(Summary: Marinette is forced to resign as class president and Lila is her replacement. This could only end badly…)

Marinette had been running late to school when she had received the text from Adrien.

Minou: Alya is on the warpath. They're removing you as Class Prez.

Me: thanks for the heads up adrien

Marinette couldn't say that she was surprised. She had been expecting something to happen. After all, it'd been a while since Lila had tried to ruin Marinette's life. Honestly, she wasn't even mad. Marinette had been considering resigning as Class President ever since they'd stopped treating her as if she mattered. This wasn't even the worst Lila could do, as proven by Principal Damocles when he'd expelled her.

And so, when Marinette walked into class, she ignored the glares, holding her head up high as she walked past them. Adrien was sitting at the back of the class. Marinette ran up the stairs, easily avoiding Lila's outstretched leg.

"How long?" Adrien asked.

"Hm… a minute?" she guessed as she plopped into the seat beside him, pressing a kiss to his cheek.

"I dunno. They might last two."

Marinette laughed, waiting for somebody to turn and look back. "Alya or Lila?"

"I was thinking Sabrina would do it." Marinette raised an eyebrow at him. "Oh, come on. Have you not noticed her new deposition towards Chloé? She's become Lila's loyal guard dog."

"At least she hasn't stolen the royal guard kitty." Marinette scratched under his chin as she spoke.

Adrien scoffed playfully. "That was one time! Not my fault if Malediktator got me!"

Marinette grinned. "Well─"

"Oh, Marinette!"

She looked back at Adrien. "Lasted two minutes, but it's Lila. We even?" Adrien shook her outstretched hand as Lila stood at the desk she shared with Alya. That was entirely on purpose. She wanted a reaction.

"I'm sorry to have to tell you this, but the class has decided that since you haven't been doing your job as Class President, that you have to resign."

Marinette didn't even tense. "That's alright. I just hope that everybody realises that not everything is going to be the same, if that's the case."

Lila's eyes narrowed. "They've also voted me in as your replacement. You're not angry are you?"

"Nope." Marinette popped the 'p'. "Good luck, Lila. But you should know…" Marinette leaned forwards, clasping her hands together and setting them on the desk. "Alya won't be able to be your deputy."

"W-what?" Lila asked.

"Excuse me?!" Alya demanded. "Marinette, it's not my fault if you haven't been doing your job! Lila asked me to be her deputy!"

"Did you read the rule book?" Marinette asked, hiding a smirk. "'If a President is voted out, then their deputy is also not allowed to take up their role again'. You see, Alya, I know you've never done anything, but a deputy also has a job. To make sure that the president does theirs, and to help them with whatever project they are working on for the class. Considering that I 'haven't been doing my job', you haven't either, and so you can't be Lila's deputy."

Alya stared at her in bewildered shock. "T─that's not true! You're lying! She's lying!"

Adrien shifted in his seat. "Max?" He was frantically flipping through the school's rule book.

"She's… telling the truth."

And an uncomfortable silence settled over them. Adrien leaned down so he could whisper into her ear. "I love you, you know that?" Marinette chuckled, leaning her head against his shoulder.

"I can be your deputy, Lila!" Sabrina exclaimed, bobbing up and down.

"I─uh… thanks, Sabrina! That's so nice of you!" Lila smiled tightly at her. "I don't know what I'd do without you!"

Marinette refrained from giggling. Now this would be a show.

The first thing she messed up was Rose's birthday. Marinette made sure to get to school extra early to see this mess.

When Alya walked in, she looked around with a frown. "Where are the decorations? The cake? The presents?" Alya looked up, catching sight of Marinette. "Marinette! Why didn't you get the cake?!"

Marinette shrugged, the picture of innocence. "I was never asked to make a cake, Alya. Why would I do that? I'm sure Lila's on her way with it now."

Alya relaxed. "Yeah─yeah, you're right. She'd never let us down!"

Lila let them down.

When she walked in without a cake in her hands, Alya hurried towards her. "Lila! What about the party!"

