Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Nino would feel guilty in the days to come after unconsciously making her burst into tears, Marinette knew. It wasn’t actually his fault, but there was so many layers to this onion that she couldn’t explain it if she wanted to.

I had been a simple request. He was going on to create a sequel of Horrificator, with Mylene and Ivan starring again. He had simply asked if she would be able to create a costume that matched the akuma on film, though it didn’t need to be perfect, since they’d be filming it Blair Witch style.

Before she could even respond, Lila had butted her head into the conversation and said something along the lines of ‘oh my father’s college roommate is a famous monster movie costume designer! He could totally whip something up for you!’

Her butting in hadn’t been the problem. Marinette was totally used to it now. She practically expected it.

“Oh that’s awesome, Lila!” Alya had chirped. “That would be so amazing!”

“Yeah dude! We’re going to start filming soon, so if you could reach out to him and give me an answer about it, that would be awesome!”

“Of course! And that way you don’t need to bother Marinette. She always so busy in the bakery…”

“I would have loved to do the costume.” Marinette clarified. “It really isn’t a problem. So if this falls through, let me know, okay?”

“Thanks Marinette!” Nino beamed.

Then Lila smirked. And Marinette sensed that she had sealed her own doom.

How? Easy.

Lila would put off on confessing that her contact was busy, and then Marinette would be forced to work too quickly and do a half-assed job, or reject it completely.

Making her look like a flake, or a bad designer.

She rolled her eyes at the thought, and took out her sketchbook and pulled up the Ladyblog on her phone. Of course Lila had no contact. There was no reason to wait for a response. She’d might as well just get started on it now.

“It’s so cool that you know so many people, Lila!” Alya said from her side.

“Oh, I try not to think about it too much. I don’t want to be a braggart.”

Marinette bit her tongue, trying not to respond.

From in front of her, Adrien had leaned his head on his arm, on her desk, watching her work. “That’s smart.” He said softly. “Let me know if you need anything, okay?”

“Thanks Adrien.” She smiled at him, a little solemnly. Her stuttering was mostly gone now. She was trying to be a good friend and let him go for Kagami’s sake. But it was so hard! Especially since they weren’t official yet.

Alya sat next to her, ignoring her ‘jealousy’ to her classmate. “Girl, before you came around, Marinette was doing everything around here! Now we’ve got you so we can pull from all different talent pools!”

Except they weren’t. It was still Marinette.

Doing everything. As class representative, as craftsman, as liaison, as a tutor, and even a therapist. She was constantly bending over backwards to help.

And still no one appreciated her. Now she was working with shorter deadlines, and less respect. More skepticism and less mercy.

Everyone was taking advantage of her, and she was too nice to put a stop to it.

Or too naïve to notice it was even happening in the first place.

Of course, this was all on top of her guardian and Ladybug duties, which was already a full time job. And also a full time student, with remarkable grades!

And she was expected to do her chores and help out part time in the bakery.

She couldn’t remember the last time she designed something for herself.

“Of course,” clarified Nino, who had been sitting on his desk, “when you’re working with famous people, things don’t always work out. That’s why it’s nice to have Marinette around! She’s so clever! She always finds a solution!”

It was supposed to be a compliment. He was trying to let her know they still liked her and needed her.

But it came to a screeching halt with Nino’s words.

“Marinette?” Adrien asked, noticing the tears first.

She covered her mouth, lest she sob out loud and get too much attention.

But the concern in Adrien’s voice had already grabbed the attention of those around her.

“Girl...” Alya said with far too much pity. “There’s no reason to get upset.”

“Yeah Marinette.” Said Lila, with fake sympathy. “I know you want to be helpful, but you’re only one person. There’s no reason to be jealous. You can’t master everything!”

“Lila, maybe you should stop talking.” Adrien said patiently. “You know she doesn’t like you.”

“And I can’t imagine why! I’ve only ever been nice to her!”

Alya winced. “It’s...complicated.”

Lila gasped. “You’re not still jealous because of Adrien are you? After all, he’s dating Kagami, and she’s your friend! That’s not fair to me, Marinette!”

Any minute now, Marinette was going to burst into gut wrenching, uncontrollable sobbing. And she would rather do it as Ladybug so she could snatch up the Akuma before they landed. Classes were over for the day anyway. She had just stayed behind to attempt to socialize with her friends for just a few minutes.

Looked like that was in vain.

She stood, “I have to go.”

Alya grabbed her wrist. “No you don’t. Let’s just sit and talk this out.”

Lila continued to twist the knife. “Yeah Marinette. Let’s air our grievances like adults. We can be friends.”

But Marinette frantically scooped her belongings into her bag, holding onto every shred of dignity that she could, while Lila continued to rip it away from her.

“Can’t you see how your stubbornness is hurting your friends? You’re causing a lot of unnecessary drama.”

“Lila’s right, you know. Acting like this is really hurtful to me.” Said Alya, still full of sympathy.

She should have stayed silent, but her anguish spoke for her. “I’ve told you again and again that I don’t like Lila because she’s a liar. No one believes me, so there’s no point in talking about it!” Her voice cracked at the end.

“Marinette, we know Lila has a condition that causes her to misremember information. That doesn’t mean she’s maliciously lying!”

Marinette shook with untapped rage. She was a ticking time bomb. “She is though. She threatened me. I warned her that her lies were going to catch up to her, and she said that she was going to war with me. To take my friends away from me!”

“How dare you!” Lila shouted, with a pathetic snivel.

She was overacting, to be honest.

“You did that to me! How dare you try to make me the villain?! I was willing to let it go, but apparently, you’re worse than I believed!”

“Are you sure you aren’t misremembering that too, Lila?” Marinette bit.

“I could never forget the attempt someone made on my life! You gave me nightmares! You threatened to kill me! All because I was talking to the boy you were in love with—no! Obsessed with!”

“Marinette!”

“That’s awful!”

“Why would you do such a thing?!”

But Marinette didn’t respond, knowing that it was futile, just shouldered her backpack, half empty coffee cup in hand.

Adrien, bless his heart, packed up with her. “I’ll walk with you,” he offered.

Eloquence was not on her side, nor was grace or kindness. All that was holding her together was the utter desire to get away. “Leave me alone!” She shouted, before leaving.

Or, attempting to leave. She was short on the step and slipped, thrusting her coffee cup forward and right onto Lila.

“Ow!!” Lila cried, as the day-old lukewarm coffee hit her. “It burns!!”

Marinette, who wasn’t buying the pain, did feel guilt for spilling coffee. Because even if it wasn’t hot, it still stained. “Oh my gosh, I’m so so sorry Lila! That was an accident! Let me run home, I’ll get you a change of clothes!”

“You did that on purpose!” Lila sobbed, holding her arm. “I think it might be third degree!! Ow!”

“Marinette, seriously? What’s wrong with you? You’re out of control girl!” Alya scolded. “We need to tell the principal about this!”

“What? No! That was a complete accident! But the coffee is from this morning, it shouldn’t even be warm—“

“Come on Lila, let’s go see the nurse!” Rose, ever vigilant and noble, grabbed the lying girl and escorted her out of the room.

Marinette stood there quaking. Stupid. Unfair. Cruel. Why had fate turned everything against her? Why was everything unraveling?

Why did she mess up with every step?

“Marinette—“ Alya started.

Furious, and not quite herself, Marinette poured the rest of the coffee on the desk, on Alya’s hand.

“Hey!”

“She’s a liar! She’s always been a liar, and that’s all she’ll ever be!” Then she finally stalked out of the room.

Alya scoffed with a shake of her head. “God, bitterness is so ugly.”

“I’m going after her.” Adrien stated, making sure he had everything.

“Dude, leave it. Marinette’s always upset these days. Don’t worry about it. If what Lila says is true, we should just let her go. We should be more concerned about Lila.”

Though Alya didn’t quite share the sentiment as she touched the puddle of cold coffee on the desk. “Well...Lila might be being a little dramatic, or it could be shock. Either way, it’s just another day of drama. Marinette just needs to calm down. Even if she did have a lapse of judgement, that doesn’t mean we can’t just let bygones be bygones.”

Always upset these days? Was she really? How much of a friend to her was he if he had never noticed before?

Ignoring his other friends, Adrien left the classroom, hoping to catch up to her.

She was in the locker room, packing up her bag while she trembled and hiccuped.

“Marinette?” He asked.

“Please leave me alone.” She whispered.

He frowned, coming closer. “I don’t think I want to.”

“I don’t want you to see me like this.”

“Like how?”

She shrugged her shoulders miserably. “Weak? Ugly? Pathetic? Take your pick!”

“What? Because you’re crying? That’s not weak at all. And you want to see an ugly crier? I’m an ugly crier.”

“I highly doubt that.” She whispered.

“No really! I get all snotty and hiccupy. When you cry...your eyes get all sparkly.”

Adrien had seconds to brace himself as her lips trembled, before she started to sob.

“Hey...” he reached out for her, wrapping his arms around her slowly so she could pull away. But instead, she just returned the hug, burying her face in his shoulder.

He could feel her tears leaking through. Still, he just held her, rubbing her back gently.

Suddenly, a switch flipped and she shoved him away. “No! No I can’t!”

“Marinette?” He asked, startled.

“It’s not fair! I can’t take comfort from you!”

“Sure you can!” He laughed incredulously. “I’m here for you, Marinette.”

“It’s not fair to Kagami!”

“Kagami? She’d want me to comfort my friend.”

Marinette trembled. “No! It’s more than that! You’re with her and I can’t cry on you because I don’t want to hurt her because I’m in love with you and it’s not fair to take advantage of you! It’s not fair that you don’t know that!”

His eyes blew wide. “You...what? Lila was telling the truth?”

Marinette made a horrible choking sound as she realized what she blurted. “No no no...no this can’t be happening. I didn’t, no I—I’m just a fan! I love you, like a friend! Like—like—!” She sobbed. “Ugh! I’m ruining everything! Everything is falling apart! Why am I so stupid?!”

Adrien grabbed her arm tightly, almost painfully. “Marinette, we need to go.”

She looked up sharply, seeing that he wasn’t looking at her.

He was looking at the black butterfly crawling through the edge of the window.

“No, you—you’ve got things to do. I’ll go—“

He squeezed her tighter, “you’re crazy if you think I’m leaving you alone.”

“But—“

“Come on!” He yanked her, pulling her out from the locker room and into the courtyard, where students were milling about. Including their classmates.

“Oh Marinette—“ began Alya.

“Shut up!” Adrien retaliated.

“No!” Marinette dug her heels in as a purple light formed a mask over her face.

Adrien didn’t let go. Couldn’t let go. He didn’t see where the Akuma had landed. Her bag? Her hair ties?

Marinette trembled. “I—I can’t. I won’t!”

Adrien turned to her, cupping her cheeks in his hands. “Marinette? Marinette listen to me. Look at me. You don’t need him, okay? You’re smart, and wonderful, and kind. He’s not going to help you. He’s lying to you. You hate liars, right?”

Marinette nodded mutely.

“Then tell him to piss off!”

“I can’t—“ she choked. “I can’t be akumatized. I can’t!”

“And you won’t!” Adrien argued. “There’s always a solution, no matter how bleak or overwhelming. And I will help you fix this!”

Marinette clenched her eyes shut, every muscle in her body coiled tight.

Then she whispered out, in a very even tone, “Hawkmoth, leave me alone.”

The light disappeared, and the black butterfly flew away.

For a few moments, everyone was tense, still, and silent, the only sounds coming from Marinette as she stifled her cries. Adrien moved his hands from her face down to hold her hands.

Then she collapsed, and started wailing.

Powerful, horrible, heartbreaking wails. The wails of hopelessness, fear, and loneliness, bubbling and bursting out of her like a waterfall. On and on, she just screamed, not caring who heard or saw.

The crowd was at a cross between embarrassed and concerned. Some wanted to give her privacy, some wanted to just leave. Either way, everyone eventually trickled away. Her classmates leaving last.

Adrien crouched, sitting beside her. Close enough she could lean on him if need be, but far enough away for her to pretend she had privacy. But he kept his hand on the back of her neck, moving across her shoulders occasionally for support.

“Marinette,” he moaned, once they were alone. “I know you must need to cry…but I can’t bare to watch this…do you want to talk about it? What happened? This isn’t just about what just happened in the classroom. Although that didn’t help...”

“It’s Lila!” She screamed. “And-And Alya! And you! And Master Fu! And Luka—And And—!” She wailed, her words turning into moans.

“Whoa whoa whoa what?”

She just wailed harder.

He exhaled slowly. “Okay, that’s a lot to unpack…” He glanced around, taking note of the lack of people. Fencing started soon, but he was obviously skipping.

“Marinette? Don’t you want to go to your house?” He asked softly.

“I don’t know! I don’t know what to do!”

“Hey, hey, let’s breathe together. Okay?” At least she wasn’t screaming anymore.

She hiccuped a few times, but finally took a deep breath along with Adrien.

“Okay.” He said, smiling at her. “You’re doing great. Now let’s slowly talk things out. Once we know what we need to do, we can take care of your problems in little chunks.”

“I can’t tell you my problems!” She yelled, clenching her fists. “That’s the whole problem! I can’t tell anyone! Not my parents! Not my friends, not—“ she cupped her hands over her mouth, holding back a sob.

“Oh Marinette...”

“No! No I can’t do this anymore! I’m 15! I can’t handle this kind of pressure! I’ve ruined all of it! Paris needs someone better, and I can’t even handle my own problems let alone everything else demanded of me.” She fumbled with her earrings, before slapping them down in his hand. “You take them! They’re your responsibility now! I quit!”

A flash of pink took over the earrings as they went from the plain black stones she wore, to the flat gray stubs he saw as his stint as Mister Bug.

He choked.

His reaction snapped her out of her hysteria. “I shouldn’t have done that! I should not have—!” She swiped the earrings back and put them back on with fumbling hands. “I need to go before anything else happens! I’m a walking disaster!”

“Hey, whoa whoa whoa, Marinette—“

“No, stop talking!” She snapped. “I’m sorry—I didn’t mean to yell. I’m just—panicking.”

“Yeah, I can see that.” He sighed, and then took her hand in his. “Look, let’s get out of here. We’ll go to your house.”

“But—But don’t you—aren’t you—will someone be looking for you?”

“I have fencing.”

“I don’t want you to be late!”

“Marinette! I’m skipping!”

“Really?”

“Yes! You’re way more important to me then some stupid sport!”

“But—“

He helped her to her feet. “I’ll text Kagami so she can cover for me. Don’t worry about it, Marinette.”

“...I just don’t want to burden you.”

“You’re not. I’m promise, you’re not.”

She gripped his sleeve. “You can’t tell Kagami, or—or anyone. Please Adrien, I didn’t mean to say it. It’s not...not that I don’t trust you. I’m just...” she sighed in frustration. She was so overwhelmed, words weren’t coming the way she wanted them to.

“Marinette, I get it.” He assured, taking hold of the hand gripping him. “You trusted me with the snake, even though I failed back then, I never breathed a word of it to anyone. I’m not going to say anything. See, I’ve already forgotten what you said.”

She managed a watery giggle. “Thanks Adrien.”

“Now come on. Let’s go talk somewhere private.”

Resigned, Marinette allowed Adrien to tug her along. On the front steps, students were milling around, having evacuated the courtyard. Adrien didn’t say a word to anyone, while Marinette kept her eyes firmly on the ground.

Once they were away from the school, Tikki peered out of the bag, taking note of the fat tears rolling down Marinette’s cheeks. She was spiraling again, assuming the worst.

But Chat Noir was here, and they’d work everything out.

In the bakery, however, things reached a fever pitch as Lila, still wet with coffee, stood at the counter, talking to Sabine.

The conversation halted as the little bell above the door chimed.

Lila just looked at them and smirked, her face turned away from Sabine.

“Thank you for telling me, young lady. I’ll handle everything.” The woman said, edge in her voice.

Lila nodded pitifully and walked passed them to the door.

As she passed Adrien, she whispered, “I’m going to your father next.” And then left without a rebuttal.

Marinette looked at him, wide-eyed and horrified. “Did she just—?”

“Adrien,” Sabine said sternly. “Thank you for escorting Marinette home. But I have to ask you to leave. I need a word with my daughter.”

Adrien panicked for a moment, not sure how to navigate this situation. He never talked back to authority figures.

Well, not as Adrien. But his Lady was in danger, so Adrien was going to sit this one out, and let his Chat Noir persona deal with it. He held up a hand. “Mrs. Cheng. I don’t know what Lila just told you, and frankly, I don’t want to know.” His tone was stern and demanding, one he adopted from his father in the most cutthroat situations. It was scary, to Sabine and Marinette. “Lila Rossi is a liar and has been harassing Marinette for a while now. She’s the one responsible for her expulsion, and lying to get it reversed as well. I’ve spent the last—“ he took out his phone to look at the time. God. “I’ve spent the last hour holding Marinette while she cried. That gave Lila plenty of time to come here and do damage.”

Sabine just stared between him and Marinette. “Marinette, is this true?”

She could only sniff and nod.

“Madam Cheng?” He said, a little softer. “My father doesn’t trust me. I never did anything to warrant that treatment, but he doesn’t. It hurts that I don’t have an adult I can turn to when I need help. Don’t be like that to Marinette.”

Sabine gasped a little. It was harsh, of course, but seein0g Marinette—his lady—so broken was stirring up some ugly emotions in him.

“I’m not leaving.” He told her. “Marinette needs me.”

“Of course dear. Thank you so much. I found it hard to believe that Marinette would become violent with anyone, but after that ridiculous expulsion, I didn’t know what to believe. I’m not at school, I know Marinette, but—“ she shook her head.

“I tripped.” Marinette whispered. “The coffee was cold. It was an accident.”

“Now that, I believe,” Sabine hummed fondly. “Madam Rossi probably deserves a phone call. Why don’t you two go up to her room? I’ll bring up some tea in a bit.”

Adrien massively sighed. “Thank you Madam Cheng. And...sorry for being rude.”

“You were stern. It was important.” She walked over and hugged her daughter, petting her hair. “Marinette, I’m so sorry for making you feel like you couldn’t talk to me about this. I trust you, both of us do.” She kissed her head. “Don’t be afraid to ask for help every once in a while, okay?”

Marinette could only nod against her.

“I’ll let you two go. When you’re calmer, you can tell me what happened, if you want. Either way, I’ll disregard what that girl said.”

“Thank you, Maman.” Marinette whispered.

“Of course baby.” She kissed her forehead tenderly.

Then Adrien took Marinette’s hand again and pulled her away upstairs.

Once in her room, Marinette sat on her chaise, pulling her legs up to her chest. She was silent.

Adrien grabbed a blanket from her bed, and wrapped it around her shoulders, then sat by her side and pulled her to lean against him.

“Whenever you’re ready to talk, I’m here to listen.”

She whimpered. “I’m scared.”

“Of what?”

“...of saying something I’m not supposed to. I wasn’t supposed to tell you about...any of that. It just all came out.”

“Sounds like you’ve been bottling yourself up. That’s not healthy, Marinette.”

She pushed away from him, standing, her back to him. “I’m sorry, Adrien. I really appreciate you being here with me, but...it’s just too dangerous. And, like I said, it’s not fair to Kagami.”

Adrien huffed, his bangs fluttering over his forehead. “Marinette...I’m just trying to help.”

“And I appreciate that, but I can handle it.” Then quietly, more to herself. “I have to handle it.”

Swallowing a growl, he looked at his stubborn lady. “What about Chat Noir?”

She hunched her shoulders. “What about him?”

“Have you talked this out with him? Does he know you’re struggling?” He knew the answer, but he was curious to what she would say. Would she lie?

Her hiccups and sniffles weren’t exactly what he was expecting, but it wasn’t surprising. “He’s already so disappointed with me!”

“What?” He stood too, whirling to face her. “What are you talking about?”

“It was written all over his face during the last fight! He knows I gave away my mentor’s identity! I’m the reason Chloé got upset! And I keep stringing him along!” She sobbed. “He had to do everything in that last fight! I couldn’t plan, or think or—or do anything! And he hasn’t talked to me since!”

Adrien’s warm hands landed on her shoulders. “Marinette, Ladybug, you know that’s not true right? Chat’s your partner. He’d never be disappointed in you!”

“How do you know?”

He shrugged. It wasn’t the right time to reveal himself. She was already dealing with so much. Surely revealing himself would cause another spiral. “I just do.”

She shook her head in disbelief.

He pulled her back down to the chaise to sit, and rested a warm hand on her back. Then he eased her over to lean against his shoulder again.

“I won’t say a thing. I’m not Adrien, I’m not anyone. Just a pillow with ears. Why don’t you talk it all out. And once you’re done, I’ll stuff this day far into the back reaches of my mind where no one will find it. All your secrets are safe with me.”

Marinette started to relax against him, despite the absolute panic of being close to her crush. He was warm, and his arms held her securely. She felt safe.

Tikki made her appearance, coming out of Marinette’s bag that had been set on her desk. “Marinette?”

Marinette only looked back at her, ashamed and embarrassed.

“It’s alright. You can trust Adrien,” is what she said. Not, “you‘ve failed and I hate you. How dare you!” There was no judgement, no reprimanding. Just comfort.

She wanted to cry again, but Adrien petted her head, a soothing rhythm.

With a shuddering breath, she began, “Lila’s been threatening me. I knew she was lying because I’m Ladybug. I didn’t like that she was using my name to get close to you. I saw her getting away with all these other lies too because no one bothered to fact check her. It was frustrating that every time I urged Alya to listen, she wrote me off as jealous. I’m not jealous of her. I have no reason to be. But because I have a...crippling crush on you—“ she bit her lip.

Adrien gave no reaction.

She continued, “—I was automatically deemed jealous because she was talking to you. Lila confronted me in the bathroom, fake concerned about my well being when I was moved to the back of the classroom. But when I told her I knew she was lying, and that everyone would figure her out, she threatened me. She said she was going to make me her enemy, that my friends would leave me behind and you’d—you’d be with her. I tried to ignore it, and take the high road like you suggested, but...”

“Did you tell anyone she threatened you?”

“...no.”

“Why?”

“I was so scared Alya would treat it like every other thing I said to her about Lila. She’d pass it off as jealousy. She’s supposed to be my best friend but she doesn’t believe me!!”

“Forget about Alya then. If she doesn’t believe you, then that’s her fault. You’ve got nothing to prove. What about anyone else?”

Marinette shuttered. “I thought...no one would believe me.”

“Even me?”

She pushed away from him, hugging herself, the guilt starting to creep back in. “I can barely talk to you...how was I supposed to tell you I was being threatened?”

“That’s fair, I guess. I just...I could have helped you.”

She was quiet, hugging her arms to her chest. “I...didn’t think about it. It was my problem to deal with. And I’m not great at asking for help. I’m sorry.”

“Aw, you don’t need to apologize for that Marinette. You didn’t do anything wrong. Lila’s the one with the stick up her ass.”

Marinette giggled. She had never heard Adrien swear before.

Suddenly, Adrien’s phone rang, interrupting the conversation. He sighed heavily. “Gee, I wonder who that could be.” He took it out, and saw Nathalie’s name. “I’m sorry, I have to take this. Then you can have my full attention.”

She highly doubted that, but nodded him on.

He answered, “hi Nathalie.”

“Adrien, your father wants you home immediately. Considering that you answered, I’m assuming that you’re not in practice anymore...or maybe you never went.”

Adrien swallowed, but realized there was no point in arguing. Not with her at least. “Put my father on, please.”

“You can talk to him when you come home.”

“This is urgent, Nathalie, give the phone to my father.” He couldn’t keep the bite out of his tone, but allowed his protectiveness to take the reins, filling him with adrenaline.

“One moment.”

The phone went quiet before Gabriel’s voice cut in, “Adrien, I want you home. Now. You are in danger with that girl—“

“Do you trust me?”

Gabriel sighed, “I’d trust you more if you did as I asked.”

“No, father, I need to know if you will listen to me and believe me when I have something important to tell you.”

“Yes yes,” he said, and Adrien could imagine him flipping his hand. “What is it, Adrien? What is so important?”

