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white-moon-kitty · 5 months

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Jewish Nathaniel Kurtzberg headcanons

It is canon that Nathaniel is Jewish, evident in his surname and absence from the Christmas special. However because "religion is a secular matter and cannot be portrayed in a children's TV show" (🙄), Nathaniel's heritage won't be represented in any of the episodes, so I'll be writing these headcanons.

Nathaniel (like Marinette, Adrien, and their classmates) was born between late 2000 and mid-2001.

The law on religious display in public schools (la loi sur les signes religieux dans les écoles publiques) was signed on March 15, 2004.

The law on face-coverings in public (la loi interdisant la dissimulation du visage dans l'espace public) was passed by the Senate on September 14, 2010.

TW for references of antisemitism and Islamophobia

Nathaniel's great-grandparents were German Jews who fled to France shortly before World War II

his family is not Orthodox but they are religious, they go to synagogue, celebrate the holidays, follow kosher, etc.

Nathaniel has always been a shy, quiet kid but his parents raised him to be assertive and to question authority if necessary

the first time Nathaniel realizes he is different is when he is three years old and starts preschool, during lunch he can't eat what the other children are eating in case the food is not kosher

his parents contact the preschool, who refuse to provide a kosher/pork-free option or let Nathaniel pack his own lunch, they compromise to let him go home for lunch instead

December rolls around, and the other children are excited about Christmas, except for Nathaniel, who is excited about Hanukkah but can't help but feel a bit left out

at six years old, another boy in his class starts running his hands through Nathaniel's hair out of the blue, "I heard that your people have horns, where are yours"

at eight years old, a girl in his class sees the gold Star of David necklace that Nathaniel always wears and starts bombarding him with questions

Nathaniel knows that she has no bad intentions but can't help feeling a bit uncomfortable and othered

at nine years old, during a class debate on the hijab ban, another boy says how anyone who wears their religious symbols are not truly French and should go back to where they came from, leaving Nathaniel flushing with shame and anger

at eleven years old, he begins attending Collège Françoise Dupont

on his first day of middle school, Principal Damoclés makes him remove his Star of David necklace

he is afraid but looks the principal straight in the eye and refuses, "this is my religion and my identity," he says, his heart pounding and his voice shaking

after a few more resists, Principal Damoclés suspends him

when he goes home to his confused parents, Nathaniel breaks down in tears as he explains Principal Damoclés suspending him on his first day of middle school for his necklace

his furious parents storm over to the school to confront the principal, demanding he allow their son back to school immediately and for him to wear the symbol of his religious pride

Principal Damoclés lets him back the next day but Nathaniel never wears his necklace to school again, only at home and in non-school settings

the day he returns to school, fellow classmate Alix Kubdel approaches him

Alix explains her family heritage: her family is of Algerian origin and Muslim, and while she can pass as white, her parents and brother have faced racism, Alix's mother have even had her hijab ripped off by an old white man on public transit and no one defended her

Nathaniel knows that he, as a white-presenting boy, cannot relate to the experiences of Alix or her mother, but appreciates having a friend who understands

he invited Alix to his bar mitzvah

he loves learning about the Holocaust, it is painful but his ancestors' strength and resilience make him proud, he can't stand how all of his classmates seem to stare at him during class whenever it comes up

in his third year, he is placed in Miss Bustier's class with Marinette Dupain-Cheng, Chloé Bourgeois, Sabrina Raincomprix, Rose Lavillant, Juleka Couffaine, Lê Chiến Kim and Max Kanté

when he arrives at school one morning he sees a swastika drawn in permanent marker on his desk, drawn by Chloé "Can't he make sushi like everyone else" Bourgeois

he reports it to a furious Miss Bustier, who sends Chloé to Principal Damoclés, who lets her off with a mere warning, which infuriates Nathaniel and his parents

as much as he wants to stay home from school the next day, Nathaniel is determined to not let Chloé win and shows up at school the next day

a sneering Chloé comes up to him, but before Chloé could open her mouth, fellow classmate Marinette Dupain-Cheng spoke up

