Fall Out

Ladybug sailed through the open window and landed with a thump. A frantic drum pounded in her ears as she wildly scanned the room. She found him at his computer, back to her.

The local news ran on his monitor, muted. HAWK MOTH IS FASHION MOGUL GABRIEL AGRESTE marqueed along the bottom of the screen. A reporter babbled silently into her microphone and gestured at the Agreste estate behind her. Police cars lined the cobblestone driveway. About a dozen policemen milled about. They huddled in small groups of three or four, always turning their backs to the cameras or hiding their lips behind their hands when they spoke. Steam rose from their coffee cups. Their breath hung in the early morning air. Still dark outside, the spotlights from the news vans were blinding. Reporters buzzed around the front gate like flies attracted to the putrid stench of trash.

Ladybug took a step forward and cleared her throat. "I ruined your life," she greeted.

Adrien didn't jump. "Ladybug." His head tilted. "You were just doing your job. And you did— you saved Paris." He turned away from his computer and shot her a smile, like he had been expecting her.

Marinette had analyzed his smiles long enough to recognize a fake one. She struggled for what to say in this situation. Are you okay? (Of course not.) I'm sorry. (It wasn't your fault.) I should have known. (No one knew.) I didn't mean to. (But you did.)

Outside she could hear the pops of cameras and the hum of news vans idling. Blue and red police lights swirled through the room, painting streaks across the walls. Beyond his bedroom door was the muffled sound of people arguing.

Adrien followed her gaze towards his door. He pointed with his thumb over his shoulder. "Police, Nathalie, and Child Protective Services," he explained. "They've been at it for over twenty minutes."

Ice spread down Ladybug's back. "Why?" she breathed.

Adrien glared back at his computer screen, head ducked. "They're trying to figure out what to do with me."

Ladybug tried to wrangle some level of articulation. "What do you mean?"

Adrien stilled. His mouth opened, then shut. Crossing his arms protectively around his middle he stared hard at the floor before heaving a sigh. "My mother is missing. My father will face trial. Considering police have film of his transformation, he will likely go to prison." His eyes finally met hers. They were wide in fear. "I have no aunts or uncles, no godparents. What grandparents I have left are too ill to take me in. All of my father's employees are under investigation for any involvement in Hawk Moth's crimes. T-That leaves…" He trailed off with a shrug, kicking out at the ground, desk chair spinning idly.

It left nobody. A big silent empty space of no one. Her chest ached. She thought of her own parents and was suddenly struck with how lucky she was. Forced to try and imagine a life without her family, her knees grew jello-ey. She crossed his room and melted onto the end of his bed. "You can live with me," she blurted.

Adrien looked genuinely surprised and touched by her offer. Then, his face fell. "That's generous, but it's not that easy. Your parents would need to legally adopt me. I don't even know who you are. You don't know me."

"I'd tell you," she decided, resolute. "If you want." Hawk Moth was behind bars. There was no need for Ladybug and Chat Noir anymore. They had won… although, this didn't feel like winning. This felt more like being chewed up, swallowed, then spat back up.

Adrien stared in awe. His gaze clouded, smile fading. He shook his head. "No. Not like this."

"No?" She reeled backwards, feeling sucker punched. He didn't want to know?

He got up and sat next to her on the edge of his bed. She tried to ignore how his body heat sent her stomach into flutters. Green eyes sought hers. "I was hoping you would come check on me so that I could tell you," he admitted.

Ladybug swallowed. She drummed her fingers along her knees. Trying, and failing, to keep her voice aloof, she squeaked, "Tell me what?"

His arm reached out before he paused nervously, as if thinking better of it. Despite herself, Ladybug tensed.

"Can I—Can I hug you?"

Ladybug's neck and cheeks lit. Nervous butterflies exploded in her gut. Barely trusting herself to speak, she nodded. Adrien needed all the hugs he could get. Who was she to deny him?

He looped his arm around her, tugging her into his side.

Ladybug stiffened. They barely knew each other, yet this hug felt right. She relaxed.

"Is this okay?" he whispered. His breath gusted her bangs.

"It's okay." This was real. This was happening. This was… it? Throat clenching, she pressed her face beneath his chin and against his collarbone. He smelled familiar. This embrace was easy, as if they had done it hundreds of times. The weight of his arm and the warmth of his body against hers… it reminded her of someone, but she couldn't pinpoint whom. Her mind was currently short-circuiting from everything that had happened in the last twelve hours.

