t be a stranger.”
“Thank you!”
The call ended, and he had to put his head down. He was crying again, but it was different.
“You okay, Dri?” Nino asked.
Adrien wiped his eyes and nodded. “Yeah, I’m okay. This was good.” Then he looked up at Nino. “Thank you.”
“For?”
Adrien shrugged. “For pushing me. I feel like you gave Marinette back to me.”
“All I did was make a mess. It was your idea to call her, mec.”
Adrien shook his head. That was definitely not what happened.
“I just… wasn’t sure I wanted to bake without her, but this was good.”
Nino inhaled another undercooked cookie. “Definitely tastes amazing!”
“Don’t eat those!” Adrien objected. “The next batch will be better!”
And it was. Adrien was grateful Nino was there to share it with.
…
Nino hopped into his car, buzzing with excitement. He had taken a night off for once instead of relying on a cancellation. Noël had wanted to meet up, like to actually hang out rather than catch a ride. Nino couldn’t remember the last time he and Noël had just hung out. Probably before his little brother had started his current semester.
They were meeting at a little cafe near Noël’s university, which was a bit of a drive for Nino who was absolutely never once for silence.
“Hey Wayzz, would you mind if we listened to Adrien’s interview, or would you prefer some tunes?”
“Let’s listen to the interview!” Wayzz said enthusiastically.
Nino smiled, hit play on the video he had preloaded on his phone, and pulled out of the parking garage, wincing as they drove by a pedestrian who’s aura was brighter than anyone’s headlights even on bright.
“I am here with Adrien Agreste who was photographed a few weeks ago kissing another man,” the interview began. “How did it feel to be outed so publicly?” the interviewer asked.
Adrien laughed. “You don’t start off easy, do you?”
Wayzz settled onto the dash. He always enjoyed being able to see when they were driving.
“I… I felt very exposed,” Adrien said. “I had always prided myself on not caring what others thought, but once it was out there, and I had no control over it, I realized I very much did care.”
Nino smiled at the response, knowing it was genuine.
“What’s different about being bi?”
Nino groaned at the question.
“I don't know. I've always been this way. What's different about being straight?”
“You tell ‘em, mec,” Nino mumbled, turning a corner.
He squinted hard against another glare from a group of people walking down the street. Nino preferred to be out during the dead of night when there were fewer people around, or during the day when the sun was still the brightest source of light. Events were becoming difficult. He was getting to the point where he couldn’t even look at a crowd of people. But as long as he kept his gaze on his equipment, he could still manage.
He wondered if the real reason Guardian’s became hermits to the world wasn’t just that it was unpleasant to be blinded at all times.
How had Marinette handled it over the course of so many years?
Maybe a thick pair of sunglasses would help.
It was worth trying.
“Why didn't you come out on your own?”
“It wasn't a secret. I was out with most of my friends. I was also caught kissing a guy in public in broad daylight. I wasn't exactly laying low.”
He wasn’t exactly advertising either.
“Did your father know?”
“Apparently, he did.”
“You didn't tell him though.”
“No.”
Nino arrived and parked the car, slipped in his ear buds, and let the interview continue playing as he walked the rest of the way.
“Did you not think he would approve?”
“He has made comments in the past that I knew he wasn't opposed to the concept in general. But it was easy to imagine it would be different for his own son.”
Nino rolled his eyes hard, sensing the coaching that had clearly gone into that answer.
“And how did he react?”
Adrien laughed. “It definitely went better than I was anticipating.”
Nino did not laugh. Gabriel condemning Adrien for the scandal itself instead of for being bi was not much better.
“He understood that this is not something I am at liberty to change,” Adrien continued.
Nino snorted. Gabriel did not deserve that much credit. Gabriel hadn’t shown any concern for Adrien’s well-being through the whole thing, let alone any understanding of what it meant to be bi.
Nino parked his car, swept Wayzz up into his jacket, switched the audio over to his earbuds, and began the two block walk to the small bistro.
“Celebrity crush?”
“Ladybug.”
There was a pause and then Adrien burst out laughing.
