The bridge of locks wasn't what it used to be, with the framework redone and the locks banned. It made sense, he supposed, but it was still a shame to see them gone. He could clearly remember the day Nino had gotten one for Alya and how ecstatic she'd been about it.

It all seemed like such a long time ago.

Andre stood in the center of the bridge, happily dishing out ice-cream to a few happy couples that passed him by. Chat Noir wasn't sure he'd be willing to help him out after his long absence, but Andre wasn't the type of person to keep happiness out of someone's reach. Hopefully the little boy wouldn't be an exception.

"Bonsoir, Andre," he said as he approached the ice-cream cart. He turned his chubby face towards Chat Noir, his smile brighter than the city lights.

"Well if it isn't the famous Chat Noir and his adorable little one, been busy I see," He winked at Chat Noir and the superhero could feel his face flush.

He shook his head and waved his hands frantically in front of him. "N –No! This isn't what it looks like. This little guy just wanted some –,"

"Ice cream!" cried the boy, grinning innocently. The ice-cream man's smile only seemed to widen and he gushed over the child, commenting on his soft dark hair and large, green eyes. After debating over some flavors, he'd dished out a small cup with chocolate, strawberry and mint.

"Thanks Andre, I'll drop by with some money when the sun's –,"

The man shook his head. "No need, Chat Noir, it's the least I could do after all you've done for Paris. The young children don't quite understand, but we old folk won't soon forget how brave you and Ladybug both were, for you two, no charge."

He handed Chat Noir an ice-cream, one with blueberry, cherry and bubble-gum. He felt a wave of nostalgia overcome his senses.

Smiling fondly at the ice-cream, he thanked Andre and led the boy to a bench a few feet away. They sat down and the boy looked awestruck, eating away at the treat so quickly it was almost inhaled.

Maybe it wasn't such a good idea to give him so much sugar that late at night.

"So, what's your name, Kid?" he asked. The boy's face twisted suddenly and he brought his hand to his head, muttering about cold and pain.

"Hugo," he replied, "My mommy says it's her favorite name in the whole wide world."

Hugo is the light of my life...

"Marinette," he murmured. The boy looked up at him, his bright green yes seeming to take in every inch of Chat Noir skeptically and he couldn't help but grow nervous knowing this was Marinette's son –the son he'd been hoping was his.

He could see now her nervous habits shining through, the cheerful smile and pale complexion framed by midnight dark hair. But the eyes threw him off. They were so big, bright and watchful while Marinette's were playful and perceptive, but this...he didn't know what to make of them.

And it was really starting to bug him.

"You know my mommy?" But it was far from a question. "Are you a friend of hers?"

Chat smiled nervously and scratched the back of his head, "We –We ran into each other a lot when we were younger, but I honestly don't know her that well."

"Oh," he replied, "But then how'd you know she's my mommy?"

Chat Noir could feel the blood rushing from his face. "I –uh –Isn't it obvious?" he tried. Hugo continued to stare blankly. "I –I'm a superhero. We know these kinds of things."

The sparkle returned to Hugo's eyes and Chat Noir knew he'd said the right thing, but it all went down from there. "I knew it! Then you can help me find my daddy!"

"Uh –," He tried to remain positive, but the longer the little boy looked at up at him, the more he could feel his resolve fading. The last thing he wanted for Hugo to hate him, especially since Marinette was probably the only person in the whole of Paris besides Chloe who'd been so willing to give him a second chance.

But meddling in her love life was crossing a line he wasn't sure he wanted to.

"So I'm guessing your mommy doesn't know you're out here, does she?" he asked, glancing out over the bridge. Stars twinkled brightly overhead and in an effort to keep Hugo warm, he brought the boy closer to his side, slinking his arm around the boy's shoulders.

Hugo sighed, "No, but she'd never let me look. I have to find him."

"Why do you say that?" Marinette looked like she was doing well on her own.

He lowered his head. "I can see she's sad without him. She won't say anything, but I can tell when she's by herself. She's lonely and scared and misses him, but she just doesn't wanna say so."

Chat Noir's head was spinning. Hugo was the result of a one night stand. How could Marinette miss him unless she already knew him beforehand? Maybe he'd been wrong.

But then again it was probably wishful thinking. Things would be so much simpler with Marinette being Ladybug. Everything could be explained and resolved, but after her rejection of him it wasn't fair to try and push the hope of reconciliation on people he loved.

He didn't want to handle that kind of pain again.

"I know what it's like to be without a parent," he said, "My mommy died when I was a bit older than you and my daddy was barely around." He thought back to the day he left Paris and the day his father locked himself in his study for the very first time.

