"Okay, dudes!" Said Nino as he held up his tablet, showing photos of Adrien and Kagami looking happy and so in love. "Our bro's got a problem, and we're the only people who can help him out!"
Max adjusts his glasses, narrows his eyes at the pictures, and asks, "How did you get those photos, and when did you have the time to take them?"
"Max, my man," he chuckled. "Like Alya with Marinette, I too am invested in my best friend's love life."
"Ex-love life," Nathaniel corrected, not looking up from his sketchbook.
"Anyway," Nino rolled his eyes. "You all haven't seen him like I have, he's all down in the dumps because of his break up with Kagami."
"Marc and I saw her in the art classroom," Nathaniel piped up. "She looked so upset. I tried talking to her, but she said that only Adrien had the answers, but, I didn't feel like getting deeper into it."
"Yeah," Kim nodded. "Poor girl. And they made such a good couple."
"Plus, Marinette liked Kagami and wanted to see her happy," Ivan added.
"There's about a twenty-five percent chance she'll be comfortable with another girl dating Adrien," Max calculated. "With Kagami, Marinette seemed very content with them dating, but she's also dating Luka, so..." He shrugs.
"Was dating him," Nathaniel corrected. "They broke up, remember? I heard from Alix, who heard from Myléne, who heard from Rose, who heard from Juleka, who was told by Luka."
"Shit," Ivan cursed. "Seems like everyone is breaking up, huh? How's Mari doing?"
"And from what I heard from Alix, she's doing okay," Kim answered. "There was a little argument but girls talked it out, they're doing whatever they can to help Mari de-stress, and then they had a sleepover at Alya's I should have been invited to!" He pouted. "They had candy popcorn, and did nothing to save a little bit for me!"
"Guys!" Nino exclaimed, sounding annoyed as he waved his tablet back and forth. "Let's get back to Adrien, alright? The guy needs our help. He just seems so... Closed in on himself lately, y'know? I think something's really wrong; he won't even tell me what's up."
"He won't tell you what's wrong?" Kim asked in disbelief. "But you're his best friend! This is serious... Maybe his dad is just being a dick," he guessed.
Nino hummed in thought. "Possibly. Let's keep that on the board. I've seen his 'Father won't let me be a normal boy,' look, and that's not the look I've seen him with." He sees the boys becoming more concerned. "But, if it is that poor excuse of a dad who's causing our bro pain, then we are definitely calling child services, for real."
"No backing out this time!" Kim cheered, making Max chuckle. "Let's get his ass in jail!"
"But, maybe we should try talking to him first before jumping to conclusions," Max suggested. "What Adrien really needs is an intervention, something to let him know we're all here for him, we're here to help him out."
"I like that," Ivan smiled.
Nathaniel set down his pencil and looked up, "That could work, actually."
"Was there ever any doubt?" Max asked with an arched eyebrow and a proud look.
Ivan leans over to see what Nathaniel was drawing. "What were you drawing, anyway?"
"The hole we're are all destined to dig ourselves into if this fails," Nathaniel said as he held up his sketchbook, showing a page with a black hole in the center and five stick figures of the guys trying to crawl out. None of them are amused. "What? You guys know I'm right. Things just never seem to go our way."
Nino walks towards the redhead and shuts his sketchbook. "Let's put the negative artwork away and focus on making sure Adrien is happy and isn't keeping his emotions all bottled up."
"Studies have shown that's actually quite dangerous that it seems," Max said. "It can shorten a lifespan, lead to heart disease, and cause people terrible stress that's enough to make their hair fall out, and-" Kim covers his mouth. The boys let out sighs of relief, knowing that's over.
"Max," Kim said as he pulled the genius close to his chest. "Chill. None of that will happen to Adrien, because we're going to be the ones who help him. Okay?" Max nods.
"Terrifying symptoms aside," said Nino. "Boys... To the mansion!"
The quintet stood outside the Agreste mansion, going over their plan a few more times.
"Max, you got the fake project rubric if Nathalie answers?" Nino asked. In response, Max reached into his messenger bag and pulled out a printed rubric for what looked like a history project. "Excellent. Nath?" The redhead stood at attention. "You got the comics if Gorilla answers?"
"You owe me, Lahiffe," Nathaniel muttered as he pulled out three Knight Owl comics from his blazer. "You know how long I stood in line outside the store for these? Two hours!"
"How'd you use the bathroom?" Kim asked, making his cheeks turn as red as his hair.
"Let's just say I ruined a perfect pair of jeans," he answered, sounding ashamed. "No further questions!"
"Okay," Nino held his hands up in defense. "Okay. Jeez." He made his way towards the doorbell and rang it, immediately backing away when the camera popped out of the wall and inspected the five boys.
"Can I help you?" Nathalie's voice asked through the speaker.
Nino turned to Mac and whispered, "Hand me the rubric." Max does so and Nino holds it up in front of the camera. "Well, we're doing a group project for our history class, and Adrien is a part of our group."
"All six of you?" She asked skeptically.
"Yes, that is correct," Max confirmed confidently without a hint of nervousness in his voice. "This project was assigned the day we had our history tests, the day Adrien left for a photoshoot, so he missed when we were being paired up."