"you suck, Chloé." Marinette glares at the blonde. "you speak of him as if he is below you, but he's got more nerve in his finger than your entire body"

Rose and Juleka join in, "Leave him alone, Chloé" "go pick on someone your own size, someone with an overinflated head like you"

Chloé started bullying Marinette

meanwhile, Nathaniel starts to fall for Marinette and becomes closer to Rose and Juleka

in the middle of his fourth and final year, he gets over his crush on Marinette/Ladybug and instead starts falling for Marc Anciel, with whom he works on their Ladybug comics

he confides his feelings for Marc to Alix

"you might be bi or pan," Alix, who is aromantic and an expert in LGBT terminology, explains to him

he first comes out as bisexual to Alix, who is nothing but incredibly supportive and proud of her best friend

Rose and Juleka (canon girlfriends!) are the next to know, and he grows closer to the girls than ever

Nathaniel is hesitant to come out to his parents, however: he feels like he is betraying the Jewish identity his parents instilled in him since childhood by coming out to them

he begins to research queer Jewish identity on the Internet and hears stories of others from all across the globe, who are queer, Jewish and proud

Nathaniel eventually asks out Marc, who agrees to be his boyfriend and he is happier than ever

Marc isn't Jewish but is more than happy to learn about Jewish culture and to fight anyone who dares to say anything antisemitic, whether about Nathaniel or not

since he started dating Marc, Nathaniel gains the courage to come out to his parents, who immediately accept him, much to his pleasant surprise

"you are our son, and our religion accepts everyone," his father says

"love is love, and if this boy Marc makes you happy, that's all that matters," his mother says

he gets into the same design school as Marc and Marinette for high school

in his first year of high school, he and Marc finally publish their Ladybug comics, which quickly become successful

towards his final years of high school, he begins studying for the baccalauréat while continuing his relationship with Marc and their comics and applying for his birthright trip

on his final year of high school, he passes the bac littéraire along with Marc and Marinette, and the three reunite with their middle school friends to celebrate

soon after graduating high school, he leaves for birthright (Alix cried buckets of tears at the airport)

the trip is the best ten days of his life, Nathaniel feels at home as he connects with other French Jews and Jews from across the globe and visits the cultural sites

shortly after his return to France, Nathaniel invites Marc to the Seine, where he gets down on one knee, much to the latter's delight (they both cry tears of joy that night)

his and Marc's wedding was the most beautiful day ever, they have a traditional Jewish wedding filled with ketubah, chuppah, glass breaking, joy, light and love

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toxinellebug · 3 months

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Shadybug’s Taste of Revenge- A Menu of Miraculous Misuse

What was that old saying about revenge and a cold dish?

That sounded too much like a single serving.

After YEARS of torture, Marinette Dupain-Cheng was planning on serving Chloe Bourgeois an entire buffet!

Thanks to The Supreme’s generous gift, she was finally able to put the meal plan in motion.

That evil, selfish, racist brat would FINALLY get what’s coming to her, and Marinette would savor every moment…

After receiving her Miraculous, kwami servant, and a tablet listing rules she needed to follow,

(See this post here) Marinette had spent the days of her weekend compiling a list of everything Chloe had ever done, and how she wanted to pay her back.

She spent the nights testing her transformation and the abilities that came with it:

Standing still, she didn’t really feel any different. But as she moved, she noticed her body felt lighter, took far less effort for motion, and required little stamina.

Having a room with roof access made sneaking out easy. Still, she had to really hype herself up to make that first jump.

But it was worth it!

Parkour was as simple as a video-game; as if the suit could somehow sense what she wanted to do- leaping from roof to roof was a piece of cake, there wasn’t even any strain on her muscles. It was insane how fast she could run without feeling out of breath. Plus, for the first time in her life, instead of being a klutz who could trip over air, she was nimble and sure-footed as anyone in Les championnats de France Elite de gymnastique!

The Yo-yo had been trickier to get the hang of; she’d be lying if she said she wasn’t disappointed- The Supreme, most powerful force on earth, gives her magic earring that grant her super-human strength and agility… and a yo-yo? Based on its use, a grappling hook would’ve made more sense.

