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Beau and the Beetle	By : Cat_Eyes Category: +M through R > Miraculous LadyBug Views: 3721 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Miraculous Ladybug. Miraculous Ladybug is the intellectual property of Thomas Astruc and released by Zag studios. No profit was made writing this story.

Chapter List
- 1-Prologue: Alya
- 2-Adrien
- 3-Felix
- 4-Bridgette
- 5-Adrien
- 6-Sabine
- 7-Bridgette
- 8-Alya
- 9-Adrien
- 10-Felix
- 11-Sabine
- 12-Bridgette
- 13-Alya
- 14-Felix
- 15-Adrien
- 16-Alya
- 17-Felix
- 18-Bridgette
- 19-Adrien
- 20-Sabine
- 21-Felix
- 22-Alya
- 23-Bridgette
- 24-Adrien
- 25-Sabine
- 26-Adrien
- 27-Felix
- 28-Alya
- 29-Bridgette
- 30-Adrien
- 31-Sabine
- 32-Bridgette
- 33-Felix
- 34-Alya
- 35-Adrien
- 36-Felix
- 37-Sabine
- 38-Bridgette
- 39-Adrien
- 40-Felix
- 41-Adrien
- 42-Felix
- 43-Adrien
- 44-Adrien
- 45-Adrien
- 46-Epilogue
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Felix was not put off by Adrien’s unsubtle attempt to get him to stop prying. Unfortunately, Felix was not in a position to investigate the reasons for his brother’s uncharacteristic outburst himself, as Gabriel had been as good as his word, keeping Felix too busy with work and school to pursue outside interests.
His days were spent fetching and carrying at Gabriel's, the common drudgery an insult to his intelligence. However, he was not permitted to forget his placement there was a punishment, not a reward, under Gabriel's watchful eye. So, Felix suffered the indignity, aware that it was well deserved, but quickly growing sick of the menial labour all the same.
After the first week in his new regime, Felix was exhausted. Every day, he had been up at four-thirty in the morning, to arrive at Gabriel's by five. For the next two and a half hours, he performed the mindless duties of a base level intern for anyone who asked, then he had to leave for school.
Public school was not as bad as he’d initially believed. However, the course material was basic compared to what he was used to, so Felix let his mind drift without worrying about his grades. He was also glad to be sitting down. More than once, he’d nearly fallen asleep, lulled by his own fatigue, and the teacher’s sonorous droning.
He had been placed in the same class as Adrien and his friends. They were a raucous bunch, without being malicious, who included him in conversations and extended invitations to socialise during lunch hours. Felix accepted under duress, aware of Adrien watching closely from nearby, ready to report back to Gabriel should Felix flout the conditions of his loose punishment.
Bridgette was also in his class; a pleasant, yet distracting surprise. She was an affable girl, who didn’t appear to hold a grudge against him for his family’s mistreatment of her. But she was quiet, remaining on the fringes of conversations, without contributing unless she was addressed specifically.
Felix appreciated Bridgette’s quiet demeanour. She didn’t feel the need to fill every silence with chatter, like many other girls their age, so her company was relaxing and refreshing. He found himself watching her during class, as his eyelids drooped, his mind floating into blankness.
Her hair caught the light, reflecting it with a subtle blue undertone that drew his attention away from his surroundings. If he reached out, he could have touched it from his seat beside the hulking Ivan. But he didn’t know how she would react to being stroked like a cat, so he kept his hands to himself, lest she think him unsavoury.

