#i also still firmly believe most of their classmates got what they deserved

[agreytracksuit]

not me out here still shipping sofia with raul even after everything he did

#he may be crazy #but i love him and i can’t help it #i also still firmly believe most of their classmates got what they deserved #control z

[makeste]

“but I thought about how I needed to say this”

a.k.a. yet another meta dissection of The Apology. I actually wrote most of this up on Friday night based on the original Japanese (@pikahlua​ has an excellent translation up here, and I also used @hanashimas’ translations as a reference as well), but I wanted to wait until the official release, though that turned out to be a mixed bag to say the least lol.

I would also recommend reading @pikahlua​ and @class1akids​’ breakdowns of this scene (here and here, respectively), because they are excellent, and because if any scene deserves to have as many meta breakdowns written about it as possible, it’s this one.

anyway so here goes.

Caleb did a more accurate job with this than the fanscan, even if he did try his best to take us out of the seriousness of the moment by throwing in that swiss cheese line lol. anyway so there are two things I want to talk about here. the first is the line about Izuku not remembering, which I thought was a nice touch. of course he doesn’t remember what Kacchan said back then. he wasn’t exactly in the soundest emotional state after seeing one of the people he cares about most taking a near-fatal blow that was meant for him. I’d be shocked if he remembers anything about the aftermath (including the way he flew into a mindless rage afterwards) right up until the point when he entered the OFA Interstellar Party Void with Tomura. anyway, so I thought that was a nice callback.

and speaking of emotional states, the other thing I wanted to talk about is the part that Caleb got right which the fan scanlation didn’t. “but I had more to say.” in other words, “stop trying to win on your own” wasn’t just a one-liner; it was meant to be the beginning of a much longer speech. “there were other things that I needed to say.”

like, can we just stop and talk about that for a second. because basically what this means is that in that instant, when Kacchan pushed Deku out of the way and got impaled, his one and only thought was that he needed to apologize to Deku. his life was presumably flashing before his eyes, he had no idea if he was going to survive or not, and the only thing on his mind was how urgently he needed to make things right with his former childhood friend.

moving on!

so I have a confession to make, which is that I am relieved to see Katsuki describing this as the reason why he bullied Deku, as opposed to Horikoshi trying to retcon it into some sort of “secretly he was just trying to protect him and keep him out of harm’s way because he was worried” thing, which ngl would not have gelled very well with me. the thing is that I’m really not a fan of the whole “Kacchan Did Nothing Wrong” mentality that some fans seem to have. like, I have seen all sorts of convoluted attempts to find excuses for Katsuki’s shitty behavior, but in my view those attempts undermine what I love about his character in the first place. Katsuki is such a great character specifically because he is not perfect. his redemption arc is so compelling because he was such a giant asshole at the start. he was completely at fault, and he acknowledges this, and takes full responsibility for it. and that is fucking fantastic.

his arc is so great because it doesn’t rely on garnering sympathy by giving him a Tragic Past, or by trying to foist the blame for his behavior over on someone else. it’s an arc that acknowledges that redemption isn’t something you achieve by making people feel sorry for you; it’s something you have to earn by actively working to change and do better. and by forgoing the “misunderstood/tragic past” route, Horikoshi is making a statement that anyone can go down the wrong path, but that more importantly, anyone can also choose at any time to turn away from said path. there is only one requirement for doing so, and that is realizing that you’ve done wrong, and deciding that you want to change.

anyway, so in chapter 284 Kacchan of course had that whole speech about Deku not taking himself into account, and mentioned how that made him want to keep his distance. and a good chunk of fandom took this to mean that Katsuki’s bullying was actually a misguided response to Deku’s reckless tendencies -- sort of an “if I show him how weak and powerless he really is, I can get him to accept the reality that he’s quirkless, and that being a hero will just get him hurt or killed” type of thing. and I won’t lie, for a good while I was wondering myself if Horikoshi was really going to go down that route. and like I said, I am honestly relieved that he didn’t. not only for the reasons stated in the previous paragraph, but also because the message that would have sent -- that there are certain circumstances in which bullying can almost be excused because the bully had Good Intentions and was just trying to save the other person from themselves, and so it Wasn’t That Bad, Actually -- is all kinds of fucked up to say the least. so yeah, I’m glad we ended up steering well clear of that.

(ETA: this post was long enough already so I edited out the 3 additional paragraphs I originally wrote analyzing the dialogue from 284. but just to be clear, I’m not trying to imply that Kacchan worrying about Deku’s recklessness is a retconned thing that Horikoshi only threw into the story recently, because there are multiple instances throughout the story where he clearly is worried and in total denial of it. but I firmly believe those feelings are not what led to the bullying. they’re two separate things. Kacchan worrying about Deku is what prompts him to yell at him in chapter 1 when Deku comes to save him. but it’s not what incited him to burn his notebook and taunt him earlier in that same chapter. that action had a much meaner and more selfish motivation behind it, and I’m glad Horikoshi didn’t try to change it up last minute, because it wouldn’t have felt right.)

thankfully as of this chapter I think we can safely cross that out as a possibility, as we’re given the true explanation straight from Katsuki himself. and the truth is that he bullied Deku out of insecurity and jealousy and fear and intolerance. there was nothing noble about it. there were no good intentions concealed in his actions. there are no justifications given, no excuses offered, and no mitigating circumstances to be considered, other than the fact (which neither he nor Horikoshi bring up) that he was and is still a child, and that children make mistakes.

it’s an explanation that challenges many of fandom’s ideas on who is and isn’t eligible to be redeemed. there is no Ozai in Katsuki’s backstory. there’s no great tragedy that he spent a lifetime trying to rise above. the only villain in Katsuki’s story is Katsuki himself. the only darkness that he has to overcome is his own. and it’s challenging, because I think many people believe the only way someone can be redeemed for doing bad things is if bad things happen to them in return. but what Horikoshi is saying here is that that’s not the case. bad doesn’t erase bad. and the one and only way to truly earn redemption is by doing good.

and that’s what makes this such a phenomenal scene for me. by not shying away from Katsuki’s flaws and failings, and having him take full responsibility for them, Horikoshi keeps the apology from being self-serving, and underscores the true depth of Katsuki’s character development. the level of self-awareness he has here is something most people can only dream of. which is very fitting, as that’s perhaps the most important takeaway from his character arc -- that it’s only by acknowledging your own weaknesses and flaws that you can learn to overcome them and reach your full potential.

one last thing to point out here, which is that in the panel where Katsuki finally acknowledges his terrible treatment of Deku, Deku is not even visible. instead, Horikoshi drew the panel from a perspective that makes it appear that Katsuki is addressing this particular line not just to Deku, but to all of his classmates.

again, he shows him taking full responsibility and admitting his wrongdoings in front of the people whose opinions and approval he cares about most. and just to clarify in case there’s any confusion from Caleb’s translation, Kacchan’s wording makes it very clear that he wasn’t just “mean” to Deku, but that he full-on bullied him (he uses the same verb -- “ijimeru” (苛める) -- that he did back in chapter 284). there’s no attempt to downplay his actions here.

moving on now, this chapter also reaffirmed another thing about Deku and Kacchan’s relationship which I was glad to see revisited -- Kacchan’s unwavering belief in Deku’s ability. this is one of those paradoxical things about their relationship which I’ve always been fascinated by, but which is also kind of hard to explain, because I don’t want it to come off like I’m trying to put a positive spin on something which was unequivocally awful. like, please don’t think I’m trying to say that Katsuki’s bullying of Deku was in any way a good thing. but that being said, there’s also a strange irony at play here, which is that Katsuki’s jealousy and insecurity also betray the fact that even at his very worst, he never once underestimated Deku. he has always believed in Deku’s strength, even when that strength pissed him off and made him afraid and uneasy.

no one else -- not All Might, or even Deku’s own mom -- believed from the get-go that Deku could become a hero. but Katsuki never once counted him out, even when he was calling him a pebble in his shoe. he confesses here that even though he “tried to act superior by rejecting [Deku]”, in truth he was never able to shake the feeling that Deku was above him. long before he ever understood the concept of “win to save”, he knew instinctively that there was a strength in Deku’s heart that couldn’t be measured, and which had the potential to surpass even his own strength. and I’ve always felt that this was so important, because it’s the one aspect of their early relationship that hinted that on some level, however subconscious, Katsuki held the same type of faith in Deku that Deku always held in him. it was one of the few things that hinted at there being a possible path towards reconciliation one day. and it paved the way for the most important shift in their relationship to date, when Katsuki finally realized who Deku got his quirk from, and responded not with resentment or spite, but with acceptance.

moving on, I also really love the way we see them portrayed at the different stages of their childhood throughout this speech, and how it perfectly lines up with the dialogue. from small children (when Katsuki talks about his insecurities first manifesting), to middle schoolers (when he talks about the bullying), to high schoolers (when he talks about the past year and everything he’s learned at U.A.). Horikoshi really didn’t have to go that hard, but he did, and that’s why we love him.

and then we finally get to That Part.

where do I even start with this there are so many things omg.

the bow. this is the one and only time Katsuki has ever bowed to anyone of his own volition as far as I recall. and this absolutely is a bow, just to be clear, even though his form is straight-up garbage (very Kacchan-esque, with his feet and arms spaced apart because he’s still a punk after all). this is Kacchan showing more humility and respect than he’s ever shown to anyone else in his entire life.

regarding “Izuku”, I actually have mixed feelings about this to tell the truth. I think it was a good call here because it was incredibly effective in setting the tone and showing just how serious Kacchan is. however if he continues to use “Izuku” rather than “Deku” from here on out, that would give the impression in hindsight that all his past usage of “Deku” really was meant as an insult, which would undermine some of my favorite scenes. I would really like to believe that since DvK2 or thereabouts, Kacchan has (mostly) been using “Deku (affectionate)” rather than “Deku (useless loser)”, lol. but if he switches to the “nicer” name on a permanent basis following his apology, it implies that the previous nickname was indeed being used cruelly. and so honestly I hope this was just a one-time thing, because I do think that in Katsuki’s mind, the name “Deku” hasn’t been meant as a slight to him for a long time now.

“my truth/this is what I truly feel” -- the word Katsuki uses in Japanese is honne (本音), and if you’re familiar with the concept of honne/tatemae, that’s the same “honne” he’s talking about here. it means that he’s casting aside all of his walls and facades and expressing what he truly feels. and of course, one of the fascinating things about Katsuki’s character is that he’s the exact opposite of most people in that he chooses to put his meanness on full display to the public, and ironically it’s the kindest parts of himself which he tends to keep the most carefully guarded and hidden away. this also means that while his rage and anger are very often insincere and put on just for show, those relatively few occasions where he lets his humanity truly shine through are pretty much 100% genuine, as is the case with this one here.

and Deku’s face says it all when it comes to how powerful those moments can be as a result.

and this, right here, is why it wasn’t enough for Katsuki to atone solely through his actions, and why he needed to actually say the words as well. it’s not that the words are more important; obviously the actions are far and away the most important part, and carry far more meaning. but the reason why Katsuki needed to say the words as well is simply because Izuku needed to hear them. needed to, and deserved to, because this is one of the most important people in the world to him.

and so he deserves to know that the relationship isn’t just one-sided, and that he is just as important to Kacchan as Kacchan is to him. he deserves to know that Kacchan understands how horribly he treated him, and that he’s sorry for it. and he deserves to know that Kacchan, without any expectation of it changing their relationship -- meaning that he will continue to feel this way regardless of what Izuku says or does from here on out -- cares about him. now more than ever, with AFO out there doing everything in his power to make Izuku feel as alone as possible, this is something that he really, really needed to hear.

so this part has some interesting wordplay which neither Caleb’s translation nor the fan scanlation was really able to get across. basically, in the Japanese version, when Katsuki talks about “those ideals”, Horikoshi uses the kanji for “ideal”, but pronounces it as “All Might.” obviously the meaning of this isn’t too hard to decipher, as we all know how much both boys admire All Might. to them, he absolutely is synonymous with the Ideal. so this is a way of showing that respect they both have towards him, even as Katsuki goes on to point out the one fatal flaw that All Might was never able to overcome.

and speaking of interesting wording, as others have noted, at this point in his speech Katsuki switches from “temee” (which he was using earlier during the “your strengths and my weaknesses” part) to “omae” (“omae” being a less insulting word for “you”, though still very manly and tough-sounding), which is definitely a big deal. though fwiw this is not the first time he’s used “omae” for Deku (he switches to it briefly right after DvK2, when he tells Deku “you had the strongest guy lay the groundwork for you -- don’t lose”, and then later when they’re walking back to the dorms and he says he’ll learn and get stronger by watching everyone around him just like Deku did). it’s definitely a good choice on Horikoshi’s part though, as it makes this last part of the speech sound more earnest and sincere.

just a quick note, he does indeed use a plural pronoun here, as in “the obstacles that you can’t overcome, we will overcome.” but as @pikahlua​ pointed out, the “we” here is ambiguous -- it could either mean “we” as in class 1-A -- “we will overcome them for you” -- OR it could mean “we” as in all of them -- class 1-A and Deku. “we will overcome them together.” idk about you, but I know which one gets my vote.

anyway, and so this is the line that finally wins Deku over and allows him to let go of his fears, however briefly. what I love about this is Kacchan’s utter conviction. one thing that Caleb’s translation doesn’t quite get across is Kacchan’s use of the word morenaku -- “without exception” -- when he talks about how they’re going to save everyone and win. it echoes that same sentiment he showed back during the Joint Training arc -- that it’s not a perfect victory unless they save everyone. every last person. and he explicitly lists Deku among their number, just so there can be no doubt.

and Deku’s response to this (or at least his thoughts, since he’s not really able to get many words out) pretty much brings everything full circle here.

he acknowledges that everyone else has gotten ahead of him. which is especially meaningful given who he’s standing directly across from. because for most of the series, as we all well know, it’s been Kacchan who was woefully lagging behind Deku in the character growth department. but now Deku himself is acknowledging that not only has Kacchan finally caught up at last, but that he and the others have surpassed him. which is only temporary, I should add, as I have zero doubt that Deku will catch up again soon. but the fact remains that just as Deku’s rapid increase in strength and skill left Kacchan scrambling to keep up earlier in the series, Kacchan’s extraordinary character development has now left Deku in that same position. as All Might once put it, “when he’s starting at level one, and you’re already at level 50, it’s only natural that you’ll be growing at different rates.”

and what’s so wonderful about this though is that the two of them are finally approaching that point where they’ve both caught up to each other and are finally starting to level out. Deku is a full-on badass, and Kacchan is out here talk-no-jutsuing with the best of them. the two of them have been chasing and chasing after each other this entire time, and now they’re finally just about ready to meet in the middle at long last, with each of them fully embodying both of those two crucial aspects -- win, and save.

just about. because Deku still needs some help catching up. but seeing as help has already been offered -- and accepted -- I can’t imagine it will be very long now, and I can’t wait to see him finally overcoming those fears and doubts with his friends by his side. it’s going to be such a powerful moment.

and last but not least,

or, as I prefer,

you had one job, Caleb. flkjsdlk.

but at least this provides a good opportunity to note that unlike the “we’ll help you handle it” line earlier in the speech, here the phrasing is left up to interpretation, as he doesn’t use a pronoun. so it could be “we know”, or, as the fan scanlation put it, “I know.” or it could be both. regardless, it’s good stuff.

anyway, and so Deku passes out, and in the process Horikoshi gives us one last parting metaphor, just in case anyone still thinks Kacchan is all talk because they haven’t been paying attention for the past 322 chapters (more likely than you think). once again, Katsuki’s actions speak louder than his words (even his nice words) ever could: he is literally there to catch Deku when he falls.

so that’s it! my sincere thanks to anyone who actually read through all of my endless ramblings about this scene which I have been waiting for since day one. props to Horikoshi for taking on an impossibly difficult task, and pulling it off with all of the emotion and care and nuance that I’ve come to expect from his writing. imo he delivered on every single level with the exception of the aftermath, which I don’t consider to have actually happened yet. Deku’s part of this is definitely a “to be continued.” but yeah, as far as Kacchan’s part goes, 10/10. so fucking proud of this kid.

#bnha 322 #bakugou katsuki #midoriya izuku #bakudeku #bnha meta #bakugou meta #deku meta #bnha #boku no hero academia #bnha spoilers #mha spoilers #bnha manga spoilers #makeste reads bnha

[imnothingbutpoetry]

Happy Tears

Howdy people!

How are you? I hope that you are all fine and healthy during these times.

Today I have to show you some cute drabbles of our best boys in Haikyuu!! in a quite peculiar situation.

(I got a little carried away with these drabbles. This was going to be shorter, but, you know me - you really don’t -)

Please enjoy this writing, and constructive comments are always appreciated!

Once said this, let’s get into it!

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

Pairings -> gn!reader x Bokuto Kōtarō / Tendō Satori / Yamaguchi Tadashi / Lev Haiba (separately)

Warnings -> Fluff and happy tears

Synopsis -> People always associate tears and cries with sadness, grief, and worry. But how would some of our boys react to a s/o who starts crying from happiness?

Words-> 4667

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Bokuto Kōtarō

Bokuto Kōtarō is a ball of fluffiness that needs constant affection, praise, and cuddles. If he doesn’t have that, he will fall into a pit of “emo feelings”, becoming his depressed self.

For this reason, all of his past partners never lasted long enough to finally get to know the boy: he was too much to handle for people who only wanted him for his looks and popularity, leaving Akaashi to look after him and take him out of his sad seasons.

Or at least, that was until he encountered you. You were someone who was willing to pamper him through his gloomy days and encourage him to be his best version, looking behind his pretty face and the popular agenda he was used to relating to. For this reason, he vowed to care for you and make you the happiest person to ever step on the earth.

Your duty as Bokuto Kōtarō’s partner was quite easy: give him cuddles, love, and baked goods, and he will be putty in your hands, as well as the happiest boy on the earth. Being his partner was a hard job that you were delighted to have, because, in return, the lover boy made you the happiest person on this planet, giving you lots and lots of love and kisses.

For this reason, you couldn’t understand how his anterior partners couldn’t keep up with the boy. You could tell that Bokuto was the sweetest person you ever met, and he was the most beautiful human, on the inside and outside, that stole your heart and protected it with all his care.

Because of this, when you overheard some of Bokuto’s classmates talking bad about your partner, you lost all your sense of rationality and went there to kick some asses.

“Who do you think you are, talking like that about a guy who is better than you in every aspect?” You stomped towards the two guys, who stopped talking at your abrupt appearance.

Looking at you up and down, one of them continued talking. “And who are you to interrupt us?” Laughing, both of the guys shared another look. Bitches.

“If you didn’t know, I’m Bokuto’s partner by the way.” At this, both of them paled a little bit. There may be some “rumors” about the volleyball captain's partner slapping someone because they were making fun of their boyfriend’s emo-mood. Yeah, “just” rumors… Well, continuing where we were. “So if you have anything bad to say, you can put your opinions up your a-”

When you were finishing the sentence, a hand on your shoulder silenced it. Turning your head, you saw Bokuto standing next to you. His presence alone was sufficient to make the boys storm off, leaving you and your boyfriend alone.

“Hey babe.” Bokuto said gloomily. That’s when you knew that he also heard what those two guys were saying earlier.

“Bokuto!” Hugging him, you started speaking again. “Baby you don’t have to listen to anything that these boys tell about you. You know how amazing you are and how beautiful and precious you are, and how you do everything from the heart, and how yo-”

“Y/n, it doesn’t matter, really.” Bokuto undid the hug you both were sharing, and you could see behind his eyes. He was affected.

“No Bo you don’t understand, you can let them talk bad about you, you can’t-” At this point you were speed-talking, and a glimpse of tears could be seen in your gaze.

“Y/N!” Bokuto shouted when he saw that tears started falling from your eyes. “Baby, babe, pup, what happened?” Whipping the crystal tears from your cheeks, Bokuto started caressing your face and neck.

“It’s just that-” Sniffling, you launched yourself at Bokuto, who caught you between his chest and arms, with one of them in your back, and the other gripping your thigh.

“Come on pup, what happened?” Rubbing your back and giving you a little peck on the cheek, your boyfriend tried to draw out the motive of your intense crying. “Are you ill? Do you need me to take you to the nurse's office?”

“No Bo.” Trying to recompose yourself so you could speak, you gave the bicolored-haired boy a soft look, which was even softer by the redness of your face. “It’s just…” Breathing in, you explained to him what was bothering you, and why you seemed so upset with those people before. “It’s just that I can’t stand people making fun of you. You are a beautiful person who always makes other people your top priority. Why does it matter if you need more cuddles than other people? I will always be here to take care of you, because I know that you will be here to take care of me. We are a couple, and my duty as your partner is to make you happy and content. My duty is to make you feel loved.”

With this little speech, Bokuto was the one that started tearing up. Then, it was his turn to speak. “That’s why you are crying? Because some other people made me upset?”

“That’s not exactly the reason.” Smiling through your tears, you gave the captain one of the brightest smiles he had ever seen from you. “I am crying because I am so happy that you are my lover, Bo. I’m crying because I never had someone like you before, and seeing other people make fun of you made me realize that I want to protect you and make you feel the one and only in this world. Baby, I am crying because I love you so much that I didn't know how to express it, Bo. Because I love you, and I will always love you.”

When you said this, none of you said anything during what seemed an eternity. You started thinking that maybe you went a little overboard with what you have said, so you started trying to climb down his strong arms. That’s when Bokuto reareacted, and gripping you tighter, he talked again.

“I love you so much, y/n. I think you broke me because I don’t know what to say, and the only thing that comes to my mind is that I love you so, so much. Baby, I love you!” While your boyfriend was saying this, he also started crying, tearing his eyes up with salty tears, while he hid his face on your neck.

This nearly broke you too, as your love for the boy seemed to increase with his sentence. What happened next, it’s something that both of you will remember as the happiest peak of your relationship, and the moment when you realized that you were a perfect match. For this reason, you couldn’t think of anything better than to shout “I love you’s” with your boyfriend.

“BO I LOVE YOU!”

“Y/N!”

“BOKUTO!”

While you were shouting each other’s names while crying and hugging with an incredible force, you didn’t notice a certain black-haired guy who was watching you from afar. The guy’s name was Akaashi, and upon seeing the scene in front of him, he let out a long sigh. Today, he wasn’t only left to take care of a sad burrito, but of two lovers who couldn’t stop crying and bawling their eyes out. Today Akaashi was going to be a nanny, but for his two friends, he would go to the end of the world and back so they could stay safe and sound and cry without anyone getting in their way.

Tendō Satori

My my, this boy is an interesting one, and I think that he doesn’t have the recognition that he deserves.

Contrary to popular belief, I firmly believe that Tendō isn’t a yandere who will take pride in hurting you. So please stop making him like this, it isn’t his personality.

Said this, in my opinion Tendō is someone who will make “his paradise”, his pet name for you, the happiest person on earth, taking them to weird and unusual dates, but ensuring that his partner always has a smile on their face. So imagine his bewilderment when you start randomly crying on your date to the zoo.

“Come on my paradise, or we will be late to see the birds.”

“Tendō, we are running towards the zoo, we can’t possibly be late when they open in an hour!”

This conversation is the one that you have with your boyfriend Tendō Satori, while you both are running towards the zoo because he decided that today he wanted to see wild animals when in the first place, you were going to have a movie date in your house.

“What happened to Ten-Ten, my love?” The red-head then stops running, causing you to crash against his back. Thank god that he had your hand in a firm grip, because if it wasn’t, well, then you would have crashed against the cold hard floor.

“I would have called you Ten-Ten if we were walking, you know I don’t play volleyball like you!”

“And? A little adventure it’s good for everyone.”

You look into each other's eyes, and then you both start laughing with stars in your sight.

“Okay, you got me there Ten, but can we stop for a minute or two?” Running out of breath you push Tendō towards a bank in a small square, where your boyfriend sits down and pushes you on his lap. “We still have time, you know?” Caressing his face, you both kiss. When he breaks it, he starts talking again.

“I know, but, I just wanted to see the birds with you.” Putting his head on your shoulder, he lets himself relax a little bit.

“Ten-Ten, you may be able to fool your enemies in the court, but you know you can’t lie to your partner.” Tendō raises his head and looks directly into your eyes, as if trying to decipher the meaning behind those words.

“What do you mean?”

“I mean that I know you, babe.” As you talk, you let your hand play with his own, tracing his bandaged fingers and giving each one little kisses as you continue with your explanation. “I know the look in your eyes when you are lying to me. Maybe in the court this gaze is transformed into something indestructible, but with me, you know that I can understand each one of your glances.”

Tendō hugged your waist and gave a tiny kiss to your neck and shoulder. He always does this when he is nervous or excited about something.

“Well…” He starts talking while his eyes wander far from your form. “Maybe it’s not the birds what I want to see.”

“Then what do you want to visit, Ten? Do you want to return to my house and watch the new movie that you wanted to see with me?”

“No!” Exalted, he nearly shouted the word to you. Then, when he was a little calmer, he continued with his rambling. “What I really want to see is your smile.”

With his statement you turned your head towards his, and this time it was your turn to put your head on his shoulder. Giving him a tiny smile, you asked him with curiosity. “What does that mean, Tendō? You always see my smile when I’m with you.”

“Yeah, I know, it’s just that…” Your boyfriend stopped talking and you gave him an encouraging kiss on his head. Then, he continued. “You always make things for me, and do whatever I want, so I wanted to return you the favor.” Tendō grabbed your hand and interlocked your fingers with his bandaged ones. “At the zoo for today they will put this new section with a petting zoo of sheep and llamas and alpacas, and I know how much you love these animals, so I thought I could bring you there to see your smile while petting them. You always have this sappy smile when you talk about how you would like to pet an alpaca, so I thought it would be a great idea. I was just thrilled to see you happy, so I wanted to get there as early as possible.”

“Tendō…” Saying his name with a whispering voice, you were suddenly overwhelmed with all this love. You were on the verge of crying, and your boyfriend took notice of this too.

“The idea was that horrible? You look like you're about to cry.” Putting his hand on your cheek, he continued. “Do you still want to go to the zoo? We can just get some ice cream in the park next to your house.”

With this final sentence, abruptly all hell broke loose and you started bawling and tearing your eyes out.

“Babe?! Y/n why are you crying? We don’t need to go to the zoo if you don’t want, we can-”

“No no, it’s not because of the zoo.” Sniffling, you started explaining the motives of your crying. “It’s just because I’m so happy Ten-Ten.”

Tendō looked at you weirdly, but still with worried and loving eyes. “Are you crying because you are happy?”

“I know it’s weird but, it’s just,” Making a pause to recompose yourself, you finally looked straight into his eyes. “I am so happy right now with you. Nobody ever cared that much for me, nobody loved me as you do, and I certainly never have loved someone as much as I love you.”

You grabbed his hands, and you looked into his eyes as if it was the first time that you did so. “Tendō, I love you so much. So, so much. And you remember everything that I say, and you make me so happy. Yes, I want to go to the petting area of the zoo with you. I would like it so much.”

At this, your boyfriend got your face between his hands and gave you a little smooch. “My paradise, look at me. The shine of my eyes it’s because of you, because of how happy you make me. I would do anything for you. But babe, you don’t need to cry of happiness. In that case, you should only laugh. I want you to laugh every day, okay?” Giving you another kiss, he pushed you carefully off his lap and stood up with you.

“Now, my paradise, do you want to go to the zoo, or do you prefer crying a little bit more about how much do you love me?”

Giving him a tiny shoulder punch, you grabbed his hand and started running with him again towards the zoo. Even though you cried this day, you can surely tell that it was the best day of your life.

Yamaguchi Tadashi

Yamaguchi has always been at your side.

Being childhood friends alongside Tsukishima, you found yourself falling in love with the freckled boy a little bit more every day, while having to listen to the nasty side remarks the blond boy threw at your side.

However, your friendship ended the day you decided to confess to Yamaguchi, having a tearful final full of surprises.

With the final ring of the school bell, classes finally ended and students were able to leave the school behind. Some people left towards an upcoming weekend full of adventures, and, some other people, left for a full weekend of homework. Thankfully, you were one of the lucky students who didn’t get any schoolwork, having done all your exams and having got good grades.

However, all the calmness that you could get by having a free-work weekend it’s replaced by the nervous feeling of having to confess to your childhood friend, whom you have asked if you could meet tomorrow morning.

“Why am I doing this?” You thought, “Oh right, because Tsukishima said that if I didn’t confess this weekend, he would do it for me” and believe me, it’s better if he doesn’t confess your feelings for you. He can be quite, hum, sarcastic and horrible when he wants to.

While you were lost in your thoughts, a usually nervous boy approached you with a sappy smile on his face. Can you guess who it is?

“Y/n, wait for me!” At this, you jumped a little bit and stopped walking towards the school gates. Turning your head to the voice, you encountered the love of your li-, your childhood friend.

“Yams, what are you doing here? You scared me, didn't you have practice?” Exalted you exclaimed.

“Well, we have a little break. I just wanted to confirm if tomorrow you still can meet me at the park.”

Sweating (when did you start sweating?), you answered. “Of course Yams, I will be there, you know I invited you in the first place.”

“Yeah, I know.” Yamaguchi started rubbing his neck with his right hand, and you swear that one day you are going to die of his cuteness. “And another thing before you leave, Tsukki is coming too.”

NO, No, no, no, “W-what?” if you thought you were sweating before, you haven’t seen yourself now. “Why is Tsukishima coming?”

“Well, he asked if he could come too because he said that he doesn’t want to miss something that would make him laugh a lot. I haven’t understood that part.”

That bitch. “Okay, don’t worry, we will still be together, so no problem. See you tomorrow, Yams.” I swear I can hear his stupid laugh.

“See you tomorrow y/n!” Now running towards the gym door, the boy disappeared, and you know that you never had this enormous urge of killing blondes before.

Tomorrow came earlier than expected, and you found yourself walking towards the park in slow motion. Little steps without confidence were the ones that you gave until you stopped at the large gates of the park.

