Chapter Text
"Chat."
Chat Noir stood across from Hawk Moth, eyes narrowed and teeth bared.
"Chat. We talked about this. Stay calm."
Ladybug's words hit his ears, but they didn't process. The man across from him looked at Chat with condescending light blue eyes - the same blue eyes that rejected everything he had ever wanted to do in life. To say he was angry at the man across from them would be an understatement. He was furious.
"Chat."
He finally tore his gaze from their enemy to his partner, keeping Hawk Moth in his peripheral. Ladybug's hand was gently, yet firmly clasped around one of his wrists. He hadn't realized his fists were clenched so hard; his fingers were beginning to ache.
"Keep a level head. I know you don't want to hurt him as much as you think you do."
Ladybug was right. Marinette was right.
Just before facing off against their enemy, she had finally conceded to revealing their identities. They had both been nervous, both afraid that it would effect the coming battle in a negative way, but once the magic had disappeared from the abandoned building they had decided to meet in there was nothing but relief. They shared a hug, quick but full of all the things they had wanted to say over the past two years, and full of everything they still needed to talk about. There would be time for that later; they had discovered Hawk Moth's lair. Or rather, he had invited them - tired of dealing with the incompetence of the people of Paris under his control.
So there they were, facing off against the man who had caused them so much trouble. They had entertained the possibility of it being someone they knew, but nothing could prepare them for just exactly who Hawk Moth was. Because after removing the brooch from its place at the man's collar, standing in front of them was Gabriel Agreste.
Chat was in shock, and he was furious. No amount of anger had ever bubbled up in him like this in his entire life, and the Cataclysm in his hand threatened to boil over. He looked at Ladybug, who saw the desperate rage in his eyes and let go of his wrist. She took a step away from him before walking over to Gabriel. She used her Lucky Charm, a pair of cuffs coming from the yo-yo tossed in the sky. She placed them on the man's wrists and led him from the room.
Chat left shortly after, a loud crash and dust following him out of the doorway. The building itself collapsed as he joined Ladybug and that man outside. He couldn't meet the man's eyes; he couldn't stand to think of how many times his own father put him danger, or more importantly - how many times he had nearly killed the girl he loved, one of the people he cared for and one of the only people who treated him like a person rather than an investment or an accessory.
There was no akuma damage to the city, so there was really no need for Ladybug to use the cure and reset everything. Plus, maybe it was better that Hawk Moth's lair stay destroyed as a testament to no more akumas. Once the Lucky Charm cuffs wore off, Gabriel Agreste sat in a parlor room of the mansion, across from two seventeen year olds.
"We can do this the easy way or the hard way, Mr. Agreste." Marinette spoke first, adjusting in her seat. "We can take you to prison."
Both Adrien and Gabriel flinched or grimaced at the idea.
"Or," Marinette continued, ignoring their responses. "We can let you go to your country home and never return to Paris. You can continue to run the Gabriel label, communicating with Nathalie here in Paris. You will have to live with the lives you've ruined and the things you've done, whether you believe your intentions were good and true or not."
Gabriel was silent, in slight awe of how calm and commanding the young woman was. He looked from her determined bluebell eyes to the downcast gaze of his son.
"I would like a moment alone wi-"
"No."
Adrien's eyes snapped up to Marinette, who was standing in the blink of an eye. He knew she could be determined and protective, but this was almost frightening. Her stance showed she was ready to be on the offense, whether she was in her civilian form or not.
"You make your decision now before I make it for you."
Her voice was steely and showed no sign of going easy on the man who had inspired her to go into fashion in the first place. And once again, Adrien felt himself falling for her, despite the current situation. He wasn't sure if he had accepted the outcome, expected it all along, or if he had simply shut off the part of his brain that would normally process the end game.
To prevent mass media coverage and more stress on Adrien and Nathalie, Gabriel was sent promptly to the countryside. It was an easy transition, since the man hardly ever made public appearances to begin with.
That night found Marinette and Adrien at Master Fu's small apartment, trying to give him the two recovered Miraculouses: the Butterfly Brooch and the Peacock Pin.
"I cannot accept these."
"But you're the Great Guardian, aren't you?" Marinette's eyes widened. "I thought you were the one to guard them."
"I was the guardian, yes," Master Fu nodded, taking the hexagonal box from its hiding spot. "However, my time to pass on the Miraculous has come."
"But, we defeated Hawk Moth, is there still a need for Miraculous holders?" Adrien asked, his question almost hurting in the process of being voiced.
"You have won the battle, but not the war. There are more dangers to come," the elderly man responded. "I am nearly 190 years old, and I will not be on this plane much longer. I have already put Wayzz back into his Miraculous. It is up to you two to decided who will be on your team."
