"I know Hawk Moth's a bad guy and all, but isn't he getting tired of the constant akumas?" Carapace was leaning back against the chimney of the home Team Miraculous decided to take a break on top of, his arms and legs sprawled out with exhaustion.

The team already had fought two akumas that day, after a three day span of multiple attacks.

Queen B leaned on the chimney as well, her arms crossed. "Not that I don't like fighting akumas and all, but I have things to do today," she tapped her fingers on her arm anxiously.

Chat Noir snorted. "Like what? Stare at yourself in the mirror?"

"You're never going to let that go, are you? It was just one time that I got distracted by my reflection! Knowing you, Chat Noir, I'll bet your civilian self just loves to gawk at yours!"

Rena Rouge groaned, rubbing her temples.

"Alright, alright!" Ladybug stepped in. "We're all tired and frustrated, but we can't start fighting amongst ourselves. That's what Hawk Moth wants. We can't let it be our weakness."

Carapace got to his feet with a grunt. "LB's right. Hawk Moth's probably done for the day himself. I think we should all go home and get some sleep."

"Sounds good to me," Rena Rouge replied with a sigh.

Carapace, Queen B, and Rena Rouge began heading home. Chat started to follow but Ladybug calling his name kept him from moving another inch.

"M'lady?" he turned, tilting his head to the side. "Everything okay?"

"That's what I wanted to ask you."

"What?"

Ladybug looked down at the ground that lay between her and Chat Noir, her tone slightly higher with awkwardness. "It's just that… you never get into arguments, and you rarely ever say anything construed as mean. Not to mention you look really tired and worn out."

"Oh," Chat gave a crooked smile and scratched the back of his head a moment. "It's nothing really, I'm just tired."

Ladybug's eyebrows rose and she crossed her arms. She wasn't buying it.

He sighed. "Things in my civilian life have gotten a lot more hectic around the time akumas were being released multiple times a day. It's really nothing to worry about."

"If you need some time to recover, the team and I can handle it. You should get some rest."

"No!" he exclaimed, his eyes wide and his cat-like pupils dilated. It gave him the appearance of a frightened cat. "I'm okay, r-really!"

"If you're sure…. Just… don't push yourself too hard, okay Kitty?"

"Of course not."

"And Chat?"

"Yeah?"

Ladybug took a few steps towards him, closing the space between them. Blue met green, and all Chat could see in her eyes was deep concern. For him.

"Sleep well," she whispered gently.

He nodded, and with the click of his baton, he was off into the dusk.

But Ladybug wasn't heading home herself just yet.

She went over it in her head a few times before making her decision. She knew her team, especially Chat, would not like her scoping it out alone, but they were much too exhausted to worry about this right now. However, Ladybug knew if she didn't follow her gut instinct and it was proven to be correct, she'd save herself and her team a lot of trouble.

With a tired sigh, she headed for the Agreste's.

—-

"Adrien… need… Camembert…." Plagg moaned as soon as he let his transformation go, safe in his room.

"Alright, here. You can have two slices tonight, you deserve it."

The Cat Kwami sniffed the air. "Ahh, my gooeyness…" he drooled, holding out his little paws eagerly for a slice, and began devouring it the moment it was in his clutches.

Adrien chuckled.

"I feel so overworked," he began, his mouth full of cheese. "I can't imagine how you're feeling, kid."

"I'll be fine. A good night's rest should help me feel like myself again," he yawned and stretched, and dragged his feet towards his bathroom, his posture slumped and his eyes drooping.

A flash of red in his peripheral vision caught his attention.

His head quickly jerked to the side, and automatically he ran towards his window.

"Ladybug?" he mumbled in surprise. "What is she doing here?"

"Is she a secret admirer, too?" Plagg had floated up next to Adrien, his mouth still very full of Camembert.

Adrien glared at Plagg from the corner of his eyes. "Hardly. Ladybug would never waste her time coming to visit me. Which means, there must be something important going on."

"What do you think that could be?"

"...Oh no."

"What?"

"Remember, she suspected my father as being Hawk Moth? I don't think she let that go completely. To be fair, I haven't either. And with all of the akuma attacks lately, it's no wonder she wants to find the one behind it. We need to shut down Hawk Moth once and for all."

"And if your father happens to be Hawk Moth… what will you do?"

Adrien just shook his head. After a moment of watching Ladybug resting on a building across the street, it finally sunk in what she was doing.

She was watching his father with her yo-yo. Something that could pick up what was going on inside a building with ease.

"Uh, Plagg?"

"Yeah?"

Adrien cleared his throat. "I know you said Kwamis can't be filmed or photographed, but does that also include the cameras in our weapons as well?"

Plagg's eyes went wide. Then he shrugged as if it was trivial. "Actually, I have no clue."

"Great, so if she looks this way, she'll either see you and discover that I'm Chat Noir. Or she'll see me talking to thin air."

"Take your pick, my friend."

"I choose neither. Go hide over there and don't move until she leaves," he pointed towards his bed.

"Fine by me, I feel like a nap anyway," he quickly darted towards the bed, and curled up on the pillow Adrien designated just for him. Within moments, he was lightly snoring.

—-

Ladybug planted herself on top of a building near the mansion, and unlocked her yo-yo to see into the building. Granted, she felt uneasy about doing this, but considering Gabriel Agreste never left his home, and stopping by and asking him about it was certainly not an option, she had little choice.

As long as she didn't turn it towards Adrien's room, she told herself, it'd be fine.

First, she examined the layout of the house to see where he was. She noticed he was in a room she never recalled seeing the few times she visited. However, she brushed off her doubt as her not visiting enough to remember the exact layout of his home.

Then she noticed something strange.

There was a chute, connecting the dining room to this mysterious room Marinette had never seen before. Puzzled, Ladybug changed the setting so she could view inside.

The image that appeared on her screen caused her to gasp involuntarily, her yo-yo slipping from her grip.

Ladybug's heart sank to her stomach as she saw Hawk Moth standing proudly in the Agreste Mansion.

AN: Hey everyone, thank you for reading the first chapter of this collab fic between JennaTalbot and I! We're really excited to share our ideas with you that we've been planning for a few weeks, and hope you enjoy what's to come, and believe me, it's going to be quite the story!
Reviews are absolutely adored, so please let us know what you think! c: