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A man sat quietly on his chair, in the silence of his small prison cell.
There wasn't much in his humble abode. A narrow bed attached to the southern wall, lying on top of it was an equally narrow pale blue mattress. An ordinary plain chair accompanied by a small desk, which was also attached to the wall, opposite the bed. A toilet, along with a sink and a shower without curtains were also in a corner of his cell.
He never felt shameful using them, even though he knew that his every move was being monitored strictly at every moment.
Gabriel had long foregone the feelings of 'humiliation' and 'remorse', he had no use for them, not after his trial.
Whatever dignity he had, was destroyed the moment he was in the heat of his very last battle.
The battle against Monarch.
'The Last Butterfly Battle', as the sensational headlines like to call it. 'The Battle of the Miraculouses', as children will learn in their history books.
"The Final Attempt"
Gabriel likes to call it that. Because out of all things, it suits the event more accurately than all its other titles.
Because,
It really was the final attempt.
Desperate, reckless, barbaric.
What an irony that the last thing he did before getting defeated was what he would consider his worst crime, committed hours before his miraculous was ripped away from his chest.
A cruel joke worthy of a cruel man.
.
.
.
.
His fingers lightly traced the lines on the paper. All the curvy strokes together resembled a face, nothing too refined but worthy of appreciation nonetheless. It was the best that he could produce, given his current lack of stationery.
His cold and slender fingers were his pen, and the dust under his bed was his ink. He is thankful towards the regulations, which allowed him access to a few sheets of paper a month. Before he had thought that he'd go mad with boredom.
There wasn't much to do in a high-security prison, but Gabriel liked the silence. At first he would sometimes just sit quietly on his bed, and stare at the wall silently. But he then began using that abundant free time to create sketches. Something to keep his hands busy.
In the beginning, Gabriel had a jail-mate. But after almost getting killed by said inmate, the authorities secluded him to a single cell, realising that a majority of the criminals here hated his guts to such an extreme height that he would soon wind up dead if exposed to them. The guards hated him too, but they were respected members of society, with a job and families to look after, so they wouldn't throw their lives away by trying to murder him.
And in the end, Gabriel was left rotting in a cold cell, feeling terribly lonely.
There was one other thing too.
Something he can't help but remember, every second whenever he sat with empty hands.
He can't stop himself from going back. Back to that particular day.
...
Gabriel doesn't like sitting still anymore. He needs to do something every second of the day, from waking up to falling asleep. He must always keep his mind occupied.
Think about an idea for an outfit, think of its colours. The way they would hang off of the model's body. The accessories that would elevate the look. Jewellery, make-up, hairstyle...shoes, nails, posture. The theme of the event, the decor of the venue, the music, the stage, even the damn curtains hanging off the windows.
Not that he would ever get a chance to host another show. But it always helped him.
He doesn't talk to anyone any more, and slowly all that he ever saw were the same four walls cramped around him.
But...
He does hear things.
From the gaps of the cold metal bars, the only link between him and the other side. Bits and pieces of the world outside that he left behind, the talk between guards. Gabriel didn't expect it but, that also became a source of comfort for him.
It was mostly some mindless gossip, something he would have rolled his eyes and even frowned upon in his previous life. But Gabriel didn't expect to hang onto it so tightly.
It was the only source of information.
Sometimes it was about someone he was unacquainted with, sometimes it was about the people he knew.
And over the years Gabriel had found out quite a lot just through eavesdropping on the guard's conversation. How André had left the political sphere, and was now living a quiet (but peaceful) divorced life in Paris along with his two daughters. How Audrey initiated the divorce and left France altogether, completely abandoning her family.
"...And her career is no longer at its peak, I guess that's karma for you."
"..Honestly, I expected the mayor's daughter to throw a tantrum that she wanted to go to New York with her mother. I heard that she is a complete psycho like her mom.."
Gabriel thought so too, Chloe was an exact replica of her mother in all manners. From her scorn-filled glare to her malicious smirk. To think that she'd just let her role model go, she must have changed.
Gabriel wondered what could have caused that.
.
.
.
"Did you hear? Tomoe Tsurugi got arrested this morning!"
"Huh? Really?"
"Apparently, she was also in cahoots with Monarch!"
"What?! That's crazy...oh my God...Doesn't she have a daughter?"
Oh yeah...I feel so bad for her...
Over the ten years that Gabriel had spent in this place, he had not once been paid any visits. And after two years he stopped expecting any. Even now whenever he thinks about it, who would visit him anyway?
His parents were no longer alive, and Gabriel wasn't one to have meaningful friendships with others. He could imagine Amélie barging in to shout at him, God knows he deserves it. But even more than that, he could see Felix taunting him through the thick separation glass.
Yet his line was visitors was empty.
Ladybug wouldn't visit him, she had seen enough of him to last a lifetime.
Adrien.
No.
That was unthinkable. A terrifying prospect that Gabriel couldn't help but hope for, every time he heard footsteps move outside his cell. Adrien, Adrien, Adrien. Gabriel doesn't know what he would say to his son, to Emilie's son, to their son.
It wasn't right for the man to still claim the boy as his, Adrien changed his name after Monarch's trial. Adrien Agreste was no longer a name associated with the young man, the boy didn't want any attachments to the monster that helped create him.
It was hard, rightfully so, Gabriel thinks. Hard to accept that the one person who Gabriel had left in his cold world would too decide to leave him. Gabriel fought, screamed, begged, but the reality didn't change. Time stopped when Adrien stepped onto the podium to testify against his f̸̜̋̇ả̸̯̞t̷͉͈͑̔h̴̢̡͠e̵̘͈̾r̶̻̂͜, whatever last bit of self-restraint the man had was all lost when he saw those familiar golden locks come forward.
What was once a face filled with adoration and love was cold and hurt. That day, it was Emilie's emerald eyes that poured into Gabriel. Full of anger, full of sadness, full of betrayal.
Gabriel didn't listen to whatever his son said in court, he couldn't. All he did was stare into those fiery green eyes, wondering if the ghost of his dead wife was wrapped around Adrien like a blanket of warmth. That day, yes....Gabriel is sure of it. It wasn't just Adrien standing against him, it was his love, his life, his everything.
By the end of it, he was screaming. At least, he must have been because the guards dragged him away from the court, the entirety of which was standing and watching him wide-eyed, shoving and pulling. He remembers the flashes of cameras blinding him, his throat acheing and hoarse, the darkness of the holding cell.
And his son's g̵͖̽r̶̺͝e̵͚̚é̵̜̐ņ̶̩̚ eyes staring into his own dull grey ones.
That was the last time he saw Adrien. That was fifteen years ago, he believes.
He wondered how the boy (he must be grown by now, right?) was doing. Was he living a life of privacy? Had he moved from France? Completely changed his name, even Adrien? It is such a pleasant-sounding name (Émilie chose it for him after all) it was a little unfair to change it just to spite Gabriel, wasn't it? He had already forgone Agreste Ȧ̶͓̃̆̾g̴̨͌͊͐͊r̶̗̣̭͊́ë̸̩̭̚s̸̗̠͎̀̒t̷̡̜̜͕͗e̶̫͕̐̓̓͊ Ȧ̶͓̃̆̾g̴̨͌͊͐͊r̶̗̣̭͊́ë̸̩̭̚s̸̗̠͎̀̒t̷̡̜̜͕͗e̶̫͕̐̓̓͊....
