Chapter Thirty-Four

"Marinette~!"

Marinette glanced up as she headed out the front doors of her school, her bag slung over her shoulder. She barely had time to react as a pair of arms were thrown around her, before being pulled into a tight hug. She would have stumbled if it weren't for their grip, but she managed a tight smile as she stood there in the sudden embrace.

"Hey, Lila," Marinette said, and Lila pulled back, her hands resting on her shoulders as she beamed at Marinette. "What's up?"

"Well," Lila began, smiling warmly. "You said not too long ago that we could hang out, and so, I was thinking that we should do that today. We don't have too much homework, and my schedule isn't too busy, so..."

"Oh," Marinette said, blinking, before giving a quick smile, not wanting Lila to think she didn't want to be with her. "I'd love to, but I kind of had a few plans..."

Plagg was low on cheese and had demanded this morning that they go shopping after school.

Lila's expression shifted slightly, though into what, Marinette couldn't say. "Well, maybe I could join in, if that's okay? Of course I don't want to crash anything if you already have plans with someone, but if they wouldn't mind me tagging along... I mean, it's just been sometime since we've gotten to hang out and all... I'm sure Alya wouldn't mind me joining, right?"

"I wasn't going to be with Alya. I wasn't going to be with anyone, actually." Except Plagg, but she of course couldn't mention him. "I just had a few things that I've been needing to get done."

"Okay," Lila said, her face turning dejected– though she quickly covered it up with a forced smile. "I don't want to impose. I just thought today would be a good day, my parents are busy at the embassy and I didn't really want to spend the day alone or anything, but I'll figure something out, don't worry!"

Marinette's heart twisted guiltily, and it was all too clear that Lila's smile wasn't reaching her eyes. "But I can always do it another time! I mean, it wouldn't hurt to take care of it later today."

"Oh, thank you, Marinette!" Lila cried, throwing her arms around her, pressing a quick kiss to her cheek. "You're the absolute best, today is going to be amazing. How about we head to your house, since it's so close?"

And with that Marinette was quickly trying to rearrange the plans in her head, ignoring the protesting pokes in her side from her purse. She had been hoping to have a bit of a quiet day today, after hours of school she just wanted some time away from people– but maybe this was a good thing. She had been a bit of a recluse since the last akuma attack, and that couldn't be healthy. This would probably be a good opportunity to break out of the shell she had built up, and it had been quite a while since she had hung out with Lila anyways.

Despite her hesitation, seeing Lila's beaming smile kept her from thinking about it too hard. She was sure it would be nice to be with a friend for a few hours, because aside from school she hadn't really been doing anything with anyone as of late. Marinette made sure to smile as Lila happily chattered on their way to the bakery, and she had to force herself to listen. She needed to focus, she couldn't keep dragging herself down.

The bakery had a good stream of people as they entered, a majority of them students swinging by now that school was over. Sabine waved at them from over the counter as they joined her around back, Marinette ready to head for the stairs that lead to the apartment, but Sabine and Lila were already swept up in a conversation.

"I can't imagine how you run all of this, Mme. Cheng," Lila said. "Not just the store itself, but all the cooking as well! It looks absolutely amazing, I don't get fresh pastries often, we have pretty basic meals at home with how busy my parents are."

"Well, why don't you and Marinette take some croissants up to her room then?" Sabine said, already getting out a small bag to put them in. Marinette went over to join them as the warm food was handed over to Lila.

"Oh, thank you so much!" She beamed. "This smells so good– oh! Are those bocconotto? Those were my favorites back in Italy!"

Their eyes followed Lila's to the pastries she was looking at. Marinette smiled softly. "Oh, that's my father's recipe for them– they're really good."

"Would you like some of those too, Lila?" Sabine offered, though she had already picked up the tongs to grab them. Lila held open the bag as several of the pastries were dropped in, giving her thanks as Sabine turned to help the next customer in line.

"Your mom is the sweetest," Lila said as they exited the bakery and headed up the stairs.

"She is," Marinette agreed softly.

"You're so lucky that she works basically at home," Lila said with a sigh. "My moms are always so busy– but they're doing a lot of important work, so I really shouldn't be complaining."

"Nothing wrong with missing them," Marinette said softly, sitting down at the table, and Lila mirrored her, pulling the bag of baked goods towards her. "Adrien often explains away his father's absence with his work, but I never liked seeing him do that– you shouldn't either."

Lila's expression shifted to distaste for a moment, before pulling out the bocconotto, taking a bite. "Mmm– just like being back home. Do you want one?"

"I'll take a croissant," Marinette said, snatching one from the bag.

Their conversation drifted towards the bakery from there– and Lila sounded ecstatic to learn that Marinette's grandmother was Italian, and from there the conversation was about Italy, Lila happily talking about what her old home and school had been like.

Sabine came up not long after they had finished off the bag, though Marinette knew she would probably need to get back to the bakery soon– but like always, she didn't seem to be in a hurry, warmly talking to the two of them. Marinette watched her mother for a moment, not truly focusing on her words. She wished that she could be more like her, being able to handle everything life gave her.

Perhaps she'd be a better hero that way. Able to save the city without having to hide all her emotions away. Be able to go about her normal life without feeling weighed down. Akumas took so much out of her, and she wasn't feeling physically drained, but emotionally. It had been over a week since Alya had been akumatized, but still Marinette hadn't been able to pull her head above water.

Lila was the only friend she had brought by since then, and Marinette was struggling to even hold a conversation. She was thankful that her mom had come by, and that Lila was quite the chatterbox and wasn't trying to pull her into the conversation.

"That painting is absolutely beautiful," Lila said, nodding towards the one that hung on the wall.

"Thank you, dear, I made it myself," Sabine said.

"Oh, so that's where Marinette gets her artistic skills from!" Lila said. "Oh, I wish I could paint like that. I don't know where to begin, though, but I have always loved the idea of being an artist, you really do have a talent."

"I actually teach Chinese painting classes on the weekends," Sabine said with a smile. "If you're interested, you could always come."

"I would absolutely love that."

"I know your school has an art club too," Sabine glanced at Marinette. "Isn't it after school today, dear?"

"Yeah, it is," she replied, before sitting up slightly. "Actually, we could go over there right now, if you'd like, Lila, M. Monlataing is always happy to welcome new members. It could be a great place to start if you want to do art."

"...Who else is in the art club?" She asked after a moment of thought.

"From our class there's Nathaniel, Alix, and Rose. Juleka is there a lot too, though she usually is just there to support Rose."

Lila instantly perked up. "That sounds amazing– yes, we should go over there before it ends."

Marinette was actually glad to be heading back to the school; it was a bit easier to smile when others were around, and she didn't have to be the sole one to carry the conversation with Lila. She didn't want Lila to think that she was the one causing her poor attitude, and so being in a crowd just sounded much better, even if she would just rather be alone.

The art room was fairly busy as they entered, everyone looking up to greet them. Everyone was scattered across the room working on their own projects, and Marinette went over to the cupboards to pull out her own to give herself something to do as Lila was swept away by M. Monlataing, showing her around. As she sat down at a desk Marinette looked down at the silver feathers she had been making.

She had less than two months before the Gabriel show that her hat would be in. The feather was not only a means to save Adrien from his allergies, but also her chance to make sure her work was up to professional standards. The artificial feathers she had made so far looked nice, but they had to be approved by Gabriel Agreste himself– which meant they had to be absolutely perfect.

She glanced up, looking at what everyone else was working on. Alix was working with her spray paints like always, wearing a mask and goggles over her face as she worked. Rose and Juleka were working on painting masks– based on the ones that Marinette had designed for Kitty Section– and it seemed they were making one for each member, a small pile off to the side. Aurore was off in another corner painting on canvas, and Lila was looking over Nathaniel's shoulders as he sketched, her eyes landing on his reference photos.

