The night of the visitation, it rained. Like a kick to the gut, a painful reminder of what it was like to fall in love…now was only a soothing presence to losing love.

The old umbrella in her hand didn't help either. It was his. Adrien's. The very same he gave her that day over ten years ago.

Marinette had agonized over what to wear for too long. It was a wake, so black, right? She had this outfit picked out and everything. A sharp blazer over her little black cocktail dress, with black pumps. Even though it was a wake, it was a wake for her boss, one of the most influential fashion moguls in the world, and she would be taking his place. She had to look her best.

But then, she changed her mind. It was a social event, yes, and she would be in the public eye and representing the brand, true!

But it felt gross.

The cocktail dress was too sexy for a wake, and wearing that much black made her look goth.

It just wasn't right.

Then she saw the dress. A rose pink, knee length dress that flared out as it went down. It had little black polka dots on it.

And it was Adrien's favorite. He said so every time she wore it.

Too peppy for a wake. Too casual, too fun and flirty. But a black cardigan over it, and she felt perfect.

She could almost hear his voice as she posed in the mirror.

"I love that dress on you. You look so cute, Marinette."

It made tears spring to her eyes.

So no makeup then. Because she knew she would be crying a lot more tonight.

"Don't forget to pack tissues," Tikki reminded, helpfully.

"Right, thank you, Tikki." She tucked the little package in her purse.

With one last pass of the brush through her hair, she was ready.

So now she stood outside of the manor, the gate open.

Well folks, I'm goin' down to St. James Infirmary

See my little baby there

She's stretched out on a long, white table

Well she looks so good, so cold, so fair

The paparazzi stood nearby with their cameras, ready to swoop in like vultures.

She must have paused for too long, because they descended on her quickly, shoving mics in her face and asking questions.

Didn't they know why she was here? Didn't they know what she was going through?

An arm reached around her shoulders and started leading her forward. "Alright everyone, that's enough! Can't you see she's not in the mood?" Her rescuer shouted.

The reporters didn't pass through the gate, as that would have been trespassing. So thankfully, the crowd was left behind as they moved forward.

"Thank you," she said to the unfamiliar man.

"Of course, Miss Dupain-Cheng." He nodded.

"You know me?"

"I know of you. Head intern to Gabriel Agreste himself, if I'm not mistaken. I'm from Harper's Bazaar."

"Oh...a reporter."

"Yes, but I really was just here as a guest to pay my respects. I've interviewed both Gabriel and Adrien a few times."

"I see."

He led her into the house.

Let her go, let her go, God bless her,

Wherever she may be,

She will search this wide world over,

But she'll never find another sweet man like me.

She was early, as Nathalie had instructed. No other guests were here. Just funeral staff, some family, and two steel caskets.

Two steel closed caskets.

Might make retrieving Adrien's ring a bit of a problem, but not seeing his face…cold, motionless, and waxy would keep her somewhat sane.

The man walked with her right up to the casket, the one with Adrien's picture next to it.

"It's a shame. That much skill, the absolute genius spread between the two of them. The world as a whole will never be the same."

"Yeah."

"Any idea what's going to happen next? Not that this is an interview, I'm just curious."

She shrugged, "well, I've been offered the position, and everyone wants me to take it...but it's so…"

"Overwhelming?"

"Yes." She rested her hand on the casket. "I wish I could have a moment alone with him."

"Let me see what I can do." He smiled, then he called louder, to the room. "The lady would like a few minutes alone, if possible."

"Is she family?" A staff member asked.

"This is Madam Dupain-Cheng, she's the successor to Gabriel's empire. She's practically family!"

There was no arguing with that, and the group of staff members filed out into the adjacent dining room.

"Thank you," Marinette called to the man, still not getting his name.

"Don't worry about it darling." And he followed them out.

Marinette glanced around the room, just to make sure she was alone. "Tikki?"

"I'm here!"

"I need you to keep watch." The casket had two doors, one on top that would have been open if this was a regular visitation, and one over the legs. She slid the flower arrangement on top over to the bottom section and ran her hand over the edge. She pulled up slightly, and as she feared, it was sealed.

