Chapter Text
Juleka stared at the TV as Nadja's words sank in. That... couldn't be right. Could it?
"... M. And Mme. Dupain-Cheng have three children..."
Oh god, the kids! Juleka felt the unpleasant memory of Jagged's absence when she was growing up sting like a wasp. Sharp and unexpected. Like it always did.
Rose burst in, phone open to the same story playing on the TV. Nadja was one of the few news anchors she trusted not to spread misinformation about their most famous friends.
Still her eyes held disbelief as she looked to her wife. "Juleka? Did you...?"
Juleka shook her head. "He didn't tell me anything." From the way Nadja was saying that they were already divorced Adrien didn't tell anyone.
Pulling out her own phone Juleka called the man whose face was plastered all over the news. Adrien would hate that.
"Hey, it's Adrien! You caught me catnapping but leave a message and I'll get back to you!"
"Adrien! We just saw the news! ...God, I don't know what to say. You didn't-" Juleka took a breath as she cut herself off. Adrien had enough to deal with without her adding to it. "If you need any help. With the kids or whatever just call me. Okay? You're still a member of Kitty Section."
Juleka shot Rose a questioning look who nodded vigorously. "You're still our bandmate even if it's been a while. Okay? We're here for you."
Having said what she needed to Juleka hung up. Hoping her words would remind Adrien that he had people who cared about him. It may be a few years since they were in the same support group but Juleka still remembered him. Just like Adrien still remembered her.
Rose was typing furiously. Probably to Marinette. Adrien may not mind being called but it made Marinette's anxiety spike. And she was busy running Dupain-Cheng Fashions.
"Rose, sweetheart, keep it short." Juleka reminded her as she reached for Rose to sit beside her on the couch.
Her wife's fingers pausing with an "-Oh-" as she sat down hard. "I don't think it's sunk in yet."
"Yeah..." Juleka still remembered how Rose looked the first time she walked on stage wearing a Marinette original. Marinette and Adrien letting Rose hold Louis in her arms as their friends looked on. Adrien's lovesick look that never faded since they were teenagers.
"It doesn't seem real..."
"Madame Mayor, what's your response to the people that say Chat Noir shouldn't have-"
"I'm sorry it wasn't me," Mylène interrupted, turning to the next reporter. "Yes?"
"Madame Mayor, the people of Paris want to know if the extradition of Felix Graham de Vanily, also known as Argos, is still a priority?"
"Yes! I've spoken with the President and he assures me that we will continue pressuring the UK government to honor our treaties."
"What about accusations of leniency to one Adrien Agreste?" Asked a reporter from one of those papers that might as well have been a tabloid.
Mylène's eye twitched. "Dupain-Cheng," she corrected.
"Isn't M. Agreste the leading contributor to your campaign?" he continued. "Some people have suggested-"
"If these 'people' have any evidence that Adrien Dupain-Cheng collaborated with Monarch I encourage them to come forward. Otherwise I suggest you refrain from spreading rumors and slander. Thank you, that'll be all."
Mylène was followed by a chorus of "Madame Mayor! Madame Mayor!" as she stepped away from the podium.
Once out of sight she collapsed into a chair. Humming Smelly Wolf to herself to settle the hammering in her chest.
"Water?"
She looked up from the offered water bottle to see her longtime boyfriend smiling gently at her. "Yes, please." Mylène returned the smile as Ivan picked her up before setting her back down in his lap.
One of the few advantages to being a short adult.
"I'm glad you took the time to come," Mylène said as she leaned her head onto his chest.
Ivan shrugged. "Kitty Section is taking a break after the last tour and I know how much you hate these things."
Smiling against his shirt Mylène traced his band's logo. "Have I said I love you today?"
"Love you too," Ivan beamed.
"Ahem."
Reluctantly Mylène turned to her aide. Ignoring the slight reproach in his expression at the Mayor of Paris sitting on her boyfriend's lap. At least it was an improvement from him blushing and avoiding eye contact... She thinks. "Yes, what is it?"
"We might have to go with a different dress for the fundraiser. Depending on how... volatile the situation is with M. Adrien."
Mylène blinked. The dress Marinette donated so she wouldn't stand out among Adrien's snobby rich acquaintances? "Huh?"