“Lila Rossi has been sexually harassing me.” He blurted. Not the argument he was planning on making, but one that might make his father listen to him. 

Gabriel paused before asking, “what?” All anger in his voice had evaporated, which was new.

“She touches me without my permission. And she threatens any other girls that get close to me. I don’t know what she told you about Marinette, but she’s been threatening her for a while. Marinette had a break down at school. I’m trying to comfort her.”

A pair of slender arms wrapped around his waist from behind in a gentle hug. She rested her cheek against his spine. Adrien rested a hand over hers, appreciating the comfort.

For once, Gabriel didn’t respond. Adrien took that as a cue to keep going.

“I don’t feel safe around Lila. She lies to people to get her way. She got Marinette expelled almost effortlessly. I’m scared that she’ll do something like that to me. To us. What’s stopping her from accusing me of sexual harassment or worse?” He swallowed. “Please don’t make me model with her anymore.”

Gabriel continued to be silent, and Adrien took it as quiet contemplation.

Finally, Gabriel responded. “You’re concerns are valid. You make very good points. Thank you for bringing this to my attention.”

Adrien exhaled in a whoosh.

“I will be working through dinner, so you may stay with the Dupain-Chengs if they’ll have you. Just be home by 8. I’d like to talk with you more about this then.”

“Thank you, Father.”

“Thank you for being honest with me, son.” And he hung up.

Adrien took a shaky breath as Marinette pulled away from him. “Sorry for the hug, I know you were just talking about being sexually harassed—I just know that was a hard conversation to have and—“

“Marinette.” He stopped her, holding her hand. “It’s more than okay. You can hug me whenever you like. I don’t mind.”

“You sure?”

“Absolutely.” He smiled. “Your hugs, whether intentional or not, are nice.”

She blushed.

“I-I mean...Lila and Chloe hang on me, or clamp down like...like a pair of handcuffs. You hold me. Sure, but gentle enough I can pull away. It’s nice.”

Still blushing, and unable to look him in the eye, she hugged him again, hiding her face in his chest.

He gathered her close, savoring her touch. He had found her. Finally. Of course, it was in a horrible way, and she didn’t know who he was. But he found her, and he still loved her without the mask. That’s more than he ever could have asked for.

“Your hugs are really nice too.” She mumbled into his shirt.

He snickered, imagining her reaction if he was Chat. He couldn’t help but think it would be a little different. “Alright,” he pulled away slightly. “My problems are on hold. Let’s get back to you. Let’s get back to what caused you to cry in class. What got you so suddenly upset? Because you started crying before Lila blurted out all that stuff. Was it Lila making another bogus offer?”

She shook her head. “No...it’s stupid.”

“It’s obviously not stupid if it made you cry.”

She sighed, but didn’t pull away this time. Her walls began to crumble, since he was Adrien and he was so kind.

“It wasn’t Lila. It was actually Nino.”

“Nino? Really? What did he do? Do you need me to kick his butt?”

She smiled softly. “No, he didn’t do it on purpose. I think it was supposed to be a compliment...”

“And that was...?”

“He said that it was nice to have me around when things fail because I always have the solution.” Her eyes watered as she spoke.

“Oh. Hmm. I guess I don’t really see why that would have bothered you? I mean, you are really smart and clever, and quick too! You always know what to do.”

“But I don’t!” She threw her arms in the air and began to pace. “That’s just it! I can come up with problem solvers when facing an Akuma! And occasionally I have good ideas for dealing with school problems! But right now? I don’t know what the heck I’m doing!” She shouted, a few tears leaking out. “My mentor is gone, and it’s my fault! I gave away his identity to Hawkmoth and he in turn gave up his memories to protect me and Chat! Now I’m the guardian of the Miraculous and I’m only 15! So not only do I have to deal with that big mess, but I have to deal with balancing being a full time student and superhero without letting anyone catch onto what’s happening, which requires a lot of lying, which I hate doing!! And now with Lila making these bogus claims and no one listening to me, I’m left scrambling to pick up the mess she makes because I’m the class representative and I’m terrified of disappointing my friends more! I’m already on thin ice with the class and being a social outcast might just break me! So I have to put aside my own problems to deal with Paris and my fickle classmates. I just keep watching you grow farther away, and Chat become more and more disappointed and heartbroken, and Luka become more impatient and I don’t even have the emotional energy to decide which one hurts me more!” She outright sobbed.

“Marinette...” Adrien breathed, not able to say much else.

“Just for once, I want my problems to just—solve themselves. Because I’m so tired and I’m so scared! I messed up so badly today—what about tomorrow? What if my next break down is in front of Hawkmoth?”

Adrien stood slowly, approaching her like a wild animal. “Hey...if it’s any consolation, you are completely justified in having this break down. This is an unbelievable amount of stress you have. I’m surprised you didn’t crack earlier.”

“I did. Right before Miracle Queen. Luka found me then. I felt awful for crying on him, because I know he cares about me...but I just don’t feel the same. I like him, I really do, but I can’t—“ she shook her head. “I’m just leading him on at this point. I’m so terrible.”

“I know exactly how you feel.”

She looked up at him, seeing the sympathy in his eyes. He looked miserable.

“That’s exactly how I feel about Kagami.”

Marinette wiped the tears from her cheek. “What?”

“She said that my indecision hurt her, which I get but...I can’t just stop loving—“ he turned red, and turned his face away, “sorry, we’re focusing on your problems. Not mine.”

“No, don’t. Adrien, who are you in love with, if not Kagami?”

The desperation in her voice forced him to look at her. He felt extremely embarrassed and guilty. All this time, he declared he’d know her anywhere, and yet how was he supposed to explain that he looked right passed her?

“Um...” he said smartly.

“Please?”

“It’s...you. I’m in love with you.”

She choked, her face turning red. “You...are? But I thought...”

“Ladybug, you. To be more precise. But now that I know who you are, the feelings are the same. Or possibly even stronger. Just so you know. It’s not just some silly celebrity thing.”

She opened her mouth, preparing to speak, but the words were stuck, her throat dry.

“Marinette...” he took her hands gently. “You are amazing, brave, smart, and kind. You’re my hero, and while you are going through some really hard stuff right now, you have something that Lila and Hawkmoth don’t.”

“A life?”

He chuckled, “well, yes. But I was going to say integrity.”

“Integrity?”

“Yeah. Willingness to help others even when you have bad days. Doing your best to keep promises. Being someone dependable, honest, and selfless. It might be exhausting, but in the end, you’ll be still standing when everyone else’s messes fall down around you.”

Her shoulders sagged as she let out a whoosh of air. “That’s really sweet, Adrien. But...” she hugged herself. “You told me it didn’t matter as long as you and I knew the truth. That I should take the high road and her lies would catch up to her. Well, I almost got expelled, so it obviously isn’t working.”

“Right, yes. And I’m sorry,” he clarified. “When I gave you that advice the first time, I didn’t know she threatened you. I thought it just bothered you that she was lying in general. I’m not saying you have to lay down like a dog anymore, I’m just saying that you have an advantage on her. And your character is your foundation. If you were a terrible person, and she was lying about you, there would be no reason for anyone to doubt her. But because you are so amazing, someone’s going to notice. And if they don’t, that’s not your fault. I will help you come up with a way to solve this problem, I promise.”

She sighed again, this time in relief. “Thank you Adrien. That means a lot.”

“Now,” he began, starting to pace himself. “I’m not sure what I can do to help you with the Miraculous. Given that I was a terrible temporary holder, and I’m not even supposed to know about this—“

“You don’t need to help me there.” She sighed, but in a gentle way, that sounded relaxed and okay. “If we can get the Lila situation under control, I think I’ll be able to handle guardianship a lot more.”

“What about Chat? Can he take some responsibilities?”

She groaned. “That’s another one of my problems. He’s so...”

Adrien held his breath, ready to take whatever terrible trait she had honed in on.

“...so wonderful.”

Huh. Not expected, but not unwelcomed!

“He’s goofy, and impatient, and goes overboard sometimes, but he has such a good heart and encourages me. So during that last fight...it broke me to see him step up and take control while I just spiraled.”

“You’re a team though. He should be able to take control when you’re unable to.”

“I know, but it shouldn’t be when I’m having an existential crisis! Just when I’m hurt or sick—“

“I’m sure Chat didn’t mind stepping up.”

“How do you know?”

“I mean, I’ve seen the way he looks at you.”

Marinette groaned again. “And there again! If I keep rejecting him, he’s just going to get more and more heartbroken, and then he’s going to resent me! And I hate that! I don’t want to be the cause of that!”

Adrien paled. Honestly, he was trying to move on with Kagami. He wasn’t going to let heartbreak turn to resentment. Especially not towards her, who he still adored. That was yesterday’s problem though, things were looking pretty optimistic in the love department now. Though they hadn’t gotten that far yet.

“Marinette, I think if that does happen, it wouldn’t be your fault. I think...Chat should be mature enough to respect your wishes.”

“He has his moments.” She breathed. “Did you know I almost gave up being Ladybug right at the beginning?”

“What?! No way!”

“Yes! But Chat encouraged me. Alya was in danger and that prompted me to put the earrings back on, but Chat actually talked me into being a hero. In my darkest moments, I wonder ‘what would Chat say?’ Sometimes the answer is stupid, but it makes me laugh. And then I hear his encouragement.”

“You care a lot about Chat, don’t you?”

“I love him. He’s my best friend and the best partner I could ask for.”

Adrien’s lovesick grin was probably not the best reaction to her praise of someone else. He shook himself into a more relaxed and normal expression. “Have you guys talked at all since then?”

“No. I have no idea what to say to him.” She plopped down in one of her computer chairs and leaned her head back. “I wish I knew Chinese!”

“What?” Adrien asked at the sudden change in conversation.

“Don’t get me wrong, I know some. But not enough to get me by. My mom offered to teach me some when I was younger, but I was being stubborn and now I regret it! I’ve been trying to learn more since I started training, but I can’t ask my mom for specific phrases, and free apps only get me so far!”

“Why do you need to know Chinese?”

Marinette took a deep breath, and looked at Tikki.

“I mean, he already knows this much, might as well keep going.”

She exhaled. “Alright. The miraculous come with...a manual, of sorts. But it’s all in code. Some of that code is in Chinese, either Mandarin or something else...maybe even ancient Chinese. I don’t know. But I figure being able to read it would help me figure it out.”

“Uh...wasn’t there a temple or something in Tibet that came back? Could you use the Teleportation miraculous to get there?”

Marinette stared at him, wide-eyed. “You...you’re on to something there! Oh but that doesn’t fix my Chinese problem! I know how to say ‘please’, ‘thank you’, ‘good morning’ and stuff but not ‘hello, I’m the new Miraculous Guardian in Paris and I don’t know how to read the book. Can you teach me?’”

“Hello, I’m the new Miracle Stone Guardian in Paris and I don’t know how to read the book. Can you teach me?” Adrien said in Mandarin. “At least I think that’s what it is. I said ‘Miracle Stone’ instead of Miraculous, because I think that’s a better translation—“

“Adrien!” Marinette grabbed his face with both hands, squishing his cheeks together. “You speak Mandarin!”

“Yes? Isn’t that what you were getting to? Asking me to be your translator?”

“I didn’t—we couldn’t—“

“Because I’m not supposed to know?” He asked delicately.

Marinette didn’t answer.

“Or because you believe you have to do this on your own?”

She groaned again. “Are you like a mind reader or something?”

He rested a hand on her shoulders and rubbed back and forth. “One of my many talents.”

“But, yes. That is what I’m worried about. I don’t want to get you too involved. I should at least talk to Chat about it.”

“Yeah, I think you should just be honest with him. Just tell him everything.”

“I can’t tell him everything, it would compromise my identity!”

“Um, just out of curiosity…why don’t you two know who the other is?”

“It was a safety measure, in case either one of us got akumatized, or under the control of an akuma. Our master was very strict about it.”

“But, you’re the guardian now. Isn’t it better to know each other? What if something happens to the other? There’s no one that would know who the other is.”

Marinette exhaled. “I’ve been thinking about that too. I just…I don’t know.”

“Okay. Well, I think you should let him in at least a little more. Just talk to him. He should at least know where your head is at.”

“Okay. I’ll start there.”

Adrien’s phone buzzed with a text. “Oh, who is it this time?”

Kagami: Where are you?

“Oh whoops! I needed Kagami to cover for me.”

Adrien: I’m with Marinette. There’s some class drama going on right now. Can you cover for me?

Kagami: Sure! Tell her she’s got me on her side. (Even though I’m not sure what’s going on.)

Kagami: Are you doing anything this weekend? I’d love to get Ice Cream with you! <3

Adrien winced, as he read the newest text.

“Is something wrong?”

“Um, just trying to figure out how to interpret this text. I think Kagami is asking me out.”

Her heart sunk. “Well, um…are you going to go?”

“Not if it’s a date.”

Adrien: As friends?

The little dots popped up, indicating that she was typing.

Kagami: I already told you that your indecision hurts me. Are we a couple or not? Please don’t waste my time.

“Woof. It’s like everyone is falling apart today.”

“What’s wrong? Can I help?”

Adrien smiled at her. “Not to be a complete hypocrite, but I have to handle this on my own. Should I just be blunt and honest?”

“Quite honestly, that seems like Kagami’s language.”

Adrien: I really care about you Kagami, and your friendship is very important to me. I don’t want to lose you. But I can’t be in a relationship with you. I’m very much in love with Marinette, and I just found out she feels the same. But I can’t be with her right now because of…extenuating circumstances. I wouldn’t be fair to you to be with you while I wait until things clear up for her. You deserve to be happy, and I don’t think I can be that person for you. I’m sorry.

“Adrien? Is everything okay?”

“I…I think I’m doing the right thing.”

Kagami: Thank you for your honesty. I wish you had told me sooner. We will remain friends, but I need some time. Tell Marinette I said hi and that I hope she feels better.

Adrien didn’t know how to respond to this very professional reply, so he just didn’t. He had heard you weren’t supposed to break up over text, but they weren’t exactly dating in the first place. More than likely, this conversation would be continued in person. Or she’d never talk to him again.

Instead, he noticed he had another unread text.

Nino: Did you take Marinette home? Is she okay?

Adrien gnawed at his lip. “Are you okay if I tell Nino kind of what the truth is? Besides your identity?”

Marinette shrugged. “If you can convince him, be my guest.” And she took a seat at her desk, pulling out some homework.

Adrien sat in the chair nearby, tapping out an honest reply.

Adrien: I took her home, still with her. She’s not great.

Nino: Alya said that Lila went to tell her mom about what happened. Please tell me she didn’t.

Adrien: She so did.

Nino: Ugghghhhgghhh We told her not to, especially since Alya confirmed that the coffee was cold. Ngl that whole thing at the end was super dramatic

Adrien: Of course. She’s an attention hog, and she demands it however she can get it. That includes lying out of her nose.

Nino: Lowkey bro, I haven’t been believing Lila’s stories for a while. I’ve been going along with it because she’s nice and Alya’s really good friends with her, but today was too much. It was not her place to out Marinette’s crush, especially in front of you. That was dirty

Adrien: Wait really? What made you start doubting her?

Nino: When she could never come through with any of her promises. A few times, sure, celebrities are busy, but every single time she said she’d pull a string, it would fall through. Chloe is more reliable than her. Why do you think I asked Marinette for help first?

Adrien: Boy I’m glad to hear you say that! Marinette’s feeling really overwhelmed because she has to pick up all the plans that Lila ruins.

Nino: Why? It’s not her fault. I love Marinette, but she’s got to stop catering to people.

Adrien: Dude…don’t get mad, but that’s kind of what tipped her over this afternoon. You said something like ‘she always has a solution’. She feels like everyone is depending on her to make things right.

Nino: Aw dude you’re so right! I noticed she started crying when I said that! I just didn’t get why! Aww man!

Adrien: I don’t think she minded helping people, but being asked to help and being expected to help are two totally different things

Nino: For sure dude.

Adrien: You trust me right?

Nino: Yeah dude! You’re my dog bro!

Adrien: Then know what I’m about to tell you is the absolute truth. Lila isn’t just lying for attention. She’s lying maliciously to hurt Marinette on purpose. And not only is she not friends with Ladybug, she HATES her. Chat Noir himself told me that she faked an injury to get him out of a fight and leave Ladybug alone with an akuma. When I told her she didn’t need to lie to make friends, she turned straight up evil. Marinette got on her bad side because she told her to knock it off. She lied about Marinette pushing her down the stairs, and all the other stuff that got her expelled. The only reason Marinette was allowed back at school was because I sorta blackmailed Lila. That’s when she made up that ridiculous lie about having a lying disorder.

Adrien’s phone laid on the desk for a moment, Nino’s contact completely silent.

Nino: Dude.

Nino: I gotta find Alya.

Nino: Stay with Mari.

“Okay. So, I think I won Nino over.” Adrien said with a relieved smirk.

Just then, Marinette’s phone buzzed. She had ignored it since coming home, knowing that there would be a plethora of foul messages from classmates. But she spared the screen a glance. “He just texted me. ‘Dude, I’m so so so so so so so so sorry that what I said hurt you. I only meant that you are extremely smart and clever and reliable. I never wanted to take advantage of you, but it’s nice to have someone in your corner, who you can trust and knows will be honest with you. You’re real, and I’m stopping communication with Lila now. What she did was not cool. Sorry this went on for so long. I’m talking to Alya now. Might take a while to wear her down. You know how she is. But she loves you, so she’ll see the light’.”

“Aw. Nino’s so cool.”

Her phone buzzed again. She blushed at the message, and turned it face down.

“What was that?”

“He said ‘behave’ and then a winky face.”

“Ha! I love Nino. It makes sense why you chose him to be Carapace.”

“You know about that?”

“Yeah, I know who all of the others are now. Except Chat Noir, but I have my suspicions.”

“Oh yeah, who do you suspect?”

“You know the performer XY?”

Marinette gagged. “No. Way. My Chat is way more handsome, kind, and talented than that pompous asshat!”

Adrien guffawed, and when he collected himself, he giggled out, “Handsome, huh?”

“Of course he’s handsome! But don’t you dare tell him I said that!”

“Your secret is safe with me.” He took on a more serious tone. “All of them are, you know? I promised I’d stuff this day in the back of my mind so no one will know.”

“Actually,” she gave a contented sigh. “It’s nice that someone knows. It’s nice that you know.”

“But we didn’t actually solve any of your problems.”

“Well, no. But we have a solid foundation to work on. I feel a lot more optimistic about being the guardian and dealing with Lila. I think the rest will fall into place when I have less on my plate.”

“And I’ll help you with Lila. Again, I’m sorry for my useless advice earlier.”

She rested a hand on his shoulder. “Adrien, it was helpful advice for what you assumed was going on.”

“I really tried, you know. She weaseled her way into my photo shoots, and I told her I wouldn’t boot her as long as she left you alone. And she hasn’t. So the deal is off.”

“You did that for me?”

“Of course!”

“Even without knowing that I’m...?”

“Yes! Marinette! You were always a very precious friend to me. The first that I really felt like I earned on my own. It really sucked to see you hurting, and I wanted to do whatever I could to protect you.”

Tears sprang to her eyes, but in a hopeful way this time. She threw her arms around him and squeezed. “You’re the best.”

He hugged her back, squeezing her tightly. “I try.” He glanced at his phone. “Looks like we got some time before I have to leave. Did you want me to look at that book? Or do you want to just play video games?”

“Honestly, video games sound awesome. Let me just go tell my mom you’re staying for dinner.”

“Okay.”

After she left, Plagg appeared. “You doing okay kid? Your heart is just a hum for how hard it’s beating.”

“I’m fine, just...I guess still processing everything? No wonder she feels so overwhelmed.”

“I’d like to think that by confiding in you, she’s feeling a little better.”

“I hope. I know how particular she is about her identity. She might still be uncomfortable.”

“Are you going to tell her who you are?”

“Not just yet. On one hand, she might feel better knowing it’s not some random person who knows who she is, but on the other hand, that’s a whole other can of worms and just one more thing to worry about.”

“Yeah. But you’re also not a stranger to her. You’re a good friend and the boy she’s in love with.”

“Yeah…Marinette’s…Ladybug. And she’s in love with me…”

“Kid?”

That was all the warning Plagg got before Adrien straight up passed out on the floor.

Marinette rushed back upstairs when she heard the thump. And thankfully Plagg heard her steps so that he could hide.

“Adrien?!”

The dizzy spell only lasted a few seconds, as he groggily blinked back to awareness.

“Are you alright? Do you need water? Food?”

“Yes to all the above.” He stated with a lopsided smile. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you. I just...I think my brain finally processed who you were and I just got really light headed.”

“You didn’t hurt yourself, did you?”

“No, I’m fine. Thanks Mari.”

She blushed.

“Is that okay? Can I call you that?”

“You can call me anything.”

“Okay boo boo bear.” He grinned.

She started giggling. “Oh no! Not disgusting pet names!”

“Snookie wookums?”

“No!”

“Sweetie Mari pie?”

“Adrien!”

“My most ardent desire, love of my life?”

She calmed down her giggles. “That one’s pretty good, only if you say the whole thing every time.”

He smiled warmly at her. “Actually, I think I have the perfect name for you. But I’ll drop it on you when you least expect it.”

“Whatever you say...Blondie.”

“That’s the best you got?”

“I’ll think on it. I’ll get one that just melts your heart.”

There was a knock on the trap door. “Marinette?” Asked Sabine.

Marinette opened the door, and helped her mom with the tray of snacks and tea.

“Here you go. Plenty of feel good snacks to help a wounded heart.”

“Thanks Maman.” Marinette said earnestly.

“Now, I want you to know, I got in contact with Lila’s mother.” She sighed. “I’m so sorry honey, but she’s right up in Lila’s lies. She didn’t even believe me when I said Adrien had come over to clarify everything. Apparently, he’s dating Lila. There’s no way he would defend her bully.” Sabine gave them a flat look.

“Me? Date Lila? I’d sooner date a rancid garbage bag. And kiss it too!”

“Well, and least the garbage bag would never lie to you.” Marinette smiled.

“So, want do you want me to do?” Asked Sabine. “Stay out of this? Call the principle? Call a lawyer?”

“No mom,” Marinette said with an accepting sigh. “I think we’ll handle her.”

“Don’t do anything dangerous.” She warned. “I know you’re not a bad kid. But don’t stoop to her level.”

“Don’t worry. I intend to handle it with grace and dignity.”

“Dignity I can see. Grace? Just do your best.”

“Gee thanks.”

“Just let me know if you need anything. Talking to her mother didn’t work, but if we can a parent teacher conference...”

“That’s not a bad idea,” said Marinette. “But let me try a little longer. Adrien knows a little more about the situation, and so does Nino.”

“Okay baby.” Sabine smiled. “I’m proud of you. And I love you. You too, Adrien. I’m proud of you for coming here and making things right.”

He blushed. “Thank you Madam Cheng.”

“Alright, I’ll leave you kids alone. I’ll call for dinner.”

“Thanks mom!”

The video games were a great distraction from all the stress and revelations the day had brought. Smack talk, praise, puns, and even overt flirting.

“What’s wrong, Ladybug? Having trouble in a digital battle?”

“Oh you wish! I’ve fought in one of these for real!”

“Oh you lie! You think you can just tell me you did anything as Ladybug and I’ll believe it!”

“I mean, I can. You can’t prove I didn’t.”

“Yes I can, you’re sucking at this!”

“Oh but that’s just a part of my plan!” In a super mega ultra combo, Adrien’s health bar went from three quarters full, to only one hp left.

“Nonononono!!” He cried, mashing the block button.

It didn’t matter.

“Victory, thy name is sweet.”

“Guhhhh,” Adrien moaned as he flexed his sore hand. “And not a single victory for me.”

“You’ll get there some day.”

“When you go easy on me...”

“No promises there, handsome boy.”

He grinned at her.

From downstairs, Sabine called, “Adrien! Your bodyguard is here!”

“Wow, is it 8 o’clock already?”

The clock read 7:45.

“You know what they say, time flies when you’re having fun.”