"Is that Alix?" She asked, pointing to the nearest one, which Nathaniel glanced at uncertainly, before giving a short nod. "Oh my goodness, she's so little! I didn't know her hair was that red."

"Used to be red as Nath's," Alix said, pausing from her painting to listen in. "That's about all the motivation I needed to dye it, though."

Nathaniel rolled his eyes. "She dyed it because her dad said she wasn't allowed to."

"I can have more than one reason," Alix said as she pushed her mask back, grinning at Nathaniel– who rolled his eyes in reply. Alix let out a loud laugh at this, before picking up another can of paint.

Lila picked up the photo, studying it. "Is the other girl in the picture your sister, Nathaniel?"

"Actually, that's me," Nathaniel said quietly, immediately reaching for the photo to take it back. "A few years before I transitioned."

"Oh! So you and Alix have been friends for a while, then?"

"Since our first year in primaire," Alix replied.

"That's so sweet. I never really got to have long-term friends like that, since we were always moving between countries and schools," Lila said.

"You don't keep in contact with anyone?"

"I tried, but we always drifted apart after a few months." She let out a sigh, sitting next to Nathaniel. "I still have a lot of my old friends' phone numbers, but since it's been so long… well, I keep them around for the memories."

"Well, don't you even dare try to lose contact with us," Alix said. "Even if you have to end up moving again– you better call or else we're going to spam you."

Lila smiled, before sliding in closer and looking at Nathaniel's sketchbook. "So you're drawing Alix?"

"Kind of," he said quietly. "I made a character based off of Alix for the comic I want to make, and I'm trying to finalize a design for her."

"That sounds like so much fun! How many characters are you going to have?"

Nathaniel shrugged, his pencil against the paper, ready to draw, but the questions kept pulling his focus. He bit his lip for a moment, shifting in his seat. "I'm not sure yet... I have ideas for some heroes, but I've been struggling with coming up with a good story line..."

"I should totally call up my cousin! She's an author, and she's written some really amazing stories. Of course, she doesn't know French... but I'm sure she would be willing to give some advice, I could help translate her messages for you– what do you think?"

"I'm sure she wouldn't want to bother with some collège student..." Nathaniel muttered, turning slightly red.

"Well it wouldn't hurt for me to ask her."

"Oh wow, so many new faces today," M. Monlataing said warmly, looking up at the two figures standing in the doorway. "Come on in, welcome– what are your names?"

All eyes flickered up to see the students who had entered– one shrinking behind the other with the sudden gazes that came their way. Marinette smiled as she saw Kagami standing there, who smiled as they made eye contact. The one behind her she recognized as a student from Miss Mendeleiev's class– Marton? Marc?

"I'm Kagami," Kagami said, sitting up straight as she turned towards the art teacher. "And this is Marc– we want to join the art club."

"Of course," M. Monlataing said warmly. "Everyone here is welcome, come on in, we are always happy to have new faces. Now, what do the two of you like to do?"

"I draw," Kagami said– her voice holding no enthusiasm, and Marc muttered something softly.

"Ah, I didn't quite hear that, young man," M. Monlataing said with a smile, and Marc shifted a notebook in their hands.

"I write..." Marc muttered, tucking their notebook under their jacket. "I... I know that's not really art-art, I didn't want to disturb you guys, but Kagami really wanted to join and..."

"You're never disturbing anyone here," M. Monlataing replied, placing a hand on their shoulder. "This room is for creation– and that is for creations of every kind."

"I do writing here, too!" Rose said with a huge smile, and she threw an arm around Juleka. "Mostly lyrics for our band– what do you write?"

"Things..." Marc trailed off.

"They write stories," Kagami said. "Poems as well– they're good at it too, when you can get them to share it."

"Nice to see you two here," Aurore said, nodding at the two of them. "Bustier's class has pretty much taken over the art club."

"We'll just have to raise our numbers some more," Alix said with a grin. "Alya's a writer too, let's get her in here!"

"Articles aren't the same as stories," Aurore said with a grin. "Marc would beat her any day, you should've seen the short story they wrote for our group presentation a few weeks back, their writing is nothing to scoff at!"

"Ah, excuse me," M. Monlataing said, cutting into the conversation, but his eyes were on Marc. "Listening to what everyone has been saying, I clearly owe you an apology, Marc, I called you young man earlier, did I not? I like this room to be a safe one, if I make any such mistakes again in the future please do correct me."

"O-oh, you're fine," Marc said swiftly. "I use masculine pronouns too, sometimes, I really don't mind..."

"Well, welcome to the art club, Marc," the teacher said warmly.

"You said you do writing, right, Marc?" Nathaniel asked, turning away from his drawings, smiling towards Marc and Kagami. "What kinds of things do you like to write?"

"I– er– I, um–" Marc's eyes fell onto Nathaniel's drawings on the table, and they slowly walked forward, looking down at them. "Oh, wow," they said softly. "I... I saw your art was featured on the school website, but these... these are really beautiful– look at the expressions, and the motion, it looks like they're moving!"

Nathaniel smiled. "Thank you."

Marc jumped back, as if realizing how close they had gotten. "It's– it's true, it really is something..."

"Hey, Nath– pass me some red paint!" Alix called over from the large canvas she had been spray painting. Nathaniel picked up the can, handing it to Lila, who passed it over to Alix, who set down the green can she had just been using.

Marinette's focus was pulled away from the small group as someone slipped into the seat next to her, and she smiled at Kagami. "Hello, Marinette– what are you working on?"

"I'm making a feather for a hat I made a while back," Marinette said, shifting slightly so Kagami could look at the silver feathers. "I won a contest, actually, but in the contest I used a real feather and Adrien is allergic and he's going to be the one modeling it, so..." she waved a hand about. "I'm making a new feather to go with the hat."

"May I?" Kagami asked, and with a nod Kagami picked up a feather. "Huh, not as heavy as it looks, with the metallic color."

"Do you think silver works, or should I have gone for gold?" She asked uncertainly.

"Definitely the silver– has that sleek look without it looking like it's trying to be flashy," Kagami said, before carefully putting the feather back down. She pulled her messenger bag into her lap, pulling out a sketchbook and setting it on the table.

"I didn't know that you drew," Marinette said.

"It's, well, something I don't talk a lot about," Kagami said, before pushing the sketchbook open– revealing a highly realistic drawing of a snow leopard perched on a rock. Marinette's eyes widened in awe– yet she wasn't really surprised, because there didn't seem to be anything that Kagami wasn't good at.

"Why not?" Marinette asked, leaning forward to get a better look. "That's absolutely beautiful!"

"Thank you," Kagami said, and she pressed her lips together. "I love drawing, but my mother doesn't approve, she says I do not have the skill for it, which is why I would prefer to keep my time here in the art club quiet."

Marinette stared– wondering how on earth Tomoe could think this masterpiece was anything but skill– and that thought made Marinette pause. "Wait, isn't your mother blind?"

"Yes."

"Then– then how on earth can she say–?"

"Because she thinks I have no time to practice," Kagami replied. "My day is filled with many other activities, and she does not know that I draw in my spare time. In her mind I have not had the time to hone my skill, and creating time for such would hinder my practice for other activities she sees as far more important." She spoke stiffly, as if this was no concern, before letting out a small sigh. "...She also does not see art as something worthwhile."

"Well, I may have only seen one drawing– but I think your art is beautiful," Marinette said softly.

Kagami's eyes flickered towards her, and she carefully pushed her sketchbook forward. "You can look through it, if you like."

Marinette considered her own sketchbooks as practically sacred, so she knew that this was no causal remark. She pulled the sketchbook towards her, slowly turning through the pages. A majority of the sketches within were of some kind of nature imagery– animals, flowers, landscapes– all rendered in a realistic style down to every detail. There were other things as well– the Paris skyline, the Eiffel Tower jutting out in the center, several sketches of Tomoe as well set in what she assumed was their home, and one of a street corner with people hurrying by. There was even one of Miss Mendeleiev at the front of her classroom as she taught.

