Catie had a rough start. Not only did she have to learn everyone's name and learn everything that the class was doing during school hours. But it only took two days before she got to actually meet the superheroes; Ladybug and Chat Noir. The first time the alarm went off she was dragged away by Marinette into a closet. Then she ran off. Catie was stunned as to why Marinette would stuff her alone in a closet that was big enough for two, but did not question it. Her curiosity got the better of her and she ventured outside to see what was going on. To say she was shocked was an understatement. She had never seen anything like it.
Out on the streets there was a giant lollipop monster walking around. Catie had to rub her eyes twice to make sure she wasn't seeing things. She then took out her phone and snapped a couple of photos before another unbelievable thing appeared. Suddenly a long metal pole appeared in front of the lollipop thing which made him stumble. The pole was being handled by a person, clad in a black leather suit, cat ears and a mask. "That must be Chat Noir" she thought before she realized the lollipop monster was beginning to fall her way. Catie began running. Suddenly she was swept away by another person swinging from a yoyo. A girl, clad in a red with black polka dots suit and a face mask. She didn't say anything but 'get out of here' to Catie. She took the words to heart and ran inside an alley. She peaked around the corner to witness the whole thing. The black cat-guy yelled 'cataclysm' and his hand began emitting black bubbles around his hand. Catie snapped more photos. Ladybug threw something to Chat Noir, and the item pulverized in his hands. The lollipop monster disappeared in a black and purple cloud. Ladybug swung her yoyo and caught a feather flying out of the item that was just destroyed. A white feather then was released before Ladybug tossed another item up in the air, yelling 'miraculous ladybug'. Thousands of little ladybugs spread out and repaired everything that had been damaged, much to Catie's disbelief. "And I thought my stories were unbelievable." She muttered to herself. "Imagine what stories they could tell."
Later that day school resumed as if nothing had happened. Catie couldn't believe what she had witnessed. Once everyone settled down for class, Catie's phone rang. It was her father. She rolled her eyes and went up to Ms. Bustier, explained that she had to answer this call from her father. It could be important. Since Ms. Bustier knew about her father's work, she agreed but told her to hurry up.
Catie went outside and closed the door before she answered. "Yes, dad?"
"Are you okay?" She could hear the worry in his voice.
"I'm fine dad. Really. You didn't have to call to check up on me. Ever since I came home with my injury on my first day you call every time something happens. You don't have to do that."
"I'm just worried. I was notified the attack happened close to you and wanted to make sure."
"It's fine. A classmate of mine pushed me inside a closet to hide in. I was nowhere near close." Catie lied. She knew the consequences of disappointing her father.
"Really? It's good of your classmates to protect you. But are you sure you were nowhere near the incident?"
"Really. Why do you keep asking?"
"Oh I don't know. Maybe because of the fact that YOU WERE ON THE NEWS ALMOST GETTING CRUSHED BY THAT THING!"
Catie froze. She then groaned and facepalmed. "Those journalists. I should've known they would be there." she thought. "Look, I'm sorry, okay? I needed to see for myself. I didn't know it was that close or that it would fall on me."
"You young lady, are in a lot of trouble. You are grounded from now on. You are only allowed to and from school, and on school grounds. If I capture you outside I will be your personal escort for the remainder of the school year. Are we clear?"
"What?! No way! That's not fair!" Catie began protesting. "It's only my first week here."
"Then you know not to rush into danger, young lady."
Catie wanted to argue more, but if she did she would lose her temper and probably be attacked by one of those black butterfly thingies. "Fine."
"That's not the correct response Catherine."
Catie took a deep breath. "I understand, sir."
"Much better. See you at home later."
Catie took a minute to look at the passing clouds before walking into class again.
—
"Are you serious?" Alya almost shouted out loud during recess. The girls in the class had asked Catie if she wanted to join them to the movies. Catie had to decline. When the girls asked why, Catie told them about the phone call earlier.
"That's not fair!" The girl in pink named Rose said.
"Well, my dad is a bit… overprotective. And I did almost get crushed under that lollipop thing. What did you say it was called again?"
