Oops my finger slipped and now it's more angst :) -Colorado

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Something was wrong. Well, perhaps that was a bit of an understatement. Things had been wrong for several weeks now, ever since the news broke that Ladybug had defeated Monarch. Ever since she showed up in Adrien's... room in England and handed him his father's engagement rings, something had been wrong.

Adrien didn't entirely know how to feel. How could he feel when his father was dead just a few short days after Adrien told him how horrible of a father he was? It seemed like he had finally come to terms with his father and how horrible he was, but then all of Paris was hailing him as a hero. He should've felt proud. Some part of him did. Gabriel Agreste had helped Ladybug defeat Monarch, that was something to be proud of. But Adrien's last memory was of his father locking him in a small room with nothing but a ping-pong table, and it was hard to ignore that. It was hard to ignore how he opposed his and Marinette's relationship at every turn. It was hard to ignore how he sent Adrien to England without even asking.

Still, part of him was proud.

Ladybug hadn't told him how Gabriel Agreste had defeated Monarch. She had been tight lipped since the entire ordeal. Chat Noir had initially felt guilty that he wasn't there. He was upset, he always figured that it would be him and her up to the bitter end. Plagg had calmed his fears, reassuring him that Adrien had made the right decision. He didn't say anything about his father either, even though Adrien pulled out the kitten eyes. Plagg only stuffed his mouth with cheese and turned away.

Even Marinette had been acting oddly! Everything was still great, they still loved each other, but sometimes Adrien would catch her staring at him. Her staring at him was nothing out of the ordinary, but the expression on her face was new. Instead of love, it was guilt and sadness. Adrien couldn't pinpoint why. His running theory was that she was just sad about his father's death.

So yeah, it was plain to see that something was wrong.

And that was before he arrived to patrol only to see Ladybug crying. She was hunched over on the rooftop, her entire body shaking.

"Bug?" Chat Noir said, his voice soft. Ladybug turned towards him, her face red and her eyes shot. His heart panged at the sight.

"Chat," she sobbed. In one moment, he was by her side. He looped a hand around her shoulder, pulling her a bit closer to him.

"What's wrong?" he whispered.

"It's too much." She shook her head. "It's too much for me to take." She placed her head in her hands. Her shoulders were shaking, and he could tell she was trying to hide her tears.

"What is? Monarch's gone and-."

"And that's the problem!" she snapped. Chat Noir sucked in a sharp breath.

"How is Monarch being gone the problem?" He tried to keep his voice even, but he knew the shock bled into it.

"It's too many secrets, Chat Noir, I can't keep them anymore. Everything thinks he was a hero. He wasn't a goddamn hero!" Ladybug yelled to the night sky. They both knew the sounds of the city drowned her out.

"I don't think anyone thinks Monarch is a hero," Chat said softly. Maybe Ladybug had seen a mean comment and it sent her spiraling. Well, that's why he was there! To reassure her. His words didn't work, she only seemed to grow smaller. She curled up into herself.

"But they do, Chat," she whispered, her voice raspy.

"Who? How do you know that, Bug?" he whispered, his voice just as soft.

"Cuz he has a fucking statue in the park!" Ladybug yelled, her eyes filled with anger. "Right across from my goddamn house and I-." A sob escaped her.

Chat Noir felt his heart crack. She couldn't be saying what he thought she was saying, right? There was no way, right?

"W-what are you talking about?" He hated how his voice was shaky.

"I can't." Ladybug frantically shook her head. "I shouldn't tell you. I'm supposed to keep it a secret," Ladybug wailed. "I'm so sick and tired of secrets!"

"I know, Ladybug, I know. But hey! Monarch is gone, we don't have to live in fear any-." She was shaking her head again, why was she shaking her head.

"I couldn't find the butterfly miraculous," she croaked. "It's still out there. It's only a matter of time before the Hawkmoth of the future shows up," she whispered.

The memory of Time Tagger popped into his mind. Time Tagger who revealed their Hawkmoth was gone and a new one would take his place. Chat sighed, heavy and long. Just when he thought they were done, a new threat showed up.

"Is that what you're worried about?" he asked, keeping his voice soft.

"I mean, sort of, but it's just all too much right now. I'm the only one who knows the truth. No one else can know." Ladybug pressed her hands into her eyes, as if trying to get rid of a memory.

"What about me?" Chat Noir whispered, hoping and dreading what she was going to say.

'He has a fucking statue in the park.' The words ran through his mind over and over and over again. There was only one person who had a statue in the park.

"I can't Chat, what if you turn out to be the one person he asked me not to tell? I'm doing this all for him. I'm doing this for him, not for that monster." Ladybug glared out at Paris.

"Oh, what are the chances of that? I can see that this is hurting you. I'm supposed to be your partner right, do you remember the last time you kept a bunch of secrets from me?" He knew it was a low blow, but it got Ladybug to flinch and look at him. Even if she looked angry.

"This isn't the same thing at all! That was my own mistake, this is something I can't control. I'm doing this to protect him. He thinks his father died a hero, it should stay that way. He's been happy recently, I can't ruin that. I just can't." Ladybug was shaking her head again.

