#Gabriel's small sweater paw...

[sainz100]

Gabriel and Max at pre season testing 2025, Bahrain | x

[nxrthmizu]

| the detective and the blue-eyed fox | ch.2

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prompt | ‘Detective and Criminal AU’ 

pairing | Damian Wayne x Marinette Dupain-Cheng

words | 1.5k

author’s note | A lot of people asked for a second part, so here it is! 

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| Previous Part | 

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Plagg watched the emerald-eyed man from behind the glass. Intelligence shone behind the young detective’s cold exterior, the emerald-eyed man’s curiosity overwriting his tiredness as the man continued scouring the internet for more information, stopping once in a while to download a document or copy an article for future reference. 

“Where am I supposed to start looking for this ring?” Damian grunted in frustration, the god of chaos wanting to laugh dryly at the sheer coincidence that the world had aligned them to. “There’s no records of how or when it disappeared, or what happened to Chat Noir...” 

The words brought back bad memories, the god of destruction clenching his paws in anger as he remembered what happened to his last kitten, what Chat Noir’s last act had been in an effort to keep the miraculous of destruction out of the wrong hands... 

“Plagg, claws out!” Chat Noir whispered, grunting in pain as he clutched his stomach, blood dripping down his fingers in a delicate, maroon painting that would’ve beautiful if not for what the ‘paint’ actually was. 

“Do you have a death wish, kid?” Plagg yelled, glancing around the dark alley they were in worriedly. “You still have time before the transformation wears off! Without the transformation, you can’t run, and you’ll bleed even faster...” The kwami’s words trailed off as Adrien collapsed onto the stone-cold pavement, blood dripping out from his lips, his complexion becoming paler and paler. 

It had been three months after Hawkmoth’s defeat. Paris was in peace- Or so everyone thought. Ladybug, plagued with endless memories of numerous deaths and times when she was too late, too slow, made the decision to leave Paris behind. 

The scarlet-clad superheroine dropped off the edge of the world. Two weeks after her disappearance, a new villain arose- Except this one kept his attacks secret and concentrated on one, sole person: Chat Noir. 

Chat came to know his nemesis by the name Vengeur, a man more familiar than he expected. Eventually, his identity was compromised and Adrien Agreste could do nothing more than run. 

And even when he ran, he couldn’t run far. 

“I can’t go on, Plagg.” Adrien rasped, his voice getting fainter as Paris’s skies darkened. “Take the ring,” He said shakily, slipping the metal off his finger. They could both sense the man drawing closer, bidding his time because they were cornered and they all knew that. “Take the ring and go.” 

“But!” 

“I command you to leave. I, Adrien Agreste, denounce the miraculous of destruction. Go find m’Lady, Plagg,” The blonde’s voice slowly got weaker. “And tell her I love her. 

Plagg found himself being whisked away against his wishes, the law of the miraculous stating that he must obey his holder’s final wishes. It was in that way that the god of destruction eventually, by fate or by coincidence, found himself inside Damian Wayne’s katana display case. 

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Damian called in sick for the next day, because 1) he was too tired from the all-nighter he pulled in an attempt for any information on the ring and 2) he didn’t know how to face Marinette Dupain-Cheng. 

Dragging himself out of bed, a quick glance outside the window told him that it was nearly noon. Damian yawned, stretching a little as he scrolled through Dick’s bombardment of ‘Are you okay?’ messages and Marinette’s single ‘Are you sick?’ message. Ruffling his dark hair, the emerald-eyed detective got through his morning routine (Despite the fact his bedside alarm said that it was nearly 11.50am), changing out of his crumpled dress shirt into a comfortable sweater. 

Plopping himself down on his desk, he pressed the start-up button of his laptop, deciding to go through some of Lan’s evidence on Harold before diving back into the mystery of the ring of destruction. 

Before he could get started, however, a loud shattering noise shook his apartment. He was up instantly, staring at his katana display case across the living room. Glass coated the floor around it, shattered into fine, sparkling specks. 

He blinked. 

The glass of his display case just... Shattered? Into powder? 

“Sorry about that.” A dry voice told him, the detective turning instantly, his eyes sharp until he caught the tiny, black creature hovering right above his desk. “I think you can guess who I am.” 

Damian blinked. Was it possible to attack a creature smaller than his palm? His katana was just across the room... 

“I can turn your sword into dust with a single touch.” The small creature deadpanned. “My name is Plagg, and I am the kwami of destruction.” 

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Plagg always knew he could leave. Damian wasn’t in the apartment for nine hours a day, sometimes more; He could’ve just pushed (Or cataclysmed) the katana’s display case and leave, leaving no evidence that he was every there- Besides the mess, that was. 

But something made him stay. 

Adrien’s last wish had brought him to Detective Damian Wayne, son of Bruce Wayne, the richest man in Gotham. Was it a coincidence that Damian Wayne had all the traits of a potential black cat? Perhaps, but Plagg would be an idiot not to stick around and find out. 

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“So you’re telling me that just when I was looking for the ring of destruction, you just... Appear, and tell me you’ve been here for two weeks.” Damian clarified. “Amazing.” 

Plagg shrugged. “I don’t control what happens, kid. Not this time, at least.” 

Damian was quiet for a moment. “What happened to him?” Silence ensued in the apartment, the kwami of destruction looking away instantly, the pain of losing another cat- Especially one so young- Still strong and ebbing away in the little heart he had in his kwami body. 

“I don’t think you need to know that.” Plagg said at last. 

“Don’t you think I deserve an explanation?” 

The kwami hissed. “You’re a detective, kid. Isn’t it your job to find your own explanation?” 

“Well, you just shattered my display case. Maybe you could at least explain why you had to break it.” Damian snapped back, emerald eyes burning into cat-like slits. “There’s no records about what happened after Hawkmoth was captured.” 

The god of destruction stared at the detective for a moment more, finally relenting. Damian didn’t know where the ring was, Plagg reassured himself, if it ever came down to it, he could retreat back inside the ring and track down Ladybug himself- Now that he knew that Ladybug was in the same city as he was. 

“Three months ago, Hawkmoth was captured. After he was arrested, Ladybug dropped out of radar and moved out of Paris.” Plagg explained, his tone icy. 

“Three months ago, Marinette Dupain-Cheng transferred to GPD.” Damian noted in realisation. 

Plagg nodded. “Ladybug- As you guessed, Marinette Dupain-Cheng- Left Paris to keep the Ladybug miraculous safe. Chat Noir remained in Paris to defend it. A new... Enemy started attacking Chat Noir aggressively, keeping the attacks out of public eye. Chat Noir was being hunted down and... Eventually, he got caught. Two weeks ago.” The kwami’s voice got softer towards the end as images of a bleeding Adrien flashed past Plagg’s mind. 

Damian was silent for a moment, sensing that the kwami was still sensitive about his previous holder’s death. “Two weeks ago, Adrien Agreste was brutally murdered in Paris.” He whispered. Of course he’d seen the news- After Gabriel Agreste mysteriously ‘disappeared’, Adrien Agreste took over the Gabriel brnad, renaming it the Agreste Brand. Three months later, the new CEO of the Agreste Brand was found bleeding out, dead in a dark alley of Paris. That day, the city of love mourned a kind-hearted citizen who had poured his entire soul into his city. 

“Ladybug’s kwami probably told her the identity of Chat Noir when the news was released.” Plagg continued, softer this time. “That’s probably when she started hunting down the ring.” 

“Wait. Lan- Ladybug didn’t know who Chat Noir was?” Damian furrowed his eyebrows. 

Plagg nodded. “It was to protect themselves and their families. If one was ever captured, the other’s identity would never have the risk of being exposed, even if it was by accident.” The kwami squeezed his eyes shut, trying not to think of Adrien being tortured even in his dying moments for Ladybug’s identity. 

“Hang on for a moment.” Damian took a deep breath. “You were with Chat Noir when he was... Caught, correct? So that means you must know who the man behind the attacks is?” 

The emerald-eyed man had developed a thirst for unravelling mysteries, and now he was really getting invested in the case. His eyes burned with curiosity as he waited for Plagg’s answer. 

“Yes.” Plagg took a deep breath. 

“His name is Luka Couffaine.” 

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taglist: @demonicbusiness @animegirlweeb @roselynfey @2confused-2doanything  @insane-fangirl-of-everything​ @promiswords​  @galaxylightmoon​ @fusser90​ @ira-sairain

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| Next Part | ao3 | 

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[emoryinaboat]

And Portpan? (Portugal and Japan) Thank you 💖

- Dealing with the raw unbridled extrovert that is Gabriel is a lot, especially for Kiku. So Gabriel knows when to tone it down so he doesn't freak Kiku out or make him uncomfortable.

- Gabriel isn't allowed in Kiku's tech room, last time that happened he somehow managed to completely reboot Kiku's PC and delete half his files. He cried when Kiku found out and Kiku stayed in a ball staring at the wall for a whole day while Gabriel apologized until his voice was gone.

- Kiku thinks Gabriel looks adorable when he has his hair in pigtails, so he wears them more often than he'd like anyone to know about.

- Kiku isn't very big on physical affection sometimes but when he is, oh lord. Doesn't really like instigating it so Gabriel kind of needs to be extra observant to signs that Kiku wants affection. When this happens, Kiku is all over him, all hugging and holding hands and kissing Gabriel's cheeks.

- Kiku has a great memory so he remembers everything Gabriel likes. They're going to a restaurant? He knows his favourite thing on the menu. They're going for a drink with friends? He knows his favourite drink. They're having sex? He knows exactly how to press his buttons.

- Gabriel falling in love with his lover's pets strikes again, Gabriel actually cried when he saw Pochi because it is very small and fluffy and Gabriel has a weak point for small and fluffy things.

- Gabriel isn't particularly into any anime but he has no problem binging shows with Kiku. This doesn't stop him from getting extremely into whatever they're watching, he's cried many times and nearly threw up at a few of the really gory ones.

- The only qualm Gabriel has with Kiku and anime is the fact that he will stay up for literal days at a time. Sometimes he comes to visit and Kiku is sitting in the dark and has very clearly barely moved at all in hours, and now Gabriel has to physically pick Kiku up under the arms and carry him to bed.

