Chapter Text
Chapter 1 : A Broken Heart can be Fixed
Luka strummed his guitar, playing chords that formed beautiful notes. Marinette sat next to him and listened, her head rocking with the song as she hummed. It was a date for them, at Luka’s houseboat. Marinette had requested it because she wanted to meet him and quote, ‘spend some time together’. That wasn’t the main reason though, and Luka knew. He knew she probably wanted to tell him something, ask him to do something.
After the song ended, Marinette shifted closer to him. She hesitated, and turned her head towards him. “Luka..?”, She asked quietly, her lips trembling while she played with her hair.
Luka smiled gently and answered her, “Hm? What is it that you need of me Marinette?”
“I-I want you to come ice-skating with me—if you don’t mind though!”
Luka was taken aback by surprise, was this a real date for them? His heart fluttered with joy, and he could feel giddiness washing over him. “Of course Marinette.” Luka said calmly, trying to not sound too overly excited. A brighter smile spread over his face, and Luka couldn’t wait for that date, just only the two of them, together.
However, before he could even celebrate, Marinette added, “But…Adrien and Kagami will be there as well.” She said shyly, a hint of red covering her cheeks.
Oh. And here he thought that Marinette wanted only the two of them for this date. It’s because of Adrien again, isn’t it? Luka felt his smile cracked a bit, but he quickly forced out another. “That’s alright.” He replied, covering up the bitterness in his tone. Yeah, that’s fine, it’s just two additional people, no big deal.
***
The ice-skating date acted like a catalyst. Marinette became more unfocused during their time together, and her mind was always wandering to who knows where. Luka knew she was probably thinking of Adrien—no, she was thinking of Adrien. He knew he could never win against Adrien, and he knew that he and Marinette wouldn’t last. Still, he tried, he tried to offer her comfort, take her to places, and be a good boyfriend. He hoped she would be able to move on from Adrien, but reality struck him that night.
The moonlight lit upon the Seine River, offering a calm soothing silence to the city. The breeze rustled their hair, making it swayed gently with the wind. Marinette and Luka stood on a bridge, both looking at each other in silence.
“I…” It was Marinette who spoke first, then she continued, “I don’t think, I mean, We should-“
Without waiting for her to end her words, Luka pulled her into a warm hug. He understood what she wanted to say, she wanted to break up with him. Luka knew the relationship would end this way, yet a part of him still hoped. But what could he do? He could only endure the pain of his heart being broken right now and just…go on. “If you ever need me, I will be here for you Marinette.” he said softly.
Marinette hugged him back and nestled in his shoulder as small beads of tears fell. Luka hummed gently and comforted her in his arms. “Don’t cry Marinette.” He whispered, ignoring the way his eyes were starting to become red as well.
After deciding to head back home, Marinette gave Luka one last kiss on the cheek and waved him goodbye. Luka returned the wave with a gentle smile, and after seeing that Marinette was out of sight, Luka turned around and let the tears fell. His heart clenched in pain and he could hear a sob escaping his mouth. It hurts how the person he loved and cared for so much already has someone else in her heart.
Luka wiped those tears away and headed towards his houseboat. Thankfully his mom and Juleka still weren’t home, otherwise, they would have questioned the heck out of him. Thinking about them, a soft chuckle left his lips. ‘Everything is going to be alright’, he reassured himself.
***
Two months have passed since then, and Luka has been focusing more on himself and his band, Kitty Section. Despite the breakup, he and Marinette continued to share a respectful and supportive friendship.
Things were going fine until his mother wanted his band to battle against Jagged Stone’s band. Luka happily obliged, and informed his band members about it, only to realize he lacked a keyboard player…
“Doesn’t Adrien play the piano?” Rose suddenly spoke up.
Luka immediately caught on to her question and an idea hit him, “Thanks Rose, I’ll ask him about it.”
It didn’t take long to acquire Adrien’s number through Marinette. Luka checked Adrien’s account and saw a cute black cat picture as his profile, seemed like it was a cat Adrien had probably seen on the road. Nonetheless, that’s not the point. He has to message Adrien and ask him first.
Luka: Hello Adrien. This is Luka. I wanna discuss with you about sth, is that ok?
It didn’t take too long for Adrien to reply back, as 10 minutes later, Luka heard a notification from his phone. He quickly opened his phone and entered the chat.
Adrien: Hiii Luka, sorry for the late reply, and yep you can ask me anything, i’m okay with it :D
Luka chuckled at the smiling emoticon.
Luka: My band, Kitty Section, needs someone to play the keyboard. Sooo i wanna ask if you would be able to play for us, it’s okay if you don’t want to tho
Adrien: Sure! i can ask my father for some free time
Luka: Are you sure? I don’t want to waste your time ;v;
Adrien: 100% sure, thx for inviting me Luka :>
Luka: No no, thank you Adrien TvT. Btw, should we meet up for practice next Saturday?
