Summary: Being forced to watch something called 'Chameleon' was not how Marinette envisioned her day going. Oh well. At least there were cookies.
Falling asleep in one place and waking up in another was a sensation Marinette was familiar with. More than once she had fallen asleep on her chaise or up on the balcony and her father always put her back into her actual bed whilst she slept.
But Marinette didn't remember falling asleep and she had never woken up strapped to a red linen chair that faced a large television screen with Adrien on her left and Alya on her right. Nino was beside Adrien. Craning her neck, Marinette could just about see Alix. Kim's hulking form was in the corner of her vision. She looked back and noticed something.
Marinette's purse was missing. Tikki was missing.
Marinette didn't particularly care about not being able to transform. Tikki is gone. If she rubbed her shoulder against her ear just right, she could feel her earrings, so they were still there. But Marinette needed to find her friend quickly. Who knew what would happen if Hawkmoth got his hand on Tikki. Maybe if she took out her earrings and then put them back in, Tikki would appear in front of her. But she'd need to get her hands free first.
A soft groan caused Marinette to jolt in her restraints. Her wrist burned at the friction from the ropes scraping across her skin.
"Adrien?" she hissed as his head lulled to the side. He blinked awake. He looked as unnerved as she felt. "Are you okay?"
"Y-yeah, I'm fine." He coughed, shifting in the chair. "What's going on?"
"I don't know. Last thing I remember… Damocles expelled me."
"Oh. I… oh." Adrien swallowed. "Marinette, I know that you didn't push Lila down the stairs. Or steal her necklace and those test answers. I am so sorry that I─"
"It's fine, Adrien," Marinette smiled. "I know. Let's just focus on getting out of here."
"Yeah," he said, looking around the room and pulling at the rope. "If I'd known she would go this far, I never would've suggested we take the high road. I thought she just wanted her five minutes of fame… but to go this far…"
"I don't blame you, Adrien," she said. Marinette couldn't blame him. He'd been sheltered all his life. He didn't see what Lila truly wanted. She couldn't help but bitterly look at Alya's unconscious form. 'I blame them.'
"O-oh." Had she said that out loud?
"They believed her, Adrien. They really thought that I… that I could…"
"When we get out of here, we'll prove that you didn't," Adrien said. "We'll prove them all wrong and we won't take the high road this time."
Marinette smiled. That was… somehow sweet. She opened her mouth to speak, but was interrupted by a noise that didn't come from her mouth.
"What's going on?" Nino asked. And this seemed to trigger something, because suddenly everybody in the class was waking up and Marinette realised that everyone was here. Chloé was shouting loudly and Sabrina was trying to comfort her. Damocles huffed and puffed. Lila whined loudly about how Ladybug, her best friend, would save them.
"Adrien?" An old man called from above them. Gabriel Agreste. They kidnapped Gabriel Agreste. Oh shit. "Is that you?"
"Father?" Adrien asked. Marinette saw the flash of relief in his eyes, and then the panic as he also realised that Gabriel Agreste was kidnapped. "Y-yeah. I'm at the front."
"Are you alright?" a new voice joined. That must've been Nathalie. Marinette knew her vaguely.
"I'm fine."
"Is this an akuma?" Alya asked, straining her neck painfully against the bonds holding her.
"Probably," Nino agreed. "How else would they get all of us?"
Marinette could hear Lila starting to talk. She was behind Marinette. She turned to Adrien, ignoring the comforting words her classmates offered Lila.
"I'm going to try and reach the rope that is holding you, okay?"
"Go ahead," Adrien said, moving his wrist forward to provide slack. Marinette's fingers inched towards the rope and started pulling at the threads. She'd managed to rip more rope than untie it, but she still succeeded. Adrien's right hand was suddenly free and he quickly undid the rope that held Marinette's left hand. He frowned at the burns but Marinette quickly moved her hand, undoing the rope at her neck and right arm. He followed her direction.
"How did you get free?" Alya demanded, looking at them both in awe as she was momentarily distracted from Lila. Marinette reached down, freeing her legs before quickly undoing one of Alya's bonds.
"I'm a miracle worker," Marinette said, standing up and approaching the television that sat in the front of the room. "Start untying everybody."
