Author's note: As always thanks for all of the reviews.

/

The scenery passes by slowly as Marinette looks out of the window. Unlike Adrien, she's never been all that fond of it down south. It all seems to be… Dry. These rocky hills look dead. There's not much out there. Further north there are fields and cows and forests around here… Well, there's probably a reason why the population levels are so low. It's most certainly not Paris. She's spent a few weeks around there, visiting him when he's down with Nathalie's grandmother and has decided that it isn't really her scene. Her boyfriend needs the rest though and she's not all that inclined to complain when he drifts down south, it almost inevitably does him some good.

Today is different however. He's not exactly resting.

The girl's heart is heavy as she spots the last sign indicating that they're about to arrive at the hospital. Her mother's worried gaze rests upon her. It's been a long trip and an uncharacteristically silent one. She knows what she'll find inside, Nathalie has prepped her as have her parents, to a degree at least. She's been warned that she likely won't like it. Not to expect too much or too little. He'd injured badly and in pain to boot. She shouldn't be expecting much from him. It's quite probable that only a brief visit will be welcome, if that. As such, she's both desperate and dreading seeing him.

"Honey, are you going to be okay?" Her father asks her, making no attempt to mask his concern.

"Yes." She lies through her back teeth, aware that there's no other choice. "Just… I hope that he's okay."

He's not going to be. He'll be better than he was but still not the young man she'd said "goodbye" to only a few weeks ago. She has to see him though.

They make their way into the hospital in silence and ask at the desk for Adrien Agreste. They're given the room number but a man whom Marinette recognizes as Nathalie's boyfriend comes to get them, offers to lead them there. They accept. The teen isn't overly fond of hospitals. She'd spent a few days in one herself, following her release from Hawk Moth's captivity. Even now, the sight of an IV causes her to shudder as she recalls being sent to sleep for what she'd feared might easily have been eternity. So she focuses on the present, convincing herself that her friend is going to need some comfort, even if it's only for a handful of minutes.

He leads them to a door, behind which Marinette knows she'll find Adrien. That's when her courage wavers the most. Somehow, up until this point, it's all seemed somewhat unreal. She knows what she's been told. Nathalie had been too weak to give her many descriptions initially and they'd had to get her back to the hospital but later, the woman had called, let her know just what was wrong. Now though, it all feels painfully real and acute. The antiseptic smell which lingers in the air stings at her nose and eyes, it's unpleasant. She can imagine finding him there, disfigured or only just clinging to life. A million nightmares make their way through her mind. She takes a few deep breaths and holds onto what little courage she can muster. She's got to do this, for him.

They enter a moment later.

Naturally, it's the bed that she sees first and it's occupant. Adrien's sitting up more than she had been expecting. There's a fair amount of machinery though. That's the second thing that strikes her: the noises. The first, the beeping she'd rather been expecting but curiously, there's no artificial breathing. That's oddly comforting. Still, she can't help but fix him with a pained expression. She'd done a bit of research when Nathalie had mentioned the tracheotomy. She knew what she would find. Still, of all of the devices and wires that she finds herself faced with, it was the pipe sticking out of his throat which seems to be the most intrusive and disturbing.

It is hard to conceive of how he could possibly be breathing through such an apparatus. She understands the physics but still… Seeing it in the flesh proves to be the markedly different however. It takes her a few instants to realize that he's conscious. The young man turns his head to see her as she comes in. A warm smile makes its way onto his lips, a look of pure unbridled relief.

It warms her soul. In a flash, all of her doubts are gone.

She steps forwards. There's a seat next to the bed, from there looks up Nathalie. The woman's face is still bruised. Something she's been able to blame on those who took her and the accident, although the authorities are still hunting for their captors. She still wore the horse miraculous, albeit disguised. To the rest of the world, it was simply a different pair of glasses. Enough to provide them with some security however. Had she wanted to, she could have created a portal to get Adrien and the machines attached to him to safety. Thankfully, as of yet, they'd had no cause to resort to such drastic measures.

The woman gives them a weary smile. She arguably looks worse than he does: haggard and worn. It's plain that she hasn't had a decent night's sleep in quite some time. Hardly surprising given the circumstances. As Marinette approaches, she doesn't know how to greet the two of them: warmly? Make light of the situation? Express concern? Sympathy? It's all a mess inside of her mind.

