Line #64 Fanfic/LiesOfAttrition


1	After the defeat of Monarque, things have mostly gone back to normal... with the slight issue that the Butterfly Miraculous is still missing, and Ladybug hasn't told anyone. The trust between Ladybug and Chat Noir has been stretched to the breaking point, and one lie too many has pushed Chat Noir to the limit. Chrysalis, the new Butterfly wielder, comes to him to bring new secrets to light; Monarque got what he wanted and made his wish, at the cost of Gabriel Agreste's life, and she wants to undo it, but she needs his help. This sets Paris' greatest heroes on a collision course that risks bringing all Paris down with them.
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3	''[[https://archiveofourown.org/works/48614392/chapters/122625742 lies of attrition]]'' is an ongoing collaborative ''WesternAnimation/MiraculousLadybug'' fanfic by [[https://archiveofourown.org/users/Missnoodles/pseuds/Missnoodles Missnoodles]] and [[https://archiveofourown.org/users/wackus_bonkus/pseuds/wackus_bonkus wackus_bonkus]] published on Website/ArchiveOfOurOwn.
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6	!! ''lies of attrition'' contains examples of:
7	* AbusiveParents: Gabriel. Chat Noir even muses that bringing him back would be a price of the Wish in and of itself.
8	* AesopAmnesia: The stress of everything that happened during and in the aftermath of the FinalBattle and her fear of how it could affect Adrien have caused Marinette to relapse back into her ControlFreak tendencies despite having learned her lesson in "Strikeback".
9	* AntiVillain: It's hard to call Chat Noir a villain at all. [[PoorCommunicationKills From his perspective,]] not only did [[BigBad Monarque]] [[TheBadGuyWins win,]] but Ladybug covered up the death of an innocent man (his own father, no less). He's just setting things right.
10	* BothSidesHaveAPoint: Neither Ladybug nor Chat Noir is truly in the wrong. As Chat points out, the Wish was the very thing they've been fighting for the past year to prevent, and Monarque performed it, but as Ladybug points out, to undo the Wish would mean re-condemning an innocent person (namely [[HeelFaceTurn Nathalie]]) to death.
11	* BrokenBase: InUniverse. The other heroes are divided on whether Ladybug or Chat Noir is correct in their conflict. [[spoiler:This results in them splitting into two factions: one following Ladybug, and the other following Chat Noir and Chrysalis]]. [[spoiler:However, even with the lines now drawn in the sand, it's clear most of Ladybug's team isn't fully sold on her actions after Chat's exposed her lies]].
12	* BrokenPedestal: Ladybug becomes this to Chat Noir when he learns that she lied about Gabriel Agreste's death and the success of Monarque's Wish. [[spoiler: The pedestal breaks even further when she tries to lie to the other heroes about his motives, which quickly erodes his remaining sympathy for her]]. [[spoiler: And by exposing her lies to the other heroes, he breaks the pedestal for several of them, causing some of them to join him]].
13	* ButHeSoundsHandsome: Much of [[spoiler: Violette's]] commentary on Chrysalis' role in Chat Noir's FaceHeelTurn is thinly veiled EvilGloating.
14	* CassandraTruth: Félix and Kagami warn Marinette that lying to Adrien about Gabriel being Monarque is a bad idea. As Adrien is actually Chat Noir, this prediction proves to be even more accurate than any of them could possibly have guessed.
15	* ControlFreak: Marinette's FatalFlaw. She ''tries'' to keep a handle on everything around her by keeping the others LockedOutOfTheLoop. If secrets won't cut it, she'll resort to lies and misdirection. The issue being that she tends to FreakOut when she ''does'' lose control, driving herself to self-destructive recklessness in an effort to take back control, causing things to spiral into chaos amazingly quickly.
16	* DeconstructionFic: To Ladybug's tendency to keep others LockedOutOfTheLoop. While the rule on knowing each other's [[SecretIdentity identities]] is understandable and important, her tendency to keep everyone out of the loop on ''literally everything'' does more harm than good, and results is some ''very'' detrimental PoorCommunicationKills. And the whole conflict of this fic [[CouldHaveAvoidedThisPlot could've been avoided]] if she'd just talked to Chat Noir.
17	* DividedWeFall: The whole premise of this story. Made ''especially'' prevalent in Chapter 11 where [[spoiler: Team Miraculous is split down the middle between Ladybug and Chat Noir over to preserve the Wish or to reverse it]].