“You can do this y/n, just ignore Tsukishima.” Repeating this like a mantra in your head, you advanced towards your special spot in the park, a little spot full of flowers and two swings. You always go there with Yams, and every time you end up with flower crowns made by the freckled friend.

“Look who's here already, our little shy friend y/n.” That bitch already. At least I know I have arrived in time for our meeting.

“Tsukishima.” Giving him your nastiest glare, you turn towards Yamaguchi, who is swinging in the wooden plaything. “Hello Yams! How are you?”

“It’s nice knowing that you care for me”

“Shut up Tsukishima, and go away.” Looking at him, you know that he won’t go away that easily. “Oh please lord Tsukishima, go away.” The disgusting things that I have to do for him to leave.

“Well if you insist, I’ll be right there.” And he only steps aside to the tree next to the swings. Well, this has to do.

“What's the matter, y/n?” Yams stands up and touches your arm. “Are you okay?”

Y/n please don’t mess this up. Please please don’t mess this up. Please don’t be nervous, you can do it, please-

“I LIKE YOU!”

…

“W-What?”

Congratulations y/n, you messed up. You really really messed up. And on top of it all, the blonde bitch is nearly falling from laughter. You have to solve this now.

“Okay Yams, I know that this isn’t how I should have confessed but… I really like you, since forever. You are always by my side, and you are what makes my world spin. I know that you don’t feel the same, but I-”

“I like you too, y/n.”

“What?” You look at him, and you feel like crying.

“I also like you… I have been liking you for a long time really, and, wait, are you crying?”

At this point, the pressure finally settled down, and you started sniffling, with tears running down your cheeks.

“I’m sorry Yams, I’m just, so so so happy-” Stopping to clean your face with your sleeve, you continued crying even more. “to be with you.”

“Come on, please don’t cry!” At this, Yamaguchi gives you a bear hug, and you can’t be happier.

“These are happy tears, Yams. I’m just so happy that you also like me!” And more and more tears.

“Well, then you are going to cry some more, because I’m going to be with you from now on.”

Hugging him even more, you nearly tackled him to the floor, and cried even more.

“I love you Yams!” At this, it was Yamaguchi who started crying of happiness, and the people at the park wondered why two teenagers were desperately bawling their eyes out, while looking at you with pity and some disgust.

“You both look ridiculous right now.”

“Shut up, Tsukishima!” And you remained hugging each other until the blonde boy had to separate you two because it was getting late, and lunch was going to be served in each of your homes.

Lev Haiba

With Lev Haiba you know one thing for sure: it doesn’t matter how tall you are, he will always be taller.

Said this, this statement leads to him picking you up on every opportunity that he has, super comfortable bear hugs, and, of course, piggyback rides on every walk home.

Used to be alone all your life, this new and recently acquired affection brings back some tears that you thought you left behind, but this time, the tears have another flavor in them.

Watching volleyball matches wasn’t something that you overly enjoyed, but when Lev was on the court, the matches transformed into a movie that you could spend your entire life watching. Even though the boy wasn’t the best player, and definitely wasn’t the team's ace, all the effort that he put into those matches was something that you could observe forever. Lev was an upcoming star who made some mistakes, but on the court, life seemed to disappear and the only thing that mattered was the ball in front of him, calling for his name.

And while he was on the court, the only thing that mattered to you were his vibrant eyes that shine through the dim lights of the gym and reflect all of his passion for the sport. While he was on the court, you could only view how happy volleyball made him, and how happy it made you that Lev has something he could rely on forever, that he has something that makes his big eyes enjoy the small world he was seeing.

However, the shine of his eyes disappears when he touches the ball, changing into determination and dedication, only for it to return when the ball goes to the other side of the court and makes a point. Then, it’s when Lev would look up at the grades and search for some other eyes. Then, it’s when Lev would search for your beautiful e/c eyes and send you one of his killing smiles, one of the smiles that make your heart engulf your chest, and that makes hundreds of butterflies appear in your stomach.

When Lev gets a point, you know that right after he will be always looking after your gaze, and then it will be your turn to have shiny eyes that demonstrate how proud you are of him, and how much you love the half-Russian guy.

Even though it’s during the match when you are proud of him, it’s when it finishes that you can go next to the guy and actually show him how much it meant to you.

After every game, it doesn’t matter if it’s a practice or a significant one, he will always come running to you in the gym halls, grabbing you and spinning you in an enormous bear hug. While he is sweaty and tired, that doesn’t stop him from showing you his love.

“Y/n!” He would say while grabbing your tights and making you hug his neck so you don’t fall to the floor. “Have you seen me? Have you seen that point?”

“Of course I have seen it, Lev!” You would also exclaim, excited for the Nekoma’s winning. “You were amazing, as always.”

“He could have been a little more observant of the ball, and not of you.” Then, it was Kuroo’s turn to speak, when he usually guided his team to their bus. “He is always looking at the grades after you when you come to the games. Although I can’t complain, he plays better when you are here.”

“Kuroo!” Lev was always embarrassed when his captain talked to you. It was an adorable sight that you witnessed when the taller guy put you on the floor again.

“Yeah, yeah, whatever you say. We are going to go get something to drink at the vending machines, and in half an hour we will be on the bus. If you are not there, we will leave without you.” The black-haired guy threatening your Lev was also a daily occurrence, but he never would leave without the half-Japanese teammate. Or at least, that’s what you two like to think.

“I won’t entertain him a lot Kuroo, don’t worry.” In the end, it was you who put a dot on the conversation, and while the team was going to eat something, Lev was busy talking to you. He preferred talking to you, and that made your heart beat faster each time.

“I know I’m sweaty, but, can I hold you again?”

While starting to blush, you respond. “Of course Lev, always.”

On every after-match you both have this conversation. The Russian asks if he can hold you again, and, who are you to deny that? Then, he goes to the nearest bank and sits with you, while hugging you even more.

“I was thinking about you while making the point. You always inspire me to do my best.”

After a game, Lev transforms into a big teddy bear. He’s tired, and he only wants you to cuddle him before going back to Nekoma’s gym. To make this cuddling session even more comfortable, he gives you his spare team jacket. A red coat that envelops you completely, drowning you in his cologne and his warmth.

“I know Lev. You always dedicate all of your points to me.”

“But this one was more special!”

“Oh yes? And why was this one more special?” You asked intrigued. This was a new conversation that he never mentioned before.

“Well, this one is special because I was thinking…” The boy stops mid-sentence, and you urge him to continue.

“You can tell me, Lev. I won’t tell anyone.”

“This one’s special because I was thinking about how much I love you.” Speechless, you let him continue. “I love you so much y/n. You make me better.” At this, the boy hides his face in your neck.

“Lev…” Hugging him even more, you finally answer the unspoken question that was lingering in the air with a breaking voice. “I love you too.”

“Really!” Separating his face from your neck, he notices something that worries him. “Wait, are you crying? Why are you crying? You just said that you love me… It was a joke?”

“No Lev, it wasn’t a joke.” Sniffling and letting even more tears fall down your cheeks onto his shirt, you continue. “I’m just so happy that you love me, Lev. I’m so happy because I also love you, and I have been dying to tell you this for a really long time.”

“If you are happy you shouldn’t be crying.” When he said this, he approached you and put his hands on your damped cheeks. “If anything, you should be laughing.” Finally, Lev put his lips on top of yours, and you two shared your first kiss.

It was a kiss full of tears, but you couldn’t have asked for a better first kiss when your Lev was the one kissing you and filling you up with an unspoken happiness, that would make you both the two luckiest people in this world.

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

If you liked this, please look for my other works!

Kageyama x female!reader x Oikawa angst!

A fluffy bad day (Fluff drabble with Kenma & Hinata)

Tall girls love short boys most (Fluff imagine with Nishinoya)

I’m not a usual writer, but if someone wants to send a request and give inspiration, feel free to do it! My asks are always open!

Thank you so much for reading!

#haikyuu!! #haikyuu fluff #haikyuu imagines #haikyuu headcanons #haikyuu drabbles #haikyuu x you #gn!reader #anime #haikyuu hcs #comfort #fluff #anime fluff #x reader #haikyuu x gn!reader #haikyuu comfort #yamaguchi tadashi #bokuto kotaro #lev haiba #tendo satori #yamaguchi x gn!reader #bokuto x gn!reader #tendo x gn!reader #lev x gn!reader #yamaguchi x y/n #bokuto x y/n #tendo x y/n #lev x y/n #haikyuu x y/n #haikyuu x reader #happy tears

[unmaskedagain]

Mean Queens

            This was for a prompt I mentioned earlier today. I decided to test my hand at Loyal!Alya fic to see how it plays out. Hope you like it.

           Marinette had officially been exiled to the back of the class and excommunicated. Lila and most of the class had been waiting for Marinette to arrive; each with cold looks on their faces. The bluenette had looked for Alya, hoping her bestie could tell her what was going on. But there was no sign of the glasses-wearing girl yet. So she had tried to catch Adrien’s eye but he had refused to make eye contact.

           Then it all came out.

           The class accused her of being a mean and horrible to Lila since the day the Italian girl came to class. Nino told her she’d become even worse of a bully than Chloe. Alix had called her a jealous bitch. Most of the class agreed. Even Sabrina who usually followed around the blonde Queen Bee now clung to the coattails of the newest golden ticket.

           The end result? They weren’t going to be her friends anymore.

“Cool,” Marinette had shrugged and took her seat in the back.

           Chloe got to class just as it happened, took one look around, snorted, and joined Marinette in back; claiming the left seat next to her. She knew the difference between diamonds and fools’ gold. And diamonds are a girls’ best friend.

           Alya arrived not long after. She had been late on purpose. The entire weekend, the class minus two (Marinette and Chloe) had been firing messages back and forth in a group chat about Marinette. It had started Friday after school. Nearly everyone had bashed their once favorite bluenette while Alya had been the only one to defend her. Adrien just said he wanted to stay out of it. Things took a dark turn when Alix admitted and joked to tripping Marinette as revenge. Then Mylene admitting that spilling coffee all over Marinette’s sketchbook hadn’t been an accident. It got worse from there. However, they all claimed it was in defense of Lila. Alya was left stunned. Nothing Marinette could’ve done deserved any of what they did. How could she be so blind as to not see that the so-called “accidents” weren’t accidents at all.

           No matter what Lila said, Alya just couldn’t believe Marinette was capable of such things. She had known the girl far too long. And honestly, she was a little surprised the kids who she knew had known Marinette since like pre-k and then suddenly they could think the worse of the so-called “Everyday Ladybug”.

           To make it worse, the things they said about Marinette were terrible and just mean. The girl who had done so much for them deserved better. So Alya kept fighting for her friend, trying to convince her friends that something wasn’t right. Maybe Lila was a bit confused or something.

           But they wouldn’t listen.

           Then Alya thought maybe if she could get Marinette to realize how amazing Lila was then everything would be fine. She just needed to show Marinette proof.

           …There was none.

           There was literally no evidence backing up any of Lila’s stories. Not even the ones about her mom being an ambassador. The only real information about anything fantastic the Italian girl did came from the Ladyblog. And Alya had deleted that video within seconds upon the realization that Lila hadn’t been telling the truth.

           Alya didn’t hesitate to create another group chat about trying to explain that maybe something was a bit fishy about Lila. She spent most of Saturday just trying to get them to listen to her. But she just got accused of being biased. Even Nino had blatantly told her that she was too close to Marinette to see what she was really like.

Was this how Marinette felt, she had found herself wondering.

“Can you prove she doesn’t actually know Ladybug?” The words tasted sour in Alya’s mouth. The more she thought about them, the worst the taste and feeling in her stomach got. Though she had remained silent the look Marinette had given Alya was like the bluenette was questioning her sanity. Or maybe her intelligence.

           Because Alya was officially questioning both about herself.

           Of course, Marinette could prove Lila didn’t know Ladybug! She was the one who originally helped Alya get her first big interview with the hero.

           And when Alya realized (remembered) that, she also remembered that fact Marinette knew Jagged Stone very well and could easily dispute Lila’s cat and plane story. Her bestie also knew Clara Nightingale and managed to become friends with the superstar; there was no way Marinette wouldn’t ask the singer if she knew Lila Rossi. She probably already had. And the answer was probably no.

           Alya pinched her nose to fight the urge to slap herself. The idea that Clara Nightingale stole Lila’s dance moves was obviously a ridiculous lie; one she had eaten up.

           By Sunday morning, Lila had subtly hinted that her classmates’ chances of meeting all the celebrities she knew and the opportunities they stood a chance for were decreasing. Or as Lila texted:

No one wants to be associated with a bully. (sad emoji)

I’d hate it if people thought you were one too.

They’d never work with you then.

           That was all it took for the class to agree to drop Marinette like a hot potato.

           And that was the final nail in the coffin as far as Alya was concerned.

           She was at Marinette less than half an hour later. Alya apologized for not believing Marinette about Lila. She had taken off her glasses when she began to cry. She handed her phone over, and let Marinette read the group texts. The hurt that flashed over the Asian’s girl face nearly broke Alya’s heart.

“You’re my best friend,” Alya had stated firmly. “I should’ve trusted you. I should’ve had your back. I’ll do better. I’ll be better.”

           Marinette wiped tears from her face. “You had my back when it counted the most.” A cold look appeared on her face. “Tomorrow, we’ll find out who’s really my friend.”

           Alya agreed but wanted to point out that friends didn’t do what they did. She couldn’t stop herself from remembering all the nasty words and mean jokes they made about her bestie. “Okay, but then we get revenge.”

“Nothing to mean.”

“No promises.”

           Alya looked at the faces of the kids who she was once her friends; to be clear, they weren’t anymore. She couldn’t trust them. If they could turn on someone like as awesome Marinette for a few sickly sweet promises and false tears, then they’d drop Alya, who could admit to herself she wasn’t nearly as nice as the bluenette, in a hot second.

           She didn’t bother saying good morning to them. Alya shook her head and promptly walked to the back of the class and sat in the right (in more ways than one) desk next to Marinette’s. To her credit, Alya didn’t blink twice at Chloe’s new chosen seat; as she far she was concerned Marinette needed all the friends she could get.

Alya crossed her arms and glared at the class. A cold fury filling her. Still, she gave her ex-friends, Nino (her soon to ex-boyfriend), Lila a small smile and a chuckle, “You have no idea who you’re dealing with.”

           There would be hell to pay for they did her best friend. This wasn’t war. No, War meant the ingrates in her class actually stood a chance. They didn’t. It was Marinette, Alya, and Chloe versus everyone else. This was a war, it was an execution.

           First thing first was they had to plan.

           After school, the three girls met up at Marinette’s.

“No matter more being a doormat, Dupain… Marinette,” Chloe corrected at the last second.

           Marinette frowned, “I’m not a doormat.”

“You kind of are girl,” Alya said, despite the part of herself that hated agreeing with Chloe. They were on the same side, she reminded herself, the same team. “You’re are constantly running around to help everyone. You’re constantly doing favors; handing out free custom design clothes, banners, food, the works. And they treat you like dirt. They’ve been treating you like dirt, and yet you still help. It’s not right. I never thought it was.”

At first, Alya hadn’t said anything because she was too new and didn’t want to step on anyone’s toes. But she should’ve.

“It has to stop,” Alya continued. “They’re not your friends anymore; you don’t owe anyone anything. Even if they were; your designs are way too badass to be giving them away for free.”

           Marinette nodded. She could agree to that

           Chloe put a hand on her hip, “The three of us are the most formidable girls in class; possibly the entire school. Outside of class, most of the school loved Mariette; the artists, the geeks, the fashion club, bakers’ club. Thanks to the Ladyblog, Alya is the most known girl at school; people trust her because Ladybug trusts her. Me? I’m the richest girl in school and I throw the best parties; the elite follows me because they have no choice, and the popular because they don’t want to risk not getting an invite. As hot and as smart as we are, we are ruling that hellhole. You know what our problem is?” She didn’t wait for an answer. “Marinette’s too nice. I’m too bossy. Alya’s too stubborn.”

           It wasn’t the first time or the millionth that someone calls Alya stubborn. “We need to work as a unit; they come at one of us, they come at all of us. Lila isn’t done yet.”

“She lied her way to the top,” Marinette said. “As long as she thinks I’m any kind of threat to her, she won’t stop.

           Chloe nodded, “Mostly because of the tops a long way from the bottom and it’s her social status, her reputation, everything she got since she came to school that’s on the line. The fall will kill her;”

“Then let’s make sure she takes our ex-friends with her,” Alya said darkly. “We got nowhere being nice and honest. Lets’ try mean and ruthless.”

           Marinette wanted to protest but the texts from her so-called friends still tore at her. They had said so many hurtful things; about Marinette, her designs, her parents’ bakery. It was terrible. “What do you have in mind?”

           Alya smirked, “We’re going full scorched earth.”

           Revenge is a dish best served cold.

           They let the class think they were safe; let the worry of any potential consequences slowly fade from their minds. It took weeks before their ex-friends would stop reading themselves for an attack whenever Chloe, Alya, or even Marinette entered the room. And during those weeks, the girls assembled their powerbases; slowly but surely, they took their rightful places at the top of the social hierarchy.

           A few of the so-called Queen Bee of the school took afront of this and did their best to sabotage each other

           But what none of the other social climbers expected was for the three to combine their forces. Marinette, Chloe, and Alya were cold and merciless in defense of their new positions; each one using their own unique still to remove or outright destroy their competition and anyone else that got in their way.

           However, it was until Olivia Knight, the former most popular girl in school, popularity fell to just above the Goth kids that people finally got the message.

           There were Three new queens in their school. Call them the Lannisters, Call them the Tyrells, or the Baratheons’; whatever However the message was the same. The Queens would do anything it took to keep their thrones.

           Two months; nine parties, one school election, a dance (where Chloe was elected Queen) and joining seven clubs between them Marinette: Fashion and Art. Alya: Track and Comic Book Club. Chloe: Mathletes and Drama. Finally, all three joined the World Travels’ Club. That way they had a foot in with the nerds, jocks, the geeks, the loners, the goths, and (by way of throwing awesome parties) the popular kids. And Marinette, Chloe, and Alya were officially the most popular girls in school.

           Marinette and Alya were surprised to learn the kids from Bustier’s class were lower on the overall school’s popularity scale than the creepy loner kid that hangs out behind the gym and smokes. They only really hung out with each other and seemed to have more problems than any other class in school. The main idea seemed to be that Bustier’s class was black hole no one ever managed to crawl out of until Alya, Chloe, and Marinette surfaced. Or a budding cult. Now that they had broken free, the three could see how they had gotten that idea.

           When they were in class, it was like they were in their own world. They were all in high school now but most still acted as they did on their first days of middle school. It was like they refused to grow up, mature mentally and emotionally. Bustier never seemed to mind.

           She was a hindrance. She blamed the victim and protected the bullies.

           It was why Bustier had to go.

           Getting Bustier fired was remarkable easy. A week’s work of videos of what life was life every day in her class, and she was gone.

           A substitute didn’t come to replace her. No someone (Chloe) had leaned on Damocles hard to get the entire class split up until a permanent one could be found. Thus they were in for a hard lesson.

           The first? Who really ruled the school?

           The best part was for that ditch the girls were planning on leaving their ex-friends in, those morons brought the shovel themselves.

           It took a few days for Bustier’s class to settled into their classes and schedule but once they did, they immediately tried to go back to their old ways.

           The teachers shut down most of it; making it clear they would NOT be tolerating any crap.

           Still, that didn’t stop everyone.

           Bustier’s students, as they would be known by the students and teachers, yelled out they’re answered, frequently disrupted the class, argued loudly with each other.

           Lila tried to spin her stories again but Marinette and Alya already spread the truth about how much of a liar she was so one bought anything she said. Most just ignored her. Lila didn’t like that. She thrived off attention. No attention meant Akumas. Unfortunately, this just caused Lila to look even more immature than she already did.

           When Alix “accidentally” tripped Marinette. Marinette let herself fall, crash, and spill all her school supplies. Alix and Mylene snickered.

           Aurore who had witnessed the event didn’t hesitate to call them out, drawing the attention of the other students. They saw Marinette on the floor, Alix and Mylene laughing and came to the correct conclusion. Marinette’s new friends rushed to help her, glaring viciously at the two girls while she did so.

           Word spread quickly. And then Alya “accidentally” let it slip about the mean texts about Marinette. And then Chloe “accidentally” revealed all of the classes’ dirty little secrets; things that had only be known by Bustier’s students. Rumors flew.

           It wasn’t long before most of the student body would rather be seen with the creepy loner smoker kid than with any of Bustier’s students.

            No one realized just how true that statement was until Marinette announced yet another fantastic party. Chloe, Marinette, and Alya had become known for them.

           …This party was different.

           Usually, it was a mass invite; welcoming anyone and everyone.

           This party was an invitation-only which was strange because it seemed like everyone in school was invited. Until they got to the party that Friday night and realized just who wasn’t.

           Bustier’s students.

           It was the worse sentence the Queen could’ve delivered to their ex-friends. It wasn’t just a drop on the popularity scale. It wasn’t social exile. The message was clear; Marinette, Chloe, and Alya would not tolerate their ex-friends whatsoever.

           No one wanted to get on the girls’ bad side. No one would even consider risking it. No one wanted to be the next Olivia Knight. Olivia who never fully recovered her reputation or her social status; most of her old friends wouldn’t even speak to her anymore. They were not about to put their necks on the line for losers Bustier’s class.

           They’d only lose their heads.

           The (Demon) Queens of school decreed it, by next Monday, the students of Bustier’s class would be deleted.

           And yet that still wouldn’t be enough for them.

           As far as they were concerned they were only just getting started.

           Move over Heathers, Plastics, the Queens have arrived.

#ml salt #ml fic #alya deserves better #class salt #a little bit of adrien salt #marinette dupain cheng

[izzyaro]

Yet another Clyde and Emily thing, because the idea would not leave me alone. It got quite a bit longer than expected.

It was meant to be a quiet evening out.

It was the end of a tough mission. They’d made the profile, caught the UnSubs, and saved a lot of lives. They definitely deserved a break. The locals had recommended a nice little pub, which turned out to be lively and half full of students, and Clyde had offered to get the first round. Sean had gone outside to call his wife, Jeremy was chatting up a young lady on the table next to them, and Emily and Tsia found a quiet corner where no one was paying attention to them.

“We needed this,” said Emily with a sigh. 

Her muscles ached from hours of being on the alert, and she couldn’t help a moan when Tsia rubbed gentle circles into her shoulders. “Oh, that feels good.”

Tsia’s answering grin was wicked. “Later I’ll show you what else I can do with my hands.”

Emily shivered. Tsia glanced round, and leaned in for a quick kiss. Emily’s eyes fluttered shut, but as Tsia drew back there was a sudden commotion from behind them. Both of them spun round, and Tsia sat bolt upright.

“What the hell is he doing?”

Clyde stood by the bar, but he wasn’t collecting their drinks. He had a yelling skinhead in a wristlock, and the ice cold fury on his face was enough to have Emily lurching to her feet.

“Clyde!” 

Clyde didn’t so much as glance at her. His whole attention was on the young man he had pinned. Emily swore and started to shoving her way through the crowd, but the bartender was already there, a frown on his face.

“Sir, let go of him-”

“I’ll let go,” Clyde growled, “when he tells me what he put in this girl’s drink.”

The mood changed in an instant. A young woman standing nearby went pale. The bartender immediately zeroed in on the now-silent skinhead. “What’s this?”

The man glared, and Clyde spoke up, blue eyes sparking with barely-controlled rage. “He dropped a tablet in that drink a she looked away. I’d be surprised if it was the only one.”

“Fuck off,” the skinhead snarled, only to yelp as Clyde tightened his grip. “Oi, you’re breaking my arm!”

“Then stop moving,” Clyde snapped back.

The skinhead swore, and Emily finally managed to push through to them. “Clyde! I think he’s got the message.”

Clyde finally looked up, and Emily had to suppress a flinch at the expression on his face. It took all her years of training to keep her voice steady, “He’s not going anywhere.”

Clyde held her gaze for a long moment, then finally shoved the man away from him. The skinhead lurched up, swearing like a sailor, but Tsia planted herself in his path.

“Take one more step, and I’ll show you what a broken arm really feels like.”

“What is going on here?”

Emily had never been so glad to hear Sean’s voice. Their boss took in the situation, Clyde shaking with anger and the gawping crowd, and set his jaw. “Clyde, get some air.”

Clyde glared at him for a moment, then jerked his head in a nod. The crowds parted for him without a word, and Sean took a deep breath. 

“I trust someone’s called the police?”

“I did,” said another bartender, holding up her mobile. She was glaring at the skinhead. “I saw it too. We don’t tolerate that here.”

Emily let out a long breath. She hadn’t doubted Clyde, but another witness was always helpful. She crossed over to the trembling young woman.

“Are you all right?”

The girl’s eyes shifted from her spiked drink to Emily. “I…He would have…”

Her shivering intensified. Emily wrapped an arm around her. “I know, but you’re okay. You’re safe now, I promise.”

The girl gave a strangled sob, and Emily pulled her into a proper hug and let her cry. Tsia caught her eye, eyes flashing with anger and sympathy, and Emily rubbed gentle circles into the girl’s back.

“It’s okay. It will all be okay.”

After a long minute, the girl gave a shuddering sob and drew back. “How…How do I know he didn’t do it earlier?”

Emily’s stomach lurched, but the bartender who had called the police was already there, “An ambulance is on the way too. I didn’t see anything, but it’s better safe than sorry.” She bit her lip. “I’m so sorry this happened.”

The girl sniffed. She was silent for a moment, hands fiddling with a loose thread from her shirt, before she looked back at Emily. “That other man, the one who stopped him, is he your friend?”

“Clyde?” Emily asked. “Yeah, he is.”

“Will you thank him for me? Please?”

“Sure,” said Emily gently.

She glanced round, but though she could see Jeremy and Sean talking with the newly-arrived police, there was no sign of Clyde. Alarm spiked through her chest, and the bartender coughed. “I can stay with her, if you want to find him?”

Emily glanced at the girl, who sniffed and nodded. “I’ll be right outside if you need anything, okay?”

Both of them nodded, and Emily caught Tsia’s eye. Her girlfriend hesitated, then sighed. “You’ll get more out of him by yourself,” she murmured. “I’ll follow in a few minutes.”

Emily squeezed her hand, grateful for her understanding, and headed out of the pub. 

The November wind bit at her cheeks, and she pulled the sleeves of her sweater down to cover her hands as she squinted round. She ignored the skinhead being guided into the waiting police cars, instead scanning the passersby. There were a fair few spectators, but there was no sign of Clyde.

Emily bit her lip. Clyde could take care of himself, but the only time she had seen him that furious was when Tsia had been attacked by a particularly stupid racist. She had never seen him lose control of himself like that before, and it had scared her.

Now, she was becoming increasingly scared for him.

There was only an unbroken line of shops to the left, but there was an alleyway round the other side, and instinct had Emily moving towards it. 

The only light came from the streetlight on the other side of the road, but it was enough. Emily let out a shaky breath, and made her way past a pair of bins to crouch in front of her friend.

“There are nicer places to get some air, you know.”

She was expecting a reply, even a sharp one, but Clyde said nothing. His knees were drawn up to his chest, and he continued to stare blankly at the opposite wall, and Emily’s stomach twisted.

“Clyde? Can you hear me?”

Clyde blinked, but the shudders running through his body had intensified, and Emily bit her lip. She touched his arm, and when he blinked again she gripped his hands.

“Clyde, listen to me. You are safe. I’m here. There’s no danger.”

Clyde’s breathing hitched. He squeezed his eyes shut, breath coming in ragged gasps, and when Emily shifted her grip she found his pulse fast and thready under her fingers.

“Damn it,” she whispered.

It had been a while since he had a panic attack, and she didn’t want to think about what might have triggered it, but she couldn’t stand by and let her friend suffer.

“Clyde, look at me.”

Clyde’s jaw clenched, but Emily kept talking, “Clyde, I’m here. You know me. You know I won’t let anyone touch you. Look at me, Clyde.”

Clyde finally blinked up at her, eyes wide with panic, and Emily squeezed his hands. “Good. That’s really good. Now, I need you to list every Queen album in order for me, all right?”

For a moment she thought Clyde was too far gone to hear her, but then he sucked in a shuddering breath. His lips moved silently, too quietly for Emily to hear, but she could feel his shivering easing a little, and when he finished he no longer felt like he would fly apart. Emily managed a smile.

“Good. That’s really good. Now do every song that appears on ‘A Night at the Opera’.”

Clyde swallowed. “‘Death on Two Legs’,” he rasped. “‘Lazing on a Sunday Afternoon. I’m in Love with My Car. You’re My Best Friend'…”

He went through both sides of the record, and then did it backwards, and when he finally sagged back against the wall his shivering had eased so much it was almost unnoticeable. Emily sat back on her heels.

“Are you all right?”

Clyde nodded. His face was very pale, and he didn’t meet her eyes. “I’m sorry,” he whispered.

“You don’t have anything to apologise for,” said Emily firmly. 

Clyde didn’t look convinced, but he also didn’t seem like he had the energy to argue. Emily kept hold of his hands. She didn’t want to pry, but she couldn’t leave this alone.

“The girl at the bar told me to say thank you.”

If she wasn’t watching so closely she would have missed his flinch. It took him a moment to reply, “I did what anyone would have.”

Emily eyed him. Clyde was the most private person she had ever met, but she did know him. The last time she had seen him like this had been when a bad case had triggered memories from Bosnia. If this was something similar…

“Go on and ask.”

Startled, Emily blinked up. Clyde still wasn’t looking at her, and his shaking had worsened again. “Clyde-”

“I know you won’t let it go. Just ask so we can go back to pretending everything is fine.”

Emily chewed on her lip for a second, but he was right. She couldn’t not ask. Not if there was any chance that she might be able to help.

She still had to take a deep breath first.

“What happened?”

Clyde was quiet for so long that she began to think he had changed his mind, but just when she was on the verge of suggesting they head back to the hotel he took a deep breath.

“I was in my first year of uni.” 

