CHANGING FACES Chapter 5: Bitter Truths
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After years of dealing with each other Lila Rossi win’s when she convinces Hawkmoth that Marinette is Ladybug. In order to throw off suspicion and keep the Miracle Box safe Marinette and her supportive parents leave Paris and head to Gotham of all places. In this new place away from her friends and her unhealthy routines Marinette is forced to confront herself and change for the better. Helping her on her journey is a surprising new friend and potential ally. When Alya missing her friend learns about the chance to win a free trip to Gotham she convinces the class to work hard to qualify. When her new life clashes with her old one will Marinette be able to hold on strong to her new confidence or will she crumble under the pressure?
( This fic will be for the most part comedic, fluffy, and sweet, with only a bit of seriousness to tie it together. With only the mildest salt because I don’t think the class or Adrien are bad people just that they can be naive and selfish thanks to the canon writing. I hope you enjoy reading this work and have fun with me on this journey. )
CHAPTER 5:
Bitter Truths
Marinette Dupain-Cheng was leaving Paris… Kind of. Thanks to her job as Ladybug a part of her would always remain attached to the place she’d called home for 16 years. But while Marinette knew her leaving was not the end of her time in the city of romance, the same could not be said for her friends and classmates. And while they were able to put on a brave face in front of the baker's daughter and act okay their real feelings bubbled under the surface.
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Alya had not been taking the news well. Marinette had been the first friend she’d made in Paris and though they had not spent much time together lately they still texted, hung out and cared for each other. Alya knew that Marinette was someone you don't meet very often, someone genuinely caring who’d give you the shirt off their back. Of course things were not always perfect but even when they got rocky Marinette never stopped caring and neither did Alya. And maybe that was why it was so hard not to view Marinette leaving as a betrayal.
Alya KNEW it wasn’t. She knew that Marinette had many bad akuma experiences, she knew her friend had been struggling with her mental health, she knew that Marinette had a breaking point. She knew and yet… She had not stepped in to try and help. Alya had seen how hard Marinette had worked for others, how much she’d given, how much she sacrificed, how tired she was getting. Alya wanted to make up excuses for herself, she’d been too busy to help, or that Marinette was a big girl who could advocate for herself, or that their classmates never meant any harm by it so it wasn’t that bad. But the truth was; Alya didn’t want to talk about it or meddle or change things, she convinced herself that her friend would be fine, that she was truly some civilian superhero who could handle it all because she always did!
And then Marinette told them she was leaving. And it felt like ice water being dumped on Alya’s head. She felt so angry, so betrayed, so hurt. But then Marinette had cried and Alya’s anger evaporated as she listened to her friend. Marinette didn’t want to leave them or lose them. But she needed to leave in order to save herself. Not just from Hawkmoth and the akumas, but from the unhealthy routines she’d allowed herself to get caught up in. And Alya knew, she had to let her go. They would stay friends of course because no way was Alya abandoning someone as great as Marinette, but maybe a little distance could be something good for them? So even if it hurt and even if Alya wanted to hold on to her friend and never let go. She would.
In the remaining time they had left Alya stuck close to Marinette inviting her over for sleepovers, sitting with her in the back of class, dragging her to fun hangouts after school. Sometimes while they were together laughing until it hurt Alya would forget Marinette was really leaving then her parents would call to ask about furniture in the new Gotham house and Alya would feel reality come crashing back down. Some Days when Marinette could not hang out because she needed to prepare things for her move Alya would go home and sit in front of her computer working on her blog and in this loneliness Alya could admit that a part of her had still not accepted that Marinette was really moving.
Deep down Alya somehow still expected everything to go back to normal, that a miraculous cure would fix the damage or that the class would band together like they always do to fix it! But it was a normal fire and so no Miracle Cure fixed the empty space that once held the best bakery in Paris. And as for the class well… It had always been Marinette who led the charge to fix whatever was wrong and restore the status quo and now she was abandoning ship. Sure Alya could try to take over Marinette’s old post but… She had no idea how she’d even begin to fix this mess. And even if she could fix it would Marinette even want to stay?
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Nino was observant, more observant than people tended to give him credit for, and so as much as he wanted to say that Marinette moving was a shock he had not seen coming… It wasn’t. Nino had known Marinette longer than most of the class, he’d seen her deal with Chloe’s constant harassment, Bustier's overbearing expectations, Adrien’s naive but harmful requests, the class's constant requests and herd mentality, and finally Lila’s honey coated hostility.
