#i low-key hate the click bait of burn city but they always do a better job on the video

[the-physicality]

burn city sports presser

Full Brittney Griner Diana Taurasi post game/ 2014 anniversary presser [desert wave]

[purrincess-chat]

Kill Em With Kindness CH3

It is finished! Now I can move on to chapter 1 of Dogrien to post this week~ I hope you all enjoy this chapter. Uncle Jagged has made his entrance and now things are about to get interesting.

Read on AO3

Chapter 3

“Knock, knock!”

Marinette paused her sewing, a wicked smile curling on her lips as Adrien climbed up carrying a plate of warm cookies.

“From your dad,” he said, holding them up before setting them on her desk and pulling up a chair. “How’s your Ladybug sweater coming along?”

“Great! I was just sewing up the seams now,” she said, smoothing over the red and black sweater that read ‘Ladybug’s bff’ on the front. “With her compromised immune system, I’d hate for Lila to catch a cold from the chilly weather in London on our field trip this week.”

“Wouldn’t that be a shame?” Adrien agreed, cupping a hand to his cheek. “Well, I successfully got Mr. D’Argencourt to give her some one-on-one time to make up her PE grade. He made sure she paced herself and didn’t put too much stress on that bad ankle of hers. It’s a shame she didn’t finish in time to get ice cream with all of us.”

“Well, school is important. We don’t want her to fail the term, do we?” Marinette said with an overly sarcastic tone.

“Of course not! That would just be awful.” He nodded, and they both broke into a fit of giggles. “By the way, I have some good news.”

“Oh?” Marinette quirked a brow, grabbing a cookie.

“Guess when Lila’s birthday is?” Adrien smirked, and she pursed her lips.

“Dunno, when?”

“Some time in August, but guess what I overheard her telling Marc when he asked her to beta read their next comic since she’s such good friends with Ladybug?” He rolled his eyes. “She said she can’t help him because she’s going to Achu with her mother this weekend to celebrate her birthday.”

“But it’s only March,” Marinette said, eyes narrowing. “That brat totally blew them off.”

“Yeah, but it gives me an idea,” he said, tapping his chin. “Okay, so you know how we all planned a big surprise party for you this year?”

“How can I forget? My grandmother got akumatized,” Marinette said pointedly.

“Well, what if we threw Lila a party this Friday before she ‘leaves’ to go to Achu?” He suggested, and Marinette tilted her head to the side in thought.

“What if we centered it around all of her lies? We could have tons of recycle bins for her anti-pollution campaign, we can have the local shelter bring out a bunch of adoptable animals since she loves volunteering, and we can even get Jagged to send a bunch of signed posters for everyone,” Marinette said.

“You’re a despicable genius, Marinette. I’m a little scared.” Adrien eyed her with a smirk, and she turned her nose up.

“Lila had it coming. She did get me expelled,” she said with a defensive huff.

“Not arguing with that. I just hope I never get on your bad side,” he chuckled. “So, what’s our first move?”

“First, we plant the bait for everyone, then we set the trap for Lila. Alya and Mylene volunteer at the animal shelter frequently, so I’m sure they can handle that, and Sabrina’s dad has an in with the city for the recycling bins,” Marinette listed.

“What about Jagged?” Adrien asked, and a sly grin curled on her lips.

“Leave Jagged to me.”

***

“Hello, Penny,” Marinette greeted the following afternoon outside Jagged’s suite.

“Marinette, it’s good to see you, but what are you doing here?” Penny tilted her head to the side.

“Did you say Marinette’s here? Rock on! Let her in,” Jagged called from the grand piano in the middle of the room. “Yo, Marinette, you have to check this new song I’m working on.”

Penny blinked in confusion but stepped aside nonetheless, and Marinette entered with an appreciative smile. Jagged perked up upon seeing her and scooted over to make room for her on the bench.

“What brings you by, Marinette?” He asked, plucking out a melody on the keys.

“I kind of need a favor, if you don’t mind,” she said with a wince.

“Ay, of course. You can ask your ole Uncle Jagged for favors any time,” he said with a grin. “Just tell me what’s on your mind.”

“Well, there’s this girl at my school, and she’s kind of a huge liar-”

“Ugh, I hate liars. I dated a liar once. Great kisser, but he always needed attention. So annoying.” He wrinkled his nose.

