She wanted to be with her- holding her hand, hugging her close, pressing kisses to her cheek. Sure, they did that as friends, but it felt like there was an line she could not cross. Wasn't allowed to cross.
She wanted to, though
Sometimes, she thought Marinette wanted to do the same.
Sometimes, her lovely blue eyes were so open, full of want. She looked up at her and, sometimes, they were pleading. Once or twice, they had darted to her lips, as if waiting for something. Anything.
Anything to move closer.
Cold hands wrapped around her arm. "Alya!" Lila squealed, and her heart warmed, despite how quickly Marinette's eyes emptied and she stepped back. "I missed you!"
"You did?"
"Yeah," Lila cooed, batting her lashes up at her. "Sure, I was off with Prince Ali, but he's not the same as you."
Alya felt her heart skip a beat even as Marinette's blue eyes and how close they were lingered in the back of her mind.
Okay so I absolutely love the 'immortal being falls hopelessly in love with some random human', and I was getting those vibes from these prompts! I also had a lot of fun with the designs, especially Lila's. I tried experimenting with opacity levels on her tails and ears to make it seem like she was phasing in and out of reality, as if nobody could if she was really there, or she herself was just an illusion. Also, drawing digitigrade(?) legs is fun-
Basic premise of this is that Lila ,or rather Volpina, is the goddess of illusion (more like deception knowing her lmao). Alya is a witch/summoner in training, but is absolutely desperate to skip all the 'boring' stuff and get right to the summoning and communicating with immortal beings part! So, one night she goes behind her coven's back and tries her hand at summoning, however, she didn't properly research how to summon any specific spirit or deity, so by some twist of fate, Volpina is the one abruptly pulled into the human realm.
She's, of course, extremely irritated at being summoned, but she's unable to leave until she fulfils what Alya desires from her. Except...Alya doesn't really know what she wants from her, this was a very impulsive decision, after all. So. Volpina is now stuck in the human realm and spiritually bound to a very excited, and very chatty Alya. Shenanigans and eventual feelings ensue.
Fellas is it weird to post the next chapter of your fanfic 3 years after the last one (and also 3 years after you wrote it?). Anyway in this one Alya goes to Lila's house to help her practice the flute
First
Previous
Lila paced around the living room, waiting for Alya’s arrival. She’d spent all afternoon cleaning her room, checking to make sure they had enough snacks, and hiding all evidence that she was not actually related to acclaimed flute player Emmanuel Pahud.
She hadn’t used that lie on anyone yet, but who knew what the future held?
Surely everything was prepared now. She stopped her pacing for a moment, scanning the room around her. Perhaps her anxiety stemmed from the fact that this was the first time in years she’d had a friend over? Or perhaps her growing, ever present, self-inflicted dread that one day her lies would crash down all around her and she’d be trapped until her mother inevitably decided to move again?
Before Lila could have an actual moment of clarity, Alya arrived.
“Sorry I’m late!” She laughed. She had a laptop bag slung over her shoulder. “I got caught up in watching my little sisters. Can I come in?”
“Of course.” Lila stepped aside to let her in. Alya paused in the center of the living room, admiring it.
“Nice place. You sure your mom’s okay with us hanging out here?”
“Oh yeah. She doesn’t know.” Lila responded, shutting the door behind her. “Doesn’t care, I mean. Doesn’t care. Anyway, want a drink?” She gestured towards the fridge. “We have soft drinks, sodas, and pop.”
“Oh, thanks! I’ll have a coke.” Alya began typing something on her computer as Lila brought some drinks over, setting herself down beside her. “Okay, so I googled ‘how to play the flute’, and this is what came up.” She explained, gesturing towards the screen. Lila saw a youtube video, helpfully titled ‘how to play the flute.’ “That’s as good a place to start as any, right?”
“Well, yeah.” Alya frowned at her. “Learning an instrument is not a five minute affair, Lila. Now come on, grab your flute and let’s get started!”