Nathalie, still not entirely convinced panned the camera over to Kim, Ivan, Nathaniel, trying to keep straight faces so the five of them could get in. She knew this Nino Lahiffe was trouble, according to Gabriel's standards, but Adrien did seem more relaxed around the red-capped boy and his friends. She heard of Max tutoring the blonde boy when his grades seemed to be slipping, just so Gabriel wouldn't pull him out of school. Kim helped him embrace his more carefree side and seemed to prove Adrien with some comic relief. Nathaniel, while quiet, is what Adrien described as an amazing listener, always being a shoulder to cry on when Nino wasn't around. Then there was Ivan, providing Adrien with the warmth and comfort his own father hardly ever provides.
They obviously weren't working on a project. But if they were going through all of this trouble just to check up on Adrien, whom Nathalie and Gorilla noticed has been quite down lately ever since his break up with Kagami, then it wouldn't hurt to let them in. It still baffled the assistant as to why they broke up when they were so good together. What she heard from Gabriel when he akumatized the Japanese girl into Lies is that she was tired of people telling... Well, lies. Adrien was lying to her about something, but what? Deciding not to mull over this anymore until later, Nathalie opened the gates, allowing the boys entry.
"Oh, thank God," Nathaniel whispered as he clutched the comics close to his chest.
Nino, with a confident look, leads the boys to the front door. "See? I told you, dudes, it would work."
"There was about an eighty-nine percent chance of the project idea working," Max said. "And eighty-three for the comics if Adrien's bodyguard were to answer."
Kim looked around the mansion and its courtyard. Still the same: Cold, empty, and no place for kids. It was still a cool house, though, but it just needed a splash of color everywhere. "You guys think Mari could do a better job redecorating this place?"
"Oh, I know so," said Nino. "I bet when she saw the interior, she had to keep herself from crying because of how gaudy it looked."
"How do you know words like 'interior' and 'gaudy'?" Asked Ivan.
"Having a designer for a best friend will do that, man," the capped boy said as they made their way up the steps that lead to the door. "I can still identify fabrics and what they're used to make." He chuckles before knocking on the double doors. "And Kim still freaks out whenever he sees a pin cushion."
"It looked like a macaron!" Kim yelled defensively, getting a few laughs in response. "Why must you all laugh at my pain?"
"You mean shame," Ivan murmured. Nathaniel, who heard him, held out his hand for the burly boy to high-five.
Seconds later, one of the doors opens, revealing Gorilla. He looks over the boys, making sure they're the ones Nathalie described and stepped to the side to allow them entry.
Nino strolled in first and shot him two finger guns, "Big G, my man!" Gorilla responds with a finger gun and a slight smile. "Keep it cool."
Next was Kim, who said, "Man, I gotta hit your gym sometime!" He gives the bodyguard a slight punch in the shoulder before making his way inside, followed by Max.
"Nice seeing you again, sir." He held out his smaller-in-comparison hand, and Gorilla gave it a gentle, but firm grip before the genius followed his friends inside.
Ivan walked in next. The two sized each other up for a few seconds before nodding. Then finally, Nathaniel. He and the bodyguard just stare at each other, wondering who was going to speak first. Gorilla hoped the redhead would say something soon because he was starting to freak him out.
Without saying a word, Gorilla took a step back away from Nathaniel, who just shrugged and went inside the foyer. Gorilla stared after the boy, shuddering a bit before closing the door.
The five boys just idly stood around. This is usually the part where Nathalie or Gabriel when he's not busy, greets guests from at the top of the stairs. Shrugging it off, they made their way up the stairs and towards Adrien's room, hoping the stoic assistant and designer won't pop out of anywhere. When they reached Adrien's room, Nino was about to knock but paused when he heard voices coming from inside.
"Adrien, your friends came all this way-"
"Please, I just want to be alone right now."
"Well, they're probably already inside. Let them see how you're doing at least."
"... Okay."
Nino frowns. "Man, it's worse than we thought, guys."
"Hey," Kim rested a hand on his childhood friend's shoulder. "We're gonna help him, okay? No bro left behind." He holds out his fist.
Nino fistbumps him. "... No bro left behind." Right after he said that, Nathalie walked out of the room. "Hey, du- Mme. Sancoeur," he quickly corrected. "We uh... Heard a bit. Is Adrien doing alright?"
Nathalie sighed. "I wish I could say yes." She's never seen the blonde look so upset, and it's not just because of Kagami. There's something else going on that he isn't telling anyone about, and it seems to be taking a toll on him. He hasn't tried sneaking out or sneaking his friends in since the breakup. One would think that's a good thing, but to Nathalie, it was a clear sign that something was off about the blonde. "I'm sure the five of you can get him to talk while you're working on your project."
Kim arched an eyebrow. "'Project'?" Nathaniel elbowed him in the arm, and the joke immediately remembered their plan. "Right! The project..." He chuckled, making the redhead facepalm.
Nathalie resisted the urge to roll her eyes, worried if she does it anymore then her eyes will fall out of their sockets. "Well, I'll leave you all to it. But try and get most of the work done because Adrien has piano lessons in an hour."
"No problem," said Nino, stepping around Nathalie so he could reach the door. "We'll be in and out, and when you see Adrien, we can guarantee he'll be back to the same guy we all know and love."
