Warning: References to the season 2 episode The Collector. If you haven't watched it yet, major spoilers ahead.

Once and for All

"Cut it out."

"Chat Noir, it's true."

"No. No it's not."

"It is."

"Stop it."

"I know it's difficult to believe, but the facts are all right there."

"It's not possible. He was akumatized, remember?"

"He did it to lead us off his trail. I just explained this to you. He-"

"You're lying."

"Call me a lot of things, Chat Noir, but do not call me a liar."

"For the last time, Gabriel Agreste is not Hawkmoth."

It was midday in Paris, France. It was a warm, sunny, all-around good weather day, but to a certain Parisian superhero, it just felt like a cold and stormy midnight. Ladybug and Chat Noir were crouched on a rooftop somewhere in between their respective homes. They had agreed to meet up to discuss an important lead that Ladybug had been following for weeks on the identity of Hawkmoth. Every road on this lead brought Ladybug back to the same conclusion-Gabriel Agreste was definitely Hawkmoth.

Of course for reasons obvious to those with omniscient knowledge of Paris's events, the idea that Gabriel Agreste could possibly be France's most malicious and destructive supervillain was incredibly distressing to Chat Noir. And no matter how much pushing Ladybug did, he wasn't buying it.

"Chat Noir. Listen to me." Ladybug reached out to place a hand on her partner's shoulder. He pulled away. She retracted her hand, albeit concerned. "I know it's hard to take in. And trust me, I don't want to either. I think he's an amazing fashion designer, and you wouldn't believe how much respect I have for him and his family." Ladybug's mind briefly drifted to a certain classmate of hers who also went by the last name Agreste. Chat Noir thought of his mother. "But everything we've seen repeatedly leads us back to this. We've suspected him before, and he threw us off his trail. Successfully. That's exactly something Hawkmoth would do if he knew we were onto him."

Chat Noir stood from his crouch and began to slowly walk away from Ladybug. She stood as well, but stayed in place, continuing to speak.

"You've seen the logos on his work. He rarely leaves his house. He was conveniently akumatized the day we went after him? And forget what we've already discussed-what about the fact that his son only began attending school within the same 24 hours of Hawkmoth's first strike? That's no coincidence, that's plotting."

Chat Noir closed his eyes and clenched his fist. As he released the tension in his hand, he spoke, eyes still closed and back still turned.

"Do...do you really think he would do that? Use his son as a pawn?" Chat Noir turned to face Ladybug, clearly holding back tears. "Do you really think he only allowed his son to go to school because it would work to his own advantage?"

Ladybug saw the hurt in her partner's eyes. She understood how painful it must be to think of someone using a family member like that. And if anyone felt bad for Adrien, it was definitely her. Still, Chat Noir must have something personal to relate to this, because it really seemed to hit him hard. Family trauma of his own maybe? Didn't matter right now, they had to focus. Personal lives aside.

"If he really is Hawkmoth, I wouldn't put it past him." She stepped closer to Chat. He put his head down. "Fashion empire? He has the means. Missing wife? He has the motives. And I just know he has the Miraculous." Chat Noir sighed and looked up at Ladybug, this time without any visible emotion.

"You've really been doing your research, haven't you?"

She nodded.

He turned around and grabbed his staff out of his belt loop.

"Let's go." And with that, Chat Noir launched himself in the direction of the Agreste mansion, Ladybug in tow.

Within minutes, the superhero duo was on the sill of the window to Gabriel Agreste's home office. Chat Noir put his head down and took a deep breath. Ladybug looked at him, concerned. Something about all this was really eating at him. And she had a disturbing feeling that this wasn't going to end well.

"Kitty?" she asked, trying to get his attention as gently as possible. "Are...are you okay?"

He couldn't lie to her. He couldn't even look at her. Head still down, Chat let out a small grunt in reply. He then proceeded to slam his fist against the window, smashing it to pieces. Chat Noir jumped inside, leaving an increasingly worried Ladybug staring at him in both awe and indescribable concern. After a moment of hesitation, she followed him in.

Ladybug looked around the empty room as Chat continued to head for the door. "He's not in here?" she questioned. "I...I didn't think he ever left this ro-"

"He doesn't." Chat interrupted firmly as he slammed the door open, paying absolutely no attention to anything broken he may have been leaving in his path. Ladybug followed him out the door and into the wide hallway, the one she had stood in several times before, but never as a welcomed guest. Chat Noir marched forward angrily, each step hitting the ground with all the force his indestructible combat boots could handle. After a moment, footsteps were heard coming from the upper level of the house and Chat Noir looked up to see Nathalie following the railing around towards the stairs. She was clearly involved in something on her tablet, as she was staring down intently and hitting the screen repeatedly with her stylus. She was so engulfed in what she was doing, she didn't notice the two teenagers standing in the hallway-one growing angrier by the moment and the other focusing solely on her partner's growing emotional instability. Nathalie passed the door to Adrien's room, heading for the staircase. As she approached it, Chat Noir stomped his foot and spoke.

"Where's Gabriel Agreste?" Chat demanded, rather than asked. Nathalie's attention was immediately drawn to the floor and she jumped back, startled.

"Chat Noir! Ladybug! Is there a reason for this unexpected v-"

"Where's Gabriel Agreste?"

Nathalie began to back up as Chat Noir angrily climbed the stairs at three times her pace. Ladybug inched forward.

"Um, well, Mister Agreste is busy at the moment, he has a-"

"Where is Gabriel Agreste?"

Ladybug stopped moving.

"Chat Noir, if this is an emergency, I can see if-"

"Cataclysm."

His hand began to glow black.

He approached Nathalie.

She stumbled.

"Um, well, I can, uh, I can go see if I can find Mister Agreste if you'd li-"

"NATHALIE."

Chat Noir raised his hand above his head.

Both women gasped.

"WHERE. IS. MY FATHER?"

Author's Note: This was just an idea I couldn't get out of my head. I haven't actually written in a couple years (and never before for ML), so sorry if I'm a little out of practice. I think this is a one-shot, but I'm considering another couple chapters. It all depends on how this one's received, so...feedback!

And thanks for reading!