What was he thinking? If there was any reason for Adrien to change his name, it would be to protect himself, not to frustrate his locked-up father.
A rough stroke swiped across the paper, dividing the face in half. The lifeless eyes stared back at the artist, colourless and unfeeling. Gabriel tore the paper in half.
Lately, he had been having dreams. Something he thought had completely abandoned him too. Or maybe he was just unable to sleep at all since all he saw in those dreams was the roof of his cell. But, in those 'dreams', he would hear voices. At first, he thought that it was the guards, but then he heard his wife's voice and came to a second conclusion, that he was going insane.
He'd never remember what the words were, but always woke up with a gaping pit in his chest, unable to breathe. He knows that it is Emilie's voice, but never, never able to remember what she said. It was like his mind was torturing itself as a twisted form of penance. His wife's voice was there, every night, right there in the cell with him but never within his reach.
Then it was Adrien.
Then it was Nathalie.
Then it was Emilie again.
Then it was Adrien again.
He doesn't know when it started but it was recent. Or maybe it had been happening since the day they threw him into this cell but only now he had come to realise. But every day when he wakes up, Gabriel feels a crushing weight on his chest (and his face wet with tears).
But today was different. Today neither of his loved ones came to haunt his dreams.
It was Ladybug.
And what was so odd, was that unlike all his previous dreams (or are they nightmares?) Gabriel can remember word for word, the conversation he had with the heroine.
The cold hard surface of his bed is pressed against his back. Gabriel can see the dark ceiling of his cell, and the edges of the concrete where the walls met. Like always, he wonders when sleep would overtake him, or if he was already asleep. It had been getting harder to differentiate between dreams and reality when he lay down at night.
Then he heard something move in his small confinement, it was far away at the opposite corner of the space.
'Maybe it's a rat', he wondered, even while knowing full well that the prison was so well guarded that it was no rat. The tapping sound was quiet, almost inaudible, but nothing could truly go unheard in Gabriel's dark cell at night. It takes him a while to realise that the rat is quite big, and very good at moving quietly, so it couldn't possibly be a rat.
Maybe it is one of the guards, (Gabriel doesn't remember the door opening) that had come to murder him in his sleep. He knew that there always was a possibility, he had been threatened by it a few times, but none actually came forward to go through with it (much to the man's relief? disappointment? He wasn't sure anymore).
Then he heard a voice, causing his entire body to become rigid. He hadn't heard that voice in years, but he doesn't think that he could ever forget it. It was the same as the day he last heard her, still with that hint of schoolgirlish lightness, followed by the authority of a battle-grown leader. No difference, none. She must be in her mid-thirties, (just like Adrien, his sweet boy) her voice should have smoothed over and matured. But it didn't, it was stuck in the last form that Gabriel had heard it in.
"Monarch"
There was no anger behind it, something that always accompanied his name whenever it was spoken by the girl. It was odd to hear it in this manner, it sounded more like she was greeting an old acquaintance rather than a defeated enemy. Unfeeling, but firm. Gabriel stared at the dark ceiling, sure that he wasn't alone.
"Ladybug", he spoke back, his voice was soft with years of unuse, nothing like the proud and dark supervillain he once was, fighting for years against the very person that was in the cell uninvited. Time had passed with Monarch but Ladybug was still in the past, just without the hatred that always accompanied her during battle.
"Have you come here to kill me?", Gabriel couldn't help but ask, although he would be surprised if the answer was 'yes'. But then again, he would also be surprised if the answer was 'no' either.
The voice remained quiet, and then he heard the sound of his chair being pulled aside and something settling down on it. He couldn't believe it, was Ladybug here to talk? What was she going to say? 'How has jail been?' 'Do you feel remorse yet?' 'Just kidding, I really am here to kill you'?
Then, right when he had begun to think that she had left, "I don't feel that kind of hatred towards you, I never did". Gabriel doesn't believe that, how can she not?
That makes him turn his head towards the desk, (had he ever turned his head in his previous dreams? He doesn't recall), and he sees the silhouette of the girl sitting on the chair. He can faintly make out the red colour of her suit, the dark spots where the dots are supposed to be. Even in the darkness, he can make out her face, it is calm. He has never seen her calm. She is still a girl, with a slender frame and young physique. Truly, nothing has changed about her. Not her voice, not her appearance, her hero suit or even her hairdo.
All but one thing. Her calmness. That was something he doesn't remember seeing during his time chasing after her miraculous.
"Then are you here to lecture me?", he tries again. He doesn't know why he's indulging her, maybe the years of isolation had finally cracked him. Or perhaps this was a dream, no one is able to control their impulses in their dreams. He sees her hands lie flat on her knees, her blue eyes being the only reflecting surface in this chamber.
"To talk, I doubt that we have ever properly done that", she said as she maintained her unfazed gaze upon him, she said it so casually that Gabriel almost scoffed in disbelief. Surely that wasn't so?
But the girl's serious expression makes him believe her words.
"Why?", he asked his third question, feeling the hard surface of the bed leave his back. The world rotated back, and he saw her sitting straight on his chair. Gabriel sat opposite to her on his bed, his posture mirroring her. Casual but firm, like you are visiting a guest that you aren't close with, yet familiar all the same. Ladybug and Monarch are the furthest thing from close, but very, so very familiar with each other.
"Because this the last time we will ever see each other, don't you think that we should lay down any past regrets?", She asked, leaning forward on the chair. Her tone had a bit more emotion this time, like she was frustrated with his lack of participation.
Yes, there was the sentimental mumbling girl Gabriel knew. Of course she was here to see him one last time as an act of closure. To soothe herself no doubt, very well, Gabriel will indulge her wishes. He owed it to her had, quite literally, nothing else to do.
And if this did turn out to be a dream, then why not?
Gabriel stood up and came close to her sitting form, she looked up to maintain his gaze. Then Gabriel spoke again, "What could we possibly even have to talk about? Nothing. You won and I lost, I am in jail serving my sentence until I get murdered or the time comes for my execution. There is nothing to talk about". He was angry, no...he was enraged. Why must he see her again? After all these years of avoidance, why was she here now?
Gabriel knew that his time was over, he could feel it deep in his guts, in his chest whenever he laid down to stare up at the dark ceiling at night. Fifteen years had gone by, of that he was sure of. He was going to get executed. He was going to die.
He still remembers how cold the paper felt in his fingers, the numbness that washed over him upon reading and rereading the words. The warden watched him with a stoic gaze, showing no emotions. Not that the other man would have noticed regardless. Gabriel stayed dead silent, and then quietly thanked the warden for informing him.
There was no appeal to be made, no need for Gabriel to see his lawyer's face again, no need for any religious counselling (He never had faith to begin with). There was only a renewal of the same acceptance that Gabriel had come to terms with fifteen years ago at his trial.
Maybe....maybe he accepted it the moment he was dragged away from the courtroom. What need does he have to live if his son hates him?
But the girl didn't flinch at his anger, even when he slammed a fist right next to her on the table causing it to rattle. She kept looking at him with that pathetic look in her eyes, that look of pity that Gabriel hated.
Then she said softly, "Let's go outside and talk, shall we?"
Gabriel tensed as the metal door opened abruptly with a sudden screech. He can count on one hand the number of times that has happened, but what was beyond that door made him blink in confusion. It wasn't the cold and narrow hallway that Gabriel had only ever seen glimpses of, not the dark and guard-filled corridor that he was expecting.
