"Five," Adrien began, taking in Ladybug's familiar hold.

"What's the plan?" She asked, as always.

"We're ignoring him this time, I figured out why he's doing it. We need to go down the elevator, and see where it takes us," Adrien told her.

Her eyes widened. "That's amazing," she told him, and he flushed. "Should I use Voyage?"

"Nooroo, Dark Wings Rise!" Adrien tuned him out.

He shook his head. "We're going to have to use the elevator anyways, and Hawkmoth will hear it either way. I'm going to have to use Mirage to deafen the sound.

"You can do that?" She asked with uncertainty.

"I can try," Adrien admitted. "Mirage!" He called out, and instead of actively controlling it, he made it such that Hawkmoth would not hear anything from the house. Ladybug dropped the Shellter, and they made it to the elevator, and took it down.

Halfway through, it split, though the two rushed past it. They arrived at Gabriel's office, and Adrien recognized them to have been behind the painting. "Huh, I thought the safe was the only thing behind it…" he murmured.

She glanced at him. "You've been here before?"

He nodded. "Can't explain without civilian details… Though I will be resetting this anyways," he winced.

She shook her head. "Don't tell me, we don't have time. What now?"

He glanced at the elevator again. "I guess we figure out what this button does." And with that, the two were sent downwards.

As the elevator stilled to a stop, Adrien felt the breath leave his lungs. The lights were not yet on, but he could still see in the darkness. It was a long corridor, although most of it was barred off by a metal fence and was beneath the walkway. The walls were lined with columns and unlit lights, and at the end of the path was a casket of sorts. It was lined with flowers and greenery, and he felt as though he stepped into a fairytale. The cords and cables of whatever machinery necessary to sustain the shadow of life that the casket held were camouflaged with long roots, roots that extended beneath the bridge.

"What is this place?" Ladybug's voice echoed quietly in the darkness, but as the lights began to light dramatically, she gasped.

They began closest to the pair, illuminating the bridge. She took his hand, pulling him towards the casket, as his legs stayed frozen in place. She didn't know there was a casket at the end, she didn't know what was happening at all. She glanced back at him just as the light behind the casket lit, without seeing its contents. They were only halfway across the bridge, and he stumbled.

"...Chaton?" She murmured.

He couldn't breathe, it was Mother in that coffin. Mother. Mother, who had never meant to leave him behind, but had been using magic before he even knew the miraculous existed. Mother, whom his Father had sacrificed everything for. He almost sunk to his knees, but Ladybug spoke.

"...Mother?" She murmured, giving him a long look. He gasped. What had he said aloud? "Adrien?"

He squeezed his eyes shut, holding her hand in a death grip.

She glanced back at the casket for a moment, before turning her full attention to him. "Oh, Chaton…." She pulled him into a long embrace, as he choked on the sob he hadn't realized he was holding.

It felt like an eternity later that she pulled away, gesturing to his wrist. "It's almost time," she murmured. "We can go and come back. We don't have to do this in one run."

Adrien took a shuddering breath. "No," he disagreed. "I can do this."

Her thumb stroked his hand. "We can do this."

He glanced back at his wrist; they were down to seconds. He looked back at her, and cursed the sunglasses, for hiding her gorgeous eyes. "Thank you," he murmured.

Her smile was soft, "I'll always be here for you, Chaton," she said, as he twisted the band back beginning the next run.

"Six," Adrien breathed. He was again sitting next to Ladybug in the dark room, she was holding his hand, it was lighter than it was before. But she squeezed his hand, and he let out a shuddering breath.

She stiffened almost imperceptibly, in worry. "Chaton? Are you okay?"

He focused on breathing for just a moment.

"Nooroo, Dark Wings Rise!"

Adrien opened his eyes. "I will be," he declared.

She nodded, with a confident smile. "So, what is the plan?"

Adrien hesitated. He wasn't quite sure. He glanced at her, "I figured out why… why Gabriel Agreste is Hawkmoth. I'm not sure what to do next," he admitted.

"Okay, tell me what you know, we'll use this Chance to brainstorm," Ladybug suggested.

Hawkmoth continued without interruption, "Ahhh, I see, thwarted and lied to by love, and these emotions, so raw. Go my little akuma, and give power to his heartbreak!"

"Sounds good," Adrien spoke over Hawkmoth, not caring to listen to him. "You know of the Grimoire already, and that he has it." she nodded in response. "I don't know all the details, but he had the Peacock and the Butterfly Miraculous as well… and the Peacock Miraculous was damaged. His wife, Emilie Agreste, used it anyway, and ended up in a coma. She's currently sleeping in a hidden corridor in the basement," Adrien explained, praying that his voice wasn't shaking.

