D/C: I own nothing.


Second Chance…

Second Chance…

Second Chance.

There are so many chances Marinette could give before she loses how many eff's she could give about her class now. Except for Sabrina and to some extension, Chole as the bespectacled teen had more or less told the Mayor's daughter of her past. Just enough so that Chole will not kick up a massive fuss once she returns from her trip with her mother.

Even so, Marinette is alone and needs to start putting the plan into action. The first step is to take a step back and evaluate the situation. That situation is, of course, being one Lila Rossi and her never-ending lies. Attacking the lies directly resulted in her being alienated from the class and Marinette needed to go about it differently. There was no way she is going to take Adrien's advice. Sabrina made it clear and managed to get into her own mind, that Adrien is someone that she could no longer consider a friend.

Adrien made it loud and clear that her own feelings did not matter, that he made her feel like no one. The no one that Lila is not hurting with her constant lies. Marinette does not need that. What she needs are people that could stand by her, not push her around and force them to comply with the demands of others.

So, when Marinette took her seat in the back of the classroom and ignored Adrien as he too took a seat next to her. Adrien attempted to gain Marinette's attention, but nothing was working, he needed to talk to her to make sure she sticks with no longer bothering Lila anymore. But no matter how much he tired, to the point of trying to tap on her shoulder, Marinette should move away from her in favor of texting with someone on her phone.

"Marinette?" Adrien said, once again trying to get Marinette's attention.

"Did you know Jagged put on a poll on his twitter? 'What's your favorite animal to have as a pet?'" Marinette couldn't help but chuckle to herself when she saw Adrien pale at the corner of her eye. "I can't decide between dog, hamster or Fang."

"Marinette… did you talk to Jagged about Lila?" Adrien did not bother to hide his accusatory tone from her. It appeared she was not taking the high road.

"Me? Not talking to Jagged? He commissioned me to do some work for him." Marinette did not look away from her phone. "Are you insinuating I shouldn't talk to him? About future work?"

For his own part, Adrien recoiled. Oh, how he had temporarily forgotten that Marinette knew Jagged personally and did some work for him. But to personally have his number… and in constant contact with him. "Have you-"

Luckily for Adrien, the teacher walked into the class, announcing they are going to do group projects.

Mari ❀❀: It's just that… there's this new girl at my school, saying that you supposedly have a cat?

? Uncle Jagged ?: Really? What kind of stuff is that? Please tell me you don't believe her, I don't even like cats. Too mainstream and dangerous to have around Fang. Plus, with Penny's allergies towards animal fur makes it right down impossible to have one.

Marinette knew two sides to Jagged Stone. The one that he shows to the world, the rock star, and the human behind the mask. If there was one thing, she could easily count on with Jagged is his ability to temporarily drop his façade when the times come for it. He's being really serious about Lila's lies that concern him and Penny to an extension.

? Uncle Jagged ?: Whenever we have people come backstage, our guards check out of they have been in contact with any sort of animals. Otherwise, we'd make sure Penny doesn't go near them and I have to steer clear of her after the meet and greet. So not cool with what she is saying. Just say the word and I'll come by for a visit to clear things up!

Mari ❀❀: Don't come until I say so, I want to keep the fact I know you on the down low right up the time to reveal it…. That and I need to finish your commission.

? Uncle Jagged ?: That's my girl!

Bugaboo2: He tried to make me not contact Jagged! I know the guy. He perfectly knew I know the man and I do commissions for him. Did he really expect me not to talk to him about what has been happening?

Little-Miss-Understood: I told you he's not worth a second chance.

Bugaboo2: I know… It's just that… I thought, never mind. He made it rather clear that he expects me to take the high road on this and to just roll over to comply with his wishes.

Little-Miss-Understood: Which you are not doing, I hope?

Bugaboo2: No! God no, I am sticking to the plan. He lost his second chance the moment he did not bother to take my feelings into consideration about Lila. What did you manage to pick up on the others?

Little-Miss-Understood: …not good. Lila has a very, firm grip on many of them. The only ones that show promise are Nino, Alix, Ivan and Max. The others a too far gone into Lila's lies.

Bugaboo2: Really?

Little-Miss-Understood: Nino is following Alya and doing whatever to appease her. He has tried to talk to Alya about her behavior but gets shut down rather quickly about it and Adrien isn't exactly encouraging his friend to seek the truth either. Alix was never promised anything through Lila's lies. She simply is skirting around the crowd and never really putting up too much input. Ivan, similar to Nino, he's following Mylene. Max is an expert in computers not when it comes to humans. Everyone else in the class… we have better luck convincing Alya Ladybug hates her blog than convincing them about Lila's lies.

