Chapter 12: Prisoner of War

                                    

                                          
      Marinette laid on the ground clutching to her body with one hand while the other was outstretched as if to try and grasp something infinitely out of reach but left only with the option to try anyway. Black Cat was in shock, but he immediately snapped himself out of this state to run to Marinette, Tikki not far behind.
      "Mari, it's me. Do you remember?"
      Cat was crouching to be as close to Marinette's level as possible without actually laying down beside her. He subtly scooped the fingers of her outstretched hand and with his other paw, gently picked up her chin to bring her back to reality and make some sort of eye contact.
      "Cat? I, I remember some things but, are you... did I... I'm so so-"
      Cat used the thumb of the hand oh her chin to stop her lips. He released her hand and waved his own over his face causing his mask to dissolve, revealing Adrien's eyes under Black Cat's bangs.
      "I don't need you to feel sorry princess. I need you to be by my side again."
      Marinette looked at his eyes in utter shock with tears of regret in her eyes. Adrien look at Marinette with a tight smile and tears of relief in his eyes. The room was silent, which was soon broken by a very excited Tikki.
      "MARINETTE!!!"
      She flew into Marinette's face trying to hug onto her cheek. Tikki wasn't particularly heavy or forceful, but she was just jerky and fast enough to startle Marinette into jumping back a few inches.
      "Tikki! I've missed you so much. We really are a good team and I'm sorry I had to put you all through this just to see that."
      "Don't be so hard on yourself, Princess," said Cat, replacing his mask and giving Marinette a hand to bring her to her feet. "Everyone gets cloudy skies in their life every now and again. It can happen anywhere. Right now, we need to worry about Hawkmoth, and your miracle stones."
      Hawkmoth was still out cold on the ground in such a position to where you can tell he was pushed by something. Marinette's akuma was still floating around, and began to seek refuge at Hawkmoth's side.
      "Oh no you don't!"
      Cat released his staff and pinned the akuma to the ground by its wings, being sure to keep his body distanced from the deformed butterfly.
      "Mari, you have to find your miracle stones before our friend here wakes up, or this little guy does any more damage."
      "I'll try. I don't know if I remember where they are, but I can look. Tikki, let's go."
      Marinette ran out of the lair in her pajamas, Tikki at her side. She had the same determination and body language as the Ladybug Cat had been missing all day.
      Marinette was led into Gabriel Agreste's office, slightly confused.
      "Mr. Agreste is Hawkmoth? That means Adrien and his dad- something I should remember. Just like the earrings! I should remember. I handed them to him myself after I told him..." She trailed off.
      Tikki looked at her, saddened and with empathy. She tried to lift Marinette's spirits by helping her search the office with high hopes, but that didn't do much.
      "I know I don't know where it is, but for some reason I know where it's not. I'm sorry but I just don't think it's anywhere in the drawer of his desk or under the-"
      Marinette stopped. Ash she was speaking, she made eye contact with the picture of Adrien's mom. She began having strange, foreign flashbacks, and walked towards it, slowly but deliberately as if in a trance. She pulled back like it was a door and stared blankly, still unaware of what she just found. Behind the painting was was an actual picture of Mrs. Agreste along with some strange tablets and trinkets that looked like they were from a different time at a different place. She stared at the picture confused and began to whisper.
      "There'ssomethingmissing..."
      "What? What did you find?"
      Marinette began to blink out of the trance as she had an epiphany.
      "There's something missing! Another miracle stone! It was next to this picture, and when I gave Hawkmoth my miracle stones, he took the one from here and... oh no. It's in his pockets. Adrien is in there with him."
      "He used his power to destroy your gloves. He's about to be Adrien again!"
      "Oh no."
      Marinette broke into a cold sweat and made a b-line back into the lair. When she crossed back into the lair, Hawkmoth had woken up, and Cat was in a fighting stance, setting the akuma free, but Cat didn't notice the akuma, and neither did Hawkmoth.
      "How could you, my own father go around behind my back like that."
      "Could say the same about you, you insolent boy. You don't even understand what you're doing, let alone what I'm fighting for!"
      Marinette silently edged around the perimeter to get out of Hawkmoth's field of vision and behind him.
      *beep*
      "Then tell me, what are you fighting for?"
      "Your mother, and especially you!"
      She stopped when she made eye contact with Cat. She waited for him to answer Hawkmoth before moving again.
      "What does this have to do with me or even Mom?"
      "Because if you and your little bug friend would've let me have my way, she would've been back by now, and you wouldn't be so miserable with me!"
      Everyone went still.
      *beep beep*
      "Wh-what do you mean?"
      "Your mother had a miracle stone herself. It was for a peacock."
      Marinette was directly behind Hawkmoth and began moving forward instead of around.
      *beep beep beep* Adrien replaced Black Cat.
      "She was called Mademoiselle Pavo before I met her, but kept the name long after so her identity would remain just as secret."
      Marinette was right behind him, but looked guilty."
      "I had the butterfly miracle stone, but not until after I knew about your mother."
      Adrien was avoiding eye contact from both Marinette and Hawkmoth.
      "More mysterious criminals began plaguing the city, and your mother couldn't handle it all as Mademoiselle Pavo. At home, she just wasn't the same and I didn't know why."
      Adrien looked directly at Marinette, then looked away to try and avoid suspicion.