He smiled softly at her. “And with you, every minute is an absolute blast.”

She blushed.

“Look, Marinette...” he trailed off, scratching the back of his head. “I...I want to be more than just a friend. I really...I love you. Truly.”

“But...?”

He winced. “A temporary but. I have a few loose ends I need to tie up before I ask you out, properly. I need to talk to my father, and I’d like to make sure Kagami’s okay. And I should probably mention it to Chloé.”

“Okay. That makes sense.”

“I just don’t want anything to ruin us before we even start, you know?”

“Of course. I understand completely.”

He sighed in relief. “Thank you. And um...I’ll leave you with this, so you know I’m serious.”

“Leave me with what?”

He swooped in, pressing the sweetest, warmest, lovely kiss of them all on her lips. It only lasted a few seconds, just to leave them both pining for more.

“I’ll see you tomorrow?” He asked as they parted.

She didn’t have the words, as she only dumbly nodded back.

With his award winning smile, he pressed a tiny peck to her nose and then danced away before she could compose herself.

After he left, she sank to the floor.

“Wow! Looks like talking out your problems with someone really did help!” Said Tikki.

“Uh huh...”

“You okay?”

“Adrien...kissed me.”

“He sure did! That was really cute!”

“I love him...I’m going to marry him.”

“Okay, maybe slow down...”

“Don’t crush my dreams Tikki!”

—

At home, Adrien arrived 5 minutes before 8. But his father was still waiting outside his office.

“Welcome home, Adrien. Did you enjoy dinner with Marinette and her family?”

It was certainly nice to receive a warm welcome! “Yeah! Her mom made this soup that was really good, and we had fresh bakery bread!”

“Sounds lovely.” Gabriel stayed with a pleasant tone. “If you aren’t busy, I should like to finish our earlier conversation.”

“No. I mean, no I’m not busy! We can talk!”

Gabriel nodded and beckoned him into his office. They sat across from each other in chairs.

“I want to thank you for being so frank about the situation with Miss Rossi. I’ll admit, I was impressed with her quick wit and ability to fabricate stories—“

“Wait.” Adrien held up a hand. “You know she was lying?”

“Of course. I’m not an idiot. Her lies were obvious, but to the unpracticed ear, they’d go unnoticed. She seemed earnest enough when she told me she cared about you, and so I...had her keep an eye on you.”

Adrien felt his skin crawl. “She...spied on me?”

“Hmm. Spied is a little strong of a word. Just reported back to me the goings on of your classmates.”

“I mean,” Adrien began, sheepishly. “If you wanted to know, you could have just asked. I would have told you.”

“I should have. I see that now. Lila was obviously abusing my trust and taking advantage of you. She probably assumed she could get away with anything as long as she reported everything else.”

Adrien wiped his sweaty palms on his pants. He desperately needed a shower after this conversation.

“I feel kind of violated.”

“I understand. Lila had no business to touch you without your consent.”

“No, I mean, yes, that was very violating, but I meant, your spying on me. I thought you trusted me?”

“I do. Adrien, I do. Lila told me you were being manipulated by unsavory types. I now know that she was talking about herself. What you said about her lying to get Miss Dupain Cheng in trouble really hit me. We will be dropping her as a model, and I’ll be speaking with my lawyer in case she decides to turn her silver tongue on us.”

Adrien sighed in relief. “Thank you father.”

“You know if someone ever touches you in a way you don’t like, you’re allowed to say no. Right?”

“I...yes. I guess.”

“You guess?”

“Well, I just...it happens all the time. Models and stuff. Lila was just doing it off set too.”

Gabriel frowned in thought. “Does modeling make you uncomfortable?”

“No. Not really. Just...some of the times in like, couple shoots?”

“I see. I’ll look into getting you more solo sessions.”

This conversation was going a lot better than he expected. His father had certainly lowered Adrien’s expectations, but at least he was admitting allowing a teenager to spy on him was a bad idea.

Progress.

“Now, about Miss Dupain Cheng.”

Adrien winced.

“What’s your...relationship, currently?”

“Right this minute, we’re still just friends. But very soon, I hope to be dating her.”

“Mmmm. You’re still very young, Adrien.”

“I know. But too young to love?”

His father gave a little chuckle. “You are so much like your mother. I suppose it would be hypocritical of me to prevent you from dating, since I dated at your age as well. Marinette has certainly proved to be an upstanding girl. Her family name is well known and respected, even in elite circles. If you wish to date her, you have my blessing.”

Yes!!

“But I would like to have dinner with her and her family, once you do ask.”

“Yes father, of course. Thank you!”

Today wasn’t so bad after all. Of course, it hurt to see his lady in so much pain, but he had been able to bring her so much happiness! And now this!

“There’s one more thing I wanted to talk about.” Gabriel took a very serious tone.

“Okay?”

“Do you trust me?”

“I—yes! Yes of course father.”

“Good. Because I need to show you something. Something I should have shown you a long time ago.” He stood, and walked to the painting of Emilie behind his desk.

Chapter Text

It was now 11pm. Adrien and Plagg both laid on his bed, staring at the ceiling.

That was...a lot.

“Your father...” began Plagg.

“Yeah.”

“...is Hawkmoth.”

“Yeah.”

“It’s not...that surprising.”

“Yeah.”

They continued to lay there, silently accepting all they had seen.

“And Marinette is Ladybug.”

“Yeah.”

“Crazy day.”

“Yeah.”

Silence.

“I’ve never seen him cry before.” Said Plagg.

“I’ve only seen it once before. I had assumed he cried when mom disappeared, but he never did in front of me.”

“It was...kind of reassuring.”

“Yeah.”

“And your mom is still...”

“Yeah.”

Gabriel had said a lot down in his secret garden. How sorry he was, how guilty he felt, how he knew he had gone too far, the times he almost quit, even though he was so close.

Adrien hadn’t been able to say a thing.

His mother was right there, but Gabriel had hid her, because he didn’t know how to explain to his son what he had done.

“You know,” said Plagg. “I get why he thought get my and Tikki’s miraculous would help. But it’s really a last resort thing. There’s other ways to treat a magical coma.”

“Yeah.”

“You okay?”

“Emotionally drained, and just...seeing my mothers face...”

“I get it.” Said the Kwami, nuzzling up to his face. “We’ll figure it out.” Plagg afforded him a few more minutes of quiet contemplation before asking, “Are you going to help him?”

“Yeah.” Adrien said absent-mindedly. Then clarified, “obviously not the way he asked me to.”

Gabriel had explained the situation. That he needed the Ladybug and Black Chat Miraculous to bring Emilie out of her coma. He had been using Lila and Chloe as triggers to set emotional teenagers off, but with Lila out of the picture, he needed someone else to fill that roll.

Adrien had asked, in the calmest voice he could muster if Lila knew he was Hawkmoth.

Gabriel had clarified that no, only Nathalie knew. And now, now that he was standing up for himself and proved himself trustworthy, he was being let in on the secret.

He had the brain power to thank his father, but it sounded pretty hollow to his own ears.

Thankfully, he didn’t have to say anything else. His father just kept talking. The truth spilled out of him like a fountain, like he was relieved to finally confess all of these terrible things he had done.

Adrien imagined that when he finally came face to face with Hawkmoth (again) he’d punch the man in the face, and then when he was defeated, he and Ladybug would scream it from the rooftops. Then he and Ladybug would share a deep kiss as Hawkmoth was loaded into the squad car.

He never imagined his father in that scenario.

But, hauntingly enough, the reveal wasn’t as agonizing as it probably should have been. He hadn’t even cried. He shed a few tears at his mother’s face, but that was a given. With his father, it was just shock. And a little frustration and guilt directed at himself. How had he not known sooner?

“Shouldn’t we tell Marinette?” Asked Plagg, breaking that self-deprecating spiral before it began.

“Yeah...we probably should. But I...don’t know if I can. I haven’t even told her my identity.”

“You don’t expect to fight him on your own?”

“No. I really don’t want to fight my father. Not after he was so...vulnerable. And he trusted me.”

“Trust means little when you’re a terrorist, Adrien.”

“Maybe...but it means a lot to me...” 

“Okay.” Plagg patted his cheek. “What’s ideal in this situation? Not realistic, ideal.”

“We...get my father to hand over his miraculous, I take it to Marinette, and together we find a way to wake up my mother...and then I don’t loose either of my parents.”

“You know your father isn’t going to hand it over. Even if you tell him who you are. And I can’t recommend enough for you NOT to do that.”

“No, no I won’t do that. That’s too risky. I saw how desperate he was.”

“So what do we do? We can’t wait.”

“No, we can’t. But...since we know where he lives, we know where he sleeps.”

“What? You’re going to take it while he’s sleeping?”

“Nope.” Adrien turned to smile at him. “You are.”

“Me?!”

“There’s not any code against Kwami’s taking another’s miraculous, is there?”

“I mean, it’s rude. But if it’s for the Kwami’s own good...” he put a paw to his face. “I’ll do it. Nooroo is hurting with your father.”

“I think the peacock is here too. It might be in the safe.”

“Oh!!” Plagg cried.

“What?”

“I saw it! Adrien! When we broke into your dad’s safe! There was a peacock brooch in there in disguise and I didn’t even think about it!!”

Adrien groaned. “Damn, Ladybug even guessed that my father was Hawkmoth all that time ago!”

“He akumatized himself though. He threw you off.”

Adrien finally sat up, resting his elbows on his knees. “You’re right. We have to be smart about this. If his miraculous goes missing the morning after he told me, I’m suspect number one.”

“So how do you want to pull the greatest heist of the century?”

“Go take the peacock first, and then get the moth. I will run the shower and hide in the bathroom. As soon as you have them, we’ll transform and go to Marinette. That way, if he wakes up at any point and comes looking for answers, I’ll have an alibi.”

“Not a strong one, but it’ll work.”

“It has to work. Then, I’ll pack my fencing duffel and disappear for a few days. Until Ladybug and Chat Noir can talk to him.”

“Yeah, that’s not suspicious.”

“I’ll leave a note, that lets him know everything is going to be okay, I just need a little time to process everything.”

“I have a feeling he’s not going to take well to that.”

Adrien wiped his hands down his face. “I mean, we could consult Ladybug first if you think that’s better!”

“Nah, I think she’ll appreciate you acting quickly and discreetly.”

Adrien looked at the clock. “Okay. I’m not sure what time he goes to bed. But I’ll pack up my bag now. Can you spy on him?”

“I’ll be the most serious I’ve ever been in my entire existence.”

“Watch out for Nooroo too. He might alert my father.”

Plagg gave him a considerate look. “Something tells me he won’t.”

So Adrien gathered his belongings. A few days worth of clothes, toiletries, and a few possessions he couldn’t leave behind if things went south, including his passport and birth certificate. After a moment of consideration, he shoveled Plagg’s cheese stash into a garbage bag.

“Hey! What’s the big idea?!”

He tossed the cheese bag into his duffel. “It’s suspicious.”

“What? You think he’s going to rifle through your room?”

“I wouldn’t put it past him.”

Then he scrounged around and found a little gift box. It would hold both Miraculous perfectly.

At midnight, Plagg went out for the first Miraculous. He returned only a few minutes later, empty handed. “Your father was still down in the basement. I’m going to go back down and watch for when he comes back upstairs. You should try to get a little sleep. I’ll wake you when I have the peacock.”

Adrien nodded, but didn’t think he could actually sleep. He was completely exhausted after this whirlwind of a day. He now knew the two biggest secrets in all of Paris. If he wasn’t Chat Noir, it may have been enough to turn him on his head.

But as it stood, he was Chat Noir, and he had a job to do.

Time stretched on, and the longer he waited there, in the dark, the longer he worried. What if Plagg was caught? Of course he could phase through anything, and he was smart enough not to lead back to him. But then his father would immediately be on edge.

The house was silent. In the huge halls and thick walls, it was impossible to hear what was going on. The door could open at any moment.

There was a creak, and Adrien held his breath.

“One down.” Plagg whispered.

Adrien exhaled, despite his heart pounding. Now is when the risk was greatest. Now he could be caught with stolen goods.

“Is my father asleep?”

“Looks like it.”

Adrien nodded, and took the peacock brooch. He put it in the box, and took it, and his duffel bag, with him into the bathroom, shutting the door behind him.

He set the box on the counter, and then went over and opened the window.

“Take it when you feel it’s safe.”

“Roger that.” Plagg gave a serious nod, before disappearing into the house.

Adrien turned on the water, and then took a seat on the toilet.

And waited.

It would be okay. Everything would work out fine. His father hadn’t figured him out as Chat Noir yet, and he even confessed that he greatly trusted Adrien. So...his father would be asleep. Not guarded, not paranoid. Just sleeping.

Minutes dragged on, as all he could do was sit there and catastrophize.

“I got it.” Plagg announced, appearing silently.

Adrien jumped at the sound. But lost his voice at the sight of the butterfly pin in Plagg’s paws.

“It went smoothly?”

“Nooroo saw me.”

Adrien shut his eyes in defeat.

“He didn’t say anything. He actually smiled at me and pointed at the pin. He wanted me to take it.”

Adrien sighed in relief. “Then we did it.”

“Almost. We have to get these in the Miracle Box.”

“Right! Plagg, Claws Out!”

—

The first stop was the school. He had to drop off his overnight bag. A part of him wondered if it would have been alright just to take his bag with him in the morning, since it was his fencing bag, but there was always the risk that Gabriel would stop him and search through it in the morning. He couldn’t risk anything.

Normally, when he was this high strung, he would savor the rush of the wind, and the secrets of the night.

But not tonight. It was far too dangerous to leave for long.

He landed on the roof of the school, and climbed down to the courtyard. Thankfully, the locker room was open, and he was able to quickly stuff his bag in his locker. The school looked different at night. Eerie, quiet, and too dark for someone without night vision to walk through. He stayed only long enough to stash his bag, before leaving again. He couldn’t worry about security cameras.

And thankfully, Marinette lived right next to the school.

He landed on her balcony, not really caring if his fall woke her up.

Peering in her window, he saw her curled up, sleeping peacefully. He had half a mind to just leave the box and let her sleep.

But no, this was too important. He had to make sure she received it.

He knocked his knuckles against the glass.

She stirred.

He knocked again.

She turned her face towards him, and he could see her squinting at him. And then her clock.

Finally, she stood and opened the hatch. “Chat Noir? What’s wrong? Do you have any idea what time it is?”

“Far too late to be making house calls to pretty girls,” he joked, but it lacked luster. “But I got you a present.”

“At 2 in the morning?”

“It can’t wait. Sorry. But I think you’ll really like it.” He handed over the box. “Don’t wait to open it. But I can’t stick around. I trust you more than anyone in the whole world. I know you’ll know what to do with them.”

“What are you talking about Chat? You’re acting really weird.”

“I know, I’m sorry. We’ll talk later, okay? I just—I got to go.”

Perhaps he was seeking comfort, or maybe he was just hopped up on adrenaline, but he swooped down and pressed a kiss on her forehead. Then without anything else, he fled.

—

Chat Noir dropped into his bathroom, the shower still running, the door still closed. He had left soft music on too, just in case someone called to him and he couldn’t answer.

He dropped his transformation, and undressed. It wouldn’t do to come out of a hour long shower with dry hair.

He showered quickly. Just enough to be convincing. Then put on his pajamas, and left the room.

Sitting on his bed, cloaked in the shadows, was his father.

Though Adrien prepared for it, it still startled him. “Oh!”

“Have a nice shower? At 2 in the morning?”

Adrien gulped. “I was...I couldn’t sleep. I thought a shower would help.”

“And did it? Are you all calm and relaxed?”

No. “Yes?”

“Good.” Gabriel stood, and in a few quick steps, loomed over his son. “Where is it?”

“Wh-what?”

Gabriel grabbed him by the collar and yanked him upwards, forcing him up on his toes. “Don’t play dumb with me! I know you took it!”

“I didn’t—I don’t—!”

“Don’t lie to me!”

“I’m sorry!” Adrien burst, honest to god tears spilling over his cheeks. “I didn’t think you’d mind...”

“I wouldn’t mind?!” Gabriel screamed. “Are you stupid or something?!” He let go of Adrien who stumbled back. “Get it for me. Now!”

Adrien scrambled over to his TV and grabbed a DVD. The one his mother had starred in, Solitude. “Here...you were just so busy...I didn’t think...”

Gabriel stared at the case, wide-eyed. “Adrien...”

“Next time, I’ll ask. I promise.”

Gabriel sighed, dropping the case onto the bed. “This wasn’t what was missing. You were fine to borrow this without asking.”

“Oh?” Adrien wiped his face. “Then, what’s missing?”

“My miraculous.” He jutted out his jaw, and lowered his gaze.

Adrien resisted the urge to smile. It seemed he was a better actor than he thought. “Your...Miraculous is missing? But...did you check by your bed? Maybe it fell off your nightstand? Or wherever you put it when you sleep?”

“I wear it to bed.”

“Isn’t that uncomfortable?”

“I’m used to it now. I have to wear it. I’ll wake up if I feel a strong enough emotion.”

Adrien ran over the information his father had given him earlier. He couldn’t let on that he knew any information about the Miraculous, but he did have the Ladyblog as a source if he slipped up.

“What about the little moth thing? The...karmi?”

“Kwami.” Gabriel clarified, “and his name is Nooroo. I’ve ordered him to obey...but it could very be likely he took it from me. At least, that’s the most likely scenario.” He frowned a little harder. “It couldn’t have been Nathalie…?”

“Do you want me to help you look for it?”

“No.” Gabriel sighed, patting his shoulder. “I’ve already caused you to lose sleep. You have school in the morning.”

“Okay, if you’re sure.”

“Thank you, Adrien, I knew I could trust you.” And with a solemn nod, he left him alone.

Adrien sank to the bed, exhausted.

A solid alibi, great deflection, and even offering to help. It looked like he was in the clear. But that would only last so long.

“That was terrifying.” Said Plagg, sitting next to him.

“You’re telling me.”

“You technically didn’t lie either. You didn’t take it.”

“Yeah, but I don’t think I’d feel guilty about it.” He looked to the door. “That Miraculous, or the power of having it, has changed him so much. He used to laugh, Plagg. He told puns and we joked and had fun. He was still always cutthroat and serious in the fashion world, but when he came home...” he rubbed at his eye. “He never yelled at me like that.”

“So those tears aren’t faked?”

Adrien shook his head. “I’ve never been more scared in my life. I thought he...I thought he might actually kill me.”

“But he didn’t. You’ve got a bag packed, and once we figure out how to help your mom, we’ll be back and put everything right.”

“Yeah. Okay.” With a slow exhale, Adrien rose from the bed and made his way over to his desk.

Dear father,

After all the information I learned last night, and your treatment of me afterwards, I have decided that I need to leave for a while. I just need to process this, and I can’t at home. I will be staying with a trustworthy friend, and I will continue to go to school. I won’t have my phone on me. If you need to get in touch with me, you can meet me at the school, where there are witnesses.

I’m really sorry. I’m just a little scared right now.

Love,

Adrien.

He put the note in his wallet, making sure to remember to leave it somewhere his father would see tomorrow.

He was so tired. So exhausted. His head throbbed, and his legs hurt from being so tense.

He took out some Ibuprofen from his nightstand, shook out two pills, and swallowed them with a sip of water.

The water was cold, but he didn’t remember getting it. Must have been after the reveal. He had been in so much shock.

“Adrien?” Plagg asked.

“Hmm?”

“Tikki’s here. Are you okay if I leave for a while?”

“Yeah. No threats of Akuma anymore.” Adrien spoke drowsily. “Go and tell Nooroo I said hello.”

Plagg smiled him. “Get some sleep, kid.”

—

Marinette stared at the spot on the railing that Chat had jumped off of long after he left.

He was acting really really weird.

“Well?” Asked Tikki. “Aren’t you going to open it?”

“I guess...but...” She worried her bottom lip. “It’s probably okay, right? Nothing suspicious about giving a random female civilian a gift at 2am.”

“Just open it already!” Tikki cried, impatient.

Marinette giggled at her. “Alright alright.” She pulled the tabs, and popped the top flap.

In a blindingly bright flash of light, two small figures appeared.

Marinette almost dropped the box.

Tikki floated closer. “Nooroo? Dusuu? Is it really...”

“Tikki!” They both cried, zipping to her and embracing her.

“I don’t understand...” Marinette breathed. Then, she glanced down into the box that rattled in her hand. Two brooches, a peacock and a butterfly, rested inside.

“How did he...where did he...?”

“Oh!” Cried Nooroo, flying into her face with the biggest smile imaginable. “You’re Adrien’s friend! The cute one! You’ll watch over him, won’t you?”

Despite the overload that was happening right now, Marinette was quick to put the pieces together.

“If you care about Adrien...so that means...Gabriel really was...?”

Nooroo nodded, much more sadly this time.

“How did Chat figure this out? How did he get you? Did he go up against Hawkmoth alone?!”

“No. Plagg came and got me while Gabriel was sleeping.” His eyes widened. “I can say his name!”

“The bond must be broken then!” Exclaimed Tikki. “You’re free from his control!”

“Oh thank you!” Nooroo cried nuzzling into her face.

“You’re welcome?” Marinette returned, holding the Kwami. Though she was unsure what she had to do with this at all. “How did Chat or Plagg find you?”

Nooroo shrugged. “I don’t know. I didn’t get to talk to him. I went into the brooch when he took it off of Gabriel.”

“I’m just...I’m so confused. I have no idea how...and why me? Why Marinette? He couldn’t possibly know who I am!”

“He did say you’d talk later.” Tikki reminded, helpfully.

“And another thing! Where did he have to run off to so quickly? He practically shoved this into my arms!”

“I guess you could stay up all night speculating, or you could go to bed and get answers tomorrow.”

She growled. “Hold on. I just—Spots on!”

As soon as the transformation completed, she had her yo-yo out and called him.

The call didn’t connect.

Nor did the five others she tried.

Her tracker clearly showed he wasn’t transformed, so what was the point?

“Spots off.” She grumbled.

“Any luck?”

“No. I have no idea what’s going on! He’s not transformed, or else I could go to him. What if he’s in danger? What if—?”

“Marinette. You are way too paranoid for your own good. You have both of the Miraculous here. So he can’t be in too much danger.”

Marinette gave Tikki a half-hearted glare. “Yeah...I guess...” Then she looked to Nooroo and Dusuu. “Would you like to go back in the Miracle Box?”

They both got really excited at that. “Yes! Yes please!”

“I know!” Sang Tikki. “I’ll grab some snacks and join you in a little bit! I can leave now that there’s no threat of akumas!”

No more akumas.

It had only been a year or so. But the idea of never having to fight an Akuma again was so foreign.

There were still criminals in Paris. She wouldn’t have to give up being a hero. But, things would be easier now.

She could take a vacation!

“Earth to Marinette!” Tikki chirped.

“Oh! Right, sorry. Just...processing some things.” She got out of bed, and lifted her mattress to reveal the hidden cubby where she had stashed the Miracle Box. She placed the brooches in their compartments, making the two kwami’s vanish from her room.

“You okay if I join them?”

“Yeah. If you wanted to go find Plagg and invite him too, you can. And if you wouldn’t mind checking in on Chat?”

“I think Plagg would love to celebrate with us. I’ll go find him.”

With Tikki checking in on the situation, Marinette started to relax.

She snuggled in her blankets, replaying that kiss with Adrien again. It was her go-to comfort place. His hands warm on her shoulders, his lips pressed so gently against hers.

He had said it wasn’t a celebrity thing, but...how many times had Ladybug interacted with Adrien? Enough to constitute for even a friendship?

She knew Adrien liked Marinette. Not ‘like like’ but he sought out her company, and asked her for advice. He had snuggled against her on the train, and held her close when they slow danced. She did believe that his feelings had grown stronger when he found out who she was.

But how strong those feelings were in the first place, she didn’t know.

She didn’t understand. How could he love Ladybug so much that he hesitated dating a girl who was right in front of him, and who liked him back?

This warranted more talking. She just hoped that she wouldn’t ruin her own chances.