The pair settled down to watch the video, occasionally pausing it so Lila could practice and perfect what the instructor said. Twelve and some minutes later, she prepared to put her new skills to the test with Inversia.
Six or so minutes later, Alya was laughing on the floor as Lila gasped for breath.
“That was-” Alya cut herself off with another fit of laughter.
Lila flushed. “It’s hard, okay?! I’m sorry I’m not some prodigy!”
“Woah, hey, I’m sorry.” Alya pushed herself to her feet, stifling her laughter somewhat. “It’s okay, we all start pretty bad. I couldn’t even get any sound to come out of my trombone for like a year. It just takes practice, that’s all!”
Lila frowned down at her flute. “Right. Practice.”
“Do you want to try again?” Alya asked. She gave her an encouraging smile. “We can also take a break if you want. You seem really out of breath.”
“Let’s watch another video.” Lila said, heading back towards the couch. “There might be a better one which can help.”
“Alright.” Alya returned to her spot next to her. “How about this one?”
Eight minutes and five common beginner mistakes that will affect your tone later, the girls were looking for another video when Lila spotted something over Alya’s shoulder.
“Top 15 mysteries solved by 4chan?”
Alya followed her gaze to the video in the recommended section. “...Huh. I don’t know why that’s there." She laughed awkwardly. 'Youtube's algorithm is kind of broken."
“Ha, yeah.”
There was silence for a moment.
“Want to watch it?”
“Yes.”
-----------------------------------------
There was a phenomenon Alya was quite familiar with from all her years of group study sessions with her friends. This being, of course, the miraculous ability to be distracted by anything.
They could only be blamed so much for this, Alya had reasoned to herself. Using the internet was unavoidable in modern schooling, and the internet was designed to distract. So when she and Lila had inevitably fallen down a rabbit hole of unholy mashups, unsolved murders, and cat videos, they really couldn’t be blamed for it.
“I can’t believe how late it is!” Alya followed Lila’s gaze towards the clock. “Did we really waste that much time?!”
“Well, yeah.” Alya laughed awkwardly. “Some of those videos were like. Half an hour long.”
Lila flopped back on the couch with a huff, crossing her arms.
“Hey now.” Alya patted her friend on the shoulder. “It happens all the time. Once, Chloe, Marinette and I spent like three hours watching cooking videos. And it was the day before our test, too!”
This didn’t seem to cheer Lila up much, though she did smirk slightly. “Did you pass?”
“No. But we did learn a 600 year old donut recipe, so that was pretty cool. Anyway, we can always meet up to practice again, it’s not the end of the world.”
Lila nodded. “I guess.” She took another glance at the clock. “Yeah, I guess you should be heading home, right? It’s getting late.”
“Right.” Alya got to her feet. “I guess I’ll see you in class tomorrow?”
“Probably. I might have a doctor’s appointment.” The two girls made idle conversation as Alya packed up her stuff and headed to the door.
“When’s your mom getting home?” Alya asked as they reached the door.
Lila seemed caught off guard by the question, though Alya wasn’t sure why. “Oh, she’s away this week!” She finally said, her voice unusually bright. “So if you want to meet up again, we can hang out here anytime!”
Alya frowned to herself. Her parents worked a lot as well, so she was no stranger to having to fend for herself (and her siblings), but she still couldn’t help feeling sorry for her friend. She thought to herself for a moment. “Did you have any other plans for tonight?”
“Of course!” Lila replied. “You know, I’ve got a meeting with Sonic-”
“The Hedgehog?”
Lila was silent for a moment. “Okay, no, I don’t have any plans”
Alya raised an eyebrow, but decided not to comment. “Well, there’s no reason we have to stop now then, right?”
“Wait, really? Won’t your parents be angry if you aren’t home for supper?”
