Disclaimer: I don't own Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug and Chat Noir or Happy Death Day or anything else recognizable contained herein.

A/N: I finally got around to watching Happy Death Day, which is weird because since they announced it, it seemed like exactly the kind of thing I'd be into, and I was right! I loved it! And I just loved the whole concept of it and one day, this just swept into my head and refused to let go.

If you've watched Happy Death Day, then you know the characters/plot don't really fit. If you haven't watched it, then don't worry because I've changed almost everything other than the Groundhog Day Loop (and a few of the deaths). I even changed the reason why the MC is being murdered, and actually gave a reason why there's a loop.

Warnings: Violence, blood, (very brief) gore, Major Character Death (but temporary, but also multiple times). I add chapter specific warnings at the start of each chapter.

I rated it T because I'm not much for gratuitous violence, and I'm pretty sure the most violent/graphic death is in this chapter. But if you think I should bump it up to M, TELL ME! As much as I enjoyed writing this, I want people to actually enjoy reading it, so if you think a T is not enough warning, I give you permission to yell at me!

Contains the Love Square (all sides, but mostly Adrienette/MariChat), and DJWifi.

Summary: Marinette figured she had a nightmare about being murdered on her way to Adrien's birthday party because she was nervous about confessing. She doesn't quite believe it could be anything but a creepily accurate dream until she's murdered again. When she wakes up in time to live the same day a third time, she's pretty sure something akuma-related is going on.

Escape The Day

Ch. 1: We're Gonna Party Like It's Your Birthday

"Today's the big day, Marinette!"

Tikki's cheerful voice and the shrill beeping of the alarm pierced through the veil of sleep and directly to the center of Marinette's forehead. The sixteen year old groaned mournfully, her arm reaching blindly to shut off the alarm. Wearily blinking one eye open, the digital clock revealed that there was still more than an hour and a half before school started.

Why? Why was she awake so early? She usually only gave herself half an hour to get ready for school, showering at night so she could simply slip on whatever was closest or - on special occasions - what she had set aside the night before.

Tikki gently tugged on a strand of Marinette's hair, her annoyingly cheerful, I'm totally a morning person voice declaring, "Get up, lazybones! Remember everything you have planned!"

Planned? Marinette blinked sleepily. Rubbing the palm of her hand against her forehead where the beginning of a wicked migraine was gestating, she tried to recall what the kwami was talking about. Her eyes wandered around her room. To her chaise lounge where an outfit had been prepared; black tights and a sky blue A-line blouse, a pair of brown mid-calf boots placed beside the seat. Then to her desk, where sitting patiently beside her computer was a rectangular box wrapped in colorful birthday-themed foil. She stared confusedly at the package for a moment, and then -

"It's Adrien's birthday!"

She shot out of bed, pain in her forehead temporarily forgotten. Stumbling over her feet but somehow managing to avoid tripping down the stairs, she frowned at Tikki's bemused smile, "I forgot! How could I forget?"

She'd had to work overtime last night to get his present ready and everything! Which explained the killer headache. She probably only got around three hours of sleep in between an akuma attack in the evening, doing her chores, cramming her homework for Madame Delacroix's literature class in there somewhere, finishing off Adrien's jacket, and then spending another forty minutes choosing an outfit for the school day and another for the party that night. And she wasn't blessed with the god-given gift of falling asleep the instant her head hit the pillow. No, she had to toss and turn and discuss the secrets of the universe with her own subconscious before being allowed some rest.

Marinette was exhausted.

And she still had to go downstairs and make a cupcake. Ugh, the things she did for love!

"Don't forget what you promised as well!" Tikki hummed quite calmly for someone that was more or less threatening her chosen with death.

"Of course not," Marinette flushed vibrantly. She blamed the lack of sleep and Alya's endless stream of texts telling her that tonight was the perfect time to finally, finally confess her feelings in a direct and absolutely understandable manner that Adrien couldn't just brush off.

Marinette agreed, of course, but knew herself well enough to know that she would somehow find a way to mess it up and make him think she meant she cared for him as a friend. Seriously, last year, while running on seven cups of coffee and an energy drink, she had literally shouted 'I love you' at him and he had smiled and responded 'I love you as a friend as well.' And after Alya had stopped her from jumping off the roof of their school, she had locked herself in the bathroom and cried for twenty minutes before promptly crashing into a deep sleep.

