A/N: Simple version, I was sick for a while and life... and writer's block. But here's the new chapter! Sorry for taking so long to get it up.

Alya hummed the words to the latest Jagged Stone song as she walked to the Couffaine houseboat. For the first time in weeks, she has woken up genuinely happy. Maybe a little sad, too, but not unbearably so.

For the past few days, she and Luka had been texting each other on and off. While they would sometimes discuss what was going on in their lives that day, and Marinette, they were mostly checking up on each other. Making sure that they both got up, that they were both eating, Luka kept making sure that Alya didn't slip into a guilt-trapped mind, and they both made sure that neither of them slipped into darkness and, in Luka's case, destruction.

They were making sure that neither of them felt alone.

Anyways, today Luka had texted asking for a favor, and Alya wasn't going to say no, even if she wasn't entirely sure what that favor was yet. But she trusted Luka, so she doubted that it was anything bad.

Alya upped her pace as she spotted the boat in the distance, and within a few moments, was at their door knocking.

Luka opened the door, and Alya was about to speak when he quickly shook his head and stepped outside with her, closing the door behind her. Then, he gestured for her to continue with what she was going to say.

"What is going on Luka?" She asked

His reply was simple, "I need your help."

"With?"

Luka looked a bit nervous, "Well… would you be willing to talk about your coping methods with someone who needs them?"

Alya lifted an eyebrow, asking the obvious question.

"Kagami," he sighed.

"Ice Queen?!"

"Alya!"

Alya rolled her eyes, "Sorry. Why Kagami?"

"She and Marinette had gotten close in the past few months," Luka explained, "They became…"

"They became?" Alya prodded, having a feeling that she knew what he was going to say.

"Best friends."

Which didn't mean that said answer was going to hurt any less.

"Anyways, Kagami has been struggling since Marinette's death. And today is especially bad."

"Why?" Alya asked,

"It's Thursday, and Thursdays were their day. The day that they hung out with each other, no matter what."

"Okay but why does Ice Queen-"

"Kagami," Luka corrected

"Right, Kagami, need my help? Can't she afford a therapist?"

Luka looked uncomfortable, and upset, as he explained, "Kagami's mother doesn't believe in weakness. Any weakness. In her mind, mourning is only for the day of the death and the day of the funeral. Any other day is unacceptable."

Alya couldn't stop herself from taking a sharp breath. She knew that Kagami's mother was pretty strict, and cold, but she never realized that it was too that degree. Sure, she wasn't Kagami's biggest fan, but to go through that? No one should have to go through that.

Really, it made the decision a no-brainer. "Okay. I'll help her."

Alya wasn't really sure what she was expecting when she saw Kagami. Maybe she would look a little sadder, or maybe a little less put together. She wasn't expecting to see her in pajamas with her knees pulled up to her chest, bloodshot eyes and tear-stained cheeks. It seemed so… un-Kagami.

Alya took a deep breath to compose herself, before sitting across from Kagami. "Hey," she said softly.

She barely heard the "Hi" whispered back.

"I heard that you need some help. About… how to handle your grief."

Kagami didn't say anything, but nodded her head, and Alya continued. "There really isn't a right way. My therapist has mentioned a couple different methods, but said that they work differently for everyone. One of the first she had me try was writing out my feelings in a journal. I still do that, and it works some. It helps to clear your mind, and sometimes memories of Marinette come out, which also helps. Um, she then had me try writing poetry. I personally couldn't, but I was able to write a very depressing story. That somehow helped, in its own odd way…"

Kagami wasn't showing any emotion, and Alya was tempted to quit talking. But she felt a bit of pressure on her shoulder, and looked up to see Luka nodding and gesturing for her to continue.

"After that, she said to talk to people about Marinette, especially those who were close with her. Exchange memories, and share grief." She smiled, "That really helped, because you're not alone. We're all going through this, and we should do it together."

"Marinette would have wanted it that way." Kagami said softly, startling Alya.

"Yeah… I bet she would have."

"What else?"

"Um," Alya racked her brain, recently her therapy sessions had turned to actually talking through her feelings with her therapist, and self care, rather than being given tasks to help with grief. "Well, my therapist did mention writing a letter to Marinette."

Kagami and Luka both shot her confused looks, "How does that work?" Kagami asked

Alya shrugged, "She just said to write Marinette a letter, telling her… whatever you want, really. Feelings, memories, rambles, that sort of thing. Then she said that you can either keep it, mail it to a random address, burn it, to do whatever you want with it."

Kagami looked contemplative, and had slowly loosened her grip on her knees. "That… doesn't sound like a bad idea." She admitted, causing Alya to give a small smile, "Thank you."

Alya's smile grew, "You're-."

A ringing noise caused all three of them to jump, and Kagami cursed before grabbing her phone.

"Hello, Mother."

Kagami closed her eyes and held her phone away from her ear, causing Alya to flinch as she heard Kagami's mother shout through the phone in Japanese. You didn't need to understand what she was saying, to know that Kagami was in a lot of trouble.

Once the shouting stopped, Kagami returned the phone to her ear, and talked to her mother in her native language. When she hung up, she looked to Luka and Alya with no emotion on her face, as if she had once again locked it all away.

"My mother will be here in a few minutes to pick me up," She said, "I probably won't see either of you for a while, so I want to say thank you again."

Alya hesitated for a moment before drawing Kagami into a hug. "Don't let your mother keep you from grieving," she whispered, "And if you need someone to talk to, Luka can text you my number."

Kagami was stiff in her arms, but she slowly returned the hug, and Alya could feel the girl shaking. "Thank you." She whispered.

"You're welcome."

After Kagami left, Luka made the pair some tea and they went out to the deck, taking a couple blankets with them.

"How had she gotten here anyways?" Alya asked, "If her mother didn't know?"

"She snuck out before sunrise."

Alya gaped at him, "Kagami snuck out?"

Luka shrugged, "She needed someone to talk to. You know you really helped her."

Alya shook her head, "I just told her what my therapist told me."

"You still helped her."

"I wish her mother would help her."

Luka's expression darkened. "So do I."

Tomoe Tsurugi did not help her daughter. After getting both shouted at, and a lecture, Kagami was grounded for a month, and had her laptop and phone taken away, the later only to be given back when she was at lessons and school.

As soon as she was in her room, Kagami fished through her drawers until she found what she was looking for. Then, she was ready to try what Alya had suggested.

On the other side of Paris, a poor soul's emotions were taken advantage of, the first in weeks.

On the other side of Paris, the akuma raged, it's goal to make everyone know how it felt to be lonely. To be isolated from everyone else.

On the other side of Paris, Chat Noir arrived to fight the akuma, to try to defeat it, or to calm it down. To do something, even if he didn't know what that something was.

And on the other side of Paris, only minutes after Chat Noir arrived, a figure in red and black appeared, showing herself to the people of Paris for the first time.

Crimson Bug.