AN: This is a chapter I wasn't sure if I would include here or later, but I like having it now.

To Lyger 0: They aren't exactly the most socially-conscious bunch, are they?

To Anon2018: Considering that Felix's character development really kicked into high gear only about a year ago, there are bound to be hiccups along the way. Their relationship started under very challenging and emotional circumstances, so there will be some issues to resolve. That will come up more in the next Heroes of the UK story (which is written, but 5 or 6 down the line).

Standing along the path leading from the elevators to the conference room in the Heroes of Paris' Headquarters, Gilbert Damocles looked around in shock at all the people filling the butterfly garden, people from all over the world, all talking and visiting, most of whom he recognized but some he did not. Someone brushed into him, almost bumping him off the path into the midst of the butterflies. Noise filled the cave, echoing off of the stone ceiling and walls to the point that Gilbert almost couldn't hear Ladybug standing right next to him. Ladybug gave him an expectant look, and Gilbert grimaced. "I apologize, Ladybug," he told her, half-shouting. "I did not hear what you said!"

Ladybug rolled her eyes. "I said, 'Did you try the macarons yet?'" she called, leaning in closer and raising her voice. She held up a tray of the dark-brown cookies, filled with a checkerboard pattern and decorated with light brown and yellow frosting on the top. "They've been selling like crazy all week!"

Gilbert selected one of the macarons and hummed, examining the illustration on the top for a moment before popping it into his mouth. His eyes widened. "Most excellent, my dear," he responded. "Your recipe?"

She smiled, shaking her head. "Papa came up with them – a tribute to the 'local hero,' of course. I'll let him know you like it!" She hummed. "Are you enjoying the party?"

He pursed his lips, nodding slowly as he took in the crowd. When he had decided to retire as the Owl, almost two weeks ago now, he had thought that it would be a simple thing. He had passed all of his equipment to Thierry. Pegasus had designed a new suit for him. King Monkey had made arrangements to train him. Gilbert had assumed that might be the end of his work with the Heroes of Paris. But not yet was that the case. At least for now, Thierry still needed his guidance, even if just as a voice in his head. He had been gratified when Thierry first asked. He was still needed.

And then Ladybug had told him that they would throw a retirement party. He had assumed that it would be a simple affair, no more elaborate than the retirement luncheon at Collège François Dupont had been on the day after school let out. But then he had arrived to find all the Heroes of Paris waiting for him, along with many of the other heroes from around the world. Lupa Gris and Ayilon had come, Marco and Vida in tow – Marco, watched by Multiplice and Sent-Bee, was in the process of exploring the hover-car on the far side of the cavern. Standing near the small collection of alien spaceships, talking to the Knight and O Patriota, was de Gaulle, the leader of the new group in Lyon. A couple of the retired heroes from Australia sat in the lounge area near the portal ring. And, talking to Pegasus and Impératrice Pourpre, were Knightowl, Sparrow, and Majestia.

Gilbert smiled benignly. "Thank you for organizing this… Mme Agreste."

Ladybug sighed. "You say that and I automatically look around for Emilie – especially since Adrien and I technically won't be married for another few weeks!"

"I apologize – should I not–"

"No," Ladybug interrupted him, smiling tenderly. "I just… I'm still not used to it."

He chuckled. "I'm sure that will come with time, my dear."

She hummed. "As will retirement?"

He let out a breath. "I hope it will."

Ladybug smiled sympathetically. "If there's anything you need, you can always call," she assured him, pulling out a bag from behind her back. "But, in the meantime…"

Gilbert cocked his head, opening the bag and pulling the contents out the slightest bit. His eyes widened as he caught sight of the pattern, looking up at her in amazement. "Is this – but how?"

Ladybug stifled a giggle. "It's amazing what you can do with the resources of an entire fashion house at your disposal!" The quilt back was a single piece of fabric printed with the figures of the Owl, Guitar Hero, and Anansi, with the Eiffel Tower behind them, illuminated as at sunset. The quilt top composed squares with all the different Knightowl and Sparrow logos, all surrounding a single square of the Owl logo. "I only just finished tying it this morning," she explained. "Printing the fabric took a little longer than I planned – the Spring line was in mid-production."

"It is incredible!" he murmured, running a finger over one of the logo squares.

Ladybug smiled. "I hope you will enjoy it!" Glancing around the cavern, her eyes settled on Cat Noir, speaking with the Hound and Knight. "But I should let you get back to the party," she added, inclining her head and moving in Cat Noir's direction as the other Owl approached, followed by Nabatala.

"Of course, Ladybug," Gilbert answered, still staring at the quilt.

