#[My poor boy is so sure it's real Allegra]

[ask-elland-n-will]

[Polyjuice Swap 2024!]

(Thank you for this wonderful event, Lily!)

── ⋆⋅🎃⋅⋆ ─☆:⭑🍂🍁🦇🍁🍂🕸⭑:☆─ ⋆⋅🎃⋅⋆ ──

── ⋆⋅🎃⋅⋆ ─☆:⭑🍂🍁🦇🍁🍂🕸⭑:☆─ ⋆⋅🎃⋅⋆ ──

Vetiti had never been more pleased with a look in his life. The black-haired beauty was staring back at him from the mirror. His reflection had morphed into sharp, elegant features and shiny raven hair that shimmered like midnight silk. A wide smile stretched across his face, utterly captivated by his reflection, his eyes twinkled with delight as he traced a finger along his newly transformed cheeks, giving them a firm squeak.

"Ciao, bella," he whispered, mesmerised. He had turned into Signorina @adallegra! Who would've thought? He did a little jump, clapping his hands together in glee. Tonight was going to be nothing short of bellissimo! This was going to be a great evening, he could just feel it! Luck was surely going to be on Titi's side!

With newfound enthusiasm and confidence, "Allegra" swung the door open, practically knocking it off its hinges. Determination scrawled across his (or rather, her) face. The Italian milk maniac had one mission, and he knew exactly how to begin.

This would be the night! Tonight, he thought, heart racing, he would finally get his hands on Sebastian's Niffler! Just imagining it filled him with giddy excitement, and "Allegra's" mouth started to water at the thought of the sweet, white essence that would soon be his. Finally, he would be able to really enjoy his bowl of cereal with real Niffler milk!

He barely managed one step outside before a sharp, disapproving voice snapped, halting him in his tracks. He turned to see a Gryffindor prefect eyeing him up and down with one raised brow.

"You don’t actually see that as appropriate for the evening, do you? Ugh." She sneered, giving him a slow, disapproving look as she flicked her wand, transforming his slightly raggedy clothes into a crisp Slytherin uniform, complete with a skirt. Titi's eyes went wide as he looked down, taking in the swoosh of the skirt's hem.

"Ooooh," Vetiti breathed delighted, already twirling in circles, entirely smitten by his new attire. It felt so breezy! He grinned at the prefect, appreciating her work. He might just have to wear a skirt more often.

It was then that Vetiti took a quick survey of the crowd, hoping to spot his target. But alas, Sebastian was nowhere in sight. "Oh well," the Hufflepuff sighed, brushing a dramatic lock of Allegra's long, dark hair from his face. "Perhaps he'll show up later." There was no need to worry. After all, there were plenty of other amusements waiting.

With a quick flick of his skirt, "Allegra" made his way over to the snack table. The spread was glorious! Pies, pastries, fruits, and cakes towered on the table in decadent stacks, a cornucopia of treats that made his stomach growl. But none quite sparked the specific delight he was after. Chewing on his lip thoughtfully, the Italian lad started to play with his new, long hair, twirling the silky locks around his finger as he pondered what to eat, eyes narrowing in concentration.

Just then, as if summoned by his very thoughts, a house elf appeared balancing a tray of hearty appetisers, each smelling more delightful than the last. Vetiti was sure he spotted something that resembled some Gouda and practically floated over, his steps light and bouncy as he eyed the tray with eager delight.

[This RP is a part of the Halloween Polyjuice Swap 🎃 Previous Elland's rp. Our apologies to @adallegra]

It was a flick of the green skirt that got Elland's attention first. Of course she wouldn't be wearing a costume, Halloween or not. He thought he had seen the familiar hair as well, but the figure got lost among the partying students. Not that Elland would ever say it to her face, but her height made it easy to blend in. He wasn't aware how much of a difference they had until the first time they danced together. But it couldn't have been her, could it? Will swore that Allegra didn't plan on going, and if Will couldn't convince her — Elland saw no point in trying himself.

A snack bar it is then. Elland was parched. But just as he reached for a glass of sparkling water, he nearly bumped into a house-elf who suddenly apparated next to him.

"Ah, excuse me, let me help you with the—" the Hufflepuff in Sebastian's skin began and abruptly stopped talking altogether: a familiar figure gracefully floated towards him. The house-elf, unnerved by the Slytherin student's eagerness to do the elf job, took the opportunity to put the tray where it was supposed to go and exit the scene.