There was nothing overtly fancy about the television, except that it was the size of a screen that you'd see in a cinema. It was hooked up to a small machine that she didn't recognise. A remote sat on it. Marinette decided not to touch it for now. She looked around the room and found no exit. Shit. There weren't any windows in the room.
Marinette's entire class was present. Mlle. Bustier and Mssr. Damocles sat beside a very uncomfortable looking Nathaniel. Nathalie, Gabriel and a familiar old man sat in the back row. Why was Master Fu here? Or Adrien's father? It didn't make sense. Adrien, Alya and Nino were untying everybody and so the front row was free. She ducked down, taking out her earrings and counted to three before putting them back in. Nothing happened. Shit.
"What are you doing?" Alix asked, standing to peer down at her.
"I'm─uh─searching to see if whoever did this dropped anything beneath the chairs. There's nothing here so─yeah." She dusted off her hands with a shrug.
Eventually, everybody was untied and nothing happened. "Try the screen," Adrien suggested as everybody returned to their original seats. There was no point in everybody jumping around and causing undue chaos.
Marinette picked up the remote, pressing the power button. She really shouldn't have been surprised when the screen roared to life, but she, as well as everyone else in the room, jumped.
She was, frankly, terrified, when her own face appeared on screen. She was running and a croissant was in her mouth. She paused… whatever this was, immediately. "Okay, what the fuck?"
Marinette turned towards Alya who looked just as confused as she was. Slowly, she turned the video back on.
[Marinette runs past a man, stopping him from closing a door on her face. She appears to be late]
Marinette: Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait!
[As Marinette arrived at her classroom door, the word 'Chameleon' appears on screen]
"Chameleon?" Adrien muttered. "Wasn't that…" He gestured behind them with his thumb. Marinette nodded.
[Marinette sees that the seating plan of her classroom has changed. She runs towards Alya]
Marinette: How'd you pull this off, Alya? You're the best. I can't believe you got everyone to swap seats so I can sit next to Adrien. Then again, it might not be the best idea. It could keep me from paying attention in class, and if I fail it'd be a total disaster because then Adrien and I would never have our own house, the three kids, the hamster named─
"Oh. My. God." Marinette knew exactly what this was. She sunk down into her chair in shame. Adrien, mercifully, didn't ask.
Alya didn't get the memo. "Is this…?" Marinette didn't answer.
Alya: Whoa girl, what are you talking about? You're not sitting next to Adrien. Your seat's over there.
Marinette: At the back? Why? What's going on?
Nino: Well since she's got a hearing issue, there's no way she can sit at the back of the class, right? Which means she needed a place up in the front.
Alya: So to make it work Ivan sat next to Mylène, Nate sat next to Alix, besides she came up with the idea of moving Nino here, so now we get to spend more time together.
Marinette: Who is this 'she'?
[Mlle. Bustier enters the room]
Mlle. Bustier: Good morning, students. I'm sure you've all heard by now, but Lila's home from her trip to Achu and she's back in school with us again.
[Lila enters classroom]
Lila: Hi, everyone.
Class: Hi, Lila.
Lila: Oh, a seat in the front row! You all remembered my hearing issue! You're such sweethearts, all of you.
Rose gasped. "Oh! I remember this!"
"This actually happened?" Damocles asked.
"It did," Adrien said. "This is most likely an akuma, then, if they're playing something that's already happened."
"Or it's the work of the devil," Marinette muttered under her breath. Adrien smiled sympathetically down at her.
Marinette: You have a hearing problem, Lila?
Lila: Yes, I suffer from tinnitus, a constant ringing in my left ear. I've had it ever since the sound of an airplane engine burst my eardrum on the runaway when I was saving Jagged Stone's lost kitten.
Marinette: Isn't Jagged Stone's pet a crocodile?
Lila: Now it is, yes. But he had a kitten until he found out he was allergic to it.
"Girl, you really need to get over this," Alya said. "Look what your jealousy of Lila has led to. You just got expelled." Marinette refused to respond to that.
Lila: The best part is, since you're such an excellent student, Adrien, you'll be able to help me catch up with all the schoolwork I missed while I was traveling with my parents. Would you do that for me?
