August 13, 2019: Where we left off

Marinette stared in shock at Allegra. "Lycée d'Art Monet? But how? I just got home, I didn't even have the time to apply."

Allegra gave her an understanding smile. "I just got called maybe half an hour ago to come and make you this offer. My friend Allan's dad is on the school board, so maybe we can ask him. All I know for now is I am to invite you to attend our open house this Saturday." She handed Marinette a pamphlet as she continued, "You will first have the opportunity to tour the campus, I will be there to show you around. Then a presentation about the school and a chance to interact with the instructors."

Marinette nodded as she looked through the pamphlet, focused on the fashion section. There were classes focused on styles, sketching, workshops for fabricating clothes. She was amazed at the variety, and that was just the fashion page. Acting, art and music were also available, both as majors and as side studies along with the regular high school subjects. Marinette looked up at Allegra again. "But this school is expensive, I don't think my parents can afford to send me here."

The kind blonde girl nodded her understanding, her purple eyes flashing excitement. "You are getting offered a full ride. The headmaster told me the school is very excited about getting you to join." She tilted her head as she gave Marinette a curious look. "Although, what got them so excited is not known to me. No offense, it's just that I never heard your name before today."

Marinette smiled, hiding her concern that her secretly being MDC had been figured out. "I had a few of my fashion pieces judged and approved in contests created by Gabriel Agreste."

Allegra nodded, not caring much for the famous fashion designer. She pointed to the back of the pamphlet. "I wrote my contact information on the back there for you. You can call or text me about anything you want to ask." Marinette nodded her thanks, still a little bit shocked by the sudden offer. Allegra gave her a warm smile. "Great! I look forward to seeing you at the open house this weekend." She started to leave, waving goodbye as she headed to the bus stop. Marinette waved at her before going back inside to show her parents the news.

Allegra pulled out her phone as she took her seat and started typing.

A#sharp: she seems interested

Dramaboi: whats she like?

A#sharp: seems a bit shy, but probs just wary of strangers

RollCameras: is she famous? Or talented?

A#sharp: not sure, she seems to be keeping her cards close to her chest

Dramaboi: oooohhh, a mysterious new girl!

Dramaboi: I like her already!

RollCameras: I will try to get more info out of my dad

A#sharp: down boys! Heel! Make sure to give her some space so you don't scare her away!

A#sharp: I will give you more deets after the open house. Just chill out until then, okay?

August 18, 2019: Skylar

The guardian watched her younger counterpart burst into the coffee shop with an excited look on her face. "I take it the open house went well?"

Marientte grinned at her. "It was amazing. Lycée d'Art Monet is huge compared to my old school." She narrowed her eyes at Skylar, "Though the timing of this with me coming home is a little suspicious."

Skylar gave her a reassuring smile. "Don't worry, that was us. We slipped in your qualifications without mentioning your connection to your brand. I thought about letting them in on it, but there are reporters offering rewards for information about MDC."

Marinette nodded, the secret identity of MDC was starting to rival Ladybug and Chat Noir as the most sought after information. Had Marinette identified herself as the designer, she wouldn't have a moment to herself as the representatives from bigger brands would know where to find her. "Thanks, this is huge."

"You deserve this, Marinette. We are just giving you the boost you need." Marinette smiled her thanks, saying goodbye to Skylar before heading out again.

August 23, 2019, Ladybug

Feeling good, Marinette decided it was time to do her first patrol since she got back to Paris. Crouching down on her balcony, she grinned at her kwami. "Tikki spots on!" In a pink flash, she was Ladybug again, casting her yoyo out. Swinging through the city, she heard multiple civilians call out in awe at the sight of their hero. She smiled and waved at them as she continued the patrol route, stopping in at the park. The mayor had commissioned statues of Ryuko, Viperion, Rena Rouge, Carapace, Pegasus and King Monkey, wishing to honor them for their service to the city of Paris. The retired heroes flanked the statue of Chat Noir and her like an honor guard. Ladybug sighed as she looked over the heroes whose identities had been exposed, wishing she could have done things differently.

The absence of Queen Bee seemed to drive home that sense of failure, the decision to call on Ryuko out jealousy instead of Chloe still haunted her. The resulting loss of Master Fu and his copy of the translation of the spellbook. Despite the sentimonsters becoming more common, the war on Hawkmoth seemed to stand still for two years, no one making progress at victory.

