"So," Alya said in her bossiest voice, "you see what I mean, don't you?"

It was late evening after a long, warm, exhausting day and Alix was resting against the rails of a bridge chilling with Rose, Juleka, Mylene, and Alya after Marinette had long skedaddled off to home. They had just spent the most ridiculous day ever trying to set Marinette up with Adrien, there had been code names, and fake stop signs, and running, and screw ups, and an Akuma that Alix was eighty five per cent sure they might have somehow caused by accident.

(That or Hawk Moth was really scrapping the barrel nowadays.)

And in the end, despite all their hard work, Marinette chose to spend time mucking around with them instead of spending that much desired time with Adrien.

Alix was simultaneously touched and pissed off at the same time.

On one hand, it was so sweet of Marinette to put her friends first and Alix loved her dearly for it but on the other hand, Marinette had just wasted their entire day for no reason!

"Oh yeah," Alix agreed, "Marinette is hopeless all right."

"Oh don't!" Rose protested. "Marinette isn't hopeless. She's just in love!"

"Yeah," Juleka's lips twitched in amusement, "hopelessly in love."

"Juleka!"

"Well I think it's very sweet and wonderful that Marinette chose to spend her time with us instead of Adrien," Mylene said timidly, "it's one of the reasons why she's such a great friend."

"She's the best friend," Alya agreed, "but she so could be Adrien's girlfriend by now if she would just a. talk to him like a normal person, and b. stop sabotaging herself."

"The over the top, ridiculous, complicated plan just to get alone time with him doesn't help either," Alix added with a grin, "it leaves way too much to go wrong."

"You thought that was a complicated plan?!" Alya grimaced. "The original plan had just the two of us doing everything. Thank God I managed to convince her to confess to you guys!"

"Pfft!" Alix snorted. "Please. The only person in school that doesn't know that Marinette has a crush of the size of a galaxy on Adrien Agreste, is Adrien Agreste himself. You have that obstacle to tack onto the list as well."

"I know!" Alya groaned, "My job would be so much easier if Adrien wasn't so blind to how awesome my Girl is."

"It's such a shame," Rose sighed sadly, "because Adrien and Marinette would be just perfect together! They're both so warm, and kind, and sweet, that they support one another into being the ultimate goodness."

"Blergh!" Alix gagged. "That's so pathetically corny!"

"True though," Juleka muttered as she glowered at Alix in Rose's defence, "Adrien and Marinette would be good together."

"Oh no doubt," Alix rolled her eyes, "they would be one of those couples. The kind everyone else around them would get diabetes from because they're so sickeningly sweet."

"But you're still going to help though, right?" Alya asked. "In trying to get them together for once and for all, I mean."

"Duh!" Alix cried out. "The sooner they're together, the sooner Marinette will stop asking us to run round like headless chickens."

"And I want to see Marinette happy," Mylene smiled, "she's been such a wonderful friend to all of us that the very least we can do is make sure she gets her happy ending."

"And true love must triumph over all!" Rose said passionately as her blue eyes blazed with, what Alix decided was, a crazed gleam. "And there is nothing truer or more pure than the love Marinette has for her Adrien. We must ensure that their love gets the chance to blossom into the epic love story I know that they're destined to have! Whatever it takes, our time, our lives, our freedom, or even our first born child, we must sacrifice for the sake of Marinette and Adrien's romance!

"Yeah," Juleka mumbled, "whatever it takes."

"Erm..." Alix exchanged a worried glance with Mylene while Alya nodded in fierce agreement with Rose and Juleka. Alix was beginning to think she was the only sensible person in this group with a backbone. Which is worrying as hell because Alix was crap at being responsible and boring. "Yeah," she muttered, "if you say so."

She might have to warn her father that he'll have to bail her out of prison some point in the near future.

She can't help but think that was a huge possibility considering today they had broken like six traffic laws and then some alone!

"So we're all in agreement then," Alya said loudly, "Operation Golden Lotus is a go!"

"Operation Golden Lotus?!" Alix wrinkled her nose up in disgust. "God, why?!"

"Because Adrien is our Golden Button and Marinette is our Lotus flower," Alya said impatiently, "Remember? Those were the code names we had given them."

Urgh!

The blasted code names! Alix wishes she could forget them, they were the most ridiculous and stupid part of the entire day she just endured.

"Ooh!" Rose exclaimed. "Golden Lotus is totally the perfect shipper name for Adrien and Marinette!"

"I know, right?" Alya said smugly. "Now to plot our next course of action, I thought that-"

"Oh no!" Mylene gasped as she glanced down at her phone. "Is that the time?! I have to be home for dinner."

This caused everyone else to check their phones and Alix grimaced as she realised it was almost six in the evening.

Mum was going to be pissed if Alix missed dinner!

"Oh dear," Rose moaned, "I have to go too!"

"I'll walk you," Juleka muttered.

"It's probably best if we all go," Alya agreed, "I know my parents will want me home soon too. Come round to mine tomorrow, and we'll plan out Operation Golden Lotus then."

And with that, everyone quickly muttered their goodbyes before they parted ways. Rose and Juleka walked in one direction together as Rose gushed about how cute Marinette and Adrien would be together while Juleka nodded dutifully, Mylene hurried off in another on her own, and Alix drifted in another direction entirely with Alya by her side.

"You know," Alix said pointedly as she stretched out her arms, "the only reason our plan crashed and burned so badly was because of those stupid code names. Rose kept getting confused when you kept calling Juleka by her name. Wouldn't it have been simpler if you called Rose, Rose, and Juleka something else, or you know, just not use Rose as a code name like at all?!"

"I know, I know," Alya groaned, "but it was all part of my other operation!"

"What other operation?" Alix asked suspiciously.

"Operation JulRose!" Alya said gleefully. "I was hoping that all the subliminal messages about how Juleka should be Rose's would seep into them during this adrenalin high day and they would fall into each other's arms!"

Alix stared at Alya blankly.

"...You," she said disgustedly, "have way too much time on your hands!"