songerein | { mirror mirror }

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{ mirror mirror }

MIRROR MIRROR

With the sleepwalking curse over, everyone will have some time to rest and recuperate—until Jack Frost comes barging in with news of a clue on how to help his beloved Ice Queen who still remains asleep. The clue was the mirror shard that was in her chest, and there are theories that it may have been a fragment of a much stronger, powerful mirror she had been given some time ago. Problem is, he can't find it nor can he remember who gave it to her. He does, however, have a magic incantation that will allow people to enter mirrors and hopefully find a trace. Unfortunately, this horrendously backfires and we have mirror chaos instead. Dammit, Jack.

More details on everything can be found here. We will request any thread submissions for certain prompts during AC .

I. REVEREIN

II. MIRROR WORLD

COMMENTS

I. REVEREIN

It all begins in Reverein, where there's a strange shift in the air upon Jack's attempt to cast the spell. But instead of affecting just one mirror, it reflects off the surface and spreads out to the entire town, hitting every reflective surface instead. Ripples can be seen before the surfaces still, but it's too late. Every reflective surface—glass, mirror, window—is under a different effect because of the botched spell.

And some are being unwittingly pulled into them.

Fortunately It is possible to communicate and even watch people from the other side of the mirror, but it's only through certain mirrors and at certain times. It also will be temporary, so while one mirror might work one time, it may not work again.

A. Strange Reflections. While some mirrors may still reflect proper images, many will have…unusual changes.

🪞 You are what you see. Whether it's an odd hairstyle, change in skin color, or style of clothing in the reflection, suddenly the viewer will look exactly like what's reflected. The most extreme is a different form entirely.
🏡 Glimpses of home. Everyone will have a rare glimpse of their home world, and these can be instances from the past, present, or even a limited future. They are just reflections and cannot be interacted with, and future reflections may be blurry to prevent the person from seeing too much. For those who have memory issues, such visions will also be blurry, but perhaps they can help stir some things…
🔮 Most desired. Mirrors that have a bit of a pink hue to them will reflect the viewer's most desired "thing." It could be an object, person, place, or even a general idea. However, if not careful the viewer may become trapped in a trance and will need to be removed or smash the mirror.

B. Clone Wars. Mirrors that do not show any kind of reflection are to be quickly taken away and covered as it will begin to create duplicates in Reverein of what is reflected within it. Yes, even people, and they will be very obviously fake: wrong colors, different voices, odd behavior, etc. and will usually be harmless. These "clones" will continue to appear and multiply until the mirror has been covered, and will need to either be destroyed or captured and shoved into the mirror, where it will lose its "no reflection" status and become a proper mirror again…only for them to appear on the other side in Mirror World.

C. Mirrorsnatched. A mirror with a black rim has the chance of absorbing a significant personality trait or memory of the one looking into it, and when this happens, the person will walk away feeling very muddle-headed and off. The mirror will "keep" this part of the person and someone from the Mirror World side must find their essence and "shove" it back out onto any mirror surface so that the original owner can break the mirror and retrieve it. The downside of this method is that breaking a mirror means one less mirror those on the Mirror side can use, so they need to choose carefully.

D. The Unknown. Appearing in both the Mirror World and Reverein will be a strange mirror masked, black cloaked figure called "The Unknown." It traverses through the mirrors and through the walls, seeking those with happy reflections and will try to corrupt them with nightmares. People on both sides of the mirrors will be able to confront and try to stop the Unknown, though beware its chocolate attacks.

II. MIRROR WORLD

Everything in this "Mirror World" is, in a word, chaotic. Imagine an AI-generated monstrosity based off of Picasso, Escher, and Dr. Seuss, where everything seems to be upside down, backwards, colors everywhere and nowhere, and everything feels so fragmented that one step feels like walking towards the edge of a cliff. In a way it's nightmarish in an unusual sense, and those inside can feel that touch of "madness" that seeps through the cold air.

Beware the strange creatures in the Mirror World. They are grotesque monstrosities, many of them looking as if they were stitched together from different parts. Fortunately they are susceptible to weapons and dreamotion and those inside the Mirror World will find they are able to use different abilities, especially those with reflective properties.