"Perfect student Kagami doodling in class?" Marinette asked, smirking slightly.

"Maybe I drew it from memory," Kagami replied, face unchanging. "Or perhaps I've placed myself into the teacher's good graces so she doesn't ask what I'm working on, anything's possible."

"You should teach Nathaniel your ways," Marinette replied. "He's always getting caught doodling."

"Marinette~" A voice called happily, and she felt a pair of arms wrap around one of her own, Lila slipping into the seat on the other side of her. "The art club is so amazing, I'm glad you brought me here."

"We're in the middle of a conversation, if you hadn't noticed," Kagami said, eyes narrowing on Lila. "Please wait until we're finished."

Kagami's hand reached forward, and Marinette took the cue to shut her sketchbook, sliding it back towards Kagami. Lila's eyes scanned her for a moment, her arms wrapping Marinette's arm into a tighter embrace.

"I don't think we've met before," Lila said warmly. "I'm Lila, me and Marinette are hanging out today."

"That does not change the fact that we were having a conversation– a private one at that," Kagami said. "So if you would, please leave until we are done with what we were saying."

Lila sagged. "You won't even give me your name?"

"I was not looking to introduce myself," Kagami replied.

"Oh, Marinette, is this what you're working on?" Lila asked as she spotted the feathers, picking up the nearest one. "Oh, it's so pretty."

"Be careful," Marinette said, sitting up slightly. "It's still a work in progress."

"I wouldn't think so, you just really have a talent for these sorts of things!"

"Marinette wants you to put it down," Kagami said.

"No, no, it's fine," Marinette said swiftly– not liking the growing tension between her two friends. "Just be careful, that's all."

"Hey, Lila!" Alix called. "Do you think you could come tell Marc a bit about your cousin?"

Lila stiffened up slightly, looking back at the table where Nathaniel, Marc, and now Alix were gathered. Nathaniel had gathered up most of his drawings, but was holding one up next to Marc's notebook, who looked nervous as they slowly set it down on the table, turning through the pages. Alix was switching out cans of paint, her goggles pushed up and her mask hanging around her neck.

"Of course," Lila said warmly after a moment, setting down the feather as she slowly pushed herself to her feet, making her way back to the other table. "She's really involved in the writing world, I think it's amazing the things she's done, I don't think she gets enough recognition– I don't think she's even known outside of Italy..."

"I don't get why some people think they can do that," Kagami said, nose wrinkling slightly as she watched Lila leave.

"She's just really... enthusiastic," Marinette said after a moment, giving a small smile. "Like Alya, always ready to go, you know?"

"Alya doesn't cut me off," Kagami replied, before slowly opening her sketchbook again. "It doesn't matter what this Lila is like, I don't want her near my drawings."

"Then you probably don't want clumsy old me near them either," Marinette said teasingly, trying to lighten the mood.

"I trust you," Kagami said simply, handing the sketchbook back to her. Marinette couldn't help but fall quiet at the softness in her voice, her face feeling warm as she opened the sketchbook again.

This time she opened to a page of flowers, these ones drawn in bouquets, with the faintest hint of color added to the petals, lightly shaded between the lines. It helped define the flowers in the bouquet, the burst of color standing out compared to the sketches on all the other pages.

"The arrangements are based on hanakotoba," Kagami said, and when Marinette glanced at her she continued. "The Japanese flower language, each flower has its own meaning, so each bouquet could be like its own message to someone, like a love letter."

"That's a cute idea," Marinette said, and she pointed to one in the corner. "What do these ones mean?"

Kagami flushed slightly, reaching for her sketchbook. "I... I would have to look it up again, I don't have the meanings memorized..."

"Well, the drawings are beautiful either way," Marinette replied as she handed it back. "Thank you for letting me look at them–"

"Oh no!" A crash, followed by a startled cry cut through the room, all eyes turning towards the back of the room. "I– I didn't mean to– I didn't know the lid was loose– I'm so sorry!"

Marinette's eyes fell onto the table where Nathaniel and the others had gathered– where part of the collection of paint and spray paint had been knocked over. Several splatters of spray paint spotted the table from their fall, and two bottles of paint had been knocked open. Nathaniel had managed to pull his drawing away as a rush of pink paint rushed towards it, but the notebook next to it had not been as lucky– black paint having spilled right across the open book, spreading over the words within moments.

Marc stared down at their book with wide eyes, face pale, looking like they were moments away from tears. They leapt forward after a moment of shock, seizing the book, but the thick globs of paint were quickly soaking through the thin paper. Their hands shook as Alix hastily shoved some paper towels into their hand, but it did little as they laid it against the paper. The entire art room was silent, and Kagami was on her feet in moments, rushing to their side.

"Marc?" Kagam asked, laying a hand on their shoulder.

Marc didn't say a word, pulling out of her grip and rushing for the door, their hands and book both stained with the black paint. Kagami took several steps to go after them, but they were already rushing down the hall, abandoning the art classroom before anyone could follow. So instead Kagami turned, glowering at Lila, who was shakily standing near the collection of paints that had been knocked over.

"I didn't mean to!" She cried, tears falling down her face. "I just stumbled and they went rolling and I– I–"

"There's no way the lids should have been loose," Alix protested. "We always check them before putting them away."

"I didn't use those colors today," Aurore agreed, glancing at her own palette of paints.

"We brought our own paints from home," Rose said, who looked very distraught, Juleka's arms wrapped around her.

"No one is at fault here," M. Monlataing said quietly as he approached the table, several rags in his hands. "Just a very, very unfortunate accident. Here, children, help me clean this up..."

Marinette felt sick, she may not have known Marc that well, but just the thought of that happening to her sketchbook, or any of her projects... that was absolutely horrible. She slowly pushed herself to her feet, making her way over to the table, taking a rag to help clean up the large globs of paint that were splattered on the table. The whole classroom was silent as they worked, no one knowing what to say.

"Maybe I shouldn't have come," Lila whispered as she sat next to Marinette as they finished, leaning against her. "This... this is all my fault."

"It was an accident," Marinette said softly. "Don't blame yourself."

"But if I wasn't so clumsy–!"

"I know all about being clumsy," she said with a smile, but it felt slightly forced. "You can't blame yourself when gravity decides to pull on you– no matter how careful you can be, things will happen."

Lila laid her head on her shoulder. "Thank you, Marinette, you're so kind. If... if no one else is blaming me, then it would be wrong to blame myself..."

"No one blames you," she said reassuringly. "You just tripped, that's all."

"If anything, it's my fault," Kagami said quietly, sitting near them, looking down at her feet. "I'm the one that brought Marc here. I insisted that we go together, I thought it would be good for them to put themself out there."

"You couldn't have known that would happen," Marinette said.

"Though maybe you shouldn't have pressured Marc," Lila added.

"I need to go talk to them," Kagami said, pushing herself. "I shouldn't have let them run off to be alone."

"It's okay, Kagami– I wasn't alone, Monarch was with me."

Marinette jumped at the sound of Marc's voice– much stronger and clearer than it had been before. Kagami raised her head as they spoke, looking slightly hopeful– before her expression hardened. Marinette followed her gaze towards the door, the quiet classroom quickly becoming alive as everyone scattered back from the figure that stood in the doorway– who could only be an akuma.

"Marc," Kagami said stiffly.

"It's Reverser now," they sneered, fists clenched. "And thanks to Monarch, I can finally be someone worthwhile."

Reverser looked about the room, at everyone who had risen to their feet– shrinking back against the wall or hiding behind a desk, but they did not move to attack. Reverser wore an outfit of contrasting black and white, divided right down the center of their form. It was not just their clothes, but even under their hood you could see that their face and eyes shared the same black and white motif. Their clothes looked like they were made of paper– Reverser peeling off a sheet of paper as they hovered there in the doorway from their chest, fingers swiftly folding it in their hands.

