Ch23
Cat Noir leaped from roof top to rooftop scanning the dark alleys beneath for any sign of movement. It's quiet. Too quiet.
He carefully made his way across the rooftop and jumped into the street below. The smell of dew and mold hit his nose as he made his was down the dark alley making only the smallest amount of noise as he stepped on the wet ground.
Scanning the area he noticed a stylized butterfly sprayed onto the wall. He looked it over the hairs on his neck standing up. Hawkmoth just what are you playing at? Hiring criminals to assist his akumas was something new but made little sense.
We can take them out with ease even if we tired from a fight. He frowned as he thought of Ladybug, I'm just doing this for the city not for anyone else. Frankly as far as he was concerned their relationship was just that of coworkers.
Shaking his head he made his way out of the alley and into main street. Cars and buses drove along the rode as he made his way up the street twirling his baton in his hand. Looking up at the sky he remembered his younger days when he and his parents would take trips to the beach together.
If only those times could've lasted longer. He sighed and looked at his reflection in a nearby puddle. I swore that I wouldn't let anyone else lose their parents like I did. Gripping his baton tightly he looked up at the sky. "I've taken a lot of scum off the streets but the problems keep coming."
He shook his head and decided to call it a night. Extending his baton he leaped into the air and onto another rooftop and headed home while watching over the streets below. As he made his way home he noticed a familiar figure walking alone with her bag held closely.
Alya? He landed on a roof and watched her head down the street. He spoke with her a bit during the reunion but she mostly stayed by Nino's side. However, he quickly noticed two men trailing behind her with knives hidden under trench coats. The men quickly advanced on Alya as he lunged at them from the rooftop.
Gripping his baton he landed between them as Alya let out a gasp. The faces of the two men turned white as he disarmed them with his baton and knocked them to the ground. "Get out of my sight or you'll wish the police were here," he growled.
The men quickly got up and ran down the street screaming. Turning to Alya he noticed her legs were shaking as she looked him over.
"You ok?" He asked.
It may have been the adrenaline from the situation but he swore he saw fear directed at him in her gaze. "Y-Yeah. Thanks Cat Noir," Alya said with a semi forced smile.
He raised an eyebrow. "You sure?"
Alya laughed nervously and scratched her head. "Yeah just shaken up a bit."
"That's understandable," he said as he put away his baton. "Come on let me walk you to a safer area."
"Um thanks," Alya said as they walked through the streets of Paris.
There was an awkward pause as they passed by other people who took their picture together. "So I guess my interview on your blog was good," he said as he waved at a few cameras.
Alya's eyes lit up. "Yeah it was great. If you want you could always come back for another."
He shrugged. "Sure why not. Hopefully old Astruc doesn't get akumatized."
Surprisingly Alya laughed with him. "I'm good here Cat Noir, thank you." She waved out into the street and hailed a cab.
"Be safe." He then looked at the ground. "Also sorry for what happened."
Alya raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"
He took a deep breath. "Ladybug told me a lot of things. I'm sorry for how I treated you in the past. Sorry that I took out my jealousy and anger out on you."
Alya stared at him but it only took her a second before realizing what he meant. "Oh." She shifted where she stood. "It's alright I forgive you."
The sincerity in his words moved something in his heart. "See you around. Tell her when you get the chance that I have something very important to share with her."
Alya looked him in the eyes and nodded. "I will. Be safe Cat Noir." With that she got into the taxi and drove off.
"Well that went better than I thought," he said as he looked up at the sky. I made a lot of mistakes back then, I won't repeat them.
Taking out his baton he leaped into the sky and began to roam around the city. He waited on a rooftop that overlooked the city and watched over it. It didn't take long for him to hear footsteps land near him.
"Cat Noir!"
Turning around he saw Ladybug her face calm under the moonlit night. "Ladybug I figure we should continue our talk."
Ladybug avoided his gaze. "You mentioned you know where the peacock miraculous is?"
He nodded. "I do. Come, all will be explained and more."
Ladybug met his gaze and nodded. "Fine."
She followed him as they made their way to his mansion. His heart raced in his chest, frankly there were questions he also wanted but didn't know the answers to.
As they landed in the back of his mansion Ladybug froze. "Why are we here?"
"Come inside."
Ladybug trembled but followed him inside the Agreste mansion. He had never seen fear on her face, the unease in her eyes was so unlike her it hurt but she followed him as if in a trance all the way to the living room where Felix was waiting for them.
"A-Adrien?" Ladybug asked softly.
Felix frowned and shook his head. "Felix."
He turned to Ladybug. "He's my cousin." Taking a deep breath he looked his partner in the eyes. "Claws in."
Ladybug's eyes widened as she saw him transform back into Adrien. She took a step back and covered her mouth as tears fell down her eyes. "A-Adrien!"
"No more secrets," he said.
Tears formed in Ladybug's eyes as she stumbled. "Your father.. did you know?" Her voice was a low croak as if she were about to lose her sanity.
He grimaced. "Not until recently."
"I'm so sorry," Ladybug sobbed as she nearly stumbled to the ground. "I ruined everything!"