Marinette and Adrien looked from Master Fu to the box in his outstretched hands and then to each other.
"But, you chose us, how can we-"
Master Fu closed his eyes and straightened his stance to cut off Marinette. "I did choose you. Trust in that and channel me if you can to pick who will stand beside you in the upcoming war. Friends and companions are good choices, but do not rely simply on them. The Miraculous will choose the holder, inevitably. Do not question it. Follow your instincts, and those of your Kwamis. They will lead you into the light of a new world."
With the brooch and pin placed inside of the box with the bracelet, necklace, and hair comb, Marinette and Adrien left Master Fu's with more questions than answers. Habit and instinct brought them back to the Bakery, where they were greeted with relieved hugs from Tom and Sabine.
After quick showers, the two sat in the floor of Marinette's room, across from each other. A plate of fresh cooked food sat in front of each of them, and in the middle sat the five Miraculouses that now needed holders. A list of people they knew was written out in an old notebook beside the now empty hexagonal box to the side, yet still in the middle. The list was written in order of who they trusted, though the gap between Nino and Alya and then the rest of the people was rather large.
"I guess we really didn't have time for many more friends, huh?" Marinette asked, trying to lighten the mood.
Adrien grunted in response, absently picking up a bite of food with his fork and chewing it slowly.
Marinette sighed, following suit in eating her dinner. She knew they both had a lot to think about, but watching her closest friend shut in on himself again just made her more worried for his sake.
Adrien hadn't realized Marinette had moved until she was sitting beside him, her head on his shoulder and her arms gently wrapped around his waist. He couldn't help but smile. He tilted his head slightly so that it was resting on top of her own.
"Thank you, Mari."
Marinette blinked, "For what?"
"For everything."
"I should be thanking you, kitty," Marinette said, sitting up slowly so as not to headbutt Adrien. She kept her arms around his waist. "All of those times you protected me, saved me. I couldn't - I can't - do any of this without you."
Adrien was quiet for a moment before placing a kiss on Marinette's forehead, then each cheek, and finally, a soft, tentative kiss on her lips. The kiss lasted barely a second, but for the two teenage superheroes, it made time stop and their shields shatter.
The two were soon an emotional heap of sobs and choked laughter. Neither knew how long it lasted, but when they pulled away from the tight embrace of the other, tear streaks lined their red cheeks and sparkled in their puffy eyes. Neither could tell if the tears had come from the laughing or the crying, and neither seemed to care. The universe fell into place around them, and they went back to eating their - now cold - dinner.
After they finished, the two made their way downstairs in a peaceful rather than strained silence. They cleaned up the dinner dishes so that Marinette's parents wouldn't have to do it - after all they've done for the two, they had to do something to try and pay them back. It was getting late, so Tom and Sabine were already in bed to prepare for the Bakery's morning rush.
"They took it so well," Marinette murmured as she grabbed two bottles of water from the fridge. She leaned against the counter and held out one of the bottles to Adrien. "As if they already knew."
Adrien shrugged, accepting the water and taking a quick drink. "Maybe they did. In their own way, of course. Your parents deeply care about you, Mari; no amount of concealing magic is going to blind them completely."
Marinette watched Adrien, her eyes searching through the green of his own. She had known him long enough, as both Adrien and as Chat, to know when he was trying to ignore his own feelings. So she pushed herself from the counter and hugged him again, smiling as he chuckled and returned the gesture.
"If you keep hugging me like this, people are going to question us at school."
"If you keep looking like a sad, stray kitten, people are going to question you. I know you don't want that."
Adrien sucked in a breath before he tightened the hug momentarily. "What did I do to deserve such a good friend like you, Mari."
Marinette smiled softly as she stepped back from the hug, albeit reluctantly, and placed a hand on his cheek. She stood on her toes and gently pecked his lips. "I ask myself the same thing about you every day, Adrien." She took a few steps, opening her water as she walked, before turning and extending a hand. "Are you joining me?"
Light pink dusted Adrien's cheeks as he took her hand and followed her back to her room. They grabbed the Miraculouses and placed them back into the box, bringing the box and the sheet of paper up into Marinette's bed as they slipped under the blankets.
Tikki and Plagg, who had disappeared once they were given their respective recharge foods, joined the two teens in the bed.
"Do you have any ideas on who to give them to?" Tikki asked, her small hands fiddling with part of the blanket.
"You have to be sure the guardian, at least, is someone you can trust no matter what," Plagg said, being actually helpful for once. "They'll have to take care of us if anything ever happens to you."
"Will they live as long as Master Fu?" Adrien asked.
"Possibly," Tikki answered quietly. "It is something a guardian must be willing to do. He, or she, typically outlives their comrades, and must choose the next holders."
