In which we find out more about Plagg and why Marinette is so nervous about Adrien hanging out with the Whisperers. Some one else decides to come for a visit too...
sweetXDmelody... It is problematic but don't worry! There is always a solution!
(Slow Burn Detective AU!) Marinette is used to working alone on the streets of Paris as she strives to take down the Hawkmoth gang. When the thief Chat Noir comes crashing into her life things are bound to get magical, especially when co-detective Adrien returns to Paris and seems to want to be her new partner. Will their fated partnership end in a capture or a kiss?
New Faces
For once, Adrien wished he could just pull Plagg out in the open and talk with him. He had a feeling that the information about the dogs and Spike had given Plagg the same idea as him. Spike had most likely been turned into an Akuma, but the question that remained unanswered was how in the world was it happening? The most he and Plagg had come up with was that someone in power within the Hawkmoth gang had a miraculous stone and they were using it to create these monsters. Plagg had told him before that the stronger humanoid Akuma had an energy that only a miraculous stone could create, but it was a corrupted energy. It was the reason that the Akuma died and the energy bubbled off, but neither of them understood how it was happening. At some point when he went to talk with Marinette, he needed to tell her of his suspicions since she was in charge of the Hawkmoth case. If she continued to pursue Hawkmoth the way she was, Adrien had a feeling that she would begin to run into Akuma more and more.
"We're here," Marinette said, suddenly interrupting the silence that had permeated their small group.
Knocked out of his reverie, Adrien suddenly took notice of their surroundings and his jaw dropped. They had stepped out of a concrete alley and into a secret garden. Bushes and flowers grew everywhere, Adrien could even see some edible plants scattered throughout. Adrien assumed the area they had walked into had once been an open courtyard to a home or something else before the buildings had been changed. Now light blue walls rose on all four sides, although he could see an alley continuing on ahead as an exit point. Amusingly, at least to him, there were also two rope ladders falling from the rooftops giving anyone access to them if they wished. People were in the garden scattered here and there down the meandering paths that seemed to be part of the old cobblestone road. The dirt banks had been built on top of them so the paths were surrounded by short wooden walls that kept the earth from spilling everywhere.
"Whoa! Is this where you guys get your flowers from? Do you have to water all this by hand? How did all this get here?" Adrien asked before taking a deep breath to draw in the smell of fresh earth and fragrant flowers.
Stormy snickered while Marinette smiled, but before she could answer a figure rose from a hidden bench behind an overly-large bushy plant.
"Finally, you children arrived . I was beginning to think I would have to send a search party out to fetch you," Gram grumped as she stumped towards them.
"If I had known you were waiting, I would have come straight here instead of taking my time," Marinette replied, reaching into one of the bags to pull out a small bundt cake. "Here, I brought you some mini cake and some of the other stuff people wanted. You already know who Adrien is."
Gram took the cake, and turned her gaze on Adrien who froze. Technically, he had already met her as Chat, though hopefully she wouldn't ever realize it. Plagg had told him that the magic of the stone would protect his identity, but this old lady was scarily sharp. As it was, she trailed her sharp gaze over him seeming to take in every detail about him.
"Good afternoon ma'am, my name is Adrien Agreste. It's a pleasure to meet you," Adrien said while holding out his hand.
Gram's face was impassive but she placed her hand in his, clearly expecting a handshake. Instead, Adrien bent forward placing a gentle kiss on her knuckles. Behind him, he heard one of the girls snort but Gram's cheeks creased into a slight grin as he rose to his full height.
"You, my boy, are a flirt. Tell me, have you tried turning that charm on our Marinette?" Gram asked.
"Yes ma'am," Adrien replied solemnly. "I've even managed to convince her I'd be a good date to the police ball."
Adrien could practically hear Marinette's eyes roll as Gram laughed before him, reaching up to pat his cheek with affection. "Cheeky child. You'll do well here, I think."
Just like that, the ice seemed to break and Adrien was welcomed by numerous people as they followed Gram through the garden area.
