"I no longer fear it, I'm going to face it and -AAH!"

"Just big ol' me, Mylene. Nothing to be scared of."

"And the Oscar for the best pathetic scaredy-cat afraid of it's own shadow goes to Mylene!"

"Mylene, wait!"

"Well played, Marinette. All that speech about working together, then you stab me in the back!"

"We need something for the competition!"

"I'm going to find Mylene!"

"But, Marinette, I'm too scared!"

"Everyone's scared of something, Mylene. You can do it."

"And... cut! Guys, that was perfect! I think we're done!"

"Thanks, Marinette. For filling in for me, and for helping me finish it."

Marinette flops down on her bed, absolutely exhausted from the day's events. They were creating a short film for the Parisian Student Short Film Festival, and after Chloe had mocked Mylene for being afraid, she'd run off. Chloe had promptly gotten angry when Marinette was pressured into filling in for Mylene, and hadn't even apologised when Mylene came back and finished the film like a professional.

All in all, Marinette is exhausted. Once she's changed into her pajamas, it's only a few minutes before she falls asleep.

When she wakes up the next morning, her parents are already in the bakery. She pops down to say good morning, before she goes back upstairs. Now she's not as tired, she's prepared to make a new episode of The Adventures of Tikki and Plagg. ChatNoir isn't active, but that's okay. She can draw Plagg.

"Let's watch a scary movie!"

"Can we not? I don't like scary movies."

"Don't be a wimp, Marie!"

But when Marie, the character that Marinette has based on Mylene, runs off in fear, she gets akumatised into the Horrificator. She uses other's fear to grow.

ChatNoir becomes active when Marinette's halfway through. When she comes back, chewing on the end of a croissant, she sees that his active bubble has appeared.

LadyBug: nice to see uve made an appearance, chaton

ChatNoir: my pleasure, bugaboo. i see uve been making a new ep without me?

LadyBug: sorry not sorry. stuff happened, hence le horrificator

She wonders whether ChatNoir knows Mylene, whether he's in her class, whether he'll guess her identity, but he doesn't say anything.

ChatNoir: scary movie, mlady? is marie based on you?

Marinette's eyes widen. She hadn't even realise that Marie is far closer to Marinette than it is to Mylene.

LadyBug: haha not me, a girl i know. dont tell me u mock girls who are scared!

ChatNoir: not at all, mlady. im the one who offers their hand to hold

Marinette snorts.

LadyBug: im sure ure a genuine knight in shining armour

ChatNoir: glad uve finally noticed, mlady. shall we finish the episode?

Marinette replies with a confirmation, and continues to draw. When she reaches the akuma, however, she falters.

How would Tikki defeat the Horrificator?

What would soothe Mylene?

But before she can type a thing, ChatNoir is drawing it for her. Long, thin things? Her unasked question is answered with Tikki's next words.

"Guitar strings? What do I do with these?"

Mylene's voice murmurs in her head, the Smelly Wolf song.

ChatNoir knowing the Smelly Wolf song is moot. Marinette knows it's a well-known song, even though she hadn't heard it from anyone before Mylene. What Marinette wants to know is how ChatNoir has connected Mylene's happy song with Mylene.

Does he know Mylene?

Marinette stares at the chat box. She wants to message him. She wants to message him and ask so, so bad. But she doesn't. She just finishes drawing the comic, and posts. She says a quick goodbye to ChatNoir, and lies on her bed, wondering.

Does ChatNoir know Mylene?

And, more importantly...

Does ChatNoir know her?

She's still wondering it when she walks into class the following Monday. As she predicted, Alya gives her a rundown of the new episode, and it warms Marinette's heart when she sees Mylene. She's ecstatic.

"Have you seen the new episode of TP?" she asks Marinette. "It's like me on Friday! Like LadyBug and ChatNoir based the Horrificator on me!"

"Actually," Alya admits, "they base all their akumas on real people, and Friday was so unique it would give their identities away for sure."

She eyes the class.

"That means that LadyBug and/or ChatNoir could be in the room right now."

It sounds so ominous, and makes Marinette so worried about concealing her identity that she laughs.

"Don't be so close-minded, Alya. Either of them could be a sibling of literally anyone who went home and told a sibling, friends of siblings, friends of parents, children of friends of parents... the list goes on."

Alya huffs.

"But if I narrow it down to this class, I'm closer to finding them!"

"If you narrow it down to this class, they might slip through your fingers," Marinette replies, knowing full well that LadyBug, for once, wouldn't.

"I suppose," Alya sighs, but Marinette spots her glancing at everyone in the room.

"Alya," Marinette warns, and Alya huffs.

"I can't help it! LadyBug could be in here, right now."

Marinette watches Alya's gaze follow everyone in the room, but she's relieved when Alya looks down at her work, apparently without considering Marinette.

Hopefully, she's got Alya off her tail. And, if he's in here, ChatNoir too.

She doesn't look around. She just works. But the question is still pounding in her head.

Does ChatNoir know me?

[A/N: This is really short and really bad, and I'm really sorry. In other news, I finished Season 2, so I'll be uploading 12 and 13 soon]