Maybe The Supreme had a weird aesthetic?

Whatever.

The Lucky Charm feature was far more interesting…

The first time she summoned it, it granted her a small, red and black polka-dotted, hand-held device with a green screen showing a grid map of Paris, and dozens of blinking dots that seemed to move around the arrondissements in a pattern.

After zooming in to look at specific streets it clicked in… This was radar. It was showing her the real-time Enforcer patrol routes!

Being caught outside of your residence after curfew was a serious violation for all citizens.

Enforcers diligently policed the city-keeping an eye out for deviants, vandals, and other would-be criminals who would dare leave their homes after dark.

In the list of rules The Supreme had sent her, it was made clear that she was NOT to be seen.

Rooftop travel would make it easy to avoid most of them, but if she wanted to scope out the layout and security features of both the school and the Grand Paris Hotel, it would be better to do so after Enforcers had already passed those areas, and leave before they came back.

The Hotel had pretty tight security, and not knowing to limits of her Lucky Charm, she decided the School was the best option to start, at least until she was more proficient with her powers.

———————

That 2nd week of school is dedicated to research and spying, and by Thursday, Marinette has a better grasp of Chloe’s schedule than her underling, Sabrina.

(C’mon, if Marinette in the Prime universe can have a pull down chart in her room with the schedule of the boy she likes- a boy who has a bodyguard and an overprotective father- then emoMarinette could easily figure out the schedules of people she hates.)

Friday morning she is up before dawn; she needs to get to school before it opens to put her plan in motion, then back home again in time to “wake-up” as Marinette to avoid raising suspicions.

(She does not have a super-villain name yet, since she believes no one will see her or talk to her, why would she need to give her transformed look a name?)

Transforming and swinging from rooftop to rooftop with her yo-yo means she can get to the school in less than 3 minutes.

Just in time; Custodian M. Haprèle has just arrived and is making his rounds to get Francois Dupont ready before the rest of the faculty arrives.

Avoiding a single man is easier than trying to sneak past several teachers and students.

She waits until he exits the door leading to the boiler room, his first task of the day- she knows that now he will go to unlock each room, turn on the lights and radiators, before he does a sweep of the main courtyard.

Being a private school, those tasks won’t take long, so she knows she must move quickly.

Even though M. Haprèle is unlikely to return to the boiler room until his routine inspection at the end of the day, she can’t risk being noticed leaving the room if he happens to be passing by.

The stairs lead to an eerie hallway that is thankfully lit, but only just so.

Her heart races when she spots the aqua glow of her prize; the school boiler.

Responsible for heating not only water, but regulating the temperature of every classroom.

It was like a big pressure-cooker, and she would use it to prepare the apéritifs of her revenge.

Pulling up her yo-yo and activating the smartphone feature (which was odd because who would she even call??) she did a quick internet image search for comparison in order to identify the expansion tank and the pressure valve.

Summoning her Lucky Charm gave her a red and black polka-dotted pipe-wrench.

Normal Marinette was weak, but with the strength her transformation gave her, she was able to turn the filling loop all the way on, and shut the pressure release valve off, and twist it impossibly tight.

She couldn’t help her self-satisfactory smirk; she’d just turned the school’s heating system into a ticking time bomb.

Step one was complete. Now to go home so Marinette could get ready for a very exciting day of school.

——————————-

It is in the middle of second class when it happens…

The classroom radiator whistles and hisses violently, releasing scalding hot steam into the room that fogs Mme. Mendeleiev’s glasses.

Shrieks can be heard from nearby classrooms, but they are soon drowned out by what could be mistaken as a crash of thunder.

Directeur Damocles activates the intercom system and orders to evacuate all students immediately!

Despite teachers insisting that everyone remain calm and to leave in an orderly fashion, there is panic; sobbing over steam burns, anxious questions over what’s happening, students shoving to get through the door first, either out of fear or excitement to get out of class, and over all the din there is a distinct banshee wail of a certain blonde threatening to have her daddy sue the school over what the burst of steam has done to her hair!