- Kiku isn't really one to instigate sex and Gabriel doesn't want to push so they don't do it as much as other couples. However, Kiku has a voyeur streak about a mile wide, so while they don't have sex all the time, that doesn't mean Kiku doesn't watch Gabriel.

- Their most common argument is about each other's wellbeing. They really only argue about dumb stuff and they end up laughing about it later.

- Gabriel gets very energetic with the car radio, full on belting the lyrics to songs he knows and dancing in his seat. Kiku thinks it's hilarious and endearing and laughs, sometimes joining him in singing (albeit a lot quieter).

- They're both terrified of bugs so neither of them are willing to kill the cockroach. They just cower on the couch or on any surface off the ground until it goes away.

- Kiku loves boyfriend sweaters, they come down to his mid-thigh and he has long sweater paws but that just makes it better, because Gabriel's sweaters are comfortable and warm and smell like him.

- Kiku either doesn't sleep at all, or sleeps until 2pm. He's also a bleary demon when he just wakes up, so Gabriel has to make him tea and steer him away from doorframes or stairs.

- Kiku's really cuddly when he's asleep and Gabriel doesn't let himself move because god forbid he wake Kiku up.

Feel free to send in any more ships!

[gabriel-agreste-has-no-rights]

Rating:  G

Summary:  Side-effects may include: eating fabric, staring into bright lights, and being allergic to mothballs.  (AKA, the one where Gabriel Agreste has moth tendencies, and Adrien is rightfully concerned.)

Word Count:  4203

Notes:  Mostly inspired by the fact that there's so many Chat Noir cat tendencies fics and even a few Ladybug hibernation fics but WHERE are my Hawkmoth tendencies fics?? Anyway be the change you want to see

For non-english readers in particular since I got a lot of questions when I talked about it on discord: mothballs are little balls of pesticide/deodorant that can be used to repel moths. Usually kept in clothes drawers and are pretty outdated now but anyway its a Real Thing and not me trying to make an innuendo i swear lol

XXX

“Uh… Father?”  Adrien peeked in through the cracked door.  He shouldn’t—Father valued his privacy more than anything, including his son’s attention—but he couldn’t help it.  The brief glance he’d caught was just too weird.

Gabriel snapped to attention, his glasses jostling slightly as he tore his eyes away from the blinding lamp in the center of his desk.

“Adrien.”  His candycane-striped tie dropped out of his mouth.  The end of it was completely chewn off.  Was—did he just swallow that?  People couldn’t digest silk, could they?   “You’re supposed to be practicing your Chinese.”

“I-I know, I just came down to ask Nathalie—nevermind.”  It wasn’t like she or Father were likely to adjust his schedule so he could get ice cream with his friends, especially not when Father was doing… whatever he was doing.  “Are you okay?”

“That is no concern of yours,” he snapped.  Which wasn’t a yes.  Was this some new kind of coping mechanism?  

Not for the first time, Adrien wished Father would agree to go to therapy.

“Um… okay.  I’ll just—go back to work.”

He dashed back up the stairs before Father could decide that his momentary break should be punished.  But still, he couldn’t get the image of the half-chewed tie or Father’s wide-eyed, trancelike stare out of his head.

XXX

“Have you noticed Father acting weird?”  He finally got up the nerve to ask Nathalie.  “I mean, weirder than usual?”

“I am sure he is just busy as always, Adrien.”

Which was just as much of a brush-off as “that is no concern of yours.”  Maybe he should’ve tried a less direct approach, but he couldn’t think of one.

“Has he… been working on a line of flavored fabrics?”  He tested one of his wilder theories.  It would explain why Father’s tie was patterned like a candy cane, at least.  Even Adrien knew that wasn’t in style.

Nathalie raised an eyebrow.  “What would give you that idea?”

Somehow he got the feeling that telling Nathalie what he’d seen wasn’t a good idea.  But who else could help Father if he was struggling?

“Um… well, he seemed like he was… eating his tie?  When I saw him yesterday.”

She sighed, and Adrien swore he heard something like “not again” muttered under her breath.  Maybe that was why he usually kept it tucked inside his vest?

“Your Father has developed some… odd habits lately.  But I can assure you it is nothing to worry about.”

Father had said the same thing before Mom disappeared.  Adrien didn’t stop worrying.

XXX

“I don’t see what the big deal is.  So your dad likes to chew on fabric, so what?  Not everyone can have excellent taste like me.”  Plagg swallowed another wedge of Camembert as if to prove it.

Adrien rolled his eyes and rolled over on the floor, soaking up the warmth of the sunset spilling in through his window.

“Maybe kwamis can eat all sorts of weird stuff, but humans can’t.  I just don’t know if this is some kind of coping mechanism, or something.  Maybe he’s been avoiding me because he’s acting weird and he doesn’t want anyone to find out.”

It would explain why Father only talked to him through his tablet, more often than not.  Maybe he was just embarrassed.  But he couldn’t go on like that forever, right?  Even if Mom’s disappearance hurt, they were better off leaning on each other than staying apart.

“Hate to break it to you, but your dad’s already weird, kid.  Eating ties is probably the best of his qualities.”

Adrien sighed.  It wasn’t like Plagg could understand; he just put whatever he wanted in his mouth.  Adrien himself could understand a little—ever since becoming Chat Noir, he sometimes had the urge to chew on cords, strings, even some plants.  It was a little embarrassing, but he could usually control himself.  Maybe if he shouldn’t though.  If Father saw him doing it, maybe he’d feel less weird about it himself?

...Or he’d punish Adrien for ruining perfectly good headphone cords.  Yeah, that was more likely.

Maybe it wasn’t a big deal, and he should just drop it, but he wanted to do something to help his Father.

“Get him something better to eat?”  Plagg suggested when Adrien voiced the thought out loud.  “A good aged swiss might do the trick.  Just don’t give him my Camembert; he doesn’t deserve it.”

“You’re useless,” he huffed.  Maybe the internet would have better advice.

“Eating fabric” just brought up a bunch of articles about sewing machine problems and disobedient pets.  Not exactly helpful.  But “How to stop my dad from eating fabric” didn’t seem like a useful search entry, either.

Plagg squirmed under his chin, looking up at the phone screen he held over his face.  “You think it’s got something to do with bugs?”  He asked, pointing to the one search result Adrien’s thumb had been half-covering.

“How to control bugs that eat clothes,” the article was titled.  Adrien snorted.

“Unless Father is secretly some kind of moth—”

His jaw snapped shut.  No, no, he was not going there again.  It had been bad enough when Ladybug suggested it before, and besides, it wasn’t like Father’s actions were any kind of proof.

Even if he had also been staring directly into a lamp, entranced��

“Adrien?  Kid, you don’t look so hot.  What’s going on?”

He didn’t want to say it.  It was stupid, anyway; Father had been akumatized before.  He shuddered just remembering it.

But he wasn’t just Adrien Agreste, son of Gabriel Agreste.  He was also Chat Noir, Hero of Paris.  And it would be irresponsible to drop a lead just because he was scared.

“Do you think… would Hawkmoth have animal tendencies from his miraculous too?”

Plagg’s eyes went wide—wider than they always were, anyway.  “Are you saying what I think you’re saying?”

“Just tell me, Plagg.”  He didn’t want to admit what he was saying at all—this was his father, and even if he could be restrictive and controlling, he wasn’t evil.

He was being ridiculous.  Utterly ridiculous.

“Well… yeah.  All miraculous users do.  Nooroo’s holders have always been weirder though.  They tend to be shut-ins.  Couldn’t even bribe them out with my best brie.”

“So you haven’t been around a lot of past Hawkmoths?”  It was both relieving and disappointing, but it made sense.  If Plagg thought Father had the side-effects, he would’ve said something before now.  Not that Plagg saw much of Father, considering Adrien didn’t see much of him…

“Nope.  They sent out their champions to fight for them most of the time.  Not like us who’ve gotta do the real work.”

Adrien snorted.  “What work?”

“Hey, protecting you when you take a beating isn’t easy!”  Plagg flicked his nose, and he laughed.

“Fair, I guess.”  Adrien rolled over onto his stomach as his kwami zipped away.  Probably grabbing some Camembert, or a stinky sock to snuggle under.

But to his surprise, Plagg didn’t come back with either of those things.  Instead he was carrying something just as smelly—if not worse.  A small, round white ball.  He was pretty sure he’d seen ones like it in his sweater drawer.

Adrien sat up and covered his nose.  “Is that a—mothball?”

“You’re still worried about your dad, right?”

He blinked.  It was easy to forget that Plagg could be perceptive when he wanted to be.  “I don’t see what mothballs have to do with this.”

“Really.  You don’t see what mothballs have to do with telling if someone is Hawkmoth,” he deadpanned.

“You think I should see if Father is… you know… by seeing if he hates mothballs?  Do you really think that will work?  I thought Hawkmoth had the butterfly miraculous.”

“You’re the one who was worried about it.”  Plagg shrugged.  “And like I said, the butterfly miraculous is weird.  Think there might’ve been something wrong with it even before it was used by a supervillain.  Maybe Hawkmoth picked his name for a reason. Anyway, you won’t know unless you try it.”

As far as Plagg’s ideas went, it wasn’t too bad.  It didn’t involve cheese, at least.  And if Father wasn’t hiding anything, then he wouldn’t be bothered by it, right?

Adrien took the mothball from his kwami’s outstretched paws.

He was going to prove that his Father wasn’t Hawkmoth.  And then he’d figure out what to do about the whole eating fabric situation.

XXX

When Nino told him he should push back against Father’s boundaries, Adrien was pretty sure this wasn’t what he meant.  Anxiety prickled the hairs on the back of his neck as he paced in front of the bedroom door.

“Come on kid, don’t get cold feet now,” Plagg whispered.

“My feet aren’t cold.  I have socks on.”  Adrien frowned down at his red-and-black socks.  They kept his footsteps quiet and gave him a little boost of confidence.  Ladybug wouldn’t be afraid to peek in his father’s room.

“Let’s do it,” he said with newfound determination, and cracked open the door.

Hadn’t Father had a window in here at one point?  The sunset should be streaming in right about now, but instead Adrien had to fumble in the pitch black for the lightswitch.  When the room illuminated, he blinked in shock.

“Wow.”  Plagg whistled.  “Your dad is a few wedges short of a wheel for sure.”