It was a little strange to be walking at Marinette's side as they discussed happenings on the streets with no one questioning why he was there. Unlike when he was Chat, no one tried to pick a fight with him or demanded to know why he wanted to be around Marinette. It was nice, even though Adrien was really waiting for the other boot to drop.
"Marinette! Marinette!" a young voice shrieked as they passed an open path to the right. A shape launched from the ground and unfortunately, right at that moment, Adrien had moved up next to Marinette to ask her a question.
Adrien simply reacted, snatching up the shape coming at him, realizing in a moment that he held young Manon.
"Uh, hi…" Adrien said, feeling somewhat sheepish for grabbing her out of thin air.
Manon glowered at him, "You're not Marinette… or kitty. I want Marinette!"
Adrien forced a light chuckle out, "Uh, nope. I'm neither female nor feline. Marinette, I believe you're wanted." Turning, he handed Manon off to Marinette. As she scolded the child for jumping on random people, Gram waved a hand at him inviting him closer. Adrien moved to her side, bending at the knee so she could speak into his ear a little easier.
"There are a few things we need to discuss with Marinette, alone. You're welcome to wander the area and meet people as you wish," Gram said.
Adrien nodded, having figured this would happen at some point. "That's fine with me, although Marinette wanted to go check on Mime at some point this afternoon, or evening if it takes longer."
Grams eyebrow raised, "You're not curious as to why we want her alone?"
Adrien shrugged, "I am curious but if it's a secret or something she can't share, then she's s entitled to keep it to herself. As long as it doesn't hurt her or anyone else, I can't complain. If she feels I need to know something, then she'll tell me."
"Smart boy," Gram chuckled. "I like you better already. Go on then and explore. Any questions you have can be directed at anyone here, although I won't guarantee an answer. Don't eat any plants as some of them are poisonous to humans, also no fighting. I need my hunters in one piece and you have the same grace our Marinette does, which usually means you would wipe the floor with them. Don't even let them try to talk you into it. Marinette will find you when necessary."
"I'll be on my best behavior," Adrien promised.
Gram patted his cheek again, a smile making her wrinkles crease into laugh lines, "Don't do that child, otherwise they'll think you're hiding something."
Adrien arched an eyebrow at Gram, "Aren't we all hiding something?"
"Cheeky child, go play," Gram answered, affection in her tone even as she moved back to Marinette.
Marinette had set Manon down as Gram moved back towards her and she even managed to mouth, "Sorry!" as she was being led off. Before he could start feeling too awkward standing in a maze of plants, however, a small hand tugged at his jacket.
"Who are you?" Manon asked, as soon as Adrien looked down at her.
"Ah, hi! My name is Adrien. What's yours?"
Manon cocked her head to the side, "Manon. Do you like Marinette?"
Internally, Adrien choked. But thankfully, he had an automatic response ready, "Of course I like Marinette! Don't you like Marinette?"
Manon nodded, but she had an odd look on her face like she didn't quite believe what Adrien was saying, "Marinette is the bestest sitter ever, but Alya has better stories! She's a unicorn princess!"
"Oh… Marinette is a unicorn princess?" Adrien asked, hiding the laughter trying to bubble through his system.
Manon huffed, "No, Alya is a unicorn princess! Marinette is still the best sitter though! She lets me eat her cookie dough!"
"I…see…" Adrien managed without laughing. "And what does Alya… er… the unicorn princess do when she comes?"
Manon grinned up at him before grabbing his hand to pull him towards one of the walls, "I'll show you! We can play over here!"
Manon hustled through the garden, pulling Adrien after her. As she did, he kept looking around at all the plants that surrounded them. Even though he had no idea at what he was eyeing most of the time, several of the plants were actually pretty neat. The people were even more fascinating as Adrien caught several amused or fond looks pointed at him, although he didn't have to guess why. He could have sent Manon off the moment he introduced himself so that he could meet and mingle with the other adults who were in the area. In fact, it probably would have been wiser since he needed to learn these people and their ways. However, Adrien had found out long ago that he could never simply ignore or send away a child callously. It had been done to him too many times as a child, and he never wanted to be the one to upset a child needlessly when kindness only took a moment.
