Chapter Six
Aftermath

The first thing he realized was that he was sweating - a lot. Everything was far too hot and Adrien couldn't recall a time where he felt more uncomfortable. Opening his eyes took far more effort than it should. There was a cacophony of shouting nearby and recognized it as his father's. He was too tired to remember the words, but he remembered seeing a face above him - blonde and beautiful. He whispered the words "Maman?" and instantly regretted it.

Chloe's face swam into view.

He watched as her eyes darted to something behind her, then back to Adrien. She was sitting beside his… hospital bed? Why was he in the hospital? He felt a little groggy… but a cup of coffee would fix that. Was his father angry because he missed a photo shoot? He went to sit up but Chloe put a hand on his chest and hissed. "I wouldn't. Your father is going to flip at you the first moment he can. Pretend you're asleep."

Gabriel Agreste noticed Chloe's movement and stopped shouting at his staff and the nurses to stomp over. "And just what are YOU doing here? This is a private room."

Chloe moved her chair around, letting it screech against the tiled floor. "I'm tending to my precious Adrien." She pulled the hospital blankets up to the boy's chin and dusted some sweaty strands of hair off of his forehead. "Providing something more pleasant to wake up to then a bunch of shouting." Her eyes narrowed in an accusatory manner before flitting back to Adrien and purring, "Can you hear me Adrien? It's your Chloe… I'm here for you." Her lip practically trembled at her words.

It took all of Adrien's willpower not to burst out laughing, though a small part of him was wondering if Chloe really meant the words she was saying. Her attachment to him could be terrifying at times. Adrien hoped she was here for alternative reasons, such as an excuse to not do a school project, or to cripple the hearts of the girls that sometimes followed him around.

To keep up the illusion that Chloe supplied for him, Adrien kept his eyes closed and his breathing even. Surprisingly Mr. Agreste backed down, though stared at Chloe with more steel behind his expression than Chloe could handle. "Fine." He turned to Nathalie, "You are to call me the moment he wakes up! Do not leave his side until then, do you understand?"

The woman looked harried, but replied with a "Yes sir!" She clutched her mobile phone with both hands as if her life depended on it.

Adrien's father left the room and everyone breathed a little easier. Adrien opened his eyes to see Chloe watching the door. Once the coast was clear she let out a long sigh and slumped in her chair.

Nathalie walked over and was startled to find that Adrien had opened his eyes. The boy could see the options running through the woman's head; should she run after Mr. Agreste and inform him about his son - or not?

"Don't." Adrien said, surprised to find his voice so hoarse. "What happened?"

Chloe flipped her hair over her shoulder and cooed from her chair, "Oh Adrien! Ladybug found you out in the storm. Said you were just laying on the sidewalk! She carried you here." There was a tiny pang of jealousy there that Adrien could detect.

Adrien blinked and then let out a moan before he could stop himself. So Ladybug knew who he was now. That was going to make things awkward in the future. If only it happened the other way around...

He was thinking about the implications of his identity being revealed, when a frustrated looking nurse arrived. She was about to say something snarky to Nathalie when she noticed Adrien was awake.

"Aah! It's good to see you up!" It was amazing how quickly her expression went from cranky to sunshine and daisies when she looked at Adrien.

"How- how long was I asleep?" Adrien struggled to get the words out. His throat was parched and he felt awful. He wrestled with the blankets around him to get some air at his over heated body.

"About fourteen hours. You needed it though. Seems like your immune system took a bit of a holiday and you got struck with a particularly nasty cold." The nurse popped a thermometer into Adrien's mouth and started to unravel a blood-pressure cuff. "You were treated for mild hypothermia. Though we don't know the cause of your sudden collapse. Do you remember anything from last night?" She helped Adrien pull back some of his blankets, letting in some blissful air that made the boy shiver. She then wrapped the velcro-cuff around his exposed upper arm.

Adrien talked around the thermometer in his mouth, "I was having trouble sleeping… I took a walk to tire myself out. That's the last I remember..." He felt so groggy. Between a sore throat and the stick in his mouth his words were nearly indecipherable. The nurse seemed to understand as she nodded and recorded his blood pressure and temperature.

"Well, you seem to have a proper temperature now… and a cold isn't really a reason to stay here in the hospital. We'll discharge you in a few hours. I'll talk to the doctor about prescribing you some sleep medication for your insomnia." The nurse left as abruptly as she came.

Adrien frowned, thinking about Dreamweaver; yet, he had been asleep for 14 hours and she wasn't there haunting him. Did she move onto torturing Ladybug? He fell back deeper into his pillows and took some slow steady breaths. The sound of Chloe filing her nails shifted his attention.

"How did you know I was here?" He asked, suspicious all of a sudden.

"You looked ill yesterday. Didn't show up at school today so I skipped out at lunch and went to your place and no one was there." She didn't look up from her nails, but a smug expression started to grow. "I called the hospital and they said you were here. I also called all of your clubs… some of your instructors are complete idiots." She inspected her nails and once satisfied put her nail file back into her bag. "Honestly, none of them knew I was your girlfriend."