It was a park, bloody Place des Vosges. Gabriel's eyes quivered in pain as the bright sunlight poured into his cell, making him raise his hand for protection. Ladybug got up from the chair and walked out of the cell, but the pain in his eyes and his natural distrust for the heroine didn't stop him from following her out. He stood outside the door, his eyes wide with disbelief. He has been here an uncountable number of times, but seeing it after so long made him feel as though he would burn if he took another step.
.
.
.
Slowly and hesitantly, he raised his hand to touch a nearby tree. His fingers traced the rough bark, dipping into the cracks between them intimately. The feeling was so familiar yet so foreign, he felt like it was his body that moved outside, but his mind was still huddled up in a corner deep inside the cell.
He doesn't like it.
Ladybug didn't say anything, but she was watching him. Gabriel moves away from the tree, and down an unfamiliarly familiar path. The sun doesn't hurt his eyes as bad now, and he is starting to feel warm. The carousel is at a distance, he can see its red and black themed seats standing still in the shade. The fountain sprayed out water neatly and with elegance. Gabriel vaguely remembers a lot of Adrien's photo shoots being taken in that exact spot.
He knows that he is in the park, but he can't fully feel it. Something feels amiss, like that nagging feeling you get when you think that you are forgetting something. It puts him on edge and makes his shoulders tense and rigid. He is no longer able to relax and enjoy the feeling of the sun on his face.
From the corner of his eye, he can see his old adversary walking beside him. Unlike him, Ladybug has a tranquil and oddly nostalgic look on her face, as if she is looking through an old album. This further unsettles the man, making his previous paranoia crawl back up.
This is the perfect place to do it, he thinks, to get rid of me. No one is around, just the two of them in the park. Ladybug with the power of a miraculous and Gabriel just a defenceless old man---
Ah-ha! This is what initially put him off. The complete lack of people.
Gabriel hates crowds. The noise, the simple moving around of multiple faces gave him immense irritation but, people were not what he hated. He is a man who likes privacy but not isolation, silence but not emptiness. And a park without people was like a dress without a model.
But he supposes that it is a good thing that no one was here. What would people think after seeing the supervillain who terrorized Paris for years, roaming around in the open along with a hero, like a father out on a walk with his daughter?
Gabriel came to a stop near an open space, the large patch of grass making a perfect place for a picnic. He wonders if this is the exact spot where he gifted his wife with the very instrument that killed her. That birthed his son, he reminded himself as horror and shame filled his gut for even daring to think such a thing. But something is missing, now this he is sure of.
Gabriel knows that this place is not supposed to be empty, but what exactly used to fill it? He can't remember. He closed his fists in frustration, he hates forgetting. He remembers feeling a great amount of hatred and misery when this space, this spot, was occupied by that 'thing'. He remembers venting to Nathalie for the entire day because the sacred spot where he made precious memories with his wife was defiled by the people preventing him from getting her back-
Ladybug and C̵̨̨̰̫̫͚͎̥̺̲̟͈̳̮͙͇̟̺͇̦̞͍̮͕̝͍͖̱̥̠̫̜̘͔̺̱͔̋̉͠ḩ̵̛̛̛͕̰̤̘̗̥̹̩͉̳͈̜̱̰̺̌͆̌̿̐͛̐̓̈́̈́̽̆̃͆͆̆̽̒̾͝͝͠͠͝ͅä̴̗̙̲̲͍̳͈̙̹͇̩̺͕͖͙͚́̌̾̄̍͐̇̓͌̂̀̂̾͒͆̈́̄͑͆͗̃͝͝͠͝͝͝ͅt̴̡̮͚̭̖̗̮͎͍̮̲͇̤̳͗̎́̅͐̽́̇̀̍͑̍̿͛̔̀͊͊̓̍̒̾̌̆́͑̌̊̍̕̚͘͝͝͝͝͠ͅ ̴̯̖͙͚̳͙̻̻͙̥͎̖̲̣̖̱̟̼͒͆̽͑̐͂ͅN̵̨̛̜̖̭̭͖̝̼̗̲̫̞̩͕̤̜̜̗̼͔̪̓̆͐́́̊̎͆̇͌̓͂́͛̽̌́́̌̉̌̓͐̓̓̆͋̀̕͘̕͜ͅͅͅȍ̴̤͈̦̫̅ͅị̴̛̺͚̬̪̃̒̑͊́͌͆ŗ̵̢̟̦̹͓̟̮̠̣̞͎̖̞͕͇̣̬̟͔̮̤̼̗̺͉̱͓̊͜
Gabriel could feel that familiar surge of loathing coming back and when he turned his head to look at the girl, he felt his fingers digging into his palm, itching to wrap around her throat. Whatever fragile threads of civility the man had were quivering with tension. Why was he angry to begin with? It wasn't her decision for the statue to be built, or for its unfortunate placement. In fact, Gabriel could almost discern that the girl preferred had it not been made at all.
But now the grass was empty and the object of Gabriel's wrath didn't even exist, yet why was he angry?
"I remember there being a statue here of you and your partner", Gabriel spoke without thinking, his voice sounding funny when he said the word 'partner'. And the girl faltered with surprise, her eyes were wide as if Gabriel had just revealed some deeply hidden secret.
"I didn't think you'd remember that", she said once she found her voice, she looked so surprised that Gabriel almost wanted to roll his eyes.
"Hard to forget", he said with faked nonchalance, it was a lie, he did forget.
But after the silence was broken, Gabriel felt oddly talkative. He really was getting lonely, wasn't he? To seek out her company of all people.
"Are you still fighting akumas?", they were walking again, but this time with a slower pace.
On this side of the park, Gabriel wasn't desperate to see the trees and the benches, this time he was walking with more.... serenity? After his initial wave of rage towards the girl cooled down, he realised that he had quite a lot of questions to ask her, but not sure where to begin. So he chose the easiest path.
Ladybug shook her head, unlike him she preferred to maintain eye contact with him while walking, it unnerved him a little. Or maybe she's just making sure that I don't run off, he thinks with equal parts irritation and amusement.
"We took back the butterfly miraculous a few months ago, Paris is safe now", she said with a small smile, but there was a darkness in her eyes, a reminder that it was no easy feat. 'Safe from people like you', Gabriel mentally added for her, he had no idea if she actually thought that when the shadow passed her face.
Four years, Monarch's reign lasted for that long. In that amount of time, he attacked not just Paris, but New York, Shanghai, London, Delhi, and many more major cities all around the globe. He found the guardian and nearly stole the miraculous box, so close yet so far, he stole the translation of the grimoire and fixed that wretched peacock miraculous. Then he finally did steal the other miraculouses from right under Ladybug's nose. He became so powerful that he had no way of losing. What did the small defeats matter if he was winning the war? It was sixteen against two.
And then he began losing. He lost the rabbit, he lost Ń̵̢̹̟͔̤͎̯͔̼͝ã̷̜̞̪̯̮̞t̴͓͙͊̍̈̽͐̆̎̚̚h̶̥̓̈́̈́̿͗͘͠a̶̧͓̔͂̀̃͝ͅl̵̡̼̻̱̺̗̞̫͍̪͛̔̐͂̌̃͑͝͠͝͠î̶̡̖̙̽̈́́̒̈́̕ě̶̢̡̯̳̫̳̽̌́̋͜, he lost his mind, he lost his soul. His son.