"It's locked," she lamented.

"Let me try!" Tikki zipped around the casket, and a moment later, it clicked and the cap opened ever so slightly.

Marinette took a deep breath as her fingers curled under the lip.

"What are you waiting for?"

"Just…I don't want to do this. I don't want to see what he looks like. I don't want to…" but she put her reservations on hold, and pushed the lid up.

She choked out a startled gasp. "Oh no…"

Now, when I die, bury me in my straight-leg britches,

Put on a box-back coat and a stetson hat,

Put a twenty-dollar gold piece on my watch chain,

So you can let all the boys know I died standing pat.

Instead of the mangled body of her true love, there was only a pile of sandbags.

Tikki, also horrified, went over to Gabriel's casket and phased inside. Then she popped out, "this one is the same!"

Marinette closed the lid and moved the flowers back into place, her mind moving at a mile a minute. Vaguely, she heard the click of the casket as Tikki put it to rights.

Marinette was panicking, but quickly calmed herself down. This didn't mean anything malicious, not yet. Maybe they were cremated and the family wanted to keep it a secret. Or because there's no graveside service, their bodies had already been buried.

Who was she kidding, something was definitely going on.

A mystery that was just aching to be solved, but her first priority was to retrieve Adrien's ring.

"-A moment alone!" A voice shouted from the dining room.

Marinette whirled around in time to see Felix storming towards her. Did he know? Was she caught?

He brushed past her, "move." And went directly to the casket, grabbing the lip like she had.

"Please sir! You'll damage the casket!" One of the funeral home staff rushed and grasped Felix by the shoulder. "It's shut and locked, it can't be opened again."

"I didn't get to say goodbye!" Felix snarled. "Look at him!" He pointed at the photo on display next to the casket. "He has my face! I deserve to see him one last time!"

"Sir...he doesn't look like that anymore. It would be very disturbing to see his remains."

Disturbing indeed, considering Adrien wasn't in there at all.

Amelie was quick to join the group and she consoled her son. "We talked about this. You knew it was going to be a closed casket."

"They said the family had time alone. I just...wanted to say goodbye, face to face." He shook his head and scowled. "He deserved that, at least."

Marinette made herself small, feeling like an intruder in this family crisis. But Amelie still saw her and brought her in for a hug.

"How are you holding up, dear?" She asked, pulling away slightly.

"I'm…I've been better."

"Of course, I'm so sorry for your loss."

Marinette had met Amelie and Felix more than a few times working at Gabriel. As the years went on, they came to visit more and more often. Amelie was always insistent that she call her 'Aunt Amelie' like Adrien. It felt weird to break the habit now.

"Isn't pink a little too festive for the occasion?" Felix bit. The red from anger in his cheeks had faded. Now he just sounded bitter.

It was Adrien's voice…but not. It was a shame Felix sounded so much like him.

He looked just like him too, minus the slicked back hair and glasses.

"Adrien really loved this dress," Marinette whispered. "I know it's not—I just—"

His face softened slightly, relieved that she had Adrien in mind, and not fashion. "Sounds fine to me."

Even after the disastrous first encounter they had, Felix and Marinette never became friends. He and Adrien certainly got along, or at least appeared to, but Felix and Marinette were only ever cordial.

It was a wake, after all. He should be nice. He gave her a small smile, one that looked eerily similar to Adrien's.

Before she could stop herself, she was hugging him.

He didn't smell like Adrien at all. He smelled like clean cat litter and laundry detergent, not spicy cologne and the smallest hint of cheese. Belatedly, she realized the cheese smell was probably Plagg's doing.

"Uh…" He said awkwardly, before sighing and patting her on the back.

"I'm sorry," she pulled away. "Even though…" she trailed off with a blush, embarrassed with what she had done. "You just look like him."

"I know," he shrugged. "I worried about coming. I'm prepared for people to see me and burst into tears. Or hug me, like you did. I get it. As much as I would like otherwise, I'm willing to tolerate it for today."

"That's kind of you."

His face softened further. "You loved him, didn't you?"

Amelie gasped. "Felix! You can't just ask things like that!"

