Lilly And The Ink Machine and Other BATIM Stories

Miraculous Prompt

How many of you are familiar with the Miraculous fandom? 

Since I've gotten into the Bendy And The Ink Machine fandom, I have been wondering how a crossover would look like with the two fandoms. I have thought about Bendy meeting Marinette and maybe getting Akumatized. I have thought of Lila actually being related to Joey Drew. I have thought of an Akuma (it could be Bendy) who drags the class into the studio and forces them to fight ink monsters. I even thought of a demon BATIM OC coming to Paris and helping Ladybug takedown Hawkmoth. Then, I thought of a crossover AU that I really like.

So may I present to you: Ladybug And The Miracle Machine.

In this AU idea, Marinette returns to the animating studio, where she used to work on a show based on the superhero comic that Nathaniel and Marc made when they were younger, after having left years ago. Why did she leave? It could have been family obligations or Jagged Stone wanted her to be his personal designer/stylist. Or she was tired of putting up with someone like Lila or someone else. Either way, Marinette comes back to the studio and finds this contraption called the Miracle Machine and turns it on with the artifacts. This throws her into a world hidden in the studio that is filled with demented villains and heroes from the show, or the comic if they decided to take out some characters, that used to be the friends she worked with, and only a handful are sane enough to become Marinette's allies. 

How the story moves and which characters Marinette interacts within whatever order could vary. It also brings the question of whether Marinette can save her friends from the demented state that the Miracle Machine had put them in. If she can purify them like Ladybug can purify Akumas in the show. There might be recordings scattered around that would clue into what happened to the studio after Marinette left. One idea that I think that I would stick to is having Alya act in the place of Sammy, most likely transformed into Rena Rouge a bit short of all her marbles. I think it would be good since Alya has this sort of hero-worshipping complex and a lot of people in the BATIM fandom believe that Sammy and Henry were best friends before Henry left like Marinette and Alya were best friends. I can also imagine Max turned into the Gamer and controlling an abandoned ride like Bertrum Piedmont in chapter four.

So, there are plenty of roads that this crossover AU could go down. But I have a storyline idea that could really bring out more emotion, in my opinion. It starts when Marinette's good friend, Lila Rossi (I know that it's strange, but Alya is Marinette's Best friend and there will be more), finds out that Marinette inspired and designed costumes for the Miraculous Comics that Nathaniel and Marc were writing. Lila decides that they should start an animation studio to produce a show based on the comic, which they do after they are done with university. Everything was okay the first several months, Marinette even had a crush on Adrien, one of the voice actors, and financial support to the studio when they were starting up. But as soon as the first season is finished, Marinette is questioning Lila's methods in motivating the workers. The workers, including herself, are being overworked and staying at the studio hours after their shifts. They have taken to storing cots at the studio so that they can sleep after a late-night shift. Lila had also been telling the workers stuff about how the studio is fairing that Marinette knows isn't true. She's LYING to her workers! Their friends! And she's pushing them to advance the franchise. Making merchandise and hiring Max to design attractions for a Miraculous THEME PARK! Marinette tried to talk to Lila, get her to stop from going too far and from working everyone beyond exhaustion, but it turned into an argument and even more between the friends. It all comes to a head one day when Lila denies Marinette time off to spend with her family and they have a heated fight. It ends with Lila firing Marinette and Marinette quitting at the same time, which is how Marinette first left the studio.

A couple of years later, Marinette receives a letter from Lila. It said that she had thought about their fight often after Marinette and that she wanted Marinette to return to the studio so that they could talk and so that Lila could show her something that she has been working on. Marinette arrives at the studio, but instead of Lila she finds what seems to be the Miracle Machine. Supposing that the Miracle Machine is what Lila mentioned she was working on, Marinette decides to turn it on and see what it does. In order to do this, she listens to a recording left behind by Chloe and gathers the offerings which are mostly based on Lucky Charms used in the show except for a book that Lila was working on. After collecting the offerings and flipping the switch, Marinette returns to the room with the Miracle Machine but finds it blocked off. Something large and black ramms at the blockage and growls at Marinette, causing her to flee. Just as she's about to reach the studio's exit, Marinette falls through the floor into the lower levels. Marinette manages to make her way to the Recording and Music Department and starts looking for a way to get out of the studio. Once she is about to leave, a super dressed as a fox knocks her. When Marinette comes through, she finds that her best friend Alya has been turned into a version of the superhero Rena Rouge that wants to use her as a sacrifice to please the "Lord." 

That's the best that I can explain it at the moment. If these ideas inspire you to write a story, then I would love to see what you come up with! Happy writing!