Adrien rolled his eyes, "Chloe… We've been over this… I'm not your boyfriend."

Chloe laughed as if he were making a cute joke, "I came to be your nurse! You just relax and realize how perfect we are together." She grabbed his hand and snuggled it. Adrien just closed his eyes and willed her away. It was useless fighting her confidence. After several minutes of gathering his thoughts, Adrien put a plan into action.

"Chloe, I want to get changed… do you mind waiting outside?" Adrien said kindly, earning an earnest nod from the girl.

"Of course~! I'll be right outside." She picked up her purse and headed to the door. Nathalie watched her leave with a slight disgusted look on her face. Adrien sighed yet again and sat up. "Nathalie… do you have a change of clothes? I don't remember getting into this gown…"

The personal assistant nodded and pulled out a bag from the private bathroom. "I already collected your possessions from the medical staff, these items are freshly laundered." She set the bag on the foot of Adrien's bed and then lingered for a moment. "I'm stepping out to call your father… let us hope for both our sakes the hospital hasn't already contacted him" She left quickly, the snap of the door closing announcing Adrien's freedom to get out of the papery nightgown they dressed him in.

Shivering at his bare feet against the linoleum floor, Adrien took his bag to the bathroom to freshen up a bit. He looked like a mess. His hair was greasy and he could smell the stale sweat coming off of him. Despite how intimidating the shower looked, Adrien couldn't resist a proper rinse.

It was only when he began rooting around for his things still dripping from the shower, when his missing miraculous came to mind. He froze in panic. Adrien dressed frantically and skidded back into the hospital room. There was nothing belonging to him anywhere. No ring. No kwami. Had Dreamweaver taken it? He pulled on socks and shoes and headed to the hallway. Outside it was busy. Nurses moving about, patients wheeling themselves around, visitors like Chloe and Nathalie leaning against the walls to get out of the way.

"Chloe!" Adrien croaked, trying to keep the fear out of his voice. "Did you see a ring anywhere?"

Chloe looked up from her compact mirror and assessed Adrien with interest. "A ring? No why?"

The feeling of doom started to crawl up his spine, but he couldn't afford to show it. He turned to Nathalie. "Nathalie, was there a ring with my clothes from last night?"

She was still on the phone, but her shaking head was the only information he needed. He ran to the nearest nurses station, but the girl there was busy so he had to wait. The seconds he stood there seemed like hours, and it must have shown on his face because the nurse kept her call short. "Sorry about that, what do you need?"

"Uh, I'm Adrien Agreste… I was in that room right there… I had a ring… but I can't seem to find it." His throat wasn't cooperating with his voice and Adrien felt like his calm mask was cracking around the edges. The nurse merely blinked and started to rummage around her desk. "Aa… I have a form here for lost and found inquiries, but I don't remember anything about a ring. I think the nurse who had you last night left a note about something though… it could have been something about that. Let's see…" She pulled out a crumpled pink post-it note. "Aa! Yes! For Adrien Agreste. Hmm… nothing about a ring unfortunately. It's a message- oh! From Ladybug. Lucky!" She handed it over with a big smile.

Adrien's hand shook as he took the note. In hurried pencil it said: "I'm sorry. Don't worry. I'm taking care of your friend. I'm so sorry."

He felt dizzy with relief. Ladybug had Plagg. His miraculous was in the right hands. She must be freaking out about knowing his true identity, but that didn't matter as much to him now. He re-read the message, trying to figure out what Ladybug might be thinking at that very moment.

"Taking care of your friend? What does that mean?"

Chloe made Adrien jump with her sudden appearance over his shoulder. She snatched the paper out of his hands and frowned at it. "What are they so sorry about anyway?"

Adrien was going to reply, but Nathalie's hand on his shoulder distracted him. She hand his bag in her other hand. "Come on Adrien. Your father is waiting in the car. Do you have everything you need?" All he could do was nod as she practically dragged him towards the exit. Did he get discharged that quickly? His father probably did some more yelling over the phone to have him handed over so fast. Chloe was following, but Nathalie stopped the girl in her tracts.

"You need to go home Miss Bourgeois."

Chloe whined but it was no use. Nathalie wouldn't let her in the same elevator down. Adrien stared dumbly ahead at the elevator doors. He still felt terrible despite the shower, and he wasn't looking forward to a car ride home with his father. Like a soldier dead on his feet, he marched wherever Nathalie took him. The car was out front and Adrien could see the silouhette of his father within. Nathalie opened the door and Adrien slipped inside without a word.

Anger was written all over Mr. Agreste's face. He wanted to rant - Adrien knew, but only silence was heard for the majority of the trip. Adrien closed his eyes, surprised at how tired he was even though he just slept enough for two days. He was startled when he felt his father's hand on his forehead. Green eyes stared into grey with apprehensive curiosity.

"I'm glad you're okay."

Adrien's mouth opened, then formed the smallest of smiles. He knew his father cared about his well being, but it didn't manifest itself well. The disappearance of his mother changed them both in ways the other did not expect. "I didn't mean to scare you…"

"I'm sure." There was some bite back in his words and all feelings of bonding were cut short. "You are to be confined to your room for the next three days."