"A sentimonster." Marinette sat down beside Catie. "What were you doing out there? You could've been hurt."
"I just wanted to see for myself. I visited your ladyblog", Catie said and looked at Alya, "but it seemed so unrealistic. So when everyone panicked and yelled akuma, I knew I had to see for myself."
"You never really seen anything like it?" The little one called Mylene said.
Catie shook her head. "Never. When my dad told me about these things when we were moving here, I actually laughed. I found it ridiculous. I mean, these are things you only read about in comics. Who knew that heroes and supervillains actually existed?"
"Did you get injured?" Marinette asked worriedly.
"No, nothing. Maybe a bruise or two but nothing serious."
"That's good." Marinette let out a relieved sigh.
"Wow Marinette. Worried much?" Alya raised an eyebrow.
"Eh, well, you know, ah, new here, not injured, good." She stammered and let out a nervous laugh.
Catie put a comforting hand on the girls shoulder. "I guess it's because of what happened on my first day? Marinette knows and the school knows. I didn't want to tell you guys because I don't want to be treated any differently. But if you can promise me you won't treat me like a porcelain doll then I can tell you." Catie waited for the others to nod in agreement. She then told them about her condition.
"Sounds a lot like Lila's arthritis." Rose said.
"The doctors thought I had that first, but when I was injured from falling down the stairs and had to ride an ambulance to the hospital because half my body's joints were dislocated, they changed my diagnosis. But it's really fine. As long as I don't overdo it then it is okay."
"You should really talk to Lila. You would be surprised how much you have in common." Alya laughed.
Catie looked at Marinette who only shrugged. She didn't want to say anything in front of the others so she just smiled and shrugged. Catie understood. "I would love to meet her. When is she coming back?"
"I think it is tomorrow, or the day after tomorrow?" Alya said while looking at the others for confirmation.
With this new information, Catie couldn't wait to meet this girl everyone was fawning over.
—
True to their words, Lila arrived the next day. Catie didn't get a chance to talk to her before first class as everyone else was surrounding her and asking her about her latest trip. Catie rolled her eyes and went up to the classroom. With the little she heard, and what she saw from a distance, she could already tell this girl was trouble.
"Welcome back, Lila. I hope your travels went well?" Ms. Bustier said when she saw Lila sitting in the front. Marinette had moved to the back with Catie.
"Oh, it was Ms. Bustier. It was so much fun, but I missed you all so much during the trip." Lila said in a too sweet of a voice for Catie's liking. She could see Marinette making a disgusted face at her words.
"I hope you didn't forget about your school work while you were away?" The teacher asked.
"Of course not. Though I couldn't do everything due to my arthritis acting up a lot. But I managed to get some done." Lila looked sad.
Catie rolled her eyes. "If she cared about school, she wouldn't just make excuses.".
"I can tell you all about my travels if you want." Lila then said while looking around. She stopped when she noticed Catie, a new face in class. "I see we have a new classmate." Lila smiled at her.
Marinette was about to say something before she was stopped by Catie who then stood up and smiled at the false girl.
"Yes. I'm Catie. I transferred here just a few days ago, from the Kingdom of Achu." Catie paused to see the reaction on Lila's face. Indeed she managed to catch a small twitch in her eyes. "I've moved around a lot and like to experience wherever I am at the moment. I have heard so many good things about you and would love to catch up with you after class." Catie sat down, satisfied with her reading of the girl. She didn't give anything that she hadn't already told the class, as she was still not comfortable to do so.
"That sounds like it would be so much fun! Please let's do that. Maybe we could tell our adventures to everyone." Lila tried to smooth things over.
Catie shook her head. "No thank you. I have no interest in boasting and bragging. I would only like to speak with another well traveled fellow person. That's all." Catie again noticed the small twitch in Lila's eye.
"Can we continue with the class please?"
"Yes, of course. Today we will discuss…"
—
"Hey Lila!" Catie called the girl once they exited the classroom. She grabbed the girl by the arm and half pulled, half dragged her to the cafeteria. "Let's eat lunch together. I want to hear about your travels. Who knows, maybe we even crossed paths." Catie tried playing nice, even though her common sense knew she shouldn't. But she needed to find out why.
