Adrien woke up the next morning exhausted. He had struggled to sleep, and what little sleep he had gotten had been plagued with nightmares. He rolled out of bed. But he'd rather be at school than stay at home all day.

So it was after a lonely breakfast, disturbed only by the steady dripping of rain on the window panes, that he shouldered his bag and his burdens and made to leave the house.

Except his father was waiting for him. Standing, as usual, at the top of the stairs.

Adrien clenched his jaw and walked right up to the front door, completely ignoring him.

'Good morning, Adrien.'

Adrien closed his eyes. He knew it wouldn't have worked. He slowly released his hand from the door handle and turned around, refusing to meet his father's eye, refusing to feel intimidated.

'Hullo, Father.'

His father walked down the stairs towards him. Each step deliberate; delicate; soul piercing as they rung out in the marble hallway.

Adrien tried not to cringe away as his father drew close. Conversations with him these last couple of weeks had never ended well. He flinched when his father placed his hands on his shoulders, but rather than the vice-like grip he was expecting, his hands were warm and comforting. Adrien looked up with dubious surprise.

'My dear son, are you alright?' His father looked earnestly into Adrien's eyes, but Adrien averted his gaze and shrugged. 'You went through a lot yesterday,' he continued. 'It reminded me just how dangerous the world is.' Adrien warily met his gaze. His father's voice was gentle but had a deadly undercurrent. 'You should stay at home.'

'No,' Adrien stepped back as panic flared in his gut. 'I'm not letting you take that away from me.'

His father sighed and drew himself upright. 'I'm trying to protect you, Adrien. You will stay at home. It's what your mother would have wanted.'

Adrien looked deep into his father's steely grey eyes. He willed those words to be true; that his father truly did believe that's what his mother would want, and that he really did want to protect him. But with a dull ache, he realised only deceit and mistrust lay behind those words.

Adrien suddenly felt a deep exhaustion settle in his bones that had nothing to do with his sleepless night.

He shook his head. 'It's what you want, Father.' He held his father's gaze. For once those unreadable grey eyes were unable to unsettle him. 'I wish you'd tell me why.'

His father didn't say anything.

'I'm going to school.' Adrien's face fell flat as he turned away. 'Whether you want me to or not.'

Adrien could practically feel the reverberation of his footsteps as he walked through the silence. But they were cut short when his father's soft voice sliced through the air once more.

'There used to be a time where you called me Dad.'

Adrien froze. His father's words dug a hole in his heart already black with grief and loss.

He closed his eyes and bit back the tears threatening to spill out.

'There used to be a time where you cared about me,' he said.

He felt his father stiffen behind him, but Adrien felt no remorse for his words as he walked out the front door.

In fact, he felt nothing at all.

Nathalie took three deep breaths before stepping through the doorway. She didn't want to look like she'd been eavesdropping.

Gabriel's expression immediately became unreadable. She thought she saw pain flash behind his eyes, but she wasn't sure.

'That didn't go as planned,' Gabriel said quietly. 'He didn't get angry.'

'Sir?'

'I demanded he stay at home. That should have upset him.'

Nathalie didn't say anything.

'He's become apathetic.' Gabriel pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed. 'I need emotions if I'm to akumatise him.'

Nathalie's knuckles whitened around her clipboard. She wanted to see Gabriel happy, she truly did. But she loved Adrien too.

'What are you going to do?' she asked.

He lowered his hands. 'I'm going to show him something I should have shown him a long time ago.'

Nathalie's eyes widened. 'No,' she whispered.

'Excuse me?'

'Uh, I mean, Mr Agreste, sir,' she stammered under his scrutinising gaze but swiftly regained her composure. 'If I may, sir. I know I was the one to suggest Adrien for this, but perhaps you should reconsider. This isn't good for him. What you're going to show him will hurt him.' She hesitated. 'Will hurt you.'

Nathalie felt a shiver down her spine as Gabriel looked at her with those cold grey eyes of his.

'I know,' he said.

She didn't imagine the glimmer of pain behind his eyes this time.

'You don't have to do this,' she pleaded. 'You can always…' she swallowed as she braced herself to say the words she'd always wanted to, but never dared say. 'You can always move on.'

She held her breath as Gabriel held her gaze. She felt as if they were both standing on thin ice. And Gabriel's next words, his next step, would determine whether the ice would crack or hold.

Ever so slowly Gabriel shook his head.

'I've come too far. It's too late to turn back now.'

They both plunged into icy water.

Nathalie's expression became unreadable as she smothered her emotions.

'Very well, sir.'

She turned on her heel and walked away to attend to her daily duties.