He was standing on what seemed to be a hoverboard of some kind– though made of paper, vaguely resembling a paper airplane, black and white like the rest of his apparel.

"Have you ever felt like it's impossible to be the person you want to be?" Reverser muttered, looking up at them with those sharp eyes. "That no matter how hard you try to reach a goal, you'll always fail? That you can never become them, because no matter what you do, it's just not who you are?"

They were almost hypnotizing to watch, a paper airplane now in their hands, and they were creating another one as they continued. The planes seemed to take shape naturally, barely even needing the guidance of their fingers. As they finished one, they set it in the air, where it just floated as they continued, each new plane joining another one in rank, just floating next to them with ease.

"You're too hard on yourself," Kagami said, stepping forward. "How many times have I told you that, Marc? But now Monarch has been able to prey upon that because you wouldn't listen."

"Monarch has set me free!" Reverser snarled, the paper airplanes tensing in the air. "The powers she has given me have allowed me to change, to become the person everyone has wanted me to be."

"No one wanted you to be a jerk," Kagami replied.

Reverser's eyes narrowed– and they waved their hand, one of the paper airplanes rushing forward straight towards Kagami. She side-stepped it easily, and the paper airplane continued on, hitting M. Monlataing instead, the paper seeming to merge with him. Everyone froze up, eyes on the teacher– not knowing what the effects of this akuma would be.

M. Monlataing's eyes narrowed with rage– glowering up at Reverser. His hands curled into fits as he stepped forward, raising his voice. "How dare you come into my classroom, akuma!" He shouted with a snarl. "Throwing around paper airplanes– that's not art, just childish shenanigans! Get out of here!"

Marinette most certainly hadn't expected the akuma's powers to turn someone against the akuma– but Reverser merely rolled their eyes. "Get out of the way, old man, I don't care about you."

"What did you do to him?" Kagami demanded.

"I already told you, Kagami," Reverser said, plucking one of the paper airplanes from the air. "Thanks to Monarch, I can help people change, become the person they could never be."

He threw another airplane at Kagami, who again moved to dodge the throw, the airplane zipping through the air. This time it made contact with Aurore– whose eyes immediately went wide. She shrank back, chair scraping against the floor as she hurried to get away, ducking behind a large statue in the corner, and Marinette could see her covering her head, eyes pressed closed.

"You make people become their opposites," Kagami said after a moment of consideration.

"I said get out!" M. Monlataing screamed– picking up a chair over his head, charging straight at Reverser. The akuma moved quickly, rising up into the air, avoiding the attack with ease. They swooped back around the teacher, giving him a shove as they sneered, causing the teacher to lose balance and fall.

A flicker of movement in the doorway caught Marinette's attention– and she turned to see Alya standing there, phone in hand as she filmed. She wasn't sure how long she had been there, but with her blocking the only exit she was only making herself a target for the akuma once he decided he was done with the class.

Reverser raised their hand overhead, and the paper airplanes they had created immediately rushed forward out at the students in the classroom. Marinette had no time to react, tensing up as she saw one flying straight at her. Lila let out a yelp, ducking behind Kagami, but Kagami had already moved forward to stand in front of Marinette– taking the paper airplane in her place.

"There," Reverser said with a smirk– everyone in the classroom save for Alya and Marinette having been hit. "My work here is finished, now to go find those heroes as you requested, Monarch."

A glowing purple mask appeared over Reverser's face, listening as Monarch whispered in their mind, before turning on their hoverboard, flying straight towards the window. They crashed through the glass easily, flying away from the school and out towards Paris.

"Vandalism!" M. Monlataing screamed. "You'll pay for that window, child, you hear me!"

"Kagami, are you okay?" Marinette asked, hands on her shoulders, and Kagami seemed to curl up against her. Frightened brown eyes flashed up towards her, her breathing growing heavy. "Kagami?"

"Marc! Akumatized!" Kagami gasped, clutching at Marinette. "My fault– he's going to get hurt–! The heroes–!"

"The heroes will save him," Marinette said firmly, turning Kagami around so they were facing each other. "He'll be okay– and this is no one's fault but Monarch's– remember that."

Kagami's eyes bulged. "Monarch could be anywhere– anyone!"

"Are you guys okay?" Alya asked, slowly coming into the classroom.

"Okay?" Nathaniel sneered. "How are any of us going to be okay with an akuma on the loose?"

"We need to do something," Rose agreed, crossing her arms. "We don't have time to wait for the heroes to arrive– we should stop the akuma ourselves!"

"Y-you want–?" Kagami squeaked.

"You heard her!" Juleka bellowed. "We can't just let Reverser get away with this!"

"Everyone– calm down!" Alya called– and all eyes fell towards her. "You guys realize that you're under the effect of an akuma, right? You guys wouldn't do this normally– so don't rush into something you're going to regret."

"What makes you think we're going to regret making the akuma pay?" Rose sneered. "Aren't we all tired of being pushed around by Monarch and these akumas– why don't we do something?"

"You guys are scaring Kagami," Lila said, her eyes falling onto Kagami– who was currently wrapped up in Marinette's arms. "Hey, Kagami, are you okay?"

Lila laid a hand on Kagami's shoulder, who peered out at her. Kagami didn't seem to have the courage to speak, but swiftly shook her head. Lila's gaze softened with worry, and she pulled her into a hug.

"Aurore?" Marinette asked, slowly making her way around to the statue she had seen her hide behind. "How are you feeling?"

"They're gone?" She whispered.

"Yeah, Reverser left," she said, offering her a smile. "The heroes will have them deakumatized in no time."

Aurore swallowed, before giving a swift nod. "Okay. Okay... I'm okay, I'll be fine."

"All the more reason we should do something!" Nathaniel snapped at Alya. "Are you really going to let them get away with doing this to our friends?"

"What do you plan on doing to an akuma who can fly and has super strength?" Alya snapped, crossing her arms. "You're just going to be running straight into danger."

"Says the one who runs after akumas to film them!"

"Exactly, to record them, not to fight them!"

"What... what if we went to find the heroes instead?" A small voice said, and all eyes fell to Alix, who was shifting from foot to foot. She hesitated at the sudden attention on her, taking a moment to find her voice. "If... if we find the heroes, then they can fight the akuma... that way we are doing something, but we aren't running into danger..."

"Not a bad idea," Juleka said, shrugging. "Lady Noire would take care of that dude in, like, a minute."

Rose grinned. "I wouldn't mind watching them beat up Reverser."

"We don't need the heroes– we need the police!" M. Monlataing snapped, who was currently sweeping up the shattered glass. "Look at what they did to my classroom!"

"I don't want to leave!" Kagami cried out. "We– we could be caught up in the fight! And– and–!"

"I'll stay here with you," Lila promised, grabbing her hands. "I'll keep a lookout, and make sure that Reverser isn't coming back, you don't have to go looking for anyone."

"Do you want to stay here with them?" Marinette asked Aurore, who gave a small nod. "Alix?"

"'Rather go look for the heroes," Alix muttered quietly.

"That's what the rest of us will do," Marinette said with a nod, and she looked over at her classmates– several of whom had a sharp look in their eyes that she wasn't used to. "And they can be the ones to actually fight the akuma."

Nathaniel grinned. "First one to find them is the winner."

"You're so on, Kurtzberg!"

Marinette let out a small sigh of relief as everyone hurried towards the door– and she could only hope that they weren't going to go cause any trouble. As for her, however, she needed to go and actually transform– because that was going to be the only way to end this. She hurried down the hall that looked the emptiest– only to feel a hand grab her arm, and she looked over her shoulder.

"Want to go together?" Alya asked.

Marinette's eyes went wide. "I– um– we'll cover more ground!" She said swiftly. "You know, by splitting up. The heroes could be anywhere in Paris, and might not be transformed, so we should spread word there's an akuma."

