Silence filled the room. Deafening. Paralysing. Suffocating silence.
Nathalie took in Hawkmoth's figure - hunched shoulders and tensed muscles.
Something had gone wrong.
'My son is Chat Noir,' Hawkmoth said slowly.
Nathalie's mouth fell open, a wordless exclamation.
'A-Are you sure?' she stammered as horror curled inside her.
He turned to face her and his terrible gaze was like a punch to the gut as his eyes answered her question, shimmering in the strange purple light.
Blue lights lit his silhouette and sirens wailed in the distance. They both turned their heads to the window.
The emergency services would reach Adrien soon. Then he'll be back. He'll be home. Chat Noir would be in their midst.
Hawkmoth dropped his transformation and Nathalie watched from the corner of her eye as he took the locket off his chest and opened it, hands trembling.
'Am I doing the right thing?' Gabriel whispered to the picture. Silence. The photo stared blankly up at him. He closed the locket with a snap, making Nathalie jump. 'All I do, I do for you,' he said abruptly and walked towards the exit, brushing past Nathalie on the way.
Nathalie looked out to the cold blue lights. She hated Chat Noir for hurting Gabriel, there was no denying that. But did she love Adrien more?
She closed her eyes and took a deep breath in.
'Come, Nathalie,' Gabriel called.
She slowly exhaled and released her emotion. She opened her eyes - as cold and as blue as the lights in the streets - and turned on her heel.
She followed Gabriel.
Adrien sat on his bed, huddled and trembling, as that memory spun and swirled in his head. He gritted his teeth and clenched his stomach as regret simmered, grief knotted, guilt twisted inside him. And those eyes, those eyes, they haunted his mind…
Ladybug's eyes. Their beautiful hue. All Adrien had thought was: They are so blue.
They shone in the dark, contrasting the stormy air. But ice ran through him when he took in her expression.
Shock. Horror. Hysteria and distress.
And he knew. And he knew, that she knew who he was.
She opened her mouth but the words were snatched from her tongue as sirens blared in the air and the world was lit with blue lights.
Rena Rouge, Carapace, Queen Bee, and Ladybug wrapped him in blankets and made sure he was safe, and then turned away before their miraculous' ran out.
That was when panic flared in Adrien's gut.
'No wait! Don't send me back!' he had cried, fighting off the paramedics.
The heroes turned round to face him.
'I can't go back. Please,' he had begged, his voice weak.
And Ladybug stared, her blue eyes, piercing. But Adrien could tell his words were lost on them.
'You'll be safe at home,' the heroes all said.
And he wanted to SCREAM! To shake them and tell them Hawkmoth is my father! My mother is DEAD!
But he choked on his words, they died in his throat. Was it love? Was it loyalty? Was he just too upset?
He stayed silent and shivering; tears burning, head pounding. And the air was left empty… those words left unsaid.
Ladybug had stared while he was taken away. Her blue eyes, gleaming bright, slowly fading into the night.
And so Adrien sat on his bed, huddled and trembling…
And those eyes, those eyes, they haunted his mind.
Adrien started when a knock rang out, but he relaxed when he realised it came from the window, not the door.
It was hard to unknot his limbs from the position they'd been frozen in, but he eventually managed to pad over to the window.
He tried to smile as he opened it, but shivered as cold air washed over him and rain dripped onto the floor. Ladybug gracefully dropped in. She gave a small, pained smile of her own. It quickly slid off as tension grew thick in the air.
Adrien averted his gaze. He couldn't handle Ladybug's eyes - so wide and blue and full of the truth. For better or worse, she knew who he was. That secret was no more.
Explanations, excuses, they were on the tip of his tongue, but before he could let them pour forth, she pulled him close.
Adrien gasped as she squeezed him tight. He hesitated before wrapping his arms around her. It took another moment for him to fully melt into her embrace. She then gripped him tighter.
A lump rose in his throat and tears burned in his eyes when he realised he didn't need to explain anything to her. She accepted and loved him for who he was: both Adrien and Chat Noir.
He buried his head in her shoulder as tears leaked through his closed eyelids.
They stood entwined together for an immeasurable amount of time, breathing each other in and holding each other so tight it felt impossible to ever let go.
'Guess the cat's out the bag,' Adrien eventually whispered into her hair. Ladybug let out a disbelieving giggle and gave him one final squeeze.
'Mon chaton,' she murmured as she pulled back. She brushed a stray lock of his hair back into place before jumping back with a yelp and staring at him with horror.
'What? What is it?' Adrien cried as panic flared in him.
'You're soaking!' she cried. Adrien looked down at his sodden clothes. He hadn't even noticed.