A. Fragment of their old self. In order to get out of the Mirror World, those inside will need to catch a small fragment of themselves that has escaped and is running around. This fragment is actually a piece of their old self prior to arriving in Songerein. For some, this self may not be so different, but for long-time residents, they may seem a lot more different. To make things more interesting, this self can be from any point of the character's past. It just has to be a version of the character from before entering Songerein. This version will also appear "homesick" and "want" to return to their original home, regardless if the character actually feels that way. Thus the fragment will seek out mirrors that will reflect anything of their home world. Shattering these mirrors will weaken the fragment until it can be caught. But that's only half the challenge. If the fragment is injured, the original will also feel the damage but to a lesser degree. If the fragment is destroyed, then the original will be "knocked out" for a few seconds before a new fragment appears. However, this fragment will be much more distorted and worse than the one before.

B. Distorted Memories. At random points while traversing, characters may come across strange pockets of the world that they will feel drawn to. Following said instinct will lead them to a shifted landscape that will reflect images of home from different points in time (past, present, maybe even future) as if they've just walked right into it, but just like everything else, they are distorted. The changes can be as subtle as the wrong color of clothes, having too many limbs, to something major like the sky now being the ground. The only way out will either be destroying the anomalies or correcting them, and they will be rewarded with a mirror shard that will aid in their escape.

C. Warped Sense of Self. The longer a person stays within the Mirror World, the less "coherent" they will feel, and sometimes sound. Their memories will slowly become more disjointed, their personality feeling a bit "off", and they may even forget who they are or where they are from. Even their physical selves will start to twist and change, starting with something subtle (e.g. eye color) and then growing more drastic as time goes on (where did those extra fingers come from? Or why are they suddenly much shorter?) Finding those reflections of home will help with these anomalies, but those weak of heart be warned: the distortions may only exacerbate the issue and make them believe that they are the truth instead. Help anyone who might be caught in fixing these so that they can recover.

D. Finding an exit. To leave the world, those inside must find a mirror that will connect back to Reverein, and those on the other side can also try to help by posing as "anchors" for those inside to recognize. Otherwise, there are many mirrors in the Mirror World that will lead to different places within Songerein—presumably. However, perhaps due to the magic or needing something else, they will be unable to pass through any mirrors that are not connected to Reverein. This is where players have the fun opportunity to make up whatever kind of location or place the characters may see reflected on the mirrors. They could be existing locations in the game, or new ones that could be explored in the future. One unique place we can mention will be reflections of a city covered in night.

Only upon finding a mirror that leads back to Reverein, but they will also need help from the outside. Someone from within Reverein must also be there to physically reach in and pull them out—while hopefully not accidentally be pulled in themselves.

I. REVEREIN

II. MIRROR WORLD

COMMENTS

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

At the sense of Adrien beginning to regain some composure, Gabriel was both relieved and bit resigned. Relieved because the sheer force of emotions that Adrien's sobbing had been concerning, and he was unsure how he would have handled it had Adrien simply been unable to stop. And resigned because despite that obviously much needed catharsis, he could tell there was still more behind it. Now, however, wasn't the time, with both of them already tired.

"I'm sure you'd be quite capable at it if you chose to put your mind to it," he said. "But at the moment, that's neither here nor there."

He pulled back from the hug enough that Adrien could see his face, but he didn't break contact just yet. "For now, how about you have a seat on the couch, and I'll make us some tea? I have a feeling we could both use a cup. And while I'm up, I'll find something to cover the rest of the mirrors in the house until whatever this is passes."

Gabriel Agreste making tea... since his mother died that was ll but unheard of. He would have someone else make it, more more likely have someone else fetch it from outside, in a cup with a label that made it clear to whoever saw it that the drink was expensive. Even if no one else saw it.

Except that more recently he had started cooking, and actually eating with Adrien again. And somehow...

... Somehow that had been worse.

So the offer filled Adrien with very strong mixed feelings, confusion and dread among them, even though he kept them from his face. "Al... alright..." he said finally, looking down at his hands, playing with his doubled rings as a nervous gesture.

