We all know how Lila fakes having different diseases and medical problems, but what would happen if she actually got sick and her mother went to the school to drop off a doctor’s note and pick up Lila’s assignments? Want the answer? Warm-Fuzzies and please enjoy!

Greta Rossi could admit that she was a bit of a workaholic. Being the secretary to the assistant ambassador of Italy, in a city that was constantly under attack by a magical terrorist, was not the easiest job in the world either. It took a lot of early mornings, late nights, and even some weekends to make sure everything was prepared for her boss. But that didn’t mean that she wouldn’t drop everything for her one and only daughter when she needed her. 

Right now, for example, Lila was trapped in bed with a nasty case of strep throat. The poor girl had a fever, white pustules at the back of her throat, and could hardly stop coughing. It was only due to some very strong medicine that she was able to stop coughing long enough to pass out from exhaustion. 

She had contacted her work to let them know she would be taking the week off, and the ambassador had been very understanding. Stressing that he knew how dedicated she was to her work and that it was good for her to take time off for her family. It was only after Lila was sound asleep that she made the phone call to her school, she wanted to make sure they knew why Lila was staying home and that she would be in later that afternoon to pick up her daughter’s assignments for the next week.

The principal, M. Damocles was his name, seemed very happy to have spoken to her and said that he would have her assignments waiting when she came to pick them up. Also, if she could bring the doctors’ notes with her, that would be very much appreciated.

Checking again that Lila was sound asleep, she left a note on her daughter’s bedside table that she was running some errands, would be home soon, and to text her if she needed anything. 

Arriving at the school, she was surprised to see everything running so smoothly and that the reconstruction after the two month akuma attack had been gone so well. She was impressed that she couldn’t even tell the difference between the old and new parts of the building. But then, she wasn’t overly skilled with architecture or building construction, so that wasn’t a surprise to her. 

A few knocks on the door and she entered M. Damocles office. She had only met the man a couple times, but he had seemed like a decent person. It was a shame that he had been akumatized for so long and she was curious about what had happened to cause him to be akumatized, but she wasn’t sure if it was proper to ask him.

“Mme. Rossi, good to see you. I understand that Lila has fallen ill?” He asked, spinning around to grab a blue folder behind his desk.

“Yes, the poor dear has strep throat and has been coughing nonstop for days.” Greta told him as she pulled the doctor’s note from her purse. “Here’s the note you requested, do you have her homework packet?”

Damocles looked over the note for a moment before nodding and looking at her expectantly. “Thank you, do you have her other doctor’s notes?”

Greta tilted her head in confusion. “Does she need more than one? It’s just strep throat, she should be back to school after next week.”

“No madam, this is all I need for her current leave from school. I was referring to the doctor’s notes for her tinnitus, arthritis, sprained wrist, and her lying disease. That last one especially, and any information you can give me on accommodating that one so we do not have a repeat of the incident last month.”

Nothing in the world could have kept her jaw from dropping. What he had just told her? “M. Damocles, everything you just said is completely false. Lila has no such ailments, and I don’t think there is such a thing as a lying disease, unless you are referring to pathological lying.”

The man blinked back at her a few times before raising one hand to rub his brow. “Oh my, Mme. Rossi, I believe you and I must have a long discussion about the things your daughter has been saying and doing since she started school here.”

Her legs were stiff as she lowered herself into a chair, a sick feeling growing in her stomach as M. Damocles pulled a different folder out from his desk.

~oOo~

Over two hours later, many truths had finally come out. 

1) The school had never closed for months due to akumas. 

2) When M. Damocles had been akumatized, it had been at night and did no damage to the school. 

3) Greta was not the ambassador, but a secretary. 

4) Lila did not suffer from any diseases. 

5) They had been in Paris since Lila had started school, no globetrotting whatsoever. 

6) She and her husband were not estranged, he had simply wanted to stay at his dream  job in Venice and she would never force him to leave it for her temporary assignment here in Paris. 

7) Lila’s grandmother was alive and had never owned or given Lila a foxtail necklace. 

8) The phone number on file was Lila’s number, not Greta’s. And the email was supposed to be ‘.gov’ not ‘.com’.

Damocles had also called one of Lila’s classmates to his office, Marinette Dupain-Cheng. When the principal told Greta about the incidentfrom the previous month, she was shocked. Then Marinette told them her side of the story; all the lies, the threats, and finally setting the poor girl up to be expelled. Greta had never been so angry with her daughter in her life. Sure, she had been a good little story teller and actress when she was little, but she never would have thought she could be so cruel.

By the end of her explanation, Marinette was practically in tears.

When she mentioned that Adrien Agreste also knew of Lila’s lies, he was called to the office as well. He was a little more reluctant to talk about what Lila had been saying, but Greta insisted that she wanted to know what her daughter had been doing since coming to school, so he told her. If she hadn’t been disgusted before, she definitely was now. Getting Adrien’s father’s employees in trouble, lying about being friends with Ladybug all while telling Greta that she was a useless hero, sexually harassing Adrien while the boy didn’t even realize that was what she was doing to him. She had become a Gabrielmodel without her permission, which meant that Lila had likely forged her signatures on the contracts, so she would need to contact M. Agreste to get that sorted out. One of the things that surprised her was hearing that Lila had been akumatized, not once or twice, but three times! 

Not long after that, M. Damocles dismissed the children so he and Greta could finish speaking. He told her that, due to falsifying contact records and two months of truancy, Lila was likely to be expelled. Greta accepted this, knowing that she would have done the same thing in that man’s position. In fact, she already had a plan forming on how to thoroughly punish her deceitful daughter. And since Lila had basically been quarantined for the next week and a half, she knew exactly what to do.

First, she began the paperwork to have Lila pulled out of Francois Dupont, effective immediately and asked to go speak to Lila’s classmates. After hearing what her daughter had put Marinette through, she wanted to make sure everyone knew the truth. Damocles allowed this, first pulling Mme. Bustier from the class to alert her as to what was happening. The woman was appalled to hear what had happened but insisted that she had been in contact with her for months via email, to which Greta informed her that it was not her email, but one that Lila had likely set up to keep the school from contacting her. This shocked the teacher to the point where she heavily leaned against the wall and M. Damocles had to support her to keep from collapsing.

When Greta was finally permitted to address the class and debunk the lies that her daughter had been spewing, there had been a lot of shock and questions to follow. But when a girl named Alya began furiously typing on her phone to blow up at Lila, Greta stopped her.

“I’m going to ask that none of you contact Lila from now on.” Alya and the other students looked at her in surprise, but she continued before anyone could interrupt. “I have already begun putting her punishment into motion and know for a fact that it will not be something she will forget anytime soon. So I ask that you do not call, text, or email her. If she attempts to contact you, tell her that you are busy and can’t talk. If she attempts to invite you over or make plans for the future, tell her that you are unavailable or that you already have plans. If she makes any threats or rude remarks to anyone, please forward those messages to me, I will leave my number for you to do so. Do this so that I may move forward with her punishment without her suspecting that I have discovered the truth.”

Having finally had the wool lifted from their eyes, the students realized just how much attention Lila seemed to demand on a daily basis. So, by acting like they were too busy for her or not in the mood to talk, that will drive her crazy and be a nice bit of revenge for lying to them. The class agreed.

After that, Greta headed home to find that Lila was still asleep but beginning to wake up, if the coughing was any indicator. While still having the chance, she called up her husband back in Venice.

“Pronto.”

“Mio amor, how are you? How are things at the school?”

“Ah, mia bella, the school is wonderful, though I must admit, my urge to see you and Lila grows by the minute. When will you come to visit me?”

“Very soon, actually. I’m afraid that you and I need to have a talk about our daughter.” About thirty minutes and a lot of cursing later, Ciro Rossi was now completely up to date on the actions of their daughter.

“I wish to say that I cannot believe Lila would do such things, but I can’t help remembering that boy, Roberto, from two years ago.”

Yes, Greta remembered him well. He had been a very popular boy at Lila’s school; handsome, rich, from a very well connected family, and from what she understood, completely dedicated to his boyfriend. She hadn’t paid him much attention until Lila came home crying that Roberto had attempted to sexually assault her. Greta and Ciro had refused to let such a thing go unchecked and went to the police to report him. During the weeks to follow, Roberto was put through hell; bullied at school, he was beaten up a few times, his boyfriend broke up with him, and his name slandered all over Venice. They had believed what happened to the boy to be justified… until proof was provided that he was nowhere near Lila when she claimed to have been assaulted. 

She suddenly recanted her story, saying that she must have been mistaken and someone that looked like Roberto assaulted her, but the damage had already been done. The boy and his family moved somewhere far away, and Greta and Ciro were forced to pay restitution to Roberto for ruining his name and reputation. Through her tears, Lila convinced them that it had been an honest mistake and that she hadn’t meant for any of that to happen. It wasn’t long after that, Greta received an offer to be the secretary for the assistant ambassador in Paris. Lila had begged her mother to go with her, claiming that her classmates were now bullying her for what happened to Roberto. Wanting to protect their daughter, they agreed.

Looking back on it now, and noticing the similarities between Roberto and Adrien, both Greta and Ciro were disappointed in themselves for not seeing the truth. Which likely was that Lila had tried to get close to Roberto for his money and connections, and when he turned her down, she lied about the assault to ruin his life, much like she had done to Marinette. And when it came out that she had lied about Roberto, her classmates had turned on her. So when she got the chance to start somewhere new, with people who didn’t know about her lies, she took it. Not caring if she harmed anyone at her new school while repeating old habits. But they were not about to let Lila do the same thing to Adrien or Marinette. Once Greta told her husband her plan, he was all for it and began preparing things on his end. By the time Lila was done being sick, her entire life would have turned upside down.

~oOo~

It took a lot more effort than Greta had expected to hide her intentions for the nine days it took for Lila to get over her case of strep throat, but she had been making good use of that time. 

She had contacted Gabriel Agreste’s secretary and asked about any contracts that may have been signed. When she told her she hadn’t signed any contract and that her daughter would no longer be modelling, the woman had no choice but to accept this and inform M. Agreste of this development. The woman also informed Greta that such a breach of contract would result in Lila being blacklisted from the fashion industry. She agreed and promised that she would inform her daughter of this once she was better.

Greta then looked into Lila’s savings and trust fund, of which she had control of since Lila was still a minor. She drained the accounts to pay restitutions to Marinette for bullying and slander, Adrien for sexual harassment; and then sent the rest of it to Roberto, along with a message that she was now completely aware of the type of person her daughter was and would be adequately punished very soon.

And to keep too much suspicion off of her, Greta began mentioning to Lila how her father desperately wanted to see her after she got better, so after the doctor gave her a clean bill of health, they would be going to Venice to see him. Now that she was watching, Greta saw the twinge of uncertainty at the mention of Venice, but quickly covered it with false excitement for going back to visit her father.

As the day grew closer that they would be heading to Italy, Greta also noticed Lila glaring at her phone with utter malice. She might not have known what was going on if Lila’s classmate, Alya, wasn’t keeping her up-to-date on what Lila was telling them. Her daughter was attempting to tell the class that she was going to be going on a trip with a famous singer after she was better, but her classmates were doing as Greta asked and treating the lies as if they meant nothing. When she accused Marinette of calling her a liar while she was sick and couldn’t defend herself, the class stopped responding. 

One message that was forwarded to Greta nearly had her abandoning her plan and confronting her daughter at that moment. It was a message that Lila had sent to Marinette, who had shared it with Alya, who then forwarded it to Greta. It read:

You fugly, no talent bitch! You think I don’t know what you’re doing? Those stupid sheep were eating up every single one of my lies before I got sick, and now they won’t even talk to me! Just you wait. When I get back to school, I’m going to ruin you in every way imaginable. No one will want to be your friend. By the time I’m done with you, I hope you kill yourself. Maybe I’ll convince someone that you tried to kill me and they’ll kill you for me. Either way, you’re dead. And even if you show someone these messages, no one will believe you over me. 

Greta forwarded the message to Ciro as well. He called her right away to discuss other accommodations that they would be making for Lila in the coming days. There was something seriously wrong with their daughter, and they refused to turn a blind eye to what was happening.

When the day finally came that Lila was better and they were heading to Venice, Greta instructed Lila not to pack her more expensive clothes as she would not want to lose them if their baggage got lost. What her daughter didn’t know was that Greta was planning on selling all of her designer clothes, jewelry, her electronics, and everything else to continue paying restitutions to Marinette, Adrien, and Roberto. And it wasn’t like she would need them soon, anyway.

The plane ride was a bit nerve racking for Greta, as she worried about giving something away and Lila figuring out her plan; but if she did, it didn’t show. When they landed at Venice Marco Polo Airport, she had to resist her sigh of relief. The plan was almost ready to be put in action. 

When she saw Ciro waiting for them in his dress whites, her heart sped a bit more. The man was, without a doubt, the most handsome man she’d ever met, and was the love of her life. Being away from him for so long was difficult, but what else could they do? Her husband was a Capitano di Vascello of the Italian Navy and had worked very hard to get where he was. Although he was semi-retired now and no longer served on a ship, he had followed his dream and became the Vice Principal for the premier naval academy in Venice, Francesco Morosini Naval Military School. 

He had gone to the school when he was younger and always claimed that it was the best experience he could have ever wished for. That being in that school saved his life. So when he continued into the navy to serve his country, he made it his goal to one day become the Principal of the school that saved him, so that he could do the same for other students. And now, they would be doing the same for Lila.

Greta and Ciro had thought of admitting Lila to Francesco Morosini when she came of age, but quickly realized that she was not the Navy type and did not want to force her into it. That choice was no longer Lila’s and she would be staying at the military school where it was Ciro’s job, not only as a father, but as an administrator of the school, to keep a close eye on any problem children.

Ciro embraced Greta and then Lila before taking their bags and walking them to his car. Lila was talking at length to her father about all her friends at school, all the happenings in Paris, and even mentioned her boyfriend, Adrien Agreste.

“You would like him, Papa. He’s a model, a gentleman, and his father is the designer, Gabriel Agreste. And he treats me like a princess!” Lila gushed as she showed her father a picture of Lila kissing the blonde boy’s cheek. Greta had seen that picture and had even asked Adrien about it while they had spoken in M. Damocles office. Lila had apparently kissed him without permission when she took that picture, and then sent it to every girl in Adrien’s contact list to make it seem like they were dating. 

Ciro played along, asking questions about her classes, Adrien, the akuma situation that he had heard about over the news, and other things to keep Lila from growing suspicious. Sure enough, she prattled on through the entire car and ferry ride to Venice. Only seeming to look around questioning when they arrived at the Naval school, rather than their apartment.

“What are we doing here?” She asked, looking at her father in confusion.

The two parents dropped the act and glared at their daughter in disappointment and anger. “I’m surprised at you, young lady,” Greta started. “Did you really think you could keep lying to us? We. Know. Everything.”

They watched as her olive skin quickly paled. “What do you mean? I didn’t lie, I sw-”

“We know the school never closed,” Ciro interrupted, his tone leaving no room for argument or interruption. “We know about you lying to your classmates and teachers about having disabilities and diseases. We know about you changing our contact information on your school records. We know about you bullying and sexually harassing your classmates. We know about the threats you’ve made to that one girl. We know that you’ve been akumatized multiple times. We know the truth about what you really did to Roberto two years ago! WE KNOW EVERYTHING!”

With every word he said, Lila seemed to inch away from her irate parents and shrink into herself. At the same time, they saw the rage and contemplation in her eyes. She was angry at being caught and was already trying to think of a way out of trouble. Not that they would give her a chance to even try.

“But I didn’t li-”

“Lie number one, Ladybug is a useless superhero that let your school get damaged and spent months trying to deakumatize your principal, which is why you were out of school for two months.” Greta interrupted that time, pinning her daughter with a glare that she usually reserved for idiot interns who screwed up important paperwork at the embassy. “I personally spoke to your principal and looked into Ladybug. The school never closed. Ladybug and Chat Noir have always defeated the akumas and restored the damage thanks to their abilities. And you told the school that you and I were off globetrotting to places like Achu.”

Her eyes grew to the size of saucers. She was just beginning to stammer out an excuse when her father spoke over her.

“Lie number two, a girl named Marinette Dupain-Cheng has been bullying you because she is jealous of your relationship with your boyfriend, Adrien Agreste. We have seen the texts that you have sent that girl, the most recent saying,” Ciro pulled out his phone to read off of the text “‘…I’m going to ruin you in every way imaginable. No one will want to be your friend. By the time I’m done with you, I hope you kill yourself…’ Does that sound familiar to you?” 

“I also personally spoke to Adrien after I spoke to Marinette, and found out that not only are you nothis girlfriend, but you have been sexually harassing him! You even showed us proof in that picture you took where you kissed him!”

“But that’s not sexual harassment!” Lila shot back at them as her panic grew.

“Any unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature constitutes sexual harassment. Your mother and I memorized that when you accused Roberto of assault, which is anotherthing you lied about! And let me guess, you wanted to use that boy’s popularity and family connections for a leg-up, but he turned down your advances since he was gay. You didn’t take that rejection well, so you told us he assaulted you. Is that what happened?”

“How did you-” Lila interrupted herself that time by slapping her hand over her mouth, quickly realizing that she had confirmed what her father had just said.

“Well, congratulations young lady. You have earned a complete overhaul on your life.” 

“What do you mean?” Lila didn’t want to know, but it seemed like she had no choice but to ask.

“Your modelling contract with Gabrielis done,” Greta told her, noticing her wince since they weren’t supposed to know about that either. “I spoke with his assistant and discovered that you forged my signatures on the contracts to let you model. They were kind enough not to pursue legal action against you, but they have asked that I inform you that you have been blacklisted from the fashion industry, so that career option is completely closed off to you.”

“Your mother educated your friends at school with the truth. They know about all your lies and have kept us apprised of what you have been saying, the rumors you have been attempting to spread about going on a trip with a random music star, and were kind enough to forward that threatening message you sent to that girl, Marinette. They are no longer interested in being your ‘sheep’.”

“Not that you will be returning to that school,” Greta continued. “Your truancy has made that impossible, even if we did want you to stay there to face the consequences of your actions. Which includes paying restitution to the people you’ve hurt.”

“Paying!” Ciro and Greta watched as Lila’s right eye began to twitch as she snapped at them.

“Yes, paying. I’ve already emptied out your savings and trust fund to pay back Marinette, Adrien, and Roberto for what you’ve done to them-”

“You can’t do that! That’s my money!” She screamed, stomping her foot at her mother like a five year old throwing a tantrum.

“Money that you earned illegally modelling after forging my signature. And you are a minor, I am well within my rights to take that money to pay for the damages you have incurred. I will also be selling your laptop, tablet, mobile phone, as well as the clothes and jewelry you left in Paris. Seeing as you won’t be needing them anymore.”

As she said this, Lila clutched her phone and hugged it against her chest. “How am I supposed to talk to anyone without my phone?”

“Pen and paper, and if you need to speak with your mother, there’s my office phone or the payphone in the barracks, where you will be staying.” 

The girl’s eyes grew impossibly wide as she looked at her parents in a panic. They couldn’t mean…

Ciro smiled the smile that he used to greet the families whose children were in need of discipline. “Welcome to Francesco Morosini Naval Military School, where we strive to give children an education that will help them for their future and the world that waits for them.”

~oOo~

There had been a lot of begging, crying, and screaming after that as Lila did everything she could to try and change her parents’ minds. This was a total nightmare for her. Forced to wear a uniform she hated. Surrounded by students, teachers, and her father; all of whom knew that she was a liar. No one gave her the type of attention she craved, but everyone was giving her the overly watchful attention she despised. She couldn’t even enjoy becoming an akuma anymore, as she was far out of Hawkmoth’s reach.

Greta and Ciro had gone out to dinner afterwards in an attempt to de-stress, only to get a call an hour later that Lila had tried to steal a boat and run away from the school. She was put on a 24/7 watch after that, now required to wear a tracking monitor wherever she went and was on bathroom and floor cleaning duty for the foreseeable future.

When Greta returned to Paris, she went about doing exactly as she promised. She sold Lila’s electronics, clothes, and jewelry; only keeping a pair of plastic stud earrings that her grandmother had given her. She met with M. Damocles again to let him know that everything had been taken care of. She contacted the Dupain-Cheng family to let them know that Lila wouldn’t be bothering their daughter again. That was probably the most pleasant thing she did, as they were a lovely family and sent her off with a box of assorted scones, so yummy! When she had them send a box of goodies to her husband in Venice, he called her a few days later and begged her to send more whenever she could.

Lila absolutely hated seeing her father enjoy pastries from the bakery of her rival’s family. That, along with being forced to talk to a psychiatrist three times a week to make her admit that she was a liar and to figure out why she feels the need to lie. All while wearing a horrible uniform and actually having to clean. She was in her own personal hell. How she wished that she had never gotten sick.

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I’ve seen a few fics where Lila reports the bakery to the health department and then plants bad pastries and pests just as the inspector arrives and gets the bakery shut down. I started wondering, what would happen if she got caught doing that? Warm-Fuzzies and please enjoy!!

Lila kept watch as she waited for the health inspector to finally arrive. She had made multiple fake reports about the bakery over the past week to get someone to come out, but no one had come yet. And she had found the perfect spot to make sure she saw the man arrive, too! She was in disguise in the park, on a bench that had a clear view of the bakery entrance, the side entrance that went to the Dupain-Cheng home, and still let her stay hidden. She didn’t have to worry about school at the moment since her stupid class and teacher thought she was visiting the royal family in Spain, and her gullible mother thought school was out for another akuma attack. Both of which gave her an alibi so no one would suspect her when Maribrat and her goody-goody parents were humiliated and lose everything.

She was almost too distracted by her daydream of Marinette crying and homeless to see a very professional looking man step out of a taxi in front of the bakery. He looked at the display with a very critical eye before writing some things down on his tablet. That had to be the health inspector she had been waiting for. Once she saw him entering the front, Lila hot footed it to the side entrance to sneak in. 

The door was locked, but she had come prepared with a lockpick set she had gotten a couple years ago. It was really too easy to get inside. In fact, it had been much harder to get the fake evidence she would need to shut the place down. She discovered while going through the dumpster for old pastries that the bakery didn’t throw away much of anything. They sold out most of the time, and the things that didn’t were donated to a local homeless shelter. It took three days of dumpster diving to find anything, which ended up being a single batch of croissants that had burned in the oven. Heck, collecting some cockroaches from a restaurant dumpster down the street had been easier; albet, a lot more disgusting.

Once inside, Lila crept towards the door as she heard Mme. Cheng speaking to the man. He was, in fact, the health inspector. A malicious grin stretched across her face as she put the first moldy croissant on the counter next to the-

“What are you doing here?” A deep voice growled behind her.

Lila froze for a moment, suddenly realizing that she had heard Mme. Cheng speaking with the inspector, but not M. Dupain. She couldn’t let herself get caught! She was facing away from him and he hadn’t seen her face yet, so there was still a chance. Grabbing the first thing she could, she didn’t even look to see what it was, she swung it around at the towering man before trying to run past him. 

Despite hearing him curse in pain, Lila didn’t make it two steps before the man grabbed her by the collar of her jacket and lifted her off of the ground. She swung her object at him again, only for the enraged man to grab her wrist and twist, forcing her to drop it with a shout as it clanged to the floor. 

The noise drew Sabine and the inspector to the back where they say Tom holding Lila off the ground. Furious and still trying to escape, she tried kicking at him only for him to release her wrist, grab her ankle, and then release her jacket so she was hanging upside down. More items hit the floor as her hat fell off, a couple of croissants and the tupperware container of cockroaches fell from her pockets, and landed next to a bloody knife…

Uh-oh.

Looking up, she saw that his right arm was bleeding from where she had slashed him with the knife, which had her fingerprints all over it. She was going to be in so much trouble unless she could think of a way out of this!

“What happened, Tom?” Sabine asked, worried when she saw her husband’s bleeding arm and was slightly confused by the girl hanging upside-down in their kitchen. It took a moment before she seemed to recognize Lila as the girl that had gotten her daughter expelled a few weeks before.

“I was coming down to meet Inspector LaStare with you and caught this girl putting bad pastries with the others.” 

“That’s not it!” Lila yelled in a panic and she wiggled in his grip, resembling a fish on a hook. “I-I-I was- I was getting rid of them! I was taking them off the counter to throw them away!”

“And your container of cockroaches?” Asked Sabine, crossing her arms over her chest and glaring dubiously at the girl.

“Those aren’t mine! I swear! If you would just let me explain-”

“I’ve already heard enough to recognize your voice, young lady,” the inspector snapped as he stepped closer to glare at Lila. “I bet you weren’t paying attention when you called the health department all those times and the recording told you that your call would be monitored and recorded. And when a single business gets over twenty complaints in less than a week, it gets some attention. But when we listen to the recordings and hear the same voice for every message, we figure it’s someone with a vendetta against the establishment. Still, we do our do-diligence and inspect the establishment, but I had no idea how stupid a person would be to attempt to plant fake evidence while I was here, in full view of the security cameras.”

She couldn’t help her surprised gasp as she, while still hanging upside down in the hulking baker’s grip, looked around the kitchen ceiling until her eyes landed on the cameras. One pointed at the side door she had picked open and the other pointed at the counter where she had put the moldy pastry.

Sabine leaned in close, glaring straight into Lila’s upside-down eyes. “Young lady, what is your mother’s phone number?” It was clear that it was more of a demand than a question, but she was still trying to think of a way out of trouble before Sabine grabbed her face and forced Lila to look at her. “You can either tell me her number now, or you can tell the police so she can go pick you up at the station while they tell her all the crimes you’re being charged with.”

Angry at being caught and forced to call her mother, Lila thought of what she could do as she tried to look and sound pitiful as she recited her mother’s number. Not difficult since she was red-faced from hanging upside-down for so long. She might not be able to get out of trouble, but she’d be damned if they didn’t pay for humiliating her.

After Sabine stepped into the front of the bakery to make the call, Lila tearfully looked up at Tom. “Can you please put me down? I’m getting really dizzy.”

She could tell that the man was tempted to drop her on her head, but he was too much of a goody-goody like his daughter and he eased her gently to the floor. As soon as he let go of her ankle, Lila’s uninjured hand snapped out and grabbed the tupperware of cockroaches, ripped off the lid, and flung the insects across the floor. 

Tom and Inspector LaStare yelled in surprise and disgust as Lila attempted to escape, this time running for the front of the bakery. She actually made it out of the kitchen, but ended up face to face with Sabine. Without a word, the woman grabbed Lila’s by the arm, flipped her over her shoulder to the floor, and twisted her arm to where she couldn’t move.

“Are you okay, Tom?” Sabine called, her voice eerily calm to Lila’s ears.

“She flung those cockroaches across the kitchen! They’re everywhere!” Tom yelled as he and the inspector scrambled to try and kill or capture the insects.

“I’ve already called her mother and the police, they’ll be here any minute.”

Lila’s struggles doubled when she heard that. “You said you wouldn’t call the police if I gave you my mom’s number!”

Sabine merely twisted the girl’s arm a little more, halting her struggles rather than letting her arm break. “I said no such thing. I only said you could choose whether to talk to your mother here or at the police station. And I promise you, young lady, your mother is going to hear everything you’ve been up to. Including what you’ve been doing Marinette.”

~oOo~

The fallout had been epic after the police and Lila’s mother arrived at the bakery. 

Greta Rossi had been in denial at first, not wanting to think that her daughter was capable of such terrible behavior. But it was hard to argue with the video evidence and eyewitness accounts of Lila attempting to plant moldy pastries, vindictively releasing the cockroaches in the kitchen, or attacking Tom Dupain with a knife, which would require stitches. 

It got even worse when school let out for lunch and the majority of Lila’s classmates came rushing over when they saw the police and ambulance at the bakery. Mme. Rossi had asked them why they were all out when there was an akuma on the loose. The class asked her why they were back in Paris since she was supposed to be in a meeting with the royal family of Spain. It became apparent after a few more minutes of back and forth that Lila had been lying for the entire time they’d been in France and Greta would have to meet with M. Damocles and Mme. Bustier soon about her daughter’s absences and failure to contact her.

When the police were placing handcuffs on Lila, she started shrieking. “You can’t do this to me! I have diplomatic immunity! Let me go or I’ll get you fired and Italy will invade France for what you’re doing to me!”

“Wrong!” Greta spoke over Lila as she approached her daughter. “I’m a secretary at the embassy, not a diplomat. Only I have immunity, you don’t. I was lucky to even be able to bring you on assignment rather than leave you with your Zio and Zia in Italy. But I see that was a mistake, and now both of us will have to pay for that mistake!”

Lila continued to shriek and curse as she was forced into the back of the police cruiser and taken to the police station. 

In the end; Lila was charged with corporate sabotage, breaking and entering, assault with a deadly weapon, and slander by Tom and Sabine. She was also charged for truancy, forgery, bullying, slander, and cyber bullying for what she’d done to Marinette at school. Lila’s mother was forced to pay for an exterminator to take care of the cockroaches, as well as all of the supplies and pastries that had been at the bakery and had to be thrown out due to the infestation that Lila had attempted to cause. But the worst was having to pay restitution for the time the bakery was closed. Turns out, Tom and Sabine’s bakery really was the top bakery in Paris and had the receipts to prove it.

There had been some worry that the temporary shutdown would hurt the bakery’s reputation, but Inspector LaStare, with the help of Nadja Chamack, had seen to it that none of the problems would blow back on the Dupain-Chengs. Inspector LaStare had gone on record stating that it was a rare occasion where an establishment was completely innocent of the accusations brought against it, but this was one of those times. He then showed footage of Lila planting the moldy pastry, assaulting Tom with the knife, and flinging the bugs into the kitchen before attempting to escape. He also stated that he was personally working with the Dupain-Chengs to make sure that the bakery was up to code and open as soon as possible so all of Paris could get back to enjoying their favorite pastries.