“We’re back!” Tikki chirped, phasing through the window.

Plagg was with her. “Sweet victory, huh?”

“Somehow, I thought defeating Hawkmoth would be a lot less...underwhelming.”

“Things aren’t over yet.” Plagg said seriously. “The kid has a pretty huge favor to ask. A couple, actually. But he wants you to relax for now.”

“How did he find out? How did all of this happen?”

Plagg grinned. “Turns out I’m great at espionage!”

She smiled. “Well, Nooroo told me that much. But how did you and Chat figure out who he was?”

“Long story. I don’t have the attention span. He’ll tell you later. Now, Tikki promised me some cheese quiche?”

Marinette sighed to herself. It looked like she really wasn’t getting any information tonight. “Help yourselves. She knows where the leftovers are.”

Tikki nuzzled her forehead. “Why don’t you go to sleep? Regardless of the Hawkmoth drama, you had a really stressful day.”

“Thanks Tikki.” She took one last look at Plagg. “I take it, that you being here, means that Chat’s safe? He’s okay?”

“Yeah, he was just about to go to bed.”

“Why did he rush off?”

“He had a feeling someone was going to check on him.”

“Oh. Okay. As long as he’s alright...”

“Bug. Go to sleep.”

Chapter Text

In the morning, Adrien awoke feeling lightheaded and dizzy.

“Hey, take it easy.” Plagg said softly.

“What…?” Nausea washed over him, settling unpleasantly in his tummy. “My stomach…”

“Yeah. Just take your time sitting up.”

This didn’t make sense. He had taken two ibuprofen before bed. Was this the after effects of shock? Or was there something wrong with Madam Cheng’s soup?

“What’s going on?”

“You don’t remember?”

Rubbing his eyes to wake up more and shake off the dizziness, Adrien sat up in bed…no. On the couch.

His room was trashed. All the books and movies were pulled off the shelves, his bedding was bunched up in the corner, and there were feathers everywhere from his pillows. The clothes from his closet were all over the bed and strewn on the floor.

Glancing towards the bathroom, it appeared to have been raided as well.

“What…?”

“Your father came back in after you went to bed. I left Ladybug’s house around 5am and came here. You and your father were fighting…but you were really…you were acting weird. I couldn’t understand what you were saying. Some of it was Chinese, and some of it was just garbage. You swung your fists at him, but he just kept tearing your room apart. I think he was looking for the Miraculous.”

“Ugh. I guess that trust wasn’t very deep.” He rested his head in his hands, and then winced. His face hurt.

Slowly and staggering, he made his way to the bathroom, only to find that his left eye was bruised.

“I think he…he gave you something.” Plagg said sadly. He was holding onto his tail, something he only did when he was genuinely scared or sad.

“What? Like I was drugged?”

“I think so. If you don’t remember any of that.”

“I...I remember you leaving and then going to bed. But that’s it.”

“Yeah. I think your father drugged you.”

Adrien combed his disheveled hair, taming it into something less chaotic. Then he walked back to sit at the end of his bed, staring at the chaos of his room. He hoped his father wasn’t expecting him to clean all this up.

“I don’t know why I expected better from a man who had Lila stalking me.” His voice was calm, despite the raging storm inside his chest.

His father was dead, the man known as Gabriel Agreste was just a husk full of garbage. Desperate, illogical, garbage.

“I’m glad I’m leaving for a while.” He stood, and picked through the clothes that were scattered everywhere.

He didn’t really want to be a model today. Though he didn’t own many clothes that his father hadn’t designed, but picking an outfit that was ‘so last year’ would be a start.

A comfortable cashmere creme cardigan, over a thin, black v-neck, and stonewashed jeans.

Comfortable, and boring. Perfect.

Adrien collected his book bag, making sure his homework was still in one piece. The bag had been upturned, but his tablet was okay.

Finally, he turned his phone off and left it on his desk.

“You’re up early,” Plagg commented. “If you leave now, no one will be at the school.”

“Then I won’t go to the school. Bakeries are open early.”

Plagg smiled, and zipped into a pocket on his cardigan.

Downstairs, he was unsurprised to be escorted by Nathalie into the dining room.

His father was there, waiting to have breakfast with him. For the first time in what felt like forever.

“Good morning, son.” Gabriel spoke, plainly and without shame.

How dare he. How dare he try to act like everything was peaches and creme. How dare he just sit there!

Adrien clenched his bag strap. “Father.”

“Oh come now, don’t be like that. Come and sit, there’s breakfast.”

Adrien glared at him. “So I’m just supposed to ignore my black eye?”

“No, of course not. We’ll put some cover up on it.”

Adrien shook his head. “I told you I trusted you. You said you trusted me. Apparently, you lied.”

“Adrien...”

Adrien took out his wallet, and took out the note he had written last night. He placed it on the table next to his father.

“I’m not hungry.” He stated, before leaving the room.

Even when his father called after him, Adrien kept moving. He couldn’t stop. Not until he was free!

The mansion doors slammed shut behind him, and he sprinted to the gate.

There was no stopping him now.

—

Marinette woke up at her first alarm. Not rested. Not really possible when you’re awakened in the middle of the night with the biggest news of them all.

“Good morning, Marinette.” Tikki spoke softly, as one would talk to someone with a hangover.

“Morning. You guys have a fun time last night?”

“Hmm...sort of. It was fun to have everyone together. But we spent a long time just talking with Nooroo. It was…emotional.”

“Oh. Gabriel didn’t treat him well?”

“Nooroo was only allowed to call him ‘Master’.”

Marinette scoffed in disgust. “When things are a little more under control, I’ll take him out and talk with him. As of right now, Chat and I are the only ones that know Hawkmoth is gone. I don’t even know how we announce it.”

“You should probably talk to Chat first. The man is still around. Or maybe not! He should probably go to jail.”

“If he hasn’t already left Paris.” Marinette stated as she rose from bed.

Oh.

But what about Adrien?

How was she supposed to explain this to him? ‘Hi, love of my life, your father is a terrorist, and I have to put him in jail! Hope this won’t put a damper on our relationship!’

Damn it all to hell. Adrien would never speak to her again. This would completely ruin him. Because how do you deal with something like that? The only parent you have left, put in jail by the girl you thought you loved. There was just no coming back from it.

Marinette rested her head in her hands. “What do I do, Tikki?”

“Talk. To. Chat.” Tikki pressed. “Don’t do anything until then! You don’t know the whole story!”

“Yeah…” She sighed. “Man, I thought defeating Hawkmoth meant less stress, not more.”

“Just different stress.” Tikki tutted, bringing her her hairbrush.

“Thanks.” She took out her hair ties and brushed her hair. “Ugh, and now I have to go to school and face everyone after that blow up I had yesterday. I can’t.”

“You have Nino and Adrien though!”

“I can’t bare to look at Adrien. I think…I might cry if I do.”

Tikki rubbed against her cheek. “I don’t think Adrien would hold it against you. His father brought this upon himself. And he will know that.”

“I just…I don’t want to be the one to tell him.”

“Let’s just worry about getting through the school day first.”

“Yeah. Okay. You’re right.”

Today called for a creme colored cardigan, over her favorite black t-shirt (the one that was a little worn and stretchy), and a pair of distressed jeans. She opted for a bun as well, wanting to distance herself from Ladybug for the day.    

“You know...” thought Tikki, as Marinette gathered her school supplies. “Now that Hawkmoth is gone, you really could tell your parents. It might clear up some lingering distrust, and they could be on alert for the Miracle Box when you aren’t home.”

Marinette considered it, shouldering her bag. “It would clear things up...”

“It’s your choice of course. Just something to consider.”

“Yeah. I think that’s a good idea! I’ll tell them at dinner! And they can be the first civilians to know that Hawkmoth is gone!”

Newly motivated, Marinette skipped down the steps to breakfast.

However, it wasn’t just her mother in the kitchen.

“Hey Marinette,” Adrien said shyly. He glanced her over. “I guess one of us will have to change.”

It didn’t even compute with her that he was talking about her outfit.

His eye. He had a black eye. And besides that, he looked like a crumpled mess.

“Adrien? What—what happened?”

“Uh...little disagreement with my father. Your mom said I could stay with you guys, but I wanted to make sure you were cool with it.”

“Me? Sure! Of course!”

“Good, because there’s no one I’d rather trust.” He furrowed his brows a little more. “I have to be able to trust someone.”

God. Like a punch in the gut. Sure, he trusted her now, when he knew she was Ladybug. But once he found out his father was Hawkmoth, and she put him in jail? Game over. Trust broken. Heart broken.

She sat across from him, and held his hand. “You can trust me, Adrien. I only have your best interests at heart.”

He smiled at her. The doom and gloom seemed to flit away as adoration took its place.

‘Talk to Chat first’ Tikki’s voice reminded her in her mind. ‘You don’t know the whole story.’

Oh god! What if the disagreement was over the Miraculous? What if Adrien suffered because of Chat?

This was unfair.

Damn Gabriel.

“Omelets!” Sabine sang, placing plates in front of them. “And for you dear.” She gave Adrien a cold pack for his face.

“Thank you Madam Cheng.”

“Of course sweetie. If you need anything else, just let me know. And you can call me Sabine, or whatever you’re most comfortable with.”

“Thank you, Sabine.” He smiled briefly.

“If you’re staying with us, do you need someone to get some clothes and stuff?” Asked Marinette.

“No, I snuck a bag out last night. It’s at school.”

“How did you manage that?”

Adrien bit his lip. “I got some help from Chat Noir.”

Her eyes widened, and she spoke quietly. “So...do you...you know, know?”

“Yeah. I promise I’ll tell you everything later, but...” he glanced over at her mom. “We have other things to deal with.”

Marinette understood what he was getting at, and decided to shelf the conversation. At least until she talked to Chat. Once she had all sides of the story, she could come up with a solution that benefited everyone. “I’m not really looking forward to school. Especially with what happened yesterday.”

He chuckled. “Oh my god, that was just yesterday. I had a long night.”

“I bet.”

“I didn’t mean to change the subject. I’m safe now, so let’s worry about you.”

“It’s okay, Adrien, really. We’ve got each other’s backs, okay?”

“Yeah.”

Marinette glanced at her phone. “Still haven’t heard from Alya. I don’t know if Nino didn’t get through, or if she’s waiting to talk to me in person.”

“Well, I know it sucks, but maybe just let her go?”

She shrugged. “I mean, maybe. Her manipulation tactic yesterday hurt really bad. But she’s the one that’s fueling Lila. Since she wants to be a reporter so bad, I want her to consider that she may get bad leads.”

“Wait, manipulation tactic? What did she say? There was a lot happening yesterday and I don’t know if I caught everything.”

“She said something like, ‘the way you are acting is really hurting me’ when I was the one that was really upset. Granted, Lila was the one that gave her that idea.”

“Why is that manipulative?” He asked, genuinely curious.

“She was trying to make me feel guilty because I was angry. I was upsetting her because I was upset. You see?”

It was like a lightbulb went on in Adrien’s head, as his eyes widened, before his head dropped on the table. “So many people have used that on me, and I’ve fallen for it every time.”

“Oh Adrien...”

“Thank you,” he said, sitting up. “I guess there’s still a lot for me to learn about social cues.”

“It’s okay! I can help you.”

“Hate to interrupt,” said Sabine, “but if you kids want to take advantage of being up early, you better leave now!”

“Thanks Maman! See you at lunch.”

“Have a good day, you two!”

As they passed Tom in the bakery, he gave Marinette a kiss on the cheek, and rubbed Adrien’s head.

Then they leisurely made their way to school.

“Can I hold your hand?” Asked Adrien.

Marinette raised an eyebrow. “Have you asked me out?” She blinked. “Wait, that’s not what the argument was about, right? With your father?”

“No, no Marinette, he actually thinks you’re fine. We had a good talk before everything went down...but still, I got some other loose ends. Not yet, but soon. But, close friends who will soon be dating can hold hands, right?”

“Especially if they’re both having a rough time.”

“Yes, especially then.” He took her hand, and intertwined their fingers.

Marinette gave a happy hum and had an extra bounce in her step.

“You got happy all of a sudden,” Adrien commented.

“I’m holding Adrien’s hand! If you would have told last week Marinette about this, she wouldn’t have believed you.”

“Last week Marinette is missing out.” He grinned.

She squeezed his hand.

At school, they had just cleared the door before they heard Lila’s pathetic wailing.

“Now what?” They said in tandem.

Walking closer, they got let in on the story.

“—told me if I ever told anyone, I’d be fired! But I just couldn’t take it anymore! Not after what Marinette did to me yesterday! I told Gabriel exactly what Adrien did! And he didn’t believe me! He called me a liar and fired me!”

Marinette and Adrien shared a look.

“I knew this was going to happen.” He lamented.

“And then Marinette’s mother called mine and told her I deserved to be bullied! That I deserved to be molested!”

Looking around the group assembled, some had looks of horror, while others held looks of disbelief.

“Sabine said that?” Asked Alix, one of the doubters. “I...I can’t even imagine that.”

“It’s true! My mom talked to her and everything! We’re getting a lawyer.”

And then, Lila noticed Adrien and Marinette standing in the back of the crowd, listening.

And of course, Adrien never covered up his bruise.

“Look! Just look at him! That’s where I punched him after he groped me!”

All heads swiveled to look at Adrien, followed by a round of gasps.

“Dude...” Nino stared at him. “What happened to you?”

“I already told you, Nino!” Lila bawled. “He touched me! He’s a sex offender! Please, you have to believe me!”

Nino have a long sigh. “Dude. We were just talking yesterday about how he and Kagami were together. I really don’t want to be a victim denier, but this whole story seems really fishy.” He turned back to Adrien. “What really happened?”

Not deterred by Lila’s story, Adrien covered his face. “I had...a little disagreement with my father.”

“Oh yeah? What about?” Asked Kim.

Adrien winced. “It’s not really anyone’s business. I don’t want to talk about it.”

“A likely story!” Said Sabrina. “But Chloe said you’re a bad liar!”

Ivan cracked his knuckles. “If you touched her, you’ll be dealing with more than a black eye when I’m done with you.”

Marinette rested a hand on Ivan’s fist. “Adrien didn’t touch Lila. She’s been the one touching him. Adrien finally told his dad last night, and that’s why she was fired. I was there when he called his dad.”

Adrien appreciated Marinette stepping in. He was having a hard time staying calm.

But no reason to worry about becoming an Akuma!

“Funny how you claimed she was threatening you, when you were the one threatening her. Now you’re the one claiming she’s sexually harassing him? That’s so stupid, guys can’t be sexually harassed!” Kim spouted this nugget of wisdom, and Adrien trembled.

“How would you like it, if every goddamn day of your life you had to let some girl hang off of you, no matter how mean or cruel, no matter how uncomfortable. And you just had to smile about it?” Adrien grit out, with thinly veiled rage.

“I’d count myself lucky. As a male model, you get to be surrounded by hot chicks all the time! How is that a bad thing?”

“Because I don’t want them!” Adrien shouted. “I don’t want Lila, or Kagami, or Chloe! I don’t want Eva, or Annette, or Marlina! I just want—“

My Lady.

He screwed up his face, swallowing back his pain. He didn’t want to talk about last night. He didn’t want to tell his classmates. He only wanted to tell those he trusted. And that was a very small pool right now.

“My black eye is none of your business. I don’t want to talk about it. But it has nothing to do with Lila. Yes, I told my father I was being sexually harassed by her, and I asked if I could not model with her anymore. Given that she lied to get Marinette expelled, I had a feeling she would lie about me too. He made the decision to let her go.”

“I didn’t lie to get Marinette expelled!” Lila protested.

“But you admitted to having a lying disease! And you took back all those claims to get me back in school! Why should anyone believe you right now? How are you all not considering if this is a ‘side effect’ of her ‘disease’?!” Marinette protested.

For the first time since their arrival, Alya finally spoke up. “The coffee was cold yesterday.”

Everyone looked at her, somewhat put off by the seemingly random subject change.

“The coffee that Marinette spilled on Lila that gave her third degree burns. Marinette poured the rest of it on my hand. It was cold.”

Lila sat in silence.

“Well,” Alix spoke. “I don’t know who to believe anymore. And frankly, it’s none of my business, like Adrien said. I’m done with drama.”

“Yeah, me too.” Said Rose, sadly. “I just want us all to get along.”

“Like we did before Lila?” Nino asked.

“Nino!” Lila gaped at him. “It’s not my fault Marinette got jealous! That’s unfair!”

“Sure dude.” He shrugged.

Then, blessedly, the bell rang.

Marinette, Adrien, Nino, and Alya lingered behind as the rest of the class wandered to class.

“So,” Alya began, “If I can be totally honest, I’m torn. I do think Lila has...something wrong with her. Whether she has some illness that makes her lie, or she’s a narcissist? I don’t know. I don’t know if I believe she’s doing this on purpose either. She’s been so nice and so sweet. She’s babysat when you had to bail last minute. I feel like I’m between a rock and a hard place. I don’t want to pick sides.”

Marinette nodded. “I understand. It is difficult when you’re in between friends. Do you trust me, Alya?”

Alya screwed up her lips in a frown, considering the thought. Then she looked over to the boys.

Marinette touched her shoulder and directed her gaze back over. “Don’t look at them. Look inside yourself. Just be honest with me. You know I won’t get mad. Do you trust me?”

Alya glanced down to her shoes. “I want to, but...”

Marinette just watched her carefully.

“You bail a lot. You disappear, you give really flimsy excuses. You forget about things. Most of the class hasn’t picked up on it, but I know you lie to me sometimes. You’re allowed to have your secrets, and I know you aren’t trying to hurt me...I just...” she clenched her fists. “I don’t know.”

Alya was observant and a reporter at heart. Of course she’d pick up on this.

“Alya, you’re my best friend. I do have secrets, and one day, I’d love to tell you. But right now, it’s safer for you not to know.”

That didn’t really instill Alya with faith. “I guess that’s fair.”

“I don’t want your blind trust, Alya. All I want is for you to do your own critical thinking, and check your sources.”

Alya rolled her eyes. “So everything Lila says is a lie?”

“I didn’t say that. But if several things she says are untrue, maybe you should double check her claims. You know that the coffee yesterday was cold. And you know my mother would never tell someone they deserved to be bullied. She did call Lila’s mom yesterday. I don’t know what she said, but I know it came from a place of concern.”

“It comes down to integrity, Alya.” Said Adrien. “Sometimes people fail and lie, but their character should still speak for them. Do I seem like the kind of person that would grope a girl?”

Alya actually chuckled at that. “You are probably the least likely. You’re a literal ball of sunshine.”

“My mother taught me to be a gentleman at all times. Especially when I’m famous and working with women. If I was creepy and skeevy, no one would doubt if a woman made a claim against me. And by being kind and a gentlemen, it’s least likely that someone would lie like that to take advantage of me in the first place. Fake rape and molestation charges are something males in our industry face a lot. They ruin our reputation, and make it harder for real cases to get justice. It sucks.”

“So, you never touched Lila?”

“I only touched what I was instructed to during shoots, like her arm or her waist. Never any more than that. I have zero attraction to her. But like I said, she had touched me...not anything that would be considered molesting, but she grabbed my arm and rubbed my chest. She grabbed my butt once. I told my dad I didn’t like it, and I feared that she’d pull this exact scenario if I crossed her. After all, she lied to get Marinette expelled. The only reason she double lied to get her back in school was because I let her model with me in exchange.”

Alya frowned harder. “Lila’s behavior yesterday gave me some red flags. How she had outed Marinette’s crush like that...that was cruel. I don’t care what kind of beef you have with someone, that’s against the girl code. I just...need some time.”

Nino wrapped an arm around her. “Let’s go to class. Later, let’s take a look at some of her stories you put on the blog. We’ll make a threshold of deniability. If she’s exaggerating, we can let things go, but if there are straight lies, we have to consider if a friendship with her is worth it.”

Alya nodded, rubbing her eye. “Yeah. That sounds like a good idea.” She managed a smile for both Adrien and Marinette. “Is there a reason you’re matching today?”

They hadn’t even noticed.

“Comfort clothes.” They both said, then chuckled.

Miss Bustier came out of the teachers lounge. “What are kids doing out here still? If you can beat me to the classroom, I won’t mark you tardy!”

The four sprinted up to the classroom.

Chapter Text

As they claimed their seats, Adrien was aware of dirty looks being thrown in his direction. 

Is this how Marinette felt when Lila lied about her? 

Alya leaned forward in her seat. “Adrien, I’ll talk to some of the girls. I’ll get them to do that critical thinking thing you mentioned. And I’ll try to get Kim to apologize. What he said was just stupid.” 

“Thanks Alya, I appreciate it.” 

Miss Bustier entered the room. “Alright class, let’s get started.” 

“Miss Bustier!” Rose called, putting her hand up. “I think it’s best if Adrien left. Lila shouldn’t have to be in the same room as her abuser!” 

“Abuser? What’s going on?” 

Adrien dropped his head into his hands, exasperated. 

“Adrien touched Lila inappropriately, and when she told Gabriel about it, he fired her!” 

Miss Bustier looked horrified. “Class! This sort of thing is really none of your business! If this did happen, Lila needs to come to talk to me about it in private. I would like to be accommodating, but I find it unfair to deny class to someone without due cause.” 

“There is due cause!” Max yelled. 

“I have heard nothing about this from Lila herself, or Mr. Damocles. Has a restraining order been filed? Has any sort of investigation been launched? I find it extremely hard to believe Adrien would do something like this.” 

“That’s what Gabriel said!” Lila wailed. “He said Adrien was a perfect angel and he’d never do anything wrong! No one’s believed me yet! So why would Mr. Damocles?!” 

There was a knock at the door. 

Miss Bustier held up a finger, asking for a moment of silence, before she went to open it. 

Gabriel Agreste, looking minutely more frazzled than usual, strolled into the room, in person. 

Adrien swallowed and clenched his fists. 

The room was silent and tense. 

“Adrien, may I talk to you out in the hall, in private?” 

Trembling, Adrien answered. “No. You read my note.” 

“There’s nothing for you to be afraid of. Stop being so dramatic.” 

“I think I have every right to be afraid of you.” He whispered, the damn of emotions he had held back all morning just threatening to burst. 

Marinette got up from her seat, only to sit next to him, her arm around his shoulders. 

The action didn’t go unnoticed by anyone. 

Gabriel’s nostrils flared. “Did you tell her?” 

“No.” Technically, not a lie. “I haven’t said anything to anyone. She just...saw I was upset.”

“About what?” Asked Kim. “That you lied about Lila?” 

Gabriel’s steely gaze pierced Kim, forcing him to shut up. “This is none of your business, shut up.” 

Kim swallowed and shrank into his seat. 

“Now,” Gabriel continued, hedging his words. “I need to clear up some of what happened last night. It seems that you have assumed the worst. I don’t want to discuss it in front of your peers. Step into the hall with me.” 

Marinette squeezed his shoulder. 

“No. I don’t want to. I’m not comfortable with that.” 

“I don’t care about comfort right now, Adrien. I care about—“ he bit his tongue, censoring himself. “I care about our family.”

“If you care about our family, then know I’m scared of you.” 

Gabriel exhaled roughly. “You don’t need to be.” 

“The evidence says otherwise.” Adrien spoke softly. “So either say what you need to say, or go. I’m not moving.”

Gabriel ran a hand through his hair, loosing some locks and becoming even more frazzled appearing. “Please?”

Adrien shook his head.

Gabriel rolled his eyes, and considered his words. “I told you I trust you. I’m...sorry, about what happened last night. It wasn’t fair, but I was...paranoid, and frantic. That caused my regrettable actions.” 

“Did you ever find it?” Adrien asked. 

“No. And I don’t think I will. I have reason to believe I’ve been betrayed. So it’s over.” He breathed a long sigh. “There’s no reason for you to stay away.” 

“With all due respect, Father, I need some time to trust you again. And forcing me to come home won’t magically fix that.” 

Gabriel was quiet for a moment, clenching and unclenching his fists. It looked like he wanted to yell, to fight, to grab Adrien by the wrist and drag him out. 

But he did none of those things. 