Nathalie smiled at that. She didn't know why Gabriel didn't approve of this boy when he seems so nice. "Good luck," she said before leaving.
"Well, let's do this," said Nino before opening the door, where he and the guys were greeted by the sight of Adrien's expansive room, but no Adrien. They stepped inside and looked around the room. He wasn't in his bed, his bathroom, or the second floor.
"Where is he?" Ivan wondered as he made his way down the stairs.
"I found him," said Max, pointing to the pristine white couch where Adrien lied, just sadly scrolling through his phone. "Adrien?"
Nino approached him and sat on the armrest. "Dude, come on. It's not the end of the world. Kagami just needs space, is all."
"She said she can't trust me," he muttered.
"Well, what even happened?" Asked Nathaniel. "Did you accidentally do or say something to make her not trust you? We don't exactly have the full story here."
"... It was my fault," he sighed. "Th-there I was something I couldn't tell her, and... F-forget it," he added, not trying to compromise his identity. "Guys, I just wanna be alone right now."
"The last thing you need right now is to be alone," Kim said firmly. "Adrien, we're all worried about you, and so are the girls, but they're helping Marinette after her breakup with Luka, so that leaves us to help you. Now just tell us what's wrong before you get a heart attack and your hair falls out." Adrien looked up at him strangely. "Yeah, Max said something about keeping your feelings to yourself."
"I said heart disease," Max remarked. "And Adrien, it would make you feel better if you told someone what happened."
"I just can't!" He exclaimed, shocking the five of them with his outburst. "I-I can't tell anyone, and it just- It sucks!" He got up off his couch and started angrily pacing around his room while his friends watched, now much more concerned. What was Adrien keeping to himself to cause this much distress?
Ivan approached him and tried to get the blonde to stop pacing by placing his hand on his shoulder. "Adrien, just tell us. We're not going to judge you-"
"I'm not worried about that!" He yelled, pushing the taller boy's hand off of him. "A-and just... What are you guys even doing in here?"
"It's because we care about you, dude," Nino said gently, not wanting to anger him any further. "We need to check on you because clearly, something's wrong and we're not leaving you like this 'til you tell us what it is. What couldn't you tell Kagami that you can't tell us? We're your friends; we're the last people who would judge you, so you can tell us anything."
"Well, real friends don't try and force their way into my life when I don't need or even want them to!" Adrien yelled, really fed up right now. He just wanted them to leave; why couldn't they understand that he can't tell them what's wrong? He can't tell anyone what's wrong and they keep trying to pry into his life.
"... Adrien-"
The blonde cut Nino off and yelled, "GET OUT! I DON'T WANNA TALK TO YOU, ANY OF YOU!"
The group of friends are shocked by this and just stand in place, unsure of what to do or say. Max held a hand over his mouth to prevent a gasp, Kim, Ivan, and Nathaniel just stared slack-jawed, and Nino... He just gripped the collar of his shirt, needing something to hold onto. It wasn't until Max took the first step towards the door that they got over their shock and followed him out, none of them saying a word. Nino was the last to leave, looking back at Adrien one more time, hoping he might just take back what he said and ask them all to come back... Nothing. He tilted his cap down and left the room.
Once Adrien heard the door close, he broke down into tears and ran over to his bed to cry into one of the pillows. Seeing that the coast was clear, Plagg quickly flew out of his hiding spot in one of Adrien's trophies and went to console him.
"I wanted to tell them," he cried.
Plagg curled up beside his Chosen on the pillow he was crying into. "Kid, it'll be okay."
"No it won't, Plagg. I can't tell anyone anything. Not Kagami, my father, my friends, or even Ladybug."
Plagg flew up off the pillow and made his way onto Adrien's head. Remembering how this would calm down his previous kittens, he started purring, hoping this would work for Adrien.
Nathalie and Gorilla watched as the boys solemnly walked out of Adrien's room, all five looking as if they were about to cry but waiting until they were outside to do it. "Boys?" She called out as they made their way into the foyer. "Is everything alright?"
Nino looked back at the assistant and gave a wordless nod before leaving the mansion.
Nathalie sighed as she pulled up the security camera footage on her tablet, showing the boys sadly walking away. While Gorilla isn't looking, she takes a screenshot and sends it to Gabriel.
Shadow Moth looked down at his phone when he received the message from Nathalie. This was almost too easy. And while it would put his son at risk, Ladybug and Chat Noir will keep him out of trouble and will be too busy trying to bring him to safety to keep his Akumas from stealing their Miraculous.
"Such anguish. Five hearts, broken all at once by a friend they believe trusted them."
Shadow Moth beckoned for a pure white butterfly to fly into the palm of his hand before covering it with the other, infusing it with the magic of his Miraculous and transforming it into an Akuma. With its purpose, the Akuma flew out of the window.
"Fly away my beautiful Akuma, and evilize them!"
The boys, letting their tears flow freely, sit around Fontaine du Palmier, aside from Kim who was instead jogging around the fountain to try and clear his mind. Max lean d on Ivan, trying to come up with probabilities of them and Adrien reconciling, but he had nothing. Ivan scrolled through his phone, looking for music that fits the way he's feeling right now, but nothing comes up so now he's just mindlessly scrolling through playlists. Next to him is Nino with his headphones on, but he's not listening to music. He just wore them to drown everything out and be alone with his thoughts. Then there was Nathaniel, silently sketching, but not with the same passion he would usually use.