18	* DoubleStandard: PlayedForDrama. Ladybug is very insistent on keeping her secrets close around Chat Noir, but he's painfully aware that she's more lax around a relative newcomer like Rena Rouge. This convinces him that Ladybug has ''never'' really trusted him and sees him as more of a risk than a partner. This conversation between Chat and Marinette sums it up.
19	-->'''Chat Noir:''' She’s always kept me at arm’s length. For safety, of course. But she never needed to keep so safe from Rena Rouge.\
20	'''[[MyGodWhatHaveIDone Marinette]]:''' [[FreudianSlip Chaton...]]\
21	'''Chat Noir:''' The Wish wasn’t just a secret from Paris, it was a secret from me, too. Just one more thing she didn’t trust me with. (bitter chuckle) I guess I lived down to her expectations. Was last night really a betrayal at all, if she’s always considered me more of a risk than a partner?
22	* DragonAscendant: Chrysalis, civilian identity Lila Rossi/Cerise/[[spoiler:Violette]], was CoDragons to Hawk Moth alongside Nathalie. And in the wake of his HeroicSacrifice, she's risen to [[EvilPowerVacuum take his place.]]
23	* DramaticIrony:
24	** Chat Noir has all but declared civil war on Ladybug, however, he goes to [[SecretIdentity Marinette]] later, and confides in her his motivations for turning on her. There's also the irony that they're newly-declared enemies as Ladybug and Chat Noir, while dating as Adrien and Marinette. Along with the fact that Ladybug covered up Monarque's Wish from everyone including Chat Noir to protect Adrien from the AwfulTruth, while being [[IgnoranceIsBliss blissfully unaware]] that Adrien ''is'' Chat Noir.
25	** Another instance being [[spoiler:that Team Miraculous has been split into two warring factions between Ladybug and Chat Noir, while still hanging out as a friend group in their civilian identities]].
26	* DubNameChange: {{Inverted}}, as the fic uses the heroes' French names. Monarch/Monarque, King Monkey/Roi Singe, Miss Hound/Traquemoiselle, Rooster Bold/Coq Courage, etc...
27	* EvilCounterpart: There are [[MirrorCharacter many parallels]] between Chrysalis and Ladybug. Both use ExactWords to describe the final battle with Monarque and the death of Gabriel Agreste, each pushing [[UnreliableNarrator their preferred narrative of the story.]] Both are [[ConsummateLiar Consummate Liars]]. Both have an attachment to Chat Noir that goes beyond friendship (Marinette's dating Adrien, but as [[JerkassHasAPoint Argos points out]], she's [[TwoPersonLoveTriangle rather emotionally invested]] in someone she supposedly only sees as JustFriends. And Chrysalis has a full-blown VillainousCrush on him, while having initially had one on Adrien as Lila. And they both use the AffectionateNickname "Chaton" for him). However, Ladybug is ultimately only doing what she thinks is best, Chrysalis is [[ManipulativeBastard using]] Chat Noir for her own agenda.
28	* EvilerThanThou: Plagg muses that Chrysalis is more worrying to him than Monarque was.
29	* EvilIsPetty: Chrysalis ''could've'' [[spoiler:tried to take Ladybug's Miraculous herself while the latter was winded from her fight with Chat Noir, but why spoil the fun of letting ''Chat'' take it off her instead?]] There's also the fact that, VillainousCrush aside, she gets a kick out of angering Ladybug by flirting with Chat Noir. In [[WordOfGod wackus_bonkus's]] own words regarding this trope:
30	-->'''[[WordOfGod wackus_bonkus:]]''' Part of the fun of writing Chrysalis is that she isn't just trying to be evil, [[{{Troll}} she's also trying to be annoying!!]] On no fronts will she give either of the heroes a break 🤣 But she will sure as hell make herself look good doing it!
31	* ExactWords: Both Ladybug and Chrysalis use these to describe Gabriel's death. And both are MetaphoricallyTrue. Ladybug says that Gabriel sacrificed himself to defeat Monarque, and Chrysalis says that Monarque sacrificed Gabriel to perform the wish.
32	* FaceHeelTurn: Interestingly, both Ladybug and Chat Noir consider ''the other'' to have pulled this, with Chat working with Chrysalis and Ladybug lying about the circumstances of Gabriel Agreste's death.