Adrien: Fine by me! Oof gtg now, byee Luka
Luka: Byee Adrien, thanks again
Luka closed his phone with a smile on his face. He went off to inform his members about the news, and they all cheered in excitement.
As weeks of practice passed, Luka discovered how Adrien could be a very good friend. They both spent a lot of fun times together, and Luka can understand why Marinette would fall for Adrien. This boy is such a ball of sunshine, with his shy but joyful personality, he could melt anyone’s heart. And the fact that he had cried so hard when Luka and his friends threw him his 19th birthday party, Luka simply liked this boy, as a friend of course.
The day of the band competition came, and everyone gathered to watch. Marinette inspected the outfits she designed for Kitty Section and made some minor changes. Soon after, Jagged Stone’s tour bus arrived. The other band stepped off the bus, each looking as arrogant as ever.
Everything was set, and all the people on the houseboat gathered. The bassist of Jagged Stone’s band looked at Luka’s team and sneered, “Losers.” he muttered in front of his team. They gave each other a look and laughed. “We’re so gonna win this.” One of them said smugly.
The band climbed up the stage and started their performance. Approximately an hour later, the band finally finished and stepped off. The vocalist raised an eyebrow confidently at Luka and walked off.
Luka did not pay attention to their provocation, instead, he turned back toward his team with a soft smile. “Is everyone ready?”
Everyone all shouted ‘Yes’ in unison. Luka turned towards Adrien and saw the blonde fidgeting nervously. Luka patted his shoulder, “Don’t worry Adrien, you can do it.” He encouraged him gently. A small smile lit up Adrien’s face, “Thanks Luka.”
Kitty Section made their way up to the stage, everyone took their respective position, and Adrien stood near Luka to play the keys. They gave each other one last glance of understanding before the melody rang out through the air. Smooth, slow notes played out, but suddenly, Luka strummed his guitar erratically as if a blade had pierced the peaceful air. The music shifted from calming to punk rock. A rash transition, indeed, but Luka had made it work professionally.
The team played multiple songs, each better than the next. It seemed like their painstaking practice did not go to waste as the crowds erupted in cheers after they finished. Luka looked at the audience, and his gaze landed on Marinette. Marinette was cheering in awe, her lovestruck gaze at Adrien, who was smiling shyly at the cheers. Luka sighed softly, and an amusing smile appeared on his face. He walked towards Adrien and wrapped his arms around his shoulders, “That was amazing Adrien.”
Adrien looked up in surprise then burst into soft laughter, “You were amazing too Luka.”
Luka chuckled as his hand gently ruffled Adrien’s hair. Suddenly, a scream rang out, “An akumatized villain!”
The rest turned their head to look at what was happening when someone jumped onto the deck. “Jagged Stone how could you fire me just like that!? Are you going to hire that green-haired boy as the new guitarist??”
Jagged Stone looked slightly shocked, “Vivika, is that you?”
“There ain’t no Vivika anymore, this is Desperada now. And if I can’t be your guitarist, then no one can!” Desperada laughed hysterically and pulled out what seemed like a trumpet. She shot a ball of yellow dust aiming towards Luka but it landed on Anarka instead who took it for Luka. Anarka disappeared as her body turned to yellow mist.
“Mom!” Before Luka could even save her, Adrien had dragged him away, “Luka, we have to go!”
Luka gritted his teeth and he turned to run towards the cabin. Before he and Adrien could successfully escape, Desperada came and blocked their way. “You’re not going anywhere green haired boy!” Another shot of yellow dust flew out of the trumpet and aimed towards Luka, until a figure in red and black spots came and blocked the attack. Ladybug had arrived. She swiftly blocked several attacks, Luka knew that them being there would be more dangerous for Ladybug, so he took Adrien’s hand and ran towards the streets.
Adrien halted in his steps and pointed towards a manhole cover, “We could hide in there.” Luka followed Adrien’s line of sight and immediately nodded, “Let’s go.” They both made way towards the lid and Adrien went down first. Before Luka went down too, he turned to look at Ladybug only to discover that she was also looking at him. She gave him a tiny nod and continued battling Desperada. Luka finally climbed down the ladders and landed near Adrien. “Luka, let’s both separate ways.” He suddenly spoke out.
“Huh? But why Adrien?” Luka asked in confusion.
“Uh i just think it’s better to hide in different spots rather than the same!”
Luka gave him a questioning look before giving in, “Okay, but you must be careful Adrien.” He grabbed Adrien’s hand and gave him a resolute look. Adrien nodded with a hint of red on his cheek. After that, both of them ran in different ways. Luka discovered a room and opened it. There were multiple lockers inside the room used for who-knows-what; nevertheless, he chose one and hid in it.