Adrien stirs. His lips move, a clear attempt to speak but his words don't quite come out. Instead, he coughs or makes some other strange noise which she can't quite identify. He winces only briefly. A noble attempt but it would seem that he isn't quite up for whatever he had been attempting. A swift glance towards the young man's carer confirms that it's nothing that needs to be worried about. So Marinette draws in a little closer before finally speaking in a soft voice:

"Hey there." She gets a smile as a response. "You okay?"

The young man taps gently at his throat. She gets the message. He can't speak. There's still a lot of damage to be healed. As of yet, she can't say what is temporary and what will be more permanent. She dares to come a little a little closer, distracted momentarily by the bruises on his chest and the few tubes which seem to be leading to somewhere on the floor. It takes her a few instants to spot the movement of his hand as he tries to reach for her. In a flash, she steps next to him so that he could reach her. She can feel that his grip is quite a fair bit weaker than it usually is. So, cautiously, she takes his hand in both of hers, holding it loosely.

Her boyfriend smiles, turning so as to be able to look at her more easily. She can sense that he's weak. It's been a few days and she can scarcely imagine what he must have been like initially. It's not something that she particularly wants to picture. So she concentrates on what he's like right now and being here for him presently. Even then, she decides to do her best to block out the machines which surround them, and to concentrate only on the teen.

Quietly, her parents enter. They don't stay all that long. It's not the biggest room in the world and four people is a crowd. They express their sympathy, encourage him to get better. He smiles. It's apparent that's about all he can manage. Eventually, the Dupain-Chengs ask Nathalie if she wants a coffee? She gives the patient she's been watching over all this time. A brief glance and an almost imperceptible nod from the young man. He'll be alright without her for a little while. Others have come. She can leave him be whilst he enjoys a few moments of privacy with another that he loves. She consents.

As the woman rises, it becomes clear that she's stiff from sitting. She groans with pain, stretches in an effort to get some blood flowing once more. She gives those who offer her concerned looks a reassuring smile before heading to join them. Her limp is still present, as she drags her leg slightly before joining the other three adults and leaving the teens to their own devices.

As soon as they were gone, a small dark creature manifested itself. Plagg, for once, demonstrated little irritation with the current predicament he found himself in. Instead, he hurried over to his partner's side, taking the opportunity to nuzzle up to him. Again, Adrien smiles. Unable to speak, it becomes clear that he's relying essentially on his body language to express himself. Perhaps Nathalie had worked out a more complex way for him to get his point across but for the time being, that's all that she could rely on. With him unable to answer, at least using words, she wasn't even too sure just what she could possibly say.

"You scared me." Is what she eventually opts for. "You okay now?"

"He's fine..." Plagg assures her, to which Adrien nods. "Just needs some time to get himself back together again."

She wants to believe that. Tentatively, she reaches out and runs a hand through his hair. He doesn't display any pain, if anything he seems to lean into her, seeking the affection. She's cautious. One wrong move and she fears that she could snag a hidden tube or wire somewhere. On the other hand, she's keen to show him some of the affection she's sure he's been missing these past few days. He seems to be a fair amount calmer than she would have expected. Her attention falls upon the nearby drips. She reasons that some of those must be painkillers. They might be making him a little bit drowsy.

"The others are asking after you. They're all wishing you better." Another smile. She feels daring enough to joke. "You'd better get well soon kitty, who else am I going to hear puns from?"

"You're telling me!" Plagg declares glancing towards his friend. "It's the quietest he's ever been!"

Adrien makes an attempt to shrug, at least that's what she assumes it is. It must cause him some pain however as he winces and for a few seconds the relief fades from his features. It's hard not to think back to bubbly Cat Noir with all of his little quips, jokes and flirting. She holds his hand, waiting for the pain to pass. When he looks back to her, his distress is apparent but he tries to conceal it once more, quickly grinning in an attempt to reassure her that all is well. She's not entirely fooled, no matter how much she might want to be.

