Hello Miraculers, as promised, I'm back this wednesday with chapter 14.
Enjoy your reading,
CHAPTER 14: The interview
"Mr. Agreste, please follow me. Only one person can accompany you. The others are asked to wait in the room provided for this purpose."
Alya and Nino addressed a comprehensive look at the police officer then a supportive look at their friends. They then departed to the room where they could wait for the end of Adrien's interview.
Adrien and Marinette followed the police officer. Discreetly, Marinette leaned towards her partner's ear.
"Everything will be fine, don't worry I'm here," she whispered.
Adrien nodded. Then, quickly, they reached a small office where Lieutenant Raincomprix awaited them. Immediately he motioned for them to sit across from him. Lieutenant Roger was the only one in charge of this sensitive case and therefore led the hearing without any team member. The police officer turned his gaze to Adrien, and the interview began.
"Well, let's get started, please. First the usual checks: are you Adrien Agreste, son of Mr. Gabriel Agreste and Mrs. Emilie Graham de Vanily, born October 4, Two-thousand in the city of Vannes in the Morbihan department ?"
"Yes", Adrien simply agreed.
"Perfect, here is the reminder of the facts for which you were called to testify today. You were the victim of a kidnapping perpetrated by your father, Gabriel Agreste, as well as his assistant, Miss Nathalie Sancoeur. You are also the witness of the criminal acts committed by your father and his assistant, acting secretly under the masks and pseudonyms of Hawkmoth and Mayura, for five years," enumerated the lieutenant while reading the document which he held.
Adrien nodded in approval.
"Well, Mr. Agreste, first of all you must know that your father said that you were Chat Noir", declared the policeman.
Adrien felt Marinette squeeze his hand strongly following this sudden declaration. The blonde's breath suddenly caught in his throat and he had to make a considerable effort not to show anything. If it turned out that he had to deny the facts, then he had to mask any reaction that could truly betray his identity.
"However, knowing that the latter worked with Ladybug, here in Paris, throughout your disappearance, I know that is perfectly impossible," he clarified.
The oppressive weight on Adrien's chest eased and he instantly released the breath he had held prisoner. He was grateful that his partner had been insightful and far-sighted enough, during his absence, to use an illusion of his masked alter-ego. Marinette seemed relieved to. The pressure she was exerting on his hand was suddenly much lighter.
"I know that I therefore cannot trust what he said during his interrogation. So I count on your help to bring me tangible information on how the events unfolded," added the lieutenant.
Again, Adrien just nodded, silently approving the policeman's request.
"Did you know of the criminal acts of the two accused before that famous evening when you were dragged into their escape against your own will?" he began by asking.
"No, I had no knowledge of it. I learned their identities that same day," Adrien calmly declared.
That was true. He had learned the truth only a few hours before confronting them with Ladybug, as Chat Noir.
The lieutenant typed the young man's answer, then raised his head to him. "When did you learn the truth?"
Adrien had already thought about this question, he could not say that he had surprised one of their conversations and then warned Ladybug and Chat Noir. He could not, because he would surely be asked how he could then contact the two heroes of Paris and especially without publicly mentioning his discovery. No, unfortunately, he had to develop an answer that would allow him to protect their secret identities, his own, but also Marinette's.
"That evening I heard shouts coming from Gabriel's office. When I arrived at his office, my mother's portrait had secret keys that were pressed down, and a circular hatch was opened in the ground," he replied.
This was partly true, he had heard vaguely about the portrait and an elevator in the conversation he had surprised. It didn't take him long to put together all the pieces of the puzzle, concerning the existence of a secret hideout within his own home.
"The hatch provided access to a narrow, cylindrical lift. I had taken it and found myself in the battle between Ladybug and Chat Noir and Hawkmoth and Mayura. When they spotted my presence, Hawkmoth unveiled his face and Mayura opened a bright portal," he said, remembering when he actually saw his father's face materialize in front of him. "Then, everything happened very quickly, the heroes couldn't do anything and I was drawn into the light with Gabriel and Mayura. I discovered Mayura's identity on the other side of the portal, even though I had already understood everything when I saw Gabriel's face," he added, still calm.
