Chapter Text
Her sweaty hands shook as she approached the edge of the building. The whole of Paris was staring at her. Marinette Dupain-Cheng. Ladybug. The secret she'd hidden for so long—they all knew now.
Hawk Moth and Mayura watched as she stepped closer and closer to the edge. Her parents screamed from the Eiffel Tower, pleading desperately with their little girl. She could see Alya and Nino in the crowd, bawling, crying, and screaming at her to just stop, just take a step back.
She couldn't. She had to do it. It was the only way.
So Marinette lifted her foot, dangling it dangerously off the Palais de Chaillot, and she closed her eyes.
This is for the best.
She stepped forward.
Paris went silent.
48 hours earlier
The sun shone through her window in beams, casting a silhouette against the wall of a girl busily working away at her desk.
She would never expect it, not with how great the day was going.
Marinette sat at her desk enthusiastically, humming away as she sewed together a bright red cap. It was a gift for Nino's Birthday. That boy was notorious for his signature red cap (the one he'd been wearing every day for the past three years), so Marinette thought he could do with a new one.
"Marinette!" Sabine called out from downstairs, causing the girl to lose focus. She lifted her foot from her pedal and placed the half-finished red cap aside.
"Yes, Maman?" She called back.
"Come downstairs, please!" Sabine called back sweetly.
Marinette made a note to herself to return to the hat as soon as possible. She tucked her chair in and left her room. Approaching the living room, Marinette's stomach started to churn, and her palms began to sweat.
Later on, she would wonder whether it was her intuition telling her what was coming or simply because she saw her crush standing in the doorway.
Adrien stood by the door with his bright smile and perfectly gelled hair. He was looking right at her, his hands by his side as he spoke to her maman. "Adrien?" Marinette questioned, interrupting their conversation.
She felt silly. Her feelings for Adrien had never truly disappeared. Over time, the butterflies had quieted, and the daydreams faded. But the crush never entirely left; it just settled beneath the surface.
They'd become close friends over the past year. Comfortable, even. She could talk to him without freezing up, and he smiled at her like she was someone he actually saw. That had meant the world to her.
So when she saw him standing at the door, her heart reacted before her brain could catch up.
"What're you doing here?" Marinette asked like a deer caught in headlights.
He smiled warmly. "I was just… in the neighbourhood. Thought I’d say hi. Hope that’s okay?"
The way he looked at her—soft, almost nervous—made her heart flutter. Her stomach flipped.
"O-Of course," she managed, tugging her sleeves over her hands. "Come in."
Her Maman returned to the kitchen, and Marinette led Adrien upstairs into her room.
A strange sort of quiet settled between them. Adrien stood near her desk, glancing at the fabrics and scattered threads and then at her photos, her bookshelf, and her floor. She watched him, her heart racing. Something about him seemed different—a little too still, a little too focused. But she told herself she was just overthinking.
"So," she said, breaking the silence, "what's up?"
Adrien turned to face her, suddenly looking unsure of himself. He shifted on his feet and ran his hand through his hair—an old habit. She knew that move. He was nervous. Maybe even… flustered?
"There's something I’ve wanted to tell you for a while," he said slowly, stepping toward her.
Her heart thudded. She tilted her head. "Okay... You know you can tell me anything."
He gave a breathy laugh, like even he couldn’t believe he was doing this. "I’ve been thinking about it a lot, and—Marinette, I really like you."
She blinked.
"I mean, I have for a long time. I just didn’t say anything because... I didn’t want to ruin our friendship." He looked at her, really looked at her. "But now, I don’t want to waste time not saying it."
Her knees wobbled. Her mouth opened slightly, but no words came out.
"I—wow," she whispered.
He stepped closer. Her body buzzed with nervous energy, frozen in place.
"So," Adrien said gently, “Would you go on a date with me?”
It was everything she had ever wanted. Her mind tried to catch up, tried to question it— Why now? Why today? —But her heart was too loud. Too hopeful.
"Yes," she said, voice trembling.
Adrien smiled like he was relieved. And she melted. His hand reached up, brushing a loose hair from her face.
"You’re really something, you know that?" he murmured.
Her breath caught in her throat. His gaze dropped to her lips. Her skin burned where his fingers had touched her. This moment felt impossible, perfect. A dream.
He leaned in, and she didn’t stop him.
His lips were soft. The kiss was slow and careful. Her eyes fluttered shut, her hands gently resting against his chest. Her whole body hummed with warmth. After everything, after all the waiting, this was finally real.