"I already put a notice that there was one on my blog, and sent a notice to the Akuma Alert hotline," she glanced at her phone. "Though no alert has gone off yet, though with Reverser flying around, I'm sure it won't be–"

As if on cue, their phones started beeping in unison, telling the city that there was an akuma on the loose. Alya glanced down at the notification, probably to see what information was being put out there, and Marinette's heart twisted guilty– the moment Alya's attention was off of her she bolted down the hallway, not giving a reply as Alya called after her, simply diving into the first open classroom, waiting to listen until she heard fading footsteps.

"Plagg," she whispered, once she knew Alya had passed. "Claws out."


Crimson Beetle really hated flying akumas.

They were hard to reach, hard to observe, and their attacks could come from nearly any direction. It took more effort to keep up with them as he ran across the roof, swinging his yoyo to keep the paper airplanes that Reverser was firing from reaching him. Crimson's eyes kept flashing from the roofs below him to make sure he kept his footing, then back up towards Reverser to keep them from attacking.

"You may be doing fine now, Crimson Beetle," Reverser mocked. "But as soon as you're hit, I think you'll be a lot less heroic."

They sent a volley of paper airplanes down below, Crimson doing a flip to leap out of the way, some crashing into the rooftop, while the rest carried on down towards the streets. They collided with several civilians. Instantly, expressions changed, the effects immediate. Someone pulled away from his girlfriend, glowering at her. Another picked up a display stand, flipping it over. Sometimes, it wasn't just attitude that was shifting: a biker who had been speeding by suddenly lost balance upon being hit, struggling to keep control of the bicycle as he went careening into the streets.

"What exactly do you even want?" Crimson snarled at Reverser– knowing that akumas couldn't be reasoned with, but that didn't stop him from always trying. Besides, any knowledge he could get was vital. "People are getting hurt!"

"People are able to reach for things they could never be before!" Reverser snarled. "Before I was touched by my powers, I was nothing! Monarch told me the truth, I was a coward, a pushover– worthless! But now I have power, better than ever before!"

"You used your power on yourself?" Crimson asked, surprised.

Reverser smirked. "I wouldn't do anything to anyone that I haven't done to myself. I'm fair– why don't you see the kind of person you could never be?"

He dodged another wave of paper airplanes. "No thanks, I'm happy the way I am."

"Are you really?" Reverser asked. "I mean look at you, not even your partner is here to help you."

Crimson hesitated– because he had yet to sense Lady Noire. Had she perhaps been hit before transforming? Would that have been enough to keep her from coming? Anything could have happened if she was hit.

Reverser suddenly dove down, abandoning their aerial advantage. The sudden pressing forced Crimson Beetle back, yoyo spinning to keep a shield between him and the akuma. His foot hit an uneven section of roofing, sending him stumbling to keep his balance, yoyo being thrown from the spinning shield for just a moment– but that was the opening Reverser had been looking for.

The paper airplane swooped straight at him, connecting with his chest, merging with him. He felt a wave of chills running through him, a sudden realization setting in. Eyes widened as he looked about him as he stood up there on the roof, watching as Reverser swooped back into the air. The fear was quick to latch into his heart, the world spinning as he looked skyward, knowing he couldn't tear his gaze away. Blinking would be dangerous, Reverser could come from any direction–

He stared at the open sky above him, wide and gaping– unending. His heart thumped heavily, moving back towards a nearby chimney. He pressed his back against it, but that wasn't enough. Every side of him was exposed, above him was nothing but the wide open sky. The chimney only provided so much shelter, but he knew how easily it could be shattered. The roof was not steady, it was not the ground, there were people below him– he needed to get somewhere safe, he needed to get inside, somewhere inclosed, somewhere safe–

A shadow fell above him, and immediately he was on the move. He heard Reverser call something out to him– a mention of his Miraculous– but he didn't pause to listen. He jumped off of the side of the building with no hesitation, throwing his yoyo to catch his fall as he rushed towards the street. He felt stable once he was on solid ground. However, the ground did not mean safety, because now that he was away from the roof, he was surrounded by people, all of whom were hurrying to escape the akuma above.

So many people.

Crimson Beetle stumbled back into an alleyway, the tall walls towering up above him. The shadows that fell across him were reassuring, enclosing, but that alone wasn't enough. The sky was still above him, the ends of the alleyway still open, and so many people just beyond these walls. He needed to get out of here, he needed to get out of here...

"Oh, Crimson Beetle!" Reverser's voice called out. "Where are you? Hand over your Miraculous, and this will all be over!"

Crimson didn't stop to wait to see what would happen– leaping up and running along the side of the wall, fleeing in search of somewhere he could be sheltered. He paid no attention to those around him as he ran up the side of buildings, sticking to alleyways when he could, eyes searching– and soon he found just what he was looking for.

He dove into the alcove, burrowing himself in as deep as he could, wedging himself between the stone. He nestled inside, breathing feeling slightly less ragged as his back pressed against the far wall, surrounded on all sides save from where he had entered. He had his yoyo in his hand, though, and he could lash out at anyone that came near. He wished he could seal the entrance, locking himself within– but for the first time since that airplane had hit him, he felt safe.

He drew up his knees, holding his yoyo tightly. He wished he was back in his room, somewhere familiar, and he could activate the security– bring the metal shudders down over the windows, securing himself within– but he was too panicked at the thought of even leaving the safety he had found.

His yoyo started to buzz, and he looked down to see that Lady Noire was calling him. He stared at it for a moment, liking the quiet and solitude he had found– but he also didn't want to leave his Lady wondering where he was. So he slowly answered the phone, well aware that he was leaving the entrance exposed as he lifted it up to his ear– so he set it on speaker instead.

"Hello?"

"Crim!" She cried as soon as he spoke. "Thank goodness, where are you– I heard you got hit."

"Yeah, I guess I did," He said after a moment.

"Where are you?"

"I'm... I'm not sure," he said, realizing he had paid no attention to where he had run. He opened up his map, sparing a quick glance. "Somewhere in the Sixth Arrondissement, by the river...?"

"Can you give me an address?"

"What if someone overhears you?"

"Huh?"

"What if someone overhears where I am and comes?" He asked, heart pounding.

"Will you text it to me, then? There's no one around to read over my shoulder," she said after a moment, and he opened his mouth– but she spoke first. "And I'll make sure no one follows me, I'll keep to the shadows."

"...Okay," he muttered, glancing down at the map, before sending the address through the yoyo. His mouth felt dry as he sat there, feeling slightly exposed as he sent out into the world where he was hiding.

Lady Noire stayed on the phone with him as she came, and it wasn't long before a shadow fell across the entrance of the alcove. He looked up, and saw a pair of glowing blue eyes peering in at him, a soft smile on her face. Instantly, Crimson felt more secure with her there, fully boxed in and sheltered, his partner ready to spring to his defense.

"Hi, Crim," she said softly, holding out a hand. "What do you say we go and stop the akuma?"

He hesitated, before shaking his head. "I'm safe here."

"Crim," she said, kneeling down. "You know you're only feeling this way because of the akuma. You never felt like this before– there's no danger. As soon as we stop him, this will all go away."

He knew that she was right, that this feeling was something new to him... but that didn't get rid of the feeling of danger. Knowing that he was once okay with such didn't change a thing– because that was then and this was now. Out there it wasn't safe, but in here he was. Yes, he could change that, but that would mean leaving this place of safety he had found. So Crimson Beetle shook his head, remaining right where he was.

"Oh, Crim," she whispered. "I... I need you, I can't stop an akuma on my own, and I can't cast the Cure to reverse this. I would, if I could... but I'm going to need your help on this. Me and you, okay? I won't let anyone hurt you."

"It's... it's too open out there," he whispered– not knowing how else to describe it. IHe was too exposed, no shelter, anything could come from anywhere.

"Open...?" She muttered, frowning. "Why don't you try out your Lucky Charm? See if it can tell us what to do."