Then he lost.
Time stopped for Monarch, but it didn't for the heroes. The Butterfly fell away from both their hands, and a new era started.
Monarch was packed in a cell and forgotten, locked away until the day would come for them to kill the past. Because they didn't have time to spend on him, as another tyrant rose with the same first step as him; alone with the butterfly miraculous.
And that was the last thing that Gabriel knew of the outside before the gates were shut and he was locked in that small cell for 15 years.
But Fantôme was a slower, more deadlier poison. The last 15 years were proof of that.
"You were never akumatized", Ladybug pointed out with a curious voice, "After you lost". For some reason, she felt the need to clarify, but Gabriel was mulling over something else. She doesn't know, does she?
"That is true, although Miss Rossi did try", he said as he watched a single butterfly fly down on a flower. There weren't that many in the park.
There was a complete halt of footsteps from beside him, and Gabriel only noticed this when he heard the leaves blow gently with the breeze. He turned his eyes away from the insect and back at Ladybug, whose body was stiff and rigid. Her shocked eyes darted about his face for any signs of deception or tricks, and Gabriel finally felt familiarity in her tense expression.
"You knew", she said, her tone was no longer warm with a sort of friendly undertone that she had been maintaining till now. In her face, there was a flicker of hurt that Gabriel couldn't quite place. Was she disappointed in him for not reporting the identity of Fantôme? Was she really this naive that she expected him to help her after she defeated him? There was a time Gabriel would have scoffed at this, but now he was genuinely baffled.
"You give me too much credit, I figured it out once she tried to akumatize me", he said coolly, he again stared at the flower, not wanting to see the pitiful expression on her face. "Even if I did know, I had no one to tell. I doubt that the guards would listen to the words of an international terrorist".
He very well could have tried, maybe even wriggled out a reduced sentence if he was lucky enough. But he had no desire to do so, because either way he had nothing left. With nothing left to lose, why not just live out the rest of his days in confinement where he would at least be safe from those who want to exact revenge on him?
"I suppose you're right...", he heard the girl say from behind him, but from her tone, he could tell that the girl was distressed. Why did it matter now? She just told him that they have the butterfly with them now, so why should it matter that Gabriel knew about the villain's identity from the beginning?
After gathering some courage, Gabriel turned away from the flower and looked back at Ladybug. And to his surprise, she had a relieved and rueful smile. Her eyes were saddened with an unspoken tragedy, but there was also relief in those bright blues.
"I knew too", she said after a while and Gabriel raised his eyebrow, which she took as a sign to continue, "Or at least, I had a suspicion, which I confirmed after I contacted her family", she put an emphasis on 'family'. The reason of which Gabriel didn't ask why.
She looked out in the distance, to somewhere Gabriel didn't know. Then the young heroine sighed and Gabriel got a sudden feeling that she does that a lot. She met his gaze and said, "She disappeared in thin air after getting the miraculous, even if you did report her it would have been useless".
Well, that was something, the man mused.
"But...", there was that odd look again, like she was analysing him, "How did you know?"
He figured that she would ask eventually, so the man shrugged slightly, jail time had not been well for his manners. "The way she spoke made it obvious that she wanted to work up an alliance with me. And what truly gave it away was the fact that she mentioned of us becoming a formidable duo, so familiarly as if we had already done so in the past. It didn't take long to connect the dots, there was only ever one person, that I akumatized, who was devious to this extent".
It was the night after Adrien's testimony. Gabriel was put in a temporary holding cell. He remembers the sleepless nights, the perpetual haziness and most of all, the unbearable ache in his chest for months after that trial. But the pain was the most searing that night, Gabriel remembers screaming until his throat was hoarse, he remembers banging his head against the door until the guards dragged him away from the metal and strapped him up on the bed. Was he sedated at some point? He doesn't remember. But the pain was so agonizing that he was convinced that he was going to die.
And at night, after the guards had made sure that he was in no position to endanger himself, after they had somewhat relaxed, Fantôme struck.
He remembers sweet promises pouring into his ears like honey into a bear's mouth. He remembers the assurance of freedom, a place to hide, of revenge. But Gabriel who had spent hours screaming, stayed quiet.
What use was freedom? He was never free. If he wasn't enslaved by his obsession with defeating Ladybug, he was enslaved by his grief. What use was a place to hide? If he was hiding then he could not be free, and if he was free then he shouldn't be hiding.
And revenge? Miss Rossi had completely miscalculated him. Revenge? Against who? Ladybug? For defeating him and ripping away the brooch from his chest? Nathalie? Who was already dead? Chat Noir? For stopping his own father?
No, whatever vengeance Gabriel had died the moment the courtroom door slammed shut, separating Adrien from Gabriel. People take revenge for momentary satisfaction, to ease the burden on their chest. But no amount of revenge would bring Adrien back to him. And Gabriel wasn't a wasteful man, he didn't do things that he knew would ultimately result in nothing.
For reasons unknown, Ladybug didn't inquire for details. He was akumatized, she can imagine why. But how Miss Rossi failed to entrap him in her snare, she didn't make any moves to know. He supposes that she realised that it didn't matter anymore, much like how he thought that him knowing Fantôme's identity didn't matter anymore. Both came to an unspoken common ground.
How long had it been? The sun hadn't moved a bit, but Gabriel felt as though hours had passed. He looked back to see that empty area of the park, where once he and his wife sat laughing, madly in love, where once stood the remainder of his failures set in stone. It was just another patch of grass.
"I want to see the manor"
It was as the words left his mouth that he realised what he wanted. He wanted, no, needed to see the house, his home, their home. He didn't care for the park, or its rare butterflies, or that patch of grass which he claimed as theirs. No, he wanted to go home. To Adrien, to Emilie, to Nathalie. To a time when all four coexisted in that manor, nothing mattered except his wife's smile, his son's laughter and his best friend's light-hearted jabs. To a time that never happened.
Gabriel doesn't remember how he said it but Ladybug was now looking at him with what he could only call pity. He grimaced as he turned away from her, but tightened his fists. Let her pity me, he thought bitterly. But anyhow, whether it be by begging or threatening (he momentarily forgot his lack of miraculous), he needed to see his home.
The girl didn't deny him, but didn't accept his request either. If anything she looked conflicted, biting her lip in indecision. "Are you sure you want that?", she asked, her face once again becoming calm and devoid of any emotions.
What a stupid question, of course he wants to! That is why he was asking, wasn't he?
But Gabriel's antagonizing internal monologue was stopped abruptly when he saw traces of worry in her eyes. 'Are you sure you can handle it?', That was her intended question, but whether it be because of politeness or pity, the girl didn't voice it.
"Please", he begged, his voice wavering uncharacteristically, 15 years ago he would he would have never resorted to begging to his enemy. "I need to see it. Please".
With every second of her silence, Gabriel felt his anguish rise. Gabriel knew that if she were to tell him to get on his knees and ask for forgiveness for every akuma, he would. Tell him to go out to a crowd of Parisians undefended, he would. All for a chance to get a glimpse of his home again.
She stared back at his pleading face with a calm one. Gabriel was surprised at her control over her features, she had surely grown. Then his heart speedened as he heard her words.
