Warning: This chapter is a bit of a recap of chapter six, but in the perspective of those watching the stream. Same amount of public humiliation.
—
"Please excuse me for interrupting whatever pointless drivel you were consumed with. My name is Salo. I'm not an akuma, but you'll soon wish I was. I have succeeded where all the others have failed." She stepped back to show Ladybug and Chat Noir, bound and gagged.
Gabriel was the first to react, his eyes wide with horror as he blindly stumbled towards the TV. Everyone else had similar reactions and levels of horror.
"I have captured the so called heroes of Paris. In ten minutes, I will be revealing their identities on 'make ladybug suffer dot com.' Be sure to tune in, you won't want to miss it." Her mouth quirked up in a malicious smile, and the picture fuzzed out again.
"I need to get to a computer—" Gabriel panicked.
But Max was already on it, plugging Markov into the screen. Soon, a website came up. A black background, with red text. But the majority of it was filled with various video streams. All the same room, in different angles, but the main large video showed Ladybug and Chat Noir from the side, still bound. Chat's face had tears streaming down it.
Sabine turned up the volume. Yes, she should have been focused on finding her daughter, but at that moment a very harrowing feeling settled on the room.
Somehow, these events weren't a consequence.
"You hear that? One minute until I reveal your name to the whole world. I'll let you have that minute to escape. Go ahead, go."
They were both fighting, frantic to get free. It was like watching a wild animal caught in a trap.
"Time's up! Aw, you two do want to have fun! You stayed!"
Furious, Ladybug spit at the woman. "You won't get away with this!"
"Oh, but I already have." Salo tapped her on the nose. "You see, the Ladyblog really is an amazing resource! Every video of you two ever shot was on there. Theories and facts, all the information we needed was on there. I studied it carefully. All you had to do was show up for an akuma, and we took care of the rest. Though, I should probably thank that hulk, since he did the hard part for us. Seems like you're not so lucky after all."
Alya felt sick.
"Then let's begin…Let's start with Mr. Noir, shall we? Your ring, sir!" She reached for it.
"Cataclysm!" He shouted.
"Oh you think you're so smug. But you see, there's more than one way to skin a cat." She snapped her fingers, and the large man standing by touched Chat's hand with a metal pole. The metal rusted and turned to dust. Chat's hand was useless once again.
The assembled watched as she took hold of the ring. A few words were exchanged, in what sounded like begging from Chat. Then there was a flash of green light.
"Oh god…" Gabriel whispered, falling to his knees. "Adrien…"
Salo leaned on his bad shoulder, making him cry out in pain. "Well well well. A famous model and a superhero! How intriguing! Adrien Agreste…I bet your father would pay a pretty penny to have you home safe and sound, don't you think?" She dragged her fingers over his cheek.
What was left of Gabriel's heart broke. Seeing his son like that, in so much pain. He cried out as the woman leaned on his arm. His shoulder looked misshapen and limp.
Salo scoffed. "What a baby." She smacked his face, then she stood and walked over to Ladybug. "Your turn, missy."
Ladybug didn't go down without a fight, thrashing and kicking, anything she could do to fight. But with strong headlock, she didn't get the chance, and in a moment, there was a flash of pink.
Sabine started crying before her brain fully processed what she was seeing. "…Marinette?"
Gabriel covered his mouth with his hand. "Oh no…no no no…"
"And who the heck are you?" Salo snorted. "We lucked out with Mr. Whiskers, but who knew Ladybug was just a nobody?" She leaned in closer. "Oh wait, I recognize you…yeah, you're a friend of the Ladyblogger, in some of her videos. Mmmm….Marinette, right? Yeah. How sad! You'd think the person most dedicated to finding out Ladybug's identity would have seen her sitting in front of her! You must either be too pathetic in your real life, or totally unimportant to the Ladyblogger."
Alya was frozen to the spot, much like everyone else, but she trembled in every limb. Half sorrow, half rage.