Chat Noir felt blood rush to his ears. A heavy weight settled in the deep of his stomach. There was no way. There was absolutely no way that Gabriel Agreste was who she was talking about, right? Right. Chat opened his mouth, but what could he even say? Ask her for the truth? He knew she wouldn't give it to him. If it was Gabriel Agreste she was talking about, then whatever truth she was hiding it would hurt. It would cut him deep and scar permanently. But he needed to know.

"Is this about Gabriel Agreste's sacrifice?" Chat asked, trying to hide how his heart raced. Ladybug whirled towards him, shooting him a glare that sent shivers down his spine.

"That was no goddamn sacrifice," she growled. She stood up. "You hear me? That was no goddamn sacrifice!" she screamed at the sky, hot tears pouring down her face.

"But he's dead! He's gone!" Chat Noir sprang to his feet. His mind was running a mile a minute, quickly reaching a conclusion that made him want to faint. And cry.

"Yeah, he's gone. And he got his stupid wish. And look at where that got the idiot! All of fucking Paris adores him, his son remembers him as a hero, everyone is happy that Hawkmoth is gone and hails Gabriel Agreste and hero and they don't know-." She stopped, gulping down whatever words she was going to say.

"Don't know what?" This was dangerous. Chat Noir knew he shouldn't pry. He should turn back now, before it was too late. He should drop the subject, try to comfort her, and try to live with his discomfort. Try to live with the constant suspicion that maybe, just maybe....

Ladybug gave him a look that cut him so deep, Chat felt his heart stop. Sadness, guilt, anger, all of it swirled in her mind. And then he knew. He fell to his knees, right there on the rooftop.

"Oh God, I'm going to be sick," he groaned, holding his stomach. His mind was swirling. He couldn't breathe. The world was slipping away from him and-.

"Chat Noir?" A voice said. He could feel hands on his face, but when he looked up his vision was swimming.

Oh, he was crying. How lovely.

"Gabriel Agreste was Hawkmoth. He managed to get his wish," Chat Noir whispered, his voice nothing more than a whisper. He couldn't see Ladybug's expression, but her silence was enough. "Oh my God." He was going to throw up. His own father, his own goddamn father.

"You can't tell Adrien," Ladybug said quickly. "I know it's a lot to take in, but-." She stopped as Chat started to laugh. It wasn't a happy laugh, it was a laugh filled to the brim with pain. It was a laugh that quickly turned into sobs.

"I can't believe it. I can't believe he would actually-." Chat Noir shook his head, leaning back on the rooftop.

"I know. I couldn't believe it either when I first found out. I mean I know we suspected him way back when, but after The Collector I wrote it off. He must have akumatized himself," Ladybug said. Chat knew her eyes were on him. He couldn't bring himself to care.

His own father was a terrorist. His own father had been the man Chat fought for the better part of a year. His own father had put his life in danger over and over and over again. It just didn't make any sense!

But then it did. The way Nathalie had suddenly gotten better once his father was gone, the way his father talked about Adrien and Kagami being a couple as if part of a master plan, how the Alliance rings had been a key part of Gabriel's final plan. How Gabriel Agreste had burned his bridge with Adrien, just for him to try and die a hero.

'One final trick,' Chat thought grimly. He laughed, but it sounded hollow even to his own ears.

"That asshole!" he yelled.

"Thank you!" Ladybug threw her hands up in the air.

"You know you're just giving him what he wants, right? You're letting him haunt you as a hero, even after he's dead. You're letting him get away with it!" Chat accused. Ladybug, to her credit, looked guilty, but there was a flash of anger in her eyes.

"Adrien. His son," Ladybug said, as if that made everything make sense. "His dying wish was for Adrien to remember him as a good father, not as a villain. Adrien loved his father, this news would absolutely crush him! We have no idea how that would feel." Chat nearly laughed again, but he was too busy being pissed off.

"So? Do you think Gabriel was actually being sincere when he said that?" he asked, his voice nothing but a harsh rasp. "I heard about what he did to Adrien, about the confinement chamber and everything. How could a man do something that harsh and then turn around and claim he wants to be remembered as a good father? Fuck. No." Suddenly, everything clicked in his mind. The way it never fit right with him that his father was some noble hero. The way Ladybug didn't tell him the details about his sacrifice. Well, Chat Noir supposed he didn't have to worry about his conflicting feelings for his father anymore. He was a grade A asshole. "He doesn't deserve his final wish to be granted. He got what he wanted, he got our miraculouses. Don't let his dying wish distract you." Chat grabbed Ladybug's arm, pulling her down so their eyes were locked.

"But Adrien is going to get hurt," she whispered.

'It's a bit too late for that,' he thought grimly. In a few days, he would realize it was a bit odd Ladybug cared so much about Adrien Agreste. But as of right now, Chat Noir's entire world had just been turned upside down. He couldn't feel anything other than hurt and anger.

"He deserves to know. His father was already horrible to him, right? Maybe Adrien won't be surprised." He certainly wouldn't be now.