She didn't drink energy drinks anymore.

As usual, Marinette had ended up venting her frustrations to the kwami, and Tikki had started talking about ancient rites and pacts and how maybe she could do it with a little divine incentive. Before she could even finish explaining it, Marinette's half-asleep brain decided that repeating some apparently magical and binding words was an excellent idea. It wasn't until after that Tikki decided to mention that breaking a promise sworn upon a kwami would bring doom upon the betrayer.

Marinette wasn't exactly keen on dying, so she would do her best to keep her promise.

At the very least, it meant she was going to do it. No amount of mortification or fear of rejection was going to overpower her desire to not die!

She really needed to come up with a better sleep schedule. Or go back to energy drinks. "Anyway, cupcake!"

She left the kwami behind as she ran down to the bakery. Her parents were up already, of course, working in the kitchen and getting the storefront ready for the day. Marinette took a moment to watch them silently. She had always been impressed by the way they seemed to almost dance around each other as they worked. They knew exactly where the other was at any given time, without even looking up, never bumping into each other or stumbling over their own feet.

Sometimes, she wondered where all that grace had gone when she was born. Then she remembered it all seemed to be reserved for when she was wearing a mask.

"Good morning, Maman, Papa!"

"Good morning, sweetie," her papa smiled kindly.

Her maman, on the other hand, grinned impishly, "You're up early. Is there a special occasion?"

Red invaded her cheeks again and she frowned, doing her best to seem serious, but well aware that she looked like a chubby-cheeked toddler when she frowned, "We already discussed this last night. I'm making a cupcake for Adrien's birthday."

"Oh right, I almost forgot," Sabine gasped in the most unconvincing manner imaginable. "You could use that oven right over there. Your papa's making cupcakes, just sneak one in there."

Marinette did her best to endure her parents' playful smiles and not so silent mutterings as she waited for the cupcake to be done, but by the end of it, the tips of her ears were scarlet and she felt a little lightheaded. She packed the finished product in a white box and ran upstairs to change into her day outfit.

She took a few extra minutes to neatly braid her hair, instead of just haphazardly tying it back like she usually did. At the start of lycée, Chloé had mocked her for still wearing pigtails like a little girl, and it's not like she cared about anything Chloé said. . . but she was kind of right. If she wanted to be taken seriously as a young adult, then she had to look the part! Ladybug still wore pigtails because, one, superheroes were supposed to be a little eccentric, and, two, brand consistency. But Marinette now cycled between ponytails, messy buns, and leaving her hair down, depending on her mood and how much time she had to get ready.

Of course, taking her time meant she was late for school despite waking up so early. She'd had to run out of the bakery in a rush, and only shouted her farewells to her parents as her mother answered the phone, with a "Good morning, Nadja!"

Alya only smiled at her as she ran up towards the school.

"Fashionably late as always," the redhead teased.

"I tried my best, but I'm hopeless," Marinette sighed tiredly, quickly falling into step beside her best friend.

A sharp shink sound made her jump in place, and her eyes quickly zeroed in on the groundskeeper trimming the bushes with a large pair of shears. She grimaced. She'd always had a thing against gardening shears. Why did anybody need something so sharp, and large, and sharp?

Alya didn't seem to notice her discomfort, "Nice outfit, by the way."

"Blue's his favorite color," she mumbled despite herself. Well, Alya already knew that fact, anyway. And she would have known why she chose that particular top.

A familiar low humming brought Marinette to a stop. She held out an arm to halt Alya in her path as one of the more well known students breezed by. Hoverboard Kid, as he was known to the school, was an oddity. No one had ever seen his feet touch the ground as he preferred to glide around on one of those vertical, two-wheeled 'hover boards.' No one had ever heard his voice either, though as far as anyone could tell he was neither mute nor deaf. How he got away with any of this in a school was the topic of many legends.

"Good morning," Marinette called cheerfully. And then, with the most deadpan face ever, Hoverboard Kid raised a fist in greeting.

"Oh my," she blindly slapped at Alya's shoulder.

"Ow!"