"There are really this many heroes in the world?" the other Owl asked Nabatala, awe in his voice as he looked around the butterfly garden.

Nabatala nodded. "Actually, there are even more than this!" she answered. "There were hundreds of heroes at Tarascon when we arrived there, and America's United Heroez have even more!"

The other Owl chuckled ruefully, shaking his head. "I mean, I knew about the United Heroez, but I hadn't seen all of the others before. And you got to meet all of them." He let out a heavy breath. "So… what was it like? Tarascon, I mean?"

Nabatala shuddered. "It was… nothing I really want to repeat," she admitted, looking away. "The heroes were all fighting against it without doing anything to hurt it. When we arrived, it shot its fire straight at us – I thought we were toast. But then Elementa raised one hand and…" She shrugged. "From there it was just… doing whatever I could to help out."

"That is what it means to be a hero," Gilbert pointed out as the two teens paused in front of him. He smiled benignly. "And how are you kids?"

The other Owl looked around the cavern. "It's all… pretty overwhelming to actually be here," he admitted. "But it's nice to see so many people came – you helped a lot of people, sir."

Gilbert chuckled. "Oh, I suppose I did."

Nabatala gave Gilbert a quick hug and stepped back. The other Owl cocked his head to one side, watching her. "I don't know if I've ever told you this," she told Gilbert, "but thank you. I was so nervous starting new, and you were always so nice and helped me to feel so comfortable."

Gilbert beamed down at her. "Think nothing of it, my dear; I am happy to do what I can for those under my charge!"

She nodded, glancing over at the other Owl. "I'm sorry to see you retiring… though I'm glad that there will still be an Owl."

Gilbert puffed his chest out, giving the other Owl an evaluating look. "Indeed – I am trusting him to keep the name going and uphold the same tradition of helping other people that I have."

The other Owl straightened his back and nodded. "Absolutely."

Nabatala hummed. "Maybe we'll get to work together sometimes."

The other Owl was silent for a moment before nodding. "That would be… um… pretty cool, I think. A lot of my classmates seem to think you're the most amazing hero there is these days."

She sighed heavily. "I know – my classmates talk about it all the time, too. A few of them were in the city during the Chaos, so I guess I understand why. But some days I wish they wouldn't talk about… well… me in front of me so much!"

"At least they have good things to say about you," the other Owl muttered as they continued on toward the table on which Gilbert had placed some of his mementos from the past few years.

"They don't about you?" Nabatala wondered. "But everyone loves the Owl…"

"Mr. Owl," a vaguely-familiar voice began, drawing Gilbert's attention away from his two students, "I, um, we met back in Angola – I don't know if you remember that–"

Gilbert smiled kindly. "Of course I remember that, Patriota!" he answered him, holding out a hand to O Patriota, Caravela, Socomem, and A Saltadora in turn. "How could I forget you?"

O Patriota's eyes widened in surprise. "I–um–" Finally he fell silent, staring at Gilbert.

Caravela shook her head. "What my brother is trying to say is, 'Thank you,'" she told Gilbert. O Patriota nodded dumbly. "The reason we decided to become heroes was, well, because of you," she explained. "O Patriota saw that you were fighting alongside Ladybug and Cat Noir against Hawk Moth and his Akumas, and he thought that maybe we could do that, too."

O Patriota let out a heavy breath. "You inspired me so much," he confessed. "I don't know if we would have become heroes if it hadn't been for you."

Gilbert's eyes widened. "I–I remember you told the Ladyblog that story; I did not realize how true it really was." He coughed, swallowing. "Thank you for telling me. It is… gratifying to hear that I have made an impact."

"You absolutely have," Socomem interjected. "In Angola… I had no idea what to do. But I could see you helping out still, even without knowing what to do. And that made all the difference."

Gilbert nodded, a lump forming in his throat. "I – thank you." He turned to A Saltadora, his eyes trailing down to the obvious prosthetics on the ends of her legs. It was on the tip of his tongue to ask, but he bit his tongue.

A Saltadora chuckled wryly. "I suppose I shouldn't be surprised when people notice," she mused, raising an eyebrow.

"And how are you adjusting?" Gilbert inquired.

She shrugged. "Figuring out how to walk normally was fun, as was learning how to shower again without slipping. I can't feel the pedals of a car, and I don't know if I'll be riding any motorcycles any time soon. But I can walk, and I can even jump better now than I could with my stilts." She grimaced. "It still feels strange, but I'm starting to adjust." She let out a breath. "But that's the hero gig, though, right?"

"It is indeed," Gilbert agreed, nodding, as the four Heroes of Lisbon moved away and he turned his attention town the path toward the next-closest heroes.