He placed a hand on her shoulder. "It's ok it wasn't easy but I got through it."
"I ruined your life," Ladybug sobbed. "We were supposed to have a bright future together and I ruined it!"
"Ok that's a little too much Marinette," He said firmly. Please don't make me regret showing you my identity. "If you wanted to get to know me you should've spoken to me and interacted with me like a real person, not a fashion magazine model."
He handed her a tissue. She took it and cleaned her eyes. "I'm so sorry for everything. You were such a good partner and.." She grabbed more tissues and blew her nose. "I killed your family."
"We can't change the past," He said firmly. "I am ready to face this new Hawkmoth will you help me?"
Ladybug met his gaze with her wet eyes and slowly nodded. "I will."
"Good. Now my cousin Felix has some words he'd like to say," He said.
Felix stepped forward his gaze as cold as ice as he revealed the peacock miraculous. "Back then I wanted to kill you for what you did but something didn't add up." His cousin put the miraculous away and looked at them both. "Adrien it is time to show you the truth of your father, the old Hawkmoth."
He nodded. "I am. Are you Ladybug?" His heart raced in his chest, he was nervous but he wouldn't let it get in the way of things now.
His partner nodded. "I am."
His heart raced in his chest as they followed Felix to his father's office, well his office now but he kept a lot of his father's old stuff there. Felix arrived at one of the paintings in the wall and hit a few buttons.
The ground rumbled as a metal surface opened up beneath them and began to take them down. "I always to tell you but I didn't want you to go into another depressive state if you knew the truth," Felix said softly as the elevator went down the shaft. "Me and Kagami found it and swore to keep it a secret until you were ready."
He frowned. "When would that have been?"
Felix shrugged. "We never figured that out."
The elevator stopped and a metal door in front of them opened up revealing the dusty ruins of a laboratory and dead vegetation. Up ahead in a froze cubicle lay a body.
His legs shook as tears formed in his eyes. With each step he took he thought he'd go mad but eventually looking down he came face to face with his own mother's body. Mom. He covered his mouth and pushed down a sob.
Ladybug looked at the body her gaze unreadable. "Is she your mother?"
He could only nod. Father is this why you wanted the miraculous? Is this why you caused so much damage and destruction?
"My uncle wanted to restore her. That is why he needed both of your miraculouses," Felix said softly. "She's gone now, but I figured you'd want to say goodbye."
He cleaned the tears on his face with a handkerchief. "Does anyone else know?"
"Only Kagami. She we decided to freeze her body." Felix looked at him calmly. "As for the peacock miraculous I found it in your father's safe, Nathalie was helping your father."
His knees grew weak. "They terrorized so many people."
"Your father was a cruel man but he loved you and your mother," Felix said calmly. "You should remember the good along with the bad and make the choice yourself how you wish to remember them.."
Staring at the ground he nodded. His insides were in turmoil as he fought the urge to break down and cry.
"What about the butterfly miraculous?" Ladybug asked. "Did you ever find it?"
Felix shook his head. "Believe me I searched everywhere but I couldn't find it."
Plagg came out of the ring and hovered next to him. "Could he have been wearing it?"
"That is a possibility but I fear by now it has already been taken," Felix said.
"But who would've taken it?" His blood boiled at the thought of someone messing with his father's body.
"Was your father close to anyone else?" Ladybug asked.
He frowned and shook his head. "Not really."
"I doubt any of the doctors would've taken it was there anyone else who was close to your father's body during any time of the funeral?"
He frowned. "A lot of people went to pay their respects to his body. It wouldn't have been easy to take in front of everyone even if he had it on him."
Ladybug looked to the ground and froze. "Oh gods."
Felix looked at her. "What is it?"
Ladybug looked at him her eyes wide. "Adrien during your father's funeral I noticed Lila by his casket. She was doing something, perhaps, and this is just a theory maybe she took it?"
"That would make sense. Lila is a tricky person." He looked up at Felix. "Can you help us take her down?"
Felix met his gaze and nodded. "No my hurts my cousin and gets away with it."
A smile spread across his face. "We'll need to verify it and set up a trap. Ladybug can you help?"
His partner looked him in the eyes and nodded. "What do you need?" She asked firmly.
A smile spread across his face. "We'll need our combined efforts."
Marinette sat in her room her head in her hands as she let the tears fall from her eyes. "Adrien was Cat Noir the entire time." She laughed loudly. It was so ironic, the boy she loved was also the guy who she kept rejecting. Oh how fate is cruel.
Tikki came out of the earrings and handed her a tissue. "Calm down Marinette at least he's starting to trust you."
She took the tissue and cleaned her eyes. "Tikki this is the cruelest joke that I've experienced in my life." She let out a muffled sob. "Cat Noir used to love me and I pushed him away. I then killed Adrien's family." It was unfair, very unfair. "I hurt the two most people important to me."
Tikki looked down. "It is a cruel irony."
She cleaned her face with another tissue before throwing her ball of tissues into the trash. Taking a deep breath she fell onto the bed. "D-Do you think he would take me back?" She asked as a flicker of emotion fluttered inside of her. It was a small hope that flickered in her heart. Perhaps in the future they could rekindle the sparks of their past?
