Fanfic / Powers of Invisibility

Powers of Invisibility by yestomiraculous is a complete Miraculous Ladybug fanfiction published on Archive of Our Own.

Juleka has always been invisible. She doesn't always mind. Especially when it allows her to see things no one else does... It starts slow at first. Little hints here and there. Innocent teenagers not being in the right place at the right time. The next thing Juleka knows, she's at the center of the biggest mess of secrets Paris has likely ever seen.

---

Powers of Invisibility contains examples of:

• 11th-Hour Ranger: Juleka only accepts the Turtle Miraculous just before the climax of the story, when Marinette and Adrien are both incapacitated by an attack. Though that's only in terms of this story since the fight against Hawk Moth is far from over.
• Acceptable Breaks from Canon: The fanfic started and finished two years before "Captain Hardrock" and "Anansi" first aired, so it makes sense that Juleka's family and the powers of the Turtle Miraculous are so radically different from canon.
• Admiring the Abomination: In addition to the canon scene where Juleka calls the Horrificator "awesome", she has similar reactions to Stoneheart and other Akumas.
• Affectionate Nickname: Juleka picks up "Jules" from Adrien after they become friends, which later gets used by Marinette and then Nino and Alya, each time after she's agreed to keep a secret for them. It also gets used by Ladybug and Chat Noir - the two both notice this but don't figure out why. While the nickname makes her happy coming from them, she still prefers to be called Juleka by Rose.
  Rose: I- is that okay? Everyone else was calling you that so I thought-
  Juleka: You’re not everyone else. You’re so much more important.
  Rose: Really? Then why…
  Juleka: I like the way you say my name. (Like I’m something wonderful. Like I’m your favorite thing in the world. Like I matter.) Like you always do.
• Arc Words: "Silent and still." First used to describe how Juleka is expected to act around her parents to avoid being sent away, later used to describe Turtle!Juleka's movements around the Louvre to keep her camouflage going.
• Armor-Piercing Question: When Marinette brings up Juleka's refusal of the Turtle Miraculous:
  Juleka: You know the drawbacks of the Miraculous better than anyone. The lying, the danger, the long hours, all of it. Is it so crazy to believe that I don’t want that?
  Marinette: No, no. It’s not crazy; I get it. It’s just… It seems to me that you’ve already got all of that.
  Juleka: I know you guys keep saying that I’m already doing the job but-
  Marinette: That’s not what I meant. I just meant that you’re already experiencing most of the sucky parts of this job. You’re already lying to the one person you care about. You’re already doing the weird hours to help me and Adrien and you’re sort of in danger because of how close to us you are in both civilian and superhero forms. You have a lot of the bad parts and not as many of the good. So - and again, just curious, not pressuring - why didn’t you take the Miraculous?
  Marinette spoke almost quietly, matter-of-factly, just stating her observations as mercifully as she could. It really wasn’t her fault that her words still hit like a freight train.
  After all, Marinette couldn’t know that Juleka had been avoiding that question since the day Master Fu had offered her the Miraculous And she couldn’t know about the dreams that had been following her every night following. And there was no way she could see the careful way Juleka had tiptoed around her own thoughts for weeks and weeks and weeks. Because in the end, that was the question, wasn’t it?
  Why wouldn’t Juleka take the Miraculous?
  Everyone was right; Juleka was practically doing the job, Juleka was taking on the risks, Juleka was suffering the consequences, so it only made since for her to put on a suit to go with it. Right?
  Except it wasn’t that simple, it didn’t feel that simple, not when everything in Juleka flinched away from the idea of taking the Miraculous. Not when a voice in her head told her that she couldn’t take it, a voice that sometimes sounded an awful lot like the error of that decision. It was easy to talk of jobs and to weigh pros and cons and to search out reason and rhyme, but it was infinitely harder to parse out error and failure and save me, save me, save me. It felt like so much more than believing she wasn’t good enough and slipping a pair of earrings into someone else’s bag.
• Ask a Stupid Question...: When Juleka reminds Marinette that she (as Ladybug) left her stranded on a rooftop after the battle with Frosty.
  Marinette: Oh no, Jules! I’m so sorry. I didn’t think- Did you get down okay?
  Juleka: No, I’m still up there, waiting for you to rescue me.
• Bait-and-Switch Comparison: Courtesy of Master Fu, after Juleka accepts the Turtle Miraculous so she can save her friends from the attack at the Louvre: "Now that that’s out of the way, let’s get started. We have a damsel to save. And Marinette and Rose." (By process of elimination, he was referring to Adrien.)
• Beta Couple: Adrien and Marinette, for once.
• Beware the Nice Ones: Rose has a rare and shocking display of anger after her father accuses Juleka of corrupting her.
• Bruce Wayne Held Hostage: Both Marinette and Adrien are turned to stone at the start of the Madusa attack (which, like every other akuma attack, is intended to draw out Ladybug and Chat Noir), forcing Turtle!Juleka to infiltrate the Louvre and restore them.
• …But He Sounds Handsome: Both Ladybug and Chat Noir praise the outfit that Marinette and Adrien picked out for Juleka's date. The narration describes this as "two smug, ridiculous, idiotic, oblivious teenaged superheroes both puffed up like roosters during mating season at the compliment they were unwittingly paying one another whilst secretly paying it to themselves whilst pretending to pay it to Juleka." When Juleka brings up this encounter with Marinette later, she jokingly asks what Ladybug and Chat Noir were like: "I bet they were amazing." Juleka deflates her by reminding her that they left her stranded on a rooftop.