"The… party?" Lila repeated. "What party?"

"It's Rose's birthday! You were meant to set up a party for her! Why didn't you?!"

"T-th-that's because it's─it's Marinette's job! Yeah. She's always set up the parties before!"

Stares turned to Marinette in the back, and many people began to scold and berate her. "But Lila, it's your job."

"What? Girl, she just said─"

Marinette sent her an icy stare. "Yes, I did set up parties before. But that was because I was the Class President. It stopped being my job when you all fired me. So, yes, it is Lila's job."

When Rose entered the room, you could tell the second that she realised there were no decorations, cake or presents. Rose didn't comment on it, she just dejectedly shuffled to her desk.

Marinette did, however, see the second her posture straightened and the grin that spread across her face as she looked back, mouthing "thank you" to her. Marinette wasn't mean enough to ruin Rose's birthday. She had left her present in Rose's desk, a dress patterned with pink roses, and a box of pastries that individually spelt 'Happy Birthday Rose!' with one pastry saying '-Marinette'.

Of course, Lila realised that she needed to save face, so she claimed that the party was actually happening after school. She had then made Sabrina go and throw together a rather crappy party. If Marinette was asked to comment on it, she'd say the food tasted like cardboard. By the looks on everyone's faces, they agreed.

The tipping point ended up being their class trip.

Marinette had been the one to bring it up, knowing full well that Lila had, once again, messed up.

"Where are we going for the class trip, Lila?" she asked innocently.

"The class trip?" Lila repeated. "I─I that's n-not my─"

"Not your job?" Marinette repeated, voice sugary sweet. "But it is, Lila. It's the Class President's job to organise the school trip and propose a way to raise funds for it."

"W-well─"

"Surely you know that, Lila? It was all in the leaflet I gave you."

"I─of course I knew!" Lila chuckled nervously. "I've already organised everything, too!"

"Really, Lila?!" Mylène exclaimed. "Cool! Where are we going?"

"It's a surprise!" Lila exclaimed, her voice tight as she spoke. "You'll all see soon enough!"

"So you sent your report to Principal Damocles on why it would be beneficial to the school, and you also wrote an essay for the Board of Directors to review so they could check to make sure it'd be safe for the pupils?" Marinette asked, her sugary voice laced with venom. Adrien smirked beside her.

Lila's eyes widened. "I─I─I don't─"

"Oh, what am I saying! You've definitely done that! After all, it was due last Monday!"

"I didn't know─"

"Marinette!" Alya exclaimed. "I can't believe you didn't tell Lila that!"

"Oh, but I did," Marinette replied, crossing her arms. "I did just say that I gave her a leaflet that detailed her job as Class President."

"B-b-but─"

"Are you saying that we aren't going to have a class trip this year?" Rose asked quietly. She was by far the most disappointed in Lila. Juleka wrapped a comforting arm around Rose, glaring at Lila.

Alya was frowning. "We legally can't." She could recall Marinette had everything set up and ready to go before Christmas was even over. "Everything had to be submitted last Monday. They won't change the rules for us. Maybe for Chloé, but…" the class simultaneously looked at the Mayor's daughter. She hadn't talked to any of them, except Adrien, in weeks. They wouldn't be getting her help any time soon.

"You know," Adrien suddenly spoke up. He was frowning at all of them, but most specifically Lila. "It really makes you wonder… if Marinette wasn't doing her job, then I wonder what you'd call this?"

And with that, Adrien took Marinette's hand in his, walking out of the classroom to have lunch at her parent's bakery. Meanwhile, the class was left to think.

That lunchtime, Alya had convinced Sabrina to bring Lila out so that they could plan a 'surprise party' for her. Really, she needed to talk with the class.

"What's up?" Nino asked, taking off his headphones.

"Guys…" Alya was staring at her hands. "I think we really messed up."

The next day, when Marinette entered the classroom, she was suddenly surrounded by her classmates, who were begging and pleading, rather incoherently.