If his partner and his masked alter-ego were also questioned, they should be careful about using the same version, he thought.
The interview went on and Adrien first explained Nathalie's worrying state of health and the reasons - which he later learned - why she was so unwell. Then he described the aspect of the Sentiworld, perfectly similar to the Agreste Manor.
"Had you, at any time, tried to find a solution to get out of there?" questioned the Lieutenant.
"Of course!" protested Adrien, offended. "I first tried to steal the Miraculouses that Gabriel was wearing, but it was impossible. He was too suspicious and had the possibility to transform instantly," he added.
"So there was no exit door?"
"None! There was no outside world around the Manor. Everything was black, It was nothingness. I was totally imprisoned, nothing else existed except the Sentiworld. It was a nightmare becoming true. A nightmare made of loneliness, isolation and moral suffering," he replied, his voice breaking under the weight of his painful explanations.
He felt Marinette leap and tense beside him. There was no doubt, his declarations were not easy for the young woman to hear. She squeezed his hand gently and he felt comforted by her presence.
"I know it's going to be difficult, Mr. Agreste."
The young man interrupted the policeman abruptly.
"Please, Lieutenant, call me Adrien. I don't want to be associated with that monster who's Gabriel Agreste anymore."
"Sure, Adrien. I know it's going to be difficult, but can you tell me how you lived through this sequestration? These are elements that will be decisive for the trial and the future condamnation of your kidnappers."
"I have been used to loneliness and isolation before. At first, it was as if a ghost from my childhood had resurfaced. The days were long, but it was quite manageable. I had faith in Ladybug and Chat Noir and I had hope that they would find a solution. Then over the weeks…"
His voice went off and he had to take a break. Then he cleared his throat and continued his story.
"As the weeks went by, it was harder and harder to live. I couldn't stand being locked up with Him every day," he said, clenching his fists.
"Was he violent with you?"
Adrien's physical reaction didn't get unnoticed in the eyes of the police officer.
"We argued several times when I tried to make him hear the reason. He slapped me once, and as a result of that, I broke all contact with him. Until he felt regret, at least that's what I thought... Until he created this... this Sentimonster…"
He felt a knot painfully tied his throat and his voice was a choked whisper.
"A Sentimonster? Like the ones we've seen here before? But why?" the Lieutenant was surprised.
A disgusted and nervous laugh shook Adrien's body.
"It wasn't really the same kind of Sentimonster... He created her to fill...to fill the loss of the woman I love... she looked like... Like…" Words were stuck in his mouth.
"Me. Adrien told me she looked like me," he heard Marinette suddenly declare. The young woman's voice was as weak and tormented as his own.
The police officer looked at both of them with a worried gaze.
"Do you wanna take a break, Adrien?" he asked, with a lot of understanding about how difficult it was for him.
"No, It's okay. We can continue this, Lieutenant." answered Adrien, squeezing tight Marinette's hand.
"Are you sure?"
Adrien just nodded, waiting for the next question.
"Can you tell me more about the Sentimonster?" asked Lieutenant Roger.
"Err, she was scary. She was harassing me… I mean…" he looked at Marinette, silently being sorry for what was coming next. "She was sexualy harassing me. Everyday." he confessed.
"Have you ever slept with…"
"No! Never!" he protested, his blood turning on fire in his veins. "It's true that she wanted to. She tried to seduce me. She had inappropriate gestures and could be very enterprising... She was driving me completely insane with desire. But I never had sex with her!" he asserted, not delicately.
But perhaps if Ladybug hadn't arrived that day... he thought, ashamed and disgusted with himself.