“Tell me about it, except this girl is a bit more than just annoying. I called her out for lying a few times, but she always spins things back on me, and now we’re sworn enemies, and she has it out for me,” Marinette said, and Jagged paused his playing.

“D’you want me to feed her to Fang?” Jagged offered, and Marinette considered it a moment.

“Nah, I wouldn’t want to make him sick.” She shook her head. “But me and another friend who knows about her have been plotting a bit of revenge against her since she got me expelled recently.”

“She got you expelled?” Jagged’s fingers slammed onto keys, filling the room with a discordant harmony.

“Yeah. My friend made her fix it in the end, but now we’re done with her lying and manipulating everyone, so we have a plan,” Marinette said before giving him the run down.

“Wow. This is all very high road yet secretly low road of you, Marinette. Rock on!” Jagged smirked, offering a fist for her to bump. “I will totally help you.”

“Thanks, Jagged!” Marinette hugged his chest.

“Anything for my favorite little lady,” he said, giving her a noogie. “But I’ve gotta say, I feel like we can do better than posters. This girl almost ruined your reputation.”

“What do you have in mind?” Marinette tilted her head to the side.

“Well…”

***

“She’s coming!” Nathaniel called, running through the park entrance, and everyone took their places.

“I can’t believe we pulled this off,” Adrien said to Marinette. “I can’t wait to see the look on her face.”

“She’s going to lose her mind.” Marinette winked.

Alya led Lila into the park blindfolded just as she had done for Marinette so many weeks prior only this time, Lila had no idea what to expect.

“Surprise!” Everyone shouted when she removed the blindfold, and Lila’s jaw dropped in confusion and disbelief.

“What’s all this?” She asked with a nervous laugh.

“It’s for your birthday,” Nathaniel said as if it were obvious.

“Yeah, you’re going to Achu tomorrow, so we wanted to celebrate today,” Alya explained, and Marinette saw the gears click.

“Oh, you guys! You didn’t have to,” she said modestly.

“You’re our bud, and you do so much for the world. We wanted to make sure you had a great bday,” Nino said, wrapping an arm around Alya’s shoulders.

“You guys are too sweet. Thank you.” Lila placed a hand over her heart.

“Thank Marinette and Adrien. They orchestrated all of this,” Alya said, and they waved to her with cheery grins which she met with a brief hint of skepticism that she morphed into a smile of her own.

“We made sure to celebrate all of your achievements,” Adrien said, gesturing to their spread. “We had the city bring in recycling bins to cut back on the garbage, and all of the party decorations are made from recycled materials.”

“We also asked a local shelter to bring by some adoptable animals for us to socialize,” Alya said, pointing to the pins of dogs across the sidewalk. “And finally, Marinette has a super epic surprise!”

Lila flicked her gaze to Marinette, her eyes narrowing under that elastic smile.

“It was no big deal, really,” Marinette said without averting her gaze. “He absolutely jumped at the opportunity when I told him it was for you.”

“Yo, Lila! Long time no see, huh?”

Lila blanched a little as Jagged approached with Penny and Fang in tow, and Marinette crossed her arms over her chest with a smirk.

“Thanks for coming, Jagged,” she said sweetly.

“Of course. Anything for my two favorite ladies.” Jagged pulled them both in for a hug. “I’d love to personally give all of your little friends autographs, and Marinette even agreed to help me sing your favorite song of mine. You know, the one I wrote for you, Lila.”

“Uh, yeah, that’s so generous of both of you, but you don’t have to do that,” Lila said, holding up cautioning hands.

“Why not?” Adrien asked, shoving his hands in his pockets as everyone gave her similarly perplexed looks.

“Uh, I have a headache, so loud noises probably aren’t the best,” she said, and Marinette and Adrien exchanged looks.

“Oh, is your tinnitus coming back? I have an ear plug, and I’ve started carrying around painkillers just in case you ever need it,” Marinette said, reaching into her purse, and Lila stared down at the items in her hand blankly.

“Wow, Marinette. You sure think of everything, don’t you?” Lila said through gritted teeth.

“She’s so detail-oriented. It’s what makes her such a good designer. That’s why she’s one of my favorite little rockers. Second only to you, of course, Lila,” Jagged said.