'I'm so sorry,' Ladybug whispered, mortified. 'It was drizzling- pouring- I mean you saw the storm, right? What am I saying, of course you did- and I guess- well I didn't think, and- and… IshouldhavedriedmyselfbeforehuggingyouohmygoshI'MSOSORRY!'
Adrien stared at her. Warmth blossomed inside him. It rose up through his chest and burst out as laughter. It was soft and light and only grew deeper as he took in Ladybug's incredulous expression. Her soft giggle joined in. And it felt so good he started crying. He hadn't felt this way in weeks. Tears shone in his eyes and the world gleamed brighter as their laughter shimmered in the cold evening air.
Adrien finally wiped his eyes and smiled at Ladybug, glowing inside at the blush on her face.
'I'm going to get changed, you make yourself at home,' he gestured to the couch before heading to the bathroom.
It didn't take long for him to be dry and cosy once more.
He stepped back into his bedroom, an extra hoodie under his arm, to see Ladybug knelt next to his TV and fiddling with something.
'What are you doing?'
She looked up and raised a controller and a game.
'Mecha-strike three?'
Another light laugh escaped Adrien's lips before he could stop it. Her cute smile, her warm eyes, her efforts to cheer him up. He loved her so much it hurt.
She accepted his hoodie and they curled up together on the couch, whiling away time on the console. Their game was subdued but fun. Though, it brought bittersweet memories of their first night together before all of this mess.
After not long enough, Ladybug paused the game.
The sudden silence was deafening.
Adrien looked at her, but her eyes were cast down and she was biting her lip.
'Adrien…what happened?' She looked at him, blue eyes full of concern.
Adrien turned away. His gut clenched. He wanted to tell her everything, he honestly did, truly. But he didn't know where to begin.
'My father…' he started, but he couldn't finish the sentence. Adrien swallowed. 'He's…' But the word Hawkmoth stuck in his throat and came out as a spluttery cough. He hated how hard this was. He hated his father. But his father was still his father, despite everything he'd done.
Adrien rubbed his face and raised his head to the window as soft light poured in. The clouds had started to break up, though rain still poured down, and a waxing moon shone through, casting a silver glow over everything. He drank in the moonlight and took a shaky breath in.
'My mother is dead,' he said, the words spilling out before he could stop them. He clenched his jaw as pain tugged at his heartstrings and grief blossomed within him once more. He glanced at Ladybug but looked back away when he saw tears shining in her wide eyes.
He couldn't see her cry. He couldn't handle it.
'That's why Hawkmoth…' he trailed off, leaving his explanation hanging.
He bit down on his tongue as the familiar burning returned to his eyes. He rubbed them hard with the heel of his palm. He didn't want to cry. Not again. He was sick of it.
Ladybug shuffled right up to him. She gently wrapped her arms around him and laid her head on his shoulder.
And that's when the tears squeezed out. They rolled down his cheeks and dripped into his lap as he silently grieved and Ladybug held him close, her touch warm and comforting.
By the time he looked up, the clouds had hidden the moon once more and the rain had given way to drizzle. Warm lights from the window's across the street spilled out into the darkness and, while Adrien felt far from content, somewhere deep down was the beginnings of peace in his heart.
He placed his hand over Ladybug's and she wove her fingers through his.
Memories flashed through his head.
'Choose love, choose life!'
'I… I remember, Ladybug,' he said, his voice quiet. 'Why do I remember?'
Ladybug lifted her head and looked into his eyes.
'Choose me.'
'You fought Hawkmoth and won,' she said softly.
'Did you mean what you said?' Adrien whispered. 'That… that…'
'I love you, Adrien.'
Ladybug's eyes widened. Her cheeks turned pink. Adrien couldn't help but smile when she covered her face with her hands as her blush deepened.
'I love her.'
I meant what I said too,' he said softly, smiling at her, 'I love-' he started to confess.
'I'm a HERO! I'm her PARTNER!'
Adrien's blood ran cold.
He had revealed who he was. But Ladybug hadn't been the only one listening.
'He knows who I am,' he said in a horrified whisper. He looked at Ladybug: at her blue eyes narrowed with confusion, and at the bright jewels glistening on her earlobes. She was in his home. In his lair.
He had led her right to him.
'You shouldn't be here!' He shot to his feet and pulled at her wrist. 'You need to leave!' Panic flared in his gut at his own stupidity.
'Adrien, wha-?' But before she could finish, steel walls slammed down just beyond his window. Adrien looked at them with denial and disbelief.
Lockdown. The house was in lockdown. Why was the house in lockdown?
He felt sick.
'Adrien?' Ladybug asked slowly, panic shaking her voice, 'What's going on?'
Adrien looked at her. Tears rose in his eyes. Panic and fear rendered him speechless, yet her own eyes shone fearless with that brilliant blue, and Adrien knew he would do anything to protect her.