…No one notices Marinette slipping away to the locker room.

Confident she is alone, she transforms.

She knows she has to act quickly, so she starts with the easiest target; Sabrina Raincomprix’ locker.

C’est du gâteau! Sabrina is completely brainwashed into being Chloe’s slave, so naturally her locker combination is that witch’s birthdate.

(A day EVERYONE knows by heart since every year Chloe makes a big spectacle of bragging how amazing her party will be since she is so rich.

Naturally, anyone foolish enough to ask if they could be invited was laughed at and insulted for having such audacity.)

Chloe Bourgeois had never done her own homework in her life. That’s what underlings were for…

In Sabrina’s locker sat an entire weeks worth of homework for both her and Chloe, including a science report they needed to present to Mme. Mendeleiev- the most unforgiving teacher in school- and it was all due TODAY.

There was no time for Sabrina to re-do all of it for herself, let alone a separate, slightly different set for Chloe.

Not only would the teachers be upset over so much missing work, but even an airhead like Mme. Bustier would have to be a little suspicious that both girls claim to have lost all their homework.

How many times had Marinette’s grades suffered because those two stole her notes, vandalized her locker and its contents, or dropped her textbook into a toilet?

How many times did the teachers blame her for not paying attention in class, forgetting to do her work, or just being a total klutz because anytime she tried to tell them who was really at fault, it was always her word against Chloe and Sabrina’s?

How many times did everyone decide that Marinette’s word meant nothing?

There was no time to count.

Marinette had one more fish she wanted to frire for this course; Lê Chiến Kim.

Summoning her Lucky Charm this time got her a red and black polka-dotted stethoscope.

It had to be magic. That was the only way she could explain being able to use it to crack the combination on Kim’s locker even quicker than what Marinette had seen in movies.

The school swim team had a meet after school today, and Kim was prepared with all his gear in his locker, including his goggles which just so happened to have his name printed on the waterproof label on the strap.

The only thing Kim loved more than swimming was practical jokes.

Let’s see who will have the last laugh~

———————————

Directeur Damocles is NOT happy.

He’d had to call in both the Enforcers AND the Fire Department, and the school budget was going to suffer a major cut in order to pay for it.

(Remember, under The Supreme there is no socialism, so receiving any kind of service from the Fire Department or law enforcement will cost you, as mentioned here.)

The Boiler had over-pressurized and exploded.

Not only would it have to be replaced, but there was sure to be a lawsuit or two from the angry parents of students who had been unfortunate enough to be seated close to their classroom’s radiator.

Thankfully, any burns were superficial at worst, and after some quick first aid, Captain Hessenpy had assured them that a simple store bought ointment would be enough and redness would fade in a couple days.

Though that assurance would probably do little to appease the ire of some parents.

The drawbacks of being principal of a private school were undoubtedly all related to the students’ parents.

Everyone enrolled came from a family that was well off, and a good deal even had family’s with a degree of influence.

Even worse, nearly every student’s parents believed their child deserved only the very best, which is why they enrolled in Collège Françoise Dupont in the first place.

As such, an incident as large as this was unacceptable.

People would demand answers and for someone to be held responsible… Which could lead to the school being shut down!

Never mind losing his job, at this rate, Denis Damoclés would never find work in the field of education again!!

What if he was arrested for gross negligence? What if the debt for property damage and personal lawsuits was so overwhelming he had to spend the rest of his life in a penitentiary labor camp to work it off?!

No, this wasn’t his fault…

Fred Haprèle; HE was Gardien d'école!

It was HIS job to inspect the boiler before and after school.

If anyone should be held accountable for this disaster, it was him.

M. Damocles interrogates M. Haprèle without mercy; He checked the Boiler room this morning and everything was fine? HA! A likely story! As if he’d believe-

But he is interrupted by Enforcer Raincomprix;

After some investigation, a suspicious item was discovered at the scene of the explosion.

A pair of swimming goggles.

——————

What a beautiful day.

