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Redemption	By : Cat_Eyes Category: +M through R > Miraculous LadyBug Views: 2815 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Miraculous Ladybug. Miraculous Ladybug is the intellectual property of Thomas Astruc and released by Zag studios. No profit was made writing this story.

Chapter List
- 15
- 16
- 17
Marinette stared at the roses Sabine had left on her desk, as she had for the last week, considering their significance. She figured her first assumption was correct, that Adrien was simply trying to thank her. But, roses were also a symbol of love.
Confused, she had looked up the meanings of flowers online. According to a number of websites, yellow roses were for friendship, while peach represented gratitude.
'Is he thanking me for being a friend?' she muttered. 'He must be. But, he's a boy. Boys don't usually think about that sort of thing, do they?' She chewed her thumbnail. 'He's not your typical boy, though.'
Her thoughts had circled around those same questions all week. Now it was Saturday, and the roses had started to wilt. Struck by a sudden bolt of panic, Marinette grabbed her purse, and ran out the door, leaving Tom and Sabine to stare curiously after her.
She searched through craft and hobby stores all day, but none had what she wanted. Desperate, she found a dingy little art supply shop in a disreputable looking side street. Despite its dubious appearance, it had what she was looking for. She bought the flower pressing kit, complete with blotting paper, and ran home.
She charged by Tom and Sabine with a cursory greeting, before bolting up to her room. There, she set up the kit and paper, then carefully clipped off four of the roses, preserving two of each colour. She arranged the flowers on the paper carefully, before tightening the wingnuts.
Even with the conundrum the bouquet brought, Marinette adored it for its scent and vibrancy. The colours looked like a sunset, inspiring a slew of ideas she wanted to incorporate into her designs. She had a sketch of a skirt she thought would look exquisite with that palette.
Now that she had a moment to calm down, Marinette wondered what had possessed her to fly out in a panic over a bunch of flowers.
'They're the first gift he ever gave me. I should preserve the memory,' she justified. 'It would be a disservice to him, and the flowers, to just let them die.'
Pleased with her reasoning, she pulled out her homework, and focussed on that.

Monday morning, Marinette stared at the stack of flower presses despairingly. The day before, she had returned to the grubby art supply shop, and bought five more flower presses. Her bouquet had been reduced to stems, denuded in her efforts to preserve what she considered a momentous event.
Now, however, Marinette wondered if she had been a little too impulsive. She feared Adrien would think her weird and obsessive, should he see what she'd done. He was expected to visit that afternoon for her daily maths lessons, which they normally held in her room.
Pressing her lips together, Marinette gathered the kits, and stacked them in an inconspicuous corner under her desk. Adrien wasn't one to pry or snoop, so the chances of him seeing them were minimal.
'Marinette, you're going to be late,' Sabine called from the kitchen.
Marinette jumped, then scurried about her room as she collected her school things. She raced downstairs and shovelled her breakfast down. Sabine raised an eyebrow, but refrained from commenting. Marinette then dashed to the bathroom to brush her teeth, comb her hair, then she ran back upstairs for her bag.
'Bye, Maman. I'll see you later,' she hollered as she bolted out the door.
'Hey, Marinette,' Adrien greeted, as she entered the courtyard.
'Adrien. Hello. Morning. What's up?' she babbled, before clapping both hands over her mouth.
Adrien chuckled. 'Nothing much. What's up with you?'
Marinette screwed her eyes shut as she felt blood rush to her face. 'Sorry,' she squeaked through her fingers.
She was saved from commenting any further by the arrival of Alya and Nino.
'Yo, guys, how was your weekend?' asked Alya, as she slung an arm over Marinette's shoulders.
'Quiet, but I got all of my homework done,' Adrien answered.
'That's a bore, and you're a nerd,' Nino stated, bluntly.
Adrien smirked, and Marinette balked.
As Ladybug, she had seen Chat Noir smirk all the time. It had been insufferable. Chat Noir was loud, cocky, and arrogant. Adrien, however, was none of those things. She briefly wondered if Adrien were more like Chat Noir, before he lost his ring. She liked that he was a quiet person, but she thought he could benefit from speaking up more.
Perhaps the true Adrien is somewhere in between Chat Noir, and the Adrien from now, she thought.
Marinette watched, eyes far away and vague from her musings, as Adrien smirked while he quipped with Nino. Marinette looked away, feeling heat flood her cheeks once more. Alya nudged her in the ribs.
'Hello? Earth to Marinette. You in there?' she waved a hand in front of Marinette's nose.
Marinette came back to herself with a start. 'Pink,' she blurted.
'Yes, you're very pink,' Alya drawled, 'and getting pinker by the second.'
Marinette moaned and put her face in her hands.
'Stop teasing her,' Adrien said, as he pulled her from Alya's grip. He tugged her hands away from her face to look her in the eyes. 'We were just talking about spending lunch in the library today. We have that history test this afternoon, remember?'
'Oh, yes,' she gasped, eyes wide. 'Studying is important if you want to pass.'
Nino tilted his head, quizzically, while Alya slapped a hand over her face.
'Exactly,' Adrien agreed. 'So, you want to join us?'
Marinette nodded vigorously, her eyes never leaving his. 'Uh-huh.'
He beamed at her. 'Great.'
The bell rang, stopping her from embarrassing herself further. What is wrong with me? she thought as the others walked away. Shaking her head, she trotted after them, putting the scene behind her.