“You’re a good kid, Adrien. I surmise you’ll be a great man. A better man than I ever was. I’ll give you your space.” He placed Adrien’s phone on the desk. “Just, please text me every once in a while, just so I know you’re safe. Alright?” 

Adrien took it. “I can do that.” 

“I’m sorry it came to this.” It looked like he had more to say, but he hesitated with so many eyes on him. So he just didn’t say anything and headed for the door. 

“Mr. Agreste?” Miss Bustier asked. 

He stopped in the doorway. 

“It seems like there’s a bit of...a catastrophe going on in my class at the moment. I was hoping you could shed some light on the situation?” 

“This is none of your business, Madame. Adrien and I will clear it up.” 

“With all due respect, sir. Lila has already gotten everyone involved. My students seem to want Adrien to leave the class.” 

He turned and looked at her. “What? Whatever for? She’s got nothing to do with this.” 

“Could you explain what Lila said to you yesterday?” 

“Miss Rossi?” Gabriel looked back at her, eyebrows furrowed, and then at Adrien. “Oh. I had forgotten. I didn’t speak to Miss Rossi yesterday. Adrien and I had a long talk about trust. He confided that he wasn’t uncomfortable around her because she touched him in a way he didn’t like, and asked that he not model with her anymore. I made the decision to fire her. I served her severance papers, and one of my managers contacted her. I didn’t talk to her at all.” 

“Mr. Agreste! How can you be so cruel to me?!” Lila shouted, real betrayal in her voice. “You said you trusted me! I could come to you about any problems I had! And I did! Your son molested me, and you fired me instead of believing me! And now you’re acting like it didn’t even happen!” 

“Do you have your severance papers with you?” He asked. 

Lila’s eyes widened. “No, they’re at home with my mother.” 

“I have a copy on my phone. Along with all severance letters we serve, because they are fairly similar in terms and conditions.” He took it out, and pulled it up. “Here, Madame, if you wouldn’t mind reading this.” He handed the phone to Miss Bustier. “Since Miss Rossi wants an audience, I will give her one.”

Miss Bustier studied the screen for a moment. “This looks like a scanned pdf of a letter, signed by Mr. Agreste. It reads as follows: 

“‘Mme. Lila Rossi, 

“I regret to inform you that we have decided to terminate your contract with Gabriel as of today. This decision is based on several conditions, as witnessed and corroborated by several Gabriel employees. These conditions include unprofessional behavior on set, including excessive noise when asked to be quiet, not following instructions, and yelling at other staff; tardiness and unexplained absences, falsified resume, and sexual harassment of another Gabriel employee. As per the terms of your contract, you will receive the allotted amount of your last modeling session, as enclosed with this letter. Please be advised as you apply for further employment, putting Gabriel on the application as a reference will automatically forward this letter of termination to your next employer. If you would like to reapply at Gabriel, you may do so after a two year waiting period. A second termination will result in a complete ban from Gabriel, including all positions of employment and communications with employees. Depending on the severity of your terms of termination, Gabriel reserves the right to seek legal compensation.

“Signed, Gabriel Agreste.” 

“Thank you,” Gabriel took his phone back. “In case you didn’t realize, I work with a lot of models. There are situations where changing happens in front of other people. We take sexual harassment very seriously. Adrien came to me first about this, and so I acted on it. If you want to counter sue and maintain that he’s at fault, feel free to do so. But, if it turns out you’re lying about this, and it goes to court, you’re looking at jail time.” 

Lila swallowed. “I’m not lying. I never lie.” 

“Like the time you lied to get into my house? Sure. I’ll see you in court then.” 

“Wait...” Lila paled. “We don’t need to take this to court. Just bring me back on as a model, and I’ll drop the whole thing.” 

“No.” Gabriel shrugged. “I don’t make any decisions without my lawyer present.” He turned towards the door. “One last thing,” he glanced over his shoulder at Marinette. “Take care of him, Miss Dupain-Cheng. He’s fragile.” And then he left. 

Desperate to not lose this game, Lila started her crocodile tears. “No! It can’t be! I can’t afford a lawyer! There’s no way I’ll win this case! I’ll lose just like all the other girls!” 

“Wait a second,” Mylene spoke up, hope in her voice. “You were just telling us last week that your uncle is one of the top attorneys in Florence! Surely he’ll help you!” 

Oops. 

“Oh...yes, I guess...I had forgotten about that.” 

“I think you’re going to need a good lawyer if you’re going to continue to lie.” Spoke Chloe, standing up. “I’m sorry Miss Bustier, I think we need to clear this up before class even starts, don’t you think?” 

Miss Bustier sighed. “I still maintain that we don’t need to be discussing this, but I know no one is going to be paying attention in class after all of that’s been said.” She walked around the front of her desk, leaning against it with her arms and legs crossed. “This is a very serious issue. This isn’t a courtroom, and I’m not making any judgement calls. If there truly is a problem here between Adrien and Lila, it will be solved in the courtroom.” She narrowed her eyes at her students. “But you all see and talk to each other every day. Rumors and one sided stories are going to spread either way. I’d rather have everyone have the same information and draw their own conclusions to maintain their own relationships. Nothing said here is to leave this classroom. So, let’s talk.” 

Marinette had yet to move from Adrien’s side. And she hadn’t spoken since coming into the classroom. 

Ever since Miracle Queen, Marinette had been disappointed in Chloe. There had seemed to be some hope for her, and yet Hawkmoth’s—or Gabriel’s rather—temptation to get the bee back had just been too strong. 

How many second chances could a girl get? Of course she was going to stand up for Adrien. He was her oldest friend. 

Marinette opted to watch patiently and see just where this went. 

“Lila, we know what Mr. Agreste said and what his timeline was. What happened to you yesterday, if you would share?”

“I don’t know…it’s just so painful.” Lila wiped a tear away. “But, yesterday, after Marinette burned me with her coffee—“ 

“When did that happen?” Miss Bustier asked, patiently. 

“Right after class. You had a meeting and we were all hanging out and talking. Everyone witnessed it.” 

“The coffee was cold, and I tripped.” Marinette defended, exhausted over this plot point.

“Either way,” Lila continued. “I went to the bakery and told Marinette’s mother what she did. She called my mother and told her that I deserved what happened to me!” 

Miss Bustier frowned. “Sabine said that?”

“That’s what I’m saying!” Nino scoffed.

“So then I went to Mr. Agreste.” 

“Why?” Asked Alya. “What prompted that?” 

“W-well at first, I wanted to let Gabriel know what kind of company his son was keeping, but then when I got there, everything spilled out! I confessed that Adrien molested me and he fired me!” 

“So, when did you punch Adrien?” Asked Max. 

“Afterwards! Adrien came home and he tried to grab me and threaten me! I punched him!” 

“What time did that happen?” 

“Right after school.” 

“I was with Marinette until 8 yesterday. You can ask my bodyguard, and her parents.”

“And I have the text you sent me at 6.” Nino held up his phone. “You were still with her then.” 

“Th-then it was after 8!” Lila clarified. “I wasn’t paying attention to time!”

“Okay.” Miss Bustier spoke calmly. “Now, Adrien. What about you?” 

His eyes slid over to Marinette’s for reassurance. 

She squeezed his hand. 

“After the coffee incident, I ran to the locker room to catch up with Marinette. She wasn’t doing well, and I offered to walk her home. Then we noticed an akuma coming after her, so we tried to run. She almost got akumatized, but she fought it off. Then she cried for a while. I stayed and watched out for another akuma. Then, we went to her house just as Lila was leaving. As she passed, she said ‘I’m going to your father next’ while smiling.” 

“That’s not true!” Lila shouted. 

“Lila, Adrien was quiet and patient through your account. You need to let him speak.”

She huffed and fell into her seat.

“I stayed at her house for a while until my father called, telling me to come home. He said that he ‘knew’ Marinette was violent. I knew that he thought that because of Lila. So I confessed that I didn’t feel safe around her, and that he shouldn’t trust her. He allowed me to stay with Marinette for dinner, and then when I came home, we talked more in length about how I felt. Then…things happened…and well. I don’t want to talk about it. But Lila wasn’t at my house when I came home. Last time I saw her was when she was leaving the bakery.”

“Okay,” nodded Miss Bustier. “You’ve both given your side of the story. You’re both accusing the other of inappropriate behavior. One of you is lying. But until you admit it, we’ll never know. But, this moment will shape the perceptions of your classmate’s opinions. I hope everyone sees how dangerous lying and manipulating is. Does anyone have anything they want to say as character testimony?”   

Chloe raised her hand. “Adrikins, I’m going to put you on blast.” She grinned wickedly at him. 

He shrugged, helpless. 

“Adrien Agreste, male model, top student, all around great guy, is desperately, hopelessly, and pathetically in love with one Ladybug.” 

Nino snickered from Adrien’s side. “Oh, we been knew.” 

“Every time Adrien and I talked, he would dissolve into talking about one of three women. A. His mother, of whom he missed dearly and was a saint of a woman. 2. Marinette Dupain-Cheng, of whom he respects and admires. And lastly, and most importantly, Ladybug. He talks about her the most. Ladybug this, Ladybug that. I love—loved Ladybug as much as the next girl but honestly, it was a little annoying. ‘I wonder how soft her hair is. Are her eyes the same bluebell blue without the mask? I wonder how far she could throw me? Do you think we could make it work if we dated?’” She mocked a gagging sound. “Never once did say anything sexual about her. Never did he ever mention Lila. And never has he had any sort of romantic relationship with anyone.” 

There were nods around the classroom, as students agreed with this logic. 

“However. Lila has lied to me, personally. She told me she had a secret code that got Ladybug to come to her when she needed help. It didn’t work, and I almost got akumatized over it. Furthermore, as we have already discussed, it was Lila’s evidence that got Marinette expelled, and Lila’s admission to having some stupid disease that reversed the punishment. Are all of you numb nuts starting to see the pattern here?” 

Nino stood, ready to present his own opinions. “Lila has promised us connections. She’s boasted about people she knows to get us parties, favors, and whatever else we need. But not once has she followed through. And not to mention all the ailments she’s claimed to have.” 

“It’s not fair to pick on someone for being disabled, Nino.” Kim argued back. 

“I’m not. Because she’s not disabled.” He pulled up his tablet. “I started keeping a list of her ailments, so Alya and I could make sure everything we did as a class was inclusive to her.” He raised a brow. “I don’t think Lila keeps track of her own illnesses.” He cleared his throat. “Ahem. Tinnitus in the left ear. Tinnitus in the right ear. Arthritis in the left wrist, arthritis in the right wrist. Ulnar necrosis in the left wrist. Fibromyalgia. Multiple Sclerosis. Cystic fibrosis. Asthma. Glaucoma. Seizures. Vertigo. OCD. ADHD. High blood pressure. Low blood pressure. Heart murmur. Anemia. Allergic to wheat, dairy, gluten, chocolate, soy, nuts, mold, shellfish, corn, cats, dogs, feathers, wool, polyester, and hot peppers.” 

“That’s all correct.” Lila stated cooly. 

“Except you eat pasta for every meal, and you only mention your allergies when someone brings in food, making yourself the center of attention. And you never seem like you’re in any pain unless it’s convenient to get out of an activity. My grandma has MS, and it’s no joke. Also, I double checked with the nurse this morning to make sure I didn’t miss anything. I shared my list with her, and she was really concerned because she didn’t have any of that on your file. She only had one thing written down. Do you know what it was?” 

Lila just stared at him, daring him. 

“Mythomania. Pathological lying. So your lying disease was the only truth you told. I deduce this was put on your file after you told Mr. Damocles.” 

Lila frowned at him. “Nino! I thought we were friends! How could you turn on me and lie like this? I know you and Adrien are friends but—“ 

“But nothing! Lila, you’re not my friend! You don’t listen to me, you don’t remember things I tell you, unless you can twist them to your favor! I mention an artist I like? You suddenly know them. You inspired them. But they’re shy and don’t meet with fans. I mention a movie I like? You were there during production. You know the director. But he’s out of the country on holiday. It’s the same story over and over. What’s my brother’s name?” 

Lila stammered. “It’s...it’s Mark!” 

“It’s Chris, and you’ve babysat him before!” 

“I have short term memory loss!” 

Marinette snapped her fingers. “Nino, make sure to add that to her list of illnesses.” 

“Oh my god.” Alya breathed. 

“What?” 

“That right there. I saw it. Her lying in real time. She didn’t even hesitate, just lied to cover her tracks. She’s been doing that the whole time!” 

“That’s what I’ve been saying.” Marinette stated, calmly. 

“I noticed this not too long ago,” continued Nino. “I assumed she was just exaggerating for attention. A storyteller. It was harmless. But yesterday, when she outed Marinette’s crush, lied about the coffee, and then went to tattle at the bakery? That was too much. I realized her lying wasn’t just telling stories. She was really dangerous. Especially in a time with Akumas.” 

Marinette and Adrien both tried not to smile, hiding the joy that that wasn’t a problem anymore. 

“So what’s it going to be, Lila?” Chloe asked, arms crossed. “Are you going to fess up now? Or are you going to go to court with Mr. Agreste and face jail time?”

Lila’s jaw shifted as she gnawed on her tongue. “Can I speak without being interrupted?”

Chloe scoffed. “Only if you aren’t going to lie your way out of this.” 

Lila narrowed her eyes at her, but didn’t reply. Instead, she explained, “some of my stories are exaggerated.” 

Someone snorted.

“I wanted to be the interesting new girl. I didn’t mean any harm in it. I was just telling you all what you wanted to hear. But apparently this was horrible according to Marinette. She threatened me in the bathroom, and said that she was going to expose me as a liar. I told her that that wasn’t going to happen. But she insisted that the truth was more important to her than friendship. I think it was jealousy. Adrien was being friendly, and Alya interviewed me. Suddenly, all her hard work and generosity didn’t matter, because I was more interesting. She kept up warning me, reprimanding me like I was a child, and trying to humiliate me in front of everyone. I knew the only peace I was going to get would be to get her to leave.”

Alya folded her arms. “So you…fabricated evidence to get her expelled?” 

“To be honest, I just wanted to shake her up, get her to realize what she was messing with was dangerous and unfair. I didn’t know Mr. Damocles was going to expel her.” 

“Shake me up? Is that what you were trying to do when you laid on the floor at the bottom of the stairs and pretended I pushed you down?”

“You wouldn’t back off!” 

“I just wanted you to be honest with people! Lying like you were was going to lead to disappointment! I didn’t want you hurting my friends!”

“That’s a fine excuse. But are you sure you weren’t a little bit jealous?”

Marinette groaned. “Jealous? No. Worried? Yes. I didn’t like the way you were hanging off of Adrien—”

“Oh, like the way you’re hanging off him now?”

Marinette prepared to retort, before Adrien wrapped his arms around her, and hugged her tightly. 

“She’s not hanging off of me,” Adrien explained. “She’s the only thing keeping me steady right now.” 

Nino was quick to squeeze his shoulder in reassurance. 

Marinette hugged Adrien tight, and then continued. “I was worried about the way you were hanging around with Adrien. Like I said, the lies you were telling could only lead to disappointment, like it has with Nino. You might think they’re harmless, but when you constantly let someone down, you do a lot of damage.”

Something about that sentence got Adrien right in the gut. It was just like his father. He was trying hard to save his mother, and thought disappointing Adrien wasn’t a big deal in the long run. But instead, he left lasting damage. Self doubt, trust issues, and hopelessness. Marinette was right. 

“Oh, like you don’t lie and bail on everyone all the time anyways? Do you know how many times I had to pick up babysitting for Alya and Nino because you suddenly ‘forgot’ about some other obligation? Or all the times you gave a flimsy excuse to leave a hang out? Alya told me all about it. You’re hiding something big.”

Miss Bustier spoke up. “This conversation is supposed to be solving what happened between Lila and Adrien, whatever Marinette has to do in her free time has nothing to do with it.” 

“I think it does!” Lila argued. “It’s very hypocritical for Marinette to point her finger at me and call me a liar, when she’s doing the same thing!” 

Miss Bustier frowned. “She has been slacking in her representative duties…” 

Marinette gaped at her. “I thought you were on my side!” 

“I’m staying neutral.” Miss Bustier said firmly. “I think it’s important we get our grievances out so we can have a more wholesome learning environment. It’s up to you to answer. You’re not under oath.”

Marinette frowned. True, she could lie. Though it would be a really sucky time to do so. Furthermore, Hawkmoth was gone, so her identity wasn't as crucial to hide. But she really didn’t want Lila to know, especially after that stunt she pulled with Oni-chan. 

“Whatcha thinking about, Marinette?” Asked Lila, “trying to come up with a convincing lie?” 

“I’m trying to weigh the consequences of telling this truth. Because it’s not just my secret. So therefore, it’s not right to share it. I haven’t done anything wrong, so I don’t think I’ll explain myself.” She shrugged.

“Petty.” Lila bit.

“I think it’s fair.” Alya disagreed. “If it’s something that affects others, she shouldn’t have to share.” 

It affected everyone in Paris actually, not just her and Chat Noir. And so Marinette let out a breath of relief.

“Okay,” stated Alix, trying to clarify what had happened. “So, Marinette knew you were lying, so you ‘accidentally’ got her expelled to get her to leave you alone. But what I don’t understand is why you’re bringing up beef with Adrien all of a sudden. We thought you guys were together, and you modeled together…and then he started dating Kagami. What’s the story there?” 

“I’m not dating Kagami.” Adrien clarified. “I considered it, but…I don’t actually have any feelings for her. I just didn’t know how to say no. But as I said, I told my father I didn’t like the way she was touching me. This had been going on for a while…”

“What prompted you to tell your dad?” Alya asked. 

“Well, after what happened yesterday after class, I walked Marinette home. She had almost gotten akumatized, and I wanted to watch over her. Lila had gone to the bakery and told Sabine her side of the story. She was about to bring down the hammer, but I asked her if she trusted Marinette. That…that made me wonder if my father trusted me. If I could go to him with my problems and he would understand. Lila went to him and told him her side of the story as well, and he called me home. But I asked if he trusted me, and then told him I didn’t like Lila and…well, everything else. We continued the conversation when I got home. I’m assuming that since I actually made a stand, he took it seriously.” 

“Wait wait,” Alya spoke. “Lila, you went to tattle at the bakery, and to Gabriel?”

”I thought Gabriel should know about the kind of friends he’s keeping.” 

Adrien laughed. It wasn’t a funny laugh, it was actually very painful, as he remembered a cutting blow from last night. “Lila spied on me for my father. He used her to find out what was going on in class.”

“Ew.” Nino stated. “That’s super skeevy.” 

“Um, I’m a spy? Why don’t you talk to little miss ‘I followed Adrien and Lila and fished a book out of the trash’?”

Heads swiveled back to Marinette. 

“You should be glad I followed you! Adrien got taken out of school for losing that book! He’d be gone for good if I hadn’t rescued it from the trash! You stole it from him and threw it away!” 

The heads swiveled back to Lila. 

“How was I supposed to know it was important?”

Marinette threw her hands up in the air. “It doesn’t matter! It didn’t belong to you! So don’t throw it away!” 

“You know, I’m glad you brought that day up, Lila. Because that was when I knew you had a lying problem.” 

“You knew she was a liar a long time ago?” Asked Nino. 

“Of course. But I didn’t know she was being malicious. Like you, I thought she might just be lying to get attention. In fact, it worked for a little bit. I thought she really was friends with Ladybug. But then Ladybug herself came up to us and blew that lie out of the water.” 

Lila jutted out her jaw, trembling with anger. 

“Ladybug called her out too?” Asked Alya.

“It makes sense,” Adrien continued. “Why would Ladybug be happy about anyone claiming to be a weakness to her? Alya, you were already targeted a lot just as the leader of the Ladyblog. Of course she’d be pissed about a civilian painting a giant target on their back.” 

Alya gasped, “oh my god! I didn’t even think about that when I posted that interview! Lila, you could have been targeted and hurt! Not just by Akuma, but anyone else who wanted to know Ladybug’s identity!” 

“Well, nothing happened.” Lila shrugged. “Ladybug and Chat Noir would protect me no matter what, anyways!” 

“Yes, like how Chat Noir saved you from Kagami when you ‘twisted your ankle’?” He put in quotes. 

Lila gaped. “How did you know about that?” 

Marinette was wondering the same thing. 

“Chat Noir helped me sneak a bag out of my room last night. Then we talked.” 

“Oh, so now you’re friends with Chat Noir?” Kim scoffed. 

“Not particularly. He helped me out a whole lot last night, but I haven’t spoken to him much before that.” 

“Ugh, you keep mentioning last night like it was the biggest thing that’s ever happened, and yet you refuse to talk about it! Now Chat Noir was there? What else?” 

“Adrien has already stated that whatever happened between him and his father is private and that they don’t want to talk about it.” Miss Bustier reminded, patiently. “If it has nothing to do with Lila, then I don’t think he needs to bring it up.” 

“But isn’t omitting the truth still lying?” Asked Lila. “Both Marinette and Adrien are being dishonest and hiding things, and I find it extremely unfair to be accused of lying if they aren’t telling the truth!” 

“And I think if whatever they’re hiding has nothing to do with you, Lila, it doesn’t need to be brought up.” Said Alya, crossing her arms. 

“Alya! You don’t believe me? What about standing with your fellow woman?” 

Alya frowned. “Okay, Adrien’s been my friend longer than you, and I find it hard to believe he’d do anything wrong. And second, I’m supposed to believe you because we’re both girls?” 

Kim shot to his feet, “As I said previously, men can’t be molested! Especially models! I think you’re just being a coward, Agreste!” 

Adrien hunched his shoulders. 

Seeing the opportunity for a teaching moment, Alix reached over and grabbed Kim’s butt, making him yelp and shuffle away. 

“What the hell was that?!” 

“What? Didn’t like it?” Alix asked with a coy smile. 

“Uh, no? Not from you.”

“Because you aren’t attracted to me?” 

“I mean, yeah?” 

“Now imagine if I was Lila and you’re Adrien.” 

It was like a lightbulb went off above Kim’s head. “Oh.” He turned to look at Adrien. “I get it. I’m so sorry.” 

“While I don’t agree with the method,” Miss Bustier explained, “I’m glad you see what the problem is, Kim. No one should be touched without their permission, no matter how ‘attractive’ the perpetrator is.” 

“Attractiveness is a sliding scale anyways.” Added Alya, “just because some people find Lila and Adrien attractive, doesn’t mean everyone does. And Adrien already mentioned he’s not attracted to Lila.” 

“Yeah, I guess…I just don’t see it. Lila is really pretty!” 

Adrien just shrugged. “She’s just not my type.” He looked to the teacher. “Miss Bustier, I think we’re kind of going around in circles at this point. Can we wrap this up?” 

“Sure. Does anyone have anything else they want to add or need clarification on?”

Everyone shook their heads. 

“Good. I’m sorry to air out dirty laundry, but I really wanted to avoid gossip. Right now, this classroom is your world. When you grow up, scandals and mistakes will be made by all sorts of people. I want to teach you now to do your research and not just blindly follow whatever source you find first. Alright?”

“But we didn’t solve anything.” Rose lamented. 

“Our goal was not to find out who did what to who. It was to bring both sides of the story forward, and allow everyone to consider who they are going to believe versus who they won’t. It’s up to you to decide if you are loyal even when faced with deception. And if you can be open-minded enough to listen to others.”

The room was silent as she let them all milk over that thought. 

“Then let’s get into today’s social studies lesson. I think there’s some practical crossovers between what just happened.”

Chapter Text

After class let out for lunch, Miss Bustier’s class was oddly silent as they went their separate ways for lunch. 

Marinette heard Lila try to tag along with someone several times, only to be turned down. 

“Sorry Lila, I need to talk to my mom about something.” 

“Not today, I’m meeting with a friend.” 

“I’d just like some alone time, my head hurts.” 

Though the excuses were vague enough, Marinette saw them for what they were. 

Reconsidering loyalties, just as Miss Bustier had warned. And probably a little bit of ‘if she turned on Adrien like that, what’s stopping her from turning on me?’ 