That… that was one way to say it.  Fabric was scattered across the floor in careless heaps.  At one point Adrien would have blamed it on his designing, but if that were the case, the clothes wouldn’t look gnawed on.  

“This is worse than I thought, Plagg.”  Maybe it was a good thing his kwami had encouraged him to rebel after all.  Father seriously needed help. Humans shouldn’t even be able to digest silk and wool!  What if he got some kind of disease?  What if he already had some kind of disease? That second option was more likely, considering… well, all this.

“So, you gonna drop those mothballs or not?”

“Right.”  Adrien snapped out of his thoughts and began digging the white spheres out of his pockets. He’d have to bury them in the chewed up clothes so Father wouldn’t see them. But what if Father did notice? Was it really worth the risk just to ease his mind about Father being Hawkmoth?

...Yes, it was. Especially considering there was no proof Hawkmoth couldn’t akumatize himself. And Father had been the only lead Ladybug had ever had…

He shook his head. Just put the mothballs down, and he could prove his Father was innocent once and for all.

“Alright, let's get out of here. This place is creepy,” Plagg said when Adrien was done.

“I thought you would’ve liked the smell at least,” he tried to joke.  Better that than actually thinking about what he was doing.

“I’ll take your stinky socks over this any day.”

Adrien crept out of the bedroom, hoping that this whole endeavor ended up being pointless.

XXX

Father had a cold.

That was what Nathalie said, anyway.  Adrien had never actually seen Father sick before.  Nothing could keep him away from his work, or from… whatever he did when he was busy ignoring Adrien.

But he heard him wheezing behind his bedroom door, so he really had some kind of illness.

...Or he was allergic to the mothballs.  Plagg didn’t say it, but from the pinched look on his face every time Adrien passed by Father’s door, he was definitely thinking it.

“It has to be a coincidence,” Adrien told Plagg, who shrugged.

“Hey, don’t look at me.  You’re the one who had the idea that your dad is Hawkmoth in the first place.”

“Technically that was Ladybug,” he mumbled, flopping back on his bed.  “Maybe he just got sick from eating all that fabric.”

“Maybe.  But didn’t Nathalie say he’s been doing that for a while?”

Dang it, Plagg was right there.  It was just so surreal, thinking his father could actually be the supervillain he’d been fighting this whole time.

It was going to take more than therapy to fix this.

XXX

“You think he’s planning something?”  Ladybug asked when they lay back on their usual rooftop at the end of their patrol route.

Adrien’s stomach twisted.  There’d been no sign of an akuma for two weeks.  

Father had been sick for two weeks.

Coincidence. Right?

“Maybe,” he mumbled, his tail twitching fitfully.  Then he sat up and shook his head.  “Actually, LB…”

“Yeah?” She sat up too, her gaze completely focused on him.  While he normally loved to be the center of her attention, right now he wished he had nothing to say.

“Remember when you thought… well, when you thought Gabriel Agreste might be Hawkmoth?”

She startled. “Why are you bringing this up now?”

“Well, um… I got a tip from uh… Adrien.  You know, Adrien Agreste?”

“Of course I know him, he’s—I-I mean, everyone knows Adrien, right?”  For some reason, her face looked pink in the moonlight.

“Right, right. Anyway… he was telling me he was worried about his father, and it’s kind of a long story… but it seems like he might have some… moth tendencies.”

Ladybug blinked.  It felt like a long shot, now that he said it out loud.  Stupid.  He was probably just overreacting. 

“What kind of moth tendencies?”  She asked, her voice carefully guarded.

“Eating fabric. Staring at bright lights.  Being allergic to mothballs.”

“Mothballs?”  She laughed.  “Sorry, sorry, I believe you.  It’s just—wow. And here I thought my wanting to eat bugs was weird.”

“You? Weird? Never,” he joked to relieve some tension.  She believed him. She believed him, and that meant that he wasn’t just overreacting.  Which meant his father could be Hawkmoth.

He swallowed, trying to hide the hole that seemed to open in the pit of his stomach.

“So… you want to investigate him?  Even though he was akumatized?” Her mask furrowed around her brow, the way it tended to when she worked out her lucky charms.

“I don’t… I don’t know.”  He sighed and shook his head.  “It wouldn’t be easy.  Believe me, I’ve tried.”

“You—what?”

Oops.  Probably shouldn’t have mentioned that.  

“It’s no big deal.  I just wanted to confirm some things for myself before taking Adrien’s word for it.”

“Adrien would never lie,” Ladybug was quick to say.  

His lips quirked upward.  “I’m sure he’d be flattered to know you trust him.” 

Her accusation of Gabriel before couldn’t have been from any kind of animosity towards him, then.  Unless it was animosity on his behalf?  Did he know how much his father isolated him? No, she’d have no reason to look that closely behind his model smile.

“So… why did you think Hawkmoth was Mr. Agreste before?”  He asked hesitantly.  Before she’d said it was a secret, and he hadn’t pressed her, but it seemed an even more serious matter now.  “We gave up the lead pretty fast last time.”

“Maybe too fast.”  She grimaced.  “I’m sorry. I didn’t want it to be true anyway… and as for why I thought that… I found a book that I learned belonged to him.  If he isn’t Hawkmoth, then it was my fault he became akumatized into the Collector.”

“No, it isn’t.  It’s only ever Hawkmoth’s fault, you know that.”  Adrien squeezed her shoulder, even as inwardly his mind was racing.  Ladybug had found his father’s book when he’d lost it?  How?  She had been there when Lila had been talking about it; maybe she’d had to double back for some reason?  “Wait—you’re telling me that book he was so attached to had something to do with Hawkmoth?”

Adrien had been the one with the book at first.  The one she’d seen with it.  Why did she trust him so much?

“Yes.  Master Fu took pictures of it before I returned it so Adrien—anyway.”  She waved her hands, as if all that wasn’t important, even though it definitely was.  Father had never mentioned Ladybug returning his book! “Master Fu said the book was lost at the same time as the butterfly and peacock miraculouses.  It’s not hard to assume they’d end up in the same place.”

Adrien was glad he wasn’t standing, because he probably would have fallen.  “That’s… a pretty big lead.”

“It really is.  I should have been more responsible about investigating.  Less selfish.”

He had no idea what she meant by that, but the crushed look in her eyes prompted him not to ask.

“If this is true, Adrien’s going to be heartbroken,” she murmured, quietly enough he wasn’t sure he was meant to hear.

She was right about that.  But there was no reason for her to feel bad because of it.

“Hey, he’s the one who gave me the tip, remember?  Maybe it won’t be such a shock to him.”

Huh.  He got all those words out with barely a crack to his voice.  Maybe he was in shock.

“Maybe.  But he’ll still be crushed.  I don’t know if he has any other family, and his mom is gone.  As awful as his father is, I just don’t know…”  She trailed off, shaking her head.

“I don’t know either.”  

He hadn’t thought about it.  Any time his thoughts danced too close to the implications of his theory, they danced back just as quickly.  He had to be brave.  Ladybug was counting on him; Paris was counting on him.  It didn’t matter if one scared boy lost his father.

“So what… what do we do now?”  She asked, voice soft.  “We need proof, but I don’t know how to get it.”

Plans were normally her area of expertise.  If she didn’t know what to do…

“I don’t know.  Get a big lamp and hope it attracts him?”  He shouldn’t be joking right now, but it was the only thing distracting him from panicking.  

(Nino’s family might take him in.  Or there was always the Gorilla. He wasn’t alone, he wouldn’t be alone—)

“You know, that’s actually not a bad idea.”  

“Wait, it’s—it’s not?”  He blinked.

“No, it isn’t.  You’re a clever kitty when you want to be.”

He blushed under her praise and fought off a purr.  “Okay, so we draw him out with a big lamp.  If Hawkmoth really does have the same kind of side-effects as us, then it should work regardless of whether or not he’s transformed, right?”

“Right.  So the only question is how we get a lamp big enough to draw him out.”  Her gaze drifted across the rooftops, to the top of the Le Grande Paris hotel.  A smirk spread across her face.

“What are you thinking, Bugaboo?”

“I’m thinking I just answered that question.”

XXX

Gabriel jolted back into consciousness when his desk lamp winked out.  Impossible—the mansion had its own generator, mostly to keep the city from learning of his underground lair.  

The lair.  Where Emilie was.

“Nooroo!”  He snarled, spitting the end of his tie out as he did.  Cursed side-effects; he could hardly go a day without chewing on the silk.  At least he could hide the end of it under his vest, which he hadn’t taken off even while in bed.  Better not to have Nathalie nagging him about his “habits” again.

“Yes, Master?”  His kwami weakly flew out from under his pillow.  Whatever illness Gabriel had contracted, Nooroo seemed to mirror.  A disconcerting fact, considering how Duusuu and Emilie had felt before her… well.

But he couldn’t take off his miraculous.  Not until his work was finished.  Unfortunately, with the incessant itching and cough that had plagued him for two weeks, he hadn’t been able to sense much negative emotion beyond his own.  He wasn’t sure that he could stand without wheezing and collapsing from dizziness.

That dizziness was clouding his mind already.  What was he doing again?

“Emilie,” he rasped.  

“What about her, Master?”

“Go see if… no.  I need you with me. In case…”

He dissolved into a coughing fit.  Nooroo, the pathetic creature, only looked on in sympathy.

“Master, you aren’t well.  Perhaps if you removed my miraculous—”

“No!”  he snapped, making the kwami flinch.  “No.  Let’s… investigate the power outage.”

Fire flared across his skin as he threw his legs over the side of the bed.  Nooroo still hovered uselessly.  It was tempting to transform, but if his sudden illness was related to the miraculous, that would only exacerbate his condition.

One step in front of the other.  He would not be bested by this trifling inconvenience, not with Emilie on the line.  

He stumbled through the door, bracing himself against the knob with an iron grip.  The generator never felt so far away.

“Master, you really should…”

Be quiet!  He would’ve shouted, but his voice was little more than a rasp now.  Everything spun.  Oh, if only Nathalie hadn’t gone home for the night!  