Adrien: Sure, Lila.
Marinette: Miss Bustier, why do I have to sit in the back now?
Miss Bustier: Do you have any trouble hearing or seeing, Marinette?
"I'm starting to think that she does," Sabrina muttered. Chloé glared at her, folding her arms and leaning back into her chair.
Marinette: Uh, I… I…
Adrien: My eyesight and hearing are good. I'll sit in the back of the class and you two can sit up front. I don't mind.
Marinette and Lila: No!
Lila: My return is causing so much trouble, maybe I should have just stayed on the other side of the world. If Marinette has an issue too, then I should be the one to go and sit in the back. It's okay.
Marinette: I don't actually have any trouble seeing or hearing. I mean…
Miss Bustier: Good, so there's no problem then. You sit here, Lila, Adrien, you stay where you are and, Marinette, you sit in the back row.
Adrien frowned. "What I don't like about that is that nobody ever asked Marinette if she was comfortable moving to the back. Why should she have to be separated from her friends and sit on her own when all of you guys got to sit next to who you wanted?"
Marinette was surprised at how rapidly Adrien jumped to her defense before anyone else could speak.
Mlle. Bustier frowned. "As the class representative, Marinette─"
"Should be forced to sacrifice her collège experience for a person she doesn't even know? Of course, that makes total sense." Adrien glowered at the class. Marinette was staring at Adrien in shock. This was a side of Adrien that she's never seen before. It reminded her of Chat.
"That's not what happened," Kim rolled his eyes. "Marinette just wanted to sit beside you, dude."
"I don't think so─"
Marinette quickly unpaused the video, interrupting any possible argument that might've broken out.
Gasps rang through the room when Hawkmoth's face appeared. Marinette drank in the sight, taking note of any possible hint from this. She'd never seen Hawkmoth's lair before.
Hawkmoth: Ah, high school, the arena of teenage angst, where emotions are so intense. A perfect stadium for my dear akumas. Being separated from your friends, becoming isolated.
[Hawkmoth infuses a white butterfly with magic. It becomes an akuma]
Hawkmoth: Just what devastating anger is made of. Fly away and evilize this angry high school girl.
Alya stared wide eyed at Marinette. "Girl…"
"I don't remember you getting akumatized, Marinette," Rose said. "I thought it was…" Juleka shushed her.
Mlle. Bustier: Open your books to page twenty-three.
[Marinette takes in a deep breath and calms down before the akuma reaches her. The akuma leaves]
Hawkmoth: Strange, I feel the fury dying down, but the wheels are in motion. It's only a matter of time, be patient now my akuma.
"I've never seen somebody do that before," Nino commented. Marinette shrugged, biting her lip. She wasn't aware of the curious gaze from a certain supervillain trained on her back.
"How many times has that happened?" Adrien asked. "I mean, I know that you've never been akumatized, but have you ever…" he fished for the right word.
Marinette didn't wait for the hook to bob. She unpaused the video.
[Scene opens in cafeteria]
Sabrina: That's for you, Lila!
Lila: Thank you. You're so sweet!
Max: Here's your appetizer, Lila!
Mylène: And I've got your main course!
Kim: I'll fetch your dessert!
Lila: I'm sorry I can't carry my own tray. It's almost impossible with this sprained wrist.
"Oh, thank you, everyone, for all of the help that you've been," Lila smiled simperingly. Lila was instantly flooded with praises from the class. At the back of the room, Gabriel Agreste exchanged a look with Nathalie Sancoeur.
[Kim reaches for a plate between Marinette and Alya]
Kim: Sorry.
Marinette: Lila's totally lying. She made up that whole tinnitus story just so she could sit next to Adrien, and her sprained wrist's completely bogus, too.
Alya: I don't get it, Marinette. You barely know Lila. Why all the hate?
"Yeah, Marinette. Why all the hate?" Kim echoed. Marinette's decided that there was no use in even responding anymore. Adrien smiled reassuringly at her.
Marinette: Fine, I'll tell you everything.
[Drags Alya and Nino to a separate table away from the others and sits down across from them)
Marinette: You remember Lila when she first came to school right after the summer break? She was only here for one day and then she left on that 'round-the-world' trip. Everyone was captivated by her. Something just felt off to me. So I followed her.
