Work Text:
“Thanks for sleeping over tonight... again,” Marinette said.
“Hey, no problemo,” Alya said, “Anything to help my BFF destress. That was a tough battle today, huh?”
“Yeah. Volpina is confusing enough when she’s just an akuma, but when she actually has the Fox Miraculous behind her, it’s on a whole other level.”
“That was a pretty close call, too. We can’t let our Resistance members get akumatized so easily. It could compromise everything.”
“Oh, yeah. For sure. I wouldn’t want Monarch finding out about what you’re up to and targeting you guys.”
“I feel like we could handle ourselves if it came to that. But you’re right, it’s better if he doesn’t find out. That’s why we recruit only the most trustworthy people.”
“Alya,” Marinette sighed, “we need to talk... about Lila.”
“Ugh, this again?” Alya said, “Look, I’m starting to get tired of this little jealous streak you’ve got going on. I know it bothers you that she’s so close with Adrien, but that doesn’t make it fair to throw accusations out against her.”
“You don’t get it, do you?” Marinette said, “Think, Alya. Knowing what you know now, can you think of any reasons–besides jealousy–that would lead me to think Lila is a liar?”
“What are you talking about? ‘Knowing what I know now’?”
“Okay, let me rephrase the question.”
Marinette took a quick look around her room, just to make sure there were no prying eyes.
“Do you know of anything that might lead Ladybug to think Lila is a liar?” Marinette asked.
Alya looked up at the ceiling for a moment, then looked back to Marinette.
“Sorry,” she said, “I’m coming up empty here.”
“Well, maybe I should refresh your memory.”
Marinette picked up her phone and opened up the Ladyblog. She pulled up a video and hit “Play”, holding it up so Alya could see.
“Ladybug and me,” Lila said, “we’re like this.”
Lila crossed her fingers, and Alya’s face completely dropped.
“Oh,” Alya said, “that.”
“Yeah,” Marinette said, “that. I thought that after I told you I was Ladybug, you would be a little more understanding of my skepticism.”
“I guess it’s just been so long since I did that interview. That was, what, end of last autumn?”
“Yeah, but like you said, that interview got you a ton of views. Not to mention, one of your classmates being Ladybug’s best friend. I would think you’d remember something like that.”
“That was before I knew you were Ladybug, though. I didn’t have any reason to doubt her then.”
“But now you do know, and yet you still left the interview up.”
“Even if it did occur to me that she was lying, what was I supposed to do? I couldn’t just take the interview down randomly, people would ask questions.”
“And you could’ve given them answers. We could’ve staged an interview where Ladybug said that Lila had lied. Or you could’ve just said that you didn’t want Lila to be targeted by Monarch. He was starting to become more dangerous around that time. Instead, you left information on your blog that not only should you have known to be false, but that also could’ve put her in danger! Imagine if Monarch had seen that interview and thought it was true. He could’ve taken Lila hostage, or interrogated her for info about Ladybug’s identity.”
“Oh my God, you’re right! That would be a serious problem.”
“Not only that, but... it kind of hurt to hear you keep defending her. It was one thing when you didn’t know I was Ladybug, and really did have reason to think I was jealous.”
Marinette’s eyes began to sting, and she struggled to maintain eye contact.
“But after I told you who I was, and you still kept saying it...” she continued, “it felt like you just didn’t care about what I had to say. Like you only heard what you wanted to hear.”
“I am so sorry, Marinette.” Alya said, putting her arms around Marinette, “I didn’t mean to make you feel that way. It’s like you said, I wasn’t thinking, and... I should’ve been. It was my mistake.”
“I know. And I’m glad you understand. But... it still hurts.”
“Listen, if it means that much to you, I’ll take the interview down. We can even do a full retraction if that’s what you want.”
“No, it’s fine. We don’t need to make a big fuss about it.”
“Alright, then. I’ll just take the interview down, and if anyone asks why, I’ll say it was for her safety.”
“Thanks, Alya.”
Marinette hugged her friend tightly.
“I’m glad you actually understand,” Marinette said, “even if you needed a little help.”
“It’s no problem, really,” Alya said, “If you ever catch me doing something stupid like this again, just tell me.”
Marinette chuckled, “You got it. BFF.”