Man, I cannot stop with the twist-ending cliffhangers, can I? Author's Note: Just in case you readers are curious about Mrs. Agreste's superhero name, here's the backstory. Argus was the name of a monster from Greek mythology that had one hundred eyes, placed all around his body. Argus was in the employ of Hera, the queen of the gods. When Argus was killed (because of a long story involving Zeus, Hermes, and a beautiful girl-turned-cow), Hera honored her dead employee by placing his hundred eyes on the feathers of her sacred bird. That bird was the peacock. Anyway, I thought that the monster's name would be a good one for a peacock-themed heroine, despite the fact that the monster was male. But then again, so are peacocks.
Chapter 9: Explanations
"So, Master Fu… you're our grandfather?" Adrien asked, gesturing between Chloé and himself.
The little Chinese man nodded. He sat on the floor with his legs tucked underneath him. Tara sat next to her father in the same position. Marinette, Adrien, Alya and Chloé mimicked the position as they sipped some tea. Alya, Chloé and Tara had released their transformations, and their kwamis were drinking tea from a miniature tea set.
"Technically, Master Fu is my adopted father," Tara spoke up. "I've never met my birth parents. I've been Master Fu's daughter as long as I can remember. That's good enough for me."
Alya frowned. "But he never allowed you to call him "Papa" until today. Why is that?"
"And why was I not told that Adrien was my twin until today?" Chloé demanded.
"How did Hawk Moth receive his Miraculous?" Adrien asked.
"And how are we going to defeat Hawk Moth without the Ladybug Miraculous?" Marinette pointed out.
Master Fu held up a hand. "All excellent questions. But please, be patient. I'll explain everything."
The four high schoolers sipped their tea as Master Fu began the story that would answer all their questions.
…
"Everyone is born with the potential to wield a Miraculous," Master Fu revealed. "Some are more worthy for such power than others, but everyone in this world can be connected to one Miraculous.
"It is the job of the Great Guardian to determine who is the most worthy to wield their potential Miraculous. A job that has been in my family for generations. My mother was the previous Great Guardian."
Master Fu took a deep breath. "My father, on the other hand, married into the family. He was always fascinated with superheroes and the Miraculous', but once I was born, he abandoned my mother.
"This abandonment shook my mother greatly, which engraved in me an instinct to protect her," Master Fu held up his right wrist, displaying the bracelet he was wearing. "That is why I was destined to wield the Turtle Miraculous, which grants the power of protection."
"So that bracelet is a Miraculous?" Marinette asked.
Master Fu nodded. "Every Great Guardian is required to wield a Miraculous. Even if we are not the most worthy candidate, we must wear the Miraculous we are connected to."
"But then, where's your kwami?" Adrien asked.
"I sent Wayzz, my kwami, out to keep an eye on you and Marinette," Master Fu explained. "I also needed an extra pair of eyes to assess the situation while I waited for you to bring back more heroes. Wayzz is resting right now, but he should be ready to help us soon."
Tara laid a hand on Master Fu's shoulder. "Perhaps you should continue your story, Papa."
Master Fu cleared his throat. "Yes, of course.
"My mother was also the previous owner of the Turtle Miraculous. She attempted to protect me like I tried to with her. This led to us having smothering relationship." Master Fu paused for a second. "At least on my end. I'm not quite sure how Mother saw it.
"I vowed never to marry, to never risk going through what my mother went through with my father. I figured that would mean the title of Great Guardian would pass onto one of my cousins after I passed away. But they all ended up dying long before me. In order to carry on the family legacy, I needed to adopt.
"At first, I was only thinking of adopting a child for the family's sake, and nothing more. But when I saw Tara, I knew she was the only child for me." Master Fu sniffed.
"Oh, Papa," Tara squeezed Master Fu's hand softly.
"I love Tara more than anything," Master Fu wept. "I didn't want her to have the same relationship with me that I had with my mother. So I tried to stifle my protective instincts."
"Is that why you never let Tara call you "Papa?"" Marinette asked gently. "Because you thought it would make you want to protect her?"
Master Fu nodded.
Tara patted her father's hand. "I'll finish the story.
"When I was seventeen, Gabriel Agreste came to Tibet to find inspiration for his budding career in fashion design. Master Fu and I were living in a small apartment there at the time.
"Gabriel was hopelessly lost trying to find his way back to his hotel, and didn't speak a word of the local language. He literally ran into me the first time we met! He was staring at a map, and I had just stepped out of a market when Gabriel came crashing into me.
"I had just managed to help him get back to his hotel when Gabriel asked me if I believed in love at first sight. I admitted I wasn't sure, which seemed to unsettle him.
"Gabriel said that he knew love at first sight was possible, as he had felt it for me. He said he would give me everything he could, if I would be his wife." Tara suddenly giggled. "As part of our wedding vows, Gabriel promised he would give the world to me, if he could."
"Anyway, I told Gabriel I would think about it. I didn't want to marry him at that point. I now know that I never truly loved him. Gabriel only cared about me from the outside. He never asked for my opinions, and never wanted to get to know the inner me.
"But when I arrived home that night, all I could think about was how tiny the apartment was, and how my father wouldn't let me address him as such. I knew I didn't want to truly block Master Fu out of my life entirely. However, I suddenly saw Gabriel's marriage proposal as a way to experience a different kind of life.
"So I married Gabriel Agreste, and my father and I moved to Paris. I thought I was happy with Gabriel, even though he insisted I model his designs, which I did not want to do.
"But a few years after our wedding, Gabriel and I were at a fancy get-together when I met André Bourgeois. He had just become the Mayor of Paris, and from the moment our eyes met, I knew I had found true love.
"Of course, I was already married to Gabriel. I… admit that I had an affair with André," Tara confessed. "So when Adrien and Chloé were born, I separated them. I have no idea who their father is, and for a while, I tried to balance two families. When I was with André, Gabriel thought I was visiting Master Fu, who Gabriel thought of as just my elderly father. André knew everything, and respected my decision."
"I always thought you kept going on business trips," said Chloé.
"I never knew what to think," Adrien admitted.
"So about ten years ago, I stopped seeing André," Tara continued. "I had hoped to improve my life with Gabriel. André respected my decision once again, but I couldn't seem to fix my marriage.
"As a last resort, for our twenty-fifth anniversary I convinced Master Fu to grant Gabriel the Moth Miraculous. Normally the candidate for a Miraculous must go through a test before wielding it, so I had to beg for an exception. I also requested the Miraculous book, so that I could properly teach Gabriel about that part of my life.
"However, before I could give the Miraculous and book to him, Gabriel confronted me about my affair. I don't know how he found out, but he went into a furious rage about it," Tara's lower lip started to tremble. "He… he did horrible things. Things that I shouldn't be talking about with you kids.
"But once I got the chance, I fled Paris. And in my haste, I left the Moth and Peacock Miraculous' behind, as well as the Miraculous book. Gabriel found them a few months after I vanished. He became Hawk Moth, and I'm sure you all know the rest."
…
Marinette, Adrien, Alya, and Chloé all sat in silence as the story ended. What more could they have said?