Alya and Nino: What?
[Flashback to Volpina]
Lila: Not only did Ladybug save my life, we've become very close friends.
Marinette: She lies with every breath.
Nino: Wait. You eavesdropped on Lila and Adrien? That's not cool.
"Dude," Adrien started. "Have you met your girlfriend?"
Nino cringed. "Yeah, that was… not well thought out."
Alya: A good reporter always verifies her sources. Can you prove she doesn't actually know Ladybug?
Chloé suddenly laughed. "Right, right. Like you verify your sources, Césaire."
"Excuse me?" Alya tensed.
"I mean, wasn't it you who thought I was Ladybug over something stupid? And I'm not even going to start into all of the useless propaganda you've been publishing lately."
"What the hell are you─" Unpause.
Marinette was fixated on Chloé using logic for once. Usually she jumped on the 'hate Marinette' train.
Marinette: Well I–uh… I… I… Okay! You want proof she's lying? Hey Lila! You forgot your napkin!
[Marinette throws a napkin at Lila and she catches it with her supposedly sprained right hand]
Marinette: Ha, ha! See that? It's obvious she doesn't have a sprained wrist.
"That was cruel, Marinette," Alix said.
[The class gasps and stares at Lila. Lila drops the napkin and clutches at her wrist pitifully]
Lila: Uh, ow! Once when I was in India, I witnessed someone getting their eye gouged out by the corner of a napkin. If I hadn't caught it, this napkin could've injured Max. I didn't have a choice. Ow!
A quiet chuckle at the back of the room caught the room's attention. Nathalie's head was in her hand. "I'm not even going to say it."
Max: Lila, you saved my eye! You sacrificed yourself for me.
Max buried his hands in his face. "My God…"
Lila: Why wouldn't I, Max? Ouch. You're my friend.
Sabrina: We'll take you to the nurse's office.
[Class rounds on Marinette]
Mylène: Are you proud of yourself?
Kim: Lila's in even more pain now, all because of you.
Lila: No, no, don't blame Marinette. She was just trying to give me a napkin. Right, Marinette?
[Marinette becomes furious and stomps away angrily as everyone watches her in shock]
Adrien turned around. "So, Max…"
"I am ashamed of myself." Was his only response. Seems that somebody, upon looking at things from an outside perspective, realised just how little sense this made.
"What's wrong?" Kim asked, placing a hand on his shoulder. Max only shook his head.
[Lila enters the bathroom, where Marinette already is]
Lila: Marinette? Oh, are you crying?
Alix snorted. "I love how Lila is still worried about Marinette. I don't know anyone else who's that nice." More people than you'd expect rolled their eyes.
Marinette: No, I'm not!
Lila: I can sense that you don't like me, but I don't understand why. We barely know each other.
[Flashback to Volpina]
Ladybug: Miss Show-Off here was trying to impress you.
"What is Ladybug…?" General noises of confusion echoed around the classroom.
Lila: Don't tell me it's because of this new seating arrangement in class!
[Marinette turns away from Lila]
Lila: It is! Of course, you're jealous because I'm sitting next to Adrien, because you would've given anything to sit there yourself. You know what? It's really not worth fighting over a boy. You and I could be friends, and who knows, I might even be able to help you with Adrien.
Alya started laughing. "Girl, why are you so good? I swear, if I had even a drop of your patience, I'd be a fucking saint."
Marinette: You and I will only be friends the day you stop lying, Lila! I can't prove it, but I know for a fact that you don't have tinnitus, that your wrist is just fine, that you don't know Prince Ali because you've never even stepped foot in Achu, and despite what you got Alya to write on her Ladyblog, Ladybug has never saved your life!
"Seriously, Marinette?"
"It never ends, does it?"
"How are you even─"
Lila: I only tell people what they want to hear.
Stunned silence.
Marinette: It's called lying!
Lila: There's nothing you can do about it, anyway. People can't resist when they hear what they like to hear. If you don't want to be my friend, fine! But soon you won't have any friends left at all. And trust me, I'll make sure you never get close to Adrien in class or anywhere. You seem a little less dumb than the others, so I'll give you one last chance. You are either with me or against me. You don't have to answer right away. I'll give you 'till the end of class today.