Honestly, Nino could not really understand why he’d never done anything to stop it all. When he was little he could chock it up to fear after all Chloe was a tiny terror and Nino a shy boy, but as they got older and Marinette became more and more like family to him… Why? He could not claim he hadn’t seen it and heck when it came to Lila and Marinette clear aggression Nino was more aware of it then even Alya had been as he’d been willing to see that Lila wasn’t the perfect angel she claimed, she could be just as jealous and petty as Marinette could. Yet still he’d said nothing and done nothing to protect his friend.
Somedays when things were going wrong and Marinette seemed overwhelmed he’d think about stepping in to help, but each time he’d find himself prioritizing something else, a date with Alya, a rare hangout with his bro Adrien, or an urgent music commission, and by the next day when he had the ‘time’ to help Marinette it was already over and done. Eventually Nino just figured that Marinette never really needed the help, Alya and the class had him convinced that she was a supergirl that her complaints and distress were just venting but that she’d be fine. And she always was so sure that him stepping up to help her would just get in her way.
Well now Nino knew better. Every hang out they left Marinette out of so she could ‘work’, every stressful task they’d passed off on her thinking she was better at it, every snide comment or petty jab they let her handle alone. The bakery burning down was just the last straw on the mountain of reasons why Marinette had to put herself first, get on a plane and say ‘later guys’. And honestly Nino didn’t know how to handle it.
In the time they had left Nino felt himself retreating just like he’d always done. He let Alya monopolize the last of Marinette’s time and he just left the asian girl alone like he always did because she was fine, she was always fine. But he could not deny the slight hole he felt forming as what was an old dear friend, no maybe even more like a sister packed up and got ready to leave. Saying goodbye and ‘i'm sorry’ felt too hard so Nino instead made her a playlist of all her favorite songs to keep her company on the plane ride to America. It was the least he could do.
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Bustier could hardly believe her star student was leaving and she’d gotten the news before the class had in a rather harsh meeting with the Dupain-Cheng parents. Bustier wanted to consider herself a good educator; she knew she had a very hands off approach, believing in the philosophy that teenagers needed the space to make mistakes and grow and choosing to impart messages of kindness and patience into her students. In her mind she was shaping future adults who would make the world a kinder, more forgiving and patient place. But the Dupain-Chengs did not seem to agree.
In the hour long meeting they had they tore into herself and poor Mr. Damocles blaming the both of them for putting too much pressure and work on kids, not being harsher on bullies, and ignoring the mental health of their student body. Bustier did try her best to explain her philosophy to the two angry parents but they just would not listen. In the end they got nowhere and simply demanded Marinette’s paperwork so they could have it translated for her new American school.
Bustier of course did not want Marinette to leave, she was the golden standard for what a student should be, well minus her tardiness and occasional distracted nature. She was a real go-getter, who relished and loved the extra work that challenged her, not to mention that she was a prime example of Bustiers philosophy, a beacon of maturity and forgiveness. It would be a true shame to see her go.
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For the students of Bustier there was a deep sadness that took root in the class in Marinette's last month.
Rose did her best not to cry or react negatively trying to be a beacon of joy and excitement like always but she could not fully hide how much she’d miss Marinette. Who had always defended her and treated her with respect and care. Rose knew that Marinette was the warm beating heart of their classroom, the one who made things feel fun and special. Without her they would be like every other class… Only with more akumas.
Juleka who handled the news better had wished she could say that she saw it coming but she didn’t rather Luka had as he’d warned his sister years ago that someone like Marinette would one day hit her limit and need to prioritize herself and when that happened the class would be left floundering. She was more than a little annoyed he was right and more then a little sad though she did her best to respect the twin tailed girls choice.
Kim and Max both tried to play it cool acting like they were fine with the change but they were both failing miserably. Kim, who had grown up with Marinette, broke down in tears twice looking at old kindergarten pictures. Max meanwhile tried to remain logical and cool about everything but could not help his obvious moodier and more bleak outlook on life. He and Marinette may not have been close but he would never forget how she always looked out for him and helped him.