As Ladybug stared at the statues, an elderly woman walked up beside her, "A shame, isn't it? Queen Bee was my granddaughter's idol, a real role model even." She sighed, shaking her head, "Yet that Chloe girl threw it all down the drain over some petty thing to work with a terrorist." She gave Ladybug a comforting smile, "I know you heroes try your best to protect us and to me, that is enough. Don't listen to those who say that you are not good enough, because they don't know your burdens like you do."

Ladybug smiled, her spirits lifted, "Thank you ma'am. It means alot to hear you say that." The elderly woman smiled at her again, then continued on her walk. Ladybug took one last look at the statues, then swung off to wrap up her patrol. As she came close to the end, she suddenly stopped at the sight before her.

Chat Noir was crouched by her trapdoor, knocking gently on it. He waited for a moment, then with his ears drooping vaulted away. Ladybug watched him go, curious more than ever about her kitty.

September 3, 2019: Marinette

Marinette stood nervously in front of Lycée d'Art Monet, feeling nervous as she gazed at the massive school. She felt Tikki nudge her supportingly inside her pocket as Allegra spotted her and rushed over waving excitedly. "Hey Marinette! Excited for your first day?" She was wearing a white shirt with a purple vest, similar to what she wore when they first met and at the open house.

Marinette flashed her a smile back. "Hey Allegra! Excited is one word I guess." She shrugged, "I'm just a little bit nervous I guess."

Allegra gave her a comforting smile. "We all have first days, but don't worry you got me to help you through it." She led Marinette through the front doors and to the student lounge, chatting about how they share classes for everything but the majors. Marinette learned that Allegra plays both the guitar and the flute, working hard in hopes to work with Clara Nightingale someday. Marinette thought about introducing her to Luka, but then remembered how long it had been since she talked to him.

They arrived in the lounge, two boys already there playing a game of air hockey. One was a tall brunette cacausion with blue eyes, dressed in a blue and white t-shirt. The other an african american wore a green hoodie with a short haircut. They were clearly too distracted by their game to notice the girls arrival until Allegra cleared her throat. The boy in the blue shirt noticed Marinette and bowed dramatically. "Hello my fair lady."

Marinette giggled as Allegra rolled her eyes, "Cut it out, Claude, before you weird out the new girl." She gestured at him. "This annoying excuse for a human is Claude." She ignored the look of hurt Claude shot at her as she gestured at the other boy. "And this is Allan. Guys, meet Marinette."

Allan eyed her curiously. "So you are the one who got the school board so excited. Nice to meet you."

Marinette smiled at both of them. "Thanks, it's nice to meet you too." She looked over the two of them, noting all their clothes were MDC Brand. "So are you guys music majors like Allegra?"

"Not exactly," Allan stated before Claude could. "I am in cinematography, hoping to get into film school. And this ape is my current lead actor who thinks he has a shot at stardom."

Claude pouted at his friends. "It's been a minute and you two are already making me look bad in front of Marinette." Allan replied by hitting the puck into Claude's unprotected goal slot, getting another reaction from the drama student to his delight. Marinette giggled, feeling hopeful for her new school.

Lunchtime

After a busy morning, Marinette finally found some peace at lunch. That is until Claude sat across from her. "So we never heard about your major?" He waggled his eyebrows at her, "So, what is the mysterious Marinette interested?"

Allan smacked Claude as he settled in next to him. "Quit harassing her and give the poor girl some space will you."

Claude looked to Marinette for pity. "See how they treat me? I get no respect or love here."

Marinette giggled again, amused by Claude's antics. "I am in fashion, I want to be a designer and see my work recognized."

Allegra sat down next to her. "So you want to work for Gabriel Agreste then?"

Marinette shrugged and said, "I used to, but I met him a few times and am not particularly eager to work for him as I used to be. He seemed so great as a designer, but as a person he is worse than Claude." She smirked at him while Allan and Allegra snickered.

The actor shot her a hurt look. "Not you too. I had so much hope for you sweet Marinette."

"Maybe there will be another new kid to join your side so you won't be so lonely," Allegra commented, getting a snort out of Allan. Marinette giggled again, surprised by the group. When she insisted on sitting in the back alone in their morning class, all three of them got up and sat down in the back row with her. She didn't ask them, they just did it. The next class was the same, just that time they followed her right away. Why they did that, she did not understand but she wasn't going to argue. They weren't bullying her, just quiet support as the instructor introduced themselves. Claude tossed over the odd note over with a pun on it, but they mostly kept to themselves. Allegra noticed her not paying attention to the conversation as Claude challenged Allan to a duel dramatically. "Hey Marinette."

Marinette perked up. "Yeah?"

