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Post by skyeknight on Jun 16, 2017 20:34:10 GMT
He was finally doing it. He was going to tell Shadow and Sunshine who he was. He needed to. Shadow was bound to have figured it out already with the fact that 'Chat' had confessed to liking Yang and then also confessed to 'getting the girl' or rather she got him. But there was also the media thing to take in consideration. Adrien and Yang were caught together by the paparazzi shortly after 'Chat's' confession. But he had ulterior motives to telling them. Mostly because, he wanted to keep Yang safe. She wanted to tell their friends they were together. Shadow and Sunshine were some of the few friends he had. He still had to tell Weiss of course. He hoped she would take that well.
He sent Shadow a message via a burn phone. Maybe they would show up. He sat in the side of the alley, waiting for them. He was wearing his suit and his mask. Dressed - business as usual - but not quite. He hoped he didn't mind that he called on them. But crime was slower with Kid Flash around, an irony in itself. Because the speedster was good at stopping petty crime and quick about it too. Still, he was nervous and kept glancing at the burn phone to see if he would get a message telling him they weren't going to show and checking the time.
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Post by Zuyuri on Jun 16, 2017 20:51:19 GMT
Shadow and Sunshine were side by side, as per usual. Magnolia Road was usual one of the may places they would find crime. But they weren't here to look for people smuggling drugs disguised as necklaces or talismans. They weren't looking for dark voodoo in plain sight in the marketplace. They were here after tracking an unknown number that had called Shadow's mobile. A burn phone. And who was the owner of said burn phone? Chat Noir. They each scanned the kiosks, looking for any signs of their cat buglar ally.
"What was so important that he wanted to talk to us during summer blowout?" Sunshine asked. She narrowed her eyes while peeking at one of the jewelry stands. The first time Chat popped in on them, he had talked about a rare jewel. Did he want to meet there? Nope. Nothing to show he was in the area.
Shadow turned the corner. An alley was covered by crates of fresh fish. In the darkness, he made out a small flash of light. That must have been the burn phone. Carefully gesturing to her, he pointed to the alley. She nodded, weaving around the vegetable stands with him going around the other bend. By pretending to go after a supposed criminal, they'd get closer to Chat and not raise suspicion.
"Pst!" Sunshine hissed as they entered the shadows. The smell of dumpsters and potential urine filled the humid air. "Chat!"
"We got your message," Shadow chimed in.
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Post by skyeknight on Jun 16, 2017 21:11:43 GMT
Chat perked up when he heard voices. He turned and saw Sunshine and Shadow. He gestured up with his head before heading into the alley and climbing the fire escape. He left the ladder down for the officers to follow him. Better to be off the streets were people could see them. He stopped at the very top of the building and seated himself once again on the edge. They would be up. A little fire escape ladder was not going to slow them down - particularly Shadow who if he wanted to could just run up the side of the wall. Because speed defied gravity. They were there. It left an odd burning sensation in his chest, anxiety perhaps? Because they could just arrest him for the things he had done, even though he was on their side.
Once they had joined him, he took a deep breath and put on a smile. Casual. Play it cool. Why was this weird? He was making this weird by overthinking things. They wouldn't arrest him. He saved Sunshine's life! He helped track down Shadow, things a real criminal wouldn't have done. A real criminal would have let Sunshine die. They would have let Shadow stay lost for as long as they could. He wasn't a criminal. Maybe if he told himself that enough, he would actually believe it.
"Thanks for coming."
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Post by Zuyuri on Jun 17, 2017 2:39:21 GMT
The duo found their prey, and he was off. But, they couldn't arrest him. No. Chat Noir alwasy was full of surprises. The ladder to the fire escape was up, and they both just looked at each other. So, what? Was he just teasing them like cats usually did? He was letting the cat persona get a little too close for comfort if that was the case. Sunshine tested the ladder. Locked into place so it wouldn't hobble. How courteous. She heaved herself up into the first landing before looking down at Shadow.
"Ready to give Rapunzel-Launch a test?" she asked.
Shadow smirked. "You bet."
Well, this would be the first time they practiced this outside of the arena. Sunshine scaled to the middle landing of the fire escape. She grabbed the end of her waist length hair, hummed a bit so it would extend, and threw the extra few feet below. The locks were grabbed by Shadow, who backed up slightly and the took a skating running start for the wall. But instead of crashing through, Sunshine yanked her hair up, and he was shooting along with it.Once he was at Chat's level, he dropped the length of hair, allowing his partner to follow suit and join them.
