Forbidden (Miraculous Ladybug Fanfiction)

The Threat - 2

  "I-It's addressed to Ladybug," he stammered. "It's from Papillon. It's...It's a threat."  

  ~=~{}~=~  

"A threat?" Marinette asked incredulously.  Adrien nodded numbly, his face pale.  He handed the letter to Marinette with shaky hands.  She read it and her face grew pale as well.

Dear Ladybug,

I am unsure of how much a concern this is, but I thought I should send you this note just to be certain.  Whether it applies or not, Adrien Agreste is off-limits to you.  As previously mentioned, I don't know if you see Adrien at all, but on the off-chance that you do...don't.  I would like to inform you that I am learning--getting stronger--and it will not be long before I have a method with which to discover your identity.  If you so much as lay your filthy, beady little bug eyes on him, I will personally find you and kill you.  You have been warned.  I won't say it again.

Yours truly,
Papillon

"Are you kidding me?" Marinette said, her voice raising a bit.  "Wait until Tikki hears about this," she whispered.

Adrien looked up, having just barely heard the alleged name of Ladybug's kwami.  He shook his head; he must've misheard.  Wait until Plagg hears about this, he thought.  

"You said you knew Ladybug, right?" Adrien looked at Marinette, who gave a single, curt nod.  "Wait a minute..."

He held his hand out for the note, and Marinette gave it to him.  He squinted at it and held it close to his face.  He reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out the letter his father had written to him.  He set them side by side.

"No..." he whispered.  Marinette leaned over his shoulder, accidentally pressing her shoulder against his.  She didn't notice as she was preoccupied with comparing the writing.

"Exactly the same." She said gently.  Adrien paled and leaned back in his chair.

"My dad is Papillon," he breathed, closing his eyes and rubbing his temples with his right thumb and middle finger.

"Maybe not," Marinette tried.  "Maybe your dad is just writing the letters to...throw us off Papillon's trail."

"So my father either is working with Papillon or is the guy himself.  Wonderful."

"Adrien -" Marinette laid a hand on his shoulder.  Adrien looked at it for a second before turning his head away but letting her hand sit.

"No, he probably is Papillon.  Not only is the handwriting the same, but they both have the same cold tone.  Plus, my dad has written enough business letters to have a habit of leaving initials below the signature if someone else wrote it." He pointed to the letter.  "Nothing but margins."

Marinette sighed.  "What do we do now?"

"We should call Ladybug and Chat Noir," Adrien said, getting up.  "They'll know what to do."

Little did he know Ladybug and Chat Noir were already on scene.

"Do you think they will?  I can get my phone if we need to.  I have Ladybug's number." Marinette said, getting up as well.