• Calling the Old Man Out:
  • When her parents state that they plan to take her back to China next year, Juleka finally stands up to them and flatly rejects leaving Paris. When her father starts to reply, "We are your parents-", Juleka shocks them both by interjecting two words: "Are you?" The only apparent effect this has is that they rescind their offer because she's not mature enough.
  • Rose furiously telling off her father when he accuses Juleka of corrupting her, after she comes out as bisexual.
• "Cavemen vs. Astronauts" Debate: Rose's offscreen argument with Alix about the cuteness of bunnies vs puppies.
• Cliffhanger: The story ends right when Juleka is about to reveal to Rose that she is Tortue. Follow-up stories have been announced, but it remains to be seen if we will see the reveal firsthand. There is, however, a piece of Recursive Fanfiction that unofficially continues from that point which can be found here.
• Coming-Out Story: During Chapter 12, when Rose is convinced that Adrien is interested in Juleka:
  Juleka: He doesn’t like me, Rose.
  Rose: But what if he does?
  Juleka: Doesn’t matter.
  Rose: Why not?
  Juleka: He’s not my type.
  (Beat)
  Rose: Wh-what is your type?
  Juleka: (You. Short golden hair. Big blue eyes. Small soft hands and a smile that somehow lights up my whole world. My type is you.) Female.
  • They promptly get interrupted by the teacher before Rose can respond to this, and it takes Juleka a while to realise she's just come out to her best friend. Later in the chapter, Rose informs Juleka that she's not dating Prince Ali and has her eye on someone else. Juleka starts repeatedly asking about "him", until Rose replies, "I wish you would stop assuming it's a guy." And it takes a while after this for Juleka to figure out that it's her (first assuming it's Marinette).
  • In chapter 24, Rose comes out as bisexual to her family after accidentally referring to Juleka as her girlfriend. Reactions vary: Her brother Lucas is overjoyed, ready to start planning a double wedding for Rose, Juleka, himself, and his girlfriend Amelie. Her mother is shocked but ultimately accepting, happy that Juleka makes Rose happy. Her father is outright furious, accusing Juleka of corrupting her, and causing Rose to flee the house in tears.
• Continuity Snarl: The timeline starts getting rather confusing in later chapters, with several months unaccounted for between Valentine's Day and Christmas: the former takes place in the middle of the cluster of chapters between Juleka finding out Marinette and Adrien's secrets and being akumatised into Reflekta, spanning less than a month, narrowing said cluster down to January-March. By extension, Chapters 11-16, spanning a few weeks, must be during April to early June at the latest, but Chapter 17 begins a continuous chain of events in the weeks leading up to Christmas, and Rose and Juleka, who got together in Chapter 13, are later stated to have been dating for a couple of months on Christmas Eve. Combine this with Chapter 4 being explicitly set in late summer, and it raises the question of why Juleka's class hasn't moved up at all (or are still in Collège).
• Damn You, Muscle Memory!: After seeing Juleka in the date outfit they picked out, Marinette tells Adrien they did a good job (the usual translation of their post-victory catchphrase in the French version, "Bien Joué!"). Adrien agrees and offers her a fist to bump, which she does after a moment's hesitation. They don't make the connection.
• Deer in the Headlights: Adrien and Marinette's reaction after he accidentally calls her "My Lady" in front of Rose, who questions them on it. The narration describes them as "really ridiculous deer caught in really adorable headlights." Also used to describe Mylene's reaction to Nino during the film shoot, and Marinette's reaction when Juleka returns to the classroom after seeing her transform in the bathroom.
• Double Standard: Mr. Lavillant, upon learning of Rose and Juleka's relationship, declares that they're too young to be in love, but he never treats the much younger Lucas and Amelie's engagement as anything other than cute. Marinette points this out and Rose agrees that it's ridiculous.
• Elsewhere Fic: The first ten chapters depict canon episodes from Juleka's perspective.
• Everybody Knew Already: Juleka and Rose's mutual attraction, to the point that Alix and Kim had bet on who would make the first move. In addition, Marinette and Adrien already know about Nino and Alya's relationship, and probably did long before Juleka found out and agreed to keep it a secret.
• Failed a Spot Check: During the Evillustrator attack, both Marinette and Adrien fail to see Juleka in the corner of the library when they hide behind a bookshelf to transform, which is how she finds out their secret. Also, during the Puppeteer attack, Adrien transformed in the conductor's booth of a subway train and neglected to check if anyone was on the platform.
• Fascinating Eyebrow: Juleka seems to do this several times every chapter.
• First-Person Smartass: Comes up a lot when Juleka is watching Adrien and Marinette's poor attempts at covering for their double lives, especially during the Horrificator attack:
  Nino: Yo, Adrien, where you goin’?
  Adrien: I left Officer Jones’ jacket back there. Should probably wear it in all the scenes.
  Juleka: (Oh yes, we just heard screaming and no fewer than three classmates have already gone missing, so what should I do? Go and get a jacket so that I’m in costume when we go looking for a possibly hostile monster. Don’t even worry about the fact that I don’t even have a costume. Seriously?)
• The Force Is Strong with This One: Juleka's subconscious ability to sense Miraculous holders or potential holders, which she refers to as her Turtle Senses at one point (because this sense makes her ideal for the Turtle Miraculous and the Guardianship), much to Tikki and Plagg's amusement. It also comes up in an earlier chapter when Juleka asks if Tikki can feel "a disturbance in the force" when Plagg is nearby.
• Foreshadowing: In chapter 25, Marinette tells Juleka that her expression when she opened the door was scary: "If looks could kill, we’d be dead right now. Or maybe just frozen as statues for all eternity." Adrien recognises it as a reference to Medusa and the two spend a moment sidetracked over their mutual interest in Greek Mythology. In the climax of the story, they're both caught up in an attack at the Louvre and are turned to stone by an akuma modeled on Medusa.