Ivan and Mylene, the couple Marinette helped get together in the first place, were gripped by a deep sadness. Marinette was the one who helped them find the spark they needed to start dating, she had also helped out during misunderstandings and fights the two had. When Mylene was scared or anxious she knew she could just phone Marinette and the girl would help talk her back into a more relaxed state. And Ivan knew he could truly relax around Marinette without fear of judgment. They wanted to respect Marinette’s choices but still they struggled to be happy for her.
Nathanial and Alix both buried their feelings in their hobbies. Alix pretended she was cool with everything while obviously dodging any talk about it and skating around claiming she needed practice for an upcoming competition. Nathaniel meanwhile kept quiet but insisted he was fine if asked. Yet in his art that he worked on so diligently one could not help but notice that the new hero for he and Marcs comic looked suspiciously like Marinette.
As for Chloe and Sabrina, well the class just assumed they didn’t care. But this wasn’t quite the truth. Sabrina liked Marinette and appreciated the girl for how often she tried to help her out of the bad relationship she and Chloe had built for themselves. She was sad to see Marinette leave but was able to respect the decision fully aware as to why it was happening and why it was for the best. Chloe meanwhile did her best not to care but she did. Truthfully her life had not been going great lately and while she managed to keep it hidden from her classmates the truth was she was facing consequences behind the scenes for her previous actions and a lot of therapy to boot. Chloe had been wanting to apologize to Marinette but her therapist had told her that doing so would only serve to make HER feel better not Marinette and that the best thing she could do was to leave the girl alone. So even if she’d regret it for the rest of her life Chloe shut up and left Marinette in peace.
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Adrien wasn’t sure what he was supposed to feel when Marinette announced her plan to leave. The first emotion he’d registered had been guilt, followed by sadness, and anger, and then more guilt, before it all settled into a comfortable numbness as he shoved his negativity down and plastered a fake smile on his face. Why was he getting upset? There was no reason to get upset! Because there was no way that Marinette was really leaving! … Right?
Marinette was their class president, their everyday ladybug, she was kind and resourceful and forgiving… well she was mostly forgiving. Sure she hadn’t really spoken to him after last years ‘incident’ but she still gave Adrien pastries on Fridays with the rest of the class and she never snubbed him at hangouts. So surely she would forgive him any day now and they would go back to being friends… Maybe even more? And well that couldn’t happen if she just left them so this had to be a joke, or a silly idea her parents were talking about right?
No, there was just no way she was leaving! Marinette would do what she always did and she’d find some way to raise money to fix the bakery and it would be just the same as before and she’d stay in Paris. But as the days turned into weeks and Marinette booked her flight, showed off pictures of their new home in America. Well Adrien started to feel doubt creep in and the guilt he’d suppressed came flooding back. A tiny little voice in his head could not help but ask if the reason Marinette was leaving was all his fault.
He hadn’t meant to hurt her so badly. He really did think that Lila had changed when he believed her words. It was just a dumb mistake really! And it had been over a year so surely Marinette could not still be mad about it… Could she? Eventually as Marinette’s last week in Dupont dawned, the bitter memories filled Adrien’s head like a ghost.
It had been a little over a year ago. Lila, having been attending Dupont for a while, had as far as Adrien knew stopped telling lies. She still bragged about her fabulous life and the people she met with her connections as a top Gabriel model but she seemed better and Adrien was honestly a little proud of her and the changes she’d made to become a better person. He was also proud of Marinette for listening to him and giving Lila the chance she needed to grow as a person.
With what he thought as peace and harmony completely restored to his class and life Adrien was shocked when one day as he arrived at a modeling shoot he discovered a crying Lila hiding in his changing room. Lila and him weren’t friends, not really but seeing the girl sobbing as she clutched her phone mascara running down her face Adrien could not help but pity the girl. After getting her to calm down enough to talk to him Lila confided in him that the reason for her hiding and crying her eyes out was her mother canceling their plans again.
And wasn’t that just relatable? Adrien knew very well what it was like to reach out to a parent only to be met with disappointment and canceled plans. As Lila cleaned the ruined makeup off of her face the two spoke openly about all the things their parents had ‘forgotten’ or missed or canceled and Adrien found himself laughing a little as he let some of his perfect boy persona drop. Adrien loved his other friends, sure but they could not really understand what it was like to have a parent like Gabriel Agreste but Lila did.
