Unclean Hands 🫴🏻 (A Miraculous Ladybug Fanfiction)

Epilogue | The Lives Left Behind

Six Years After

The bell above the front door rang as an older woman stepped into the tiny bakery. The fresh smell of warm bread still hung in the air and she smiled as she walked up to the counter. "Your bread smells as lovely as ever, Sabine!"

The owner appeared from the back room, her face covered in sweat and flour. Marinette—who now went as Sabine—beamed brightly at her regular customer. "Mrs. Calloway! It's so nice to see you. How are you?"

"I'm good, dear. My grandkids are visiting this evening."

"Oh, Susie and John are back for the summer?" Marinette asked as she started preparing her customer's usual order: two loaves of bread, a dozen macaroons, four chocolate croissants, and a fresh piece of cake—on the house. "I miss those kids."

"They miss you, too," Mrs. Calloway told her, laughing. "After all, you are their favorite babysitter."

Marinette grinned. "I try."

She glanced at her bare hand and cocked an eyebrow. "I see Nate hasn't popped the question yet..."

"Oh, we're just waiting for the right time," Marinette replied, glancing at the clock above. She handed over a thick brown paper to-go bag. "Here you go. I added an extra treat—on the house, of course."

"You're too kind, Sabine." Mrs. Calloway gave her exact change. "What time is better than now, sweetie? If your man doesn't propose soon, I'll have to send my son over here to woo you!"

"That won't be necessary, Mrs. Calloway." Adrien—who now went as Nate—wrapped an arm around his girlfriend's shoulder as he stood beside her. "Once I got my heart set on something, it's hard to keep me away."

"Aww, babe..." Marinette stood on her toes and kissed her boyfriend's cheek. "You always have the sweetest things to say."

Mrs. Calloway chuckled and smiled at the couple. "My, you two are absolutely adorable! I can tell you've always been meant to be together."

"I've felt that way for a long time, Mrs. Calloway," Adrien whispered as he grinned down at Marinette.

"You kids have fun, I have grandkids to see!"

"Have a good day, Mrs. Calloway!" The two shouted to her.

Marinette found her orange cat sleeping by the register and patted his head, moving to scratch under his chin. "Sleeping on the job I see, Croissant," She teased, bending down to kiss him. "Watch the shop for me real quick?"

Years later after departing Paris, Adrien and Marinette found refuge in a tiny city deep in Iowa. They changed their names and identities. Marinette was now Sabine—in honor of her mother—and Adrien went by Nate—a sweet gesture to Nathalie.

The two worked odd jobs to save up money and were soon able to buy their own property and open their own bakery. Adrien and Marinette lived a private, secret life out of town, but still close enough to other people to not raise weird suspicions of themselves.

Marinette grabbed new seed packets from a drawer and walked outside to their own garden. The kwamis flew around and greeted her, munching on fresh fruits and vegetables, and she bent down and grabbed a tiny shovel. She dug holes and sprinkled the seeds over and buried them, and grabbed the pink watering can.

Yes, Marinette still had the miracle box, but she could never lend the miraculous out to anyone again. Not now, at least. It was still far too early to appoint new superheroes, and they didn't want to risk exposing their secret life.

Of course, Paris wasn't the only city that had crime, and Adrien had snuck out a few times to help the people of their new home. With a lot of inspiration and dedication, Ladybug and Cat Noir were able to transform their suits into something unrecognizable, and were always waiting on standby if the city needed their help.

Adrien and Marinette hadn't had any contact with people from their old lives, but that didn't mean they didn't check up on their loved ones from time to time. It hurt to see their friends live their lives, do what they always dreamed of, but they were still happy for them.

As for Felix, they couldn't risk contacting him, either, so they never wrote to him while he was serving his cousin's time in prison. He still had seven years remaining of his scheduled sentence, in prison for a crime that he didn't commit, and he was still okay with it after all this time.

After all, that was Felix's plan all along, and he still had other tricks up his sleeve.

Adrien and Marinette were finally happy, though the journey to get there was a long one. The former model had to find a new therapist, and even after three years, he still attended weekly sessions. Though he hadn't seen his father's ghost since he left, he still had nightmares time to time, and Marinette was always there to comfort him.

Adrien locked up the bakery and found his girlfriend in the garden. He patted Wayzz's head as he walked past and offered his hand to her. "The sun's about to set, Milady."

Marinette looked up with a grin. "Is it time?"

He nodded. "Yes."

She grabbed his hand and they raced into their tiny house behind the bakery.

Seconds later, Adrien and Marinette ran out the back door, hand-in-hand, and made their way up to the top of the hill behind their home. Excitement, bliss, and adrenaline knotted into butterflies in their guts and they looked over at each other.

Adrien wore a beige suit with a black tie, the fabric bouncing around his shirt. Though his hair was messy and out of place, Marinette thought he never looked more handsome.

Marinette's veil flew in the wind behind her as she carefully held up the skirt of her homemade wedding dress, a baby pink strapless ballgown with flowers embroidered around the bust. Her hair was braided and pinned up in a bun. She looked absolutely perfect, and Adrien was in awe by the sight of her.

They soon reached the top of the hill and faced each other. The sun set behind them, casting beautiful colors of purple, orange, and pink across the sky. Wind blew gently against them and pushed them closer together.

Even though this marriage wouldn't be official, in their eyes it would be, and that was enough.

"I, Adrien Agreste, take you, Marinette Dupain-Cheng, to have and to hold forever, to love and protect, til death do us part."

"I, Marinette Dupain-Cheng, take you, Adrien Agreste, to have and to hold forever, to love and protect, til death do us part."

They exchanged his parents' wedding rings.

The two looked up at each other and smiled. He stepped forward and gently cradled his lady's face as he bent down to kiss her. They pulled each other closer.

Adrien and Marinette had finally accepted they'd never be able to go back to the lives left behind, and they'd grown to live with these harsh truths.

Tom and Sabine would never see their daughter again, and never get closure in her disappearance.

Marinette's bedroom stayed exactly the way it was since the day she left and her parents hadn't planned on boxing up her things or renovating. They believed—in vain—that their daughter would come back one day.

Gabriel Agreste's body was never found, and Adrien's mother never woke up.

A funeral was held in Emelie's honor, after Nathalie's multiple failed attempts to find a cure. No one but the former assistant and bodyguard attended. Emelie Agreste would never be forgotten.

They stepped closer as they grabbed each other's hand, resting their foreheads together. "I love you," They whispered at the same time, and laughed.

"Oh, that was so romantic!" Tikki cheered as she spun in circles. "A perfect fairytale!"

Plagg crossed his tiny arms, pouting. "You think everything is romantic, Sugarcube, but I have to admit, this has been a long time coming."

"Just be happy for our holders," The red bug said.

The tiny cat smiled. "I am."

"Did I miss the ceremony?"

Adrien and Marinette spun around fast. Their eyes widened as they gasped. "Felix?!" They broke into wide smiles.

The look-a-like stepped forward, and with a sly smirk, asked, "Did you miss me?"