Gabriel nodded, finally letting go and getting back to his feet, glad to no longer be kneeling before moving to the kitchen to put a kettle of water on the stove to heat. While it was doing so, he got a tray, cups, and the other necessary accoutrements together. He got out a jar of honey as well, and since he wasn't sure how this Adrien preferred his tea, also got out the milk.

As it would take a little longer for the water to heat, he went upstairs to fetch a few spare towel and blankets o cover the house's mirrors. Once he was certain he was out of sight though, he took a moment to lean on the wall and just... breathe. No doubt Nooroo would be concerned, but for Adrien's sake, he needed to remain relatively calm and in control despite the onslaught of intense teenage emotions.

He returned with a large towel that he draped over the top of the mirror that had sparked this particular incident, obscuring its surface- pointely without looking directly into it- before returning to the kitchen to retrieve the now steaming kettle and turn off the stove. Once he'd added it to the tray he brought the whole thing into the living area, setting it on the coffee table in front of the couch. "I... wasn't certain how you like your tea, so I brought both milk and honey," he said a bit awkwardly, carefully pouring hot water from the kettle over the teabags in both of their cups. Tea thus poured, he sat down on the couch next to Adrien and added a spoonful of honey to his own cup, stirring it in gently.

Adrien, for his part, had gone to sit on the sofa as he'd been told to do. Part of him very much wanted to pull his knees up to bis chin and hold his legs, like he was holding himself together. Maybe doing it physically would help him do it emotionally. But there was no universe, even in a dream, where he could see Gabriel Agreste being alright with anyone's shoes on the sofa like that, much less Adrien's, not with Adrien allowing himself such a hunched over posture.

So he sat with proper posture at the edge of the sofa. He had long been practiced in making that seem natural and preferred rather than stiff and stifling. While he waited, to help calm himself down, he pulled out his cellphone and started flipping through the pictures.

And it worked. While Gabriel finished with the mirrors and setting up the tea tray, Adrien calmed down, and there were warm wistful feelings coming from him as he looked over an album of photos from a recent day when they had all been hanging out together.

But when he heard his fa... Gabriel... coming, he shoved his phone back away quickly.

"I'm not picky," he said to the comment about not knowing how he liked it. "But um... thank you." His father pouring the tea did make him a little uncomfortable again. No, not his father.

This was so weird still.

But he looked over. "Since you made the tea... maybe I should get us something to eat?" he offered, unsure and uncomfortable once again.

Gabriel was glad that Adrien had calmed down, though noticed he still sat rather stiffly, as if he were afraid to lean back and relax on the furniture in his own house. Or maybe it was just his imagination? With the intense emotions subsided the usual awkwardness had settled back in between them to take their place, and it might be coloring his perceptions. He gave a polite nod to Adrien's thanks as he turned his attention to his own tea.

"That's not necessary, but if you feel up to it and you'd like to, I'd have no objections," he said, then offered a bit of a wry smile. "Though if it's anything that requires actual cooking, I hope your skills in that area are better than mine. Making tea or coffee is largely the extent of my skills in the kitchen." True, Emilie had once said that he made a decent omelet, but he wasn't certain how much of that assessment had been her being charitable to spare his feelings.

He shrugged the smallest bit. "I was just going to put together a small charcuterie..." he said. That would let him feed Plagg some cheese and give him an excuse to be in the kitchen long enough for a whispered conversation too..

Besides, if he constantly chose meat and cheese platters whenever they needed to fend for themselves, as the only thing he could make, then keeping the house stocked with cheese wouldn't look odd.

"Alright," he said. "We should have everything you might need in the pantry, though if we're short on anything, feel free to let me know, and I'll be sure and pick up more at the market once things settle down." As even shop windows were a potential hazard at present, he wanted to hold off on any shopping trips until the issues with the mirrors had passed.

He nodded, and headed into the kitchen. Once inside he pulled out the cheeses and quietly fed Plagg, giving the small kwami a hug as well. He put together the platter and after giving Plagg another cheese wedge and hiding him under his shirt, he brought it all out.