"Fine"
In his moment of immense relief, Gabriel watched with a hazy mind as the girl took out a sphere from her yo-yo. It was patterned with the same colours as her, a luckycharm no doubt. She held the bottom of the sphere and gently rotated its upper half like a dial. The large black screen on the top blinked, Gabriel could faintly see a picture of the park on it before it got lost in a flurry of images.
As he looked up, Gabriel stiffened as he saw the trees disappear one by one, the grass beneath his feet flattened and morphed into cement. The buildings in the distance faded as walls sprang up from the ground, surrounding the two. And at last, his breath hitched as he saw the front of the manor standing proudly before him. Just as it had many many years ago.
And for a moment, everything was okay again—he was home.
He would go to his office, be reminded of his schedule by Nathalie, and open his monitor. Adrien would soon come back from school. As Gabriel’s pen glided across the screen, he would faintly hear the sound of the piano playing—a subtle reminder that Adrien was in the house. Maybe he would try his luck again at defeating the heroes, or perhaps he would simply have a peaceful day inside.
Yes, everything was back where it belonged. Gabriel was a man of routine; any disruption affected him greatly, but it never took long for him to fall back into rhythm. He couldn’t remember what he had been doing before he left the house, but he must have left at some point, right? The fact that he was outside was proof of that. But why was he outside alone? Where was Nathalie?
"Here we are"
Gabriel's little fantasy was crushed the moment he heard the voice of Ladybug behind him, bringing him back to reality. There was no Nathalie, no Adrien coming back from school, no monitor holding his designs, no chime of piano in that cold empty house.
He took a stiff step forward, but not towards the entrance, instead in the direction of the garden. The white walls were covered with flowering vines, pink petals blooming out throughout the year. He spread out his arm, his fingertips traced the lush leaves as he combed through them. He can hardly remember ever doing this, having used to admiring them from afar. Yet the coolness of the leaves grounded him, letting him have a small victory against Ladybug's knowledge--a small illusion that he was home.
He kept walking, one two three four five six... as expected, the flower changed from here and the leaves increased in density. Small victories... See that Ladybug? He is still the master of his memories! No amount of time in prison can take away what was imprinted in his mind palace, his lips curled up at that thought. He is sure that the girl couldn't care less for his ability to recall his past, but the fact that he still could--brought him a bizarre sense of triumph over her. A petty, childish triumph.
His feeling of satisfaction dissipated as he saw a small arch buried snugly in the flowering wall. A marble bench was under the archway, white and smooth as a pearl. Upon that bench was the statue of an equally white woman sitting down. On her face was a gentle smile, her almond-shaped eyes were gazing out at Gabriel, her presence there in moments. Her features were just as he remembers, the marble carved in the shape of her hair, sitting on her left shoulder. It looked so real, all that was missing was the colour in her cheeks and eyes.
But she's gone, Gabriel felt the pit in his heart deepen to impossible depths. How many times had he wished to be back, just so he could run a hand down her marbled face? Too many, and yet here he stood frozen. He felt cold, his spine shivered violently. It was wrong, Gabriel breathed out shakily as the realisation dawned upon him. This was wrong, he shouldn't be here, standing in front of Emilie's statue just as he did fifteen years ago. It was an insult, to her wish, to her memory, to her existence. To stand here in front of her immobile sculpture, with old familiar thoughts brewing in his head.
Thoughts of going back to the window of his observatory, to transform and hunt for the miraculouses.
Gabriel shuddered, panting-half breaths escaping his lungs as he turned away from the figure. He was shaking, his nails were digging into his palm painfully. He couldn't stop it--not even after fifteen years. The impulsive hunger for the power of his miraculous, the feeling of holding the dark oozing butterfly in his palm. The thrill and adrenaline rising in his chest with every strike that hit the heroes, the intoxicating feeling that victory was close whenever an akumatized villain cornered them.
"You used to do this out of love for Emilie, but now, you're only doing this out of madness!"
No.
Gabriel felt his face sneer in self-hatred. He will not think of her words, he will not remind himself of the pain that it caused him. He began moving again, the archway becoming smaller and smaller until it couldn't be seen anymore as he turned the corner. His hands pressed firmly against the grand wooden doors, no tremors like he initially thought he would get. Somehow recollection of that particular conversation (or confrontation?) hardened Gabriel against his volatile emotions, he wordlessly opened the door with a push.
Marble floor leading up to a grand staircase, cuboidal pillars supporting the floor above, framing the entrance but not overshadowing it. Multiple lamps hung from the tall ceiling, dimmed because of the light that entered from the windows. Gabriel's eyes fell on the pattern on the floor, symmetric, black, sophisticated.
Gabriel placed his hand on the railing, feeling the smoothness of it as he slid it up alongside him. He counted each step as it led him up, up to the platform where hung a large portrait of him and his son.
He gently caressed the painting, the pressure under his fingers grounding him. He was here, he reminded himself once again. This isn't a fragment of his imagination.
"Adrien...", Gabriel said with a shaky whisper, his heart hammered at the sight of his son. His Adrien, their Adrien. He didn't know what he was feeling, pain and regret? That much was obvious. But a different, more hurtful emotion clawed his chest as he put his palm flat against the flat surface of the artwork.
After the trial was over and Gabriel was locked up, he used to imagine meeting Adrien again. He used to ponder and think up the words he would like to say to him--at first, they used to be angry, then after a few days, desperate. Over time, Gabriel thought up a hundred apologies, explanations and justifications. The pain of betrayal faded, and all Gabriel wanted was to see Adrien again.
"How could you do this to your own father?!"
"I know you think that I'm a monster..."
"It was for you, It was always for you Adrien..."
"I couldn't bear the loss of your mother..."
"I know that you will never forgive me..."
"Please...Please, Adrien...Please let me look at you..." Gabriel looked back at the emerald eyes on the painting, his heart clenching and twisting painfully. He had never noticed just how sad Adrien looked before. .
.
.
The office was just like he remembers it. The black and white checkered floor spread across the large room, a small set of stairs leading down to a sitting area accompanied by a long glass table. A desk in the corner, right beside the entrance, the man couldn't handle looking at it for long.
And at the end of the long room stood an elevated platform. A large screen still standing in wait for him, and the large portrait of Emilie behind it all, the portrait that still haunted his nightmares. Gabriel sucked in a breath, a sudden chill ran down his spine as he gazed at the emerald eyes of his wife. How awful was it that Gabriel could stoke the colourless statue, and only observe the lively face of Emilie in the portrait?
The thought had been gnawing in his chest ever since he saw the painting in the hallway, but only now did he utter it out. "I shouldn't have come here", Gabriel said with a faint voice, and Ladybug watched him sadly. He didn't want her pity.
"I was afraid that you weren't ready, even after all this time", she said, in her eyes, there was pity, or at least that is what Gabriel saw.
He ran his hand down the painting's smooth surface, he remembered the touch, the very minute ridges under his fingertips. Yes... He remembers it just like yesterday. Index finger goes here..thumb goes here...a little more to the left...
"Stop"
Gabriel flinched, his eyes were blown wide open as his fingers stayed glued to the painting, all of them over some very specific buttons. He didn't even realise what he was doing, and suddenly nauseating guilt flooded his throat. He immediately dropped his hand, grabbing his right wrist with his left hand, as if to restrain it. He couldn't stop the tremors that racked his hands.
The girl shook her head, instead of taking on a defensive stance with her yo-yo spinning like he expected her to take, the girl had both of her hands outstretched halfway in his direction--moving in a placating motion. There was no shock in her face, no anger, no betrayal, just sadness and understanding.