Viewers all over Paris were appalled at the actions of the teenage girl,discovering her vendetta was against Marinette since she knew about Lila’s lies. While laughing at her as they watched Tom hold her upside-down by her leg and Sabine flip the fleeing girl over her shoulder via security footage. The footage ended up being shared by people all over YouTube and gained millions of views, showing their support for the Dupain-Chengs and humiliating Lila on a now global level.

There was also sympathy towards Marinette and outrage towards the Francois Dupont administration when Nadja reported how Lila had also been bullying Marinette without receiving any help from the school. This would result in both Damocles and Bustier being suspended from their jobs until they completed training in regards to handling bullies.

With all the publicity against Lila Rossi, Gabriel Agreste had been left in a difficult position since Lila had only recently been named a new spokesmodel for his brand. Adrien, however, offered a solution to save face and help the brand in the future. So, when Nadja was doing a followup on the story the following week, Gabriel did a video interview where he very publicly announced Lila’s termination from the company for her actions and announced that he had offered Marinette an internship and a scholarship to the fashion university of her choice, so long as she was accepted. This caused a slew of universities to scout Marinette themselves, as it wasn’t every day a fashion mogul does a public shout out to a girl in college. And just like that, sales and public opinion of the Agreste brand went up.

Lila watched all of this unfold from her prison cell outside of Paris. She had been tried as an adult and was caught committing perjury during her trial, which prompted the judge to give her the maximum sentence for her crimes. She couldn’t even enjoy the pleasure of being akumatized anymore since she was so far out of the city. All she could do was sit in her cell eating moldy bread with cockroaches as her only friends as she sulked on the fact that she had failed, and the entire world was laughing at her.

Taglist:

@2confused-2doanything @7-sage-7 @aadnrsstar @abrx2002 @awkwardromances @bayball @babylovebug18 @botanicalfoxx @back-cats-and-broken-mirrors @caffeinetheory @cheshire5210 @chocolateherringtacofan @city-of-all-tunas @classycollectorreviewworld  @corabeth11 @chocolatechipcookiesandcamembert @darkened-flame @delightfulcookiesrecipespizza@fandom-trapped-03 @ghostmaster @iamblinkmarvelarmy @interobanginyourmom @izang@jesussavedevenme @kazedancer @kitten12113 @lady-phoenix-of-tardis @lilypotter2018 @lunataravler @ladylupuscrow @maskedpainter @miraculouslydumb @nerd-nowandforever @ola-is-dead @pandacatxd @plushbookworm @plz-excuse-my-inner-ravenclaw @pheonix-biach @pandora-fucking-box @raiderofthelostbooks @ramos123 @rowanrouge @rowanyx @ren121 @seesea22 @seraphichana @sashakoi @shypeacekitten @tazer6787 @that-girl-sakea @thecrazyfantrollshasmoved @the-smallest-kittenz @tishwinchesterannabethjackson @t1dwarrior-of-earth @ulmban @with-forward-motion @wonderbat91939 @zoiechance

Hey everyone! I’ve been writing this new story for the past couple of days, and am planning to take a break for a while after this. My husband and I are expecting our first child next week and will be focusing on her. For that reason, I decided to give the class some sugar, as we all need some goodness in the world. I’ll be back when things settle down, but until then, Warm-Fuzzies and please enjoy!

It was just an average conversation. Alya was sitting at her desk before class with Lila since Marinette was late again. It was very pleasant until the italian girl said something… wrong.

“After I saved Jagged’s kitten from being run over by the plane and he wrote that song about me, we kept in touch.” Lila tittered away, without a care. “He ended up mentioning how he wanted a pair of special glasses for his tour, so I made him those Eiffel Tower glasses that he loves so much. Next thing I know, he’s bragging about me to all his friends and they’re all asking me to make things for them too. I ended up making a website and going by the alias MDC. Isn’t that amazing?”

Alya hadn’t had a chance to answer as Marinette came rushing into the room a second before the bell rang and Mme. Bustier began her lesson. Although whatever the teacher was saying was practically ignored by the majority of the class that had heard Lila’s claim. 

Because they knew.

They had been there when Marinette had made those glasses for Jagged Stone for the work experience day at Chloe’s family hotel. They knew that Marinette went by the acronym MDC for the initials of her name. Max, Rose, Juleka, Mylene, Kim, and Alya had all helped Marinette set up her website and model her designs a couple months ago, while Lila had been traveling… 

She’s a LIAR!! They all thought at once.

During the next break, Alya quickly set up a group chat with everyone but Lila and Marinette.

FoxyJournalist:You all heard that, right? She’s lying about being MDC, but that’s Marinette!

DJTurtle:So not cool, doesn’t she know that we were there? Is this some kind of joke?

MightIllustrator:Don’t think so, she’s still bragging about it back here.

GothicBeauty:@DJTurtle Agreed, not cool.

Rocker’n’Pink:I can’t believe it! I just emailed Prince Ali to see if he knows her, because if Lila’s lying about this…

BigTeddy: …

SmolTeddy: …

TrueBrain: …

Da’Strongest: … Crap

Sk8Grl: … I second that Crap

FoxyJournalist:Emergency meeting at my place tonight! We need to figure all this out!

DJTurtle:Agreed.

TruQueen:We’ll be there too. I don’t like Dupain-Cheng, but I HATE Rossi.

MissRed:I’ll bring snacks.

By the time class started again, everyone had agreed to meet up after school. The hard part, as it turned out, was shaking the liar, who practically latched onto their group and wouldn’t let them be. It was Mylene you finally came up with an idea, mentioning that they were going to the homeless shelter to help feed people and clean the facility. Lila suddenly rememberedthat she already had plans and couldn’t come help them, before turning to walk home.

Once she was out of earshot, Alix turned to the other girl with a smirk. “Good going, how’d you know that’d work?”

Mylene shrugged. “I was thinking earlier about all the times she talked about charity work but always made excuses to not come with us when we were doing it. I figured she’d do it this time too, and I was right.”

An hour later the entire class; sans Marinette, Lila, and Adrien, who was at a photoshoot, were gathered in the Cesaire apartment. Everyone had their phones or tablets out, looking up everything that Lila had told them since coming to school. And what they found was anything but comforting.

Connection to Jagged Stone due to saving a kitten: lies, according to articles about his one and only pet for the past 17 years, Fang the crocodile.

Connection to Prince Ali via Go-Green charities: lies, according to Prince Ali himself when he responded to Rose’s email, plus he didn’t do green charities, instead focusing on children’s charities.

Secretly dating Adrien: lies, confirmed when Adrien called Nino back during a break and let it slip that Lila was only his friend and that she made him uncomfortable at times because of how clingy she was.

Every single thing they looked up about Lila turned out to be a lie. And although they couldn’t prove it themselves, that likely meant that all of the diseases and injuries that she’d claimed to have were probably fake too. Meaning that they had been buying her lunch and giving her money for charities, and the money was probably going straight into the liar’s pocket.

“By my calculations, when including all the lunches and food we bought for her, money we donated for charities she wasn’t involved in, and tickets for events she attended with us; Lila Rossi has scammed close to €1,000 from our class. All of which we are not likely to get back from her.” Max groused as he typed away on his tablet.

Alix scoffed. “At least all we lost was some money and a bit of our dignity. I’m pretty sure Marinette went through a lot more than us. Heck, that liar tried to convince me last week that Marinette ruined her homework and said ‘if only she understood what it was like for someone to do that to her’ like she was trying to get me to destroy Marinette’s homework as revenge. I didn’t do it, but I let her copy my homework so she wouldn’t lose any points.”

Juleka’s pale complexion went stark white. “She kept telling me how Marinette was only friends with me so she could get close to Luka and make Adrien jealous, and that I was really trusting to let someone like that near my family.”

“When my headphones broke, she told me that she’d seen Marinette messing with them earlier,” Nino told them, his voice laced with guilt as he remembered giving his oldest friend the cold shoulder for days after that.

Alya’s head dropped into her hands as she struggled to hold back tears. “That liar almost had me convinced that Mari was nothing but a jealous bitch who was out to get rid of her since they both had a crush on Adrien. I can’t believe how close I came to buying that bull.”

“And then there’s the expulsion,” Rose added, her voice quivering. “She was accused of stealing, assault, and cheating on that mock exam. Even though Marinette was reinstated, that kind of stuff doesn’t just disappear from someone’s record. What if that keeps her from being accepted into lycee?”

Everyone went pale at that. Although most turned red in the face a moment later from rage for their friend.

“We can’t let her get away with this!” Kim growled as he began pacing the room.

“But is there anything we can really do?” Mylene asked with tears in her eyes.

When the blonde heiress chuckled, sitting off to the side of the room, everyone turned to glare at her, but she wasn’t phased by their looks. “And this is exactly why I decided to come here. None of you have any idea how to deal with someone like Rossi. I, however, have dealt with those types of people multiple times.” The glares ceased, realizing that Chloe was probably right. 

“One of the best ways to get back at her, would be to use her own lies against her. Do it in a way that the only way out of it is to admit that she’s a liar. And while we do that, we completely tear down the empire that fake HBIC is trying to build, maybe get her expelled like she tried to do to Dupain-Cheng.”

The class stared at her in surprise, not expecting the former hero to actually be useful in this situation. But what she said…

Alya shook her head in surprise. “I never thought I’d say this, but it sounds like you’re the best option. Please, tell us your plan.”

The smirk Chloe gave them, almost made them feel sorry for what was about to happen to the liar.

~oOo~

The following morning when Lila came to class, she saw everyone fawning over something on their phones or tablets. Curious, she stepped next to Alya and looked over her shoulder to find that she was looking at the MDC website. 

She smirked for a second before plastering an appreciative, yet shy grin on her face. “I see you found my website, what do you think of my designs?” 

“Gurl, they are gorgeous! I can’t believe you made such intricate clothes and accessories!” Alya gushed as she continued looking through the pictures until she stopped on a design that she had modeled for Marinette, although, like all the other photos, her face wasn’t shown. “And this one here! It’s like a total dedication to Rena Rouge. Make no mistake, Ladybug will always be my favorite, but Rena’s power is really awesome too.”

“I’m glad you like it!” Lila smiled, she was about to go into describing how she was inspired by the design when Alya asked her something surprising.

“Do you think I can have it? Pretty please?”

Lila came up short, not having expected this. “Well, you can just order it from my website-” she began saying, only to stop when Alya’s expression dropped.

“I don’t understand. You always say that if we need anything to just ask you, and you have this dress listed as in stock on your website, it would be nothing for you to just give it to me, right?”

“I-um-”

“And you even told Marinette the other day that if she were a real friend, she wouldn’t mind giving us free pastries whenever we ask, right?”

“R-right! I’m just surprised that you would be so interested in one of my designs. I’ll bring it in tomorrow!”

“Thanks gurl, you’re the best.” Alya gushed before giving Lila a hug that actually kind of hurt. 

Hurrying back to her seat, Lila resisted the urge to curse as she got onto the MDC website to order and overnight the dress to her apartment. Luckily, the mail normally arrived before she left for school. And doing this would help her convince everyone she was the designer MDC.

~oOo~

Lila’s newest lie about being MDC wasn’t going as planned. Sure, she got a lot of praise and people wearing her designs, but it was costing her. Every time she brought in an item that she’d had to buy and overnight to her apartment to give to one of her classmates, another would practically demand another item that was listed as available on the MDC website. A hat for Alix, a hoodie for Kim, a shirt for Max, a dress for Rose, it went on and on. And when she tried to say that she couldn’t, they would say how Marinette would never do such a thing and then start to question what she told them. This left her no choice but to buy everything they wanted herself and give to them. 

Sure, it made her lie all the more believable since she was able to deliver the items they asked for, but it was beginning to clear out her savings. At the rate she was going, she was probably MDC’s best customer.

Then came the day when the MDC website began offering custom orders. Alya asked Marinette for a couple sheets of paper from her sketchbook and a pencil before handing it to Lila. “Gurl, I’ve been wanting you to do something custom for me for weeks, but I wasn’t going to ask since you didn’t have it listed on your website and I didn’t want to take advantage of you. But now, I can tell you exactly what I want and I can even record your process for my blog! Isn’t that awesome?”

Lila gripped the pencil until it nearly snapped. She could barely draw stick figures and she was pretty sure Maribrat knew that, not missing the smirk that the goody-two-shoes was sending her direction. “I would but, oww! My arthritis has been acting up all day and I can barely hold a pencil.” She whimpered pathetically as gingerly gripped her left wrist.

“But that shouldn’t be a problem,” Max spoke up smiling kindly at her. “After all, it’s your left wrist that has arthritis and you’re right handed.”

Shut up, you stupid nerd! She thought, struggling to keep the scowl from her face. “You’re right, but I’m not sure if I’ll have enough time to draw something out before class starts.”

“But, Jagged Stone and Clara Nightingale have commented on your website how you are really good at doing fast concept drawing for your designs. So, it shouldn’t take you too long to come up with something to start with.” Rose commented, her high voice grating on the liar’s nerves.

She was trying to think of another excuse when Chloe began laughing. “You can all stop the act, I think we’ve played it out long enough.”

To Lila’s surprise, the majority of the class nodded before their eager, friendly faces turned to scowls and angry glares as they looked in her direction. Unsure of what else to do, she started faking tears as she looked around the room. “Why are all of you looking at me like that? I haven’t done anything wrong. Did Marinettesay something? You know-”

“Cut the crap, Lila! We did our research weeks ago and figured out you’re nothing but a lying bag of nothing.” Chloe cut her off as she stood from her desk and smiled cruelly at the girl. “You really messed up when you started claiming you were the MDC, the rising star of fashion. Everyone in class knows that’s Marinette.”

Unable to help herself, Lila’s head whipped around in shock to glare at the french-asian girl, sitting shocked, but a little smug at her desk. “Is that what Marinettesaid? She’s lying!”

Alya scoffed this time. “You know, there may have been a point when we might have believed you, but not this time. We were all there when Mari gave those glasses to Jagged Stone and then had her design his album cover. Max and I helped her set up the MDC website. And Rose, Juleka, Mylene, Kim, Max, and I were the ones that modeled the designs posted on her website.”

Lila glared at her. She knew when the jig was up, and there was no point in wasting her energy on her worthless classmates anymore. Still, she couldn’t help but be angry at them. “Well, you all better have the money to pay me back for all the stuff I bought you! Or else I’ll get all of you in trouble with Mme. Bustier and M. Damocles. If you can’t tell, from the time I got Maribrat expelled, I’ve got them both wrapped around my finger.”

“Actually, you can consider all this repaying us.” Max grinned that annoying, calculating grin at her. “Everything you bought was equal to or of similar value to all the lunches we bought you, tickets for events that we covered, or money we donated to your supposed charities, which I’m 96.8% sure was actually your own bank account.”

She growled at that, about to let out a tirade at all of them when Chloe laughed again, gaining her attention again. “Well, all that was to pay back the class, but you’re still not even with Dupain-Cheng or me. I’m sick of seeing your ugly face and hair-don’t in here every day and decided to do something about it. So, I had Daddy get a hold of the Italian Embassy for a meeting the other day. Imagine how surprised and angry they were when the ambassador’s assistant started talking about how incopitant Ladybug and Chat Noir are, since they couldn’t defeat the akuma that had forced her daughter’s school to close for months.”

Lila’s tan skin paled quickly as her head whipped around the room, looking for an escape, but Ivan and Kim were guarding the door. 

“The woman was even more surprised after mentioning which school it was and Daddy told her how it was my school. Then I mentioned a girl that had been out of school for the time the assistant had mentioned, and that she claimed to be in the kingdom of Achu via Embassy funds. The Ambassador wasn’t too happy about what he was hearing and cut the meeting short. Although I did hear her mention that she was planning to speak with the principal and her daughter’s teacher. Speaking of, I wonder why Mme. Bustier is so late for class?

Seconds later, the door Ivan and Kim had been guarding burst open, revealing a very angry Damocles, Mme. Bustier, and a woman that had a strong resemblance to Lila. Without a single word, the woman stomped forward, grabbed Lila by the arm, and began dragging her out of the room. Lila tried to pull free as she pleaded for her mother to listen, but the woman didn’t say a single word as the door closed behind them, leaving a very upset Mme. Bustier standing at the front of the room.

The news quickly spread around school before lunch how Lila had done, and was likely to be expelled for truancy, bullying, lying to the staff, and trying to get Marinette expelled. If that hadn’t been bad enough, an akuma had come fluttering into the courtyard just as the two Rossi’s had been leaving. Lila had pushed her mother away in an effort to catch the akuma, only for a yo-yo to smack her hand to catch it, snapping two of the liar’s fingers in the process. 

Seeing that, M. Damocles had no choice but to call the police while Ladybug and Chat Noir stood guard over Lila, with Alya recording everything from the moment she’d seen the akuma entering the courtyard. Lila screamed and raged as the police handcuffed her and took her away. Ladybug recommended using a facility outside of Paris, as they had witnessed her willingly going after an akuma.

The class never saw Lila again, although they did hear that she had been deported back to Italy and was dropped in a high security prison’s deepest, darkest hole to be forgotten by the world after being convicted for aiding a terrorist. Granted, none of them had expected that when they had set out to get even with Lila, but after seeing her willingly go after an akuma for revenge, they were glad she was gone.

The class had also profusely apologized to Marinette for not believing her, as well as keeping her in the dark about their plan to expose Lila. Marinette accepted their apology, but admitted that she had been starting to figure it out after Lila kept ordering from her website and her classmates ended up with the ordered items. Then, when she had mentioned her theory to Adrien, he’d shown her the group chat and admitted that the class had planned a way to confront and expose Lila. So, she decided to trust her friends and let their plan play out, using the money Lila had spent to buy more supplies and make matching ‘thank you’ gifts for her friends.

And that’s it! I hope you all enjoyed this bit of class sugar. With all the salt out there, I really needed something sweet and this seemed like a good way to do it!

Taglist:

@2confused-2doanything @7-sage-7 @aadnrsstar @abrx2002 @awkwardromances @bayball @babylovebug18 @botanicalfoxx @back-cats-and-broken-mirrors @caffeinetheory @cheshire5210 @chocolateherringtacofan @city-of-all-tunas @classycollectorreviewworld  @corabeth11 @chocolatechipcookiesandcamembert @darkened-flame @delightfulcookiesrecipespizza@fandom-trapped-03 @ghostmaster @iamblinkmarvelarmy @interobanginyourmom @izang@jesussavedevenme @kazedancer @kitten12113 @lady-phoenix-of-tardis @lilypotter2018 @lunataravler @maskedpainter @ miraculouslydumb @nerd-nowandforever @ola-is-dead @pandacatxd @plushbookworm @plz-excuse-my-inner-ravenclaw @pheonix-biach @raiderofthelostbooks @ramos123 @rowanrouge @rowanyx @ren121 @seesea22 @seraphichana @sashakoi @shypeacekitten @tazer6787 @that-girl-sakea @thecrazyfantrollshasmoved @the-smallest-kittenz @tishwinchesterannabethjackson @t1dwarrior-of-earth @ulmban @with-forward-motion @wonderbat91939@zoiechance

Hey everyone! Sorry I’ve been missing for a while, but I’ve had a lot going on and lacking inspiration, until the other day! I know that Lila thinks she’s the smartest person in the room and that everyone else it too stupid to figure her out. So, I decided to let her “think” she’s being smart, but gets caught because she did something stupid. Warm-Fuzzies and please enjoy!

Lila was happy. Since she had become a model, she had acquired a small fan base of people that thought she had beauty and talent. Granted, it wasn’t as large as she thought it should be, but she had only done three photo shoots and had been mentioned in one magazine. But this was just the beginning; soon, all of Europe would know her name and reporters would be clamoring after her for pictures. 

But at the same time she was very angry.

This was because Marinette had been mentioned in the same magazine as her. And where Lila got a single photo that showed more of Adrien than it did of her, Maribrat had gotten an entire article and multiple photos about her designs and the collaboration she was doing with Style Queen Audrey Bourgeois since the woman had decided to stay in Paris. She had even looked at the girl’s website and saw that there was an actual wait list to receive one of her original designs.

Enraged that someone she considered to be plain, talentless, and all around lower in status than her, Lila started coming up with plans. She wasn’t about to share her spotlight with anyone, let alone Maribrat.

She was tempted to accuse the bluenette of stealing her designs and ruining her reputation, but since she had been designing for longer than Lila had been in Paris, that had too much of a chance to backfire. She’s thought of sicking one of her classmates/sheep to break into her house and destroy her commission projects, but that also had too much of a chance to backfire since they would likely blab if they were caught.

No, she needed a different type of plan. Something that would be farther removed from herself so nothing would blow back on her, but harsh enough so that even Maribrat wouldn’t connect what happened to her. It took a few weeks and a lot of planning, but she came up with something that would work. It had been the perfect plan, a way to get Marinette out of her life and the spotlight for good. 

All it took was some sweet talking one of her new followers; a large, burly boy named Henry that was a couple years older than her and not very bright. He would have done anything for her… including going after a “stalker” that had threatened to hurt her. She barely even had to suggest anything before the boy assured her that he would protect her at all costs. It even seemed to be working when Maribrat was suspiciously absent from school for a few days after Henry said he would “take care of it”.

It had been the perfect plan…

Until the police showed up. 

She had just gotten home when the police arrived, saying that she was wanted for questioning in an open case. They had already been in contact with her mother and Greta Rossi had promised them their full cooperation. Rather than risk looking guilty, Lila called her mother to make sure they were telling the truth before grudgingly going with them. 

When she got to the police station, she was met by her very confused and furious mother. This wasn’t the first time she had been in trouble with the law. There had been an incident in Rome where she’d been accused of pushing a boy, Simone, down the stairs, and her mother had been forced to pay his medical bills. She had made it very clear that if Lila caused any more problems at school, it would not be pleasant.

So there she was; sitting with her mother and a couple of police detectives that she didn’t recognize, who were giving her condescending looks. “I am Detective Cooper, and this is Detective Raimus. We understand that you have been made aware of your rights, correct?”

“Yes, multiple times. What is this all about? You can’t just bring my daughter in for questioning like she’s some common criminal.” Her mother said as she stared down the two men.

“Mme. Rossi, we need to ask your daughter some questions in connection to an assault that took place against one of her classmates.” Stated Cooper, a detective with a thick mustache.

“Are you or your daughter familiar with a M. Henry Mortaure?”

“I’ve never heard of him,” Lila lied with a shrug.

“Neither have I, who was attacked?” Her mother asked, suddenly worried about what her daughter might have gotten involved in.

“A Mlle. Marinette Dupain-Cheng, are you familiar with the name?” Asked Raimus, who looked a bit older than his partner.

Greta Rossi thought for a second before nodding. “Lila has mentioned her a couple of times, said that she was a bully. What about her?”

“The Dupain-Cheng residence was broken into a few days ago by M. Mortaure. He was armed and confessed to be doing so with the intent of killing Mlle. Dupain-Cheng.” Mme. Rossi gasped in shock while Lila was attempting to hide her smirk with a look of worry. “The Dupain-Chengs were not harmed, although the same cannot be said for M. Mortaure.” Cooper placed some photos in front of them on the table, gaining another gasp from Greta. Three of the man’s limbs were wrapped in heavy gauze, his face was swollen and bruised from a black eye and a seriously broken nose. 

Lila didn’t flinch when she saw the photos, but was now fighting a scowl at the knowledge that Henry had failed her. And since she was here in an interrogation room, it could only mean that the idiot had blabbed. But that didn’t matter, she could just say that he must be a crazy stalker who had somehow found out that Maribrat was bullying her and decided to take things into his own hands. After all, it wasn’t like she had called or messaged him from her personal phone. She had bought a burner phone with cash just for this occasion. 

“Despite being armed with a pistol, he never had a chance to use it,” Raimus stated as pushed one of the photos towards Lila. “He will require reconstructive surgery on his face from being hit multiple times with a rolling pin. His arms were severely burned when he fell into a fryer, it’s likely that he’ll never have full use of them again. Despite the burns, he attempted to go for a kitchen knife after being disarmed. That knife was turned on him and he ended up with a perforated lung.”

Greta looked like she was going to be sick, unable to look away from the pictures in front of her. But she eventually did, casting a harsh stare at her daughter. “Please, tell me you had nothing to do with this.”

Doing her best to fake her shock, she shook her head and pushed away the photos. “I swear, I had nothing to do with this. I don’t even know why he would do this.”

“We were wondering the same thing and discovered that he’s a fan of yours. He has multiple pictures of you, as well as Mlle. Dupain-Cheng. We suspected that he had been stalking you and came to the conclusion that he thought she was bullying you and decided to protect you on his own-”

“Oh no, that has to be it!” She exclaimed, skillfully faking shock. “Marinette followed me out of school last week and threatened me to stay away from my boyfriend. This boy must have seen her and decided to get rid of her.”

“If that’s the case, why are you questioning my daughter?” Greta pressed, not completely believing Lila but seeming to be coming around to her side.

“As I was saying,” stressed Detective Cooper. “We had suspectedthat M. Mortaure was stalking your daughter, until we got the warrant for his phone. It seems that someone, supposedly Lila, has been corresponding with him for many weeks. She had been flirting with him, sending him photos of herself, and then Marinette. She went on to tell him that Mlle. Dupain-Cheng was a stalker and had threatened her. M. Mortaure seems to have done what he did with the understanding that he was protecting Lila, at Lila’s own behest.”

“I would never do that!” Lila cried before reaching into her purse to pull out her personal mobile and set it on the table in front of them. “Check my phone, I never messaged him.”

“We have already checked your phone records against the one that has been messaging M. Mortaure, and found that the numbers did not match.” Detective Raimus said, and Lila watched her mother visibly slump from relief… but it was short lived. 

“We did, however, track the number to a burner phone that was purchased in cash from a gas station. We thought it was a dead end, but the person who bought the phone made a mistake.” Raimus continued as Detective Cooper pulled out his own mobile and dialed a number. “The person who bought it has kept it on, and it is currently active.”

Seconds after Cooper pressed send, a ringing came from Lila’s purse. Greta Rossi stared at her daughter in shock before yanking the purse out of Lila’s hands and pulling out a second phone from inside. When Cooper cancelled the call, the second phone stopped ringing. 

“What have you done?” She spat at Lila.

Panicking, she shook her head while looking around the room for an exit. “That’s not mine! They must have planted it on me when they brought me here! They’re trying to frame me!”

“DON’T LIE TO ME!” Greta screamed at her daughter, causing Lila to practically fall out of her seat in fear. “You convinced someone to commit MURDER for you! That makes you just as guilty as him!”

“But-but I have diplomatic immunity! I can’t be charged for any of this!”

“Yes, you can,” Greta said, her voice going cold. “I may be a secretary to the Italian Ambassador, which grants me immunity, but that doesn’t extend to you! I told you to behave! I told you to never cause trouble like you did in Roma after what you did to that boy that called you out on your…” Understanding washed over Greta’s features as her expression morphed from anger, to understanding, and then disgust. “That’s it, isn’t it? Marinette never bullied you. She knew about your lies and you set out to hurt her just like before!” 

Standing up quickly, her mother started pacing the room before looking back to the detectives. “I’ll still need to speak with the ambassador, but you can expect our full cooperation in this.”

“Mom, no!”

“What are the charges?” Greta asked, acting as though Lila wasn’t even there. 

“As Lila is a minor, she can be charged with Complicity to Commit Murder, the decision of sentencing is ultimately up to the judge. But seeing as she purposefully bought a burner phone to use and has also lied to the police, I wouldn’t hold much hope.”

~oOo~

The trial took longer than expected. At first, things had been looking up since her followers from class had come to act as character witnesses. All of them saying how wonderful she was, a great friend that did so much for them and everyone she knew,   and that she would never do something so terrible. That Marinette was just jealous of Lila, so it was better to take whatever she said with a grain of salt.

Then, the prosecution started their case. Showing evidence of Lila falsifying records at school, video evidence of her purposefully framing Marinette for assault and theft. As well as the communications between herself and Henry, encouraging him to kill Marinette. 

Her followers had still been a bit sceptical to believe what the prosecutor was saying about her, not wanting to believe that they had supported someone who would try to get another person murdered. But then came her past victims, many of whom her mother had never known about. Simone from Rome, Sara from Florence, Giulia from Venice, Daniel from Viterbo, and Sofia from Palermo. All of them testifying against Lila, many with screenshots of threatening texts from her, photos of ruined property and injuries she had inflicted on them, and all around proof that Lila was the reason behind many hardships that had happened to them. And all because they had figured out that she was a liar and she had done everything in her power to hurt them.

After all that, the judge had not been kind. 

“It is clear, Mlle. Rossi, that you are a very disturbed girl in need of help,” the judge said, not bothering to hide how offput he was by Lila. “I cannot, in good conscious, allow you to roam freely. Having seen that these habits of yours have not only been repeated over and again, but have escalated to attempted murder. I have no choice but to have you returned to Italy where you will be kept in a juvenile detention center until you turn 18, at which point you will be transferred to a mental hospital for treatment for no less than five years. At which point, you will be evaluated to see if you will be able to safely rejoin society.”

Lila was immediately escorted back to Italy in disgrace. Her name slandered across every newspaper and magazine across Europe for what she had done. She was now famous, with most everyone knowing her name and reporters scrambling to take her picture as she did her walk of shame out of the courthouse. She was finally famous, but for all the wrong reasons

In case you are wondering. Henry made the mistake of coming after Marinette when she was with her parents. Tom and Marinette were in the bakery kitchen and Sabine was at the front. Tom saw the gun and hit him in the face with his rolling pin twice. He dropped the gun but was still coming after Marinette, she tripped him and he landed in the frier, which had been turned on to make donuts, and splashed oil all over him. Sabine had rushed back in time to see a bleeding and badly burned Henry grabbing a knife, she did some wicked moves that resulted in Henry stabbing himself. By then, he passed out from the pain and the Dupain-Chengs had called the police. The officers that came were both impressed and terrified by what happened to the boy, but the surveillance footage proved that they were only defending themselves.