She smiled at him, perching herself on the edge, waiting. His hand wrapped tightly around his yoyo, considering this. Summoning a Lucky Charm could help, but that would also put himself on a timer– which meant this transformation could fall, leaving him even more exposed. He looked up at Lady Noire, who was looking nothing but confident, so he took a deep breath.

"Lucky Charm," he said, a burst of pink light filling the alcove, momentarily blinding them. A large expanse of cloth filled up the space between them, red with spots, and Lady Noire pulled out the Charm, thinking.

"How about this?" She said after a moment, holding up the cloth, revealing it to be a blanket. "You can use this, if that will help– and we go together to find Reverser. I think his akuma is in the paper-hoverboard thing he has. One touch to it is all I need to get rid of the akuma– so you don't even have to fight, just stay nearby until the butterfly comes out, okay?"

He hesitated, before slowly giving a nod– because they couldn't just let the akuma rampage. "I... I guess that could work."

She held out her hand towards him, and he slowly placed his into her palm. Lady Noire slowly guided him out of the alcove, and as he passed into the sunlight he instantly regretted his choice. He froze up as he stood there, and a moment later Lady Noire tossed the blanket over him, pulling it up over his head like a hood. She beamed at him warmly, and it did feel slightly more secure– but nothing like he had before.

"Let's go stop us an akuma," she said with a smile.

It wasn't hard to find Reverser, who was more than happy to turn and fight the heroes that Monarch had tasked them to fight. With every passing moment, Crimson Beetle was regretting coming out from hiding: everything from Reverser diving down to attack him, to those below who were gathering to watch the fight, to the fact that he was once again up on the horrible roofs. Despite Lady Noire's confidence to stop the akuma, her ability to handle the fight solo did not match. The akuma could fly, and was not keen on getting close to the one with destructive powers– which meant she had no chance to Cataclysm the akumatized object.

He knew that he should do something, but he felt glued to the rooftop as he stood there, a blanket pulled tightly around him as he watched, everything within him telling him to run and hide.

And then Lady Noire was hit by one of Reverser's paper airplanes.

She froze up on the spot as it touched her, the Black Cat standing there for a moment, completely still. Crimson clutched his blanket tighter, taking a step forward– but he didn't know what to say. He wanted his Lady, he needed her, not whatever Reverser's magic was about to do to her!

Lady Noire's eyes flashed up towards Reverser, that blue gaze cold and bitter. "You want a fight, akuma?" She spat. "Then, very well– let's fight!"

She sprang forward, shadow and claws, springing off of a chimney to reach Reverser in the sky. Whatever they were expecting their powers to do to Lady, it clearly wasn't this. She slammed into the akuma, claws digging into them as she dragged them from their hoverboard with no hesitation, and down towards the roofs, flipping them over in midair so she slammed them into the shingles below– claws landing on his throat.

Reverser let out a grunt of pain, looking up at the furious Lady Noire pinning them, her eyes cold and harsh. "That's all you got? Weakling."

"I'm not–" Reverser began, but Lady Noire didn't let them finish, rolling over and using the momentum to send them flying off of the roof. Without their hoverboard, they had no means to stay in the air, falling down towards the street. Lady Noire jumped to her feet, harsh eyes scanning the rooftops, landing on Crimson Beetle.

"Well?" She snapped at him, a growl in her voice. "I don't have all day, Crimson Beetle– bring the stupid object down so we can be over with this already!"

"What– what about the akuma–?"

She rolled her eyes, but glanced down at the streets. "He's fine, and standing– so hurry up before he tries climbing back up here."

He didn't waste a moment, throwing his yoyo up and wrapping it around the paper hovercraft, dragging it down so she could reach it. Lady Noire didn't even spare him a glance, sinking her claws into the paper as she called for her powers– instantly turning it to dust. A small butterfly rose up out of the remains, and Crimson threw his yoyo at it with as much force as he could manage, not wanting to spend another moment in this petrified state.

He slowly pulled the blanket off of his shoulders, shooting one nervous glance at the roofs around him, before throwing it into the air. "Miraculous Ladybug!"

The feeling of relief that came the moment the pink light washed over him was indescribable– in one moment going from feeling completely vulnerable to how he always was when transformed– free and unhindered. He looked out as the light swooped across the city, trying to make sense of the feelings he had been feeling only moments before. He glanced at Lady, who seemed to be trying to get her bearings too.

"I'm so sorry," she immediately said. "I– I didn't mean to talk to you like that, I–"

"Hey, don't you dare apologize," Crimson said, giving a small smile. "I mean, I didn't even do anything to help with that fight, I'm sorry about that. That akuma... was an interesting one."

"I was just suddenly... I don't know, I wasn't mad," Lady Noire said, shaking her head. "I just... gah, just couldn't stand anything anymore. Was just sick of, well, everything I guess." She let out an uncertain laugh. "Feels weird looking back on."

"Tell me about it," Crimson said, thinking of the hiding place he had found. Something that sounded far from the safe embrace it had felt like in the moment. "The akuma?"

"Marc was okay with their landing, I think," Lady Noire said, face twisting. "It... it was hard to focus like that..."

They made their way over to the edge of the roofs, peering down in search of the akumatized victim. It was easy to spot them, as all eyes were on the teen who was standing there, holding a notebook in their hands, black paint stained on their hands. Marc's eyes flickered across everyone, and as their eyes flickered skywards and saw the heroes, they bolted down the street.

Crimson Beetle knew they could follow easily if they wanted, but sometimes people didn't want to talk to them. They wanted to be alone after being akumatized, or with someone they knew, and so Crim hoped that Marc was running off to find someone that could comfort them.

He took in a deep breath, before holding out his hand to Lady. "Pound it?"

"Pound it," she said, bumping her fist up against his.

His earrings began beeping in his ears. He drew his yoyo to leave, before pausing. "Oh! Last akuma! I was with the Guardians for a bit, you know? They wanted me to tell you that they wanted us to keep the offer of becoming Guardians in mind, to think about it and discuss it– maybe we can do that next patrol?"

Her eyes widened slightly. "Um, yeah, that sounds good."

He wanted to ask her what she was thinking, but there would be time to do so later. When they weren't on a timer, and had some time to truly think the offer over, at least with the intention of coming to an answer. So he gave her a warm smile, waving goodbye– before throwing his yoyo in search of finding somewhere to detransform.


"The Miraculous Ladybugs didn't fix it?"

Marc jumped at the close voice as they sat there under the stairs, their paint-soaked notebook in hand. They looked up and saw Nathaniel from the art room standing there, his hands deep in his pockets. He looked hesitant, inclining his head to the spot next to Marc, who gave a short uncertain nod, and Nathaniel slid up next to them.

"It was ruined before I was ak-akumatized," Marc muttered. "Nothing I can do, I guess..."

"Can I see?" Nathaniel asked, and while Marc's instincts were to hide the book away, they pressed it into Nathaniel's hands. It was soaked with paint– nothing left to be read, anyways.

That didn't stop Nathaniel from trying, flipping through in search of pages that hadn't been hit, holding them up to the light as if he could see through it, but there were only a few scattered paragraphs that remained unmarked. Still Nathaniel paused, reading through them as he reached those pages, Marc still as their writing was read. A smile flickered up on Nathaniel's face, looking up at them.

"You like superheroes too?" He asked.

"Who doesn't?" Marc replied, shrugging slightly, tucking their knees up.

Nathaniel handed them their notebook back, before digging into his own backpack, pulling out a sketchbook. He offered it to Marc, who gingerly took it, afraid that they would somehow ruin the pages, and peered inside. They found dozens of doodles of Crimson Beetle within, oftentimes paired alongside Lady Noire. There were a handful of the Citrine Húlí as well, but what caught Marc's eye were the drawings of akumas as well. Not of just any though, but rather dozens of Evillistrator, all very detailed. Every pose and angle, and of summoning his powers. As they continued on, another akuma showed up, one that looked a lot like Aro Dynamix, though with some details changed. There was one with her helmet visor up, a friendly smile on her face compared to what you'd find on an attacking akuma, and one that appeared to be a younger version of her– costume and all.