• Genre Savvy: Juleka is familiar enough with fantasy novels to figure out how the glamour works when Tikki brings it up.
• Glamour: It's eventually revealed that there is a glamour protecting Miraculous holders' identities, preventing them from being recognised under their masks or otherwise being identified due to circumstantial evidence. Juleka is immune to at least the second part of it, due to the same senses that make her ideal for the Turtle Miraculous. The glamour does affect other holders, but not to the same extent - when Juleka tells Tikki that she thought Adrien and Marinette were just really oblivious, Tikki admits that's still pretty much the case, perhaps implying that other holders would have made the connection a long time ago.
• Heteronormative Crusader: Serge Lavilant, who shocks his family when he reacts to his daughter coming out as bisexual by accusing Juleka of corrupting her. He makes an evidently grudging apology for this the following day to get Rose to come home.
• Hour of Power: As with Ladybug's Lucky Charm and Chat Noir's Cataclysm, Tortue has Restoration, which will restore someone affected by an akuma (such as Marinette and Adrien being turned to stone) but force her to change back in five minutes.
• Hulk Speak: A snowman-themed Akuma who interrupts Rose and Juleka's first date: "Frosty want miraculous!"
• Incompatible Orientation: A source of angst for Juleka in the early chapters, until Rose tells her otherwise.
• Inflationary Dialogue: When Adrien chides Plagg for raiding Juleka's fridge without asking:
  Adrien: Plagg, did you steal cheese from Juleka?
  Plagg: You guys were taking forever and I was hungry. It was only one cube. (Adrien and Juleka look at Plagg.) Okay, okay. It was two. (Adrien raises an eyebrow) Three? (Juleka tilts her head.) You might need more cheese.
• Intergenerational Friendship: Juleka (15) and Master Fu (186), which began years earlier before she met Rose. Her visits to La Tortue de Guérison tend to consist of her venting about her life while he serves her tea, mainly Oolong when she was upset. He later surprises her by changing the tea, to make the point that, despite all the stress she's just unloaded on him, she's happier than he's ever seen her.
• Invisibility: The title refers to Juleka's nature as a wallflower and how it makes her more observant than everyone else. It also refers to the Turtle Miraculous, which allows its holder camouflage even when an enemy is looking right at them, as long as they move around as slowly and quietly as possible.
• It's All My Fault: Juleka blames herself for the disastrous game night in chapter 24, despite Rose pointing out that it was her decision to come out and her decision to leave, and that nothing either of them did justified her father's behaviour.
• Jerkass Realization: When Juleka reveals that Master Fu told her about his role at the Guardian at Christmas, Marinette and Adrien immediately start getting excited about the prospect of her being offered a Miraculous, not realising that she's already rejected the offer and has been suffering a lot of stress from that decision. When they find out, they're both apologetic about adding to that pressure. Soon after this, Marinette and Adrien both realise what was going on when they all had lunch together (Marinette was freaking out that Chat Noir would find her, Adrien was freaking out about the possibility of finding Ladybug, Alya and Nino were freaking out about their relationship being discovered, and all four were freaking out to Juleka), and they again apologise for stressing her out so badly, while making it clear that they appreciate her for what she's done for them.
• Kick the Dog:
  • After Juleka refuses to go to China with her parents and walks out of the Christmas party, her mother comes into her room at home later, and for a brief moment seems to take an interest in her life and her friends, admitting that she's not always sufficient as a parent.
    Angelique: Our decision to bring you to China was a logical one, intended to... But we see the error of that decision now. You showed tonight that you aren’t mature enough to go. You wouldn’t be very helpful in our work, emotional as you’ve proven to be. So you may stay here and continue as you have. (stands and walks to the doorway)
    Juleka: Wait. Are you going to meet Rose?
    Angelique: When?
    Juleka: She gets back Christmas Eve, three days from now.
    Angelique: Our plane leaves tomorrow afternoon. Sorry. (leaves)
  • Serge Lavillant's reaction to his daughter coming out as bisexual and revealing she's in love with Juleka:
    Serge: You’re too young.
    Rose: W-what, Papa?
    Serge: You’re too young to be in love.
    Sylvie: Serge-
    Serge: She is. The girl’s too young to know what she wants.
    Rose: Papa, I-
    Serge: No.
    Juleka: Mr. Lavillant, with all due respect-
    Serge: Enough, Juleka. You are not a part of this family, so I would thank you to stay out of our business.
    Sylvie: (staring at him in disbelief) Serge.
    Serge: She’s corrupted our daughter, Sylvie, the least she could do is stay out of this.
• Lame Pun Reaction: Juleka's usual reaction to Adrien's puns. And Marinette's puns in response. And Madusa ("We get it. You make statues.").
• Love Confession: Rose surprises Juleka with one in Chapter 12, which she reciprocates.
• Meaningful Echo: The morning after Rose runs away from home, she tries to convince Juleka she's okay. Juleka replies, "You don't have to be. You don't have to be okay," essentially giving her permission to break down. Rose says this back to her soon after when Juleka is trying to downplay how strung out she's been since before the Christmas break. Marinette later says the same thing when reminding her that she can turn to her and Adrien to talk to (though this one's more of an Ironic Echo since she wasn't there when Juleka said it).
• Minor Living Alone: Juleka's parents spend most of the year working as tenured professors of archaeology in China, forcing their fifteen-year-old daughter to live alone in an apartment in Paris. Dialogue implies that this has been going on for at least five years, and the only time they consider actually bringing her to China is when they think she's old enough to help them with their work.
