Akuma Flashpoint

The Recruit

It had been a long morning and midday, and yet Marinette still felt lost. To figure out the right thing to say for the now dreaded breakfast, she had to ask about her history with Adrien in this timeline. And it sure was... interesting. Starting with the fact that they got together when they were fourteen, instead of sixteen. Apparently, since he never fell in love with Ladybug, it opened the door for him to instantly fall for her civilian identity instead.

That was one what-if scenario she never knew she would get the answer to. Not that she had ever actually wanted to know. But it also meant Lila was Adrien's second girlfriend, meaning she shouldn't underestimate the importance Lila had acquired for him in this timeline.

Another awful revelation was that he was the one to break things off. According to Tikki, their communication suffered greatly after Nino passed away, and this timeline's Marinette didn't want to fight for the relationship, blaming herself for what happened. After that, she distanced herself from everyone, resulting in Adrien giving up in the relationship.

But every now and then, she would drunk-dial Adrien to tell him how much she cared about him and that she was glad he was alive. Among other things Tikki wouldn't divulge. As for his relationship with Lila, that was a more recent development. Something that started between four to five months prior. And apparently, Marinette did not take it well at all, ending up at his doorstep, drunk and sobbing.

"That's so embarrassing," Marinette whined, dragging her hands down her face. "No wonder he's pissed. I'm a total disaster."

"More like cripplingly depressed," Tikki said with a cringe.

"And borderline alcoholic," Marinette pointed out, as she checked her phone again. "I have so many calls made to Adrien in this phone. At least three times a week. Why was I drunk three times a week?!"

"Well—"

"You know what? I don't need to know," Marinette intervened. "On the bright side, that gives me a few ideas of what I can say to them."

"Really? Already?"

"It's obvious I had a drinking problem before I got here, so what do alcoholics do when they're finally ready to get their life back together?" Tikki shrugged. "They admit they have a problem and, somewhere along the line, they make amends. I can start by jumping to those amends. I just have to convince them that this was something I had already been thinking about for a while."

"Oh!" Tikki said excitedly. "Simple!"

"Mhm," Marinette nodded. "So, now that that's settled, I just have to make sure I don't mess it up. And in the meantime, I can try to figure out how to fix everything."

"May I ask, how will you know when something or someone was responsible for changing everything?"

"Unfortunately, I think that's something I'll figure out along the way," Marinette admitted.

"Is that why you still made a plan for tomorrow? Even though you hope to find the akuma before then?"

"Yeah," she said. "Because I have absolutely no idea who The Genie could be, and I'm not even sure she knows I'm here. There's a chance this might not have been part of her plan. And if that's the case, she has no reason to suddenly show up."

"Wouldn't we have noticed someone walking around in blue skin, though?"

"That's the part that I least understand." Marinette started pacing in the small room. "Surely someone like that would've stood out by now. And I also don't think she would've gone through all the trouble of time travel if this timeline didn't end up benefiting her in some way. She did say something about getting her wish. Maybe Adrien not being Chat Noir triggered a better life for her."