Bugaboo2: Understood…. Thank you."

Little-Miss-Understood: You are welcome. At this point, you need to make a line in the sand and figure out what you are going to do with Alya. Out of everyone in the class, she is the one you need to completely be on board on cutting all ties with her. Lila has her claws gripped tightly to her that Alya will believe everything she says and will defend it to her very last breath.

Bugaboo2: That is what I am afraid of.

It was one thing to be around Alya when they are at school, but it is a completely different thing once they are Akuma-fighting superheroes protecting Paris from Hawkmoth. Ladybug needed to reevaluate Rena Rouge and see if her personal life is interfering with her hero work. At first, things were going okay. Nothing out of the norm.

Rena Rouge still being Rena Rouge, if she keeps this up then maybe she still has a chance. Ladybug hopes Rena will be able to separate her civilian life from her hero one. At this point, this could be the only way she could trust her.

Waving good-bye to Chat Noir after taking down another Akuma and it was time to separate ways before the last beep of their miraculous.

"Ladybug!"

'Right now, she is not Alya. She is Rena Rouge.' Ran though Ladybug's mind as she turned around to see Rena running up to her. Rena's miraculous began to beep, possibly be the beginning of the end. "Yes, Rena?"

"I was wondering if you could tell me how exactly you decide on who becomes a hero?" Rena asked she didn't bother to hide her excitement let alone that knowing glint in her eyes. "Who receives a miraculous?"

Ladybug took in a deep breath and resisted the urge to pinch the bridge of her nose. Suspicion began to fill her mind as she knew that familiar glint meant. She had seen it many times before and the outcomes of that glint always got Alya in trouble. "I am not the one who fully decides on who receives a miraculous."

"But you could put in a good word for someone, right?" Rena asked she bounces on the ball of her feet waiting for Ladybug to confirm her thoughts. "Like with myself?"

Beep.

"More or less but… yes." Ladybug nearly grounded out, she so did not want to have his conversation with her. She suspects that Rena knows who is Carapace, so that takes Nino of the list of who could be a possible future miraculous holder. "I pick people who I believe we, Chat Noir and I, could fight alongside with. People who have the heart of a hero."

"Have you thought of having someone else helping us? You know, just in case if we need backup?" Rena did not miss a beat. "Giving Chole a miraculous was a very bad idea. You could have given it to someone else like…. Lila! Your best friend."

Beep.

Ladybug sucked in a deep breath, who she needed to steer this conversation elsewhere. "Chole… Queen Bee has shown progress in being a hero for Paris. Yes, she still needs some work, but she is getting there. As for Lila… it's a no."

Beep.

"No? Why not?" Rena questioned; her entire posture turned defensive. "She's your best friend, right? Why don't you consider her as a possible backup…?"

Beep. Where Rena Rouge once was, now stood Alya Cesaire who is still ranting.

Ladybug did not bother to listen to whatever else Alya attempted to argue that Lila would become a stupendous Hero. She managed to get a word in when she saw Alya took in a deep breath to continue with her argument. "What about Marinette? She would make a stupendous hero."

Alya did not bother to hide a snort of disgruntlement. "Like she'll even have the time to be a hero. Don't tell me she is filling your head with lies about Lila. Marinette is jealous of Lila, who by the way, is your best friend!"

"Are you insinuating that Marinette Dapain-Cheng is brainwashing me about Lila Rossi?"

"Yes!"

"You're fired. Give me back your miraculous." Ladybug finally said, extending her arm out for Alya to give her back the Fox Miraculous.

"Wh-what?"

"I gave you a second chance and you blew it."

Nino did not know what Alya was telling him through the phone. He had just finished helping his mom at the family's food mart. Nothing out of the norm for him. It brought in a sense of relief for him from constantly having to run around Alya who is constantly running after Ladybug or helping Ladybug… it's a never-ending cycle. Then there are the fact things are becoming to become tense ever since Lila transferred into their school.

Alya became obsess with Lila to the point it is becoming a constant strain in their relationship. Either Alya is following or helping Ladybug, following Lila and when they do manage to find some sort of time to date, they both must babysit their younger siblings. There were times that he actually preferred to stay home to take care of Chris than to go out after a long day, more so to not get in trouble with his mom. He had to bribe Chris to not spill the beans that Marinette has been babysitting him to oppose himself.