"That would be so much fun." Lila said, faking a smile.
"I've only heard so many good things about you in these few days that I've been here. You must really be amazing."
"Oh, I don't know about that." Lila tried playing modestly.
"I heard you were in Achu not long ago. What was your favorite thing to do there?" Catie didn't mention anything about how she lived there. She wanted to see what the girl would say first, if it was true and she really did travel there.
"Uhm… I'm not so sure. It was a while ago so I kind of forgot what we did." Lila tried to play modest as other students went past.
"Alya said you did some charity work with the royal family?" Catie was careful not mentioning anything about Marinette to really hammer down that she hadn't heard anything negative.
"Yes. I was there and helped them with their charity for the environment. It was such a productive travel." Lila kept a loud enough voice that people around them could hear in the lunch que in the cafeteria.
"Seriously? But I thought prince Ali only worked with charities for children and children's hospitals?" Catie looked puzzled.
"Oh, that is because he is. But the royal family as a whole focuses on charity for the environment." Lila quickly said, as she noticed a few students had turned their heads when Catie made her comment.
"So did you spend a lot of time with the royal family? Was it fun? What did you do?" Catie kept throwing questions at Lila who kept smiling as she happily answered.
"Oh we did so much! We went to the zoo, I got to fly in their private helicopter and I even got to spend the night at his castle. It was so wonderful."
Catie looked really confused at this. She knew for a fact that one; there were no zoos in Achu, two; they had a private jet, not a helicopter and three; they lived in a mansion not a castle. Everything Lila had told Catie was not true, from the charity work to her visit. It was clear that this girl had never even been to Achu.
"I want to show you something." Catie said after Lila looked confused as well.
"Sure!" the uncertainty could be heard in her voice. Once they sat down at a table Catie took out her phone and opened her album. She started to scroll down until she found the photo she was looking for. It was of her and her family eating dinner with the royal family. All color seemed to escape Lila's face.
"Uhm…"
Some students seated nearby tried to look at what Catie was showing Lila, and a few did. They saw it too, and almost immediately started to whisper amongst themselves.
"I see you have traveled there as well." Lila said through gritted teeth. "Who is this girl?" she thought.
"No, I lived there remember? Since my dad works with what he does, I move around a lot too. We lived in Achu for about a year before we moved here. That's why I was wondering when you were there. Maybe we crossed paths."
"I thought that was made up" Lila thought before she finally gave a nervous laughter. "Maybe we did."
Catie sensed the tension in the girls voice and tried to change the subject. "Please tell me more about your travels. I'm dying to meet someone who knows the struggles of moving around." Catie quickly asked. Her mission to discredit Lila about Achu had worked wonders, although it came at the cost of her anonymity. The whispers had already begun spreading, unbeknownst to Lila too it seemed.
"You move around alot?" Lila asked, more sincerity in her voice now than Catie had heard all day.
"Unfortunately. It comes with what my family does. Your mother worked for the embassy right? I heard it from Alya, she really admires you, you know. But anyway, I guess working for the embassy entails a lot of traveling. You should have some amazing stories to tell as well as me." Catie leaned forward and positioned her head on her hand for support.
"Oh, well, I have done some pretty amazing things." Lila began, changing her voice as she was bragging.
"Really? Please tell." Catie urged.
Lila began on a rant about some of her 'stories', how she had been an inspiration for Steven Spielberg, and even helped Clara Nightingale with her dancing. She kept going on about Jagged Stone and how she saved his cat. Catie drew her head back and looked confused. Lila noticed and stopped. "Did I say something wrong?"
"No, no… Well, that thing about Jagged Stone doesn't make sense to me." Catie gave Lila a questioning look.
"Why?" Lila changed her voice again, she sounded worried and annoyed.
"You know that Jagged Stone is world famous, right?"
"Yes? Of course I do. He wrote a song about me to thank me for saving his kitten."
"Even I who moved around a lot knows about him. I'm actually a big fan."
Lila gritted her teeth and nodded, trying hard not to show her annoyed and angry self.