Max sighed. "I... I really thought that would work. Maybe if I hadn't suggested-" Ivan wrapped an arm around the bespectacled boy before he could finish his sentence.
"It wasn't your fault," he reassured. "... What happened to him?"
Kim came to a stop by them, panting. "Maybe... We should just leave him be for a while. He can't be mad at us forever," he said, trying to stay optimistic, but deep down, he felt like this was the end of their friendship with Adrien. He was about to take another lap until he noticed something by Nathaniel's shoe. "Hey, Nath. You dropped something."
The redhead looked down and saw a white piece of paper by his shoe. Thinking a page must've fallen out of his sketchbook, he picked it up, only to regret it immediately when he saw that it wasn't another one of his drawings and wiped away the tears with his blazer sleeve.
Kim looked to see what it was and felt himself about to cry again. "Damn. Salt in the wounds there."
Nino, Ivan, and Max looked to see what had their friends more upset, and when they saw it, they understood why. In Nathaniel's hand was a group photo of the six boys of the Akuma class, taken on the day when they threw Adrien that party. The six of them were gathered for a group hug, smiling and enjoying each other's company. That had to be the happiest they've ever seen Adrien, always so busy with modeling, his many lessons. It felt nice to see him be so carefree, but now it's like all of that progress went out the window.
"Guys," Nino finally said as he slipped off his headphones. "... I think we lost Adrien."
The four of them wanted to deny it, tell Nino he was wrong, but they couldn't find the words and just hung their heads in defeat. Caught up in their sadness, they failed the Akuma entering the photo. They lifted their heads up as Shadow Moth's symbol appeared over their faces.
"Brotherhood of Secrets, I am Shadow Moth. Your friend won't tell you what troubles him? I will give you all the powers you need to force him to confide in you! All that I want in exchange are Ladybug and Cat Noir's Miraculous."
"Adrien WILL stay our friend!" Nino swore.
Nathaniel added, "Whether he wants to or not!"
"And he won't keep anything hidden from us," Ivan muttered.
"All will be revealed," said Max.
Kim smirked. "He'll regret pushing us away."
Citizens ran when they saw the black and purple magic bubbling up from the photo and encasing the five boys, turning them into their previous Akuma forms, Bubbler, Dark Cupid, Gamer, Evillustrator, and Stone Heart.
"Evillustrator, you're with me," Bubbler instructed. "Dark Cupid, Gamer, take out anyone in our way. Stone Heart, keep Ladybug and Chat Noir busy when you see them!"
With a nod, Evillustrator drew a copy of Reverser's glider for them to take to the mansion. He and Bubbler got on while Dark Cupid and Gamer shot and blasted people, and Stone Heart went to look for Ladybug and Chat Noir.
"Let's get him back," Bubbler snarled.
Adrien sat at the foot of his bed, feeling a little better than he was earlier, but still feeling so guilty. He didn't know what came over him. He yelled at his friends, stupidly implied that they weren't friends, and forced them to leave. He was just so frustrated that he couldn't tell anyone his feelings, knowing they wouldn't understand. They had parents who were always there for them, didn't have to worry about the fate of Paris, sacrifice themselves every time to keep the real hero safe, or keep their superhero identities secrets from their significant others since they aren't permanent heroes.
He knew Ladybug said they had to keep their identities a secret, and as the new Guardian, he followed her words, trusting her fully. But sometimes Adrien just wanted to come out and tell someone, anyone that he's Chat Noir so he could just vent. Plagg was an option, but he needed to tell someone like Kagami, Nino, even Marinette. Someone he trusted to never tell anyone, and so they won't be upset every time he had to bail whenever Hawkmoth decided to be an ass and Akumatize someone.
"Uh, kid?" Adrien looked at the Kwami and saw him pointing at his window, showing what looked like Evillustrator and Bubbler flying towards his room on Reverser's glider. "You might wanna hide!"
Adrien quickly took to hiding under his bed, Plagg following behind. Once he was settled, the two Akumas had arrived and Evillustrator put his pen to his tablet to erase a section of the window to allow him and Bubbler entry.
"Adrien!" Bubbler called out. "Dude, just tell us what's wrong!" Getting no answer, he turns to Evillustrator and nods. The artistic Akuma started erasing everything in sight. "It'll make you feel so much better!" He looks around and noticed a shoelace sticking out from under Adrien's bed. With a smirk, he pulled out his bubble wand and gestured for Evillustrator to erase the bed.
Before he could fully erase the bed and reveal Adrien, Nathalie and Gorilla barged in, both looking ready for a fight.
"If you want Adrien, you'll have to get through us!" Said Nathalie. Gorilla merely cracked his knuckles. The two Akumas looked at each other for a second before shrugging.
"If you insist," Evillustrator said before drawing two boxing gloves that flew towards the two. Nathalie leaped over the one coming for her, and Gorilla fought against his.
Bubbler fought off Nathalie with his bubble wand, but she deflected each of his attacks, side-stepped when he thrusts his weapon, and swiftly moved around, making it hard for him to attack.
Evillustrator drew five ninja stars and fired them all at the bodyguard, but he caught each of them quickly and with ease, none of them leaving a scratch on him.