Marinette sort of wanted to drop a needle, just to test if it could be heard, because holy shit.
"Lila…"
Adrien's eyes widened. "She threatened you?!"
"I─"
"If you'd told me that, I never would've suggested that high road shit in the first place! What the fuck, Lila?"
The blood drained from Lila's face as everyone turned to look at her.
Alya swallowed, loudly. "Lila…" she turned to look at her. "You better have a good fucking explanation for what we just saw."
"It's obvious, isn't it?" Chloé snorted. "Dupain-Cheng was telling the truth, Rossi was lying. You believed the liar."
"Holy shit."
"Lila, how dare you─"
"You fucking─"
"Settle down, children," Mlle. Bustier called. Her face was as white as snow. "I-I'm sure we'll get to the bottom of this soon─"
"Caline, I thought you told me that Mlle. Rossi was completely trustworthy?" Damocles rumbled. He didn't look particularly threatening.
"I was sure─"
"You─Marinette didn't push you down the stairs at all, did she?" Sabrina frowned.
"I─"
"What a surprise," Chloé snorted. "I mean, come on. Do I even need to point out how unlikely it is that Dupain-Cheng would push someone down a flight of stairs over a boy?"
"That implies that Marinette would push somebody down a flight of stairs over something else," Adrien said, frowning at Chloé.
"OH MY GOD!" Alya jumped up out of nowhere.
"Here we go," Adrien muttered. Marinette snorted quietly.
"You─you─you snake! You lying viper!"
"Hey, leave Viperion out of this," Marinette called.
Alya didn't appear to hear her. "How dare you?! How dare you do that to Marinette? You had no right to threaten her! To─to frame her and c-convince me that she was─she was evil, or a bully or even mean! You fucking skank!" Alya was about to jump over the partition separating their chairs, so Marinette quickly grabbed her hand and forced her to stay still.
"Did you really threaten Marinette in the bathroom, Lila?" Rose asked in restrained sadness. Juleka wrapped an arm around her and glared at Lila.
"How could we be so blind?" Alix asked. Max's face was still in his hands.
"I don't even…" Kim frowned. "What the fuck?"
Ivan leaned forwards, frowning down at Lila. He glared down at her, but didn't utter a word.
Nathaniel crossed his arms, clenching his fists. "I should've known…"
Mylène gasped. "We were so, so cruel to poor Marinette!"
Marinette was suddenly overwhelmed by a volley of apologies and didn't know what to say when presented with such an opportunity. "I-I don't─"
"I think that, maybe, we should ask Lila for her stance on this," Adrien said, glaring behind him. Lila shrunk under his gaze.
"W-well, you see─I─I have this disability," Lila sighed. The demeanor of the class changed instantly as they turned to look at Lila with interest. Marinette could see the mistrust falling away from her classmates and she knew. Of course. They were going to believe her. Again. "I─I do and say things I don't mean. It's called Tourette's syndrome. When I threatened Marinette, it wasn't because I wanted to, but because I just couldn't stop it. I was too embarrassed to tell all of you this… I thought that all of you might hate me because of it."
'Oh my God.' Lila certainly had a very vague idea of what tourettes was, because holy shit. That explanation was so flawed and stupid. Her class was bound to believe it.
"O-oh," Rose said. Juleka still glared at Lila. "I-I don't─"
Mylène clasped her hands together. "That means that Marinette and Lila were both in the right! Marinette knew Lila was lying and wanted to protect us and Lila couldn't help it."
Max scoffed loudly, finally looking up. "Bullshit. Lila doesn't have tourette's. She doesn't have any disabilities. She's just a liar who's desperately trying to dig herself out of her own grave. You don't need to be a genius to realise this."
Rose frowned. "Max, she just explained what was really going on. Neither Marinette or Lila were trying to hurt anyone."
Adrien laughed loudly. "Are you all blind? Notice how when everything is going to shit and her lies are coming out, Lila has a convenient excuse that took her the past five minutes to come up with. Why didn't she tell us this when Alya asked for an explanation? Because it's not true. And what Lila described was not tourette's, and frankly, I'm tired of her lying about random syndromes and diseases. That could be really damaging to people who actually have tourette's."