But then his hand moved. Past her cheek. Toward her ear.
Her earrings.
She pulled away instantly.
"What are you—"
He smirked. Not shy. Not sweet. But cruel. Cold.
"You're too easy to fool, Marinette Dupain-Cheng."
Her stomach dropped. Her chest tightened.
"What?" Her eyes flickered between his eyes, his smile, his whole demeanour, the feeling from earlier—that something wasn’t right. The person before her wasn't Adrien.
"...Felix?" she breathed, eyes narrowing.
He tilted his head mockingly. "Guess again."
Her heart slammed in her chest. It wasn’t Adrien. It wasn’t Felix. That could only mean—
"...Hawk Moth."
"Shadow Moth now," he said, stepping forward.
A sentimonster.
She couldn’t move. Couldn’t breathe.
She should’ve seen it. She should’ve known. She’s Ladybug. She’s Marinette. She’s supposed to be smarter than this—
She backed up a step, legs trembling.
The sentimonster lunged. "Tikki, Spots On!"
No time to ask how he’d figured it out. It didn’t matter. She just had to get the miracle box and run.
Her yo-yo shot to the railing of her bed. She launched over Senti-Adrien as he crashed into her desk.
He didn’t know where the box was, which gave her a chance, but not much of one.
She couldn’t grab the entire sewing box. No time to open the code, either. She considered leading him away and returning for it—but no, Hawk Moth could barge in and take it himself.
It was over.
She'd failed.
"You’ve lost this battle," the sentimonster growled. "May as well give up now, Ladybug."
Suddenly—
CRASH
Chat Noir’s staff shattered the window. Glass rained down. She and Senti-Adrien turned away.
Chat stood firm in the middle of the room.
Relief hit her chest—sharp and sudden. “Chat—”
Something felt off.
He didn’t move toward her. Didn’t say anything. Didn’t even look at her properly.
Marinette acted fast—yo-yo tangling the sentimonster—then lunged for the sewing box.
But Chat’s staff swung again, smashing it.
The miracle box rolled free. They both dove.
"Chat, what’re you doing?!" Ladybug shrieked.
They hit the ground—the spherical box tumbling away.
He looked at her coldly. A copycat.
He crouched low. She lunged, grabbing his tail and yanking him back behind her. She dove for the box.
"Cataclysm!" he yelled, charging toward her and the box.
She hurled the miracle box onto the bed, braced on the railing, then kicked him—hard. He flew out the window.
A thud.
She didn’t wait. She snatched the box, untangled her yo-yo, and ran.
The wind blew against her face. Her heart pounded in her ears. Paris would never forgive her. She had failed.
She heard the baton click behind her. Footsteps pounding over rooftops.
"Roarr, come out now!" she cried. "Tikki, Roarr, unify!"
No time for questions.
"Clout!"
Copycat met her fist and flew.
She didn’t look back. She didn't stop running until the sky had gone grey and the sun disappeared.
She had to have been far from Paris, yet she wasn't sure.
Ladybug slumped against a tree in a big open park and detransformed.
Tikki and Roarr lazily landed in her hands; both kwami were exhausted, but she had nothing to offer them.
Her mind went to nothing, and her vision fogged up. Tears fell, soaking her shirt. The two kwami tried to comfort her, but Marinette was far from solace.
"T-Tikki, w-w-what am I supposed to do?" Her breathing was staggered. Her chest was tight.
"Marinette, you have to calm down! It's okay!" Tikki pleaded.
The statement made Marinette cry harder. Calm down? She’d just destroyed the one thing she was never supposed to lose.
This wasn’t okay. It would never be okay.
"W-What if he’s told a-all of Paris?" She spat out, "He knows who I am; he found out where I live; he'll find out who my friends and family are; no one is safe, Tikki!"
Marinette cried out in the open air; her chest ached with a pain she'd never felt. She cried for what felt like hours; Tikki didn't know what to say; the rest of the kwami were poking their heads out of the miracle box, watching in silence as she broke.
Her mind spun. Hawk moth knew her identity. She couldn't be Ladybug or the guardian safely anymore. She had to give it up, along with her memories, meaning she couldn't even be Marinette anymore.
It took a while, but eventually, her sobs calmed down, and she stared into the vast night, utterly devoid of emotion.
Tikki was cuddled up against her collarbone, which Marinette only noticed after her breathing had calmed down. Tikki floated before her. "Marinette," she whispered softly, "You are the best Ladybug I've ever had."