As the four of them fought, Adrien took the opportunity to sneak away, leaving his room unnoticed, and ran outside where he saw civilians running from Dark Cupid shooting arrows at them, and Gamer's avatar at level one flying through the air and zapping people in sight, making them disappear or feel only hate, depending on who hit them. Needing to hide, Adrien darted into an empty bus, going undetected by the Akumas and the mob of hateful Parisians.
Plagg flew out of his shirt. "Aw, four Akumas?" He complained.
Suddenly, they felt the ground shaking. The two looked out the window and saw Stone Heart leaping from building to building.
"Make that five," Adrien sighed.
Bubbler and Evillustrator landed in the middle of the street, making a nice-sized crater when they did. "WHERE IS HE?!" Bubbler yelled. Adrien paled, wondering what happened to Nathalie and Gorilla. He got his answer when he saw them encased in one of Bubbler's bubbles and flying towards the sky.
"Come on out, Adrien!" Evillustrator called out as he erased cars and buildings while Bubbler sent more people up into the air.
With a determined look, Adrien said, "Plagg, Claws Out!" and transformed into Chat Noir. He leaped out of an open window with his staff ready. "Hey, you guys!" He yelled, grabbing their attention. "What's your deal? I thought you and blonde wonder were buds." He side-stepped out of the way of one of Dark Cupid's arrows.
"We still are!" Dark Cupid shouted as he loaded another arrow. "He just needs to see that!" Another arrow was fired, only to be deflected by Chat Noir spinning his staff.
Evillustrator asked as he drew on his tablet, "Is it so wrong to want to comfort one of your friends?" Three torpedoes appeared at his side. At his command, they flew towards the leather-clad hero, who had barely enough time to dodge each one, followed by a barrage of blasts from the Ultra Mecha Strike-inspired avatar.
"Well when you're destroying the city, yes!" Chat Noir answered, dodging the last attack. "And you can stop looking. I'll bet Adrien ran far away from here!" Then, much to his shock and confusion, he saw his civilian form running out from behind a car and towards the school. "What the...?"
"Stone Heart, keep the stray busy. After him!" Yelled Bubbler, and four out of five of the Brotherhood of Secrets wasted no time going after who they believed to be Adrien, leaving the hero alone with Stone Heart.
Chat's fake ears dropped as the massive Akuma raised his fists. "Oh, this is gonna hurt."
Ladybug stood on top of a building and watched as the Eiffel Tower moved in a strange way as a result of Trixx making an illusion of Adrien. She sighed, "All worth it." She pulled out her YoYo and swung towards the school where she saw four of the Akumas heading for.
When they made it to the school, Gamer started blasting students and teachers, enough time that his avatar was now at Level two. "Upgrade!" He cheered, then shot smaller beams at people, turning their eyes green. "Go and find Adrien Agreste! Bring him to us!" The students with green eyes ran out of the school to go search for the illusion.
"Has anyone seen Adrien Agreste?" Dark Cupid asked as he and Evillustrator entered the art classroom.
The first one to say anything was Alix as she took off her respirator mask. "Kim? Nath? What happened?!"
"Not an answer!" He said before loading in more arrows. "You all just hate the fact that Adrien is running from us, don't you?!" He fired his anti-love arrows at Alix, Juleka, Rose, Marc, and M. Haberkorn. Evillustrator drew them weapons ranging from sledgehammers to flails.
"Destroy the school if you have to if it means finding him!" Evillustrator commanded, and they ran out of the classroom, knocking holes in walls and doors to look for the blonde illusion, but it was nowhere to be found.
The desks and chairs being tossed out of classrooms by the students searching for Adrien were sent into the air by Bubbler when he saw Ladybug swinging towards the school, getting an idea on how to slow her down.
"Nino!" Ladybug yelled as she landed in the courtyard. "You and your friends need to stop this! Whatever happened between your and Adrien, you need to talk it out!"
"That's what we're trying to do!" He yelled, firing more bubbles her way, but Ladybug dodged each one by either jumping over them or deflecting them with her YoYo. It was getting harder to dodge with Dark Cupid and Gamer trying to blast her in different directions, Evillustrator kept erasing the spots she was standing on, leaving a few holes in the floor, and students were throwing objects in the middle of the courtyard that Bubbler kept sending up into the air with his wand.
Getting frustrated, Bubbler yelled, "Try dodging this!" At the snap of his fingers, dozens of popping sounds were heard, and Evillustrator quickly drew a glass box around him, Bubbler, and Dark Cupid while Gamer's avatar stood outside the school to zap more people. This confused Ladybug until she looked up. Desks, chairs, lockers, all of the things that Bubbler encased in bubbles were falling from the sky and towards the courtyard.
'Damn it! Why did I have to introduce him to My Hero Academia?' Ladybug thought to herself as she got her YoYo ready. She spun it over her head quicker than she ever has before, hoping this would work. And to her relief, when the objects came into contact with her YoYo, they broke into bits that scattered around the courtyard. Bubbler scowled and turned to Evillustrator, "Get me out of here!" He complied and erased an opening.
Bubbler charged towards Ladybug, slashing falling objects with his bubble wand so they didn't hit him. And while she was preoccupied, he shot a barrage of bubbles at Ladybug that she couldn't avoid, and eventually ended up getting encased in one.