"So I know that he has had his crocodile alligator pet for a long time. What was its name?"
"Fang!" a fellow student by the table next to them chimed in.
"Thank you!" Catie thanked the student and went back to the conversation, not caring that they overheard, but thankful because another seed of doubt could be planted. That was probably what Lila was worried about. "He has had Fang for at least… fifteen, fourteen years I believe. And he has never even mentioned having a cat."
"Well, I'm not supposed to tell this, but Jagged did have a cat at one point but Fang ate it. That is probably why he never talks about it." Lila claimed without batting an eye. It appeared that Lila had already thought of a response for that question as well as the royal family of Achu.
"Really? That's interesting."
"If he spoke about it then animal control would take Fang from him and put him down. It's such a sad story." Lila dried a fake tear with her fingers.
"Really? Fake tears? She does know I can see that her eyes are dry, right?"
"Seriously?"
"Don't you believe me?" Lila changed her voice again, now sounding offended and hurt.
"Do I have to?" Catie simply stated.
Lila could only stare at Catie.
"And if he really had a cat, maybe the cat fled because of fear from being eaten?" Catie tilted her head as she asked.
"Maybe…"
"And also. When someone flies with animals they are locked inside cages. Cages that can't be opened without keys and fingers. I know because we once moved with our dog. They can't accidentally open." Catie's goal right now was to poke as many holes in Lila's stories as possible while the other students were listening in. She did not like this girl and how people seemed to believe anything that came out of her mouth.
"Well…"
"And! Only airport personnel are allowed on the tarmac. And no one is allowed on the runway while a plane is taking off. IF an animal was on the runway, it would either be run over or run away. Cats are notorious for changing their directions to avoid dangers."
Lila looked around nervously, as more and more students started to listen to their conversation.
"And someone outrunning a plane would definitely make the press."
Lila began to cry her crocodile tears. "Why don't you believe me?"
Catie was not moved by her actions, but instead leaned back in her chair and crossed her arms over her chest. "I was taught to always look at the facts. If something sounds too good to be true, then it probably is."
"It's Marinette who told you to not believe me, wasn't it? I've noticed that you two hang around each other." Lila was hiding her face in her hands and faked sobbing.
Catie shook her head. "No. I don't tolerate gossip and badmouthing another person. I want to learn about someone by myself. It's one thing if they talk positive things about someone, like how Alya was talking good things about you. But if someone would begin saying bad things about someone, I stop them immediately. So no one has said bad things about you to me. I made these conclusions by myself from experience and facts."
"Why don't you believe me then?" Lila kept fake crying, hoping someone would come to her 'rescue'.
"Why do I have to believe you? Isn't this a multicultural and multireligious society? I'm entitled to my own beliefs, just as you are. I was taught to never only take someone's words as truth. Only facts and evidence."
Lila looked up, confused. The 'crying' magically disappeared, 'tears' dried up. She didn't know what to say to that, as she had a point.
Catie sighed. "Look. I know how it feels to not be believed for a story. But instead of crying and screaming, I give evidence. In fact, I have a whole folder of papers in my bag right now, and tons of photos on my phone to show in case that happens. Just like how I showed you that I lived in Achu."
"What? Why?" Lila looked genuinly confused.
"When I lived in Japan, my friends took me up Mount Fuji as I had expressed that I wanted to climb it. Unfortunately, we chose the wrong day in the winter, and got caught up in a storm. We had to be evacuated by helicopter after spending the night in a snow cave we dug out. Some people don't believe me, as it sounds so outrageous. Teens climbing a mountain alone, being stranded by a snowstorm, having to dig a shelter. I get it. It sounds out of this world. But we made the news, and I have plenty of photos on my phone to prove it. If I choose to tell a story, I'm ready to back it up with evidence."
"But, shouldn't your words be enough?" Lila tilted her head. Catie felt like this girl was fishing for tricks and advice to better be believed.
"Why?" Catie asked back. "I can't force someone to believe me. Some still question the truthfulness even after being shown the photos. That's life."
Lila stared at Catie for a while, before she became serious again.
"What does your family do since you move so much?"