At the last minute, Adrien realized they were heading right for a brick wall covered in vines, and without a moment to spare, thought to duck in case the opening was set for children rather than adults. It was lucky he did since the wall entrance was set for a far smaller person, Manon giggled mischievously as she continued pulling him forward into the now—open area. Adrien would have grumbled at a child's attempt to sabotage him, but he was too busy gaping at the sight before him. They had gone from being outside in a garden to a child's playground paradise. In one corner, he spied a foam pit that had monkey bars and other entertaining contraptions on it. The space to the other side had more traditional playground equipment, like swings, tucked away. But what held his attention was the giant rope-jungle gym-giant play tube set-up that disappeared up through the floor above. It was a sharp reminder that they had technically entered the building, even though neither the lighting nor the temperature had really changed. The edges of the play area hosted chairs and a few benches for weary adults to rest on while the kids played.
"Wow this place is amazing!" Adrien said, suddenly wishing he were far smaller.
Manon nodded eagerly at him. "You fit too! Alya an' Marinette does it all the time, but you gotta take your shoes off first."
Adrien glanced down at Manon's eager face, then back up at the complex mess of ropes, bridges, and tubes. "Alright, I'll play with you for a little bit, ok? If other kids come though, I'll have to get out. I think I'm too big and I wouldn't want to squish anyone."
"Ok!" Manon cheerfully cried before slapping her hand into his side, "You're it!"
She took off straight for the ropes, her shoes flying off in the process.
"Ah! Hey wait!" Adrien yelped, struggling to toe off his shoes as he moved forward.
Somehow, he managed it as Manon scrambled onto a platform sticking her tongue out at him. "Can't catch me!"
Adrien had to resist leaping straight at the platform. If it had been Marinette he would have, since she would have known better than to tease him so close to the ground. Instead, he dove for the bottom ropes, hooking his sock-covered feet into the loops to boost himself up through the first hole.
"Boo!" Adrien teased, as he maneuvered himself up onto the platform.
Manon squealed, and dodged his randomly waving hand to sprint down a rope bridge. Adrien followed at a more sedate pace, letting Manon stay one step ahead of him as they played through the large jungle gym area. Finally, after several minutes Manon collapsed with initial kiddy-exhaustion, and a snickering Adrien scooped her up while being mindful of his back.
"Gotcha!" he cried, making Manon giggle and drop her stuffed kitty that Adrien had seen Marinette give her as Chat. "And who is this handsome fellow?" Adrien asked, lifting the kitty up so he could return it to Manon.
"This is Noir! Marinette made him for me and I named him after my big kitty friend. I wanted to see him again, but Nama and Marinette say he's busy doing other kitty things," Manon pouted at this, so Adrien felt a touch guilty.
Remembering that he wasn't supposed to know about Chat, and hearing other people arriving at the play area, Adrien managed, "Well I'm sure your other kitty will show up soon. If he doesn't, you could always look for him with permission of course."
Manon's eyes brightened at Adrien's idea, and hearing the sounds of other children she kicked her legs, clearly wanting to be put down. "You can come play again! I like you!" Manon said before darting off deeper into the play area.
Adrien chuckled and decided to focus on getting down since multiple children had entered the play area, making the whole thing shift crazily under foot. Kids scrambled above him, around him, and one even climbed on him, refusing to get off until they realized Adrien was climbing down. By the time Adrien reached the floor, he was feeling foolish for climbing into the contraption in the first place. Then, to make matters worse, Adrien practically got stuck trying to fit between some webbing in the ropes.
"This is not the way I came in," Adrien groused as he shifted out of the tight spot, dragging the rope right across his stitches. It made him grimace in pain since he had nearly forgotten they were there. The stupid things were nearly healed, although now they were itchy and touchy when hit wrong.
"You seem to have woven yourself into a tight spot, there," An elderly, masculine voice called.