Gilbert was just reaching for another macaron when King Monkey and Sk8r Girl reached him, bantering back and forth as they went. "And I'm telling you, I can absolutely swim to Le Havre from here!" King Monkey insisted, grinning.

Sk8r Girl shook her head. "Sure. So maybe you put your money where your mouth is."

"Maybe I will!"

"And no Kwami."

"That wasn't the deal!"

"It should be obvious!"

"Just remember: discretion is the better part of valor," Gilbert advised them.

King Monkey rolled his eyes. "Fine."

"So, have you two settled on your paths for next year?" he asked them.

King Monkey shrugged. "Ondine and I are trying to decide on a date – I'm not sure how long of an engagement we really want. She wanted to come today, by the way," he added. "Only Ladybug said it was heroes only. But she sends her congratulations anyways."

"Well, do thank her for me," Gilbert instructed him. "And congratulations to the two of you, as well!"

King Monkey grinned. "Thanks! It feels… right, you know? Taking the next step, I mean."

"It is a big step to build a life together."

Sk8r Girl snorted. "You're lucky you found the one girl on the planet crazy enough to have you!"

"Ha, ha," King Monkey retorted dryly.

Gilbert smiled, shaking his head in amusement. "I'm sure you will find someone eventually, as well," he assured Sk8r Girl.

She scoffed. "Not likely." She let out a breath, looking around at the rest of the crowd before turning back to Gilbert. "Hey, um… I just wanted to say… I'm sorry. For all the dumb stunts I pulled at Dupont. And the even dumber stunts I dared Idiot-Boy here to try."

"Yeah," King Monkey added, looking mildly penitent. "It was cool and all at the time… but I suppose we probably did make your job a little harder than it probably had to be."

Gilbert started. "You need no forgiveness from me," he told them. "Although I am glad to hear that you have matured – somewhat, at least," he amended.

King Monkey shrugged. "After everything that's happened this year, I don't know, maybe it's time to rethink some things. Or at least to stop doing stupid stuff just for the sake of it."

"I am sure your fiancée will appreciate that," Gilbert observed. "And I would be grateful if you did not train my successor to act so recklessly!"

King Monkey snorted. "Some of that is just part of being a hero," he pointed out.

"All the same," Gilbert told him, as his eyes drifted past King Monkey and Sk8r Girl to stop on the three people approaching him. He jumped, his mouth suddenly going dry. He had seen them from a distance so many times, but never had he gotten to actually speak to them!

"I'll make sure the kid knows the right way to do things," Sk8r Girl promised.

"Of course," Gilbert agreed, not taking his eyes off of his heroes as they got closer. "I am certain you will."

King Monkey gave him a look. "Right, well… I guess I'll see if I can hang from the ceiling…"

"Absolutely," Gilbert told him, hardly noticing when King Monkey and Sk8r Girl walked away, sniggering.

"Congratulations on making it to retirement," Majestia told Gilbert, holding her hand out to him once they reached him. "Not many in this life make it that far. And, given the circumstances, you have my respect."

Gilbert nodded quietly. "Thank you. It was… it was time, unfortunately."

Sparrow laughed. "Yeah, I'd say it was time," he agreed.

"Hush," Knightowl chided Sparrow before turning to Gilbert. "I am happy to see you reaching this stage. It is well deserved."

Gilbert grimaced, looking away. "I am sorry I do not have your stamina, sir," he responded. "I wish I could continue – I really do. But when the body is unable, there is little else to do."

Knightowl clapped him on the shoulder. "It happens to all of us eventually."

"Meaning sooner or later it's going to happen to you, too!" Sparrow interjected with a snort. Majestia gave him an annoyed frown.

Gilbert wringed his hands, looking up at Knightowl in shock. "But… you have not lost a step in 130 years!" he protested. "Whereas I am retiring after just 4." He shook his head. "I just… I wish I knew the secret. How could you fight Mr. Mime back in the 1890s and still be in shape to fight the mobsters in the 1920s and 30s? How are you still in as good of shape now as you were then?"

Knightowl sighed and looked over at Majestia before nodding slowly. "You want to know the secret to Knightowl's longevity?" he asked. Gilbert nodded eagerly. "Many have asked, but very few have ever found out the truth. I think I can trust you. But if I tell you, you cannot, under any circumstances, reveal the secret. Do you promise?"

"I promise!"

Knightowl jerked his head in the direction of the other Owl. "That's how."

Gilbert started, momentarily confused, before he looked more closely at the other Owl. "But he is… ohh."

AN: Tomorrow, look for the next SLD Case Report.