Despite what Mom had said about her own parents, he was still excited to meet them. Maybe they would be awful, but at least he'd know what they were like. He saw people in tv shows and movies talking to their grandparents, forging these special familial bonds and just… he'd never had that, not with any of them. He wanted to know what he was missing out on at least. And maybe– maybe gain some of those bonds as well.

(Next scene, a helicopter lands in the courtyard, with Nathalie and Adrien standing to greet them, with Marinette a few feet behind them.)

Nathalie: These are your grandparents from your mother's side, Emil and Milly Graham de Vanily. (As they walk up to them, Nathalie bows her head) It's an honor to have you.

Emil: You're not having us. May I remind you that this estate used to be our viete en terre in Paris, before we allowed our daughter and her dressmaker husband to live here? (Looks down on Adrien) Now, at least they produce a half-decent looking child.

(Marrinette immediately glares daggers at Emil)

Adrien: Grandfather. Grandmother.

(Milly looks at Adrien with a fond smile and gives him a friendly smile)

Emil: Lord Graham, please. (His eyes narrow as he hears a motorcycle rev up behind him, and turns to see an old couple drive in behind them.)

"...are you sure that those aren't your dad's parents? Because I think I know where the stick up Gabriel's ass came from," Nino quipped.

He laughed. "I'm sure. I mean, granted, I've never met either set of grandparents, but Father's parents weren't wealthy. He grew up in a more normal sort of household. I always loved when Mom told me stories of how she and Father got together, how he was a poor, but earnest artist doing what he loved, how they fell in love, and against her parents' wishes, they got married and made a life together, despite their differences in social status."

It was just so romantic. Getting together with the person you loved, even with society trying to tear you apart? Fighting for your relationship against the odds, because you know it's worth it? Having that level of conviction in your love? It'd always made him want to find a partner of his own.

He smiled fondly at Marinette. Judging from the future, he found one.

Nathalie: And arriving now, are your grandparents on your father's side, Johnny and Gabrielle Grassette.

Gabrielle: Thanks for the invite, your international hignnesses! (Gabrielle holds out her hand to shake Milly's)

Nino let out a low whistle. "Are you SURE Emil isn't Gabriel's father? Because man, his actual parents are nothing like him. I want to meet these dudes, they seem cool!"

He laughed. "I'm sure. And same." Especially since, judging by their shirts, they were both Jagged Stone fans. He'd been a Jagged fan for the past several years, even if only on a casual basis. Come to think of it, Father didn't seem to think much of him. Maybe Jagged reminded him of his parents? Though he wasn't sure whether Jagged was even on the music scene by the last time Gabriel'd talked to them.

Milly: Hello-(Just as Milly was about to take her hand, Emil harshly grabs her by the wrist and throws it down, making Milly look to the ground)

(Johnny and Gabrielle look surprised by the action.)

He instinctively clenched his fist. The way Emil had grabbed her, the way Millie looked down, upset… it made him want to get Millie out of there.

"Adrien, did your mom say exactly why her parents were so terrible - and more importantly, whether both of them were equally bad?" Alya asked in a strained voice. "Like, did she ever hint at any sort of domestic abuse?"

"Domestic abuse?" He didn't know what that was, but judging from the fact that "abuse" was in the name, he was guessing it wasn't good.

"You know, when one member of a household is abusing another, sometimes emotionally, but it could be physically as well," Alya explained. "Emil's controlling nature, the way he physically grabbed Millie, even though she didn't like it… none of those bode well. I'm worried he might have hurt your mom growing up as well."

"She didn't…" He trailed off. If her father HAD been hurting her like that, he doubted that Mom would ever have specified about it, at least in detail. Certainly not when he was younger. She'd tried to shield him from just the knowledge of how bad her illness was, he had no doubt that she'd try to shield him from the knowledge of how bad her childhood was as well.

Emil: I am Lord Emil Graham de Vanily, Duke of Westchestermunster and this is Milly, my wife.