TAGLIST:

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So, I read a prompt from @charming-mage about Lila’s laptop being damaged and her mother finds out that Lila’s been lying to her and the school. I thought it was a cute idea and the girl would have no way of trying to turn things onto Marinette, so I went with it. Warm-Fuzzies and please enjoy!!

It was a silly little accident that ended up exposing everything. Lila had accidentally spilt coffee on her laptop and caused it to short out. Her mother, being terrible with technology, had taken it to a repair shop to see if it could be saved. 

Greta Rossi had taken her lunch break and gone to the repair shop to check on the state of the laptop. The woman behind the counter, Evelyn, gave her head a shake, saying there was too much corrosion and the damage to the motherboard. “Best I can tell, you didn’t unplug it, take out the battery, or tilt it to let the liquid drain out away from the main components. That was pretty much a death sentence to this thing.”

Greta groaned at that. It would be expensive to buy her daughter a new laptop, but it was necessary so she could do her homework and communicate with her friends when akuma attacks were so bad that the school shut down. “Were you able to save anything?” She asked the woman.

“Some things,” she nodded, handing Greta a flashdrive. “Mostly your photos, some saved documents, I also noticed that you were emailing your daughter’s school when the laptop was damaged. I was able to save that conversation for you.”

Her hand froze as she stared at the woman. “Are you sure? I only ask because that wasn’t my laptop, that was my daughter’s laptop.”

Evelyn’s eyes widened slightly before nodding. “It was the first thing I was able to recover since it was mid-correspondence. I assumed it was your laptop since the emails were addressed to you and were signed by you. If that’s not the case… I think you should probably read those emails and talk to your daughter’s principal as soon as possible.”

A little uncertain of what the woman just told her, Greta called the Embassy to tell them she would be taking the rest of the day off. Going home, she plugged in the flashdrive and started looking over the emails that Evelyn had mentioned. Sure enough, they were between Principal Damocles and supposedlysigned by her. The first emails were dated the day Lila had told her the school was closed due to akuma attacks, only the email said that she was pulling Lila out of school to go on a diplomatic trip to Achu. 

A little taken aback, Greta looked up the akuma incidents to see just how bad things were. She normally wasn’t permitted to look up these kinds of things at work, nor did she ever have the time since she had to make sure the Ambassador’s days were scheduled down to the minute and all the paperwork was ready to be signed. But now that she had a moment to look, she could see videos of Ladybug and Chat Noir defeating every akuma… and two of the akumas had been her own daughter! This meant that Lila had been lying to her for months!

The next email was from the day of the Scarlet Moth incident, she remembered her co-workers talking about it. That email to Damocles said that her number had changed and gave a new number, which just happened to be Lila’s number.

Another email requesting doctors notes for Lila’s numerous injuries and disabilities: tinnitus, a sprained wrist, a dislocated kneecap, and tonsolatius. Lila had responded with photocopied doctors’ notes that even Greta could tell were fake, and the principal had responded with gratitude for the prompt response.

Some of the more recent emails spoke about Lila being pushed down the stairs by another student and how a family heirloom had been stolen by the same student! Only to be followed by another email requesting anotherdoctor’s note referencing a disease Lila claimed to have that makes her lie uncontrollably. Was the principal a total idiot? 

The most recent email, the one Lila had been working on when the laptop was destroyed, stopped mid-sentence as Greta Rossi told Damocles that she and Lila would be going on another extended diplomatic trip to London, as she would be working personally with the Queen of England. If Greta hadn’t been furious at her daughter before, she sure was now. 

Still, part of her wanted to have some faith in her daughter, so she would set up a test when Lila got home. Which, coincidentally, wouldn’t be long as she had spent a good few hours reading over the emails and she had finally looked into akuma reports that had occurred since they had moved to Paris.

Lila came home about half an hour later, texting on her phone with a cruel smile, but abruptly stopped when she saw her mother. “Mama, you’re home early. Is it because of the akuma attacks?”

“No,mia bella. I was just given the afternoon off, so I decided to spend it with you. How was school?”

Watching her daughter carefully, she saw her change in posture and expression as she began to do the same fake crying she did when she was 6 years old. “Oh Mama, it was terrible. The school got attacked by another akuma and Chat Noir was just so reckless, his Cataclysm destroyed half of the school. It got closed down until repairs can be completed again.”

“Mia Bella! You weren’t hurt, were you?” Greta asked, faking shock and worry. She suspected that Lila had completed the email on her tablet or a computer at school and sent it to Damocles. Now, her daughter was trying to make an excuse as to why she was staying home. But Greta wasn’t about to be fooled again. Oh no, she had given her daughter a chance and now she was going to make her pay. “That’s it, I can’t allow you to keep attending such a dangerous place.”

Lila stopped mid-sob to look at her mother in surprise. “W-what are you saying?”

“Lila, from what you’ve told me about Hawkmoth, the akuma’s, and those terrible vigilanties; I can’t force you to stay in such a dangerous place due to my job. Go to your room and pack, I’ll call your Zio e Zia in Italia and ask if they can take you in while I finish my assignment here in Paris.” Greta continued to watch her daughter as she spoke, her expression becoming more and more panicked and upset as she spoke. Lila had never liked staying with her uncle and aunt because they lived on a farm that was far from everything, had no internet or cell service, and Greta’s brother was of the mindset that if you didn’t work on the farm, you didn’t eat.

“Bu-but Mama, you can’t just send me away like this! What about school-”

“You just told me that the school was shut down again due to the attacks, and after all the other times the school has been closed, I doubt if you’ll be able to graduate with the other schools or even be accepted into lycee at this point. At least if I send you back to Italia, you’ll be safe and be able to go to school without worrying about being attacked.” Reaching forward, Greta took Lila’s hands firmly between her own. “Please understand, mia bella, I am your mother and I love you more than anything. Even if you’re upset with me, I must do what is best for you and your future.”

Lila didn’t bother hiding her scowl as she tried to tug her hands from her mother’s grip. Then the girl really looked at her mother’s face and realized something was wrong. “Mama?”

Greta returned her scowl. “I am very disappointed in you, young lady. I was giving you a chance to come clean and tell me the truth.” Lila’s eyes blew wide open and was about to say something, but was cut off. “I saw those emails between myself and M. Damocles on your computer. Funny thing, I don’t remember writing them. I also don’t recall changing my contact number, going on a diplomatic trip to Achu, or telling him about a bunch of injuries, disabilities, and diseases that you don’t have. I also don’t remember my bosses assigning me to go on another diplomatic trip to London to work with the Queen of England, seeing as I’m not an ambassador.”

“Wait, Mama! I swear, I can explain-”

“You’ve already said enough! You and I are going to the school right now to speak with M. Damocles. You are going to tell him everything that you’ve been lying about and I’m going to have a talk with him about your supposed fall down the stairs since I’m pretty sure you lied about that as well since I was never notified and you were never taken to the hospital.”

“No, Mama! Please-”

“Be quiet! If you dare try to fight me on this or say one more lie, you will be on a plane back to Italia tonight and spend the rest of your school career with your Zio e Zia, understand?

Pouting the entire time. Lila went back to the school with her mother and was forced to confess to everything she had lied about. M. Damocles also ended up looking at the CCTV footage, something that Greta thought he should have done in the first place, and showed that her daughter had not been pushed down the stairs and had planted the not-family-heirloom in the other student’s locker. Greta demanded that he tell Lila’s class exactly what her daughter had done and that he apologize to Mlle. Dupain-Cheng for getting her expelled. She also demanded the student’s information so she could speak with the girl’s parents and force Lila to apologize. Damocles, still thinking that Greta was an ambassador, told her about the bakery and promised that he would alert the class to Lila’s misdeeds before the two Rossis were out the door. 

Greta thought the Dupain-Chengs were wonderful people, offering them pastries as soon as they were upstairs and listened intently to her when she described the things that her daughter had been lying about. When she asked Marinette for her side of the story, Greta got even angrier at Lila. Threatening, bullying, and framing that poor girl when all Marinette had done was tell Lila to stop lying to her friends. Not only had she been lying to the school and her classmates, but all of Paris, if she were to go by the posts on the Ladyblog that Marinette showed her. She had never been more disappointed in her daughter. 

Once they got home, Greta forced Lila into her room and confiscated her phone and tablet. “I thought it was bad when you were lying to the school and playing truant, but now I find out that you are being a bully, and tempting a terrorist to attack you! How foolish are you?”

“Why are you believing that goodie-two-shoes ove-”

“I believe her because there is literally video evidence of you setting her up and trying to get her expelled! After what you’ve done, you’ll probably get expelled!”

“What!? But I didn’t do-”

“You bullied a student, committed months of truancy, forged signatures on doctors’ notes, and changed my contact information so the school couldn’t contact me. Any one of those are grounds for expulsion!” Greta shook her head in disgust when she saw the shock on her daughter’s face. Lila actually believed that she wouldn’t be punished for all the things she had done. Well, that was not something that she was going to allow, and she didn’t trust the principal or Lila’s teacher to do the right thing by her daughter anymore. “You know what, pack your bags right now. I’m calling my brother and putting you on a plane tonight. It’s clear that you need to learn some responsibility, and I highly doubt that you’re going to do that here.”

Lila tried to argue with her, but no amount of begging, pleading, or threats was going to change her mind. Lila was on a plane back to Italy within a few hours and Greta would be spending the next month cleaning up the mess her daughter had made in Paris. She was fortunate that she was able to keep her job. Luckily for her, her boss was a big fan of the Dupain-Cheng Boulangerie and she had told him when she had brought in a big box of the pastries. That smoothed things over a bit, although she was no longer permitted to bring her daughter on assignments anymore. Greta considered that a small price to pay to keep her job, and maybe her daughter would learn that her actions have lasting consequences.

Taglist:

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Part 1     Part 2

The final part of my “Marinette’s Haunted Doll” series. It took a lot of time and effort to write, but it was really worth it. By request, I have included the Adrien salt and redemption ending. Please let me know qhich ending you liked the most. And thanks again to @unmaskedagain for the prompt that inspired this story. Blood, gore, and character death ahead. You have been warned.

It had been the most eventful week of Marinette’s life. And considering she had gotten her miraculous, became a central figure in Paris, met Chat Noir, and met Adrien in a single week; that was saying something. 

It all started when Lila convinced Alya to dump a jar of paint on her during the class photo. Mme. Bustier didn’t do anything to help, neither did Adrien. She just went home crying and told her parents what happened. They had been furious by the state of their daughter and her mother took pictures of the damage to her dress, the smeared makeup, and the bruises and scratch marks on her arms and face. Marinette attempted to salvage her dress; but it proved to be beyond saving. She could hear her parents on the phone with the Board of Governors when she got out of the shower and they did not sound happy. But there was only so much that could be done until the class, Mme. Bustier, and Adrien stopped blaming herfor Lila’s behavior. All that happened on Monday.

On Tuesday, things started happening. First, Kim and M. Damocles both fell down the stairs and someone from the Board of Governors had to come to take over until their principal could return to work. She had a feeling that her parents’ call the night before might have had something to do with it. When she saw Lila try to blame her for both of them falling, Marinette wasn’t sure what to expect, seeing as the teachers of the school kept letting her down. But when M. Rupere confronted Lila and pointed out that if she had been pushed down the stairs, she would be injured, Marinette almost cried in relief and Lila later showed up with detention slips. The day got even better when Nino came up and apologized to her. It was a relief to have one of her oldest friends back on her side. 

Wednesday morning, she heard the news about Alya and couldn’t help but cry for her former friend. She had hoped that somewhere down the line, Alya would have figured out the truth about Lila and they could try to start over, but that was gone. A part of her admitted that she was relieved that Alya would never torment her again, but that feeling was fleeting. She would miss the girl that she had met on the first day of the school year and shared a macaron with.

Then after lunch, M. Rupere was in class, saying that Mme. Bustier had decided to take the rest of the day off for personal reasons. Much to her relief, he kept a keen eye on Lila for the rest of the day and stopped her every time she tried to interrupt the lesson to tell one of her stories. At one point, even threatening to give her another day of detention for every time she interrupted class. For the first time since Lila came to school, Marinette felt like they actually learned something in class. 

When Mme. Mendelieve’s class came; she and the rest of the class watched in horror as Max and Alix’s experiment literally blew up in their faces and burned them. The smell of chemicals and burning flesh nearly made her throw up as she covered her face with her sleeve. Classes ended not long after that and Marinette decided to go visit her former friends in the hospital, knowing that Lila wasn’t likely to do it. Although she wasn’t allowed to see Max and Alix, she was permitted to see Kim. She brought him his favorite macarons from the bakery to cheer him up, already knowing how much he hated hospital food from the time he broke his collarbone when they were nine years old. He was happy to see her, saying that she was the only person to come see him and that he appreciated it. He even apologized for being a bully, since being stuck in bed with nothing to do but think, as well as listening to his mother chastise him for his bad behavior, made him realize what a terrible person he had been.

Not long after she got home, Mylene and Ivan came over to visit and apologized to her as well. They even brought her fabric to replace her ruined dress, apology cards, a new sketchbook, and money to pay for the things they had asked for but never paid for; going so far as to ask for receipts to pay back everything to her. Marinette had started crying and hugged the two of them in relief. 

Thursday morning, she went to school early with her mother, since M. Rupere had apparently called the day before and asked them to come in to talk. After arriving, he asked her why Lila had accused her of causing Kim and M. Damocles’ accident. Since he had already proven to be a more trustworthy educator than Damocles and Bustier combined, she told him everything. It was Kim who took her bag and dumped it out, then ran up the stairs with Serafina and tripped near the top, and the doll was still missing. She told him about how much Lila lies and that she’d had it out for her since she called the italian out after she returned from her “trip to Achu” and threatened Marinette. That she hadn’t said anything because Adrien had asked her to take the high road, but Lila hadn’t stopped. 

She told him about the day she was expelled; the test answer sheet, the fake push down the stairs, and necklace in her locker; pointing out that her locker had been broken into before, that the answer sheet had been crammed into the top of her bag, and that M. Damocles had never looked at the CCTV footage. And through the entire incident, Bustier and Damocles had basically refused to listen to her side of the story and believed Lila without a second thought. They only reversed their decision after Lila told them that she had a lying disease, which did not exist in any of the medical journals she had looked into. 

Then, just earlier that week while they were taking the class photo, Mme. Bustier had forced her and Lila to sit next to each other in an attempt to make them get along. She had seen the jar of paint seconds before Alya went to dump in on her. Marinette had tried to get out of the way, but Lila had gripped her arm so tight that her nails dug in. When she started really struggling, Lila threw an elbow into her face and then got out of the way before Alya dumped the paint on her head and down her dress. Sabine pulled out her phone to show M. Rupere the photos she took after arriving home, and he looked quite disturbed by what he saw.

He asked her what Mme. Bustier had done and that brought Marinette to tears. Her teacher had told her to stop causing a scene and not touch anyone, or else she would ruin the photo for everyone else. She was then sent home for the rest of the day and told that she simply would not be in the photo that year.

M. Rupere listened to her before looking something up on the computer. A moment later, he turned the screen to show Marinette the entire incident from Monday, happening exactly as the girl had described it. He also showed them a recording of Marinette and Lila arguing at the top of the stairs before the other girl practically skipped down, sat on the ground, and began crying. Sabine was furious that the girl she had thought was simply sick from a diseasewas actually hurting her little girl. 

They were interrupted a few minutes later when Rose came rushing into the office, saying that Sabrina had fallen with a bag of knives and razors in her hands and was badly hurt. Their meeting was paused for a long while before M. Rupere returned to place something in his desk drawer, and then called the Italian embassy to have Mme. Rossi join them. From what Marinette could hear, the woman sounded very amicable and agreed to come to the school right away. He left the office once again and returned with Lila herself, forcing the nervous girl to sit in a vacant chair. 

“Now, Mlle. Rossi, Sabrina claims that she got that bag from you. Do you want to explain why you brought a bag of weapons onto campus?” M. Rupere asked, his tone indicating that she had to answer.

Marinette watched as Lila began her act, covering her face as she pretended to sob. “I-I didn’t mean for this to happen, i-i-it was Marinette’s fault. *sniffle*  She blames me for what ha-happened to Alya, but that doesn’t make sense. This-this morning, just before class, she-she practically threw that bag at me and told me to use it. *sob*”

Her gaze switched from the liar to M. Rupere, he was looking at the girl with a hard glare while writing everything down. “You said that Marinette gave you the bag full of sharp objects?” Lila nodded. “And she did this right before class, correct?” She nodded again. “About how long was that before Sabrina got hurt and Rose came to get me?”

Marinette saw Lila hesitate, but she still answered. “N-not long. *sniffle* Maybe, ten minutes at most.”

He nodded, writing that down while Marinette fought the urge to smile. She and her mother had been in the meeting with him for close to half an hour before Rose came. And before that, she’d been with her parents at home. 

“And why would she do that?” He asked her.

Marinette barely caught Lila’s snide glance before going into her sob story about how Marinette bullied her, threatened her, had stolen from her and pushed her down the stairs. True, she had been very lucky to not be seriously hurt, but that was because she’d been trained by an uncle who was a stuntman in Hollywood. 

By the time Lila had finished spinning her tale of all the reasons Marinette was jealous and had been bullying her; her mother, Greta Rossi, had arrived and sat next to her daughter. Everyone saw the utter shock and unease on Lila’s face the moment the woman stepped into the room. Marinette had to keep herself from smirking, knowing that the liar wouldn’t be able to spin such tales with her mother sitting next to her.

“Is everything alright? What happened?” Mme. Rossi asked, looking from M. Rupere to Sabine.

“Mme. Rossi, your daughter was just telling us about her life. But before we get into all the things she’s been saying,” M. Rupere paused as he reached into his desk and pulled out the object he had placed in his desk earlier, one of the knives that he had taken from inside the bag. Marinette and the other two adults saw Lila’s face pale significantly when he placed it on the desk, while Mme. Rossi looked at it with a bit of shock. “Do you recognize this kitchen knife?”

The woman’s brow creased. “It looks like one of our old kitchen knives. Lila said that they were beginning to rust and that we should throw them out. We got the new ones last night.” Then she turned to her wilting daughter. “Why in the world would you bring that to school? Someone could have gotten hurt!”

“Someone did get hurt, Sabrina Raincomprix fell with the bag in her hands and had to be rushed to the hospital.”

“But those aren’t our knives!” Lila practically yelled in a panic. “I told you, Marinette threw them at me before class and told me to ‘use them on myself’. She basically told me to kill myself!”

Greta Rossi turned back to M. Rupere in shock. “Is that true?”

“That your daughter claimsthat Mlle. Dupain-Cheng gave her the bag of knives a few minutes before Mlle. Raincomprix was injured, yes. The problem with her claim is that she, her mother, and I were in a meeting for close to a half hour before I was alerted to the incident. So, unless she was in two places at the same time, your daughter is lying.”

“Well, considering how terrible those vigilante heroes are at doing their jobs, that could be a possibility. After all, the school was closed down for months when Principal Damocles was akumatized.”

His brow creased at that. “I apologize, Mme. Rossi, but the school never closed for that amount of time for akumas. However, there isthe matter of the trip you and your daughter took to the kingdom of Achu, missing four months of school. If you are saying that is not the case, your daughter will be charged with truancy, will very likely be expelled, and you will be paying some significant fines. And then there are the other matters to be addressed. Such as the assault and destruction of property your daughter committed against Marinette, of which we have picture and video evidence. Framing the same girl for assault, which we also have video evidence, and there are likely to be other charges added on once the Board of Governors, of which I am a member, concludes their investigation.”

The meeting quickly devolved into a lot of shouting after that; with Lila’s lies coming undone, recordings of her purposefully framing Marinette being shown to the woman, and talk of possible jail time since she had brought weapons to school and a police officer’s daughter had been seriously injured. Marinette could see that even though Lila was nervous and angry that she was in trouble, she wasn’t really scared. After all, she had a magical safety net known as diplomatic immunity.

She even had the nerve to roll her eyes at the adults discussing her fate. “So what if I’m expelled? I’ll just be enrolled in another school by the end of next week. That’s the worst anyone in this country can do to me since I have diplomatic immunity.”

“No, you do not.” Greta sneered as she coldly stared at her daughter. “Only the higher ranking members of the embassy have immunity. I’m a secretary at the embassy, I don’t have immunity which means you don’t either. And even if you did, I would have it revoked.”

“HOW COULD YOU SAY THAT!?” Lila screamed, standing from her chair.

“If I didn’t, the embassy would have. But that’s neither here nor there. And as for your next school, it will be a reformatory school in Italy and you’ll be staying with your Zia Francesca.”

Lila’s jaw dropped even more. “But-but Zio Simone andZia Francesca don’t have internet, cell signal, or even a tv at their house!”

“Do I look like I care? You are in big trouble, young lady. This is not something you talk your way out of. You are going to answer for everything you’ve done. Including committing assault, property damage, and slander; while trying to frame this girl for assault, theft, slander, and threatening you with deadly weapons. At this point, you’ll be lucky if I can convince the courts to try you as a minor instead as an adult since you were fully aware of your actions.”

Marinette saw it happen; the shift in her expression, posture, and pallor to alert her that she was about to do something. She barely had time to react when Lila screamed, grabbed the kitchen knife from the desk, and dove at her own mother. Her Ladybug reflexes had her leg lashing out and striking Lila in the chest. The girl, not expecting the blow, was thrown back into the desk and fell to the floor in a heap. The two women had jumped from their chairs while M. Rupere dashed around the desk to restrain Lila, only to pause when he turned her over. Marinette looked on in shock when she saw that the knife had impaled her throat and she was quickly losing blood. Marinette quickly removed her jacket to staunch the blood while her mother called for an ambulance. 

A few minutes later while the paramedics were treating Lila, Greta Rossi approached Sabine and Marinette with tears in her eyes. “I want you to know that I don’t blame you for Lila getting hurt. You likely saved our lives, mine at the very least, when you kicked her away. And I promise you, Lila will answer for everything she’s done to you.”

Seeing that the woman was on the verge of a breakdown, Marinette hugged her and whispered words of remorse that she was going through something so horrible. And she really hoped that things would get better very soon.

M. Rupere excused Marinette from school for the rest of the day, but she was expected to speak with the school counselor the next day. She thanked him before she and her mother left for the police station to give their statements.

It was a little after 3pm by the time she got home, but didn’t stay for long as the Nadja reported another akuma on the news. She half expected it to be either Lila or Mme. Rossi, considering how upset they had been, but no. It was Nino, back as Bubbler and at least three times as powerful as before. She expected it to be difficult, but Chat Noir was surprisingly on top of his game that day. Apparently, he was aware of Alya’s passing and knew that Nino had been dating her, so he wasn’t messing around this time. They soon defeated Bubbler and restored Nino to normal. Ladybug gave him a hug, telling him that she knew about Alya and although they didn’t always see eye-to-eye about what she was reporting, she knew Alya was a good person, a wonderful Rena Rouge, and would miss her greatly.

Friday morning came and everyone in school knew about Lila’s freak out, attempted murder, and that Marinette had been the one to stop her. She was glad to hear that Sabrina would be alright, although she had suffered nerve damage and would have to go to physical therapy to regain full use of her hands again. Kim had joked with her about being therapy buddies to push each other to get better sooner. Nino was a bit of a mess, but Marinette set a box of his favorite pastries in front of him and got a small smile in return. Alix and Max were still in the hospital, and were not likely to return until after their surgeries. It was now suspected that Lila had mixed up the chemicals to go after Marinette but the other two had grabbed those bottles instead, though this could not be proven. 

M. Rupere had hired a substitute teacher as Mme. Bustier was on leave for the foreseeable future. Although it wasn’t mentioned, most of the students were pretty sure it was because she had a nervous breakdown at the school the day before. One of M. D’Argencourt’s students had found her hiding in a corner of the supply closet just after lunch and it took a couple hours to coax her to come out. They did hope that she would get better, she was a really nice teacher, afterall.

Adrien also wasn’t in school that day and he wasn’t answering his phone. Most everyone in the class tried to reach him, but received no reply. It wasn’t until during lunch that they got their answer on the news. Gabriel and Emilie Agreste had been found dead in their home by Adrien the day before from heart failure and an apparent suicide. Although details were scarce, Adrien mentioned that he had been out to see his friends but returned to find his parents in his father’s office. He guessed that his mother had returned to their home on the brink of death and passed away. His father had not been able to handle it and took his own life to be with his wife again. Anyone watching could see how broken Adrien appeared and knew that he would never be the same. Nadja went on to report that the investigation was still underway, but the thoughts and prayers of Paris went out to the last surviving Agreste.

Adrien Redemption

Marinette went out that night as Ladybug, focused on going to see Adrien and comfort him in any way she could. What she hadn’t expected was to find him sitting on the front steps of his house in the dark. He barely even acknowledged her when she landed a few feet away and then sat beside him.

The two of them sat for a long time in silence, tears slowly leaking out of Adrien’s eyes before nodding absently. “You were right.”

“About what?”

“About my father being Hawkmoth. You were right, M’Lady.”

It took her a moment for her brain to fully comprehend the meaning of what he’d just said. She had only told two people her theory about Gabriel Agreste being Hawkmoth; Master Fu and Chat Noir. And since the Master had recently lost his memories and left the city… 

“Kitty?” She gasped, surprised at herself for not figuring it out sooner. “But… how-”

Plagg flew out of Adrien’s shirt pocket before reaching in to pull out a folded piece of paper, holding it out to her. Ladybug carefully unfolded it before reading the elegant script.

Dear Adrien,

I am not one to admit defeat, and I refuse to do so now. However, I am also a businessman and recognize a failed investment. And the endeavor I have been participating in has failed.

For the past year, I have been operating as Hawkmoth in order to obtain Ladybug and Chat Noir’s miraculous. This was so I could bring your mother back to us. She fell into a deep sleep after using the damaged peacock miraculous, and I was going to use the wish to wake her. 

However, after today’s failure, Nooroo informed me that Emilie has been dead for a number of months and I was only preserving her body at this point. He also informed me of the cost of using the wish. If I were to wish your mother alive, you would have likely taken her place. If you had died, she would have never forgiven me. Therefore, I have relinquished my claim to the butterfly and peacock miraculous. 

All I have wanted was to hold your mother in my arms and hear her voice. With that out of reach, I can not go on. 

I expect you to maintain the dignity of the Agreste name and protect the company in my stead. Nathalie will assist you as she did me, if necessary. 

Goodbye,

Gabriel Agreste

Ladybug couldn’t help but read the letter again once she had finished. M. Agreste’s reasoning for wanting their miraculous made a lot more sense now. But she didn’t miss the underlying statement that he had only had himself and his wife in mind. He didn’t even tell his only son that he loved him in his final words, only that he was to uphold the Agreste name. Part of her wondered, if he had been a little further gone, would Gabriel have sacrificed his son to get his wife back? From the tears in Adrien’s eyes, he believed that he would.

“After we saved Nino, I hung out with him for a while to make sure he would be okay. When I got back to my room, I saw that letter on my desk with both of the miraculous beside it,” he said, his eyes unfocused as he remembered what had happened. “I must have read it four or five times before realizing exactly what it meant and ran downstairs. They were in his office on the floor and I just… I couldn’t move. I mean, the paramedics told me that they were both dead for a while when I found him, it must have happened just a few minutes after we saved Nino.

“After the paramedics left with their bodies, I confronted Nathalie. She denied everything at first until I showed her the letter. She was Mayura, that was why she was getting sick. She tried defending Father, that he was only doing what he thought necessary to bring Mother back…” A shuttered sob escaped him as he gripped his hair in both fists. “I lost it. I yelled at her, told her she was fired. She packed most of her things and left a few minutes before you got here.”

Tears brimmed in Ladybug’s eyes as she wrapped her arms around her kitty and held him close. The moment she did, the floodgates opened and he was sobbing into her shoulder. They sat there for a long time, holding each other as he let everything out, and she never once loosened her grip on him. 

It was a long time before he gently pulled away from her, but only so he could reach into his pants pocket and show her the butterfly and peacock miraculous.  “I am returning these to you, the new Guardian, to keep them safe. I had the chance to talk to Nooroo and Duusu earlier, they’re sad, but they’ll get better with the rest of the kwamis.” Then he paused, giving Plagg an apologetic look before removing the ring from his finger and holding it out to her as the little cat disappeared.

Shocked, Ladybug stared at the ring for a long moment before shaking her head as her own tears trailed down her cheeks. “No, I can’t take that. You’re my kitty, I could never replace you.”

“It has to be done M’Lady. After losing them and knowing what the wish is capable of, I’ll be tempted. And despite you saying that you love someone else, I’ve loved you since we defeated Stoneheart together. Meaning that you would be the person I lose if I ever got your earrings and made that wish, and I won’t risk it. So, I’m begging you, M’Lady. Let me be a hero one last time and give you my ring to make sure that you and Paris will be out of danger.”

With trembling fingers and her eyes blurred with tears, Ladybug gently took the ring from his hand and placed it safely in her yoyo. “That was the most noble thing I have ever seen in my life. And with or without the mask, you will always be my kitty.”

Adrien gave her a sad smile before looking away from her. “I realize that you’ll have to tell Paris that Hawkmoth is gone, but…”

Knowing what he was asking, she tilted her head back to look at the stars that were beginning to form in the sky. “I’m going to tell them the truth. That Chat Noir discovered the identity of Hawkmoth and Mayura and was able to retrieve their miraculous, they are no more and will never be able to harm anyone again. However, while doing so, Chat worried that he had become corrupted by the events that had taken place. Rather than risk anyone being harmed by his future actions, he gave up his miraculous to live a normal life.”

He nodded, grateful that she was willing to let his father keep his good name in the end. It was more than the man deserved, but Ladybug wasn’t doing it for him. She wanted Adrien to be able to live in peace; and as difficult as it would be with the knowledge of who his father had been, she wasn’t about to make it worse with the world against him for being Hawkmoth’s son. 

“So… what are you going to do now?” She asked him, a little worried about what his answer would be.

