"Oh, Marinette, you're so stressed!" said Tikki. "Call Alya! She can help you!"
Marinette cried, "Alya hates me! She could spoil my identity on the Ladyblog; that's how much she hates me."
Tikki shook her head and leapt from key to key on Marinette's phone. No more than two minutes later, Alya replied.
Coming now.
"TIKKI!!!" whisper-shouted Marinette.
Tikki snickered, "You're welcome."
Alya's steps creaked through the apartment. The hatch door croaked as Alya slipped through. She looked at Marinette. Marinette turned towards her, and they shared a sisterly embrace.
"Marinette, what happened? What's this about Cat Noir?" asked Alya.
Marinette sniffled, sighed, and proceeded to tell the story.
"C-Cat Noir?"
"Yes, Milady?"
Ladybug put her hand on Cat Noir's cheek. "Do you- remember?"
Cat Noir put his hand on Ladybug's. He pushed her hand in closer. His eyes closed. He used his other hand and clasped it tight on his lady's other hand and placed it on his other cheek. Ladybug walked a minuscule step closer to him.
Oh no, she thought. He remembers.
"Ladybug-"
"Yes?"
"What just happened?"
Ladybug's heart sank. But was it out of relief. . .or disappointment? "You. . . don't remember-?"
"I have no idea what that was about, Bugaboo," answered Cat Noir. "Will you tell me?"
Ladybug whispered, "I can't."
She yo-yoed home crying.
"Marinette, isn't that a good thing? You're not in love with Ca. . ." Alya's sentence declined at the look on Marinette's face. "Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait. Are you in love with Cat Noir?!"
Marinette inhaled sharply. "I mean-"
"You can't be in love with a guy you don't know, Marinette!" shouted Alya. "You have better chances with Adrien."
Marinette said, "But as Ladybug-"
"Ladybug or not, you don't know if Cat Noir is a one-hundred-and-eight-six-year-old man, or a really tall seven-year-old," said Alya. "You can't date him unless you know his real self."
Marinette replied, "Should I know who he is?"
"NO!!!"
Sass came flying out of the Miracle Box. He was panting, out of breath, and sweating.
"Sass, what's wrong?" asked Marinette.
Sass said quickly, "You can't know who Cat Noir is, Marinette. It destroyed the world last time."
"Last time?" asked Alya and Marinette at the same time. Alya continued on for the both of them. "It happened before?"
Sass sighed. "Yes, it did. It was a while ago, it doesn't matter. Let's just leave it at the fact that the love between Ladybug and Cat Noir's secret identities destroyed the world and Shadow Moth almost won if we hadn't gone back in time and fixed it."
"Wow," gasped Alya.
"Girls!" shouted Sabine. "Alya's mother called! It's time for her to go!"
"Okay. . ." they answered. Marinette hugged Alya. "Thanks, bestie."
"You're welcome, M," replied Alya, smiling.