Johnny: I am Johnny, and this is Gabrielle. We're not married, but like a convict of love, I'm chained to her for forever.

(Gabrielle lays her eyes on Adrien and immediately gets emotional, covering her mouth) Oh, jumping Jagged! Adrien! (walks over to Adrien, clearly excited) I've been waiting for this day for so long! You're even more darling in person!

"Your father's parents are adorable, I can't believe he kept them from you for so long."Nino thought for a second. "Never mind, I can totally see him keeping you from them."

"I'm just surprised he's letting me see them now. I wonder what changed his mind?" Come to think of it, it was really weird that Father hadn't put in an appearance at all. He could see him hiding from his parents, given how little he seemed to want to acknowledge their existence, but he figured there would have at least been a scene of him laying out the rules he wanted Adiren to follow during the visit. Honestly, it was shocking that Father's wishes and expectations hadn't even been mentioned once during the episode so far, not even by Nathalie.

A small niggling of anxiety started up in the back of his head. He'd been glad that Father had relaxed his grip, but this seemed a bit much. Something felt off…

(Milly smiles, happy for her, but then frowns and sniffs the air) What is this intriguing scent? Emil: (sniffs and plugs his nose): It's vile!

Johnny: It is my ballotins. Delish, no? (Emil and Milly look sick) I made them myself. (Plagg comes out attracted by the smell, and Adrien panickly hides him back in his shirt, freaking out) I've got the easy pockets up! Where is your cuisine?

(Nathalie ushers them inside. Marinette tries to help Johnny, but he kindly refuses. As the others head to the dining room)

Johnny: Save yourself the trouble, bon motit. Just show me the way.

Emil: Enough time wasted on prosperous ceremonials, our lunch is waiting.

(Plagg, driven by the smell, leaves Adrien to follow Johnny and Marinette, much to Adrien's terror, as he's forced to walk into the dining room and not go after him)

(Nathalie looks nervous as she closes the door, leaving Adrien alone with his grandparents, as Placide looks down at her with sympathy.)

(Adrien looks at the door nervously, as he sits down at the table)

Gabrielle: Oh la la! Fancy schancy!

(Johnny and Marrinette come in from the kitchen)

Johnny: Voila! There in the oven. Ha ha ha ha!

(Adrien looks nervously for Plagg, He then catches Marinette's eye, who give him a wink of assurance, to which Adrien tries to give her a smile back, without showing his worry about his kwami's whereabouts)

He winced along with his onscreen counterpart. Could Plagg NOT stop being a glutton for five minutes?!

Who was he kidding. Of course he couldn't. Not for anything as stinky as the stuff Johnny had brought.

"Awww, he's so cute!" Rose cooed.

He wrinkled his nose. "Yeah, sure, if you're okay with the stench." He loved Plagg, he really did, but did he have to be so enamored with stink?

"So you're admitting that you know Plagg," Alya concluded.

"Wha-? No! He just obviously likes stink, that's all." His protests sounded lame, even to himself. Marinette was still putting up the act of not being Ladybug, and that was really the only reason he wasn't just admitting the truth at this point.

"Suuuuure." Alya didn't sound convinced.

Emil: (Clears throat) Dear relatives…(under his breath) not by choice, I should say.(Out loud) Thank you for agreeing to this lunch that will undoubtedly prove to be decisive in regards to the future of our families. The question that brings us here, together at this table…

Adrien: (panics and gets up, making a loud noise.) Sorry! I…uh…forgot something.

Emil: (narrows his eyes at him, and then waves him away) By all means.

Adrien: (Runs out of the room) Thank you!

(Marinette looks worried as Adrien runs off)

(Adrien bursts into the kitchen, searching frantically for Plagg)

Adrien: (Shouting quietly) Plagg! Plagg!

Marinette: Adrien!

(Marrinette's voice causes Adrien to bang his head on the bottom of the kitchen island.)