"I─I don't─" Lila flinched. "Adrien, you're not─"
"Serious? Perfectly, Lila."
"I never knew you were an ableist, Adrien," Lila said. Marinette caught sight of the dangerous glint in her eye and Marinette was suddenly fed up with this situation.
"Max, can you explain what tourette's is for the class? I think that might help explain this situation some."
And so Max explained and with every word the paler Lila became. It was so satisfying to watch.
"Any more excuses?" Alix asked, glaring at Lila.
Before Lila could speak, Mlle. Bustier spoke. "I think that we should resume the video. Perhaps we'll get out of here if we finish it and then we could deal with this situation."
Reluctant sounds of agreement were made. Gabriel Agreste watched his son curiously. He'd never seen Adrien so… passionate about something. He wanted to see where this would go.
[Lila leaves the bathroom. Marinette enters one of the bathroom stalls and Tikki flies out.]
"Is that…"
"Quiet."
"No, but─"
"Pay attention."
Marinette: I thought Chloé was evil, but Lila really takes the whole cake! She's like a supervillain who doesn't even need a costume!
"Excuse you, Dupain-Cheng."
Tikki: You mustn't let her get to you, Marinette.
"It really is─"
"Holy shit─"
"Marinette, why do you have─"
"What is that?"
Adrien could only stare at Marinette's pale face. He knew exactly who that kwami belonged to.
Marinette: If I don't manage to expose her lies, she'll ruin my life, Tikki. She'll turn my friends against me, including Adrien!
[Marinette makes a noise of frustration and punches the stall wall]
[Hawkmoth's lair]
Hawkmoth: Yes! I can feel it. The anger's about to emerge!
[In the bathroom stall, Marinette begins to cry. Tikki sees the akuma]
Tikki: Marinette, look out!
[Akuma approaches Marinette. She sees it]
Marinette: Aah! An akuma!
[Scene change to locker room]
Adrien: Hey, Lila.
Lila: Adrien, we'll have to figure when you're gonna help me catch up on all the schoolwork I missed. I also heard you play piano, my uncle's the great pianist Chuch Boroughchuck. He wanted to teach me when I was little, but I had to stop playing because of arthritis. But when my wrist gets better, I'd love for you to give me some lessons.
Adrien: Lila, I'm perfectly happy being friends with you, and I'll gladly help you catch up on your schoolwork, but please don't lie to me like you did last time with Ladybug.
[Flashback to Volpina]
Adrien: So I'm guessing you're not a descendant of a superhero, either.
Ladybug: She's more like a super liar.
"Dude, that's how you found out?!" Nino laughed, despite the situation.
Lila: Ladybug's the liar.
Adrien: I'm not judging you, Lila, but instead of making friends you're going to turn everyone against you. You can tell me if there's something bothering you. I can help. But you need to be honest with me.
Lila: Are you trying to be some superhero lecturing me just like Ladybug did? Well thanks, but no thanks. Ugh.
[Lila storms off]
Adrien: I'm still here if you need help catching up with your schoolwork.
Alix grinned. "I take back what I said. Adrien is a literal angel."
Kim nodded. "He's like… the embodiment of sunshine."
"Um, hello," Alya frowned at them. "Marinette is literally being chased by an akuma!"
Tikki: You can resist it, Marinette. Hawk Moth's power only affects people who think there's no solution to their problems, and you always find a solution.
Marinette: You're right! You won't get me, I'm proud, I'm confident, I'm Marinette!
[The akuma flies away]
"Oh, thank God!"
"I love that akuma and only that one."
"Can you imagine what Marinette would be like as an akuma? Ladybug and Chat Noir wouldn't last five minutes.
Hawk Moth: What's happened? The anger has disappeared. Hmm, but I can feel something new arising.
[Lila is walking through a hallway]
Lila: I can't stand those super goody-two-shoes.
[Lila sees the akuma]
Lila: Yes, here's my chance!
"This better not be what I think it is," Alya muttered, looking back at Lila suspiciously. She doesn't reply.
Marinette: We can't let this akuma run loose! Tikki, spots on!