• Misery Poker: Inverted (mostly) when Juleka tells Adrien about her parents:
  Adrien: And I thought I had it bad. I don’t get to spend a lot of time with my dad and when I do, he’s pretty distant, so I get it. But I guess I don’t really have any room to complain.
  Juleka: What?
  Adrien: You have it worse than I do.
  Juleka: How?
  Adrien: My parent is usually in the same city as me.
  Juleka: Yeah, but weren’t you, like, forbidden to go to school until this year?
  Adrien: Sure, but that means my dad’s protective. Your parents literally don’t tell you where they are.
  Juleka: Absent parents means I can basically do what I want. Overprotective ice sculpture pretending to be a parent is way worse.
  Adrien: But at least I know he cares. And even if I have to spend Christmas at a dumb company schmooze party, at least I know I’ll be spending it in the same room as my dad.
  Juleka: But even if my parents aren’t home, I still have to go to a schmooze party with my mother’s family. (realises that she's now arguing against her point)
  Adrien: See? You have it worse than I do.
  Juleka: Adrien, this isn’t the Crappy Life Olympics.
  Adrien: Oh. Right. Sorry.
  Juleka: Besides, even if you don’t win the gold in Crappy Parents, which I’m not convinced you don’t, everyone has the right to complain. Our lives both suck and we both get to complain about it.
  • Played straight in a later chapter, during the aforementioned "schmooze party", shortly after Juleka's argument with her parents over going to China with them. She storms out of the party and runs into her cousin Chloe.
    Chloe: How do you do it?
    Juleka: Do what?
    Chloe: You know.
    Juleka: I don’t.
    Chloe: How do you get them to let you near them?
    Juleka: Who?
    Chloe: Everyone. Your parents, my mother, everyone at school, Adrien. How do you do it? You’re not pretty, you’re not rich, you’re not interesting, not like me. So how do you get them to like you? How?
    Juleka: Our parents don’t like me.
    Chloe: Oh, really? Then why do they let you stay?
    Juleka: They can’t make you leave if they don’t notice you’re there. If I stay quiet and still, they tolerate me. Doesn’t mean they like me. Doesn’t mean they actually talk to me more than they talk to you.
    Chloe: Boo hoo. Poor Juleka doesn’t get as much attention as she wants.
    Juleka: I wouldn’t call standing within five feet of them attention.
    Chloe: Oh, please. It’s a hell of a lot more than I get.
    Juleka: What you get? You mean a parent that actually pays attention to you?
    Chloe: When he isn’t busy paying attention to all of Paris.
    Juleka: At least he’s in Paris.
    Chloe: My mother’s in Paris and you talk to her more than I do.
    Juleka: No, I don’t. I nod and stand there and hope they won’t send me away.
    Chloe: Yeah, just like they do to me every year.
    Juleka: Like they’ve done to both of us. (long Beat) This…this isn’t the Crappy Life Olympics, Chloe.
• My God, What Have I Done?: After the Reflekta incident, Juleka panics that she may have given Hawk Moth access to her memories and the knowledge of Ladybug and Chat Noir's identities. However, she's assured by the footage of the attack, as well as subsequent attacks, that he still doesn't know.
  • Alya's reaction when she realises how much she hurt Marinette with her reaction to the secret identity reveal.
• Nightmare Fetishist: Juleka's usual reaction to akuma attacks is that they brighten up her day, though she admits to being terrified for Rose's safety even if she doesn't show it.
• Nightmare Retardant: In-Universe, Juleka is fairly unimpressed with Frosty. "It was pretty large as far as akumas go and probably should have been scarier than it was what with the roaring and everything. The sharp icicles poking out of its gaping mouth were pretty intimidating, but it also had a carrot nose, an old top hat, twig arms, and two eyes made out of coal. And it didn't have legs, so it was hopping into view, which was simply ridiculous." The fact that its name is Frosty also gets an eye roll from her. However, it's still enough to cause a stampede of panicked civilians, and Juleka notes that it's a lot more terrifying up close.
• Nightmare Sequence: At the start of Chapter 24.
• Noodle Incident: Exactly how Juleka once ruined a Lavillant family game night has yet to be explained. The most we get is a comment from Rose when trying to convince her to try again in chapter 24: "It’s different now. You’re more used to people loving you now."
• Not so Dire: One chapter opens with the following, in reference to a game of Tic-Tac-Toe:
  Juleka narrowed her eyes at the dilemma in front of her, considering her strategy carefully. Now was not the time to rush, no matter how much she wanted to. It wouldn’t be the first time she had succumbed to the lure of an easy solution and it probably wouldn’t be the last. This was a delicate situation Juleka found herself in, one of her own creation.
• Oblivious to Her Own Description: After Rose tells Juleka she has a crush on a girl (both of them previously believed she was straight):
  Rose: This girl… Well, you already know that she’s one of my best friends. She’s really sweet. Not a whole lot of people know her like I do. But once she lets you in, there is nothing she won’t do for you. She always protects me and I kinda just wish I could do the same for her. She’s an amazing artist. She’s a genius with a makeup brush. And she’s also, like, the cutest. Goodness her hair is so wonderful. I want to run my fingers through it all the time. So soft. And black. And long. (It's around here that Juleka starts to realise she's not talking about Marinette.) And she has these beautifully angled eyes. They’re this gorgeous reddish color. And she has these awesome purple highlights that just scream how amazing she is. (And the penny drops.)
• Oblivious to Love: Adrien, as in canon, though he takes it to bewildering extremes when he still can't figure out how much Marinette likes him after the reveal.
• Oh, Crap!: Adrien's reaction as he changes back in front of Juleka for the first time. What he says is "Oh sh-", only to finish it as "shoot" after de-transforming, causing Juleka to burst out laughing.