33	* FauxAffablyEvil: [[BigBad Chrysalis]] comes off as very pleasant and sympathetic to Chat Noir, even offering mostly sincere advice and even comforting him about his regrets, however, it's all with the goal of [[ManipulativeBastard manipulating him]] to her own ends.
34	* GreaterScopeVillain: [[PredecessorVillain Gabriel Agreste.]] While long dead by the start of the fic due to his canon HeroicSacrifice, his influence is still felt throughout the plot. [[TheHero Ladybug]] is covering up his SecretIdentity to [[IgnoranceIsBliss shield]] Adrien from the AwfulTruth, [[FaceHeelTurn Chat Noir]] seeks to undo Monarque's Wish and bring him back, despite being fully aware that [[AbusiveParents Gabriel's]] resurrection would likely cost Adrien his current freedom, and [[BigBad Chrysalis]] is using his Miraculous.
35	* GreenEyedMonster: [[DownplayedTrope Downplayed]], but after Ladybug and Chat Noir's first fight, Chrysalis comes to her and calls him "our [[AffectionateNickname Chaton]]", Ladybug's immediate reaction is to think, "He's not ours, he's not ''yours''."
36	* GreyAndGrayMorality: Barring the exception of [[BigBad Chrysalis,]] no one in this fic is truly evil, but none of them are saints, either.
37	** Chat Noir has lots of reasons to mistrust Ladybug's account of things, especially once he learns that some of the things she told him were BlatantLies. That said, he's still working with [[BigBad Chrysalis]], who Akumatizes someone in just the first chapter, and who Plagg claims is even worse than Hawk Moth.
38	** While Ladybug is unquestionably a hero, she also has a bad habit of keeping her allies LockedOutOfTheLoop even when it's more beneficial for them to know what's going on. The resulting PoorCommunicationKills is what turns Chat Noir against her. And as Chat Noir points out, they've spent years fighting to ''prevent'' Monarque from using the Wish, and now she's trying to ''preserve'' it. [[spoiler:This is later compounded by her lying to the other heroes about Chat Noir's motives, trying to paint him as being beyond reason, which almost immediately [[NiceJobBreakingItHero comes back to bite her]] when Chat [[WhatTheHellHero angrily]] [[LiarRevealed exposes her]]]].
39	* HappyEndingOverride: Adrien considers the return of his {{control\|Freak}}ling, {{abusive\|Parents}} ArchnemesisDad to be this, but chooses to go through with it anyway because he thinks it was wrong for Gabriel to be sacrificed for someone's wish. And if he left things as they were, he'd be just like Monarque.
40	* HearingVoices: {{Downplayed}} but Marinette notes that her subconscious has started to sound eerily like Gabriel to her.
41	* HeroAntagonist: Interestingly, both Chat Noir ''and'' Ladybug count as this, as they're both invested in the common good of protecting Paris, but resort to some rather questionable means to do so. They just happen to have been pushed onto different sides by PoorCommunicationKills. Indeed, if it weren't for the fact that they both undertake a good number of questionable actions [[WellIntentionedExtremist in the name of good intentions]], this would've been a straight case of GoodVersusGood.
42	* HiddenAgendaVillain: Chrysalis claims that she wants to [[SetRightWhatOnceWentWrong set things right]] by undoing the Wish, but her motives for this are unclear, and since she's a ConsummateLiar, this may not even be her true goal at all.
43	* HypocriteHasAPoint: Argos is completely correct in warning Ladybug that lying to Chat Noir about the Wish is a bad idea... [[SarcasmMode it's just a shame]] about the whole "posing as Adrien and giving the Miracle Box to Papillombre" business.
44	* KickTheDog: After Ladybug and Chat Noir's first real fight, Chrysalis corners her [[spoiler:and gives her a short but potent BreakingSpeech, before telling her that she plans to let [[WeUsedToBeFriends Chat Noir]] take the Miraculous from her rather than taking it herself.]]
45	* LockedOutOfTheLoop: {{Deconstructed\|Trope}}. Ladybug's tendency to keep secrets and [[BlatantLies outright lie]] to her allies, and especially Chat Noir, is what causes Argos and Ryuko to question her leadership, and outright [[FaceHeelTurn turns Chat Noir]] [[spoiler:and later three others]] against her.
