Switched

Chapter 12 - Shadowmoth's Defeat

You'll get my miraculous, over my dead body!

Why, Adrien, Marinette thought. Why did you have to say that? I'm worried enough as is. Why did you choose today of all days to not listen to me!

"Before resorting to barbarous fighting," Shadowmoth said, pulling Marinette out of her thoughts, "let me ask you again. Adrien, give me your miraculous."

"Like I said, not gonna happen!"

"Adrien..." he repeated, this time twirling his ring. "Give me your miraculous."

Adrien became uneasy. To Marinette, the scene looked like an akumatization. Adrien was being forced to give in to Shadowmoth. He took a step back and spoke again, stuttering on his words. "I-I already s-said...no...I won't give it to you."

"Adrien, give it to me," he repeated again.

Adrien grabbed and pulled on his hair. He let out a scream to try to resist whatever his father was doing to him. He quickly stopped and went limp. "Yes, father," he said in the most monotone voice Marinette had ever heard.

"STOP! PLEASE! BRING HIM BACK!" Marinette shouted in a state of panic. "THIS IS INHUMANE! I WON'T LET IT END LIKE THIS!" The tears continued to stream down her cheeks. "ADRIEN! I KNOW YOU'RE IN THERE. PLEASE STOP THIS!"

Without thinking, Marinette charged at Gabriel. He was so startled by her sudden attack that he didn't react fast. She was able to take her earrings out of his hand and transform. She immediately took out her yo-yo and used it to tie Shadowmoth's hands behind his back. She was powerful against him. Even though he was physically stronger, she had speed and agility on her side.

"Nathalie, help me!" Gabriel pleaded.

Nathalie looked conflicted. She looked from Adrien to Gabriel, back and forth, unable to pick a side.

"Ma'am, I think you know the right thing to do," Marinette said. "Would you rather help the innocent Adrien, or the super villian willing to kill the innocent Adrien?"

"It's a lot more complicated than that," Nathalie said.

"No, it's not," said Marinette as she took the two miraculouses off of Gabriel and then his ring which controlled Adrien.

Adrien took a step back and blinked a few times, trying to register what had just happened.

"If you're on our side," Marinette said to Nathalie, "please, watch Gabriel and make sure he doesn't escape. If you're not, let him go. I don't care, he's powerless anyway. If you do that though, you'll live with the guilt of saving the man who made this mess and hurt someone you love, Adrien."

After she had finished talking to Nathalie, Marinette ran up to Adrien and put her hands on his shoulders. "Are you okay? I'm so sorry, sorry about everything."

Adrien was still dazed. "What just happened? Why did I do that? It felt like weakness was overtaking me and I became a robot or something. I couldn't control my actions. Did I really hand Shadowmoth my miraculous?"

"Almost, but no. I stopped him before you could."

Marinette put Gabriel's ring in Adrien's hand. He understood instantly what it meant, but it took him a while to process it. After staring at the ring blankly for almost thirty seconds, the tears came streaming down. "No! This can't be true!" he said. His whole body was shaking. "I'm...just...a...sentimonster?" He paused again, trying to let it sink in. "I was created from a miraculous. I'm not even human. I shouldn't exist."