"I have to tell you guys something."
Felix could practically hear the inner screaming of his friends as they stared at him on his cot. He let out a deep breath and avoided eye contact with all but Cheep. "Any way to make sure no one will disturb us?"
Bridgette made what had to be her first giggle in days. "Way ahead of you!" Reaching under the cot she revealed a large picnic blanket, earning raised eyebrows all around. "What? I thought it would be fun to throw an indoor picnic once Felix woke up."
Quickly the Quantic and Damma slipped under and held the blanket up like a tent around their heads. Each sat on the edge of the cot and leaned in as the glow of the Quantic gave light to the red and yellow fabric. "Alright, Felix," Whipp said, "the stage is yours."
Felix took a deep breath and kept his eyes glued to the blanket he wore. "You guys were right to worry. I have been hiding something from you. When we…when we came back through time, I was lost for a moment."
That was terrifying, Ben signed with a shiver, but you came back in one piece once we landed back in the Catacombs.
"When I lost contact with you and the others I was transported to the past. It was a hidden place in Paris. There was…with me…another…" His voice trailed off, leaving the hospital room quiet and awkward. He tried again and again to get it out, but his words kept getting caught. His panic was rising. His breaths were coming out short.
Lyra reached over and took his hands to keep them from shaking too hard. "Felix, please, tell us what you saw. I promise we can handle it."
I'm the one who'll have trouble handling life without you guys once you learn the truth, Lyra. I want to keep you all safe and close, but…but…if I keep pretending everything is okay…how long will I last?
He gripped the blanket until his knuckles went white. "…I saw HawkMoth…unmasked." Cheep chirped in alarm. "He was just standing there…transforming…using butterflies he turned into his akumas to take over Nathaniel." He risked a glance at Ben and found his friend nodding for him to continue. Felix shut his eyes, pulled away from Lyra, and crossed his arms over his chest so he could keep his heart from leaping out.
"…HawkMoth…is actually…Gabriel Agreste."
He heard them gasping and could practically see the way their eyes widened, and jaws dropped. He also heard a Quantic faint onto the blanket. Still, none of them were grabbing at him or trying to leave the room, and after a moment of silence he gingerly opened his eyes. They were staring at him like he had just revealed a terminal illness. Bridgette even had a tint of green to her cheeks as her Kwami partner tried shaking the unconscious Cheep awake.
"I saw him transform and send out an akuma," Felix murmured as the others tried to get over the shock, "and purposely send it out to harm people. When I got home that night I investigated and found the entrance to his base…and he found out."
Ben signed so frantically it almost looked as though he were asking Felix how to tango with two toes wide shut. HawkMoth knows you know?!
"He confronted me in my room and told me to basically keep my mouth shut. He had to be the one who made out jet on the trip home nearly crash us into the ocean." He averted his gaze. "All because I learned the truth."
Damma glanced up from Cheep. "Why would you keep this from us? Had we known the truth all those months ago we could have eliminated the villain!"
"Maybe I didn't want to eliminate my own father," Felix snapped, "or have to hurt Adrien again! Maybe I knew that the moment you all found out I would be-!" He bit his tongue to keep from saying anything more, but the damage was done.
Victor looked almost hurt at the outburst. "Dude…did you really think we would stop being your friend because your dad is HawkMoth?"
Felix could feel his eyes clouding over. "My father has hurt your families. His greed has harmed so many innocent people…you would be in the company of an accomplice because I decided to keep his identity a secret."
Lyra shook her head and took his hands again, and she did not speak until he looked her in the eyes. "Felix Agreste, for someone so intelligent, you can certainly be an idiot. None of us would ever turn out backs on you or Adrien for what your father is doing. You should have trusted us with what you learned, but…I get why you waited so long."
Bridgette nodded. "If I ever found out a member of my family was evil I would have reacted way worse than you have. No one blames you for being afraid."
"We trust you, Felix," Victor said, "and we know you would never do what HawkMoth does. We stick together through thick and thin."
Besides, Ben was optimistic, perhaps there is more to why your father is doing this?
Felix was at a loss for words for the longest moment but was saved from awkward silence by his Quantic partner. Cheep woke up and shook his head before staring at Felix. "I thought…could it really be true…your father?"
Felix nodded.
"So, you were hiding it this whole time?"
Another nod.
"…Were you afraid I would choose a new hero?"
The slowest nod Felix had ever given left his neck sore.
"Oh, Felix!" Cheep flew over and gave him a tiny but firm hug. "Nothing someone else does will ever affect our partnership!"
Felix felt a great weight lifting from his chest…but…
"I still have to tell Adrien before HawkMoth can do anymore damage."
His friends fell silent. Too silent.
"…You do want me to tell the others, right?"
Lyra squeezed his hands but kept her eyes down. "Felix…while you were out…oh, Felix," her voice cracked, "Paris is gone!"