“I, um, called my Aunt Amelie this morning. I’m going to be moving to live with her and my cousin Felix in London. I just… if I’m not my father’s perfect model son anymore and I can’t be Chat Noir, I need a fresh start to figure out who I am. I’m hoping I can figure that out away from Paris.”

Ladybug nodded, knowing that he was right. “While you’re doing that, you can start by knowing this; you are a good person, Adrien Agreste. Not because of your status or what your father made you to be; but because you made the choice to put others before yourself when it really mattered. Start with that, I think you’ll eventually be okay.”

That gained a soft smile from him before looking her in the eye. “May I ask one thing from you before you leave, M’Lady?”

“Anything.”

“I know that I’ll probably never see you again with me going away and you staying here to watch over Paris. So, before I go, can I have a kiss that I’ll actually remember?”

A sad chuckle bubbled up, thinking of the two kisses they had shared but how he hadn’t been able to remember either. Reaching towards him, she gently cupped his cheeks between her hands and gave him a lingering kiss that said so many things: “I will always care about you”, “you are a wonderful person”, but the saddest one of all, “goodbye”. 

Breaking the kiss, Ladybug wiped away her tears before yo-yoing away.

~oOo~

Saturday morning, Ladybug met with Mayor Bourgeois and had him hold a press conference where she alerted Paris that Hawkmoth and Mayura had been defeated by Chat Noir and that Ladybug was now in possession of their miraculouses. There were a lot of questions and a lot of tears when they asked where Chat Noir was. 

With tears in her eyes, she told them. “Chat feared that he might have been corrupted and refused to put the city he loved in danger. As many citizens have been akumatized, you know the kind of influence he had and how skilled he was at getting into peoples’ minds. Chat refused to risk that. To protect Paris and its people, he gave up his miraculous and opted to live a normal life. It was the bravest and most heartbreaking moment of my entire career as a hero. He is truly the embodiment of what a hero is meant to be and I am honored to call him my partner.”

The Mayor immediately declared that a new statue would be erected in honor of Chat Noir’s sacrifice and that he would not be forgotten. Ending the press conference with declarations of celebration across the city, as they were finally free to feel again.

Back home, Nooroo and Duusu’s miraculouses were where they belonged in the miracle box. She had asked the kwami if she should retire as well, but all of them agreed that even though Hawkmoth was gone, the world may still need Ladybug.

By Monday morning, school was a very different place. Adrien was gone, Mme. Bustier was on permanent leave, and M. Damocles had been let go with M. Rupere taking over as his replacement for the rest of the year. Word has also gotten around that Lila had completely lost use of her vocal cords and had attacked a police officer with a syringe while in the hospital when they came to arrest her. That resulted in her being drugged into a stupor and immediately deported back to Italy where she would be tried on five counts of attempted murder, assault, property damage, slander, as well as other charges being added on every day as the investigation into her actions continued. Max and Alix would not be returning to school that year, as it would take time to recover from their upcoming surgeries. And then there was Alya’s funeral, which would be taking place after school.

However, on a good note, classes were a lot more peaceful. People were finally expressing themselves in ways that they hadn’t been able to do in over a year. And someone had found Serafina. The porcelain doll had been left sitting on top of her desk when she got to school that morning. Although her outfit was a little worse for wear after being kwami knows where for close to a week, she still looked to be in pretty good condition. Giving the doll a hug, she carefully placed her in her bag before turning forward since the class was about to start.

Serafina was satisfied. Marinette’s enemies had been punished, she was no longer in danger, and she had even regained some of her friends. All that, and she had only killed two people. It might have been easier to just kill everyone, but it was worth the effort to see this special girl smile. Adrien had even surprised her when he had not only handed over the butterfly and peacock jewels, but also the ring of the black cat to make sure that his lady would never be in danger from him. For that reason, she had decided that the knowledge of his father’s identity was enough punishment. 

She also hoped that those she had punished had learned their lessons. Because, if she was forced to step forward again to protect Marinette, she would not be so kind next time.

Adrien Salt

When Ladybug arrived at the Agreste Mansion, she immediately sensed something off with the atmosphere and was on high alert. The front door was open, she could hear movement inside, and the smell of blood and death had her covering her nose and mouth with her hand. Following the sound, she cautiously entered the mansion and opened the door to M. Agreste’s office. The inside was an absolute disaster area, nothing like the organized workshop she had seen during the Simon Says incident. The chaos of the room had been so drastic, it took her a second to clear her head and look at Adrien. 

With bags under his eyes, rumpled clothes, and cuts on his hands, it looked like he hadn’t slept at all since finding his parents. She might have considered that an understandable reaction if he wasn’t manickly pacing the room, while looking over the Miraculous book with the butterfly and peacock miraculouses beside it. She must have gasped or made some sort of noise, because Adrien stopped what he was doing and turned to her with a large smile.

“M’Lady! I’m so glad you’ve come! Now I can fix everything once you give me your miraculous!”

So many things ran through her head in the moment Adrien was reaching for her ears. First was that only Chat Noir called her M’Lady. Second, since the butterfly and peacock miraculous were both on the desk, her previous theory about Gabriel Agreste being Hawkmoth had been correct and he’d tricked them. And third, the way Adrien was acting, she was having some serious flashbacks to Chat Blanc. 

Just as she felt his fingers graze her cheeks, Ladybug shoved him away with all her strength before diving across the desk to grab the other two miraculous while she could. By the time Adrien was standing again, she had already placed the jewels securely in her yo-yo. When he looked at her, she could see the shock and a bit of hurt in his eyes.

“I’m sorry, M’Lady. I didn’t mean to be rude. And you didn’t have to snatch the other miraculous like you did, I was going to give them to you as soon as I saw you. Now, can I have your miraculous, please? It’s the only way I can fix things.”

“Kitty?” Unable to help herself, she stepped closer to him. “I don’t understand, why do you need my miraculous?”

His eyes went wide and manic for a split second before rushing over to the book and pulling out a piece of paper to show her.

Dear Adrien,

I am not one to admit defeat, and I refuse to do so now. However, I am also a businessman and recognize a failed investment. And the endeavor I have been participating in has failed.

For the past year, I have been operating as Hawkmoth in order to obtain Ladybug and Chat Noir’s miraculous. This was so I could bring your mother back to us. She fell into a deep sleep after using the damaged peacock miraculous, and I was going to use the wish to wake her. 

However, after today’s failure, Nooroo informed me that Emilie has been dead for a number of months and I was only preserving her body at this point. He also informed me of the cost of using the wish. If I were to wish your mother alive, you would have likely taken her place. If you had died, she would have never forgiven me. Therefore, I have relinquished my claim to the butterfly and peacock miraculous. 

All I have wanted was to hold your mother in my arms and hear her voice. With that out of reach, I can not go on. 

I expect you to maintain the dignity of the Agreste name and protect the company in my stead. Nathalie will assist you as she did me, if necessary. 

Goodbye,

Gabriel Agreste

She was genuinely shocked. Gabriel Agreste had been trying to steal their miraculous so he could bring back his wife, but committed suicide when he found out the cost. She remembered Tikki and Master Fu telling her a while back about the dangers of having the black cat and ladybug miraculouses out into the world and something about a wish and the cost. If M. Agreste had brought his wife back, Adrien would have died.

“It’s all here,” he said looking from her to the book. “By merging our miraculous together, we can be granted one wish. Any wish we want. My wish would be to fix everything. My parents would be back, you’ll be safe, and we can be together. Even if someone has to be sacrificed, it doesn’t have to be someone I know, any random person will work-”

“Kitty, stop! Are you listening to yourself? You’re talking about human sacrifice to resurrect your parents after your father…” Her voice trailed off as she saw his brow crease and his lips turn into a grimace.

“You’re not even listening, you don’t understand. Plagg, claws out!”

Ladybug jumped into action before he even finished transforming, jumping up to wrap herself around his right arm and drag him down into an armbar. She moved fast, grabbing his ring and yanking it off his finger before he could call for his Cataclysm. He transformed back into Adrien, giving her a hurt and anger look as he struggled to free himself from her hold. But without his transformation, he was no match for her strength. 

“Why won’t you help me fix it! We’re soulmates! You’re supposed to help me no matter what!”

“We are not soulmates,” Ladybug said between gritted teeth as Adrien continued to struggle, her own heart breaking as she realized it was as true for Adrien as it was for Chat Noir. “We were only ever to be partners to keep Paris and its people safe, but you never listened to me when I told you ‘no’. And now you’re willing to let people die, just to get your wish? I can’t let you do that!” Giving his arm a twist, not enough to break anything but it would still hurt, she jumped a safe distance away. “As Guardian of the miraculous, I hereby reclaim the ring of the black cat. You are unworthy of its power and will never come by it again.”

Without waiting for his response, she sprinted out the door and yo-yoed away. His anguished scream chasing her every step of the way until it faded in the distance. 

~oOo~

Saturday morning, Ladybug met with Mayor Bourgeois and had him hold a press conference where she alerted Paris that Hawkmoth and Mayura had been defeated and that Ladybug was now in possession of their miraculouses. There were a lot of questions and a lot of tears when they asked where Chat Noir was. Although it made her uncomfortable, she didn’t want to completely destroy the city’s memory of Chat Noir.

“As many of you know, Hawkmoth had the ability to get into peoples’ minds and corrupt them. Chat Noir fell victim to his manipulation and it affected him even after I had the butterfly and peacock miraculouses in my hands. For the safety of Paris, I had no choice but to relieve Chat Noir of his miraculous.  And although I will not reveal his identity, I believe that he will not be a danger to Paris. Nor should we blame him for what transpired. We should all wish him a happy life and future.”

The Mayor immediately declared that a new statue would be erected in honor of Ladybug and Chat Noir’s defeat of Hawkmoth. Ending the press conference with declarations of celebration across the city, as they were finally free to feel again.

Back home, Nooroo and Duusu’s miraculouses were where they belonged in the miracle box. Plagg apologized and told her how he tried to calm his kitten down, but the loss of his parents sent him over the edge. Plagg was glad that Ladybug had reclaimed his ring before Adrien could do something that he would later regret. She had asked the kwamis if she should retire as well, but all of them agreed that even though Hawkmoth was gone, the world may still need Ladybug.

By Monday morning, school was a very different place. Lila was gone, Mme. Bustier was on permanent leave, and M. Damocles had been let go with M. Rupere taking over as his replacement for the rest of the year. Word has also gotten around that Lila had completely lost use of her vocal cords and had attacked a police officer with a syringe while in the hospital when they came to arrest her. That resulted in her being drugged into a stupor and immediately deported back to Italy where she would be tried on five counts of attempted murder, as well as other charges being added on every day as the investigation into her actions continued. Max and Alix would not be returning to school that year, as it would take time to recover from their upcoming surgeries. And then there was Alya’s funeral, which would be taking place after school.

On a good note, someone had found Serafina. The porcelain doll had been left sitting on top of her desk when she got to school that morning. Although her outfit was a little worse for wear after being kwami knows where for close to a week, she still looked to be in pretty good condition. Giving the doll a hug, she carefully placed her in her bag before turning forward since the class was about to start.

When Adrien walked into the room, Marinette couldn’t help but tense a little. His posture was ridged, he looked to be wearing the same clothes that he’d been wearing on Saturday, and he appeared exhausted. If she had to guess, he still hadn’t slept since he found his parents. 

When the class started talking about everything that had happened the week before and someone mentioned Lila and her lies. What happened next, Marinette would say that it came down to how angry and exhausted Adrien was. He jumped up from his seat, turned to glare at her in the back of the room, and yelled “Stop trying to expose Lila, Marinette! Her lies aren’t hurting anyone and I don’t want to deal with her getting akumatized again! Stop antagonizing her!”

It was only when he was met by her shocked expression and the intense silence from the classroom that Adrien realized exactly what he had done. Or more specifically, what he had said to Marinette.

“Dude, you knew that Lila was lying to us? How long did you know?” Nino asked, not bothering to hide how hurt and angry he was at his friend.

“Um, since Ladybug confronted her?” Adrien responded, still seeming dazed but what he was saying.

Ivan glared at him from the back of the room. “When was that? A week ago? A month ago? When did you find out, Adrien?”

“The first day she was here. Ladybug told her not to spread lies about her or claim to be the fox miraculous holder.”

Nino growled when his friend said that. Not only had Lila lied to them for close to a year, but she lied about having Alya’s miraculous! If he had been angry before, he was becoming more furious by the moment. “How could you not tell us about this?”

“Well, it, her lies weren’t hurting anyone-”

“How can you say that after what happened to me?” Sabrina snapped at him with tears in her eyes. “She told me that Marinette gave her a bag of knives and razors and told her to ‘use it’, but she brought those from home herself! If she hadn’t brought those in and lied about them, I wouldn’t have gotten hurt!”

“And what about me?” Kim glared. “Lila suggestedthat since Marinette tried to dump paint on her during the class photo to ruin her outfit, she wished that someone would show her what it was like to have their stuff sabotaged. I’ll admit that I did what I did myself and the fall was my own fault, but it might not have gotten to that point in the first place if you had told us!”

“Lila got Marinette expelled, too!” Rose said in the most disapproving tone. “Do you have any idea what that can do to someone’s student career? Assault, theft, and cheating are not things that will just disappear from your record. Notes like that stay in files. Because you let Lila lie and get away with everything, Marinette might not have been accepted into lycee!”

Adrien wasn’t sure what to say. He wanted to argue that he was right, that all you had to do was ignore the person lying until they left you alone, just like his father taught him. But the evidence to the contrary was literally staring him in the face. Sabrina’s hands, Kim’s broken bones, Marinette’s permanent record; all hurt because he didn’t out Lila. And looking back, even though she hadn’t been outed earlier, she had still been akumatized multiple times for petty reasons that were out of his control.

“I… I just-”

“Didn’t think her lies hurt people.” Nino growled at him. “I know you were sheltered, dude, but that was just mean and wrong.”

Without another word, Nino picked up his bag and moved to the back to sit with Marinette. Everyone else turned away from him. Even Marinette looked at him with utter disappointment before turning away from him to comfort Nino. He wanted to say something else, try to defend himself, but the substitute teacher came in and they got down to the lesson. 

By the end of the day, Adrien had practically been slapped in the face as he realized just how alone he was. He’d lost his father, his mother all over again, his Lady, and now all of his friends. There was literally nothing left for him in Paris. On the way home, he called his Aunt Amilie in London, set on asking if he could come live with her and Felix. Maybe he just needed a new start, a place to find out who he was if he wasn’t his father’s perfect model son or the masked superhero.

Taglist (even longer):

@themagicmistic @andromeda612 @ramos123 @t1dwarrior-of-earth @justanotherweirdo277 @irisfox @thestrangestofthemall @plz-excuse-my-inner-ravenclaw @certainmuffinbagelcalzone @the-fandom-girl @wisecolorthing @mewwitch @luxurioushellgirl97 @seraphichana @fantasiame @whydoexamsexist @wispyrainbow @legodetectivemalsblog @kindasoundslikealien @shadowangelreborn @kazedancer @unmaskedagain @7-sage-7 @irontimetravelflower @ghostmaster83 @izang @ulmban @plushbookworm @corabeth11 @darkened-flame @caffeinetheory @iamablinkmarvelarmy @raiderofthelostbooks @cheshire5210 @chocolateherringtacofan @city-of-all-tunas @aadnrsstar @kitten12113 @interobanginyourmom @pandacatxd @nerd-nowandforever @jesussavedevenme @zoiechance @the-smallest-kittenz @wonderbat91939 @maskedpainter @tazer6787 @that-girl-sakea @seesea22 @with-forward-motion @ola-is-dead @thecrazyfantrollshasmoved @bayball @2confused-2doanything @queen-in-a-flower-crown @sabrina1414 @ceres-zephyr @if-you-give-a-chat-a-cookie @zalladane @tails-and-scales @rumbelle18 @sam-spectra @collegefae @pale-lady-dreamer @animegirlweeb @evaraux @consumeconstantly @iz-bell-saiah @puspa-san @wishing-to-be-a-fictional-chara @sassakitty @miraculous-ninja @fandom-trapped-03 @idontfuking @sillyfishrubberducky @anonymousreviewer-t @i-am-fallen-angel @zotinha456 @throneoffirebreathingbitchqueen @chocolatecatstheron @crypticsabbat @startouchedqueen1318 @para-dox-normal @marinettepotterandplagg @incredulous-reader @professionalfangirl1738 @fangirlnerd001 @redscarlet95 @sixtyeightdays @iamtotalfandomtrash @tazanna-blythe @animehime94 @mysticsoulgirl @miraculouspenta @local-witch-of-mn @roseinbloom02 @senpaiweird @iggy-of-fans @tropestropestropes @sleep-deprived-aroace @comteqfr @neromerp13 @prudencerika @galaxylightmoon @c-s-stars @spartanxhunterx @shadowhex99 @abrx2002 @lunartaravlar @theymakeupfairies @myazael @wannajointhecrabcult @some-weird-multifandom-girl @marvel–unsolved @kuroko26 @mcheang @nach0ava @syrencall @mexicantttt @insomniac-nerd-posts-things @enchanted-nerd @actual-disaster-human @mashmallow619 @clumsy-owl-4178 @hollowwisteria @kanamexzeroyaoifangirl @lunataravlar @lady-phoenix-of-tardis @tishwinchesterannabethjackson @mariposa-macaroon @starlightshield @255940g@naruwitch@emmathedestroyer@trippingovermyfeet@emark7@mewwitch@zalladane@lilypotter2018@rowanrouge @hansa-12

Part 1     Part 3

The 2nd installment of the “Marinette’s Haunted Doll” series. I was seriously shocked by how much response I got from part one, so I hope this lives up to your expectations. Blood, gore, and death are coming, along with some mental freak-outs. You have been warned. 

Part II

Despite wanting to stay with Marinette to comfort the girl after the tearful apologies by Mylene and Ivan, Serafina couldn’t return until her work was finished. There was still much to do and people to punish. 

She arrived early with Mylene, which allowed her to observe the others that entered the classroom. Kim had returned to school that day in a wheelchair. The cast on his leg went up to his waist and the one on his arm went up to his bicep. His face and exposed skin were covered in bruises and his right eye looked like it had blood in it. 

“How are you feeling, dude?” Nino asked him as he entered alongside Adrien.

“Really sore,” the boy admitted. “Doctors had to reset my leg at the knee and said that my arm was a three piece offset fracture, so they had to use screws to put it back in place. Other than that; had a concussion, a lot of bruises, and a couple cuts; but no internal bleeding or ruptured organs. They said after a few months and some physical therapy, I should be as good as new.”

Nino gave him a solemn nod. “Glad to hear you’re going to be okay, dude.”

Kim’s expression dropped a bit. “I heard about Alya, I’m really sorry, man.”

The boy lowered his head while Adrien patted his back. “I really… I can’t believe she’s gone because of some freak accident. It makes no sense!” Nino jumped to his feet and started pacing as more students filed in. “I mean, she wasn’t supposed to die like that! Getting caught up in an akuma battle, childhood disease, there would be a reason for that! But that was just pointless!”

Mme. Bustier did attempt to calm him down, but her kind words fell on deaf ears before he grabbed his bag and left the room. No one could blame him, and only Adrien followed to make sure he would be alright, and to make sure he wasn’t akumatized.

Lila came in not long after with a curious bag in her hands. Serafina watched the liar as she looked around the room. She had a feeling that the liar would try something after her last attempt to frame Marinette had failed. When the girl tried speaking to Mylene, the doll was proud to see the girl refuse to acknowledge her as she continued to speak with Rose and Juleka. When it was clear that she was being ignored, she tried speaking to Ivan, only for him to give her a harsh glare that had her shuffling backwards. With Max and Alix still at the hospital and Adrien not in the room, that left her with Sabrina. The redhead had been sitting alone at the front of the room since Chloe had transferred schools after the Miracle Queen incident.

“Hi Sabrina, how are you doing?”

The girl smiled up at the italian, glad to still have a friend. “I’m doing okay, at least a lot better than a lot of our class. I heard Max lost sight in his one eye from the chemicals and Alix might have to have cosmetic surgery to get her face back to normal. At least Kim might be back to normal in a few months after going through physical therapy. But Alya…”

Lila faked her tears at the mention of her lost follower. She was really more annoyed than sad, Alya was easily manipulated, went along with everything she said, and Lila had been able to use her blog to build up her popularity. And the girl had been a decent attack dog, just point her at someone and off she went. Now that she was dead, maybe she could turn Sabrina into her new lead follower, she was already partially trained and it wasn’t like the blonde bitch was around anymore.

“I know, it’s so terrible. She was my first friend when I moved here, it’ll be so hard without her,” she faked a few more tears. And just like that, Sabrina took her hand in comfort and said a bunch of soothing words while she continued to fake cry. 

After a moment, Lila placed the bag she’d been holding on the desk and pushed it away from her, making sure the action caught Sabrina’s attention. “What’s that?”

Lila fake sobbed even harder, hiding her face in her hands. “Ma-Marinette, she-she said it was m-my fault that Alya’s dead. She practically threw that bag at me and said to use it,” she said before breaking down in more fake sobs.

Carefully opening the bag, she gasped when she saw it was full of razor blades and a couple of kitchen knives. Sure, she knew that Marinette didn’t get along with Lila, but to actually give this to her and tell her to ‘use it’? How could she be so cruel?

Serafina scowled as the red head hugged the liar and promised her that she would take care of it. Her anger erupted as Sabrina stood from her desk with the bag in hand, and began walking towards Mme. Bustier’s desk. The girl didn’t take two steps before trippingover nothing and falling onto her side. Luckily, she did not land on the bag. Unluckily, she gripped it too tight and the impact forced the knives and razors through the bag and deep into her hands.

The girl screamed and cried as blood rushed out of the wounds and down into her sleeves. She begged Lila to help her, but the italian backed away from the girl in shock. Mme. Bustier gripped her head between her hands and began saying “not again, not again” before running out of the room. The only ones that helped her were Juleka, Rose and Ivan; the smaller girl sprinting off to alert the nurse and the principal, while Juleka and Ivan got Sabrina to her feet. Ivan kept the girl upright and moving out the door while Juleka held the girl’s hands above the level of her heart to keep her from bleeding too much.

Those left in the classroom were in shock as they stared at either the door or at the blood staining the floor. No one said anything for a long time, not even Lila. She hadn’t thought anyone would get hurt. She just thought she would get Marinette suspended and everyone would be on her side again. Adrien returned before the others, completely shocked when he saw the blood and Kim explained to him what had happened. The blonde sent a scathing look at Lila but said nothing.

It was a while later before Rose, Ivan, and Juleka returned to class, along with M. Rupere. He informed them that their classes were cancelled for today. “After everything that has occurred this week, I’ve decided that all of you will be meeting with the counselor today. He will decide if more sessions are necessary and for who, but his door and mine are open if you need to talk. M. Deveraux will come to speak with you one at a time. Kim Le Chien, he had requested to speak with you first. Mlle. Rossi,” he looked sternly at the girl, “would you please follow me, we need to talk about the incident with Sabrina Raincomprix.”

Serafina smiled as the liar trudged out of the room after the man. She was satisfied with Sabrina’s punishment and doubted if Mme. Bustier would last another day before having a total mental breakdown. She also knew that Lila would be in even more trouble after M. Rupere looked into the girl a bit more. But just to make sure, Serafina touched her on the way out. To most people, that would do nothing; but to someone like Lila, it would cause her to become more and more unhinged until she did something drastic. Very soon, Lila would be out of the picture and those deserving of punishment will have paid their debts.

~oOo~

It was more difficult sneaking home with Adrien than she had expected, especially with the tiny god of Chaos and Destruction in his bag. Plagg was his name, and he was very defensive of his kitten and had threatened to cataclysm her. Serafina told him that she would not purposefully harm his ‘kitten’, but there was something she had to take care of at the Agreste Mansion. The doll had long suspected that Gabriel Agreste is Hawkmoth and she was going to find out tonight if it was true. Plagg was reluctant to agree since it would hurt Adrien; but if it was true, they had to put an end to it.

After arriving at the mansion, Plagg easily convinced the boy to sneak out and check on Nino. After he left, Serafina sensed something on Adrien’s desk. Being an enchanted/haunted object, she could sense other objects like herself… such as Miraculous jewels. And right there on the desk was a pin shaped like a peacock, one of the jewels that had been missing and used by Mayura. If there had been any doubts before about who had been terrorizing Marinette, they were gone. 

Tucking the pin into her small outfit, she began to search the building, starting with Gabriel’s office. She had expected the man to be present, but he was missing. And given that Hawkmoth was a very active user, she had no doubt that he kept his jewel on him at all times. So, she waited.

It was about an hour later that Gabriel Agrest entered the room, and not from the door Serafina had expected. The man had a secret entry in the floor in front of a portrait of a woman. He was muttering on knowing better than to use Bubbler again, but that the negative emotions had been too strong to ignore. She also saw the purple kwami hovering over his shoulder, but the creature stopped when it sensed her. Gabriel strode out of the room, barely noticing that Nooroo had stayed behind and flew over to the doll hiding behind the desk.

“What are you doing here? If the Master finds you, he will destroy you.” The kwami said with worry.

The doll conveyed that she knew that his master was Hawkmoth, just as her human was Ladybug. She was here to protect her and return the butterfly and peacock miraculous to their rightful place. Also knowing that Gabriel had become too corrupted for his miraculous.

“I’ve tried to tell him that the wish would be dangerous,” Nooroo told her with downcast eyes. “He wants to make a wish to revive his wife, but he doesn’t realize that the cost would be to put Adrien, someone he loves equally as much as Emilie, into the same state of death. She isn’t even truly alive anymore, her body only lives because of the machine she is in.”

An idea spawned in Serafina’s thoughts and she barely kept herself from smiling. She asked Nooroo to help her activate the secret passage so she could get to his wife, but the little kwami shook his head. “Even if I could get you down there, the motion sensors would trip and he would attack you.”

Smiling this time, Serafina promised the little god that Gabriel would not attack her. That she would make sure that Adrien would be safe and the two kwami’s would go to their rightful place. All he had to do was help her open the door. Although reluctant and slightly scared, the little god opened the door, hoping that the nightmare would finally end. 

Down in the lair, the doll saw the mechanical coffin placed in the center of the room and went to it. The motion sensors caught her quickly, but she had been planning on moving fast anyway. Opening the coffin, she settled herself into the woman’s arms. Nooroo had been right, Serafina could sense that the woman’s soul had departed from her body a while ago and it was only the machine that was keeping her body alive. With no other soul to contend with, this would make what she was about to do next all the easier.

Nathalie had called to alert him the moment the alarms went off in the lair while she and Simone were out on an errand. He was moving faster than he could remember with Nooroo following close behind. Gabriel transformed on the way down, prepared to attack whoever had stumbled in, but his breath caught in his throat halfway down when he got a good view of the room. 

The coffin was empty.

Rushing forward, he began frantically searching the room for his wife, calling her name. He turned to rush back upstairs and froze. Standing behind him, looking dazed, was his wife. Her eyes were unfocused and her arms were hugging her middle, but it was her. Dropping his transformation, Gabriel cautiously approached her and she flinched back from him. It took a few minutes and a lot of gentle coaxing before he was able to wrap an arm around her shoulders and lead her to the elevator. When they got to his office, he watched her carefully as she began walking around the room. He wanted her to sit down and rest, but he was still in shock that she was awake and standing in front of him.

Eventually, her green eyes met his. “Where’s Adrien?”

“I… I don’t know, he should be up in his room.”

Emilie’s head tilted slightly, her eyes searching his. “What have you done? Did you make the wish?”

“No, my love. I was going to when I got the jewels, but Ladybug and Chat Noir evaded me.”

Tears grew in her eyes as she continued to stare at him. “You tried to make the wish? Knowing that it would have cost our son’s life?” 

Gabriel froze. He hadn’t known that wishing Emilie to come back would cost Adrien’s… but Nooroo had tried to tell him. He remembered the kwami trying to tell him about the cost and he had forced him to not speak. “I’m sorry, Emilie. I didn’t-”

“You knew,” she interrupted, her voice lacking any emotion as she continued to stare at him. “You knew from the beginning that what you were doing was wrong, evil. You chose to ignore what it would cost.”

“Emilie, my love, please don’t say such things,” Gabriel begged as he rushed forward to wrap his arms around her. “All I have wanted since the day I lost you, was to hold you in my arms again and hear your voice. I was lost without you and was willing to go to the ends of the earth to bring you back. Is that so wrong?”

He had just barely met her eyes when he felt the twin pains in his arms. Jumping back, he looked down to see both wrists had been cut deeply with a pair of his fabric cutting scissors. Blood was draining from the wounds at an alarming rate. His hands were shaking and he was already feeling light headed as he grabbed a handful for fabric from his work table in an attempt to slow the blood. He wanted to call out for help, but they were alone. 

His eyes grew hazed as he looked to Emilie, surprised that she was staring at him with such contempt. “I know what you’ve been doing while I was in that coffin. Tormenting the city and people I love, isolating our son and treating him like a burden. If you had ever succeeded in getting the Cat and Ladybug miraculous, it would have destroyed Paris. But you didn’t care. As you said, all you cared about was hearing my voice and holding me in your arms. Congratulations, your wish came true, and you will be the one to pay the price. Not Adrien.”

His legs gave out from under him as the fabrics dripped from the excess blood. He couldn’t understand how this had happened, Emilie would have never done something like this… but was this really her? With his vision fading, he took a hard look at his wife, only now noticing the dullness of her eyes, the greying pallor of her skin, and the fact that she only seemed to breathe when she spoke… “Who are you?”

Her head tilted again, the corner of her mouth lifting slightly. “Serafina. Quite astute of you to figure that out in your state. Your wife’s soul passed on a long time ago, all you have been doing is preserving a corpse. And I was telling the truth; even if you had made the wish, it would have cost Adrien his life.” Her hand shot forward, removing the butterfly miraculous before he could stop her. “Your actions have hurt someone close to me and I could no longer stand back and allow it to happen.”