"It's okay," Marinette assured, hugging herself. "You're right. I was—am. I still love him, even though he's gone."

"And…you know what happened?"

She nodded. "It sucks. And I really wish I could allow one terrible action to wipe everything away…but I knew him. These last two weeks he wasn't himself. He was cruel to me in a way I had never seen. It just…it wasn't Adrien."

Felix gave her a critical look. "I always assumed my cousin couldn't hurt a fly. It's…bizarre, what happened."

"It's not public knowledge," Amelie reminded. "And it should stay that way."

"Who are we protecting by lying about it? The 'Brand'? The family? Adrien himself?"

"What are they saying, anyway?" Asked Marinette.

"They're saying both Adrien and Gabriel died from an in-home accident."

"Vague," said Felix. "Suspicious."

"But better than 'unknown causes' at least," said Marinette. "Maybe it's selfish, but I want Adrien to be remembered for all the good he did…" As Chat Noir, her brain added, "and not the demons he faced in the end."

"Still, I can't help but wonder what made him snap," he mused, looking at Marinette. "Do you have any idea what may have caused it?"

Her mind went back to two weeks, when he had asked her to dinner. He was nervous, and told her he had something to tell her.

And then that phone call a few nights ago. What had he said? Something about the basement?

"I'm…not sure. I'd have to think about it."

"Perhaps you two could consider this mystery another day? Not during the visitation?" Amelie urged.

"Sorry mom, you're right." He glanced back at Marinette. "If you have anything on this, I'd love to hear it. I care deeply for Adrien, and honestly, I'm highly suspicious of these circumstances."

Amelie huffed. "Darling, you heard Nathalie, what she saw, what the police found, it's pretty cut and dry…"

"People don't just murder their father's for no reason! Especially with supposedly flawless mental health!"

The room grew quiet, as Felix's outburst was louder than intended. Thankfully, guests had yet to arrive.

"Sorry. This whole thing…I've had enough of death in this lifetime." He cleared his throat. "I need some water."

When he left, Amelie squeezed her shoulder. "Don't let Felix get to you. It's just hard for him. He has so much in common with Adrien, it's a little scary for him."

Oh. That made sense. Fear he'd snap too?

"It was sudden for everyone. We're all going through it."

"They said you were having a moment alone with Adrien. I'll let you get back to it." She squeezed her shoulder and left her in peace.

So now Marinette was left to wonder what she could possibly do. Where to even start? She didn't need anymore time with an empty casket.

An' give me six crap shooting pall bearers,

Let a chorus girl sing me a song.

Put a red hot jazz band at the top of my head

So we can raise Hallelujah as we go along.

There were a few more guests now, but it was still a little early. She saw a man in a suit arranging flowers. He had a name tag on his lapel.

As casual as she could, she snuck over to him. "Excuse me, are you the funeral director by chance?"

"Oh? Yes I am. Bill Hunkerson, at your service. How can I help?"

She had to phrase this very carefully, to not be suspicious. "I'm a very close friend of Adrien's. He was wearing a silver ring when he died. It doesn't actually belong to him, and I was wondering if I could have it back."

The man turned pale, but plastered on a smile. "Well, he's probably wearing it now. Unfortunately, after we close the casket, we can't open it again."

She knew that was a big fat lie. And Marinette hated liars.

She lowered her voice. "Well, since his body isn't actually in the casket, it shouldn't be that hard, should it?"

The man stared at her, wide eyed, no longer smiling. "How did you—" He frowned. "Look miss, I'm just doing what I'm paid for. I don't know anything. That ring is probably gone forever, and I'd stop this search now." He straightened his tie and bowed his head slightly. "If you'll excuse me."

Marinette opened her purse when she was alone. "I don't know about you, Tikki, but I've got a bunch of red flags and alarm bells going off inside my head."

"This isn't good! We need to get that ring!"

"We need to find out what happened to Adrien's body!"

"Yes, of course, that too!"

Marinette gnawed at the inside of her cheek. "Hey, no offense to Plagg, but wouldn't he know to bring the ring back to me? If he can't remove it, then wouldn't he come tell me about it?"