• "Oh, Crap!" Smile: Marinette's reaction after she realises she changed back in front of Juleka. Described in the narration as a "don’t-take-me-to-Vegas grin".
• Once Done, Never Forgotten: Juleka refuses to let Adrien or Marinette live down how many times she caught them transforming.
• Only Sane Man/Surrounded by Idiots: The narration frequently expresses Juleka's mounting frustration at being seemingly the only person capable of connecting the dots between Adrien and Chat Noir or Marinette and Ladybug. Ultimately justified by the glamour, which Juleka is partially immune to.
• O.O.C. Is Serious Business: Overlapping with Stutter Stop, Juleka notices a number of times when Marinette manages to interact with Adrien with none of her usual awkwardness, such as when they take charge during the Horrificator incident, and when they work together to pick out Juleka's outfit for her date with Rose.
• Original Character: Because this fanfic came long before the canon episode "Captain Hardrock", Angelique Couffaine is in many ways different from her canon counterpart Anarka. Whereas Anarka is supportive of individuality and is a GoodParent to Juleka and Luka, Angelique is neglectful and apathetic to the emotional needs of her daughter, even trying to take her to China with them for their own personal needs and ignoring her own.
• Orphaned Punchline: From Rose: "And that's how I finally got Alix to admit that bunnies are the cutest."
• OTP: Namechecked In-Universe by Rose, first used when she gushes about how good Ivan and Mylene are together. She also states that last year's OTP was Aurora and Mirielle, which somehow ended badly (no doubt contributing to their rivalry in "Stormy Weather"). It later comes up again after Rose says that Adrien and Marinette are moving up the list, and Juleka asks if the two of them are in the running.
• Overly Long Gag: After Adrien tells Nino his secret, he starts dropping what should be fairly obvious hints at Ladybug's secret identity. Thanks to the glamour (probably), Nino keeps missing the point until Adrien tells him straight out.
  Nino: Why didn’t you just tell her (Alya) at the same time? Would have been so much more convenient.
  Adrien: (exchanging a glance with Juleka) Oh, Marinette wanted to be the one to tell her.
  Nino: Marinette knows too? Aw, come on, man. Why am I the last one?
  Adrien: Well, I had to ask Ladybug before I told anyone else.
  Nino: Yeah, I get that. But I’m better bros with you than Marinette.
  Adrien: (blinks, then looks at Juleka, who shrugs, before looking back at Nino) I had to ask Ladybug.
  Nino: Yeah, dude, you said. And then you told Marinette before telling me.
  Adrien: No, I told Ladybug.
  Nino: Dude, I heard you the first time. Ladybug, then Marinette, then me.
  Adrien: No, Nino- (facepalms, then turns to Juleka) I apologize for every conversation you’ve ever had with me.
  Juleka: Apology accepted.
  Nino: What am I missing here?
  Adrien: I didn’t tell Marinette my identity after telling Ladybug my identity.
  Nino: Wait, you told her first? That’s messed up.
  Adrien: Oh my- I didn’t tell her after, because Marinette found out when Ladybug did.
  Nino: (blinks, then narrows his eyes) Like… a joint reveal?
  Adrien: Nino, Marinette is Ladybug.
• Parental Neglect: Bordering on Parental Abandonment. Christophe and Angelique Couffaine are completely content to live halfway around the world from their underage daughter for most of the year, apparently believing that putting a roof over her head and giving her money to feed herself was enough. In a way, the fact that she's capable of taking care of herself as well as she does makes it even more disturbing, since it implies that they started training her to do so from an early age fully intending to leave her alone if a good enough job became available overseas.
• Parental Substitute: The Lavillants are depicted as a rather reluctant example. While they like Juleka and are happy to invite her for dinner frequently, she's never comfortable joining in on their family game nights and, despite knowing as much as they do about her situation, they're not willing to invite her on their Christmas holidays. This reluctance turns into outright hostility on Mr. Lavillant's part after he learns that Rose is bisexual - he dismisses her feelings for Juleka, orders Juleka to stay out of his family's business, and accuses her of corrupting his daughter. In contrast, the Dupain-Chengs have been a lot more affectionate and welcoming, even despite Juleka and Marinette having only been close friends for a few weeks. Sabine gives her a hug when she's leaving after her first visit to Marinette's room (Juleka notes that it took Mrs. Lavillant over a year to reach that point), and both she and Tom have borderline Mama Bear and Papa Wolf reactions when they realise just how badly she's been neglected, and they invite her to spend Christmas with them without a moment's hesitation or discussion. It gets to the point that Marinette declares that they can be parental substitutes for Rose and Adrien as well, "since nobody else's parents seem to be able to get it together," (though Rose does stand up for her mother at this point). Elsewhere, Juleka also names Master Fu the closest thing she has to real family.
• Playing Sick: Nino's attempt at helping Marinette and Adrien leave the classroom after being alerted to an akuma attack downtown - he throws himself to the floor screaming in feigned pain and asks to be taken to the nurse's office. His hamminess about the whole thing and his insistence on Marinette and Adrien being the ones to take him probably makes this a lot more suspicious than if Marinette and Adrien just both asked to use the bathroom again (or would, if the glamour weren't in place).
• Poor Communication Kills: Adrien sends Juleka a text message reading, "Can you meet me at my house? Like, now?" Juleka assumes it's Chat Noir related and probably urgent, and is rather annoyed when he just wants to hang out and play video games - as he explains, "I’m a busy person. I have time now, but I might not later." While Juleka chides him for not being clearer, she later makes the same mistake when she sends Marinette and Adrien an SOS without explaining that she just wants help preparing for her first official date with Rose. Both assume an Akuma attack and both converge on her apartment in costume, though Juleka is able to respond to Chat's private cell phone in time for him to change back, and distract him when Ladybug arrives at her window, so she can tell her to change back.