Marinette… Nino felt uneasy with how things were going for her in and out of school. Every time he attempted to say something, Alya, Lila and even Adrien will quarrel down his doubts about her supposed attitude towards Lila's words. Of course, he's not exactly innocent on the entire matter, he knows he plays a part to it and those doubts are once again rising as Alya cried through the phone.

"What do you mean, you got fired?" Nino had to lower down his voice as he walked past a random couple. What was said next caused Nino to physically and mentally take a step back. Is Alya blaming Marinette for what happened? How did that happen? Of course, he knew that Marinette had encountered Ladybug and Chat Noir from time to time, but to be in talking terms with Ladybug? To supposedly brainwash her about Lila. Nothing was making sense to him. No, the only way to make sense of things is to talk to Ladybug about what happened. Yeah, that's what he'll do.

Nino looked up into the sky wondering how he would start the search to look for Ladybug when he saw her swinging by. She is probably looking for a place to power down before her own timer goes off. Lucky for him, the street is clear, and no one was around to hear him shout out for her. "Ladybug!"

For her own part, Ladybug did take a pause to land in front of a randomly closed storefront before she turned around to the person that called out her name. From what he could see from his spot, Nino could see that Ladybug is trying really hard to not cry and putting up a strong front. "Is something wrong? Another Akuma attack?"

"No, no, nothing like that." Nino measured his steps when he walked up to her. "Could we talk?"

"We are talking right now." Ladybug pointed out.

"As Nino… not as…" Nino trailed off, he had reached up to pull on his cap to make a certain point with her. "To not raise suspicion. I just want to talk about is all."

Ladybug looked away from Nino, chewing on her bottom lip wondering if she should talk to him. Then she remembered her plan and promise. She has yet to give Nino his own second chance. His own second chance is not connected to Alya's own decisions, he is own person and thus, she needed to know where he stood in all this massive mess. With that in mind…

"We'll talk during patrol tonight."

"Does anyone bother to ask me about Lila? No one does! Alya… oh, Alya…" Ladybug does not know what got into her when she started to tell Carapace everything, well almost everything, on what has been happening to her. Mainly going over how Lila's lies have been affecting her. She could later chalk it up to the fact that she and Nino were once close friends before life got the better of them. That and she really wanted to get it off her chest that is not Tikki. There are so many cookies she could bribe the little kwami so that she would not do something her own self. "She claims to be a good reporter who always verifies her sources, she never bothered to ask me if her supposed reports are true? No. She does not. Everything Lila has ever said about me is…"

Carapace rubbed his forehead as he took in Ladybug's words. Oh, he should have seen this coming. He should have seen this coming from who knows how long ago. From the way Ladybug is describing Alya, it makes his girlfriend sound like Lady Wifi. Someone that will stop at nothing to update the Ladyblog with the next best thing, without even caring on how she gets the information.

"To top it all off… Lila had nearly caused me-Marinette to get Akumatized." Ladybug huddled into herself, whispering out the word more to herself than to Carapace.

"What?" Carapace could not hide his shock at the news that he didn't even take note of Ladybug's slight slip up. "Marinette nearly got Akumatized? When? How? Is she okay?"

Ladybug looked away from Carapace in favor to look out into the city. They ended up on some random rooftop that overlooked the city. "At this point, it is hard to say. She confided to me what Lila has been saying and doing against her."

"What has she been doing against Marinette?" Carapace asked from his spot on the roof. He knew he should not allow his emotions to get the best of him. That would only invite Hawkmoth to bring in more trouble whenever it is not necessary. "Ladybug, what has Lila been doing against Marinette?"

"…It's not my story to say, I'm sorry. If you want to know more, you have to ask Marinette yourself."

Marinette groaned into her hands as she paced around her room. She really messed up tonight. Really messed up. She said faaar too much to Carap-no, to Nino. She said far too much to Nino about what has been happening to her.

What if he did not believe her?

What if he will once again get entrap by Lila's lies?

What if-

Tikki, for her own part, could only shake her head as she had her fill with cookies. She felt bad for Marinette but knew that what was said could not be undone. At least she did not stop Nino from continuing his work as a Miraculous Wieldier at this point. Maybe there is still some hope for him? Time will tell at this point.

Marinette's phone rang, causing the teen to trip over her own two feet. She quickly went over to her desk where she was charging her phone to see an incoming call… from Alya.

Taking in a deep breath, she answered the call and waited for whatever Alya wanted to complain about this time.