Elland looked at Allegra, stunned by her presence for a moment before clearing his throat and giving the Slytherin witch a deep gentlemanly bow. It would've looked so much more impressive if he had his phoenix costume on: all the beautiful firecharms dancing across the cloth and feathers, sparks coming from under his dancing shoes wherever he stepped, the faint sounds of the crackling fire and the pleasant smell of the fireplace. But alas, he was playing a different role. Wait.

"Sebastian" looked up in panic. No way Allegra would hang around when he was Sebastian! He had to let her know it was him, without alerting the other students around them.

"Allegra! So good to see you!" he called out and let her get to the snack table as for some reason Allegra seemed very interested in the elf's cheese platter. Elland had never seen her like that and he wondered if she had some butterbeer before coming here. He kept those thoughts to himself. Allegra was smiling while playing with her hair, and Elland found it rather endearing.

"I've been meaning to return your scarf from a while back, forgive me for holding onto it for so long," is what Elland settles on. Hopefully, his smile, attitude towards her, and the reference to the act itself were enough for her to realize who he was. The thought of Allegra not being Allegra never even crossed his mind. It was as clear as day that it was not her style. Perhaps she just stopped by for the snacks. After all, the Slytherin common room is not far from here.

[foster-the-world]

WFH

Still sitting around at work. Apparently waiting on some logon before I can start doing assessments. Boring but I get my at home logistic stuff. Today I sent a bday invite for Rebel's bday and finalized a grant submission for the school.

I sat in on a nurse union zoom. It seems work from home is not out of the question. Which would be such good news. It would be two days a week. At least two other days I would be doing assessments in the field. One day a week in the office is not a big deal.

Baby boy was super tired tonight. He passed out while I was reading bedtime stories. I love when that happens. I rarely get to hold him anymore - so its such a joy.

Talked with the special ed consultant. Every time it stresses me out - so I'm not sure why I do it. I guess I forgot as its been a long time. She thinks we need to take him to several schools and they can tell us if he qualifies for their program. I expressed my skepticism about continuing to take him to one hour assessments. I don't think children can really be understood in an hour and he's no exception. He has done five separate 1 hour evaluations - which required trekking all over the city. So more of those don't appeal. Will do the one at the school near us and see how it goes. Blah. Blah. Blah. I want them to call us and say they've found a SEIT so I can stop spending time trying to get services. He's already owed over 100 hours of SEIT services alone.

My head actually doesn't feel itchy for the first time in a while. Its such a relief. I took an allegra and tried a more medicated shampoo. I'm not sure which one is doing the job but really hope it continues.

I miss my girls. I'm still enjoying the only child parenting but want to see their sweet faces. Every time they call it sounds like they are having the time of their lives. My MIL fell down again. No real injuries but it must be scary for everyone. Poor lady. I know I bitch about her but she honestly is an extremely kind person. Next level kind. Literally NEVER says a mean thing about anyone. She is going to start using a cane. They want her to go to an OT. I'm not exactly sure that will fix the issue. I worry this will be the last year she can do three months in California visiting her daughter. My FIL and her are NEVER apart. In eight years with my husband I've seen them not together maybe 4-5 times. I cannot imagine one without the other. Hurts my heart to even think about it. Send them good vibes. They deserve only good things.

[pl-panda]

To Marry a Vigilante: Part 17

MASTERLIST || First || Previous || Next

To Marry a Vigilante: Part 17

------

The altercation with three footballers had several outcomes. First, Marinette was no longer treated as someone weak. Quite the opposite. The smarter part of the school now had a healthy dose of respect for the small french girl when they saw the camera recording Chloé ‘leaked’. The more sport-inclined part of the faculty was devastated by the loss of the three star players, for which they blamed Marinette. 

Erica washed her hands about the whole incident, declaring that the poor souls must’ve just rashly reacted to the gossip going around the school. It still hurt her position a bit. Chloé and Allegra masterfully countered any of her minor lies and started spreading gossip about the head cheerleader instead. It was turning into a cold war, where neither side could get any advantage over the other for long. 