Adrien: Marinette!

(Marinette immediately runs up to Adrien, holds both his hands reassuringly, before embracing him tightly)

Marinette: I know this must be hard, but everything is going to be okay!

Adrien: (Awkwardly hugs her back, as his eyes dart everywhere looking for Plagg) You're riiiiight. It will be okay…

He smiled fondly at Marinette. Sure, his counterpart hadn't actually needed her reassurance there, but he was glad she gave it anyway. She was just like that, checking in on him, wanting to be sure he was okay. He was glad she was here, even if it was a little inconvenient for his counterpart right now. Hopefully Plagg wouldn't cause too much trouble…

Who was he kidding. He was TOTALLY going to cause trouble.

(Scene changes to Marinette taking Adrien back to the dining room)

Emil: As I was saying, the question that brings us here together today is, who will have custody of Adrien, now that he's all alone?

The air felt like it'd just been sucked out of his lungs. What did Emil mean, him being all alone? He– he still had Father, right? Granted, Father might deign to speak with him for two minutes on a good day, but he was still around. He couldn't… not so soon after Mom died… what could even have killed him?! He didn't seem sick at all in the present time!

Was it an accident then? Or murder?

Was it preventable?

Could watching this help him prevent it? If it was truly the future, could it be averted.

Nino looked over at him, his eyes widening slightly. "Oh, dude… I'm sorry."

"I– How could he– so soon after Mom died too!" He choked out.

Nino frowned. "Wait… do you think he's dead?"

"What else could they mean?" He gestured at the screen. "One of my grandfathers just said that I was all alone and was discussing who gets custody!"

Nino shuffled in his seat. "Well… there is another option… I can't say that it's better, exactly, but your father might not be dead."

"What do you mean?" His father wouldn't have given up custody willingly… right? Sure, he'd never been very involved in his life, and he'd barely had anything to do with him since Mom died, but he wouldn't abandon him. Surely he wouldn't!

No. No, that definitely couldn't be it. He wouldn't still be living in the Mansion with Nathalie and the Gorilla in that case. Nino had to be proposing something else.

"Well…" Nino spoke slowly. "He could have been forced to forfeit custody."

"What? Why?" That wasn't exactly a typical occurrence.

Nino shuffled in his seat, knitting his hands together. "Dude… you know I've had problems with how your father treats you for ages. It just isn't right. And if some other government agencies agreed with me on that… or if your father was doing something else that was shady… his parental rights could have been revoked, and he could have been sent to prison. I dunno what it'd have taken for someone as rich and powerful as him, but it would have had to have been pretty bad."

"Just because he's a little strict doesn't mean he's abusive! He just had difficulty handling Mom's death!"

But that wasn't true, was it? He'd just seen a flashback of the past, how Father had never been around, had always brushed him off. In some ways, he was more present now, physically if not emotionally.

"Maybe you're right," Nino conceded. He didn't sound like he believed it. "But he still runs a billion dollar business. Can you really say that everything involved in running it is above board?"

"I–" No. He couldn't. It wasn't like he had anything to do with the business operations of the company. FATHER barely had anything to do with that, Nathalie ran a lot of the day-to-day operations.

He let out a sigh. "...maybe that's it. Maybe he was insider trading or embezzling money and got thrown in prison, and that's why my grandparents are talking about custody."

"Or maybe this isn't true at all, it's just making things up, and your dad is fine!" Marinette interjected.

"Yeah, you might be right." For some reason, that thought made him feel… disappointed?

Was he a terrible son for preferring the idea of his dad being in prison?

He was the only family he had left that he'd actually met. He shouldn't feel this way.

And yet… And yet…!

The freedom he had in this other universe. The way he could just… call up Marinette and set up dates. How he could move around freely without needing Father's approval. He wanted those things.

The guilt welling up in his chest didn't stop his envy towards his other self from growing.

