As Lila Rossi returns from Paris, Marinette's life went downhill. Her friends turned against her, except a reformed Chloe, Luka, Alya, Kagami and Juleka. Even Adrien, who told her to take the high road, turned against her.
Suddenly, a mysterious ara...
It's been a month since Lila's arrest. She's currently sent to Rikers Island in USA, where she'll spend the rest of her life in for her crimes. I should be happy that Lila gets what she deserves. But, I'm not.
Because of my actions, Ladybug has become infamous for letting Hawkmoth get to her and almost turned Paris into a battle ground. And it doesn't make it any better that I've drawn away from my friends. The Akuma Class tried to reconcile with me, but I didn't want anything to do with them. Eventually, they coldly left me be. Especially Adrien.
At night, I couldn't sleep. So, I decided to go out in my civilian form to get some air until a group of thugs ambushed me. I tried to walk away, but their leader blocked me off.
"Well, well. You look quite the looker. How about we play with you for a bit, yeah?" He said as he stroked my hair.
I kicked him in between the legs and punched him across the jaw as he doubled over. The thugs were about to advance towards me, but something pulled them into the darkness. I looked up and saw the thugs hanging in a cocoon of webbing. On the roof was none other than Arachno, wearing a red and black tight fitted bodysuit and a mask covering his face along with a dark red hood.
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
"Seems like you handled yourself well, Marinette." He said.
"Hey. It's been a month since we saw each other. Though, I wished it were on better terms." I replied as he hopped off the wall and landed in front of me.
As the police arrived to arrest the men, Arachno took me to the Eiffel Tower to watch over the city from above. He sighed and faced me.
"I know that you're Ladybug." He said.
"I figured. You called me Marinette during our fight while I was Lady Dark. I feel like crap after I broke my promise to you. And I know you're mad at me for it." I replied.
Arachno shook his head.
"Why would I be? It's Hawkmoth's doing. Not you." He said.
"Yeah. But, I allowed myself to get akumatized whilst I was in my Ladybug form. I was so obsessed with getting revenge on Lila and my former classmates, I almost turned Paris into a graveyard. I hurt my friends and family and I also caused Ladybug's reputation to go down the toilet." I sobbed.
"But, you can still make amends." Arachno replied, wiping away my tears.
"How can I ever continue defending Paris if I end up destroying it before Hawkmoth does? How can I ever redeem myself?" I asked.
The spider themed vigilante went silent, as if he was taking some time to think about what he's about to say. After a while, he took off his mask to reveal his face. I gasped in shock to see that Troy is Arachno.
"Before I came here, I used to be a member of The Web Warriors alongside my father, Benjamin Riley, the Scarlet Spider and my uncle Peter Parker, AKA Spider-Man. My powers started to develop on my 12th birthday and I took the name Shadow Spider. When a clone known as Chaos Spider. When he killed my parents, I snapped and killed Chaos Spider. However, I paid a great price. My identity was revealed by Doctor Octavius and I was branded a criminal for murder.
S.H.I.E.L.D managed to detain me away from the public until Doctor Strange erased everyone's memory of Shadow Spider, excluding himself, The Avengers and my uncle and aunt. So, as everyone knows, Shadow Spider never existed and Troy Riley never had any powers to begin with. I lost my friends and ruined my reputation. Now, I've been trying to make amends as Arachno." He explained.
He pulled out a picture of a black, white and red suit, possibly his old suit.
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
"I never knew. Troy, I'm sorry." I said.
"Yeah, well. At least New York is safe from a rampaging clone of Spider-Man. And to answer your question, take one step at a time. Rebuild yourself. Start small. Paris will someday forgive Ladybug and welcome her with open arms. After all, the city needs heroes. More than ever." He replied.
A smile found its way onto my lips as I took in what Troy said. Hawkmoth may have lowered my resolve, but he hasn't completely shattered it. And with Lila out of the way, I don't have to add more trouble onto my plate. After a while, Troy pulled on his mask and allowed me to climb onto his back. As he swung from web to web, I blushed as I felt how muscular his back feels.
I never knew how handsome Troy really is without the mask. Or how strong he truly is. I thought.
As we landed on my balcony, Arachno prepared to leave, I stopped him by hugging his back. He looked back in confusion.
"For a while, I thought that after what happened with Adrien, I would never fall for anyone again. I only saw Luka as an older brother and I was afraid that I would get betrayed again. But, then you showed up and I started to fall for you when we hung out together." I said as my cheeks burned red.
Arachno turned around and lifted my face with a hand under my chin.
"Truth be told, I wanted to be your friend. But, as I got to know you better, I started to fall for you. And I was scared that you would be a target for my enemies. And when I kissed you, I felt exhilarated and terrified at the same time. Terrified that I was dreaming the whole time. Terrified of losing you to Hawkmoth. Now, I don't have to hold it in me anymore." He explained.
And with that, I tugged up his mask up to the bridge of his nose and kissed him on the lips. He slowly kissed me back, wrapping his arms around my waist while I wrapped mine around his neck. Right now, I don't care about Hawkmoth, Lila or even my former friends. All I care about is that I've finally found love again.
And it's in the form of Troy Riley Parker.
As we pulled away from each other, Troy chuckled.
"So, does that mean you're over Adrien?" He asked.
"Hell yeah, I am. But, let's keep this between us." I replied.
"Whatever you say, Lovebug." He said as he pulled me into a hug.
I nuzzled in his chest and smiled. After a while, we pulled away from each other. Troy tugged his mask over his mouth and hopped over the railing of my balcony, swinging away with his webs, letting out a loud cheer loud enough to wake all of Paris.
"Looks like you finally moved on from Adrien, Marinette." Tikki said with a grin.
I touched my lips and smiled.
"You know what, Tikki. You're right. I have moved on from Adrien. And I'm glad that Troy is in my life." I replied.
After hearing Troy's past, I decided that it's time for Ladybug to go on a race for redemption. I'm going to regain Paris' trust in me no matter what.