The initial background search turned clean on both of them. Lila’s mother was an orphan, raised in one of the covenants in the mountains before studying law and politology. She now headed the French Embassy, after previously working in Germany, Belgium, and Spain. Lila’s father was a mystery and his name was not given at any point. The Italian girl often changed schools. Usually, she didn’t stay even one semester there. Lack of any family and trusted friends made her move around with her mother often. Boarding schools were too expensive for a then-starting diplomat. At some point, Lila started to thrive in each new school. Her files were nothing but praise since then. 

Erica Layton was born Erica Blake, then Boyle when her mother married a wealthy CEO. Before, she ran a smaller Blake Industry, which merged with Boyle enterprises after the wedding. When Mr. Boyle was shot during one of the Two-face’s robberies, Erica’s mother started to date again. Until last summer, when she married a star baseball player, Lance Layton. The business was clean-ish and there was nothing that could be used against them really. There were some cases of inner nepotism and a bit of discrimination, but it wasn’t even worth a real investigation. Erica herself was truly a mean character, but her good looks, influential family, and good grades made her the “Gotham Academy Golden Princess.”

Damian wanted to get his vengeance. He tried hacking, but Barbara stopped him. It wasn’t as if anything he got that way could’ve been used against her and forging evidence was wrong, and would only hurt them in the long run. Marinette stopped him from going after them as Black Cat, which only agitated him further. He hated the feeling of powerlessness. Well, he loved Marinette more so he wouldn’t go against her orders. 

Sabine also did her best, but she was similarly blocked by Barbara, who went as far as to lock the Bat-computer. A woman of many skills, Sabine was still unable to beat Oracle at hacking. She did make sure to always be available and near the school to intervene if any of the teachers tried to punish Mari unfairly. She was doing the same for Chloé, who she slowly came to treat as her child too, just like Cassandra. 

Allegra tried to get her mother involved, but Catherine Hamilton-Kane was a woman of high morals and would not use her influence to fight dirty games. “That’s how corruption took seed,” she declared. And Gotham Academy, as a private school, was beyond her reach anyway. It still gave Allegra enough power to at least counter Erica and her mother, who was at best negligent and at worst co-operating with her daughter. 

All in all, Marinette and Chloé settled into some form of routine. The school was much better than Françoise Dupont. It was bigger, which meant Lila had a harder time setting up her court. Erica’s power also suffered a major hit when the ‘outcasts’, as the blonde witch called them, took a bit more active role in the events going around. Claude, who was one of the lead actors in the theatre club made sure that no one aligned with Lila or Erica could join. Felix started to slowly push Erica from politics, engaging in subtle games at every front. Even Jon helped by taking over the school newspaper. The guy that was running it previously happily handed over the reins. 

There were few minor dramas at school, like the Witch Club, haunting at the theatre, or the weird carnival. Damian and Marinette didn’t pay it much attention. Claude dealt with the ghost quite easily and met Katherine Karlo, who became his favorite actress ever since. Professor Trent was against including her, but when the usually cheery boy threatened him to quit and take over half of the crew, the discussion was over rather swiftly.

Of course, akumas didn’t make it easier. In fact, they were the biggest holdback. Whenever Chloé and Damian did something too drastic, Lila, Erica, or someone associated with them would become an akuma and then their work was in ruin. Every akuma on their side would earn them ‘pity points’ and serve as ammunition against the Waynes’ front. 

The investigation proved fruitless. Sure, akumas could’ve been traced, but they actually made sure to never come from the same spot. Sometimes, it was a rundown building, other times a flat over a crowded restaurant; a hotel; a public toilet at the bus station. Adrien was moving and making sure not to fall for what got his father. They had no idea how he could be so stealthy. The cameras never saw anyone even similar to him at any of those places. Sabine was now running the rooftops as Shadowbat, not wanting the press to associate the Miraculous team with Batfamily too much for now. She had been using her old assassin suit (still fitting perfectly) with a bat logo on her chest as her outfit. She mostly just worked with Cass. Black Bat and Shadowbat. They were probably most feared of all dynamic duos in Gotham. Silent, ruthless, precise, undefeated.

Of course, peace couldn’t really last forever. About six weeks since Christmas, when Marinette’s birthday was closing in, the first real hiccup appeared. 

