Chapter One

A/N: Welcome, welcome! As the summary says, this fic can act as a direct sequel to Smile At The Sky or as a standalone and is definitely a post reveal fic. Enjoy!

Co-planned by Sabrina again because she's my Lucky Charm lol

It happened again.

Adrien is pacing the length of his room, gripping one hand-the hand with his ring-tightly against his chest, replaying the event over and over in his head.

This time, it was at the dining table. Adrien eats alone every meal. His father is always too busy to sit down and eat with his son. He's always occupied with designs or phonecalls or important meetings... Always. Except for today. Today, Gabriel Agreste strode down the steps as naturally as if this were a daily occurance, took the seat opposite his son, at the far end of the long, white table, and took a sip from the wine glass Natalie placed in his hand.

Obviously, Adrien froze in place under the piercing scrutiny of his father's gaze. A spoonful of soup halfway to his open mouth. He swallowed despite his mouth being dry, and lowered the spoon back into the bowl. "Father...? Is something wrong?"

"No, everything is just fine," Gabriel said, his voice as smooth as steel. But still, Adrien shrunk back at the feeling of his eyes lingering on his hand. On his ring. And pretended to yawn, stretching his arms high above his head just so he could bury them both in his lap, out of view.

"Well, I'm...tired...big day at school today...gonna go...sleep." His chair screeched against the tiles as he pushed himself to his feet and turned away, making for his bedroom as quickly as possible.

"Adrien."

He stopped, a vein of goosebumps quivering down his arms. "Yes?"

"How long have you worn a ring?"

"Lie!" Plagg hissed at him from beneath his jacket.

"Uhh-n-not long. A few weeks."

"Really..."

"Y-yup! Now, I'm gonna...go...sleep. Yeah." Adrien turned and hurried away, closing himself into his bedroom as quickly as possible. He fought the urge to lock the door and instead, sunk onto his bed, his legs feeling like jelly beneath him.

Plagg wriggled out of his shirt and zipped into the air above him. "Your old man is really starting to give me the creeps, Adrien!" he snapped. "This is what? The fourth time he's mentioned your ring in the last three days?"

"Fifth," Adrien ammended wearily.

It started with Simonsayz. Having to save his father from the akuma's vengence had brought Cat Noir closer to Gabriel than ever before. And because of it, he'd noticed the hero's ring. And in turn, his son's startlingly similar piece of jewlery. For a few days, nothing was said and Adrien almost managed to forget about it... But three days ago, his father had begun to question him. And not just about the ring. About his friends, his passtimes, hobbies... really anything a normal father would already know.

But Gabriel had never cared before.

And now suddenly he did? It was unnerving.

And that's what finds Adrien pacing his room as the sun goes down, gripping his ring tightly to his chest, sighing heavily every so often.

"I'm gonna have to do it," he mutters eventually, and Plagg looks up from his lounged position on the sofa.

"Do what?"

"I didn't want to tell her. I know she's going to be worried out of her mind if I do but...she deserves to know..."

"Who deserves to know what?" Plagg grumbles.

Adrien opens his mouth to say 'Ladybug' but stops himself. Lately, he feels like the walls have ears and he can't say anything without it being heard. "You know who," he mutters instead. "I have to tell her about my father."

"Oh," Plagg nods his head and takes a bite of his camambert. "Yeah, you probaby should."

Adrien stops pacing and scowls at his kwami. "You're being awfully casual about all this."

Plagg shrugs and takes another bite. "You'll figure it out."

With a roll of his eyes at his unsupportive kwami, Adrien turns toward the windows and out at the fading skyline of Paris. "Yeah, I will. Right now. Claws out!"

Plagg yelps as he's unexpectedly sucked into the Miraculous and with a flash of green light, Cat Noir climbs onto the roof from his bathroom window. He takes his staff from his back and slides open the panel, frowning when Ladybug doesn't answer. Marinette must still be busy with her volunteer project...

Cat sighs and runs a clawed hand through his hair. He could drop by to talk to her... But he decides to wait. No reason to interrupt her. Besides, they have a patrol in less than an hour. Maybe a little alone time will do him some good.

"Marinette, could you grab me an ice pack and dial the number for Blaise's mother?" The nurse calls out over the pained groan of the injured track runner as she prods along his swollen ankle.

"Right away!" Marinette drops the sign in sheet she'd been pouring over and hurries to the large, stand up freezer in the corner of the nurse's office, popping open the door and grabbing one of the ice packs from inside. She hands it over and taps across the computer keyboard, scanning the screen until she finds the number.