"It looks like we're low on salami and camembert." He was eating extra of other things so it was never just the one cheese they needed to restock on.

Gabriel nodded his understanding, making a mental note of that. "Thank you, " he said for both the information and the food.

And after that, awkward silence descended once again as they waited for their tea to steep. He nibbled on a bit of hard cheese himself for a moment before deciding to break it, clearing his throat softly. "I... think I owe you something of apology, Adrien," he said. "I wish that I could say that my witnessing that memory of yours was entirely accidental, but the truth is that I'd come into it early on and had originally intended to go upstairs and give you a bit of privacy. But when I heard the name 'Marinette', I recalled you mentioning once before that she was a friend of yours, and I'm afraid that curiosity got the better of me. It may have worked out well enough in the end, but I still shouldn't have intruded like that; I'm sorry."

He shuddered a bit, looking down. He rotated his two rings around his finger. "I... Don't know why.... of all my memories of her... that was the one the mirror..." he swallowed hard. "I don't know why you would want to watch..." He didn't know why he hadn't been able to pull himself away.

A tear ran down his face and his hands curled into fists. He wanted to be home. He wanted to be with Marinette. And Nino. And everyone.

But even if he could... there would be people missing. For the rest of his life... there would be holes. People he could only ever see again in moments like that. Only see in dreams and...

Pain filled him, but he found himself standing. Walking towards a mirror. Maybe... Even if it hurt... maybe... this was a way to see them again? It would hurt... but.... one more time.... his shaking hand was reaching for the cover Gabriel put over the mirror. Dread and hope twisted inside him like a spiral, faster and faster, mixing and driving him.

Edited 2024-04-29 07:04 (UTC)

"It... was rather obvious that she wasn't at her best just then, yes," he said. "But she seems like a fine young lady, if perhaps a bit high strung. And to me a least, that particular memory speaks highly of both of your maturity; many full grown adults wouldn't have been able to remain good friends with someone after a romantic rejection, and I'm glad the both of you were able to make it work."

When Adrien stood, Gabriel did as well, uncertain of his intent for a moment, until he saw him moving to the mirror. Then realization hit as Adrien's emotions coalesced with logic, and he understood. Thankfully, his longer stride allowed him to close the distance between them in time without looking desperate. He rested a hand on Adrien's shoulder before he could pull the cover away. "Adrien," he said gently, "though I know very little about your friends, I think it's safe to assume that they wouldn't wish you to hurt yourself for something like this."

"In any case, I witnessed one of your memories. I think it only fair that I allow you to witness one of mine. If you'll allow me?" Was it a risk? Absolutely. But it was worth it if it stopped Adrien from trying such a thing again.

He hadn't even heard Gabriel's response about Marinette, as focused as he was on reaching the mirror. But the hand on his shoulder stopped him, dragged his attention back.

"But I...." then the offer hit him. He stared at him, stunned for a moment. "....why....?"

"Just because a memory is painful to recall, doesn't mean it's not precious," he said. "It seems only fair that I share something equally precious with you, even it turns out to be painful for me."

Stepping partway between Adrien and the mirror, he pulled the cover away himself, gazing into it. A moment later the surface shimmered before resolving into the image of a much younger Gabriel, somewhat ironically, checking his reflection in a mirror...

He checked his hair from every angle he could, then reached up to adjust his shirt collar and smooth down the already pristine lapels of his jacket. He checked his watch then glanced nervously back at a curtained off area nearby. He paced back and forth across the length of the room a few times, which with his long legs, didn't take long. It wasn't a very large room, clearly part of a relatively small apartment, and much of the furniture was clearly second hand or had otherwise seen much use. Nonetheless, everything was neat and tidy, almost tooo much so, as if someone had taken great pains to disguise the fact that the room and everything in it was a tad shabby.

Young Gabriel paused in his pacing in front of the mirror that hung on the wall once again, checking his appearance as he had before until he abruptly realized what he was doing and made an irritated noise. "Get it together, Gabriel," he muttered to himself. "Stop fidgeting. She'll be here any minute, and you need to look calm. Confident." He took a deep breath, then exhaled, trying to calm himself. "Like a man who's worthy of her."