"Stop", she repeated, this time with a gentler tone, "She isn't there anymore".
Something stopped moving in Gabriel's chest, he felt as though he was falling. "What do you mean?", he asked, his mouth dry.
Ladybug looked back at him with those same sad-looking eyes,
"She's not here anymore".
.
.
.
It was nearly evening, Gabriel was surprised that time still moved in this domain, he was damn sure that it didn't before. He was standing on a bridge that looked out to the Eiffel Tower with a cone of ice cream in his hand--pistachio with chocolate drizzles and crushed almonds on top. He wasn't hungry, but Ladybug wasn't having any of that. She pestered him until he was almost ready to fight her barehanded, miraculous be damned. He reassured her many times that he was alright, and infuriatingly the girl could see through his poor lie. He supposes that his awful poker face was to blame.
It was a shock, and Gabriel wasn't coping well. But why was it even a shock at this point? He had long come to terms with the fact that Emilie wasn't, couldn't stay alive anymore. It was the first thing he realised the moment he lost. Not the failure of his plan, not the pain of his injuries, not even the pain of fighting his own son, but the fact that he was going to lose Emilie for good now.
It was an assumption, based on everything that Adrien said before he knew who his father was, and what was in the recording that Emilie left behind herself. He mourned her, every single day he mourned her death. But hearing its certainty from someone else, someone who was intimately intertwined with the events that led to that conclusion, seemed to open a new wound in his heart.
The pain was duller than when he had freshly lost, but made him feel as though every step weighed a ton. There was a dullness in the world as he saw it, like all colours had lost their lustre. Yes, he had accepted Emilie's death long ago, but a small part of him, a small delusional part of him still hoped that the world was turned upside down and she was still alive. In a coma-like state, barely hanging on to life, strung up to dozens of machines or perhaps just left alone in that butterfly-filled basement, surrounded by its magnificence--but still alive.
He was a monster. Wishing for such an awful existence to befall his true love instead of letting her rest in peace. It was this exact monster that picked up the butterfly miraculous will malicious intent, that schemed and planned suffering upon his opponents, his son.
"It's melting, you know?"
His self-loathing musings came to a pause as he heard the sound of a yo-yo zipping to the railing behind him. Gabriel continued staring at the Tower, purposefully ignoring the confectionery in his hand, his jaw twitched as he felt a cold sticky drop sliding down his skin. He should have never agreed to the ice cream, the girl would have tired eventually in making her ridiculous request. Even more, he regrets letting the girl choose the flavour.
As if reading his cold sneer, the young heroine shrugged unapologeticly. And instead prompted to eat her own pink-coloured cone, "If you didn't want pistachio then you should have said something", causing Gabriel to direct his glare towards her.
As a rule, Gabriel doesn't like ice cream at all. In his youth he discovered very quickly his pension for falling sick easily and avoided anything cold, gradually developing a dislike for them. Emilie always found his avoidance of ice cream to be rather cute, like a child refusing to eat vegetables. Of course, if she ever craved any--Gabriel would gladly buy boxes upon boxes (after he was financially stable enough for that) and consume it alongside her with a smile on his face. She had the odd power to make him enjoy anything that he would hate otherwise, as long as she was beside him.
After she was too sick to move, even his favourite dishes tasted bland. What was the point of smiling if he wasn't smiling alongside her?
The man took a tentative spoon of his softened ice cream, it was okay at best, but he still didn't find the appeal of people's obsession over this enough to face cavity. Although he had grown out of his weak and easily ill body, his dislike for cold food remained.
Eventually, he was only able to consume half of it. Whatever was left was too liquidy for him to continue, and dumped the soggy cone into a garbage bin. He was sure that Ladybug thought otherwise, from the clear disapproval on her face, he felt a small smile appear on his face for having successfully annoyed her.
Somewhere in his chest, he felt the ache weaken.
.
.
.
They were back at the park, the sun had nearly set by now. Now that he thinks about it, during his entire time here he hadn't sat down once--yet he didn't feel tired at all (at least physically). He was looking out at the reddish sun, the weight on his shoulder had not completely left, but he felt slightly more stable to bear it.
He felt comfortable enough to address his other companion.
"Was she really this strong, that it took you fifteen years to defeat her?", Gabriel realised that his initial disinterest in the affairs of Paris's super-community was born out of his petty dislike for Ladybug and her partner (He refuses to see his son as Chat Noir, even now). But he himself was genuinely surprised that found himself curious.
The girl was sitting on the swing, which stood right beside Gabriel's bench. She dragged her foot on the ground, quiet for a moment, her eyes were unfamiliarly contemplative.
"She was good at hiding", she spoke at last, her tone thoughtful and ever so slightly tense.
"Very good in fact, it was like she didn't even exist. There were no appearances, no public speeches-", The girl looked at him sardonically, her eyes briefly twinkling with wry nostalgia causing him to scowl. Heroes Day, how could he forget?
"She did try and nearly succeeded in stealing my miraculous, but we thwarted her at every turn."
"So in conclusion, she was much better at this entire 'supervillain' role than I ever was", Gabriel said dryly, flicking away a stone from beneath his foot. The girl grimaced but said nothing, she looked oddly regretful. Gabriel didn't understand what she could possibly be upset about.
"She was... Well, I wouldn't say that you were above hurting people either. But you never tried to kill others in order to achieve your goal", she said grimly, causing Gabriel's curiosity to peak.
So Miss Rossi, (or rather Fantôme, Gabriel found out that Lila was just one of the many names that the girl took on) was a bad guy, through and through. No noble or greater good was being pursued by her, no boundary she wasn't willing to break.
"Then how did you manage to catch her?"
"..."
The girl had a hardened look in her eyes, and Gabriel knew that she had gone through horrible ordeals and survived. He wondered what Fantôme did to her, but realised that it was a line that he shouldn't cross and he was edging pretty close to it. It was personal, and from the looks of it--had left a profound scar on her.
So he stayed quiet, finding peace in the silent surroundings. There were no birds here, but the cool evening air made up for it. The girl's tense shoulders relaxed, and she had a grateful look in her eyes. After a while of silence, she started in a weary tone.
"It wasn't just us, we asked for help from many other heroes. Ladydragon, Eagle....We combed through the country and well, like you, Fantôme also got desperate."
Gabriel kept quiet, so that was the cause of the downfall of the infamous Fantôme, desperation. Gabriel remembers that feeling. Scrambling for even a chance to catch the heroes off guard, or rather in Fantôme's case, desperate to keep herself from being found. But still, Gabriel didn't understand her goal. Fifteen years is a long time, what could Fantôme be so devoted to if she was willing to continue this game for fifteen years?
"I am assuming that she took such a major gamble, resulting in her capture?"
Ladybug stayed quiet, a dark shadow passing through her face. Gabriel got struck with a sudden feeling that he may have overstepped. The girl silently opened her yo-yo and glanced at it, then stood up. So it was time to leave--the man realised. He too stood up after her as she began walking away, how odd was it that now the roles were reversed and he was the one following her?
Unlike all the times before, Gabriel didn't like or initiate this silence. It was tense, in an oppressive way. There were times, especially after Ladybug told him that Emilie was dead when a silence fell upon the two of them while Gabriel mourned. This was nothing like that, not a nostalgic and emotional plunge into the memory lane. This was an angry, dark and trauma-filled silence. No happy memories were making Ladybug clench her fists so tightly.