Once he made it to the hallway, however, some of the fog cleared.  His lungs didn’t feel quite so tight.  But there was… something else.  A glow that hadn’t been visible from his room.  Through the window, like a beacon of warmth and light… Something that pushed against the darkness of his grief and rage…

His legs regained their strength the closer he grew to the light.  It involved actually going out through his front door, but that wasn’t so bad, was it?  It was near midnight, with barely a buzz of traffic, and… and the light.  How could he possibly sense any negative emotions when staring into its blinding fluorescence?  

Dully he realized he should be worried about that—he needed those negative emotions if he wanted to save his beloved Emilie—but it was difficult to think beyond navigating the narrow alleyways to follow the bright beacon.  How was it still out of reach?  He swore it had been just outside his window, a halo of light, with just a few shadows dancing within… shadows in the shape of… some kind of insect…?

Before he could discern the image now glowing against the brick wall, something wrapped around him from behind.

“Gotcha,” a girl’s voice hissed.  The string binding him dug into his arms.

“It’s really him,” a boy breathed.  

“Or he’s just crazy.  We haven’t ruled that out yet.”

“Unhand me at once!”  Gabriel shouted—tried to shout.  His voice still hadn’t fully recovered.    Nooroo was safely hidden in his jacket, and for a moment he considered transforming.  Why had he gone out without a bodyguard?  He’d made enough enemies even as a civilian; he should’ve known better, but that cursed light—the light that left spots in his eyes as a red-and-black arm reached down to unplug its source.

“Sorry, Mister Agreste.  Not until we check you for any mysterious jewelry.”

The girl spun him around, and he came face-to-face with his archnemesis herself.  It was difficult to keep the sneer off his face.

“Does the hero of Paris often accost civilians in the street?”

“Only when they show at least three signs of being Hawkbutt,” Chat Noir said from behind her.  He wore a sterile smile, one that clashed with the bitter green of his glinting scleras.  

Gabriel shuddered.  He was just a child.  Nothing to be afraid of, even with the power of destruction curled within his ink-black ring.

Even when he apparently knew Gabriel’s identity.

“I’ll be reporting this to the authorities,” he still threatened as he processed the scene.  Ladybug and Chat Noir, confronting him in an alleyway with no witnesses.  A now-dark spotlight he now recognized as Queen Bee’s signal.  A red-and-black cord that must have been the hero’s Lucky Charm

They’d planned this.  They knew.

Still, he clung to the hope that they wouldn’t find his miraculous. Not when it was hidden under— 

Ladybug tugged his half-eaten tie out from his vest.  “Wow, you weren’t kidding.  This is...”

She trailed off as her eyes caught the shine of purple beneath the red and white silk.  Beside her, Chat Noir froze.

“Nooroo, dark wings—!”

Chat Noir’s claw snagged the brooch before he could complete the phrase.  Nooroo zipped back into the miraculous, and Gabriel swore he heard the kwami sigh in relief.

This was… not ideal.

“It is you.”  Chat Noir’s hands shook—with rage?  Gabriel wouldn’t begrudge him that.  He instinctively moved to capitalize on that emotion before remembering he couldn’t akumatize anyone in his current state.

“Chat…?”  Ladybug reached out to him, and he turned to bury himself in her arms.  

Gabriel thought it might provide an opportunity to squirm free from Ladybug’s string, but her grip on her yo-yo was just as tight as her grip on her partner.  He grit his teeth.  Surely there was a way out of this!  He couldn’t lose to two teenagers over—over chasing a spotlight!

“It’s okay.  I’m here,” the girl was consoling him, though the useless hero had barely done anything besides some quick sleight of hand.

“Yeah.  Yeah, it’s going to be okay.”  He sniffled and smiled softly at her.  Then his gaze sharpened to steel when he looked back at Gabriel.

“Come on, Father.  I hope they have good therapy in jail.”

[coffeecomicsgalore]

25 Days of Adrien (+6 of Marinette)

A Christmas Miracle

Part of the MLHolidays2k19 prompt.

Ao3

Chapter 25 – Christmas Day

Adrien’s alarm rang a few minutes to six, giving him enough time to say goodbye to Marinette, transform, and land safely back to his room before Nathalie would wake him up for the day.

He rubbed the sleepy sand from his eyelids and planted kisses on Marinette’s jawline.  

She scrunched up her face and gently swatted away the man who was teasing her awake. “Bad kitty.” She mumbled.

“Come on bugaboo. I have to go. If I don’t go now, Nathalie will figure out I’m missing and I won’t be able to come by for brunch. Plus, I’ll only be gone for about an hour.” He kissed her lips. “I’ll be back soon. I promise.”  

Marinette pried one eye open while pouting at his words. “I guess if it means I see you soon, then okay. I’ll see you soon.”

He pressed one last kiss to her lips before calling upon his transformation and vaulting out the skylight in quick action.  

Soon enough, Marinette woke up to Tikki nuzzling her face, reminding her to get ready before Adrien came back over. Marinette slowly woke up, already missing the warmth that had left her side. She ran her hand against the bare spot, smiling at the fact that Adrien had been over sleeping peacefully beside her. It wasn’t the first time he slept over, but it only reminded her that the number of times that they could do this would soon end.  

She chose a pretty shimmery, crimson, long sleeved dress that stopped mid-thigh, and paired it with white leggings and black combat boots. She wore her hair down with strands tied back into a half pony with a crimson bow. Natural looking make-up completed the look.

“Joyeux Noël! Merry Christmas!” She kissed her maman and papa before moseying into the kitchen to help set the table for morning brunch. She sniffed the air. “Mm. Papa, everything smells so good! What are we having?”

“The Christmas special! Crepes, fresh fruit, croissants and jam, danishes, and peppermint coffee.”

“Oh, I can’t wait! Adrien should be here soon.” She remembered her conversation with Adrien the night before and looked over to her maman. “Adrien called me last night after he got home. His father invited me over for dinner today. I was hoping it was okay for me to go with him, only after we finish everything here, I mean.”

Her maman smiled at her shy request. Even at 18, Marinette was always unsure when it came to family matters. She did not want to hurt her family in any way, also considering that today was a holiday, but she also didn’t want to upset Adrien’s dad and not show up to dinner, even more so that he requested she be there himself (or at least through Adrien).

“Of course, sweetie. As soon as brunch, presents, and games are done, you are welcome to head over to Adrien’s home. Make sure you bring the box of treats we set aside for him.” Sabine gestured to the pastry box on the table. Her papa must have created a few extra treats for Adrien to bring over today.

“Thanks, maman.”  

As soon as the table was set, the doorbell rang and Marinette bolted to the door to greet her handsome blonde beau.  

“Joyeux Noël!” Adrien chimed before kissing Marinette. He turned to Tom and Sabine. “Joyeux Noël!”

“Joyeux Noël!” Tom and Sabine replied back, Tom reaching over and giving Adrien a hug. “You’re just in time! I just finished breakfast and Marinette just finished setting the table.”

Adrien shifted the gifts that were piled in his hands and Marinette grabbed a few before bringing them to the tree. The family sat and enjoyed the delicious breakfast, laughing over some funny baby Marinette moments from Christmas pasts. It only prompted an embarrassed and flustered Marinette, but Adrien enjoyed that the color of her cheeks matched her dress perfectly.

Soon enough, the table was cleared and the family all gathered around the tree to open gifts. Sabine handed Adrien two gifts while Tom handed Marinette three. Adrien and Marinette each handed the parents their gifts to open. Adrien received a scrapbook kit and a camera, something that Adrien had said he wanted in passing. Marinette opened hers to reveal brand new artist markers, a sketchbook, and soft emerald fabric that she had been eyeing. Tom received a personalized apron that said Master Punny Baker with a chef hat and two whisks crossed behind it to look like skull and bones from Adrien and a handmade sweater from Marinette. Adrien gifted Sabine a family tree pendant with birthstones that represented her, Tom, and Marinette and received a handmade ornate dress from Marinette.

Sabine and Tom each handed a gift to each other while Marinette and Adrien exchanged gifts of their own. Marinette had made Adrien a few cat pun shirts with some physics garble on it while Adrien gifted Marinette a necklace and bracelet set with two very distinct charms on each – a paw print and ladybug on the necklace and a black and pink charm (for Plagg and Tikki) on the bracelet. Adrien noted that once they added members to their own little family, she could add on as many charms as she wanted.

Games were played and the morning passed quickly before Adrien noticed the time. He turned to Marinette and nodded noting it was time to go. “While I wish I could stay here all day and hang out with all of you, it is time for us to head to Christmas dinner with my Father.” He gathered his things and placed them on the table as Marinette grabbed the pastry box and gifts for Gabriel, Nathalie, and Gorilla and placed it near Adrien’s belongings.

Tom and Sabine hugged Adrien goodbye, thanking him again for the wonderful gifts and spending time with them. They bid their daughter farewell and shooed them out the door.

-----xoxox-----

Marinette and Adrien arrived to the mansion quickly, thanks to his bodyguard. As they entered the atrium of the mansion, Adrien assisted Marinette’s coat off her shoulders and placed it in the arms of his bodyguard. Marinette and Adrien shifted uncomfortably as Nathalie came through the doorway wishing them both Joyeux Noël in a cheerful tone. Marinette smiled and wished her one back, Adrien repeating the phrase with a friendly tone himself.  

“Your father is waiting for you in the dining hall, Adrien.” He nodded and placed a hand to the small of Marinette’s back, both to guide her to the room and for stability. Gabriel stood from his place at the table wishing them both a Joyeux Noël before gesturing to sit at the table in front of them.

Adrien and Marinette both wished him back as he guided her to his usual spot at the large table. When he noticed the table settings were not set, Adrien looked back to his father and noticed the settings were all placed near Gabriel. With that, he also noticed that there were extra settings at the table, one presumably for Nathalie and the other for Gorilla. He looked to both the secretary and the bodyguard and noticed a smile to their faces, waiting for Marinette and Adrien to take a seat at the table before they took theirs.  

Gabriel looked to Marinette. “Mademoiselle. When you came for lunch a few weeks back and assisted Adrien in trimming the tree, you brought back a light that was missing in this house. I noticed you sitting beside him, allowing Adrien to speak and remember her. You helped me remember those moments that we cherished so much.” His reminder brought up a teary smile. “It helped me so much that every moment I am away from my office, I stand in front of the tree and look to the ornaments that I had given her. The angel – the last one she had given us – is the one I look at the most. It reminds me of her in so many ways.” He looked to his place setting, nudging the wine glass to the side.  