Footsteps in the hallway rang out and forced him to break their gaze.
'Get in here,' he said and they sprinted to his bathroom. He threw her in, slammed the door shut, and jumped back to the centre of the room just in time for his bedroom door to open.
Adrien didn't look as his father walked in. He instead crossed his arms and faced the windows.
He waited for the footsteps to still right behind him before finally opening his mouth.
'Was this really necessary?' he asked, his tone emotionless as he stared at the steel.
When his father didn't reply, he turned to face him. Adrien shivered as those cold, empty eyes looked down upon him. But when he looked closely, he saw something else there: a pain in the darkness and a doubt in his glare.
Adrien's jaw clenched and his fists tightened. Yet he flinched as his father raised a hand, but he only fixed his collar that had bent out of place.
'Why didn't you tell me?' his father asked softly, hands trailing Adrien's shoulder.
Adrien's body slackened with disbelief. He laughed. He couldn't help it. He clutched at his sides as pain twisted inside him, and his laugh turned to tears, and his grin to a grimace.
'Like you wouldn't have taken it from me,' he said, his voice bitter, 'Hawkmoth or not.' He angrily wiped the tears in his eyes to prevent them from falling.
His father's hand traced Adrien's cheek down to his chin and then gently twisted his jaw up to face him.
'You will not give it to me,' he said, a statement of realisation, 'not even for your mother.'
Adrien swallowed. Once more he felt anger at how his father used his mother against him.
'She wouldn't want this,' he said with a choked whisper.
A brief flicker of sadness flashed behind his father's eyes before darkness swallowed his emotions and left his eyes cold.
'Very well,' he said. 'You leave me no choice.'
His father stepped back. Only then did Adrien notice the people behind him. The Gorilla: looking fearful, and Nathalie: looking more severe than usual.
'Gorilla,' his father said, commanding. The chauffeur didn't move, hesitation flickered across his face. 'Gorilla!' Gabriel ordered once more, but the large man shook his head.
His father pinched the bridge of his nose. 'For christ's sake,' he muttered under his breath.
Adrien yelped as his father suddenly grabbed him and twisted his arms behind his back, locking him in place. Adrien squirmed and shouted, but his father's grip was ironlike.
'Don't bother transforming,' his father said in his ear, 'don't make this difficult.'
Adrien scowled. 'Plagg!-' but he was cut off by a hand covering his mouth.
'I said, don't.' His father's tone was quiet but final.
Adrien went limp as his father straightened.
'Nathalie,' he said, his voice commanding. But Nathalie wasn't looking at them. Adrien followed her gaze and ice trickled down his spine.
A window wide open and a puddle on the floor. Two controllers on the table and a game on pause.
Nathalie walked over to the couch. She picked something up. A long black hair that shone blue in the light.
She gave Gabriel a knowing look.
'You think she's still here?' his father whispered, and Adrien could hear the disbelief in his voice.
'Mid-game? She wouldn't leave.'
His father chuckled, 'Well this is my lucky day. We'll deal with her after.'
Nathalie nodded.
Adrien froze as Nathalie's eyes turned to him. He shook his head wildly as she stepped closer; he tried to yell, tried to squirm, tried to shake his father's hand from his mouth, but he held him still in his iron grip.
Adrien pleaded with his eyes, he begged her not to do it, but she avoided his gaze and reached for his hand. He moaned, scared and hopeless as she started to pry open his fingers.
Sudden anger flared within him. How dare she take his miraculous? How dare his father do this?
With a burst of desperate rage, Adrien stomped hard on his father's foot, bit down on his finger, ripped his hand from Nathalie's grip, and shoved them both out the way.
'Claws Out!' he cried and shot to the other side of the room. He breathed heavily and faced them, hardly believing what he'd done.
'You think Ladybug's still here?' he taunted, loud enough for Ladybug to hear, 'Well you're wrong! She's long gone!' He prayed she stayed safe and hidden in the bathroom and didn't come out to help him.
Chat watched as his father rubbed his finger and eyed him almost sadly, but then he saw a glint of anger in his eyes.
'Adrien, I asked you to make this easy,' his father said.
'Like I'm going to let you just take my miraculous,' he replied coldly.
His father sighed. 'Adrien, I don't want to fight you-'
'-THEN DON'T!' Chat Noir screamed, his voice cracking, 'You don't need to do this!'
But he turned cold inside as his father stared back with his menacing eyes.
He took a step forward. Chat took a step back.
'Nooroo, Darkwing's Rise.'
Chat Noir's gut sank with horror as his father transformed and pain twisted inside him but he refused to let it show. Instead, he gripped his baton tight, turned his pain into anger, and with a snarl he leapt forward and attacked.