"What's up?" Sunshine asked as she came up to the top, shortening her length. "Did we practice our new launch for nothing?"
"Didn't see anything from the view," Shadow answered. "Was it something we missed before you summoned us?"
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Post by skyeknight on Jun 18, 2017 2:27:37 GMT
"Ah, um, well, it's nothing serious-serious." he said.
He had a huge speech planned, something emotional, maybe even stirring emotions out of Shadow (not likely but he could hope). Something about how much he trusted them and how things had gotten to a point where he needed to think about Yang. All of that was out the window. Having them there brought back the nerves again. He took a deep breath. This was getting nowhere. He was more or less just wasting their time like this. He took another deep breath. He had to start over. Calm himself down. Start small.
"You know I trust you guys, right?" he asked. "You've been... really good friends to me."
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Post by Zuyuri on Jun 18, 2017 5:16:08 GMT
Both cops relaxed. And by relaxed, that was Shadow becoming less stiff and Sunshine letting out a quiet sigh of relief. So this was a friendlier session. Given the times they did meet up had been during a crime spree or some sort of drama, this was a welcome change of pace.
"That's...a first..." Sunshine admitted, in regards to being trusted and the not serious part. No one ever said they trusted the Others Unit. Or heck, considered them friends.
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Post by skyeknight on Jun 18, 2017 16:01:49 GMT
"Well, I do. You are probably the closest things I've had to friends." he said firmly. "But I can't keep lying to you like this."
He took a deep breath and put a hand to his mask. The adhesive wasn't as 'strong' as it was when he normally used it. Yang had punched it clean off his face after the riots because his sweat made the adhesive weak. Shadow and Sunshine were going to be the last to his little revelation circle. Weiss, though a good friend, might not understand his motives. Kid Flash, was another 'super hero', but Adrien didn't know him well enough to say that he absolutely trusted him with his 'secret'. Not yet anyways, but he could someday.
"So... No more of that," he said.
With that, he peeled the mask away, revealing his face.
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Post by Zuyuri on Jun 18, 2017 23:46:12 GMT
The cops exchanged looks. So that was why Chat stuck around around for as long as he had. He had started off doing it with his Robin Hood schtick. But he had been there for all the tough crimes, and did not hesitate to back down. It was almost foreign having a "thief" call them friends, but at least he had been saying it with no thinly veiled teasing.
The kid then mentioned he was done lying, and, much to their surprise, took off his mask. The kid in the jumpsuit in front of them was no stranger.
Shadow had to give this kid credit. Social media didn't scare him away from dressing up to talk to the cops. Or rob from the very people he had been a part of. He had gotten the truth from Yang, but by the kid doing this himself, having the courage to tell it to his face, that brought the respect levels up.
Sunshine's jaw almost dropped to the floor. Her green eyes were wide. How could she have been so stupid? The blonde hair, the gree. Eyes, the know-how of the craziness the elite hid from the middle class.
So, one shocked and one impressed, both of them chorused;
"Adrien Agaste."
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Post by skyeknight on Jun 19, 2017 1:43:45 GMT
"Hi. It's... nice to meet you both officially?" he said.
Perhaps that was the best way to word it. Shadow didn't seem surprised actually that Adrien Agreste was the one behind the mask. That put a slight damper on the utter surprise that Sunshine presented him with. Simply because he thought he had done a good job keeping his secret from cops. Still, he offered them both a smile. No one was breaking out the handcuffs yet, though, that could be saved for the media because they knew where he lived now and could arrest him whenever they wanted with an audience that would eat up the scandal and make them famous.
"Oh, c'mon, Shadow! You could have looked at least a little surprised. You don't even read the magazines I'm in!" Adrien complained.
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Post by Zuyuri on Jun 19, 2017 5:15:02 GMT
"You're right. I don't," Shadow said with a smirk. "But social media spread the wildfire a little quicker. I was at Yang's house when the reporters' nosiness blew up her phone. She told me what happened, I put two and two together and decided to have you tell the truth on your own terms."
Sunshine's jaw still hadn't come up from its dropped position. Okay, maybe it had closed ever so slightly. She also had seen, and of course swiped by, the news that Adrien Agaste had a mystery girl. She never in a million years would have seen it being Yang. Oh, she was happy that the two of them were together, and the fact that the media had actually reported celebrity gossip that was TRUE, but it still was a big rush trying to tie all this up.
"I have to admit," she said after a while, "when I said I wanted to meet a celebrity, I didn't think I'd actually have one save my butt on more than one occasion."