“I know I haven’t been the best lately, especially during this time of year.” Gabriel glanced at Adrien placing a tender hand over his. “I miss your mother terribly, but that is no excuse for me to ignore you. And I deeply regret doing that to you. I’m sorry.”

Adrien audibly swallowed. Marinette guided her hand over to his, encouraging Adrien to speak in order to break the silence.

“All I wanted was for us to be a family, Father. I wished you could have been there all the times I needed you. I wished so much for that. I accept your apology, and I love you, but I would love for us to work on our family before I can forgive you completely.”

Gabriel nodded in understanding. “That’s all I ask.”  

The dinner moved forward with conversations between all parties. Adrien still could not believe what had happened; his father was actually speaking to him and his girlfriend. Nathalie was having a meaningful conversation with them all. Laughter and jokes were at the table. Even Gorilla smiled!  

At one point, Adrien leaned into Marinette’s ear and whispered, “Am I in shock and this is all a dream or is this really happening?”

Marinette turned to Adrien and smiled as she put a hand on his. “I’m calling this a Christmas miracle. But I’m proud of you and standing your ground. I just hope he continues to treat you like this.”

“Years of damage won’t be fixed overnight, but I’m willing to try if he is.” Marinette nodded in agreement. “But it is a Christmas miracle, indeed.”

[tenebres-champ-moved]

“ Akela, ‘m comin’ in. ”

It only takes the pushing of a door to see that the room is completely empty. She had been searching around the house, just to see her mother again -- for she had decided to come back early from her trip to Alola.

Her steps had guided her in the attic.

She cannot recall the last time she went up there. In fact, she doesn’t think she has even been there at all. Yet many toys of her youth are scattered around -- the floorboards creak and groan under her light steps.

She has never been there ... Yet she cannot help but feel nostalgic herself, once she takes a good look upon that room. From the small window on the left, light poured in heavily and flooded the place, so much even the dust present in the air became visible. Everything stays unmoved, as if suspended in time -- the old rocking horse of her younger years tilts back and forth gently, barely.

That is enough to bring a slight smile up her face, and her hand reaches for an old framed picture on a old drawer.

“ ‘S like she didn’t get any wrinkles on her face ... ”

Her mother, on her wedding day, with Gabriel Nicolai, her father, at her side. Oh yeah, that reminds her that she brought some malasadas for him, too. Dude goes crazy for sugar.

And that would have been that, she would have turned around, has it not been for that small, tiny detail.

... The drawer, unlike any other piece of furniture in the room, stayed clear of dust.

When was the last time someone came up here ? A cloud of dust rises as she takes another step, crouches down.

“ What kind’a shitty secret does she have ... ” Honestly, maybe some naughty novels. Akela could have been the type, after all -- not really old fashioned, still had some old alolan standards ... But, hey. Girls be wildin’. 

... She shouldn’t think about these things when it concerns her mom, she thinks. She keeps on pawing inside one of the drawers as she goes.

“ ... Mhh ? ”

Something soft, yarn. She doesn’t know what kind. She feels many bumps under her fingers, something that is old, something that could fall apart any time, unfinished. The sun reveals the red sweater once she takes it out, and the knitting sticks are still attached to it, heavy on each side. So small -- for a baby.

... Was that for her ? No, no. Her mom did make her one when she was ... That had to be for her, right ?

A sense of panic rises.

She remembers this feeling. It was the same she had felt many times while traveling through every room of her home as a child. Something missing, barely out of reach. Something so close, so distant, so needed.

Her movements become less fluid as she opens the drawer fully.

She had wished she had found erotic novels.

Papers, documents, an old burned picture. They all stood there, idle, frozen in time, like the rest of the room. Clear of dust, just as if they were just put there.

A trembling hand reached for the photograph. There is her. There is her mother. There is ...

... THAT’S NOT HER. THAT’S NOT HER FATHER.

Even with the face burned out, even with the corners missing, she knew. This isn’t Gabriel. This isn’t his body, these aren’t his clothes. The man standing right beside her mother, still on the hospital bed -- THAT IS NOT HER FATHER.

THE CHILD SHE HOLDS IS NOT HER.

𝐏𝐀𝐍𝐈𝐂 𝐑𝐈𝐒𝐄𝐒 𝐋𝐈𝐊𝐄 𝐀 𝐖𝐀𝐕𝐄, 𝐋𝐀𝐑𝐈𝐌𝐀𝐑’𝐒 𝐃𝐀𝐌𝐒 𝐓𝐇𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐓𝐄𝐍 𝐓𝐎 𝐁𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐊. 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐁𝐈𝐑𝐃 𝐒𝐈𝐍𝐆𝐒 𝐈𝐍 𝐇𝐄𝐑 𝐑𝐈𝐁𝐁𝐂𝐀𝐆𝐄, 𝐇𝐄𝐑 𝐁𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐓𝐇𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐁𝐄𝐂𝐎𝐌𝐄𝐒 𝐌𝐎𝐑𝐄 𝐄𝐑𝐑𝐀𝐓𝐈𝐂 𝐀𝐒 𝐒𝐇𝐄 𝐒𝐓𝐀𝐘𝐒 𝐒𝐓𝐈𝐋𝐋 𝐎𝐍 𝐇𝐄𝐑 𝐊𝐍𝐄𝐄𝐒. 𝐇𝐄𝐑 𝐇𝐀𝐍𝐃𝐒, 𝐂𝐋𝐀𝐌𝐌𝐘, 𝐓𝐈𝐆𝐇𝐓𝐄𝐍 𝐀𝐑𝐎𝐔𝐍𝐃 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐏𝐈𝐂𝐓𝐔𝐑𝐄. 𝐒𝐈𝐍𝐂𝐄 𝐖𝐇𝐄𝐍 𝐖𝐀𝐒 𝐈𝐓 𝐒𝐎 𝐇𝐎𝐓 𝐈𝐍 𝐇𝐄𝐑𝐄.

𝙄𝙏’𝙎 𝙃𝙀𝙍𝙀. 𝙄𝙏’𝙎 𝙃𝙀𝙍𝙀. 𝙒𝙃𝘼𝙏 𝙎𝙃𝙀 𝙃𝘼𝘿 𝘿𝙀𝙎𝙋𝙀𝙍𝘼𝙏𝙀𝙇𝙔 𝙏𝙍𝙄𝙀𝘿 𝙏𝙊 𝙁𝙄𝙉𝘿 𝙄𝙎 𝙃𝙀𝙍𝙀. 𝙒𝙃𝘼𝙏 𝙒𝘼𝙎 𝙈𝙄𝙎𝙎𝙄𝙉𝙂, 𝙒𝙃𝘼𝙏 𝙈𝘼𝘿𝙀 𝙃𝙀𝙍 𝙃𝙊𝙈𝙀 𝙁𝙀𝙀𝙇 𝙎𝙊 𝘼𝙇𝙄𝙀𝙉 𝙒𝙄𝙏𝙃𝙊𝙐𝙏 𝙄𝙏. 𝙎𝙃𝙀 𝙍𝙀𝙈𝙀𝙈𝘽𝙀𝙍𝙎 𝙏𝙃𝙀 𝙁𝘼𝙄𝙉𝙏 𝙎𝙊𝘽𝘽𝙄𝙉𝙂 𝙊𝙁 𝘼 𝙈𝙊𝙏𝙃𝙀𝙍, 𝙍𝙀𝙈𝙀𝙈𝘽𝙀𝙍𝙎 𝙃𝙐𝙎𝙃𝙀𝘿 𝙒𝙃𝙄𝙎𝙋𝙀𝙍𝙎 𝙄𝙉 𝙏𝙃𝙀 𝙆𝙄𝙏𝘾𝙃𝙀𝙉 𝘼𝙎 𝙎𝙃𝙀 𝙎𝙏𝘼𝙍𝙀𝙎 𝙏𝙃𝙍𝙊𝙐𝙂𝙃 𝙏𝙃𝙀 𝘾𝙍𝘼𝘾𝙆 𝙊𝙁 𝙏𝙃𝙀 𝘿𝙊𝙊𝙍. 𝙎𝙃𝙀 𝘿𝙊𝙀𝙎 𝙉𝙊𝙏 𝙐𝙉𝘿𝙀𝙍𝙎𝙏𝘼𝙉𝘿 𝙒𝙃𝘼𝙏 𝙏𝙃𝙀𝙔’𝙍𝙀 𝙎𝘼𝙔𝙄𝙉𝙂.

“ I don’t care that she isn’t mine. I will love her with my whole heart. ”

That can’t be it, that can’t be it, THAT CAN’T BE IT.

𝘚𝘩𝘦 𝘥𝘰𝘦𝘴����’𝘵 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘩𝘢𝘴 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘤𝘳𝘺. 𝘋𝘰𝘦𝘴𝘯’𝘵 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘧𝘢𝘤𝘦 𝘨𝘰𝘵 𝘧𝘭𝘰𝘰𝘥𝘦𝘥 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘵𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘴, 𝘣𝘶𝘵 𝘪𝘵 𝘥𝘰𝘦𝘴𝘯’𝘵 𝘮𝘢𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘳. 𝘏𝘦𝘳 𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘴 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘤𝘩 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘱𝘢𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘴, 𝘢 𝘯𝘢𝘮𝘦, 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘯𝘦𝘦𝘥𝘴 𝘢 𝘯𝘢𝘮𝘦. 𝘈 𝘯𝘢𝘮𝘦.

Yamamoto Sil . . .

                                     She can’t.

Strelitzia rushes out, breath heavy, slams the door behind her as she runs down the stairs, missing a few steps. She goes down to the ground floor, grabs her jacket resting on the kitchen’s chair, and when she looks up -- 

“ Oh honey, were you home already ? ”

... Her mother is right there, and her breath is cut short at the same exact time. Soon enough, she regains her composure once again, or tries to, as much as she can.

“ - ... Yeah, I ... Wanted to surprise you guys. - Expected of Sardonyx Ville’s very own dark-type gym leader, isn’t it ? Tu es adorable. ”

She ... Acts as if nothing ever happened. How could she ? For all these years -- HOW COULD SHE ?                                                                                 Didn’t it ever hurt ? Her mind imagines her sobbing mother, holding tight that old sweater.