Gabriel was highly doubtful that the girl was upset about the supervillain's capture, but rather the torture that she must have been put through by Fantôme over the years. Once again he felt a pang of curiosity, but he bit back the questions. Despite the girl's exasperating presence behind him all the time, her irritating insistence for ice cream, her pity-filled eyes, she still gave him space. Space and silence to process his grief. He should return it in kind.
"She did"
Gabriel's ears stood up as the girl suddenly spoke in a quiet voice. "Pardon?"
Ladybug didn't repeat herself, from his position behind her Gabriel couldn't see her expression--neither could he gauge her emotions as she completed her sentence.
"The only difference is that it resulted in her death."
.
.
.
Although Ladybug had been a good host, Gabriel was not one to test her hospitality. It was nighttime now, and perhaps it was his gut feeling or the blurry trees in the distance--something told him that his time was up. She didn't say anything, but a look of mutual understanding passed through them--time was nearly finished.
Both of them walked back the way they had originally come from, the lights on the side of the path revealed a different angle of the park that Gabriel had scarcely seen. Without any bugs flying about, Gabriel was awestruck at how comforting everything looked.
He was aware of the girl's presence behind him like always, but this time he felt as though it was heavy. Then, at last, they stopped in front of a wall. Gabriel's heart twisted uncomfortably as he looked into the open metal door, on the other side was the small world where he was supposed to spend the rest of his life. That was until the very girl responsible for his imprisonment had set him free in a very realistic dream, one that felt so real as though he was actually here.
He didn't feel the usual hatred coiling in his chest at that thought.
Gabriel came to a stop right outside the door, but his legs refused to drag him back inside. Back into that dainty cold cell, how could he when he just got the taste of freedom that he had never had, even before he was arrested?
The freedom that only Emilie could give him?
But the better part of his mind reminded him that ultimately it didn't matter whether or not he stepped into the cell. Once Ladybug revokes her luckycharm, he will wake up no matter where he is. But going back into the cell on his own would mean that he was accepting his faults, accepting his punishment.
And he was. He should have never turned away from Adrien at his most vulnerable. He should have never pushed Nathalie to the brink, never left her alone in her bed to die. He should have never cursed Emilie to that pitiful existence.
Gabriel wasn't a good man. This was a truth that he accepted the day Emilie fell into a coma. He was never a good man, and he wasn't going to pretend that he was. But more than anything, he knew now what he did was wrong. Be it for love, obsession or plain arrogance (as some of the media spread), he accepts his fate.
Perhaps that is what Adrien wanted for him, for Gabriel to come to terms with reality, to pick up the pieces and keep moving. Emilie wasn't here anymore, but Adrien was--and so was her memory. He was fine with that now. Fifteen years was a long time to come to terms, but this day might have just saved him.
Gabriel took a step forward, just as the girl spoke again.
"Fantôme was vicious to an inhumane degree"
Gabriel faltered upon hearing a change in the girl's voice, it no longer sounded the way he remembered it. It was more mature, like an adult. The change made the man turn his neck.
Ladybug was no longer down to his shoulders, she was taller. Her suit had a few changes, bits and pieces of armour placed in distinctive regions for protection. Her face still had that hint of her more immature self, but she was a grown woman now, with a calm and mature demeanour.
A sudden thought invaded Gabriel's mind, Adrien must be grown too by now. The prospect left him reeling.
The two of them maintained eye contact for a while until she looked off to the side, her voice grave as she continued, "She punished anyone who resisted her akumas to sow fear into others who might try to do the same. She even attempted to akumatize me".
Ladybug looked greatly pained at that moment, and for the first time during their entire encounter, Gabriel could clearly see the toll the last fifteen years had on her. He fully turned to face the heroine but maintained his silence. Gabriel knew that words wouldn't help, he knew that better than anyone.
"That is why...", she looked back up at him, her eyes filled with regret and resignation, "That is why I was afraid that she might have hurt you too, when you told me that she tried to akumatize you".
Gabriel was stunned, unable to form a reply. Was that why she appeared upset when he told her about his near akumatization? Fifteen years was a long time, and Gabriel was sure that this girl--woman would hold some resentment for him. He expected her to, even hoped.
Paint me as the villain like the rest of them. Don't direct your empathy towards someone like me.
"What happened when she tried to akumatize you?", Gabriel asked softly, his voice just above a whisper. A part of him expected her to turn away, to harden her expression and tell him to return to his cell. But a more remote and hopeful part of him hoped that she would share her story. Why did he feel that way?
Was this also what she felt? A desire to understand him, just like how he wanted to understand her at this moment? Who is Ladybug? What makes this woman the beacon of light for the rest of Paris?
Why would she give him one last chance to see the world? One last chance to see his home? Why would she go out of her way to extend a hand of peace towards this wretched man?
The pair of blue eyes fell to the ground, not in shame or avoidance--but in thought. Her hand came up to caress her stomach gently, the motion sending a pang of familiarity through the man. Emilie used to do that a lot when she was pregnant, whenever she was deep in thought. She would laugh whenever Gabriel pointed it out, and joke about 'asking' Adrien's opinion.
The memory made Gabriel feel a pang of loneliness. He looked up to find that Ladybug was watching him and upon meeting his eyes again, she smiled sorrowfully.
Gabriel's brows furrowed in confusion before a chill went down his spine, making him look away. A thought formed in his mind before he could dispel it, she was pregnant.
"I lost...", The heroine started with a brave voice, but she couldn't control the slight quiver in her tone. She shook her head ruefully, her hand dropping to her side.
"She found out while she was trying to akumatize me, and sent another akuma in the meantime...in the tussle to get her out of my head, I-I didn't realise...", She trailed off unable to look at Gabriel any longer, a look of profound pain in her eyes.
Gabriel didn't need her to complete her words to understand what happened. An odd pang resounded in his chest, and he felt the uncomfortable urge to say something, anything. But what should he say? Did he even deserve to sympathise with her?
Emilie used to have night terrors a lot, during her pregnancy. There were many nights when Gabriel woke up startled by the sounds of his wife crying beside him. At every episode, his heart would clench painfully, and he would refuse to close his eyes until he was sure that she was asleep soundly again, wrapped in his warm embrace.
It went on for so long that even Gabriel began having nightmares of the small bundle of joy dimming out before he had the chance to hold his parent's fingers.
"I'm scared Gabriel--what if we lose him?", She would weep on his shoulder, trembling like a leaf.
"We won't. I promise you, my love. No force in the world would be able to harm our son. I promise to protect him until my last breath. I promise to protect the both of you until my last breath".
What a liar he was.
He and his wife were fortunate that her pregnancy went smoothly (the magic of the peacock must have contributed to Adrien's safety), and Gabriel was blessed enough to live the next few years in pure happiness until his world was upturned.
Ladybug never got to experience that. Gabriel cannot imagine the utter agony she must have felt.
The man quietly looked at Ladybug, she had a dazed look on her face, as if she had forgotten that Gabriel was still there. No, you fool. Gabriel clenched his teeth at his own insensitivity, She is mourning her loss.
"I am sorry"
The words were short and easy to let out, but Gabriel felt them burn his tongue. He didn't pity her, just like she didn't pity him. But he understood her pain and offered her the only thing that he knew she needed, understanding. Ladybug's distant eyes snapped out of her daze, and she took a deep breath to calm herself. She weakly smiled at Gabriel, attempting to look grateful.