Adrien's head jerked up, spying the short elderly gentleman that stood just a few short feet away, "Ah, I'm pretty sure I didn't weave this mess. I'll be alright though, I just have to wiggle through right here."
Sticking his shoulders through the hole, Adrien was far more careful to not hit his stitches this time. Within a moment, he was through. Glancing up to find his next handhold, Adrien found himself nearly eye to eye with the old man.
"Wait… how?" Adrien asked, not managing to hide his surprise at finding the man far too close for comfort. He hadn't even heard the man move, much less seen him.
"My apologies, Adrien. If you place your hand here and pull, I'm sure you will find your escape somewhat easier," he said, pointing at a nearby rope with a tortoiseshell-embellished cane.
"Uh… right…" Adrien managed, following the man's advice and nearly face planted as he slipped free from the ropes. Catching himself, Adrien turned back to say 'thank you', only to find the gentleman outside of the rope area again. Blinking and feeling utterly confused at how the man moved so quietly and so fast with a cane, Adrien slunk the rest of the way out of the tangle of ropes.
"My name, dear boy, is Fu. And it's far easier to climb into that mess than it is to climb out, Adrien. Much like how it's easier to get into trouble in life than it is to get out," Fu said with a smile.
While slipping his shoes back on his feet, Adrien cocked his head feeling slightly confused, "Am I in some kind of trouble? Was I not supposed to go inside the play area or something?"
Fu gave him a warm smile as he leaned on the cane comfortably, "No, dear boy, I am just as vague and useless as a fortune cookie."
Adrien felt slightly thrown at this odd conversation, but even still he managed to say, "Well, I like fortune cookies, and considering how quick and silent you were getting out of those ropes, I doubt you're in any way useless. How do you know my name, if you don't mind me asking?"
Fu chuckled as they began walking towards a proper door, and not the one Manon had dragged him through, "You are the only new face here, and the chatter is that Marinette was bringing her new partner, Adrien, out. I suppose you could have been female with such a name, but I didn't think so, especially since I knew you were Tiki's Adrien."
All conflicting thoughts of Adrien correcting Fu on being Marinette's partner evaporated at Tiki's name. He nearly gave himself whiplash as his head snapped down to look at Fu, "Tiki told you guys about me?"
Fu laughed at his surprise, leading him down an alley that didn't seem to connect to the garden at all. Adrien wondered if he should be worried about the fact that he was following a strange old man somewhere, but the conversation that they were having was alluring. Plus, Adrien didn't think he was in danger, especially since Plagg had been giving off a low-key purr ever since Adrien started climbing out of the kiddie jungle gym.
"Of course she did. She was hoping you would return to Paris someday with her friend, Plagg. Alas, it never happened and Marinette never had the chance to meet a good man," Fu said, his voice tinged with sadness.
Adrien froze at Plagg's name, feeling like he had just taken a trip into another world. Apparently it was a good place to stop since Fu reached up and opened a door that had been painted to look exactly like the concrete. Propping open the door with his cane, Fu stepped inside watching Adrien carefully.
"You knew Plagg," Adrien finally said, his tone completely flat as he fell back on his emotionless mask since he suddenly wasn't totally positive who exactly Fu was. They hadn't run into anyone since Fu had popped up and suddenly Adrien felt a little sliver of fear sink into him.
Fu's face creased into a look of fondness easing the fear that had made Adrien pause. "Yes, dear boy. Plagg was the best thief on the streets of Paris before Tiki caught him and made him go to the straight and narrow."
Adrien felt his jaw drop at the same moment Plagg's low-key purr vanished.
Fu merely chuckled at his shock. "Come in, please. We don't want to let any flies inside and it's safer to speak of such things in here."
Adrien didn't resist, following Fu inside the building down another hallway and into a small, comfortably set room. Fu moved into the room, waving to a set of comfortable chairs set to one side.
"I believe I would like some tea. How about you?" Fu asked.
"Um...sure?" Adrien answered stiffly, as he sat in the cushy chair.