Gabriel had made his choice. She would do everything in her power to help him.

That was the promise she'd made.

As soon as Adrien stepped into the classroom, Marinette could tell something was wrong.

Usually Adrien was pretty good at hiding his emotions. But today Marinette could clearly see the cracks.

And she wasn't the only one to notice.

Nino made a bigger effort than normal to make him smile. Alya tried to involve him more in their conversations. Even Chloe tried to engage with him with more sincerity than normal.

And Adrien smiled. He talked. He laughed. He went through all the motions perfectly. But everyone could tell his heart wasn't in it.

Marinette looked at him in dismay. Was it what she'd said last night? Was it the thought of being akumatised getting him down? Was it just his father being himself again? Or... Marinette stared at the blond head in front of her, the words "I don't know if I could say no" ringing in her mind, and chewed her pen like the worry gnawing her from the inside out.

She jumped when someone snatched the pen out of her mouth.

'Girl, you chew that pen any harder and your mouth's gonna be stained black.'

Marinette slumped forward onto the table and groaned.

'What's up with you?' Alya said, not unkindly.

'I'm just tired,' she mumbled into the table. Technically it wasn't a lie.

'Come on,' Alya pulled her up, 'Let's go get lunch.'

'Class is over?' Marinette jerked upright and realised everyone was packing up around her.

'Damn girl, you really were out of it!' Alya laughed but Marinette wasn't listening. A voice had caught her attention.

Adrien.

'I just need some time alone, I'll catch you later, okay Nino?'

Marinette narrowed her eyes. He didn't look like himself at all. He looked so down.

She suddenly felt alert.

'Hey, watch my stuff for me,' she gestured absentmindedly at Alya, 'I'll be right back.'

She walked away and out the door, ignoring Alya's spluttery protests.

She followed Adrien out the classroom, down the stairs, and into the courtyard where it was starting to get rowdy with congregating students.

She watched him as he went over and sat on a bench by himself. She hummed in concern before walking up to him.

'Hi,' she said.

He looked at her. 'Hey.' He smiled, but it fell flat almost instantly. He glanced away.

Marinette fidgeted a moment before sitting down next to him.

Up close he looked worse than normal. His eyes were shadowed from lack of sleep and his hair had lost its lustrous shine. She bit her lip to hide her unease and followed his lifeless gaze.

Children were running and playing over the schoolyard. Screams, shouts and laughter bounced around. The joyful noise was jarring against the solemn stillness that surrounded Adrien.

Marinette turned to him once more when he started to speak, almost dreamlike, into the stillness.

'Do you ever feel like your life is out of your control? Like you're walking down a set path and there's no way off.'

Marinette smiled sadly but didn't say anything.

'I don't want to be walking down this path that I'm on.' Pain welled in Adrien's eyes. 'I know what's going to happen. And I don't know how to avoid it.' His voice cracked as distress leaked through. 'I'm sorry, you don't want to hear any of this,' he muttered, suddenly aware of his words.

'It's okay, I'm here to listen,' Marinette said softly. 'That's what friends are for.'

Adrien looked at her, gratitude lighting up his dull eyes.

But a deep foreboding settled uneasily in Marinette's gut.

Adrien had expected his father's wrath when he returned from school. So it was no surprise when his father called out to him as soon as he stepped through the door. Though this time he was at the bottom of the stairs. Adrien narrowed his eyes as his father walked up to him. He didn't cringe away; he didn't flinch as his father wrapped his arms around him and enveloped him in a warm hug. But he made no effort to return the gesture. He stood still and limp in his father's arms and waited patiently for him to pull back, giving him an empty glare when he did so.

His father rested his hands on Adrien's shoulders and met his glare with a gentle smile.

'You wanted to know why I need to protect you,' he said. Adrien said nothing. 'There are dangerous people in this world, people who want to hurt you.' His voice turned deadly cold. 'People who hurt your mother.'

Adrien frowned ever so slightly as his heart rate increased, but he stayed silent. He didn't show his confusion and shock. But he couldn't help but shiver as his father spoke once more.

'Come with me, Adrien. I have something to show you.'

A deep dread knotted itself in his gut.

Adrien shook his head and tried to take a step back but Nathalie was standing right behind him, looking more severe and blank than usual. Adrien swallowed as she took his bag and he realised he had no choice but to follow his father.

Adrien's wary footsteps contrasted his father's confident strides as he led Adrien into his office and up to his mother's portrait.

Adrien gazed up at her golden face. He had always loved this picture. It was full of light and love and hope and always put him at ease. But not this time. This time he only felt apprehension swirl inside as she stared down at him with her unseeing eyes.