Critical thinking, as she had put it. In the aftermath, Lila might still have some friends. But as long as the truth came out, that’s all that mattered. 

“Hey, Marinette?” Adrien asked, hand on the back of his neck.

“Yes?” 

“Uh, I had a text from Kagami. She wants to have lunch with me. It sounded serious.” 

“I bet she just wants to talk about yesterday.” 

“Honestly, I’d like to wipe yesterday right off the board, if I could.” Then he gave a little half smile as he caught her eye. “Well, most of the day at least.” He reached up to touch her face, brushing his thumb over his lips. “Other parts are just unforgettable.”

Marinette blushed heavily, diverting her eyes. 

Adrien tried to hide his smug grin. All it took to get his lady flustered was to flirt without his mask on. She was a total sucker. 

“I’ll see you later, Sugar Wugar Bear.” He grinned. 

“Mmm, still not good enough. Keep trying.” She flirted back, still with the bright blush on her cheeks. 

Marinette took her time stopping at her locker, putting her books away, and strolling out of school. She’d go home, have a nice lunch, and maybe even get the chance to hide some of the more embarrassing photos of Adrien she had hanging up before he noticed them. 

Plans changed, however, when Marinette came out of the building to see Luka standing at the stairs. He gave her an easy smile. “Hey Marinette, wanna do lunch?” 

May as well. Adrien was having his hard conversation with Kagami today. “I uh...sure?”

“Cool.” And he reached out to take her hand. 

Marinette, however, pulled her hand away, a bit too harshly. There was no way he missed it. 

He frowned at her. “Did I do something?” 

“What? No! No, you’re fine! I just...um, look, we have to talk.” 

“What about?” 

She rubbed the back of her head, feeling more and more awkward as the seconds rolled on. How do you break up with someone you aren’t even dating? “Um...well, you see...Luka, you’re really nice, and I appreciate you always being here for me. But, I’m still in love with Adrien. And I can’t be with you.” 

“Then I’ll wait.” 

“No, no don’t do that.” She breathed. 

Luka exhaled harshly, sounding like he was only barely hanging onto his patience. “Marinette. I really think you need to move on. Adrien doesn’t like you. That may sound harsh, but I just hate seeing you so miserable.” 

“But he does like me. He loves me.” 

“Then why did I see him and Kagami leave together?” 

“He’s having the same conversation we’re having right now. A lot...a lot of stuff happened yesterday.” 

“You were talking to him? Even when we’re together?”

“Luka, we aren’t together. We never were.” 

“Yeah, well it was implied. You knew I liked you!”

“And you knew I was in love with Adrien!” 

“Yeah, but he wasn’t reciprocating! I thought it was understood that you were getting over him so you could date me!” 

“I never said that!” 

“You sure acted like it!” He spit.

Marinette hadn’t seen Luka so mad since XY stole his music and her costumes. It was frightening to be on the receiving end.  

“So what? All the time I spent with you, everything I did, it meant nothing?”

“I didn’t say that either!” 

“You knew I liked you, but you never gave me a real chance!” 

“I don’t have to!” She cried. “Just because you like me, doesn’t mean you get to be first in line to date me! It doesn’t work like that! You know that!” 

She hated to yell, especially at someone who was heart broken, but this was possessive behavior and completely out of character for someone as calm as Luka. 

He stared at her with tears in his eyes. 

“I don’t owe you anything, Luka. You gave me love and support when I needed it, but I didn’t ask you for it. Expecting something in return is...kinda neck-beardy.” 

He scoffed. “I’m not being a neck beard! I’m just upset because I feel like you wasted my time. If you were never going to like me back, why did you drag me on?” 

“I didn’t know I wasn’t going to like you back! I mean—I did like you! I just—not as much as I like Adrien. I’m sorry. I know that this sucks. I didn’t mean to waste your time. That’s just how it happened.” 

He shook his head. “You were obviously still talking to him though. So you weren’t really trying to get over him.”

She bit back a growl of frustration. “Adrien’s my friend too, okay? I had a moment of weakness yesterday, and he took care of me. Then I confessed. It just—came out of me. I hadn’t confessed to him before, so he couldn’t reject me before, so I didn’t have a reason to get over him. I just assumed he loved someone else. There, happy?” 

“No.” 

“Look, Luka. You deserve someone that can love you wholeheartedly. I could only give you a fraction, and that’s not fair.” 

He was quiet a long time. Then breathed out. “Yeah. Whatever. I’ll see you around.” 

“Band’s practice is tomorrow right?” 

“Yeah, but...maybe you should skip...for a while.” 

“Oh. Okay. Um...I understand.” 

He turned away. “I’ll take a rain check on lunch. I’m not feeling hungry anymore.” And he briskly walked away before she could catch up to him.

“That was so weird. I’ve never seen Luka act like that before.” 

Tikki looked up to her. “Well, that’s the thing with love. It makes people act weird.” 

“This is my fault for leading him on, isn’t it?” 

“It’s like you said, Marinette. He comforted and supported you, but you never asked him to do it. He was supposed to be doing that without the expectation of being reciprocated. Somewhere in there, he thought you’d return the favor sometime.” 

“Should I have?” 

“Relationships work when you give without expecting to receive. And they build when both are willing to give. But as soon as you turn into a taker, relationships crumble. Friendships, however, aren’t based on anything but commonality. You both had different expectations for your relationship, and you didn’t meet his. It’s not your fault, because you didn’t come into this friendship at the level he was at. Do you get what I’m saying?” 

“His expectations were too high?” 

“Pretty much. He was at the romance level, and you were at the friendship level. Different levels of effort.” 

“Okay. I think I get it...” 

“You wanted to nip this in the bud anyways. You knew you didn’t like Luka the way he liked you. You’ve done him a huge favor.” 

“It doesn’t feel like it.” 

“Sure! Right now, after he pointed a finger at you and said some mean things. But, you set him free!” 

“Still, I should probably keep an eye on him in case he gets akumatized.” 

“You don’t need to worry about that, Marinette.” Tikki hummed. 

“What do you me—oh! I had completely forgotten! Gosh, I’m so used to worrying about that...” 

“So now just let him go. You beat Hawkmoth, so now he can grieve in peace!”

“I had nothing to do with Hawkmoth.” 

Tikki shrugged. “Maybe you didn’t, maybe you did.”

—

So far, they had talked about the weather six times. And that was only after the endless loop of ‘how are you? Good. How are you?’s. Adrien was beginning to suspect this might be the most awkward lunch of his life. 

The waiter came, and took their order, and then Kagami fell into business mode. She folded her hands in front of her. “First of all, I must apologize for putting you into this very tricky situation.”

“Wait, what? Kagami, you didn’t do anything wrong.” 

“On the contrary, Adrien. I know you weren’t aware of this. But I was aware of your feelings for Marinette, and Marinette’s feelings for you. However, it seemed like neither of you were making any moves on the other, so I took advantage of the situation. I had hoped you would get over her, but I should have known better.” 

He blinked at her a few times. “Wait—you knew she liked me?”

“It was obvious. From the first day we met, in fact.” 

His face colored brightly, embarrassment clamping on him like a vice. It was obvious? And he never noticed? Who else knew?

“So I apologize.” She said simply. “I should have known not to get in between you both. It was inevitable one of you would crack. So, who confessed? You or her?”

“Um, well, her first…” 

“I figured as much. I don’t think you were quite aware of your feelings. More of a subconscious crush, as compared to her obsession.” 

“Obsession?”

“Yes. She can barely keep her hands off of you. You really didn’t notice?”

His mouth fought to form words. “Compared to all the other girls that can’t keep their hands off of me, no, I didn’t.” 

“I see.” 

“So…you’re not upset?”

“Oh, I was. I cried my eyes out yesterday. But I brought this on myself, so I can’t be pitied.” 

“No, Kagami, I pursued you—“ 

“After I rather sternly told you to switch targets. Or else you would have continued to moon over her.” 

Technically, he had been in love with Ladybug, specifically. But it seemed sub-consciously, he found her out anyways, if he was mooning after her. Or he really was just that fond of Marinette. 

Secret identities were too confusing. 

“I owe Marinette an apology too, but I suppose that will come later. I’m sure she’ll feel awkward around me for a while. Not that she needs too, I’m over you, after all.” 

“What? Really? Already?” 

“I like to win, but I’m not a sore loser.” 

“Oh…okay.” 

“So are you official with her yet?” 

“Not quite. I wanted to clear the air with you first.” 

“I understand, and I appreciate it. She probably needs to do the same with Luka.”

“He’s a pretty cool guy, he’ll probably take it well.” 

“We can certainly hope.”

The waiter came back with their drinks, and then they were alone again. 

“Oh, you said something about class drama. How’s that going?”

He groaned, laying his head on the table. “It got worse today…but also better? Lila—you remember Lila, right?”

“How could I forget?”

“Well, she’s been making Marinette’s world miserable with these…very specific lies. Enough to discredit Marinette, but also give her extra work as class rep. She kind of had a meltdown yesterday, and when I helped her out, Lila decided to target me instead. Apparently, I’m a sex offender.”

Kagami started laughing. “If anyone believes that, they’re an idiot. Or someone has a really low threshold of what they constitute as sexual harassment.” 

“Apparently, I groped her. See? I have the black eye to prove it.” 

“I was wondering where that came from, I figured you’d get to it.” 

“It actually…it came from my father,” he said sadly. 

“On accident?”

“No.” 

“That’s awful. But…not that surprising. I’m sorry.” 

“It’s okay. I mean, it’s not, but I appreciate your sympathy.” 

“So what happened with Lila?”

Adrien stirred his drink with his straw. “She told our classmates, and they tried to kick me out of class. But our teacher wouldn’t allow it. Chloe suggested we talk about it, and Miss Bustier agreed it was a good idea to get both sides of the story out so people could make their own conclusions.” 

“Not really fair if you wanted to keep your fight with your father private.” 

“I weaseled my way out of it. But now it’s up to everyone else to decide if they believe me or Lila.” He took a sip. “My father’s threatening a lawsuit over it.” 

“Typical.”

“Well, I don’t really want to be thought of a sex offender all throughout my school years. It would kill me. My guess is that Lila is going to find a way to weasel out of her lie before it actually goes to court.” 

“Most likely, but by then, no one will believe her anymore. If you’re going to lie like that, you can’t back out. It doesn’t work like that.” 

“With any luck, she’ll skip the country and we can be done with her.” 

Kagami gave him a soft smile. “Sounds like you and Marinette both have had a crazy few days.” 

“You have no idea.” 

“Then I’m glad you can find comfort in each other. I hope I can have that one day too.” 

“I mean...Luka should be available soon.” 

“A guitarist, hmm? I’ll have to think about it.” 

Chapter Text

Returning to class, everything felt sort of surreal. 

As Adrien and Marinette passed their classmates, instead of awkward smiles, they were greeted with hugs. But not quite in a friendly way. A hug that one would give another after they had been in a car accident, or some similar life-changing tragedy. They never said a word either, just a hug, and then they moved on. 

However, it appeared that Lila never took the hint. She stayed completely delusional in the belief that the class was on her side. 

In the classroom, she was fishing for attention. Marinette heard her asking around, “hey, do you want to hear about my vacation plans to Hawaii?” And, “oh during lunch I got a call from Jagged Stone! He heard about the whole thing and called to comfort me!” 

No one took the bait. Not even a ‘maybe later’. Just cold hard silence. 

By the time the school day came to an end, the classmates started to speak to each other, but it wasn’t ever anything more than school and homework related. Absolutely no gossip, nothing about media consumption, nothing. 

It was almost as if all friendships had been reset to zero and everyone was reconsidering what they knew about each other. 

Thankfully, Nino seemed pretty solid in his loyalty to Adrien. “Hey dude,” he asked softly after the last class of the day. In the silence of the room, he was still heard pretty clearly by everyone. “If you’re not going home, where are you staying right now?” 

“Oh,” Adrien tried to keep his voice even quieter. “I’m actually staying with Marinette. Chat Noir thought she was safest.”

“Chat Noir said that? I wonder why?”

“He seems to have a good opinion of her.” 

“We’ve talked.” Marinette clarified. “A few times. He’s stopped on my balcony during patrol and stuff.”

There was a scoff in the back of the room. “Really? He’s stopped by your house? You’re that chummy with Chat Noir?” Lila mocked. 

Before Marinette could reply, the rest of the class groaned. 

“Just shut up.” Alix barked back. 

“Chat Noir had to protect Marinette while I was akumatized,” Nathaniel added. “It was on the Ladyblog too.” 

“Oh, so now we’re taking all interviews on the Ladyblog as gospel?” Lila huffed, crossing her arms. “Hmm, sounds like favoritism to me.” 

“Except Chat Noir corroborated Marinette’s story.” Alya added. “He praised her quick thinking. He’s mentioned her in high esteem a few times.”

“Fine. But did you ever ask Ladybug about our friendship?”

Alix moaned. “Are you still talking?” 

Alya forged ahead. “No, I didn’t. But Adrien said this morning that Ladybug called you out in front of him.” 

“Adrien and Marinette are both liars, and everything they say should be taken with a grain of salt.” Lila sneered.

Adrien clenched his fist, about to speak, but Marinette just stood from her seat. Calmly, she packed up her bag, and shouldered it. “If this is the hill you want to die on, be my guest. If there’s anything I’ve learned from our classmates, it's that if you call someone a liar, they’ll just think you’re jealous. So good luck with all that.” 

Alya inhaled a quick breath, that Marinette ignored. 

“You ready to go?” She asked Adrien.

“Absolutely.” He gathered his supplies and they rushed from the room. 

Once outside, Adrien let out a sigh. “What a fatal last comment.” 

“Ehh, I probably went too far. But I am still kind of salty about the whole thing. I’m ready to forgive and let my bitterness go, but I’d at least like an apology first.” 

“I think they definitely owe you one.” 

“Maybe I’ll get more on Monday. It felt like everyone was…kinda in shock all day.” 

“No kidding.”

“Chloe surprised me. I’ve been…kind of hesitant to trust her again, but what she did for you today was really something.” 

Adrien almost forgot he wasn’t supposed to know about Miracle Queen, since everyone in the city, including Alya, had been in a trance. There was no coverage of it anywhere. No one knew why the auxiliary heroes were all retired, and no one knew about the Miracle Box being taken. Thank God.

“I know Chloe’s a brat, but she’s…been getting better?” 

Marinette shook her head, and spoke in code, since they were out in public. “She was. Honestly, I was really proud of her and how hard she was working to be a friend again. But…the reason I’m the guardian now, it’s kind of her fault. She was the akuma. But, she did it willingly. The big bad got a hold of the Jewelry Box and offered her the Comb if she worked with him. Him getting a hold of it was my mistake…but all the other friends were revealed because of her.” She paused for a moment. “I wonder why you weren’t summoned forward too, since you had the snake and all.” 

“I was inside.” He clarified. “I saw the bees swarming out in the streets, so I stayed hunkered down in my room. I guess I didn’t realize at the time it was Chloe, but with bees and all...it makes sense.” He pursed his lips. “I didn’t notice Chloe acting much different. I wonder if her standing up for us was her trying to absolve herself.” 

Marinette shrugged. “She’ll have to keep it up, I’m afraid. But I can’t give her the comb again. It’s just too dangerous.” 

“It’s not your responsibility to fix people, Marinette. I know you want to, but Chloe is a damaged person. She will get better in time, but you gave her several chances. You can stop.” 

Marinette let out a breath. “Yeah. You’re right. Thanks Adrien.” 

“Anytime.” 

Desperate for a change in topic as they reached the locker room, Marinette asked, “how’d it go with Kagami? You came back kinda late so I didn’t get the chance to ask.” 

“Oh, it went good. Really good.” 

“Really?” 

“Yeah. She said she’s over me already. I suspect she’s lying...but we had a good talk. She’s on our side at least. She doesn’t believe I could molest anyone.”

“As she should.”

“She says she hopes to hang out with you again soon.” 

“I wouldn’t mind but…I think it might be a little awkward for a while.”

“She said you’d say that too.” He laughed. 

“Wow, she sure does have me pegged.” 

Adrien wrestled his duffle out of his locker, slinging it over his shoulder. 

“Is that everything you need?” Marinette asked. “Do you need me to get Ladybug to get anything else?”

“Nope,” he shrugged. “All of my earthly possessions are in here. At least, the things I can’t live without.” 

“Do you need me to carry anything?”

“Nope, I got it.” 

So they headed out, not running into any of their classmates. However, as they left the locker room, they could hear yelling coming from the second floor, where their class was. 

“Well, it’s not an akuma.” Adrien said with a tiny smirk. 

“Should we intervene?”

“No. I think we’ve had enough drama for the last two days.”

“Yeah…” Marinette breathed. “Speaking of drama…I spoke to Luka at lunch.” 

“Oh? How’d that go?”

“Not good. Not good at all. He feels…like I wasted his time. He was upset.” 

“Oh…”

“He thought that I was trying to get over you so that he and I could date, but that’s not exactly what happened. He thought his persistent pursuing me meant he was first in line to date me.”

Adrien winced. That’s kind of how Chat Noir had acted too. Boy, she would be pissed when she found out who he was. Maybe he shouldn’t tell her after all…

“So yeah, that’s how we left things. I’ve been kicked off the Kitty Section team indefinitely…”

“Oh Marinette…” Adrien cooed, resting a hand on her waist. 

“Nope. Don’t talk to me like that, or I will cry.” She blinked rapidly. “I knew whatever I said would break his heart. But…I think if he had been gracious about it, I would have taken it harder. For him to react the way he did makes me feel like I dodged a bullet.”

“I know exactly how you feel. Trust me.” He tugged her close and gave her a little side squeeze. 

The rest of the trip to the bakery was taken in silence as both teens were lost in their own thoughts. Both mulling over ‘what if’s of the future, and what was going to happen next. 

Especially a very long conversation that had to happen. 

At the bakery, Sabine greeted both of them with kisses to the cheeks. “Hello you two! How was school? Survive okay?”

“Survive is an apt word.” Marinette chuckled weakly. “Lila’s not going out without a fight.” 

“Well, my offer still stands, if you need me to request a parent teacher conference, I will!” 

“Thank you Mrs. Cheng,” Adrien stated, “but…my father threatened a lawsuit. If that doesn’t get her mother’s attention, I don’t know what will.”

“Oh my! She’s that bad? I just assumed it was rumors and gossip. A Lawsuit is quite serious!”

“Well, my father fired her yesterday after she left here. In order to save face, she accused me of sexual harassment.” 

Sabine tutted. “That girl is a real piece of work. I’m sorry you’re both having to deal with this! Whatever you need, just ask!” 

Adrien gave a weak smile. “Could I have an almond danish?” 

Sabine laughed. “Oh sweetie, you didn’t need to ask.” She took one out of the case and handed it to him. “Now, I have to get back to work, but we can finish this conversation later. Adrien, Tom and I wake up very early, so we think it’s best if you stayed in Marinette’s room so we didn’t wake you up. You can behave yourselves, right?”

“Yes ma’am!” Adrien agreed a little too enthusiastically.  

“Good, then scoot!” She shooed them out of the bakery.

“Are you okay with that, Marinette?” He asked. “Or are you afraid I’d sexually harass you in your sleep?”

“You touch me anyway I don’t approve, and you’ll be hanging from your ankles from the top of the Eiffel Tower.” 

He snorted. “Noted!”

Adrien followed her silently upstairs into the apartment. Now that they were alone, he knew he had to tell her. He needed to say everything, so they could move forward and make a plan. As he took the steps up to her room, his hands began to sweat around the strap of his bag. Just do it. Just say it. 

“You can set your bag here,” Marinette began. “The bathroom is across the hall from the living room, but you can keep your toothbrush here at my sink if you want. I’ll get some pillows and blankets—“

“I’m Chat Noir.” 

He said it when she had her back turned, so he didn’t have to see her face. She continued to face away from him, her shoulders slowly tightening with anxiety, like a coil about to snap. 

“I should have told you yesterday,” he continued, desperate to make sure she heard it all before she freaked out. “But you were so panicked with everything else, I just didn’t want to add to it. I didn’t want to hide from you, My Lady.” 

She flinched, ducking her head slightly. 

“I went home yesterday. My father greeted me at the door, and we talked about trust. He said he approved of you and I seeing each other, and he said he would remove Lila from my photoshoots. You know this. And then…he said he had something he wanted to trust me with.” He licked his lips, finding them unbearably dry. “He pressed some buttons on the painting of my mother, and this elevator lowered through the floor. At the bottom, there was this huge cavern I had never been in before. There was a bridge, and then a garden on the other side, and in a…it looked like a coffin, but I think it was a life support machine…my mother was there. She’s in a magical coma, from using the broken Peacock Miraculous. Dad revealed himself to be Hawkmoth, and he explained he wanted our Miraculous so he could use the ultimate power to wake her up.” He inhaled, his breath stuttering with faintly concealed sobs. “Then he asked me to help him. He had been using Lila as an akuma trigger, but since she was fired, he wanted me to take her place.” 

“And what did you say?” Marinette’s voice was hollow and dull. 

“I didn’t say anything. I was just in shock. He was crying and…I wanted to save my mother too. I know his method is wrong, and I can’t help but think the ultimate wish isn’t going to do what we want…”

“So Plagg stole the Miraculous while he was sleeping?” 

“Yes. I thought about getting you, but I had to work quickly. I didn’t want to fight him. And after I gave them to you last night, I returned home, and he was waiting for me.”

“So he knows?”

“No. I had an alibi, but…he still drugged me and tore my room apart looking for them. I woke up at some point, disoriented and confused, and I attempted to fight him, that’s how I got my black eye.” 

Finally, finally, Marinette turned around, showing the tear streaks running down her face. “I was so worried about you.” She whispered. 

“Oh bugaboo…” He rushed to her, wrapping his arms around her waist and pulling her into a strong and solid hug. “I’m sorry. I just couldn’t risk getting caught. That’s why I left.”

“I understand, you did the right thing.” Her fingers dove into his hair, scratching at his scalp in a calming way. “I’m so proud of you, kitty.” 

“Thank you, my lady.” He squeezed her. “And I am most certainly not disappointed in you for what happened. I know it was an accident, and I’m here to help you. I was worried about you, because I love you. I love you so so much, Marinette.” 

She croaked out a sob and nuzzled her face into his shoulder. “I’m so glad it’s you. I’m sorry I kept breaking your heart, but I’m so glad it’s you! It was always you, the boy I loved. The boy I kept turning you down for…I’ve always loved you.”

“And now you know how I feel isn’t a celebrity thing,” he chuckled.

“I didn’t doubt you for a second.” She clutched his shirt. “You said you loved me even more since you found out who I was. I trust you, Adrien. With my life.” 

He pulled away enough to look down at her. “This was the final loose end I had to tie up. Telling you who I am.” He reached a hand up, tracing the shell of her ear with his thumb, and letting it trail down to her jaw. “Marinette, would you marry me?”

She snorted, “what?”

“Sorry, I skipped a step. Would you like to be my girlfriend?”

“Wait, I didn’t get to say yes to your proposal!”

He laughed, gathering her tightly and spinning her around. “I love you, Marinette Dupain-Cheng! One day, I’ll make you mine!”

“I’ll hold you to that,” she giggled, elated and bursting at the seams with love. “You’ll have to get it approved by my parents first.” 

“Your parents!” He gasped. “We should tell them! They might not be okay with me sleeping in here if they know! And I don’t want to get on my in-laws' bad side!” 

“Adrien.” Marinette snickered. “It’s okay. We’ll tell them at dinner. And…” She glanced down. “I was thinking about telling them my identity.” 

“Oh?” There was no judgement or caution in his tone, just plum curiosity. 

“It was Tikki’s idea. Now that Hawkmoth isn’t a threat, maybe revealing myself would clear the air, you know, because of unexplained absences?” 

“In that case, can I tell them too?” 

“Uh, sure…why?” 

He rubbed his arm. “I want adults that I can come to if I need help. My father isn’t that for me. One day, I’ll probably tell him the truth, but…Not now. I’m too scared.” 