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Post by skyeknight on Jun 19, 2017 14:50:59 GMT
"About Yang... She's kind of the reason I'm telling you..." Adrien admitted sheepishly. "She wanted to tell our friends we're seeing each other and I wanted you to hear from me not the news."
The media was ready to pounce on him at a moment's notice. His date with Yang was news. His father's death was even more juicy news. If he made another move, it would likely end up in the papers. It was already tense in high society because he used 'local' caterers for his father's post-funeral services. He didn't want Yang's entire life to be plastered in the papers because she didn't like living like that. She couldn't have people rooting through her trash to make up some bullshit about her life. She didn't need a camera in her face every time she went outside, especially not if the photographers were going to grab her.
"This is going to change some things too," he added. "My father has passed away. The Agreste Industries are mine. I... can't risk being arrested."
The scandal alone would kill his company. He had never truly done anything wrong when he was out on his heists. No one got hurt. The rich could easily replace the things they stole, because they were rich. Those things were likely to have ended up in the trash anyways, like the fashions from last year his father tried to have destroyed that Adrien had taken to giving to the homeless and low income families. The crimes were things the rich wouldn't miss. Aside from Cinder... Who nearly killed Yang. If he got arrested or killed, then his company could fall. Then there would be thousands out of a job. The city would suffer from a hit like that. When people got desperate from no work, crime rates went up. That meant more work for the Others Unit.
"I can still pass you information, but I have to think of my company and my employees." he said.
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Post by Zuyuri on Jun 19, 2017 16:28:05 GMT
"This was why I wanted you to tell us the truth," Shadow said with a nod. If Adrien was coming clean, then he was serious both about his relationship status and what the cops thought of him as a person and not a masked vigilante. If memory served, the arrests were going onto Chat Noir, not Adrien Agaste. The last thing this kid needed was some kind of controversy. Again. "I'm impressed, Adrien. It takes a lot of courage to do what you're doing...and I'm not talking about the vigilante stuff."
Sunshine nodded in agreement. With the media pressing in closer with the death of Agreste Sr., there would be no time for fighting crime. That and as the new head of the company, the people who relied on him came first. It was a tricky sacrifice. "We understand. Besides, last we checked, we weren't out to arrest a kid who has enough shit on his plate."
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Post by skyeknight on Jun 19, 2017 17:59:40 GMT
Adrien gave a sheepish smile and he rubbed the back of his neck with his free hand. He still felt naked without his mask, especially in front of them. He certainly didn't feel brave by telling them either. He had been nervous to the point where he thought he would be sick. However, he had also run into a burning building to save Sunshine without a second thought. The only thing he felt that moment was relief. He wasn't in cuffs. They weren't cursing him or trying to catch him. It was like a weight was taken off his shoulders.
"You're both taking this better than I thought. I was almost afraid I'd have to flee the country and take Yang with me." he joked. "Uh, we are going on vacation but that's not fleeing the country."
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Post by Zuyuri on Jun 19, 2017 18:23:09 GMT
Maybe they were taking this a bit better than most other cops would have. But the truth was, both of them had no incentive to slap cuffs onto Adrien. When they had worked with them, he told nothing but the truth. Wild claims, but in the end, they were true. The crimes he had committed? Minor. If they had to arrest him for anything, it would be lying, which was a stupid reason to arrest anyone unless it was legit fraud.
"A vacation is definitely something both of you need," Shadow sighed. Even as Adrien, the kid was still taking care of Yang.
"Oh what, and we don't?" Sunshine huffed. At least Adrien and Yang had a chance to go someplace fancy. For them, a vacation would be driving forty five minutes down the freeway just to the get to the beach. Part of her wondered if that was still possible.
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Post by skyeknight on Jun 19, 2017 18:35:36 GMT
"I want to take her somewhere nice. Where she doesn't have to deal with all of... this."
The city was great. It was his home. He loved the town. At the same time, it was frustrating and he wanted to scream. The reporters giving him a hard time about everything from relationships to his father's death. Not to mention Yang's current depression and self admitted PTSD. They both needed somewhere non-toxic to just sit and clear their heads. Where they didn't have to worry about anything else. Adrien had to hire someone to mind the company while he was gone, which meant a co-CEO and a fashion designer to keep the family name going. But those were things for the morning, when he wasn't out telling two close friends he was dating. Weird.
"Tell you what, next event I cater, I'll hire Nevermore and you'll be able to pay for that vacation you want," Adrien offered.
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