In some odd way, there was a sense of peace over him. He was still pissed of course, and the betrayal still stung. But in some utterly fucked up way, it seemed like Adrien could finally justify hating his father. Plagg would tell him that Gabriel Agreste's actions on his own justified Adrien hating him, but he loved his father. Monarch wasn't his father. Maybe they had the same name and body, but the man who died was not his father. Gabriel Agreste had died long ago, and a monster had taken his place. It was about time that Adrien realized that.

"I... I will think about it," Ladybug finally said. "I never thought I would tell anyone about it, even you. I figured this would be just another one of those secrets that I could never tell a soul."

"I'm glad you told me, really." Chat Noir hated being lied to, even if it was for his own good. His entire life, he wasn't allowed to make decisions for himself. He was told how to think, how to feel, what was true and what wasn't. All done by his father. In one final trick, his father had somehow convinced Ladybug to do the exact damn same thing.

His father who had been Hawkmoth. His father who had shut Adrien out over and over again. His father who... who Chat Noir had cataclysm just a few short weeks ago.

The dam broke. Sobs wracked his entire body as memories rewrote themselves. Hawkmoth hitting Chat with his cane? That was his father. Gorizilla letting Adrien fall down a building? His father had done that. All of that talk for the greater good, how he truly loved Adrien. It was lies all lies. He never wanted whatever his father made the wish for, all he wanted was a fucking dad. And he thought that at least for the last few weeks, he had one! But no, it was just another trick.

He hadn't had a dad since his mother had disappeared.

"Oh kitty, it'll be okay." He could barely register Ladybug's arms coming around him. One of her hands tangled itself into his hair, giving him some light scratches. He grabbed onto her body, falling into her shoulder.

He used her as a lifeline as he cried. He sobbed into her shoulder, his entire body shaking. He couldn't stop, as much as he wanted to. He knew he needed to stop, but he couldn't. He kept on crying, even as his throat started to hurt from his sobs. Even as his stomach started to ache – he still wasn't sure if he was going to throw up – he continued to cry.

"I know it seems hopeless right now, but we're going to get through it together. You and me against the world, right?" Ladybug was telling him. He nodded into her shoulder, even though he didn't quite understand what she was saying. He could hear, but he couldn't listen. He was too busy trying to calm down.

Already his mind was searching for an excuse to stay the night at Marinette's. Maybe if he said he was feeling lonely, the Dupain-Cheng's would take pity on him. Maybe he'd reveal his identity to her and come in through the trap door. Either way, he needed to see his girlfriend. 

"I'm sorry, I know it's upsetting. I'm mad, too," Ladybug continued. Chat Noir had to bite back words of anger. How could she possibly know what he was feeling? How could her anger possibly even begin to match his? But he couldn't explain that without explaining his identity and he couldn't open up that can of worms tonight. "I knew Gabriel in my civilian life. I looked up to him as a designer. I shouldn't tell you that, but I'm so sick and tired of all of these secrets. I don't give a fuck anymore."

"That makes two of us," he mumbled into her shoulder. Ladybug knew Gabriel? Did that mean she knew him as well? Oh, what does that matter? His father was a domestic terrorist and was dead, that was the pressing issue. "Tell Adrien, or I will. You can keep the dead man's secret, but I made no promise to him."

Ladybug pulled back, her eyes flashing with anger. She opened her mouth to argue, but Chat Noir shot her a look. She clamped her mouth shut, and simply looked away.

At least if Adrien let it slip he knew his father's identity, he could pin the blame on his alter ego.

"Fine," Ladybug grumbled eventually. He knew she wasn't happy, but there was only so long Adrien could pretend he was fine. "Just, give me a week okay? A week to figure out how the hell I'm going to talk to him and then I'll talk to him."

Chat Noir rolled it over in his mind. For just a week, he could pretend that he was okay. All of his friends were so caught up in the celebration, no one would really pay him any mind. The only one he'd really need to convince was Marinette, but he could write it off as grieving. In a way, he was grieving the death of his father. It was just a different type of grieving than Adrien had thought. The death of a person, both physical and metaphorical.

"Okay. One week and then I'll break the news to him," Chat agreed. For just one week, he could keep up the act. He could pretend like he didn't loathe his father. He could pretend like his father didn't betray him. He could pretend that the entirety of his world hadn't just been changed so drastically.

"I think patrolling might be a moot point now," Ladybug whispered.

"Probably," Chat Noir muttered.

"I should probably head home, are you going to be okay?" She stood up, offering him a hand. Despite her anger at their deal, concern was still written all over her face. Chat Noir slapped on a fake smile – he saw many in his future this week – and took her hand.

"Of course, My Lady. Thank you for sharing your secrets with me, I really appreciate it." He kissed her hand.

"Thank you for being so understanding. Be safe tonight, Chat." She offered him a small smile, but her eyes were still bloodshot. Chat Noir knew he didn't fare much better.

"I will be," he promised. He saw her off, waving until she was simply a red speck against a dark sky. Then he turned towards the park.

He had a statue to cataclysm. 

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Look at me writing a one-shot that works with the canon, people CAN change.  -Colorado