"You spaced out or something, what's up?" Allan and Claude turned their attention from their bantering to her as well, concern on their faces.

"It's nothing, I'm just surprised at how friendly you guys are. You moved to sit next to me in classes without me asking and now again at lunch. I just wasn't expecting anyone to be this kind on my first day."

The three of them gave her a mix of confused and concerned looks, not speaking for a moment. Finally, Claude spoke up, "Why wouldn't we? You are kind and clearly have some talent. And Ally told us about hanging out with you at the open house and when you first met."

Allan nodded in agreement, "So we decided to invite you into our group of platonic friends."

Marinette smiled. "Thanks guys. This means alot to me." The other three simply grinned at her, making her feel welcome.

"Welcome to the Quantic Kids!" declared Allegra.

Marinette gave her a confused look, "The quantic what now?"

Allegra and Claude groaned, dramatically complaining about how she ruined the moment while Allen shrugged. "It's sort of our squad name. It started out as our discord server's name, then we just adopted it for more than just that. It's mostly Claude's fault." Said actor turned to glare at Allan as Marinette giggled.

After school

After the final class, Marinette accepted Claude's invitation to join him for a game of air hockey. It was safe to say that she definitely surprised him with her fierce sense of competition, catching him off guard right away. After the first game where she creamed him, Claude begged for mercy, getting more laughter from her.

She had a pretty good day, learning that outside of fashion, she had the same classmates for each subject. Though Allegra had a separate Discord for the three of them, they had another for the whole class named 'Art Squad'. Some she learned that she could help low-key via her company.

Mark: The quiet trombone player

Brittany: a fierce redhead who wanted to model and actor (Marinette made notes for potential trial hire)

Ashley: loud artist who loved to draw her classmates

Kyle: the matchmaker, which usually never worked, and painter

Darren: Photographer (Marinette made note of him too)

Holly: the sweet guitarist and songwriter, Marinette noted privately that she seemed to eye Brittany shyly often

Tyler: Split between acting and directing

Nathan: Trumpet player

The class wasn't as big as she thought it would be, but then she learned that these were the third group of students, using the smaller classrooms to make scheduling easier. Marinette liked the smaller size, making it less overwhelming. Needless to say, she liked her new class and was eager to learn more about each, but for now she just wanted to settle in. And literally everyone wore MDC brand clothing, which blew her mind.

Claude recovered from his horrible defeat, "Let's try a different game. Ping-pong?" Marinette nodded, not sharing that she had lightning fast reflexes thanks to intense guardian training sessions. In a few minutes, Claude threw his paddle away dramatically sighing, "Why? Why must I be so humiliated?"

Marinette shrugged, "Next time we should invite an audience, maybe then the peer pressure may ruin my game enough for you to actually score a point." She laughed as Claude dramatically stormed out with a smile on his face, clearly trying not to laugh at himself.

Tikki zipped out. "You could have let him score at least one point."

Marinette smiled. "I can't help being competitive Tikki."

Tikki rolled her eyes. "You just want to show off." Marinette gave her a guilty grin as she slung her bag over her shoulder and headed to the subway. Once off the closest stop near her house, she carefully went past her old lycee. Her old classmates were hanging out on the front steps, chatting about their summers most likely.

She moved carefully, doing her best to stay hidden, not ready to face them yet. But a certain blonde model noticed her and broke off from the group to follow her. Adrien didn't even make it to the bakery before his phone rang, mostly likely Natalie demanding to know where he was. Looking longingly at the bakery, Adrien sighed and picked up the phone, "Hello? Yes Natalie, I will be right there." Maybe Chat Noir will have better luck tonight he decided as she turned to head back to the school to meet his driver.

Ladybug

Once again, Ladybug returned from a patrol to find Chat Noir on her balcony. This time she decided to surprise him, landing quietly behind him. "Chat, please tell me you aren't planning on begging for food?"

Chat's head jerked around, his snarl turning into a smile, "M'lady!" Ladybug smiled as he eagerly hugged her. "I didn't know you were back!"

"I am now, just got home." She felt bad lying, but she wasn't ready for an identity reveal and if Chat thought Marinette had been home for weeks, then he might make the connection. "So, are you begging for food again? Or planning a robbery?"

Chat shook his head. "No, I was hoping to see princ… I mean Marinette."

Ladybug raised an eyebrow, smirking at her partner. "Were you about to call her princess?" Chat blushed, finding something very interesting on his ring. "And why may I ask do you call her that?" she pressed, enjoying his embarrassment.