Fu gave a pleased smile and moved back out into the hall, silently closing the door behind him.
Two seconds were all that passed before Plagg wiggled in his pocket, "Kid, you should get out of here."
Adrien was surprised, "What? Why? Do you thing Fu's gonna poison us or something?"
"No, he won't kill you since Marinette likes you. Either way, just make something up and scat out of here," Plagg grumbled and Adrien could practically feel the waves of agitation rolling off of him.
Adrien didn't understand, but he stood since Plagg had rarely led him wrong. Matter of fact the only time he ever had was because Plagg had been embarrassed. At that thought, Adrien froze in his surveying of the room's escapes.
"You're embarrassed… that's why you want me to leave…" Adrien hissed.
This time, Plagg actually flew from his pocket since Adrien was facing away from the door. "Kit, don't push me. You should get out of here, find Marinette, go visit your Mime friend, and do whatever it is you want to do. There is no reason for you to be hanging out with the creepy, old dude."
Adrien could feel the smirk sliding across his face as Plagg's eyes narrowed at him. Before he could snarl any further though, the door slid open making Plagg dive back into Adrien's pocket. Turning, Adrien spotted Fu the same moment he spotted him.
"Ah, there you are. The darkness looks good on you, young man. I suppose you would look quite different cloaked in shadows."
Adrien nearly swallowed his tongue, and once again he wondered if Plagg was right that he should flee after all. "Ah… thanks, I guess? You know, I wonder if Marinette might be missing me. I think she was supposed to be only a few minutes."
Fu nodded as he poured the tea into two cups, "Yes, Marinette is sufficiently busy right now and is not quite missing your company yet. She is a protégé to Tiki as you are a protégé to Plagg. Tell me, dear boy, did he teach you how to fight? You move similarly to him."
Slowly walking back towards the chair, Adrien frowned a bit but his unease was being outweighed by his curiosity. "He did teach me how to fight. But then again, so did Tiki when my father wasn't around. I also know fencing, although it's not like I can carry a sword around with me. Plagg fought more hand to hand. Viciously, I might add."
Plagg sank his claws into Adrien's chest as Fu huffed, an odd look crossing his face. "Yes, he was an excellent hand to hand fighter, especially when he made those hand claws. That's where he got his nickname from, you know. Any time he used those claws, they looked like a large cat had been around slashing up the place. Since he wore all black, the people of Paris named him the Chat Noir."
"You're kidding," Adrien stated in disbelief, but Fu laughed at his dumbstruck face and simply handed him a cup of tea.
"Oh, I am not kidding at all," Fu stated, watching as Adrien sank into the chair before sitting in his own. "As I said before, Plagg was a thief long before you met him."
Adrien's eyes snapped to Fu's and winced since Plagg sunk his claws in him again, but even still, he muttered, "Plagg didn't tell me a lot about himself. He just sorta did what he wanted to do and explained things on the fly as they happened. He is a good mentor, like Tiki, though."
Fu raised an eyebrow at Adrien's lack of a past-tense, but decided not to call him on anything quite yet. "I see. Well, we should always know and understand the past our predecessors make. Especially with Plagg having claimed the name Chat Noir as a young man, I would think he would have said something."
Adrien didn't dare interrupt and Plagg seemed to realize that he wasn't going to win, no matter how hard he sank his claws into him. So, he settled down with a soft growl, just loud enough for only Adrien to hear.
Fu smiled at Adrien as he took a sip of tea, and then, able to feel the boy's curiosity like a physical thing, he began. "Plagg and Tiki were both orphans who grew up practically living on the streets of Paris. They met when they were young, and by the time we found them they were an inseparable pair. They were also complete opposites in personality which made it entertaining to watch how they interacted with one another. Once the two of them trusted us enough to not run away every chance they got, Tiki was more boisterous, not minding the limelight, while Plagg liked to stick to the shadows. They were both fairly secretive children, although Plagg took it to a whole new level. I suspect he started his real thieving long before he even hit his teens, even though he didn't take on an identity until he was around 16. Surprisingly, they both went to school without complaint, and even though Plagg rarely did his homework, he usually got top marks because he was very intelligent. I fear Tiki forced him to attend school on many occasions since she was the only one who could track him once he hit his teens. As they got older, it was obvious that they were heading down two very different paths in life. It was rare to hear them argue, but I know of several times where they argued fiercely. Those few times we know about turned into physical bouts, although they didn't hurt each other as I see you fear."