Ladybug's eyes widened. "You saw her, didn't you?" Adrien looked away. Sympathy shone through her face, but with a breath, she switched to her thinking mode.

"What are we going to do…" she mused, as if she had been given a lucky charm. He waited anxiously, wondering himself.

They had come here to resolve this peacefully, and they now knew his motive. He wanted to resurrect someone from a miraculous induced sleep. "Nathalie is Mayura, and she's been having dizzy spells and coughing fits recently," Adrien added. "With the translated Grimoire, they figured out how to cure the miraculous, but Nathalie hasn't recovered."

"Hmm," Ladybug acknowledged. Her mouth opened slightly. "That's it!"

"What is it?" Adrien urged.

She turned to face him, with a grin that told him she had a plan. "The Grimoire, Hawkmoth still has it. He must have looked how to fix the miraculous, but there has to be something on how to help cure users wounded by faulty magic. He probably missed it, because the language is wordy and, in some places, untranslatable. In my training with Master, he went over a lot of that for me, so maybe I could find something in the Grimoire."

Adrien grinned. "That's perfect! Okay then, so…"

"Dark Knight," Hawkmoth's voice exploded into the room, but Adrien shook his head, drowning him out.

"So then, next try, we will look for the Grimoire, and the try after, you can look for the information you need, and then next I can direct you to the information?" Adrien suggested.

Ladybug chuckled. "You should be Mister Bug again; you're getting the hang of convoluted plans."

Adrien shrugged nonchalantly, though he was grinning inwardly, "I only learned from the best." A smirk crept to his face; he could trust her to keep him grounded. He glanced back at the Snake Miraculous, there wasn't much time left. "Alright, Second Chance!"

"Seven," he told Ladybug, and she nodded.

"Progress?" She asked. He blinked; she had changed her response. Makes sense that she would react differently the higher the number rose, however.

"Yeah, we made a plan for the next few runs. We're looking for the grimoire. Can you use Voyage to send us to the safe inside Father's office?"

She blinked at him. "Father's…? Wait…"

He winced. Of all the times to slip up… "Uhhh, should I just reset, or can you ignore that tidbit of knowledge…" he asked.

She blinked at him, her mouth gaping open. "Adrien?!" she squeaked.

"Aaaalright then, Second Chance!" He spun the bracelet. "Take two," he snorted.

"What's the plan?" Ladybug asked, and he felt the familiar squeeze of reassurance.

He blinked. "Oh, this is actually number eight, I just did something stupid last time and reset immediately," he explained. She frowned, but he pushed on. "We need to look for the Grimoire this time, can you give us a Voyage to the vault in Gabriel's office?" He stressed his father's name with a light wince.

She nodded. "Voyage!" her voice drowned out Hawkmoth's.

They arrived before the painting, and Adrien opened the Painting the way he had when he first found the Grimoire. "Been here before?" Ladybug asked.

Adrien startled, but realized she was probably referring to Second Chance. "Yeah," he confirmed. Inside was the Grimoire, and the Peacock Miraculous. The tablet was not there.

"The Peacock!" Ladybug gasped.

Adrien handed the pin to her and asked, "I don't suppose you could read it without the translation?"

She shook her head. "There wasn't time for Master to teach me the script," she lamented. She held the Peacock carefully. "So Mayura really was Nathalie…?"

Adrien blinked; he had almost forgotten she had half the truth. "Any ideas where we could find the tablet?"

"Kwamis aren't supposed to see the Grimoire, but maybe Duusuu knows something. We should ask her." She put the pin on, allowing the kwami to fly out.

The blue creature opened her eyes, and gasped. "Who- who are you?" she warbled dramatically.

"Don't worry, I'm Ladybug, the guardian," she explained with a smile, and removed her glasses, half her transformation falling. "Kaalki can back me."

The horse put a hoof to its chest, "This here is Ladybug, for sure," it confirmed.

"Oh, that's wonderful!" The kwami spun in a small circle, before coming to a dead stop. "But what about Nooroo? I can sense he's active…"

Ladybug winced. "We're getting there. Do you know where the Grimoire tablet is?" she asked.

"Ohhh, he usually keeps it with the rest of his supplies, here!" The kwami led them to the desk, only to find the place she directed void of said tablet. "Hmmm, it must be tethered right now."

Adrien frowned. "Tethered?"

Ladybug rolled her eyes, and Adrien glowed at the sight. Finally, he could see her eyes. "She probably means charging, Chaton."

"So, you're Chat Noir then? Hiiiii~" The kwami floated to his face, and he blinked. She sure was carefree….

"Where would it be charging then?" His eyes flitted to the ports in the room, but there were no cords attached.