"I cannot believe this..." Blaise moans, shaking his head in disgust. "The day before the meet and I twist my frikin' ankle..."

"Hold the ice pack here and keep that foot elevated," the nurse advises, standing up to take the phone from Marinette. It's still ringing so she turns to her volunteer assistant and says, "You can go now, Marinette. Thank you for your help today."

With a bright smile, Marinette nods her head. "I'm glad I could help," she says, grabbing her backpack from underneath the counter. "See you tomorrow!" She pushes open the door and yelps as a girl barrels into her and then cries out in pain as they collide. Marinette pales at the sound of her shriek. "Oh! I'm so sorry!"

"Aghh...is the nurse in?" the girl asks, swaddling one arm closely to her chest.

"Um-yes! Come on, let me help you-"

"No, no, I'm okay..." the girl pushes past Marinette, letting the heavy door slam shut behind her. With a look of alarm, Marinette is about to follow her anyway when Tikki wiggles out of her cardigan.

"Cat Noir is trying to call you," her kwami whispers and Marinette blanches.

Adrien? Why wouldn't he just text me...? Unless something's wrong... she gives the nurse's office door one last, passing glance as she sprints for the courtyard. "Spots on!"

"The day before the big meet..." Blaise mutters grumpily for probably the fifth time now. "I can't believe this..." His sprained ankle is elevated on a stack of sheets with an ice pack draped over it so he can't move even when the door slams loudly and the nurse audibly gasps in shock.

"Oh my! What happened?!" she asks whoever just entered.

"I...think I broke my arm..." a familiar girl's voice replies, sounding a bit shaky. "I was in practice and I fell..."

"Alright, come lay down, I'll get something to wrap it." A moment later, the nurse and the girl with the broken arm turn the corner into the nook where Blaise is laid up. His eyes widen a little at the sight of the other injured student.

"Charlotte?"

His girlfriend whips her head up at his voice. "Blaise? What are you doing here?" her eyes trail down to his ankle and she gasps. "What happened?!"

He smiles meekly. "Looks like we're both klutz's today."

She moans and shakes her head, sinking down onto the cot next to his.

The nurse hurries off to find bandages and a splint, leaving them alone.

"This sucks..."

"Sure does."

"Don't you have a big track meet tomorrow?"

"Not anymore... What about your preformance next week?"

"I can't ribbon dance with my arm in a cast..."

Charlotte and Blaise groan in unison. "Can't believe this..."

Silver, early morning light spills into the open window of Hawkmoth's lair, glowing butterflies scattering into the air around him. A dark smile curls across his mouth as he holds out two of his hands, an insect landing in both of them.

"Now this is interesting..." He closes the butterflies together between his palms, black magic bubbling between the cracks of his fingers. "Two disappointed souls sharing their grief..."

Hawkmoth releases his demons and they flutter out the window. "Go, my little akumas, and darken their hearts."

"There, that should help your bone not to move too much," the nurse tells Charlotte as she finishes her makeshift splint. "I'll go call your father now and have him take you to the hospital."

"Thank you..." Charlotte sighs, laying back down. She winces at the stabbing pain that spikes through her arm when she moves. The nurse disappears around the corner and Blaise turns to face his girlfriend, frowning at the sadness on her face.

"How'd that happen?" he asks her quietly.

"I fell..." she mutters but the way she trails off feels like she isn't tell him something.

"How?"

Even in the dim light of their little back room, he can see the blush that spreads across her cheeks. "I...uh..." Charlotte smiles sheepishly at him. "I was practicing my routine for the recital...and someone thought it would be funny to play a joke on me...they dropped a fake spider right in my face from the bleachers and it scared the life out of me so I fell right on my arm..."

Blaise mouth falls open and his brow wrinckles with anger. "Who exactly?"

But she shakes her head. "I don't know. Someone on the team."

"Idiots..."

Charlotte nods and turns her face to the wall, biting her lip to distract herself from the crushing knowledge that the position she worked so hard to get in the recital is now lost to her because of a stupid prank.

And Blaise closes his eyes against the anger in his chest. Both for his girlfriend's sake, and for his own clumsiness.

So neither of them see the pair of black butterlfies flapping into the room. One akuma vanishes into bandage wrapped around Blaise's ankle...while the other disappears into Charlotte's splint.

They both sit up mechanically, vibrant purple masks glowing over their eyes.

"Velocity, Calypso, I am Hawkmoth. I can feel your rage and your sorrow...and I want to help you. But in return, you must get me Ladybug and Cat Noir's Miraculouses."

"Yes, Hawkmoth."