"Will you─"

"Please─"

"I'm─"

"We're so─"

"You're the─"

"Marinette─"

"Lila─"

"We just─"

"Can you─"

"Please!"

Marinette blankly stared at them. "What?"

"I think," Adrien came up behind Marinette, pressing his hands against her shoulders. "That they're asking for you to be the Class President again."

"What?" she repeated. She looked back out at her classmates, meeting their hopeful stares with her own incredulous one. "No."

They weren't expecting this.

"What─"

"You can't─"

"Please─"

"Marinette, we─"

"We don't─"

"We need─"

"Lila can't─"

"You're─"

"Marinette!"

Marinette didn't think she needed Adrien to translate this time. "Answer one question for me, and maybe I'll reconsider." She critically examined them. "Why?"

"W-well─" Kim hesitated. "Lila has failed at everything."

"You're the only one able to do it," Max stated matter-of-factly.

"You care," Rose said quietly.

And yet, none of these answers were what she wanted, despite the fact that they were all good answers, they weren't what Marinette wanted.

"No." Marinette turned away from them, walking towards her seat.

"Fuck..." Marinette paused. Alya Césaire doesn't swear. She just… doesn't. It wasn't something she did. Marinette looked back to see Alya staring at her critically. "We're terrible friends, aren't we?"

"I think she's got it," Adrien whispered into her ear.

"We─you just wanted us to believe you… when you said that Lila was a liar."

Marinette honestly didn't expect Alya to be the first one to put two and two together. She didn't pay attention to Kim's outraged whispers or Alix's shocked gasp. Marinette cleared her throat. "Sorry?"

"God… I… how didn't I see this?! You have no reason to be jealous of her! Shit! We've just─ holy fuck… we really messed up, Mari."

"What are you talking about?" Alix asked, frowning.

"Lila's been lying… about everything." Alya looked up to Marinette. "Am I right? Is that the answer to your 'why'?"

Marinette didn't expect anyone to actually answer correctly. Marinette turned her back to Alya, continuing on.

"I am right!" Alya exclaimed. "Lila's a liar… and we didn't believe you. And… I'm sorry. I'm so, so sorry!"

"What made you realise?" Marinette asked quietly. "What was it that made you stop and think 'this doesn't make sense'? Was it the facts that I gave you? The points I made? The fact that I was only trying to expose Lila because she's been exploiting all of you?!" They flinched as her voice, heavy with emotion, rose. "No. No, that's not it. It's the fact that I haven't been there to give you presents or throw you parties or organise trips for you! Well, I'm sorry! I'm sorry that you've lost the walking doormat that is myself! That you've pushed me away! That you people voted unanimously that I shouldn't be Class President anymore."

Marinette never once looked back as she spoke and walked with a grace none of them knew she possessed. "It's not even Lila I'm mad at. It's you. So, no. You won't be getting a person who'll do everything for you! And did you know that it wasn't actually my job to organise your birthday parties or trips?! I volunteered! Because I wanted you to have fun! Because I thought, 'oh, these guys are my friends! Surely they'll return the favour."

Marinette stared at the wall in front of her, wiping the tears that streamed down her face. She turned back to face them. "You didn't."

Marinette never did take up the mantle of Class President again. And she did eventually forgive them (Adrien still said they didn't deserve that, but she was also too nice), but even then, she never forgot. And neither did they.

Every day, Alya worked to earn her trust back. As of now, Marinette was finally beginning to smile back at her again. Their other classmates did their bit, and on Marinette's birthday…

Well, let's just say that it was a pretty big party.

And Lila, of course, was removed as Class President. They gave the job to Alya, as she couldn't be deputy again, but she could still become the Class President. Lila eventually got fed up of their newfound image of her, so she forced her mother to move back to Italy.

Adrien didn't really have to change anything about himself, as he was too busy being a sunshine with a crappy father.

And Marinette… as previously stated, she didn't forget. But Marinette considered the class her extended family.

Family fought. But they stuck together.