"Alya, did you see that? Hoverboard Kid greeted me!"

"Congratulations, when's the wedding?"

Marinette stuck her tongue out at the blogger and continued her march towards the class, "You're just jealous!"

"Oh, for sure," Alya snorted. "Whatever will I do without Hoverboard Kid's love?"

They burst into laughter as they walked into the classroom. "You guys sure are cheerful today," Adrien called bemusedly.

Marinette immediately stopped laughing, a blush blooming on her face, but Alya only smirked, "Marinette's just pleased she added another victim to her long list of admirers."

"Alya," she hissed. There was no list!

"Oh, that - that's nice," Adrien smiled uncertainly, as if he didn't quite know how to react. Or like he didn't really believe in the list either.

Of course, he doesn't! He'd known her for three years and in all that time she'd never had so much as a single date. She certainly wasn't beating men off with a stick.

Desperate to distract him from her lack of love life, she walked up to him and all but shoved the box in his face, "Happy birthday!"

"Oh, thank you," he smiled so sincerely she felt her stomach flip.

"It was my pleasure," she had gotten better at speaking with him. Not for, like, long periods of time. But better. She liked to think she could have entire conversations with him now before she inevitably made a fool of herself. Tikki pressed against her hip through the purse and she was reminded of her oath.

It probably wasn't as grand as anything Alya was imagining, but right now was a good a time as any to confess, wasn't it? 'It was my pleasure because I love you and I'd do anything for you.' That wasn't too bad, right? Well, it was kind of bad but it would have to do because divine oaths and whatnot.

Marinette opened her mouth, but Chloé's voice sounded out, "You know he has a diet, right?"

Adrien pouted and made of point of looking his oldest friend in the eye as he took a bite out of the cupcake.

"Exactly," Nino waved her away as he walked in. "That's why it's our civic duty to make sure he gets all the sweets he possibly can."

"You got that right," Alya leaned over to give him a peck on the cheek. Then she threw an arm around Marinette's shoulders. "Isn't it great you're friends with a baker's daughter?"

'I'd give you all the sweets you want because I love you!' No, that wasn't right either. She'd give him sweets because they're friends even if she didn't love him. She would just confuse him again if she said that.

As always, Adrien didn't register her awkwardness, "Of course, I can't imagine my life without Marinette in it."

Marinette choked on her tongue.

Oh, she was going to die tonight!

About ten minutes before lunch break, three things happened in quick succession. The first was a loud banging noise followed by a car alarm and a very angry man screaming, "Can't you watch where you're going, you nutsack!" Causing the class to burst into an immature bout of laughter despite the teacher's stern, disapproving gaze.

Alya quickly texted Nathanaёl for information, since he sat by the window, and he promptly informed her a bicyclist had slammed into the side of a parked car that seemed pretty expensive.

Mere moments after they'd managed to calm down, a rolling blackout swept through the 21st Arrondissement. It lasted only about thirty seconds, but it served to distract the class further, much to Madame Delacroix's displeasure.

Then, right after that, Adrien's cell phone went off. He blushed and quickly silenced it, apologizing for it all the while. The teacher let it go because she seemed to have a soft spot for him, and only for him. It wasn't until lunch that he listened to the message from Nathalie informing him that his father needed him in the office for some kind of emergency meeting.

"What, no way!" Nino cried. "He promised to give you the day off!"

"Well, yeah, but it's an emergency," Adrien defended.

"What kind of an emergency do you need a model for?" Alya huffed.

"The modeling kind?"

"Will you be able to make it to your party?" Marinette asked quietly. Because if he couldn't she was screwed. She would have to confess right then and there. She'd have to just shout, 'I love you! Like love-love. Not friend love. Please understand because if you don't I'm going to die because I swore I'd confess my undying love on my kwami and if I break that promise I'll be struck by lightning or something. Also, I guess I have to admit I'm Ladybug because I just said I have a kwami and Alya and Nino totally know what that is!'

No, that wouldn't do either.

"Of course," he rubbed the back of his neck. "I wouldn't miss it for the world."

Oh good, that gave her some time.

"Geez, and we were going to take you to my mom to get your first beer during lunch," Alya pouted.