"Can we take a break, Lieutenant Roger?" He heard Marinette ask, her voice shaking and begging.
"Of course, I leave you some privacy. I'll be back in ten minutes," he replied.
The policeman got up and left the room, leaving Adrien and Marinette alone.
"Do you want to talk about it?" proposed Marinette.
"No, everything's fine. I just need to get a glass of water and get some air for a few minutes."
Adrien stood up under Marinette's profoundly worried gaze and left the room, which had become too oppressive for him. He felt like he was suffocating and needed to breathe, alone. And so he did. He made his way outside the building but stopped before reaching the main gate of the police station. Indeed, he could tell there was a crowd of journalists waiting outside. Then he turned around, heading to the water fountain in the reception area where he served himself a cup of fresh water. He took a moment to deeply inspire and slowly exhale, he did it many times, to calm his emotions and the anarchic beats of his heart. When he returned to the room where he was being questioned, Lieutenant Roger was already back and was visibly trying to appease Marinette who was nervously moving on her chair.
He sat down next to her again and she didn't hesitate a second before entangling her fingers with his. She needed him, she needed him to reassure her, she needed to feel that he was there with her. Just as he was grateful that she was present for him, even though it was painful and uncomfortable for him to open himself thus before her. He was afraid that his words might hurt her. He was afraid to make her suffer again.
He carried his lips to his glass, drank a sip of water, then turned to the policeman. "We can continue, Lieutenant," said Adrien.
The man nodded solemnly, then the serious expression, he resumed the interview.
The Lieutenant asked for more details about the Sentimonster and her actions, to which Adrien replied, increasingly uncomfortable and overwhelmed.
"We're almost done, Adrien. Can you tell me what happened the night Ladybug and Chat Noir freed you?" he asked.
"I was in my room when the two heroes arrived. Ladybug took care of the Sentimonster and Chat Noir of me. I told them where Nathalie's room and Gabriel were, and then I stood aside as they asked me," he replied. "A few minutes later, everything started shaking around me. There were cracking sounds, as if the walls were splitting, as if the windows were breaking. And the next moment, I found myself in Hawkmoth's lair, where we had disappeared almost eight weeks before."
He sighed with relief at his words. He could still feel deeply, the deliverance that it had been to be liberated from the Sentiworld and to rediscover the real world.
"Hawkmoth and Mayura were mastered and deprived of their Miraculous. Nathalie was safe, as if she had never been dying. And for the rest, you know perfectly the end of the story, since it is about their arrests," he finished his explanation.
"Thank you for your testimony, Adrien," replied Lieutenant Roger, concluding to type the latest information provided by the young man.
Just a few moments later, the police officer handed Adrien a copy of the minutes he had written.
" will ask you to read this carefully to see if the facts are in line with your statement. If so, you can date and sign the document to approve the minutes. I'll leave you alone for a few moments to scroll through the contents of the file," he said, as he left the office.
The moment the door closed behind the policeman, Marinette turned back to Adrien, eyes shining with tears.
"I am so sorry to have waited so long before coming to save you," she sobbed. "If I had made the decision to make the wish earlier, you wouldn't have had to endure so much pain... But I was so afraid that the consequences would be irreversible... I was afraid that you would be hurt or worse... to lose you..." she said, collapsing in his arms.
She started sobbing in his arms and he hugged her closely in return, trying to calm her down. "It's okay, I'm not dead or hurt. I'm here," he whispered through her hair.
It took Marinette a few moments to control her emotions and regain a semblance of serenity. She was no longer shaking in his arms and slowly he felt her moved and raised her head to plunge her bluebell eyes into his emerald gaze.
"I should have intervened earlier," she again apologized, wiping her damp face with the back of her hand. "If I had used the power of the wish upon my return from Tibet, you wouldn't have had to live with this abominable Sentimonster and her sexual advances. She wouldn't have driven you…" she stopped, biting her lower lip and gazing down at the ground.