Tikki frowned. "I don't know Marinette but we have more important things to worry about than your past crush."
She avoided her kwami's gaze and nodded. As much as it hurt her she knew there were more pressing matters at the moment. "I know," she said softly. Yet she would be lying if she said she didn't hope Adrien would like her again, just the thought of it gave her a bit of hope. But at the same time she had to defend Paris. Lila as Hawkmoth wouldn't be an easy opponent and she'd have to give it her all.
Later that night she raced through the city as Ladybug towards the meeting place Cat Noir told her about.
She arrived at a park where she found Cat Noir standing across a middle aged man in a coat. "Cat Noir?"
Her partner turned to her and motioned for her to come. "Hey Ladybug I think I should properly introduce you to my partner. This is Mr. Dubois from the Ministry of Defense."
She looked at the man and nodded. "Uh nice to meet you."
Mr. Dubois smiled. "The pleasure is mine Ladybug."
"I've been helping him with a few terrorist incidents and he's also been helping us track Hawkmoth," Cat Noir said.
Mr. Dubois took out a tablet. "We released some of the butterflies and many more with tracking devices."
She looked at a map of Paris on the tablet where many small dots were beeping. "There are so many of them?"
"Don't worry we'll find Hawkmoth sooner or later," Cat Noir said. "Mr. Dubois how has the interrogation of the suspects we captured been?"
Mr. Dubois put his tablet away. "They are remaining silent."
"Well thank you," she said firmly.
"We believe you should look into Lila Rossi," Cat Noir said his arms folded. "She is a lying snake and we have reason to believe she is behind this."
"Understood," Mr. Dubois said. "Good luck both of you and thank you for your service to this country."
As soon as he left she turned to Cat Noir. "Do you trust him?"
Cat Noir nodded. "We have a working relationship." He turned to face her his gaze calm. "I'll be looking forward to fighting beside you."
She nodded. "M-Me too." Her heart fluttered as she avoided his gaze. "I uh hope we can go back to how we were once long ago."
Cat Noir stared at her blankly. "We can never go back to the past. However, we can choose our actions for the present." He turned around and extended his pole. "Be alert for anything out of the ordinary."
Lila sat in her office frowning at the memory of her latest defeat. Something was different, they seemed more in sync with each other than ever. She had been planning on Cat Noir to still hate Ladybug, had he gone back to his old feelings?
It doesn't matter. She shook her head. If anything happens I can always cover my tracks. Lying was her specialty and no one could trap her.
A smile spread across her face as she reassuringly felt the miraculous she held. No one can stop me.
It was then she felt a hand on her shoulder. She immediately jumped up to see Thomas Astruc grinning at her. "What do you want?" She asked as a shiver went down her spine.
"I want us to have some dinner together how about that?" Thomas Astruc said.
"I'm not interested," she sighed as she tried to walk away but Mr. Astruc blocked her path.
Oh you are really pushing your luck. It really did take all her willpower to not transform there and beat him senseless.
"Come on just a dinner," Thomas Astruc said his beady eyes bearing into her
He then tried to grab her arm but she quickly pulled away and managed to duck from his grasp. "I'm good sir."
With that she quickly exited her office and put as much distance between her and her pig boss as possible.
"Light wings rise," she muttered as she entered the basement. In a flash she turned to Hawkmoth. A smile spread across her face as she locked the door behind her. Now time to cause trouble.
She twirled her cane in her hands as various butterflies flew in her layer. Taking a deep breath she began to search for negative emotions in the city. There were many and as she felt the butterflies land on her she felt one that was particularly strong. Focusing in on it she saw the angry emotions of a young teen girl with black hair and a denim shirt with a beaded necklace around her neck arguing with the manager.
"You have to pay!" The manager yelled.
"Um excuse me! I already did!" The girl yelled in English. "Why are you treating me like this! Don't you know my boyfriend broke up with me! At least you can give me a colorful room and some free breakfast!"
"Don't take that tone with you obnoxious American!" The manager yelled his anger rising. "Get out of here you dam brat!"
"Oh yeah! Do you know who I am? I'm the moderator of the subreddit R/Camphalfblood the best-" The girl was cut off as she was thrown out of the establishment by the security.
Perfect. A smile spread across her face as a butterfly flew into her hand. Focusing her energy into it she let the akuma fly. A poor girl who thought she could escape her heartbreak here in Paris only to be treated with misfortune. Fly my akuma and lets continue my work.
As soon as the akuma landed on the girl's necklace. She felt the connection and immediately began speaking. "Prettyinpink you long for a world of color with the power I give you you'll be able to make the world as colorful as you want. All that I ask is that you give me Ladybug and Cat Noir's miraculouses in return."
"Yes Hawkmoth," The girl said as she transformed.
A smile spread across her face. You fools are chasing smoke. She doubted Cat Noir even knew the truth and if he did it wouldn't be an issue, she'd always find a way to escape.
AN: Friendly reminder that this Thomas Astruc is the character in the show not the real life person.
As for Prettyinpink she maybe based off a subreddit moderator who harassed me.