• Portmanteau Couple Name: Used In-Universe by Rose when Juleka asks her about this year's OTP. "Mylivan is the only official couple, but there’s also Ninalya, Chloim, and Nathanette to name a few." Adrienette and Ladynoir are also mentioned in the same scene, while Roseka appears in the opening summary, and Julerose appears in the author's notes.
• Precision F-Strike: By the story's standards, Marinette gets one when she asks for permission to call Julekas' parents asshats (after they leave her again without staying for Christmas), and then does when she gets it.
  • Rose gets one in Chapter 25 when she calls her father an asshole for how he treated Juleka.
• Recurring Dreams: After Juleka's rejection of Master Fu's offer, she starts suffering regular nightmares in which her loved ones accuse her of failing to save them. May overlap with Anxiety Dreams, since it appears the dreams have stopped after she accepts the Turtle Miraculous in the climax.
• Recursive Fanfiction: Powers of Visibility by Raptra, which picks up just as Juleka is about to let Rose in on her secrets.
• Refusal of the Call: Juleka is offered the Turtle Miraculous and the role of Guardian but refuses, in part because she's seen how Adrien and Marinette's double lives are tearing them apart. When pushed, she later acknowledges to herself that the reason is that she's afraid of failing, of letting down her friends with disastrous consequences. But by this point, with Adrien, Marinette, and Rose incapacitated by Madusa, she knows that she is their best hope, and she accepts the role.
• Related in the Adaptation: It is revealed that Juleka and Chloe are cousins. Both of them have agreed long ago to keep this a secret because Chloe does not want people to associate her with the middle-class Juleka, while Juleka does not want to be associated with Chloe because she is an Alpha Bitch.
• Relationship Upgrade: Rose and Juleka in chapter 12. Adrien and Marinette by chapter 29.
• Revealing Injury: During the film shoot just before the Horrificator attack, Juleka has to help Adrien cover up a bruise on his face with makeup. Played with in that she already has some idea how he got it thanks to the previous chapter, so it doesn't reveal much to her.
• Rule of Three: Marinette and Adrien both transformed in front of Juleka three times before they found out she knew, though Adrien's second such incident happens offscreen.
• Running Gag: Adrien continually insisting that Juleka knows everything. Juleka usually denies it, but she doesn't exactly help her case when she answers questions from Alya about the Miraculous that weren't directed at her.
• Sarcasm Mode: Juleka has a habit of this when she's frustrated. The narration notes that, "It usually resulted in everyone getting really confused and someone feeling insulted. And that was just at Christmas." It gets particularly heavy during the Horrificator chapter - not because of the attack, but because of all the other stress resulting from the morning's film shoot. It's mostly in her internal monologue, though.
  Ladybug: Is everything okay?
  Juleka: (Yes, Ladybug. We're stuck inside of a school building with a monster with a penchant for kidnapping children and a massive grudge. We're just dandy.)
• Saying Too Much:
  • When Rose negotiates with Lucas over a property in a game of Monopoly, which Lucas wants because he wants a set of Amelie's favourite colour.
    Lucas: What do you want for the blue card?
    Rose: (after making a show of deliberating) I want Juleka.
    Lucas: You want Juleka? In exchange for the blue card?
    Rose: Yup.
    Lucas: But Juleka's my partner. That's not allowed, is it?
    Serge: There’s nothing in the rules about trading partners. What do you think, Maman?
    Sylvie: Hmmm. I say it’s okay. If Lucas is willing to part with her, then Juleka is an acceptable trade.
    Lucas: Awww. What else do you want for the blue card?
    Rose: Nothing else. I only want Juleka.
    Lucas: But Rooooose. It’s for Amelie.
    Rose: Nope. If you’re doing it for your girlfriend, then I want mine.
  • In chapter 28, Juleka answering Alya's questions about the Miraculous, the first of which wasn't directed at her, eventually culminates in her being forced to admit that she's already been offered a Miraculous and rejected it, which she'd been trying to keep from Marinette and Adrien.
  • Played for laughs elsewhere when Adrien starts calling Marinette "my lady" out of costume and in public. Juleka manages to cover for him by suggesting she and Rose try it, though this still convinces Rose that Marinette and Adrien are, or soon will be, a couple.
• Secret Secret-Keeper: Juleka sees Adrien and Marinette transforming during the Evillustrator attack in chapter 5, and spends the next several chapters silently snarking about how bad their efforts to hide their identities are, including from each other.
  • Secret-Keeper: Adrien finds out that she knows during Chapter 11 when she pulls him into her hiding space right before he's forced to change back during an Akuma battle. Marinette finds out during Chapter 15, when she makes the mistake of returning to school through a bathroom window and transforming, without checking if anyone's there. Both times Juleka is greatly amused to tell them she figured them out months earlier.
  • Keeping Secrets Sucks: Once both heroes befriend Juleka, she begins to find it fairly stressful to hang out with both of them, as none of the three can bring up why they're suddenly so close: Juleka knows that neither Ladybug nor Chat Noir knows the other's secret identity, as Marinette in particular isn't ready to tell Chat nor let him do the same - and because Chat had told Ladybug that someone from his school had figured him out, Marinette immediately realises that this was Juleka, and that therefore she and Chat go to the same school. Things only get worse when Juleka finds out that Nino and Alya are dating and hiding it from Marinette and Adrien, mainly because they don't want it to get back to their parents. The awkwardness of all this is mostly played for laughs, in particular when she has lunch with the four of them and ends up being bombarded with text messages in response to innocuous comments, assumed to be connected to the secrets she's keeping, until she finally walks out without explanation. Despite this, it's noted that Juleka is happier with them in her life than she ever was before.
