Fortunately for Lila, only her torso had been tied to the chair, so she was able to stand up. She just had a chair on her back.

She wasn't about to wait for rescue. Plus, her parents would slaughter her the later she came home. She pushed aside thoughts about leaving France and focused on escaping.

Lila shuffled around, examining the exits. She didn't know how true it was that Game Over had trapped them all. If he did, then his powers were extremely extensive and he would be difficult to beat. She grimaced as she approached a door, ropes digging into her arms with every step.

Lila huffed, tightening her fists. I wonder if I can break this, she thought, fingers brushing the cold metal. She looked around the dim room, and decided on one of the many columns that held up the ceiling. She just hoped it was sturdy enough. Lila inched her way to the column and took a deep breath.

Then she swung her body around, slamming the chair against the pole. The impact sent shocks through her body, but her motion continued because the legs snapped off in the collision, taking the seat of the chair with it. Lila backed up, wincing as her legs caught on the rusted metal edges. The back of the chair was still tied to her, but she could slide out from it and the ropes easily now. Lila lifted it off of her head, reveling in her small victory.

The real problem now was choosing an exit that didn't contain certain death. Lila rubbed her sore arms as she went back to the door. It looked harmless, but she wasn't sure. A window might be less likely to be trapped, but they were all way high up on the walls and fairly small. Too small for her to fit through them if she could even get up there.

She looked back at the door, and then took a deep breath.

All of the exits have been trapped.

That's what Game Over had said. That could have just been a ploy to keep her from leaving. A bluff. What had his body language been like? Even breathing, but maybe a bit too boisterous. Too confident? Was he lying? Was he telling the truth?

Lila closed her eyes, putting fingers to both sides of her head as she tried to recreate his image. That brief scene. The akuma opening and closing the exit door with ease. His immediate footsteps signaling that he left instantly, leaving no time to have trapped that one door.

He's lying.

For some reason, Lila felt a certainty settle in her gut. The certainty she'd felt upon seeing Marinette for the first time, but also the certainty she'd ignored in favor of being blissfully ignorant. As a practiced liar herself, she was also able to discern more accurately whether other people were lying. She supposed that side of herself was at least a little useful. That's how she could see hints of Adrien inside of Chat Noir. That's how she knew most people weren't interested in her, only her connections. That's part of why she had been so thrown upon seeing Silvia for the first time. The woman had been so openly honest with her affection, and it had been weird.

Lila curled her fingers around the door handle and pushed it open, holding her breath.

And it opened fine.

Game Over had been lying. She smiled. But as she moved to leave, something hot dropped in front of her, scorching the ground at her feet. Lila froze, fear replacing all of the pride in her body as fire brushed her shoes.

"Not so fast," A mocking voice said. Game Over's voice.

He had come back.

"What are we waiting for?" Chat Noir asked perched up on a ledge. Ladybug sat next to him, watching as thick gray clouds began to roll in. The two were sitting up on the roof of a tall building, awaiting the next move.

"The location," Ladybug answered, looking down at her yoyo before sighing and putting it back down. A silence ensued as she bit her lip. "I should never had let her fight with us." She breathed, responsibility constricting her throat. Ladybug put her head in her hands. "It's my fault that she's in danger. I told her to stop coming to fight the akuma. But I didn't try hard enough."

Chat Noir looked over solemnly.

"I don't think you could have done anything about it," He simply said. "She seems like the type to do what she wants."

Ladybug looked up, giving Chat Noir a broken look.

"I'm supposed to be protecting Paris. The civilians of Paris. Not the other way around. And because of that, Lila's being used against me." She shuddered as she let out a breath. "I'm a failure of a superhero."

Chat Noir clicked his tongue. "Ah-ah-ah." He shook his head in disapproval. "You can't hold yourself responsible for other people's actions, my lady. And you've rescued thousands of civilians since becoming Ladybug. We've saved so many lives," He countered. But it didn't change the reality that they were in right now.

"But I've put her in danger." Ladybug repeated, that one fact haunting her. One of the people closest to her… now in the grasp of an akuma. It was all her fault.

"Hey hey hey, don't talk like that," Chat Noir frowned at her. "We have a plan. We're going to save her."

"But-"

"There's no buts on that, my lady. We're going to save her. We're going to save her like we always do. Trust me on this one." He continued, and smiled brightly at Ladybug. Her eyes widened at his words, a small ray of confidence shining into the murky abyss of worry.

Just then, her yoyo buzzed. Ladybug slid her yoyo cover back. The blue text read a message.

An address.

A drop of rain suddenly touched her head and she looked up, feeling more drops follow the first, soaking into her bangs. Chat Noir stood up, and then reached a hand down to Ladybug. She stared it for a second, the water sliding off of the black material easily.

"Do you trust me?" He asked, giving her a warm smile. Ladybug laughed, and couldn't help but smile back. She wasn't like the water; she wouldn't fall off the side. She was going to hang on. Ladybug took his hand in a firm grip, and allowed herself to be pulled up to her feet.

"I do."

"Good." Chat Noir looked from her to Paris, surveying the world around them. "Let's go save her."

Lila didn't think that a fusion of Mario and Megaman would be the person to beat her up in her life. But here she was, getting beat up by a fusion of Mario and Megaman (and other assorted video game characters). Well, almost.

