I'm Sorry Chaton

Chapter 19

Chat Noir took in the scene: his lady was running in front of him, the wind blowing back her hair, while he followed closely behind. She turned her head and caught him staring, but instead of commenting, she merely giggled, blushed, and turned back around. He smiled at her reaction and thought about how lucky he was to have her in his life. It was all he had ever hoped for, despite the fact that they were about to fight his father. The whole "evil villain is my dad" thing really put a damper on the mood. They approached the mansion and set their eyes on their location: Hawkmoth's lair.

"You ready for this?" Ladybug asked her partner.

Chat sighed and nodded his head. "It's now or never."

Ladybug swung up to the tower and dropped through the hole in the window she had made earlier. Chat followed her in by extending his staff and vaulting through. Hawkmoth was standing in the middle of the room with a dark expression on his face. He saw his son, Chat Noir, but kept his calm, collected demeanor.

"I see you've de-akumatized my son and his kwami," he said matter-of-factly.

Chat's eyes flashed with seething rage at the sight of his father. "Son?! Do you think you have any right to call me that? You're not my father. A father doesn't do this to their own child. He looks out for them. He loves them. You--" Chat took a deep breath before continuing. "You don't love me." Chat began to step towards his father, backing him slowly into a corner.

Hawkmoth backed away from Chat, hands raised in the air, as Chat began to move closer and closer to him. "I-I'm sorry, son. I didn't know what else to do!" Hawkmoth tried to reason with Chat Noir, but it was pointless. There was no coming back from the mistakes he made and the pain he caused.

"What did I say about calling me your son?" Chat glared at him and took another menacing step forward. "I'm done being your son. I'm done being an Agreste. I'm done with it all!"

Hawkmoth tried to back farther away from his son, but he backed into the wall behind him. In front of him was his angry son and behind him was a sturdy wall. He was trapped. Chat Noir had finally trapped him.

Chat's speech wasn't over. "You will give me your Miraculous. Now."

Hawkmoth lowered his hand to his brooch. It was the only thing he had left in his life, and he clung to it. It was the one thing that gave him any chance of getting his wife back for him and returning the joy he had lost the moment she fell asleep. "I can't give it to you, Adrien. I'm sorry. It's the only way I can ever be happy."

"The only way you can be happy?" Chat chuckled dryly. "You really never cared about me, did you?"

"I-um well..." Hawkmoth searched for an answer.

Chat smiled, but there was no joy on his face. He smiled because he had finally come to terms with the fact that his father never truly loved him. He had other people in his life who he loved and who loved him. He didn't need to chase his father's approval anymore. "No need to make excuses, Gabriel. You never really loved me and that's okay. I can't make you love me or be proud of me, but I can do the right thing for everyone else. So, give me the Miraculous or I'll just take it myself."

The fire died in Chat Noir's eyes and was replaced with a look of content. He gazed at Ladybug with that look in his piercing green eyes and she looked back with a rivaling smile. She was glad he had finally found his independence and realized that plenty of other people loved him; she loved him.

Hawkmoth realized it was over. The battle he had fought for years was over and his wife was gone. Truly gone. His head fell and tears slipped out of his eyes and onto his cheeks. Softly, he whispered, "I'm sorry Emilie. I tried. I promise."

He showed no signs of taking off his brooch, so Chat Noir reached down and carefully unclipped it. He couldn't bear to meet his father's eyes because he didn't want to see the pain he knew would be in them. The pain he felt partially responsible for. The second the Miraculous was off of Hawkmoth, he de-transformed into Gabriel Agreste.

Gabriel Agreste: a sad man, red in the face from crying, slumped in the corner. He looked so pathetic that Chat Noir almost took pity on him. Then he remembered all the shit his father had put him through and with one last look at the shell of a man his father had become, Chat Noir turned around and walked towards his partner.

Ladybug knew exactly how Gabriel Agreste was feeling; she felt the same way these last few months. She knew that his grief had swept away everything else in his life, including his son. Ladybug used to be confused by Hawkmoth's motives. How could someone terrorize a city for their personal gain? Now, she realized why: love. She had done the exact same thing Hawkmoth had done. She let her grief and longing for the person she lost take control and wipe away her concern for everyone else in her life.

As Chat walked back to her, she placed her hands on his shoulders and looked him straight in the eyes. "Give him another chance."

"Hawkmoth? You want me to give him another chance? After all the crap that man has put me through, I don't think I can," he replied.

Ladybug sighed. "I know where he's coming from. I did the same thing. You were gone, and I panicked and swore I would do everything I could to bring you back. Even if it meant hurting people I loved. I'm so grateful for the second chance you and Tikki have given me, so please try and find it in your heart to try and have a relationship with him again. I'm not saying you have to forgive him, just try and repair what he broke. Please?"

Chat thought for a moment. Everything she was saying was true. He knew it would be a while before he could ever forgive his father, but ignoring him wouldn't do either of them any good.

He walked over to his father, who was still on the ground, and reached out his hand. Gabriel looked up and slowly took it. Chat helped his father up and embraced him for a few seconds before parting and returning to Ladybug's side. It was a wordless interaction, but there was no need for words. The mutual understanding was there. They both were going to try and fix this. Together.

Chat Noir and Ladybug's eyes met and they shared a look. "Claws in!" And "Spots off!" were said in unison as they de-transformed together. Adrien pocketed the butterfly Miraculous before reaching out for Mari's hand. Hand in hand, they walked away from the mansion and towards the park. Their troubles were far from over. They had a lot of things to deal with: Master Fu, the re-appearance of Adrien after his "death", taking care of Gabriel's mess, but they weren't going to worry about all that right now. Right now, they were just going to pretend they were a normal couple of high schoolers holding hands and falling in love while walking under the Paris night sky.

A/N: Okay, so I think it's over! I'm so sad right now!!!!!! I just want this story to go on and on and on... FOREVER! But, that would be a crappy story, so I think I'm going to stop here. 

One last thing: Have any of you guys watched Spatziline on YouTube? The channel is a bunch of ML comics and they are amazing! There are tons of AUs and storylines, plus it updates every week so you never have to wait for a new comic! I totally recommend if you haven't seen them already! Alright, I guess this is goodbye!

Don't forget to vote for my story! It means a lot!