46	* ManipulativeBastard: Chrysalis is this in spades. First, she offers Chat Noir the location of her victim's Akumatized object as a show of good faith, then when he meets her, she gives him a MetaphoricallyTrue account of the final battle, which he believes because she's able to prove she was there by virtue of wielding Monarque's Miraculous, and plants seeds of doubt in his mind, which [[PoorCommunicationKills Ladybug]] [[UnwittingInstigatorOfDoom unwittingly]] [[UnwittingPawn nurtures]] with her lies and [[LockedOutOfTheLoop secrecy.]]
47	* MetaphoricallyTrue: Both Ladybug and Chrysalis' accounts of what happened with Monarque and Gabriel are this; Ladybug says that Gabriel sacrificed himself to defeat Monarque, Chrysalis says that Monarque sacrificed Gabriel to perform the Wish. The truth, of course, being that Gabriel ''was'' Monarque, and [[HeelRealization came to his senses]], before [[HeroicSacrifice sacrificing himself]] to save [[HeelFaceTurn Nathalie]] and [[MustMakeAmends fix at least one of his mistakes.]]
48	* NiceJobBreakingItHero: Ultimately, Ladybug's insistence on [[LockedOutOfTheLoop secrecy]] and [[BlatantLies lying]] to her teammates, even about things they should know about, causes Argos and Ryuko to question her ability, and causes Chat Noir to ally with Chrysalis. [[spoiler: And after Chat exposes her to the others, it causes [[PowerIncontinence Roi Singe]], [[SummonToHand Traquemoiselle]], and [[ThinkingUpPortals Pegasus]] to join him]].
49	* NobleDemon: Even at his worst, [[NiceGuy Chat Noir]] is this. One of the conditions of his alliance with Chrysalis is that she [[NeverHurtAnInnocent never Akumatizes a civilian again]]. And he shows a lot of restraint in his fight with Ladybug (and vice versa). [[spoiler: He even saves Ladybug from drowning after she falls into the Seine, and Marinette later defends some of his actions during the fight to her classmates]], as neither of them truly wants to hurt the other, [[WellIntentionedExtremist merely do what they think is right]].
50	* NotSoDifferentRemark: [[BrutalHonesty Kagami]] remarks to Marinette that keeping the truth of Gabriel's death from Adrien puts her in [[UnequalPairing a position of power over him]] that ironically makes her similar to [[ControlFreak Gabriel]]. Marinette, naturally, is [[MyGodWhatHaveIDone horrified]] by this.
51	* NotSoWellIntentionedExtremist: While Chrysalis's stated goal is to undo Monarque's Wish and put things back to the way they were, it's clear that she's ultimately only in it for her own secret agenda. [[spoiler:This is underscored by the way she sadistically taunts Ladybug while she's incapacitated, and specifically mentions that she plans to let Chat Noir take her Miraculous off her rather than just doing it herself]].
52	* ObliviousGuiltSlinging:
53	** Chat's conversation with Marinette in Chapter 10 is full of this, as Chat admits to [[MyGodWhatHaveIDone Marinette]] that he feels like Ladybug has never really trusted him and sees him as a risk rather than a partner.
54	** There's also plenty of this from the class toward Adrien regarding his fight with Ladybug.
55	* PlaguedByNightmares: Adrien's been having recurring nightmares of [[spoiler:Chat Blanc]] ever since Nightormentor's attack. [[spoiler: Along with it being the reason why he stayed out of the FinalBattle, it's also why he refuses Chrysalis' offer of [[SuperMode Akumatization]]]].
56	* PoorCommunicationKills: Might as well be called, "PoorCommunicationKills: The Story." The whole conflict is driven by Adrien and Marinette's inability to properly communicate with one another, resulting in various forms of tension, resentment, and other issues to come up between them. The lies, secrecy, and stress only compound this until all it takes is a few nudges from [[ManipulativeBastard Chrysalis]] and it all snowballs out of control.
57	* RegretfulTraitor: While Chat Noir is undoubtedly [[WellIntentionedExtremist well-intentioned]], he still holds tremendous regret over being on opposite sides with [[TrueCompanions Ladybug]]. It causes him to [[MyGodWhatHaveIDone frequently question]] [[GreyAndGrayMorality the morality]] of his situation. His [[spoiler:recurring nightmares of [[ApocalypseHow Chat]] [[SuperpoweredEvilSide Blanc]]]] don't help matters.