Marinette looked up at the woman. "Alright, you've taken our Miraculous, and now everyone knows who we are. Can we go now?"
Salo slapped her cheek and sent her sprawling on the floor. "Didn't you hear me? You're never getting out of here. You'll never see daylight again. I intend to keep you here and torture you over and over. One day, you won't even know your own name anymore, but you'll beg me for death!"
"We have to call the police." Tom said, "Or the army! Or—or—!" He didn't know what to do. No one did. For so long, everyone was reliant on Ladybug and Chat Noir to save the day.
Who was supposed to save them?
Gabriel didn't move. He couldn't bare to miss a detail.
"Let's see, first thing first is to get you into uniform."
Marinette was freed from her bindings and forced to her feet. She rubbed her wrists and looked around.
"Whatever you're thinking, don't." Said Salo. "Now strip."
She took off her shoes, purse and jacket.
Salo crouched and picked up her purse. "Let's see, just as I thought…18 missed calls? My my someone is worried about their baby." Then she dropped the phone and smashed it under her heel. "Not to worry. We'll let mommy know how much fun you're having."
Sabine sobbed.
She then went over to Adrien and frisked him, finding his phone. "2 missed calls. Hmm, I wonder who's more loved?" She smashed his phone as well. The remnants of both were collected and tossed in a bucket of water, just to make sure all the circuitry was fried.
"I tried to track her, earlier…but she was transformed and her phone was gone, and—and..."
Tom hushed her gently.
Salo gestured Marinette onward.
She then took off her shirt and pants, standing alone, trembling in her underwear.
"Well?" Said Salo. "The rest of it too."
So Marinette unhooked her bra and shimmied out of her panties, standing completely naked in front of all of Paris.
The boys in the room tried to look away from the screen, but they also didn't want to miss any key details.
"Oh what a gentleman!" They heard the woman laugh. "But I know where you really want to look. You're in love with her, aren't you?"
Adrien whispered out, "…I'm sorry."
"Did I say you could talk, pussy cat?…Aw, he already knows how to behave so well. This will be so fun!"
The girls winced as Marinette was drenched with a bucket of water, crying out in shock.
Adrien was forced to his feet, his arm hanging limply at his side.
"That looks dislocated," said Kim, trying to be helpful.
"He might need some help, Ladybug. So why don't you help him." Salo shoved her forward, as she tripped into his chest.
Marinette stood there awkwardly for a moment, her shoulders hunched.
"Tick tock, you two."
She slowly helped him undress, as he hissed and winced with each movement. As she got lower, there was snickering and wolf whistles from their captors.
Then they were both naked, in front of Paris.
"Wow, the suit really holds everything in, doesn't it, Adrien?" Salo laughed, looking between his legs.
He didn't even look like he cared about it. He just held his arm, his face scrunched up in pain.
"Here," Salo spoke, dropping a folded cloth into Marinette's hands. "Your uniform."
It was just a short hospital gown, but at least it was something.
Salo gave another one to Marinette for Adrien, and she helped him dress, awkwardly having to reach around to tie the strings in the back.
When she was done, she cupped his cheek, a gesture that did not go unnoticed by the group.
Salo grabbed Marinette's arm and yanked her back. "Alright, that's enough. I've got some new jewelry for you, since I took your old ones."
"Where did you put our miraculous? What did you do with them?"
Salo smiled, "Oh, you didn't notice? Why, they're right here."
She walked off screen, and the camera didn't move, only continued to show Marinette's furious expression. "I don't worry showing you this. Because there's no way you'll be able get them. But I'd love to see you try."
Salo picked something up from the table next to the safe, and came towards Marinette. "Alright bug, I'd stay still unless you want to get pinched."
She clamped on two wrist restraints, and then one to her neck, all connected with chains.
Then she did the same with Adrien, even clamping his bad arm.