--------------

Just before lunch, Marinette’s phone vibrated, as well as several other people’s in the class. When the bell rang, she went to check it. From past experience, she knew that mass messages to students were usually bad. It had Erica and Lila plastered all over it. It was a link to the tabloid article. It opened with a photo of Damian and Allegra, sitting in a coffee shop and drinking coffee. She only read a bit of the content, far enough to reach the first quote of GA student, before storming out. People were giving her pitying looks as she walked toward the cafeteria. She didn’t want to do anything rash until she spoke to Chloé and Allegra. That was a new kind of low for the Mean Girls front. They even dared to attach a message of fake condolences to Marinette. 

Unknowingly, the Bluenette was channeling Damian the whole way, making people jump out of her path. Nobody ever saw the Angel (not that anyone would call her that within Damian’s hearing range, or where one of his multiple informants could inform him) so angry. Suddenly, everyone remembered how she took three football players in less than twenty seconds without getting more than a light bruise on her neck. 

The cafeteria was completely silent the moment she entered. Everyone expected her to rage at Damian, who was waiting next to the doors to intercept her immediately. To their utter and infinite surprise, she instead grabbed his hand into hers and squeezed tightly. A small smile made its way on her face and Damian smirked too. Nobody (but the ‘outcasts’) had any idea what that was about. Didn’t he cheat on her recently, or for a long time?

The two walked past the baffled crowd toward where Allegra and Chloé sat, already waiting for them. There were no words exchanged between the four, but the two blondes nodded like it was a signal. 

Marinette and Damian jumped onto the table in a synchronized show of grace and agility. Everyone stared at them. 

“Hi!” Marinette smiled. Next to her, her boyfriend was glaring at certain people in the crowd. “First, I wanted to thank all of you who actually meant it when they gave me their condolences. You had good intentions, even if they were completely misplaced.”

“Tt. I did not cheat on my Habibti. Not with anyone, and especially not with my cousin!” Damian growled at the silent cafeteria. They didn’t dare to respond vocally, but some lowered their heads in shame. While the relation between Bruce Wayne and Mayor Kane was not that well-known, they didn’t hide the connection. “The first cousin once removed to be precise.”

“Point is, the article is full of fake news and we’ll be dealing with it later. Still, I appreciate your effort.” She smiled at those who weren’t angry. Then, her face turned to the cold mask and she channeled Damian. “Now onto those who mocked us or tried to use it to break me and Damian apart. It won’t work. Stop. Don’t. I can’t see any situation where we would break up, and even then, there is no chance either of us would lower ourselves to dating any of you. I trust Damian with my life. I’m his and he’s mine!” She declared. 

“I’m hers and she’s mine.” Damian echoed. They raised their joint hands before turning to one another and sharing a quick kiss. Many people cooed at the romanticism of the scene. 

Erica and Lila were on the verge of a stroke. This was harder than either anticipated and they were, in fact, slowly losing more than they gained. 

A black butterfly entered through the window behind Marinette. As soon as she saw it, she acted without thinking and grabbed it. Everyone looked at her in panic. They saw the muscles in her forearm tighten and after a short moment a bit of some dark substance leaked through her fingers. When she opened her hand, the butterfly was turned into a gooey mess.

“Not today, Hawkass Junior.” She seethed. Then, she left to clean her hand with Allegra and Chloé following her. She rarely was left entirely alone, especially at school. As they walked, people gave her a loud applause. 

--------

“Why did it not work!?” Adrien raged in his hideout. Next to him, Nooroo was floating with his head bowed. 

“She… she touched it only with her skin. There was nothing to akumatize… master.” The little creature added, forced by the magic of the brooch. 

“But why didn’t the akuma pass through her fingers!?” The hero-turned-villain seethed.

“She… She damaged it before it could…”

“I paid a handsome sum of money to have that article published! It was supposed to either break them up or give me my own Scarlet Moth!” Adrien stomped around his hideout. “Now it’s all for naught! I want their Miraculouses! I want my family back!”

Another figure walked from behind him and pulled him into a hug. In the darkness, the only visible details were her silhouette and a predatory smile on her face. 

“Don’t worry. We will get what we want soon enough.”

“Did you decipher it?”

“Almost. There are several symbols on it that I have no idea what they mean.”

“Hm… I think I might have an akuma just for the occasion. It will require some setting-up though.”

“Don’t worry. I’ll deal with it. Meanwhile…” She said, her grin widening

“No. Get out of here, Witch.” He snapped.