Dark Cupid whispered something to Evillustrator, making him perk up before drawing something else on his tablet. Next to the bubble Ladybug was trapped in appeared a large baseball bat. "Batter up!" The bat took aim and swung, sending Ladybug flying through the air as she screamed.
Shadow Moth's symbols appeared. "Why did you not take Ladybug's Miraculous before trapping her?!"
"Relax," Bubbler dismissed. "My bubbles are indestructible. She's not getting out any time soon."
"One of my avatars has found Adrien!" Gamer yelled out, now manning a level three mech. "He's been spotted not too far from the bakery!"
Bubbler furrowed his brow in confusion, "How is he... Forget it! The three of you go take Ladybug and Chat Noir's Miraculous! I'll take care of Adrien!" Before any of them could get a word in, Bubbler launched himself into the air, leaving behind a trail of bubbles as he made his way towards the bakery.
Dark Cupid wrapped his arms around Evillustrator and took to the skies to look for the heroes with Gamer's mech running after them.
Chat Noir leaped out of the way of another one of Stone Heart's punches. He just needed to keep him occupied since he was one of the more dangerous Akumas, and he'd probably tear the whole city apart looking for the fake him Chat still doesn't know how it appeared. Hopefully, Ladybug caught on about the Akumas and is holding the others off.
"LOOK OUT, CHAT!"
The leather-clad hero didn't have time to react and was knocked onto his back by the bubble Ladybug is trapped in. She bounced off of the walls, cars, and streets before finally coming to a stop, looking rather dizzy, too.
"Ladybug!" Exclaimed Chat Noir as he ran over to his slightly disoriented partner. "Are you okay?"
"Y-yeah, I'm fine." Her half-lidded eyes widened. "Chat, get out of here!"
He looked behind him and saw Stone Heart, Gamer's mech, Evillustrator, and Dark Cupid. running towards them. Instead of running, Chat Noir yelled, "Cataclysm!" And destroyed the bubble before taking Ladybug's hand, pulling out his staff, and vaulting them to safety while dodging the occasional boxing glove, courtesy of Evillustrator. They eventually landed in an alley and hid behind a dumpster, going unnoticed by the Brotherhood of Secrets and a few of Gamer's avatars who just ran past them.
Chat Noir let out a breath of relief. "We're safe. Also, you mind telling me why I saw Adrien when I hid him in his house?"
"Just a little help from the Kwami of Illusions," answered Ladybug. "While they're chasing after the fake Adrien, the real one will be safe. But I do wonder, what did Adrien do to make them upset?"
Chat Noir frowned at the memory. "... From what he told me, Adrien just sort of isolated himself from them when they were trying to help."
Ladybug felt only sympathy for the blonde. She heard about his and Kagami's breakup, and during the same week she and Luka broke up because she couldn't tell him about her duties as Ladybug, which resulted in his Akumatization into Truth. She accepted the comfort from her friends with open arms, just needing so many shoulders to cry on right now. And while they explained to her that telling them what's wrong would make her feel better, Marinette couldn't do so without giving away her identity and told them that she wasn't ready yet. They accepted that answer and told her they'd wait until she was ready.
That probably wasn't the case with the guys, though. Something must've gone wrong in their goal to console Adrien about his breakup, resulting in their Akumatizations. It must've been nothing but heartache for Adrien if he isolated himself from his friends. Some people just respond differently when others try to help in a time of need.
"Where's Bubbler?" Chat Noir wondered, rousing Ladybug from her thoughts. "I didn't see him."
"Look behind you alley cat," said a familiar voice.
On instinct, Ladybug quickly whipped out her YoYo and wrapped it around Bubbler's weapon before he could attack, pulled it towards her, and snapped it in two. But there was no Akuma.
"Bummer, dudes," he smirked. "But I don't have the Akuma. And I definitely don't need that wand to kick your asses!" Proving his point, a bubble materialized in his hand and he fired it at a stack of crates, making them explode into splinters.
"Lucky-" Chat Noir cut her off by placing a hand on her shoulder.
"You gotta find Dark Cupid and Gamer and stop them," he said. "If you take them out, there will be fewer people to fight." He glanced over at Bubbler. "I'll try and get him to tell me where the Akuma is."
Ladybug thought over Chat Noir's plan before nodding. "Alright, good luck, Kitty," she said before swinging away.
"Well, the little lady's left you all alone," Bubbler taunted as he created another bubble. "Just you and me, stray."
Chat Noir shrugged, "Fine by me. I just wanna talk, man."
"I've got nothing to say to the likes of you," he snarled.
"Nino," he started, angering the Akuma. "I heard what happened from Adrien. Issues with your friend?" Bubbler's eyes darted to the left, trying to avoid Chat's concerned look. "I know you're there, Carapace." Bubbler goes rigid for a second before raising his hand, intending to throw one of his bubbles, but can't seem to bring himself to do it. "I'm sure you know all about secrets. Ladybug and I keep them from each other because of our identities. And even though we can't tell each other everything, we still trust each other. We're still friends. And even though Adrien can't tell you his own secret, that doesn't make you friends any less."
Shadow Moth symbol appears over Bubbler's face, but it starts flickering. "Bubbler, don't listen to another word he says! Don't you want to learn what your friend is hiding from you?!"