"Boring job if you ask me," Plagg piped.
Marinette and Adrien looked at each other. They knew who they wanted to give at least two of the Miraculouses to, and they were worried on how they would react. It was late, and there was school in the morning, but the two actually got out of the bed to go to Marinette's desk to work out plans.
"We need a base of operations, if we're going to seriously do this," Marinette said, looking into Adrien's eyes. They were both exhausted, but it needed to be done. Worrying about school just seemed unimportant in comparison to the events of the day and the events of the future.
"We could use the mansion," Adrien's response was nearly immediate. "There's plenty of backyard space. I can get contractors to help. We can keep it hidden, a secret."
Marinette thought on it for a moment before nodding in agreement, writing it in the notebook.
"Do we really think they'll accept?"
Adrien shrugged, "The worst they could do is say no." He kissed Marinette's temple and looked at the time in the corner of her computer screen. "But for now, Princess, we should get some sleep." He nodded toward the time.
4:32 am.
Marinette's eyes widened and she quickly agreed, considering they had to be up in less than three hours.
-
For the first time in nearly two years, Adrien and Marinette were not only on time to class, but they were early. They sat in the classroom, heads touching as they hunched over the notebook, going over their game plan once more.
They had become closer over the two years of being friends in their civilian forms, so the two of them suddenly being so close together wasn't as odd as it would have been when they were younger. When Marinette couldn't form a full sentence around Adrien. However, it was still slightly odd to see them there on time, so when Alya and Nino walked into the classroom, they were shocked.
"Hey dudes, what's up?"
The two of them looked up at Nino, tired eyes wide. They simultaneously cracked a grin and rubbed the back of their necks, as if they had just been caught with their hands in the cookie jar.
"Weeeiiird," Alya almost sing-songed before shrugging. "Whatcha got there?" She nodded toward the notebook.
"Hmm? Oh, nothing, just notes we forgot to go over during the weekend," Marinette smiled. She could feel it as one of her nervous smiles, but she couldn't make it more genuine. She was honestly terrified of their lunch break that day.
Adrien nodded, agreeing with the lie Marinette had made up. She was getting better at them, he noticed. It made him have to step his game up, too. They weren't so much worried about their identities being reveal to their best friends anymore, but until they could get them in a private area they had to play it safe. He watched as Nino and Alya slipped into the seats behind him and Marinette.
"Do you two want to come to my house for lunch? We can grab some croissants from the Bakery and hang out in my room," Marinette smiled, turning to face the two teens behind her and Adrien, closing the notebook as she did so.
Alya and Nino exchanged a glance and shrugged at each other before nodding to Marinette. The rest of the class filed in soon after.
When lunch finally came, the four of them made their way to Marinette's home. As planned, they grabbed some food and went up to Marinette's room. The tension in the air was palpable, considering they hadn't really talked the entire walk from school.
"Where was the Gorilla?" Nino questioned as the four of them sat in a circle in Marinette's room.
"Huh? Oh. H-He won't be needed anymore," Adrien answered, trying to keep his voice level. He smiled as he felt Marinette lay a hand on his upper leg. "That's… That's why we asked you two to join us for lunch."
"Not that we don't all have lunch together anyway, when we can," Marinette started, almost starting to flail before realizing she really didn't have the energy to do so. She looked at Adrien, who met her glance just briefly before nodding for her to continue. She took in a breath. "We have some news."
"My father," Adrien said quietly, his fists clenching and unclenching. "He was Hawk Moth."
Alya and Nino sat in a stunned silence for a moment.
"Dude, I know your dad can be a prick, but-"
"They're serious." Alya cut him off, her honey eyes wide and full of concern and confusion. "How…"
Adrien and Marinette laced their hands together.
"Tikki, Plagg, you can come out now," Marinette looked toward her desk, where she had had Tikki and Plagg hide until the two teens were ready.
The kwamis flew over to their respective holders.
"Oh. My. God. No shitting way!" Alya was the first to recover. She didn't seem to even care that there were two fairy creatures levitating in front of her. "No. Shitting. Way." She looked from Adrien to Marinette, her grin growing. "I knew my friends were special, but this special? Damn." Her smile fell. "But Ladybug and Chat Noir had to defeat Hawk Mo- Oh Adrien."
Adrien gasped as Alya threw her arms around him a bit rougher than she had intended. He chuckled and hugged her back. "It had to be done."
Nino was still blinking away the shock. Slowly, he nodded to himself. "It all makes sense, really. I'm glad that you two trust us enough with this information. But, if Hawk Moth is out of the picture, why are you still Ladybug and Chat Noir?"