“Spoilsport.” She muttered and walked away. Adrien felt anger bubbling inside him. Someone was so getting akumatized that day.

-------

Masterlist // Next

[pandawritespoorly]

With Time: Chapter 18 - An Unpleasant Surprise

Author’s Note: Sorry for the late(ish) update! I'm still sick and slept in. Anyways, there isn't a strong language for this chapter, which honestly surprises me.

Chapter Summary: A field trip to the museum doesn't go as expected.

First | Previous | Next

December had finally arrived. The friends were taken aback that they had a field trip.

“How did we forget about this again?” Allan turns to the others.

They’re waiting outside for the buses, and Marinette is leaning against Claude, no one is quite sure if she’s awake.

Due to the sleepy girl on their side, Claude settles for a one-sided shrug, “I dunno’.”

“I’m excited! I haven’t been to the Louvre in a while.” Allegra is bouncing slightly.

“This is still a school trip. Do not forget to do what you are supposed to. I believe some teachers made lists.” Felix looks at Claude in particular.

He only shrugs lopsidedly again, grinning.

A breeze goes by, and Marinette shifts in an attempt to protect herself from it. She slips off of Claude’s coat as the buses pull up. She comes concerningly close to collapsing on the ground, but he grabs her again, helping her onto the bus. At least in a seat she can’t fall in the snow.

--- 

They’ve been at the museum for about an hour. Marinette’s in one of the less popular exhibits on a bench. Her friends left for a moment - she assured them it would be fine. There were a few things they wanted to look at, but Marinette is too tired to be in the mood to explore with them.

She hears someone walk into the room, one of them’s probably returned already.

“Marinette?” 

Oh no.

“It is you!”

Oh no no.

“Here I thought this would be a boring field trip!”

Nononono

“This is a spectacular surprise though!”

Lila.

Marinette is too tired to even give some sort of retort in her defense. Her brain is convinced that by staying perfectly still she’ll be spared.

“See, I told you I knew what I was doing.” Lila is inspecting her nails, “No one’s seen you in months and they all still hate your guts - rightfully so of course.”

She’s finally near the girl. Marinette’s eyes never leave her, but her body is frozen - her brain too slow and too tired to do anything to save herself. What are even her options here? Leaving and risking meeting more of her old classmates?

She’d been doing so much better recently, but this - on top of the old phone incident not too long ago - she’s reaching for her rules again out of comfort. She hasn’t thought of her lists in so long, but now she runs through each item systematically in her head, desperate for any sort of comfort.

“You know, they call me their everyday ladybug now? I’m honestly insulted - not only did they give me your old dumb title, but they’re comparing me to her. They were that is, until I changed that.” the liar’s voice is filled with disgust as she thinks of Ladybug.

Please stop.

“Look at you! You’re pathetic! I can’t believe I considered you a legitimate threat to me. I could have just left you be and they would have eventually left you in their own time.”

Marinette manages to turn her head away, squeezing her eyes shut. 

Lila grabs a pigtail and sharply yanks her head to face her again, “You could at least look at me you disappointing nobody.”

Stop it stop it stop it.

Her eyes are closed, but tears are visibly welling up. Lila cackles, “Oh, are you sad? Can’t handle the facts? The truth?”

She pulls the girl up by her arms, purposefully digging her nails into the skin, “Do you want to know the truth?”

She digs the nails in deeper, raking them down her arms, “This is the perfect opportunity to keep all that lovely Marinette-hate going. Without any material it could have died down-”

stopstopstopstoppleasepleasestop

She drops the girl to the ground, she falls, feeling shaky and sick. She must have scraped her knees some time because they’re bleeding now.

Lila crouches down to her level, “-but now I can spin this anyway I want. Those morons could walk in right now and would still believe me if I told them you attacked me. They just despise you that much. Not that I can blame them - you’re just so detestable.” 

Marinette tries to curl into herself, but being on the floor she’s at a disadvantage.

Lila grabs her wrist.

The wrist.

The one Alya held her by on that Thursday. Marinette unconsciously keeps track of that.

“This is the one isn’t it? I watched. That was quite the fall. Not to mention how you twisted it. I’m surprised you didn’t break it. I wish I had a recording though. Everything you do is just so pitifully bad.”