His voice was so quiet she had to strain to hear it, and then it was all she could do to keep herself steady. Clyde continued, eyes fixed on the floor, “First week actually. Went out with my new classmates. I had one drink.” He squeezed his eyes shut. “I remember nothing of the rest of the night.”

Bile rose in Emily’s mouth. She had to swallow hard before she could speak, “Did you report it?”

Clyde gave a weak huff. “You think anyone would have believed a student was forced to take drugs? Back then?” He shook his head. “And…Cambridge wasn’t exactly accepting.”

It took a moment for Emily’s brain to process that, and then she could only stare at him. “You…Clyde…” She stopped, and tried again. “Did they…?”

“I don’t know,” Clyde whispered. He scrubbed his hands over his face, and finally looked her in the eye. “I had bruises and I hurt, but I don’t know what happened, Emily. I don’t know.”

His voice was rising and the panic was threading back into his voice, and Emily threw caution to the wind and pulled him for a hug. Clyde sagged against, trembling like a leaf, and Emily hugged him tight.

“I’m sorry,” she whispered. “I’m so sorry.”

Clyde made an incoherent noise in the back of his throat, and Emily caught the nape of his neck. “It’s okay. I’ve got you.”

She brushed her fingers through his hair, and felt him slowly relax against her. Tears burned at her eyes, and she blinked them away before they could fall. Clyde needed her right now.

“What do you need?”

Clyde gave a brittle laugh. “The ability to travel back in time and tell my younger self not to be a bloody idiot?”

Emily flinched. “You cannot blame yourself for that!”

“Of course I can,” Clyde muttered. “I was stupid.”

Emily drew back to look him in the eye. She could tolerate a lot of things, but she couldn’t listen to that. She was opening her mouth to argue when she had a better idea.

“Was that girl in there stupid?”

“What?” Clyde demanded. “Of course not.” Then his eyes narrowed. “That’s different.”

“How?” Emily asked, and somehow she managed to keep her voice calm. “She’s roughly the same age you were. She hasn’t had any training, just like you hadn’t. What makes her situation so different from yours?”

Clyde opened his mouth, then closed it again and looked away. Emily sighed. That wasn’t a battle she was going to win any time soon.

“Okay,” she said. “Is there anything I can do for you right now?”

Clyde met her eyes for a split-second before ducking his head again. “You’re already doing it.”

A flicker of warmth pierced through the shock and fear, and Emily took both his hands in hers. “I’m not going anywhere.”

The corner of Clyde’s mouth twitched into a weak smile. Emily chewed on her lip, then glanced up as a shadow fell across them.

“There you are,” Tsia said. “I was beginning to think you’d gotten lost…”

Her voice trailed off as she took in the scene, and her eyes hardened. She crouched next to Clyde. “I really will go and break his arm, if you want.”

Clyde choked out a startled laugh, but shook his head. “I appreciate the offer, but he’ll get what’s coming to him.” His amusement faded as quickly as it had come. “Is that girl all right?”

“She’s fine,” Tsia assured him. “She’s on her way to the hospital, but she wasn’t showing any symptoms.”

“Good,” said Clyde quietly.

Tsia quirked an eyebrow at Emily, who grimaced. She squeezed Clyde’s hands. “How about we get back to the hotel?”

Tsia nodded, but Clyde frowned. “I need to give a statement.”

“Tomorrow,” said Tsia. “There was a room full of witnesses,” she continued, when Clyde’s frown deepened. “Yours can wait ’til you’re not about to pass out.”

It was a mark of how rough he was feeling that Clyde didn’t even try to protest. He accepted the hand up Tsia offered him, and rubbed a hand over his face. “I’m sorry,” he said quietly. “I’ll be fine.”

Emily glanced at Tsia, and saw her own concern mirrored on her girlfriend’s face, but she just nodded. “Okay, but if you ever want to talk-”

“I know,” said Clyde. He managed a faint smile. “Thank you, Emily.”

“Any time,” said Emily softly.

He was still pale and shaky. Emily couldn’t help pulling him into another hug, and Clyde clung to her like a lifeline. There was so much she wanted to say, but she had to swallow down the lump in her throat first.

“You know, that girl is safe because of you,” she said softly. Clyde stiffened, but Emily kept talking, “That guy won’t be hurting anyone else, because of you.”

“She’s right,” said Tsia. Emily smelled her perfume as she drew closer. “That girl will be okay.” She paused, and added more softly, “You will be too.”

Clyde was silent for a minute, then gently disentangled himself from them. He turned aside, and when he looked back his eyes were clear.

“Thank you,” he repeated.

Emily shook her head, and Tsia elbowed him very gently. “Stop that. We’ve got you.”

Clyde looked at the two of them, and for the first time in what seemed like hours a small but completely genuine smile touched his lips. “Yes,” he said quietly. “I believe you do.”

“Finally,” said Tsia, but her expression was very fond and very soft as she looked at him. She wrapped her arm around Emily’s waist, and held out her free hand to Clyde. “Let’s get back. You look like you could sleep for a week.”

Clyde gave a faint huff, but he took her hand and something in Emily’s chest settled. They would be okay. She would make sure of it. 

#jtf12 #emily prentiss #clyde easter #tsia mosely #sean mcallister #non con drug use #attempted date rape #referenced non con drug use #panic attack #ptsd #referenced date rape #background prosely

[nobodyfamousposts]

Missing 3.4 Final

Good news: No more Lila!

Bad news: Cliffhanger.

Fair warning: This is a good 40+ pages.

Adrien arrived at school early that morning with a plan and a hope. He would have also had a speech already typed out if Plagg hadn’t forced him to go to bed. And it wasn’t like the akuma fight had left him with much time to really plot anything out, either.

That was the other thing taking up his focus. Ladybug had been acting strange recently, but it really showed last night. She didn’t cast her Lucky Charm. She had done nothing for Alya as the akuma victim despite having plenty of time to at least talk to her. She had also been particularly stand-offish with him during and after the fight, even disregarding their standard fist bump.

It was worrying. And Plagg’s strange silence on the matter wasn’t helping.

It threatened to eat away at his mind, and admittedly had to some extent. But if there was one thing Plagg had been useful for, it was keeping him grounded.

“You can only focus on one thing at a time. Focus on the here and now.“

In the here and now, Ladybug was not here and there was nothing he could do about her current state. Nor was there much he could do for her today, especially once he reached the school. However, Alya still needed him, and he would be going to school where he would be in a prime position to at least try to help her.

There was no way of knowing how much he could do or what he could accomplish. But he was bound and determined to try. For Alya. For Nino. Even for Marinette, despite her no longer being there.

“Mr. Agreste? The Principal will see you now.”

Adrien took a breath.

It was time to step up.

Damocles blinked in surprise when he entered.

“Mister Agreste, is something the matter?”

“Yes.“ He said, mentally preparing himself for the conversation. “I have something to tell you about yesterday‘s incident.“

To his credit, Damocles had listened to him this time. And he did seem rightfully angered when Adrien told him what he had heard. But his expression at the end of Adrien’s tale was apologetic and did not in any way suggest any sort of action would result.

“I’m sorry, Mr. Agreste. While that does shed new light on things, that does not in any way justify the assault of a student.“

“Sir, I don’t believe that Lila was assaulted in the first place. Or at least if she was, it was by her own hand.“

He appeared skeptical. “But why would she do such a thing?“

“Because Lila is a liar.”

The man’s eyes widened in shock. “What?!”

Adrien took a breath. Don’t back out now, he told himself. You’ve already started and gotten this far. Alya is counting on you.

“Lila is a chronic liar and has shown a tendency to target people who call her out on her lying. She first became an akuma after Ladybug confronted her in the park about her claiming to be her best friend. She became an akuma again and pretended to be me after I told her I would be happy to be her friend but asked her to stop lying the first day she came back to school. She had been making comments and spreading rumors about Marinette after she started pointing out issues with her stories. And now she’s claiming Alya attacked her during an incident when Alya was calling her out on her lies.”

“But you weren’t there for the actual assault.” Damocles countered, skeptical of what he was being told. “So how can you prove that she didn’t hit her?“

Adrien’s eyes narrowed. “With all due respect, sir, where is your proof that she did?“

The man appeared affronted at that. “Well, Miss Rossi did say—

“Lila Rossi is a pathological liar. Her word can’t be trusted.” Adrien insisted firmly. “And Alya just spent all of yesterday telling you she didn’t do it.”

“But Miss Rossi’s cheek was marked.”

“Which was at best circumstantial evidence, and something she could easily have done to herself.”

Now it seemed that Damocles had enough. “Young man, that is quite the accusation!”

“So was her claim that Alya struck her.” Not that they bothered to appropriately investigate it in the first place. “And that wasn’t the first wild claim she’s made.”

“Be that as it may, some minor stories don’t disprove this incident occurred.”

“But they do imply a trend.” Adrien argued. And really, it was more than just a simple trend by this point. If he had plotted it all out, he was sure this was probably her norm. And it made him all the more regretful that he hadn’t spoken up about it sooner.

He had failed to stand up for his friends before. First with Nino and his father. Then with his other friends and Chloe. Then with Marinette and Chloe. And then again with Marinette and Lila.

He wasn’t going to make the same mistake this time.

“Sir, she’s lied about Marinette before. You know this. Three lies in one day: Accusing her of stealing the test answers for a mock exam, of pushing her down the stairs, and then of stealing a family heirloom. All of which were lies used to wrongfully hurt and humiliate Marinette. And nobody listened to Marinette back then either, just like you didn’t listen to Alya yesterday.”

“She has a condition—”

“The condition is just her lying.” Adrien emphasized. “If you know this—if she told you about this supposed condition of hers, then couldn’t it have been a part of the situation yesterday?”

Damocles frowned at that, clearly having forgotten that matter. “But there was the mark!”

“And with Marinette, there was the test answers and the necklace. Lila still admitted to those claims being false. Why couldn’t this be false, too?”

He hesitated. Because yes, these were all things that didn’t add up. They were issues that the Principal and the school should have looked in to more, and really should have handled better. At least better than just disciplining each girl based solely on the word of one person. Especially when it’s the same person both times.

Damocles appeared uncertain, but still seemed unwilling to budge on his position. Emboldened, Adrien cut him off before he could try to make further excuses.

“Sir, with all due respect,” Disregarding that the man before him was far from deserving of any such respect at this point. “I understand that you want to be a hero. And as the Owl, you have supported people. But your actions as a Principal have been lacking at best and at worst, have been clearly biased and unfair. If you really want to help at making things better, wouldn’t it matter more to do so in the role you already have?

It was probably the meanest that Adrien had ever allowed himself to act towards an an adult—especially an authoritative figure. But it was also the most honest, and he for once didn’t regret it.

Damocles looked shocked. Possibly that he was being spoken back to. Possibly the fact that the one doing it was Adrien. He opened his mouth to respond.

Only to be cut off by the door to his office opening.

“Excuse me, is this where the meeting is supposed to be?”

Both Principal and student turned to the doorway to see a middle aged woman. She in turn seemed confused upon seeing them, glancing between the two uncertainly. “Is this a good time?”

“Oh, is the best time!”

Before either male could speak, Chloe Bourgeois appeared at the door, politely (and wasn’t THAT well out of the ordinary for her?) encouraging the woman further into the room and all the way to the Principal’s desk. To the further confusion of everyone besides Chloe, two police officers as well as a man in a semi-formal if not somewhat cheap looking jacket entered the room after. One of the officers quietly shut the door behind them.

Damocles frowned in a mix of bewilderment and annoyance from that bewilderment. “Miss Bourgeois, what is the meaning of this?”

Chloe merely sauntered to the desk, smirking.

“Principal Damocles, may I introduce Mrs. Rossi. Lila’s mother. She has a rather...interesting perception of what’s been going on at the school for the past few months...”

_______________________

“I was so scared! I had never been attacked by an akuma like that before. I’m just lucky that Ladybug got to me in time.”

Not even a day after causing the akuma in question (who had never even gone after her) and already she was back at it as bad as ever. Watching the ease with which she fluttered her eyelashes and quivered her lip was enough to make anyone want to break something.

Alix was finally getting a sense for how frustrated Marinette had to have been for all those weeks when she was the only one to have known the truth. Seeing the way Lila teased and manipulated her classmates with falsehoods and promises she clearly had no intention of keeping was infuriating and it took everything Alix had not to scream at times.

Nathaniel at least had been a comfort—a stable source of sanity and reason during this time. Someone to assure her that no, she hadn’t gone crazy (yet), everyone else was just being that stupid.

But Marinette...for all that time, Marinette hadn’t even had that much.

Given all this, part of her was wondering if what Lila had said was right and Marinette hadn’t decided to run away due to everything.

Part of her wouldn’t blame her.

As much as she wanted to call Lila out on her bull, she knew even without Nathaniel’s grip on her arm, that doing so at this point would be a bad idea. Lila would simply cry and act as the injured party, then Alix would no doubt find herself next on the list of people to suddenly be removed from the school thanks to Lila’s unsubstantiated claims.

It didn’t help that both Rose and Juleka were fully entrenched in Lila’s stories. Kim was there as well and seemed sympathetic to Lila’s fake tears. Ivan and Mylene were also present, though they appeared a bit withdrawn as they stood further away from the small group and were giving each other wary glances rather than respond to anything Lila was saying. Even Sabrina was there, though she was standing off to the side and was doing something on her phone.

Alix had to wonder what that was about, but was in no position to ask. At least, not without the risk of drawing everyone else’s attention. Especially Lila’s, whom was the one person Alix needed to not be noticed by at this time.

Because if Lila did notice her and try to speak to her directly regardless of the reason, Alix couldn’t promise she wouldn’t start verbally tearing her a new one.

Alix and Nathaniel agreed to try and discuss the matter with their other classmates. But with Lila present, that was no easy task. Especially since she would comandeer their attention. Trying to tell everyone the truth up front was pointless with Lila present and in a prime position to retaliate. And trying to get each of them alone would only get Lila suspicious.

Honestly, Alix just wanted to forego the subterfuge and out Lila anyway. And her stupid story and dramatics weren’t helping with that!

“She’s truly a great friend!” Lila continued, dabbing at her completely dry eyes. “Once she heard about the akuma, she came to check on me first.”

Alix rolled her eyes. It took a less than gentle nudge from Nathaniel to keep her from scoffing outright.

Fed up, Alix turned away and headed for the front hallway. She could wait for any of the others outside and away from all that drama. In particular, she had been hoping to talk to Adrien or Nino. Nino at least should be able to give an update on Alya. And Adrien could give Alix some peace of mind by confirming Alya’s version of events. Then maybe they could go to Damocles or work together to convince the rest of the class.

At the very least, they could make things easier for Alya’s return by ensuring their friends knew what really happened.

“Alix, you need to calm down.” Nathaniel’s voice cut into her thoughts as he caught up to her in the hallway.

“I am calm.” She retorted as she spun around on him. She wasn’t blisteringly angry like she was yesterday, at least. That was calmed down, right?

His deadpan expression made it clear he wasn’t impressed and certainly didn’t believe her. He was right and she knew it. She sighed and took a few seconds to clear her mind.

“You’re right.” She admitted. “But listening to that? Now that we know for sure, it’s just…”

Why had they ever believed her? How had they ever fallen for it? It felt like such a waste and hearing Lila keep it going made Alix want to start yelling.

“I know.” Nathaniel agreed, fists clenched tightly around his tablet. “I’m upset, too. But the only thing getting angry will do is attract an akuma.”

“And that would be bad because…?”

“It would give her more ammo.”

Oh.

Yeah. There was that.

Confronting Lila won’t work. They both knew that. Marinette had surely tried, and it hadn’t made a difference when none of them believed her. Granted, that wasn’t truly their fault for not knowing, but it did mean that repeated attempts even by other parties were not exactly guaranteed success.

Still, they had to try.

And it was fortunate perhaps that a certain genius arrived at that moment, offering the first one they could try to convince.

“Max! We need to talk to you about Lila!” Alix called out as he approached.

Max glanced to his bag, appearing uncertain. “Can it wait? I have something else that is rather pressing to attend to.”

“No, it can’t. It’s about what happened yesterday.”

He frowned, his gaze falling back to Alix. “You mean the akuma attack.”

“Are you okay? We heard Lady Wifi made a comeback and that she targeted you.” Nathaniel cut in. Alix would have been annoyed, but her friend had been kidnapped and she had been just as worried about him as well.

Max hesitated. Possibly due to the shock? Or trauma perhaps?

“It was...harrowing, yes.” He finally stated. “Fortunately, Ladybug and Chat Noir were able to restore her to normal and then Chat Noir escorted me home.”

“But do you know what caused the akumatization in the first place?” Alix asked him.

“I assumed it had to do with Marinette’s disappearance.”

Both of the other students blinked in surprise at that. It wasn’t quite what they expected, though it did make sense for Alya to focus on helping her friend.

Still, they needed to focus. “Yesterday, Lila got Alya suspended by making a false claim of being attacked.”

Max tilted his head. “You are certain the claim is false?”

She nodded. “Yes. I spoke with Alya after the fact and she not only insisted she didn’t do it, but that she wished she had.”

That seemed to get his attention. “But why would she regret that she hadn’t harmed Lila?”

“Alya found out that Lila has been making up everything.” Nathaniel told him.

“It was a bunch of lies. All of it!” Alix exclaimed. “From her charity work to her celebrity friends and even that whole napkin thing—”

“You mean her joke?” Max asked.

THAT made her freeze. “What?”

“She claimed to have saved me from a napkin.” He pointed out. “What was that supposed to be if not a joke?“

Of course. Of freaking course the class genius knew and completely mistook the entire situation.

Alix groaned. “It was a lie, Max.“

“Oh.“

A pause followed.

“It wasn’t a very good one, was it?“

Looking back, it hadn’t been. Which only made it all the more vexing that they had believed it.

Nathaniel seemed torn, looking like he wanted to laugh while also trying to hold himself back from slapping his forehead in exasperation.

Max glanced between the two, taking in their expressions and seemed to catch on.

“I apologize. I misread the situation.” He had thought it was a joke that everyone else was already aware of, and only played into that. He hadn’t realized that it was an actual manipulation tactic on Lila’s part and that everyone had been fooled, or that he had helped her to fool them. In a way, he blamed himself for this discovery coming too late.

“It wasn’t your fault, Max.” Nathaniel told him.

“Yeah,” Alix agreed. “We all misread things. Just...in different ways.”

“I guess the question now is what will we do about it?” Nathaniel asked.

That, they weren’t sure. The obvious thing to do seemed to be that they needed to inform the rest of their classmates about Lila. But would they be believed? And if they were, how would they react?

Lila had manipulated them all, yes. But other than getting special treatment for a time, there wasn’t much that any of them had truly suffered at her hands.

No. The ones who had suffered had been Marinette and now Alya, both of whom had found themselves targets of Lila’s more malicious tactics once they had called her out on her lies.

Looking back, the circumstances of Marinette’s expulsion from the school, however temporary, had been not only unfair but also clearly orchestrated. There was no way Lila could have known about the test answers and her necklace being with Marinette unless she had seen it or seen to it personally. Marinette had never been the type to willfully steal another person’s possessions as far as they knew. And she CERTAINLY had never cheated. Nor would there be any benefit to stealing test answers for a mock exam that had no real weight.

Marinette was smarter than that.

She was also smart enough to not just have the test answers plainly visible at the top of her bag the day after the exam. That was just sloppy work, and Marinette was often paranoid when she thought she was doing anything wrong. If she had done it, she wouldn’t have been so clearly surprised.

Lila had been the one responsible. She set Marinette up for no other reason than to hurt her. She had told lies and attempted to frame her.

Alix could have forgiven the girl for trying to play herself up. She was a new girl at a new school and surrounded by strangers who had been involved in amazing things. Alix could understand her trying to lie if she thought it would help her fit in. But Lila’s antics went well beyond simple self-praise, and she could not forgive her for trying to drag other people down. And especially not for trying to frame Marinette for things she hadn’t done and get her expelled just for not buying her bullshit.

And now that she had attempted the same with Alya, it was more than clear that Lila’s actions were dangerous and not simply a one-time affair. She’d attacked Marinette. Then Alya. And thinking back, that one creepy akuma Adrien-look-alike had probably been tied to her as well, meaning she’d had some issue with the blond despite whatever interest she appeared to have in him.

“We need to let the others know.” Alix stated. “And from there, we can work out what to do with Lila.” They would have to. Because her tactics would get notably worse once she was aware they knew the truth about her. And given the response from Damocles and Ms. Bustier…

Yeah, they wouldn’t be able to count on the school officials to actually help them.

To her surprise, Max backed up a step.

“I’m sorry.” He stated. “I want to help, but there is something very important that I have to take care of first.”

Nathaniel frowned. “Can’t it wait? It would really help us out with convincing the others if you were there with us to confirm the truth.”

Max shook his head. Whatever was going on, he was insistent. “I will join you as soon as I can, but this is something I must see to immediately.”

He looked back to the window, noting the approach of Alya and her parents to the school.

“It’s important.”

_______________________

Alya hadn’t known what was going on. Her parents had gotten a phone call requesting they come to the school for a meeting in regards to her suspension. Her hope was that Nino or one of the others had spoken to Principal Damocles on her behalf and perhaps he would be showing leniency regarding her suspension. Or that she would at least be given the opportunity she had been denied previously to actually be able to tell her side and reveal Lila for the lying faker she was.

To her irritation, only her parents were invited inside the Principal’s office while Alya herself was asked to wait. Whatever was going on inside, it looked like a full house. She noticed a number of people sitting and standing around the office, including a couple of police officers (which was concerning). She had maybe all of a couple seconds to notice Adrien was in there and see him give her a shaky smile before the door was closed in her face.

She sighed and took a seat. There wasn’t much else she could do. Whatever the door was made of was pretty good material, because at best she could only pick up some sounds of murmuring on the other side.

She just hoped that whatever was going on would work out. And that maybe if she could get a chance to actually talk, that would be real swell.

“Alya. You’re back.”

The whispers that had followed her and her parents through the halls indicated that news of her presence would no doubt reach the class soon enough. She was even expecting that one of them would approach her, hopefully to check on her or get her take on what was happening.

But it wasn’t Nino who was there to greet her. Or Alix. Or even Adrien.

It was Max.

Alya didn’t remember much from her time as an akuma, but it didn’t take long for her to hear how Max of all people had been her target.

“Alya. It’s good to see you back to normal.”

She winced. “Max, I am so sorry for kidnapping you. I don’t even remember what I did, but I’m really sorry—”

Except his words cut her off.

“I’m not.”

Startled, she drew back and frowned in confusion. “You...what?”

He pushed up his glasses. “Last night, you kidnapped myself and Markov and took us to the the TVi station. You then had us hack the cellphone tower located there.”

She jerked back in shock.

“I did...why?”

He looked up at her, his gaze a strange mix of sympathy and pride.

“You were trying to find Marinette.”

Everything. Everything just stopped.

She had...

Even as an akuma, she had done all that? Gone that far? Not to get revenge on Lila or the school like she’d thought...

...but to search for her best friend?

As if sensing her confusion, Max explained. “You had us hack into the cellphone tower to try and locate her cellphone signal. It was...weak. And strangely disrupted. But we found it. And once you had it, you vanished.”

“I see.” That was some of the night accounted for, at least.

“From what I gathered, there was something strange going on with Marinette’s phone. It wasn’t ‘on’ and wouldn’t let you teleport directly to where it was, so you couldn’t find it. However!” He raised a finger. “While her phone didn’t give off a physical location, the signal was still there. That was what you had us track and that what what you were trying to locate last night.”

On the one hand, Alya was impressed with herself for managing this as an akuma, as well as Max and Markov for their efforts. On the other hand, she had still been an akuma and kidnapped her friends—regardless of the reason.

“At least now I know what I did.” She admitted. “Still, I should never have put you in that position.”

“But if not for you, I never would have been in that position.”

She frowned, confused. He made it sound like her kidnapping him wasn’t actually a bad thing.

“Under your orders, Markov and I had hacked a cellphone tower.”

She nodded, still confused. He had already explained that. What was he trying to say?

Max gave her a rather odd look.

“I’m sure you understand, legally speaking, that such an act is a crime and not something I would do were I not coerced.”

“Of course—”

“So you understand, legally speaking, that anything I happened to find was only because an akuma ordered me to.”

“Well, sure—”

“And certainly not because I took advantage of an opportunity to look up some additional information the akuma did not necessarily ask for but would have wanted had she known.”

It took a moment for the full meaning of his words to register.

She gaped.

He coughed. “Legally speaking, of course.”

“Of course.” She echoed numbly.

Because Max was telling her something. It wasn’t something she was sure she wanted to hear or not.

“Now IF by some bizarre luck I had gotten access to some extra data, I could hypothetically have gained some intel that might be of interest to select persons who knew Marinette rather well.”

That certainly got her attention.

“And IF such data existed in my hands, those select persons would be better able to make use of it.”

Her eyes widened. He wasn’t really...was he?

“Especially if one such person was an investigative sort who would have the skills and inclination to use the data appropriately.”

Oh god, he was!

“Though if that person should get caught, they certainly didn’t get any data from me. And it would do well to remember that lest a number of computer viruses be needed to completely erase their blog and entire online identity to remind them.”

Alya nodded. She barely even took notice of the threat. Not that she had any intentions of ratting our Max. Or even letting anyone know she had it in the first place.

“Of course, that’s just hypothetical.” Max reminded her.

“Of course.”

Max gave a resolute nod. He glanced around for any possible witnesses, and upon ensuring they were alone, he gave her a keychain.

It was cute. A little cartoonish kitty that smiled up at her with such innocence. She recognized the type of keychain it was though. Beneath that adorable exterior lied a usb device.

“Good luck.” Max whispered.

‘Bring her home.’ He left unsaid.

_______________________

Nino sighed once he’d reached the school. He’d been hoping to meet up with Adrien first thing, just to have a buffer and friendly support if nothing else. But the blond was nowhere to be seen and his attempts to call him went straight to voicemail.

He hoped he was okay. While they had talked things out the day before, he knew Adrien was still pretty sensitive.

There was nothing for it, though. He would just have to wait and see his bro when he got there.

...and try to survive in the meantime.

Nino was admittedly less than happy when he arrived to the school knowing Alya wouldn’t be there.

But seeing Lila sitting on the bench surrounded by his friends and lamenting over the ‘horrible akuma that tried to attack her the night before’?

He could see why Alya had lost her cool yesterday.

“Oh, Nino!” She exclaimed when she saw him, sending the rest of the class looking his way. She seemed to actually draw back from him as if uncertain, something he could now tell was method acting and a play for sympathy. “I’m so sorry for what happened yesterday. I never wanted Alya to get in trouble.”

Of course she didn’t, he thought sarcastically. She only lied about Alya attacking her to make herself look like a victim when Alya called Lila out on her crap.

He couldn’t quite bring himself to speak out. It was like he couldn’t form the words. Both Rose and Juleka were staring at him warily. Kim was frowning, though his focus seemed to be on Lila. Ivan and Mylene were giving him sympathetic looks. Sabrina was there as well, close enough to be “with” of the group but far away enough to not actually be part of the conversation.

He clenched his fists around his bag straps.

“Lila, dude...er...ette.” He started, trying to be as polite as he could bring himself to be. “It’s early and I’m just really not up for talking about it if it’s all the same to you.”

Lila gasped. “You don’t think she was right to hurt me, do you?”

It felt like all the air was being sucked out of his chest as everyone around them gasped at that and stared at him in shock.

“What?! No! No one deserves to be hurt!” Rose insisted, coming up to Lila’s side. “Right, Nino?” She added, looking up at him expectantly.

“Whatever happened yesterday wasn’t cool.” He replied, neutrally. Hoping that she would simply leave it at that.

But that wasn’t good enough. She covered her eyes and gave a wail.

“You do blame me!”

“I didn’t say that.” He insisted.

“But you didn’t not.” She shot back with a small sob that drew the classmates close to her. Rose put a hand on Lila’s shoulder in comfort while Juleka sent him a clear frown.

Oh god. It was like nothing he said could be the right answer or even just left alone. Anything he tried to say would be twisted and turned against him.

Was this what had happened with Alya?

Was this how it was for Marinette?

Or hell, Adrien? It was little wonder he was so scared to speak up then! How could he when it was like this? When Lila made it this hard to even dare to speak.

That was why...

He took a breath and straightened his cap, readying himself for what he was about to do.

“I shouldn’t be expected to apologize for what other people do.” Nino stated flatly. “But even if that were the case, I would still stand by Alya before I ever bow to you.”

Lila reared back in (fake) hurt. The others all stared at Nino in shock or outrage.

“Nino!” Kim gaped.

“How could you!” Rose exclaimed, tearfully.

Juleka’s frown grew into an outright glare.

Ivan and Mylene though…

They were gazing at each other, hands clasped. On the cusp of a decision. One he hoped was in his favor.

“You’re just as bad as Alya!” Lila cried out, hiding her eyes behind her palms. “You and Alya both!”

“Say that to me without covering your eyes and I may actually believe you.”

“You may want to check her hands first.” Came a voice from behind him. Nino looked over his shoulder to see Alix and Nathaniel arrive, the girl giving Lila a particularly dirty glare. “I wouldn’t put it past her not to be using some sort of eyedrops to complete the look.”

“Please.” Nathaniel said with a roll of his eyes. “With her level of acting, she’s probably taught herself how to cry on command.”

Nino hadn’t been expecting either of them to speak up on his behalf, but he was certainly grateful as they both seemed to be in his corner.

The air wasn’t nearly as oppressive now. He could speak and let his voice carry. He turned back to the others, resolute.

“Lila’s a liar.�� Nino announced to the group present. “She’s lied since the first day she came to our class. She’s not Ladybug’s friend and she never spoke to her about looking for Marinette—both Alya and I can confirm this when we spoke to Ladybug during the search we did two days ago.” Around him, he saw eyes widen in shock and Lila’s in fear.

Seeing the response, Nino felt emboldened. “Alya didn’t do a damn thing to her and I would bet my hat that Marinette never did either.”