(Emil glares at her, while Milly merely looks at her curiously)

(Adrien looks at Marinette with worry, and Marinette immediately remembers her role at the moment)

Marinette: Eh…uh…Mmmm…(Gives a very poor British accent) Mr. Adrien isn't alone in having some appetizers, I suppose.

Alya stifled a laugh. "Nice catch. Maybe you should try out for improv acting classes?"

Adrien was pretty sure Alya was joking, but Marinette paused, tilting her head to the side seriously. "You know, maybe I should…"

"I wouldn't mind trying out either," he said, after thinking about it for a moment. A collaborative group activity, one where he was free to be as silly and expressive as he wanted? And that could help him get better at making up excuses to leave and fight akumas? Sounded both fun AND useful.

Adrien: If I may Lord Graham, I live with Nathalie.

Emil: She's an employee, not family. She has no legal right to care for you, unlike us, your mother's parents!

(Outside, it's revealed that Nathalie can hear every word being said; she tries to look forward stoicly, but it's clear Emil's words are affecting her as Placide gives her a look full of sympathy.)

"As much as I hate to admit it, he has a point," Alya said, frowning. "It doesn't sound like she was given legal guardianship, which means that it'd revert to your closest family members. Which I guess would be your grandparents…?" she looked at him questioningly.

"My mother has a twin sister, Aunt Amelie," he informed her. "Her husband died not long before mom did though, so she might have a lot on her plate. It's just her and Felix now."

"Felix?"

He pulled out his phone, scrolling to a photo of him and Felix from two years ago. It'd been so long since they'd last seen each other. "Here, this is him."

Alya's eyebrows shot up. "Are you sure he's your cousin?"

"Of course!" He was his aunt and uncle's son, what else would he be?

"Adrien, he looks identical to you. The only reason I can tell you two apart is your hairstyle, clothes, and expressions being different. I don't think you could scowl like that if you tried."

"Hey, I can totally scowl!" he protested. "See?" He scowled at her to prove a point.

She stifled a laugh. "You look like an angry kitten."

"I do not!"

"You sort of do, dude." Nino interjected.

He groaned. "Not you guys too. I get enough of this from Felix."

That caught Alya's attention. "Wait, Felix said the same thing?"

"He claims that I'm the reason we always got caught whenever we switched places," he grumbled. He totally wasn't! Moms just had a supernatural ability to sense their kid!

"Wait, you actually pulled off twin switches? Successfully?!" Alya said, shocked.

"Well, I mean, our moms could always tell who was who. But our fathers, not so much. We were able to fool them for an entire weekend once."

The thought made him grow somber. For a few moments, he'd forgotten the fate this episode had been hinting at for his father. Either death or prison, one of the two.

Of course Father hadn't actually grown more accepting, more willing to let him hang out with his friends when and where he'd wanted. He'd been foolish to think that. Of course that would only happen if Father was out of the picture entirely.

He needed to be grateful that this hadn't actually happened yet, and he might still have time to change whatever happened. Depending on what had happened. If Father really was out of the picture because he was a criminal… he wasn't sure what he'd do then.

He needed more information. Hopefully the show would give it to him.

He glanced over at Alya. Her brows were furrowed as she continued looking at the picture on his phone.

Milly: Emil, dearest. Nathalie has known Adrien for so long that she's practically part of the family no–

Emil: (Snaps at her harshly, cutting her off) Milly, I'm talking! Keep your useless remarks to yourself! (Milly immediately shuts down and looks down, depressed.) Sown on this crest, bearing the coat of arms of our family, the Graham de Vanily, have always stood astride the Kingdom of England and the lamented Kingdom of France.

Nino hissed. "Can I punch Emil? Please? Just once?"

"Oh, I'll punch him more than once," Alya said grimly. "I'll get Nora in on this too, she'd have something to say about it."

"Who's Nora?" Marinette asked curiously.

"My older sister. She's actually a boxer, goes by the stage name 'Anansi'. She doesn't stand for domestic abuse, if Emil tried this in front of her, he'd have to watch his ass."