Alya pulled away from the hug and sat back beside Nino. She nodded in agreement, surprising Marinette when she made no mention of the Ladyblog in way, shape, or form.
"Because, the Great Guardian - the one who guards the inactive Miraculouses - told us that it was only the beginning," Marinette answered. "And he's getting on in years, so he gave up his Miraculous and told us to find new holders." She sighed softly, taking the wooden box from where she and Adrien had hidden it the night before.
"He told us to trust our instincts and the instincts of our Kwami, as well as let the Miraculous choose the holder," Adrien said. "The first people we thought of were, well, our best friends."
"You're… You're asking us to be superheroes?" Alya asked, once again being the first one out of the shock of the news. "But, how will I keep up with the blog? Wait, if I were a superhero, it'd be easier to get interviews; it could work out wonderfully - but wait, why us?"
"I don't know about you dudes, but I am not the superhero type - I already can't keep up in class, man," Nino said, holding his hands up in surrender.
"And I could?" Marinette grinned. "Listen, Nino, I know what it's like to doubt being worthy - just ask Tikki - but if you trust us as much as we trust you, then I know that you can do this. It's not easy, that's for sure, but doing this - saving people, helping people, the rush and the feeling of being successful is definitely worth a try."
"Marinette tried to give up her powers at first," Tikki chimed in, "but look at her now: a force to be reckoned with, and most of it isn't even my own doing." She smiled. "Us Kwami don't do much besides give you the power to transform; it just so happens that sometimes being behind a mask brings your best qualities to the front, and sometimes they stick out even when the mask is gone. I believe Marinette and Adrien have made the best decision at this juncture."
"Do you trust us?" Adrien asked, looking from Nino to Alya. He waited for the two of them to nod, Nino being a little slower to agree. "Close your eyes." He again waited for them to comply before nodding to Marinette.
Marinette opened the wooden box, taking the green bracelet from its spot, clasping it around Nino's wrist before she sat back down.
At the same moment, Adrien took the necklace, clasping it around Alya's neck, careful of her hair. He took his place back beside Marinette, watching as Tikki and Plagg waved to the new Kwami that appeared in the room.
"Open." Marinette smiled.
Alya looked at the necklace first and then to the orange and cream Kwami floating in front of her. It was the same big head-tiny body shape as Tikki and plagg, but its ears were more pointed, fox-like. Amber eyes stared at Alya, as if staring into Alya's very soul. Two white whisker-like fibers stuck out from each side of the Kwami's mouth.
"Vexxa."
"Alya." The ombre-haired girl grinned.
Nino opened one eye and then the other. Yellow and green eyes stared back at him, a slightly worried look on its tiny face. "You're kind of cute." The teen chuckled, taking in the shell on its back and the antenna on its head.
"I am Wayzz."
"I'm Nino."
Marinette and Adrien exchanged a relieved glance, squeezing each other's hand.
"So, you help me to transform?" Alya grinned, happily conversing with her Kwami. She could tell from the first interactions her and Vexxa would get along most of the time. "And my ability is what now?"
"Fox Fire. It makes copies of yourself. It's one of the reasons you're the other offense member in this team. You can only use it for five minutes, though, and your transformation will run out," Vexxa explained. She flitted around Alya's head, taking in her appearance, she nodded to herself, approving of her charge.
"Force Field." Wayzz said simply, sitting on Nino's open palm. "It's really just to give your teammates an extra boost to staying alive. That's really our goal - helping them reach their goal. You can produce up to six shields at a time, but there's a time limit before you switch back. Unfortunately, you all have a time limit after you use your special ability."
"There's something you're forgetting, Wayzz," Tikki smiled.
"I can't tell them everything, Tikki. You know that."
"Oh, come ooon, Wayzz. It'll be more motivation to find the last three Miraculous holders."
"There's the Vexxa we know and love."
"Shut up, Plagg. Go eat some cheese."
The humans in the room laughed at the Kwamis' antics, before Nino spoke up.
"So what is it, little dude?" Nino asked. "This thing Tikki wants us to know."
Wayzz sighed, crossing his tiny arms. "If all seven Miraculouses are active at once, and you all train and trust each other no matter what - and I really mean no matter what - the time before you detransform will lengthen. It could go on for ten or even twenty minutes, but! If there is any break or doubt in trust, the time will shorten again." He shook his head. "Not since the first holders have all seven been active at the same time. It's unheard of, but my previous holder believes there will be reason to have you all prepared."
Marinette looked at Wayzz for a moment. "Master Fu was right, wasn't he? We have a war starting soon."
Wayzz looked up with sad eyes, nodding.
"Looks like you two need help finding the rest of our teammates," Alya said, adjusting her glasses with a grin.