The kind of day that left you feeling nostalgic;

Marinette remembers that day last year all too clearly…

She had mustered all the courage she could wring out of her tiny body to ask Kim out.

She steeled herself for rejection.

She wouldn’t blame him- she was the biggest loser in school.

She expected him to say “hard pass”.

She hoped he would turn her down gently.

She thought he’d think it was a joke.

She never dreamed he’d say “yes”.

But he did, and she was on cloud nine!

On the bus she couldn’t help but imagine all the dates they would go on once the school year was over.

In her head, she was already designing the gift she would make for Kim’s next Birthday, and the gift she would make him for Valentine’s day, for Christmas, for his next next Birthday…

Not that she didn’t still have some jitters- there was always the chance that Kim would change his mind and she would be stood up. Or maybe he never intended to show up in the first place but had felt too awkward and put on the spot to say “no” to her face??

But all that anxiety melted away when she arrived at the pool and Kim was waiting for her with a smile.

They’d had so much fun! The most fun she’d had in a long time.

They played pool games, and Kim showed off his dives and made her laugh.

Marinette felt so comfortable with him.

He was so nice… In fact, he was the only one who’d ever been nice to her.

It seemed so perfect, she’d been so happy that she couldn’t help herself-

She let the words slip out;

“Je t'aime.”

Those words came back to bite her in the form of dozens of spiders, crawling up her arms, her shoulders, her neck, even down inside her swimsuit, and they were actually biting her!!

She screamed and flailed about, hopping like some kind of panicked chicken, swatting madly at her limbs and torso while Kim laughed hysterically, before she fell backwards into the pool.

Even as she sputtered and swallowed a mouthful of chlorinated pool water, she still instinctively clawed at her own body, still feeling dozens of tiny, itchy, little legs crawling all over her.

When she finally came up for air, Kim was still laughing, and he wasn’t alone- Chloe and Sabrina were there, snickering and recording the whole thing.

All Marinette could do was crawl out of the pool like a wounded animal and scurry away to the changing rooms to pray the earth would split open and swallow her up.

It didn’t.

Chloe posted the video online, and by the time Marinette managed to get home, it had already gone viral.

The last two weeks of school were filled with new nasty names and insults, there was even a contest where boys tried to see who could do the best impersonation of her freak-out.

Someone took the original video and made a remix, complete with clownish sound effects.

She was a walking meme.

She cried herself to sleep every night, wishing that she had drowned in that pool.

Not that anyone would care, but with enough bad press, they’d have to at least pretend like they were sorry.

Which is why Marinette wasn’t sorry at all when M. Damocles expelled Kim in front of the entire school.

The moment Enforcer Raincomprix read aloud the name on the strap of those goggles, students began to whisper.

Kim was well known for stupid dares and obnoxious pranks.

As far as everyone was concerned, the evidence was incriminating enough to justify M. Damocles decision and have Enforcers escort Kim off school grounds.

Whether it was enough to have Kim sent to maison de correction and have his family foot the bill for property damages, who could say?

It didn’t matter if it was enough to convict him or not; the accusation alone would tarnish his reputation forever.

Forget getting accepted into a University, no job would be willing to hire him, considering how many kids had important families who loved to gossip.

Kim would have to move to another city, maybe even another country!

(Marinette also couldn’t help but notice that a few of the students complaining of burns were the same who gave her particularly nasty nicknames last year, including “water-phobic retard.” That had to be the power of the Lucky Charm, right?)

It was savory and satisfying.

But Lê Chiến Kim was nothing more than a hors d'oeuvres, and Marinette was far from feeling full.

With Kim out of the way, she could now devote her time and extra care to people who really mattered.

Speaking of which….

Despite needing to get back home to run the register at the Bakery, Marinette was willing to risk her mother’s lecture in order to hang back after school to catch a lovely show-

After determining the premises was safe, students were allowed to return to classes, and the fruits of Marinette’s labor paid off.

Now, Chloe was screaming at Sabrina, actually smacking the ginger haired girl’s head with her designer purse, and accusing her of being useless, utterly useless!