[Transformation sequence]
Marinette wondered what would happen if she tapped her nail against her chair. It would reverberate around the room. She had never seen her class so focused. So quiet. So… Marinette couldn't even think of the right word to describe this.
"So."
"So." Alya echoed, pressing her fingers together and spreading them out. "Are you gonna explain to us just what the fuck we just saw?"
"I…" she cast a look around the room. "No." On the screen, Lila was reaching for an akuma.
Lila: Come here, akuma.
[Lila puts the akuma in her earring]
Lila: Hawk Moth, I am Lila. I know you want to destroy Ladybug and so do I.
Hawk Moth: Yes, I remember you.
Lila: Give me supervillain powers and I'll give you her and Cat Noir's Miraculous.
Hawk Moth: With pleasure. I have some new powers for you, Chameleon.
[Black-purple magic engulfs Lila]
"Okay, pause it," Alya said. "We need to talk about that. Now."
If Lila was pale before, she was now a ghost. "I─I─I─"
"Wait until I tell my Daddy that Lila Rossi is a terrorist!" Chloé chortled. Adrien shot Chloé a sharp look at her callousness, but didn't object to her claims.
"How does getting akumatized make Lila a terrorist?" Rose asked. She paused and her eyes went impossibly large. "Oh my God!"
Juleka patted her on the arm comfortingly.
"We'll deal with this after we get out of here," Marinette said. 'Perhaps if I find this akuma, then everybody will forget. I hope.'
[Ladybug runs out of bathroom but quickly retreats upon seeing Adrien]
Ladybug: I gotta find another way.
[Ladybug sees an air duct]
Alya laughed. "Girl…" Marinette elbowed her in the stomach.
[Adrien sees Lila]
Adrien: Hey.
[Chameleon pushes Lila into the locker room]
Chameleon: Adrien, I wanted to apologize for what just happened. I've thought about it and you're right. I want us to be friends, so I'll never tell another lie again. Will you make peace with me?
[Chameleon kisses Adrien on the cheek, turning into Adrien and making the real Adrien collapse onto the ground]
Chameleon: Whoops, I lied.
[Chameleon puts Adrien into a locker and leaves]
[A black kwami appears]
Plagg: Adrien, Adrien!
Marinette turned to Adrien. Her eyes were as large as saucers. "N-no way."
Adrien grinned. "What's wrong, Marinette?"
'I could be wrong. I could be wrong. I mean, not like that was Plagg, or anything. Yeah, I have to be wrong. Right? Right?!'
If Adrien was Chat Noir, then Marinette would be forced to punch herself for being so blind.
"N-nothing?"
"If you're sure," he hummed.
They watched as Chameleon bullied Nino and as she recklessly put herself in danger, knowing that Ladybug would show up. And they watched as the black kwami managed to wake Adrien up.
Adrien: Plagg, what happened? And what are you doing?
Plagg: Oh, me? Nothing I, uh… your friend Lila put you to sleep with an evil kiss. You should be more careful picking your friends.
Adrien: Lila must've been re-akumatized. Quick Plagg, claws out!
This whole 'dead silence' thing was getting old.
"So." Alya said again. "How is this… I… you know what, I'm not even gonna ask."
"It is so unlikely that both Ladybug and Chat Noir would be in our class," said Max. Marinette could feel the dumbfounded stares on both her and Adrien.
"Wait." Nino suddenly grinned. "Dude!"
"Huh?" Adrien asked.
"You like Ladybug… and Marinette likes you… and she's Ladybug… and she's always turning Chat Noir down… for you..." Nino put his head into his hands, laughing silently.
"You… you successfully created a love square with two people," Nathaniel said.
"Wouldn't it be a love hexagon? They both have some weird things going on with Luka and Kagami," Alya said.
"No, it's a love square again since now they know their identities."
"Yeah." Alya crossed her arms. She snorted. "Oblivio makes so much more sense now."
"Huh?"
"I mean, you found out who you were, so you kissed each other! Of course!"
"Oh." Marinette blushed, hiding behind her pigtails. But wait. Now was not the time to get caught up in this. She stood. "Let's just finish the rest of this episode."
"No, no, no," Adrien turned to face her with a devilish grin. "You like me?"