"Now aren't you two just precious? All gussied up for your first day of camp! Smile for the camera! Let your parents know how much fun you're having!"
The camera swung in close to them, capturing their expressions of absolute humiliation and horror.
"I said, smile!" They both winced in pain, but morphed it into a pained smile.
"Alright, now let's take you to your bunks. We have a really nice set up for our new campers. You'll just love it!"
Then the video went black. A message appeared, saying, "The next stream will be tomorrow morning at 6am. It would be best watch on an empty stomach."
Alya was shaking with rage. At herself, at her classmates, at this 'Salo' woman, but not at Marinette or Adrien.
Never at them.
She swiveled her head around, looking for a target to unleash her fury on, and she found it in a very pale Lila. "You liar!" She screamed as she leapt. Alya tackled Lila to the floor, her fists flying without hesitation.
She only got a few licks in before Ivan and Kim grabbed her by the arms and yanked her to her feet. "We trusted you! I trusted you!"
Lila held her bleeding nose, desperate to not be made a villain. "Alya please…I know you're upset. Everyone is…but that's no reason to be mad at me."
"Shut up! Shut up! You're a liar! Just like Marinette said! I never should have believed you! Ladybug would never—My Ladybug would never take unsolicited photos! She'd never lie about this!" She was bawling her eyes out, and Kim and Ivan were the only things keeping her from collapsing on the floor. "You said you knew! You knew who Ladybug was! That you were best friends with her!"
"I thought I was!" Lila teared up, "she said she was someone else, most likely to protect me!"
"Stop lying!" Alya screamed. "Marinette hated you! And the only other person Marinette ever hated, was Hawkmoth! She doesn't even hate Chloe! Now, because of you, she's suffering! Adrien's suffering! Ladybug and Chat Noir—it's over! And it's all your fault!"
"I had nothing to do with this!" Lila stated vehemently.
"Why should I believe you?" Alya snarled. "Why should any of us believe you?"
Lila balled up her fists. "Because—Because all I wanted was to discredit her! Like she was trying to do to me!"
Nino wrapped his arm around Alya's shoulders, prompting Kim and Ivan to let go. He asked, "so how much of that photo story was a lie?"
Lila exhaled, her nostrils flaring. "All of it, okay? Marinette knew that I was lying, and kept trying to get everyone else to notice. But I warned her to knock it off. But she wouldn't. She just kept on antagonizing me. All I wanted was to make friends and tell people what they wanted to hear, but she wouldn't let me!"
Alix crossed her arms and spat, "Are you seriously trying to blame Marinette for this? Man, we all should have listened to her."
While this argument was going on, Gabriel remained frozen in place, staring at the screen with tears in his eyes. A thousand thoughts rolled through his head, ideas, revelations, plans, too many things to parse at once.
"Sir?" Asked Nathalie, crouching by his side and touching his arm.
She grounded him slightly, as he took in the room around him. Tom was embracing his wife as she wailed. He didn't blame her at all.
The children were fighting, pointing fingers and blaming each other.
Chaos.
His brooch burned on his chest at all the unbearably hot rage. Not just from the room, but Paris in general. The city was on fire with righteous anger, sadness, and hopelessness.
His fingers curled into fists, his resolve strengthening. He thrived in chaos. Not just as Hawkmoth, but as Gabriel as well. The man who built a fashion empire on his own. A man who didn't allow himself to crumble in the face of grief.
He didn't then, and he wouldn't now.
Of course, his first priority was to save Adrien, but the consequences of what just occurred were not lost on him. After all, he had a secret identity of his own. If he wanted to save the children, he had to keep himself safe.
"That's enough." He spoke just loud enough to catch their attention, but not enough to shout.
"Oh Mr. Agreste, you understand don't you? After all, I only wanted to do what was best for Adrien."
He met Lila's eyes, his own cold and steely. "You lied to my face. I refuse to be involved in petty high school squabbles. I have real, visceral problems to deal with, and you will gain no sympathy from me for your fabricated delusions. I suggest you leave."