Adrien flinched, "Um... how do you fight with someone and not hurt them?"
Fu chuckled, "Sometimes when a person gets so angry they can't see straight, the best way to snap them out of it is to get them to fight. It releases the anger in a healthier way rather than just letting them build until they snap. Obviously, this method is not for everyone. But it worked well enough for those two, and it works for Marinette as well when she gets riled up."
Adrien nearly snorted his tea, "Marinette?!"
Fu laughed, "Yes, dear boy, Marinette. Tiki trained her, as did we, so she works through her anger best in physical bouts. If you ever engage her in anger, be warned. She will not hold back and you will get hurt. Only Tiki and two others were allowed to engage her in such circumstances since she is very dangerous when unleashed."
"Oh," Adrien commented quietly. "I'll remember that."
"See that you do. I would hate for her to break you on accident, although I feel you will be harder to break than most. Marinette always feels very guilty when she does hurt someone, unless they were the ones who raised her ire. Then the sentiment is buried by satisfaction."
Adrien chuckled and took another sip of tea. It really was very good and he was eager to hear the rest of Plagg's story. He was probably going to get an earful later from his kwami, but it was his fault for not telling him about his past anyways. It was obvious Plagg was grumpy about Fu telling Adrien about his past, but he didn't totally object to it. If he had, Plagg would have made it very obvious to Adrien and he would have left.
"So, what happened to them? I mean, Plagg was in America when I met him. How did he end up over there?" Adrien finally voiced when it seemed as if Fu had gotten lost in thought.
Fu sighed, setting down the cup in his hands. "What happened, dear boy, is that they grew up. The only person Plagg really cared about was Tiki, and he never showed an interest in doing any normal-everyday work. I believe the word he used was 'mundane' for any normal job, such as a cook or doctor. Tiki, on the other hand, saw the threat of the Hawkmoth gang clearly and decided she was going to do something about it. She had grown up on these streets and she knew many, many, people. The bones were already there because we were already here, but Tiki acted as the glue that drew everyone and everything together. Plagg, of course, remained on the fringes. But when Tiki decided to become an officer of the law, they had a bit of a falling out."
"I'm guessing that's when they had one of those knock-down drag-out fights you were talking about?" Adrien asked.
Fu nodded, "It woke up half the neighborhood, and of course there was property damage that Tiki had to fix herself. After that night, Plagg vanished, except when he left Tiki notes or signs that he was still alive. As you know, Tiki began her career as an officer of the law. But she never forgot those she left behind. She worked her way up the ladder, and one day she was handed the Chat Noir case. By that time, Plagg had become quite notorious across Europe and she decided to hunt him down, since, at the time, she didn't really believe it was him."
Fu went silent, taking another sip of his tea and Adrien followed suit before putting the cup down on a nearby table. It was almost comical since he could see a parallel between the story being told and his own that was still unfolding. Curiosity in every fiber of his being, Adrien just had to ask, "When she found out, did she kick his butt?"
Fu was somewhat solemn as he slowly shook his head, "I'm fairly certain that they had several encounters. By that point, Tiki knew who Chat Noir was, even if we at the time didn't. I'm sure Tiki asked Plagg to stop, but he didn't or maybe he couldn't because he wasn't yet meant to. The day I found out was the day Tiki came to me with a badly injured Plagg since she couldn't take him to a hospital with the wounds he had. That night Chat Noir died, and in a way, part of Plagg did too. He stole something that changed him and set the two of them on a path that has unfortunately been passed down to both you and Marinette."