“Just because she’s your girlfriend doesn’t mean she’ll tell you the truth!” Lila insisted.

“I trust her more than I’ll ever trust you.” Nino shot back. “Especially after what you’ve put her and Adrien both through yesterday.”

Lila’s head shot up in surprise. Sure enough, her eyes were glistening and Nino had half a mind to follow through with Alix’s suggestion to check her hands for eyedrops. “What...what are you talking about?” She demanded.

Alix actually let out a huff. “So she really did say it, then? That Marinette ran away because of us?”

Lila paled as the other students nearby gasped. Nino wanted to sag in relief. It seemed that Alix had spoken with Alya and was at least willing to consider her report on the events.

Nino nodded to her. “Yeah. Adrien himself confirmed it to me yesterday when he ran away after Lila told him that.”

“How cruel!”

“Why would you say that?!”

Lila coughed. “That’s not true! You’ve got it wrong! That is not what happened at all!”

Nino crossed his arms, glaring at Lila. “That’s not what Adrien says.”

“He misunderstood!”

“And his report matches Alya’s.”

“She’s twisting things!”

That seemed to get the others thinking. Ivan and Mylene both had heard Adrien’s account first-hand. They knew the truth of what Lila had said to instigate the situation even if they weren’t sure whether the attack itself had actually happened. As such, they both looked ready to speak up.

Except…

Kim stepped forward first.

“So, I wasn’t going to say anything,” He said, directing his words at Lila. “But there are a lot of things that haven’t been adding up here for a while.” He rubbed the back of his head, uncertainly. “Your injuries have been all over the place, and I’m talking literally. Your tinnitus would switch ears. You claimed a wrist injury but never wore a brace for it. And when you fell down the stairs, you didn’t have any scratches or bruising afterwards. There were too many and they were never consistent. There just never seemed to be a good time to ask and I didn’t want to make assumptions.”

He shrugged to the others, apologetically. “But if we’re getting everything in the open, I couldn’t help but notice how Lila’s injuries were suddenly not a problem during our search party for Marinette.”

Lila froze. “What?”

Kim frowned. “You went out of your way to join us, Adrien’s group specifically. And you had no issue keeping up with us until he left and you were suddenly too weak to continue. But up to that point, you didn’t seem all that inclined to help with the search. If it was your injuries, that’d be one thing, but instead of bowing out yourself, you kept trying to get the rest of us to drop it.”

“What? That’s not true!” Lila insisted.

“Looking back, she had seemed pretty intent on trying to stop us from helping in the search.” Nathaniel noted.

“Hey yeah! Weren’t you saying you had Ladybug helping in the search?” Alix questioned. “Was that even true?”

“It wasn’t.” Nino insisted. “Ladybug herself said she had only just heard about the case from Chat Noir.”

“That was before I talked her into it.”

“It was after you said you spoke to her.” Nino cut her off. “And what’s more, we outright asked and she said she doesn’t even know you!”

“She was lying!”

“Just like Alya was, right?” Alix mocked. “And Marinette. Tell me, Lila. How many people are suddenly going to become liars if they point out holes in your stories?”

“She was just trying to protect me!”

“If you needed to be protected, why announce your friendship and make yourself a target in the first place?” Nino questioned, glaring at Lila. “Wouldn’t a real friend of Ladybug’s not put her in that position?”

Lila glared at him with such hatred that Rose found herself backing away in fear. Even Juleka seemed surprised and uncertain.

“It sounds a lot like you didn’t want Marinette to be found.” Came a quiet voice, drawing eyes to Ivan. “If you lied about Ladybug looking for her, then telling people she ran away…”

“That’s not it at all!” Lila exclaimed, losing the hateful glare and trying to make herself look innocent. “You can’t take Nino or Alya’s word for it!”

“We’re not. We’re taking Adrien’s.” Mylene cut in, glaring at Lila in distaste. “He told us what you said. How you started the argument yesterday. Honestly, if Alya HAD slapped you, I wouldn’t have blamed her after hearing some of your comments.”

“And it says something,” Alix mused, “that NOT hitting you is the one thing Alya regrets.”

“So you’re taking her word for it then?” Lila demanded angrily. “She has no proof!”

“To be quite frank,” Nathaniel pointed out blasely. “Neither do you.”

Lila’s ire only grew at that. “What?!”

Ignoring the way everyone stared at him in bewilderment, he merely shrugged. “I mean, there’s no proof other than your word that Alya was the one who assaulted you.”

Lila gestured to herself, angrily. “I’M the one with the injury!”

“Yes.” The artist noted. “On your right cheek, from your report.”

She frowned in uncertainty, able to tell that he seemed to be leading up to something but not sure what. Many of the others appeared confused as well.

Nathaniel pointed to Lila’s face. “Alya is right handed. If she slapped you, her reach should have gotten your left cheek.”

Eyes widened and immediately sought out Lila’s face. Lila jerked back and covered her cheek, but the damage was already done. And if anything, her instinctual reaction only drew more attention to the placement of her right hand over the remaining mark on her face.

“Wait—you mean Lila did that to herself?!” Kim demanded, outraged.

“Of course not!” Lila cried out, but no one really listened.

“It’s circumstantial at best.” Nathaniel admitted. “But from an artist’s eye, the mark and scratch on her face fits more in lines with the awkward placement of her own hand rather than that of someone else.”

It was true. His attention to detail wasn’t definitive proof of anything. But it was enough to make the students doubt.

And sometimes, a little doubt went a long way.

Lila knew that full well.

“Y-you’re just making things up!” She hissed.

“It’s merely an observation.” Nathaniel stated. “I can’t prove it, of course. But your response is rather telling…”

Lila grit her teeth. She had to get things back under control. “Why wouldn’t I be upset? How am I supposed to respond when all of you are ganging up on me and accusing me of awful things!”

“We’re not accusing you.” Ivan stated flatly, uncomfortable but steadfast.

“I am.” Alix cut in.

An emotional appeal often worked in her favor. When someone would confront her with the truth, crying and acted as the wounded party would often draw the attention of others and gain her people willing to defend her.

She gave out a sob. “I thought...I thought you were my friends!”

“Funny.” Came a voice. “I thought you were mine.”

Everyone spun to see Alya arrive. Max trailing along behind her.

“Alya? What are you doing here?” Nathaniel asked, more confused than anything.

The other girl shrugged. “My parents and I were called in to talk to Principal Damocles. I don’t know why.”

Lila drew back in apparent fear. Though whether it was of the growing force against her or any genuine concern that Alya might supposedly hurt her was anyone’s guess. “You’re not supposed to be here!”

Alya simply stared down the Italian, undeterred. “I’m where I need to be.”

Max shifted his glasses. “We overheard the commotion from the Principal’s office and came over to investigate.”

That it sounded like the potential for an akuma in the making didn’t need to be said.

“Here to attack me again?” Lila asked, making her voice quiver. It was enough to elicit some sympathy and make a few want to move to her side to protect her.

They had to hold themselves back.

“Marinette was right. You lie as easily as you breathe.” Alya said with a roll of her eyes. “I never attacked you in the first place. Heaven knows I should have. At least then the suspension would have been worth it.”

Murmurs broke out around them.

“How could you?!” Lila cried out with a sob.

“No. How could YOU?!” Alya retorted angrily. “I trusted you! I believed in you! I stood up for you and defended you, even when you didn’t deserve it and I had no basis! I…” She choked, gritting her teeth. “I admired you! I wanted to believe you. And you made me want to do better. BE better.”

Nino reached out a hand to comfort her, but it was Alix who held him back, shaking her head slowly.

Let her speak.

She needs this.

“Every time you came to me, I listened to you and took you at your word. All the things you said. About yourself. About Ladybug. About Marinette and how she had been acting. I kept trying for both of you, even when I felt like I was being torn apart.” She clenched her fists, her muscles tightening.

“Do you have any idea what that’s like? Being stuck in the middle between two people I care about. Both of whom I care about. Both telling me bad things about the other? I didn’t want to believe either of you because I wanted to believe in you both. But I kept getting pulled in two different directions until I couldn’t take it anymore. in the end, I was forced to pick a side, and I chose you.”

She glared at Lila with disgust.

“I chose wrong.”

Alya shook her head, chuckling bitterly.

“All this time, I’d thought Marinette was the one being unreasonable, but she had you pegged all along, hadn’t she?”

She took a breath. “I wish I’d listened to her sooner. But the sick thing? The truly disgusting thing that I hate myself for is that even now, even more than that, I wish that she hadn’t been right about you.”

“Alya!” Lila cried out, scandalized.

“Don’t.” She shut her down. “You’re a horrible person and a worse friend. You’re not capable of even being a friend at all. Not to me. Not to anyone.”

And how sad was it that Alya wanted that to not be true?

Alya would have done anything for a friend. She would have moved mountains and scoured an ocean. When Alya put her mind to something, she put her ALL into it to see it through. It was part of the reason she had been so forceful with Marinette in her pursuit of Adrien. And in turn why she had been so adamant on Marinette having undeniable proof about Lila.

“Lila lied to us all. But I’m just as complacent in her getting away with it.” Alya admitted to the others. “I told Marinette to check her sources when she tried to warn me, but if I had checked mine, we would’ve known about this from the beginning.”

“To what? Bully Lila?” Rose asked, clearly uncomfortable.

She shook her head. “No. To know not to simply believe whatever she says without checking first.”

They never had to believe Marinette without question. Their “Everyday Ladybug” never wanted that from any of them. But at the very least, they should have listened and considered her point, if only enough to investigate matters themselves and try to discern the truth.

Marinette deserved that much, at least. Hell, THEY deserved that much. They all deserved better than to be fooled like this. They should have at least looked. That way, if Marinette had been wrong, they could have explained their discovery to her and worked things out. And if she had been right, they could have confirmed it. Either way, there had been other means they could have resolved things.

No one had to be hurt and this whole divide and drama never needed to happen in the first place.

Lila realized she was losing her influence. Individually, none of her classmates had enough to truly counter her. But now that they were all here and collaborating, it was becoming increasingly clear to them that her stories weren’t adding up. She could lose her standing. All the relationships and benefits she had put such effort into.

“I can’t believe it. You’re really letting Marinette corrupt you!” Lila wailed. “And I thought her bullying couldn’t get any worse once she was gone! Now she has you bullying me for her!”

Alix scoffed. “You’re really trying to say Marinette was the one bullying you?”

Ivan nodded. “Yeah, Marinette has been bullied by Chloe for years! She wouldn’t do it herself.“

“Actually, statistics say—”

“Max.” Alix cut him off, exasperated. “I’m sure your statistical information is very interesting, but it’s not the point right now. Especially if you know Marinette is telling the truth.”

He coughed. “Duly noted.“

With that, the pinkette turned back on Lila. “We’re not all completely blind. Even if I didn’t necessarily believe Marinette that you were lying, I could read situations. Marinette never liked you and never bothered to hide it, but the thing was, you clearly never liked her either. Only you tried to be sneaky about it.”

Lila gasped and held her hand to her chest, as if asking whether Alix could possibly be referring to herself.

“Don’t act shocked.” Alix snapped. “If you don’t like someone, you should be glad not to deal with them. Marinette was certainly less tense when you weren’t around, and she simply focused on having a good time with us. But you? You never stopped poking or trying to start something.”

“That’s true.” Mylene agreed. “If you weren’t bragging about yourself, you were complaining about her. In some way, anything that happened had to be about you.” And wasn’t she just kicking herself for being one of the ones to get onto Marinette for her attitude against Lila, now that she knew the truth?

“I was only trying to be part of conversations.” Lila countered. “I never meant to come off as self-absorbed. I just wanted to fit in—”

“That is by no means the point here!” Alya hissed out. “You’ve been lying this whole time!”

“No.” Ivan stated flatly, to Alya’s surprise. “The problem isn’t that Lila has been lying. The problem is that it is clear she has been doing so maliciously.“

“That’s right!“ Kim added in agreement. “Lila hasn’t only been lying about herself and her accomplishments to make herself look better. That at least would be understandable, even if still not OK. The problem is that she’s also been lying about other people to make them look worse. She did it to Marinette. And now she’s done it again to Alya.”

That got the other students thinking. About Lila. About her claims. About their interactions with her. And now Lila could see she was truly losing her hold on them.

Lila hunched over, looking wounded. “Guys, this is ridiculous! Doesn’t it seem strange that this is happening now? Alya is Marinette’s best friend! Of course she would have reason to be antagonistic towards me! Marinette’s loss has been pretty hard on her.” She said, sounding overly sympathetic. “But that’s not justification for her to attack me and accuse me like this! Are you all really just going to take her word for it and do the same? After everything we’ve been through?”

It seemed they were. Looking around to her classmates, she saw guarded expressions and wary looks. She noticed Max standing somewhat in the back and away from the rest, and her expression brightened at the realization.

If she could get the genius of the class to openly confirm her, surely the others would believe it. He was the smartest kid in class, after all.

“Max! Come on! You remember how I protected you, right?”

But the boy only narrowed his eyes at her.

“The throw of the paper napkin had neither the trajectory nor the force to touch me. Even if it had, it was a napkin. The probability of damage was minimal.”

Lila gaped, more shocked that he was against her than the logic he was pointing out.

“But...but your eyes!”

“I had incorrectly assumed your antics at that time to be a joke of some sort, albeit a poorly humored one I did not understand. It was a napkin. I was wearing glasses. It wouldn’t have scratched my lenses, much less touched either of my eyes. At most, it might have left a smudge—hardly life threatening to warrant praise for catching it.”

“I was only trying to protect you!” She insisted.

“Interesting, given that the napkin ball had clearly been targeted at you.” Nino commented.

“Which Marinette threw to intentionally agitate my injuries!” Lila accused, trying to shift the focus to Marinette’s wrongdoings in an attempt to deflect.

Kim frowned. “Yeah, injuries or not, that wasn’t cool of her. But it was a napkin and she was trying to prove a point. It was only once she announced what she was doing that you suddenly acted like you were in pain.”

“Also, I think we need to reiterate that it was a NAPKIN.” Alix gestured with her hands to emphasize the sheer silliness of the entire thing. “It wouldn’t have injured you if you hadn’t caught it. And if it was bad enough to cause you pain by holding a napkin, it should have been in a brace. So why wasn’t it?”

Lila huffed. “I hadn’t wanted to cause a disruption.”

“Like requesting the seating chart rearrange was? Or having us carry things for you?” Nathaniel asked, annoyed.

Kim shook his head, honestly disappointed. “You know, we’re a good group. If you had just asked for help, we would have given it. You didn’t need to lie.”

“I’m not a liar!” Lila shouted angrily.

Everyone took a step back at that, automatically wary.

Rose looked around at each of her classmates. All of them, every one of them seemed to be angry with Lila. Each of them seemed so sure of her being the one in the wrong.

“Rose, you don’t believe them, do you?” Lila asked, near begging with tears in her eyes.

The poor blonde floundered. She wanted to believe Lila. But they were her friends and they were all so very angry and insistent that Lila was lying. She didn’t know. She just didn’t...

A arm wrapped around her shoulder and gently pulled her away from Lila. Rose looked up to Juleka in surprise. The goth girl merely kept a heated glare on Lila.

“You don’t touch her.”

This was it. It was official. Lila had actually lost her hold on all of them in the span of a day, and the worst part was that she had no idea how it all fell apart.

“I can’t believe it.” Lila gasped out. “After everything I’ve done for you—”

“You really haven’t done anything for us.” Nino pointed out. “I mean, sure, you’ve made promises and offers...and they sounded great and all. But this ‘friendship’, if you could even call it that, was generally more about what we could do for you rather than the other way around.”

“Oh, I should be the one saying that!” Lila bit out angrily. “All you did was take Marinette’s seat to get to sit next to your girlfriend and carry things for me. That was hardly any real effort on your part. And in return, you were the ones only being nice to me to use me and my connections.”

“But we never asked you to, Lila!” Rose cried out, getting everyone’s attention. The blonde was still crying, and sounded angry for once. “You’re the one who brought up the people you knew and how you could introduce us! None of us even cared about your connections and famous friends until you started offering to introduce us to them!”

Juleka hugged Rose tighter.

“I just...I just don’t understand why you had to do this. We were happy to be your friends! You only ever needed to be yourself! You didn’t have to lie!”

There was silence.

And then a hiccup.

Lila dabbed at her eyes. “I’m sorry everyone. I was new and scared. You were all so amazing and I was trying to fit in. I only wanted to make friends.”

“Can the crap.” Alya snarled. “There’s trying to make yourself look good to be liked and then there’s the way you’ve been manipulating everyone and actively targeting anyone you don’t like.” She shook her head. “You wasted no time turning on me when I called you out.”

Nino’s eyes widened in horror as he remembered something else Adrien had told him. “That creepy Adrien-akuma was you! You attacked him and turned into him to make him look bad as payback because he knew you were lying and asked you to stop!”

Lila froze, panicked. “I would never—!”

“Don’t.” Nino snapped. “Adrien already told me how you lied your way into his home and got to his dad.” He was still kicking himself for his part in that and helping Lila to emotionally manipulate Adrien.

“You probably faked the accusations against Marinette, too!”

“You got her expelled!”

There were too many accusations coming from too many people all at once. Lila appeared overwhelmed and was clearly struggling to juggle them all.

“It was an illness.” She explained, trying to appear calm. “The Principal knows I couldn’t help what I said. I explained everything and helped her come back. Doesn’t that prove my intentions?”

“Not when you’re the one responsible for it all in the first place.” Alya snapped.

Max looked through his phone, frowning. “That only explains what you said. But that doesn’t explain how or why you got the test answers in Marinette’s bag. Or your necklace in her locker.”

Alix rolled her eyes. “And I’m pretty sure there is no illness that makes you walk down a flight of stairs and conveniently fall to the ground with no injuries before crying and accusing someone of pushing you.”

“Sounds like a whole bunch of lies. All targeted at one person.” Alya stated flatly.

“The one person who wouldn’t go along with you.” Kim added.

“How convenient.” Nathaniel sniped, feeling just a little petty after everything.

Lila crossed her arms over her chest as though she were trying to protect herself from physical blows instead of words. “I was only protecting myself.”

Everyone bristled at the sheer audacity.

It was Nino who broke. “No! You don’t get to make yourself the victim here! No one told you to lie! No one made you slap yourself and accuse Alya. And no one forced you to do those things to frame Marinette! That was all you!”

“You can’t even say they were threats to you.” Ivan pointed out. “We all believed you, remember? You knew that.”

“They’re the liars!” Lila shouted. “They’re the ones making things up just to hurt me!”

Nino stares at her incredulously. “Do you really believe your own lies that much?”

Finally…

Finally, a break in the mask.

“And now you sound like Marinette.” Lila scoffed. “Always with the goody two-shoes act. ‘We can only be friends if you stop lying, Lila!’” She sneered at the memory. “Are you all really that pathetic?”

“So Marinette was right!” Kim exclaimed.

“Yeah, we kind of already knew that.” Nathaniel reminded him in annoyance.

He simpered. “Well, it seemed right to confirm it.”

“Isn’t that what we’ve been doing?”

“Make it official, you know?”

Alix groaned. “Guys, not the time!”

“It just goes to show that your friendship really is conditional.” Lila said, crossing her arms and looking away, appearing hurt.

“Honesty isn’t too much to ask for, Lila!” Alya shouted.

“Yeah, it’s kind of the basis for any sort of relationship.” Kim added.

“Don’t kid yourselves.” She scoffed. “If that was true, you would have believed Marinette, who had been nothing but honest with you.”

The class as a whole glared at her.

“We’re not going to forget who was the one instigating everything here.” Juleka told her, sounding cross.

“It’s not like it matters now anyway.” Lila stated, snidely. “Everything’s been said and done.”

“Au contraire!” Came a new exuberant voice.

Everyone turned in pure confusion to see Chloe approaching the scene with all the grace of a queen—or at least someone who seemed to think of herself as one.

Needless to say, the assembled students were mostly less than impressed. The one exception being Sabrina for obvious reasons, who brightened upon Chloe’s arrival.

Nobody was happy about this.

Except for Chloe, who approached the group with a smirk and stopped a few strides from Lila.

“Chloe Bourgeois, protector of the weak and Savior of Paris!” She announced pompously with a flourish. “You may bow at your leisure.”

Lila stared, more annoyed than anything. “Are you serious?”

“Chloe, this really isn’t a good time.” Kim started, only for the blonde to cut him off with a fierce grin.

“Oh, but it’s the BEST time!” Chloe said, downright gleefully. “I couldn’t help but overhear your mention of Lila’s antics and it made me wonder about one thing that stuck out to me in particular…”

The rest of the class frowned, glancing at each other in confusion before turning back to Chloe.

“You all said Lila had been lying about getting Ladybug involved in the search for Marinette. Which Ladybug, of course, denied. Then later, she said that Marinette had run away. She said this to Alya and to Adrien.”

Lila raised an eyebrow. “So? She probably did. It’s not my fault if they can’t handle the truth.”

Alya looked furious and even Nino seemed half inclined to start shouting.

Chloe, however, merely tapped her cheek, the picture of obliviousness.

“The truth? You seem so sure of this.”

Lila shrugged, uncaring. “What’s your point?”

“I just have to wonder if perhaps this little ‘Runaway Marinette’ story wasn’t something you told anyone else? Like say...the police?”

THAT got everyone’s attention.

“After all, everyone in the class had to have been called in for questioning by the detectives investigating her case. Since you’re all ‘oh so close’. And if that’s the case, Lila...was that the story you told them?”

“I never told them she ran away. I merely mentioned catching her with an older man and implied a couple of reasons she may want to leave together. Is that a crime?”

“Yes, I’m pretty sure it is.” Max retorted, angrily.

Lila looked away, flipping her hair without any concern. “I only told them what they needed to hear. Isn’t that what I’ve done for everyone? It’s not my fault if they act on it.”

Alya stared in growing horror. “Wait...you lied to police about Marinette running away?!”

“What the hell, Lila!” Nino shouted, downright furious. The rest of the class wasn’t too far behind him on that, and it almost looked like a brawl was about to break out.

Lila, however, simply shrugged. “Well, why wouldn’t she leave? I mean, after the way you all treated her, who would want to stick around?”

The classmates winced at that. Several lowered their heads. A few others only glared more hatefully at Lila.

But Alya wasn’t taking it. At all.

“No. No, no, no. You are not turning this one around on us because there is nothing we’ve done that compares to you lying to police about our friend running away!”

“Wait, so not only did Lila lie about Marinette being a slut, she lied to police about it?!” Kim questioned, getting him many dark looks from the other classmates. But he took no notice of this, instead glaring at Lila and looking angrier than they’d ever seen him.

Which rather said something. Kim was often foolish, and at times hurtful. But he was never angry the way he seemed to be now.

Alya frowned at him. “Are you trying to imply something, Kim?” Because it sure sounded like he was minimizing the issue of spreading false claims about a girl in that fashion. Reputation and relationships can easily be destroyed by things like that, and Lila was certainly manipulative enough to try it. Whether police were involved shouldn’t discount that.

Kim shook his head. “Marinette is 15. If Lila had convinced the police Marinette was the type, they could peg her as a runaway and write her off as eloping.”

That certainly got everyone’s attention.

“That would result in her disappearance being deemed intentional and reduce the resources spent trying to look for her!”

“Lila, what the hell?!” Mylene demanded, shocking everyone. The girl never cursed. She never even raised her voice before!

“Mylene...”

“Who does that? What kind of sick freak even does something like that?!”

Ivan grabbed Mylene and pulled her into a hug as she started to heave. It hurt. It was sick.

This was...this was beyond what they had been expecting.

“And what can you do about it?” She smirked. “Nothing.”

Silence.

“Sabrina? Did you get all that?”

The red-head smiled and nodded, holding up her phone. “We got it all, Chloe!”

Lila froze, paling at the implications. “What?”

Chloe only smirked. “I should really thank you, Lila. Who knew you were one to brag so much? I think this should be more than enough evidence.”

Lila gaped at them in horror. “You...you can’t record me! It’s illegal to record someone without their consent! You—you could have edited that!”

But Chloe’s smirk turned downright devious. “It’s a good thing that this isn’t a recording then.”

“MISS ROSSI!”

Lila jumped and spun towards the direction of the Principal’s office, where Damocles and several other adults stood, all of whom were looking rather furious. Adrien was there as well, though he had separated from the group to make his way to his classmates, appearing relieved and disbelieving all at once.

“TO MY OFFICE NOW!”

The class glanced around in confusion, uncertain what had just happened. Looking to Sabrina, Alya noticed the other girl’s phone in hand, with the screen still on. Not recording, but rather in the middle of a call.

On speakerphone.

“Lila.” A woman said, approaching the girl and looking rather cross. She must be Lila’s mother. Their appearances were similar enough. “Young lady, you have some serious explaining to do.”

Alya’s eyes widened as it hit her. Sabrina had been on the phone this entire time. She had been on the line with Damocles’s office. Where everyone including Damocles, her parents, and all those people were.

Everyone in that office had heard them. Who knows for how long? But at least enough for sure for Lila to implicate herself.

Lila shook her head. This wasn’t it. This couldn’t be it. She could still find some way out of this. It wasn’t over for her yet!

“Excuse me.”

Everyone looked to the entrance to see a mostly professional-looking woman entering the room. What did not appear professional, however, was her purple hair. As well as her clicking of a pen, which may have been a habit or nervousness.

Juleka gasped upon seeing her, recognizing who she was. The other members of Kitty Section weren’t far behind, getting some looks of confusion from others in the class.

The woman took no notice of this, merely glancing around at the class.

“I am looking for a Miss Lila Rossi?”

Lila’s expression immediately shifted to something pleasant and seemingly innocent—at least to anyone who didn’t know better. She stepped forward with a polite smile. “I’m Lila Rossi. Can I help you?”

“Yes.” The woman replied. Her glance slid over to Mrs. Rossi standing next to her daughter. “Actually, am I correct in assuming you are her mother?”

Mrs. Rossi frowned. “I am.”

“All the better then.” The woman stated as she handed over a folder. “Your daughter is being sued for defamation of character.”

Everyone gasped at that, but none were more shocked than the poor mother herself. “I’m sorry?”

“Your daughter’s report to police implicated Jagged Stone in a crime. One he did not commit and one that was, quite frankly, disgusting to him.”

Whispers broke out around them. Jagged Stone? Lila had lied to police about Jagged?

Mrs. Rossi opened the file and read through the documents before her face paled and her mouth opened in horror.

“We will be seeing you in court.” Penny stated before turning around. Seeing the familiar teens nearby, she gave them a small smile before going on her way.

“Lila. Rossi.” The woman hissed, glaring at her daughter. Lila actually seemed frightened for perhaps the first time. “Come here. NOW.”

That was it. The final nail in the coffin.

And just like that…

It was done just like that…

Lila was clearly enraged, but forced herself to calmly walk by everyone and head to the Principal’s office where the group of adults and police were waiting.

Everyone moved aside to let her through, willing to watch her walk of shame and bear witness to her upcoming judgement. Lila refused to look at any of them, keeping her head straight and her eyes forward.

She passed Chloe last.

“I’ll find a way out of this, mark my words.” Lila hissed to her as she passed.

Chloe smiled back.

“After everything I’ve done, there’s no shovel that will unbury you.”

She leaned in close to Lila’s ear.

“This was for Adrien, you bitch.”

Because how dare she—HOW DARE SHE make Adrien cry like that!

Lila meanwhile marched to the Principal’s office, seething internally. She was guarded on all sides with no way to slip through or make an escape. And nowhere to go if she tried.

She was trapped. Finished.

Though there was one thing she could do...

Lila allowed her rage and indignation to build.

No doubt Hawk Moth would sense the emotion and send an akuma for her.

She still had avenues to change things in her favor.

_________________________

“It seems Miss Rossi has gotten into a bit of trouble.” Hawk Moth mused from his lair.

“Still...we might as well make some use of this.” He said, summoning a butterfly to his hand and about to infuse his power into it when—

“Sir,” Nathalie interrupted, appearing at his side. “Audrey Bourgeois is calling. The Style Queen magazine can’t seem to finish publication for the expose on the latest runway show. She says they’re missing key pieces.”

If he were a lesser man, he would have rolled his eyes.

“Can’t it wait?”

“No, sir. She is very adamant to speak with you directly on the matter.”

“What is the issue? Everything she needs should be available.”

“That’s just it, sir. It isn’t.”

That got his attention.

“What?”

The butterfly was released from his grip.

_________________________

The group watched as Lila trudged to the office where the Principal was waiting. She entered, but not before sending one final glare back at Chloe and the class. Damocles ushered her in fully and shut the door behind him.

Alya sighed, releasing not only a breath but all of the anxiety and turmoil she had been holding in.

Catharsis.

With Lila’s exit, there was an absence or at least a lessening of the tension none of the class had known they were being suffocated by.

“Does anyone else feel like a lobster that just escaped a boiling pot back into cold water?” Kim asked.

Several chuckled.

“That...is quite possibly the most apt metaphor for the situation.” Max said with a small smile.

His choice of words was silly, but he certainly wasn’t wrong in his description. Lila’s manipulations and poisoning of the class had been going on for so long and slowly getting worse over time. None of them had even noticed just how much more stressful and tense things had been getting with her there. Not until they were faced with the prospect of her leaving and found themselves feeling relieved. It wasn’t quite the sort they were hoping for, though.

They weren’t glad it was over. The relief was less a feeling of freedom and more a sense of uncertainty. Just because a poison is gone doesn’t mean a wound isn’t left behind.

It was sad, as she still had been someone they considered a friend. And there was also a sense of hollowness. They had been lied to, manipulated, and turned against a friend. Lila being revealed didn’t undo any of that.

All it meant was that they had lost a friend. A bad friend who clearly hadn’t returned the sentiment, sure. But knowing that didn’t erase the feelings they’d had. Because they had all cared about Lila. And it hurt to lose that, as one-sided as it may have been.

Now that the source of the toxicity was outed, all that was left was to clean up the pieces and try to work out which pieces were hers or theirs.

“You know this doesn’t fix things.” Nino said to her, tentatively. “That her being gone doesn’t make things better.”