A buzzing noise droned at a distance, causing the both of them to tense. Gabriel knew before the woman could tell him--his time was up.
Gabriel nodded at her, a gesture she returned gracefully. Bracing himself, he turned back to face his cell, this time, Gabriel didn't feel the same desperation that he felt before their small vulnerable moment. An urge to run, to avoid the inevitable. The same four walls that were Gabriel's 'home' stared back at him like a mother waiting for her son to return after playing all evening. But this time, he was choosing to return.
Ladybug watched silently as Gabriel walked back inside the dark crevice that was unnaturally split between the park's walls. He still doesn't understand how she was able to manipulate his dream so well. He thought that luckycharms didn't have any power of their own, existing only to assist the holder in an overly elaborate plan. However, the ladybug miraculous was pretty versatile.
Who knows? Maybe the butterfly miraculous also had untapped potential that he didn't explore, apart from creating mega akumas. The thought didn't upset him in the slightest.
Gabriel stopped once he was inside the cell, he could see his elongated shadow plastered over the wall opposite to him, made by the street lamps of the park. Strangely enough, as soon as he stepped back into his cell, he felt a cold air brush past him making him flinch. It almost felt like he had passed through an unseen barrier.
Ladybug didn't enter after him, but he could still feel her gaze from outside the door. Whether it was to ensure his safe return or to monitor if he returned at all, Gabriel could only guess. Still, a small part of him knew that she trusted him enough to think that he wouldn't put up any last-minute struggle.
"Marinette"
The man turned back to meet the heroine's gaze. She really had grown into a more composed and calm adult. Even with her seemingly relaxed stance, Gabriel could see her shins ready to spring into action--should there be any need.
He was wrong. Well, partly that is. She did trust him enough to not pull any last-minute antics, but that trust didn't stem from the goodness of her heart (not completely anyway, Gabriel could still see that naivety on her face, albeit much less). It stemmed from her trust in her abilities. And of the unspoken agreement between the two of them.
Gabriel's mouth quirked up into a faint smile. Against his will, he found himself feeling proud of her growth. Both as a hero and as a person. Here was the superheroine that defeated not only Monarch but also the mad villain Fantôme.
Ladybug returned his smile with a sincere nod. Perhaps this was the good thing between them--Gabriel would of course never consider Ladybug as a friend, and she wholeheartedly returns those feelings. He did unforgivable things, and hurt innumerable people, even his own son. She can never forgive him, for he had hurt her too.
And she was the biggest cause of his downfall, of his defeat.
But even if Marinette would never make the same choices as him, she understood him. Maybe even better than Adrien or Nathalie.
And he was fine with that. Even if the whole world hated him and cursed him to his death, just the knowledge that there was one person out there who understood him, even if it was the very person who caused his ruin, it was enough to bring Gabriel peace. It was like a last act of closure, the ending of a story. Even if his truth, his feelings died with the girl, they once existed--within the mind of someone apart from Gabriel.
Because if the cogs of the world turned back, and fate brought him another chance.
He would do it all again.
But this time, he would be a better father, a better friend, a good mentor. Adrien would never know the reason for his father's change of behaviour, why he had begun making breakfast for the both of them, why he insisted on spending time with him, why he allowed him to go out and make friendships. The young wide-eyed girl from a bakery, who saw big dreams and designed dresses passionately would never know why a world-famous fashion designer suddenly wanted to take her under his wing. She would never know why and how she landed herself an internship at 14 with Gabriel Agreste himself.
Nathalie would never get a definite answer for her sudden and massive pay rise.
No one would stop Gabriel from saving his wife. Perhaps he would have a long chat with Fu on how to reverse the damage from a broken miraculous. He is sure that the old coot would try to weasel his way out, claiming it's too late. But Gabriel can be very persuasive when he wants to.
But there was no use daydreaming about a second chance. Gabriel didn't cling to delusions until he was absolutely sure that the world could turn back.
Hope was an odd thing, wasn't it? It was hope that caused Emilie to pick up the peacock miraculous, that same hope that drove her to her grave. It was hope that made Gabriel turn into a monster, hope for reviving his wife. Hope that allowed Ladybug to stand on her feet again after nearly losing everything. Hope that helped Adrien to break free of his prison, and to confront his father. Hope that Paris held for its protectors.
Hope for a world without akumas. Hope for an irredeemable father to look past his pain.
Some of them got what they wanted, but most didn't. But right now, all Gabriel felt was hope. Hope that by one-millionth of a chance, he would see Emilie again. Even if he had to spend eternity burning in an inferno, he could always look up at the blood-red sky and chase the sliver of a white cloud.
It was a wonderful thing, hope. Gabriel had never felt so much of it until today. Even when his situation was anything but hopeful.
"Take care of yourself"
"You too, Mister Agreste"
The heroine smiled. Even from this distance, Gabriel could see the shine in her eyes that twinkled because of it. Happiness... She could see the hope in his eyes, and she was happy for him. Happy that Gabriel was no longer chained to the past.
He could see why Adrien fell in love with her twice.
"Thank you for being there for my son", Gabriel said. The lights behind Marinette dimmed slightly, beginning to flicker weakly. He could suddenly feel the tug of bone-deep exhaustion at the back of his mind, Gabriel's eyelids fluttered.
Ladybug nodded animately. There was a sense of urgency in her eyes, a look of yearning, of thinly veiled desperation. Gabriel could tell what she was thinking.
Not yet.
Gabriel shook his head with a tired chuckle. "It's alright Ladybug. I wouldn't want to overstay my welcome."
"Afterall.... All good dreams must come to an end, correct?"
Maybe it was the trick of his fatigued eyes, but the girl's eyes looked glossy. He haphazardly grabbed the table behind him, his whole body felt like lead. Outside, the lights in the distance were all darkening one by one, a serene blackness was slowly washing over the disappearing park.
Marinette took a deep breath, clenching the polka-dotted sphere tightly in her hand. She raised it to her chest, halfway ready to throw it up in a motion that Gabriel had seen hundreds of times. But she stopped and raised her head to meet Gabriel's gaze again.
At that moment, the sluggish fog that had overtaken his mind cleared. He maintained the gaze of the heroine as the two stood between dreams and reality. No words were exchanged but her eyes spoke volumes about herself.
He was leaving Adrien in good hands.
And then, the sphere was thrown up into the sky.
"Miraculous Ladybug"
.
.
.
It took Gabriel a moment to calm down. His chest was heaving, his eyes were blown wide. Deep, shaky breaths escaped his mouth as they slowly smoothed over eventually. The man slumped back against his pillow, all strength leaving him for that moment. He had never felt so boneless his entire life.
It was real.... no, not literally. But Ladybug was here last night, even if it was through his dream. Gabriel wearily glanced at the heavy-duty door--looking like it had been decades since anyone opened it completely. It was impossible to believe that just last night, a park was just outside it. In which the ex-villain and superheroine had taken a friendly stroll.
Gabriel sat up on his bed, his lanky knees bend upwards awkwardly as the his feet rested on the cold floor, he never liked the low frame. Sunlight seeped from the small window that was on one wall of his cell. He could barely feel its warmth.
The corners of his eyes caught his reflection in the mirror, Gabriel was smiling.
For the first time in fifteen years, he felt at peace.