Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

This is not how Marinette planned it.

To be fair, she didn't plan it at all.

She decided in her head that she wouldn’t reveal her identity to Chat Noir until they had defeated Shadow Moth. Not earlier because it could endanger the world,  because the villain would use it against them, and as Bunnyx proved to her, it would end in literal world disaster. 

Marinette didn't want that.

But of course things had to go wrong for her.

It would be weird if they didn’t.

She was locked up with Adrien (why exactly with him of all people available????) in the attic. They found themselves there because Ms. Bustier had asked them to bring the materials needed for their lesson today, but bad luck would have it that a villain under akuma's control had locked the door and so left them there.

After checking the room several times, Marinette realized that the only other way out than the door was through the window, only to exit through the window she would have to transform herself into Ladybug, and she couldn't do that in front of Adrien.

The villain sowed terror, Tikki wriggled in her purse, restless and Marinette ran out of ideas.

She took a deep breath. She had to tell Adrien that she was Ladybug.

"Don’t worry. I'm sure Ladybug will get here soon and free us," Adrien assured her, wanting to comfort her. She smiled slightly. In her spirit, she wished that Chat Noir would come instead of her, but she knew that either he wasn't there yet or he was busy fighting the akuma.

She took another deep breath to mentally prepare for it. It's now or never.

"Ladybug won’t come."

Adrien blinked a few times and looked at her confused.

"Why-"

"Tikki, spots on," she continued before he could add anything. She closed her eyes. 

When she opened them, Adrien was standing in front of her with his mouth open.

"Ladybug?! But I...but you-! But I don't...what?!"

She sighed. 

"It's probably not what you expected, but I don't have time to talk about it," she started after a while. "I shouldn't have done it at all, but unfortunately the situation demanded it" she walked closer to him "Adrien, I trust you and I know that you will keep this information to yourself. I hope it won't change your perception of me too much." she finished, sent him a small smile and moved towards the window.

"I'm Chat Noir!" he sputtered out before he realized what he was saying. 

Ladybug stopped. He covered his mouth with his hand. 

"What...?" She asked, without turning toward him. He swallowed.

"Uhh...umm...."

"Adrien..." she repeated, turning around with a deadpan expression "what?"

I'm screwed.

"Well, looks like the cat's out of the bag! Haha!" a new voice spoke up. Adrien and Marinette simultaneously opened their eyes wider.

"Plagg!" he growled at his laughing kwami.

Meanwhile, Ladybug stood as if she had been struck. 

Adrien is Chat Noir.

Adrien is Chat Noir.

Adrien. Is. Chat. Noir.

Oh. My. God.

"Marinette?"

She shook her head, snapping out of her trance. They didn't have time for that now, Paris needed them.

"Nevermind, we don't have time for that now. Transform and I'll see you downstairs" she opened the window "we'll talk about it later." She threw him a warning glance and jumped out.

"Someone’s in trouble hereeee!" Plagg spoke up, in a singing voice.

"Shut up Plagg and claws out!"

                           ***

They didn't talk about it later.

That's because literally a few hours later they had a fight (a real fight) with Shadow Moth and defeated him.

They really defeated him.

It's just that, she didn't feel any satisfaction from it after seeing who was hiding under the mask.

The greatest fashion designer, her idol altogether, Gabriel Agreste.

She expected everything, but not this.

Gabriel Agreste who was...Adrien!

She quickly turned to Chat Noir, who, however, was gone.

She sighed quietly as she watched the police arrest Gabriel. She wanted to call him, but in the end she decided that it was probably better for him to digest this information on his own. 

After all, it's not everyday that you learn that your own father is your greatest enemy.

                          ***

The only upside to this whole situation was that his mother never really died/went missing.

His father, his fucking father, kept her in some shitty basement that he had no idea existed until today. He stole a miraculous, became a fucking villain, hurt people every day, tried to steal his and Marinette's miraculous under the pretext that he was doing it for him (of course Gabriel didn't use those specific words because he didn't know Adrien was hiding under the mask. He was lucky that Adrien had to hide his identity or he wouldn't have ended up in jail), to fix his family and so on.

He snorted. Right.

"There was nothing to fix anymore, father," he muttered under his breath.

He pulled his hood over his head, leaned against the back of the chair and looked at his phone, which had been off for days. When the internet was flooded with news that famed designer Gabriel Agreste was the Hawk/Shadow Moth, he threw the phone on the floor. 

Wanting it or not, he quickly got himself a new one, but he hadn't turned it on once yet.

He wasn't ready.

He wasn't ready for messages from strangers telling him how sorry they felt for him, from friends who were worried about him, possibly also from teachers at school.

And especially from Marinette.

He avoided her civilian form, avoided her as Ladybug, and felt bad about it.

But he just couldn't.

He knew they had to talk about everything, but he couldn't bring himself to do it. 

He looked up at the hospital ceiling, sighing heavily. He rubbed his eyes. He had to go get coffee because he was getting sleepy again. 

He got up, stretched, glanced at the person on the bed then left the room. 

He yawned, passing nurses in his path. 

"Adrien, you should go home and sleep," Plagg spoke up when they found themselves in a more empty part of the hospital. 

"I'm not going home, Plagg. It's too..." he broke off, stopping at the coffee machine.

Empty.

"I can't leave my mom now," he said instead, "I don't want her to be alone among strangers when she wakes up."

In the end, the doctors told him there was a chance his mother would wake up. He clung to that hope because it was the only thing he had left.

Plagg flew out of his sweatshirt pocket and stopped in front of his face.

"Then maybe you can at least sleep here. Seriously, you're already drinking too much of that coffee, eventually something will happen to you," he said, booping him on the nose with his paw. Adrien rolled his eyes.

"Relax, I promise it's my last one," he assured him, "now hide because someone else will see you and then Ladybug will really be angry," he joked, trying to cheer up the atmosphere, but it sounded weak even by his standards. 

Fortunately, Plagg did the request anyway and Adrien, with his new coffee, headed back to the room.

"You know you'll have to talk to her at some point? If not on patrol, then at school."

He sighed, taking a sip of coffee. The hot drink instantly relaxed him.

"I know, Plagg. I'll take care of it soon, I swear."

"If you need anything, you can always count on me, kitten."

He smiled.

"Thanks."

He opened the door of the room and immediately regretted going for that coffee.

Sitting on the bed was a very awake and very confused Emilie Agreste. She was looking around the room when her gaze finally came to rest on the figure in the doorway.

"Adrien?"

He barely heard the sound of a coffee mug crashing.

"...Mom?"