58	--> '''Chat Noir:''' Fighting her last night almost destroyed me. Every blow I landed—every small victory—felt like a knife carving at my insides. The way she looked at me when I demanded her miraculous—it tore me to pieces.\
59	'''Marinette:''' (tearfully) Why then? Why did you keep fighting her?\
60	'''Chat Noir:''' What other choice do I have? Chrysalis promised she wouldn’t akumatize anyone against their will. I wouldn’t work with her if she did—I’d never let her use an innocent like that. But the only alternative is to fight Ladybug myself.
61	* SecretKeeper:
62	** Alya serves as this to Marinette, serving as TheConfidant to her, and being the one most in the loop out of all the heroes.
63	** Félix and Kagami reluctantly serve as this, as well, although they both disapprove of Marinette's decision to keep the truth about Monarque's "defeat" from the others.
64	* SpiritualAntithesis: To ''Fanfic/TruthAndConsequences''. Both follow the basic premise of "Ladybug and Chat Noir become enemies while dating as Marinette and Adrien", but the way they both go about it couldn't be more different:
65	** Where in ''Truth and Consequences'', Marinette is out to [[EarnYourHappyEnding secure the best possible ending]] for ''[[ItsAllAboutMe herself]]'', Adrien views his endgoal in ''lies of attrition'' as a HappyEndingOverride, but chooses to go through with it anyway because, at least from his perspective, it's the right thing to do.
66	** In ''Truth and Consequences'', Chat Noir is almost completely isolated from any form of superpowered help, his only real allies being a BadassNormal in the form of Kagami and his new mentor. In ''lies of attrition'', [[spoiler:he manages to sway three members of Ladybug's team to his cause]].
67	** Even the Butterfly-wielding {{Big Bad}}s conduct themselves differently; whereas Hawk Moth is a serious-minded ControlFreak who spirals into a VillainousBreakdown upon losing control of his plans, Chrysalis is a {{Troll}} and is flexible enough to adapt to changing circumstances. And their alliances are also different; where Ladybug and Hawk Moth utterly ''despise'' one another and only tolerate one another due to shared goals, Chrysalis has a crush on Chat Noir, and happily flirts with him.
68	** Another thing is how both sides of the conflict are characterized; while in ''Truth and Consequences'', they're both portrayed sympathetically, it's also made unambiguously clear that Marinette is the villain. Here, the lines are much less clear-cut, with even a few scenes in the story calling into question how much ''either'' of them can be considered unambiguously right or wrong in their conflict. Not helping matters is that both characters' views are presented as valid, and both are willing to take questionable actions to further these ends.
69	* TeethClenchedTeamwork: Chat Noir doesn't really trust Chrysalis, but she's also the only person willing to [[LockedOutOfTheLoop tell him anything]] about what exactly the hell is going on, and up to this point, their goals are aligned, so he'll still work with her despite his misgivings.
70	* {{Troll}}: Chrysalis's M.O in a nutshell. Many of the things she does are as much for her own [[ItAmusedMe amusement]] at her enemies' expense as they are about advancing her goals.
71	* VillainousCrush: Chrysalis seems to have one on Chat Noir, with much of her dialogue being rather flirty with him. She even calls him [[AffectionateNickname "Chaton"]] at several points. Although, WordOfGod (specifically Missnoodles) has suggested that this could be partially to [[{{Troll}} grind Ladybug's gears.]]
72	* WellIntentionedExtremist: Both Ladybug ''and'' Chat Noir count as this, as they both take drastic measures throughout this story to fulfill their goals, however, they're both firmly invested in the greater good. Indeed, a core theme of this conflict is that BothSidesHaveAPoint.
73	* WhamEpisode:
74	** Chapter 9 features Ladybug and Chat Noir's first real fight as enemies.
75	** Chapter 11 has Chat [[LiarRevealed expose Ladybug as a liar]] to the other heroes, [[spoiler:causing Roi Singe, Traquemoiselle, and Pegasus to turn traitor and join Chat to undo Monarque's Wish.]]
76	* YesMan: Chat implicitly accuses Rena Rouge of being this to Ladybug when she [[spoiler:still [[UndyingLoyalty sides with Ladybug after he exposes her]]]]. Although, it's technically a subversion, as Rena isn't so much mindlessly obedient as she's aware that Monarque and Gabriel Agreste were one and the same.
77	--> '''Chat Noir:''' Figures you'd side with her.

Context Fanfic / LiesOfAttrition