“Yeah.” Alya admitted. “But at least she can’t make things worse.”

Because Lila had been actively sabotaging any efforts. Trying to limit their attempts to search and lying to police to put them on the wrong trail. Enough time had been wasted because of her. How far would it have gone if they hadn’t learned the truth when they did?

_________________________

Ultimately, Lila left the school not with a bang, but with a whimper. Granted, the whimper happened to come with a police escort, but the point remains.

When Lila first arrived at the school, she was surrounded with rumors and speculation. And now that she’s left the school, it was much the same.

Only the rumors and speculation were not nearly as in her favor this time around.

“I heard she assaulted another student.“

“It was sexual harassment, I think.”

“No, she had something to do with that girl who disappeared.”

“I heard she was involved in human trafficking!”

In the end, no one outside of the class and the administration knew for sure what had happened. Lila remained shrouded in mystery, but it was a much less appealing one than when she first came to their school.

Honestly, it was less than Lila deserved after everything. Alya wasn’t sure she was satisfied with that.

But with the ensuing investigation and charges against Lila that no amount of lies could pull her out of, she would have to be.

_________________________

“I’m sorry.” Adrien said, speaking just above a whisper and barely enough to be heard.

“What for, man?” Kim asked, concerned.

“I knew.” He admitted. “I knew all along that Lila was lying and I never said anything to anyone. If I had, maybe things wouldn’t have gotten this far.”

Nino immediately moved to stand next to his bro, placing an arm around his shoulders in support.

Several among the class glanced at each other, unsure. Yes, it would have helped to know, and they were admittedly put out that he hadn’t told them.

Alya shook her head. “Honestly, I’m not sure it would have changed much.”

Nino looked up at her in surprise. “Alya?”

“I mean…” She shrugged. “Lila was good at lying. Like...really good at it. Maybe it was our fault for not investigating more thoroughly, but if we had all known the truth, that would have just caused her to up her game.”

Adrien hung his head, remembering how Lila had been akumatized into Chameleon and abused his friends.

“If you think about it,” Mylene noted with a frown, “she went pretty far to implicate Marinette and get her expelled just because she knew the truth. If she’d do that to her, there probably isn’t much she wouldn’t have done.”

Max nodded in agreement. “Her methods were precise and well thought out. She performed a three-pronged attack to discredit Marinette. It was no wonder her lies were easily believable.”

Rose shuddered. “That’s scary to think about.”

“But Adrien, I’m trying not to be upset...but why didn’t you say anything?” Alix asked.

Kim frowned. “Yeah. I mean...I think a few of us suspected something was up, but we didn’t know for sure like you did. Why not tell us?”

Adrien winced. He opened his mouth but couldn’t speak. He just couldn’t find the words to explain.

It was all the more reason why he was so grateful for Nino, whose gentle presence kept him stable and who knew perfectly well when to speak up and what to say.

“It wasn’t that he didn’t think we’d listen to him, it was that he honestly believed he wasn’t supposed to say anything in the first place. That he wasn’t allowed to.”

The others stared.

“That’s messed up, man.”

Adrien winced again and looked away. “I’m sorry.”

“Look, Adrien.” Kim said, resting a hand on his shoulder. “Chloe—and now Lila aside, we’re a pretty chill group. If something’s going on, we WANT you to tell us.”

“Yeah.” Nathaniel agreed with a gentle smile. “We don’t want you or anyone else to force yourselves to be okay with something when you’re not.”

Rose sniffled. She wanted to be supportive, but it was clear she was still hurt by the whole thing. “It kind of hurts to think that you don’t trust us.”

Mylene frowned at that. She understood Rose’s feelings, but at the same time, she understood Adrien’s as well.

“To be fair though…he wasn’t wrong to think that way.” She drew back when the others turned to her in surprise. “Well, if you think about it, we haven’t really been the best at listening to each other either.”

“Maybe if we had, everything would still be okay.” Juleka mumbled as she turned away, echoing what everyone else was thinking.

“No!” Came an unexpected voice.

She spun in surprise, and quite frankly everyone there was surprised as well to see Adrien glaring at her and looking angrier than they’d ever seen him.

“Their only fault was trusting and trying to help someone who never deserved it.” He forced a smile. It was hurt and frustrated, but it was still real. “You guys...you’ve been nothing but awesome this whole time. To me and to everyone you’ve met. You were kind to Lila because that’s how you are with everyone. Lila was the one in the wrong for taking advantage of that. But all of you…”

He raised his head. “Look, we fell for some lies and trusted the wrong person. We all did, even if we realized it sooner or later. That doesn’t make anyone here bad, it just makes you kids.”

They stared.

Nino gave him a side-look. “Speak for yourself. You’re more of a kid than any of us.”

Adrien blushed as the others laughed.

It was dumb.

It was silly and childish.

And yet for the first time, Adrien wondered if maybe things would be okay.

_________________________

Adrien sighed as he fell onto his bed.

After all was said and done, it had been a long...long day.

But at least the truth was known. Alya’s suspension was lifted. Lila was gone. Chloe...he probably owed her a new wardrobe. And Marinette was finally vindicated.

…

...Marinette…

“Kid? You okay?

“I wish Marinette had been there.” He whispered.

Plagg said nothing.

As his own eyes closed, Adrien never noticed how the kwami’s eyes glowed fiercely as he looked out to the city.

It was only once Adrien was asleep that Plagg phased through the window.

_________________________

Plagg was patient. But there was only so long he was willing to wait.

Seeing Adrien like that...trying for her when she wasn’t there? All while unaware how close she was? Uttering his wish like a shameful secret he wasn’t allowed to have?

Something had to give.

And his own curiosity burned for an answer.

He found her lazing on a rooftop. Not even her own balcony, but a random roof of no significance.

“What are you doing?” Plagg asked her.

It meant so many things.

Why didn’t she return home?

Why was she staying out as Ladybug?

Why was she letting everyone think she was missing?

But Ladybug seemed altogether unconcerned.

“I’m patrolling.” She stated.

Which was...not the answer he wanted. Or really any answer to any of the questions he wanted.

“What?”

“Since I have nothing else to do, I’ve been keeping an eye out for anything suspicious. Being out like this now, I can try and locate any akumas before they affect someone. Perhaps I can even determine where they may have originated from.”

That was…

Well, it was smart, actually. At least in the sense that she could gather intel and was trying to track down Hawk Moth. He’d give her credit for that, at least.

But it was a simplistic plan littered with holes. Paris was a big city and it would be a matter of luck if she happened to be in an area close enough to catch the butterfly before it reaches its target—assuming she even sees it at all since akumas ARE butterflies and let’s face it, they aren’t the easiest things to pick out and keep track of in the first place.

Then there was the matter that if she was staying transformed, that was taking up a lot of time and energy on a plan mostly counting on chance. Tikki may be a being of energy and power, but she needed fuel to keep it up. And even transformed, Marinette was still human, and thus susceptible to normal human needs like hunger, thirst, and sleep.

And that wasn’t even getting started on the wave of upset that her disappearance had caused, which would just give Hawk Moth more potential targets to choose from like her friend. Alya had come close to track Marinette down that day. There was every chance that more of her loved ones could be akumatized into Champions with any array of powers that might allow them to locate Marinette.

Then if they find Ladybug in the process? He’d said people were blind, but it wouldn’t take that big a leap for someone to put the clues together. And the last thing they needed was for that someone to be Hawk Moth.

“Nice plan.” He deadpanned. “Very clever. Just one little problem: what about Marinette?”

He felt something. A tickle in his throat as he said it. But he shrugged it off and continued to focus on the girl in front of him.

Ladybug scoffed at that. “What about her?”

His frown only grew. “Don’t you think she should be making a reappearance at some point? You know...got a lot of people rather worried about her.”

His kid included.

But Ladybug…

She just shrugged it off.

“She’s just some girl who got lost and is causing people to worry. It’s not like it matters.”

Not like it matters? What foolishness! What outrage!

“Of course it matters! YOU’RE—”

He felt it in that moment. Like a collar around his throat. Unseen but clearly felt as it started to tighten in warning.

Plagg froze, his eyes wide in shock at the sudden sensation as he realized it for what it was. Familiar...but never in this way. Never like this.

But there was only one thing it could be.

“What is it?” Ladybug asked, frowning at him in confusion at his sudden silence.

No.

He opened his mouth, feeling the sensation again. Stronger this time.

Marinette.

No.

Marinette.

It shouldn’t be possible.

Marinette!

She was right there!

You are Marinette!

It was her! She was RIGHT THERE! She was the only one there with him!

“You are—”

He cut off, choking as that damned magical binding tightened and transformed his words while still in his throat. He knew this feeling. He knew this magic. He hated the feeling of it every time.

He didn’t want to believe it. There was no way it could be right.

But logic and possibility didn’t matter as he was forced to gag out the physical remnants of what only seconds ago had been her name. The true name of Ladybug. The name of a Miraculous user.

A name he could not speak to someone who did not already know it.

He gaped at the green bubbles.

This...this made no sense!

It was her. He could feel Tikki’s magic. He KNEW this was Ladybug. And Ladybug was Marinette.

So why…

Why would that binding activate now?

“Plagg?”

“I...I have to go!” He shouted quickly before taking off.

He had to get to Adrien.

He had to see Fu.

Whatever was going on…

It was worse than he’d thought!

#ml fic #missing #missing au #ml angst #cliffhanger #adrien agreste #alya cesaire #nino lahiffe #max kante #kim le chien #alix kubdel #nathaniel kurtzberg #miracuclass #lila sucks #lila the liar #karma is sweet

[mrs-berry]

Rock Bottom

Read on AO3!

Summary: Marinette has been stressed and depressed lately. The weight of everything is just too much, but she continues to try to handle everything by herself. Luckily for her, her partner has noticed and he is more than happy to lend an ear (and his chest) during one of their patrols…

Word Count: 4072

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Ready for patrol, LB?” Chat Noir asked as he landed on the secluded roof they agreed to meet on.

“Yeah,” Ladybug replied, her voice sounding hoarse and very unlike her.

Her smile (if you could even call it that) didn’t reach her eyes. Her eyes looked dull, void of the usual playfulness or happiness.

He had noticed her mood had been low lately, but tonight it was especially obvious.

Ladybug was always adamant about keeping their personal lives secret, but he’d be damned if he was going to let this carry on any longer.

She was about to turn away to begin their patrol, but he latched onto her wrist before she could leave.

“Ladybug. Let’s talk,” he suggested firmly, then added more gently, “Please.”

“Talk? … About what? There’s nothing to talk about.” But despite her denial, it was painfully obvious it was a lie. Her voice didn’t hold its usual strength and liveliness, it sounded frail and weak.

“Of course there is. Please sit down. Please,” he requested, taking a seat at the edge of the roof, dangling his legs over the ledge. He patted the space next to him in an inviting manner. When she made no move, he added, “I pawmise I don’t bite. I’m a docile kitten.”

A small smile slipped onto her lips at that, but it didn’t stay long. He expected some sort of clever retort, but was disappointed to receive none.

Still, he considered it a small victory when she finally perched herself next to him after only a brief hesitation.

Ladybug said nothing and just stared out at the city as she fidgeted with her yo-yo.

“So, want to tell this gentlecat your woes?” he prompted, as it seemed unlikely she was going to start talking if he didn’t.

She frowned and remained tight-lipped.

Quickly realizing his light-hearted approach was ineffective, Chat decided it was best to treat this very seriously. Ladybug’s problems, whatever they were, should be taken seriously and he was already regretting not doing so immediately. He had hoped to cheer her up with his silliness, but it had become clear this wasn’t what she needed right now.

What she probably needed was an ear to listen. Maybe even a shoulder to cry on. And, even if she didn’t love him, he vowed to always be that person for her.

He shifted so he was facing her more, one leg tucked under his thigh as the other remained over the ledge.

“Ladybug, you don’t have to say anything if you really don’t want to. I understand how important keeping our identities secret is to you. But I just want you to know, I see you.” Ladybug, who had been looking away finally returned his gaze with a pained look, patiently listening to him. “I’ve noticed you’ve been down lately. I keep waiting for you to speak up and say what’s bothering you, but it’s finally become clear to me that you’re not going to say anything willingly. Ladybug, please. Please tell me what’s the matter. I’m here for you. I want to help you.”

He gazed into her eyes imploringly, hoping she would see and hear and feel his sincerity.

Ladybug finally let out a breath she had been holding.

Her eyes fluttered down, then to the side, before looking up at his again.

Biting her lip, she turned away again.

Chat felt a stab, fearing she would get up and leave without a word.

To his surprise, though, she stayed next to him.

Her next words surprised him even more.

“Are you sure?” she asked, her voice trembling.

“Am I sure?” he repeated dumbfoundedly. How was that even a question she was asking? “Of course I’m sure! You’re Ladybug: my partner since day one. We’ve been through so much together and we’re a team. You’re the girl I fell head over heels for. Of course I’m here for you and want to help you!”

He watched as her eyes became glossy and she hid her face by looking away.

Chat Noir’s heart dropped.

Was Ladybug crying?

Chat panicked. He had never seen his partner cry before. It must be really serious, but he had no clue know what to do. He wanted to hug her and cradle her and reassure her and be there for here and build her back up! Most of all, he wanted her to be happy. He wished for her happiness and well-being far more than he wished for his own.

Tentatively, not wanting to scare her off, he lay his hand on her shoulder and became worried when she tensed.

She raised her hands to her eyes and brushed away her tears, before finally turning to face him again.

She may have dabbed away her tears, but her eyes still glistened in the moonlight, clearly ready to produce more.

He clenched his free hand to stop himself from brushing away the tears that threatened to fall.

“I have no one,” she whispered, her voice soft and vulnerable. “M-my friends have been turned against me.”

Chat stared intently into her eyes, trying to understand. Patiently waiting for her to continue.

“A girl at school threatened to take away everyone I love. And she succeeded. She fed them lies about me. And all of my friends… all of my classmates… they believed her… they don’t like me or believe me anymore,” she murmured, her eyes dropping to stare at the yo-yo in her hands. “The only one who hasn’t been turned against me is the boy I… the boy I’m trying to get over.”

The news that Ladybug was trying to get over the boy she loves shocked Chat to his core. But he remained quiet, willing for her to continue.

“The boy… he has a girlfriend now. A-and I’m happy for him. But I’m tired,” she confessed. The bags under her eyes were visible despite the mask, proving her statement to be nothing but true. “I’m tired… mentally, physically, emotionally. I’m tired… of being alone and friendless.”

Ladybug’s voice cracked. The tears started pouring down her cheeks, but she made no effort to stop them.

“I’m tired of the glares and disbelief at my words. I’m tired of being a third wheel and acting like everything is okay. I’m tired of being the Guardian and having all this responsibility. I’m tired of making mistakes and suffering the consequences. I’m tired of being the one who is supposed to have all the solutions, because I don’t have any. I can’t fix this mess. I’m useless, hopeless, and no one loves me,” she sobbed, her words becoming more and more illogical and nonsensical as she went on.

Chat couldn’t believe his ears, his heart pounding wildly. Did she really believe all that? He wanted badly to stop her, but he also knew he needed to let her finish.

“And you don’t even call me M'Lady or Bugaboo anymore, so even you are upset with me and I don’t know what to do. I feel so lost and alone,” she vented, dropping her face into her hands as she let her sobs take over, giving up on saying anything more.

Once Chat was sure she was finished talking, he pulled her into his arms, ready to face her reaction—whether it was resistance or a slap. He was relieved to find there was no struggle or rejection to his comforting embrace. He squeezed her tightly, making sure she could feel his warmth. He pulled her head to his chest, making sure she could hear his heartbeat.

She clutched at his chest and it made his heart soar, despite the serious and melancholic atmosphere.

He was heartbroken to see his Lady like this. But at the same time, he was relieved to finally hear her troubles and was touched that she had confided in him. He felt love coursing through his veins; the flames of his love for her were so easily rekindled. He had tried to move on with Kagami, but no one else had quite the same effect on his heart, mind, and body as Ladybug did. Even if she never returned his feelings, he would always love her.

Chat remained silent as he let her cry on him for as long as she needed. He stroked her back soothingly and buried his face in her hair, allowing her words to finally sink into his mind and thinking of a response to all of it.

After she had calmed down and was breathing normally, Chat figured it was now appropriate for him to respond to all her troubles.

Grabbing her shoulders, he slowly peeled her away from him so that he could look into her eyes as he spoke to her. Her eyes were swollen and red, still tearful and filled with sadness, but her beauty still shone through to his heart and made it flutter.

He held her gaze with intensity, wanting to ensure his words got through to her.

“First of all, you don’t have no one. You have me. And you’ll always have me. And as much of a moron as this boy you like sounds, it sounds like you have him too. Even if he is a total idiot,” he reassured, muttering the last part.

A tiny snort escaped from Ladybug, causing a momentary grin to split across Chat’s face. He quickly returned to his serious demeanor and continued.

“Your friends and classmates may not believe you right now, but that doesn’t mean they don’t like you and it doesn’t mean this situation will last. The truth always finds it way. And if they truly don’t like you because of what one girl says, then do you really want them as friends anyway? You’re a genuine person and deserve the same kindness from others, and you shouldn’t take anything less,” he said, speaking slowly and making sure to emphasize her worth. “I’m so sorry this is happening to you right now. I wish I could be there to stop it all. But, honestly, I know how strong you are, Ladybug, and I know you can get through this.”

Ladybug was biting her lip, her eyes still sad and frown lines marring her beautiful features. She stared back at him and listened intently, doing her best to grasp and believe in what her partner was saying.

“As for the Guardian situation, you’re doing an amazing job already. Heck, I’d say you’re going to be a much better Guardian than Master Fu—no offense to Master Fu, of course. You’re clever, smart, resourceful, creative, a great leader, and a great judge of character. All the superheroes you’ve picked so far have been great choices, some moreso than others, of course, but none of them have made any grave mistakes. Hawk Moth hasn’t defeated us under your watch. Nobody has died with you as the Guardian. Nobody has been seriously injured. The team dynamics work well, the holders you’ve chosen take their job seriously and are good people, none of them have joined sides with Hawk Moth. The exception being Chloé, but that’s not your fault. Besides, you were able to take over being the Guardian on a spur of the moment and still managed to win against Hawk Moth! Is Hawk Moth still out there? Yes, but that’s not because of you. You didn’t make him a stubborn villain out to get Paris, that’s all him. Sure, you’ve made a few mistakes, Ladybug, but you’re human and anyone else would have made far more mistakes than you have, trust me. You’re doing an amazing job and I don’t think—no, I know—there’s no one better suited to doing this than you,” Chat squeezed her shoulders as he implored her to understand and accept his words. “One more thing: I’m always here to help you with this. If it ever gets to be too much, tell me. We can swap kwamis or I can take care of the box for a little bit.”

Ladybug looked at him with wide eyes. Silently, she swallowed and slowly nodded, looking ready to say something.

“Wait, please, let me finish,” he pleaded. “To be honest, I think we should reveal our identities to each other. Not knowing who you are means I can’t ever come to you for the Miraculous or for advice or brainstorming. When Master Fu was the Guardian, I’m sure you found it helpful being able to locate him. He was part of the team and you could brainstorm together. I think it would be beneficial for us to know one another. But that’s ultimately your decision as the Guardian. But I just want you to know I am more than willing to help out and shoulder the burden with you.”

Fresh tears had sprung to Ladybug’s eyes again. She looked down, contemplating the idea he had planted.

“Also, I stopped calling your M'Lady and Bugaboo because I had been trying to move on from you. Whenever I say your nicknames, I feel a surge of love for you… but also a surge of sadness. I know you aren’t interested in me and, as much as I still love you, I don’t want to force my love on you. I thought you didn’t care for the nicknames and that it would be a relief for you not to hear them anymore,” he confessed, scratching the back of his neck ashamedly. “But if it had the opposite effect and is making you sad, then I won’t hold back anymore and will keep on using my nicknames for you.”

“Mon minou…” Ladybug whispered affectionately, the tears spilling from her eyes once again.

This time Chat didn’t hesitate in delicately wiping them from her with his index finger.

“As for that boy… he must be the biggest dumbass on the planet to have chosen someone else over you. If I ever find out who he is, his face is going to have a very pleasant meeting with my fist,” Chat said threateningly, a dark look taking over his face.

“Please don’t hurt him! Kagami is a great girl and I completely understood why he chose her,” Ladybug admitted dejectedly, but forced a small smile on her face. “It’s okay. He’s happy, so I’m happy.”

Chat growled, but then his eyebrows shot up.

Kagami was not a common name.

“Kagami… Tsurugi?” he asked for clarification.

Ladybug turned pale.

“U-um, I don’t know if that’s her last name,” she replied. It wasn’t completely a lie. She knew the last name started with a “Tsu” sound but it wasn’t like Japanese names were easy for her to remember. Of course, she was almost certain they were both speaking about the same girl at this point.

Chat Noir took her reply as confirmation. Ladybug’s boy was dating Kagami.

But wait, no one was dating Kagami right now. Sure, he as Adrien had dated her for a little bit, but it didn’t last long and they were now back to being friends.

So Kagami was single now. But she didn’t have many friends and Adrien knew she didn’t have a boyfriend.

Which meant…

Adrien was the boy Ladybug liked.

Chat began to internally panic as he started putting the pieces together.

Ladybug also looked panicked.

What had Ladybug said? A girl at school had turned everyone against her, except for one boy.

At school, Lila had turned everyone against… Marinette.

Which meant…

Ladybug is Marinette.

Chat Noir stared incredulously at his Lady. At Marinette.

Marinette, who had a deer-in-headlights look on her face, stared back at him, dread creeping into her expression.

“I’ve been a world-class, grade A idiot!” Chat Noir practically yelled. “I need to punch myself!”

Ladybug gasped at his declaration, it was not exactly what she had been expecting him to say.

“Marinette,” was all he said, before taking her face into his hands and crashing his lips onto hers.

The kiss was passionate but quick, over before Ladybug could even close her eyes or comprehend what exactly had just happened.

“I’m in love with you. Deeply in love with you, Marinette. I’m so sorry I’ve been the world’s biggest dumbass. Please forgive me, I really love you so much,” Chat spilled, his confession of love desperate and pleading.

Ladybug blushed brilliantly, but still look confused.

Chat rested his hands on her shoulders again and squeezed gently as he explained.

“I’m not dating Kagami. I did for a little bit, but only because I was trying to move on from you. Gosh, I can’t believe I have been so dumb. I even asked you on a double date to the ice rink and made you think you were a third wheel at the hotel. Marinette, I always felt something special for you, even though I didn’t know you were Ladybug. But I never attempted to date you, because I was stupidly certain that you only ever thought of me as a friend and I desperately didn’t want to ruin that. I had always taken your words at face value: you said I was a friend and I thought you were trying to say that’s all we could be. I never realized you liked me in that way,” Chat said, then sighed. He really wanted to slap himself.

“A-Adrien?” Ladybug gasped, the pieces finally falling into place after the whirlwind of a kiss and confession.

A sheepish grin spread across his face.

“At your service, M'Lady,” he replied goofily, pressing a small kiss to her fingers, an apologetic look seeping in his eyes.

Ladybug slapped her hands over her mouth as she looked at him, her eyes grazing over his features—his hair, his eyes, his nose, his lips, his jaw—to compare him to Adrien in her mind.

“Adrien,” she whispered breathlessly, lowering her hands from her mouth. Then she began flapping her hands in a panic. “Oh-ohmygoodness. Oh no, no, no. This wasn’t meant to happen! Our identities were meant to remain a secret. I’ve messed up again.”

Ladybug clutched her head dramatically as she began catastrophisizing over the new predicament.

Chat gently pried her fingers from her head and held them to his chest.

“You didn’t mess up. This is a happy accident, I promise. Trust me,” he reassured. “Now I can be here for you as Adrien and Chat.”

Ladybug gnawed at her lip in thought as she took in his reassuring words. Releasing it with a sigh, she once again studied his face as she tried to steady her breathing. She reached forward and brushed her fingers along his mask, envisioning him without it. He was her partner and the boy she loved. He was the one she trusted the most and the one she pined for, yet also the one she rejected. She could hardly believe it.

Chat’s heart sped up at her soft touch. He felt like his love was overwhelming and ready to escape, like it might spill out and flood all of Paris.

Looking at her now, he really couldn’t believe how dumb he had been.

It was himself who hadn’t been there enough for Marinette at school, who had been oblivious to her pain and suffering. He would have to change that. And he would do everything in his power to do so. It was him and her against the world, as usual, and he wouldn’t have it any other way.

He was also going to do everything in his power to help her with her Guardian responsibilities.

Ladybug removed her fingers as he started talking again.

“Marinette, I’m really sorry about Lila and everyone else at school. I’m really sorry I hadn’t noticed it had gotten so bad. I’m really sorry I haven’t done anything. Please let me make it up to you. I’ll do anything to help you win back the class and expose Lila’s lies, if that’s what you want, of course. But if you want me to stand silently by your side instead, I can also do that. I think it’s best we put a stop to Lila’s lies, of course, but I will always follow your decision as I know you’ll make the best one,” Chat offered, lifting his hand to brush the back of his fingers lovingly across her cheek. “And I’ll help you with your Guardian duties. Anything you need, I’ll help with. Even if you don’t ask for my help, though, I’ll still help you anyway. I’m here for you, and I can be here for you even more, now that I know who you are. I care about you, Marinette. And I love you. And, again, I’m sorry.”

Ladybug giggled as more tears were released. She shook her head and wiped them away.

“Thank you, Adrien. I’m sorry, too. For telling you I only thought of you as a friend… It was my own fault I drove you away. I just hadn’t been ready to tell you the truth… and had missed my opportunity as a result. I unknowingly helped push you into Kagami’s arms. And I should have reached out to you more, to ask for your help. But I assumed you were with Kagami and I didn’t want to bother your happiness with my problems with Lila and the class. I also assumed you were upset with me as Chat, so I didn’t ask you for help or support. I have been going through a lot, but it was me who failed to reach out to anyone. I didn’t even try to ask my parents for help. I just felt helpless and didn’t know who to go to. I’m really grateful you reached out to me first, otherwise this would have continued on for so much longer. Thank you, Adrien, for asking me what was wrong tonight. For giving me the push to finally admit to all the problems I’ve been facing. And for offering your help. I wish I had come to you for help ages ago. But I didn’t know how it would go. And I’ve always been so scared of confrontation and rejection. I was scared you would hurt me, too… Which I now realize was completely silly and insane, because I know I can trust you. So, I’m sorry, too, for all this mess. All these misunderstandings. And thank you. For everything,” Ladybug said, wrapping her arms around his neck and pulling him into her embrace.

Chat Noir felt warmth spread through his body, from his heart to the tips of his toes, to the tips of his fingers, to the tips of his ears. He returned the embrace, his arms curling around her petite frame and gently squeezing her. He burrowed his face into her shoulder and inhaled, basking in her sweet scent.

“I love you, Marinette,” he repeated, unable to contain his overflowing feelings for her.

He felt her lips curve upwards against his neck, her face emanating heat.

“I love you, too, Adrien,” she whispered reverently.

His heart beat erratically at the words he had been longing to hear for a very long time. Finally, his mind was at peace.

And so was hers.

Chat turned his head to the side and cupped her cheek, turning her to align with his lips and kissed her again. Ladybug happily returned the kiss, her hand slipping into his blond mop of golden hair.

Reluctantly breaking the kiss, Chat asked, “Ready for patrol, M'Lady? We can’t start skimping on our duties just because your kisses are irresistible.”

Ladybug giggled and playfully swatted his arm.

“Fine, but just so you know, you’ll have to resist at school and in public for now. Until we figure out the Lila situation, I don’t think it’s a good idea for our relationship to be known, as she will probably find some way to twist things around. And I don’t think it would be professional for two superheroes to be romantically involved… At least not publicly,” Ladybug stated. “Do you agree?”

“Yes I do, Bugaboo,” he replied with a wry grin and a wink. It was so typical of her to be so responsible, but that’s part of what he found so amazing about her.

Giving into their desires a little bit, they exchanged a few more kisses before they set off for patrol.

They still had many obstacles left to face, but they would face them together as a team. As partners. As friends. And now also as secret lovers.

#miraculous ladybug #ladynoir #ladybug #chat noir #ml fic #ml fanfic #identity reveal #angst and fluff #lila salt #communication #post season 3 #mlb season 3 #ml spoilers #season 3 spoilers #love square

[black-streak]

Waiting For The Worms - The Show Must Go On

Part 4

Sooo, this isn't nearly as dark and has very little angst in comparison to the point I'd almost say it isn't? It's pretty much just an update on life in a way. Which is also part of why it took so long for me to write. Like, the struggle was real. Next chapter will go back to your regularly scheduled heartbreak.

Warnings from chapter 1, while mostly inapplicable for this part, still in effect.

The gallery: @northernbluetongue @thethirdwheelfriend @shizukiryuu @theatreandcomicfreak @michellemagic @karategirl119 @moonlightstar64 @my-name-is-michell @mystery-5-5 @zalladane @queen-of-the-trash-planet-tm @miraculousdisapointment @dorkus-minimus @jardimazul @allthebooksandcrannies @g-arya @worlds-tiniest-spook-pastry @persephonescat @mycupisbroken @luciferge @18-fandoms-unite-08 @dawnwave16 @alwaysreblogneverpost @kris-pines04 @mysteriouslyswimmingfan-blo-blog @weird-pale-blonde-person @you-will-never-know-how-i-think @kokotaru @naclychilli @slytherinhquinn @clumsy-owl-4178 @ladybug-182 @darkthunder1589 @evil-elf16 @dast218 @lysslovsanime @emilytopaz @naoryllis @iloontjeboontje @thepeacetea @danielslilangel @finallyaniguana @i-like-fairytail-and-stuff @vixen-uchiha @yuulxd @bleeding-heart-romantic @magic-inthe-stars @st0rmy-w1th1n

~---~

The next year of Jason's life was hectic to say the least.

