Chapter Text
Ladybug pulled herself up towards the top of the tower, using her momentum to rocket past it higher into the air before freefalling. She would never be able to get over the adrenaline rush she got when she spread her arms and legs, her back to the ground as her hair whipped up around her. The wind roared in her ears, and she smiled giddily as she let herself fall until she knew to straighten up and swing her yo-yo in a different direction. Chat Noir, Carapace, Rena Rouge, and Queen Bee were close behind her, all whooping and hollering about another successful battle against an akuma.
The battle had been long and demanding, and, though she would never admit it, Ladybug had been afraid that they would lose. However, they didn’t! The akumatized object was captured and broken, the butterfly and victim were freed, and Hawkmoth’s plans to capture her and Chat Noir’s miraculous were once again thwarted. Ladybug was so relieved and proud of her team that she was considering bringing them to the bakery for a celebratory treat.
Yet, just as Ladybug was about to look for a roof to land on to relay her plan, she spotted a group of teenagers waving their arms and calling for her down on the streets below. They didn’t seem distressed or afraid, so Ladybug took her time losing her momentum as she landed on the ground. Chat Noir and the others were quick to follow.
“Everything okay down here?” Ladybug asked, trying to hide her heavy breathing as she smiled.
“Yeah, thanks to you! You were totally awesome up there!” one of the teenagers exclaimed.
“I had to stop them from hollering at you and fangirling loud enough to give our location away,” another chimed in.
“Probably a good idea, dude,” Carapace said while laughing.
Ladybug’s earrings beeped, and she briefly cupped her ear before returning her attention to the teenagers.
“So, what’d you wave us down for?”
“Right,” the third teenager began, pulling out their phone, “as I’m sure you know, it’s Pride Month, but there’s actually a surprising amount of kids at our school and other schools in Paris that don’t know much or anything at all about the month. We were wondering if you would help us make some educational videos about the LGBTQ+ community and what it means to be a part of or just support it!”
“That sounds awesome!” Chat exclaimed, gripping his staff tightly.
“It was my idea!” the first teenager said, shooting her arm in the air.
Ladybug’s earrings beeped again, as did Carapace and Queen Bee’s miraculouses.
“What would you need us to do?” Ladybug asked, her eyes darting around for a quick hiding spot.
“We already have the videos planned out, down to the scripts and visuals,” the second teenager explained, “All we need from you is to be the recognizable and influential faces of the PSA campaign. Is that okay with all of you?”
He looked around the group, waiting for a nod from each of them before clapping his hands together.
“Great! We want to get these out on the internet as soon as possible. So, whenever you’re ready…”
“Would it be alright if just Chat Noir and Rena Rouge were in the first video? We need to recharge,” Ladybug explained when her earrings gave yet another beep.
“Of cour-”
“Amazing! Carapace, Queen Bee: with me!”
Ladybug swung her yo-yo up into the air, zipping off into the sky with Carapace and Queen Bee close behind her. Meanwhile, Rena Rouge and Chat Noir stepped forward to face the three teens.
“You have some cue cards for us or do you want us to memorize a script?” he asked.
“Cue cards. Melissa is going to hold them up for you while Avery records,” the second teenager explained further.”
“And what will you be doing?” Rena asked.
“Will’s in charge of the audio!” the first teenager, Melissa, said excitedly.
“ Sounds great,” Chat mused, grinning at his own joke.
The three teenagers laughed while Rena just rolled her eyes.
“Let’s get this started!” she said.
“Alright! And we’re rolling in three…two…”
“Hey, everybody! As you know, I’m Chat Noir-”
“-And I’m Rena Rouge-”
“-And we just wanted to take a moment today to talk to you all about Pride Month and why it exists,” Chat read off of the cue cards.
“Pride Month exists to celebrate the journey, history, and lives of those who are a part of the LGBTQ+ community.”
“The ‘L’ stands for lesbian, the ‘G’ stands for gay, the ‘B’ stands for bisexual, the ‘T’ stands for transgender, and the ‘Q’ stands for queer. Of course, the ‘+’ stands for all the other sexual, romantic, and gender identities. There’s an entire spectrum within the community, and it’s important to know about each one so that, hopefully, you can find one that resonates with you.”
“That’s not to say that you need to rush to find a label and stick with it forever. We’re always learning more and more about ourselves each day, and it’s okay to change your mind about what label you use or if you even use a label at all,” Rena Rouge went on.
“Through these next few PSA videos, we’re going to go over many identities while providing resources for further research on your own. Furthermore, we’re going to discuss important dates and people in our history-”
“-And we’re even going to talk about coming out to friends and family, how to safely do it, and resources available to everyone for further support.”
“Cut! That was great,” Avery exclaimed before turning to her friend, “Will, send me your voice-over for the end of the video when you get the chance to record it, okay?”
Will gave a thumbs-up as he put down his recording equipment.
“I’m so excited about this project! Say, you should try to reach out to the owner of the Ladyblog to promote your PSAs,” Rena Rouge suggested, knowing that she’d do it anyway.
“That’s a great idea! And thank you both so much for your help in this video and any more you’re willing to do. It’s a great help, and a lot of people are going to appreciate it, I’m sure of it!” Melissa said.
“We’re always dedicated to helping the heroes of Paris, even when it has nothing to do with Hawkmoth. Gotta understand the love to spread it, right?” Chat Noir replied, beaming.
“Exactly! Maybe we should use that as our slogan for the campaign!”
Melissa turned to discuss it further with her friends, and Chat Noir and Rena Rouge took that as their cue to leave and try to find and catch up with the others. Chat was for sure excited to tell Carapace all about it, even if he didn’t know that Chat Noir was his boyfriend while he was a civilian.