She tightens her grip, digging her nails in again.

Lila drags the girl back to her feet, Marinette doesn’t meet her eyes.

Lila yanks her by the pigtail once more, forcing the girl to face her directly, ��I told you to look at me you cretin.”

“That is enough!”

Lila turns at the new voice. She sees Adrien with four vaguely familiar people. Clearly they won’t be on her side.

“Is it though?” She shoves the designer backwards harshly. She can’t quite see, but from the corner of her eye it looks like Marinette fell on that same wrist. She grins - it’s honestly kind of funny to her.

She recognizes the one who spoke now. Felix Voclain. She’d almost gone to his school instead, he is of a similar status to Adrien. She’d decided against it when she realized the boy had more real-world experience. He’d have been harder to manipulate than the sheltered model.

“Lila. Leave her alone.” Sunshine boy’s voice is cold, he’s as mad as she’s ever seen him. 

Wow, and she thought this would be a boring day. This is exhilarating.  

“I’ll step away.” She holds up her hands in mock surrender, ‘accidentally’ taking a step back onto the girl’s hand. That arm is really going to be in rough shape, “Whoops!” She walks toward the exit.

A blonde girl grabs her arm harshly, “You’re not going anywhere.”

Rude. She twists her arm roughly when the girl isn’t expecting it, hurrying away before they can catch her again. 

Maybe she could put her arm in a sling for that.

--- 

As soon as they’d seen Adrien, they began to worry. When he confirmed that the other class is also at the museum for a field trip they headed back to where they’d last seen Marinette. They didn’t want to risk her facing any of those people alone.

They’d been too late, arriving in time to see the exhausted girl being held up as one pigtail was pulled sharply. It looked like she was bleeding too, and there were tear tracks on her face.

Once Lila made her escape, they rushed to Marinette’s side. 

“Marinette, it’s okay. She’s gone now.”

She only whimpers in response, curling into herself, pulling her legs up.

A cursory glance over her gives them an idea of what happened. She looks pale and sickly, covered in scratches. Her knees are bleeding the most, though her arms have the most marks by far. Some have a little blood, and there’s nail marks in her wrist. That same wrist looks like it’s swelling slightly, which makes sense given how she fell on it and how Lila stepped on it. Her pigtails are loose, a few strands even pulled out from the yank.

“Oh, dear, you’re safe now. It’ll be alright. I promise.”

They don’t see the butterfly until it lands on her earrings.

“Oh no. No nonononono.”

They all back up slightly, Adrien gets ready to run off and transform.

There’s a tense moment as her unfocused eyes stare ahead blankly, the butterfly symbol over her face.

Her eyes slip shut.

The butterfly flutters away, down the hall. 

Adrien knows he should let Ladybug know, but Marinette is his priority. Fighting off Hawkmoth took the rest of her strength and she’s fallen into an uneasy sleep. He picks her up gingerly, careful of her injuries.

“Another akuma. She’s amazing, poor girl.”

He nods in agreement with Allegra’s statement. He looks at the group, “I can’t keep leaving school randomly. Can one of you help her to my car? My driver can take you to her house.”

Claude nods, helping Adrien shift the girl into their own arms, “We’ll go home with her. Her parents can take care of her from there. Would he be able to drive us back?”

Adrien nods, waving as they hurry out of the room.

Plagg flies out immediately,”Cataclysming her face is still on the table kid. Just saying.”

“No, Plagg, murder is illegal.” “Not if they deserve it.”

“Still illegal. Plagg, claws out!”

Chat Noir stands in his place, rushing in the hall in the direction Adrien had seen the butterfly go. He pulls out his baton to contact Ladybug. As he turns a corner he spots the evil butterfly and Lila.

He begins to record. He and Ladybug had both agreed that Lila’s track record for being akumatized seemed a little fishy.

That doesn’t mean he is expecting what happens next. Lila’s face lights up at the purple bug, and she rushes to it immediately. She touches a bracelet to the creature, and the butterfly symbol appears over her face.

Volpina stands in her place, hurrying away before he can do much. He sends the video to Ladybug and chases after her.

This is an interesting development.

--- 

Tikki looks down at the sleeping girl below her. Marinette certainly deserves the break, but she wishes that it didn’t require this. The poor girl is all scratched up, and she’s sprained her wrist again. Lila won’t go unpunished though.