“Alright Kitty, we’ll tell them tonight at dinner. After all, we have to get their permission to go to Tibet this weekend.” 

He raised an eyebrow. “That soon?” 

“Sure! We have to talk to the guardians about how to save your mom after all.” 

His face melted from giddy to astonished, as he beheld her. “You…you want to save my mom?”

“Of course Kitty! You love her, don’t you? If she can be saved, we should at least try.”

He opened and closed his mouth, fighting for words of gratitude. ‘Thank you’ wasn’t strong enough. It didn’t mean enough. ‘I love you’ was starting to sound repetitive. Emotion seeped out of him, drenching his cheeks with tears of joy of being in love and being so loved in return. It was overwhelming, but so welcomed. He couldn’t hold it back anymore. 

He kissed her roughly, thoroughly, solidly. Hands wrapped around her, grabbing, tugging, caressing, bringing her closer and closer, until he could be all consumed with her, her scent, her taste. Her everything. 

He took her bottom lip between his, sucking and teasing with his teeth, while he coyly tugged on her belt loop. 

Then suddenly, they were tumbling, as her leg hit the edge of the settee and she lost balance. She landed with a little ‘oof’ right on the cushion, as he braced himself above her. 

Her impossibly blue eyes stared up into his, before she burst into giggles. “Whoops.” 

“Are you okay?” 

“I’m fine, Kitty.” 

“Good. Are you comfortable?” 

“Yes? Why?” 

“Because I’m not done with you yet,” and he returned to capture her lips again with an open mouthed kiss. He indulged for a moment, just before pulling away. “If that’s okay, My Lady?” 

“Its alright, my Prince.” 

His cheeks colored a little at the pet name. “I like that one.” 

“Yeah?” 

“Yeah...” He finally closed the distance, his touch much more gentle, tender, and just savoring the moment.

“I love you.” He whispered between caresses. “I love you.” 

“I love—“ she giggled as he cut her off over and over. “I love you! I love you!” 

“Marinette! Adrien! Dinner’s ready!” 

They pulled apart to look at each other before they started laughing all over again. “Did we just—?” 

“Kiss for two hours?” Asked Plagg, with the dullest voice. “Yes. Yes you did.” 

Tikki elbowed him. “Leave them alone Plagg. They’re in love!” 

“Yeah,” said Adrien, sappily. “We’re in love...” 

“Go to dinner!!” 

Chapter Text

“So, how was school today?” Asked Tom. The family was gathered around the little table in the kitchen, Adrien and Marinette sitting next to each other. Sabine had made quiche, remembering that Adrien had greatly enjoyed it. So far, they were sticking to small talk, trying to avoid the inevitable reveal. It had to be natural, of course. “Mom said it was a little rough. You’re still having trouble with that Lila girl?”

“Maybe,” Marinette said as she finished her bite of quiche. “Miss Bustier had us air our grievances like adults. She said she wanted to avoid rumors and gossip, so Lila, Adrien, and I all got to state our sides of the story. And then Chloe and Nino backed us up.” 

“So, did it get solved?” Asked Sabine. 

“We don’t know,” Answered Adrien. “We didn’t stick around. There was a lot of shouting from the classroom, so…we’re just going to let our classmates decide for themselves.” 

Tom gave both of them a surprised glance. “That’s a bold move! Are you sure?”

“You can’t force someone to believe you,” said Marinette wisely. “I know from experience.” 

Sabine reached over and patted her hand. “Well, I’m proud of you. You’re learning this lesson very early in life. It does get better as you get older, but some people never outgrow petty behavior like lying. But the older you get, the more dangerous it is to lie. It has bigger consequences for those who it affects, and when you get caught.” She finished with a broad smile. “I’m glad I raised a daughter that’s above lying.”

Marinette smiled at her, before the look fell. She couldn’t have asked for a better opening, but she just wished it hadn’t made her feel so guilty. “Actually maman, papa…there’s something I need to tell you. Something we both need to tell you.”

This was it. The moment of truth. Of course, Marinette trusted her parents, and she knew they’d take it well, but she had just been hiding it for so long…

“I wanted to tell you from day one. It killed me that I couldn’t. It was for your safety, you know?”

“Honey, what are you talking about?” Sabine frowned, concern etching wrinkles around her eyes. 

“Just…don’t get mad?”

Tom and Sabine shared a look. “We’ll try.”

Marinette exhaled, and reached over to take Adrien’s hand. “Together?”

“Of course.” He smiled. 

“Okay…Tikki, spots on.”

“Plagg, Claws out.” 

The bright flash forced Tom and Sabine to look away, and when they looked back, their daughter and her classmate were replaced with the Heroes of Paris. 

Silence. It felt like minutes ticked by, as they just sat in silence. Both parents wracked their eyes over the teens, taking in every detail, making every piece fit in their minds. 

Marinette held her breath, as Adrien squeezed her hand. 

“All this time…? It was you…? Both of you?” Sabine looked absolutely horrified, as she remembered over and over, these two children taking fatal hits and falls, fighting on rooftops and cars, facing off with guns and swords. 

Her baby, on the front lines of a magical war. 

Marinette nodded, tears starting to form in her eyes. 

Suddenly, Tom was laughing. Not just a chuckle. A full on, rattle the windows, fist pounding on the table, absolute uncontrollable laugh attack. 

It startled everyone.

“What’s gotten into you, Tom?”

“When did you—“ more laughter. “When did you find out about each other? I have to know!” 

Confused, and a little unsettled, Marinette answered, “Um…he found out yesterday, and he told me today.” 

That just incited more laughter, as Tom actually fell out of his chair and landed on the floor. 

“Papa…?”

“I’m—I’m sorry, cupcake!” He tried to get a hold of himself as he kept giggling. “It’s not—It’s not that funny—!”

The other three just shared nervous glances. Did their reveal drive Tom to insanity? 

“Were—“ He wiped a tear from his eye. “Weredad! Breakfast!” He took a deep breath and tried to calm down. “I’m just thinking about that one time Marinette confessed to being in love with Chat Noir, and then he said he had to turn her down for Ladybug. But I knew Marinette had a crush on Adrien! And I got akumatized over that! That’s hilarious!”

Both of the heroes blushed. “Papa…” Said Ladybug. 

“No, no you’re right, that was an emotional day for everyone.” He held a straight face for about three seconds before he burst into giggles again.  

Although Adrien and Marinette were actually dating now, it didn’t ease the embarrassment for either of them, and they both blushed. 

But his laughter did break the tension in the room, and Marinette was able to take a steady breath. 

“Now Tom,” Sabine chastised. “Leave the kids alone. I’m sure they had a good reason for hiding their identities from each other.” 

“We did. We had to keep each other safe. If one of us fell under control of an Akuma, Hawkmoth could use that to get our identities.”

Tom’s laughter finally subsided as he got off the floor. “I’m sorry, cupcake. I didn’t mean to embarrass you. It was just—you got yourselves in such a pickle!” He retook his seat, and put his head in his hands. “Okay, now that that’s out in the open…is there a wedding in the future?”

Sabine smacked his arm. “Tom!”

“What! You know I’m a huge romantic! And an even bigger Ladynoir fan!”

“What happened to Marichat?” Asked Marinette with a wiry smile. 

“Old news. So…?”

“Well sir,” Chat began, a dusting of pink on his cheeks. “I’d like to formally ask you for permission to date your daughter—“ 

“Yes! Of course! Absolutely!” 

“—But,” Chat interrupted right back. “There’s something else we need to tell you before you make your decision.”

“We’re listening,” said Sabine, resting a hand on her overly excited husband. “Take your time.”

“Well,” began Ladybug carefully, “we’re revealing ourselves to you now because it’s safe. You’re the first civilians to know. And you’re the first civilians to know that Hawkmoth has been defeated. Chat took his and Mayura’s Miraculous.” 

Absolute joy and pride nearly burst out of both of the parents, as their smiles grew and their eyes sparkled. But before they could celebrate, Chat Noir elaborated, “It’s because of that that I’m here. My...my father is, or was, Hawkmoth. He was suspicious of me, so I had to leave.” 

All that joy was snuffed out in a second, and Marinette swore she could hear her parent’s hearts breaking. 

A clattering of chairs and Chat Noir was embraced with two pairs of arms. 

“You’re a part of our family, Adrien,” Sabine assured. “You will always have a place here with us. It’s going to be okay.” 

He didn’t cry when his father had revealed himself. He didn’t shed a single tear because of the shock. But all of the subsequent actions had built up, and now in the arms of the Dupain-Chengs, Adrien felt himself beginning to break down. 

“We got you, Kitty.” Marinette promised, the flash of light signaling her transformation. 

“Plagg, Claws In.” 

The suit faded, and all at once, Adrien let loose his tears of frustration and betrayal. Just a few tears being squeezed out of him by Marinette’s family. 

“Thank you.” He choked. “Thank you so much.”

“Of course, kiddo.” Sabine cupped his cheek. “You’re a great kid, and we owe Chat Noir a lot. We want you to be happy, and safe.” 

“Marinette is extremely lucky to have you as parents.” 

“Oh no,” Tom disagreed. “We’re horrendously annoying and nosy!” 

“Papa...” Marinette warned. 

“But cupcake! You knew when you got a boyfriend I was going to hound him relentlessly! Don’t act so surprised!” 

Sabine patted her husband. “Oh leave them alone Tom. I think we’ve all had a very stressful day. Let’s cool down with a movie, hmm?” 

“Actually...there’s still more.” 

“More?!” Both Tom and Sabine shouted. 

“It’s not as bad as the last bit,” Marinette waved her hands around. “Well...I guess that’s debatable. We need to go to Tibet.” 

“Tibet?” Parroted Sabine. “Why on earth would you need to go there?” 

“The Guardians of the Miraculous live there in a temple. Adrien and I...well, we learned why Gabriel did what he did.”

“My mother,” Adrien explained. “She’s still alive. She’s in a coma from using a broken Miraculous. He hoped that using our Miraculous would wake her up, but...” 

“It’s really risky.” Marinette continued. “We just want to see if the guardians have a better idea.” 

“I see.” Sabine breathed. “Where’s Gabriel now? Did you not call the police on him?” 

“No.” Adrien shook his head. “We took his Miraculous. He’s not able to hurt anyone anymore. And if we revive Mrs. Agreste, he won’t have a reason to either.” 

Tom and Sabine shared a skeptical look. “Are you sure? I know you’re Ladybug and Chat Noir, but...shouldn’t he face judgement for his crimes?” 

“I’m being selfish.” Adrien said softly. “I don’t want to lose my father. If I get back my mother, maybe he’ll be back to who he used to be, and we can be a family again.” 

“Oh honey,” Sabine cooed, wrapping her arms around him. “It might not happen that way.” 

“I know…but it’s worth a try, right?”

Sabine wrung her hands. “But Tibet is just so far! Plane tickets would be expensive—“

“We’re not flying. The Horse Miraculous allows the user to make a portal to any location. We’ll go and be back on Sunday night.” 

Sabine frowned. “It sounds like you’re telling, and not asking.” 

Marinette gave an uneasy smile. “This is official superhero business. I thought it would be better if we told you?”

Sabine sighed. “Yeah, I suppose it would be. If I can’t stop you, at least I can make sure you’re safe. When do you leave?”

“First thing in the morning. Tibet is six hours ahead of us, so it wouldn’t make sense to leave tonight.”

“Alright, then make sure to pack everything you need for an overnight bag. Papa and I will make sure you have plenty of snacks to take with.”

Marinette smiled. “Thanks maman! The trip is instantaneous though, we don’t need any snacks.” 

“Oh but you should offer your hosts some of our pastries! An offering of peace!”

Marinette smiled. “You’re right, of course. Thank you. Both of you. For being so cool.”

—

Later that night, Marinette was mostly asleep when Adrien’s voice pierced through the silence. “Are you still awake, My Lady?”

“Hmm-mmm.”

The floorboards groaned and then her mattress swayed as he climbed up onto her bed, leaning against the wall. “Sorry, I can’t sleep.”

She turned to face him. “I don’t blame you. Wanna talk about it?”

He laid down beside her, propping his head up on his arm. “I can’t really have my family back to normal, can I?”

“Do you want me to answer that honestly?”

“I want to be on the same page as you. You’re…you don’t have the same bias. You know what to do.” 

Marinette held her breath, knowing this would be the breaking point. The same question had come back to her over and over too. So what was the right thing to do? Hurt him? Or brush off her duty as Ladybug?”

“He needs to face justice, Adrien.” 

He hid his face in her shoulder and nodded. He knew what she would say. He knew what was right. He just didn’t want to believe it. It wasn’t fair.

It was fair, though. His father was a messed up, broken man who had done horrible things, no matter the reason, no matter how temporary. He had scars on his heart from that man that would take years to heal. 

“I don’t want you to do that alone, but I don’t know if I can be with you when you turn him in.” He breathed, sobs just at the edge of his voice. 

“Kitty, I would never expect you to turn in your own father.” 

“But I want to support you. You have so much responsibility to shoulder being the guardian and—“ 

“Adrien,” she pushed his shoulder so he would look at her. “You single-handedly defeated Hawkmoth. Please, let me take care of the clean up.” 

Hesitantly, Adrien nodded. 

“But first, let's worry about your mom, okay? One step at a time.” 

“Thank you, My Lady. I love you.” 

“I love you too, My Prince.”

—

At the break of dawn, Marinette dawned the Horse Miraculous, and along with Chat Noir, departed to Tibet. 

The temple was on top a mountain, and stepping from tepid France to frigid Tibet was a whiplash. The snow whipped around, and threatened to knock Marinette’s pastry box right out of her hands. 

But they waded through the snow to reach the massive doors of the temple, and knocked. 

The door slid open cautiously, a monk watching them with confusion.

“ Hello ,” Chat translated. “ I’m Chat Noir, and this is my partner , Ladybug, or Pinto Rouge, we’re here to learn about the Miraculous. ” 

Pinto Rouge held up the box. 

“ We brought snacks! ”

Still confused, the monk allowed them inside and instructed them to wait in a large lobby. The room was mostly bare, only decorated with the symbol of the Miraculous on the walls, and huge columns. 

“ Welcome ,” another monk finally greeted. “ How can we assist you? ”

Both Pinto Rouge and Chat Noir bowed in greeting, offering the pastry box to the man. 

“Tikki, Kalkki, divide.” Ladybug whispered, returning to her normal suit. 

Chat Noir translated for her, “ Pardon our intrusion. My name is Ladybug, and this is my partner , Chat Noir. I don’t actually speak Mandarin, so he’ll be translating for me .” 

The monk nodded, indicating that he understood. 

“ We were picked to be wielders by Wang Fu, who trained me in succession to be a guardian. He was once a student here. ” 

The assembled guardians all reacted to the name, nodding, some chuckling. 

“ How is Wang Fu? ” One man asked. 

“They want to know about Master Fu.” Chat provided. Ladybug answered, and he translated. “ He’s well. Unfortunately, he was compromised and named me as guardian, and then lost his memories. He lives with his wife in England now. ” 

“ He must be quite old. ”

“ 186, last I checked. ”

“ Well, despite not being chosen for our order by the council, you are still a guardian of the Miraculous, and you should be trained as every one is. Where do you hail from? ”

“ Paris, France. ” 

“ All the way from Paris! Wang certainly fled as we asked. When can you start? ”

“ As much as I desire to start training as soon as possible, there is something we need help with first. ” 

They were beckoned into a meeting hall, and sat down among the order. Tea was served, and the pastries were divided up. Then they began the story from the beginning. How Hawkmoth appeared one day, and how they were bestowed Miraculous. How they fought together for over a year against him and Mayura. And then the day of the reveal, how Adrien had come to discover his own father was behind the whole thing, and that his mother was in a magical coma from a broken Miraculous. How that night, he stole the Miraculous and returned them to the Miracle Box. 

“ So you see, he doesn’t pose a threat to Paris anymore, but his wife, my mother, is still asleep. He wanted to use the Ladybug and Black Cat Miraculous together to wake her up. ”

More nodding as their tale was considered, and then the conversed among themselves, speaking much too fast for Chat to translate completely. 

“What are they saying?”

“Some of them are doubtful she can be healed, others are doubtful they can trust us.” 

“Yikes.” 

“ Drop your transformations, as a show of good intentions. ” 

“They want us to de-transform, My Lady.” 

“Oh, okay. No harm in that. Tikki, Spots off.”

“Plagg, Claws in.”

The Guardians seemed much more at ease after they took off the suits. 

“I’m Marinette Dupain-Cheng.” She reintroduced. 

“And I’m Adrien Agreste.” 

“ A pleasure .” The monk bowed. “ Now, we have discussed what you have said. We will need to examine this woman, Emilie, and the broken Miraculous before knowing exactly what there is to do. Our last resort would be to use the Black Cat and Ladybug, but it is very risky, and works with equivalent exchange. If your father, Gabriel, really wishes to wake her up so badly, he must decide who he wants to give up in exchange. Whether it is another loved one, or himself. He will need to keep that thought in his mind. ”

Adrien explained this all to Marinette, who frowned. “Would you be able to handle that? If he decided to take her place?”

Adrien was quiet for a moment, and then admitted, “I’d have to think about it…”

“ You’ve both come so far, why don’t you stay the night? We can get in a little training tomorrow before you leave. Then you can return with Emilie when you can. ”

“ Thank you, Master. We’d love to stay. ”

—

Sunday night came quickly with all the training that had taken place. Marinette was thankful she had brought a notebook, since the monks had taught her how to read the coded Grimoire. Adrien had, of course, been there to translate all of it, so he was also being trained as a guardian. 

But now it was time to return to Paris, and time to confront Gabriel Agreste. 

It could go either way. He could be responsive to help, or he could fight the whole time. It was absolutely unpredictable.

Chat Noir and Ladybug arrived at the mansion at sunset, waiting outside the gate, gathering courage.

“You still with me, kitty?”

“I feel like I’m going to puke.” 

“I don’t doubt that. Do you want to come back later?”

He shook his head. “No, the longer we wait, the worse it’s going to be for me. I just…”

“You don’t need to explain yourself to me.” She offered him a smile. “You remember a few days ago? When I had my melt down?”

“Sure.”

“It was this feeling of hopelessness, of everything being completely out of control and the whole world resting on my shoulders. But you gave me control back. You gave me peace of mind. Now I’m here to do everything I can for you. You and me against the world, and you and me against your father.”

He clenched and unclenched his fists a few times before hugging her. Just soaking in her warmth for a while and letting her strength flow into him. 

He could do this.

He had to do this.

“Let’s go.” 

She rang the doorbell.

The camera came out, spotted them, and the gate opened without a word. 

“Out of the frying pan, and into the fire.” Chat muttered to himself. 

“He doesn’t have a Miraculous, we’re stronger than him.” She reminded him gently. 

He scoffed. “I’m not afraid of him hurting me physically.” The rest went unsaid. 

Gabriel opened the door as they approached, then beckoned them inside. He was quiet, reserved, and looked tired. He had bags under his eyes, unkempt hair, and a shadow of a beard on his face.

“Ladybug, Chat Noir, please come in.” 

“Your secretary have the day off?” Ladybug asked conversationally. 

“Nathalie and the rest of my house staff will be taking an...extended vacation.” 

Chat tried to not let his disappointment show, but he had assumed Gabriel would fire anyone he was suspicious of. He just didn’t think that included Nathalie. 

“To what do I owe the pleasure?”

Ladybug smiled as pleasantly as she could, like she was talking to any other civilian. “We’re here to help.” 

“Ah, with what, exactly?” 

“Please show us your wife, Monsieur Agreste.” 

Gabriel’s almost pleasant attitude evaporated into something akin to anger. “He told you then? My son ran his mouth?” He sneered. 

“Something like that.” 

“You have Nooroo now?” 

“And Dusuu too, yes.” 

“So what now? Have you come to gloat? To beat me up anyways? I’ve already lost everything, what more could you take from me?” 

“We’re not here to take anything,” Chat said. “We want to give back.” 

“We might have a way to save your wife.” 

The tightness Gabriel held began to subside. His fists unclenched, his brow smoothed, and the deep set frown relaxed into open mouthed awe. “You...want to help me save her?” 

“Purely for selfish reasons on my end,” Ladybug explained. “If your reason for hurting others is removed, you’re not a threat anymore, right?” 

He inhaled, his breath shuddering as he did so. “I never wanted to hurt anyone. This went on for so long, and I kept telling myself that I would quit, that it wasn’t worth it...then I would see an opportunity, and get so close again. I was obsessed, Ladybug. Can’t you see?” 

“The powers of the Miraculous can be addicting. Knowing that you were so close to being with your wife again...I don’t blame you.” 

Then Gabriel did something they were not expecting. 

He started to cry. 

“I don’t deserve this. I don’t deserve your help.” 

“You don’t.” Chat confirmed. “But your wife and son do.” 

“My son hates me. He’ll never speak to me again. And I can’t blame him for it. And my wife...once she knows what I did...this wasn’t worth it. I ruined everything.” 

“Mr. Agreste,” Ladybug spoke calmly, as he started to spiral out of control. “Let me see your wife.” 

Gabriel collected himself and turned from them, heading to the office. 

Ladybug and Chat Noir shared a look. Villain or not, Gabriel Agreste was not well, and he severely needed help. Maybe not even help they could give him. 

They followed him into his office, and up to the painting Chat had seen the other night. He typed in the code, and then they were descending in an elevator into a huge cavern. 

At the end of a bridge, there was a garden, filled with flowers and swathes of butterflies. 

In the middle of it all, was a glass coffin. 

It might have been beautiful if it wasn’t so horrid. 

Ladybug reached out to take Chat’s hand, holding it in comfort as they walked down the bridge. 

“She was using the Peacock Miraculous,” Gabriel explained. “It’s broken. It hurt her, made her sick. By time we figured out what was wrong, it was too late. She had...she had fallen asleep.” 

Chat wanted to yell at him to shut up. He had heard the whole pitiful story before, but he just found himself as silent in shock as the first time. 

“I have the grimoire too. There was a page on combining the Ladybug and Black Cat miraculous to create an amazing power, capable of granting any wish. Nooroo confirmed that it worked.” 

“We talked to the guardians about it. Yes, it would work, but not without equivalent exchange. To wake up your wife, someone else would have to take her place, perhaps you, perhaps your son. There’s no way of knowing.” 

“I could have—“ his words got caught in his throat as he fell to sit on the grass. “I could have killed Adrien. I was so concerned with bringing her back, I didn’t even think…” He pulled on his tie, ripping it away from his neck. “What have I done? What have I done? ”

“Will you let us take her to Tibet? To see the Guardians?”

“My poor Adrien…I could have lost him. What did I do? I tore apart his room! I hit him! I’d never—“ He moaned as he rocked back and forth. 

Ladybug looked at Chat. “Do you want to tell him?” She asked so softly. 

“Tell me what?” Asked Gabriel, looking up desperately. “What else is there? What do I have to do? Is Adrien safe? Did you talk to him? Will you talk to him?”

Chat took a calming breath, trying not to lose it at the sight of his insane father. Then he spoke, “Plagg, Claws in.” 

Gabriel looked away at the green flash, and when he turned, his tears started again in earnest. 

“I lied to you, Father.” Adrien began, before he lost courage. “I’m the one that betrayed you. I had my kwami take your miraculous while you slept. I do want to save mom, but I had a feeling combining the Miraculous wasn’t going to work. So I went to Ladybug. She’s smart and she always has an answer. I’m sorry I didn’t tell you sooner, you just…you scared me. You’re still scaring me. I trust that you only had good things in mind but…you’ve changed. You need help, father.” 

Gabriel clamored to his feet, finding shaky steps towards his son. 

Ladybug stood at the ready, in case he became violent. 

Gabriel collapsed on Adrien, hugging him and crying and begging for forgiveness over and over. “I’m sorry, I’m so sorry, I’m so sorry…” 

It wasn’t what he had in mind, but he’d take any affection he could get from the man. He hugged him back. 

“We’re going to find a way to save her. You don’t have to do this alone anymore.” 