Not only was Mme. Mendeleiev unwilling to extend the deadline for the science report, she was planning to call their parents to let them know their daughters have been slacking off in school.

AND IT WAS ALL SABRINA’S FAULT! How could she forget to bring their homework?! Why does she even bother to keep her around?!

(Mme. Bustier was also very disappointed, and concerned that both girls somehow forgot an entire week of homework. She is willing to extend her deadlines, but she will have to deduct points away from their grade for being tardy.)

Sabrina insists she didn’t forget! She had everything done and ready to be turned in! She had it all in her locker this morning!

Chloe isn’t interested in excuses, and says that if Sabrina is going to be this incompetent, she can easily be replaced.

This leaves the other girl sobbing, begging on her knees for another chance, swearing she’ll do better!

Yes, this was what would make it all worth it, and it was only the beginning!

These two had done far too much for their punishment to be a one-and-done.

They deserved to suffer slowly, steadily, having their misery increase little by little until they were the ones crying till their eyes were swollen shut, wishing they were dead.

The very thought made Marinette’s mouth water.

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the-delta-42 · 5 months

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Hindsight - Chapter 2

Hindsight

Chapter 2

Marinette tried not to itch the gauze that covered her ears, everything was muffled, although her phone had practically blown up with texts, mostly from her friends, some from her teachers and a few from some people she’d never met before. Adrien sat not too far away from her, his leg bouncing.

“Can you please stop that?” Asked Marinette, her voice raised so she could hear herself speak.

“Oh, sorry.” Said Adrien, getting to his feet.

“You don’t have to hang around, Adrien,” Said Marinette, putting her phone down, “my parents are coming to pick me up, they haven’t yet because the Bakery’s been flooded with the press.”

Adrien looked down, before glancing towards the door. He could see Gorilla’s shadow over the window, his bodyguard had taken to preventing any unwanted persons into the room. Which included the multiple journalists that were crowded outside the hospital.

“Are you sure you want me to go, Marinette?” Asked Adrien, hesitantly.

Marinette looked out the window, there was a practical sea of people outside.

“Adrien, I’ll be fine.” Promised Marinette, smiling at the model.

Adrien looked like he didn’t believe her, but got up and headed for the door anyway, “If you need anything, just call me.”

Marinette hummed and nodded, looking down at her phone. Gorilla guiding him towards the car as soon as they were out of the building. Marinette dropped her phone on the bed and popped her mouth, before following it up with a series of noises as she shuffled around.

“Why can’t I transform again?” Marinette asked Tikki, as the Kwami devoured a cookie.

“Because,” Tikki hiccupped, “when your ear was ripped off, your body entered a state of shock and still needs time to recover.”

Marinette frowned, “And you’re not using this as an excuse to eat as many cookies as you want without getting in trouble?”

Tikki froze and glanced at the pile of cookies behind her, “Noooo…”

Marinette hummed and looked out the window and saw her parents van pull up, “You better eat fast, because we’ll be leaving soon.”

Tikki looked at the window and then at the pile of cookies. Marinette heard a loud, sucking sound, before she pivoted and saw Tikki seemingly passed out next to where the pile of cookies sat.

“Okay, didn’t expect that.” Said Marinette, as her mother entered the room.

“Marinette!” Cried Sabine, before grabbing Marinette and pulling her into a bone crushing embrace.

“Maman, can’t breathe.” Gasped Marinette, as her mother smothered her.

“Why didn’t you say anything? What were you thinking? How long have you been doing this?” Demanded Sabine, unconsciously tightening her grip on Marinette.

“Sabine,” Said Tom, entering the room, “she needs to breathe.”

Sabine loosened her grip, allowing Marinette to suck in a large gulp of air.

“Thank you.” Whispered Marinette, as she regained her breath.

Tom spotted Tikki, sleeping on the table, “Is this the mouse we’ve gained?”

Marinette nodded, as Tom picked Tikki up and gently placed her in his pocket.