She’s made sure of that.

The Kwami startles when she realizes Chat Noir sent a message to Ladybug, quickly followed by a video.

An akuma, oh of course. 

“Marinette, I’m sorry, but you have to get up.” She floats near the girl’s face, tapping her gently, “There’s an akuma.”

The girl groans, wrinkling her face at the interruption, “Wha’?”

“Mari, dear, there’s an akuma.”

“Ughhh.” She props herself off, “Why?”

“It’s probably the one that you fought off…”

Tikki sees the realization that strikes Marinette’s face, and smiles softly at her, trying to be comforting.

“Oh.” Stupid girl, you fell asleep instead of doing your job. Lila was right, “S-spots on.”

She might as well actually get her job done properly now. She sees a message from Chat Noir about an akuma at the Louvre, confirming that it’s got to be that same akuma that went after her. 

She just took a nap instead of doing the one thing that people actually need her for. Failure.

She exits her room, swinging to the museum, wondering who got akumatized this time.

Ladybug arrives on a nearby rooftop, surveying the area. Then she sees them.

Chat Noir is clearly fighting the akuma already - it’s Volpina.

No. No, no, no.

Ladybug isn’t ready to face her again. Her wrist still hurts, and she can feel the scratches beneath her suit,

But she’s already messed up enough today. She doesn’t deserve leniency.

She hops into the battle, ready to end this.

--- 

Volpina stays close to the Louvre. It’s odd, until the heroes realize she wants her classmates to notice her being an akuma. She isn’t trying to get any particular goal - it’s just to make it seem like she had been really upset during the field trip to earn sympathy points.

After about an hour, the battle is finally over, and Ladybug throws her Lucky Charm into the air, repairing the damage caused.

Chat comes up from the side she isn’t expecting, holding his fist out. She hesitates, the fist that she would use is on the side that she hurt earlier. Ladybug uses the other fist.

“Pound it!”

“That’s what I thought.” He looks at her in concern, “Ladybug, you’re favoring your right wrist.”

Oh. He’d noticed.

It got in the way of you doing your job that badly. Idiot.

“I just, uh sprained it.” She looks away - the ground is fascinating.

“How did that happen? You could have told me, there’s no need to suffer in silence.”

She hesitates, trying to think of a half-truth over a lie, but all she can think of is the run-in with Lila. He sees the look on her face.

“Oh, Bug, what happened?” His voice is gentle, and he steps toward her slowly. He unconsciously notes the brighter colors of her suit and knows not to startle her.

She panics, not wanting him to see her cry like the failure she is for the upteenth time. She turns, walking to another part of the museum. She sees her friends talking quietly - probably worried about her. She hurries to a corner where they won’t see her. Look what she’s done. Or maybe it hit them that she isn’t worth their time.

Both options are ones she doesn’t want.

Chat comes up next to her, touching her arm gently to get her attention. He cocks his head at her, trying to see her face. He frowns at her tightly shut eyes and the visible tears waiting to fall. Ladybug turns her head away.

You’re Ladybug. You have to be okay. You can’t not be okay. You are Ladybug. You’re fine. You’re fine, you’re absolutely fine-

Her partner raises his arms in an offer of a hug and she breaks, shaking quietly and leaning into him.

Ladybug doesn’t let herself cry, just accepting the comforting hug.

After a moment, their miraculouses beep and they break apart.

“Do you want to tell me what happened?”

“...I just fell.” It’s a complete lie and they both know it. What else is she supposed to say? That she couldn’t defend herself from the girl they just defeated?

“Sure.” He looks at her doubtfully, but allows her to just lie to his face like she isn’t a good-for-nothing flop.

This is why he’s a hero. He’s a good person.

They both go their separate ways, and Ladybug slips into Marinette’s room, falling asleep again as she detransforms.

Her Kwami sits above her, watching her sleep. The cold gets to her eventually as well, and she falls asleep too.

---

“Oh, she’s sleeping.”

Marinette’s friends have stopped by after school to drop off her homework, and check on her.

“I would guess that’s due to the fact that her trapdoor is open.” Felix points above her bed.

“What was she doin’ on her balcony?” Allan asks as Claude climbs up to shut it properly.

“I noticed before that it gets stuck a little bit. Kinda’ works against her heaters.” Claude hops off the ladder.