Adrien sighed angrily. "Really? How am I suppose to get anything done? What about my lessons… school?"

"I don't care Adrien! You are sick. You have been rebellious and reckless! What were you thinking going for a walk in the middle of a storm! You will obey me and stay in your room lest I ground you for a week."

Adrien said nothing, though he seethed on the inside. Now that he didn't have his ring he was really trapped.

The night of the second day Adrien was lying in bed trying to rest. Boredom had made him restless and his room was a complete disaster - mostly out of spite. He was just about to close his eyes for the fourteenth time when a quite tap made him sit up and turn to his window.

Silhouetted against a crescent moon was Ladybug. Her eyes were wide, searching his face for something, but Adrien could think of nothing other than how relieved he was to have a visitor. Quietly he crossed the room and opened the glass. It was strange staring at her in costume, while he was just simple Adrien.

"Hello." He said, breathing the word like it was the first time he ever used it.

Ladybug turned a shade of pink Adrien thought familiar, "Aah… Hello. Is this a-a bad time? I could come back later." She looked over her shoulder like she wanted to run.

"No. Come in. It's okay." He stepped back to allow her to shimmy through the window. Her movements were stuttered and her eyes never quite met his. A small sadness nipped at his heart. She was uncomfortable, did she feel guilt at discovering his secret?

"I don't mind you knowing."

Ladybug didn't seem to know where to put her arms. "I- ah… I didn't mean to see. I didn't know what to do. You were so cold and… I-" She shook her head and squashed the awkwardness by re-posturing. "We can't change what happened." She looked Adrien in the eyes, making his heart flip. "I'm happy it's you Adrien… for what it's worth."

Adrien didn't know how to reply. He felt like pulling her into a hug, ensuring that everything was okay between them. Just as he moved to touch her shoulder Plagg came out from behind Ladybug and hovered in front of Adrien.

"What a mess! Is everything you own on the floor?" He moved to perch on top of Adrien's television. "I knew you'd fall to pieces without me. Do you have any cheese?"

Ladybug shot the kwami an irritated look. "My kwami is much better behaved then yours. I don't know how you manage." She frowned, then blushed as their eyes met. "Um… nice room." She looked around trying not to linger to long on the various piles of clothing and equipment scattered about. This made Adrien's ears turn scarlet.

"Normally it's a lot cleaner…" He started to kick things underneath his desk and bed. "My father confined me here… so I'm making a bit of a statement." He laughed nervously before changing the subject. "Thanks for taking care of me the other night. I was really out of it… I'm still trying to figure out what happened. I remember a fox-girl playing a flute. Who was she? Did Dreamweaver get dealt with?" Once the floor was somewhat cleared he sat on the foot of his bed.

Ladybug paced, her brow furrowed in thought. "There are other Miraculous in town. One belongs to Volpina. She was trying to fight the weird akuma that arrived. We defeated it… but apparently she had taken a Miraculous… a bee Miraculous. The only problem is Lynn can't remember what she did with it. She doesn't remember her time as an akuma." Ladybug rubbed her arm. "I said I'd help look for it, but I don't know where to start."

Adrien nodded, following along and trying to figure out how he could help. "Do you think Hawk Moth has it? He is collecting them after all."

This made Ladybug shake her head and looking pointedly at Plagg. "No… she thought you needed all the Miraculous to perform a Miracle, but apparently you just need ours."

This was news to Adrien. A small part of him wondered if he could bring back his mother if he could just get Ladybug to understand. He pushed the voice to the back of his mind and refocused. "Wouldn't he still want it so that he could make himself an ally?"

Again Ladybug shook her head, "He can make allies with his power, ones that can't challenge him. Why would he create someone who could potentially turn against him? A rival would be bad for both sides." She paced some more before sighing and heading back to the window. This made Adrien stand up and reach out.

"Wait! Are you leaving so soon?"

Ladybug stopped, her eyes wide as she looked back towards Adrien. "I can't stay out too late. I meant only to give you Plagg back and run back home… I've stayed too long already." She turned back to the window apologetically, but Adrien quickly crossed the room and hugged her from behind. The action made Ladybug gasp.

"Thank-you. For being my partner… and my friend." He said quietly before letting her go. He had felt her shaking within his embrace and he didn't want to make things more difficult between them.

The heroine stood frozen, face beet red and a jumble of incoherent words primed on her tongue. She closed her mouth once she realized she left it open and practically dived out of Adrien's window. The boy watched her leave, trying to be polite by not laughing as she nearly hit the fence as she left. It reminded him of Marinette-

Adrien stopped his train of thought, then slowly tried to make an argument against the connection he just made - only nothing contested the idea. "No… surely Alya would have figured it out… I mean… they're best friends." Yet who is always there to capture footage of Ladybug? He thought that it might be a classmate since Ladybug knew all the akuma victim's names, but they all had been akumatized - except Marinette. She was conveniently missing whenever Ladybug stepped onto the field.

"It's Marionette." He said, looking to Plagg who was curled up pretending to sleep. The kwami opened one eye at the mention of the girl's name, then closed it before grinning like the Cheshire cat.