As if on cue, there was a knock at the door, causing young Gabriel to startle slightly before a voice familiar to both of them spoke from the other side of the closed door. "Gabe? It's Emilie," said the voice somewhat muffled by the wooden door. Young Gabriel's shoulders slumped slightly, and he sighed, once again irritated at his own nervousness, but he quickly pulled himself together, and when he opened the door, there was a warm smile on his face.

"Emilie, come in," he said, stepping aside to allow the young blonde woman inside. Closing the door behind her, he leaned down to kiss her on the cheek. "I'm glad you could come on such short notice."

"It's no trouble," she assure him, returning the kiss on his opposite cheek. "Besides I'm curious to see this mysterious project that's been keeping you up nights lately. Though I'm not sure why you were so adamant about needing my opinion on it; you've probably forgotten more about fashion than I've ever known, and that's saying something."

"Well, this is something a bit different," he said, guiding her toward the center of the room in front of the curtained off area. "Something very special. There, now stand right here."

Leaving her standing in the middle of the room, he moved to take hold of the curtain, took one last deep breath, then drew the curtain aside. On the dress form in the revealed sewing nook was what was unmistakably a wedding gown, beautifully made and exquisitely detailed. Emilie's expression registered shock. "I... made it to your exact measurements," he said, awkwardly, not quite able to look at her directly yet. "Silk; I know how much you like the feel of silk, and embroidered the bodice with your favorite flower." He turned to face her This... this is my gift to you. All the love I feel for you, I poured into this dress. Every stitch, every line, an expression of my heart and soul in hopes that it... and I, might be worthy of you." Moving to stand directly in front of Emilie, he got down on one knee, taking her hand in both of his and gazing up at her. "Emilie Graham de Vanily, will you do me the honor of becoming my wife?"

When she didn't respond after a moment, and just continued to look stunned, his hopeful expression crumbled. "You... don't like it," he concluded, letting go of her hand and slowly getting back to his feet.

Snapping out of her stunned state, Emilie abruptly realized what had happened, but not before Gabriel had turned back to the dress. "I... this was the best way I knew, to express how I felt..."

"Gabriel, that's not...", she began, trying to reassure him, but he didn't seem to hear her.

"I've never been good with words, but I thought that this way, this way there'd be no mistake..."

"Gabriel..."

"But I was a fool to think I could make something worthy of you. That I could be someone-"

"GABE," she said, raising her voice slightly and moving to rest a hand on his arm, finally catching his attention, snaping him out of his self accusations. "Gabe, darling, stop." She gently directed him to turn to to face her, which he did, though once again he couldn't quite look her in the eye. "The dress is wonderful, more than wonderful, but you didn't have to go through all this trouble..."

"I know...", he said. "I should never have presumed... despite my hard work, I still don't really have anything to offer you. You're my princess... you deserve a prince, not someone who can barely afford a decent apartment." Abruptly he looked her in the eye again, taking her hands in his. "But that will change, you'll see! I just need time and I can become someone worthy of your love! I've had some interest in my new designs, and this time for sure-"

"Gabe," she interrupted him, causing him to abruptly fall silent. "That's not what I meant." She slipped one hand free and reached up to caress his cheek. "You don't need to earn my love, or do anything to become worthy of it. Because you already have it, and you already are."

Now it was young Gabriel's turn to stare at her with a stunned expression, to which she smiled. "You know, for someone as smart as I know you are, you can be incredibly dense sometimes, Gabe. I don't want some fairy tale prince; believe me, I had plenty of them looking to court me back home, each of them more insufferable than the last. I want you. Brilliant, creative, and passionate, willing to give up everything you knew, your chance at a safe, secure, but boring life to chase your dreams. Just like me."

Young Gabriel blinked, a hopeful smile starting to come back to his features. "Does... that mean...?"

She looked up at him smiling brilliantly, her eyes sparkling. "It means the answer is yes, you big, awkward, adorable dunce. But for heaven's sake, you need to learn to calm down. I love your passion, but if you don't learn to relax a little, you're going to go prematurely gray." She ran her fingers through his hair, teasing.