It started with the downfall of Lila Rossi. Which consequently, he had no part in. She stepped on the wrong toes, made a few too many contradictions and suddenly a pile of lawsuits were stacked against her. Her mother went completely ape shit on her and pulled her out immediately to be shipped off to a very strict boarding school. More like a juvenile detention center if the rumors were true.

For the first month, no one approached him. The guilty, stricken looks upon his classmates' faces told a million stories of apologetic remorse, but since becoming a jaded, snarky outcast, 'Marinette' was no longer the person you could give a simple apology to and expect forgiveness. And no one wanted to be the first to get shot down.

Eventually, the first apology came. Surprisingly, Alya tried to win his favor. She groveled and apologized up and down on how terrible she and Lila had been and named every reason in the book as to why she had reacted and treated Marinette the way she did in an attempt to explain herself. While it wasn't necessarily surprising that she would be the first to not fear him, it was shocking she saw the error of her ways so soon with all that bull headed ego she carried around.

Bravery got her nowhere, however, as Jason only lifted an eyebrow, arms crossed as he leaned back, and calmly replied.

"Cool story, still betrayal."

As the girl sputtered before him, he turned back towards Chloe, continuing to make their plans for the day. After two minutes had passed and Alya still stood there hunting for her words, he turned back.

"Can you leave? Sometime today would be nice."

And so the precedent was set. While it took another week for someone else to approach, they seemed spurred on by the ease of Alya's dismissal. Suppose they figured if the biggest offender only got mild verbal abuse and dismissal, things had to go more smoothly for them.

Nino came next, awkward shuffling and avoided eye contact included. He pushed through his apology, beating around the bush and trying to defuse the situation at the same time he built it up. It only served to piss Jason off. They deserve better than this. At least meet her eyes if you're going to apologize and expect me to believe it.

"Uh… Marinette? Did you hear me?"

"I'm sorry, were you talking to me? I assumed you were talking to the desk next to me and minded my business. Would hate to be accused of eavesdropping."

He flinched at the reminder and finally looked him in the eye.

"I'm sorry. What we did was wrong. What I did was wrong and I am so beyond sorry for it. There is no excuse for my behavior."

"You're right. There isn't. Do better in the future."

"I will!," he rushed to reassure Jason, voice hopeful, "Does this mean we can be friends again?"

"No. Do better for those who chose to be your friend in the future."

"Oh… okay, yeah, that's fair," Nino gave a downtrodden look and wandered off.

Next came Sabrina and Rose, who didn't so much as apologize to him, but instead tried to reattach themselves to Chloe and Juleka's sides as if nothing had happened at all. This might not have thrown Chloe in the slightest, but poor Juleka looked a moment from having an anxiety attack. Chloe made short work of both girls, dismissing them entirely and when Rose started to cry and stare at Juleka for reassurance that everything was okay, Jason pulled the goth into a hug, glaring at the little blonde girl, until eventually she received the hint and ran off, tears streaming down her face. Apparently Nathaniel gave Marc the same treatment.

Lastly Kim, Alix, Max, Ivan, and Mylene came as a group. They must've taken comfort in their numbers, hoping it would somehow protect them from him singling them out. Thought everything would go smoother that way. He could hear Juleka grumbling at his side where they sat under a tree for lunch. They both appreciated the shade and quiet peace of the place. Marc sat on her other side, writing away in a journal.

"Hey Mari, we wanted to apologize for the way we've been acting lately," Alix took the lead.

"Yeah, it was really uncool of us," Kim followed up, the others nodding along.

They looked imploring. Like they were waiting for some sort of forgiveness. He couldn't help but wonder if they thought their actions were somehow better. That he couldn't really be mad at them because they weren't the ones who lied or lead the pack against his soulmate. They didn't make harsh accusations or physically attack Marinette. So somehow, they were better and their apologies could be less.

How fucking rude. How presumptuous. How entitled to think his time, thoughts, feelings were forfeit in their need for forgiveness. Marinette deserved better in her time here than these heartless bastards. None of them ever defended her either. Or him for that matter. Not one of them tried to so much as change the subject to avoid harping on him. None cared when his soulmate never returned to her body. Maybe that wasn't fair, but at the very least they could've approached him in his grief when it was easily displayed. Everyone here had a soulmate and knew the signs of loss for when one died. Surely they knew that this person in this body lost their other half. And yet not a soul outside of his group had offered condolences.

"That's all you have to offer? That it wasn't cool?" Juleka asked, tone quiet but sharp.

"Well it's not like we-"

"Let me cut you off there, before you piss me off. You didn't personally attack me, you just watched and snickered behind hands. Joined in to the cruel jokes and snide remarks. Encouraged those who did attack. At least they had the decency to be that way to my face and let me know where we stood. You? Hiding behind others actions and grouping up to give half-hearted sorrys that you barely think of before you speak? Now you guys are the ones that truly infuriate me. Either you believed I deserved the treatment I received but refused to be singled out for it. Or you thought what was happening was wrong and were too much of a coward to step up and help me out. I'm not sure which is worse. Either way, I don't want to see a single one of you approach me again. I don't mean enough to you to make a stand? Then you don't mean enough to me to even speak to. Get out of my face."

When his little speech was done and the startled masses ran off with an added glare, protests held on the tip of tongues, Jason slumped back against the tree, taking small comforts in the silent support of his two companions.

Adrien never approached. That was for the best.

His friend group was also something new. Marc, Juleka, Chloe, and Kagami. The group technically leaned more female than anything, but after the heavy masculine energy of his old life, this turn of events felt refreshing. It helped that Marc came out as nonbinary and Jason couldn't help but relate in a way with his view of this body fitting as female, but his mind staying firmly male. Altering his soulmate's body to fit would never happen, but it also didn't match him. 

The group only grew stronger and more resilient after Jason agreed to revealing identities in the team. After the loss of Mari and the stripping of the ring from Adrien, Jason found it necessary to place new permanent holders. With Kagami and Chloe having screwed up their original hero personas, the placement became a challenge. 

He started out with figuring out his new cat. 

Talking it over with Fu and dragging the decision out way longer than it needed to, he eventually convinced the old guardian of Kagami's worth. She took to Plagg with ease, the design of her look altering to match. The suit stayed all black but wasn't leather and had gold detailing. The ears and tail looked more realistic as well. Her hair went pitch black and eyes went to shades of gold. Kagami insisted her new name be Serval.

Next came Chloe who ended up comforting Jason the most through his despair, whether she knew the reason for it or not. Without the bee as an easy go to, he ended up giving her the Dragon. Sure, the mix wasn't the best ever, but it kept her on the offensive side and more active, so it worked the way they needed it to. Her outfit consisted of tight fitted scales in shades of black and blue. Unlike when Kagami used the dragon, her and Longg took more to the shades of blue that came with most weather. Her shock of blonde hair played nicely with the idea of lightening on a stormy day. She went with Nimbus.

Surprisingly, Marc became the next holder. Jason planned on handing off the fox to Juleka, only to realize it wouldn't quite suit the girl. She stayed in the shadows most of the time, yes, but not really by choice. She wanted to be a model and show up in photos more than anything, so it made no sense to stick her with another identity she had to hide in. Add on the fact that she wasn't necessarily the most creative and well, Jason couldn't hand off an illusion piece to her. That's when Marc came into play. The kid had creativity in spades and preferred to avoid the spotlight. Marc and Marinette grew closer with all their time spent in the art room and courtyard together and especially with Nathaniel having ditched them. With Marc starting to build a spot of their own within the group, it only made sense to pair them with the Fox.

Now that he thought about it, the whole team really stuck with black. Marc had a black velvety almost shapeless form, with white tail, ears, sash, gloves, and boots. Their eyes fell white on gray on black and gave off an eerie feel. They choose Jocular for their hero name.

Finally, Jason hunted down the perfect miraculous for Juleka. The mouse. Quiet and unseen, playing in the background until the moment was right. And then she was everywhere, a multitude taking over the scene and overwhelming the enemy in a matter of moments. Perfect for the girl who hid behind her bangs but longed for the spotlight. Mullo played to both halves of her personality. The suit that came with consisted of a deep vivid purple that matched her bangs while detransformed. While in costume, the highlights disappeared and her eyes shined purple as well. The fit was reminiscent of a belted, hooded tunic with black leggings and matching purple booties. She went with Fievel. Turns out Juleka had an interesting favorite childhood movie. Months later, they would find themselves sitting around a tv, watching the old animated musical, but in the beginning, they just took it in stride.

The last major change came in a heavier bond forming amongst his team.

When Jason agreed to reveal identities, if for no other reason than the guilt of already keeping one major secret from the group, things spiced up. For one, Juleka and Marc traded their respective miraculouses back and forth depending on their comfort level for the day. If one felt more ready for the spotlight, they took to the mouse for the battle. If one felt especially creative at the moment, they tagged in for the fox. Of course, they jumped in with whichever they had when an akuma hit while separated, but the switch off seemed to comfort them.

Secondly, Chloe started running more interference to allow them escape time if stuck up in civilian form. Her false bratty attitude and daddy issues came into play here, despite her actual maturity about both. It helped to amp it up from time to time.

Lastly, Kagami and Jason begin to switch on occasion.

Plagg hadn't been outside the ring since Jason removed him from Adrien and Kagami received him. The shock and horror on his face when Tikki told him the reality of their situation broke Jason a little more. The cat insisted on spending more time with Jason after that. His soul resonated better with the ring anyways, so the time spent as the cat holder felt soothing after so long as the ladybug, despite this body feeling more receptive towards Tikki's magic. 

As an added bonus, the two kept the other's costume and attributes such as eyes and hair. Between that and the heavy magical glamour hiding their identities, no one, not even Hawkmoth, knew which one was which until their fighting style came into play at which point, it was too late. Luckily, with the sneaky aspects of the mouse and fox, the other two became quite the ambush as well. Add in Chloe showing up with one of three different powers at any given moment, and Hawkmoth's akumas became easy prey.

By the time the year ran out, their team ran as a well oiled machine. Despite the horrific heartbreak festering in his heart, Jason felt hopeful. Hopeful that they might take down the villain that had taken over his soulmate's life from so young. That this battle at least might end on a happy note. That soon he would be free to seek out justice for Marinette once and for all.

#maribat #jasonette #ml x dc #WFTW #part 4 #did i mention i never edit these? #choosing the team was a four day struggle

[mysterylover123]

Todoroki’s Relationships Analysis Part 7: Chapter 169-now. Culture Fest, Pro Hero, JTA, MLA & Winter Internship arcs.

(SPOILERS TO NOW)

Culture Festival Arc

The new, party person post retake arc Shoto

Shoto’s retake course has helped to change his perspective on things a little, and understand the value of fun a little bit more (which is what this arc is all about)

He remains critical towards Bakugou here, though Katsuki definitely starts it. 

Or more accurately, the rest of the school starts it by acting like Class A asked to get attacked by crazy supervillains. Bakugou initially in this scene seems like he’s being a jerk, but he’s actually having one of his moments of kindness and empathy, as he defends his classmates from the rest of the school, and Shoto stops criticizing him once that lands. 

Shoto spends most of the CF arc hanging around twith this group, whom he mostly gets along with on the level of fairly normal friendship, so there isn’t much to say about these scenes.

We see Shoto to be the most concerned classmate about Deku’s wellbeing, probably because he’s learned by this point that an unavailable Midoriya probably means he’s breaking his body in two.

He watches Izuku getting scolded by the teachers.

And hangs out with Iida during the Culture Fest event itself. (Iida is the universal bro)

Culture Fest Shoto is still fairly quiet, but much more sociable than before. He suggests throwing a big party for the school, which should probably tell you that he’s a very different kid from the start of the year.

Pro Hero Arc

This arc is mostly about Shoto’s relationship with his dad, though we get a quick glimpse of his classmates looking after him when the fight plays on TV.

Four classmates are specifically watching Shoto. Now, while Kiri and Shoto do have a friendship, Kiri is generally the “glue that holds the class together”, so essentially, he was written to be the kid who always looks after his teammates. The other 3 are Shoto’s 3 main ships: Bakugou, Deku, and Momo. 

Though just about everyone comes over to him afterwards.

Included because how can you not.

joint Training Arc

Sero and Shoto sure have come a long way since “nice try” huh? And yes, Earlyroki is the phrase I want to use too.

Shoto is focused on watching Yaoyorozu’s fight.

He showcases some understanding of Momo’s tactical expertise and confidence in her ability to win. He believes that only a total assault on her could have been sufficient to actually defeat Momo. 

He looks worried for Momo after she loses and states firmly that he “hopes she doesn’t get all discouraged again”, recalling her previous sadness and worrying for her in the future.

We see a moment of Todoroki and Bakugou being on the same wavelength here, as following the above panel Shoto immediately does just that. 

Tetsutetsu pushes Todoroki to the point where he has to use way too much firepower. However, his team still loses/ties.

He has a Deku-like moment and this triggers his actions in the next arc (tears at BabyTodo in the left hand panel.)

This is his reaction to BlackWhip. He goes over to Deku after the JTA is over and after Deku’s training session with Bakugou and All Might and asks him directly, indicating he thinks Izuku has two powers.

Clearly, Shoto felt a bit betrayed that Deku asked him to go all out but was apparently holding back himself. I wish we could’ve had Shoto’s thoughts while the whole thing was going on.

He instantly believes Midoriya and doesn’t think to question this strange development. He compliments him as well, showing that Deku has joined Momo and Kacchan’s ranks as someone Shoto admires. Deku shoots right back at him.

Shoto, having tied while Deku and Kacchan, his two Official Rivals, both won with a complete knockout, obviously feels like they’ve surpassed him. This is, basically, his equivalent (though less angsty) to Bakugou at the end of the PLE arc, feeling completely surpassed by everyone.

The Joint Training arc sees, to Shoto, his classmates surpassing him, and spurs him to decide and seek out Endeavor as a Utility. We see his admiration for Momo, Kacchan and Izuku on full display.

MLA Arc

Newly minted Licensed heroes Todoroki and Bakugou are here to save the day Together!

They’re referring to each other as “we” and working together to end the villains.

Shoto’s showing concern for Kacchan, who as usual takes all concern for his wellbeing as an insult. (and as usual makes everything about Deku. Holy crap, was that really as powerful as the Sports Fest move?!?! They’ll have to bust out some sick animation for that).

Winter Internship Arc (up to present chapter, Chapter 250)

So Todoroki and Kacchan work together well. Are they friends? What does Shoto think of their relationship? His self-definition is that they get along well.

Todoroki apparently defines friendship as “spending a lot of time together”. Bakugou objects to this. Todoroki basically calmly insists that they get along anyway.

Shoto’s motto of heroism here is that he wants “to put others at ease’. We’ve got his manifesto as to heroism laid out here.

This is funny, yes, but also kinda heartbreaking. Shoto is incredibly awkward in his interview and doesn’t seem to understand that he’s being flirted with. It’s possible he doesn’t have much conception of what romance, flirtation and attraction even are. This is a facet I’d like to see explored more in shipping fics, actually, because any idea of Shoto as some smooth charmer with great flirting skills should be heavily dispelled by this instance.

Although he’s talking about his dad here, the words could just as easily apply to Midoriya.

Shoto instantly apologies to Katsuki, taking it as his fault that Bakugou was cut, because he’s not socially adept enough to get that Bakugou’s behavior is inappropriate. While one doesn’t have to, you could take Bakugou’s reply as him relieving Shoto of feeling guilty by telling him it wasn’t his fault. Just in Bakugou-speak.

Deku’s 3 most popular ships watch him try and conquer his quirk. Or is this in his head?

Some nervous solidarity between Shoto and Izuku, + bonus Jealous Bakugou.

ChristmasTodo notices Bakugou feeling down.

And immediately offers him and Deku internship jobs with the #1. Shoto’s motives her deserve some consideration. He states later on that he sees Endeavor, as far as regards his career as a pro, in a utilitarian manner. He views him as a means to an end for success (outside of their past and family drama, obviously). So Shoto is, essentially, offering Deku and Kacchan the best possible internship opportunity he can, even though it involves asking his old man for a favor. That’s some serious supportive friendship power right there.

Endeavor complains about having to teach all 3 but Shoto shuts him down quickly.

He agrees with Bakugou that Endeavor’s dismissive attitude is not what they signed on for or what he promised Kacchan. 

Todo and Kacchan are again on the same wavelength here and act like they both find Deku’s constant chatter annoying.

In his big speech to Endeavor, he states that “competing with these guys” before correcting himself and trying to include the rest of his classmates in that estimation. But he ca’t take back that initial impulse. Deku and Kacchan are placed first in his estimation. They are the first ones he thinks of. And both, as well. It’s  very clear that Deku and Kacchan (Twin Stars of class A indeed) changed his life. Thinking about it too...he didn’t immediately use fire after his match with Deku. It wasn’t until he hurt Bakugou by holding back and lost hte match that he really started to change.

“IN front of my friends”. Shoto again points out that he came her to use Endeavor, regardless of feelings. He insists on being treated the same as Deku and Kacchan, and tells Endeavor not to pretend to be dadlike to him in front of them. This impulse is interesting too. He doesn’t wish to present any kind of lie to these two.

Shoto pays a lot of attention to Kacchan and actually smiles when Bakugou calls Endeavor’s power a “rip-off” of Bakugou’s own explosion quirk. I guess he likes the chance to insult dear ol dad.

When Deku and Kacchan are both in a bad mood, Shoto plays supportive cheerleader.

He’s totally cool with the invitation.

He shows again some understand of (and criticism of) Deku.

This is where Todoroki comes to understand that Katsuki knows about his situation with Endeavor. Interestingly enough, while Deku is the one he told, he hasn’t shown any inclination to add more to that knowledge since the Sports Festival. 

Deku shows some incredible understanding of Shoto’s mind here and supports his decision with Endeav either way. Shoto’s expression is astonished, as if he had never thought of his situation this way before.

He immediately opens up to Deku and Kacchan about Toya with Fuyumi’s help; once again, both know Shoto’s backstory.

He also reaches out to get the recipe from Fuyumi to give to Bakugou. Always the caring, considerate friend.

Presumably she doesn’t thank Bakugou too because he keeps insisting he totally isn’t friends with Shoto. Shoto looks so adorably embarassed here.

He’s solicited as a study buddy for Deku, and for now (until Friday) this is where we leave them. Jumping forward to save Natsuo.

So this retrospective on Todoroki’s relationships - Todoroki’s relationships only, from his POV alone - was interesting. And very informative, as it changed my perspective on Shoto’s character dynamics a lot. I hope you enjoyed, and let me know if there are any other characters you want me to do a Relationships retrospective on in the future.

#shoto todoroki #todoroki shōto #todoroki meta #todobaku #tododeku #todomomo #culture festival arc #pro hero arc #joint training arc #meta liberation army arc #winter internship arc

[shsl-fluff]

uhh,,, saw your reply to my ask and i- snsjs thanks a lot, ur really nice. i guess I'll request something to get ya started, I hope you don't mind! 👉🏻👈🏻 could i get sdr2 boys w/ a fem! shsl baker s/o? s/o is really affectionate and sweet too, she wears pink and pastel clothing with her baker outfit, + firmly believes in the phrase "sometimes kindness is enough" + that even bad people deserve a second chance. just trying to ship my cute af oc with my fav boys, don't mind me.. 👉🏻👈🏻 >u< 💐

This was really fun to write! I'm so sorry that it took a while. Also, some of these are more based in the middle of the relationship, some are more meeting to the beginning of the relationships. I hope you don't mind :)

Sdr2 boys with a fem, shsl baker S/O who is very kind, patient, and affectionate

Fuyuhiko Kuzuryu

People aren't normally very patient with him, especially due to how on edge he can get

It's a bit shocking for him to see that you've stuck around, even before you started dating

When you two first cuddled he was so embarrassed. Blushing bright red and muttering a few reluctant insults before going quiet and just being a bright red mess. 

You don't remember if he fell asleep in your arms, or if you fell asleep in his, but it didn't matter.

You kiss him every morning. Sometimes it wakes him up and other times it doesn't, but it makes you happy either way. 

He really has a sweet tooth, even if he doesn't like admitting it. Peko and yourself might be some of the only ones who know.

You often surprise him with sweet things. Cakes, cookies, cupcakes, and especially doughnuts.

He always acts a bit annoyed at first but the facade collapses as he eats

"You didn't have to make me anything, you know? I don't like sweets"

"Thank you, (Y/N)... This is amazing, as usual" 

Gundham Tanaka

The Lord of darkness and a sweet baker never seemed like they'd be the best pair, but they were. 

Even before you got together, you would surprise him with small cakes you were creating recipes for to get his opinions

"A Lord of darkness such as myself does not need such worldly goods!"

Yet he still eats them and showers you with compliments

Apparently, all the horrific forces at play in the many universes would enjoy them

When you found out about his demonic beasts, you found them absolutely adorable

You went to your recipe book to see if you could find any treats for hamsters but couldn't find any. 

The same went for online

So you made that your mission. Making a sweet for only the most ferocious of hamster beasts.

You tried to keep it a secret, but gundham found out, and declared he must join you on your mission in life. 

Every afternoon he would meet you at your kitchen and you'd both work on recipes to find something that would be easy to replicate and mass produce that brings the dark devas powers to their fullest potential. 

You would work until the early hours of the morning. What was once going to be a small present had spiraled out of control, but you didn't mind. 

It was fun to spend your time with someone as passionate as the ultimate breeder.

When you had finally cracked the code, it was early in the morning. He was so happy that he looked like he was about to hug you

"(Y/N), I often wish you weren't a mere human." He said as he watched the devas eat their sacred meals.

"Even a human of your strength would perish by simply touching me, and it pains my heart"

He continued to ramble about how his power had the ability to destroy any human, and how he sometimes feared making companions for that reason

And then you hugged him

He was caught by surprise, and shocked when you didn't turn to dust in front of him

Maybe you weren't human after all

He decided you would be a perfect companion to rule the underworld with someday.

He crowned you the princess of darkness and unwavering determination.

Hajime Hinata 

Though he was a reserve course student, Hajime would often spend time with your class after school. 

He just became one of the pals.

You loved giving out treats during homeroom, so you would make sure to save him some to give him after school.

"I'm so sorry that it isn't warm, Hinata! Oh! What if you come with me? I'll make you some of whatever you want!"

You dragged him off to your room. 

"What do you want? I'll make anything!" 

He reluctantly said he'd have some chocolate chip cookies. 

You whipped them up instantly and gave them to you nice and warm. 

He thanked you generously.

You continued the habit of making him things, making them more and more creative.

His favorite was your orange zest cupcakes

He had wanted to ask you on a date for a while, but was too shy to. He was a reserve course student, why would you go after him of all people? 

Mahiru ended up being sick of him being so shy, so she asked for him.

You laughed and accepted. 

You both went out to dinner a few days later. He was flustered and yet also a little frustrated that Mahiru rushed him. 

The dinner went overall well, and he walked you home that evening. 

He thanked you for coming out with him and being so kind and sweet 

And then you suddenly 

Kissed his cheek

He went deep red and flustered as he sorta blanked out

He kissed you back quickly as you parted ways.

You both couldn't wait for tomorrow

Imposter (Byakuya)

You decided to hand out brownies to your class one morning, when they were nice and warm. 

Almost everyone showered you with praise for the baked goods, but one person especially. Byakuya Togami. 

He told you it was the best food made by a commoner he had ever tasted. 

You two slowly grew closer as you brought in baked goods once a week. 

At first he had treated you with overall indifference, yet as you talked to him more he slowly opened up to you. 

He talked about his favorite foods, his favorite brands, and even his hobbies. 

As you two started to talk out of school, you noticed some things that didn't seem to fit in with the way he normally talked. He wasn't calling you a commoner anymore.

He started to treat you like an equal. 

One morning when you were handing out baked goods during class, he gave you a note. 

Meet me at my locker after school today. I have something important to talk to you about -Byakuya Togami

He didn't say anything else, besides a quiet thanks. 

When you went to his locker after school, he looked surprisingly anxious

"Follow me, we're going to the park, (Y/N)" he said coolly 

He sat down on the bench next to you under a cherry blossom tree. 

He let his secrets spill. That he always wanted to be someone else. Someone who would be noticed. That he wasn't even sure who he was… 

He spoke quietly and with a steady voice as he stared you in the eyes

"Would you really care about someone who you don't really know?" He asked. 

"Yes, yes I would Byakuya. Because even if that isn't your name, I didn't befriend a name or a face… I befriended you for your heart" 

He looked like he was about to cry as he pulled you into a soft embrace. 

Kazuichi Soda

Souda really, really loved touch, and was surprisingly easy fluster.

He loved it when you held his hand in public, it would make his heart thunder out of his chest.

Not to mention cuddling

Running your hands through his hair

He would rub your back sometimes, too. 

Whenever your kitchen gadgets broke, he would rush over and fix them.

He tried to add some mods, too. To make things faster or more efficient.

They were often to fast to use reasonably, but you thanked him for them anyway

You loved surprising him in his garage when he was working. 

You would always bring him his favorite- death by chocolate cupcakes. 

Sometimes you'd get grease on your clothes. He'd rush to help you clean them and try to get the stains out. 

When he realized they wouldn't be able to fully get it out, he took her to the store and bought the same outfit, along with something else.

He adored spoiling you.

You were his princess.

Nagito Komaeda 

You had heard some of the things your classmates had said about one of the ultimate lucks. That he was creepy and had an obsession with the other ultimates

You didn't believe them. You didn't think they were lying or anything, just that they didn't understand him. 

You decided to introduce yourself to him, and he was so excited.

An ultimate would talk to him?

He apologized in advance for having to put up with trash like himself.

You assured him he wasn't trash, and even invited him to hang out after school. 

He asked about what your ultimate talent was.

When he heard baker, he was awed. Oh the hope that you would be able to bring into others with your treats!

You two would gradually hang out more and more and become better friends. 

You would bake him something every time, but something always turned out wrong.

A bit of eggshell somehow got in, the vanilla would slip out of your fingers and dump into the batch, the baking time on the recipe was wrong, or something had spilled on your cookbook

Nagito had to anxiously explain the way his luck worked. Terrible luck had to come before good luck, followed by even more terrible luck.

"Well then, I don't mind! As long as you're getting some good luck, I don't mind having to bake something a few times to get it correct for you due to bad luck"

He was shocked by your amount of hope and kindness. 

"What do you think the good luck is, by the way?" You asked him suddenly

"To be honest, I think its spending time with you after school, (Y/N)"

He asked you out, and you accepted. He thought it was all his luck, but it wasn't. 

You loved giving him love and affection. Even small things like holding his hands in public, to cuddling him on the couch when you watch tv together. 

The bad luck would really be inconvenient, yet you got through it if it meant you got to spend time with him. 

He often rambled about how much he didn't deserve you, yet you always cut him off and tell him how much you loved him. 

He loved you so much

You loved him so much.

Nekomaru Nidai

You two were both rather sweet to others, so it made sense that you got along right away. 

You quickly became the power couple of the school

He would pick you up and carry you on his shoulders all the time and make up little excuses for why he'd do it

Maybe it'd be faster if he just took you

It was for his workout

You had to grab something on the shelf

So on and so forth. 

You didn't mind, you just loved being carried by him. 

You would have movie nights with him all the time. 

You'd make cookies and pop some popcorn, and then cuddle with him or sit on his lap as the movie started

His favorite movie was Rocky

His favorite movie snack was your oatmeal bar cookies.  

Sometimes he massages you during the movies. You swear that those are the best things in the world.

He invites you to work out with Akane all the time. You aren't very athletic but accept anyway!

He has a list of exercises to help different parts of your body so you get a balanced yet not painfully difficult workout. It's one he had once used for a beginner's team, but it works well for you too. 

He makes sure to work out at a pace you can handle and gives you tons of tips before going off to spar with Akane

Sometimes, the winner gets your cookies. 

Those are the most intense any of their battles get

Teruteru Hanamura

You and Teruteru had something in common before even knowing each other, as both of your ultimates were centered around culinary

He hadn't really tried to bake before

You decided to invite him to your home so you could show him what he was missing

He treated it like it was a date, and kept making inappropriate jokes the whole time, but you didn't really mind too much. 

He was having fun after all. 

You guys kept inviting each other over, either cooking or baking with one another. 

You realized he had feelings for you, but didn't reciprocate for a while

One day when you were cooking together it just hit you that you loved him

You loved his passion for his craft

You loved his kindness

You loved his humor

You loved him.

You asked him out

He accepted

Some things- a lot of things- stayed the same.

You would cook and bake every day together and search through recipe books to find new things to make

Other things changed

You were both big on cuddling and affection and couldn't get out of eachothers arms at night

His accent totally changed too. You didn't expect him to speak in a southern accent, but also didn't mind

It was nice to hear him talk about how beautiful you were in that voice. It showed you he didn't have to put up a front around you.

He would buy you aprons and dresses with light, pastel colours.

He just loved how everything looked on you. 

He would also buy some risque clothes, but if it made you very uncomfortable, he'd stop.

You realized why some of your classmates hated him, he could be pervy at times, even bordering on creepy. 

But that was just one flaw about him. 

His passion was almost unrivaled by your classmates, not to mention how funny he could be.

You just had to stick around to see that passion. Your patience went a long way. 

#phew that took a while #justweebsworld #sdr2 goodbye despair #sdr2 #sdr2 scenarios #fuyuhiko kuzuryuu #gundham tanaka #hajime hinata #lol i cant write hajime #shsl imposter #byakuya twogami #lol i cant write shsl imposter #kazuichi souda #nagito komaeda #nekomaru nidai #teruteru hanamura

[four-loose-screws]

What would you rank all the fire emblem games that you have played.

Thank you for waiting, anon! This essay is finally finished! XD I don’t know if either of us ever intended for this to end up so long, but it did.

It’s interesting to see how each person experiences each game, so I hope everyone enjoys reading this. If anyone wants to ask questions for more details or just for conversation, please do!

I did a tier grouping ranking as well as ordering from bottom -> top, because that helped explain my feelings a little better. This isn’t really reflecting my nostalgia or personal feelings for the characters/world quite as much as “how much fun I had in my initial playthrough(s).” Because I think that’s what these sorts of lists are generally asking for.