Half an hour passed by, and Luka was getting more anxious. He wanted to know what happened to his friends, what happened to everybody, and especially what happened with Marinette, he hoped nothing happened to her. The more the time passed, the more suffocated he felt inside. He couldn’t stand it anymore. He had to go outside, and maybe he could find Adrien. Luka pushed the locker’s door and ran out with bated breath. As he walked further and further trying to find Adrien, he ran into Ladybug and Chat Noir. “Ladybug? Chat Noir? What are you guys doing here?”
Both hero turned their head in surprise towards his direction when Ladybug suddenly rushed towards him and exclaimed, “Right! Luka, we need your help.”
Luka raised an eyebrow at how she knew his name, but didn’t question about it. “What do you need my help with Ladybug?” He asked gently.
Ladybug and Chat Noir each exchanged a glance, then she handed what seemed like a small jewelry box to Luka, “Luka Couffaine, here is the Miraculous of the Snake, which grants the power of Second Chance. You will use it for the greater good, if you’re willing.” Luka nodded. “Once we succeed, you will hand this Miraculous back to me, can I trust you?” She added. Luka took the box and opened it, a bright green glowing light bursted out from the box. A small green snake creature appeared in front of his face. “Greetingss, my name is Sass and I’ll be your kwami. All you have to say is Sass, Scales Slither.” Woah, was he going to become a superhero too?
Without waiting any further, Luka put on the bracelet, repeated that same words, and soon was enveloped in a cool green suit. Ladybug then explained to him how his powers work and how to use them. Chat Noir idly stood by and listened. After the explanation ended, he heard Chat Noir asked him, “So, what are you going to call yourself?”
Luka comprehended the question for a brief moment before deciding, “Viperion. Call me Viperion.”
“Ooooh, sounds purr-fect.”
Luka gave a slight chuckle at Chat Noir’s cat puns. What a tease. However, the light atmosphere was cut off when Ladybug informed them that Desperada was on top of the Eiffel Tower. “We will need Chat’s cataclysm for this.” She spoke as they all ran together.
The three finally reached the area under the Eiffel Tower, and Chat Noir used his cataclysm to destroy the place. The Eiffel Tower crumbled into debris while Desperada fell down as well. The three heroes escaped the cluster of mess and hid behind a wall. They all discussed the plan with Luka readying his Second Chance. Ladybug and Chat Noir went in to attack Desperada, but failed multiple times.
“Second Chance.”
“Second Chance.”
“Second Chance.”
“Second Chance.”
Luka observed the fight while unconsciously strumming his lyre. The melody echoed out when in an instant, an idea hit him. Luka continued to play his lyre and soon, Desperada’s attention was on him. Bingo. “Second Chance.”
He stopped Ladybug and Chat Noir and informed them about what he learnt. The three quickly changed their plan with Ladybug leading the team. Luka sneaked onto the Eiffel’s tower and started strumming the strings. The melodious tune floated over and soon reached Desperada’s ears. She turned her head towards the source of the sound and aimed her trumpets at Luka. But before she could even shoot, a baton and a yoyo came from both sides and collided with her trumpets, pushing them out of her hands. Chat Noir rushed towards her with a saddle. A grin formed on Desperado’s face, she reached for the guitar case behind her back, but before she could even touch it, Ladybug swung her yoyo and tied up one of Desperada's arms. Desperada proceeded to use her other arm when Luka took hold of it with his lyre as well.
Desperada couldn’t move, and it seems like now is the right time. Chat Noir slid on the ground and tied the saddle’s rope to both her legs. He pulled the saddle which causes Desperada to fall to her face. Chat Noir immediately retrieved the guitar case and threw it towards Ladybug. She threw her yoyo and it broke the guitar case, an akuma flew out of the case. “No more evil doings for you, little akuma. Time to de-evilize!” Ladybug captured the akuma with her yoyo and free it out. “Bye-bye little butterfly.”
She tossed the saddle up in the air and it soon turned into a bundle of ladybugs that scattered around everywhere to fix the city back to normal. “Pound it.” The three heroes fist-bumped.
***
Luka rushed back towards the houseboat. He ran past his friends to find Marinette. She was standing near Alya, whispering something to her ear. “Marinette! Are you alright?” Luka asked worriedly, a bit out of breath, he panted slightly.
“Luka! I’m fine.” She replied with a smile.
Phew. Now, where could Adrien be? Luka turned around and easily spotted Adrien in the crowd, and it seemed they both made eye contact as Adrien made his way towards Luka. Luka looked at the blonde and asked, “Where were you hiding Adrien?”
“Oh um, I climbed up to another manhole and hid quietly in a shop.” His hand reached up to awkwardly scratch his neck.
Silence stretched out between the two before Luka pulled the shorter boy into a hug, “I’m glad that you are safe.” He sighed softly.
“…” Adrien chuckled lightly before returning the hug. “I’m glad you’re safe too.”