I haven't slept, therefore it is still Sunday

[alexseanchai]

kayim (or copied from kayim anyway):

Six Sentence Sunday is a writing thing where, on Sunday, you post six sentences from an unfinished work. It can be a new fic, a new chapter of a WIP, or even something you’re not sure you’ll ever post.

Choose an excerpt from any section (and it doesn’t have to be six sentences) and post it, letting people know what it belongs to or indicating that it’s something you’re working on.

from "lady in red (never seen you shine so bright)" (a Miraculous Ladybug fic I hope to finish and post in the next day or two; this excerpt is CN menstruation):

"Well," Chat managed, "at least you know he'll never be too embarrassed to buy you tampons."

"So I'm told." Ladybug buried her face in his neck. "Not tampons, though. Hate tampons. Pads."

She really wanted her money's worth from his promise [not to tease her later], didn't she? "Aren't tampons supposed to be better for athletic activity, or something? And as often as we're bouncing around Paris..."

"Yes. They are. I hate them." She bit off each syllable.

"Sorry, sorry!" Chat might have held up surrender hands, if she weren't still in his lap. "I didn't realize it's a sore subject."

Ladybug deliberately took a calming breath. "It's fine. You're fine, you didn't know, and it's worth thinking about." She moved her hand down to his heart. "I wasn't regular before. I'm still not. Tikki says I'm not eating right, but we haven't found 'right' yet. It might just be not enough for how active I am—a lot of teen athletes who should get periods don't, and that's why—but I eat everything in sight. So Tikki thinks I should be looking for tasty human-edible bugs or flowers, because for Miraculous wielders the weirdness never stops. [...] Anyway, that all means my period is not a monthly problem. And in the suit, it is never a problem. Tikki does something about it. I have not asked what, because I don't want to know. And the rest of the time, pads work just fine."

"Noted!" Chat said, and Ladybug snickered. "Moving on!"

(goddamnit body let me sleeeeep)

Comments

[silveradept]

These are important considerations when you are a teen superhero.

[alexseanchai]

Uterus-equipped superhero between menarche and menopause, I would argue, but yeah.

Kind of wondering if Marinette ordinarily gets cramps, too, and consequently maximizes her time suited up those weeks because that's the most effective way to make them not.

[silveradept]

Solid argument, perhaps in older heroes it's not as much of a topic of conversation due to already knowing and any other heroes in the business by now should understand our have been sent out of the business at this point.

I wouldn't be surprised if Ladybug is way more easily spotted during those periods.

[alexseanchai]

Actually, you know what? Marinette canonically skips school so Ladybug can...idk what it was in "Simon Says", was it getting a kitten unstuck from a tree? Anyway, Marinette is hyperaware of her responsibilities, even if she can't necessarily keep track of what they all are and what the priority and due dates are on each, so skipping school for a problem that doesn't require Ladybug seems a bit uncharacteristic of her, don't you think?

But she also canonically masks up all the time whenever she has half a reason to. Usually to reduce her travel time, but also to try to rerecord the video clip of Alya's she accidentally deleted. To yell at Lila for lying about her. There's a list—but I think, with the possible exception of everything in the "reduce travel time" category, the whole list is things she couldn't do if she were Marinette, either at all or without breaking identity.

So yeah, let's absolutely postulate magical pain relief in the suit, it's not like that isn't common fanon already. Because even if menstruation is merely unpleasant, if it's easier to put up with while masked? Sold. Kitten rescuing is then a good enough excuse to mask up during shark week, even if not otherwise!