"Le Dessinateur and Connexx," Nathaniel said, rubbing the back of his head. "Hero forms for me and Alix's akumas. Well, technically I had le Dessinateur designed before I was even akumatized, but I'm not going to let that stop him from being my character. Connexx has the power to create connections and understanding between people, and superspeed too, because Alix insisted– but it's kind of our way of turning our akumas around, you know? I've always wanted to make a comic, and these guys are going to be the main characters so far."

"That's pretty cool," Marc said softly.

Nathaniel took his sketchbook back, flipping to a blank page, pulling a pencil that had been tucked behind his ear, and began drawing. Marc couldn't help but stare as the artist worked, awed at how quickly he was able to map out the piece. The sketch was a basic one, but Marc was quick to recognize the hood and paper hoverboard that was being drawn, having seen the images of their akumatization on the news earlier.

"I was thinking of adding another main character into the mix," Nathaniel continued. "One named Seeker, maybe– and with their paper airplanes they are able to spark courage and break the bonds of whatever is holding someone back– or maybe something else, if you'd like more?"

"You– you want a character based off of me– er– my akuma– um– your comic book?" Marc stammered.

Nathaniel swallowed, twisting his pencil between his fingers. "Er, actually... I was wondering if you wanted to help me write it." He said, pressing the pencil to the paper, drawing geometric shapes next to Seeker as he spoke. "I never have been able to have much in the way of a plot, and I've actually been looking for a creative writer to team up with to make my comic..."

"You want me to help you with your comic?" Marc asked with wide eyes.

"Y-yeah, if you're interested," Nathaniel said quickly. "I always imagined a superhero story set here in Paris, with the characters I told you about. I never thought of who they could be fighting, though, but I have their powers all fleshed out and stuff."

"Do... do you think Seeker could have a bit of color on their suit?" Marc asked after a moment. "Not just black and white?"

Nathaniel smiled, reaching into his backpack, pulling out a pack of colored pencils. "What colors did you have in mind?"

"Er, maybe red and orange and... blue?" They said uncertainly, staring at the sketchbook. Nathaniel pulled out several colored pencils, rubbing them against the paper as he made a small gradient, from orange to red, with a hint of purple to link it to the requested blue.

Marc watched in almost a trance as he made a small palette of different shades of reds and oranges, before returning to the sketch of Seeker, adding more details to it. Slowly the akumatized version of them– no, hero– came to life. Nathaniel began to add some color, seeming a lot more relaxed as he worked.

"Do... do you have a backstory for how the heroes got their powers?" Marc asked quietly.

"Not really," Nathaniel replied, glancing up to study Marc for a moment, before adding more details for a drawing. "I thought maybe they could through touching something, like how akumas get their powers, but I didn't like that idea much."

"Well, maybe the source of the heroes powers could be the same as the villain's," Marc began uncertainly. "Like, if they were experiments, they were from the same lab, or were in the same location when they were all hit by something... but, er, maybe the heroes and villains could be old friends, needing to fight against each other since one turned dark..." They swallowed. "That's, um, based on an idea I had..."

"What other ideas did you have?" Nathaniel asked.

"W-well, I was once wondering how the heroes– the real ones– are able to get into their suits so quickly, you know? So I was thinking of a magic cloaking system that they might have, and..."


Alya sat down at her desk, looking over the notes she had compiled. Mostly of things she wanted to mention in her post-akuma article, things she had noticed during the battle, along with the thoughts and theories she had. Near the bottom she had a list of classmates, friends, and others she knew had been hit by Reverser's planes, along with a quick blurb about what had changed when they had been hit.

"Alix!" Alya said, sitting up as the girl walked into the room. "Do you think you can tell me how you felt under Reverser's influence? What exactly changed for you?"

A smirk tugged on her lips. "Working on your next article?"

"Yeah," Alya said, looking down at her screen. "I'm not going to be using any names when I post, but I just want a comprehensive list of what was 'reversed' for people when hit. I have the basics written down for nearly everyone I saw, but I want personal input, too."

Alix shrugged. "My mind felt pretty much the same, to be honest, like, in terms of how I felt didn't change. For me, it was just really when talking, I wasn't nervous I was just... felt like it took some time to figure out what I wanted to say? I had to consider everything first, and even when I did talk, I was pretty quiet. Didn't like the attention on me much.

"It was pretty much the same thing for Juleka, but opposite," Rose said, smiling back at her girlfriend, who seemed fine with Rose speaking for her. "We were talking about it last night, how did you describe it?"

Juleka muttered something, which Alya couldn't hear from this side of the room, and Rose beamed.

"Yeah! Like what she was feeling was the same, but what changed was when you were talking, just blurting everything out!" Rose rubbed the back of her head. "For me I was... um, well I was kind of just mad, I guess? It was like I forgot not to blame akumas and I wanted to see them taken down for what they were doing."

Alya nodded, quickly writing this all down next to their names. "Thank you, guys, is it okay if I talk in my article about how you were reversed? I won't be using any names, just saying what was switched for everyone."

"You can use my name if you want!" Rose said brightly. "I don't mind."

"Oh! Lila!" Alya said, watching as the girl slipped into the room, and her eyes landed on her. "Can I ask you a few questions about what happened to you when you were reversed by Reverser? I couldn't really tell what changed with you."

Lila stared at Alya for a moment, those green eyes unblinking. Alya immediately backtracked in her mind, wondering if that had come out wrong, but after a moment Lila merely smiled. "Oh, I wasn't hit by Reverser yesterday."

Alya paused at this, blinking in confusion. She could have sworn that she had seen one of the airplanes hit Lila when the entire classroom had been struck. "...You weren't?"

"It was a close call," Lila said, still smiling. "Kagami ended up taking the hit for me and Marinette, though, that was so sweet of her." She glanced at Alya's phone. "Oh, are you working on an article? I can tell you about how Kagami and Aurore were, I was with them after they were hit, you know."

Alya smiled. "I'll just ask them during lunch or something– I want to get firsthand accounts. It seems a lot of people were impacted in different ways that you wouldn't think otherwise– like some people had physical skills reversed, others the way they acted, and others how they viewed things." Her eyes scanned down the list, seeing who in class she had yet to talk to. "Reverser actually used their powers on themself– I saw them right after they were akumatized in the hallway, like the dark energy was still fizzing away, I then followed them up to the art room from there. But they immediately used a paper airplane on themselves after getting their powers, so that means they were looking for change– not just to go after people. I'm wondering if there's a pattern to what was reversed in people, and if how they felt impacted anything–"

"You put so much thought into these articles," Lila said, beaming. "Honestly, I don't know how you piece all your ideas together and then write them out like you do. I can't wait to read this one."

"Thank you," Alya said, wishing she hadn't been cut off– but honestly she could ramble on and on about her blog at times anyways. "I'll let everyone know when I post."

She turned back to her phone, frowning slightly as she replayed yesterday in her mind. Marinette hadn't been hit, she knew that, Kagami had stepped in front of her, but Kagami hadn't been hit by two planes. Her eyes flickered towards Lila again, unsure. She was pretty sure that she had been hit; did Lila not want to talk about it? She wouldn't have posted anything if Lila didn't want her to, she'd have to be more clear about that in the future...

Then again, nothing about Lila had really changed.

"Marinette!" Lila cried excitedly, and Alya's eyes looked up to see Marinette hurrying into the classroom– not late like she often was, though. Lila bounded forward, wrapping Marinette up in a hug. "We should hang out again today– since our time was cut short by the akuma yesterday."

Marinette smiled. "I'll have to see, I have a few plans."

"Well, a few more wouldn't hurt!"