Her aide handed her his tablet and Mylène read the headline. "Well... shit."
"Max! Oh, Max! Wherefore art thou Max?"
"Ha, ha, Kim. Very funny."
"He lives!" Kim raised his arms as Max came back into view of his webcam.
Alix snorting and Ondine shaking her head fondly in their respective tabs onscreen.
"We were just ironing out the kinks to the new software!" Markov explained as he floated next to Max.
"Hey, Markov."
"Hi, Markov!"
"S'up!"
"Hello, Alix, Kim and Ondine." Markov smiled with his eyes. "It's nice to see you again. Congratulations on your new job Kim!"
"I still say leaving him in charge of kids is a bad idea," Alix piped up.
"Uh-huh. Remind me who out of the both of us has gotten arrested the most?" Kim smirked.
"ACAB!" Alix snapped. Blushing from the fact that she'd been caught more often than Kim rather than anything else.
"ACAB," they chorused. Alix had taken to tagging protest art in very public places after joining Mylène and Ivan's activism. Well, on a more permanent basis than the rest of them.
"Besides," Ondine chimed in, "Kim cares about the sport. He's not gonna let them do anything reckless." She narrowed her eyes. "Right?"
Kim put on his most innocent expression, which wasn't very innocent at all. "Me? Encourage recklessness? I would never!"
Alix snorted.
"Statistically speaking there's an eighty percent chance of Kim encouraging reckless behavior in those he interacts with," Max said.
"Ha!" Alix smirked.
"But, of course, the data is skewed on account of Alix being the main data point."
Kim guffawed while Ondine covered her mouth in a vain attempt to stifle her laughter.
"You're all terrible," Alix announced.
Whatever comeback Kim was going to retort with was interrupted by his phone chiming. "Oh shit."
"What?"
"What is it?"
"Adrien and Marinette are getting divorced."
Alix blinked as her own phone chimed. Sure enough Kim was right.
"Max, you look a little off," Ondine stated.
"Yeah, dude. Aren't you the one always saying that marriage has a fifty percent divorce rate?"
"Certainly reminded me when I got married," Ondine nodded.
"Twice!" Kim elaborated.
"Yes, thank you Kim."
"Well... Yes." Max admitted. "But I always thought those two would beat the odds."
"We all did," Alix nodded. "But life throws you curve balls. Believe me, I didn't expect to spend my last year of collège time traveling."
"Lucky!"
"Kim, she had to repeat a grade."
"Oh yeah."
As his friends went back to bantering amongst themselves Markov started running calculations in his head...
"You hear the news?" Marc asked.
"Yeah." Nathaniel continued sketching the next page of their comic. "Hand me that would you?"
Marc gave a chuckle as they handed Nath the ruler. "Chloe's ranting about how she 'always knew this would happen' on Twitter."
"You should really block her," Nathaniel pointed out, still not looking up.
"True," Marc admitted without giving any indication that they would. "So... You don't have anything to say?"
Nathaniel sighed as he straightened up. "I mean, shit, Marc. We don't know anything about what happened. We haven't talked to either of them in over a year. I just... Don't give me that look."
"What look?" Marc asked innocently while giving Nath the Look™.
Nathaniel grumbled as he pulled out his phone.
Marc beaming at him.
"One ticket for Paris, please."
"Sure thing! Is that one way?"
"Yes, please."
"... Y'know. You look an awful lot like one of Kitty Section's guitarists."
Luka smiled. "I get that a lot."
Kagami downed her glass of Romanee-Conti wine like a shot and then poured herself another.
The news playing in 4K on her Samsung QLED flat screen.
Turning on one of the stools of her personal bar to look at the TV. A picture of Adrien's smiling face staring back at her.
She raised her glass. "To proving me wrong."
Nino stared at his phone for a moment before sighing and rising to his feet. "So it's over."
Alya narrowed her eyes as she quickly left money on the table for their coffees. "That broke way too fast. Someone blabbed."
"It was bound to happen sooner or later, dude."
"Preferably later."
Nino nodded. "Yeah. You know where she'll be?"
"The studio, drowning herself in work like always. You?"
"Home," Nino stated simply as their paths split. "He always goes home..."