Removing the Mask (Book Two)

Chapter 3

(3rd Person POV)
After Adrien knocked out that night, Nathalie quietly snuck out of the house. She climbed into her car and started the engine, driving to a far side of the city. The lights of the buildings flew by in bright, rainbow blurs. As Nathalie neared her destination, the lights slowly began to disappear.

Eventually, the lights were nowhere in sight. The only light came from the glimmering stars in the night sky and a few streetlights. Nathalie reached an abandoned building and parked her car outside. The woman stepped out of her car and locked the vehicle before proceeding towards the building.

Nathalie knocked on the front door and it flew open. She was greeted by a female voice.

"Come in, Nathalie"

Nathalie stepped inside and the door closed behind her. A lamp was turned on, and Emilie was sitting on a couch.

"Have a seat," the lady on the couch tells her.

Nathalie did as she was told and sat down on a couch in front of her.

"Emilie, you do realize Gabriel tried to get Ladybug and Chat Noir's miraculouses to bring you back, right?"

Emilie nods.

"Then how come-"

Emilie raised her hand to cut her off.

"Not too many questions, if I may request. I have my own reasons for wanting their miraculouses"

Nathalie had so many questions for Emilie, it was driving her crazy. Her hands were fidgeting with the fabric of the couch out of anxiousness.

"May I ask one quick question?"

Emilie nods.

"Why did you wait so long to follow through with your plan?"

A smile forms on the blonde woman's lips, "I wanted to catch the heroes off-guard"

~

Adrien was laying in bed, twisting and turning in his sleep. He was breathing heavily, sweat running down his face.

His father had appeared in his dream. Gabriel's blurred figure stood over his son with a whip in his hand. At this point, the memories were just a blur, but Adrien could still feel the whip lashing across his skin. He could still feel the flame burning his skin and the blood escaping his wounds. He could still hear his father's hateful words screaming into his ear, telling him to just die.

The blond's tear-filled eyes shot open and he sat up quickly, heart racing with oxygen coming in and exiting his lungs at a fast pace. He quickly climbed out of bed at four in the morning, making his way to the bathroom. He winced as his eyes met the bright light of the bathroom, taking a couple moments to adjust to the great, sudden change of brightness.

He was still panting and his hand opened the drawer, picking up the knife. His hand trembled as he held the knife. He looked at his arms, which were now clear of scars. His eyes went back and forth between the knife and his arm. He gritted his teeth and put the knife away, taking deep breaths.

Not today, he thought.

Adrien stood in front of the mirror, examining the boy who stood in front of him, staring back at him. His dull, green eyes were red from tears and had dark spots underneath them. His hair was a bird's nest and his lips were chapped.

He sighed and filled his hands with cold water, splashing his face. He closed his eyes and took in the refreshing feeling of the cold liquid trailing down his heated face, cooling him down.

Even though he still has four hours before class starts, Adrien decided to change to his daytime clothes, fix his hair, and brush his teeth. He didn't want to go back to sleep and re-enter the world of nightmares.

The blond quietly stepped out of the bathroom, trying not to wake his kwami. He tiptoed to his table and picked up his phone, sitting down on his couch.

Adrien was on his messages with Marinette, his thumb hovering above the keyboard. He wanted to text her, but he wasn't sure whether she was even awake or not. He decided to just send her a little "good morning" text. To his surprise, Marinette responded within seconds.

M: hey, what are you doing up so early?

A: I would ask the same to you ;)

M: my notifications woke me up

A: oh, I'm sorry :(

M: no, no, don't worry about it. I don't mind at all :)

M: did you want to talk about something?

A: ehhh sort of

A: just had a bad dream. That's pretty much why I'm up so early

M: aw I see. Is everything okay?

A: yeah, I'm fine. You should go back to sleep

M: are you sure?

A: yeah. See you in a couple hours

Adrien plugged his earbuds in and closed his eyes, absorbing the calming melody ringing in his ears.