She stood, walking to his desk to pull out a piece of paper and writing something down before neatly folding it and leaving it on his desk.

“Wh… What…”

“Youjust wrote a letter to Adrien; admitting what happened to his mother, that you were Hawkmoth, and the reason why you did what you did.” She said calmly before looking back at him. “Whether he tells the rest of the world is up to him. As for the miraculous, I will give him a chance at redemption. Though if he should fail, you may be seeing him sooner rather than later. Either way, they will soon be back where they belong, with the guardian. And you, good sir, have just committed suicide after bringing your wife’s body upstairs, so you would be able to hold her in your arms as you died.”

Unable to sit upright anymore, Gabriel barely felt his body collapse to the floor. He was hardly aware of Emilielifting one of his arms to tuck her body to his side. The last thing he was aware of was something that he swore would haunt him in the afterlife; a porcelain doll emerging from the folds of her clothes and standing beside them. It stood there on its own, watching him until he could no longer keep his eyes open and he took his final breath.

Taglist (even longer):

@themagicmistic​ @andromeda612​ @ramos123​ @t1dwarrior-of-earth​ @justanotherweirdo277​ @irisfox​ @thestrangestofthemall​ @plz-excuse-my-inner-ravenclaw​ @certainmuffinbagelcalzone​ @the-fandom-girl @wisecolorthing @mewwitch​ @luxurioushellgirl97​ @seraphichana @fantasiame​ @whydoexamsexist​ @wispyrainbow​ @legodetectivemalsblog​ @kindasoundslikealien​ @shadowangelreborn​ @kazedancer @unmaskedagain​ @7-sage-7​ @irontimetravelflower​ @ghostmaster83​ @izang​ @ulmban​ @plushbookworm​ @corabeth11​ @darkened-flame​ @caffeinetheory​ @iamablinkmarvelarmy​ @raiderofthelostbooks​ @cheshire5210 @chocolateherringtacofan​ @city-of-all-tunas​ @aadnrsstar​ @kitten12113​ @interobanginyourmom​ @pandacatxd​ @nerd-nowandforever​ @jesussavedevenme​ @zoiechance​ @the-smallest-kittenz @wonderbat91939​ @maskedpainter​ @tazer6787​ @that-girl-sakea @seesea22​ @with-forward-motion​ @ola-is-dead​ @thecrazyfantrollshasmoved @bayball​ @2confused-2doanything​ @queen-in-a-flower-crown​ @sabrina1414 @ceres-zephyr​ @if-you-give-a-chat-a-cookie​ @zalladane​ @tails-and-scales​ @rumbelle18​ @sam-spectra​ @collegefae​ @pale-lady-dreamer​ @animegirlweeb​ @evaraux @consumeconstantly​ @iz-bell-saiah​ @puspa-san​ @wishing-to-be-a-fictional-chara​ @sassakitty​ @miraculous-ninja​ @fandom-trapped-03​ @idontfuking​ @sillyfishrubberducky​ @anonymousreviewer-t​ @i-am-fallen-angel​ @zotinha456​ @throneoffirebreathingbitchqueen​ @chocolatecatstheron​ @crypticsabbat @startouchedqueen1318 @para-dox-normal​ @marinettepotterandplagg​ @incredulous-reader​ @professionalfangirl1738​ @fangirlnerd001​ @redscarlet95​ @sixtyeightdays​ @iamtotalfandomtrash​ @tazanna-blythe​ @animehime94​ @mysticsoulgirl​ @miraculouspenta​ @local-witch-of-mn​ @roseinbloom02​ @senpaiweird​ @iggy-of-fans​ @tropestropestropes​ @sleep-deprived-aroace​ @comteqfr @neromerp13​ @prudencerika​ @galaxylightmoon @c-s-stars @spartanxhunterx @shadowhex99 @abrx2002 @lunartaravlar @theymakeupfairies @myazael @wannajointhecrabcult @some-weird-multifandom-girl @marvel–unsolved @kuroko26 @mcheang @nach0ava @syrencall @mexicantttt @insomniac-nerd-posts-things @enchanted-nerd @actual-disaster-human @mashmallow619 @clumsy-owl-4178 @hollowwisteria @kanamexzeroyaoifangirl @fandom-trapped-03 @lunataravlar @lady-phoenix-of-tardis @tishwinchesterannabethjackson @mariposa-macaroon @starlightshield @255940g

Part 2     Part 3

Based on @unmaskedagain post “Marinette’s Haunted Doll” this is my take on the story and the kind of things Serafina would have done to get even. There’ll be three parts, and will hopefully be posted through the week. Blood, gore, and character death ahead. You have been warned.

She was seven years old when her Grandma Gina’s sister, Ramona, passed away. Marinette couldn’t remember ever meeting her. Her dad said that she was a very private person and didn’t get out much. Since she had never married or had any children, all of her relatives were asked to come over to the house and divide the property before the rest was sold and equally divided. 

While her parents had been in the kitchen, looking over some family cook books, Marinette had wandered around the old house until she came to a small room. It was full of spiderwebs and old toys, which greatly interested her. She spent a long time looking through the boxes and shelves until she found a locked chest in the closet. Remembering the key she had seen in a dresser drawer, she retrieved it to see if it worked. It was hard to turn, but she heard the click and was able to open the lid. Inside was a box with an envelope laying on top of it. Curious she opened the envelope and read the note as best as she could.

“If I’m dead, Serafina killed me.”

Tilting her head in curiosity, Marinette set the letter aside and opened the box. Inside was an old looking porcelain doll. It was covered in spiderwebs, the dress was old and ripped, she was missing a shoe, and the hat looked like it was stained with red paint. 

“Are you Serafina?” She asked the doll before carefully lifting it out of the box. “I don’t think you’re bad, you just look lonely. But don’t worry, I’ll take care of you!” Giving the doll a gentle hug, the little girl got to her feet and left the room and letter behind. Finding her parents, she asked if it was okay to take the doll home so she could take care of her.

Tom remembered seeing that doll when he was a kid and had always thought it was creepy, but if his little girl saw the good in it, he would trust her. And since none of the other relatives wanted anything to do with the doll, it came home with them. 

Once home, the little girl raced up to her room with the doll and immediately got to work. She threw away the old dress, hat, and shoe before cleaning away all the dirt with a washcloth and carefully combing out the knotted hair. Then Marinette got to work on making Serafina a brand new outfit with new shoes and a hat. It took a few days, but she was really happy with what she came up with: a pink Victorian dress with rose and pearl accents, a wide brimmed hat with maroon feathers, and maroon slippers that tied with ribbons around the ankles.

Proud of what she had made, Marinette held the doll up high as she twirled around her room. She had been interested in fashion and clothes for months now, and making the pretty outfit for Serafina was a lot of fun. If anything, it proved to her that fashion design was what she wanted to do.

“I hope you like your new clothes, Serafina. You make the perfect little model, so I hope you don’t mind if I make more clothes for you later on. I promise to only make you clothes that will make you feel pretty.” Giving the doll a kiss, Marinette placed her next to her computer before skipping down stairs for dinner.

~oOo~

Serafina had not been expecting this when the young girl, Marinette, had opened her box. It had been decades since anyone had shown her any kindness. For so many years, she had been passed from person to person, shoved into boxes and hidden from sight or attempted to be sold off. Serafina had had no choice but to punishmany of her past owners, and she had not been lax with their punishments. 

But she didn’t feel the need to do that with Marinette, this girl was different. She wasn’t afraid of her. She didn’t scorn her and hide her away where no one could see her. No, this girl was kind and made Serafina feel loved; something she hadn’t felt in nearly a hundred years. Staying with Marinette, she knew that she would be happy. So, no one needed to die here.

And she was.

The porcelain doll smiled quietly on Marinette’s desk as the years passed, and felt more for this girl than she could remember with anyone else. She felt beautiful whenever Marinette used her to experiment with a new outfit before she would make a full sized outfit for herself. She had fun when the girl would sing and dance around the room, sometimes even picking her up so she could dance with her. She felt entertained when she would play movies on her computer, one time watching a movie about a haunted doll like herself; they didn’t watch much before she turned it off, but Serafina thought it was funny. Scratching people and leaving notes wasn’t scary, she had done muchscarier things than that.

As Marinette grew into a teen, Serafina felt proud as she grew from a shy girl into a fearless superhero. Her owner had a lot of love and light to give, so it made sense to her that she became Ladybug. She also felt scared for the girl, not wanting to lose her to Hawkmoth, but silently promised her that if she was ever hurt, the people who hurt her would pay her back in blood.

Serafina was also aware of the tiny god that gave Marinette her power, just as Tikki was aware of her. No doubt, the god could sense the darkness that dwelled in her porcelain body, but realized that she cared for the girl and would not harm her. So the little god wisely said nothing, she would hate it if Marinette suddenly feared her.

After all, the three of them were happy and at peace.

Until the day Marinette came storming into her room, complaining about a girl named Lila. From what she could hear, this girl was a liar and was using her friends. Knowing how much her human cared for other people, that didn’t sit well with how it would affect her. Then she didn’t hear anything about the girl for months. But when she was mentioned again, it quickly got worse from there. 

Serafina heard about the threats, the lies, almost being akumatized, her crush Adrien telling her to take the high road, all of it. She watched as one by one, her friends turned against her. Bullying her while accusing herof being a bully until only three of her classmates remained. She knew that the teacher and principal were useless and even accused Marinette of being a problem, especially after the expulsion. Serafina had nearly enacted her revenge that day, but held back when she was reinstated the next day.

Nathaniel, Rose, and Juleka were the only people left that believed her or even bothered to try and help in her class. There was also Kagami and Luka, Juleka’s brother. Serafina would admit, that boy was sharper than most. When he first saw her, his blue eyes studied her intently for a long moment until Marinette spoke up.

“That’s Serafina, she’s been passed down through my family for a long time. She was in really bad condition when I got her and took a lot of work to get her fixed up, but it was worth it. She was my first ever model and I’ve never felt lonely since she’s been around.”

Luka looked back over at the doll and gave her a smile. “I can tell, I’d bet no one gave her the proper love or attention until she came to you. And I think, if she could talk, she would say that you kept her from feeling lonely too, and all she wants is for you to be happy.”

Serafina liked that boy, a lot more than she had liked Adrien when he had come to play video games. The boy genuinely seemed to care for Marinette. And even though he could somehow sense that she was more than just a doll, he didn’t spill her secret. Yes, she approved of this one.

And then, less than a week after she returned to school, came the worst day. They were taking pictures at the school and Marinette had worked so hard on a new dress; it was pale purple cotton with teacup sleeves, a tulip skirt and pink lace at the hem. It was so sweet and looked like she was going to a spring tea party. Then half way through the day, she came into her room crying. Her makeup was smeared, there were bruises and scratch marks on her arms, another bruise on her cheek, her hair was a mess and covered in dark blue paint. The same paint that covered almost half of the dress. Tikki was doing her best to comfort the girl as she showered. Marinette was unable to save her dress and ended up throwing it away before she cried herself to sleep on her bed. 

Serafina was angry, the kind of anger she hadn’t felt since Ramona had attempted to burn her in the fireplace… and that hadn’t gone well for her. Tikki flew over to face her. “I know what you’re thinking and I can’t condone you falling into old habits and killing her entire class. Despite how much they’ve hurt her, it would still break her heart if they all suddenly died.”

The doll actually considered that for a moment before picturing some very specific people. Lila, the liar that was trying to take away/destroy the person she cared about. Alya, the best friend that betrayed her, acted like a hypocrite, and took joy in hurting her. Adrien, the boy that not only broke his promise to help her as a civilian, but continually harassed her as a pseudo-hero. And finally, Hawkmoth, the person that was constantly putting her in danger. Everyone else that had harmed her would be punished, paying back the harm they had done to Marinette in blood, but those four would pay with their lives.

Tikki shook her head. “As angry as I am with Adrien, you can’t kill him. Marinette still has feelings for him and if he dies, she might never get over him. I can’t stop you from punishing them, but please try not to kill them. You know that she has a big heart and it would hurt her to lose any of them, so please keep that in mind.”

Serafina would have argued, but the little god was right. Killing around Marinette would only upset her. So she would do her best to punish them without killing them… although, accidents do happen. 

~oOo~

It was easy enough to sneak herself into Marinette’s bag the next day of school. It was even easier to select her first victims. One of her classmates, Kim, stole her backpack and dumped out all of her stuff, including her. The boy laughed about Marinette bringing a doll to school as he ran up the stairs to keep it away from her. It took little effort to make the boy trip, in full view of everyone that had been watching, and fall backwards down the steps. 

Serafina had landed at the top landing with a perfect view of the boy’s tumble, and it was oh so satisfying. She could see his knee bent in the wrong direction, a bone in his arm protruding from the skin, and blood dripping from the cuts and open wounds. But the sound was even better, all the cracking and popping of bone before he began crying like a little girl, begging for his mom.  Ah, she hadn’t realized how much she had missed those sounds.

When the principal came out to see what was happening, she hid her presence and let the principal trip over her and fall as well. He even landed on Kim, causing more injuries to both of them. She held back a laugh as the grown man wailed and cried until the paramedics arrived. Loading the two into the ambulance while one of the teachers called the Board of Governors. A representative, M. Rupere, quickly came to take over the principal’s duties while he was gone, and was surprised when a bunch of students tried to blame Marinette for the incident.

“And how is it her fault?” He asked the students that surrounded him. “Did you see her push or trip M. Le Chien or M. Damocles down the stairs?

“Marinette brought in a doll and Kim was distracted by it when he was going up the stairs, that’s how he tripped and fell,” Lila told him with tears in her eyes. “Then M. Damocles tripped over the doll and fell down the stairs too. It’s just like how she pushed me down the stairs last week and I hurt my knee. I think she’s actually trying to hurt people.”

The man looked at Lila for a moment before looking to the top of the stairs, but there was no doll there. Then he looked back at Lila with a stern glare. “Young lady, if you had been pushed down the stairs last week, you would have been severely injured just like your friend or M. Damocles. And whether or not it was Mlle. Dupain-Cheng’s doll that caused the incident or not, does not mean that she is at fault for the accident. To the principal’s office, right now. I think we should have a discussion as to why you are trying to blame another student for something she did not do.”

Totally shocked, the girl looked around to her followers for some support, but they were now looking at her with uncertainty. They had just seen two people fall down the stairs and receive severe injuries, so how was Lila walking around just fine without a scratch on her? Huffing in annoyance, Lila stomped her way to the office while the class stared after her, most of them noticing the lack of limp to her walk.

Serafina was pleased with how this was turning out, she had already punished two of the people that had betrayed Marinette and had begun sewing seeds of doubt with the liar. At the moment, she was hiding in the classroom, observing everyone so she could figure out the best way to punish them. She noticed Rose, Juleka, and Nathaniel sitting close to the girl and doing their best to comfort her. She also noticed Nino, a boy she had seen a couple of times over the years, casting looks back at Marinette. 

During the first break, the boy cautiously approached her, clutching his hat in his hands. “Hey dudette, listen… I, um, wanted to say I was sorry,” he said, having a hard time looking her in the eye. “After Kim fell, what that Governor dude said about Lila not being hurt, and the fact that I’ve known you forever. I felt so stupid. You would never push someone down the stairs or cheat or steal from someone like that. And I tried looking up Jagged’s discography to see if there was any mention of a song about Lila, and there was literally nothing. I tried telling Alya, but she didn’t want to listen and-”

Nino was interrupted by Marinette giving him a hug. Serafina smiled at that. The boy had thought for himself and admitted that he was wrong. He apologized and Marinette was willing to offer him forgiveness. She supposed that Nino could also be exempt from punishment, so long as he never betrayed the girl again.

Half way through the second lesson, Lila had returned to the class with two weeks worth of detention and had a meeting scheduled with herself, M. Rupere, and her mother at the end of the week. Serafina decided to let the girl’s empire fall before going in to completely destroy her.

During lunch, when all the students had left. Serafina got to work on punishing Mme. Bustier. She started by slamming the door shut, it made the woman jump and look around the room, but there was no one there. Then the giggling started, causing her to look around the room again. This time, she walked up the steps to see if anyone was hiding in the room, but she was completely alone. When she turned back to her desk, the papers she had been grading were torn to pieces. A bit panicked, Bustier tried to run out of the room, but the door was locked. As she struggled with the door, she heard the scraping of chalk and froze for a moment before looking at the board. Large words were scrawled in block letters: LIAR, ENABLER, MEAN, CRUEL, and the most frightening of all, YOU WILL PAY.

Bustier’s hands were shaking as she erased the words from the board, not understanding what was happening. Only taking a breath when the door opened and her students began to file in. Serafina quietly laughed at the teacher’s fear, she was another person that she would take her time in punishing. Payback for failing to help Marinette. For now, it was time to take out her biggest supporter. 

Again, it was much easier than it should have been to sneak herself in Alya’s backpack and go home with her. When the girl found her she sneered. “The klutz must have put you in my bag by mistake.” Then she smiled cruelly at her. “I think I’ll give you to Etta and Ella to play with before giving you back to Maribrat, maybe tell them that you need a makeover and give them some permanent markers too.”

Turning to take the doll out to her sisters, she stubbed her toe on her desk chair hard enough that she felt a crack and dropped back on her butt while hissing in pain. When she was finally able to think past the pain, she realized that she had dropped the doll and didn’t see it on the floor. After wrapping her foot, she looked all over her room but couldn’t find it anywhere.

That night, things got… more than scary. Alya was absolutely terrified.

First, her computer turned on, on its own, and started printing off papers saying “YOU KNOW THE TRUTH”. She turned the computer off, only for it to turn back on after she’d climbed into bed and the browser pulled up past searches; specifically, the searches that proved that Lila had been lying. She had found that out after Lila had disappeared from school for months, but had kept to herself so she wouldn’t lose her credibility on her blog or have to admit to Marinette that she’d been right. Turning it off again, she’d decided to sleep on the couch when her phone suddenly let out a hiss and burst into flames.  

Letting out a shriek, Alya rushed to her door, and had just barely opened it when it slammed shut on her fingers, causing her to scream as she struggled to pull her hand free. She could hear her parents and Nora shouting on the other side of the door, trying to push it open, but it wouldn’t budge. Her head got fuzzy and she suddenly felt cold, she realized that she was going into shock. Her parents’ shouts became garbled background noise and Alya heard the sound of tiny feet running around the room. She tried reaching the light switch so she could see, but it was out of reach.

From the light outside her window, she could barely make out the movement of a small shadow, moving from one part of the room to another. Coming closer and closer to her with every sweep. Alya began tugging harder on the doorknob and her hand. She needed to get out. Something was in the room with her. She could almost feel the darkness creeping closer. It wanted to hurt her!

What happened next, Serafina couldn’t have planned better if she’d tried. Alya jerked back her trapped arm and the doorknob at the same time Nora threw her shoulder into the door as hard as she could. Sending the teenagers flying into her bedside table and her head hitting the corner with an audible *crack*. The doll smiled silently in the corner of the room as the paramedics were called and listened to her parents cries for their horrid daughter to wake up. They called time of death at 2:03am.

~oOo~

It was a bit more of a chore for Serafina to get back to the school, but it was still manageable as her mother had to inform the school of her daughter’s death and pick up her things. The woman had also noticed the information that had been brought up on Alya’s computer and thought that she had been up late chasing a lead. And as the lead had to do with the disturbing behavior of one of her daughter’s classmates, she thought it best to show the acting principal the information before taking her leave. 

Making her way back to the classroom, she saw that the news had spread already. Nino seemed to be hit the hardest, as it was his girlfriend, but he would get over it. Kim was still out of class, and likely would be for a few more days. Tikki saw the doll when she was peeking out of the purse and gave her a disapproving glare, but there was nothing she could do. And in Serafina’s defense, she had only intended on maiming the failed journalist, her death had been an “accident”.

When class let out for lunch, Serafina got back to work tormenting Mme. Bustier. Today, the door slammed and locked shut a few minutes after the last student left. The woman shrieked and was struggling to open the door when the giggling started again. Bustier started screaming for it to “go away” but the giggling continued. Turning back to the door, books began flying at her from all over the room, hitting her chest, back, arms since they were shielding her head.

Then the door opened to show a panicked looking M. Rupere. “I heard screaming, are you alright?” The red haired teacher looked extremely frazzled; her hair was a mess, eyes wide and dilated, and her hands were shaking.

“The books,” she said in a trembling voice. “There was giggling, the door wouldn’t open, and the books attacked me. And this was the second time!”

His eyebrows rose to his hairline as he stared at the woman. “Did you see who was throwing the books at you?”

Bustier shook her head in a frantic manner. “There was no one, the books just started flying at me after the giggling.”

Giving her a slow nod, Rupere gently motioned her to step out of the room ahead of him. “How about you take the rest of the day to recover? Some rest will do you some good.” 

To his relief, Mme. Bustier agreed and collected her purse before leaving the school. Looking around the room, he was confused to see all the books in place on the shelves. Curious, he went to examine her desk and saw essay papers… covered in red ink with large “F’s” on every one of them. Reading the paper on top, all he saw were a few grammar mistakes, nothing that should have resulted in a failing grade. A bit unsettled, Rupere called the Board to schedule a psychological exam for the teacher. Serafina watched the man with satisfaction, at the rate she was going with that terrible teacher, she wouldn’t be around much longer.

Her next victims were Max and Alix during science class. She switched a couple of labels on the tubs on their desk before hiding in the room to enjoy the show. Half-way through class, Max poured a large amount of reactive chemical into the mix while it was warming over a burner, and the glass exploded. The two screamed and cursed in pain as Max tried wiping the liquid away from his face, only succeeding in getting more in his eyes. Alix tried wiping it away with a cloth, not noticing in time that the fabric was also soaked in the chemicals that now covered her entire face.

Serafina was impressed with how quickly Mme. Mendeleiev reacted to the incident. Doaning on gloves in an instant and leading the two students to the chemical wash station. Both students looked to have chemical burns on their faces, arms and necks. She could already see the burns covering a large amount of their exposed skin. While the class was distracted, Serafina switched the labels back so it would appear that the two had not been doing as instructed.

When school let out, the doll hid away in Mylene’s bag and ended up going on a date with the girl and Ivan. They commented on the bad luck their class seemed to be having and wondered out loud at what the cause might have been.

Mylene was hesitant to speak as the two ate their ice cream. “Do you think… maybe it’s karma coming back on our class?”

“Why do you think that?” Ivan asked her, seeming genuinely curious. Deciding that their conversation might lead to something more, Serafina waited and listened.

“It’s just… ever since Kim fell down the stairs, it’s got me thinking. Lila says that Marinette pushed her but the only injury she says she got was a bad knee, and she’s been walking around fine since then. And then she tried blaming Marinette for Kim and M. Damocles, when Kim shouldn’t have been running up the stairs and M. Damocles tripped at the top of the stairs when she was still down in the courtyard.”

“You’re right, now that I think about it. Lila lied to that new principal and she did it really easy.” Ivan nodded slowly, his brow creased as he pulled out his phone. “I wonder if she lied about anything else.” Mylene watched over his shoulder as he looked up the story about saving Jagged Stone’s kitten from an airplane. There was nothing, the only article that came up about a pet was his crocodile, Fang. The story said that he had hatched the reptile himself seventeen years earlier and any other pet wouldn’t be as rock’n’roll as Fang. “I don’t think Jagged ever had a cat, this article says that he’s only had Fang for longer than we’ve been around.”

Mylene pulled out her phone and called Rose, putting the call on speaker when she answered. 

“Hi Mylene, did you hear anything about Max and Alix? Are they going to be okay?” The girl asked as soon as she picked up.

“Ivan and I haven’t heard anything about them yet, but we have a question for you, Rose, and it’s something only you would be able to answer.”

There was a slight pause on the line. “Go ahead.”

“Do you still chat with Prince Ali?”

“Sure I do! We video chat every Saturday and I send him videos of our performances with Kitty Section. Why do you ask?”

“Ivan and I were wondering… Has he ever mentioned Lila to you?”

There was another pause, although they could hear a hushed conversation in the background. “So, you guys figured out the truth about Lila?” When they didn’t respond right away, Rose continued. “I found out a few weeks after Lila says she came back from Achu. I mentioned Lila to Ali and asked him about the charities they had been working on together, but he’d never heard of her. And Ali is only working on charities involving children, nothing with the environment. When Juleka and I tried asking Lila about it, she got really mean and threatened us if we told anyone. I would have been akumatized if Marinette hadn’t been there to calm me down.”

Ivan and Mylene were horrified, not only had Lila been lying to them, but she had threatened Rose, Juleka, and probably Marinette too. “What should we do?”

“First, you should apologize to Marinette for how you’ve been treating her and let her know that you know the truth.” They heard Juleka over the phone. “Lila has been more terrible to her than anyone else and she keeps getting in Lila’s way to protect us and Nathaniel since we know the truth about her.”

“Who all knows?” Ivan asked, feeling a bit sick to his stomach. Sure, he and Mylene hadn’t really hurt her or done anything, but they hadn’t stood up for her either and they were supposed to be her friend.

“Us, Luka, Kagami, Nathaniel figured it out when she said she could introduce him to Stan Lee, Nino figured it out yesterday, and Adrien’s apparently known from the start but didn’t say anything because he doesn’t think her lies are hurting anybody.”

Both of them could hear the acid in Juleka’s voice when she mentioned Adrien, and they couldn’t argue with her. They knew he had led a sheltered life, but how could he claim that ‘lies don’t hurt anybody’ after sitting back and watching Lila and her friends torment and bully Marinette?

Mylene hadn’t even realized that she had asked that question out loud until Rose answered them. “He told us that it was Marinette’s own fault for antagonizing Lila, and ‘If she just took the high road like I told her, then Lila would leave her alone’. It took everything I had not to slap him.”

Coming from Rose, that really was saying something.

Serafina was then taken on a shopping trip to an arts supplies store, a card shop, and a stop at an ATM before going to Marinette’s family’s bakery. She smiled quietly and with great respect to the couple as they apologized to her girl, gave her cards, an entire bolt of soft purple cotton the same color that her ruined dress had been, a new sketchbook, and money to pay her back for some of the things that Marinette had given them over the past year. They even asked her to provide them with proper receipts, and admitted that they knew the amount they had given her wasn’t enough to cover everything. But they promised to pay her back before asking for anything else, as well as pay in advance for any future items or baked goods. 

The little doll would have cried right along with Marinette if she could. These two had proven themselves to her and would avoid punishment, just as Nino had.

Taglist (it’s a long one):

@themagicmistic@andromeda612@ramos123@t1dwarrior-of-earth@justanotherweirdo277@irisfox@thestrangestofthemall@plz-excuse-my-inner-ravenclaw@certainmuffinbagelcalzone @the-fandom-girl @wisecolorthing @mewwitch@luxurioushellgirl97@seraphichana@fantasiame@whydoexamsexist@wispyrainbow@legodetectivemalsblog@kindasoundslikealien@shadowangelreborn@kazedancer@unmaskedagain@7-sage-7@irontimetravelflower@ghostmaster83@izang@ulmban@plushbookworm@corabeth11@darkened-flame@caffeinetheory@iamablinkmarvelarmy@raiderofthelostbooks@cheshire5210@chocolateherringtacofan@city-of-all-tunas@aadnrsstar@kitten12113@interobanginyourmom@pandacatxd@nerd-nowandforever@jesussavedevenme@zoiechance@the-smallest-kittenz@wonderbat91939@maskedpainter@tazer6787@that-girl-sakea@seesea22@with-forward-motion@ola-is-dead@thecrazyfantrollshasmoved@bayball@2confused-2doanything@queen-in-a-flower-crown@sabrina1414@ceres-zephyr@if-you-give-a-chat-a-cookie@zalladane@tails-and-scales@rumbelle18@sam-spectra@collegefae@pale-lady-dreamer@animegirlweeb@evaraux@consumeconstantly@iz-bell-saiah@puspa-san@wishing-to-be-a-fictional-chara@sassakitty@miraculous-ninja@fandom-trapped-03@idontfuking@sillyfishrubberducky@anonymousreviewer-t@i-am-fallen-angel@zotinha456@throneoffirebreathingbitchqueen@chocolatecatstheron @crypticsabbat @startouchedqueen1318 @para-dox-normal@marinettepotterandplagg@incredulous-reader@professionalfangirl1738@fangirlnerd001@redscarlet95@sixtyeightdays@iamtotalfandomtrash@tazanna-blythe@animehime94@mysticsoulgirl@miraculouspenta@local-witch-of-mn@roseinbloom02@senpaiweird@iggy-of-fans@tropestropestropes@sleep-deprived-aroace@comteqfr@neromerp13@prudencerika @galaxylightmoon @c-s-stars

I read a short story on AO3 a while back about a teacher or adult sending a letter to the Board of Governors about the teachers of the school and how terrible they were, and decided to write a story about the person who was assigned to look into the accusations. Got some salt and justice coming along. And I must say, this was very therapeutic to write. Warm-Fuzzies and please enjoy!!

Inspector Walters had a bad feeling about the Francois-Dupont College since the moment he’d received the assignment. The Board of Governors had been debating conducting an investigation on the school since one of the classes had been nicknamed “The Akuma Class” by social media and a few news sources. It became a necessity when a complaint had been filed by the Dupain-Cheng family about their daughter’s expulsion. 

That complaint had surprised him. Only the Board of Governors had the power to expel a student after an investigation, and they hadn’t expelled the girl. The parents claimed that it was done on the same day as the accusations against the student, and was then retracted the following day. Again, something that only the Board of Governors had the power to do.

Looking over the incident report, the details were slim at best. Mlle. Dupain-Cheng was accused of cheating on a mock exam and the answer sheet was found in her backpack. When looking at the schedule, he saw that the mock exam had been taken the day before and the teacher only noticed that the answer sheet was missing afterreceiving the exams. A fact which bothered him a bit, but he’d seen a few scatterbrained teachers, as well as students make the mistake of not getting rid of the evidence. However, he also saw from her student records that she was one of the top students and always got high grades, so there was some doubt that she would have cheated.