Chat looked at her, face still red with embarrassment. "Well after you sent me to protect her, I visited her a few times. And there were a few akumas I saved her from. I figured I was like a knight saving a princess and it sorta just stuck."

"Yet I never heard you call another girl, even me, that?" She smirked at him again. "I think you have a crush on the baker's daughter."

"I guess I do." Ladybug froze, what? Chat Noir wasn't joking, his face was an expression of softness she had only seen before when he told her that he loved her. He was serious about this. "I never really knew until it was too late, after she left for a fashion opportunity two years ago. She is really pawsome you know? Creative, sassy and always tries to help others before herself." He sighed longingly. "Every now and then I think I see a light on in her room and get my hopes up. But she is never here."

Ladybug felt her heart throb, of course the stupid cat would fall for her twice. "Maybe you just missed her?"

He nodded solemnly, gazing at the trapdoor again. "Yeah, maybe someday." He turned his attention back to her. "So, finished training?"

She nodded. "Yeah, that was intense. But I am glad to be back in Paris, I missed living here."

Chat smirked. "You mean you missed my warm purresence?"

She stared him down. "Nope, the wifi." Chat pretended to be hurt as she laughed at him, complaining that he got no respect.

September 16

As the instructor left them to their own devices, Marinette started browsing her old bookmarks for news feeds. Scrolling past a bunch, she stopped at one: the Ladyblog. Taking a deep breath, she selected the link…

...And was shocked by what she saw. The last update was on December 18, 2018, titled, 'Marinette, Please'. The one before that was October 13, 2018, titled 'We're sorry, Marinette'. The day before that was a video post titled 'I am sorry everyone'. All the interviews and posts related to Lila Rossi have been deleted she noticed, the pieces starting to come together. The first video was just Alya in her bedroom, apologizing to the Ladyblog followers for posting false information from an unreliable source. Alya acknowledged her mistake in not fact checking Lila's claims. At the end, she announced she will no longer be posting as the Ladyblogger.

The second was shot in Ms. Bustier's classroom, the enter class standing together in the front of the whiteboard. One by one everyone said their apology, starting with Alya and ending with Adrien. She felt herself captivated by his green eyes again as he apologized for telling her to take the high road and not standing by her side. Marinete looked over the first couple of comments, wincing at the way people slammed her former classmates for being bad friends and falling for a liar.

The last post on the Lady Blog was a short video with just Alya in her bedroom again, her eyes red. "Hi Marinette. I hope you get this, uh, message. No one has heard from you since you left and I'm hoping to get some sort of sign that you got the video." She took a deep breath, "The truth is I have never been a good friend to you Marinette. I used you and left you for your talents when something that seemed better came along. I am sorry Marinette and I hope you give me another chance." Taking another deep breath, she finished, "I really hope I hear from you Mari, things haven't been the same since you left." The video ended leaving Marinette stunned.

Allegra looked over at her, "What's up?"

Marinette shook her head and quickly switched to the MDC homepage, "Nothing, just checking out that fashion brand you guys like so much."

Allegra grinned, "Honestly, MDC's designs are the bomb, you would love them." Marinette smiled back at her, Alya's plea still fresh in her mind.

September 22: Marinette

She was doodling some designs in her sketchbook when she heard a loud thump on her roof. Setting the book to the side, Marinette waited for a knock, but there was no knocking. Curious but cautious, Marinette quietly eased her trapdoor open a crack. The sight before her was one no one has ever witnessed before: Chat Noir was pacing nervously. "How hard is it just to knock and say, 'Hi princess, how was fashion school?'" Marinette tried her best to not giggle, Chat Noir was nervous about talking to her? "No, no, no. that's sound too creepy, she never told me she left for it in the first place." Marinette frowned, he had a point, how did he know?

As Chat started pacing again, she decided to take the initiative for him, "Just so you know, I still don't adopt strays." It pleased her to see Chat jumped in surprise as he stared wide eyed at her. "What? Cat caught your tongue?"

She giggled as he stumbled over his words, "N-no, I-I uh, just, um, you know." Chat couldn't form a single coherent sentence in his head as he stared at Marinette, now standing across from him. She definitely had changed for the better since he last saw her, her body maturing despite not changing much in height. Marinette was still a head shorter than him, staring up at him expectly. She was so beautiful, so amazing, so...

"Find what you are looking for?" Chat blushed hard as he realized he had been caught staring as Marinette raised an eyebrow at him.