His father held out his hand. Adrien saw a glint of metal as Nathalie placed something in his palm. A key. His father lifted an invisible panel next to the portrait to reveal a small hole. He inserted the key. Adrien's eyes widened when the portrait - safe and all - swung open to reveal a doorway.

'Come, Adrien,' his father said.

'Father?' Uncertainty rang clear in Adrien's voice.

'I said, come.' His father's words were gentle, but there was an air of exhaustion and finality about them. There was no arguing with those cold grey eyes.

Adrien stepped forward into the darkness.

A spiral stone staircase led them down, down, down; deep into the earth.

They descended in silence.

The air was musty and the stone, old. Adrien feared the secrets they held.

After an age, they reached the bottom and stepped through a stone archway onto a metal walkway. Adrien gasped. The walls and floor fell away as they walked into a formidable chamber. It was nothing like Adrien had ever seen before. The ceiling arched high above and the floor dropped away deep beneath them. Far on the other side, brilliant light shone down onto a magnificent tree Adrien realised was growing from the ground. Its branches merged with the open platform above, forming a floor of lush greenery on its surface. The backdrop to it all was a large circular structure reminiscent of a butterfly.

It was both disturbing and beautiful.

But Adrien could only look about in trepidation. Why did his father have a secret underground cavern? How did his father have a secret underground cavern?

'Father…' Adrien tried to speak, but his voice was shaking, 'I don't… What is-'

He bit down on his tongue when his father turned and looked at him.

Adrien thought he saw sadness and regret in his father's eyes, but he wasn't sure if it was just the strange lighting.

'What do you know about your mother's disappearance?'

'Oh,' he hadn't been expecting that. 'Um, nothing really. Just one day she was there, and the next she wasn't, I guess.' His heart clenched. Thinking about that day brought back painful memories. Memories of confusion and outrage and denial. Of screams and tears and grief.

'What if I told you your mother didn't disappear.'

Adrien's head shot up. 'What?'

'She didn't disappear,' he repeated.

'H-How do you know?' Adrien hated how his voice shook. He clenched his fists to stop them trembling too.

'Because she's right here.'

Adrien stopped breathing. His gaze darted around.

Where, he started to say, but his father raised a single hand and gestured to the other end of the cavern where, nestled amongst the greenery, glass glinted in the light.

Adrien didn't realise he was moving down the walkway until the metallic echoes of his footsteps crashed onto his ears.

No. Horror mounted Adrien with each step. No. No! It couldn't be.

But as he drew closer, the figure in the glass coffin grew clearer.

'Mum?' He found himself crying as he stumbled forwards.

'Mum!' He picked up speed as tears welled in his eyes and his chest tightened and his breath hitched in his throat.

'Maman!' He screamed like he was eight years old again, crying for his mummy after a nightmare as he raced towards that terrible light where his mother lay.

MAMAN!' He slammed into the coffin.

'MAMAN!' Tears streamed down his cheeks

'MAMAN!' He screamed and screamed as he clawed at the glass and his heart ripped to pieces and he screamed.

Time lost all meaning as grief and confusion tore itself from him in the form of that piercing scream, crying over and over for his mother who lay indifferent and unmoving under the glass beneath his fingers.

Eventually Adrien found himself on the ground, sobbing at the foot of the coffin.

He became aware of his father standing behind him.

Adrien swallowed and tried to speak.

'W-What is she doing in here? Is she…is she…' he couldn't bring himself to say that terrible word.

'Yes.'

Adrien wailed and hunched over as sickness and denial stabbed him in the gut.

'No, no, no, Maman!' His shoulders shook and tears splashed onto the floor as his heart tore in two.

His father knelt down next to him and wrapped his arms around his son.

Adrien turned into his embrace and sobbed into his father's chest.

His father murmured words of comfort and reassurance as Adrien cried.

Adrien didn't take in his words at first, too upset to make sense of anything, but slowly the words penetrated the grief-stricken fog in his mind.

He pulled back and hiccuped as he tried to suppress his sobs. 'W-What did you s-say?'

'I said don't you worry, my son. We'll bring her back.'

'H-How?'

Gabriel ran his hands down Adrien's arms comfortingly before speaking.

'You know why Hawkmoth wants Ladybug and Chat Noir's miraculous, don't you?'

Adrien hesitated and wiped his eyes before nodding.

'To s-save the one he loved.'

His eyes widened. They flicked from his father, to his mum, and back to his father.

'Are you in league with Hawkmoth?' he asked in a horrified whisper.

'Adrien,' his father said in his gentle, cold way. Adrien's stomach twisted as pain and grief filled his father's eyes.

'I am Hawkmoth.'