The next thing was the accusation that she had pushed another student, Mlle. Lila Rossi down the stairs, injuring her right knee. However, there was no mention of an ambulance being called or even a trip to the nurse’s station. It was also suspect that there was no mention of other injuries that someone would have received after falling down stairs; no recorded cuts, bruises, or anything. So either Rossi had the most well placed fall that kept her from major injury, or she was lying.

The last part of the report was that Mlle. Dupain-Cheng had stolen a necklace from Mlle. Rossi and put it in her locker. Again, he was a bit skeptical considering that the same two girls had been involved with a separate incident on the same day. There was a picture of the locker, but Walters quickly noticed that there was no actual lock on the locker, something that he shouldbe seeing since the Board had funded upgrades for lockers months ago. There was also no CCTV record attached to the incident report, meaning that the system was down and not reported, or the principal never checked them and only went by the word Mlle. Rossi.

Looking over the rest of the file, it was even more suspect when he saw that only Mlle. Dupain-Cheng’s parents had been called in. Mlle. Rossi’s contact, her mother, had been listed as “unavailable”. This was yet another thing that didn’t sit well with him. Following his gut, M. Walters set aside the Dupain-Cheng student file to look more closely at the Rossi student file. 

Not five minutes in, he knew that things were not right. The disabilities she had listed in the current file were not consistent with the files from her previous schools, and there were no doctors notes to support them as being recently discovered ailments. He attempted to call the number listed on the current file, but it kept going straight to voicemail. Comparing the number to the previous files, he noticed that the number did not match.

Finding himself very unhappy with the incomplete file provided by Principal Damocles, he decided that he would have to go to the school in person the following morning and see for himself what was really going on.

~oOo~

First stop he made was to the principal’s office. M. Walters had not alerted him of the inspection so that the man would not have a chance to change or hide specific documents, he’d seen that happen more than once. What he had not expected was to see a grown man playing with dolls/action figures behind his desk. Damocles quickly straightened up, hiding the dolls in a drawer before scowling at him. “What is the meaning of this? You can’t simply barge into my office without-”

“Actually, M. Damocles, I can,” he interrupted, pulling out his identification. “Inspector Walters, I’m with the Board of Governors, looking into a recent complaint filed against the school.”

“Complaint? What complaint?” He asked, sputtering a bit in surprise.

“The expulsion of Mlle. Marinette Dupain-Cheng,” he glared at the man.

“Oh, that incident has already been handled.”

“Is that so? Then please, explain to me how the incident was handled.” Pulling out a chair, Walters flipped open his notepad and clicked open his pen. Some of his colleagues considered the whole pen and paper thing to be a little old-school at times, but it had its purpose. He waved a hand at Damocles to begin.

“Well, Mlle. Lila Rossi suffers from a rare disease that makes her lie uncontrollably when she is stressed-”

“I’m going to stop you right there, M. Damocles. We will get to the reason why you reinstated Mlle. Dupain-Cheng in a moment. First, I want you to go through everything on the day of the incident.”

“Oh, of-of course,” he was beginning to fidget. “I was sitting in my office when I heard screaming outside of my door. When I came outside, Marinette Dupain-Cheng was standing at the top of the stairs and Mlle. Lila Rossi was at the bottom of the stairs, crying that she had been pushed.” Walters wrote this down and waved a hand for him to continue. “M. Harpele and I brought her upstairs and wrapped the knee that was injured, and then contacted Mlle. Dupain-Cheng’s parents to talk about the incident, seeing as Mlle. Rossi had been badly injured.”

Walters finished writing that down before looking back up at Damocles. “And is that when you called an ambulance to look over Mlle. Rossi’s injury and check to make sure there were no other injuries?”

It was no surprise to him when Damocles mouth did an impersonation of a fish for a moment. “Well, um, no. I did not call an ambulance-”

“Then I can only imagine that you called the school nurse to your office to look her over and deem whether or not a trip to the hospital was necessary?”

Again, he began impersonating a fish. “I-I didn’t think it was- Mlle. Rossi claimed that she was fine and that only her knee was injured.”

“You just told me that you believed Mlle. Rossi was, and I quote ‘badly injured’, and yet she received no medical attention?” Walters hummed in a disbelieving manner as he looked down at his notepad and wrote down his thoughts. “That was quite irresponsible of you. I’ve read your personnel file and nowhere does it list that you have a medical background. Yet, you thought yourself qualified to treat and diagnose a girl that claimed to have been pushed down the stairs and could have underlying injuries, such as a concussion, broken bones, or internal bleeding?” 

To his satisfaction, the principal began to sweat, but he was nowhere close to finished yet. “I can imagine that Mme. Rossi was upset when you called her to the school for the meeting with M. and Mme. Dupain-Cheng.” Just as he suspected, Damocles wouldn’t meet his eyes. “You have contacted Mme. Rossi about the incident, have you not?”

“Well, Mme. Rossi is an ambassador and is very busy-”

“Are you meaning to tell me that you failed to alert a parent that their child was injured while in your care?” When the principal looked away again, Walters glared before double clicking his pen and writing down more notes.Taking his time as he wrote to allow the man to sweat and worry about what was being written.

“We will return to your failure at contacting parents and guardians later. Now, tell me what you observed when you reviewed the CCTV footage of the stairs at the time of the incident.” Just as he suspected, the man became flustered and refused to meet his eyes. “Are you telling me that you did not, at any time, look over the footage to corroborate whether Mlle. Rossi was pushed or accidentally fell?” 

Hesitating again. “I, um, thought it unnecessary. It was clear that she was pushed-”

“And you know that for fact, how, exactly?” He glared as he kept writing.

“As I said, Mlle. Dupain-Cheng was standing at the top of the stairs while Mlle. Rossi was at the bottom of the stairs, crying that she’d been pushed-”

“You also said, and I quote ‘I was sitting in my office when I heard screaming outside of my door’. Meaning that you did not actually see whether Mlle. Rossi was pushed or simply fell. Am I to understand that you believed one child over another without gathering evidence to prove or disprove the claim?”

Walters watched as the man’s parlor turned a pale green while muttering multiple failed excuses, which only served to anger him further. So far, Damocles had failed to show him, in any way, that he was qualified to run this school and had let an innocent girl suffer for his mistakes. “You are going to pull up that footage right now, and have it prepared for a meeting I will be setting up with Mme. Rossi later today. And not just the stairs, but the footage of the classroom to see exactly who stole the test answer sheet and the lockerroom to see if the accusations of Mlle. Dupain-Cheng stealing Mlle. Rossi’s property is at all valid. And allow me to make something very clear, you are already looking at being brought up on negligence and abuse of power, seeing as you expelled and reinstated a student, something that only the Board of Governors has the power to do. If I find out that the footage is somehow ‘missing’, I will have no choice but to assume that you have purposefully erased it to protect yourself and will have you brought before the Board by tomorrow morning. Am I clear?”

The man gave a shaky nod, as he immediately got on his computer and began pulling up the footage from that day.

Getting on his phone, Walters called the number that Mme. Rossi had listed in the previous files and it went straight through. He easily scheduled a meeting for later that day and hung up.“I will be sitting in on Mme. Bustier’s class for the rest of the day, until Mme. Rossi arrives at 1pm for our appointment. Have all the footage ready by then.” Without another word, Inspector Walters left the office and made his way down to the Akuma Classroom.

~oOo~

Lunch had finally come and Walters was anything but impressed by what he had seen. To her credit, Mme. Bustier had been polite and understanding towards his presence in the classroom and seemed to go about teaching as usual. She was also a very upbeat type of personality, something needed in a city plagued by akumas. But that was the extent of his compliments towards the teacher. 

During the first half of the day, he witnessed the woman allow her students to become disorderly multiple times. Three of which stood out to him beyond the normal rowdy teenage energy that is normal for a classroom. 

The first was how a boy in the front of the room kept flinching and curling into himself whenever another student, who just happened to be Mlle. Lila Rossi, touched him. She was sharing his desk in the front, sitting inappropriately close, clutching his arm in a possessive manor, and ignored him when he asked her to let him go or give him space. All this was done in full view of Mme. Bustier, and she did nothing.

During the literature lesson, they were studying Bram Stoker’s Dracula, Mlle. Rossi interrupted and began telling a story about being a descendant of Vlad the Impaler. A complete falsehood since Vlad’s only child had been killed as an infant. This was a fact that the teacher should have corrected or told the girl to pay attention to the lesson, but she did nothing. Allowing the girl to prattle on for close to 15 minutes before returning to the lesson.

The worst though, was when Mlle. Rossi, made another scene when she began complaining about how her leftknee was still hurting from when Marinette pushed her down the stairs. The other students proceeded to glare and speak harsh words about the girl. It was at this time that Mlle. Dupain-Cheng stood from her seat in the back and attempted to defend herself. Mme. Bustier did intervene this time, but she did not reprimanded the other students that were ganging up on the one girl. Instead, she reprimanded Marinette and told her that she was not setting a good example for the class. Then forced her to apologize to Lila for upsetting her. Blatant victim blaming, right in front of him, and the teacher had the nerve to smile at him as if to say that she had handled the situation.

Walters had written everything down, already deciding that he would need to call the Board at the first possible moment to alert them to the incompitent administrative practices of Damocles, as well as the toxic teaching methods of Bustier. It was now little wonder why this class had produced so many akumas. It was a miracle that there were any students left in the class that hadn’t been akumatized. But seeing as one student was clearly being bullied and the other was being sexually harassed, it likely wouldn’t be long.

He was just barely able to fit in the call and look over the CCTV footage before his meeting with Mme. Rossi in M. Damocles office. That had been interesting, to say the least. Before the meeting had even started, Mme. Rossi was voicing her worry about the amount of time that the school had been closed due to akuma attacks…

Oncethathad been cleared up, M. Damocles got to the matter at hand. Beginning with requesting information and doctors notes at her earliest convenience pertaining to her daughter’s injuries, disabilities, as well as requesting more information about her lying disease. Again, that had been a very interesting conversation that resulted in the woman yelling at Damocles in French and Italian about how incompetant he was and why hadn’t he gotten ahold of her sooner?

But the worst reaction came when Damocles told her about the day of the incident. They showed her the footage found of Lila, and yes it was Lila, stealing the answer sheet off of Mme. Bustier’s desk and then slip it into Marinette’s bag on her way back to her seat. Then the footage of Lila breaking into Marinette’s locker and planting the necklace. And finally, Lila smiling at Marinette before walking down the stairs and sitting on the ground before she started screaming. 

By then, another inspector from the Board of Governors had arrived to assist in the situation that he had reported during his earlier phone call and the students had returned from lunch. Walters requested Mme. Bustier to join them and to bring Lila along. When the girl entered the office and saw her furious mother and principal, she paled immediately and started lying.

Even when Walters, Damocles, and her mother tore apart every one of her lies, she kept trying to turn things around and make herself a victim. And to Walters’ horror, Damocles was actually buying her lies! It was at that moment that he decided that the man had no right being a school administrator and would be put on leave, pending the end of his investigation and the Board of Governors decision. 

Bustier attempted to side with Lila as well, claiming that the girl suffered from a disease and shouldn’t be punished. Completely ignoring that Mme. Rossi told her that her daughter suffered no such ‘disease’. The other inspector, Marchand, looked on in disgust before pulling out his phone and calling the Board of Governors right there, relaying his support of Walters’ recommendation against Damocles and Bustier. 

Walters took charge of the situation, forcing Damocles out of his chair to take his seat. “Mme. Rossi, as an inspector of the Board of Governors, I must ask if you fully understand the situations that your daughter has caused?”

The woman took a deep breath before slowly letting it out, all the while retaining a firm grip on her daughter’s arm after she had attempted to flee the room earlier. “If you would, please go over everything from the top.” The woman requested, her voice a bit hoarse after yelling at the principal, the teacher, and her daughter.

Giving the woman a sympathetic nod, he flipped open the notebook and went over his notes while Marchand kept Damocles and Bustier quiet and standing in a corner. “I have personally observed your daughter disrupting class, bullying a student named Marinette Dupain-Cheng, lying to her peers, leading them to also bully Mlle. Dupain-Cheng, and sexually harassing another student who verbally asked her to stop. We have video evidence of her committing theft, harassing the same student I witnessed her bullying, framing that student for assault, as well as framing that student of theft and cheating. All that, as well as your testimony of her lying to the school administration about different injuries and illnesses, fraud in regards to changing your contact information, and four months of truancy. 

“At this point, the school has no choice but to suspend Lila, pending an investigation to be completed by the Board of Governors,” he said, handing her the paperwork to sign, which she did right away. “At the time the investigation is complete, she will have the opportunity to plead her case to the Board. However, I want to make it clear that, from what I have seen, it is very likely that your daughter will be expelled.”

To her credit, Mme. Rossi held her head high as she nodded and handed back their copies of the suspension papers. “I suspected as much. However, I do request that a meeting be scheduled with Mlle. Dupain-Cheng’s parents so that Lila may apologize in person. I also want her to apologize to the class and admit her lies to them so that there won’t be any backlash on that poor girl.”

Lila turned to her mother in a panic. “No, Mom! Please don’t make me-”

“YOUNG LADY, you are going to tell the class everything you lied about, apologize to that girl, and admit that you have been bullying her. Am I clear?” Walters was impressed that the girl simply nodded as she curled into herself before Mme. Rossi looked back to him. “I will not allow Lila to escape her punishment, that includes telling the truth to the people she has wronged.”

He nodded in understanding. “I’ll see about arranging a meeting. However, the suspension will be taking effect immediately, if you wish to have her confess to the class, I suggest doing so right now before school lets out.” Walters then turned to give the teacher a hard look that had her wilting under his gaze. “I’m sure Mme. Bustier would have no problem with that, I will also accompany you. M. Marchand, would you mind keeping an eye on M. Damocles?”

“Of course, I would like to word with him in private, myself.” He said, sending the man his own scathing look.

Mme. Bustier quietly escorted the Rossis and himself back to the classroom. The gym teacher, M. D’Argencourt had been watching over the class while Bustier had been in the meeting. Walters asked him to stay, and that they would only be there for a moment before turning to nod at the other teacher.

“Students, may I have your attention, please?” She waited a few seconds as the students put away what they were doing, likely hearing the tremor in the woman’s voice. “As you know, M. Walters, from the Board of Governors, has been sitting in with us today. It has been brought to my attention that one of our students has not been honest with us and has been causing a fair amount of trouble.” 

Looking back at the girl and her mother, Mme. Rossi forced her daughter to step forward while keeping a hand on her shoulder. At first, she didn’t say anything. Then her mother leaned forward to whisper something in her ear, causing her to slump and tears to fall down her cheeks. “I-I lied, about everything. *sniffle* I don’t know any celebrities. I’ve never helped charities or been to Achu. *sniffle* I don’t have tinnitus, arthritis, or anything like that. I’m not Ladybug’s best friend and I’m not related to Vlad the Impaler. And-and…”

“And…” Mme Rossi said in a forceful tone, ignoring the stunned looks they were receiving from the class. Lila tucked her chin to her chest, muttering the rest of her confession under her breath. But her mother wasn’t going to allow that. “Speak up so everyone can hear you, unless you want to be grounded for twice as long with no allowance at all.”

The girl’s hands fisted at her side as she spoke loud enough for everyone in the room to hear. “Marinette never bullied me. I-I bullied her. I told her that I would take her friends from her. I pl-planted the answer sheet in her bag. *sob* I put my necklace in-in her locker. She never pushed me down the stairs either, I faked it to get her expelled.”

“Andwhydid you do all of this to that girl, Lila?” Her mother asked, making it clear that she had to answer. 

“Be-because sh-she knew that I was lying *sob hiccup sob* and I wanted her gone.”

“And what do you have to say to Marinette?”

Lila lifted her chin, glaring dangerously at the girl sitting in the back. “Sorry,” she snapped.

Mme. Bustier looked up at the girl, giving her a kind smile. “And do you accept her apology, Marinette?”

That really pissed him off, that woman had no right to put that girl on the spot after Rossi had done everything in her power to ruin that girl’s life. Before she could say anything, Walters stepped in front of Bustier. “Marinette, you are under no obligation to accept her apology, that is completely up to you.” Waiting a moment he saw the absolute relief on the girl’s face before quietly shaking her head and settling back in her chair. 

Walters then instructed M. D’Argencourt to continue with the class while he escorted Bustier back to the office while Mme. Rossi took her daughter home. 

There was still a lot to do in this school, it was clear to him that the two educators, and he used that term loosely, needed to go. There was paperwork to fill out, more CCTV footage to go over, interviews with the students of Bustier’s class, and calls needed to be made to the Dupain-Chengs and the Agrestes about Lila Rossi and what she’d done to their children. The investigation literally had weeks of work to do, but it had to be done. But Walters knew, by the time they were done cleaning house, the students and school would be better off for it.

~oOo~ Four Weeks Later ~oOo~

Walters was working on the last of the paperwork having to do with the Francois-Dupont College debacle, greatly relieved that it was over.

Lila Rossi had been officially expelled after the investigation for bullying, harassment, theft, sexual harassment, cheating, destruction of property, fraud, and truancy. During her trial before the Board, the Dupain-Cheng family had been present and she had been forced to apologize to them for what she had done to her daughter. From her file, he saw that the Dupain-Chengs, as well as the Agreste family, had placed restraining orders on the girl. The Agreste family were also pressing charges for sexual harassment. Mme. Rossi had mentioned a reformatory school for delinquent children in Italy, stating that she had already enrolled her daughter, despite the outcome of the Board’s decision. He was glad that the woman was taking everything in stride and seemed to be doing the right thing.

The investigation into M. Damocles had uncovered even more skeletons than Walters had expected. Negligence and abuse of power, those were easily confirmed. They also uncovered proof of favoritism, taking bribes to ensure that certain students were not punished for offenses or that they passed their classes, despite failing grades. But the nail in the coffin was when Walters tracked down the money that was supposed to go to upgrading the lockers, Damocles had embezzled it to fund his vigilante superhero activities. He had officially been fired and blacklisted from ever working for the educational system or any branch of the government. The new principal was a vice principal from another school, well versed in bullying situations and had degrees in accounting as well as education. She would be going over all the books to see exactly how much money Damocles had embezzled over the years, so the Board of Governors would be able to sue for the proper amount of restitutions.

The issue of Mme. Bustier turned out to be an interesting matter. While looking into her qualifications, it had been revealed that her teaching license had been suspended beforeshe had been hired by Damocles to teach at the school. Not trusting her file, Walters contacted her previous school and found out that they had fired her for much of the same reasons he had put her on leave. She had enabled bullies, blamed the victims, and pressured her “star pupil” to take on the work of a teaching assistant. When that same student complained and refused to help anymore, Bustier had told his parents that the boy was a troublemaker, refused to follow instruction, and was talking back. The boy had insisted on talking to the principal, who had cleared things up with the student and his parents. Bustier had been fired for her behavior and her license suspended until she completed anti-bullying classes, which she never attended. She simply applied to a new school, where the principal didn’t look too closely at her paperwork, and resumed her toxic teaching methods. Because of this; Bustier had been fired, blacklisted from ever teaching again, as well as arrested for teaching without a license.

The whole of Bustier’s class had been assigned counselling sessions for the foreseeable future until the toxic habits that the teacher had instilled in the class could be rectified. Though Walters was pleased to see that there seemed to be progress, as none of the students had been akumatized since the day he had gone to the school. A new record for time between akumatizations. The substitute that had been hired was stern, well versed in squashing bullying habits, but was sympathetic to the victims. That was what that class needed for the time until the Board could find a suitable, permanent replacement. 

All in all, Walters felt that he had done his job with investigating the Dupain-Cheng expulsion, and was happy to hear that the girl was doing much better. Her record had been cleared, her grades were still at the top of the class, and she had given the Board a basket of baked goods on the day of Lila’s trial, which had been like eating little bites of heaven. She had even given him a custom notebook cover, that he was pretty sure she made herself, and a matching pen. It was a very kind gift, and might have thought it was a bribe if anyone else had given it to him, but he could tell that she was just grateful to him for listening to her and making her school life better. 

That was the reason he enjoyed his job.

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This story was inspired by the idea of a what would happen if a civilian tried to go after Ladybug or Chat Noir’s miraculous and it got caught on video. Origially, I was going to have Alya be the one recording, but I decided someone outside of the Akuma Class needed some love. Warm-Fuzzies and please enjoy!!

Aurore Borell considered herself a dedicated weather girl and journalist. She paid attention to leads, always checked her sources, listened to witnesses after akuma battles, and always minded her safety when there was an attack. The akuma of the day was a boy from her school, she didn’t know him personally but he was going by the name Stillshot. Aurore had heard on the news that he had the ability to freeze people in place if he took your picture. 

The battle had moved close to where she lived and she hadn’t felt safe in her home, seeing as the akuma was a street level type and she lived in a lower apartment with her parents. So, she had moved to the roof of her apartment building with her phone to record everything she could see from her vantage point. 

And boy, did she see a lot.

Ladybug and Chat Noir were barely keeping clear of the beams that were shooting from the camera in Stillshot’s hands. They were even more encumbered because they were carrying a civilian around with them. Aurore recognized her as Lila Rossi, another student from her school. She didn’t know her well, but was pretty sure that the girl was a total liar. She’d once heard her say that she used to be a junior weather girl in Italy, which was admittedly impressive. But when Aurore looked her up, she couldn’t find a single news or radio station that ever listed her as an employee, intern, or even a volunteer; so she was pretty sure that it was a total lie.

Looking down, her phone in hand, she could see Stillshot shouting at the two heroes for protecting the girl. To her surprise, Ladybug and Chat Noir didn’t look thrilled by the situation either, but were still doing their best to protect her. When Ladybug called for her Lucky Charm and got a can of hairspray, Aurore was excited to see how the heroes would use it to save the day. 

Lila was quickly tossed to the side, Chat Noir used his Cataclysm to destroy the top spray button, and then Ladybug chucked the can at the akuma. Hairspray practically exploded all over him, covering his lens with a thick coat of the sticky substance and making it impossible for the camera to focus enough to take a picture. Then the yo-yo shot at the camera, breaking the lens and freeing the little purple butterfly to be caught and purified. 

Seeing the magical ladybugs swarm around the city always made Aurore smile. So much so that she almost missed Ladybug and Chat Noir jumping over her roof and landing on the building next to hers. It was a story lower than her apartment building, which gave her a good vantage point to look over at them. It was a bit surprising to see that they had brought Lila with them… and they appeared anything but happy with the girl.

“Thank you so much for saving me! I was so scared, and I have no idea why he was coming after me-”

“Will you stop lying already? There’s no one here to show off for.” Ladybug snapped at the girl, surprising both Lila and Aurore. “We know that you told that poor boy that you would get him a personal interview with Gabriel Agreste to become one of his photographers, and he believed you because you’re a Gabrielmodel. Then when he went to the mansion, at the time you told him to, he was arrested for trespassing!”

Chat Noir put a hand on his partner’s shoulder in an attempt to calm her down, but he didn’t look any happier. “This has got to stop, Lila. We’ve heard about all the things you’ve been doing; lying about having disabilities, sexually harassing Adrien Agreste, getting Marinette Dupain-Cheng expelled from school because she called you out on your lies! Do you not care that your lies are hurting people?”

The facade that Lila had been wearing at first faded into a cruel scowl that caused a cold shiver to crawl down Aurore’s back.

“Do I look like I care? I only tell people what they want to hear. If they’re stupid enough to believe me, then that’s their own fault.”

“And what about the danger you’ve put your family in?” Ladybug asked, seeming almost desperate. “What if Hawkmoth sees that fake interview on the Ladyblog of you claiming to be my best friend? He’ll target you or your family, just to get leverage to get out miraculous!”

Lila let out a manic laugh before stepping closer to Ladybug. “Like I would care about that? If anything, I would gladly help him if it meant taking you down!”

That’s when the girl lunged at the red and black spotted hero, her hands reaching for her ears as Ladybug was knocked back onto the roof in surprise. But before she could rip the jewels from her earlobes, Chat Noir had grabbed Lila by the back of her jacket and flung the girl away from his partner. The italian landed hard on her shoulder and Aurore could see scrapes on her cheek and knees from the impact as Chat helped Ladybug to her feet and checked her ears to make sure her miraculous were still in place.

Aurore made doubly sure that she was out of sight as she kept recording, barely believing that someone would dare try to take Ladybug’s earrings while knowing what would happen to Paris and its people without Ladybug. Lila’s smile reminded her of a feral animal as she stood up. “Now I’ll make both of you regret ever challenging me! Everyone saw you carrying me away, I’ll tell everyone that you beat me up.”

“And why would we even do that?” Chat snapped at her.

“I’ll think of something,” she continued to grin. “A few tears, tear my clothes a bit more, you’ve already given me a few marks to make it more believable. By the time I’m done with the two of you, you’ll be just as infamous as Hawkmoth.”

Chat and Ladybug were alerted by their miraculous that they were down to their last minute and had no choice but to flee, glaring at the girl before jumping away. Aurore continued to record as Lila grabbed the sleeve of her jacket and ripped it at the shoulder, then slapped herself across the face to leave nail marks on her right cheek, opposite of the scrape on the left . She paced around for a moment, muttering to herself before she began crying.

“I don’t know why they did it. *sob* They carried me to the roof, I thought it was to make sure I was alright, but then they started blaming me for the akuma, said that they should have just let it have me and then they wouldn’t have to deal with me anymore.*hicup-sob-hicup*I tried to get away but Ladybug slapped-” she stopped crying suddenly, giving her head a shake “No, I can do  better than that.” Then she started crying again “I tried to get away, but Chat Noir grabbed me and threw me down, it hurt so bad. Then Ladybug slapped me and said that if she ever saw me again, she’d do worse than just scare me. Chat Noir even said he would gladly use his Cataclysm on me. Please, I’m so scared, I don’t know what to do!” 

Then Lila’s face went back to that manic look that gave Aurore the creeps before skipping over to the fire escape and began climbing down. She stopped recording as soon as the girl was out of sight and then played the recording back. She’d never been so relieved to have a good quality phone, the camera had caught everything that happened and picked up every word that was spoken.

She was nearly in a state of panic, indignation, and urgency as she raced inside and down the stairs, calling her producer at KIDZ+ news to call an emergency meeting and get some police there as well. The producer sounded skeptical at first, but when Aurore went on to say that she had proof of someone that was not akumatized trying to steal Ladybug’s earrings, that got her moving.

~oOo~

The entire upper level staff of KIDZ+ and TVi News were present when Aurore arrived. Officer Roger Raincompix had come, along with Mayor Bourgeois. They had been in a meeting when Roger received the call and the mayor insisted on coming, saying that if someone was threatening the heroes of Paris, he wanted to be in the know. She began playing her recording from the beginning, attempting to prove how recent it had been made and that she’d of had no time to doctor the footage. When it came to the footage from the roof… the reaction to her recording had been immediate and about what she had expected; shock, horror, fear, and disgust at the girl’s actions.

“Are you sure this recording is accurate?” Officer Roger asked, looking like he was about to be sick.

“I’m sure,” she said before sliding it towards him. “Check it, put it through every test you can think of to see if it’s authentic. I recorded that video from the roof of my building, it was right by where the akuma battle ended. I’ll give you my address so you can make sure it’s right.”

“I can also say, from a preliminary look, that I didn’t see any cuts, skips, or changes in color or texture which would indicate that this recording has been altered.” Nadja Chamack stated as she restarted the video and looked it over with a more critical eye. “At this point, I’d say that this is authentic, but I agree that we’ll want to run some tests to be absolutely sure before putting in on the news.”

Just then, Roger’s phone rang. He mentioned that it was the station and that he had to answer it. Stepping away, Aurore watched his back go stiff and his brows crease into a deep scowl. “I understand. Are her parents present?” Another pause and he nodded. “Put her in a private interrogation room, and don’t let her talk to anyone else. Tell her that we cannot do anything or properly take her statement unless she has a guardian present. Do what you can to keep her at the station and her mother present. I’ll be in touch very soon.”

Hanging up his phone, he turned back to the group. “Apparently, a Mlle. Lila Rossi has just come to the police station claiming that she was assaulted by Ladybug and Chat Noir. Her injuries that Officer Laurent told me, match the ones that were shown in the video.” He then looked to the President of TVi News. “How long will it take your people to inspect the recording?”

“Since it hasn’t been uploaded to any social media sites and we have the date, location, the phone that recorded the video, and the person who recorded it; not long, maybe a few hours.” She glanced at the clock, reading 11:27am before looking back at Officer Roger. “It could be ready and verified in time for the 6 o’clock news tonight.”

“Get started,” Roger nodded, “I’ll be sending a few of my people from our tech division to observe and double check the work. Once it has been verified, I want copies made for evidence.”

“I will also need a copy,” Mayor Bourgeois spoke up, finally finding his voice after the shock of the video. “If I’m not mistaken Mme. Rossi is employed by the Italian Embassy, meaning this could result in an international incident. If this turns out to be true, I will not allow this horrid girl to remain in my city or to ever set foot on French soil again.”

The TVi President nodded, writing down notes while Officer Roger called his best tech people from the station to drop whatever they were doing and come to the TVi station immediately. Then he turned to Aurore, took her statement, her address, and had her send him a copy of the recording before calling another one of his officers to meet him at that address to compare the video to the scene. As well as sending officers to the Dupain-Cheng Bakery and the Agreste Mansion to get corroborating statements. 

~oOo~

Lila was beginning to get tired, she had been fake crying for hours and really wanted to go home and take a nap. It had become even more taxing when she was forced to call her mother to the station or else the police wouldn’t be able to take her statement. At least her mother had bought her story hook, line, and sinker and was already talking about filing charges against the city of Paris for allowing a couple of vigilante teenagers to run around and hurt her daughter.