At his words, Adrien froze. Eyes going wide as Fu's words fully processed, "I-I'm not sure what you mean sir…"
"Oh, I'm sure you don't, Adrien," Fu agreed amiably. "Since Plagg never really shared much about his life before, would you like to know how I caught him and Tiki one-"
"ALRIGHT! You caught me! Do not fill this stupid kit's head with nonsensical stories! He is bad enough to deal with when he goes all dopey eyed!" Plagg practically shrieked, flying out of Adrien's jacket so fast that Adrien recoiled and flipped his whole chair over.
"Hello again, Plagg. I'm glad to see your personality hasn't changed, although your appearance certainly has," Fu called, an extremely smug look on his face.
"Wait, so you did know?!" Adrien yelped from the floor, trying to right himself.
"Of course the old coot knew, or at least guessed. The moment we appeared back in Paris disrupting the Hawkmoth gang, old man Fu probably figured out what had happened," Plagg snarled, still not happy at how all this had played out.
Managing to get his knees at least to the floor, Adrien eyed his twitching kwami, then Fu, who still had an amused look on his face. "Is that why everyone has been so nice to me? Is Gram telling Marinette?!"
The thought had Adrien instantly panicking and Fu held out his hands in a calming gesture. "The others like you as Adrien simply because Marinette likes you and she rarely takes to others so swiftly. They know you are someone special simply from that alone. In turn, most of them are wary of Chat Noir, although some simply fear you. You will have to work on that unless you want that to be your image. It is up to you. This secret is your own, Adrien, and will remain your own. Gram may know but she will not pursue you or tell anyone. We miraculous users are a law unto ourselves in this, and we cannot reveal the identity of another that we know unless it is our own."
Adrien had been relaxing but he froze again in the middle of righting his chair to stare up at Fu, "Wait, run that past me again?"
Fu sent a mild glare at Plagg who bared his teeth at the man, "Has Plagg explained anything to you, young man?"
"Uh... I guess? I say some magic words and I turn into a half-cat creature, complete with powers of destruction… What else is there to explain?" Adrien asked, truly curious.
At his words, Fu actually pinched the bridge of his nose before pointing a finger at Plagg, "I believe you and I have some things to discuss in private."
Plagg hissed, clearly not wanting to bothered, "I don't think I feel up to it, Fu. Matter of fact, I think it's time my kit and I go find Marinette."
Fu's face fell into a frown as Plagg floated back to Adrien, intent on ignoring him. The poor boy looked conflicted as he glanced between the two of them, which made Fu suddenly smile, "You know what? You are right, Plagg. I will walk you two back and tell Adrien about the time you decided to serenade your love-"
Adrien was shocked at how fast Plagg moved, twisting and flashing across the room to slam into Fu's face.
"Alright! Alright! I promise I'll stay and talk to you, you stupid old turtle!" Plagg yowled, cutting off the rest of Fu's sentence. "But if anything happens to him because I'm not there to save his scrawny butt, I'll disintegrate you."
"Wait, what?" Adrien said, feeling even more confused than the last time he said those words.
Plagg turned his eyes on Adrien, "Fu feels the need to have a chat and catch up on old times. I'll meet you at the old apartment whenever we finish. Fu, you're going to have to get someone to walk the kit back to Marinette."
"Of course, I will go get them. I won't be but a few minutes, so don't try and slip out, Plagg. Adrien, you can have some more tea if you would like," Fu called, sounding pleased as he moved out the door.
Plagg hissed and Adrien nodded, having already decided that his silence was better in this situation. The door closed softly and Adrien sat down on his righted chair.
"So, I'm guessing you don't really want to explain what all that was about?" Adrien queried.
Plagg huffed, "Fu already explained it, kid. You just weren't listening."
"I was too!" Adrien retorted, looking affronted. "He said you found something, which I'm assuming was the miraculous stone, and then he never finished the story because you came bursting out!"