"Uh, I need to, um, patrol! Yes! Patrol, I need to finish it!" He bowed dramatically, his face still red as her ladybug suit. "Have a go-good evening, purrin-incess!" Before he could make a further fool of himself, he pole vaulted away, leaving behind an amused Marinette to go back to her sketches, a certain flustered cat on her mind.

November 24, 2019

Marinette decided to go out to a coffee shop while reviewing MDC's quarterly reports. She liked her room to stay a place of relaxation and creativity, a random coffee shop could always be left as a place she conducted business at. Sipping at her cappuccino, she had her tablet set up before her with the report her accountant sent her. Apparently she chose a popular coffee shop by accident, Alya striding in up to the barista. Marinette cringed and focused her attention on her tablet, hoping the reporter wouldn't notice her. Lady luck didn't have her back that day, Alya spotted her as she turned away from the counter. Her eyes widened as she recognized her friend, "Mari!"

Marinette forced a smile, trying her best to seem thrilled. "Hey Alya, how is it going?"

The former Ladyblogger stood awkwardly next to her table, the only chair taken by Marinette. "It's going, Christmas break is closing in so everyone is getting excited." She fidgeted nervously and asked, "How have you been?"

Marinette smiled, this time more genuine. "It's been good, still catching up with what's been going on in Paris still."

Alya nodded. "I haven't seen you at school…"

"I transferred. When I got back, an art school invited me to join them."

"Oh okay." Alya seemed to accept it for a moment. Then the dam broke. "I'm so sorry about everything, you can hate me or not I just wanna say I screwed up. I'm sorry, I just want to talk to you, I'm really sorry, but can we please catch up because I haven't seen you in years and I just want to talk to you, you see? You just do whatever you want, I just want to be friends with you again please!"

Marinette sighed, she knew this moment was going to happen and wasn't sure yet. Her old classmates left her once and could leave her again after using her for a while for the free stuff they want from her. "I don't know Alya. A lot has changed and I don't know if I am ready for this again."

"But," Alya caught herself, looking down as she mumbled, "Okay, but I will pick up if you call." She started to leave looking back at Marinette. "I really hope you give me another chance." Marinette nodded her acknowledgement and with that, the blogger left, trying not to cry.

December 17, 2019

In the lounge seated in a booth, Marinette doodled in her sketchbook as Allegra sat next to her, going over some sheet music. Allan and Claude sat across from them discussing the short film they were working on. No one expected Brittany to burst in with Holly following, "Guys, I heard a rumor someone famous might be joining our class after the break!"

Marinette shrugged and went back to her sketch as the others speculated curiously of the potential celebrity's identity. "Could it be Adrien Agreste?" Claude asked.

Allan shook his head, "No, I hear he has friends at his current school and doesn't want to leave it. Even his father can't make him leave that place."

"But nearly everyone in their class had been akumatized in the last couple of years except him," Holly said quietly.

Brittany nodded and added, "And a bunch of them had been akumas multiple times, even different versions."

Allan frowned. "And yet they never had therapy or been taught to control their temper?"

Allegra shrugged. "They are a bunch of hormonal teenagers, what can we really expect? Hawkmoth probably picks and chooses his victims." She took a moment to consider the school, "Isn't that where that Lady Blogger chick goes too?"

Claude nodded. "Yeah, though she hasn't posted since she got discredited. Her career as a journalist is probably gone for good."

Marinette prayed they wouldn't connect the dots between her and the school, she wasn't ready for that. Brittany jumped in unknowingly to her rescue. "Who cares about that? That's old gossip, someone famous might be joining our class!" She squealed as the others chatted, speculating on the mystery identity of the new classmate. Marinette went back to her doodling, her old classmates long forgotten by her new classmates to her relief.

January 6, 2020

Marinette walked into her new homeroom, hoping to talk to her teacher before class started. No one else was there yet, but there was a seat arrangement on the whiteboard. She was in the front, seated next to the window. The spot next to her was labeled 'new student'. So Brittany was right, there is a new student and Marinette gets the honor of being their deskmate. To her amusement, she noted that Allegra, Claude and Allan were all placed in separate corners of the classroom.

People started pouring, greeting her as they took their seats, chatting about their Christmas vacations. But the new student failed to show. As the bell rang the teacher came into the room. "Okay now, settle down everyone!"

Brittany raised her hand and asked, "Where is the new student, sir?"

He smiled. "He is a bit late this morning." Just then there was a knock on the door. The instructor walked over and opened it, stepping aside to reveal the new student. Marinette couldn't stop herself from staring at the new student. Her jaw was dropped in shock. Adrien Agreste stared back at her.