“I’m just doing my part. We can’t all save African villages, but we can be there for each other,” Marinette said, clasping her hands together with an innocent beam. “I just wanted to make sure my amazing friend had a great birthday.”

“So thoughtful of you,” Lila cooed, though Marinette could see the rage burning behind her smile.

“Alright then, who wants an autograph?” Jagged asked, holding up a pen, and their classmates all crowded around him.

Marinette and Adrien stood back on either side of Lila with impish grins.

“I don’t know what you two are planning, but you’d better tread carefully,” Lila said under her breath.

“What’s the matter, Lila?” Marinette asked.

“Isn’t this what you’ve always wanted?” Adrien added, and Lila’s eyes narrowed.

“Drop the act. I’m not an idiot, and if either one of you even thinks about starting anything-”

“Gosh, I didn’t realize inviting Jagged was going to upset you so much. I thought you two were good friends,” Marinette said, pressing a hand to her lips.

“I’m serious, you two. Call off the song, or else,” Lila said, shifting her gaze between them. “I’m not dumb. I know you’re going to get Jagged to diss me in front of everyone.”

“You really think we’d do such a thing?” Marinette gasped, and Lila rolled her eyes.

“I haven’t bought your whole nice act from the moment it started, but if you threaten me, I can get you kicked out of Paris for good,” Lila growled.

“That seems like an unkind thing to do to a friend. Marinette worked really hard to put all of this together, Lila,” Adrien said with a warning tone, wrapping an arm around Marinette’s shoulders as her face fell.

“No, it’s okay. Lila doesn’t want us to sing, so we won’t. It’s her birthday after all,” Marinette said. “I’ll let everyone know.”

Lila and Adrien watched her join the crowd before Lila turned to him with a scowl.

“I don’t know what you two are up to-”

“We’re just trying to be your friends, Lila,” Adrien cut her off.

Lila glared up at him, jaw clenching, and his face hardened for one brief moment.

“But you might wanna tread carefully,” he said, giving her a pointed look before a smile broke over his lips again, and he patted her shoulder. “Happy Birthday, Lila.”

“Oh, your throat is sore?” Alya was saying when they joined the group.

“Yeah, just a tickle, but I’d hate to ruin the performance,” Marinette said with a frown. “But maybe it’s for the best. Lila has a headache still, and when I told her about it, she was totally cool with putting it off for another day.”

“It’s a shame. We must have worked too hard rehearsing it last night,” Jagged said. “Hey, here’s a thought. Why don’t you all come to my concert tomorrow? You can rest your chops tonight and perform with me tomorrow. All of your friends can come.”

“Wow, really?” Marinette perked up.

“Of course! I want to rock out with you for sure,” Jagged said, ruffling her hair.

“Oh, but Lila’s going to Achu tomorrow,” Marinette said, deflating again. “She won’t be able to make it.”

“Don’t worry, love. Lila gets to go to my concerts all the time. She won’t be too upset missing one chance to come backstage with everyone. Isn’t that right, Lila?” Jagged gave her a look, and Lila’s spine stiffened.

“Uh, yeah. I get to sing with you all the time. It’s no biggie,” she said, and Jagged patted Marinette’s shoulder.

“See? She’s cool with it, so whaddya say? Wanna rock out with your Uncle Jagged?” He asked.

“If it’s really alright then…okay!” Marinette perked up, and all of their classmates crowded around her excitedly.

Lila crossed her arms over her chest as everyone broke off to enjoy the rest of the party. Marinette may have won this battle, but Lila didn’t intend to lose the war. She wouldn’t be so easily fooled next time.

“Ya know.” She jumped a little as Jagged draped an arm over her shoulder. “Marinette told me everything, and if it were me, I would have totally asked me to call you out in front of all your little friends today, but she didn’t.”

Lila averted her gaze.

“Marinette is one amazing little chick, and she’s like family to me. If anyone ever hurts her, they’ll have me to answer to, and they’ll learn that I’m not so nice,” Jagged said. “Just a little something for you to keep in mind. Because she’s miraculous, simply the best, up to the test when things go wrong- hey, ya know, now I could make a song out of that.”

He patted her shoulder before pacing over to join Marinette and Adrien, and Lila closed her shaking hands into fists. If this was the game they wanted to play then fine, but they were about to learn what a formidable foe she could be.