“Nah, my parents are pretty chill.” Alya pulled out her phone, texting her mom. “Stuff like this usually comes up anyway, my dad and sister aren’t home tonight either.” She glanced towards her friends. “I mean, if you’re tired-”
“No! No, I’m fine.” Lila seemed flustered for some reason. “... Want to order a pizza or something?”
They had about half an hour before the pizza arrived, so Alya suggested they try practicing some more. “Just to make up for all that time we wasted.”
Lila seemed unsure. “Uh... I don’t know, maybe I’ll play better if I practice on my own.”
“... Girl, you don’t have to be embarrassed about messing up in front of me.” Alya laughed. “Seriously, it’s a completely normal part of the learning process.”
Lila didn’t respond.
“Okay, if you’re done practicing for the night, we can do something else.” she sighed. “Next time we meet up, I’ll bring my trombone. Then we can both screw up.”
This did bring a slight smile to her friend’s face, satisfying her for the moment. The pair sat down to watch some more videos until the pizza arrived.
“So, you’ve been all over before moving here, right?” Alya asked as she took a slice of pizza. “Also why did we order dominoes.”
“Pretty much, yeah.” Lila took a bite of pizza. “My mom’s got like this super important job, so we basically get to see all kinds of cool places. I’ve met a lot of cool people too!”
“Like Sonic the Hedgehog?”
Lila scowled at her.
“Okay, okay, I’m sorry!” Alya laughed. “So like, is Paris the coolest place you’ve been to or what?”
Lila thought to herself for a moment. “Well, it’s hard to say. It’s pretty nice, I guess… I only moved here over the summer, so I haven’t seen much of it yet.”
Alya nodded. “I can show you around if you want! I know basically everything about it. I wanted to start a tourism blog about underappreciated spots in Paris once, actually.”
“That sounds neat! Can I see it? I know a few people who can promote it, if you want, of course.”
“It’s pretty dead now. I kind of gave up on it.” She took another bite of pizza. “If your friends want to promote Nino’s soundcloud page though…”
Lila laughed nervously. “Well, see, they’re busy people, and like they’d love to help me but I hate bothering them since they’ve got so much to do-”
Alya frowned. “Lila? Are you, uh, lying about knowing blog-promoters?”
“What!? No! Of course not!” Lila’s extreme reaction confirmed for Alya that she was in fact lying. “Why would I ever lie about something like that? Are you-
“Woah, woah, calm down!’ Alya held her hands up until Lila stopped flailing around for excuses. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to freak you out like that!”
The other girl looked confused. “You didn’t?”
“Sorry, I just… You don’t have to lie to me, y’know? Or anyone!” She gave her friend what she hoped was a comforting smile. “I’m not gonna think less of you just because you haven’t met a lot of celebrities!”
Lila was quiet for a moment. “But my friend Drake-”
“Lila I will actively think worse of you if I find out you’re friends with Drake.” Alya took a deep breath. “Look, I just… You’re worth more than what you can do for other people. I don’t care if you can help promote my dead blog, or introduce me to a bunch of random celebrities. Having you as a friend is what matters, and I’m sure there’s a lot of other people who will feel the same way!”
“Uh.” The other girl stared at Alya in shock. “I- uh-”
“Sorry!” Alya laughed awkwardly. “Didn’t mean to overwhelm you or anything!”
“It’s fine.” Lila’s voice sounded choked. Her face was turned away. “Thanks? That’s. Um. Nice of you to say?”
“Well. I mean it.”
There was silence between them for a moment. “I guess I don’t know Drake. Or Sonic.”
“That was kind of obvious.”
“I know. I just… Wanted to make that clear.” Lila took a deep breath. “Sorry. For lying, I mean.”
“It’s okay. I’m not mad! I just thought you should know. Look, let’s just forget about it, okay? Why don’t you tell me about some of the other places you’ve visited!”
“Oh. Okay. Well.” Lila thought to herself for a moment. “I went to Ohio.”
“What’s it like?”
“It’s. Uh.” After a moment, she laughed, though it still sounded nervous. “It’s boring.”