After that Adrien found he enjoyed photo-shoots with Lila a lot more. It was wonderful having a friend on set. They’d vent about their absentee parents, joke around about the over dramatic camera man, and confide in each other over how their other classmates were wonderful people but just didn’t ‘get’ what it was really like to be them, living with such high expectations. Slowly without realizing it Adrien started to take Lila's side in every small argument or fight. Even when he knew Lila was being a bit catty with Marinette he would still defend the Italian feeling annoyed with Marinette for being so patty. Where he would previously track Marinette down after these types of fights to comfort her and tell her they weren't a big deal he was now ignoring the Asian girl feeling like she was unfairly judging Lila.
It was around that time that he learned about Marinette’s feelings for him. It was an accident of course, he had forgotten his book-bag and when he'd gone back to get it from his locker he somehow walked into an argument between the girl squad and Marinette. He knew eavesdropping was bad but he could not help it, and so he was shocked as he realized the girls were trying to come up with an ultra romantic plot for Marinette to confess her ‘love’ for none other than himself! Adrien Agreste.
Now Adrien has always been loyal to his dearest Ladybug but the superhero had made it clear she was not interested, so why shouldn’t he take a chance on Marinette? She was plenty pretty and kind besides the idea of dating sounded fun and it's what normal kids his age did. He had an extra hop in his step as he went to the photo-shoot that evening thinking about Marinette and her future confession. His extra pep must have been noticed by Lila who could not help but inquire.
That was when Adrien made a second mistake in trusting Lila. She congratulated him but Adrien noticed the obvious strain in her voice and concern on her face. Curious what was wrong he tried to ask Lila what it was wrong but she dismissed the question claiming that Adrien would never believe her anyway. When he pushed harder Lila blended her face into the perfect picture of concern and care.
“Well yes Marinette is very sweet and all but, well are you sure she really likes you for you Adrien? She might just be a fangirl in love with the idea of ‘Sunshine Agreste’. I just don't want to see you get hurt.”
That small seed of doubt had all it had taken for Lila to get her claws into Adriens mind. In the following days as Marinette worked up her courage to confess, Lila, like the snake she was, whispered into Adriens ear bringing doubt to every kind and sweet action Marinette made.
“Adrien you didn’t confide in Marinette about your true feelings toward your father, instead you confided in Chloe and me.”
“Marinette can hardly hold a conversation with you because she's so starstruck about your dad, does she care more about you or his fashion brand?”
“Just ask Alya but Marinette is very jealous and possessive of you. Is that really love or just a superfan who wants to date you Adrien?”
“I just don’t want to see your heart get broken. Marinette is a good person, we both know that but maybe dating her is just a bad idea for both of you. Wouldn't it be better to just stay friends?”
Each carefully crafted word blinded Adrien more and more to Marinette’s true nature. Where he once saw a cute kind girl with a crush on him he now saw a slightly obsessed super fan who needed to understand that he would never date her and that she needed to apologize for her possessive and jealous antics toward his friends!
The following Monday when Marinette finally gathered her courage after what Adrien only later found out from Alya was YEARS of hardcore crushing to finally confess the true depth of her feelings to Adrien with a cute box of handmade pastries and a pair of hand knit mittens. Well he didn’t give the response Marinette was hoping for. Truth be told, the response he gave in return was harsh, and mean. Honestly Adrien could hardly remember now what he said at the time but he knows he went too far, he accused her of being shallow, a super fan who only wanted to date him because of his dad, he demanded she apologize to Chloe and Lila for her actions while jealous. And finally he told her that he didn’t even want to be her friend not until she worked on becoming a better person.
Adrien hadn’t realized what a stupid mistake he made until after Marinette ran off sobbing with Juleka and Rose in hot pursuit. Nino and Alya had looked at him in horror and anger. And the class besides Chloe and Lila avoided him for the rest of the day. He still did not fully register what an idiot he was until a day later when Alya took the initiative at lunch to trap him and interrogate him. Adrien never admitted that it was Lila who planted the ideas in his head even under Alya’s death glare but he did learn that he had been an idiot he learned about all the previous failed attempts, about how long Marinette had tried to win him over, how many times she’d sacrificed her own happiness for his. It was a bitter pill to swallow and with Marinette refusing to speak, look, or be within 5 feet of him, apologizing was something Adrien found hard to do.