"I needed to tell you. Needed to say… Thank you. For stopping him," he murmured into the top of her head. His low voice rumbled beneath her ear. "I'm glad it was you. You were, as always, extraordinary."

Tears welled in the corners of her eyes. She ducked her head even further in order to hide them. She didn't feel extraordinary. She felt like a little girl that had been tricked into thinking defeating Hawk Moth would fix everything. How could he be so calm? It was as though he had already decided on something. This felt a lot like a goodbye and she didn't like it. Fear seared through her veins. "What will you do?" she whispered.

Adrien tensed, his embrace growing stiff. He pressed his nose into the top of her head, burying into her hair, and sucked in a long inhale like he was committing her scent to memory.

Marinette would normally have been reduced to a goopy mess by Adrien's embrace. Instead raw fear spiked into panic. What was he planning? What was this? She reached up and pushed at his chest so she could break out of the embrace.

Adrien released her and avoided her gaze.

"Adrien?" Ladybug demanded, dread compounding. Her breathes grew fast and uneasy. She didn't like that look on him. "What are you planning?"

The voices outside his door exploded. A woman's voice— Nathalie's?— yelling, "He's fourteen! You can't possibly think a child had anything to do with this?"

"This is a good thing," Adrien spoke up, as if he couldn't hear the argument outside his door. "No more akumas. No more innocent people getting hurt."

"You're getting hurt," Ladybug said. "Adrien? Look at me. You're getting hurt."

"—give a statement before we can clear him." Male voice this time. Loud. Authoritative.

"—has to have a councillor present before you ask any questions." Yet another voice. Protective.

Ladybug felt like they were sitting in the eye of a hurricane. All around them, police lights, reporters, yelling, arguing. It was awful.

Her head swiveled between Adrien and his bedroom door, torn. He had the veteran look of someone that had been disappointed a lot. The hunched shoulders, the impassive tone in his voice… he was hunkering down in preparation. He was getting ready for his life to unravel. A stone slide down her throat and plunked heavy in her guts as she realized that— despite knowing his schedule, his favorite foods, his wardrobe, down to the way he walked and the way he laughed— she had never truly known Adrien Agreste.

"Are you going to run?" she asked.

Adrien blew out a short laugh. "That wouldn't look good. I can already read the headlines: 'Supervillain Heir Flees Police.'"

"But you're innocent!" Ladybug cried. Frustration lashed through her. She wanted to do something. Punch something. Kick something. Clean something. She hated feeling helpless. What was happening to Adrien was unfair! No lucky charm could fix this. She wasn't used to this… this inability to make things right.

Adrien blinked. He tilted his head. "Why do you care so much about what happens to me?"

"I— W-What?" Marinette sputtered. Her cheeks flushed. "Why wouldn't I? Of course I care! I care about all of Paris' civilians!" She tried to dredge up some of that Ladybug bravado, puff out her chest, maybe brandish her clenched hand with a flair of heroic determination, but there wasn't any left.

Adrien twisted on the edge of the bed so he could face her. With his hands lightly atop her shoulders, his soft smile grew fond, knowing, almost… amused?

The way he was looking at her... The way he had been talking with her, embracing her... It's almost like he— Ladybug rocked back in realization. He knew! He knew that she liked him! Did he know she was Marinette? His clumsy stuttering friend? Oh god— how long had he known? Had he known the whole time? Why didn't he say anything?

"Hey," he called softly, and all her attention snapped back to him. The chatter of the reporters and the raised voices of the police grew muted and faraway. Nothing else mattered but Adrien. This moment was important. Life changing. She had to be aware. Had to memorize his face and his hands on her shoulders. She had to listen.

As she started paying stricter attention, she noticed his hands trembled atop her shoulders. His face was paler than normal. His eyes were wide. Shock, probably. He kept taking long, deep, breathes as if he was trying to keep himself from hyperventilating. Like it was taking everything out of him to stay glued together. She needed to wrap her arms around him and hold him close. She settled on reaching up and placing her hands on top of his.

Adrien wet his lips. His gaze held hers, dead serious. "Whatever happens to me… I need you to know. You have to know. It's not your fault. It will never be your fault." His voice cracked. "You're... You're my hero, Ladybug."