“It’s all my fault. I ruin everything…I’ve hurt you so badly.” He pulled away from the hug to hold his face, squishing his cheeks slightly. “I’m so proud of you…” 

Pride. Adrien never thought he’d be worthy of his father’s pride. All his life, he had done everything right, and only now, after he had betrayed him and gone behind his back, at the reveal of fighting against him after all this time. Now he’s proud.

It was kind of a kick in the pants.

“Father…”

“You knew when to ask for help, when I didn’t. You knew I couldn’t handle this. You did the right thing…I told you before, that you were a good kid, and you’ll be a great man. I mean it. Adrien…”

And then Adrien understood what was happening. It wasn’t immediately apparent, but with his father’s face so close, he finally figured it out. 

“You’re drunk.” 

Gabriel started to sob again, grabbing hold of Adrien’s shirt and sliding to his knees. “I didn’t know what to do. I thought I had to say goodbye. I’m sorry, I’m sorry.” 

“Are you really? Or are you just drunk?”  

“Don’t leave me Adrien...please, son. I love you.” 

Adrien grabbed his hands and pulled, trying to wretch him free from where he was clamped. “Why did it take alcohol to get you to say it?”

“Because I’m awful...I’m worthless, I ruin everything I touch. Everything I did was a waste! I couldn’t save her! Hundreds and thousands and millions of people were hurt because of me! How can I live with that?” 

“Adrien,” Ladybug began. “I think we should continue this conversation when he’s sober.” 

“No!” Gabriel protested. “Take her! Take her to Tibet and save her! Give Adrien back his mother! Please I beg you!” 

“Then what will happen to you?” Adrien asked, looking down on the blubbering mess that was once his indomitable father. 

“I’m going to turn myself in. I’ll live with guilt the rest of my life, but let me have some relief! Let me face judgement.” He collapsed onto his hands and knees, bowing at the feet of his son. “Let me earn your trust. Let me earn your forgiveness. Please.” 

They spent a long time in silence, Adrien coming to terms with what had to happen. 

“My lady,” he finally said. “The Horse Miraculous?” 

She handed over the glasses. 

“Plagg, Claws out.” In a flash, Chat Noir stood there, and stepped away from Gabriel over to the glass coffin. “Plagg, Kalikki, unify.” Dawning both Miraculous, Belle Noir easily opened the coffin. 

“Be careful with her! Please, I beg you Adrien! She’s done nothing wrong.” 

“I will be careful,” he spoke calmly, as he reached his arms behind her shoulders and knees. 

“Ladybug. Please escort my father to the police. I’ll take care of my mother.” 

“Of course, Chat.” 

“I’ll find you when I’m ready.” 

“Stay safe.” 

He only offered a nod of agreement, before summoning his voyage and disappearing into nothing.

Chapter Text

Monday morning rolled around with a cool, all encasing fog. The gray mist that settled in between buildings, blotting out sunlight, and casting a refreshing coolness on everything blanketed underneath it.

It was glum.

Ladybug had escorted Gabriel to the police last night, as they had planned. Though he was drunk, Gabriel was well behaved. This allowed Ladybug to convince the Police to stay quiet about his arrest. Of course, it was inevitable that the media would catch wind of it, and it would be all over the news. 

But she just wanted to have a few days to prepare to announce it herself, and to give Adrien some time with his mother. 

He hadn’t come home last night, not that she expected him too. He may be gone for the rest of the week. Maybe longer. She couldn’t blame him for staying away. 

She just missed him already.

“Hey Marinette,” Alya greeted warmly. “Where’s Sunshine? He’s gotta get rid of this fog!” 

“Yeah dude, where’s my dawg?” Said Nino. 

Marinette smiled, but it didn’t quite reach her eyes. How much truth could she spare? This was Rena Rouge and Carapace after all. Surely they were trustworthy. Would Adrien mind?

“Um…he’s with his mother.” 

Nino and Alya just stared at her, dawning horror creeping on their faces. 

“He’s dead?”

“No!” Marinette scrambled to explain. “No, no…We found his mother yesterday. Well, he found her a few days ago, but we couldn’t do anything about it until last night.” 

Alya blinked a few times. “Okay girl, you lost me. You often lose me, but this is like—a whole other dimension. Can ya back up a touch?”

“I’ll tell you guys everything after school, but you have to promise me not to tell anyone.” She leaned closer. “This is just as secret, or even more so, as your secret identities.” 

Alya rapidly blinked again. “Wh-what?! What are you—how do you—What!?”

“That’s all I’m saying for now.”

“You can’t just leave us there!” 

“That’s all that’s safe to say here. Just...just trust me. Okay?” 

Alya took a long breath. They’d been through this before. Her trust was constantly being tested by Marinette. The absences, the tardiness, the forgetful ‘oh I have to go water my hamster’ ness. “Girl...I did trust you. But...are you going to finally explain what’s going on?” 

“Yes. I’ll tell you everything. If you’ll just be patient with me.” 

Alya exhaled, her shoulders relaxing. “Okay. I think that’s worth it.” 

They travelled together upstairs and into the classroom, where several other students milled about quietly. It seemed they hadn’t recovered from the turmoil from last week. 

Faces turned to her, weak smiles in place. Sincere enough, but lacking luster. She didn’t really blame them. She felt like that too. 

After some time, Miss Bustier arrived, and settled everyone in their seats. 

And then there was a knock at the door. 

“Come in.” 

Miss Bustier invited in the devil, and the mother of the devil. 

Lila. Lila was here. 

“Hello, Madam Rossi, are you vouching for Lila’s tardiness?” 

“On the contrary,” the woman said coldly. “Lila won’t be attending your class anymore, or this school, for that matter. But before we leave, I wanted to make sure she apologized to those she wronged.”

My my, what an interesting turn of fate. Lila stood in front, arms crossed, and full of spite. 

“Where’s Mr. Agreste?” Madam Rossi asked. 

“He’s not here,” Marinette supplied. “He’s visiting family.” 

“Ha!” Said Lila. “That proves it! If he wasn’t guilty, he’d be here!” 

“Hush, Lila. I’ve heard enough from you.” Her mother spat. “You, what’s your name?” He looked at Marinette. 

“Uh, Marinette Dupain-Cheng?” 

“Marinette—first of all, I want to apologize to you and your mother. She called me with concerns and I blew her off. In fact, I didn’t know there were any problems until I received a court summons at my workplace. Not only was my daughter lying to me about her after school activities, but she lied about the school being closed to take an extended vacation!” 

There were scoffs of disgust from around the room. 

“Mama...” Lila whined. 

“I said be quiet, child. Your lying has gotten too far out of control and I’ve had enough of it. It’s time your friends knew the truth. And you’re going to tell them. Now.” 

Lila swallowed. “Um...I didn’t actually go with my mother abroad for several months. I was at home. I told her the principal was akumatized and the school was closed.” 

“Now, about Marinette?” 

Lila groaned. “Marinette was right. I didn’t bully her at all. I made all that stuff up...” 

“And regarding Adrien Agreste?” 

“Adrien...never touched me. I lied. I was mad because I was fired from Gabriel for harassing Adrien.” 

“Anything else you want to get off your chest?” 

“No.” 

“Well, that’s a shame.” Madam Rossi huffed. “What do you have to say to Marinette?” 

“...I’m sorry.” 

“For?” 

“For lying.” 

“Not good enough, Lila. Try again.”

Lila hissed, like apologizing was actually, physically painful. “I’m sorry for tattling on you to your mom. And I’m sorry for trying to get you expelled.” 

Marinette pushed her luck. “...and for turning my friends against me?” 

“AND for turning your friends against you.” 

Eh. Good enough. 

“Now, Marinette,” said Madam Rossi. “Lila must apologize to Adrien, but she’s being sent back to Italy right away. Will you record it and make sure he sees it?” 

“Of course, ma’am.” Marinette took out her phone and turned on the camera. “Ready when you are.” 

Madam Rossi nudged her daughter in the ribs. 

“Adrien...I’m sorry I lied about you touching me. I’m sorry I lied to get into modeling with you. And I’m sorry I kissed your cheek without permission...and I'm sorry I spied on you.” With a little shrug, that’s where she ended it. 

Marinette stopped recording and leveled a glare at Lila. “You’re not really sorry, are you? You wouldn’t think anything was wrong if your mom wasn’t here making you apologize.” 

Lila didn’t answer, but her dead-eyed glare spoke volumes. 

“You’re a psychopath.”

“Oh you think you’re so smug! Just because my lies caught up to me first! But you’re just as much as a liar as I am, aren’t you, little miss goody goody?” 

Maybe she was being petty. Maybe it was adrenaline. Or maybe she really didn’t like being called a liar. 

Either way, she held back just long enough to look in her purse. 

Tikki gave her a firm nod. 

Time to be selfish. 

“Tikki, Spots on.” 

In a whirl of pink, Ladybug sat in Marinette’s seat and the room went dead silent. 

Except for Alya, who was making some choked wheezing sounds. 

“Happy now, Lila?” Ladybug said calmly. “Yes, I lied, and flaked, and ditched my friends. I hated every minute of it, but I knew fighting akumas came first, and everything else came second. I couldn’t tell a single soul until Hawkmoth was defeated. Not even my partner.” She leveled her gaze on Lila. “But you? You just lie because you can. You have no plans, you just lie and then lie again when someone calls you out on them. You don’t care. You never cared. All you care about is yourself. That’s the reason you got caught. I chose to reveal my secret because it’s safe now.”

“Shut up!” Lila barked. Then she actually threw a punch at the hero of Paris. 

Naturally, Ladybug dodged it like she had been moving in slow motion. 

“You’re the worst! This whole time I thought there were two stuck up, nosy, holier-than-thou bitches in Paris. But now I see it’s only one. You don’t deserve your fame or your powers! I could have had everything! Popularity! Friends! Adrien! Fame! Even powers like Hawkmoth promised me! But you had to ruin it for me! You always ruin everything! I hate you! I hate you!! ” 

“Alright, we’re done.” Said Madam Rossi. She wrapped her arms around Lila, as she continued to wriggle and scream. “I see now that Italy isn’t going to be a good idea either. We’ll find a nice, quiet...resort for you for a little while.” 

But Lila just continued her screaming and kicking. Her mother had to forcibly pull her from the room. 

The door shut with a slam, Lila’s tantrum muffled down the hall. 

And then, Ladybug stood there, keenly aware of the actions she had just made in front of all her classmates. Even Miss Bustier was slack jawed. 

“I expect all of you can keep a secret of this magnitude. It would be best if you never even saw me transform.” 

Still silence. But Marinette dropped her transformation and sat down. 

Alya was the only one able to find a voice. “Why now? What changed?” 

“It’s safe now.” Marinette explained. “Relatively speaking. I’m certain that there’s people out there who still want to hurt me. But if we all keep this to ourselves, I see no harm.” 

“What about Lila?” Asked Alya. 

“Well, she does have a track record for faultless honesty. Who wouldn’t believe her?” Marinette said sarcastically. 

“Safe?” Nino asked, finding his voice. “Safe how?”

It was the sweetest truth in the world. “Chat Noir and I defeated Hawkmoth.” 

The sentence was like electricity, jolting the room with excitement, cheers, and hugs. Students scrambled to hug her in gratitude. 

“How?! When?!” Barked Alya. “There was no akuma! How did this happen!?”

Miss Bustier sat at the edge of her desk, resigned that there would be no learning today, but she really didn’t mind. 

“Espionage.” Marinette said, matter-of-factly. “And to be honest, it was mostly Chat. We just officially arrested him last night.”

“Who was he? How did it happen?! I need details!” Alya nearly screamed and grabbed her by the collar and shook. 

“Alya, calm down.” Marinette laughed. “I’d love to tell you all the details, but…I haven’t told anyone else yet. I have to address the public and write a speech…but I don’t even know where to start…”

Miss Bustier clapped. “Marinette! I have an idea!” 

She looked to her teacher, skeptical. “Yes?”

“A writing assignment for the class. You give us the details, everyone will take notes, and we’ll help you write the speech! It would be an excellent exercise for writing from an interview.” 

Marinette paused, crossing her arms and looking forward towards Adrien’s seat. 

Again, the news about Gabriel was going to be public at some point. If she could get it out quickly before the other media beat her to it, she might be able to manipulate the story in her favor. As angry as she was with Gabriel, his motive was fine, and he showed…remorse? Maybe he could be redeemed and maybe Adrien could have his family back one day. 

“As long as everyone promises to not talk about it to anyone, I don’t mind sharing the details.” 

There was another cheer around the class as everyone gathered their phones and notebooks to take notes. 

Miss Bustier clarified for everyone, “If you’re recording Marinette, the video promptly gets deleted after the assignment is over. It does not get posted on any social media, or get sent to anyone. This is for Marinette’s safety, do you all understand?”

“Yes, Miss Bustier!” Called the class, unanimously. After the dreadful behavior with Lila, no one was eager to get on Marinette’s bad side again.

Marinette stood at the front of the room, recounting what had happened, with the smallest twist of having Chat Noir as a separate character. If someone did blab, Adrien’s identity would be safe. 

“Adrien’s the hero of our story.” She began. “Gabriel Agreste was arrested last night at 10:30, coming peacefully and quietly. On Thursday night, he confided in his son, that he was in fact, Hawkmoth, and that his assistant was Mayura. He disclosed his purpose was to save the life of his wife Emilie, who had fallen mysteriously ill. He was under the assumption that the only cure was using Chat’s and my Miraculous. It is unknown where he got this idea from. Adrien was skeptical enough to flag down Chat Noir as he was doing a late night patrol. He explained the situation to my partner. From there, they waited until Monsieur Agreste went to sleep, before stealing the Miraculous off of him. Chat then delivered the Butterfly and Peacock Miraculous to me, and further explained the situation. After consulting my resources, we visited M. Agreste and told him it was likely we could still save his wife without the need for our Miraculous. He then willingly gave himself up and apologized. He has been taken into police custody.” 

“Excuse me, Ladybug,” Alya called out, just like in a real press conference. “What happened to Mayura? Is she in police custody as well?”

“I don’t know about that. The police are aware of her involvement, but she was fired by Gabriel earlier this week. She wasn’t with him when he was arrested.”

“Are you going to go after her?”

“No. She no longer has a Miraculous. This is not a job for us anymore.”

Someone else raised their hand, Nathaniel. “How much do you want us to elaborate on Adrien’s involvement?”

“I only have Adrien’s best interest at heart. While I know he’d rather not be mentioned at all, I think it’s extremely important for the media to know that he was not complicit in his father’s actions.” 

“Where is Adrien now?” Asked Chloe, more out of concern than for the assignment. 

“He is with his mother while she gets treated. I won’t disclose that information to the public.” Then she added as a side note, “but if you want to know, ask me later, Chloe.” 

Chloe just took a relieved sigh and nodded to her. It seemed all the previous animosity between her and Ladybug, or even Marinette, had faded with all this new information. 

“Where are the Butterfly and Peacock Miraculous now?” Asked Kim.

“Someplace safe.” Marinette smiled. “There’s no fear of someone else getting a hold of them.” 

“Are Ladybug and Chat Noir retiring now?” Asked Rose, full of emotion.

“Ladybug will continue her patrols, and try to help around the city. I haven’t talked with Chat about what he wants to do.” 

Alya raised her hand again, her eyes shining with excitement. “Any chance of auxiliary heroes getting to join you every once in a while?”

Marinette shrugged. “Perhaps.” There was no reason for them to, but with Gabriel behind bars, there was no reason for them not to. “Any other questions?” 

The class was frantically scribbling down notes, but there were no more raised hands. 

“I have plenty of off the record questions!” Alya called. 

“I’ll answer those later,” Marinette asked. 

“Alright,” began Miss Bustier. “These speeches will be due…Wednesday? Does that work for you, Marinette?”

“That should be perfect.”

“Wonderful. Then I won’t be giving anymore literature homework until then, because I want everyone to focus on this. Please write at least one page, double spaced. But more is fine. Ladybug has the right to edit whichever one she picks.” She glanced at the clock. “Goodness, that was almost the whole hour! I’ll give you the rest of the hour to talk among yourselves.”

—

While stories don’t typically have a happy ending in real life, Marinette was happy to note that things were working out nicely. The fog remained the rest of the week as Adrien stayed away from Paris. Juleka, of all people, ended up writing the most articulate, emotional, and accurate speech out of the bunch, and Ladybug presented it at a press conference with the Mayor. 

Stories of all sorts of accuracies came out of it from the media, but conspiracies were loudly silenced, as Ladybug’s speech in full was available to everyone. Gabriel had yet to make any statements of his own, but his lack of urgency only lended itself to the official story. 

It was over.

Gabriel’s trial would come in time, and Ladybug and Chat Noir would both be expected to testify, but the fight against Hawkmoth was over. 

Despite revealing herself to her family and classmates, Marinette felt light. Unburdened, and guiltless. The raised grades were a bonus. 

There was just one thing missing.

Adrien.

It had been a week since he stepped into that portal with his mother. He hadn’t taken his phone with him, but she never received a message from his baton. Not even a confirmation that he made it safely. 

After several days of solid dependence and partnership, she missed him terribly.

Then finally, late one night, she awoke to a flash of light on her balcony. She was instantly awake, throwing open the door to investigate. 

Belle Noir stood there, alone, and looking exhausted. 

“Adrien?” She asked softly. 

“Miss me, My Lady?”

“Unbelievably.”

Adrien dismissed his transformation and dragged himself over to her room. 

“So what happened? How is she?”

“Still asleep.” He landed on her bed, and took off his shoes. “Not likely to wake up for a while still…but she looks better. They told me to go home, since being around her and watching was making me ill.”

“Are you alright?”

“Just need a shower and a good night’s rest. Can I sleep next to you? I really missed you.”

“I wouldn’t want you anywhere else.”

After showering and shaving, a nice clean Adrien flopped onto Marinette’s bed. He inhaled deeply. “Hmm, I missed this smell.” 

“Weirdo.”

“Smells like bread and cinnamon and pretty girl.” 

“Do you want to hear about all the trouble I got into while you were gone?”

“All of it…if I can stay awake.”

So Marinette told it all, starting on Monday morning with Lila, and leading all the way up to the speech, which she showed him on her phone. 

“You just transformed? In front of everyone?”

She shrugged. “Not my brightest move, but Lila was accusing me of lying too…I just wanted to get it out in the air. I don’t regret it.”

“Did you tell anyone who I am?”

“Nope. I thought about telling Alya and Nino, but your identity is yours to tell. Or to keep a secret. It’s totally up to you.” 

Adrien had his eyes half closed, the comfort of the bed and the warmth from his girlfriend relaxing him to sleep. “I have some ideas.”

“Care to share?”

“No. Too tired.”

“Okay kitty.” She giggled. Then she shuffled down to lay beside him, before he latched on and nuzzled her. “Hmmmmm My Lady.”

“Goodnight Kitty Cat.”

“Night. I love…”

“I love too.”

—

In the morning, Marinette woke up to an empty bed. For a moment, she worried that Adrien coming back last night had been a dream. But his suitcase was open and rifled through. 

Confused, she got up and got dressed, and then came down for breakfast. 

“Morning Miss Hero.” Sabine said fondly.

“Morning mama…did you see Adrien this morning?”

“I didn’t, but your father did. Said he got up really early to take care of some stuff.

“‘Stuff’ huh? Sounds vague.” 

“I don’t know. But he said he’ll meet you at school. So instead of interrogating me, you can go to class and find out for yourself.” 

“Oh I suppose!” Marinette said, dramatically. Then she took a seat at the table and started pouring herself some breakfast. 

“They’re talking about the Hawkmoth story again.” Sabine gestured to the muted TV. “Some people are calling for a reinstatement of the guillotine.”

Marinette scoffed. “Yeah, maybe if there had been any lasting damage, maybe. But as it stands, no one died, no collateral damage…maybe some trauma I guess.”

“You’re being awfully defensive of the man you’ve been fighting the last year.” 

Marinette shrugged. “I just…want Adrien to have his family back. I know Gabriel has to face punishment, and jail might even soften him up to be a better dad when he gets out. I just want him to be able to have his dad in his life…even if it’s just a little bit.”

“Even after all this, he doesn’t hate his father?”

“I couldn’t say.” 

—

The fog had lifted. The morning sunlight was warm and bright, the birds chirped, the flowers bloomed. Adrien was back in Paris, somewhere, and all was right with the word. 

Marinette almost skipped to school.

Half of her class awaited her by the steps, and when she came into view, they all started calling for her. “Marinette! Marinette!” 

“Carry your bag to class?”

“Carry you to class?”

“Guys guys,” she laughed. “I’m flattered, but you don’t need to keep pampering me. It was fun last week, but we’re cool now, okay?”

“We just wanted to let you know that we were sorry and we appreciate you!” Said Rose, enthusiastically.

“I understand. And I forgive you. The cards, and the back rubs, and the foot rubs, and the manicures…I got it. But I don’t want our friendship to revolve around you guys just worshipping me. And I especially don’t want to be treated like this because of who I am. Let’s just…all go for ice cream this weekend?”

“Fine, but I’m paying for your ice cream!”

“No! I want to pay!”

Marinette chuckled to herself and led the throng of followers into the school. Maybe…one more week of being spoiled wouldn’t hurt. Right?

“Have you heard anything from Adrien?” Nino asked, as he asked everyday. 

“Actually, I did! I’m fairly certain he’ll be in class today too!”

Nino pumped his fist. 

“What should we do to make him feel welcome?” Asked Rose. “We were pretty crappy to him last time we saw him. After all he’s been through…”

Marinette looked over the remorseful faces staring at her. They wanted to make things right. 

“I think apologies, hugs, and just being there for him will be enough. I think he’d appreciate affection, but not being treated like he’s fragile. He’s incredibly strong, you know.” 

They all nodded, but she could hear them conspiring with each other about cards and a cake. She wasn’t going to fight them on this. Adrien needed his friends, and sincere ones at that. 

Walking into the classroom, Marinette’s eye immediately fell on the very expensive handbag on her desk. Chloe sat at her own desk, admiring her nails. 

“Is that—?”

“A Hermes Birkin Togo Handbag with gold Hardware? Why yes, it is.” 

“Why is it on my desk?”

Chloe shrugged. “what, that old thing? I got it, but it doesn’t match my wardrobe, so I figured you would appreciate it.” 

“But…this is new this season! It hasn’t even been released yet!”

“Well, it’s old to me. Give it to your mom if you don’t want it. It’s no skin off my nose!” 

Marinette gave her a genuine smile. “Thank you Chloe, this means a lot to me. Especially after all that happened.” 

“Are you talking about my silly little tantrum? Puh-lease. Even I’m not immune to the allure of pretty jewelry. But it won’t happen again, I’m over combs.”

“Well, I’m crazy about this bag, so thank you.” 

Chloe’s mouth twitched before she said, “you’re welcome.”

Alya and Marinette spent the rest of the morning gushing over the bag, because regardless of who it came from, it was a nice bag . Miss Bustier came in and started the lesson.

It was then that Marinette realized Adrien still hadn’t shown up. 

“I thought you said he was coming today?” Whispered Nino.

“I thought he was. He doesn’t have his phone on him anymore either.”

A few minutes passed before a black blur whizzed by the window. It back tracked and Chat Noir landed on the ledge, knocking on the window. 

“Chat Noir?” Miss Bustier asked as Kim opened the window. 

“So sorry I’m late! I was packing up some of my mother’s belongings to take to her later.” He stalked across the room, with Adrien’s bag draped over his shoulder. Then he stopped at Marinette’s desk, before stooping to kiss her on the lips. “Good morning, My Lady. Sorry I left without saying anything. I woke up early and I didn’t want to bother you.” 

“It’s okay.”

“Claws in.” 

And then it all clicked. The class went ballistic. There was screaming, hugs, well-intended punches, and overall excitement. 

Miss Bustier rolled her eyes fondly. “Guess I’ll have to remove your absences too, to be fair.” 

“Oh, sorry. When Marinette told me she revealed her identity to the class, I knew I had to too, and even more dramatically.” 

“You’re such a goober.” Marinette teased fondly.

“But I’m your goober!”