"Maybe in his personal quarters?" Duusuu cocked her head. Adrien glanced at the bracelet, there wouldn't be time to go all the way there, especially without being caught. He wasn't quite sure where Nathalie was at the moment, either.

"Can you look for us, Duusuu?" Adrien asked. The kwami's face lit with a bright smile.

"Of course, Chat Noir!" She disappeared through the ceiling, only to reappear moments later. "It is in his personal quarters," she confirmed.

"Wonderful," Ladybug smiled. "Oh, he probably changed the password… would you know the new password, Duusuu?"

Duusuu shook her head gleefully. "Kwamis aren't supposed to look at the Grimoire, of course I wouldn't look!"

Adrien and Ladybug sighed, now they would have to play a guessing game. "That's fine Duusuu, thank you for finding it for us," she assured her, then turned to Adrien. "Next Chance?"

"Just one moment," he caught her eyes, and just took them in, until he was satisfied. "Sorry, I haven't seen your gorgeous eyes since yesterday, even though you've been right next to me," he admitted overdramatically.

She snorted and rolled her eyes. "Are you taking this seriously, Chaton?" she teased, flicking his nose.

He smiled down at her and her beautiful eyes, "Purrfectly," his smile curved into a smirk. "Alright then, Second Chance," and with that, he spun the bracelet.

"Nine," he informed Ladybug, and she nodded, with that same reassurance that never grew old.

"Progress?" she asked.

"I need you to open Voyage into Gabriel's room, the Grimoire tablet should be charging in there," he told her.

She nodded, without pushing for an explanation. "Voyage!"

They arrived in his father's room, and it felt so foreign, yet again. Not only had he not seen it for years, but he was entering as a superhero, with Ladybug by his side. He took a shuddering breath, pushing down his thoughts. He already established that he couldn't afford to feel at the moment, he had to push on.

They looked around the room, quickly finding it on the bedside. They sat beside each other, the tablet in Ladybug's hands. She opened it, pushed in a series of numbers, and Adrien prayed it would work.

Naturally, it didn't, and she glanced up at him sheepishly. "Oh yeah, of course the password would be different…. Do you know what it is?"

He swallowed nervously. "I can make some guesses?"

She nodded, handing it over to him. He punched in first mother's birthday, his father's anniversary, the day she went missing, but nothing worked. He sighed, and heard Ladybug ask, "So, why are we looking at the Grimoire?"

He glanced over to her, and then the Snake's timer. "I can't fully explain because of the time, so the short answer is, Hawkmoth wants the wish to solve a magic problem he has, so I was hoping there would be an alternate solution we could bring to his attention in the Grimoire," he summarized.

"Ah," Ladybug nodded. "But we can't figure out the password-"

She was interrupted by the door being kicked down, and the two gaped as Nathalie stood, completely civilian, but her demeanor could have them both fooled.

"Who are you two, and what are you doing here?" she growled.

Adrien felt his blood freeze in his veins, he had never heard her express such fury before. He and Ladybug gaped at her, before she piped up.

"We- we want to help you!" Ladybug exclaimed. "We wanted to look in the Grimoire for ways to help take out Chat Noir and Ladybug-"

"And you could not have informed either Hawkmoth or I first?" her voice was icy. "Don't think I'm falling for that; I see you have access to the miraculous box."

"N-no, seriously!" Adrien added. He wanted to pull the fact that he was Adrien, but he would have to detransform to do so, and that would deactivate Second Chance. "We're tired of our lives being interrupted over and over again, we think it would be better to just hand over the cat and the ladybug to Hawkmoth. But we at least wanted to know why first," he pleaded. "The Grimoire would tell us what combining it would do, can you show us the page?"

He offered the tablet to her, and she took it. He waited anxiously for her to unlock it, but as she looked down at it, it was locked out from their numerous failed attempts.

She then glared back up at them, and Adrien realized not only were they down to a minute, there was no getting the password out of her. It seemed she knew it, though. He would have to try again. Resigned, he activated his Second Chance.

"Ten," he sighed, grateful when Ladybug squeezed his hand. "This is going to be tricky."

She blinked. "Do you have a plan? Are we close?"

He fidgeted. "Uhhh, we're getting there," he admitted. "We're trying to get into the Grimoire, but it's in Gabriel's room, and as we were trying to figure out the password, Nathalie walked in. Well, kicked the door down. She knows the password, but I don't know how we can get it out of her. I don't know if she would enter each time though, my guess is she heard us."

He frowned. "We didn't have time to convince her last time, but I have an idea. There's no time to explain, I don't know if five minutes is long enough," Adrien confessed. "We need to figure out where she is, and if I had to guess I think she's in the hallway at the moment. Can you use Voyage to bring us to her?"

Ladybug bit her lip. "She will see us as superheroes."