By the time the final bell rang on Friday, Felix was ready to lay down and sleep the weekend away. His classmates streamed by him, eager to begin their weekend activities, but he was reminded that he still had a few more hours to complete at Gabriel's before he could relax.
Bridgette sidled up beside him as he was putting his books back in his bag, watching him with concern.
‘Are you ok?’ she asked. ‘Your first week at school must’ve been a big adjustment for you.’
Felix shook his head. ‘It’s not school, so much as Father’s punishment. It’s gruelling, being worked like a slave.’
‘I see.’ Bridgette was an intelligent girl, who didn’t require a reminder as to why he was being punished. ‘Is there anything I can do?’
He turned to face her, touched by her offer, and surprised by her generosity. ‘No, thank you. This is something I have to do on my own.’
Bridgette rubbed her arm and looked away. ‘Oh, ok.’
When she hesitated, Felix regarded her curiously. ‘Was there something you wanted?’
He hoped she would ask him to help with her schoolwork again. The last time he had assisted her, Felix found her to be astute and attentive, picking up on his explanations quickly. She also smelled nice, like flowers and cinnamon.
However, Bridgette blushed and shook her head. ‘No, nothing. I just wanted to make sure you were fitting in all right. I had a hard time settling in when I first got here, so,’ she trailed off, her gaze averted.
Felix slung his bag strap over one shoulder. Bridgette hefted her own bag, then accompanied him from the classroom.
‘I can’t imagine you having difficulties making friends,’ Felix said, as they walked down the stairs.
Bridgette cleared her throat. ‘Well, my cousin had vanished only months before my arrival, so some people thought it was weird. I guess they didn’t like being confronted with the reminder, and thought I was trying to replace her, or something.’
She was looking at her feet, and rubbing her arms as if to ward off a chill. Her uncertain behaviour wrenched his heart.
‘Listen,’ he told her, grasping her shoulders, ‘you are no one’s replacement. You are a complete, wanted, and welcome person in your own right. Understand?’
Bridgette’s eyes widened as they began to well. Before Felix could worry for making her cry, she flung herself at him, hugging him tight around the middle.
‘Thank you, Felix. You don’t know what it means to me to hear that.’
Felix stood, frozen for a moment, before awkwardly petting her head. Looking down, he saw the light reflected in her hair, and gave in to his urge to stroke it. Her hair was thick and silky, something he could easily spend hours running his fingers through.
An impatient beep from the street brought him abruptly back into reality. He took a step back, coughing into his fist as his cheeks warmed. Bridgette let him go with an apologetic grin.
‘Sorry to keep you.’ She ducked around him, but paused by the double doors to wave cheerily. ‘See you on Monday.’
He returned her wave, and then she was gone. Breathing a weary sigh, Felix exited the school, and slid into the back of his family’s car. Adrien was already inside, smiling widely, but with a mischievous glint in his eyes.
Felix ignored his gleeful ribbing, and pulled out his phone to check the afternoon schedule. He wouldn’t finish at Gabriel's until six o’clock that evening, as he would be expected to clean up after Adrien’s photoshoot, and be present while Gabriel accepted a delivery of fabrics. He sighed, resigning himself to a long afternoon.

He was the only passenger in the car on the way home after work, since Adrien had finished an hour earlier, right after the shoot had concluded. Felix rubbed his forehead, an exhaustion headache pounding just above his eyebrows.
Arriving back at Agreste manor, Felix let himself out of the car, and into the house. It was dim and quiet, without even the soulful notes of a piano drifting from Adrien’s room. Felix bit his lip as he stared at Adrien's bedroom door. They hadn’t had a chance to speak since Felix’s confession, and he wanted to apologise properly. Whether Adrien would accept it, or even listen, was still in question, but Felix needed to get the words out, regardless. He had tried to do that only a few days ago, but after Adrien walked out on him, it had been difficult to find another opportunity to speak with him.
Pulling his shoulders back, Felix marched up the steps, and gave a perfunctory knock. He waited for two minutes, but was met only with silence from inside as well as out. He knocked again, insistently, but still there was no answer. Frowning, Felix tested the handle, raising his eyebrows when it gave way easily. He entered, with a careful look around, but Adrien was not in residence.
Worried, curious, and annoyed, Felix searched the rest of the house, but found no trace of his brother, as he’d expected. He rang Adrien's phone, but an automated recording informed him that the number was out of range. Felix wondered where he could have snuck off to, for him not to have any phone reception. He narrowed his eyes as he thought of the dangerous underground tunnels.
Surely, he wouldn’t go back there, Felix mused.
He was certain Adrien was on another one of his mysterious “outings.” If that was the case, he would return in his own time, and before Gabriel could begin to worry. So, Felix took a seat on the foyer stairs and waited, watching the front doors intently.
An hour later, they inched open with a creak. Adrien stuck his head inside, glanced about furtively, and grinned when no one was in sight. Concealed by shadows, Felix watched as he darted inside, and closed the doors behind him, a limp duffel hanging from his shoulder.
‘Where have you been?’ he asked.
Adrien jumped and spun around, flattening his back against the doors. Felix stood up, revealing himself, to return Adrien’s glare with cool regard.
‘Out,’ huffed Adrien.
‘Out where?’
‘None of your business.’
Felix sighed. ‘If Father were to find out you’ve been sneaking off – ‘
‘He won’t,’ Adrien interrupted, ‘unless you snitch.’
‘I’m only trying to look out for you. What’s so secret that you can’t even tell me?’
‘Don’t act as if we were ever that close.’ Clutching his duffel, Adrien strode by Felix without sparing him a glance. ‘What I do is none of your concern. Butt out.’
Felix watched on as Adrien stalked to his room, slamming the door behind him. Troubled, Felix decided to keep a closer eye on his brother, despite his new schedule.
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Beau and the Beetle