Consequences Verse - Fallout

xXx

Marinette was shocked she'd been able to present her argument to Gabriel as well as she had. It had honestly been a motion to keep Adrien away from his father until he could come to terms with all of this (if that was even possible, Marinette wasn't sure she could in his place). But she'd gone into that room channeling Ladybug, despite not being in the mask, and she'd delivered the lines she knew would give them the best chance of helping her friend.

There was something to that, she realized, but she'd have to think on it later, because now she had a kitty to comfort.

Despite him asking her on a date, she wasn't sure he would be up to it any time soon. With everything that had happened and his father and the betrayal she could practically feel radiating off of him...

Somehow getting into a relationship with him at the moment felt... wrong. Or not wrong, per se, but like it could go wrong.

No, right now, he needed a friend. He needed support. And she was determined to give it to him.

So she sat with him, long after his father had left. They didn't say much, and helped Master Fu set up a room and a futon for Adrien (some of the only words they spoke were them thanking him profusely, multiple times) and then with dinner. Marinette was glad it was a Saturday. She'd had to cancel on Alya, but she was sure her friend would understand.

Leaving felt... strange. She didn't want to stay there (awkward much?) but she didn't want to leave him like that either – alone in a strange house, coping with everything that had happened.

So she called him after she got home. They talked for a bit, her simply asking him how he was doing, him insisting he was alright (although she didn't believe a word of it, and was pretty sure he didn't either). Then she got started on her homework, even talking Adrien through it. He didn't have any of his own school supplies with him, but he was able to help her with a couple of problems and just having him to discuss things with helped her finish far faster than she'd expected. Then she excused herself, got dressed, and took the phone to bed as he did the same. Then they just sat in the dark and quiet, her not wanting to hang up and letting him know that she was there if he needed her.

When Master Fu finally came on the line and told her Adrien had fallen asleep, she thanked him again and went to bed herself.

It felt strange not to go patrolling, but that had been more to let Paris know they were there (which the would probably still do) and to look for Hawk Moth (which wasn't really necessary anymore). They obviously wouldn't need to as often and somehow, she was sure that wasn't the only thing that would change in her life. She just didn't know what else would...

It was entirely possibly they'd have to learn to work with new Miraculous holders and Hawk Moth. They'd have to keep training for a potential demon invasion. She now knew Chat Noir's identity and he knew hers. Both of them knew Hawk Moth but couldn't really do much about it...

It was just... so much. Why on Earth did Tikki and Master Fu decide that she and Adrien could handle things like this?! They were in collége for goodness sake! Then again, there was no way they could have known who Hawk Moth was when she and Adrien had gotten their Miraculous.

Adrien's luck really sucked. Poor boy. He embodied the black cat miraculous more than she'd initially thought. Although, with her luck, she probably could have embodied that too. Her good luck leaked through to Marinette sometimes, but at other times, her natural bad luck completely nullified Ladybug's good luck.

For a few moments she wondered exactly what it would have been like had she been given the Black Cat Miraculous instead. The idea of not having Tikki in her life wasn't a thought she particularly liked to entertain, but she was pretty sure she'd get along with Plagg just fine.

She wondered if maybe trading Miraculous at some point might be useful, just in case. The fact that it might be fun too had nothing to do with it. She doubted Tikki would go for it, but she'd have to talk to her Kwami about it tomorrow. She could already hear her companion's even breaths, as fast as they were for one so small.

As of tonight, she just had to try and get some sleep, despite her full head and her worries for the future and Adrien and Paris and Hawk Moth...

Yeah, somehow she didn't think she'd get a whole lot of sleep, exhausted as she was.

But one thing was for sure, she was determined to protect Adrien and Paris. If that meant she had to bring down Gabriel Agreste (and it really looked like they probably would), then so be it. She would find a way to do it.

After all, she was Ladybug.

xXx

When his father had been there, it had been easy for Adrien to be angry and upset. Now that it was just him and Master Fu, though (and the Kwami of course), he just felt that numbness come back. He woke up the next morning feeling lethargic and stuck. Despite that, he got up and dressed in his clothes from yesterday (strange, but that was all he had), fed Plagg and set the table for breakfast. After they ate, he politely asked his old host if he needed help with anything and ended up helping clean up. It was a novel experience that he wasn't completely used to, but Master Fu was patient in helping to point different things out and give him advice on how to clean something faster and better.

He hadn't realized so much went into keeping things tidy. Sure, he kept his own room pretty neat, but it never had the chance to really build up because his father had hired people who would come in and clean once a week.

After breakfast he just sat in a corner, not knowing what else to really do. All he really had on him was his phone (which Master Fu had a charger for, thank goodness), his wallet, his ring, and the clothes on his back. He was kind of lucky to have all of that, and he wasn't going back for anything else.

Nathalie showing up with his homework, laptop and a couple of bags of clothes stirred multiple feelings in him. He was beyond grateful to have his things, but at the same time, he didn't really feel like they were his things. Everything he owned (with the exception of the ring, and he felt that was more Plagg's anyway) belonged to his father, or had some sort of trace back to him.

He still thanked Nathalie for her delivering them and even nodded to the Gorilla sitting in the car parked on the street behind her. She looked torn for a moment after that before saying he could call her or the Gorilla at any time for any reason and handing him a card with both of their personal numbers. Then she turned awkwardly and walked back to the car, her head held high.

Adrien watched them go without a word, closed the door quietly, then turned and looked at the bags on the floor and in his hand.