      "One night she was out again, and I found a little black box on my bed. Inside was a pin, and I met Nuru. I became The Papillon. I met with your mother and-"
      "GOTCHA! Transform, Lady-stop! Not again!"
      The super akuma planted Marinette between it and Hawkmoth.
      "I don't think so."
      Hawkmoth grabbed Marinette with the earrings still in her hand. He covered her mouth and faced her to Adrien as if to continue a conversation.
      "Let her go, father. Mom wouldn't want this!"
      "To hell with what you think! Now where was I?"
      The akuma flew a little too close to Marinette's face causing panic tears to form.
      "Mademoiselle Pavo and The Papillon swept the streets of all crime. Crime slowed down, and so did we. We came clean about all of our secrets, laughed off the irony, and had you. We slowed down, but we never stopped. One day, she told me she'd go on a solo mission, saying I needed to be there for you."
      Marinette struggle, but Hawkmoth's grip got tighter, angering Adrien as he inches closer.
      "She was gone for a little while longer than usual, but we've both had worse, so I stayed home with you, said mommy was running late at work."
      Adrien's eyes began to water. He remembers. It made sense to him now.
      "She didn't come back early that morning either. You were asleep. I hired Natalie to take care of you for the day on short notice and went to look for your mother as The Papillon. I was out searching til dusk, when I came across a dark alley. I walked down it, and came across a dumpster that looked oddly placed."
      Marinette jerked trying to get the hand on her mouth loose. Hawkmoth took the hand off and held the akuma in front of her face. Adrien was about to start a fight.
      "I opened the lid, and there was your mother. She was beaten all over by who knows what. Some parts of her were covered on bruises, others burns, and some gashes. Her kwami was in the dumpster with her, crying. I took her miracle stone, and tore through all the books I had on those cursed things."
      Adrien squeezed the ring on his finger.
      "I knew that the power of creation, destruction, and possession was needed to bring back my love. I just didn't know where to find them, so I tried to lure them out, and became Hawkmoth. A year ago, you began showing up, and my mission was that much closer to being completed, but my own son got in the way. And now, his poor mother lays in her grave, because of his selfishness."
      Adrien became livid.
      "AAAAAGH! Say that about my mom and me again and you'll be a dead son of a bitch!"
      With Hawkmoth suddenly busy with Adrien, Marinette was able to get free with miracle stones in hand.
      "No! Get off of me! Give me your miracle stones! My akuma, go!"
      "Tikki! Transform, LADYBUG!"
      The akuma began to awkwardly fly towards Ladybug as she was transforming, but Adrien tried to block its path, and it landed in his over shirt.
      "Ah, what a pleasant twist. Mama's Boy, you will bring me your-"
      "NO!" Marinette and Adrien screamed in unison.
      "Lucky Charm!"
      From her famous yo-yo, Ladybug received a small cylindrical box with the word 'Camembert' written in black with red dots against the ladybug base of the lid. She opened it, and real (non-discolored) Camembert cheese was inside.
      "Yuck!" She whispered to herself.
      With her lucky vision, she made out a small kwami on the floor where Black Cat detransformed. She immediately took her yo-yo and restrained Hawkmoth and pulled him towards her, jumped, and used his shoulder as a launching point, send Hawkmoth to the ground and Ladybug to Plagg.
      "Oh my, I'm absolutely famished! I can't move! Just bring the Camembert to me."
      Ladybug rolled her eyes and left the Camembert but took the box. She walked to Adrien who stood stiff with a strange look on his face.
      "Adrien, give me the shirt."
      "No! Leave my mom alone!"
      "I'm not trying to hurt your mom. I just want to he-"
      "No! I'll decide if you're helping or not."
      Ladybug took a step back. She knew how he felt. After all, she caused a disaster earlier that day because she lost the power to decide. After all, he could now have a whole new motive of using his miracle stones, Hawkmoth, and even akumas all because of something he never knew about his mom.
      "Okay. I'm stepping back." She put one hand to her ear. *beep* "I'll let you decide. I will give you my miracle stones so you can bring back your mom if you want to. I can also have Hawkmoth arrested or I could get that akuma out of you and leave. If you think you have any other options, you can have those too. This is your family. It's not my place to decide.
      Adrien's head was buzzing. Hawkmoth began yelling from the ground, but Adrien couldn't hear.
      'It's my place to decide. It's not my place to decide. It's not my place to decide. Place to decide. Decide. Decide. Decide. Decide. Decide.'
      Adrien cocked his hade and made strange eye contact with Ladybug.
      "Ladybug, you're alright. I'm sorry. This isn't what she would have wanted Hawkmoth."
      "Adrien, no!"
      Adrien ripped the over shirt off of his back and any signs of akumization vanished, but from his shirt emerged a grotesque and misshapen black butterfly. Plagg came flying to Adrien once he was replenish. While that was happening, Ladybug untangled Hawkmoth to retrieve her yo-yo.
      "I don't think so!"
      Hawkmoth knocked Ladybug flat on the ground and pinned her down.
      "What are you gonna do now? Here we are, and after all this waiting *beep* I will finally take your-"
      "Dreadfully sorry Mr. Hawkfly, but your appointment with a Miss Ladybug has been postponed and you have been directed to me."
      Cat had Hawkmoth off Ladybug and under his staff.
      "Go take care of it my Lady. I know you can." He have her a warm smile and for the first time today, she returned a genuine smile back.