“See! You’re actually disappointed,” Adrien said. “You wanted me to name a male celebrity.”
“It would be more interesting.”
“It’s called being bi, but if it makes you feel better, Carapace is pretty hot.”
Nino shook his head. And immediately pulled out his phone even as he walked.
Nino:
[20:17] Really dude? Carapace is hot? I swore you were going to say Chat Noir.
Adrien:
[20:18] Nah. He’s not my type. I prefer a bit of color in my eye candy.
Nino found himself blushing despite knowing Adrien was just teasing him.
“But you don’t have a crush on him?”
“I’ve never met him.”
“Most people haven’t met their celebrity crushes.”
“I guess I’ve always needed at least a conversation with someone before catching feelings.”
Nino arrived at the restaurant. It wasn’t anything fancy. Just a small bistro. His brother was nowhere in sight, but he approached the hostess anyway.
“Table for two,” he requested.
“Inside or outside?” she asked.
Nino risked a glance towards the dining room. It wasn’t packed, but the dozen or so patrons in the room were still blazing as bright as a polychromatic star cluster.
He laughed at himself for the metaphor. He had definitely been spending too much time with Adrien.
“Outside.”
Nino:
[20:19] Just got here. Grabbed a table outside.
Noël:
[20:19] sounds good! Almost there.
Nino settled into his seat to wait.
“Anything you want to say to LGBTQ individuals out there?”
“You owe no one anything. If you want to stay in the closet, or come out, you get to do what you want to do. You don't have to worry about being a role model. You just worry about doing what’s right for you to live your life.”
“Hey bro!”
Nino started hard.
“Woah, there,” Noël said, holding out a hand in mock support. “How did you not see me coming?”
Nino squinted as a woman walked past behind his brother.
Noël wasn’t glowing at all.
Nino couldn’t see his aura.
Fuck. He wasn’t ever going to be able to see Adrien’s aura. He loved him. That’s what it was, wasn’t it?
Adrien and Noël, and even Alya, were people that he loved through and through. This was why he couldn’t see Adrien’s aura, and why Alya’s was so dim. Who knew how much of it he was missing?
But this was a problem because he wasn’t going to stop loving Adrien. He didn’t want to stop loving Adrien.
Maybe he needed to give the Ladybug to Kagami on more than a temporary basis.
“Nino?” Noël prompted.
Nino shook himself out of his thoughts and made himself smile.
“Hey! Sorry!” He stood and swept Noël into a hug. “I was just lost in my own thoughts. How’s school going?” he asked as they both took a seat.
Noël shrugged. “School is school. It’s fine.”
Nino laughed. “How’s Remy? You guys dating?”
Noël sighed. “Man, I wish!”
“Tell me about her?”
And apparently that was the right question because Noël just started gushing, only pausing to order dinner. And Nino basked in the fact that he could hang out with someone besides Adrien and Alya without being blinded.
“What about you? How’s Adrien?” Noël asked.
“Adrien’s… fine,” Nino eventually landed on. “He’s going through some stuff, but handling it pretty well, I think.”
“I’m sure he’s doing fine with you around.”
“Yeah, I–”
A series of screams interrupted. Nino jumped to his feet turning toward the commotion, trying to keep Noël behind him. His brother didn’t cooperate though. He had his phone pointed towards the people running toward them, fleeing from the five story apartment building.
“Etta is going to be thrilled!” he exclaimed, running toward the commotion.
Nino sighed. At least he didn’t need to come up with an excuse to disappear.
He ran for cover, while hitting the akuma alert on his phone, hoping Adrien and Alya were already on their way. He hated jumping into battle alone, but with Noël diving straight into the action, Nino wasn’t going to wait.
Maybe he should give Noël a miraculous and then his brother would at least have some protection during the attacks.
He transformed, and ran back towards the screaming.
Carapace squinted against the light blasting towards him. He was half blind, and could only make out the akuma hovering over the crowd because it had golden angel wings spanning a good three meters in diameter.
