History YMMV / TwoLetters

* CatharsisFactor: PlayedWith as part of the story's {{Deconstructi|onFic}}ve nature. One of the overarching themes of the story is that Marinette's desire for catharsis has eclipsed her better judgment; her desire to see those who have been utter {{Jerkass}}es and {{Entitled|Bastard}}, {{Ungrateful Bastard}}s blinds her to how much ''everyone'' is suffering. This does not ''entirely'' prevent readers from being able to draw some pleasure from seeing what's befallen some of the biggest jerks, but is meant to make them question whether or not said catharsis is truly worth the cost to the rest of Paris.

* TooBleakStoppedCaring: One of the underlying tragedies of this work is how very few of the cast, if anyone, seems to learn ''anything'' from the experience: most [[HoldingOutForAHero still expect the old Ladybug to come back and save them]], acting [[EntitledBastard incredibly entitled]] to her aid [[AllTakeAndNoGive while still offering nothing in return]]. And Marinette StoppedCaring [[TookALevelInJerkass to a degree]] becomes [[{{Yandere}} increasingly more disturbing]] as the story goes, making it harder to be happy that she escaped that toxic arrangement. This can make the whole work difficult to get through.

* TooBleakStoppedCaring: One of the underlying tragedies of this work is how very few of the cast, if anyone, seems to learn ''anything'' from the experience: most [[HoldingOutForAHero still expect the old Ladybug to come back and save them]], acting [[EntitledBastard incredibly entitled]] to her aid [[AllTakeAndNoGive while still offering nothing in return]]. And Marinette StoppedCaring [[TookALevelInJerkass to a disturbing degree]], making it harder to be happy that she escaped that toxic arrangement. This can make the whole work difficult to get through.

** Alya also qualifies, having gone through an extended TraumaCongaLine that left her HatedByAll... while still struggling to grasp how her own mistakes and {{Fatal Flaw}}s led to this outcome, resulting in her [[NotHelpingYourCase not helping her case]] when she pleads with Marinette and Luka for help.

** Why didn't Mayor Andre tell Marinette and Luka anything about what was happening to his daughter? Was he [[ItsAllAboutMe more concerned about himself]]? Too worried about the possibility of word getting back to Ladybug to risk it? Or was he self-aware enough to realize that Marinette and her boyfriend might not be moved by the plight of her long-time tormentor, especially since he'd known about and enabled Chloe's bullying all that time?

** In the final chapter [[spoiler: it's revealed that Marinette deliberately lied in her letter to her post-amnesia self about her near Akumatizing into Princess Justice by claiming that Alya was lying about it, simultaneously reinforcing Marinette's view of herself as being "better" than the rest of Paris while also further driving another wedge between herself and Alya. Did the pre-amnesia Marinette do this to make sure that she would follow the plan she set in motion because she was concerned that her post-amnesia self would revert to sacrificing herself again without incentive OR was she so delusional she honestly believed the entire Princess Justice incident never happened?]]
** Is Marinette's bitterness entirely because of her service as Ladybug or is it also from issues in her civilian life? Luka notes that Marinette seems to have been conditioned into treating ''all'' relationships she had as AllTakeAndNoGive and given how this was prevalent early in her retirement there's good odds that some of her issues were kickstarted in the civilian part of her life rather than stemming entirely from her work as Ladybug.

* JerkassWoobie: Marinette. On the woobie end, she's been taken for granted by everyone around her, has severe trust issues, and is heavily traumatized by her time as Ladybug. On the jerkass end, she has become incredibly vindictive, routinely engages in victim-blaming, and [[spoiler:willingly gave incredible cosmic power to the one person most likely to abuse said power. The final chapter also reveals that Luka is the only thing keeping her from having a full-blown meltdown and becoming the very monster she spent so long fighting]].

* JerkassWoobie: Marinette. On the woobie end, she's been taken for granted by everyone around her, has severe trust issues, and is heavily traumatized by her time as Ladybug. On the jerkass end, she has become incredibly vindictive, routinely engages in victim-blaming, and [[spoiler:willingly gave incredible cosmic power to the one person most likely to abuse said power. The final chapter also reveals that Luka is the only thing keeping her from having a full-blown meltdown and becoming the very monster she spent so long fighting.]]

*** In the final chapter [[spoiler: it's revealed that Marinette deliberately lied in her letter to her post-amnesia self about her near Akumatizing into Princess Justice by claiming that Alya was lying about it, simultaneously reinforcing Marinette's view of herself as being "better" than the rest of Paris while also further driving another wedge between herself and Alya. Did the pre-amnesia Marinette do this to make sure that she would follow the plan she set in motion because she was concerned that her post-amnesia self would revert to sacrificing herself again without incentive OR was she so delusional she honestly believed the entire Princess Justice incident never happened?]]
** Is Marinette's bitterness entirely because of her service as Ladybug or is it also from issues in her civilian life? Luka notes that Marinette seems to have been conditioned into treating ''all'' relationships she had as AllTakeAndNoGive and given how this was prevalent early in her retirement there's good odds that some of her issues were kickstarted in the civilian part of her life rather than stemming entirely from her work as Ladybug.