There was an akuma attack during lunch, because of course there was. Luminescence had apparently tripped over herself during the blackout and broken an important project that was due that afternoon and was now going around blinding people with her extra bright lights in revenge.

Fortunately, Marinette had been on her way back from the bakery after helping her parents put the finishing touches on Adrien's birthday cake and was alone. So she didn't have to come up with some convoluted lie as to why she had to leave immediately in the direction of the akuma.

Fortunately, her lycée was as much a hotbed for akuma activity as her collége had been and she didn't have to go very far after making quick work of the relatively weak akuma.

Unfortunately, the akuma was so weak that Chat Noir hadn't even needed to use Cataclysm. Which meant he was free to goof around on campus after the fight was over. And somehow, in a crowd of literally hundreds, he managed to find her.

"Well, hello there, Princess! You're looking so purr-fectly lovely today."

Marinette rolled her eyes and pointedly ignored the red on her cheeks. Alya grinned toothily, not even bothering to hide the fact that she was recording the exchange. "Hey, Chat Noir. Don't you have some mice to chase or something?"

He didn't seem to mind her brusque tone at all, if his smile was any indication. Marinette wondered idly if he had some sort of rejection kink, "Why would I search for mice when I have such a beautiful prize right here?"

"Prize?" Marinette squawked indignantly only to choke on her tongue for the second time that day when he took her hand and kissed the back of it. He kept his lips against her skin, his eyes looking directly into hers, and she was pretty sure she was red from the top of her head to her toes.

Alya was cackling in the background.

"You're never going to get a girlfriend if your idea of flirting is calling women prizes," she yanked her hand from his grip, clutching it to her chest.

"Precious gift from above, then?" he raised a brow curiously.

Of course he was just practicing on her! There was absolutely no reason for her stupid heart to speed up like she was running a marathon. "Those are babies," she growled.

"Oh. . . well then, treasure? Jewel? Gem? Huh, those are all things with monetary value, aren't they?"

When did she become Chat Noir's wingman? The bell rang and saved her from having to answer, or hit him. Whichever.

"I have to get to class," she balanced her weight on her heels, the hand he kissed still tingling. She placed it under her chin, "And, um, princess is nice."

He grinned brightly enough to give Luminescence a run for her money, "Till next time, Princess!"

Despite being the one to insist she had to go, she waited until he had hopped out of eyesight. And then a little longer.

"Hey, Princess," Alya whispered in her ear, causing her to give a little hop in fright. "Why are you kissing the hand Chat Noir kissed?"

Marinette went cross-eyed as she realized she was holding the back of her hand against her lips. "I am not!"

She jogged towards the classroom, Alya laughing as she caught up with her. "Is this why you haven't confessed to Adrien? Do you not want to anymore?"

"Of course, I do! I will! Tonight at the party."

"Good, because Nino and I have a bet going on, and I'm still betting on you."

They artfully dodged Chloé and Sabrina facing off with Tessie and Fleur. All four of them turned to glare at the pair as a unit. Creepy.

"Well, you're winning your bet tonight," Marinette announced confidently. My life depends on it.

"Is it too blue?" Marinette asked for the twentieth time.

"Marinette," Tikki giggled. "It's lovely! And it brings out your eyes."

Well, yes, it did. The off the shoulder, cocktail dress wasn't anything special. The v-neck ended tastefully, and the hem touched her knees. She certainly wasn't trying to throw herself at him, but. . . "Is it too simple?"

"You're going to be late! Don't forget your promise."

Right. Confess or die. That was. . . great.

Sending a quick on my way text to Alya, she grabbed her purse and Adrien's gift and made her way to the Grand Hotel Paris. It was already dark and she was sure she would be the last one there, but there were still four hours left in the day, and she should have enough time to build up the nerve to confess.

But, maybe, she should put a little more effort into it? "Do you think he'd like flowers?" she stopped in front of a flower shop. It was probably about to close, and Marinette didn't want to be that customer, but desperate measures and all.

Tikki poked her head out, "Everybody likes flowers."

True. And Adrien didn't suffer from so much toxic masculinity that he'd reject her just because she tried to woo him with flowers. He could reject her for loads of other reasons, but not flowers.