First, I’d like to make a general statement about why I love FE games so much: Well, most simply it’s because I have more fun playing FE than any other series. That much is obvious though, right? I also love them because they all stand out in their own way, with their own unique combination of features, and because they are all super ambitious titles. It may lead to some rushing and half-baked ideas, but ambition is what excites me the most in any series. Even if the creators are not able to fully realize the ideas they had, the hard work still wows me as I play, and I can see hints of the full vision they had in every nook and cranny. Even the lowest games on this list are pretty high up there for me in fun level. The “fun but flawed” games just had glaring issues that interrupted the fun from time to time.

...FEs 1 & 3 are overall exceptions to the “unique and standing out rule,” being early games in the series; and FE6 set up post-Famicom FE, so it’s pretty basic, too - but they still get their own awards for setting a solid foundation for a fun video game series that withstands the test of time.

I can’t fully explain it, why I attached to FE the most over all other game series out there. But when I play FE, I usually don’t think about what’s not so great about the games. I just have fun. The gameplay always has me thinking, and I get engrossed in the stories and unlocking convos and supports.

Basic Tier

These games are really hard to judge properly in the ranking system, because they are just so basic for the series.

FE1 / FE11

When FE11 came out, I remember it getting so much flack for being really, really boring. But I didn’t get that. I like FE gameplay and storytelling at its core, so I don’t need the bells and whistles to have a good time. I knew this is where the series started, and was surprised with what content there was considering this is a remake of a game on the Famicom (NES).

FE1 set a very solid foundation for what the core of the series would be. Load it up next to a modern game, and it feels so the same and different all at once. I’ve only played a little bit of FE1 itself. I just can’t get through it because FE11 is SO similar to FE1, so you really only have to play one to get the whole experience. I didn’t feel like playing the same game over again at the time, so FE1 is still on my unfinished list.

Basic, solid foundation for the ages / 10

FE3 / FE12

After FE11 played it “safe” and took an “upgraded graphics with a few new ideas tacked on” approach, I was blown away by how much FE12 did, even if it was more for worse than better sometimes. It added so many conversations, was the first to tinker with the idea of a more fleshed out Avatar, added more story… and so on.

From what I’ve read recently, the new story stuff isn’t that great, but I don’t remember now. I’ve only played this game once. Overall, despite some clunk with the giant maps and so on, this game really challenged itself to improve from FE11, and it’s how I learned to love remakes that aren’t afraid to deviate from and add a lot to the original!

Set the stage for what kind of fun and ambition an FE remake could have / 10

FE3 is way more of a classic than any of us in the West can truly understand. It sold insanely well (the best in the series until Awakening I believe?), challenged the programmers to put FE1 on the cart as well, long before re-releases were a thing in the industry, and the game even made it to the Super Famicom Mini! I haven’t played it yet because again, it’s hard to get the motivation to play through the slow speed and clunkiness when I’ve already experienced the remake, but I’m looking forward to it some day.

The good ol’ days of the Super Famicom & SNES / 10

FE6

This was the first game without Kaga (the series original creator), so it set the stage for a future without him. The series might have strayed far from his plans for story and such, but this game, while it was pretty basic, firmly established a new foundation for the series on a new system, and gave a glimpse of what greatness the future had in store.

Overall though, this game is harder to commit to memory than others, except for classic characteristics like how terrible Roy is until, finally, BAM he gets his sword in the final stretches of the game; and running in circles from Douglas so you can avoid fighting him and successfully recruit him after the chapter.

Awkward, but sets a solid foundation for post-Kaga and post-Famicom FE / 10

Fun But Flaws Distracted From The Fun A Lot Tier

FE16

I really, really hate to say it, because this game tries to mix up the FE formula with the school setting and other new features and changes, and brought in a good mix of old and new, just like all the other FE games. But this game left very little impact on me for such a big experience. And I’m leaving out the fact that trying to play all four routes is dull as heck when I place the game this low. I’m basing it off of just how much I enjoyed the first playthrough.

Overall, I was most turned off by the class system. Which is funny, because I’ve seen others praise this as FE’s best class system. Everyone’s different. Classic classes like troubadours are just gone. The top tier classes are super limiting. Of course, you can just stop one tier down, but that’s not emotionally satisfying to me - I want my characters to reach the top! Despite having such free choice, I feel more limited than anything. If they’d just stopped at 4 tiers and not tried to go to 5, I think that would have been best. They had to stretch out the available classes too much to get to 5. ...Although being able to have an army of dragon riders is awesome, I’ll give it that. Dragons are too cool. 

I was also really disappointed by the story. Fire Emblem has established that it can write a really emotional plot, and not be afraid to pull punches, with games like 4 and 8. I was expecting a huge contrast between part 1, where everyone is friends and classmates, and part 2, where war rips them apart, transforms them into different people, and forces them to brutally slaughter each other.

But in reality…the hate between Dimitri and Edelgard has nothing to do with the school at all… That was jarring to me. Of course there is no one right direction to take a story in. But the worldbuilding and story writing… feels even less coherent than Fates. That’s an accomplishment.

This is the one time I say ambition was really just too much. The game didn’t get enough polish. A game about the seasons doesn’t even have seasonal differences...

While my friends who don’t usually play Fire Emblem have had a fantastic experience with this one, after all I’ve been through, I found that I liked other FE’s more.

I think the best part about this game is the characters and supports. After Fates had a ton of supports in it just because it had to have them, the creators of this game weren’t afraid to change up the support formula once more, so they could balance quality and quantity. ...And then, ironically, this game went for the (almost entirely) mute, personality-less avatar character. Funny how that works out. XD

Dragon Lord Army Go! / 10

FE14

I feel this game deserves way more credit than it gets, while also agreeing with the critiques. The ambition was as great as ever. But then it got stuck in development hell and we got what we got. (For those who don’t know, the team was divided in two - the team that wanted a more fanservic-y experience, and the one that wanted to make a standard FE.)

I think the gameplay is the best part of this game, Conquest is great, and the gimmicks are indeed gimmicks, but still fun. In offering three different experiences, the entire package will please few, but that was the point of the multiple routes, to give everyone one route they would like, not to please everyone with all three.

But beyond the gameplay, the story is all over the place, the multiple routes just create more questions than answers; and features like an increased number of support convos and children feel like they are there only because of a desire to bring back “popular” features. After multiple food/cooking supports in a row, I couldn’t take it any more. There was so little that the characters were actually talking about in their supports vs. Awakening. I generally feel that more supports = better, because character interaction through supports is of course a highlight of post-Famicom FE, but in this case, the numbers did not do any favors.

Bringing back weapons that don’t break didn’t feel well done, either. I just ended up using basic weapons the whole time because I didn’t want to deal with the drawbacks of the higher level weapons.

Back to a positive for me: The hub world was neat, though it needed some convoluted story writing to be included. I was amused by going through the different features and collecting the items. I agree with Nintendo of America taking out the “petting minigame,” but since I lived in Japan when Fates released, it was amusing to do on the train and weird out the bored Japanese people who peered over my shoulder.

Since all three routes were different, this game was fun enough until the end in comparison to Three Houses, of which I am STILL trying to slog through the last route one year after release. But Fates was made for every route to be different, whereas Three Houses was not, so it’s not surprising I feel like that.

But time for the real talk about this game… why is everyone’s HP so low??? What happened?????

Up and down and all around in quality from start to finish / 10

FE15

I really want to like this game more. Oh, do I. It’s absolutely GORGEOUS, the character art makes my heart skip a beat, the game proved that full voice acting does fit FE really well, it fleshed out things like the dungeon crawling & story, and added support conversations & skills, etc. while still staying kind of basic, retaining the feeling that the original was on the NES. The momentum for the fun and ambition that an FE remake could have transitioned well from FE12 to here and led to this being a stunningly presented game.

But the creators totally missed the point on what were the defining features of the game in my opinion, and that mismatch of vision ruined a lot for me. I loved the imbalance, struggling as I placed my units in corners of maps just to survive, until I obtained all those OP items, and my super soldiers marched into battle and did wild and amazing things. Valbar with +5 move and 40 speed with the Speed Ring is the one thing I remember the best of FE2 and oh man was it fun, and did I love it.

And I mean, I understand why the creators weren’t going to keep that imbalance, it doesn’t make the game good for everyone. It’s just something I found fun, and made the game stand out among the other FEs. But the developers really just replaced old imbalance with new imbalance, the dread fighters being the one thing I remember in particular.

And they defined FE2’s best defining features as “the maps and the terrain effects” and I just did not agree. That was the stuff I DISLIKED about FE2! And that’s what they wanted to keep most? The terrain that made battles one giant miss, and the gigantic maps where I’d spend half the time just getting to the enemies? No thanks.

Then the story only cranked up the horrible treatment of the women, with Faye… being Faye, and I hated the direction they went in with Celica’s story...  Ugh.

For every step or two forward, there’s one back / 10

FE10

FE games are always ambitious, but this one cranked the dial up to 10 and tripped over itself a lot. Still, it provided (even if it is info dumped) an intense and satisfying ending to the Tellius saga, and is another classic for the ages. I found the pacing boring and slow until then, though.

I think now that I’m older I can appreciate the story much, much more - and how it shows the story and aftermath of the Mad King’s War from multiple points of view -  but the lack of the support conversations, and too much going on for any aspect of this game to be properly refined, still make this one lower on my list.

If only I could have played it more than once, to really get a good memory of the events of the game. My Wii actually scratched up my disk (How this happened, I don’t know, and it’s the ONLY disk my Wii ever slaughtered). It only held out long enough for my sibling and I to enjoy one playthrough each. I’ll get to playing my Japanese copy eventually!

Part 4 = Laguz Royals Emblem / 10

Somewhere Inbetween Tier

FE5

The last of the Kaga games. Still clunky and difficult, but with it’s own super unique features in capturing, stamina, and stealing weapons.

The brokenness of staves is not at all a flaw, but a feature in my opinion. Encouraging bizarre thinking and finding new ways to plow through maps is fun. I would probably be critical if this was a modern game, but I think older games need these quirks to stand out among modern titles with better graphics and decades of gaming history behind them.

And you still can complete the maps in a more traditional manner if you are determined. I did even for Reinhardt’s map.

Also, I gotta say... I don’t agree that this is the most difficult FE overall… it just has the hardest individual maps. The difficulty spikes are all over the place. The game goes from bashing your head against a wall to snoozefest constantly.

Fog of war was a mistake though, if I was a time traveler, I’d go back and make sure the programmers never figured out how to include it. XD

Steal ALL the tomes! / 10

FE13

Experiencing this game and its release in real time was an experience. The fandom really, truly thought this game might not only be the last FE ever, but also that it might not get a localization. Thinking there would never be a localization, I spent a night of my first trip to Japan buying a Japanese 3DS and a copy of the game. I only had 2 weeks on that study tour, but I was so determined that I used some of my precious free time to go shopping for it. To afford it, I even used the money my college gave to me for food, then subsided off of cheap convenience store meals with what little I had left. I barely had any true understanding of Japanese at the time, but I wanted other fans to experience this game, so I worked as hard as I could to translate as many supports as I could. This game is why I got into translation, and was what I really thought might be the end, so it will always have a special place in my heart for that.

Now to actually talk about playing the game itself. I really enjoyed it the first couple of times. Who cares that pair-up and the kids were OP, you either blast through the game with them and have a good laugh, or ignore them, set some challenging rules, and enjoy having at least a little challenge. I didn’t care much that the supports were a little lower quality because of the sheer number of them, I eagerly awaited unlocking each one, and reading what the two characters would talk about. (We fans have fanfiction to turn to if we hunger for more development. :p) The bonus content was plentiful, and a great fanservice-y way to bring the series to a close.

After all is said and done though, the game left me feeling empty when I thought about replaying it any further. The maps and story felt empty in comparison to previous games. Now that it’s been 8 years since the initial release, I’d of course enjoy a replay or two, but after having played FEs7-9 5 or 6 times in a row before moving on to the next game… anything less than that level of excitement was surprising for me. I placed this game kinda high on the list because it’s fun when you play it. It’s just doesn’t have as much replay value, I feel.

Also, as a group, the children characters are my favorite in the series. They all come from deeply traumatic backgrounds, and the way they work through that trauma and navigate being given a second chance, but also not a true second chance because this timeline is different from their own, is endlessly fascinating for me. I don’t know if other fans give them enough credit, so I wanted to point them out in particular.

Would have been a fantastic way to send off the series, despite the flaws / 10

FE2

This game is flawed, imbalanced, makes me want to throw things, and it’s all, somehow, in a way that makes me LOVE IT. ...So long as I’m playing using an emulator with a speed up button.

This game is so hard, and the hit percentages are such garbage. But as I played, and unlocked more and more OP weapons and items, until I reached a point where the zombie dragons - what once took all my efforts - were an enemy that can easily be slaughtered in 1-on-1 combat... I felt so satisfied.

Old games need some kind of charm to make them still worth revisiting in a world of much better graphics and features that have now had decades to be refined. For me, this game has that perfect kind of quirky charm in spades.

The maps and terrain though… I have no words, just bash your head into the wall and you will understand how I feel.

Also, this game reminds me of Zelda 2 in it being a black sheep of its respective series… that’s a fun little nugget of info.

Duma’s sprite / 10

FE7

I don’t remember this game as well, despite it being one that I’ve played about 5 times? I don’t know why, it’s yet another fantastic Fire Emblem with its own ways that it stands out, managing not one, not two, but three lords, introducing the tactician, and so on. Guess time has just not been kind to my memory on this one.

I remember being really impressed with the length of this game back in the day, and Hector’s mode offering enough differences to make it totally fun to replay the main game again.

Lyn gets kind of pushed to the side (because that’s what generally happens to women main characters in Fire Emblem, if there’s a male lord around), but having the three lords was really fun. With three people, you get a great balance between all of their personalities, and they all play off of each other well.

Of course I loved Lyn and Hector, most everyone does, but I was always just as much of an Eliwood fan. His average stats pushed people away from liking him as much as the others, but I always looked up to his kindness. Eliwood / Ninian was an especially favorite pairing for my sappy teenage heart. Eliwood was just so romantic and sweet to me.

And though the game was made easier with international audiences in mind, the developers hadn’t invented all of the “easier/for convenience” features yet, so this is the last time we got to enjoy some “harder” features like needing to buy weapons during battles, and a convoy separate from the main lord. That’s cool if you like that stuff.

Unlocking the paralogues is hard though / 10

Favorites Tier

FE8

When it comes to FE8, while there’s plenty to like about the gameplay (despite the game being so easy, but again, like I said with Awakening, you can just set your own challenge rules), what I really love to ramble on about is the story and its emotional impact. Lyon is so precious and kind, but has so many inner conflicts stewing deep inside of him, leading him to elder magics, and… The Demon King is just ends up as a sideshow compared to Lyon coming face to face with his own demons. Both the characters - and many players, I’m sure - hope and hope to find a way to save him, but there just isn’t one. There are never any real leads. There’s nothing. Only the harrowing reality that some people cannot be saved, no, that some people do not want to be saved. The inevitability of Lyon’s demise, and seeing it all play out, packs a punch most plots can only dream of.

But it’s not like I won’t talk about the gameplay features either. Bringing back much of the best of FE2, the overworld map and everything to do really enhances the experience. I mean, yeah, I guess two side dungeons isn’t that much to get excited over, I can see that critique… but I didn’t care, it allowed me to easily chase support conversations, and (with some RNG abusing to obtain enough Boots and money to buy the stat-boosting items, but hey, whatever it takes) I could max out my characters’ stats and truly “complete” a Fire Emblem game.

Sacred Stones is so awesome.

Finally! A postgame! I sure hope the developers keep this up in all the future games… oh. / 10

FE9

This is the first FE game I ever played, so it will always occupy the most dear and special place in my heart, even if FE4 eventually won over as my favorite.

Do you believe in first sight? I do, and this is what taught me it’s real. From the first second of the first cutscene, I was enthralled. ...And that’s saying something, when the FE9 cutscenes are the kind of thing only a mother could love. But I just knew. I may have been a wee lass of 14, but I knew a love that would last a lifetime was being born. ...Or that would at least last 14 more years. I can’t predict the future. Maybe I’ll wake up tomorrow and hate Fire Emblem with a burning passion? 2020 has taught me that tomorrow is always a big fat question mark.

Fun fact: in case you are wondering exactly what inspired my very initial interest in this series, it was a TV commercial. Probably this one. I just remember Ike running, of all things. My sibling and I both thought FE9 looked interesting from this commercial, and sought out the game all on our own with zero private knowledge that anything FE even existed.

This is where obsessions are born. Or mine at least. / 10 

FE4

As I’ve established, this is my favorite of favorites. The bizarre way money, arenas, items, and more were handled, actually made the game more and more fun for me. Big maps are just so fun. Gen 1’s story is a tale for the ages, and Gen 2’s story is… well, classic FE, which never gets old for me. It will never cease to amaze me even today what the SNES/S Famicom could handle.

All I’d want added is a “warp between conquered castles” feature. I’m completely neutral on a remake otherwise. Of course a lot more could be added and detailed upon that I’d be happy for, but that’s my one specific wish.

Calvary Emblem Forever / 10

Bonus:

FEH

I played this game every day for around 2 ½ years before I finally felt I had to break the habit, so I’m not leaving it out! This title got a lot of flack for simplifying FE gameplay, but… looking at it that way completely disregards the niche app games fill, and the interesting ways developers view what type of games app games should be, and how the developers work hard to both innovate for the format yet stay faithful to the source. It is surprisingly deep, and the maps + higher focus on unit skills make you think entirely differently about how to win in what is, in essence, the same gameplay as the main series.

Plus, what fan couldn’t get suckered into the fanservice of it? My best moments include attaining a +10 Nephenee while only spending money to get 2 of her, the other 9 were all F2P orbs; and becoming a Narcian/Valter shipper after supporting them on impulse because they were both on my flier team, and realizing the sick, twisted chemistry afterwards. Discovering rare-pairs is fun.

Also, finally, this game dared to nerf magic users a bit by making them RNG 2 only. If only the main series could do something like that.

I really enjoyed Heroes a lot, I just quit solely because it was a time drain. It was time to move on and play other things. And I’m glad I got out when I did. Seeing the game stoop to over-the-top powercreep (above and beyond what it was always implementing) and add the monthly service to keep the $$$$$ raking in was hard to watch.

Perfect app-style game gameplay-wise and fanservice-wise, but why aren’t gacha illegal yet / 10

FE Warriors

Oh yeah, this game exists too! It’s a Warriors game. If you like the formula and it never gets old for you, you’ll have fun with this game. If you don’t mind the limited game representation too much, you’ll have fun with this game. For me, the answers to those questions were a yes, so I enjoyed FE Warriors. Yay for wailing on hordes of enemies / 10

#fire emblem #favorites

[mymarvelbunch]

Different Roads... Same Destination: Part One

Pairing: Steve Rogers x Reader (established)

Summary: When the Avengers went back in time to get the Infinity Stones, new timelines were created. By not delivering them back to their exact same spots, you and Steve created major changes in those timelines. What happened? (Non-American!Reader)

This is a sequel to “Be Your Own Hero”. I highly recommend you read it first, since it features many major changes in canon that are addressed here.

Notes: Y/N = your (first) name; Y/Co = your home country; Y/Ci = your home city; Y/N/L = your native language (to be ignored in case you speak English).

Masterlist

Part One

New York, 2012

The Avengers were still trying to understand what happened when a loud ‘thud’ was heard. Tony turned to see the Scepter lying on the ground.

“Well, here is the thing Loki used to brainwash people”, he said. “But where is the Tesseract?”

“This isn’t the Mind Stone”, Loki said. “They placed the Tesseract in the Scepter.”

Everyone turned to him. He had already been right minutes prior, when he pointed out there were four Avengers from the future. Now the team was more inclined to believe him again, especially Thor.

“How do you know this, brother?”, he asked, frowning.

“The glow is different, for starters. And... I don’t know how to say this accurately, but I feel different when the Mind Stone is near me. Ever since those warriors came from the future and took it, I felt... lightweight, even if for brief moments. As if...”

Thor’s eyes widened. “As if the Mind Stone has some sort of power over you.” Loki nodded weakly. “Well, this is important information. Mother will certainly know to fix this. Stark, hand me the Scepter. It will be safer in Asgard.”

A SHIELD agent opened his mouth to protest, but there was little they could do as Tony gave Thor the Scepter. The Asgardian walked to the open balcony, his brother in his arm, and left, though not without asking his ‘brothers-in-arms’ to find the Mind Stone first.

“We’ll do surveillance around the Tower”, Runlow said, “with your permission, Mr. Stark.”

“Yeah, yeah, sure. I don’t want that thing near any of us.”

~~

“Wait”, Tony said. “Loki was under mind control back then?” 

You turned behind to face him, but a quick glance told you almost everyone was surprised. “You didn’t know? He told me back in 2014.”

Loki wasn’t there to defend himself, busy as he was being king, but Thor was. “Honestly, I didn’t know either, not until Asgard was destroyed. Loki told me on our way here that Mother chose to perform her purification spells out of everyone’s eye because... It would be better (or less worse) to have people believe Loki had turned evil than to have them know about Thanos. But yes, he was under Thanos’ influence through the Mind Stone. It wasn’t exactly like what he did to Barton and others, but close enough.”

That made an awful lot of sense. No one had a good answer for that, and they turned back to the ‘screen’.

~~

It took five years for the Mind Stone to be found. In the meantime, SHIELD was dismantled, the Winter Soldier was revealed to be a brainwashed Bucky Barnes and HYDRA was taken down piece by piece.

There was no Scarlet Witch, no Quicksilver, no Ultron, no Sokkovia Accords, no Zemo. Steve found Bucky in Bucarest in 2016 and, after weeks of talking and with Sam’s help, took him to New York. There, they faced another battle, as many people wanted him in jail for the crimes he committed as the Winter Soldier.

Surprisingly, their help came from Tony. “I know what he did to my parents, yeah. I read all those files Romanov leaked. But we all saw what brainwashing does to a person, huh?”

No, Tony and Bucky didn’t become friends. Despite his forgiveness, Tony was still wary of him; poor man had his own mental health issues to face already. But he was willing to pay the best lawyers to convince the public that Barnes had no control over himself for the past seven decades, and that the Winter Soldier was nothing but a weapon in HYDRA’s hands. It took time and money, but it was worth it, for Bucky was absolved and reclaimed his status as war hero.

Even so, he didn’t want to stay in US. “Too many memories”, he explained, and Steve understood. It all got worse when one of Tony’s employees found a glowing Stone in the elevator shaft. Thor wasn’t on Earth when it happened, so the Mind Stone stayed at the Tower for a while. Needless to say, Steve was worried, and Bucky was terrified.

“I found a place that might be good for you”, Maria Hill told him one day. “Y/Ci, in Y/Co. It’s a place untouched by HYDRA and with no evidence that the Winter Soldier ever stepped foot in there. No memories, no triggers.”

Bucky accepted the offer almost immediately, and Steve was happy to follow him. “I’ve had enough fights for a lifetime”, he said. “We should have retired from soldier duty decades ago, Bucky. We both deserve a normal life.”

It was early 2018 when they finally settled, and, upon Steve’s insistence, Bucky started looking for mental health care facilities.

~~

Your grip on Steve’s hand tightened when you recognized the mental health facility Bucky got inside. “I was an intern there at college”, you said. Steve’s eyes widened, and he grinned.

“Maybe Bucky will be the one to get you instead of me”, he teased.

Behind you, whispers could be heard.

“It’s weird to not see myself with you guys”, Wanda said. “I wish I could know if Pietro is alive.” Vision rested his hand on her shoulder, likely reflecting on how would his life be if he had stayed as a disembodied voice.

“Wakanda wasn’t even mentioned”, Shuri said. “I guess with father still alive, the borders remained closed.”

“Probably the reason why Bucky moved to Y/Co instead of Wakanda”, Sam added. “If people still think Wakanda is a poor country, no one would think of it as a mental health care reference.”

“I’m not mentioned either”, Scott said, “which is kind of weird, because I don’t see why I wouldn’t meet at least Sam.”

“Yeah, but there was no fight in Germany for you to take part of”, Hope replied. “They probably never contacted you again. Parker isn’t mentioned either.”

Someone shushed them.

~~

Even though he had scheduled it all by himself, Bucky didn’t want to go his first appointment alone. So, when Y/N called for Sebastian Stan (his new alias), he and Steve (who called himself Chris Evans) stood up together from their seats.

Inside, Bucky soon confessed his true identity. Your surprise was visible for five seconds, and then you smiled. “I’m glad you trusted me with such a delicate information, Mr. Barnes. But I wish you’d tell me your story with your own words, not just what was said about you on newspapers.”

Steve stayed inside the whole time, having also revealed who he was. Bucky didn’t tell his whole story at once, give there was a time limit for his appointment, but you asked him to come back in a week. “We can’t give you any concrete diagnosis for now, Mr. Barnes, though we have a few suspicions. But I assure you we’ll help you in every step of your recovery. You won’t be alone.”

After three more sessions, he was diagnosed primarily with PTSD, along with general anxiety disorder and memory problems (he had yet to remember key details of his past).

You were supposed to leave the facility at the end of the month, but your mentor offered you a prolonged stay. “You mentioned your next internship would be in surgery, and you don’t like it, right? I can pull some strings to keep you here. It’s not like you’ll need those skills to become a psychiatrist.”

You happily accepted his help. You’ve always been sure of what you wanted to do after finishing college; skipping surgery internship was honestly a dream come true, and you were eager to follow Barnes’ case. Your classmates didn’t know his true identity, but the case discussions made it clear you got one of the most complex cases at the facility, and some classmates envied you.

Your teacher was successful, and for the following three months you stayed, taking care not only of Barnes, but of other patients as well. It was a wonderful experience, and you were sure you had fallen into the staff’s good graces, which increased your chances at getting into residency program there after graduation.

As the weeks went by, though, you noticed something rather odd. Barnes had been getting inside the room alone since his fifth appointment, but Rogers still accompanied him, waiting for him outside. Eventually, you asked your patient why that was, assuming he’d say he still didn’t feel safe coming alone. Instead, he grinned.

“Oh, he pretends he comes for my sake, but he actually just wants to get a glimpse of you.”

You nearly choked on your own saliva.

~~

At your side, Steve laughed and hugged you tight.

“Guess I didn’t steal Y/N from you after all, punk”, Bucky said, grinning just like his alternate counterpart.

“Thank God”, you replied. “No offence, Bucky, but seeing us dating would have been way too awkward.”

“Couldn’t agree more.”

---x---

It wasn’t easy for Steve to convince you to go on a date with him. You were hesitant, given he was her patient’s best friend and roommate, but eventually you conceded.

“We won’t talk about Barnes at all”, you said firmly. “And if I sense this will affect my relationship with my patient, it’ll be over.”

“Yes, ma’am”, he replied instantly, willing to do anything to see you more.

You had charmed him from day one, and his interest on you only grew as weeks went by. When the day of your date arrived, he was a nervous wreck.

“Haven’t seen you like this since Peggy”, Bucky mentioned.

“Shut up, jerk”, he retorted. “And go hide, I don’t want Y/N to see you and cancel our date.”

“She’s got you wrapped around her finger and you haven’t even kissed yet”, he teased, but left to his room anyway.

A date led to another, and another, and another... Steve waited for you to leave the facility and stop seeing Bucky to ask you to be his girlfriend, and she promptly agreed.

A year later, when you met the Avengers for the first time, Thor told the story of how he, Loki and others fought Thanos when he invaded Asgard to take the Space and Mind Stones. Your eyes widened as he gleefully detailed the purple alien’s demise.

“Glad you defeated him still in Asgard”, Tony said. “We just found out about another of these Stones here on Earth. A wizard here in New York is its guardian.”

“Really? Give me his address, I figure we have much to discuss.”

You didn’t really understand all those talks, but Steve’s visible relief was enough information for you.

~~

On the current timeline, that same relief was visible among everyone. “A peaceful timeline”, you commented. “I hope there are more of these.”

After Strange showed what happened to the Avengers who were not featured, Wong took his place to show another timeline. You straightened your back as the ‘screen’ showed you briefly kissing Steve in Morag.

~~

Did you like it? I was looking forward to write about the consequences of those changes. Butterfly effect is strong here.

For those who don’t remember, in ‘Be Your Own Hero’ Loki tells the Reader he was under the influence of the Mind Stone in the events of the first Avengers movie. This is a popular theory that explains some differences between his behavior in that movie and his behavior on... well, any other movie he’s in.

In this, I try to touch on how things would be different if this information was made known right away, instead of being kept a secret. Being seen as a victim instead of a villain changes a lot for Loki’s story, and therefore Thor’s arc as well (The Dark World and Ragnarok’s. It also helps Tony understand Bucky’s story and actions better, since he saw the effects of mind control on Clint and Loki.

Scarlet Witch, Quicksilver, Ultron and Vision are all products of the Mind Stone, meaning that, in its absence, they don’t exist. The events of Age of Ultron are what make Civil War happen, meaning one doesn’t exist without the other. With no Civil War, nobody reaches out to Scott, T’Challa doesn’t become king to open the borders, and Peter Parker’s role in Tony’s life is probably less significant (though I do believe he mentors the teenager anyway).

If you want to follow my crazy ideas on time travel and its consequences, taglist is open!

#steve rogers x reader #Steve Rogers #steve rogers fanfiction #steve rogers imagine #steve rogers x you #steve rogers x y/n #marvel imagine #The Avengers

[the-hilda-librarians-wife]

The Mistakes We Made - Chapter 6

Summary:  When her high school girlfriend comes back to town after two years with a baby and a terrible story she won’t tell, the Librarian has to deal with the feelings she had worked so hard to keep at bay.