"I... right, I'll try and remember that," young Gabriel said, a bright grin spreading across his face, one mirrored on the face of his new fiancé.

Though hers soon took on a hint of mischief. "So... are you going to kiss me or not?", she said. "After all, we have a wedding to plan." That finally seemed to snap young Gabe out of his stunned stupor, an he laughed, picking her up and spinning her around before pulling her in for a passionate kiss as the images began to fade out...

In the present Gabriel had been watching the scene play out with a smile that was equal parts fond and pained. He lifted his glasses for a moment to wipe away the tears that had gathered in his eyes. "Well..." he said after a moment, his voice sounding unusually thick. "...She was right. About me going gray." He chuckled, but had to draw a sharp breath to keep it from becoming a sob as he hastily re-covered the mirror.

Edited 2024-04-30 06:11 (UTC)

"....M....mom...." he had whispered in a gasp hearing her voice. Even muffled. Her name. Even reminding himself this wasn't his mom, this was some other version of her, some other world, he found himself leaning closer. Desperate.

He watched the whole scene with rapt attention. Finding a million ways that they weren't the same and ignoring them all. Seeing a hundred times that ways in which this was his mother. His mom.

From everything he knew about the other reality he had encountered.... Everything this Gabriel had said made it sound like that was the reality he was from. But could that world have still created a moment this wonderful? Could his mother still be so.... so amazing...?

"Mom..." he whispered again as the memory faded. He lifted a hand to the mirror even as Gabriel went to cover it. One of them was going to have to act fast to prevent a minor collision, but it wasn't going to be Adrien.

For better or worse, Gabriel didn't move quite fast enough and did end up bumping into Adrien. Luckily, it was only a gentle bump, perhaps enough to bring them both back to the present, but not much else. However it did result in only one upper corner of the mirror being properly covered, allowing them to see its surface shimmer again as it brought up another memory...

The scene opened this time to the sound of a crying baby. It resolved on to another image of Gabriel, still somewhat younger than present, but with bit of silver hair visible at his temples, trying in vain to soothe a blonde-haired baby that could only be Adrien. Judging by what could be seen out the window behind them, it was late at night, the famous City of Lights looking rather surprisingly dark.

Gone was the small apartment, and in its place a room that was obviously part of the mansion Adrien had spent his childhood in. Or rather the version of it from Gabriel's world; the pattern of the flooring was different for one. But far more obviously, what was obviously Gabriel's work area was an oasis of colorful chaos in an otherwise neat and tidy room. Design sketches in various states of completion, drawing tools, fabric samples, buttons, ribbons, and zippers in different styles all competed for space on its surface. A sewing machine with yet more fabric and assorted bits and bobs stood to one side. A dummy with a half-finished dress pinned to it stood on the other. Even the arm of the desk lamp played host to several colorful scarves.

But if the state of his work area was at all unusual to Gabriel, he gave no sign of it, in memory or in reality. The younger version of Gabriel- looking dismayed and somewhat harried- gently bounced his young son in his arms, making soft shushing noises, but to no avail. "I wish you could tell me what's wrong," he said to baby Adrien, who simply cried on. "You can't be hungry; your mother just fed you before she went to bed. And I've checked everything else I can think of."

Unsurprisingly, baby Adrien was unmoved by his father's logic. If anything, his crying went up in volume slightly. Younger Gabriel gave a somewhat desperate sounding sigh. "Please, Adrien, you're going to wake up your mother and Nathalie at this rate, and they both have had long days. Just... what do you need?" After that got roughly the same response as logic, he gave another sigh, this time more dejected. "Or maybe it's just me you don't like..."

Slumping slightly in defeat, he carefully transferred his still crying and fussing baby son to thee baby seat that rested on his desk just outside his chaotic work area. Once he was safely secured there, he moved to the sewing machine, shifting a few objects out of the way and pulling out a garment he'd obviously been working on, bending over the sewing machine and setting to work.