"Good eve-" the words stuck in her throat as she came face to face with a large pair of gardening shears. The sharp shink sound slicing through the air just before the drooping heads of a pair of dahlias were struck off their stems.

The florist giggled, "Scared of the shears? I get that a lot."

"A fear of gardening shears is a perfectly reasonable fear," Marinette defended, face hot.

"So I've been told. How can I help you, sweetie?"

Oh right, flowers. Adrien. Confession. Should she go with roses? No, they were kind of cliché, and she kind of associated them with Chat Noir so that wouldn't do. Tulips? Daisies? What were the flowers you gave when you wanted to declare your love to someone?

"Um, I'm just looking," she took a step blindly and almost immediately tripped over her own feet. She reached out to steady herself only to grab onto a glass display case which quickly joined her on the ground, shattering into a million pieces. Some expensive looking orchids were scattered amongst the glass and water soaking the ground. "I can - I can pay for that."

"Just. . . get out," the florist managed through gritted teeth, barely keeping a handle on her anger.

"I - please don't turn into an akuma!"

Why did she say that? Tears pricking her eyes, she jumped to her feet and ran out of the store, almost immediately colliding with another young woman, sending her to the ground, a collection of papers flying in all directions. "I'm sorry!" Marinette cried as she continued on her way.

She ran until she couldn't because the street was closed due to construction. How hadn't she noticed that before? Why did nobody warn her?

"Great! No flowers, the gift's crumpled, and now I'm going to be late!"

If she went around, she'd be adding another half hour to her route, but - her eyes roamed the street - the only other option was going down a creepy alley. Dangerous construction zone, creepy alley, or half an hour more? She chanced a look at her phone. It was already past eight. If she waited longer, she really might choke when the moment came because she didn't have enough time to psyche herself up!

"Tikki -"

"No."

Right, she was done helping Marinette with her Adrien schemes. Creepy alley it is then. At least there was no danger of anything falling on her there.

Marinette had taken all of ten steps before she realized she had made a mistake. She walked slowly, the hairs on the back of her neck standing at attention, the feeling of being watched ever present. And then the music started. She wasn't an expert on classical music, but she was sure anyone could recognize the Für Elise. It was common in TV serials and music classes and music boxes. . . like the one sitting in the middle of the alley right in front of her.

"Hello?" That was weird. Who would leave a music box in the middle of an alley? Playing. They couldn't have gotten far, could they?

She kneeled as she recognized it, taking it delicately in hand. She'd had one just like it, except hers had been pink and gold while this one was black and purple, the cylindrical bottom layered with reflective keys. But the little ballerina on the top, one leg sticking back and her arms raised as if preparing to take flight, had even lost her head just like this one. She cleared her throat uncomfortably, something about the similarities unsettling her, and she placed it back on the floor.

Rising to her full height, she screamed when the silence was pierced by her phone ringing. She was going through a K-Pop phase and the Bangtan Boys yelling 'Fire!' at the top of their lungs when she couldn't so much as hear a car going by was not the best. She was even more surprised when she saw the name on the caller ID.

"Adrien?" she asked, half-convinced it would be Alya on the other end.

"Hey, Marinette!" Nope, that was Adrien. "I was just wondering where you were. I thought you'd be at the party before I got here."

Marinette pouted. It obviously wasn't a surprise party, but it would have been nice to be there when he saw everything for the first time and his eyes lit up. "Oh, I'm on my way. The route I was taking is closed so I had to go down this creepy alley."

"Do you want me to send my driver to pick you up?" he offered automatically and she melted a little.

"No, it's fine. I'm more than halfway through and I should be there in maybe three - ahh!"

Marinette screamed as she felt herself be tugged backwards by the back of her dress. She tripped and fell onto her backside, her back colliding against a pair of strong legs. Tilting her head back, her heart leapt to her throat as she saw a tall figure, completely covered in black cloth from head to toe, something like an executioner's hood covering their face completely.

"Marinette! What's wrong?" Her hand spasmed around her phone at the sound of Adrien's voice, but she was frozen.

This was wrong. She'd faced akumas before. She shouldn't be so scared, but. . .