Marinette's eyes then fell onto Alya, and she went still as their eyes made contact. There was a hesitation in Marinette's gaze, and Alya hated it. They didn't stare at each other for long, but still in those moments Alya replayed all of her latest interactions with Marinette in her head. Had she said something while akumatized? Before she had been? Had she forgotten something important? Or just overlooked something when Marinette had needed her help? Or had she slipped up elsewhere? Why had Marinette been so keen to get away from her yesterday? Had she been pushing boundaries too far? Or–

"Hey, Alya," Mariniette said, smiling warmly. "Can we talk for a moment?"

"Of course!" Alya said– relief and fear coursing through her at the same time, having been wanting a moment to talk to her, but also those words hardly ever lead to something good. She tried to keep herself from considering the possibilities, pushing herself to her feet, and Marinette went to untangle herself from Lila's embrace.

"Want me to come with you?" Lila asked, and again a spike of worry ran through Alya. Was it that bad that she had been talking to Lila about it? What had she done? What should she do–?

Marinette merely gave Lila a confused look at this offer, though, blinking. "No?"

"Let me know if you need anything," Lila said, eyes flashing towards Alya for a moment, before unlinking arms with Marinette and heading off towards her desk, letting the two of them head out into the hall.

Silence hung in the air, Marinette turning to face her, and Alya felt that heavy feeling she had as of late building up in her. Each second seemed to last way too long, and she found herself blurting out: "I'm sorry!"

Alya spoke at the same time as Marinette, their apologies filling the air, and the two of them looked at each other in surprise. They blinked, and then Marinette let out a small chuckle, but the uncertainty was back in her eyes.

"I'm sorry," Marinette said again. "For how I treated you yesterday. I was so focused on going to find the heroes and stuff that I didn't even think about what I was saying... and it was rude for me to just leave you like that."

"Oh," Alya said, shifting. "Heh... I was worried I might have said something and I–" She paused, shaking her head. "Oh, don't worry about that, girl– I know you don't do well with akumas, I shouldn't have tried to drag you out there, knowing that I like to be right there with the action."

"Heh. Maybe I'll have to try out the front lines of an akuma fight sometime," Marinette said with a small grin.

Alya let out a snort. "That will be the day!"

The conversation seemed to trail off from there– far from finished, at least for Alya, but she didn't know what to say. She watched Marinette, who had her hands clasped around the strap of the purse she always wore, looking down at it, then back at Alya– looking like she wanted to say something as much as she did.

"Is everything okay?" Alya finally asked. "I... I've noticed you haven't really been yourself this last week."

Marinette gave a forced smile. "Just haven't been getting enough sleep."

"Anything I can do?"

Marinette hesitated. "...Yes. Actually there is." She took in a deep breath, squaring her shoulders. "I... I noticed you didn't post an article about the akuma fight with Reverser yesterday."

"I'll be posting it tonight," Alya said. "I was talking to Nino, and we were thinking– well, he was– that since my audience has grown a lot, that it might be good to take a bit of time on my main articles about the akumas and not just post the first things I think of." She grinned. "So from now on, I'm going to be posting a short article the day of that gives a brief overview of the akuma and the power, and just to act as a notification that the fight is over– then I can save my analysis and theories and stuff for a more thought-out article later on."

"I like that," Marinette said softly, and again she hesitated. "So... so you're going to be posting one about Reverser today, then?"

"Yep!"

"Do you think you could..." Marinette began, before hesitating again. She then closed her eyes, taking in a deep breath. "Do you think you can not post any footage of Lady Noire from the fight yesterday?"

That was not what Alya was expecting. "...What?"

"Don't post any footage of Lady Noire from yesterday, please," Marinette said, eyes locking on Alya as she took a step forward. "I... I was thinking about it and... and I don't like what can be done with it, Alya. People always take things about her out of context, and I'm afraid if there's footage of how she was acting after she was hit by Reverser, they'll act like that's how she always is and take out the fact that she was under an akuma's influence. And– and if you post something from before like when she was with Crimson when he was under affect– since it's from the Reverser fight what if people think that's how she was after Reverser hit her and think she wouldn't treat her partner like that otherwise and–"

"Hey, Mari," Alya said softly, placing her hands on her shoulders. "You're spiraling."

Marinette looked up at Alya desperately, and she gave her a tight squeeze to try to get her to focus and not get lost in her thoughts. She hesitated for a moment, not sure how to reply, because she was sure that mentioning that other sites would be posting footage of Lady Noire would only make her spiral further.

"J-just the footage," Marinette continued when she didn't reply. "Like– talking about what happened is one thing, it's just that the video can be taken out of context more easily, and if you just would–"

"I won't post any of Lady Noire," Alya promised.

"Really?" Marinette seemed surprised at this answer, sounding very relieved.

"Nino was saying pretty much the same thing, too," Alya said with an uncertain smile. "He... that was one of the reasons he wanted me to take more time on articles, he felt a lot about the heroes was being taken out of context with a lot of the shorter videos and immediate articles people post every time they show up."

"Yeah," Marinette whispered. "There is a lot."

Alya hesitated. "Um, speaking of heroes and akumas... was Lila hit by Reverser yesterday? You were standing right next to her, right?"

Marinette frowned. "I don't really remember, I wasn't really paying attention. Um, she didn't really act differently, though."

"No, she didn't," Alya said. "I just could have sworn she was hit, but she said she wasn't, so..."

Marinette gave a small smile. "Well, there's your answer, then."

"Yeah, I guess so," Alya replied quickly, and she bumped up against Marinette. "What do you say we get to class, hm?"

Thankfully, they weren't late to class, even with their conversation– but Alya's mind was not at all on Miss Bustier's lesson, or any of the teachers' classes that day. Her mind was solely on the akuma and her upcoming article, the 'notes' she was taking in class really being ones meant for the article. Layout, what she thought should be said first, what footage she would use, and how she was going to incorporate the way everyone had been reversed.

She decided that showing a clip of Crimson Beetle would be okay, because she didn't see how that moment could be twisted in any way; the city loved Crimson, anyways. She would add a note in the video, though, that it was while he was under the influence of Reverser, just in case, so it couldn't be taken out of context like Marinette was worried about for the heroes.

What kept repeatedly coming to her mind throughout the day, however, was Lila.

She tried replaying Reverser's attack in the art classroom in her mind, and while she was sure she didn't have it perfectly remembered, she just couldn't imagine how Lila had avoided getting hit. Alya didn't know why it seemed to matter in her mind; if she hadn't gotten hit, then she hadn't gotten hit.

Maybe she was just annoyed by the look Lila had given her earlier. Or that she had been hanging with Marinette a lot as of lately– she did not need to overreact because of that, that was ridiculous.

Great. Now she sounded like Chloe.

However, as soon as she got home, she found herself rushing to her laptop, pulling up her footage from yesterday and scrolling straight to the moment Reverser had sent out the planes, eyes scanning for Lila.

She only caught a few seconds of her hair out of the corner of the camera.

Alya slowed down the footage, where she could see Marinette; Kagami and Lila were just out of frame. She watched as two paper airplanes were sent flying through the air towards where they stood. Kagami jumped into frame as she moved in front of Marinette, taking the hit for her, the other flying right past Kagami to where Lila would be standing, the few seconds of her hair visible in frame.

Kagami hadn't taken the hit for both of them.

She replayed those few seconds again, supposing that it could have been possible for Lila to dodge– but not likely. She stared at that plane as it flew out of frame, knowing that it had to have hit Lila. It had been heading straight towards where she had stood.

But Lila hadn't changed like she should have if she had been hit.

Alya's fingers tapped against the desk, biting her lower lip. Had Lila remembered what had happened wrongly? Just assumed that Kagami had taken the hit for both her and Marinette? But surely she would have noticed the paper airplane flying by, she didn't see how she could miss it. And if she had been hit, what had changed? Why hadn't she mentioned it, what would she gain from that?

What reason would Lila have to lie?