He nodded. "We're going to convince her we're on our side, and to give us the password. Trust me?"

Ladybug took a breath. "I trust you. Voyage!"

Fortunately, Adrien's guess was spot on, as they appeared right behind Nathalie. She dropped the schedule she was holding, to stare at them in shock.

"Nathalie!" Adrien exclaimed, bursting into tears, and running to give her a long embrace. Nathalie stiffened, and Ladybug dropped her mouth in shock. It didn't seem Nathalie noticed however; her focus was completely on the boy in her arms.

"Wh-what is this?" she spluttered.

"Nathalie, don't you recognize me?" Adrien whined. "It's me, Adrien." She let out a gasp, and Adrien wondered idly if he should have prepared Ladybug for this.

"How did you get these…?" She touched the Fox amulet on his chest, but as she reached for the bracelet, he took a step back.

"I know you and Father are trying to save Mother," he urged. "I want to help."

Nathalie glanced up sharply at his partner. "You went to Ladybug for help. You know her identity," she breathed. Her eyes softened, but coldly. "Adrien, you can't trust her, she helped you do this because you told her who Hawkmoth is, but she's just going to take our Miraculous."

"N-no!" Ladybug interrupted, and the two glanced back at her, eyes wide. "I- I'm not Ladybug," she stuttered, and pulled her fingers to her ears. "Look, I don't have the earrings. We- Adrien doesn't know her identity, I do. Adrien told me about his mother, and I had to help." She took a deep breath.

Nathalie narrowed her eyes. "How do I know you didn't just leave the earrings behind? Who even are you, how can I know you have Adrien's best interests in mind?"

Ladybug took a deep breath, and said, "Because Ladybug cares about one thing more than anything else, and that's identities." Adrien's heart pounded even faster, was she going to…? "And even more than that…" she murmured, removing the glasses, and then the bracelet.

"Marinette…" Adrien breathed.

"This isn't the first time I've stood up to someone for Adrien's sake." Marinette said, her voice quiet yet powerful. Adrien felt tears filling his eyes, shaken by the truth of it. Marinette had convinced his father to let him go to New York, had stood up to him when no one else would, and she was, of course, his everyday Ladybug.

Of course it was her.

"And I promise it won't be the last. I discovered Ladybug's identity, and we stole these Miraculous from her. We would have taken more, but…" she winced. "It became tiring to hold them all, and Adrien didn't want to risk it. Four was enough.

Nathalie took in a deep breath, closing her eyes. "I see. Then…."

As heartfelt as that was, and as warmed Adrien was that Marinette revealed herself to bring Nathalie to his side, he wasn't sure what to do next. How would they spin this into her giving them the password? Marinette sacrificed her identity to him, knowing it would stay with him in future chances, he couldn't let that go to waste.

Fortunately, Marinette was already three steps ahead of him, "I remember there was a big book about the superheroes or something," she scrunched up her face. "I think, if we recharge Kaalki, I can open Voyage and bring us back to the box so we can take more, but I don't know which ones to bring. Can we look at the Grimoire real quick, before Ladybug notices these are missing?" She pleaded.

Nathalie's eyes narrowed. "Why couldn't you take the whole box?"

"Ladybug's more careful about that," Adrien piped up. "She grounded it to her room, it can't move. We would have taken the whole thing already if we could."

Marinette shot him a grateful glance.

"Okay, but I need to tell your father about this development first. He's sending out a somewhat more powerful akuma, Ladybug may be interested in adding another miraculous to her mix, we should stop him before she notices the difference."

Marinette nodded. "Could we get the Grimoire then? We'll go get them at the same time."

Nathalie blinked. "Yes, that is a good idea." She looked between the two of them, and her eyes softened. "I'm so grateful that you two have decided to join us. Adrien, your father…" she stopped, tears in her eyes.

Adrien's breath caught in his throat. "I… We can talk about it later. Where is the Grimoire?"

"There's a tablet in your father's room. The password is 33478. If you go to the documents, you should be able to find the translated copy."

"33478," Adrien confirmed aloud. Adrien gave her a long hug, while reciting the number in his head. "Thank you so much, Nathalie." Before she had a chance to react, he reset the bracelet.

AN: Ironic, that these chapters are so much longer than the rest of my stories, and yet I wrote them so much faster. I blame procrastination pushing me into writing. That and I knew exactly how this 'battle' was going to go from step one, so I knew what I was writing. There's a lot of Adrien perspective, but he's the one repeating, so that's the way it has to be. I almost considered rewriting chapter 1, but this is fanfiction not a novel, and it serves its purpose. It doesn't have to make sense, with like 5 Adrien chapters and just one Marinette. (I don't know the exact number.) Anyways, once again thank you for reading! This has been a blast to write!