"But—"
"Now. And in case it wasn't clear, I rescind that invitation into my home."
Now, faced with real, true defeat, Lila had no choice but to save face and walk, sniveling with her crocodile tears all the while. No one gave her a second glance.
With that problem out of the way, Gabriel collected himself a little more. "Mr. Dupain, Mrs. Cheng."
Tom and Sabine looked at him, faces drained of hope.
"Ladybug and Chat Noir's identities have been compromised. We are no longer safe in this house. I suggest you stay with me until further notice, since I have extensive security measures. Miss Cesaire, and Mr. Lahiffe, that goes for you too. Since a simple glance over social media would reveal how close you are to them."
"What do you mean, we're no longer safe?"
"Our children are heroes, and heroes have plenty of enemies, as we can see with this woman." He gestured to the TV. "No doubt, they would be after us for revenge soon enough. If we want to save Marinette and Adrien, we have to stay safe while we figure out how to do that."
"Yes, of course!" Sabine collected herself, wiping her eyes. "I'm so glad you thought of that! I—I can barely process what I just saw."
"I can assure you, I am still in shock too." He swallowed hard, looking to the classmates. "Who's the fastest runner here?"
Both Alix and Kim raised their hands.
"Perfect, go together." He took a key out of his wallet, and handed it to Kim. "The passcode for the gate is '7539'. There's a shed in the back side of the lot. In the cupboard, there's a roll of duct tape hanging on a nail. The spare key to the kitchen door is behind it. I want you to go inside, and into my office. Next to my computer, there's a short table with a keyhole. This is the manual key. Switch it to on, and it will activate the self defense system, effectively barricading all windows. The sooner we get the system on, the sooner we prevent anyone coming inside."
"What about you, Mr. Agreste?"
"I have an override code. We'll be fine. Now go, and don't let anyone in the house!"
"Yes sir!" They both shouted, before running out of the room.
"You two," Gabriel pointed at Alya and Nino. "Go through Marinette's belongings as quickly as you can. Anything that can be used as blackmail or has sentimental value needs to get packed up. Same thing for you, Mrs. Cheng, Mr. Dupain. Anything that could be used as leverage against them needs to come with us to the house. Any documents, computers, phones, family albums, any information about you."
The students gathered got to work, helping them pack up most of their belongings. They'd have to make a few trips, but it was better to be safe than sorry.
Nino set Marinette's computer tower on the floor at the base of the stairs. "Her monitor is too big, but this should be fine."
Alya set down the duffle bag. "I have her sketchbooks, old diaries, and plenty of clothes for her to wear when we rescue her. I also emptied her filing cabinet. I don't know what all was in there, but I'd rather not leave her social security card out."
Gorilla took the items downstairs.
"Alright, thank you all for your hard work," Gabriel said to the assembled students. "But I think it's in everyone's best interest if you all go home. If any reporters approach you to get more information about either of them, be vague. Pretend that you don't them for your own safety."
The students all looked at each other, feeling hesitant.
Gabriel's voice was demanding and firm, "The temptation to do something on your own to help will be strong, but please, leave this to us now. Understand?"
There was a murmuring of voices before they trickled out the door, one by one.
Then Alya and Nino, Tom and Sabine, Gabriel, Nathalie, and the Gorilla remained.
"You two should go home and pack up your bags. Brief your parents on what's happening. If they need to, they can call me." He held a hand out, asking for their phones, which he entered his number into. "Go together, and do not separate. My bodyguard will pick you up once you are ready. Understood?"
"Yes sir."
He nodded once, and looked to Tom and Sabine. "There's not much else we can do tonight. Let's go."
They loaded up what they could in the car, and then put the house on lock down. Then they were off.
Sabine sat in the middle, sandwiched between her husband and Gabriel, with an overnight bag of her most bare essentials on her lap.. "I—I can't thank you enough, for watching out for us like this."