*** One of the central conflicts of ''Karma'' is how Adrien refuses to truly ''support'' Marinette in either of his identities, leaving her to deal with Lila alone and similarly proving to be a poor partner as Chat Noir due to his [[SkewedPriorities skewed]] and [[ItsAllAboutMe self-centered]] priorities. ''Two Letters'' centers around Marinette feeling like she's the only person in Paris who takes the threat Hawkmoth poses ''seriously'', and her frustration over the lack of support or defensive measures reaching the breaking point.

** One common debate around ''Karma'' is whether or not Marinette should have helped Adrien and her classmates despite how they'd taken her for granted (and were [[EntitledBastard still continuing to do so]], having [[TheyJustDontGetIt learned nothing]] from their misfortunes). The severity of their punishments (especially Adrien's) had the side effect of some readers labeling Marinette selfish for sticking to her SelfCareEpiphany and not giving in to their demands. ''Two Letters'' further explores themes of dealing with grossly entitled people in a setting that is more GreyAndGrayMorality, where it's suggested Marinette actually ''is'' being selfish, but not for entirely unsympathetic reasons.
*** This also folds into ''Two Letters'' [[DeconstructedCharacterArchetype deconstructing the concept of]] "Saltinette". Like "Saltinette", the Marinette of ''Two Letters'' actively wants those whom she sees as wronging her to suffer, drawing pleasure from their LaserGuidedKarma. By contrast, the Marinette in ''Karma'' simply ''avoided'' her former friends, doesn't orchestrate any of their consequences, and only laughs at the DramaticIrony of Alya telling Adrien that "we know Lila's not a liar!"

*** In the final chapter [[spoiler: it's revealed that Marinette deliberately lied in her letter to her post-amnesia self about her near Akumatizing into Princess Justice by claiming that Alya was lying about it, simultaneously reinforcing Marinette's view of herself as being "better" than the rest of Paris while also further driving a further wedge between herself and Alya. Did the pre-amnesia Marinette do this to make sure that she would follow the plan she set in motion because she was concerned that her post-amnesia self would revert to sacrificing herself again without incentive OR was she so delusional she honestly believed the entire Princess Justice incident never happened?]]

** This story also has Alix Kubdel be stripped of her Miraculous and Lila Rossi getting ''everything'' she felt she deserved. Alix is stripped of the power of Bunnyx when Marinette tracks her down purely due to the fear that Bunnyx could restore the status quo, while Lila Rossi becomes '''''Ladybug''''', using the same crocodile tears and threats of retribution that allowed her original campaign against Marinette to become the 'greatest hero Paris has ever known'.

** How much of Marinette's current behavior is a result of her LaserGuidedAmnesia is up for debate. Not having the whole story due to lacking her memories as Ladybug could definitely bias Marinette's view on the situation. In particular, it's unclear if Marinette has any memory of Hawkmoth trying to Akumatize her into Princess Justice and Unmasker or even knows that it happened, which could influence her condemnation of virtually everyone else who was akumatized at some point.

** How much of Marinette's current behavior is a result of her LaserGuidedAmnesia is up for debate. Not having the whole story due to lacking her memories as Ladybug could definitely bias Marinette's view on the situation.

** One common debate around ''Karma'' is whether or not Marinette should have helped Adrien and her classmates despite how they'd taken her for granted (and were [[EntitledBastard still continuing to do so]], having [[TheyJustDontGetIt learned nothing]] from their misfortunes). Some labeled Marinette selfish for sticking to her SelfCareEpiphany and not giving in to their demands. ''Two Letters'' further explores themes of dealing with grossly entitled people in a setting that is more GreyAndGrayMorality, where it's suggested Marinette actually ''is'' being selfish, but not for entirely unsympathetic reasons.

** Both stories involve Marinette being completely overwhelmed by her responsibilities. ''Karma'' focuses more upon the stresses of her civilian life, with how Adrien and her [[FairWeatherFriend Fair-Weather Friends]] were [[TakingAdvantageOfGenerosity taking her generosity]] for granted, while ''Two Letters'' turns a spotlight towards how the citizens of Paris take Ladybug's presence and protection for granted.

* SpiritualSuccessor: Can be seen as one to the author's previous story ''Fanfic/TheKarmaOfLies.'' Both stories involve Marinette getting completely overwhelmed by her innumerable responsibilities and going to Luka for support; the key difference is that, in the last story, Marinette decided that the only way to escape from being crushed by her responsibilities and akumatized was to draw out Hawkmoth and beat him in a last-ditch battle, while in this story, she decides her only way out is to quit being Ladybug.