Vanished (Lukadrien) • Miraculous Ladybug

Chapter 8 | suspicions

It was odd to the class having an empty seat in the second row. It's been weeks, and still no sign of Adrien. And so far things in the case have been silent, that was until this morning.

Again, Marinette was late to school. Not unusual for her, but when she entered the class she found that the same police officers from before were back again and instead of everyone being in their seats the whole class plus a few friends from other classes were crowded around them.

"What's going on?" Marinette asked Alya as she slipped into the crowd as if she wasn't late.

"They finally got into Adriens phone and laptop" Alya replied.

This was good! Maybe it'd reveal where he'd gone or what had happened to him. Although, it could also potentially confirm the abuse theory which was worrying.

"It's a tricky situation, since we only have his search history to go off and we have no outside witnesses to it we can't say for sure he was being abused, but it definitely looks like it. As far back as multiple months there's searches for things like 'gaslighting definition', 'parental abuse help' and 'how to treat cuts so they won't scar' which does look alarming given the context..." the cop explained.

The class, especially those closest to Adrien knew that this was burning evidence and Luka's theory was right.

"So the runway theory is confirmed?" Chloe asked.

"Yes. We believe he know what happened on the day he ran away, some of which he can't reveal due to his safety and privacy. Although it would be helpful to confirm things it's a violation of his privacy to tell everyone. Only a select few will be told about some of the finer details and they must keep it secret and not let it out to the media for his sake. But the general theory is that he'd been planning this for months and his mental health was declining due to his father neglecting to spend time with him and being so controlling. On the night he ran away an argument broke out between them which was the final straw for Adrien and he ran that night" the other cop explained.

That's what the class feared, even though they knew it was the case the second Luka connected the dots and told them. This was a planned escape just like he theorised, it was confirmed by the cops themselves.

"So he's probably alive then. Of course it's dangerous for him to be out there but if it was planned and he took things with him he must be out there somewhere right?" Marinette asked.

"Usually I'm missing persons cases the longer they're gone the less of the chance of being alive is. But in this case that period of time is longer since this was planned and he clearly left with the intention of living somewhere else. We've contacted the rest of his family and it seems he's not with any of them so wherever he is he's either got a location in mind or is prepared to live on the run for a while"

This case was getting thicker, more and more pieces of the puzzle coming together. The cops explained that as soon as these updates broke the news there'd likely be a media frenzy over the allegations of abuse toward his father, but since his father was rich and powerful and all they had was some google searches as evidence, he could absolutely buy his way out of it. Gabriel Agreste was a scummy man and the kids as well as the taskforce on the case knew it. But without some kind of further proof like dated images of Adrien with injuries, or a witness to the abuse coming forward they couldn't make any arrests.

Nathalie saw everything that happened in that household and that night, but is was clear she was too wrapped around Gabriel's little finger to snitch on him. Adriens bodyguard may be willing to testify but again, Gabriel was powerful and there was very chance he could prevent that.

It was a very tricky case, a 15 year old LGBT kid was out there alone and potentially in danger fresh out of an abusive household packed with trauma. And his father was so rich and influential that he could easily buy his way out of trouble and if Adrien was found he'd end up back in the care id a clearly unhinged man.

"Kind of off topic but do you know anything about Cat Noir suddenly vanishing too? It's weird that two famous people have vanished so close in time to each other" Alya asked.

"Nope, nothing. We're focusing on Adriens case. Plus no one knows his identity so he might not even be missing, maybe he's just sick and can't fight for a while or something. Although I will say it is certainly not very convenient timing, we could use the help of superhero's on this case. Ladybug agreed to keep an eye out but Cat Noir would be some extra help we definitely need" the cop replied.

As the class was being updated on the available and not confidential information on the case, the missing person in question... or rather the stray cat if you will was walking the rather empty streets of the almost ghost town he was staying at with a bag of shopping. He'd successfully made a shopping trip for more supplies without anyone recognising him. The new hair and clothing style was really helping him stay on the down low. If things kept going well he might even be able to get that job he needed soon.

"Sooo we're making progress are we?" Plagg said.

"Yep! This is going much better than I thought but I'm definitely not complaining" Adrien replied.

"Could you have gotten a cooler phone though? Flip phones are SO outdated!"

"I need to save money, plus they're harder to track. I just need a phone so I can have one for when I eventually get that job and so I can read emails and stuff. There's free wifi in a few places in this town I can connect to so I can use it when I'm out. I'll also have to charge it while I'm out as well since the building we're in has no power"

Plagg groaned, this whole plan seemed rather complicated.

"How will you pay for the phone bills? We don't even have an address for them to be sent too!" Plagg added.

"We're you not listening? I can connect to public wifi and I won't have to use data. It'll make things more useful to have data yes but until I have an income in the form of a job I can't do much. This phone is for emergencies, communicating on wifi and knowing the time at the moment. Stop complaining will you? It's not like the phone is the only thing I bought"

In the shopping bag was also some new clothes, more food as well as some basic kitchenware: a few bits of cutlery and plastic re-usable plates and bowls. As well as some extra soap. He was lucky the building still had running water, even though there was no shower he could as least use the to keep clean with soap and cloth.

That running water ended up being still filtered and clean, so he was able to use it for drinking and cooking, washing clothes and bathing. Last time he washed his hair in the sink the water was stilling running black from the hair dye so he really needed to keep an eye on his hair.

As for the clothes he bought, he'd gotten some gloves after he realised he's forgotten to grab some when he packed his winter clothes. He also got a dress, because when he decided he'd make his new 'Chaton' identity more androgynous to throw people off, he knew a dress would make that work perfectly. And finally he bought a second hoodie, this time a pastel one rather than the black one he bought from home.

He was pretty much set for clothes, he'd bought enough from home to suit all seasons and with these few extras he should be set to last just fine until he could get that job and have a stable income.

He could hardly believe that at 15 he was surviving on his own, and under these circumstances too. Despite the lack of electricity and not living in a proper house and having no stable income, he was happy. His situation was by no means good but he was happy.

Happy to be away from his dad, to have a break from the drama that was ladybug, to be able to be himself and make his own decisions. Sure he did miss his friends, and he would definitely like to at least have a small apartment to live in, it was a start. His bruises and cleared up, the gash was almost done healing and even though it'd leave a scar, he was ok.

Did he have a lot to work on? Yes. Was he completely recovered mentally from everything he went through? No. But it was the first step in the right direction. He knew that if he just kept pushing, and worked as hard as he could, then eventually he'd be lying in a warm bed in his own small apartment with working power and a stable income and able to make his own life decisions under his new identity. An identity that was truly him.

An identity that was like Cat Noir took of his mask, but kept his personality, because that's who he truly was.