A sharp shink sound sliced through the air as they reached behind themselves with the hand that wasn't still holding onto her dress. They raised a wickedly sharp blade the size of her arm and suddenly her legs started working. She kicked and twisted but couldn't so much as throw off their grip.

"No, wait, I - " she could transform! No. If it was an akuma, and it was almost definitely an akuma, then Hawk Moth would see through their eyes and know who Ladybug was. But. . . she was close enough to the hotel, wasn't she? Somebody could offer a distraction, at least, so she could escape and transform. She just needed a moment more! "Adrien! Help me!"

She could hear Adrien shout her name, but whatever else he said was lost in the rush of blood in her ears as the akuma held the blade centimeters from her left eye.

"Didn't you like my gift?" Its voice was distorted. She couldn't tell if they were male or female, young or old. She didn't understand what they meant.

"Marinette!" Adrien's voice was much clearer. Not through the phone. He was close. Just a moment more. She could get through this.

Then the akuma lifted the blade and plunged it back down. She didn't even have the time to scream.

"Today's the big day, Marinette!"

There was a pain in the center of her forehead, and Tikki's overly cheerful voice playing backup to the alarm wasn't helping. Wait.

"Today?" Her eyes roamed across her room, to the outfit on the chaise and the gift on the desk. Wait.

"Today is Adrien's birthday," she said slowly, somehow confused.

"Yep! Don't tell me you forgot!"

"I. . ." There was something wrong here.

Hoverboard Kid raised a fist in greeting and Alya made fun of how shocked she was by it. "Marinette got hit on by the school's most exclusive bachelor," she winked at Adrien when he asked why the designer was so pale.

"Oh, that - that's nice," he smiled uncertainly. Marinette got some serious déjà vu, but she managed to give him the cupcake. And get through Chloé's commentary. And not faint when Adrien said he couldn't imagine a world without her in it. She would have enjoyed it more were it not for the fact that she was almost sure he'd already said that once.

The unsettled feeling continued throughout the day, which could be explained by school being mundane and repetitive by nature. Until shortly before the lunch break. Then the class burst into laughter at the reaction of a man whose car got hit by a bike. Then the lights went out. And then Adrien's phone went off in the middle of class.

"I need to be excused!" Marinette ran out of the room before Madame Delacroix could respond and locked herself in a bathroom stall.

"Marinette, are you okay?" Tikki asked, concern coloring her voice.

"No," she admitted, holding her head in her hands. "I think - I think I died, Tikki."

The kwami cocked her head, "What do you mean?"

"I dreamed - I dreamed it. This. Everything's that happened. And then, later, later I was walking down - and I - I -"

Sobs bubbled up her throat, and she placed a hand over her mouth as if to trap them. Tikki placed a gentle hand against her cheek, "Are you sure it wasn't just a dream?"

"I don't know! It was just so real. I felt it! I felt the blade go right through my skull, but I - I'm not psychic! Is it a Ladybug thing?"

"It never has been, but, visions are powerful things. If one has been sent to you, then it must be for a reason. It means the universe wants you to survive. You know what got you killed, you just need to do something different. For example, in your dream, did you break down in tears in the bathroom?"

"I, well, no."

"Then you're already changing things!" Tikki cheered. "Don't worry, Marinette, nothing bad is going to happen."

"I guess," she could almost believe that. And then Luminescence attacked.

"You okay there, Princess?"

She didn't have the energy to even roll her eyes, "No, I'm not feeling well right now."

His gloved hand landing on her cheek startled her, "Sick not feeling well, or emotional not feeling well?"

"Emotional," she admitted. Though her heart was currently doing all sorts of things that made her feel more energized suddenly.

"Would a quick bit of sightseeing cheer you up?"

"No," she reached to move his hand, giving it a quick squeeze so that he didn't feel entirely rejected. "I have to get to class."

He smiled sadly, "Well, if you change your mind, you know how to contact me. Till next time, Princess."

She stood there for a moment more. Until Alya yelled in her ear, "What the hell was that?"

"What?" she stared confusedly at her best friend. Well, at least this was different.

Alya waved her arms wildly, "All that - that intimacy! And, wait, do you have Chat Noir's number?"

Marinette had the decency to blush, "I told you that we're friends!"

