Butterfly Delivery - Adrinette

All in a Day

Fifteen days after Cigogne

"Good morning, Adrien."

"Good morning, Nathalie, will my father be joining me for breakfast?" he asked out of habit.

"He will."

"He will?!" Adrien echoed in surprise.

"I will," Gabriel said, coming into the room. "Nathalie, you may be dismissed."

"Père," Adrien greeted respectfully.

"Adrien," Gabriel sat down at the table. "Let's talk about this butterfly child of yours. What's the latest the doctors said?"

"The children are growing abnormally fast," Adrien reported. "They're not getting a lot bigger, but their physical form is far more advanced than they shoud be at this stage. We had a blood test at school two days ago; it's supposed to isolate the babies' waste material and tell us whether we're biologically related to the children we're carrying."

"When are the results due?"

"The usual, three to five business days."

"So, I've been considering the future of your butterfly child, and - "

"I want to keep it!" Adrien blurted out.

"Do not interrupt me," Gabriel scolded his son, "but I'm glad you want to, because you don't have a choice."

"I... don't have to convince you?"

"If we'd been in disagreement over this, do you think you could have won?"

"I should have a say! I'm it's father - "

"And I'm your father, understood? Good. This child isn't such a bad thing; we can use it to our advantage. The butterfly children have already caught the media's attention, and any publicity is good publicity. The public can be made to feel sorry for you, the victim, left by no fault of his own to single-handedly raise a child when he is little more than a child himself. They'll want to support you, and they'll do so by buying from the brand you represent."

'I'm not going to let you use my child the way I've let you use me.' Adrien swallowed his words along with the last of his breakfast. He might not like what his father had planned, but at least they agreed about one thing - keeping his kid. As long as that was in place he'd probably be better off if he didn't stir the pot any further. Still he had a question left. "What about the other butterfly children? My classmates were making arrangements to take turns babysitting for one another after the children are born, and I promised I would join in - that is, if you let me."

"Community efforts are usually more effort than they're worth, Adrien," Gabriel warned. "I'll think about it. How many of your friends are planning to keep their children, anyway?"

"Well, let's see, there's - "

"Hold on," Gabriel interrupted, "don't you need to get to school?"

"Not yet," Adrien answered. "It's still half an hour before I usually leave, and I haven't been late yet."

"Well, I just remembered some urgent business I need to get done, and you'll have to leave before I get finished. Don't wait around for me. We'll finish this discussion tonight." Gabriel got up from his place at the table and walked out of the room.

"What was that about, Master?" Nooroo asked as soon as they were out of earshot. "You finally made time for your son, and then you leave him without notice?

"Can't you sense that delicious despair?" Gabriel removed his tie; beneath it his miraculous glowed a faint purple. "Darkwings Rise!"

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