He'd heard the news from Natalie. His father simply hadn't had the strength to tell him that she was never coming back. And then, becoming Hawk Moth in a last ditch effort to bring her back...

Chat Noir's heart clenched painfully but he shook it off and smiled at the boy.

"Yeah," mumbled Hugo, "She smiles like that too."

His honestly almost knocked Chat off the bench. "Oh, does she now?" he sighed, "I should probably take you home before she has a heart attack."

"She's sleeping. I don't think she knows I'm gone." He finished off his ice-cream and got up to throw the plastic spoon and cup in the bin.

"Well you mustn't sneak out again." He did his best to come across as stern, but it hardly had an effort when Hugo began snickering. "Paris is too dangerous for you to run around all by yourself at night. You need to have an adult with you. You need –,"

"But I have you," he giggled, "I have a superhero and Mommy says I can trust superheroes because they're the good guys."

Chat Noir shook his head. "No –uh, well, yes –but that's not –," Hugo wasn't even paying attention anymore, already walking off the bridge back to the street they'd come from. Chat Noir knew he wouldn't win and he hardly wanted to be the one to kill the child's dreams.

Maybe he should just go along with it, for Marinette's sake.

"Where do you think you're going?" he called out.

Hugo turned around and waved to him. "We gotta find my daddy, come on!"

Chat sighed and hurried after the child, his ice-cream forgotten on the bench. He stopped beside Hugo. "Do you at least have a plan?"

"Yes," he replied, "I've been going up to all the guys I think look like me and asking."

Chat forced down a groan. "I –I don't think that's going to work."

"Why not?" he asked. He looked up at Chat Noir, genuinely curious and frowned.

"Well," he waved his hand in front of him, "It's a little tricky asking around like that. Don't you have a picture or something?"

"No," he grumbled, "Mommy's just got all these pictures of a guy she used to like, but he's not my daddy. I already asked."

They started walking down the street, Hugo leading the way with his hands in his pockets. "Have you asked anything else about him?"

Hugo shook his head. "No, whenever anyone asks about him she gets real mad. Like the time she saw that blonde lady in this really cool hotel."

Chat Noir tilted his head to the side. "A blonde lady?" He couldn't mean...

"Yeah," said Hugo, "She was really tall and skinny, like a toothpick. Really sharp nails too, like a bird or something..." His voice went unusually low, "She started calling my mommy names or something and the next thing I know, my mommy smacks her, right across the face."

He glanced over his shoulder at Chat Noir before bringing the hood up over his head. "That's usually how things go if anyone brings up my daddy."

Chat Noir tapped his claws against his chin, his luminescent eyes trailing after the boy. "You don't say." That wasn't exactly the reaction he'd gotten from her the last time he saw her.

Hugo stopped in the middle of the sidewalk, head up and body alert, but there weren't any people walking around. Chat placed his hand on Hugo's shoulder. "Come on, let's get you back home."

"But we haven't found my daddy yet. I'm not leaving until I find him."

"We can look again tomorrow," he suggested. Crouching down to Hugo's height, he ruffled the boy's hair and grinned.

"Fine," he grumbled.

He didn't want to admit it, but the idea of seeing the little guy again was really appealing, especially when Hugo obediently took his hand. He was just so small, so fierce and adorable. He was definitely something special and Chat Noir didn't know whether because he was so determined to protect his mother or because he'd inherited the best traits of Marinette.

"Good, so remember, don't ever leave your house without an adult. The last thing anyone wants is for you to get hurt when no one's around. She's still at the bakery, right?"

He nodded eagerly.

"Great, I'll drop you off at the door and fetch you from the balcony tomorrow night. Will that make you feel better?"

Hugo ran a hand through his hair and mumbled something inaudible, but he didn't complain when Chat Noir began leading him back towards Marinette's old home.

"Oh and, Hugo, promise me one thing?"

"What?"

"Don't tell your mother."

I initially wasn't going to update today considering it was Christmas a couple hours ago, but I saw how some of you wanted the next chapter and I didn't want to keep it from you since I had the draft anyway. I'm really grateful for everyone who's reading this, especially since the first few chapters were kinda hecka repetitive and sad.

But I'm hoping to make the rest of the book more lighthearted except for some more drama and an sorta hectic reveal. So hang in there!

Also, Merry-Late-Christmas Everyone!!!!!!!!!!

P.S. Guys that picture on top is so cute! I love the photo editing and my little heart ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️ like how adorable!!!

Please don't forget to vote or comment if you liked this chapter. As I've said before I have no experience with younger kids at all (no younger siblings) and kids with really scary moms are not kids I wanna take the chance to upset. I should really get out of my comfort zone more often. So please don't be afraid to tell me if I'm completely off with his personality.

Have a great day everyone! Luv you guys!