It was just after 5pm when Officer Roger, Sabrina’s dad, entered the interrogation room along with Officer Laurent. The younger officer had taken her statement not long after her mother arrived at the station but had told them that, due to the serious accusations being made, it would be best to take this up the chain of command to make sure that nothing was overlooked. That had made Lila nervous at first, but she was confident that they would believe her. After all, she was the one that had been hurt and Ladybug and Chat Noir were nowhere in sight to contradict her story.

“Hello Mme. and Mlle. Rossi, I’m Officer Roger. I want you to tell me what happened.” He said as he placed his tablet and a notebook on the table and pulled out a pen.

“Do I have to do this again? Just thinking about what they did scares me.” Lila squeezed her eyes shut as she pinched her inner thigh to draw tears. Her mother wrapped an arm around her shoulder in comfort, eating it up.

“I understand that this must be difficult, but I need to hear your statement.”

Giving a shaky nod, Lila went into her story again, making sure that her voice trembled a bit and to keep her shoulders hunched. “I don’t know why they did it. *sob* They carried me to the roof, I thought it was to make sure I was alright, but then they started blaming me for the akuma, said that they should have just let it have me and then they wouldn’t have to deal with me anymore. *hicup-sob-hicup* I tried to get away, but Chat Noir grabbed me and threw me down, he even kicked me. It hurt so bad. Then Ladybug slapped me when I was trying to get up and then grabbed my face, it felt like she was going to crush my chin. She said that if she ever saw me again, she’d do worse than just scare me. Chat Noir even said he would gladly use his Cataclysm on me. Please, I’m so scared, I don’t know what to do!” 

Officer Roger nodded as he continued to write everything down. “And you’re willing to testify to this in a court of law?”

Mme. Greta Rossi was already nodding to the affirmative. “Yes, those incompitent vigilantes are going to pay for hurting my daughter. I want to file lawsuits against them for assault and intimidation.”

Roger nodded in understanding but then gave Mme. Rossi a curious look. “I understand that you are upset, but I don’t see how Ladybug and Chat Noir could be labeled as incompitent. They have always defeated the akumas sent by Hawkmoth.”

“That’s not true, my daughter’s school was closed for months, months, because those two couldn’t beat the principal of her school after he was akumatized and damaged the school.”

He blinked at her. “Mme. Rossi, I’m not sure if you are aware of this, but our daughters are enrolled in the same school and attend the same class. There have been days when an akuma will cause the school to open a bit late or close early, but it has never been closed for months. And as for M. Damocles being akumatized, that occurred after school hours, with the majority of the battle taking place off of school grounds, and he was returned to normal before the end of the night. It did not interrupt the school at all.”

Hearing this, Mme. Rossi’s mouth dropped open before turning to look at her daughter, who had gone suspiciously quiet and was ducking down a bit in her chair.

“And as for the lawsuits that you wish to file, you should be made aware that there lawsuits being filed against your daughter by three different parties for assault, slander, intimidation, sexual harassment, and a few other charges.”

“WHAT!?”

“Yes, Madame. Some of those charges are being filed by the city of Paris, itself.”

“How dare you!” Mme. Rossi yelled as she stood so quickly that she knocked her chair backwards onto the floor. “My daughter was assaulted by those two and the city has the nerve to blame Lila? I won’t stand for this!”

Officer Roger stayed calm as he turned on his tablet and played the video he’d queued up. As Mme. Rossi watched the video, her anger ebbed away into surprise at the things the two heroes  said and how Lila didn’t deny it; then shock when Lila attacked Ladybug for her earrings only to see that she was injured because Chat Noir had protected his partner; back to anger as she watched her daughter rip her clothes, scratch her own face, and then practice the lines she had told the police, almost word for word. Officer Laurent was forced to come around the table to steady Greta before righting her chair so she could sit down. 

“For the record, Mme. Rossi, multiple people have inspected this recording, including TVi News and members of the Paris Police Department, and have come to the conclusion that it is authentic. No tampering whatsoever. Your daughter assaulted Ladybug in an attempt to steal her miraculous, which is designated as a terrorist act as she and Chat Noir are the defenders of Paris, and currently our best defense against the known terrorist, Hawkmoth.”

Lila had been silent since giving her statement again, she hadn’t expected her mother talking about the school being closed or Officer Roger destroying that lie so easily, but that was something she might have been able to recover from if given the chance. But now with that recording, actual hard evidence that proved that she’d been lying, had attacked Ladybug, and had faked her injuries and lied to the police… there was hardly a single thin straw for her to grab at, but she had to try.

Lila turned up the tears as she desperately gripped her mother’s arm. “Mom, you don’t actually believe them, do you? You know I would never do the things they’re saying I did. That video has to be a fake! Please, you have to believe me!” 

To her dismay, her mother removed her grip on her arm, stood from her chair, and began pacing the room. “Who are the other parties that are filing lawsuits against her?”

“Mom!”

“Be quiet!” Mme. Rossi snapped at her daughter, glad that her mouth snapped shut before slumping lower in her seat. “Who else has she hurt?”

“M. Agreste is planning on filing lawsuits for sexual harassment and slander. The Dupain-Chengs are filing lawsuits for slander, intimidation, and harassment. I have looked into the school and found that Mlle. Dupain-Cheng was indeed expelled after your daughter accused her of assault and theft, but later recanted her story while claiming that she suffered from a disease that makes her lie uncontrollably. Mlle. Dupain-Cheng also claims that your daughter has been bullying her by spreading lies and rumors about her to isolate her from her friends.”

“She’s lying! Marinette’s the one that’s been bullying me!”

“I SAID BE QUIET!”

Lila jumped in her chair that time before cowering, she’d never seen her mother this angry before. It was actually kind of scary, but even worse… she was sure that her mother wasn’t going to support her or back up her lies. She was on her own.

~oOo~

When the news broke an hour later, Mme. Rossi had never been more humiliated in her life. The Embassy had called her as well, saying that she would be on leave pending an investigation, meaning that she would be lucky to still have her job by the end of the week. After leaving her daughter at the police station to face the charges against her, Greta had made a beeline for the school, demanding to know why they had never contacted her about the truancy, the disabilities, or her daughter’s supposed tumble down the stairs. The teacher and principal had given her less than satisfactory answers like “Lila said you were busy and we didn’t want to disturb you” and “she promised that she would get us those doctors notes”. She was on the phone with the Board of Governors before she was off the property. Since they had also seen the news, she could easily say that they were almost as upset as she was and the two incompitent educators would be lucky if they were still employed at the end of the week. 

The visit to the Dupain-Cheng Bakery was even more enlightening. From the stories Lila had told her during the past few months, she expected Marinette to be cold, callous, and rude. But that couldn’t have been further from the truth. Sabine Cheng had invited her up to the livingroom to speak and Marinette soon joined them. She was a shy but sweet girl that offered to get her a glass of water and whatever she would like from the bakery. To be honest, she had wanted to try the pastries from the shop months ago, but had made the mistake of believing her daughter when she said that they were terrible. So she asked for a berry scone and Marinette gave a kind smile before going down stairs and coming back up with the scone, a few different macaroons, a croissant, and a chocolate chip cookie. 

When Mme. Rossi looked at her in surprise, Marinette gave her a kind smile. “You look upset, I thought having a variety of sweets might help cheer you up.”

The sincerity on the girl’s face nearly brought tears to her eyes. She couldn’t believe that her daughter had been tormenting this sweet girl just because she had called her out on her lies. She asked the girl honestly, what her daughter had done to her. And although hesitant, Marinette told her everything; from the threats and lies, to acting like she had been pushed down the stairs and planting her necklace in Marinette’s locker; if it could even be called that since it didn’t lock. 

After that, Marinette asked to be excused and Greta proceeded to speak with Sabine. She admitted that she’d had no knowledge as to what Lila had been up to, that the school had never contacted her about any of the incidents, she had already filed a complaint with the Board of Governors, and recommended that they do the same. Despite Lila’s terrible treatment of Marinette, Sabine accepted the advice with gratitude but informed her that they would still be filing the lawsuits against Lila. Greta stated that she hadn’t come to change their minds, but to hear Marinette’s side of the story.

Just before she left, Marinette hurried down the stairs with a small white silk square with royal purple flowered embroidery. In one corner, the initials G.R. were stitched in elegant script and looked to be hand sewn. “It’s a handkerchief, my way of saying ‘thank you’ for hearing me out. Other than my parents and the police officers that came by this morning, you were the first person to really listen to what I had to say about Lila. Thank you.”

Not bothering to hold back tears this time, Greta accepted the gift and asked the girl for a hug, which she easily gave. Then turning to Sabine, she told her. “You are wonderful parents, I am so sorry that my daughter has put you through so much. I just hope after this, she’ll learn that actions have consequences.”

After that, Greta jumped in a cab and made her way over to the Agreste Mansion. This was a completely different experience compared to the Dupain-Chengs. She never actually spoke to Gabriel Agreste, only Adrien and Gabriel’s assistant Nathalie. Adrien explained that he discovered that Lila was lying on the first day when she claimed to be best friends with Ladybug and the descendant of the wielder of Fox Miraculous. That was when Ladybug had shown up and chastised her for lying about her. Adrien agreed due to the danger of tempting Hawkmoth. 

He went on to say how Lila claimed that she was traveling the world with her mother and was friends with all sorts of celebrities. If Mme. Rossi wanted a more complete list of her lies, to check out the Ladyblog, as she had done several interviews. Adrien also went on to talk about how during their first photoshoot together, Lila wouldn’t keep her hands off of him and it made him uncomfortable. Lila had told him that unless he wanted Marinette to suffer even more, he’d stop complaining.

When Greta mentioned that she was told that the photoshoot was a relationship announcement between the two teens, and that she’d had no idea that she was a Gabriel model, Nathalie pulled up Lila’s contract on her tablet. The one that Greta had supposedly signed to grant her underaged daughter permission to work as a model. Mme. Rossi told the assistant at a glance that it wasn’t her signature and Lila had never shown her any such paperwork. To which Nathalie informed her that Gabriel would also be adding forgery and fraud to the list of charges being filed against her daughter, Greta simply nodded in acceptance. After all, forgery and fraud weren’t nearly as bad as assault, sexual harassment, or terrorism. 

~oOo~

When her daughter was brought to trial two weeks later, Greta Rossi sat dutifully behind her daughter but refused to testify on her behalf, not that it would have helped her. Between all the charges that were filed against her by the city of Paris, the Agreste family, the Dupain-Cheng family, and the investigation into the school and Lila’s actions by the Board of Governors; her daughter had no leg to stand on. She also made the mistake of lying to the judge on the first day and committing perjury, which only added to the charges.

The trial lasted for three days due to all the evidence and testimonies brought against her and the fact that Lila was the daughter of a diplomat. However, the evidence was overwhelming and the Italian government had already revoked any immunity that Lila might have had. The jury found her guilty and the judge declared that the sentencing would lie in the domain of the Italian government. Although it was decided that Lila would not be permitted to return to France.

Mme. Rossi made it clear to the court that she was already preparing to send her daughter to a juvenile corrections center in Italy, where she would remain until her 18th birthday and the courts would decide further sentencing. 

Lila had screamed at her mother, accusing her of betraying her only daughter and that she was not her mother anymore. She had also hissed and attempted to attack Marinette for “ruining her life because she couldn’t keep her nose out of her business” and “why couldn’t you have just killed yourself”. Greta did her best to ignore the cruel words, but found herself pulling out the handkerchief that Marinette had given her. It was a small comfort, but it was more than what she deserved after Lila had hurt so many people.

Taglist:

@7-sage-7 @fantasiame  @seraphichana

@t1dwarrior-of-earth @ghostmaster83 @izang

@ulmban @plushbookworm @corabeth11

@ramos123 @darkened-flame @caffeinetheory

@iamablinkmarvelarmy @abrx2002

@delightfulcookiesrecipespizza 

MLB Class Salt Prompts/Fics Reccomendations 2

Part 1

A False Ladybugby@cornholio4

She looked and saw an open mouth Chat Noir and was surprised to see him there already but then saw everyone looking towards a nervous looking Lila and a girl she didn’t recognise. “Wait, you’re not Milady? Did you use the Mouse Miraculous to multiply yourself or something? Please tell me this wasn’t a lie!” Chat Noir demanded and Marinette demanded someone explain what was going on.

“The new student is Sara and she is Lila’s best friend; they had been telling us that she was you.” Sabrina spoke up and Marinette had her mouth wide open and was growing angry. This had gone far enough…

Not My Friendsby@lenacraft

This doesn’t actually have a title

“Then why won’t you help the class,” asked Adrien. Lately, he’d been on Lila’s heels. Her former crush was another name on a long list of betrayals.

“It’s simple, I’m always willing to help my friends. Now, please leave, I’m busy.”

They left the art room, her words sinking in. Oddly enough, it was Nathaniel who broke the news. Telling Alix, who told Kim, who told Max, and so on and so forth until it got to Alya.

Tattered Remains of Broken Dreams (Yours, not Mine)by@unmaskedagain

Marinette shook her head, “Fifteen thousand dollars of work you were going to get for free, gone.”

Most of her classmates’ faces had drained of color at the price, at realization of how big of a screw up they made. They had no idea just how much work Marinette did.

Lila was seething because it would be too hard to turn this around.

Marinettes Big Fallby@aliensunflower-fics

“What’s your best friends name? And can you describe them.”

Marinette froze and stayed silent. Tikki suddenly felt a strange twist in her tummy. Sabine and Tom looked at their daughter uncertainly. Finally after a long pause. Marinette spoke with a strained laugh.

“I uhh dont remember having one sir.” Sabine felt her stomach suddenly drop, hidden away behind a plant Tikki felt the same thing.

Nothing Left to Say Nowby@musicfeedsmysoul12

“I suppose there’s nothing left to say then.” She told them, before she turned away from them, heading to the back of the class. She sat down and refused to speak for the rest of the class despite the confused looks she got and the annoyed ones. Even a few hurt ones.

Like they had any fucking right to be hurt.

Remember some chapters are longer than others

(ﾉ◕ヮ◕)ﾉ*.✧

Taglist:

@the-dumber-scaramouche@madd-kwami@arty-shadow-morningstar@platinum-here@ao3s-ishouldreads@naturegreenr-2@fandombetch@fangirlingfanatic@caney768@funnybunnyxxx@sillyandquest@storylover04@fangirlingfanatic@crazyyanderefangirlfan@sassakitty@alicesangelofmusic@virgil-is-a-cutie@babyizuwu@briansastro10@harrietrile17@actualnarislayer@d-starfairy@summerfox1988@lcamila23@wolf-for-life@mothwithglasses@xpxlxgxxs

Alya in charge

Marinette knows her occupation as Ladybug is more important than Alya’s blog. She does not need the added stress of being class representative.

Bonus, if Alya is busier as Class representative, perhaps it means she will be less able to chase after akumas, consequently running into danger, if she is herding the class to safety.

As a result, Marinette insists Alya be Class representative. Downright standing down when Alya nominates Marinette.

When Dark Knight attacks, Marinette is tempted to start ordering the class what to do, but she instead asks Alya out loud what they should do.

As Alya directs everyone, Marinette rushes away to transform.

Alya is elected class representative since Marinette does not exactly inspire confidence in them.

Later when it is Ms Bustier’s birthday, and Chloe ruins Marinette’s gift, it is Alya who is called away

Caline encourages Alya to forgive Chloe, but Alya is stubborn and quotes that people who do nothing are just letting bad people win. If people keep forgiving Chloe for her misdeeds, she won’t see any harm in continuing to do them.

Alya is not as swayed by Ms Bustier’s authority because she is disillusioned with the staff after Damocles suspended her and is outraged on Marinette’s behalf. If Ms Bustier forgives Chloe just like that without punishing her, she is hurting Marinette’s feelings.

They see an akuma and it is unclear whether it is more attracted to Ms Bustier’s fear for her students or Alya’s feeling of injustice. But since Ms Bustier puts herself in front, the akuma goes for her. Alya refuses to believe herself guilty as Ms Bustier can’t just force people to forgive bullies when no justice has been served. If that is the case, should they just forgive an unrepentant Hawkmoth in the hope that he will turn over a new leaf?

When Zombizou is defeated, Ladybug gently advises Ms Bustier that she cannot force people to forgive their bullies. And that she needs to think of the victims, not just the bullies.

Later when Lila arrives, Alya is fascinated by her tales and wanted an interview about her time as Volpina. Due to class President duties making her less likely to have direct footage, Alya has instead learned to post video and reports from multiple sources.

Alya is disappointed when Lila claims her mother was so alarmed by her akumatization that she is taking her with her to Achu. It is rather sudden for the Italian Ambassador to stay in Paris for just two days, but a mother’s love knows no bounds.

Alya wishes Lila a good trip and informs Ms Bustier, who acknowledges this when an email comes from “Mrs Rossi” addressing Lila’s leave of absence.

Meanwhile, determined to make a post on Volpina, Alya reviews all the various footage people have on Lila.

To Alya’s dismay, she sees a recording of Ladybug exposing Lila as a liar in front of Adrien. And Alya can understand after the recorder repeated Lila’s claims of Ladybug not being a top tier hero.

Apparently the recorder wasn’t at first interested in Lila and Adrien but was appalled to see Marinette stalking the couple, then recognized the celebrity nearby and recorded him instead, wondering how much he could get paid about Adrien’s secret girlfriend.

Alya is understandably upset at being lied to. And if Lila lied about this, what else has she lied about? She forwarded the footage to her class, editing out Marinette stalking Adrien, asking them to double check what Lila claimed.

While the class is outraged at Lila insulting Ladybug, and kind of annoyed with Adrien for not telling them, even if his plea that Lila was already upset and humiliated enough that he did not want to upset her further; Alya tells Marinette that she was recorded stalking Lila and Adrien.

Marinette is alarmed but relieved the recorder might not have seen her transform. Alya admits that she might encourage Marinette to pursue Adrien and even look on as Marinette steals his phone to delete her unintentional message. But seeing her actions on video, Alya admits that if Adrien were to ever find out, he might be creeped out. Alya suggests that Marinette tone down her crush. Even though Marinette followed Lila to steal the book, she agrees.

When the class report that Lila’s claims are either impossible or false, Alya decides to try calling Mrs Rossi.

(Considering that Damocles had her number, Alya should have it too just in case.)

Mrs Rossi answered and was curious why Alya the class President was calling her. If this is about the school being shut down, she already received an email. If this is about online classes, she should be calling Lila.

“Mrs Rossi, may I inquire as to why Lila will suddenly be leaving school when her first day was just today.”

Mrs Rossi: hasn’t anyone told you the school will be shut down due to the akumas?

Alya: Mrs Rossi, do you know who was akumatized today? We only had one akuma, Volpina, and Ladybug and chat Noir defeated her already.

Mrs Rossi:…who was akumatized?

Alya: your daughter. I’ve asked around. Apparently Lila has been claiming some outlandishing feats from saving a rock star’s cat to being best friends with Ladybug. As a matter of fact, after she was defeated, she called me to say that you were horrified by her akumatization and were taking her out of Paris to go to Achu.

Mrs Rossi: I see…thank you for informing me of this, Alya. I promise you, you will see Lila tomorrow.

Lila was in so much trouble. Her mother had seen the interview on the Ladyblog and knew how much she had lied to her class.

Knowing Lila would not want to show her face after her insulting Ladybug is now on the Ladyblog, Mrs Rossi does not ground Lila. Instead, she stopped her allowance.

The next day, Lila keeps her head down at class, ignoring the glares and hurt looks.

Rather than let Lila be isolated, Alya feels guilty and instead asks Lila if they can start over.

Lila grits her teeth, blaming Alya for exposing her to all of Paris, forces a smile and fakes an apology.

Chloe is insulted that Alya can even consider forgiving Lila after she insulted Ladybug! and refuses to do so.

Marinette feels guilty as well and also chooses to give Lila a second chance. Mostly everybody else follows but this time whenever Lila tells them stuff, they’re just gonna double check.

Of course Lila is going to exact her revenge on Alya somehow. But in the meantime, she needs to be careful. If she wants the girls to like her again, she needs to stay clear of Adrien.

As it is, Lila is Chloe’s new target for insulting Ladybug and going after her Adrikins.

Birthday Guests

This is a draft

Lila is a parasitic friend. Always taking and “asking” from her classmates.

She skipped Marinette’s party during her supposed trip to Achu. But of course she loves parties.

There is a crowd of admirers waiting for her to arrive, along with a buffet of free food.

Of course, it would have been better had this been Lila’s birthday party and not Juleka’s. As technically the twins were to claim the spotlight on this day.

However, with Juleka’s shy nature and Luka’s preference to speak through music, Lila is sure her voice will dominate.

As Marinette rushed to comfort Juleka and Luka expressed his disappointment, Lila was quick to take advantage. Turning, she put on a chiding face. “Guys, we should have known better. Juleka doesn’t like being in the spotlight.”

The others all looked downcast, but hearing Luka’s sad song, they all put aside their negativity and sought to cheer up Luka. Like Lila said, they had to think of others first.

They all offered excuses for Marinette and Juleka. Lila couldn’t help adding in her poisonous words. “We should probably let Marinette come to you when she is ready.”

And knowing baker girl, that will be never.

Lila internally smirked at the thought of Marinette’s friendship with this cutie being officially over. And really she didn’t have to do much this time. Marinette practically declared they aren’t friends anymore with her absence.

To give Juleka and Marinette assurance that no one was waiting for them to come back into the spotlight, Nino started playing his music and everyone began to dance.

Lila chose to dance closer to Luka, keen on getting to know this handsome boy better.

It was then that a certain celebrity boarded the boat.

Jagged Stone had arrived, and so had Fang.

Lila squeaked, her own horror and shock lost in the surprise of the others.

“Jagged Stone? What’s he doing here? Did Lila invite him?”

“Maybe he wants Marinette’s help with a design project?”

But Jagged wasn’t here for either girl. He was here for his son Luka and daughter Juleka.

To say everyone was shocked when father and son greeted each other would be an understatement. The class, especially Kitty Section, thought they were pretty good friends with the twins. Close enough to know that their parents was a celebrity!

Lila panicked. If Juleka knew Jagged Stone personally, she might spoil everything!

As it was, when Jagged went downstairs with Luka, the others thought her shocked frown was because Jagged Stone had not acknowledged her.

“Don’t be upset Lila,” Rose assured. “I’m sure Jagged is focused on his kids only today.”

Lila forced a grin. “I understand. Don’t worry, I adore family relationships and I wouldn’t want to intrude.”

The others cooed over how thoughtful Lila was.

Then, thank you Hawkmoth, the divorced couple were akumatized and everyone fled.

Lila was relieved and opted to skip the party. Better to be absent then have Jagged actually meet her and ask for her name. She can claim to be busy donating her clothes or something.

She even texted the class this in the group chat.

What she never considered was that some students just were not that interested in checking their phone over every alert, or that their phone was on silent mode.

As a result, as the party resumed, someone in the crowd asked, “Where’s Lila?”

“Oh, she was asked to help with an emergency meeting with Prince Ali.”

Jagged stood on the stage. “Any requests?”

Adrien raised his hand. “The song you wrote about Ladybug!”

Mylène: what about the song you wrote for Lila?

Jagged blinked. “Who’s Lila?”

Alix: the girl who saved your kitten, remember.

Jagged: I’m afraid you must be confusing me with someone else. I never owned a kitten and never will.

Nodding towards his children, he added, “Not that kittens don’t rock. My allergies just don’t get along with them.”

Juleka paused and mumbled, “You never had a cat? But Lila said she saved your cat and that’s why you wrote a song about her.”

Jagged: like I said, maybe she was talking about someone else.

Except no. Everyone knew this story was about Jagged Stone.

Kim: Lila lied to us.

Alix: not cool!

For Alya, it was as if the dots were finally connecting. Marinette was Ladybug but Lila said she was best friends with Ladybug except Marinette can’t stand her. So…wow, Alya just wanted to crawl into a hole. How had it taken her this long to figure out Lila was lying?

Seeing how upset everyone was getting, Marinette took charge. “Ok, so now you all know Lila is a liar. But this is Juleka and Luka’s day. And we’re not going to let a liar spoil it, are we?”

Everyone: no!

And so the party continued. Yet once all were back in their bedrooms, Lila’s deceit was once more brought to the forefront of their minds. Laptops and phones were brought out. Search engines fired.

Time to see just how much of a liar Lila Rossi is.

The results were disheartening, and students outside Ms Bustier’s class began receiving texts in the middle of the night.

The next day, Lila knew something was wrong when everyone began whispering as soon as they saw her.

Not the good whispering kind where people gossip about her supposed connections.

This whispering was indicating that Lila was involved in a scandal.

She paused. Perhaps she had been outed after all at yesterday’s party….if that was the case…she immediately turned around and began walking back home, texting her mother that the staff had been akumatized again.

The school may have finally caught onto the truth but her mother might not have. It was imperative this was so, if only so Lila could convince her gullible mother to transfer her to another school.

Meanwhile, Lila’s departure was talked about widely. The class felt disappointed, wishing to confront her.

Caline noted her absence and said Mrs Rossi texted her to say Lila was feeling ill.

Alya: is this the same Mrs Rossi who texted you about their sudden leave for Achu? Because Rose confirmed with Prince Ali that Lila was lying.

Caline paused. Is it possible she had been given the wrong contact number?

The answer is yes.

Thanks to Markov, a new number was produced to call the Italian embassy.

At the embassy, a receptionist called Mrs Rossi. “Your daughter’s teacher wants to talk to you.”

“Disconnect the call! My daughter told me the whole staff has been akumatized!”

The receptionist was puzzled. “But there have been no akuma alerts. And besides, the teacher was not addressing herself with an akuma name.”

“I don’t know! But I’m not taking the call from an akuma.”

The receptionist sighed and switched calls. “I’m sorry, but my colleague is under the impression you are an akuma and refuses to pick up.”

Caline was not amused. “I see. Well, please let Mrs Rossi know that Lila is currently skipping school and that we urgently need her to inspect Lila’s file in person to double check that her medical ailments and contact information are correct.”

The receptionist promised to do just that and told Mrs Rossi the teacher’s message.

Mrs Rossi: I am not going to an akuma’s lair!

Receptionist: I don’t think there actually is an akuma. Hang on.

She goes to a secretary. “Hi, Mr Fontaine. You have a son who attends Dupont College now, right? Mrs Rossi is told by her daughter that an akuma is taking over the school, whereas the teacher told me her daughter was playing truant. Would you mind calling your son?”

Mr Fontaine: not at all

He made the call. The receptionist patient and Mrs Rossi embarrassed.

“Ah, hello Alain….nothing much, I just wanted to check if your principal or anyone has been akumatized at your school…no? That’s good.”

Mrs Rossi began to feel uneasy. “He might be under the control of an akuma!”

Mr Fontaine raised a brow at this woman. “Hang on, for a moment son. Mrs Rossi seems to think you’re under an akuma’s influence….oh my. I see. Yes, I’ll tell her right away. Have a good day, son.”

He ended the call and turned to Mrs Rossi. “Alain had something rather remarkable to say about your daughter. Apparently she has a reputation for lying.”

Mrs Rossi huffed. “Well, he’s under an akuma’s control. We can’t trust what he is saying.”

Mr Fontaine continued, “One of her lies includes a trip to Achu that took place a couple of months ago. Did your daughter stay at home then too?”

Mrs Rossi was not deterred. “Yes, but-“

“Did you also know your daughter has been akumatized at least twice? Both of her akumatizations involved deception in one form or another.”

Mrs Rossi faltered. “What?”

Mr Fontaine looked at the receptionist. “Volpina and Chameleon,” she was already using images from the Ladyblog to show the pale mother. “In fact, I remember Lila was interviewed as Ladybug’s best friend the same day she got akumatized.

When Mrs Rossi saw the interview of Lila claiming to be best friends with the heroine she also claimed to be lousy, her cheeks flushed with humiliation and anger.

“Do you still have the teacher’s number?”

Needless to say, Mrs Rossi and the staff were both ashamed in their discussion at having been duped by Lila Rossi. And considering the situation with Marinette Dupain-Cheng, with the footage finally watched, obviously she cannot stay in the same class. And she will need to serve detention and retain a year.

Mrs Rossi took it one step further though. “I have to take her out of Dupont. It will not do for her to be the pariah when Hawkmoth is at large.”

Later that day, Lila had rehearsed what she wanted to say to her mother when she finally came home. “Oh mother! With all these akumas interrupting my education, how will I ever graduate? Do you think I should transfer? I’ve been doing some research and it seems like Dupont College is a hotspot for akumas. Although with the daughter of the mayor bullying everyone and the Teachers not standing up to her, that is no surprise.”

Mrs Rossi was firm. “Actually, that is a great idea. I’ve been thinking that you should leave Dupont immediately. And I’ve found the perfect school for you!”

Lila: is it Sinclair Academy? Because their credits are almost as good as Dupont!

Mrs Rossi: nope. I’m sending you to military school!

Lila: ….what?

Mrs Rossi: although it looks like you will have to stay beyond school hours to catch up on your studies. I’ll arrange everything.

Lila: military school! Why?

Mrs Rossi: you didn’t think i would never find out about your lies, now did you, sweetie?

Lila stood up. “Mom, you can’t trust the akumas.”

Mrs Rossi finally glared at her daughter. “Oh, but I can trust you? Your opinion about Ladybug seems to be quite contradictory when I compare what you told me to what you tell your classmates.”

“They’re fans! You don’t badmouth their idols in front of them!”

Mrs Rossi: but you can lie and say you’re best friends with said idol?

Lila: I wanted to make friends

Mrs Rossi: friendship built on lies? That is a new one. Cheer up, Ma Bella. You’re transferring, just like you wanted.

Lila: I didn’t want to go to military school!

Mrs Rossi: would you rather stay at Dupont where everyone hates you? Those are your only options.

Lila gritted her teeth. “Fine!” she snapped. “I’ll transfer.”

“Good. And I’ll be sure to inform your teachers about your compulsive lying, just so you don’t try to skip classes again.”

And certainly no one was falling for Lila’s grand tales now.