    • As of Chapter 23, most of this stress seems to have been alleviated, with Marinette and Adrien revealing themselves and Juleka learning that they already know about Nino and Alya, but a new complication has been added in the form of the Turtle Miraculous, and Juleka now has to deal with Marinette and Adrien's complete lack of subtlety about how their relationship has changed when interacting at school, which quickly arouses Nino, Alya and Rose's suspicions. As such, Nino and Alya are soon feeling hurt about their friends keeping a secret from them while also feeling guilty about feeling that way. Juleka brings this to Adrien and Marinette's attention and suggests that it may be time to make Nino and Alya secret keepers as well. They do so in the following chapter: Nino takes it well, Alya does not, though she reconciles with Marinette after a wake-up call from Juleka about how dangerous her investigation into Ladybug's identity could have been. Meanwhile, Master Fu suggests that Juleka consider letting Rose in on their secret, which Marinette and Adrien volunteer to go along with when it becomes clear that this is affecting her relationship. Their plan to do so ends up falling through due to an akuma attack, but the story ends with Juleka about to tell Rose she's the Turtle Miraculous holder Tortue.
• Shipper on Deck: Rose, to the point of giving her classmates Portmanteau Couple Names. It's mostly directed at Mylene/Ivan and Adrien/Marinette (and she's not alone in the latter case, being joined by Nino, Alya, Tom, Sabine, Juleka, and Master Fu). It also turns out most of the class ships Rose/Juleka, as does Rose's brother Lucas even before either of them knew the other liked girls.
• Sickeningly Sweethearts: Adrien and Marinette after they get together, which Alya complains about because she and Nino didn't subject them to their honeymoon period. Adrien retorts that he and Marinette had to deal with their honeymoon period while pretending they didn't notice it. Rose and Juleka have their moments as well, though the only one who really complains about it is Lucas.
• Smash Cut: There's a couple of times when the narration abruptly cuts off, albeit to the same scene, for comic effect. When Juleka watches Ladybug and Chat Noir do a roll call of the Horrificator's encapsulated victims, the narration gives several reasons why this isn't a smart move:
  First of all, they didn’t know where the monster was, so moving into the clusters of capsules shouting at the top of their lungs was just begging for an ambush. Second of all, they couldn’t check to see if everyone was there because they couldn’t know who all was missing. Third of all, it was mostly an exercise in futility because if they just focused on purifying the akuma, all of these people would be safe anyways. Fourth of all, it was kind of dangerous for them because-
  Ladybug: Adrien? Adrien!
  They were both supposed to have been kidnapped by the monster. Juleka shook her head as she watched Chat flinch and duck behind a capsule.
  Chat Noir: (as Adrien, not sounding remotely different than he had a moment before) Yeah, yeah, I’m fine. What about Marinette?
  Ladybug: Yeah, we’ve got everyone.
• Social Services Does Not Exist: Implied by the fact that Juleka's situation has been going on so long without the Lavillants reporting it to anyone, and that Juleka is honestly confused when the Dupain-Chengs react with shock and anger at it.
• Starts Stealthily, Ends Loudly: Juleka's mission to un-petrify Marinette and Adrien sees her cover blown when she restores them, but she manages to survive for the minute it takes for Ladybug and Chat to return, and she works well with Chat when he joins the battle.
• Stealth-Based Mission: Turtle!Juleka's infiltration of the Louvre to restore Marinette and Adrien after they're turned to stone before they can transform.
• Supernatural Sensitivity: Tikki and Plagg explain that the fact that Juleka was unaffected by the Glamour protecting Marinette and Adrien's secret identities and the fact that she wound up associated with them and Master Fu was because she is a candidate to take on the role of the Guardian and wielder of the Turtle Miraculous. She then sarcastically refers to this as her "turtle sense."
• Supreme Chef: Juleka, who among other things, manages to turn a chocolate-Camembert-orange truffles recipe into a cookie batch that Tikki, Plagg, Adrien and Marinette all rave over.
• Take Off Your Clothes: After helping Marinette pick out a date outfit for Juleka, Adrien excitedly tells her to try it on. It takes a raised eyebrow from Juleka and a comment from Marinette to remind him she might want some privacy for this. (Given that Adrien is a model, it makes sense he wouldn't think much of trying on clothes around people.)
• Taken for Granite: The power of Madusa, an akuma modeled on Medusa, though the power is limited to shooting Eye Beams at those she can see (which can be blocked by Tortue's shield), rather than automatically turning anyone who can see her.
• This Explains So Much: Nino's reaction after Adrien reveals that he's Chat Noir. Also Marinette's reaction when Juleka explains the glamour to her.
• Time Skip: There's an explicit gap of two to three months between Chapters 10 (the Reflekta attack) and 11 (Adrien finds out that she knows his secret) - Juleka tells Adrien that she found out (chapter 5) three months ago and indicates that her akumatisation (again, Chapter 10) was at least two months ago.
• Trademark Favourite Food: In reference to a fandom meme that was spawned by TV commercials for the 2016 Christmas special, Nino's love of potatoes comes up in the lunch scene in Chapter 28 - it's mentioned seven times in the narration before Tikki comments on it.
• Transparent Closet: Played with: Rose thinks she was completely transparent about her feelings for Juleka when looking over some of the text messages she's sent recently. Juleka concedes the point about the texts, but scoffs at the "transparent" remark, pointing out that Rose spent a lot of time gushing about heterosexual romances. On the other hand, they were both completely transparent to the rest of their class.