More tears swelled in Marinette's eyes because Tikki's words felt like a goodbye.
"I know you will think of something; you always do."
Tikki was right; she always thinks of something. For the past few hours, she's been sitting against that tree, weighing her options. But every action she could think of led to the same consequence: giving up the guardianship and losing her memories.
After taking a deep breath, Marinette finally said it out loud. "The guardianship has to be passed on."
"Marinette," Tikki exhaled, sounding defeated, "There has to be another way."
Her little nub rested on Marinette's cheek. She was so attached to the little bug that she couldn't imagine a life without Tikki, which made her cry harder.
"There isn't Tikki." Marinette sobbed. "I don't know what to do! In any scenario I can come up with, Hawk Moth has the upper hand. Alya is the only one who would know how to be a guardian, but giving it to her would be exactly what Hawk Moth expects. I can't give it to Chat, he's been akumatised before, and I don't think he could handle choosing a new Ladybug and being the guardian without me. Hawk Moth would attack him relentlessly, too, knowing I would pass on the guardianship to him. I can't choose anyone I know, and I can't trust any stranger either!"
The thought of leaving everything to Chat paled Marinette. To never fight beside him again and to forget him completely was a pain Marinette never wanted to feel. The thought of leaving him all alone without a single warning tightened her chest.
"And who's to say Hawk Moth doesn't know Chat Noir's identity either?" Tikki added, sounding defeated once again.
"Exactly.”
Suddenly, Tikki and Trixx dipped back into the miracle box. Marinette looked up to see a man walking his dog across the field, whistling softly as the animal trotted beside him. Somewhere in the distance, traffic hummed, and horns beeped. The bright glow of the city skyline peeked out from behind the trees. Life was going on.
She pulled her knees to her chest. Her head tilted toward the sky, her eyes tracking the city lights through the branches. She used to love the way Paris sparkled at night. But now, it just made her feel like she didn’t belong in it anymore.
Her gaze wandered until it caught on the side of a building just across the park. An enormous ad stretched across the wall, brightly lit in soft blue and pink.
“A Better, New You!”
Introducing Revivre—Paris' #1 anti-aging miracle cream.
The model smiled back at her with glowing skin, dressed in white like a blank canvas. Someone Marinette could never be.
Someone new...
Her breath hitched. Her heart started to pound—not from panic this time, but from possibility.
A better, new you.
Marinette slowly stood, her legs stiff, her eyes still locked on the sign.
Maybe she couldn’t win as Marinette Dupain-Cheng. Perhaps she couldn’t pass on the guardianship.
But maybe she didn’t have to.
Her voice was barely a whisper.
“…What if I became someone else?”
The air was still. The thought echoed louder in her head.
She turned to the miracle box. “Tikki,” she called softly.
The little Kwami peeked her head out. “Yes?”
Marinette looked determined now. Hollow-eyed, tear-streaked—but certain.
“What if I faked my death?”
Tikki froze.
“I mean it,” Marinette continued. “What if Marinette Dupain-Cheng disappeared—and someone new took her place? A new life, a new face. I keep the box. I keep being Ladybug. But no one would ever connect us again.”
Tikki blinked. “You’d… disappear?”
“Just for a while,” Marinette said quickly. “Long enough to figure out who Shadow Moth really is. Long enough to finish this.”
Tikki squinted her little eyes. "Marinette, how would you even pull this off?" the Kwami asked.
Tikki floated closer, concern on her face. But Marinette could see something else flicker behind her eyes: possibility.
"The Fox miraculous," they both said at the same time.
Throughout her training, Master Fu taught her a power-up for the Fox miraculous in dire situations like this one. It would enable an illusion to come to life for a short period of time, almost the same way that Mayura created senti monsters. It could last anywhere between days and months.
"Do you remember the ingredients for the power-up?" Tikki asked.
"I do," Marinette nodded. At least she wasn't a complete failure at everything.
So that was that. Fate had led Marinette to this moment, and after the absolute worst day of her life, she felt as if maybe, just maybe, her plan would work. She and Tikki discussed the finer details with the rest of the Kwami that night. The stars twinkled, and the moon's ethereal glow spread across the park. For the whole night, Marinette Dupain-Cheng stayed awake.
The worst day of her life had pushed her to the edge—literally. But in the quiet of the park, under the moon's silver glow, Marinette and the Kwami planned.
And the next day, Plan B began.
The day Marinette Dupain-Cheng changed history.