“ - ... I gotta go out. - The gym is opened again ? - Yeah, I ... Yeah, that’s it. Gotta call the others. - Alright, well, you be careful, okay ? I love you. - I love you too ... ”

“ ... Mom. ”

Once again, the woman turns back around, surprised -- then a tender smile grows back on her face.

                                               “ Oh, that’s nice. ” 

She just needed her mother’s smile to decide that she wouldn’t have told her of her discovery. Not now.

                                                                                                                                    Nor ever.

[synkiller82]

Collapse Into Me Chapter 15 - Anguish

Adrien sat at his computer, his head resting in his hands.  He knew the paparazzi could spin a tale, but the current ones were certainly competing for best fairy tale written by a delusional lunatic.  There were pictures of his lunch date with Marinette, their walks to school, and even photos from his fencing tournament.  The headlines went from an innocent hidden girlfriend to gold-digger ploys.

“Father is going to ground me for life,” Adrien groaned as his head slid to the desk.  “There is no way he’ll let me see Marinette after all this.”

Plagg, who had been cackling at some of the more outlandish stories, turned to his charge.  “Don’t worry so much.  If he hasn’t summoned you by now, he probably won’t.”

“Do you know how much work it’s going to take to clean this mess up?  It will probably take the whole legal team days to squash all these rumors,” Adrien stood up just to fall face first into his bed.  “I’ve really screwed up this time.”

“Kit, go to bed,” Plagg advised as he hovered over Adrien.  “You need to be able to function tomorrow.”

“Why’s that, Plagg, so I can sit here and watch the world go by again?”

“Two words,” Plagg answered, though he knew his kit was being sarcastic.  “Bakery Girl.”

Adrien shot straight out of bed.  Plagg was right.  While Adrien was used to the paparazzi, Marinette had no idea what kind of jackals they were.  Adrien glanced at his clock, noting it was just after midnight.  Too late to talk to Marinette or his father.  Sighing, Adrien crawled under the covers, not entirely sure he wanted tomorrow to come.

---

 A sharp knock woke Adrien before his alarm the next morning.  Without an answer, Nathalie walked in from the far door.  “Your father would like to speak with you in 20 minutes.”

“Thank you, Nathalie,” Adrien replied with a sigh.  He got up as Nathalie left and went to his bathroom to get ready.  After a quick shower, he dressed in a black sweater over a pale grey button-down that he paired with black pants and black dress shoes.  With Plagg tucked, warm and secure, into Adrien’s breast pocket, he grabbed his school bag and headed to his father’s atelier.

Adrien took a deep breath and knocked on the door, nervously waiting for an answer from the other side.  At Gabriel’s acknowledgement, Adrien opened the door and stepped inside, closing the door behind him.

“Adrien,” Gabriel began, his tone cold and even.  “I would expect better from you.  Your outing yesterday is causing me unnecessary work.”  Gabriel’s eyes seemed to pierce through Adrien.  “Maybe some time away from Ms. Dupain-Cheng, as well as the rest of that group, will help you refocus.”

“I’m sorry for the trouble I caused, Father.  Please don’t blame Marinette or the others,” Adrien answered, hoping his voice didn’t betray his internal panic at the thought of being confined again.  “What can I do to help clean up the mess I made?”

“We are releasing an official statement this afternoon confirming your relationship with Ms. Dupain-Cheng and denying the rest of the outlandish claims.  You are to inform Ms. Dupain-Cheng of this and bring her here this afternoon to work with Maurice.”

Adrien was stunned.  He wasn’t quite sure what to make of this, but questioning it would probably be a bad thing.  “Thank you, Father.  I’ll tell her this morning.”

Gabriel nodded and turned his attention back to his tablet.  As Adrien’s hand touched the door, Gabriel spoke once more, “Adrien, if this happens again, I will not hesitate to withdraw you from school and continue your education here.”

“I understand.  Have a good day, Father.”

---

Marinette woke to her phone ringing incessantly in her ear with Alya’s ringtone.  “Lo?”

“Marinette!” Alya shrieked, causing Marinette to hold the phone away from her ear.  “You are all over the net girl!  You are trending higher than Ladybug!”

Marinette, who was still half asleep despite her friend’s yelling, was trying hard to keep up.  “Alya, what are you talking about?”

She heard the tell-tale beep of text messages coming through.  “Check those out and I’ll see you in class.”  Alya’s chuckling rang in her ears as her best friend hung up the phone.

Marinette opened up her phone to find over 50 messages in the class group chat, four from Adrien, and over a dozen from Alya.  Ignoring the class and Adrien, for now, she opened up her chat window with Alya and clicked on the first link.  Staring back at her was a photo of her and Adrien hugging in the alcove where they expressed their feelings for each other.  She blanched when she read the headline of the article: Adrien Agreste in Secret Relationship: What will happen to his other girl? 

Marinette closed out the article and opened two more before she threw her phone on her bed, falling next to it and screaming into her pillow.  Was this why Adrien was always seemed on edge, or maybe like he was performing, when they were all out in public?  Was this something she would have to deal with as well if she dated him?  Was she willing to have her privacy invaded like this all the time?  What about her parents?

“Marinette,” Tikki called softly to her companion.  She had seen a few of the articles Marinette had pulled up, the last one making her out to be just another girl after Adrien for his wealth.  “You shouldn’t get upset.  None of it is true and Adrien knows that.”

“What about his father, Tikki?  My friends at school?  My parents?  His fans?”  Marinette rattled off as she felt the tears pricking her eyes.  “I can’t go to school today, Tikki.”

“You will be fine, Marinette,” Tikki assured as she rubbed a paw on Marinette’s cheek.  “You can’t hide in here forev—”

“Marinette!”  Tom’s voice called up from the floor below.  Tikki ducked out of view as the hatch opened.  “Adrien just called.  He’s coming over early to talk to you.”

Marinette’s eyes went wide and she dashed out of bed.  She had to get ready quickly so she could talk to her parents before he got there.  She put on a pink and grey striped sweater dress with a black belt around the middle, grey leggings and black boots.  She pulled her hair into a braid over her left shoulder, and went downstairs to talk to her mom.

“Hey, Papa,” Marinette started as she made her breakfast.  “Can I ask you something?”

“Of course, Cupcake,” Tom answered, coming to sit at the table. 

“Well, it’s about Adrien, I guess.  The gossip columns got photos of us and they are writing horrible stories about us.”

“Don’t worry, Marinette.  As long as those who know and love you understand that they’re just lies, then the rest doesn’t matter.  Your mother and I love you and support your decision.  We will keep those jackals off you as much as we can.”

Marinette jumped into her father’s arms, comforted by the warmth and love the mountain of a man gave.  No matter what might happen, she had her parents.

There was a quick knock on the door before it opened and Adrien stepped through.  Marinette raised an eyebrow at his monochromatic wardrobe choice for today, but decided not to say anything.  She wasn’t feeling very colorful either.

“Good morning, Mr. Dupain.  Hey, Marinette,” Adrien greeted.  He made no effort to come further into the house than necessary.

“Good morning, Adrien,” Tom called back. “I’ll leave you two to talk.”  Tom took his leave, placing a hand on Adrien’s shoulder and giving him a reassuring smile as he passed.

Adrien watched the door close than slowly turned to find Marinette looking down at the table.  He took a few tentative steps forward, stopping on the other side of the table from her.  “Marinette, I’m so sorry.  I should’ve been more careful—”

“It’s okay,” Marinette interrupted.  “You didn’t ask for this life.  I should’ve known this was a possibility and it’s something I’ll have to get used to, I guess.”  She looked up at him, the small smile she was trying to convey slipped when she saw the unease in his eyes.  “What’s wrong, Adrien?  Did your father say something to you?”

Adrien nodded.  “He said they’re making a formal statement about us this afternoon and you should come with me after school to talk to our image coach.”  He winced as he told her, hating that he had dragged her into this without any real warning.

Marinette sat for a second longer, processing the information.  She stood, walked around the table, and wrapped her arms around Adrien’s torso.  “Okay.”  She felt his arms curl around her back and pulling her closer.  “If that is what we need to do, then let’s get it done.”

“You are really okay with this?”  Adrien asked, pulling away to look down at her.  The determination in her eyes reminded him of Ladybug.

“In all honesty, not really,” she confessed, shrugging her shoulders.  “But I care about you and I still want to give this a chance.  If this is what I have to do in order to date you, then I’ll do it.”

Adrien wrapped her tightly again, tears pricking his eyes.  He had been so afraid she would leave him when she found out what was happening.  He should learn to never underestimate the girl in his arms.  She was full of surprises, but more than that, she always stood by her friends.

“Thank you,” he whispered into her hair.

She pulled back and ran her thumb along his cheekbone.  “Anytime.”  She kissed his cheek and walked over to grab her bag.  “Now, let’s go face those harpies.”

They walked out of the bakery hand-in-hand, not paying any attention to the shouting from across the street.  The entrance to the school was crawling with reporters.  Marinette felt Adrien slow a bit as the neared the school, but she squeezed his hand and gently pulled on it.  They slowly made their way through the crowd, and Marinette turned back around once they were at the top of the stairs.

“Before we go in, I would like to clarify a few things,” Marinette announced to the crowd in front of them.  “Adrien and I started dating yesterday.  I am not dating him because he has money or connections.  I am dating him because he is a wonderful person with a beautiful soul.  Now, please leave us and our families alone.”

---

Adrien and Marinette were hanging out in his room after her meeting with Maurice.  He had been impressed by her, but Gabriel expected more.  Maurice gave her a book to study and set an appointment in one week’s time to see what she had learned.  Nathalie had also come by to tell them that the official statement from the Agreste household had been made, though it had to be modified a bit due to Marinette’s ‘stunt.’  Now, they were just sitting on Adrien's couch watching a movie.

Well, Marinette was watching the movie. Adrien couldn't stop watching Marinette's reactions as the movie progressed.  He couldn't get over how cute she was. 

After the movie was over, he decided to ask her something that had been on his mind since yesterday.  "Marinette, has anyone asked you to the Winter Formal?"

She turned to look at him.  "Not yet."

Adrien took her hand.  "Marinette, will you allow me to escort you to the Winter Formal?"