"Adrien does trust you, Nino!" Chat Noir exclaimed. "You, Kim, Nathaniel, Max, and Ivan. He'll tell you his secret on his own time, and you'll all know why he's kept it hidden from you all for so long!"
Bubbler clutches his head as Shadow's Moth's glowing mask starts flickering. He realized that Chat Noir was right; no amount of prodding would get Adrien to tell him or the others his secret, and no matter how concerned he was, he'd just have to wait until he finally admits what's wrong.
"Nino?" Chat Noir reached out to him, seeing his Akumatized friend has gone stiff. Suddenly, Bubbler's head snapped down before looking back and screaming, making the Akuma symbol shatter and blasting Chat Noir back.
Shadow Moth dropped down to his knees and healed his head in pain. "Im... Impossible!" The symbol appears over his eyes again, and he communicates with the rest of the Brotherhood of Secrets. "Listen to me. Bubbler has betrayed you! Clearly, he doesn't care about your friend. Seize Ladybug and Chat Noir's Miraculous so you can take care of him and your friend!"
Bubbler de-transforms back into Nino, who nearly fell to the ground before Chat Noir swooped in and held him up. "Whoa. I don't think anyone's ever done that before... You're awesome!"
"I learned from the best," Nino said, fist-bumping the leather-clad hero.
Chat Noir's phone rings. He pulls out his staff and switches it to the phone setting. "What's up?"
"What's going on, Chat?" Ladybug explained as she fought off the Akuma's by Canal Saint-Martin. "The Brotherhood of Secrets is looking for you and Bubbler now, and I can't hold them off for long! Is everything okay?" She moved out of the way of one of Evillustrator's kicks, grabbed his ankle, and flung him into Dark Cupid. Both fell into the water, leaving her with Stone Heart and Gamer until they resubmerged.
"Bubbler turned back into Nino," Chat explained, smiling back at Nino. "He broke away from Hawkmoth's control."
"Wh-what?! How?!" Ladybug asked, astonished as she dodged a blast from Gamer. "I mean, that's good news, but does he know where the Akuma is?"
"It's a photo," Nino answered. "Nathaniel was holding it!"
Stone Heart's fist came into contact with the bridge, destroying it and sending Ladybug into the water. Dark Cupid flew out of the water with Evillustrator in his arms. "No Lucky Charm to save you this time," Stone Heart grunted. "You gotta come out sometime."
As Ladybug held her breath, she quickly sent a Miraculous box to Chat Noir. 'I hope this works. Trixx, where are you?'
"... I'm going in there," Dark Cupid finally said, tired of waiting, and a little concerned. He set Evillustrator down on Stone Heart's shoulder, but before he could dive into the water, he heard, "LADYBUG!"
They whirled their heads and saw the Adrien illusion standing in the street. "ADRIEN!" They yelled.
"After him!" Evillustrator commanded.
"No! Take her Miraculous first!"
While they were chasing after Trixx's illusion, Ladybug swam back to the surface, taking a few deep breaths since she had been underwater for a while. She spoke back to Chat Noir. "Chat, did you get what I sent you? We're gonna need all the help we can get."
"Got it right here, m'lady." Chat held out the octagonal box to an awestruck Nino. "We'll meet up with you in a bit. Let's just hope they don't catch the illusion." Once he hung up, Chat Noir asked, "Any chance Carapace can come out of his shell?"
"Always, dude." Nino took the box and opened it, revealing the familiar bracelet. He slipped it on his wrist and said the phrase, "Wayzz, Shell On!"
Ladybug ran after the Brotherhood of Secrets, who were heading for the theater, and called for her, "Lucky Charm!" What landed in her hands was... "A tarp?" Using her Lucky Vision, she saw that Evillustrator and the tarp were illuminated, but it wasn't everything she needed to catch the Akuma. That was when she saw Chat Noir and Carapace leaping from roof to roof, and the turtle hero was illuminated too. "Got it," she said to herself.
The Adrien illusion ran into the theater, followed by Evillustrator and Dark Cupid since they were the only ones who could fit through the doors while Stone Heart and Gamer stood outside to fight off the heroes. Chat Noir tries to run in but is captured by Stone Heart.
"Carapace! Look out!" Ladybug warned.
He looked up and saw Gamer's mech reaching to grab him, but he ducked out of the way, avoiding the hand, and slid into the theater lobby, followed by Ladybug. "So, what's the plan, Ladybug?"
"Evillustrator can't draw in the dark," she remarked. "I need you to use your power to trap us, then you take the tarp and throw it on top."
Carapace nodded and took the tarp. Got it."
Evillustrator and Dark Cupid cornered the illusion in one of the theaters. "There's nowhere else to run, Adrien!"
Dark Cupid loaded one last arrow and took aim. "You're gonna hate keeping secrets from us! Your best friends!" He fired the arrow, only for it to go right through the illusion and make it disappear into an orange mist. "What the-?"
"It was a trick!" Evillustrator snapped. "Come on! We can still find- Ah!" Out of nowhere, Ladybug tackled him to the floor. "Get off of me!"
"Carapace, now!"
