The Rose That Brought Us Together - Miraculous Ladybug Reveal

There Is No Light Without Darkness

Credit for this oneshot, its storyline, and all of its plot goes to Marichatislive! Thank you for the great story idea! Make sure to check out their other stories!

This story is not connected to the previous one and exists as its own story. It's based on 'Ladybug' (season three, episode 24), but it quickly deviates from the original plot. If you'd like to see more from this storyline, let me know! If you notice a distinct change in writing style, it's because the previous story was written in 2018, and I've done a good amount of tweaking my style since then.

I hope you all are doing all right in these trying times. Stay safe out there, and make sure to take care of yourselves. Without further ado, here is "There Is No Light Without Darkness"!

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"Marinette Dupain-Cheng, you are expelled from this school!"

A sudden shock of silence set in. Marinette was in shock, to say the least. She had been framed so thoroughly that even the people who knew her best were rethinking what they knew about her. She felt alone in that crowded locker room.

In the end, she found that the best way to respond was to bury her face in her hands. She couldn't stand to look at her peers. A sturdy hand found her shoulder- her dad, most likely- and began to lead her out of the room. She felt her mom fall in behind them, making their way to the door. Suddenly, a hushed voice broke the silence, just loud enough for her to hear.

"I believe you, Marinette," Adrien said with quiet confidence.

Marinette stopped, her hands drifting down from her face, keeping eye contact with her classmates and teachers at a minimum. "Thanks, but it looks like you're the only one here."

She and her parents walked out of the door. The class was slow to follow, taking a few moments to process what had just happened. Then, the class began to trickle hesitantly out of the room, murmuring amongst themselves about what had just happened. The teacher followed until it was just Adrien and Lila. Just before she made it out of the room, Adrien caught Lila's arm.

"Why are you doing this? What did she ever do to you?" Adrien implored her.

"What are you talking about? She's the one who stole my grandmother's necklace and pushed me down the stairs!" Lila feigned ignorance, batting her eyelashes. Remembering that she was supposed to have a wounded leg, Lila began favoring the one that wasn't bandaged. She limped exaggeratedly out of the room.

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Marinette's parents were stoic during the car ride home. Marinette herself was trying to find a way to explain her situation without seeming even guiltier, and when she couldn't find one, she stayed quiet until they made it to the bakery. Her parents did the talking for her when they got inside. They turned, suddenly, from their hushed conversation and addressed her directly.

"Marinette," her father said haltingly, "since you won't be doing much while we find a new school for you, we thought that it would be best if you worked in the bakery full-time." Her mother nodded along with him.

Marinette smiled sadly, swallowing back the pain in her throat from restraining her tears. "Yeah, that sounds good." She turned and climbed the stairs to her room, where she promptly scaled the ladder to her loft. She face-planted on her bed and lay there, thinking about what to do next. Tikki crept out of her bag and sat next to her on the bed for a moment before making her presence known.

"That wasn't very nice of her to do. You didn't deserve that." Tikki said softly.

Marinette shifted onto her back. "You're right. I didn't. But that's just what she does."