"Okay. Don't tell anyone about this. I haven't told anyone about it. Only the teachers know because of the extensive paperwork I had to turn in on my first day. But my dad is in the military." Catie half whispered the last part. Lila continued to stare at the new girl.
"You… your dad is in the military?"
"Yeah. Not so great really. But it has some perks I guess. But now you understand why I only follow evidence. My dad is really serious about it. But you can understand, right?Having to move from one place to another. Meet new people. Having to act a certain way to not get your parents into trouble. It's so refreshing meeting someone who understands these struggles." Catie tried to sound engaging again, and it seemed to have worked as Lila took the bait.
"I guess. But isn't it amazing getting to travel around the world?" The overly sweet voice was back.
"Seriously. She has like four voices. Bragging, offended, crying and overly sweet. It's disgusting really."
"I hate it." Catie said as a matter of fact. Lila was surprised to hear that.
"You hate it? Why? You get to meet these amazing people, have these amazing experiences and do good in this world. How can that be something to hate?" Lila faked being concerned.
"I hate it, because you never know when you have to move again. I hate it, because you have to learn everything from scratch again. I hate it, because you have to learn a new language again. I hate it, because when you move again, you have to say goodbye to all of your friends again. I hate it, because you have to explain yourself over and over and over again. It's exhausting really."
"You hate it here? Do you hate us?" Lila gasped, trying to get the attention of the students at the other tables again, failing miserably.
"This girl really feels threatened by me so much right now so she has to discredit me as soon as possible."
"You're twisting my words. I never said I hated you guys, or anybody. I only said I hate the fact that once I make friends and inevitably move again I have to say goodbye to them. It's hard. I never said anything about hating people. That's all I said. Don't put words in my mouth, thank you." Catie locked eyes with Lila, sending her a silent warning.
"Of course not. I must've misunderstood you." Lila backed off annoyed. Lila knew quickly that this girl was not to be allowed going around discrediting her. But she also realized that this girl was not someone you should make enemies with lightly.
Marinette sat in a corner with Alya and Nino. They had a full blow discussion about super pinguino that Marinette had tuned out of as soon as it began. Now she was looking at the scene a few tables away. Marinette couldn't help but give off a satisfied smile at the scene. Catie gave Lila pressure, she could tell by the liar's body language. At one point she even tried crying to get her way, but Catie shut her down. She had never felt this satisfied with how someone handled the liar. Good thing that Alya hadn't noticed the liars fake crying. She would definitely have walked over to her rescue.
"I really hope they get along." Alya finally noticed the pair talking, breaking Marinette's thoughts.
"Uh, well. Yes." Marinette couldn't find any other words.
"I hope that Catie isn't too harsh on Lila. It seems a little one sided. Do you think that Catie is trying to overshadow her?" Alya looked at Nino with worry.
"It wouldn't be difficult." Marinette accidentally said out loud.
"What do you mean?" Both Nino and Alya said as they looked at the girl.
"Ah… what I mean is… Catie has some amazing stories as well."
"Really? Has she told you some of them?" Alya raised an eyebrow.
"Well… Don't you think it's amazing how humble Catie is? She has a medical condition that she doesn't use as an excuse or lets it get in the way. She dislocated her wrist on her first day, and participated in gym class the next. We played basketball, a sport that requires the use of hands! She did flinch a couple of times, but she never complained. She never brags about things and barely talks about herself. I find that amazing." Marinette crossed her arms.
"What medical condition?" Nino asked.
"Nothing for you to worry about." Alya waved her hand at Nino. "But Marinette, you can't compare the two. Every illness affects people differently."
"I know. But still. One provides medical records and acts like it's nothing serious at all. The other refuses to show anything, and uses it as excuses to get out of class or work. Don't you find that weird?"
"What makes you say she hasn't given the papers to the school?"
"Because we often hear the teachers ask Lila for them. She has been in our school for over half a year and still hasn't given them. Catie gave them on the first day without questions. I find that suspicious."
"Are you sure it's not your jealousy talking?"
Marinette sighed and excused herself. There really was no point talking to anyone about Lila. Anyone besides Catie it seemed.
—