It took him a few moments to realized that baby Adrien's crying had stopped. Surprised, he paused in his work, glancing over to where his young son 's baby seat. Though baby Adrien was still somewhat red faced from his earlier exertions, he had indeed settled somewhat, though he began fussing a bit again once the sound of the sewing machine stopped. Experimentally, the younger Gabriel sewed a bit while glancing over at Adrien and indeed, once the sound resumed, baby Adrien relaxed again. Young Gabriel breathed a sigh of relief, giving his baby son a fond smile and shaking his head slightly before resuming his sewing properly. And the memory remained focused on that oddly peaceful scene as it faded out...

Back in the present, Gabriel blinked and shook his head as he realized what had happened, shifting the cover to block the mirror properly this time before turning to the teenage alternate version of his son who stood beside him. "Adrien...?", he inquired gently.

Edited 2024-05-01 05:11 (UTC)

He stared at the mirror even after it was covered, a tear running down his face. His emotions were more deep than loud at the moment. A deep dark pain burrowed within him. Another tear ran after it, from the other eye. A shudder passed through him as he wallowed hard.

Uncertain what else to do, Gabriel, gently pulled Adrien into a hug once again, though this time without crouching down. "I'm sorry," he said softly. He wasn't entirely sure if it fit just then, but he felt the need to say something, and nothing else came to mind. "Maybe... maybe showing you memories of mine was a bad idea."

There was a moment of shock before his arms closed around his father. Well.. Around Gabriel Agreste, and the tears started in earnest.

For the second time in less than an hour, Gabriel found himself holding Adrien as he cried, gently rubbing his back with one hand. And found himself wishing- perhaps somewhat unfairly- that this was his own son, not an alternate. How many times had he wanted to do something just like this for his own Adrien, but been forced to keep him at arms length for his own safety? Or just not been there at all when he should have been, due to leading a secret double life, with essentially two careers to maintain, one of them incredibly secretive. Even knowing it was all for the greater good didn't make it any easier. Or less lonely.

But even then he couldn't and didn't regret his choice to take up the mantle of Betterfly. A better world was possible. The kind of world his son- and his alternate- deserved. And that kind of world was worth fighting for.

For the moment though, he could afford to be the tiniest bit selfish and spend time comforting the alternate version of his son. He could do that much at least.

One wonders if it would help him to know how similarly Adrien's thoughts were running. Wishing this were his own father, his actual father. That his dad cared enough to hug him like this... to be here for him. If this was a dream he could be here... couldn't he?

But with that came the guilt. Guilt because that wasn't fair to this version of Gabriel. Guilt because having his actual father back filled him with terror. Guilt because his father died helping Ladybug save the world. Guilt because he hadn't been there. So much guilt.

But right now he needed the hug, needed the illusion, even knowing it was fake. It hurt too much. Everything hurt too much. Everything was just too much.

None of what they were feeling was fake. Gabriel could attest to that much. It simply... wasn't quite what either of them wanted. But at the moment, it was what they both needed, and that would have to suffice.

He was silent for a long moment before speaking again. "Your mother... Emilie... always knew just what to say in difficult situations," he said, his voice still somewhat tight. "Sadly not a skill I ever mastered. But I while I can't claim to know all the details, I can tell you're carrying far more weight on your shoulders than someone so young should ever have to. If there's any of that burden you feel able to share with me, I'm more than willing to help you carry it."

They... would really need to figure out exactly what they were to each other at some point, he was realizing. But that was for another day. When they could think a bit more clearly.

"I...miss her...." he whispered. It was safe to say. And painfully true. He wanted her back. And his dad the way he used to be. Before.

"I do too," he said softly. He couldn't imagine a version of him that didn't. Part of the difference, he suspected, was in how each version of him handled that. "Some days more than others, but... the feeling never quite goes away. But I also know that she wouldn't have wanted me- or anyone she cared for- to live in constant mourning. So I do my best to move forward, to honor her memory."

He sniffed. Heavily for him. "Wish someone had told my dad that," he mumbled.

"It's entirely possible that someone did," he said. "But it can be difficult advice to take to heart, even when given with the best of intentions."

{ mirror mirror }

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