Notes: Warning: this chapter contains a homophobic slur, which may be upsetting for some readers. Also, this is the last chapter I’ll post before my classes begin tomorrow *cries* 

Read it on ao3: (chpt1) (chpt2) (chpt3) (chpt4) (chpt5) (chpt6)

In her whole life, Johanna had found few things that were more satisfying than finishing a good, long book. Though she loved reading, she wasn’t very quick at it, and so finishing a book always felt like some sort of victory for her. She was very lucky that her favorite company could most often than not be found in the library, so she never lacked incentive to go renew her current reads.

She got up from her chair and stretched herself, hearing a few of her bones pop from being in the same position for too long. But not even the mild pain in her back that had resulted from the afternoon’s reading session could dim her happiness. After all, tonight she’d do one of her favorite things in the world.

She would go out with Maven.

She smiled, picking up the empty tea cup from her desk and turning around to head to the kitchen. These days, Maven spent the better part of her time completing the assignments that the dean of Ericsonberg had given her, and Johanna was always all too happy to stay by her side and draw or read while she did so. Her girlfriend’s focus and determination were truly awe inspiring.

But of course, Johanna was still a little selfish for her attention, and so whenever there was a chance of spending some time with Maven when she wasn’t focusing on her tasks, she’d always jump at the opportunity. She hopped down her house’s stairs giggly, thinking about her girlfriend’s promises of hot cocoa in this freezing weather and of cuddling under fluffy blankets as they played card games or watched a movie.

The girl had just placed her cup in the sink when she heard steps behind her. “Dad!” She exclaimed when she turned around and saw the man watching her with a very pleased smile on his face. Her own smile widened at that. She liked to see him happy.

“My girl, let me ask you something.” He began, still cheerful. “Do you have plans for tonight?”

Immediately Johanna felt fear settle in her stomach, even as she told herself it was okay, for all her father knew Maven was simply her best friend, same as she had always been. “Yeah, I’m going to hang out at Maven’s.”

Just like that, her father’s smile melted into a frown. “No.”

She blinked, taken aback by his bluntness. “What?”

He sighed. “My girl, I get that the two of you have been close for years… but this has to stop. Your mother and I only allowed this friendship because we were convinced that when you grew up you would, well, come to your senses and be smart enough to realize that she is bad news. But you two only seem to be getting closer and closer and this has to stop!”

Johanna gasped, but he continued, though more softly. “Sweetheart… people are talking, you know? This proximity hasn’t gone unnoticed by the good people of this town. There are things being said about you.” He shivered at the thought. “Things that should never be said about good, Christian girls like you. And we are worried for you. Because there’s no way that the outcome of this relationship, even if it’s just a friendship, will be anything other than pain for you.”

Johanna got up, suddenly furious. “I don’t care what they’re saying about me. Maven is the best friend I’ve ever had, I’m quite sure I know her better than this town does!”

The man followed his daughter’s lead and got up too, but slower, trying not to anger her further.

“Look, try to see it from my point of view. My little girl is coming closer and closer to someone I know will break her heart and take advantage of her. I must do what I can to protect you.”

“I don’t need you to protect me from her.” She whined, tears stinging in her eyes. “I need you to trust me. Besides, I already arranged this with her. She’ll be waiting for me! I can’t just not show up!”

“You can and you will.” He said firmly. “Besides, we have just received an invitation that under no circumstances can we deny!”

Her anger was momentarily appeased by her curiosity. “And what would that be?”

“The mayor himself has invited us to a dinner at his house! He says it is to celebrate our children going to college at last. Isn’t it wonderful?”

“No, it’s not!” Johanna was not one to snap at her parents, but she was far too gone to mind. “I hate his son. And I want to stay with my friend. You can go eat with the Mayor, but I won’t!”

“I missed the part where this was a question, sweetheart.” He practically growled at her. “You are going to the dinner and you are not going to that dyke’shouse again for as long as I’m here to stop you!”

Johanna stepped back and bit back a sob. She knew she was trapped. She knew there was no way she could get out of this. Later they figure out a way for Johanna to meet Maven without anyone gaining knowledge of it, but for now she could only pretend to obey.

She lowered her head, holding back tears. “Okay. I- I’ll just send her a message to tell her I won’t make it.”

“No, you won’t. She doesn’t deserve your time or your kindness. Right now you’ll go take a shower, and then you’ll put on nice clothes and do your make up. Do you understand?”

A drop ran out of her eye and ran along her nose as she whispered, defeated. “Yes, father.”

_#_#_#_

When they arrived at the Mayor’s house - that would probably be better described as a mansion - Johanna realized that she knew most people there.

It wasn’t any comfort.

Many of her old classmates were there, however it was obviously that only the students that were either high on the town’s hierarchy or liked by Torrin. Johanna truly hoped she was in that first cathegory, but considering her parents’ works as a real state agent and a doctor, she didn’t find that likely.

When she had to greet Mr. Aven right upon arrival and he commented on how lovely a woman she was becoming, she thought that would be the most uncomfortable she’d feel that night.

She was wrong. The whole night it felt like she was being watched, put to test. Few of the people she tried to talk to actually seemed to enjoy her presence, which made her go from group to group in search for a conversation to pass the time.Finally, she ended up in the middle of an old friend group who had also taken Art with her.

In the beginning the conversation was innocent enough. But after a while it became clear that they wanted to move on into topics that they didn’t trust Johanna enough to talk about while she was there, and so with a sigh, she excused herself and walked away to the kitchen, where she found cooks and waiters amidst a flurry of activity.

There really was nothing for her to do there, but then again, there was nothing for her to do elsewhere either.

If only she could be with Maven…

She had just sat down on the kitchen table when someone walked up to her and greeted her in a voice that Johanna recognized. And it was recognizing it that made her cringe before lifting her gaze and acknowledging it.

“Hey”, she said back to Torrin Aven’s eyes.

At first, he let an awkward silence extend itself, which was quite unusual for him. He always went straight to the point. Rudely so.

“Can I sit here?” He asked, pointing to the chair by Johanna’s side, making the girl lift an eyebrow. They both knew very well she couldn’t say no to the host.

“Shouldn’t you be mingling with your guests?”

“Yeah.” He sighed. “But it just became too much for a second, you know? Don’t take me wrong, I love those people, but sometimes it gets hard to just do meaningless small talk.”

Johanna narrowed her eyes. That was new. Nothing like to Torrin she’d known at all. Was it possible that she was finally seeing the good, thoughtful person hidden behind the jerk? She shook her head to send that thought away. She would not be manipulated by a single relatable sentence.

Seeing he had her interest, he continued. “I insisted on inviting you, Johanna. You always seemed like such an amazing person. It’s truly a shame we never got along in school.”

Johanna chuckled, thinking that if he was truly sorry about their unexisting friendship, he would have probably behaved differently while they studied together. “Yeah, I wonder what could possibly be the reason”, she said sarcastically.

Torrin’s shoulders dropped a bit and either he was a really good actor, or he had been truly struck by her comment. “Look, I know you have no reason to believe me, but I’ve changed. I am changing! I’ve begun going to therapy, to work out my issues and all. Won’t you just… give me a chance to get closer to you?”

Johanna bit her lip and furrowed her brow. This boy was not on her list of people she’d like to befriend, but then again, if he was truly making an effort, wouldn’t the right thing be to give him a chance? She had always believed in second chances, and in the goodness of others, so she’d be quite the hypocrite if she shunned him for his past, wouldn’t she?

“Fine.” She sighed, and saw him light up considerably.

“Thank you!” He breathed. “I thought maybe we could talk a bit in private? I know a room in which there shouldn’t be any other guests. It’s pretty hard to find.”

Johanna got up. “Okay, then. Lead the way.”

As she followed him through the endless, richly decorated corridors of the house, she thought that maybe this evening hadn’t gone to waste. Maybe something good could come out of this.

Of course, this thought would probably vanish if she could look at his face as he guided her, and see that his smile wasn’t an innocent, happy one, of a boy who had just gotten a second chance. It was a predatory one. It was the smile of a man who knew he’d win.

#fic: tmwm #sketchbook ship hilda #sketchbook ship #sketchbook fanfic #d slur tw #the hilda librarian #hilda librarian fanfic #Hilda Johanna #Hilda's mum #hilda johanna fanfic

[imaginedanganronpa]

Mod where characters do you think deserve to survive in each game?

Oh, this is fun! I’ll leave Spoilers below, so heads up! Although, I’m sure most of you know the victims/killers but I’ll still cut it for safe measure :) Kind of long rant below!

For me, it’s hard to determine who I believe “deserved” to survive, because that’s a fine line. I do have a few characters that I wholeheartedly believe should have lived and got robbed. A lot of the killers had genuine Motives and the victims were all pretty sad, other than maybe Sayaka for example. I also might be biased and since all of these are characters I really like.

For Trigger Happy Havoc, the only character I firmly believed should have survived was Sakura. Her affiliation as the Traitor and reasoning for committing suicide was so heart-breaking, and I still hate how most of the remaining Cast turned on her and no longer trusted her. She’s the epitome of “they deserved better!” for me, because she was such a good person and truly wanted what was best for her classmates, but was unfortunately backed into a corner. I don’t think she deserved what she got at all. 

I also feel like Chihiro and Leon deserved better. However, my issue with them is that in Chihiro’s Case, yes, he didn’t deserve to be killed in Mondo’s blind rage when he just wanted help, but that situation coupled with the Motive was not one he ever could have predicted, and in Leon’s Case, killing in self-defense means nothing in the rules of Danganronpa. Although I think both of them got the short end of the stick, their deaths made for interesting plot devices and a more captivating story-line, so I’m not too mad at it.

I also think Junko killing Mukuro was cheap, but Mukuro shouldn’t have provoked Monokuma so, she kind of deserved it, I guess.

For Super Danganronpa 2, it’s hard for me to say. A lot of the Blackened had legitimate reasons or killed in cold blood, so eh. I think Gundham deserved better since he was just trying to save everyone (despite trying to say otherwise). I also think Hiyoko deserved to live since she wasn’t ever the target, and she was killed when she accidentally walked in on Mikan, so even though I’m not really a Hiyoko fan, her death wasn’t deserved. Also, Chiaki’s whole Case was pretty sad. Neither of her deaths were deserved in my opinion. 

As for Killing Harmony, I can be biased and say Rantaro didn’t deserve to be killed and I really wished he lived longer. I think it’s still bullshit that the Mastermind could interfere and kill him and pin it on someone else, but maybe that’s the sad fangirl in me wanting more time with her best boy. I don’t think he deserved it but I understand why he was killed, because of how well his death fit into the plot, it just made sense. (sad face).Otherwise, I don’t think Gonta deserved to die, either. I don’t think he ever would have done that had he not gotten involved with Kokichi, and considering he didn’t even remember killing Miu, it’s pretty upsetting that he still got executed. I know he had good intentions, though, and I’m not angry with him.

I also wish Kiibo didn’t have to sacrifice himself at the end, he was one of the end game characters that I really wanted to survive. 

Hope that rant was enough to answer your question!! xox.

[nobodyfamousposts]

I loved the post you did about Alya's parents getting involved in the Lila affair! Could you do something else about it? Whatever is! A continuation, headcanons, a similar story with the parents of another classmate, etc.

Think of it like a toxic friendship. Sure, we’ve seen Chloe and Sabrine with their toxic friendship, but that’s not the only variation out there and others warrant being explored.

Imagine this whole thing with Lila being a hurdle in Alya’s character arc rather than simply a rival in Marinette’s.

Consider if Lila is the sort of person who focuses in more on select individuals rather than big groups, as it means less people who can potentially catch her. After all, you can fool some people all of the time or all people some of the time—she goes for the former. And she picks and chooses her specific targets, which tend to be those who can offer the most use to her.

Adrien? Yeah, he’s on the list. He’s a famous model. He’s pretty. He’s rich. And he’s no doubt got connections. He’s definitely a keeper.

Chloe? She’s the daughter of the mayor who also happens to run the best hotel in Paris. She’s also rich and has connections. Plus, there’s the benefit of her having a massive ego. As long as Lila plays to it, she can be the one using Chloe while letting Chloe think she’s the one in control.

Alya? She runs the Ladyblog and is up front and center in a multitude of akuma fights. She has connections to Ladybug, has a budding career as a journalist, and was notably the closest to discovering Ladybug’s true identity. As someone who rather hates Ladybug, THIS would definitely be something Lila would want to use.

Marinette would be one as well if she wasn’t already on to Lila from the start. A pity, since Marinette is the Class Rep, has connections to Jagged Stone and other celebrities, is noted for her winning a design competition and her hat being worn by Adrien. She has skill and talent—and unfortunately, a good eye for people just as much as her designs. Lila is put out by the loss, but she has others she can use.

Adrien and Chloe are both high profile figures in the public eye who are generally used to people trying to use them. Lila’s attempts with them aren’t quite so easy since they have more knowledge and protection. Alya, however, does not. She’s still rash and prone to jumping to conclusions. She also makes very easy mistakes that could be avoided if she double checked her facts (the “Chloe is Ladybug” claim in particular stands out). Lila could just portray herself as a hero/Ladybug fan to get in with Alya and she would believe Lila is an asset to her cause rather than a traitor riding on her back.

So we have Lila cozying up to Alya and using her in ways that Marinette is going to hate—not simply because Lila is a lying liar who lies, but because she is an active THREAT to people Marinette cares about. This relationship would start to have a negative impact on Alya, her ability to do things, and her relationships with others in turn.

The thing is, it wouldn’t be just Marinette that Lila’s toxicity would affect. Sure, the show did it that way and we as the fans responded similarly, but it would hardly be that neat. A toxic relationship like this thrives on drama and conflict. Has anyone ever seen or heard about the Karpman Drama Triangle? The three sides are Victim, Rescuer, and Persecutor. Generally, it’s supposed to be the sides of a conflict, but in this case, Lila plays all three roles in SPADES.

So she regularly instigates conflict and then passes herself off as the “real victim”. It’s something we commonly see in salt pics where she makes some false claim about Marinette bullying her. She plays herself off as helpless and takes the Victim role to make others sympathize with her. But there are the other aspects, where she accuses Marinette of talking badly behind other people’s backs and plotting things, how she tried to “stand up to her” to solidify herself as the “good guy”. And if anyone attempts to mediate or rationalize, she jumps on them and makes accusations to immediately get them on the defensive so they’ll back down to try to console her.

Lila knows how to play this game. She’s done it plenty of times before.

But here’s the scary thing: Marinette wouldn’t be the sole target. She’d just be the FIRST one.

It’s easy to single out Marinette first to everyone. She’s the only one vocal in her disapproval of Lila and her claims. The class would have to be blind not to notice the animosity between them (or rather more blind than they already are to believe Lila’s lies in the first place). So even if they aren’t sure which of the two is the real source of the problem, they know that having Lila and Marinette together is grounds for trouble.

Some of the class would believe Lila. She’s awesome and promises them things. Why would she lie?

Some would believe Marinette. She’s been nothing but kind and helpful to everyone before any of this started. Why the sudden issue only when Lila comes along?

Lila would hone in on her specific targets during this time. She’d want to rope in everyone she can, but she has those key people she focuses on. Adrien, Chloe, and especially Alya. Secondary to Alya, she needs to have Nino on her side as well since he’s her boyfriend and could end up convincing Alya against Lila.

Adrien knows she’s a liar but is at least quiet and open to her manipulations. Chloe doesn’t trust her, but will at least let her be a hanger-on. It’s Alya that Lila is putting the most effort into ensuring at this point, and everyone else is secondary.

Marinette is Alya’s best friend and a major obstacle in this plan. So Lila slowly poisons Alya’s perception of her. Pointing out Marinette’s flaws. How flakey she is. How clumsy she is. How unreliable she’s been. Slowly but surely pointing out more and more negative traits about the girl. Until eventually, Alya is defending her less and agreeing with Lila more. That’s when Lila starts in on the “mean Marinette bullying me” angle. And Alya is at a point where she would believe it.

So their friendship is tarnished. As a result, the relationships between the other girls are more strained as well since some of them would still want to be friends with Marinette. Lila would either try to ensnare them as well or turn those she already has on her side against them. Dissent is not permissible, after all. And Lila either lies more about Marinette or acts wounded and victimized that they’re not supporting her. She attempts to force them to pick a “side”.

The results would vary.

Given her attitude in canon, Mylene would side firmly with Lila. Alix would be more trusting of Marinette and get tired of the antics and drama soon enough. Rose would try to stay friends with everyone while Juleka would stay silent and stick with Rose, which would put both girls in a difficult position as they would be frequent targets of accusations until eventually they have enough as well. 

And as soon as anyone else breaks ranks, Lila turns on them just as easily. Sometimes even if they don’t. They would end up being turned on each other as much as against Marinette or anyone Lila deems an “enemy” at the time to keep herself the center of attention. Sob stories and accusations galore. In that case, some of them would be aware of what she’s doing but too fearful to actually try to leave out of fear of what she may do.

In the meantime, while having the majority of the group backing her, Lila would continue to take advantage of their bleeding hearts and push to have them do as much for her as she can get away with much like she did in Chameleon. Whether having them do menial tasks or acting as “go-fers” for her. Among other things. Like trying to get Nathaniel and Marc to make a comic about her. Free music from Nino. Increased interactions with Adrien. And in particular, free access to the Ladyblog and any inside info from Alya.

In the midst of all this, what Alya thinks is happening is that she’s protecting a new friend from an old one that went bad and giving support to someone who needs it. To an outside observer, Lila is a negative influence who is using Alya for whatever she can get from her and poisoning Alya’s relationships with other people. This wouldn’t just be Marinette, but also her other classmates, her family, and even Ladybug. Because she’s Ladybug’s number 1 fan. She’s devoted so much time to her. Doesn’t she deserve more? Doesn’t Ladybug owe her the truth? It’s that building up of Alya’s ego while at the same time increasing her dependency on Lila.

After a while, she may try to interfere with Alya’s relationship with Nino. What if she was the one nudging them to focus on their dates more than their babysitting responsibilities and other chores in the home? And when their families start to take issue, Lila can play it off two ways—both that the family doesn’t understand and that Alya’s time with Nino is a distraction.

Thus a slow but eventual breakup occurs. Nino is left unaware as to what caused it.

And since Alya has all this free time now, she can spend a bit more time supporting Lila. Taking on more burdens and work to help her. But Alya wouldn’t realize that she’s also taking on more stress as well. Because most people don’t realize that there is a level of constant stress of being around someone like that so much. It’s like boiling lobsters—because the stress and tension is such a slow buildup, most people don’t realize just how much of it there is until it either blows up or they get away from it. And even if they do realize it’s there, that’s not to say they’d know where it came from or why.

With Lila pulling her strings, Alya would attribute it to Marinette. Or to her sisters. Or to Nino. Or to anything and anyone else other than the one person actually responsible.

This would be what her parents are seeing. Stress has a physical affect on a person just as much as it has an emotional one. They’re seeing that Alya is snapping at her sisters, becoming more withdrawn and isolative, and not attending to her chores or homework. But they’re also seeing she’s not getting as much sleep, has no energy, is “never hungry, and can’t seem to focus.

To be fair, the secret identity of Rena Rouge wouldn’t help matters, but with Alya’s issues and worsening temperament, it stands to reason that Ladybug would avoid bringing her out if at all possible, which would just add to Alya’s frustration and stress.

When a manipulator of that level is whispering in your ear, the actions of everyone can look like a betrayal. Either they’re turning their backs on you when they’re trying to stay away from what they’re seeing as a negative relationship, or they’re doubting you when they’re confronting you on how unhealthy the situation has been and telling you that you need help. Anything done out of genuine concern looks warped through that lens.

Fortunately, her parents have enough and draw the line before it gets that far. They never liked Lila. They didn’t like her lies. They didn’t like her false sweetness. And they certainly didn’t like the effect she has having on their daughter.

That’s why they have that sit down talk with Alya and confront her. Because yes, they’re being nosy and interfering with their child’s friendships, but when it’s having a negative impact on their child, of course they have to respond.

And Alya would see it from the perspective of a wronged teenager. The way that Lila has shaped the lens for her to see it through—that everyone is against her. That her parents are trying to control her. That nobody trusts her—not like LILA does.

The fact that Alya doesn’t become an akuma with this mindset is a surprise, even to herself later on. But in an attempt to prove their point, her parents make a deal with her that they will lessen the grounding if she can show them proof—clear undeniable proof of Lila’s claims. They fully agree to admit they were wrong if she can, with the bargain being that she will not have any contact with Lila whatsoever if she can’t—which to be fair, she probably wouldn’t want to anyway. She agrees. So they let her use her computer to attempt to look up any information backing Lila’s stories and give her an hour or two to search.

Alya finds nothing.

It…kind of ends up hitting her pretty hard. She refuses to believe it at first, and attempts to make excuses. But her parents are patient and part of the point of this period of being grounded is to give her the chance to process.

And while she may be grounded, that’s not to say her parents don’t help. They support her. They let her take as long as she needs to accept the realization and come to terms. They give her space to cry and rage once the truth sinks in and she finally understands just how much she was manipulated.

Once the worst of the emotional upheaval is over and Alya refigures her priorities, they let her have use of her phone back to call Marinette and Nino to apologize.

#ml salt #good parenting #lila sucks #alya cesaire #toxic relationship

[sombrz]

Hello please talk about king explosion murder

THE BOY!!!!!

can you believe i spent months trying to be lowkey about my bakugou ships? it took me a while to even admit he was my favourite despite the fact i knew from the start i’d end up a bakugou stan. i never had a ‘oh no this kid’s a mean terrible person’ phase - it was a ‘oh, i can’t Reveal my character tastes like this. not like this.’ phase.

this got…..long. so uh. under the cut it goes:

ANYWAY: i ship bakugou with…..uh…….a lot of characters. kiribaku is the easiest to explain - dumbass jock boyfriends who do shit like baku using kiri as a hammer to make mochi. and kiri being gung-ho about testing his unbreakable mode (which, btw, was motivated by bakugou’s words!!!) by having bakugou fucking. use howlitzer impact on him. you know how i feel about bro ships (hint: i love them). how kiri went from ‘man this bakugou guy is nuts!!! we have to stop him!!!!’ to ‘wow bakugou is so manly and cool and i wanna be by his side’ in the span of (1) one-on-one convo. HE LIKES BAKUGOU SO MUCH. IT’S CUTE. LIKE, I DON’T THINK BAKUGOU GETS HOW HAPPY HE MAKES KIRISHIMA LMAO. how bakugou so readily accepted kiri as an equal - bakugou, who only had two categories for people [extras vs rivals], never thought to seriously think of kiri as anything but an ally and a friend, people always talk how kirishima was the first classmate bakugou even bothered remembering the name of, and with reason, since it says a lot. kiri’s got quite a bit of mlm subtext going on, tbh, and bakugou’s the source of almost all of it. soooooo there’s that too. 

but i’ve also fallen Deep into bakudeku. it’s the shared development, okay. the history and complex emotions and the slowburn to becoming partners. there’s just so much, and they’re so ENTRENCHED in each other. for better or worse, for how much they might dislike the fact they can’t stop thinking about each other, they just can’t help it. they couldn’t understand each other at all but somehow still knew the other inside and out. and deku’s been so smitten since he was like a baby 3 year old and it breaks my heart. it’s honestly one of my favourite shounen rival ships bc it keeps subverting your expectations. and every episode/chapter that deals with their issues and nudges them closer to the ideal - the endgame - is guranteed to be among the best. they’re the backbone of the series, and i love watching them grow together. the fact that they’re currently HEALTHY RIVALS AND TENTATIVE FRIENDS (like deku feels so comfortable gushing over bakugou to his face again and bakugou is so invested in deku’s improvement & is only snappy w/ him out of reflex lmao)….that bakugou is deku’s secret keeper and deku is the one person bakugou allows himself to be vulnerable around……HOO BOY. i just imagined bakugou holding out his hand for deku to take - or accepting deku’s hand at all - and died.

ALSO, TODOBAKU….my darkhorse ship, which hit me in the face one day when i realized how a) hilarious they are together and b) how the series keeps shoving them together (sometimes literally - thanks slidin’ go for giving them the group hug they deserved). i love how they’re so different yet similar - bakugou is loud and obnoxious while todoroki is stern and quiet, but they’re both rude prodigies who needed to be jumpkicked into realizing that they could become better people with the help of others instead of letting anger and bitterness swallow them up. and the provisional exam course made it so they were forced to hang out with each other 95% of the time for three whole months and i LIVE FOR THAT. i love how funny they are - todoroki is snarky & doesn’t even bat an eyelash over bakugou’s tantrums but genuinely tries to be nice and make friends with him! bakugou is so petty and wants todoroki’s attention soooo bad but don’t think i haven’t noticed that most times we’ve seen him genuinely smile has been in todoroki’s presence (ok, then todoroki reacts to it and bakugou instantly goes back to a snarl but STILL). also the fact that the narrative doesn’t want us to forget that bakugou eavesdropped on todoroki telling deku about his family, and bakugou is always Alert and keeping an eye on todo whenever endeavour is involved bc he’s sympathetic and y’know??? cares????? SO GOOD. AND THEY’RE SUCH A GOOD TEAM - SURPRISINGLY IN SYNC AND THEIR QUIRKS MATCH UP AND I LOVE THEM!

GOD, HORI…..BAKUGOU/URARAKA WOULD BE SO GOOD. like, can you *imagine* the sheer potential of a ship that you only really have them interact during one goddamn tournament fight and yet it becomes arguably the most popular het ship in your series (w/ only the main character and his canon love interest as real competition????) i love them though, like,,,,i find it so interesting that uraraka has shown, despite again - minimal onscreen interaction - that she understands bakugou better than most. she knows how he’d handle their fight and uses that to her advantage. (and while she still lost, she gained his respect and a new drive to get stronger!) she’s the one who brings up how HE’D feel about the plan to go rescue him - that his pride would prevent him from easily accepting help. i’m desperately trying to figure out a way they could animate that omake where uraraka plants herself in deku’s seat and demands that bakugou bury the hatchet with him while gently but firmly calling him out for his root issue of fear and his defense mechanism of violently pushing deku away. and it managed to calm him down and honestly, i wouldn’t be surprised if he ruminated on those words for a while. IT’S SO GOOD, WHY WASN’T IT IN THE STORY ITSELF!!! and like, the mere fact he respects her a lot and ended up *psyched* to continue fighting her - and after he’s told deku had nothing to do with her plan, i don’t think he’d make that mistake again, which makes it easier for him to understand her back. he knows she’s smart and talented and that everyone else was wrong to underestimate her. also, i love that uraraka thinks bakugou is like…..funny? he’s out there threatening to murder kaminari and uraraka’s like ‘hahaha :’’)))’ bc she has such a Bro/vulgar sense of humour. like, i think they’d have a lot of fun together. LET THEM TALK MORE, PLS!!!!

THOSE ARE MY MAIN SHIPS BUT I ALSO SHIP HIM WITH THE REST OF THE BAKUSQUAD! BOTH PLATONICALLY AND ROMANTICALLY! I HAVE NO SHAME! baku/kami is so underrated and great - kaminari is just as much bakugou’s bff as kirishima is, tbh, and he has absolutely No Chill which makes their interactions - especially the further the story goes and bakugou’s edges soften - so much fun. one moment, he’ll be casually commenting that bakugou is the worst and needs to change his whole rotten personality - then the next second, he’ll be sprawled all over him, calling him kacchan and defending his honour from actual haters. and bakugou just fucbdhfhd lets this happen. bakugou likes kaminari enough to just let him. do whatever the hell he wants. ALSO, THE BAND. admittedly, sero is the only one with enough common sense and actual standards to avoid dating bakugou (’HE’LL NEVER BE BEAUTIFUL’ ghdhfhd sero) but i still adore them. sero’s so tricksy and loves playing the reverse psychology trick on bakugou, who just constantly falls for it. i bet he was the first person bakugou let just hang out in his room, and he probably appreciates that sero actually gives him his space when he needs it! i can’t believe baku/sero is the Real ‘bakugou pining’ ship. @ hori: GIVE MINA AND BAKUGOU ACTUAL INTERACTIONS, GDI. i’m forced to headcanon their whole dynamic from near-scratch. whereas kiri and kami are more the type to glue themselves to bakugou’s back, i imagine mina’s the type to actively drag bakugou along places. she probably cried when she found out that a) his parents are rich designers (’BUY ME CLOTHES, BAKUGOUUUU’) and b) his glycerin-based quirk and taking after his mom means he usually has perfect skin and has never broken out in his life. she doesn’t speak to him for a week until he takes her out to dinner and buys her a cute dress. and i’m super fond of baku/jirou. i love that their dynamic is like…..while the rest of their friends are doing dumb shit For The VineTM, they’re on the sidelines waiting for shit to hit the fan. they’re punk buds and prob do that couples clothes switch thing a lot just to see if anyone notices. jirou bosses him around and he takes all her advice seriously and like, they trust each other! they have great team synergy! she was the first person bakugou both consciously protected and asked to protect him in turn!! DID I MENTION THE BAND?? i also ship him with camie! it’s just such a funny concept to imagine - like imagine you’re in class 1A and bakugou shows up out of nowhere with a hot girlfriend who talks. like that. and she makes him laugh??? and no, seriously, does he actually understand what the hell she’s saying???? WHAT’S HAPPENING. but yeah, she very casually teases him but also seemed comfortable w/ him right off the bat and i know in my heart that bakugou relented and let her have his phone number. also, i find it funny people started shipping him with shindou after bakugou was the one to call him out for being duplicitous. bakugou’s the type of character that just needs to interact with another character once and *someone* out there will be like ‘what if………..they were dating’ and that’s so valid of them.

good bakugou ot3/ot4s: kirishima/bakugou/uraraka, todoroki/midoriya/bakugou, todoroki/inasa/camie/bakugou. i reblog a looooot of kirishima/kaminari/bakugou and bakugou/uraraka/midoriya even tho i don’t actually ship either as an ot3 that much, oops? they’re good ships tho.

is there something i’m missing? I MIGHT BE MISSING SOMETHING.

#katsuki bakugou #asfornow #questions #reply #but you were the one in my life #your declaration of war was to the wrong person #if you refuse to go down it means you're stupidly strong #what part of her was frail #bakusquad