• Troll: Juleka shows a mischievous streak a number of times after she finds out Marinette and Adrien's secrets but before she tells them that she knows. The morning after the Evillustrator attack, she tells Marinette that she doesn't have to be concerned about Nathanael's crush on her because he's in love with Ladybug now, and when she does Adrien's makeup before the Horrificator attack, she questions him about the bruise they're trying to cover up and enjoys his poor attempt at lying.
  Juleka: It was during the akuma attack the other day, right?
  Adrien: What?
  Juleka: A lot of innocent bystanders end up with bruises.
  Adrien: Yeah. Yeah, that's how I got it. Bystander. Totally.
• Wham Episode: Chapters 5 (Juleka sees Marinette and Adrien transform), 11 (Adrien finds out that Juleka knows his secret), 15 (Marinette finds out that Juleka knows her secret, and that she and Chat go to the same school), and especially 23 (Juleka is introduced to Wayzz and is offered the Turtle Miraculous and the role of Guardian, and Ladybug and Chat Noir finally unmask for each other) and 24 Rose comes out to her family, and her father's homophobia causes her to flee the house in tears.
• What the Hell, Hero?: The morning after Marinette reveals her secret to Alya, Alya pulls Juleka aside and expresses her anger at Marinette for not trusting her earlier. Juleka calls her out for the recklessness of her goal of unmasking Ladybug, pointing out that she'd be giving Hawk Moth a target. Alya admits that she never even considered that. Juleka then points out that in the end, Marinette chose to trust Alya when she could have left in the dark forever, and she also trusted Alya to accept her. Alya realises that her reaction must have been Marinette's worst nightmare.
• Who Wants to Live Forever?: Brought up after Juleka accepts the Turtle Miraculous, as the extended lifespan of a Turtle Holder basically guarantees that she's going to outlive Rose. Juleka acknowledges this will be painful eventually, but given the situation Rose is in right now, it doesn't change her decision.
• You Are Better Than You Think You Are: When Juleka asks Marinette why she's scared of telling Chat who she is:
  Marinette: I’m not like Ladybug is. He goes to our school; he probably knows what Marinette is like. What if he’s disappointed?
  Juleka: But… that’s ridiculous. No, it’s just that you are Ladybug.
  Marinette: Technically, yeah, but I’m better as Ladybug. I act differently.
  Juleka: No, you don’t.
  Marinette: Yes, I-
  Juleka: No. You are Ladybug, Marinette, with or without a mask. It’s so obvious. You’re both strong. You’re both independent. You’re both smart. In fact, it’s one of the things that convinced me it was you. The way you acted. You basically go full superhero any time you have to deal with Chloe.
  Marinette: Really?
  Juleka: (nods, along with Tikki) Chat won’t be disappointed. It’s pretty much impossible.
  • Comes up again during their sleepover on Christmas Eve, when Marinette opens up about how seeing Juleka and Chat together on the roof that day really hit home for her. "You know him and it’s okay. And you know me and it’s okay and we could know each other and it’d probably be great, but I’m too damn scared to do anything even though he wants to know so badly, I know he does. We’re so close to each other all the time and yet we’re so far and it’s my fault and I just- I just don’t know what to do, Jules." In response, Juleka goes to her bag and gets out a painting she'd been planning to give her in private for Christmas: a watercolour of Marinette/Ladybug mid-transformation, a fierce and determined expression on her unmasked face.
    Juleka: This is how I see you. As both. You are stronger than you think you are.
    Marinette: (Hugging her) Thank you. It’s beautiful. Thank you so much.
    Juleka: I can’t really tell you what to do. But you’ll figure it out. I know you will.
  • Turned around in a later chapter when Tikki and Plagg assure Juleka that she has the skills to become the Turtle Miraculous holder and the Guardian if she wants to, pointing out that she's already basically doing the job by advising and encouraging Marinette and Adrien as much as she does.
    • And again from Wayzz, who tells Juleka that, despite what Plagg told her, her Turtle potential has nothing to do with her friends wanting to be around her. "Your Turtle potential made you immune to the glamour, but you were the one who put it together that they were superheroes and you were the one who stepped up to help them and win their trust. Kwamis may give you the benefit of the doubt on first meeting because of your potential, but most humans can’t feel that. They’re friends with you now because they like you, not because of some subconscious pull." Master Fu confirms this when she asks if he first invited her in because of her potential. "You don’t seem to grasp that you are important to the people around you. When I looked at you all those years ago, I saw your potential, that is true. I see potential in everybody, all the time. But that wasn’t what made me start talking to you. I started talking to you because I saw a deep sadness in you. And later, I kept talking to you because you proved to be smart and witty and interesting and still very sad, but a little less so every time you left. I offered you the Miraculous because I thought you’d be a good fit, no more, no less. It had nothing to do with our friendship."
• You Are Not Alone: When Juleka states that it's her job to keep Rose safe if her father won't.
  Master Fu: Juleka. You don’t need to carry the world on your shoulders.
  Juleka: If I don’t, who will?
  Master Fu: You’re not alone, Juleka. Maybe you were once, but you have people who will hold up the world with you. You don’t have to be okay.
• You Didn't See That: A variant, after Marinette changes back in front of Juleka in the bathroom:
  Marinette: I don’t suppose there’s any way you didn’t just see that?
  Juleka: See what?
  Marinette: (perking up a little) Wait, really?
  Juleka: No. (snorts as Marinette deflates again) We can talk about this later.
• You Fight Like a Cow: Defied by Turtle!Juleka, who tells Madusa that she's not going to engage in a back-and-forth dialogue with her. "I'd rather just beat you and go home."

---