"Fu baited me!" Plagg complained. "He's known me since I was a stupid little kit and he knows exactly how to push my buttons the same way Tiki did. Besides, there isn't much more to know. Fu found out I was Chat Noir, healed me up, and instead of turning me in, they decided to use my talents. Tiki was sorta against that last part until I helped her catch another wanted thief that was trying to copycat me. He got the blame for my crimes and Tiki made me go on the straight and narrow. Plus, Fu needed my help with some problems in America that they had sniffed out, so I went where I was needed. Then you dropped in on me and you know the rest."
"Huh... so you had the miraculous stone the entire time I knew you," Adrien commented, more to himself than Plagg.
"Yeah. You know how I told you that if a stone likes you it compels you to hold onto it?"
Adrien nodded and Plagg continued, "Well, the stone I stole liked me. And the reason I was so badly injured is because I tried to steal both of them."
"Wait, both?" Adrien interrupted and Plagg's eyes narrowed at him, his tiny paws crossing.
"Yes, Adrien. Both. Miraculous stones come in pairs, as far as we know. Although, they can activate separately. The stones can work in tandem, or they can be opposites in terms of powers. Now, are you done interrupting me, or may I continue?!"
Adrien ducked his head looking properly abashed as Plagg ran a paw over his face in exasperation. "As I was saying, the stone I stole was part of a pair, and when I grabbed one of them, it set off the other, which was destined to be mine. I saw it and I had to have it, even though at the time it was just a featureless round grey rock. Unfortunately, I took too long getting it out since I hadn't planned for it and for the first time in my career, I got caught. They were not happy with my presence and the shots they took at me nearly ended me. I managed to drag myself to Tiki, but I lost the second stone along the way somewhere. The stone you stole from Hawkmoth, the stone Marinette has, it's the other half to the stone that brought me back like this."
Adrien could feel his jaw drop but he quickly recovered, "How could you possibly know that, Plagg? Is Marinette in danger? I mean, the stone is activating!"
"Marinette isn't in any more than you were when I carried around my stone, so calm down," Plagg huffed, clearly tired of explaining things already. However, he did owe it to the kid to tell him how he knew the stone Marinette held was his other half. "As to how I knew where it was, the stone called to me when we strayed too close, which is how I knew to guide you to it. Plus, I did a little recon before I let you anywhere near that building. I was more surprised by the lack of security, but I suppose that's why they had that sniper watching for you."
Adrien sniffed at the mention of the sniper but he was still concerned about Marinette having the other stone. He needed to find out more information on them, but Plagg kept telling him that it was something he didn't really need to know since his was already activated. "Plagg, you really need to tell me everything you know about the miraculous stones. I can't go around knowing only bits and pieces, and if I have to explain everything to Marinette, she won't be pleased if I just say 'I don't know' for every question she asks."
"Marinette will have the files Tiki made of the miraculous stones so she probably knows more than you at this point," Plagg snipped, then zipped behind Adrien as the door slowly opened.
Adrien bit down on his question, although he really wanted to know where Plagg's files had been when he had cleaned everything out before he left for America. Fu stepped into the room and Adrien briefly spotted someone behind him before the door closed again.
Fu gave Adrien a warm smile before frowning at Plagg, "You know where to go, Plagg. I expect to see you in about five minutes."
Plagg rolled his eyes as he came out from behind Adrien's shoulder, "I'm not going to take off, Fu. You know I keep my promises. Besides, I want to make sure you don't go filling my kit's head with stupid stories."
"I won't, as long as you behave yourself," Fu answered, causing Adrien to snicker.
Without warning, Plagg nipped Adrien's ear sharply, making him jump and swat at him, "Ouch! What the hell, Plagg?!"
Plagg had long ago darted out of reach and hovered between Adrien and Fu, tail twitching irritably. "That's just a reminder that I can still make your life a misery. I know all kinds of embarrassing stories about you, too, you know!"
Adrien rubbed the sore spot with a grumble but he had been properly chastised, and so he moved towards Fu, who was hiding a grin.
"Come, Adrien. I will introduce you to Max, who will take you to where Marinette is waiting," Fu said, patting the boy on the back as he opened the door.