Marinette's face broke out into a wide smile.  "Yes!"

[lollipop1141]

Of Friends and Christmas Sweaters

Summary: The Christmas season had always been somewhat nostalgically lonely for him. But maybe, this time, things could be different.

10 years ago…

Multi-colored baubles and Christmas lights decked the halls of the Agreste Mansion as soft holiday music floated around the house, smells of cinnamon and hot chocolate filling the air, bringing in the Christmas magic.

Laughter spilled through the crack underneath the door leading to the living room where a large evergreen tree was on the process of being dressed up in traditional and handcrafted decorations by a happy family.

"Mama, look! I'm a Christmas tree!" A young five year old with golden locks called out to his mother through a mouthful of green garlands. His parents looked over to him and burst out laughing. His limbs stuck out at odd angles as he hobbled around, wrapped in the wreath like a present.

His mother reached out to grab a loose end and pulled it. Adrien spun around before slowing down in a drunken stagger, giggling all the way before falling on his mother's lap. He gave them a toothy grin. "I'm a bare tree now!"

Gabriel Agreste chuckled as he ruffled his son's hair. "Just like this tree, eh? C'mon, this one won't get dressed by itself without our help."

"Okay Père!" Adrien piped as he jumped up and grabbed a Santa decoration. Raising his arms up, his father lifted him and Adrien hung it in a bough. Then he paused. Gabriel looked at his son and grew shocked at the tears spilling down his face. He cradled Adrien in his arms. "Son, what's wrong?"

"Santa won't be able to come and give me presents." The child sobbed. His parents exchanged puzzled, worried looks.

"Why is that, ma cherie?" His mother asked gently. Adrien's crying was too hard that his reply was a blubbering mess. Fortunately, his mother deciphered what he was saying. "Is it because we don't have a chimney?"

Adrien nodded miserably. He didn't notice the repressed laughter of his parents as he was too sad with receiving no presents this year.

“Don’t worry, mon minou.” His mother said as she kissed his forehead. “Santa always finds a way.”

And find a way Santa did because on Christmas Day, footprints of snow came from the large window leading to a present-filled Christmas tree.

“Santa came! He came! He even ate my cookies!” Adrien shouted excitedly as he ran in the living room. Gabriel Agreste yawned widely, as he watched his son talk animatedly about his presents. He smiled and kissed his wife lovingly, one arm wrapped around her waist.

“Joyeux Noël, ma amour.”

…

It was on nights like this – cold and bitter, outside looking in warmth-filled houses – that Chat Noir wondered how Marinette could stay the optimist that she is when all these akuma attacks happened around her.

It was on nights like these – dark and lonely – that his thoughts were magnified. Especially one particular thought which the object of his affections was.

Ladybug.

He wondered if she was spending this night alone or with her family or with her special someone. Just thinking of the latter one made his chest ache. She wouldn’t think of him on this Christmas season. Why would she?

It was on nights like this –

“Chat Noir?”

Chat Noir snapped out of his self-deprecating woes as Marinette’s voice carried out from the opening in her balcony. She stepped out, a quilt blanket wrapped around, beckoned him. Chat Noir hesitated for a moment and then leaped down from the rooftop and onto the railings, hands and feet gripping the cold steel.

She was quiet as he looked at her. Tension seemed to rise, but he didn’t know why. Her steady gaze matched his as she waited for him to break the silence.

“Why’re you up so late, Princess?” He finally said. Then he smirked. “You don’t want to cut down on your beauty sleep now, do you?”

“I could say the same to you.” Marinette snorted. But then her expression turned serious. She looked around. “Why are you out? Is there an akuma attack?”

“Relax. Paris is safe and sound in my paws.” Chat Noir said easily. “I’m just out on patrol for possible akuma victims. Y’know, the usual.”

She gave him a skeptical look and he wondered if she saw through his lie. Seems like she did because she shrugged and with a smile, she said, “Would you like to come in?”

Chat Noir gaped at her. He peeked in her bedroom, all Christmas lights and pink, and said, “But your parents-”

“Oh they’re asleep. As long as we stay quiet, no one will be the wiser.” Marinette said with a wink. Chat felt his heart skip a beat. He knew Marinette was filled with brilliant ideas, but this one didn’t feel brilliant at all.

“Are you sure? I mean, what if I try to do something to you?” Chat called out from behind her.

Marinette climbed down, saying easily, “Oh you wouldn’t do that.”

“How do you know?” Chat said, peeking down from the opening.

She looked up at him and grinned. “Because I know you, Chat Noir.”

He was taken aback. For a moment, a fleeting thought of ‘did she discover my identity’ passed through his brain. But then he shook his head and jumped inside her room.

The smell was what first hit him. He had been in her room before, but that was on a summer day with the smell of leaves and sunshine. Right now, the scent of cinnamon, chocolate, and peppermint filled his nose.

Chat Noir watched as she pulled out two large beanbags and laid them in the middle of the room. Marinette grabbed her laptop and put it on the floor. With an ‘I’ll be back’, she ducked downstairs. Once she came back up, she was balancing a tray of Christmas cookies in one hand and two mugs filled with hot spiced cocoa and marshmallows topped with whipped cream and chocolate shavings on the other.

He helped her set them down. Once again, she was a flurry of activity as she opened her drawers and pulled out small candles. There was a smile on his face as he watched her light them up and arranged the candles around them.

“What’s wrong?” Chat Noir tilted his head. Marinette was standing in front of him, her brows furrowed.

“I feel like I’m forgetting something.” Marinette mumbled. Then she brightened up. “Oh right!”

His eyes widened as Marinette pulled out a large red box from her closet. She handed it to him. Chat Noir was speechless. He looked from the box and back up to her blushing face. “I-Is this for me?”

She nodded her head. Chat Noir cradled the box in his hand, as if it was something incredibly fragile. Marinette pushed him down on the beanbag and flopped down beside him. She said excitedly, “What are you waiting for? Open it!”

Chat Noir pulled the green ribbon. It fluttered on his lap. He looked hesitantly at Marinette who just gave him a grin. Ever so slowly, he took off the lid and looked inside.

A wide smile grew on his face as his eyes lit up in delight. Marinette’s smile echoed his as he pulled out the present. It was a large red sweater with green paw prints distributed around. On the front were the words ‘The Chat’s Meow’.

“I – It’s amazing! You made this for me?!” Chat Noir looked inside. He took out a red Christmas hat with two peaks meant for his cat ears.

Marinette rested her chin on her hands. “Do you like it?”

Chat’s face popped out the hole of the sweater. “Are you kitten mew? This is the meowst pawsome present I’ve ever received!”

Marinette groaned, but there was a hint of a smile on her face as she watched Chat Noir inhale the scent, wrapping his arms tightly around himself. Her smile dropped when a solemn expression took over his face.

“What’s wrong?” She asked.

“I don’t have a present for you.” Chat said guiltily.

Her eyes widened. But then she gave him a soft smile and scooted a little closer. Bringing her laptop on her lap, Marinette said to him, “Your company is a good enough gift for me.”

“Are you sure?” Chat Noir gave her a skeptical look. “I mean, you must’ve spent hours making these-”

“And you’ve spent a thousand more keeping me safe from akumas.” Marinette interjected, stopping his tirade. “So trust me when I say that you really are the best present. You’ve kept me and all of Paris safe. And what’s more, you’re one of the bestest friends I ever had.”

Chat Noir stared at her, agape and touched. Slowly, his small smile turned into a full out grateful grin and he couldn’t help but let out a chuckle. “Wow, you’re really not pulling any punches on the compliments, huh, princess.”

Marinette shrugged as she played their favorite anime series. “Well, they are true. So don’t ever second-guess yourself, Chat Noir.”

He smiled as he settled down beside her. “I wouldn’t dream of it.”

A few episodes later, Chat Noir gently laid down a sleeping Marinette on her bed. Pulling up the covers, he took a moment to commit her peaceful face to memory before leaning down and giving her a light kiss on the cheek.

And with a “Joyeux Noël, Marinette,” he bid farewell.

[ourloveisforthelovely]

Second Chances 2

A/n: no warnings 

Words: 2, 504

Link to Chapter 1

Pairings: Gabriel x OFC

____________

Once back at the bunker Elena stormed in without a word to the men following her. She was still fuming over Gabriel magically showing up. After thousands of years of him being gone, Elena had made herself get over him. Now here she was feeling all of the same horrible feelings that she felt the day that he left her.

She had ignored him the whole ride back to the bunker. Elena had even refused to sit in the back of the Impala with him. She wedged herself between Sam and Dean not caring if the Winchesters were uncomfortable. That is what they got for bringing Gabriel back with them!

Elena's sour mood vanished when Jack poked his head up from the table he was sitting at. He grinned his usually happy smile upon seeing his family.

“How did it go?”

He asked cheerfully. Elena mumbled some choice words about Gabriel under her breath earning herself a scowl from the archangel.

“Awful!”

Elena finally grumbled before storming into her room slamming the door. Jack titled his head looking to over to Cas. The angel looked as equally confused until he noticed Gabriel standing behind Sam.

“That explains everything.”

He said gruffly. Gabriel and Cas exchanged a cold expression before Gabriel finally spoke.

“Okay, I'm an asshole! I get it.”

“Can't argue there.”

Dean replied with a smirk before going to get a beer out of the refrigerator. Gabriel had been so busy glaring at Dean he had forgotten the boy in the room that he didn't know. It wasn't until Jack spoke again that the archangel seemed to remember the unfamiliar face.

“Who is he?”

Jack asked curiously. Gabriel turned his body back in Jack's direction. He gave Jack the same curious expression.

“Who are you?”

He asked returning the question. Jack smiled.

“I'm Jack.”

Gabriel raised an eyebrow.

“Well that tells me a lot. Guess my name is Joe then.”

Sam rolled his eyes.

“That isn't his name Jack. This is your uncle Gabriel.”

Gabriel's smirk had went from amusement to dead serious as he looked at Jack. He took in the boys appearance before clasping his hand over his mouth.

“Oh my dad!”

Dean nodded.

“Yeah, oh your dad is right. Don't worry he isn't evil. Kid doesn't even acknowledge Luci as his father.”

Gabriel still looked as though he was putting everything together.

“I am just going to go over her and sit quietly for a moment.”