Maybe the Guardian powers were another reason the Order hadn’t wanted Guardians to use the miraculous themselves. Or maybe he could get Wayzz to transform him with magical goggles next time. Even if an ordinary pair of sunglasses wouldn’t work, surely the miraculous could filter out the effect during a battle.
The angel akuma dive-bombed the streets below, and the ground split apart like an avalanche.
He threw his shield, but the akuma easily arced away into the sky before the shield came back to him like a boomerang.
He was going to need some allies to corner this one, he was pretty sure. She was fast and his power set was not built for speed.
It didn’t help to have so many onlookers below, Noël featuring front and center, with their phones out recording. Carapace hated it when battles broke out near the universities and lycees. There were so many kids without an ounce of self-preservation.
“Get out of here!” he shouted at them. None of them moved.
The akuma dove towards the crowd again.
“Shelter!” he encased the whole lot of them in his protection.
“Hey!” someone objected, but Carapace didn’t care. The protective dome absorbed the energy blast.
The akuma spun towards him and shot off another blast.
Carapaced rolled to the side, but the akuma’s strike just hit the ground, ripping it apart. Carapace went flying with the explosion.
He landed painfully chest first against his own green dome, gasping for the air that had been forced from his lungs.
His eyes landed on Noël through the transparent shield, safe and protected. Thank goodness for small mercies.
“I’m on the scene. Any chance either of you are going to join me anytime soon?” Carapace shouted into his shield-phone before slamming it closed again, launching himself away from another blast.
“We’re already here!” Chat Noir called, landing next to him in a crouch. Multiple copies of Rena ran across the rooftops overhead.
Her illusions didn’t have auras.
Interesting.
“Why didn’t you wait for us?” Chat demanded as he went on the offensive with a flurry of strikes.
The akuma flitted away easily.
“Didn’t have a lot of choice,” Carapace said through gritted teeth. He threw his shield on an arc to block one the akuma’s retreat from Chat Noir’s next flurry of strikes.
The akuma dropped from the sky.
“Hypocrite!” Chat called.
The akuma streaked past them and away from them, low to the ground, explosions in its wake. Spider web cracks branches across his protective dome.
“Shut up and come up with a plan!”
“I’m working on it!”
But protecting the dome on the ground was all either of them could manage. And it didn’t help that the spectating crowd kept growing in size.
“Anyone not under the Shelter needs to leave!” an illusion Ladybug yelled to the crowd of people, pointing in the direction she wanted them to go. Some of them even listened to Ladybug, retreating rapidly back the way that had come.
The akuma was faster though, and gave chase.
“Adeline!”
Carapace’s attention jerked towards the little girl who had fallen behind and her mother who had been swept away by the moving crowd.
Instead of running towards her mother’s shrill cry, she ran towards Ladybug.
The Ladybug who was not actually there.
The Ladybug who the akuma was very much targeting.
Nino dissolved the shelter behind him - the shelter that protected his little brother - and shot off another one towards the child.
But it didn’t get there fast enough.
The girl - Adeline was her name - ran through the Ladybug, dissolving the illusion into a puff of smoke and fell sprawled to the ground. The akuma streaked just over her head, breaking the ground apart.
The girl went flying with the blast, just as Carapace had a few minutes prior. She struck the side of the building and stuck to it like a strand of spaghetti.
His protective shell caught her before she could fall, and he brought it gently to the ground. He was at her side an instant later. Her eyes were wide with shock, sucking in gasping breaths to replace the air that was stolen from her. He pulled her into his arms. Her face crumpled immediately with heartbreaking sobs and her little arms clung to his neck.
“It’s going to be okay,” he reassured, rubbing her back. Her arms and face were cut up, but it looked superficial. At least he hoped so.
“It hurts,” she sobbed.
“I know. I’m sorry,” he cried. He couldn’t even be mad at Hawkmoth. This one felt like his fault. If only he had chosen a Ladybug, a Ladybug who would have been there to catch her instead of an illusion.
Even the Miraculous Ladybug a few minutes later couldn’t ease his guilt. Or the tears from the little girl who clung to him even after she was healed.
…