“Come on! It can’t be that boring.”
“Alya, tell me one interesting thing you know about Ohio.”
She thought to herself for a moment. “They have… corn?”
“Corn isn’t interesting.”
“Okay, okay, fine. What about some of the other places you’ve been to?”
“Well, Montreal was a bit more exciting…”
The pair was soon deep in conversation, as Lila recounted the many places she’d visited and they reminisced over the struggles of moving away.
“Do you still keep in touch with any of your old friends?” Alya asked.
Lila’s face was briefly overcome with the most pitiful expression Alya had ever seen before it disappeared, replaced with her trademark smile. “Oh, I’ve been to so many places, it’s difficult to remember them all!”
“It’s hard leaving them behind, isn’t it?” It had been years since Alya had lived in Martinique, but she still found herself missing her old friends.
Lila was quiet for a moment. “Of course.” She seemed to be mentally debating something before she finally spoke again. “Uh, actually-”
At that moment, a woman who Alya presumed to be Lila’s mother burst through the door. “OH! Lila, you didn’t tell me you had a friend over!”
“Uh, yeah, hi mom.” Alya couldn’t hold back a grin at the look on Lila’s face. “What are you doing home so early?!”
“Early? Why Lila, it’s almost midnight!” The pair turned to the clock on the wall to see she was right. Apparently they’d lost track of time.
“Sorry, I didn’t mean to stay so late, I’d better head home!” Alya got to her feet, sending a quick text to her mom. “Ugh, my parents are gonna kill me…”
“You’re welcome to stay!” Ms. Rossi smiled at Alya. “Lila doesn’t have friends over very often! It’s nice to meet you- I’m sorry, did I get your name?”
Alya winced. “Um-”
“Mom, this is Alya. She was helping me practice flute.” Lila explained through gritted teeth.
“You’ve decided to start playing the flute!? Oh Lila, that’s wonderful! I can help you as well, you know!”
“I know, mom. I just knew you would be busy.” She began to lead Alya towards the door. “You’re probably tired after work, right? We can take care of ourselves, so-”
“Well, I am tired, but are you sure you won’t need any help?” Ms Rossi turned to Alya. “I could give you a ride home, if you like!”
“That’s alright, Ms. Rossi, but thanks! My parents are coming to pick me up anyway.” Alya took a glance at her phone. “They should be here soon.”
“Oh, alright! But let me know if you need anything!” With that, she disappeared down a nearby hallway. Lila let out a heavy sigh and turned away from Alya.
“... Sorry about her.”
“Don’t be!” Alya laughed. “Wait until you meet my parents! My dad still tells that stupid panther story…”
This did seem to cheer Lila up a bit. “Right. Parents, huh?”
“Yeah… Hey, that reminds me! We should do this at my place next time, it’s only fair since I stayed here so long.”
She seemed surprised. “Are you sure?”
“Of course! We didn’t get much practicing done today, anyways. Though we did learn a lot about bigfoot.”
“Who knew he was in Paris this whole time?”
The pair chatted for a short while longer before Alya’s father pulled up and they said their goodbyes, promising to meet again as soon as possible.
Repeating one of my favorite headcanons: Alya is a same-sex leaning bisexual who didn’t expect to fall for Nino at all, partly because she likes guys in principle but not in specific and prefers girls
But then the zoo cage scene happened in Animan
And then! Then Chameleon comes around—and Alya gets a crush on Lila. (Obviously nothing compared to what she feels for Nino but just enough to make her throw out her better judgment.)
If you think about it this makes a lot of sense—the whole class thinks “Alya would’ve fact checked and if she says Lila’s legit then she’s legit” so they go along with it. Meanwhile Alya has either failed to fact check or refuses to believe it because she has feelings for Lila that she doesn’t know how to deal with.
(Possible corollary: while Alya is very happy with Nino, she’s annoyed that Marinette has never even looked in her direction like that and her claiming Mari is jealous is projection.)