Allegra sets the girl’s bags against her chaise, “Should we wait to see if she wakes up, or just go?”

“We can wait a little, I’d like t’ talk to her.” Allan answered, “Besides, I think she should talk to people that aren’t gonna hurt ‘er.”

“Poor thing.” Claude fiddles with Marinette’s phone, probably adding some positive reminder.

“Oh, that little-”

“Allegra, it will do no good to be upset now.” Felix interrupts her.

“I know, but still! I can’t believe someone would do that to her! It’s not even like she was planning on talking to any of that girl’s sheep, she just wanted to sleep!”

“At least she got a chance to rest once she got home.”

The group gets a text.

Claude checks their phone first, “Adrien wants to know if we’ve checked on Mari. I’m letting him know we’re here.”

A moment then, “He says he’s at fencing now. He’s father’s got a bunch of things scheduled for him today, so he can’t come over.”

“Shoot.”

“Ugh! That guy! I should start a record of people who need to be replaced as parents and friends.”

“Allegra, you can’t kidnap Adrien. That’s very illegal, especially considering how rich the family is.” “Someone needs to give that man a parenting manual. I’m also not hearing anything against getting rid of Alya and Lila.”

“Can’t do that either.”

Allegra just paces angrily, Claude looks up, “Even though they deserve it?”

“Yes, Claude,” Felix joins Allan’s side, “You cannot just ‘get rid of’ people for being mean.”

“Ha! That’s the understatement of the century! How about malicious? Or despicable? Or wicked? Or-” Allegra lists.

Allan cuts her off, “We don’t need an entire thesaurus Al’.”

She just mumbles lividly.

“I find it odd that she became akumatized.” Felix interjects.

“Who? Lila? Why?” Allan looks to him.

“Did she seem particularly upset to you?”

“That’s… a fair point”

There’s shifting from above, and they hear a quiet murmur, though they can’t make out the exact words.

Claude throws their arms up, “Mari! How are you doing?” He climbs the ladder slightly, peeking over the edge of the bed.

“You say sumthin’ ‘Nette?”

All they can make out from her sleepy mumbles is the word ‘ladybug’.

“Let’s give you a moment to wake up.” Claude suggests.

She nods, leaning against the wall. After a moment she speaks again,”Lila doesn’t like Ladybug… I think she like bein’ akuma…”

“Do you mean that she purposefully becomes akumatized so as to better go after Ladybug?” Felix clarifies.

“Why would she do that?” Allan sounds appalled.

Marinette shrugs, “Dunno’... bein’ akuma isn’ fun.”

Claude offers her a hug,”I wouldn’t think so. I’m sorry you got targeted again.” She flops into his hug,”Not your fault…” It’s mine. My own dumb self for being incapable of keeping my emotions in check. Stupid wanna-be hero.

“Still.” They hug her tighter, careful to be mindful of the scratches. Claude looks down at the others, who shrug helplessly.

Marinette seems about to fall asleep again, Claude brushes her hair out of her face, ”We love you, Mari.”

The tired girl looks surprised at first, then confused, then she just closes her eyes, mumbling, “‘oo too…”

The group smiles at that.

---

Author’s Note: Poor Marinette. Don't worry, she doesn't have a run-in with any of the old classmates for another... okay actually that's pretty soon. Sorry, not sorry! The next chapter doesn't actually happen directly after this one, but I can assure you Marinette was hugged plenty. Lots of comfort for her.

I'm excited for next chapter actually! I'm sure you're all curious about who will hold which miraculous within the quantic kids. I've already decided all of them, and next chapter will show you one of them! I'd love to hear your theories and reasoning! It took a lot of time for me to decide, but I'm happy with my choice (and may or may not have been leaving a few hints within past chapters).

Speaking of next chapter, it'll be Wednesday! Another bonus chapter! If you're reading this after it already came out, I'd still love to hear your theories before you click that 'next chapter' button. There will be one more bonus chapter this month, and then I no longer need to worry about timing my posting correctly, so bonus chapters may become more frequent. We'll see, it depends on how much free time I get (school is so time-consuming).

Thanks for reading! Feel free to leave any thoughts, theories, constructive criticism, or anything really in my ask box, in replies or through reblogs. I love seeing what you think!

First | Previous | Next