They studied in the library during lunch, Alya and Nino acting as a buffer and preventing Marinette from humiliating herself further. Their last minute cramming was worth the effort, though, when Marinette breezed through the test, putting her pen down with twenty minutes to spare.
They let out a collective sigh of relief when the bell rang.
'Hand in your papers on the way out, please, and don't forget you have a literature test to prepare for. See you tomorrow, students,' Caline called after them.
Marinette smiled as she handed her test back. 'See you tomorrow, Madame Bustier.'
Caline returned the smile. 'See you then.'
Marinette then jogged to catch up with Alya, Adrien, and Nino in the locker room.
'Do you want to go over some of the lit sources today?' asked Adrien her. 'I know you want to focus on maths, though,' he trailed off.
Marinette shook her head. 'No, it's ok. We can do some lit, if you want. That test'll come before our next maths one, anyway.'
He grinned. 'Awesome. Thanks, Marinette.'
'I'd ask to come, too, but the twins have brought home another bug,' Alya moaned, as she looked at her phone. 'Mum needs me to come home.'
Nino scrunched his nose up. 'Just don't go bringing that bug to school. The last time you did that, I was puking for a week.'
'We were all puking for a week,' Kim interjected, vehemently.
'Ew,' Adrien muttered, cringing away from Alya.
'I haven't caught any bug yet,' Alya told them, scowling at Adrien.
Marinette shoved her things in her bag and slammed her locker shut. 'Ready to go?'
'Yup,' Adrien replied, without hesitation.
They walked briskly out of the school, as Alya began ranting behind them. 'I haven't even gone home yet.'
'Begone, plague carrier,' Nino cried.
Marinette and Adrien entered the bakery, amidst an influx of customers. They waved to Sabine as they walked by, then went upstairs, and settled in the lounge room. Marinette made a pot of tea, then they pulled out their literature work, taking turns to read aloud and ask each other questions on the material. They took a break when Sabine came in with snacks.
'How's it going?' she asked, as she set a tray of pastries on the coffee table.
'It's going,' Marinette sighed.
She went to make a fresh pot of tea as Adrien turned on the television. As the kettle boiled, Sabine and Adrien struck up a conversation. Marinette tuned them out, and spooned tea leaves into the teapot.
'Oh, no,' Sabine moaned.
'What is it?' Marinette asked. Turning around, she saw Sabine and Adrien staring at the TV. Nadja's voice drifted out, catching Marinette's attention.
'Nathalie Sancoeur, the former executive assistant to Gabriel Agreste, is believed to have escaped prison by feigning illness, overpowering paramedics and her guards, as they escorted her to a secure vehicle. She stole a hand gun from one of the guards, as well as the vehicle intended to take her to a medical facility for treatment. She then rammed the prison gates, in her bid for freedom. She is still at large, and considered armed and dangerous. Any sightings of her can be reported on this emergency contact number.'
A phone number appeared at the bottom of the screen, in a large red font.
Marinette looked at Adrien. He was sitting up straight, with his eyes locked on the screen. Suddenly, his phone rang, and they all jumped.
'Hello?' he answered, hesitantly. 'Yes, just now, on the news. Of course, I'll be right there.' He hung up, and turned to face Marinette and Sabine. 'That was my case worker. The police want to question me.'
'Would you like me to come with you?' Sabine offered.
He took a long time to reply. Eventually, he shook his head. 'No, it should be ok. It's not like I knew this was going to happen.'
'All right, but if you change your mind, just ask.'
Adrien nodded. 'Thanks, Madame Cheng.' He packed up his bag and headed out. 'I'll see you tomorrow, Marinette,' he murmured over his shoulder.
Marinette held up one hand with a feeble wave. 'See you.'
She felt removed from the world for the rest of the day. Marinette kept her phone within reach at all times, fielding texts from her classmates as best she could, but the detached feeling lingered. Dinner was a sombre affair, after Sabine told Tom the news. They all went to bed early, but no one slept.
By ten-thirty, Marinette still hadn't heard from Adrien. She waited, on tenterhooks, fearing the police had taken him away. She sent numerous texts, but they all went unanswered, fuelling her spiralling imagination. She eventually fell asleep from sheer exhaustion, her anxiety no match for her body's need to rest.
The following morning, she was frustrated with herself from oversleeping. She wailed, aloud, when she checked her phone to see she had missed a call from Adrien. Brushing aside the need to prepare for school, she called him back, panicked, as her mind concocted one terrifying scenario after another.
'Hello?' he answered.
'Adrien,' she shrieked. 'I'm so sorry I missed your call. Are you ok?'
'I was fine, until you perforated my eardrum.'
She blinked. 'Huh?'
'I'm ok,' he assured her with a soft chuckle. 'The cops grilled me for ages, but eventually decided to let me go. I just called to let you know that I'm too tired to come to school today.'
'Oh,' she mumbled, feeling foolish. 'Do you want company, or would you rather be alone?'
He hesitated before answering. 'I think I'd like to be alone. I really need some sleep.'
Marinette nodded. 'Sure, no problem. Call me if you need anything.'
'Will do. Thanks, Marinette.'
'See you tomorrow?'
'You bet. Bye for now.'
'Bye bye.'
She hung up, and struggled to untangle herself from her blankets. Despite oversleeping, she didn't hurry to get ready. She could foresee the interrogation her classmates were sure to put her through, even though she didn't know any more than they did. She could avoid some of the frustration by being late, and felt comforted by the knowledge that Caline would understand.
- 15
- 16
- 17
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Redemption