My first Miraculous Ladybug and Ouran Host Club crossover

For @therealvampiratelycan

https://archiveofourown.org/works/38184745

Dupont goes to Ouran - Maggi8noodlesalfredo2lasagne - Miraculous Ladybug [Archive of Our Own]

Dupont goes to Ouran

For fans of Miraculous Ladybug and Ouran High School Host Club

Adrien is actually allowed to join the exchange program, more like ordered to, really.

He will be visiting Kagami’s old school, Ouran High School, a school for the children of rich and influential adults.

Lila wants to go there too and Gavriel allows it.

Marinette originally was not going because she has to stay behind and protect Paris but Kagami realizes what Gabriel has planned and refuses to let the old man pair Adrien up with that liar.

So she signs up Marinette for the exchange tour too, in secret.

Marinette initially wants to back out, no matter how tempting it may be to get between Lila and Adrien. But Tikki points out she went to New York too. They have Kaalki. She’ll be fine.

At Ouran Academy, Lila tries to sound glamorous and claims to know so many important people.

Unfortunately, the students of Ouran can see the holes in her stories.

For one thing, they actually know the people Lila claims to be so intimate with, and have heard nothing about her.

Haruhi, the scholarship student, is also quick to point out the impossibility of such stories. For instance having tinnitus from standing too close to an airplane.

Kyoya Ootori himself does thorough research on the students. He concludes that while there is merit in befriending Adrien Agreste and Marinette Dupain-Cheng for their connections, Lila is someone to avoid.

Tamaki, however, insists that they show Lila she doesn’t need to lie to make friends.

Kyoya pulls out records where Lila’s old classmates have made posts about her, calling her out for being a bully and parasite.

Marinette meets Honey and Mori, popular students who are old friends of Kagami. Honey has an especial sweet tooth and grows fond of Marinette.

Lila is unhappy to be making no progress, she threatens Marinette to help her or she will frame her once again.

Marinette refused to lie.

As a result, Lila pretends Marinette stole her wallet.

But the staff and Kyoya are very thorough and check the security footage where Lila herself plants the wallet in Marinette’s bag.

Lila mentions her lying disease.

Kyoya’s family manages hospitals. He can assure everyone there is no such thing.

Lila is sent back to Dupont in disgrace.

Tamaki notices Marinette’s crush on Adrien and decides to help her out. But no matter how many times the pair are alone in romantic settings, Adrien always sees Marinette as a friend, making her depressed.

The twins find out Adrien has a crush on Paris’ local superhero. Tamaki uses that information to cheer Marinette up, since Adrien likens her personality to the superhero.

This works as Marinette blushes, and no longer feels depressed that Adrien likes someone else, because that someone else is her.

Back home, Damocles was notified that there is no such lying disease and of Lila’s horrible record. He contacts her mother at last. Lila won’t be getting away with this.

What’s with the frown?

Everyone notices Adrien looking depressed about his global trip. This makes it easier for Marinette to rouse the others to stop it from happening.

Lila points out that Gabriel is in control right now and can ground Adrien.

Nina is fed up about Gabriel and actually lashes out, asking how Lila became cool with Gabriel when he hates everyone else.

Lila lies that the photographer insisted she become a model and Adrien was supporting her career, not Gabriel.

On a roll now, Nino decides to finally report Gabriel to the child authorities, never mind Adrien’s reaction

Kagami and Wayhem and all Adrien fans join in by encouraging Adrien to stand up to his father.

Adrien tries to stop the mob forming outside his house, but Nino confronts him about his busy schedule when he would rather just hang out. “You even see school as a form of freedom!!! If that doesn’t raise red flags, I don’t know what does!”

Thanks to Risk’s influence, Adrien temporarily blurts out that he hates modelling and doesn’t want to go on a trip with Lila of all people.

Gabriel: Adrien!

Adrien covers his mouth in dismay.

One fan: This is forced child labour!

Another fan: call the police!

Adrien: no! Don’t do that!

Forced to keep up a front, Gabriel at last said “I thought you would enjoy a trip to see the world. And I never realized how taxing modelling can be. I apologize, Adrien. You and Lila can stay here!”

Catching Lila’s glare at him for ruining her career prospects, Adrien blurts out again, “And Lila isn’t my friend! I only agreed to work with her so she would make sure Marinette got back into school.”

Marinette: so that’s why she took back her charges.

Adrien: i got your back.

Mylène: what was that about Lila?

Under influence of Risk, Adrien exposed Lila himself.

Lila: he’s lying! He’s siding with Marinette!

Alya knows Ladybug is Marinette however and said, “Well, we could always just ask Ladybug herself. And Rose can call Prince Ali.”

Crocodile tears steamed down Lila’s face. “You don’t believe me!”

One fan, impatient from all this drama now, called out, “Just let them make the call so we can all go home already!”

Lila is exposed as a liar by the celebrities.

Gabriel terminates Lila’s contract.

Lila is tempted by Risk to expose Gabriel hiring her to spy on Adrien’s friends and distance them. This lands her in hot water but also paints Gabriel in bad light.

Gabriel: your best friend threw a wild party in my house without supervision! What am I supposed to think? You are literally in the akuma class!

Adrien: Lila was an akuma too!

Gabriel: she agreed to keep you safe from bad influences. And she never threw you an unauthorised party!

Inside his mansion, Gabriel exhales. “So much for taking risks. Ladybug hasn’t shown up and already the police are eyeing me with suspicion.”

It looks as though the earrings and ring are the only way out of this mess.

Nathalie: sir, given the circumstances, how can we trust our own judgment.

….

Gabriel had to admit he had not thought that far ahead.

And if he was compromised, instead of Ladybug finally being defeated, what if he is the one who is finally caught and arrested?!!!

He recalls Risk.

Lila is now a pariah at school and it only gets worse for her because at work, her mother finally blurts out her complaints against the heroes. Before her colleagues had just told her to keep her mouth shut but now thanks to Risk, she just ranted about the incompetence of the popular heroes.

The people at the embassy are shocked by her tactlessness and ignorance. Needless to say, Mrs Rossi is in for a rude wake up call, especially when she connects the dots that her daughter must have been playing truant.

Lila will not be graduating at the end of the year. She will be held back a grade. Her mother is also furious and blames her daughter for making a fool out of her.

Lila: like it’s my fault you don’t even watch the news!

Mrs Rossi stops giving Lila her allowance and forces her to get a job. Given Lila’s record, no one wants to hire her but Chloe decides to get her daddy to hire her as the new garbage girl. (Like how Linguine was the garbage boy in ratatouille.) Mrs Rossi also cuts off cable TV and wifi, and confiscates Lila’s phone. The laptop will have to remain for school but Lila will need to use the school wifi to actually do research.

A different morning

The morning after Risk was akumatized, Nathalie went to comfort Adrien.

They were alone in Adrien’s room and seeing Adrien look so disappointed and depressed, it made Nathalie sad.

She cared for Adrien. She did.

“Adrien, i thought you would be more excited,” she commented, coming in. “You’ve always expressed a desire for more freedom.”

Adrien: you and I both know this trip gives me no freedom. It’s a business trip. I’ll be leaving my friends behind.

Nathalie knew better than to mention Lila Rossi. She overheard his deal and knew he could not like the girl.

Being stuck with the clingy liar for the whole trip…Nathalie doubted he would even be able to appreciate the scenic landmarks in that frame of mind.

I am froggy

Adrien: and another thing, I hate Lila. Why did father even hire her? She got you and my bodyguard in trouble! Did she make up some story about her celebrity connections? You have to have suspected she was lying at least!

Nathalie pushed up her glasses. “Your father found that Lila’s Italian heritage gave him inspiration for a new line of clothing and he rewarded her with a job.

Adrien did not look impressed.

Nathalie came closer. “Adrien, I know you’re unhappy with your choices being taken away from you. But your father does care for you. The main reason behind this journey was because he wanted to send you away from Paris for your own safety.”

Adrien blinked. “What?”

Nathalie sat down. “With all the akumas roaming around Paris and the never-ending war between the heroes and Hawkmoth, Gabriel doesn’t want you in the middle of that. Nor the rest of us.”

“Then why doesn’t he join us?” Adrien pleaded.

Nathalie gave a sad smile. “Adrien, who is resting in Paris?”

Emelie.

Gabriel would rather die in the city with her than leave with his son.

Adrien did not know how to feel about that. So he settled for, “Why does Lila have to come? We have other models in the agency.”

Nathalie shrugged. “She is your classmate. Your father didn’t want you to get lonely.”

He made a face. “You didn’t protest? We’ll be stuck with her for weeks.” A never ending tale of how many celebrities she claimed to know and amazing feats she really never performed.

That…was a very unpleasant scenario.

Nathalie grimaced as well. “It’s too late to change the details after our announcement.”

After she left, Adrien and Plagg looked at each other. “We can’t leave Paris. Should we ask Ladybug for the horse miraculous?”

Plagg: worth a shot.

Adrien transformed and called Ladybug, telling her to meet him ASAP.

He was busy roaming the streets to broadcast his presence and kept busy saving careless civilians.

Alya noted Chat’s presence and informed Ladybug.

Ladybug: what do you mean you’re going away too?

Chat: too?

Ladybug: never mind. I suppose I have to give you the Horse Miraculous.

However Ladybug soon had another message from Rena. “Adrien’s gone missing again?”

Chat: what?

Oh yeah, he was supposed to go to school in his limo but ended up meeting Ladybug. Oops.

Ladybug: I don’t blame him for running away from Lila. He looked so sad in the news.

Chat perked you as he got an idea to discourage Ladybug from finding his alter ego. “Does that mean we shouldn’t find him? If he doesn’t want to be found.”

Ladybug frowned. “I’m not sure.”

I am froggy

“But if this is what Adrien wants, then so be it.”

Chat never planned to run away but sure!

Ladybug headed to school, with Chat rushing to save some children running across the road.

Everyone was concerned about Adrien. Why would he run?

Marinette: does no one notice Adrien frowning? He doesn’t want to go!

Mylène: but why? I thought Adrien loved to go out.

Nino stared at the phone. “It’s a business trip. He won’t really be having a holiday, not with his schedule.”

Lila frowned and gritted her teeth. She texted Adrien to keep his end of the bargain or she won’t either.

Chat received the text message and hissed.

I am froggy

“I’ve had enough of her!”

He had some visits to make.

Less than two hours later, there was another scandal on the loose.

Chat Noir had made a video post where he interviewed various celebrities from Jagged Stone to Prince Ali about Lila Rossi.

Their answer was always the same: Who?

He even visited Mrs Rossi to ask about her daughter’s visit to Achu.

Mrs Rossi: I’ve never been to Achu. And now please leave. I have to work.

The whole school stared at Lila, exposed.

Bustier: Lila, if you weren’t in Achu, where were you?

Ivan: you’ve been lying this whole time haven’t you?

Lila: it’s my condition. I have a rare lying disease from the time I visited a rural village in the Amazon.

Bustier: lying disease or not, you still missed a large chunk of the school year. I’m afraid it looks like you will be held back a year.

Lila: I can provide the paperwork to excuse myself. Just give me time.

Alix: seriously? Ms Bustier, how do we know she isn’t making up this lying disease!

Caline paused.

Alya: we should at least check with her mother to confirm the story.

Lila: my mother is very busy! You saw that in the video.

Caline pauses. Unsure what to do.

I am froggy

Alya and Marinette transform.

Rena: so Ladybug, are you actually friends with Lila Rossi?

Ladybug: of course not!

Rena visits the embassy while Ladybug helps Chat save civilians.

Rena: Mrs Rossi, is it true that your daughter has some rare lying disease?

Mrs Rossi: what are you talking about? My daughter is perfectly healthy. Why are you heroes harassing me?!

Rena: you might want to visit your daughter’s school.

Rena’s post was watched during lunch break.

Gabriel also made another announcement.

Alec: in light of the recent Liar Rossi scandal and his missing son, Gabriel has cancelled the upcoming trip and fired Liar Rossi from his company.

So much negative emotions. It was a shame he couldn’t become Scarlet Moth again.

Satisfied, Chat returned to school and detransformed. His friends greeted him enthusiastically and congratulated him on a narrow escape

Lila was upset and stuck in the principal’s office. Where was her akuma? She was furious right now!

Gabriel was waiting for Adrien to come home, safe and sound before he created Strike Back.

With the scandal about Adrien gone missing, Felix hesitated in coming to Paris.

Strike Back is unleashed on Paris.

Rena Furtive informs about Risk.

Ladybug rushes to find Sabrina.

Miss Hound retrieves Risk’s toy.

Now they just have to defeat the sentimonsters.

Gabriel feels so defeated.

Ladybug and Chat Noir’s risk was exposing Lila as a fraud, but the massive negative emotions resulting could not be taken advantage of since Nathalie could not become Catalyst.

Even though Alya was receiving criticism for not checking her sources and Lila was still seething, Gabriel felt defeated and not in the mood to akumatize them.

They had their chances at least twice and failed.

He’ll just keep failing.

Nathalie: are you so ready to give up? Perhaps we should try this from another angle.

Gabriel: like what?

Nathalie fumbled. “There are other miraculous out there. What if we were to acquire them?”

Gabriel considered. “An intriguing idea.”

He made a master thief sentimonster, Sneak, then akumatized it to be able to find foreign miraculous.

“Go forth, Sneak, and bring me miraculous to counter Ladybug’s own!”

Reckless

I have only watched Risk, not Strike Back, which will be for tonight. Anyway, rather than risk giving Adrien a miraculous, I rather Marinette expose Lila

The moment Marinette sees the news about the First Love perfume trip, she chooses to sabotage it by exposing Lila as Ladybug, and demands Alya help clarify the situation, never mind the risk of Lila getting akumatized. If the truth was going to be exposed sooner or later, that is going to happen anyway, and she rather it happen before the trip.

Alya turns on her camera.

Alya: breaking news. In light of Lila’s exciting opportunity, I thought I would ask how her celebrity friends felt about it. But instead….

Video recording of Ladybug: Lila? She’s not my best friend. I never even met her before she became Volpina.

Alya: I’d like to officially apologize to my viewers. I should have fact checked.

Considering how popular the Ladyblog is, those who know Lila are now wondering what else she told them is true.

Rose asked Ali and he confirmed he does not know who this Lila Rossi is.

Luka and Juleka confirm Jagged never had a kitten or wrote a song about Lila.

The news spread through the school, with students getting angry at being lied to and given false promises.

Lila is so happy she will going away from school now.

Damocles and Bustier know about Lila’s lying disease and try to calm the student body.

Needless to say, they are not happy the faculty let them be lied to either.

So much negative energy, Shadowmoth creates a Sentimonster to enhance his own powers, becoming Scarlet Shadow.

Now this is what should have happened when Lila framed Marinette!

Lila and Chloe willingly get akumatized into Volpina and Antibug, except the former is hit by Princess Fragrance’s perfume.

The akumatized student body is ready to take revenge on their principal, Ms Bustier and Lila.

Some of Ladybug’s team members are akumatized. But no matter. Ladybug learned her lesson about giving miraculous out during Scarlet Moth’s last attack.

As duo battle against the akumas, Princess Fragrance forces Volpina to tell about all her lies on live TV.

Eventually all akumas are de-evilized or immobilized. But Scarlet Shadow is not done. People are still upset by Lila.

Knowing this, Ladybug decides to finally end this war, and tells Scarlet Shadow she will have Chat cataclysm her earrings. Never mind that he could take out his frustrations by destroying the city, which cannot be fixed by a magical cure now.

Realizing the mistake of making Ladybug reckless, Scarlet Shadow finally confesses about the Risk akuma, if only to get Ladybug to stop Chat from destroying her earrings.

One miraculous cure later….

The news coverage blames Lila for Scarlet akumas.

Now unpopular, her truancy and framing Marinette exposed, Gabriel fires her and gives her money to keep her mouth shut.

Lila manages to persuade her disappointed mother to send her away from her haters lest she be akumatized again. She knows when to cut her losses.

Mrs Rossi agrees but makes sure Lila’s new military school will see to it her daughter attends therapy

Grudge

You’d think since Lila humiliated Chloe about being Ladybug’s close friend, Chloe would know that something is wrong if Lila says she hates Ladybug instead.

Chloe was initially satisfied to know that someone else hated Lady Loser, even if it happened to be this pathetic weakling.

As she rode home in her limo, she considered adding Lola to her entourage. She can do her language and geography homework for Chloe.

At least now she’ll have someone to disparage Ladybug with. It would almost be like having a friend, except Chloe was a queen. She did not have friends. She had servants.

Chloe ordered Sabrina to invite Lila to evening tea so she can have her rant about Ladybug today.

Sabrina: But why Lila? She’s Ladybug’s Best Friend, she’s just going to argue against you.

Sabrina herself never argued against Chloe, but she never said anything to support Chloe’s insults either.

Chloe:Best Friend? She told me she hated Ladybug! She must have seen the error of her ways and realise that Ladybug is utterly ridiculous.

It was this tirade that finally brought the memory of Miraculer back to Chloe.

Lila claimed to be Ladybug’s Best Friend and told Chloe about that ridiculous dance.

And by now Chloe knew that the real way to get Ladybug to come was by having an akuma around. So that dance wasn’t even magical!

Ugh!

The humiliation burned Chloe’s face red.

Whats-her-name may hate Ladybug now, but nobody makes a fool of Chloe Bourgeois and gets away with it!

Was that liar ever friends with Ladybug before?

Chloe knew all the miraculous holders’ real identities from her time as Miracle Queen. Maybe that loser was angry she never got to be a hero and broke off her friendship with Ladybug?

The why and how does not matter now. What matters is Chloe getting her revenge.

Chloe is not shy about broadcasting who she hates. She already made enemies of everyone that her resentment of Ladybug hardly changed their opinion of her.

But what would happen to Lila if Chloe exposed her as a fraud?

And that was how Lila was invited to have high tea at Chloe’s hotel.

Naturally, the liar did not want to draw attention to the fact that she was becoming friends with the local bully, and made sure to watch out for Zoey.

In Chloe’s bedroom, Lila delighted in the confectionary spread.

Chloe sipped her tea. “So tell me, what made you finally realize that Lady Luck is Lady Loser?”

Lila smiled. “Ladybug threw a tantrum when she saw Alya report about our friendship. She is so secretive that even our friendship can’t be public. Can you believe that?”

Obviously! Chloe lost her chance to be a hero because Ladybug was so concerned about her secret identity being exposed! Puh leaze! Those American heroes did the same and they manage fine!

Lila continued, “We got into a huge fight about it and Ladybug told me to tell Alya I was lying. But I refused and then she dumped me! For refusing to lie.”

Chloe yawned. “Yeah, poor you and whatever. But why didn’t you do anything about this? Reveal Ladybug’s true colors?”

Lila: because Ladybug is too popular. No one will take kindly to any criticism about her.

Chloe: ugh, you are so spineless, and utterly worthless.

Lila bore the insult in stride. “I’m sorry. I’m just not brave like you are.”

Chloe studied her manicure. “You’re right. I am brave. But I suppose you have some decent vision, if you managed to see the truth. I’ll let you do my language homework. See Sabrina for details.”

Like hell. Lila excused herself, “But my wrist…!”

“Figure it out!” Chloe snapped.

Oh well, Lila supposed she could butter Sabrina to carry on with her usual workload and pretend Lila did it.

As Lila left, Chloe sat in silence. The blog post about Lila’s friendship with Ladybug was months before the Miraculer incident. Meaning when Lila told Chloe about the dance, she already wasn’t friends with the heroine.

This conversation had been recorded secretly. But the words Lila had let fall were not good enough for to receive any backlash.

Looks like Lila will be getting another invitation to the hotel.

It took a lot of invitations and branded goods to make Lila finally show her true colors. By now she realized that if she wanted more expensive freebies, she needed to be more insulting about her classmates, possessive about Adrien and hateful towards Ladybug.

Once Lila was sure that Sabrina and Zoey weren’t around, she let her mask slip a bit.

She started sharing advice on how Chloe could get out of doing unwanted lesson stuff, trying to get the blonde to listen to her.

Lila: here’s a tip if you want to avoid an akuma targeting you, try offering to help them defeat Ladybug.

Chloe: that’s what Hawkmoth wants, not the akuma. Wow you really do suffer from amnesiac fits.

Lila: you have to make the goals align. Say you will do whatever they want, but only if they defeat Ladybug. By that time, Hawkmoth will have no use for them and we will be rid of two enemies.

Chloe: easier said than done.

Lila: it can be done, I promise. One time, that fencer girl turned into an akuma because she doesn’t like Adrien knowing any girl but her. She chased after me but I got her to stop by saying I would give up Adrien if she got rid of Ladybug. And she fell for it, hook, line and sinker. She would have killed Ladybug too if that stupid feline hadn’t gotten in the way.

The delight in her voice was obvious.

Hook, line and sinker indeed.

Chloe: do you want to watch videos of Chat Noir the punching bag?

Lila: let me guess, you got it on one of those hate websites.

The next day, during lunch period, Chloe used Sabrina’s phone to send voice recordings of Lila badmouthing her classmates and desire for Ladybug’s death. Her own voice was disguised or hidden.

Everyone was shocked to say the least.

Chloe’s involvement was hardly surprising but sweet, delicate Lila?

Lila quickly fled from the school and summoned an akuma to her. Her rage was not at Chloe but at Sabrina! That sycophantic doormat must have gotten jealous and spied on them!

Lila transformed back into Volpina, intent on returning the favor by showing how Sabrina was an expert at making false voice recordings.

Except Ladybug and Chat Noir expected there to be trouble and arrived on time.

One fight over, the cops arrived. Roger looked very proud of his daughter for her role in exposing the true nature of this horrible character, even if it was via spying.

Sabrina: it wasn’t me!

Chloe: she’s right, it was me.

Lila: why?

Chloe: you didn’t think I forgot about that stupid dance, did you?

Lila was exiled from Paris. It wasn’t just about keeping her out of an akuma’s reach, it was about keeping her away from those Ladybug zealots who were furious at her.

Ladybug tried to thank Chloe but the latter refused, still claiming she would make Ladybug regret denying her a miraculous.

After all, with Mayura and Lila out of the picture now, Chloe was Hawkmoth’s only able accomplice left.

Regarding Lila’s mistake, either she assumed Chloe forgot about the dance incident like she forgets names, or she was just that careless. This is the girl who would lie about celebrities to people who actually know them.

Narcissus

Based off the Greek myth

Believing herself to be a celebrity after her first photo shoot and media debut, Lila thinks she is famous.

And certainly her workload has increased, attending photo sessions with Adrien.

Lila does not want to be associated with her class anymore, thinking them beneath her. She aims for fellow celebrities like Aurore and Mireille. Her excuses have also become more about meeting with celebrities than helping with fundraisers.

Fortunately, Aurore and Mireille are good friends with Marinette and they can tell she dislikes Lila. Trusting her judgement to be beyond simple jealousy, the weathergirls stay clear.

Lila is frustrated but decides to spend her time primping. She is a model now, she has to look perfect. She even spent a lot of money for a new fancy hairdresser.

Meanwhile, Mylène is hurt that Lila brushes off her charity fundraiser selling candy and potted flowers.

She had accidentally gotten the honey-drizzled treats on Lila’s hair and she freaked.

“DO YOU KNOW HOW MUCH MY STYLIST COSTS NOW? HOW MANY TIMES HAVE I TOLD YOU I AM TOO BUSY WITH MORE IMPORTANT THINGS THAN YOUR CHARITY? YOU’RE LIKE A BROKEN RECORD. Charity this, charity that! Just stay away from me.”

Fortunately, Marinette had been on hand to console Mylène.

Lila’s outburst had been secretly recorded by Markov.

As Lila prepares herself for her next photoshoot, ignoring her disgusted and offended classmates, she is surprised to hear that the session has been cancelled.

Rather than risk Lila targeting Markov, Adrien slyly suggests it was hardly a surprise. Lila just didn’t cut for model material. She should have spent more money on facials.

Lila frantically checks her mirror for pimples or moles.

Meanwhile Max hurriedly makes sure the recorder’s identity is anonymous.

Eventually, Lila decides to check public opinion to find out how she is lacking. She finds the video instead.

Outraged, she confronts the class but they all deny it.

To make matters worse, the comments agree she isn’t model material.

“Looks like she is ugly on the inside and the outside.”

“She must have won a contest or something to be hired.”

Knowing she must fix her reputation, Lila is forced to apologize and ask to volunteer.

However Ivan harshly refuses. “The fundraiser should be handled by those who genuinely want to help. You just want to feel good about yourself, you don’t care about others.”

Everyday, Lila has to endure scorn from the student body and it hurts so much, knowing she was so close to fame only to lose it.

The despair drowned her enough that no lies were ever issued from her mouth again.

Listen Instead of Lie

This is based off a prompt by @miraculousfanworks that I was tagged in by @vixen-uchiha a while back. Sorry it took so long for me to get to it! Hope this was worth the wait!

What happens if Lila tries to lie about MDC, when the class already knows who MDC is? The end of the liar’s reign happens.

Marinette had been making quite the name for herself in the fashion world. Ever since she made the sunglasses for Jagged, he kept asking her for more pieces every few months. He also made sure to brag on Marinette every chance he got, using her pseudonym, MDC. Soon other major celebrities had commissioned her work and were also raving about the talented young designer. She was quickly becoming a household name, or at least her pseudonym was. Marinette wanted to stay relatively anonymous for now, for a few reasons, Lila being chief among them. She worried that if the liar knew about her success, she would try to destroy it. She also didn’t want to be hounded for her work for now. So she resolved to use the name MDC until she graduated at least.

As the whole world was talking about her designs, no one knew who MDC actually was. That is, except for her class. Marinette had been using MDC for all of her designs for years, ever since they had known her. So naturally, they all knew who this ‘mysterious new designer’ was. They were very happy for their friend and her success. While they didn’t get why Marinette didn’t tell the world who she was (after all, who wouldn’t want to have this kind of spotlight), they did respect her wishes, and made sure not to slip up and mention her actual name in public. However, when it was just the class, they would gush about Marinette and her latest designs, always impressed with their friend’s work. Maybe if Lila had listened to her friends talk, instead of always make the conversation about her lies, then maybe she wouldn’t have made such a stupid mistake.

MDC was now a major player in the fashion industry and was even going to be featured at the next Paris Fashion Week and the class couldn’t be happier for their friend. The class decided that they wanted to throw Marinette a small party, nothing too crazy, but they wanted to congratulate her. The next morning, they arrived at school and when they went in the classroom, they saw Lila walking from the back of the classroom where Marinette was sitting towards the front to her desk. Lila went to greet the class with a sweet smile plastered on her face, but the class just continued towards Marinette. Lila hated the class even looking at Marinette. And she would put a stop to it. As Lila approached the group, she heard Alya say, “Marinette! We saw the latest news about MDC and we wanted to tell you-” But before Alya could finish her thought, Lila jumped in. If she had listened to what Alya was saying, she may have thought again about what she was going to say. But she was so focused on getting the attention off Marinette and back on to her, that she went to her usual plan. Lie. But this time that was the worst thing she could have done.

“Oh Alya! You all are talking about MDC?” Alya turned back to Lila with a smile, slightly irritated though that she had been interrupted. “Oh yeah, we were just going to tell Marinette-” Lila cut her off again. “Oh MDC is such a sweetheart. We actually met at the Milan Fashion Week, before she used MDC as her name. MDC are the initials of her mother who got her into fashion. Its her way of honoring her mother. I was so happy to hear she will be at the Paris Fashion Week, maybe I could introduce you all and get us tickets to her show? And Marinette, maybe she could give you some pointers on how to break into the fashion world?” Lila put on her best shy smile and waited for the class to gush about how awesome that would be, and how sweet Lila is. But that never came. Instead the class was staring at her in shock and anger.

“Lila? What are you talking about? Why are you lying?” Alya asked, hoping maybe she had misunderstood Lila, though she didn’t see how she could have. “What are you talking about? I’m not lying! I’ve known MDC for years, we are very good friends.” Lila immediately got defensive. Nino spoke up, saying “That isn’t possible.” Lila, forgetting to appear sweet and nice, snapped at Nino. “And why is that Nino?” Marinette stood up from her desk. “Because I am MDC.” Lila scoffed. “Do you guys actually believe her? She is obviously lying for attention since her fashion business isn’t doing as well. You should be ashamed Marinette, taking credit from a hard working designer! I thought you were better than that!” Lila expected the class to drop the conversation. They always did when this happened, if only to keep the peace. But they just doubled down. Alya walked towards Lila, furious that this girl had been lying to them, likely since she joined the class. “Marinette isn’t lying. She is MDC. And if you hadn’t interrupted me earlier, and listened, you would have heard us congratulate her for her success. She has used those initials for years for her fashion. MDC stands for Marinette Dupain-Cheng. You haven’t been friends with her for years, and you certainly haven’t been friends since you got here!” Lila was backed into a corner. She had no way out of this.

The class started yelling as they realized that not only did Lila try to lie about Marinette as MDC, but had likely been lying to them the whole time. Lila couldn’t lie her way out of this one. So she ran. She ran out of the school and all the way home. The class continued with the celebration, congratulating Marinette and then treating her to a picnic in the park after school to celebrate. They had a great time, and went their separate ways that night, glad to not only have congratulated their friend, but defended her from a liar.

Later that night, Lila would convince her mother to send her back to Italy, saying that she was scared of the akumas and didn’t want to stay in Paris. Lila wished she didn’t have to leave Paris, but her mother wouldn’t just let her transfer to another school in Paris. And she couldn’t risk transferring to a new school in the city and then Mrs. Bustier’s class spreading the word that she is a liar. Lila knew that if she just asked her mom to transfer because she didn’t like her school, her mom would say to tough it out and not let her transfer. But if she was too scared to stay in Paris entirely? Her mother would listen. So, Lila reluctantly left Paris behind and returned to Italy. She would be living with her grandparents until a new school, likely a boarding school since her grandparents couldn’t care for her long term, could be found. Lila sat on the plane to Italy, lamenting her mistakes in Mrs. Bustier’s class. If only she had listened more than she lied.