"I thought you meant casual acquaintances, not all that tell me what I can do to make you feel better, Princess," Alya dropped her voice an octave in the worst Chat Noir impression in history and reached for Marinette's cheek. It didn't have quite the same effect.

She slapped her hand away, "What's wrong with trying to make your friend feel better?"

Alya snorted, "Friend? That boy wants to be your friend the same way you want to be Adrien's."

"Don't be ridiculous! He likes Ladybug, everybody knows that!" And she was Ladybug, but he didn't know that. Did he? No, there was no way he would have been able to keep that to himself.

"Then why are you touching your cheek?" the blogger smirked and a quick glance revealed that, yep, she was touching her cheek. Why were her limbs so hard to control?

Why were her limbs so hard to control? Marinette ran away from the flower shop she had trashed and the poor girl she had trampled as fast as she could. If either of them were the akuma, then maybe she could just lose them. Visions were useless! She couldn't remember anything until half a second before it happened, and by the time she remembered the flower shop, she had already walked in. She only remembered the reason why she went down the alleyway once she came face to face with the construction zone.

"Darn it!"

What were the chances it was just a weirdly accurate dream? That happened all the time, right? That's why there was a phrase like déjà vu in the first place! It must have been a dream because she was Ladybug. She was an actual superhero. She wouldn't just freeze when confronted by an akuma or put Adrien of all people in danger by crying for help. She'd fight her way out of their grasp and take them down herself.

She took a step down the alley when something glinted in the distance, right in the middle of the path. Something like the reflective surface of the ballerina music box.

"Oh, forget that!"

She was going right through the construction zone, and no one was going to stop her. If she all but ran through it, it was just because it was dangerous, not because she was scared. Not because she felt eyes on her the entire way through.

When the entrance to the Grand Hotel Paris appeared in her vision, she took a deep breath of relief and closed her eyes for a moment.

"Would you like me to escort -"

Marinette's mind blanked with fear and she was spinning on her heel, fist raised to strike before the voice registered in her head. By that point her fist had already made contact with Kim's throat and he was doubled over in pain.

"A simple no would have sufficed," he wheezed.

"Oh my gosh, I am so sorry! I didn't mean to! I've just been freaked out, and -"

"It's okay," he waved her frantic apologies away. "Nice right hook, DC."

She turned as red as a tomato, "I'm sorry."

He snorted with amusement and walked through the doors before her. She scurried after him, shamefaced, holding Adrien's gift like a shield in front of her as she joined him on the elevator ride up.

"Hey, girl," Alya shouted, somehow loud enough to be heard over the booming music. "You're late! How are you here after the birthday boy?"

"I ran into a detour," she explained.

Alya grinned wickedly and then leaned forward to speak directly into Marinette's ear, "You should have seen how worried and disappointed Adrien was that you weren't here yet. I think he was about ready to call a search and rescue."

Well, he would have called me, at least. It was nice to know he worried, but it was terrible that he had to be the one to hear. . . all that. It's over now. We made it safely. And if it's an akuma, then we'll deal with it like we always do!

And if it wasn't. . . did she just condemn another curious girl to a bloody death in an alley?

Marinette shook the thought away, holding the gift a bit tighter to herself.

"Is that the Ladybug jacket?" the blogger asked excitedly and Marinette nodded.

It was probably a bit weird to be giving him a gift based on his celebrity crush when she was planning on confessing her own crush, but, well, she was Ladybug! So, she wasn't exactly against his infatuation. Besides, everybody had a crush on Ladybug, it wasn't anything serious!

"Ooh, can I see?"

"You can see it once he opens it!"

Alya had been dying to see the finished product, but since it had taken Marinette forever and half to finish it, she hadn't had the chance.

"Well, here he comes now, tell him to open it immediately!"

"Wait, what?" Marinette whipped her head around until she saw what Alya meant. Adrien was walking directly towards them with a small smile on his face. She tightened her grip on the gift.

Abort! Abort! I can't do this right now! She needed just five more minutes or so. She shifted her weight, trying to find an out, when Alya's hand gripped her arm.

"Uh-uh, no chickening out! I'm betting on you, remember!" With a gleeful shout, she pushed the designer forwards.