Once she's sure that he's over it. Marinette rests her head on the bed next to him, taking Nathalie's seat for a few moments. Adrien's gaze softens as he contemplates her, there by his side.

"You're going to be okay now."

It's as much of a promise as it is a plea.

They don't go far for their coffee just into the hospital lobby. The promise of sunlight however is enough to draw Nathalie outside into the open air. She hasn't realized how much she had missed it. The warmth radiates through her body which has been trapped inside with artificial lighting and air conditioning for far too long. There's some guilt that Adrien can't be out here too, he would enjoy the early morning's heat. She can only imagine the doctors' faces if he was to come out here with them…

She's forced to sit down. Her ankle still pains her if she tries to walk too far or otherwise remains standing for extended periods of time. Thankfully, there are benches outside, seemingly for that precise reason. The Dupain-Chengs, having just come out of a long drive down south and are a little keener to stretch their legs so don't join her. The silence between them is a bit awkward. In the scheme of things, they don't know her all that well. Ironically enough, they were better acquainted with Delphine Lebrun than they are with Nathalie Sancoeur. They know however that she's close to Adrien, can no doubt imagine how difficult this must be for her. If nothing else, the shock of being kidnapped and then the accident must be affecting her. So they're not too sure, where, if anywhere, to begin.

Nathalie Sancoeur is unfortunately famous for being a difficult person to approach about such matters. She's hardly famed for sharing her innermost thoughts and doubts with the world. She tends to keep her cards close to her chest and as her surname suggests, has something of a reputation for being harsh and cold. Still, Sabine eventually takes a chance and asks:

"How's it been?"

"Tuesday was rough..." Nathalie mutters taking a swig of her drink. "He was either completely under or not under enough but he is getting stronger."

"How long until he can move around again?" Tom asks tentatively.

"A while. They're going to take out the drainage tubes for his heart out tomorrow. The tracheotomy they're not too sure…" Her voice trailed off for a moment, letting some of her suffering shine through. "His hip's going to keep him off of his feet for a while."

They can't give a precise date of when he'll be able to leave, only a rough estimate. He's young and strong. His body has already proven its resilience although he has pushed it perilously close to breaking point. She has no doubt that he'll live but it's going to be a trying period for him. He'll be in a wheelchair for a while. She can't even begin to imagine just how he managed to smash his hip to such a degree and still break his throat. He must have spun… A gruesome thought which she plainly doesn't want to think about right now. He's safe. She repeats to herself. He'll get better.

She decides to distract herself by asking after Marinette instead:

"She was pretty shaken up when she heard." Sabine told her. "So were Mr. and Mrs. Agreste when they came round. Have they paid a visit yet?"

"Yes but they preferred to keep things discrete, you know. Best that the press don't start crowding him. He needs his peace and quiet."

It always feels doubly terrible to lie to good people. It's something that Nathalie has a good amount of experience in however and now, it doesn't require all that much effort. One day, maybe, they might explain everything to these people and she will be able to tell the truth. They won't laugh but she can pray that they'll understand.

Her mind inevitably drifts back towards the Agrestes. Their absence here is a relief. Even their absence is troubling. Whilst she knows better than to expect the two of them to turn up. They had been warned about the potential consequences should they return or otherwise made any other attempt to involve themselves. They would make the justice system seem mild… All the same, Nathalie finds herself wondering if she'll ever be able to relax once more knowing that they're out there, somewhere, potentially plotting something. A part of her hopes that this will be enough to make them finally learn the lesson. The doctor's words come back to her "He was lucky"… Yes, he was. He could easily have died.

She doesn't want to think about all of that right now. Instead, she distracts herself with another sip of coffee. The Agrestes are something which they will have to deal with. She has neither doubts nor illusions as far as they're concerned but they will need Adrien. Right now he can't even talk in anything other than strange and contorted gasps which are impossible to make out, let alone move or discuss matters in any detail with his parents. They will have to be patient and pray that they keep their side of the bargain rather than deciding to 'help' once more.

"He'll be alright..." The woman speaks quietly, muttering more to herself than anyone else. "We'll all be."

It isn't quite hope which Nathalie feels. It's something different but at the very least, some of the weight is lifted from her chest as she sits out there in the warm morning sun.