"Crazy? Irrational? Unreasonable? Insane with a burning desire? It's not your fault, Marinette... you couldn't have known that a double of you made me lose my mind there…"
You couldn't have known that she would drive me crazy to the point that I lost control. Crazy to the point that I fucked you savagely when I found you again, he mused, horrified, the memory of Ladybug's moans of pain resonating like a scathing echo in his ears.
"You did what was right. It was a difficult decision to take. You have no reason to blame yourself," he replied. But I do… he thought bitterly.
His eyes fell sadly on the report he had in his hands. Marinette knew everything now. But instead of feeling relieved, he felt even more ashamed, concerned, and guilty. Ashamed, to have desired the Sentimonster to the point of having considered giving in to her advances. Concerned about what Marinette might think now that he had confirmed to her that what she had seen: Sentibug straddling him was a moment of weakness where he was about to give up all hope of regaining a normal life. Guilty: deeply guilty, to have vanished this sexual frustration being harsh and brutal with her.
"Is the report complete, Mr. Ag... Adrien?"
The male voice behind him made him startled. Lost in his confrontational thoughts, he had not heard Lieutenant Roger enter the office again.
"Yes. Yes, it's complete, Lieutenant," he replied by grabbing the pen placed in front of him.
He wrote the date on his statement and signed it, then handed it to the policeman.
"Can we leave now?" he heard Marinette ask.
The officer nodded and shook hands with the young woman, then with Adrien, before opening the exit door and greeting them one last time.
Marinette and Adrien found Alya and Nino in the waiting room of the police station. The interview lasted almost two hours and during this time, many journalists had gathered at the entrance of the building.
"How are we going to get out of here without being harassed?" asked Alya with concern.
The young woman was well placed to know that when a bomb like this was dropped, journalists were willing to do anything to get any little information. Getting out of here without being blocked by all the vultures waiting for their prey was going to be very complicated.
"It will not be so difficult," said Adrien, confident.
His three friends raised an eyebrow, visibly confused.
"Go ahead, journalists are just waiting for Adrien. I'll meet you in a few minutes, Gorilla will cover me," he specified, by taking his phone out of his pocket.
"Are you sure? asked Marinette with apprehension.
"Yes, don't worry about me."
Marinette, Alya and Nino left the building without any difficulty.
A few minutes later, the Agreste's familiar sedan stopped in front of them, about a hundred meters from the police station. They all got on board and then the car covered the remaining few meters and parked. The three young people were deeply grateful to be made invisible by the tinted windows of the vehicle, because already all the journalists were turned to the famous sedan.
The next moment, the imposing bodyguard entered the police station and came out with Adrien. His large and muscular body formed a rampart around the young man and allowed him to quickly reach the vehicle without any difficulty.
"I know you wanted us to have a drink together, guys, but as you've seen, it's going to be really hard with the media hype. And then, the interview was quite grueling, I am tired, I would like to go back to the Manor and rest," exclaimed Adrien, a little embarrassed.
" No problem, dude. We understand," replied Nino.
"Yes, go and rest, both of you need it," added Alya.
Following Marinette's directions, the driver took the direction of Alya's apartment to drop off the young couple, then brought Marinette and Adrien back to the Manor.
The vehicle parked in the inner courtyard and Adrien was astonished to see that an unexpected visitor was waiting above the steps leading to the door of the residence.
He grimaced, upset, and Marinette could not hide her reaction similar to that of her boyfriend.
It was not the time for this…
To be continued...
Here is a chapter that summarizes a little the previous ones to keep a maximum of fresh information in your mind. I think that this little recap was a good thing and at the same time it brings something new, a new perspective on the events and Marinette's reaction to what Adrien experienced.
Don't forget to take a few seconds to leave a comment, please. It's important for me to have your opinion.
So if you're in the shadow since the beginning, don't be afraid to pass in the light and leave a review.
Miraculous kisses dear readers.