She dodged a fireball, and then a plasma shot. Just then he ran right by her in a blur and Lila groaned. His fusion included Sonic, too? As he moved past, a hand grabbed her arm and then she was being dragged at an inhuman speed. Her feet left the ground and she screamed internally as she found herself parallel to the ground, the wind from the motion tearing at her ears. Her arm burned, aching as it was pulled too hard. And then the tight grip left her, but her body kept moving forward. Lila looked behind her, and saw a smug faced Game Over watching as her body flew into the wall. In the moment she felt her stomach lurch, and then her back slammed into the bricks hard.

Lila's air was knocked from her lungs as she crumpled, falling to the floor. This kind of violence isn't allowed on a kid's show! She thought fiercely before her body was overcome with pain. Lila felt her knees hit the ground hard, and then the rest of her body followed. She tried to breath, but found she couldn't. Not really. Panic exploded in her mind as her hands came to touch her throat. She tried to inhale but she couldn't feel any air come in.

Her mouth shaped the word help but no sound came out. Lila winced as she moved, her back groaning in protest and her arm aching where it had been gripped. She couldn't get up. Lila remained on the floor, eyes wide as she tried to force herself to breathe.

"I hope that was enough to teach you a lesson." Game Over's voice somehow made its way through her clouded thoughts, but Lila was focused on trying to breathe. He turned away from her dismissively and Lila squeezed her eyes shut, wondering if she was going to die.

As the seconds came and went, Lila realized that air was beginning to circulate again. Sharp, wheezing gasps brought air into her system. She could breathe again, albeit more painfully and with more effort.

So that was what it was like to get the wind knocked out of you.

"Ladybug's on her way," Game Over suddenly said, and Lila winced. She'd put Marinette in danger and that pulled at her heart.

She wanted to curl into herself and cry. But honestly, she'd cried enough today. Just then, light flashed in the windows before vanishing. A shock of thunder shook the floor slightly, and Lila realized it had begun to rain.

At least she now had an excuse for her parents.

Lila pulled herself to a sitting position to assess the situation as the pain slowly lessened. She needed to form a plan. Her parents already dictated most of her life; why should this blue video game character wannabe be allowed to as well? Why should Lila be used to put others in danger? Marinette didn't deserve this. Ladybug didn't deserve this.

Lila needed to fix this. There were many things in her life that were her fault. Every bad thing that hurt her family or her heart; Lila was the cause of it. She brought discord to her parents' lives and she lied to everyone. But, she decided, she wouldn't let Marinette get hurt anymore because of her. Lila had already caused enough grief; she'd lied to her and caused Marinette's sadness.

That was all Lila ever did, wasn't it? Lie, deceive and trick people into thinking she was someone she wasn't. That's all she was. That's all she ever would be.

Lila blinked. That didn't mean she couldn't use that skill to protect others.

To protect Marinette.

Lila looked over at the akuma. Game Over stood near an outlet with his 3Ds plugged in. It seemed using his powers made the battery drain quickly. She wondered if it ran out, would Game Over lose all of his powers?

"Hey," Lila said softly. She was going to change tactics. After being thrown by the akuma, she felt like it would be best to gain his trust rather than go against him again.

"What, haven't had enough yet?" Game Over put his device on the ground and cast a look at Lila.

"I was just thinking… you're so strong like this," Lila continued, fake admiration in her eyes.

"What?" Game Over's expression turned confused.

"I mean, you're really smart. Using others to get your enemies. And you're so confident, too. And strong! You threw me just like that! I just… I'm really weak," Lila's voice faltered as she got to the end of her sentence. "That's why I got in a fight with Ladybug. That's why I'm here now. I've only ever really been strong a couple of times…" She trailed off, and then met Game Over's eyes. He seemed interested, and also appreciative of the flattery.

"What are you trying to say here?" He said, a slight hint of suspicion clear in his voice.

"I wish being Volpina," Lila finally said, looking down at her hands. "She was so strong. So much more powerful than I was. Than I am. And after you showed me the akuma, I was scared at first. But that got me thinking… We could be powerful together," Lila confessed.

Game Over looked more interested. The outline of a butterfly appeared in front of his face. Even Hawkmoth was interested.

"Why did you accept Hawkmoth's help?" Lila asked then, hoping to hear some personal details. His face darkened.

"Let's just say someone humiliated me. I helped her out, but in exchange she laughed in my face." He said, clenching his fist. "But I got back at her, thanks to Hawkmoth." Lila nodded sympathetically.

"I know how that feels. I told you I got in a fight with Ladybug earlier. She humiliated me in front of my friends, too. She yelled at me about helping her. She scolded me like I was a child! I… she needs to pay," Lila hissed the last part, putting in a good amount of venom in her voice. "She may have beaten me when I was Volpina before. But if there were two of us, she wouldn't stand a chance," she finished, and knew that she had put on a good performance.

"And if we get the Miraculouses, I can stay Game Over forever." He suddenly said, and smirked. "You're smarter than you look, Volpina. I thought you were just a regular girl. I think we can work something out."

"I can't become Volpina yet. Ladybug might see through a window and just come in fighting. She has to keep thinking that I'm your hostage," Lila explained.

"You could make an illusion of yourself," Game Over suggested.

"But she might touch it. Or you might touch it. That would break the illusion. And I don't know how different my powers will be the next time I become her," Lila frowned. The real reason she wasn't a fan of that idea was that she didn't think she could stay in control with the akuma for that long. She wanted to minimize the amount of the time she had with it.

"I suppose you're right," Game Over agreed. "But there's not that much time before she gets here."

"I have an idea," Lila suddenly said, and it hurt her to know that Marinette would think she was betraying her. She would be deceiving her again.

But she had to.

guest asura, thank you very much for your review!