Tikki's eyes widened. "You're right! If he died under normal circumstances, yes…but if he was transformed when he died…"

"Then what?"

"Plagg probably would be forced back into the ring. That's probably why he didn't come!"

"Now I'm even more worried and confused." Marinette crossed her arms. "What if Adrien isn't actually dead?"

"What do you mean?"

"What if…he ran away? And Gabriel made it out like he died? What if Gabriel's still alive too?"

"It's a theory, but I don't know how well it will hold water."

She studied the room again, trying not to draw attention to herself. She was supposed to be grieving after all.

Felix sat in the chairs over by the stairs, his back to the growing crowd.

Even if they didn't really get along, two skeptics working together would be better than each on their own.

"Do you mind if I join you?" She asked.

"I suppose not." He sighed.

Marinette sat in the chair next to him, and sat quietly for a moment, trying to decide how to proceed. She didn't want to reveal her whole hand, but maybe playing a few cards would be to her advantage.

Felix beat her to it. He let out a weak chuckle. "I hate this family."

What an awful thing to say at wake. "Why's that?" She asked calmly.

"They die too quickly. It sounds so awful, I know. But it's just my mother and I now. Grandparents are long gone, then my Aunt Emilie, then my father, and now them. It sucks and I'm sick of stupid funerals."

"It must be hard. I'm sorry."

"Yeah, well...I'm a pro at it now." He was resting his cheek on his hand, and was staring at the corner of a wall, just pointedly avoiding eye contact. Still, she could see he had red in his eyes. Though she chose to ignore it. Felix seemed to be the type to hide his tears.

"You know...the last time I talked to Adrien, he told me to check the basement."

This piqued Felix's curiosity enough for him to look at her. "Basement? What basement?"

"I suppose here, but I haven't had the chance to, since you know…all this going on."

"That doesn't make any sense. I used to come to this house all the time. It doesn't have a basement."

"So…maybe at the company?"

"Could be. I wouldn't know."

"Okay, I just wondered...since you were family…"

He growled. "Yeah, some family."

"Do you...want to talk about it?" She offered, really hoping he would take the bait.

He chuckled again, no humor in his tone. "Might as well, no one around left to hide things from." He leaned back in the chair. "Gabriel is...was a very private person. I tried to love him, since he was my uncle, but he did a very good job at keeping us at a distance. Adrien was the opposite. We talked often, even when his mom and my dad died and things got rough. Sometimes, it didn't feel like we were welcomed here. But Adrien so wanted a connection. I could feel it in his hugs when we visited. He was starving, Marinette."

Marinette willed herself not to start crying.

"Mom and I were told by Nathalie that Adrien and Gabriel were caught in a murder-suicide, as enacted by Adrien, early in the morning on the 23rd."

"Did she tell you where the murder-suicide happened?"

"Nope, just that it happened in this house. As the only living relatives, she asked if we could come and help with the funeral arrangements."

"Were you involved in all of it?"

"I thought mom and I did all of it together, but there was one thing that Nathalie insisted on and wouldn't budge."

"What's that?"

"Gabriel is going to be interred in the Agreste family mausoleum, but Adrien…" he sighed with disgust. "As punishment, he's getting an unmarked grave."

"What!?"

"That was the compromise. The truth about the murder-suicide, which I am believing less and less, would be withheld from the public as long as Adrien was…effectively erased from the family line."

She couldn't help the tears that burst forth. "But that's not fair! He didn't do anything wrong! He couldn't've!"

"Yeah kid, I know. I agree." He scowled. "It makes me sick. I hate it. Adrien was suffering in life, and now he's going to suffer in death."

"You don't think he did it?"

"Do you?"

She shook her head. "I can't. I know what's been said, and what people saw...but it just can't be true." And she had evidence to prove it, in the form of that empty casket.

"You won't mention I said any of this to my mom, right? She's also having a hard time, but she tells me I'm in denial."

"I won't say a word."

Folks, now that you have heard my story,

Say, boy, hand me another shot of that booze;

If anyone should ask you,

Tell 'em I've got those St. James Infirmary blues.

I'm not sure about next week's update. I'm going camping and I don't know what the wifi will be like. Fingers crossed!