"I-I like lots of things," Marinette said. "I like designing. I like baking. I like Tikki. I like Jagged Stone. That doesn't prove anything."
Adrien turned to look back at the screen, but not before shooting her a wink.
They finished the episode in silence. So many thoughts ran through the class's mind, but nobody said a word as they watched the ensuing battle between Chameleon, Ladybug and Chat Noir.
When it was over, the screen shut off without delay.
Nothing happened.
"Uhh…" Alix looked around. "I thought we were gonna be sent back when it finished."
Marinette and Adrien glanced at each other. "Plagg's not with you, is he?"
"No," Adrien said. He frowned. "Do you hear that?"
"No." She stood up. "Where?"
"Behind the screen." Last time Marinette had checked, the screen was empty. As she got closer, she heard voices.
"We can't just come out of nowhere! We'll scare them!"
"They've already seen us with those videos!"
"And I'm going to kill you for making me think this was a good idea! But we have to explain why we─"
Plagg stared up at Marinette. "Hey, Sugarcube?"
"What?!" Plagg pointed behind her. Tikki whirled around to see both of their wielders. "Marinette! This isn't what it looks like!"
"Really?" she folded her arms. "Because it looks like you and Plagg did something weird to expose Lila."
"Well…" Tikki looked down in shame. "Yes. We did."
"Why, Tikki?" Marinette asked.
"Because she got you expelled and I couldn't bear to see you get hurt anymore! So… we did this."
"And what did you do?" Adrien asked.
Plagg floated over to Adrien, settling in his shirt. "We thought we were creating a video of all the bad things that Lila girl did, but we messed up and that happened."
Marinette frowned. "So, it was an accident? You never meant to reveal our identities?"
"Oh yeah, we did that. We could probably make them forget."
"Forget?" Marinette asked. "Like they never found out Lila was a liar in the first place?"
"Pretty much," Plagg shrugged.
"It's not hard to do," Tikki said. "It wouldn't be painful."
"I…" Marinette glanced back. Her identity was one of the most important things in the world to her. She looked at Adrien. "Would we… would we remember?"
"Yes, unfortunately," Tikki looked down solemnly. "We can't erase your memories, because it might damage our bonds."
"Oh," Adrien looked at Marinette. "Do you… want to think about it?"
Her gaze hardened. "No. I can't risk my identity getting out, Adrien, you have to understand. Even if I stay expelled, it'll be completely necessary. We can't risk Hawkmoth finding out who we are. And Lila's definitely not trustworthy."
Adrien wrapped an arm around her shoulders. "Don't worry," he said. "I'll make sure they don't expel you."
Marinette wasn't quite sure if she believed him. "Okay." They turned back to their kwamis. "Do it."
And memories were undone.
Marinette wasn't quite sure why, but Lila ended up telling Principal Damocles that she had a 'lying disease' of some sort. She didn't know how he ended up buying that, but her school continued to astound her with how oblivious they could be.
She suspected that Adrien had a hand in her reinstatement, but he refused to tell her what he'd done.
Speaking of, knowing who her partner was made things both easier and stranger. She still wasn't quite sure how she felt about Chat knowing her identity, but eventually she decided to let it be. If worst came to worst and one of them ended up akumatized, they'd deal with it when the time comes. Marinette didn't think that she would personally be having a meeting with Hawkmoth anytime soon. Adrien made her happy. Even if Lila managed to make her angrier than she thought possible, nothing she said or did could ruin her happiness.
It was in the middle of the night, weeks later, when a question came to mind.
"Hey, Tikki. When you did that thing with Plagg to expose Lila, why was Master Fu and Adrien's dad there? And Nathalie?"
Tikki floated up beside her. "Well, if I had to guess, when we pulled all of your classmates into the room, we accidentally took Miraculous users with us, too."
Marinette's jaw dropped. She sat up so quickly she got whiplash. Only one thing was on her mind.
"I knew it!"
Of course Adrien's dad was a supervillain! He's, like, evil personified.
Now all Marinette had to do was figure out how to tell Adrien.
Little did she know, Plagg would do it for her. He was never tactful.
"Oh yeah, I forgot to tell you. Your dad's Hawkmoth."
Adrien dropped the camembert.