"You're worrying about enough right now, Mrs. Cheng. You don't need to worry about yourself too."
"Sabine. Please just call me Sabine."
"And call me Tom. If your son is…is Chat Noir. I have a feeling we'll be seeing a lot of each other in the future."
Gabriel cracked a minute smile. "Tom, Sabine, I agree. Though I wish we could come to this…friendship in a different way."
Sabine raised a hand to wipe at her cheeks, but Gabriel held out a handkerchief for her to use instead. "I just can't believe…the last few years, my Marinette…she's been saving the city. With Adrien. They…they just took down that drug lord the other night! That must be why she had that cut on her cheek!"
"And why this woman is involved now." Finished Gabriel.
"So what are we going to do?" Asked Tom. "We know nothing about these people."
"No, not yet we don't. But they're broadcasting plenty to the public. They will make a mistake. And as much as we think of Adrien and Marinette as children, they are superheroes. Ladybug comes up with solutions in every situation. They aren't completely helpless."
"But…without the Miraculous…" Sabine nearly whispered.
Gabriel was trying to be optimistic for their sake, but he really had nothing to say to that. He took off his glasses and pinched the bridge of his nose, forcing himself to keep from crying.
It was more than likely that he'd never see his son again. And if by some miracle he did, Adrien would never be the same.
They arrived at the mansion, a crowd of reporters in front of the gate. They parted at the sight of the car, allowing them to pull in.
"Damn it, the paparazzi never rests. I suggest you cover your faces, to hide the fact that you're staying with me."
The car pulled up to the gate, and Gabriel stepped out to enter the code, being followed by his bodyguard.
"M. Agreste, did you have knowledge that your son is Chat Noir?"
"Do you have any more information about Ladybug's identity?"
"Have you been in contact with her parents?"
"What are you going to do to save your son?"
Gabriel was usually very good about ignoring the press. Or sometimes just giving vague enough answers to satisfy, but he had no patience for it today. "I didn't know that Adrien was Chat Noir. I'm dealing with a lot right now, and I would like you all to leave. Please just leave…"
The reporters mostly backed off, standing back to give him some room. He entered the override code, opening the gate just enough for the car to go through. He drove in himself, his bodyguard keeping everyone back outside the gate.
Reporters continued to shout questions as Sabine and Tom got out of the car, keeping their faces forward and away from any cameras.
Finally inside, the voices of the reporters were muted. Gabriel glanced out the window, his eyes narrowed in anger. "We'll have to go back for your other items later, once things calm down."
Nathalie gestured them upstairs. "I will show you to the guest room. You can make yourselves at home."
Gabriel watched them go, and then went to his office.
—
Hawkmoth emerged in the large room, butterflies fluttering all around at his presence. The akuma that had been rampaging around the city was now sullenly flapping around in his cane. He had called it back that minute he heard Adrien was missing, fearing that his akuma had been the cause.
But now he was looking for a new target, with a new goal in mind.
There was so much anger and grief in Paris. So much that it was overwhelming. Nausea was building every minute he was transformed.
He couldn't pinpoint Adrien or Marinette. Their suffering must have been in the waves, but it was like looking for a grain of sand on the beach.
"Nooroo, dark wings fall."
"Master?" Nooroo asked, reappearing.
"It's no use. It's like listening for someone's shout in a crowd of thousands. I have to have an idea of where to feel from."
Nooroo stayed silent as Gabriel fell to his knees, scrubbing his hands through his hair. "All I wanted…was my family. To keep Adrien safe! But now I—" His words were cut off with a sob as he leaned forward and rested his head on the ground.
Hawkmoth struck fear into the hearts of Parisians. He created akuma that could grind the city to a halt.
But this woman…she had succeeded where he had failed, and done it so effortlessly.
And he didn't even care about the Miraculous anymore.
Now it was personal. He would wreak his own revenge in time.
He just needed a clue.