"NINO BROKE UP WITH ME BECAUSE OF YOU!"

Marinette pulled her phone away from her ear to see who exactly she is talking to. Once seeing it is Alya that is calling her, she put the phone up to her ear once more. Alya continued with her yelling on with blaming her now former best friend onto why she was blaming her for the breakup. All of which is a load of bull. Lots of it.

"Alya… Alya… Alya…" Marinette began to lose her patience with the girl on the other line. It got to the point she simply allowed Alya to scream while Marinette pulled up her messenger app to text Sabrina.

Bugaboo2: Alya and Nino just broke up. She's blaming me because of it.

Little-Miss-Understood: I know, she created a group chat to 'discuss' about it with all the girls minus you. Luckily for you, Rose once witnessed them arguing about one thing or another ever since Lila came into the picture. She believes that it was something that was bound to happen is Alya is looking for any excuse to blame anyone but herself.

Bugaboo2: Really? Rose…?

Little-Miss-Understood: I may or may not have something to do with that…. Did you have anything to do with the breakup? Just wondering.

Bugaboo2: I…. I'll text you later. Alya is losing her voice.

Little-Miss-Understood: She's calling you?

Bugaboo2: More like screaming.

Little-Miss-Understood: Please tell me you are recording this.

Bugaboo2: What do you take me for? I'll send you a copy late tonight. Plus, depending on how tonight goes, I may have gained a friend back.

Little-Miss-Understood: Keep me informed.

Marinette closed the app before she put the phone by her ear once more. "Are you done?"

"What the hell does that supposed to mean!"

"I haven't talked to Nino in weeks. Weeks." Marinette didn't bother to hold back a hiss. "Every time I've ever seen him is when he's spending time together with you or Adrien. I never could even say hi to him before you drag him to who knows what. Stop blaming me for something that is completely out of my control. Maybe you'd spend less time gossiping with Lila, you would have seen the massive train wreck that's coming your way."

Without even waiting for a response, Marinette hung up on Alya. She was so tempted in throwing her phone against the wall in frustration but the last time she did that, she almost hit Tikki. That was the last time she ever threw anything in her room. Along with having to make several trips down into the bakery to grab cookies Tikki and many, many apologies afterward. Yeah… not her greatest moments to date.

Marinette was about to put her phone back to charge when another call was coming in. Muttered under her breath, wondering who is calling her this time. Her eyebrows shot up when she saw it was Nino who is calling her. Looking over at Tikki, who had by now taken refuge somewhere under the bed, peaked under the covers to motion her to pick up on the call when she saw Marinette's look of complete distress.

Answering the call made Marinette wince as silence was the only thing she heard. "Hello…? Nino?"

"I take it Alya called you?" Nino asked from the other side of the line.

Oh, she is going to need to sit down for this. "I did. She is blaming me because you two broke up. What happened?"

"I… I need… How do I say this…?"

Marinette could tell that Nino is struggling with whatever he wanted to say with her by a massive long shot. There was a long pause between them. It wasn't awkward or felt completely out of place. It was just giving someone enough time to gather their thoughts before they say what was needed to be said.

"How was your day today? How are you feeling?" Nino asked.

Marinette could hear Nino cursing at himself for not saying what he actually wanted to say. "I no longer have a best friend; she thinks I brainwashed her now ex-boyfriend and is not talking crap about me to someone that threatened me… yeah. Not so good."

Pause…

"Could we meet tomorrow? I don't want to say I'm sorry through the phone, I rather say it in person."

"You just said, 'I'm sorry' just right now and I accept your apology."

"Marinette… I swear you're too good of a person for any of us. I'm serious. I want to hear your side of what's been going on without anyone interfering."

"Promise not to judge or jump to conclusions?"

"I'll listen. I've been told I'm a great listener."

"Alright. Tomorrow." Marinette agreed before she hung up. She looked up at her ceiling, wondering who she is going to face Nino tomorrow. Lucky for them, tomorrow is a Sunday and classes. Or maybe that's a bad thing… no, it's good. The last thing she wants is to face Alya tomorrow for something that might as well be her own doing.

Marinette could not help shaking her head at the thought. She's going to have to talk to Nino about the breakup tomorrow. To see what happened and what broke the camel's back on their relationship. She wanted to feel bad but at the same time, she does not feel bad about what happened. At now she could honestly say, she possibly gained back a friend that is more than willing to stand by her side during this tiring time.


R/R.