Chapter Text
Adrien stared at the Ladybug rag-doll in his hands, thinking about what to say next. How do you take an idea as big as Ladybug and shape it into mundane words? How do you take a memory dearest to your heart and share it so clearly, you don’t lose a single dot?
His thoughts ran to breezy rooftops, to chases under the halfmoon, to cold metal of Eiffel Tower and gutters, to battles and alleys, balconies and confessions. And suddenly there was a blush on his cheeks. His heart sped up. His eyes stung with the prickly feeling of accumulating moisture. He never felt more alive than at his Lady’s side.
‘Grandpa?’
Dottie’s small voice managed to break through the haze of memories filling his mind.
‘Earth to Grandpa Adrien!’ she waved a hand in front of his unseeing eyes and with a jerk he snapped back to reality.
‘Sorry,’ he mumbled, ‘I was just wondering what to tell you first.’
‘How about, what was she like?’ the girl prompted. ‘Was she brave and fearless? Like in fairy tales?’
‘She was very brave, kitten, unbelievably so,’ Adrien replied. ‘Did you know she was only fourteen when she became a heroine? Many people wouldn’t be brave enough to manage the task. But she did, and she was amaaaaaziiiing!’
Dottie chuckled at his admiration.
‘This isn’t funny, sweetie. You can’t image the monsters she had to fight, the obstacles she had to work through. Yet she never wavered, always did the job that was in front of her.’
‘Wasn’t she scared?’ The girl wriggled excitedly. ‘I would be scared of monsters!’
‘She was, kitten. She was,’ Adrien sighed. ‘She wasn’t stupid, you know. She had her doubts and she feared for the safety of people, especially those close to her. And that was what made her stronger. She didn’t cower in the face of danger. She made it disappear.’
‘Wow,’ Dotties eyes lit up with appreciation. ‘I wish I knew how to do that.’
‘What made her special was that she always remembered who the real enemy was. Not the victims bent to his will, innocent and manipulated to serve his purpose,’ Adrien’s features hardened at the memory of who the enemy turned out to be. ‘One of the things I admired about her was that she had respect for everyone, even those who had done her wrong, who had tried to bully her or lie to her. Everyone could count on her when they needed help.’
He smirked when he saw that Dottie was enchanted, turned into stone on his lap; mouth agape, eyes as big as saucers. That was Ladybug’s magic.
‘While in her famous super red costume, she was stronger, tougher, faster, and she had some special powers,’ he continued. ‘But she was the hero in and out of the suit. That’s what made her so special.’
‘She was a hero without her suit? What did she do then?’
‘She never tolerated injustice and she always called out those doing bad things,’ Adrien replied cryptically. It had been really hard to accept that his own friend had been among those people. ‘But she could see good in anyone and had her ways to bring it to light,’ he smiled at the thought how far Chloe had gone from class bully to responsible and respected politician. ‘With great results.’
‘The girl behind the mask was a brilliant leader,’ he supplied. ‘People followed her because she cared for them. They knew she would help them; they trusted her. She could move mountains with her enthusiasm and it was contagious,’ Adrien chuckled. ‘Once she even took command of the City Hall, and the Mayor listened to her orders - her, a barely fourteen year old girl in pink slacks!’
Dottie laughed with him, clearly amused at the possibility of a grown man listening to little girls. ‘She must have been very smart then.’
‘She was. Oh, she was so smart, kitten! You have no idea!’ he exclaimed. ‘She could think her way out of any trouble. Finding solutions was her specialty as a hero, but she was very creative on her own. I’ve already told you - she had made all the things in that box. Every one of them is her unique creation.’
‘I like her,’ the girl decided.
‘I’m not surprised, kitten!’ Adrien bumped her nose again. ‘You’d have a lot in common!’
Dottie perked up at this news. ‘Really? Like what?’
‘She liked video-games, like you do. In healthy amounts,’ he added before she could argue about the time he let her play. ‘She cared for her friends and family. She was passionate about everything she did, like you are, my little kitten.’
‘I am?’
Adrien hesitated, thinking of the best way to put it to words simple enough for a child, but close to what he had in mind. ‘When you dance, you become the music. You forget about everything and everyone. There’s a saying that I think suits you both so well.’
You’ve gotta dance like there’s nobody watching
Love like you’ll never be hurt
Sing like there’s nobody listening
And live like it’s heaven on earth
‘She did that. She lived like that. She made the world a better place. By being herself,’ Adrien quickly wiped the lonely tear that appeared in his eye. Dottie didn’t notice. She was too excited with that bit of cheap poetry.
‘And she defended the city!’ she exclaimed. ‘She fought the bad guys!’
‘That she did, sweetie,’ he nodded. ‘And she won. Like good guys always should.’