Phantom arrived at the basement of the Agreste Residence, holding in his hands the miraculous that Hawk Moth sought. When they were delivered, he was ecstatic and took them greedily. "Finally... Finally, finally, finally!" He looked like he was going to cry.
Vlad cleared his throat. "The butterfly brooch?" he asked, holding his hand out.
Hawk Moth nodded. "Nooroo, dark wings, fall," he said, for what he hoped was the last time, and handed the gem to Vlad.
The halfa chuckled and put it on. "Now, to see if ghosts can wield miraculous... Nooroo, dark wings, rise!" he called and transformed.
In seconds, he went from Vlad Plasmius to something completely different. The red of his cape turned a dark purple, and the light grey fabric turned silvery. His bluish face stayed revealed, there was no need to hide it, anyway. And, of course, the brooch on his chest stood out.
Phantom looked a bit confused, glancing between Gabriel, who was flipping through some big leather-bound book, and Vlad, who had gone through some sort of transformation. "Wait..." he muttered, trying to understand.
Vlad approached Phantom with a smile. "Hello, friend."
"Where did Hawk Moth go?" asked Phantom, looking at unease.
The miraculous holder laughed. "I am Hawk Moth now... But you can call me 'father'. In fact... I have a job for you, son."
Adrien was crying, sitting on the ground. Alya approached. "No way... Adrien Agreste is Chat Noir?!" she asked in amazement.
The blond looked up at the girl and glared daggers. "Phantom won. He took the miraculous, no doubt Hawk Moth already has them... We lost, Alya. We couldn't beat him."
Jazz walked up, looking shaken. "Not all is lost... My brother is stronger than he looks. He might be able to resist, right?" she bit her lip.
Marinette ran to Alya, crying. "I'm sorry..." she whispered, sobbing into her friend's arms.
Alya was confused, "what for? You couldn't do anything, you were just in the wrong place at the wrong time!"
The bluenette shook her head. "I... He took the earrings... He took Tikki..." she said breathlessly.
Jazz understood before anyone else. "You're Ladybug," she determined, with a gasp.
Adrien's eyes went wide. "No way... Marinette is Ladybug?"
"It's okay, girl. There has to be something we can do, right?" she asked, searching her friend's eyes.
Marinette frowned. "Well, there might be someone who can help us... But we don't have much time..."
"Hold on a second... Marinette, you were Ladybug, all that time?" asked Adrien.
The girl squirmed. "Well, yeah... W-why, Adrien?"
"Adrien is Chat Noir," Jazz helpfully supplied.
Marinette gasped in disbelief. "No way..." she whispered, staring at him. "How could I have been so blind?"
Adrien shook his head. "That doesn't matter, Marinette. We have to hurry. Let's go see this someone who can help, quickly!" he said, with determination.
The bluenette nodded, before rushing off, the three trailing behind her. Maybe there was hope... But they didn't know for how long.
Gabriel sat at his desk, the miraculous he sought for so long in the palm of his hand. He flipped to the page of the ritual, his eyes skimming over the directions. Nooroo had done him a favor and given him a decoder ring, so he could decipher the meaning. He twirled the ring, annotating as he went along, so anxious to begin. His palms sweated, and he stood once he was done, eyes alight with excitement. Finally... He could -
He was knocked over, sent flying into the wall with brutal force. He hit hard, and he swore he heard the sound of something cracking. The miraculous flew from his hands, and he looked up with blurry vision, one of the lenses of his glasses cracked. "Wha...?" he gasped in pain.
There stood Phantom. He snatched the miraculous from the ground, Gabriel too weak to stop him. He looked up at Vlad. "You..." he whispered, grunting, attempting to stand, only to fall. "Our deal... You got what you wanted!" His voice cracked, eyes brimming with unshed tears.
Vlad smiled. "I did, but I decided that I want more. With these jewels, I can make it so Maddie truly loves me... You did say any wish, didn't you?" The ghost asked with a smile.
Disbelief shone in the blond man's eyes. "No... We had a deal...!" he cried out, unable to stand.
Phantom picked up the book, and flew back to his master, handing them over.
Vlad nodded, "true, we did have a deal... But why would I give up the chance to make my wish? I can have the perfect family... My son," he messed with Phantom's fiery hair, to the akuma's annoyance. "And my wife," he explained, before grinning.
"My wife... Please, I just want my wife back..." the blond man sobbed, beginning to crawl across the ground desperately.
Pity shone in Vlad's eyes for a split second, before he turned to Phantom. "Why don't you make sure he stays down, son?" he asked, before turning and walking away.
Phantom grinned, and cracked his knuckles, those red eyes not showing a fraction of sympathy. No, he relished in this - just like Gabriel had wanted. The former villain felt a sick feeling in his stomach.
"Phantom, please... You don't have to do this..." he gasped, backing away, desperate.
The akuma only advanced. "Funny, that's what they said... And you're right. I don't have to do anything. But I want to," his eyes gleamed with that horrible crimson light.
Gabriel shook his head. "No... You're doing what Vlad wants. He's your enemy, isn't he? Why are you listening to him, it should be him listening to you!" he hissed, his voice still like honey, smooth and charismatic, even though he could not hide his terror.
Phantom stopped, puzzled, before thinking. "But Vlad... He is Hawk Moth," he said.
"He might be, but that gives him no right to control you. You're the monster. Don't act like a domesticated animal, Phantom. You aren't his lapdog... Are you?" Gabriel took a deep breath, watching the boy carefully. This seemed to be working.
Indeed, the akumatized kid nodded. "No, I'm not," he growled.
"Give him a taste of his own medicine," the fashion designer urged. "Show him that you're the boss, you're the one who should be in control, not him!" Gabriel knew that Vlad had no knowledge of the butterfly brooch's power. He would not be able to control Phantom... Hopefully. "Come on... You're more powerful than he will ever be. Why should you have ever listened to him."
Phantom's eyes seemed to light, and he smirked, the lightbulb turning on in his brain. "You're right, Gabriel. I should be in control!" The ghost boy vanished, invisible.
Gabriel let out a sigh. That was a close one. He carefully crawled up to his desk and hit the microphone button. "Natalie... I need some first aid and a new pair of glasses."
His assistant nodded. "Right away, sir."
The blond man slowly sat back down, breathing deeply. That was so close... If not for his charisma, he might have been killed - or worse. He would get back those miraculous, he vowed. Even if it brought himself even closer to death. He would do it... For her.
(This is gonna be the last chapter for this story for a little while. It takes me some time to write these chapters, and more importantly, inspiration. In the meantime, though, you can check out my other stories or leave a review for this one!)