Right about then, it hit him.

His father was Hawk Moth.

Oh, sure, he'd known that before, but somehow he hadn't realized exactly what it all meant for him. His father was the villain terrorizing Paris... and he'd been right there, under Adrien's nose, the whole time! What kind of a super hero was he? And now he'd left his father's house, was living away. Would he ever see his father again? Sure, their relationship hadn't been the greatest, but it was his father... Had he been right to leave? He wasn't sure anymore.

The bag fell to the floor and he had crouched down, hands placed over his head to try and block out the world. It wasn't working. The thoughts just kept coming again and again and again and the wouldn't stop and he was losing his father just like he'd lost his mother and he was alone now and how was he going to be able to do this?! He wasn't! He didn't know what would happen, but he couldn't do this alone! Without his family to back him up! Without a home to go to! He couldn't breathe, he realized. Except he was breathing, but it didn't feel like he was getting in any air and what was he going to –

"KID!" Plagg's voice broke through the haze that had settled over him.

Adrien looked up to see the black cat floating in front of him. It didn't help him with the breathing, but it did manage to break him out of that panic-inducing spiral.

Master Fu had heard Plagg's yell too, apparently, because he came hurrying into the room, Wayzz floating behind him.

The blond watched as the old man approached cautiously and squatted in front of him. He was awfully spry for his age, Adrien thought vaguely and wondered why he was thinking something so absolutely random.

"Adrien, can I touch your shoulder?" Master Fu asked softly.

The teenager blinked for a moment, his mind not responding. Then he forced himself to think on the question.

Slowly he nodded, still having problems breathing.

Master Fu reached forward and put a hand on Adrien's shoulder. "Feel my hand," he said. "Let it ground you. You're here, in my home, and you're safe. Now, breathe with me. Match my breathing..."

Adrien couldn't really do any more but nod and try to follow his advice. Master Fu's breathing was slow, though. How was that going to help with the air? But it was only a passing thought that he dismissed in favor of following the advice he was given.

It helped. He didn't know why, but it helped.

He didn't know how long they stayed there, focusing on the breathing. An indeterminate amount of time later, he felt the streaks of wet on his cheeks, and while his breathing had slowed, it wrenched itself out of his throat in horrifying sobs that he just couldn't stop.

That was also when he noticed that someone else was in the room. To his horror, he glanced over to see Marinette watching him worriedly, her hands wringing in her lap.

How embarrassing.

"M-M-Marinette," he said, trying to stand, but he stumbled. Pins and needles shot through his legs and he winced.

Master Fu shook his head. "You should rest. Don't move until you're ready."

Adrien fell back against the wall. He wanted to protest, but he was just so tired. So he nodded and glanced back over at his partner.

"When did you get here?" he asked.

"Um... a... while ago," she muttered. "A-are you okay?"

Adrien couldn't help the derisive snort/sob that he made.

"Sorry. I-I guess that was a d-dumb question," Marinette stammered, looking away, her cheeks red.

He shook his head. "No, it's fine. You're just asking because you care. Unlike some people." Alright, that had come out far more bitter than he'd wanted it to.

No one said anything for several seconds, and surprisingly, when the silence was broken, it was Plagg who did it. He flew up to Adrien, arms folded and face grim.

"Your father cares. Don't get me wrong, I'm not excusing what he did, but he cares. If you ignore that, you're just going to hurt yourself and him in the future. Him, I don't care about. He can rot as far as I'm concerned, because whether he cared or not, he still hurt you. But I know you and you'll just beat yourself up over it needlessly if you do anything to him, so let's just head that off now."

Adrien didn't want to hear it. He didn't want to remember that his father had only done this because he wanted the other member of their family back. He didn't want to see anything but the cold, ruthless villain and the cold, distant father.

But he knew what Plagg said was true.

"You can be angry," a new voice said, and he looked up to see Marinette's kwami (Tikki, right?) floating there, blue eyes so big and sad. "It's natural to be angry and upset. But don't let that anger blind you to the truth."

He didn't want to hear that either.

Another sob tore itself from his lungs and he put his face in his arms, bringing them up and over his head, trying to shut the world out again. At least this time he could breathe.

But it hurt.

Not breathing, per se, but just... everything. It all knotted in his chest and only seemed to come out, a little at a time, with each sob.

After a moment, he recognized someone coming to sit by him, and slender arms pulled him into a hug. It was Marinette, he realized. His Lady. His partner. His friend. He wasn't alone, he realized... and while that didn't fix anything, it made all the difference in the world.

It wasn't fair to her, but he couldn't make himself let go. He hated that she saw him like this, but he couldn't seem to stop it. He just hated the whole situation... but she was there. And she made everything better. So he clung to her and sobbed into her shoulder, only vaguely wondering where Master Fu had gone.

They stayed like that for a long time.

xXx

The leaving of a home and potential break up of a family is NOT an easy thing, no matter how much it is needed. A lot of people may call this 'angst', but honestly, we needed an emotional fall out. Angst always struck me as childish and selfish, not necessarily a natural response, so I don't see this as angst so much as him just DEALING with what will happen.

Good news, though. Because he got it all out now, he's not going to have as much of a problem with it in the future. Sure, he's still going to be angry at his dad and upset and frustrated, but he has a good support system. I just don't see this happening again, but if we didn't have it happen once, I felt like it would be cheating him, if that makes any sense.

Now, hugz for the cinnamon roll!