Seeing the archangel completely silent and looking beyond baffled was an amusing sight for everyone in the room. Jack had planned to say something to his uncle but shrugged realizing that the guy didn't seem open for conversation. With a shrug, Jack went back to his happy normal ways.  

It wasn't until Elena walked out did Gabriel open his eyes again. He looked up eagerly at Elena, hoping that a few moments of quiet had changed her mind. She looked a lot more like the girl that he remembered. Elena had taken off the trampy make up and changed into leggings and lose sweater. She looked like the beautiful girl that had originally stolen his heart.

The moment that she gave him a cold glare did Gabriel know that nothing had changed. Elena walked right past Gabriel before taking the empty plate that was resting in front of Jack.

“Have you eaten?”

She asked softly. Jack nodded with a smile.

“I had tuna. I don't like it.”

Elena chuckled.

“Let me fix you something proper. Tuna isn't a good dinner.”

Jack stood following Elena into the kitchen.

“You don't have to do that auntie. I don't need anything else.”

Elena reached over tucking  a strand of Jack's hair away from his face. Part of her adored the ways that he reminded her of Gabriel. Tonight, however, it was almost a curse. She could look in the living room and see Gabriel watching them like a hawk. She wasn't sure if he as jealous or curious.

She scoffed at the thought of Gabriel being jealous. What did he have to be jealous of? Did he honestly think that Elena would be interested in Jack like that? Surely he wasn't that crazy. At the moment Elena wasn't putting anything past him though.

“Are you sure?”

She asked softly. Jack nodded.

“I was reading a moment ago. Did you realize that it is Christmas Eve tomorrow night?”

Elena's emerald eyes rolled back to the boy's face. She had, for the most part, put Christmas out of her life many years ago. All it brought was memories of her life that she would never get back. Besides what fun was Christmas when you were alone?

“I honestly forgot.”

She replied. Elena couldn't help feeling guilty. She should have looked at the calendar to see what day it was. There could have been some kind of Christmas planned for the boy.

Jack looked thoughtful.

“I read some of the customs. Presents, church services, family gatherings, and such....do we do any of those?”

Dean had wondered back into the kitchen for another beer.

“Well kid I am planning on having another beer and gonna pass out in front of the TV. Its gonna be a winner of a holiday for me.”  

Elena gave Dean a small disapproving frown. That was one of the last things that Jack needed to be hearing! Although Dean getting wasted was a fairly normal occurrence for this being Jack's first Christmas it should be somewhat special.

“We can find something to do Jack.��

She said with a smile. Jack looked honestly excited.

“Great! I'll go get my coat.”

He raced out of the room with an over excited smile.

Once he was out of the room, Dean opened his beer before leaning back against the counter. He looked at Elena with a pleased expression. Cas' master plan to have the once angel assist in the care and keeping of Jack was working splendidly.

“So what do you have planned?”

He asked. Elena groaned.

“No idea.”

Gabriel appearing in the kitchen broke any thought process that Elena had.

“Elena you are going to have to talk to me sometime especially now that I know that you are mothering my nephew.”

Elena had started pawing through a cabinet looking for cookie mix. Surely Sam and Dean hadn't eaten all of the cookie mix that she had bought a few weeks ago! Glancing over her shoulder at Gabriel, Elena considered ignoring him. Maybe if she ignored him long enough he would get the message and bail like he was good at.

“Nah, I don't have to do anything.”

She replied coldly. Gabriel raised an eyebrow.

“You know you being this dismissive is a tad annoying! I am trying here. I mean actually trying! You, however, are biting my head off.”

Elena snorted.

“Jeez I wonder why?”

Gabriel silently was trying to remember if Elena had always been this moody? He didn't think so. In the past he could get her to smile without much struggle or trying. If she was mad at him it took a charming smile or some kind of fluffy admission of love and all was good in their world again. Tonight, though, was not one of those nights.

“Wanna go on  date with me?”

Gabriel asked. Dean laughed at that one. Gabriel shot the eldest Winchester a glare. The archangel didn't need any assistance when it came to repairing things with Elena.

Whether it be the thought of Gabriel doing something so stupid or the fact that she was honestly shocked Elena turned.

“No! Absolutely and positively no.”

She snapped. Gabriel frowned.

“How can I fix something if you won't stop being a stubborn woman?”

Dean winced.

“Ick it was nice knowing you Mary.”

Gabriel's golden eyes flickered to Dean. He chose to ignore Dean's snide comment as he looked back to Elena.

“I can fix this!”

Dean chuckled again. Elena was just waiting for Dean to cut in. If she had never been thankful for Dean Winchester she most certainly was now! He was antagonizing Gabriel so bad it was hilarious!

“That's a tall order for you Sally.”

Gabriel scowled at Dean.

“I get it! You are calling me different girl names to get under my skin.”

Dean pointed at Gabriel with a wink.

“You're catching on Peaches!”

Gabriel was giving Dean a furiously angry expression until Elena finally spoke again.

“Gabriel, how many sets of tits have you had your face in since we have been apart?”

Gabriel was quiet a moment. He was deciding whether he should be truthful or make up some shit eating story? The truth would be the best but at the same time it would probably infuriate Elena. If he lied then shit would definitely hit the fan later! The truth seemed to be the way to go!

Dean looked to Gabriel with a raised eyebrow.

“Gabe you shouldn't answer that!”

Gabriel sighed; turning to Elena.

“There's not a number sugar. So about that date and letting me make up?”

Elena was clearly disgusted.

“You're a pig!”

She growled before storming into the living room where Jack stood with his jacket in hand.

“I am ready auntie.”

Elena tried to smile but she couldn't.

“Wonderful, just on time.”

40 minutes later Elena and Jack sat in the upper balcony of a church that was in town. Jack was curiously watching the choir below as they sang Christmas carols to the congregation that had gathered. Elena had been trying to calm down since they had walked into the place. Watching the curious and peaceful expression on Jack's face was soothing in itself.

Although Elena had heard these songs thousands of times during her time on earth this time was different. Jack's had rested his face on his arm that lay on the balcony rail. He had been quiet for some time before turning and looking to Elena.

“So these people come to these services because it makes them happy?”

Elena nodded. She had barley looked at the congregation below. It had been a long time since she had really looked at a human! Before Michael had taken her grace she enjoyed watching the humans and doing what she could to help them along their way. She didn't like seeing people left to suffer. This had been what her father had commanded of her years before...be kind, be gentle. She was no solider nor would she ever be.

“Yes, they do. You see Jack, the humans, they worship God in their own ways...in their own voices. Some come to services while others stay home or do something different. Each way is unique and each way is special.”

Jack looked thoughtful.

“Did everything happen the way that the preacher told it a moment ago?”

Elena looked thoughtful again. Jack watched her carefully as he waited for a response. To him, she looked young like the rest of his family. Her eyes alone, however told the story of her age.

“Somewhat.”

Elena replied softly. She let her mind go back to the months leading up to the first Christmas. Her mind drifted to Gabriel. He had been so annoyed with God over everything that his father was asking of him.  

Gabriel had spent the majority of his free time whining to Elena about everything that was happening.

“These human won't listen to me Elena! All they do is run around screaming and I have to threaten them to get a word in. I have been down there three times and the nicest one has been that virgin that is being affected by this calamity.”

Elena had been sitting quietly as the archangel paced in front of her.

“Did she question you?”

Gabriel nodded.

“Well yes. Dude that is all sparkly and bright appears to you...you are probably going to ask questions.”

Elena sighed.

“Please tell me that you didn't take her voice away like you did Zachariah or call her an arrogant dick like you did her fiance.”

Gabriel stopped pacing at looked at her with a shocked expression.

“Oh please Elena! I am not that big a jerk! In her pediment I think she is entitled to questions. I felt sorry for her. I think I am just going to hold up a sign any time I have to appear to these humans that says, Fear Not! I'm an angel! I'm nice! Won't kill you! Don't ask questions or argue with me on the bases of reality on which I know about and you do not.”

Elena chuckled as Gabriel lay back resting his head on her lap.

“That will be an awful big sign for you to carry about.”

Elena's thoughts were disturbed by Gabriel's voice.

“I should have made that sign too.”

Gabriel was smiling when both Elena and Jack turned to face him. Jack looked slightly confused.

“Sign?”

He questioned. His comment seemed to go unnoticed as Elena turned to face the archangel that was seated on her left side.

“Wouldn't have done you any good. What are you doing here anyway?”

She whispered coldly. Gabriel shrugged.

“Church, Christmas, angel....me particular because that's when I turn up in the holy book go together quiet nicely. Come now Elena surely you haven't forgotten how everything happened or has this time as a human left you with just the nasty parts of our....past?”

Elena looked ahead coldly.

“Oh I remember everything!”

Gabriel leaned back in the bench. He closed his eyes and looked as though he was just enjoying the choir music below for a few moments.

“Well that's a relief.”

Elena rolled her eyes.

“You didn't answer my question. Why are you here?”

Gabriel's golden eyes snapped open.

“Can't a guy enjoy the holiday that he helped out with?”

Elena snorted.

“You bitched the whole time.”

Gabriel smirked.

“And your point is???? What else is new cupcake?” Okay fine you got me! I felt bad for what happened back there at Sam and Dean's hide out and I wanted to apologize. I'm sorry.”

Elena looked at him like he was some sneaky five year old that got caught stealing candy and was apologizing to get back in Mom/Dad's good favor.

“Yeah, whatever.”

She grumbled. Gabriel groaned.

“Tough crowd.”

He considered saying some more but he didn't. Gabriel knew that he had a lot of crap to make up for and right now Elena wasn't falling for any of his old tricks. Instead of making up with his lover Gabriel was now stuck in a church with a bunch of singing humans making him think of a past that he would rather forget...

_________

@sumara62

@greenappleeyes

@tas898

@sherala007

@jannalionheart

@authoressskr

[thetricksterwithwings]

Sam has an old sweater with a pumpkin on it that he used to always wear in October (aka Halloween month) before he got Beefy but it’s too small for him now so he gives it to Gabriel at the start of the month and Gabe wears it basically all month and he looks real cute cause it’s too small for Sam but still a lil too big for him. (Did someone say sweater paws? Yeah, me.)

soft headcanons?? please and thank you???