Marinette POV

The day after Alya's little sister died, I woke up early. Tiki didn't have to fly around my face motivating me to get up. I even got up before my alarm, which don't remember happening before.

Getting up early usually implies that one is well rested. However I barely slept a wink. Alya's little sister had died, and I hadn't done a thing about it. Tiki was constantly trying to reassure me that it wasn't my fault. Sometimes being a hero meant making sacrifices as a civilian, but so far being ladybug hadn't hurt anyone but me. I didn't like Alya being hurt because hurt I was ladybug, it wasn't her fault I was a hero after all.

Not only that but I was grounded, which means I couldn't go and offer Alya support at home, I was only allowed to see her at school. My parents never got angry, they only ever got disappointed with me, which was some how worse.

"Marinette, you were irresponsible, you didn't come straight home after school and you didn't answer you phone. You made us worry and also made Alya worry, who did not need extra worry, at that point in time especially. I am really disappointed in you. Until we feel we can trust you again, you are grounded."

At that point I didn't even try to give excuses. I just excepted it mumble with a lowered head. Tiki's efforts to make me feel better did nothing, and my sleep didn't come. Leaving me staring mindlessly at the ceiling, wishing for once that I didn't always have to be selfless, and that I could just give up being Ladybug.

I arrived at school way earlier that I usually did. Not even noticing the students who tried to greet me, rushing straight past them all until I got to the classroom, where I could just see Alya sitting in Nino's seat with her head on the desk balling with Nino doing his best to comfort her.

I was about to open the door when Chloe stepped in my way.

"I don't think she wants to see you right now." she said snottily tossing her blond hair over her shoulders and lacing the word 'you' with hard hitting venom.

I flinched, avoiding Chloe's gaze and looking at the ground. I didn't even know how Chloe knew, but I could tell she did. She knew, and was here, rubbing it into my face. I didn't even have the strength the stand up to her, after all, it was justified.

"Everyone thinks you're a such a hero Marinette, a little angel. Not so much of a hero now. Besides Paris already has two heroes, Ladybug and Chat Noir, and they do their job much better than you do. You weren't even there to help you best friend. Why can't you be more like ladybug? It do us all a favor if you were." She turned and cackled before walking off with Sabrina at her heels, who shot me a pitying glance.

Chloe was right. Why couldn't I be more like ladybug? Tiki always says that ladybug is me. I could be brave, and witty, and confident. But I was just Marinette. I wasn't brave, or witty and I didn't even have it in me to tell Adrien I loved him. I wasn't even confident or brave enough to reveal my true identity to Chat. I was not ladybug.

Just then Tiki came out from my purse, flying around my face.

"Don't listen to Chloe, she doesn't know what she's talking about, as usual. You are everything ladybug is, you ARE ladybug."

But Tiki could do nothing to console me. For all her faults, this time, Chloe was right.

I numbly turned away holding my hand out for Tiki and putting her back in the purse, before walking quietly out of the school and sitting on the steps waiting for classes to start.

Adrien's POV

I hopped out of my car, walking up the steps to where I usually greeted Nino. But Nino wasn't there. Marinette was, sitting with her head in her hands and looking very lonely and very lost.

I went up and placed a hand on her shoulder.

"Hi Marinette."

She didn't even look up to greet me, barely acknowledging my presence with a mumbled hello. I may not be all that good at reading social cues, but even I could tell that something was wrong with Marinette. I sat down next to her, swinging my bag down beside me.

"Marinette, what's wrong?"she didn't seem to here me so I put a hand on my shoulder. Suddenly she looked up at me, and not even seeming to register who I was spoke.

"Don't tell me you don't know." she didn't stutter, didn't even appear to even realise who she was speaking to. Her eyes were glazed over. Mystified I asked;

"Know what?"

"Know that I completely failed my best friend, even Chloe seems to know." I frowned slightly. What could Marinette of all people do to fail someone. Marinette was so inherently dis-positioned towards being cheerful that I was surprised to hear her speaking like this at all. I remained silent, not knowing what to say.

She looked away briefly before returning her gaze towards me, this time stronger and saying;

"What do you do when you completely screw everything up?" she asked, desperation clinging to her words.

I was getting worried. Marinette seemed completely distraught. She was a prime akuma target.

"Calm down Mari, I am sure there is a way to fix this." I nearly chocked on the end of my sentence, not realising that I had called her by the nickname I had heard Alya and occasionally Nino calling her. She didn't seem to mind though, didn't seem to even realise.

"I can't get akumatized though, akuma's have to want justification and they have to be angry at someone else, the only person I am angry at is myself."

I was surprised. Marinette didn't strike me as someone who knew a lot about akumas.

"How do you know so much about akumas?"

That seemed to snap Marinette out of whatever revere she was in. She looked at me and seemed to struggle to find words.

"Oh, ummm, A-Alya. Yeah, Alya told me." the stutter was back, I noticed. Though the answer she gave made sense, of course Alya would know.

Just then the bell rang and I offered my hand to help her up which she blushed slightly before taking. We made our way into class to together. When we walked in however I noticed Nino was in my usual seat, with Alya in his. I raised an eyebrow at him and Nino just shrugged like, 'what can I do about it?'

I turned to Marinette.

"Is it okay if I sit with you for the day, it seems as though Alya has kicked me out of my seat.

Marinette just nodded her head absentmindedly, her gaze fixed with a conflicted expression on where Alya's head of curls were visible from where her head was resting on the desk.

I made my way up to Alya's usual seat and Marinette came and sat next to me, her gaze still fixed on where Alya was. Marinette didn't even seem to realise that I was next to her until I answered my name for roll call. She then jumped in her seat and stared at me in shock. I scratched the back of my head embarrassed, why was she looking at me like that?

Chloe then walked in and I suppressed a groan. She rambled off some excuse to the teacher, something about being caught in traffic, and resumed walking towards her seat, flipping her hair flamboyantly over her shoulder. Then her gaze caught on Marinette and I and a snarl seemed to latch itself onto her face.

"What are you doing sitting next to my Adrikins. What, did you throw yourself on his mercy? Did nobody want to be your friend after what happend with Alya? Adrien is to good to be your friend, so you shouldn't go throwing yourself on his conscious, it's not his fault he's to nice for his own good. There's a spare seat up the back in the corner, just where you belong Marinette, out of sight, out of mind."

I was shocked,m, Marinette didn't even put up a fight like she normally did, just looked at the desk. Not even Alya seemed inclined to stand up for Marinette, and the teacher had only just realised there was a commotion, turning around to to talk to the class. Chloe wasn't going to get away with it however. Not with Marinette already feeling bad about herself.

"Leave her alone Chloe, I chose to sit here, not Marinette, it's not her fault."

Chloe turned her gaze from Marinette to me, it was full of contempt.

"Adrien I thought you were to smart to fall for the good girl act. sShe's not a good person, the only good person around here is Ladybug and Marinette is nothing like Ladybug."

Marinette looked close to tears and finally Ms. Bustier stepped in.

"That is enough Chloe. Go to your seat. You can spend your lunch time with me. No one is like ladybug, and it is unfair to accuse anyone of not being like the super heroine, Ladybug is a superhero after all." out of the corner of my eye I saw Marinette wince, almost imperceptibly. It seemed as though Ms. Bustier had not actually helped, only make Marinette feel worse about herself.

Just then Marinette got up and ran out of the class. Despite the teacher calling after her. I got up to go after her but was held back by the teacher.

"No Adrien, give her some alone time."

I went back to my seat and stared at the door, waiting for Marinette to appear, and growing more worried by the second when she didn't.

Then the screaming started.