“Be careful with her, she just Kirby-ed a plate of cookies.” Warned Marinette, stretching her arms, “I’m actually amazed that Hawkmoth hasn’t tried to make an appearance.”

“What do you mean I can’t bail her out?” Demanded Gabriel, as the Duty Sergeant idly looked at him.

“National Intelligence don’t want anyone to speak to her until they’ve questioned her.” She said, in her bored tone.

“I have work that needs to be done.” Snarled Gabriel, trying to intimidate the woman.

“Then hire someone else.” Retorted the sergeant, “We can’t release a domestic terrorist because you don’t have anyone to schedule your meetings.”

Gabriel puffed up and demanded, “Do you know who I am?!”

The Sergeant looked at him, before grabbing her radio. Gabriel smirked, satisfied that he’d get what he wanted. Then the sergeant spoke, “Chief, can you come to the front desk? There’s a guy who doesn’t know who he is.”

The Sergeant gave Gabriel a smug smile and rested her chin on her fist.

Gabriel spun on his heel and stormed out of the Police station, not noticing a journalist that had been listening to him demanding Nathalie be released.

Marinette blew air through her teeth and spun around in her chair, while all her friends stared at her.

“I’m bored.” Whined Marinette, getting a wince from everyone.

“You’re not supposed to do anything that could further damage your ears.” As soon as Nino said that, Marinette perked up.

“Mullo!” Yelled Marinette, summoning the Mouse Kwami and reached out for the necklace.

Ivan quickly grabbed Marinette around the middle as the petite girl tried to reach for the miraculous. Alya’s phone beeped, alerting her to a new news headline.

“I don’t believe this!” Exclaimed Alya, drawing everyone’s attention, “The press found out about Marinette’s expulsion, and Damocles is saying Marinette attacked people!”

Everyone froze, before a rock sailed through Marinette’s bedroom window.

“They’re saying that Marinette carried out an unprovoked attack on a fellow student and was expelled on the spot.” Stated Alya, venom dripping from her words, “I’m going to kill that fat bastard!”

Nino looked over Alya’s shoulder, “It also say that there is no evidence to support or contradict those claims and the expulsion was illegal because Marinette didn’t receive a hearing.”

“Damocles is performing a smear campaign to cover up his own failings.” Snarled Alya, while Alix picked up the rock and threw it back out the window.

Damocles tried not to squirm as the two inspectors stared at him.

“You… refused to investigate the claims Mlle Dupain-Cheng was making, because you saw Mlle Rossi sitting at the bottom of a flight of stairs. Was Mlle Rossi harmed in any way? Did she have any visible bruises or marks?”

“W-well, no, but-” The female inspector cut him off.

“You were granted several thousand euros to refurbish the school and its contents, and yet, this is the only room that has been visibly altered.” She said, her voice cold, “It is well known that you have an…unusual hobby. There have been concerns about you embezzling funds. As well as accusations of unfair dismissal and blatant favouritism towards the wealthier students.”

“I-well-erm-you see-” Damocles was interrupted again.

“M. Damocles, you’ve shown us evidence that you are both inefficient and incompetent in your job.” Warned the male inspector, “Now, you will tell us everything, the whole truth and then we will decide your next course of action.”

Marinette’s leg bounced as M. Coleman read the article. The principal looked up at Marinette, before running a hand over his face.

“If I’d known the severity of your situation, I wouldn’t’ve accepted you,” Began Coleman, making Marinette wilt, “You were expelled under dubious circumstances at best, with no evidence supporting the course of action, and you’ve been bearing a burden that you shouldn’t have to.”

“S-sir, what does that mean?” Asked Marinette, quietly.

“It means, Mlle Dupain-Cheng, that Hector Damocles made a catastrophic mistake and has no way of recovering from it.” Clarified Coleman, before glancing at the clock of the wall, “Class will be starting soon, I suggest you head there now.”

Marinette silently nodded and hurried out of the room, leaving Coleman to his thoughts. Arthur glanced at his phone, before frowning and picking up the receiver and dialling a number.

“Michael,” Started Arthur, “I need a favour.”

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