But the hardest part of apologizing was actually DOING it. Admitting that maybe he’d been fooled by Lila again was not something he wanted because they were friends now and Lila didn’t mean it right? She’d just been looking out for him; she didn't know that Marinette was sincere. But if Adrien told Marinette that he had no doubt the girl would only get angry. But apologizing without bringing up Lila meant he would have nothing to say, no proper explanation to give, and with how crushed Marinette seemed and the death glares fierce but small Rose gave him each time he tried to get close to Marinette kept him away. He’d apologize later when things were less awkward. That's what he told himself anyway.
But it had been over a year now, and he had no apology to give and Marinette kept her distance and her silence to herself. And now… Now she was going to Gotham City all the way across the ocean in America.
And so Adrien had to wonder. Did he help cause this? Did Marinette want to leave because of him? From what Nino told him he wasn’t the cause… At least… He wasn't the ONLY cause. But the idea of Marinette leaving them forever only communicating via her computer left Adrien’s stomach turning. Maybe if he just apologized… Maybe she’d change her mind? The two of them could catch up and make up for lost time, they could date, and fall in love and she’d stay in Paris for him. She just needed to forgive him already and talk to him. Surely she would do so surely she didn’t mean to leave Paris with their friendship in such a sorry state right? But as Marinette’s last week came and went and the whole class went to the airport to see her off bright and early in the morning Adrien simply stood by confused about how it was all playing out. Everything had always worked out before, Marinette was supposed to rally everyone together and fix it just like always. So then… Why didn’t that happen this time?
As Marinette turned one last time to blow the class a kiss and wave goodbye he watched her disappear into the crowd with her parents. Adrien held his breath and waited. Waited for her to run back to them. Waited for things to go back to normal like they were supposed to. He waited… And waited… But she never came back.
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Lila should have been celebrating right about now. She’d done it. She had gotten Marinette to leave, and not even just leave the school, no, she got the little goody two shoes ‘better than you’ BRAT to leave the whole country! This should have been her moment, her time to gloat and grin and shine in all her victory because she had finally WON.
But as Lila sat lounging on her balcony sipping her delightfully fruity and expensive sparkling water and reading texts in the class group chat and receiving videos of the last pathetic tearful goodbyes the class was making with Marinette at the airport the model could not help but feel robbed of her victory.
Marinette was supposed to leave, tail between her legs, tears in her eyes, running away from Paris like a whimpering pathetic mutt to some backwater little town where she would languish in obscurity and nothingness for the rest of her days. But instead of that delightful scene Marinette was leaving Paris very much still loved by her friends, heading off a bigger more beautiful bakery and home, in fucking Gotham City no less.
Lila felt her grip on her champagne flute tighten as she downed her sparkling water and seethed. It just had to be GOTHAM didn’t it. That putrid black stain on her otherwise flawless life. At first Lila was sure that Marinette had figured out about Lila’s past in the city of bats, something that should have been impossible as her name had been concealed in all the records and news broadcasts due to her status as a child at the time. But there was still a risk that Marinette had found something so Lila manipulated the sheep into asking Marinette questions and getting answers out of the stupid girl.
But according to the intel Alya gathered Marinette was actually BORN in that vile place. Because of course she was. There really was just something about Gotham and the people it made, it was like they were designed to see through her lies and ruin her perfect life. If only that horrid place and its horrid people would just sink into the damn ocean. Honestly its like the Joker wasn’t even trying to destroy the place with how much he failed. Pathetic honestly.
Throwing her cell phone onto the table with a clatter Lila sighed and leaned back in her chair letting the sun warm her skin. She should be celebrating, she reminded herself. Marinette was gone one way or another, and Gotham would hopefully eat her up alive and spit her out the same way it had her. Maybe if Lila was really lucky the idiot Parisians would be robbed or taken hostage by Two Face and Marinette would disappear for good. Yes, this was a good thing in the end Lila reminded herself letting a smile slip onto her lips.
Come Monday she would be the new and un-opposed queen of Francois Dupont and all the gullible rich talented little idiots that attended.
She had won. Just like she always did.
( Thank you all for the continued support and feedback about this fic I’m sorry for the slow update. I have a weak immune system and get sick more often then I’d like so I am trying to take better care of my health. Next chapter we will be switching to Damians POV so I hope you guys will like that! Reblogs, comments, art, whatever is always appreciated and loved )
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