"I'd be interested in meeting her sometime, she sounds like an interesting person." Not that he thought Father would ever let him meet someone like that, he'd probably say something about how as an Agreste, he should keep better company. His other self might be able to visit her freely, considering his circumstances.

A wave of guilt ran through him again. Was he really thinking about the advantages of Father being dead or in prison?

Gabrielle: Oh, that is so funny! The doggy is sweeping the floor! And what does this little poem say?

Emil: It's a wolf! And the "poem" is our family motto, but it matters not. This dual nationality is symbolised in this twin ring. (Zoomed in on the rings on Adrien's finger) Passed on from generation to generation to the eldest chi-(Emil smells something as smoke bellows behind him) Is something burning?!

Huh, he didn't know his parents' wedding rings held such significance. He figured they were just something that Father had bought–

Wait. Why was his counterpart wearing them? He'd assumed that Mom's wedding ring was either buried with her body or that Father had taken it off and locked it away in a drawer somewhere after she died. So how had he ended up wearing not only it, but Father's ring as well?

His heart sank. It had to be for sentimental reasons. Why else would he wear both of them? He wouldn't have thought of honoring his parents in that manner, but something might have happened that convinced the other him that it was the best way to do so.

And if he wanted to honor not only Mom, but Father as well–

His heart clenched. No. There was still a chance that Nino was right, and Father was merely in prison. He might not have died. There could be some other explanation. He didn't know what that would be, but surely it had to exist.

Johnny: Oh! (Rushes into the kitchen)

Gabrielle: Oh! That's my Johnny! Always play with the fire.

Marinette: (Still talking in a bad British accent) Mr. Adrien. Will you come with me to the kitchen to check? (Adrien gets up to leave) Thank you very much!

(Marinette and Adrien run to Nathalie and Placide)

Marinette: Nathalie! There's no way! Adrien can't go and live there with…that…lord! Nathalie: Marinette. That lord is his grandfather and I have no righ–

Marinette: There must be something that can be done.

(Nathalie just looks to the side, defeated, as Marinette immediately turns to Adrien) Marinette: What do you think about this?

Adrien: I don't want to leave Paris, Marinette. I don't want to leave you or Nathalie, but… they're my family.

"Sadly, Nathalie's right," Mylene said, frowning. "Unless your father drew up some legal documents declaring her to be your legal guardian, and it doesn't seem like he did, then she has no say here. However much you consider her to be family, that doesn't hold true in the eyes of the law."

"But he can't be forced to live with that man! He just can't!" Marinette protested.

He sent her a reassuring smile. He doubted it reached his eyes. "It's okay, Marinette. I've lived with Father, I'm sure I could grow accustomed to living with Emil as well."

"Emil being similar to your dad doesn't make this better," Nino grumbled.

"There is still a chance though. Nathalie might not have any legal claim to your guardianship, but Gabrielle and Johnny do. They seem nice and fairly flexible, they might be willing to let you stay in Paris," Alya said thoughtfully. "The main problem is fighting the court cases. They don't seem like they'd have as much money to pay for lawyers to fight for custody. In a straight-up fight, they'd probably lose. Hm… I wonder…" she muttered, looking down, seemingly lost in thought.

"What is it? Do you have an idea?" Marinette asked desperately.

"It might be possible to sway public opinion in Gabriel's parents' favor," Alya said. "That probably wouldn't impact the actual court decision, but it could allow for crowdfunding for their legal team, and may even persuade Emil to back down entirely in order to avoid losing face. He seems like the type to care about reputation above all else."

He bit his lip. "I'd rather just… talk things out. Make them see things my way, if possible." He didn't like the idea of subjecting someone to a major public pressure campaign for his own sake. Not when they could just talk things out, settle them amicably."

She nodded. "That would be preferable, but… just remember, that's not always going to be possible."

Even if it wasn't always possible, he wanted to try.