Red Pants
Day 8 - Gabooty
Gabriel wants Hawkmoth to know that the villain will regret causing his wife to disappear. Day 8 – "Gabooty" for the Bonus Day of Gabriel Appreciation Week.
Notice: This was written before season 2 premiered so Gabriel Agreste is not Hawkmoth.
Gabriel Agreste didn't always wear red pants. There was a time in his life that he would often be seen in what would be considered very conservative attire – dark professional suits. Perfect for board meetings or negotiations with suppliers. It wouldn't do him any good to be laughed at while attempting to finagle a particularly difficult sale with a client.
Because after all, his flamboyant side came out when he transformed into Paon.
All that changed the day his wife vanished.
Gabriel knew who was responsible, of course. That didn't mean he could actually find the man. It was the same man that had dogged their every steps, determined to woo his wife. They never discovered the name of Yvette's stalker, much to his chagrin. But that didn't stop the anonymous flowers, notes, and creepy phone calls late at night. Yvette took comfort in her Miraculous, and Nooroo assured her he could protect her from any attack.
He tightened security in the house; installed a security system so advanced it put most government centers to shame. He hired bodyguards. After an innocent note appeared inside Adrien's bag one day after school when he was six, they pulled him out and home-schooled him from that moment on. He screened every phone call and changed phone numbers every six months.
Yvette tried not to let it get to her. She tried to keep it together and put on a cheery face for him, to calm him down. Gabriel could see through her facade in each increasingly dangerous mission she undertook, sometimes alone.
And then she decided to go to Tibet.
Gabriel had a last-minute board meeting the afternoon she left, and he reluctantly agreed to meet her the following morning. She was so desperate to leave Paris, to finally feel safe and relax, that she didn't want to wait for him to join her.
"I'll be fine," she assured him, her shoulders relaxing in anticipation of the first time she would be able to walk the streets without looking over her shoulder. With a cheerful smile and a goodbye kiss, she got into the car and waved as it pulled away. He waved back, a small smile on his lips.
It was the last time he ever saw her.
The news came in the middle of the board meeting. Yvette never made it to the hotel. She vanished, and no one knew where she had gone. She landed, and customs reported her entering the country. She vanished after that, along with her Miraculous.
And so he wears the pants. The red ones. Not in memory of her. As a warning.
He knew who was responsible for her disappearance. The shadowy man around every corner who was obsessed with her. Gabriel vowed that he would make him pay. He hints during interviews that the pants are a reminder. He jokes with the press that they're a message. He ignores his board members when they ask if he'll consider perhaps wearing one of his... newer designs.
His eyes tell the world that they are a deadly promise.
And when Hawkmoth finally appears on the scene, months after Yvette's disappearance, he knows. He knows that the man who stalked her for years was responsible. He almost grabs his own Miraculous and goes out when news of two new superheroes filter through the news feeds. He hesitates, and watches as these new heroes join the fight – oblivious of the undercurrent of history surrounding that particular Miraculous.
He waits. He bides his time, waiting for the moment to join in and strike. Not now, when there is nothing to track. Not now, when the akumas are so fresh and monstrous. Not now, when Ladybug and Chat Noir still fumble through the discovery of their powers. Not now... but soon.
And so, he spends his days pouring over the Miraculous book, studying Ladybug and Chat Noir's powers so he can assist them effectively when the time is right. He attempts to lure out Hawkmoth by creating replicas of the Miraculouses. He doesn't hold back his sharp criticisms in the hope that maybe this time, the akuma his actions have created will yield vital information surrounding Hawkmoth. The guilt almost overwhelms him but the red pants ground him. He is reminded of his goal.
And this time he will not fail her.
Author's Note: I did a drabble!