"Shell-ter!" Carapace used his shield to shoot a force field at Ladybug and Evillustrator before quickly throwing the tarp over it and leaving him to fight Dark Cupid. The winged Akuma shot at him a few times, but each arrow was blocked by Carapace's shield.
Evillustrator tried to draw something on his tablet, but since it was too dark, he couldn't see and was defenseless against the spotted heroine who grabbed both his pen and tablet before snapping them in half, freeing the Akuma from the tablet. "Carapace! Drop the shell-ter!"
Having heard her, Carapace yelled, "Shell-ter, drop!" The forcefield disappeared.
"No more evil-doing for you, little Akuma! Time to de-evilize!" She caught the Akuma in her yoyo. "Gotcha!" Seconds later, a pure white butterfly fluttered out. "Goodbye, little butterfly." She grabbed the tarp off the ground and tossed it into the air. "Miraculous Ladybug!" The tarp burst into Ladybirds, flying around the city and fixing the damage caused by the Brotherhood of Secrets. Finally, Evillustrator, Dark Cupid, Gamer, and Stone Heart turned back into Nathaniel, Kim, Max, and Ivan.
Ladybug and Carapace fist-bumped. "Pound it!"
Chat Noir met up with Ladybug and Chat Noir at the entrance, both escorting Nathaniel and Kim back outside. "Thanks for the help, Carapace."
"No problem," he said before looking at Chat Noir's ring that only had two minutes left. "You better go."
"Oh, you're right." He extended his staff to vault away, but before he did, he turned to the boys and said, "I suggest you guys try talking to Adrien again. He might appreciate it." And then he left, leaving the five of them to think over his words.
Nino stood outside Adrien's room, his fist just an inch from the door, hesitating to knock.
"Come on." Ivan gave him a little nudge. "Maybe it'll go better this time."
"... Yeah. Yeah, you're right." Finally, Nino knocked on the door and waited... Waited... And waited. He sighed. "Maybe we'll do this-"
The door finally opened, revealing Adrien, looking solemn. "Hey."
"H-hey," Nino stammered. There was an awkward silence between them until Nino spoke again, "So, uh-" Much to his surprise, Adrien pulled him in for a hug.
He whispered, "I'm sorry. To all of you, I-I shouldn't have said that, and... Breaking up with Kagami just messed me up. I-I thought I finally found the person I could tell everything to, but the thing is, I still can't, a-and I wanna tell her everything, and you guys too, but I-"
"Hey, it's alright," Ivan reassured as he, Max, Kim, and Nathaniel joined them. "We shouldn't have been too pushy, so it was on us, too. We get it, everyone has secrets, and it's your choice whether you wanna tell us or not."
They pulled away from the group hug, and Nathaniel walked towards the blonde before holding his hand. "So, when you're ready, you can tell us, we'll listen, and do whatever we can to help you out."
Adrien smiled. "Thanks."
"Love's overrated anyway," Kim laughed before coming to an abrupt stop when he remembered his girlfriend. "Don't tell Ondine I said that," he quickly said. "But my point is, you've got us."
"And we're not going anywhere," Max added.
"How's movie night at my place sound?" Nino suggested as he held out his fist.
Adrien fist-bumped him. "I'd like that."
"See you then," Ivan said as he left Adrien's room, followed by Kim, Nathaniel, then Max, but Nino stayed behind.
"You dudes go ahead. I have one last thing to say to Adrien." The blonde looked concerned at that and wondered what he had to say. Nino closed the door and lead Adrien over to his bed to sit down. "... You still have more to say, don't you?" He wraps his arm around his best friend. "A bro always knows. And a bro would never force it out of you."
"... Would we still be friends if... If I told you what's been going on?"
Nino pulled him in for a hug. "Adrien, we're gonna best friends no matter what. And because of that, it kills me that I can't help you with whatever's making you feel like this, alone and like you have no one to talk to. And not just that, either. It makes me feel like shit whenever I can't help you out stand up to your dad, either."
Hearing that, Adrien started crying and hugged Nino back. "I do feel alone! There was another person I was close to, but she's keeping secrets too, and I keep trying to tell myself that she has her reasons, but I hate being left out! And I did lie to Kagami! I lied to Kagami, you, my father, Marinette, everyone! I'm lying every single day and look what happened! It's just getting in the way of my life, getting me into more trouble with my dad, and... UGH!"
"Adrien, look at me!" Nino pulled away from him and held his shoulders. "Whatever this is, the two of us can work through this together."
"But if I tell you, things will never be the same again..." Adrien looked down at his ring and curled his hand into a fist. This was it. He's going to tell someone and finally feel free for once in his life. "This could destroy everything we've worked towards, but I need to tell someone."
"Then tell me," Nino urged.
"... Nino... I'm Chat Noir..."
Nino stared at the blonde in shock and disbelief. His best friend is Chat Noir... Everything makes sense now. Always disappearing when there's an Akuma, the lame excuses, his previous crush on Ladybug. And he had the blonde hair, the voice... The ring. He started wearing that when Ladybug and Chat Noir made their debuts. Plus, there was the cheese, probably for his Kwamii whom he noticed poking his head out from behind one of the pillows.
Nino isn't sure what to do, and Adrien is nervously waiting for him to say something to reassure him that it's okay. Having no words, he holds his arms out, and Adrien falls into his embrace while Plagg looks on.