There was still a bit of space between them, and she took the chance to breathe deeply. She could do this. She didn't escape the jaws of death just so that she could die by shyness. She was Ladybug! She was a superhero! All she needed to say was three words: I love you. They could work on specifics later, all she needed was to get the words out.

He was only three steps away, and she was almost excited at the prospect of finally confessing her feelings, when the window was smashed open. She turned in time to see a figure dressed all in black practically flying at her, a long, shining blade held before it.

And then she felt it.

The blade went right through the gift and into her abdomen before coming out the other side. The figure's momentum didn't allow it to stop, and she was swept off her feet, her body propelled backwards until her back slammed against a wall. She stared at the hooded figure before her. Not even its eyes could be seen, but, somehow, she could sense the anger and hatred in them.

She could hear screaming, distantly, yet the akuma's heavy breathing was as clear as day. And so was the soft squelching sound her body made as it pulled its blade back out.

The gift fell to the floor in a bloody mess as her arms wrapped around her abdomen. As if that would somehow keep her insides on the inside. Oh god, those were her intestines! Marinette whimpered as she sank to the floor, the strength leaving her legs.

The akuma cocked its head, "Didn't you like my gift?"

Blood gurgled out of her mouth when she made to respond.

"Marinette!" Adrien was suddenly at her side, kneeling beside her and pulling her into his arms. One of his hands joined both of hers in trying to stop the inevitable. His entire body was shaking, a desperate glint in his eyes as they looked into hers. "Geez, just - we called an ambulance. Just hold on a little bit, okay?"

Her eyes flicked over to the akuma, surprised to find it standing there, just watching, as the familiar purple butterfly mask appeared over its face. She wondered what Hawk Moth was saying, to make it just stand there while somebody helped its prey. Maybe it was something as simple as 'nothing can be done to save her.'

Because nothing could be done to save her. She'd changed her path and he'd chased her down to kill her. Maybe she wasn't meant to survive. Maybe the universe had sent her the vision so that she could understand that she was going to die and there was nothing she could do. And if that was true, then she preferred to die like this anyway. In the arms of her first love. It was almost poetic.

"Please, Marinette," Adrien sobbed, tears streaming down his cheeks. "You can't die!"

There was just one thing she needed to tell him: "Run."

Hawk Moth wouldn't be able to talk to the akuma forever, and they were never content with just one victim. She wouldn't burden Adrien with her feelings. Not now that they would only weigh him down. What did her oath matter if she was already dying?

She let her eyes slip closed and Adrien's cries fade away as she floated into a deep, unending darkness. And then. . .

"Today's the big day, Marinette!"

A/N: This is like the longest opening chapter I've ever written! But I wanted to give a broader idea of what the loop is like. I'm almost certain the following chapters will be shorter - depending on how the loops go and how many will be in each chapter. I guess we'll see!

I'd like to think Gabriel is a good enough parent that he won't let his son be murdered just to complete his plan. Like, he told Riposte she could kill Adrien after getting the miraculouses, but I'm sure he would have taken her powers away before that, so yeah, just imagine Hawk Moth telling the akuma "you can have any teenager except that blond one in particular."

I know it's hard to tell while reading, but both attacks were pretty quick, like less than a minute in real time. So, that's why Marinette doesn't really have a chance to fight back. That will change as she adjusts to everything that's going on, but also, it will be revealed that there's actually a preternatural reason for why she freezes up despite it obviously not being her first akuma.

Google and most English-speaking sites are kind of terrible at giving information about foreign countries, but as far as I can tell the legal drinking age in France is 18, but since until very recently (2009, I think) it had been 16, the acceptable drinking age is 16 as long as it's with an adult and it's not in excess. Amongst my circle, it's tradition to drink one (1) glass of alcohol one minute after midnight on the day you're legally able. And while lots of people drink way before that, the Miraculous crew are Good Noodles and follow the law, and so they wait until it's socially acceptable under adult supervision!

The chapter's title comes from In Da Club by 50 Cent, which was a pretty big part of the trailer for the movie but unfortunately not actually in it. But, whatever, I actually like that song and considering the subplot's trying to get to a birthday party, the line fit.

Please review and let me know what you liked, didn't like, and what could use improvement!

~ Destiny's Sweet Melody