It had been a few weeks since the dinner at the Dupain-Cheng's, when the first incident happened.
It was a day filled with gray clouds, puddles of rain on the ground.
Gabriel had been waiting for Adrien at the end of school, settled in his car. They were supposed to go at a photoshoot together, when the rumble of the excited students out after a long day shook him out of the reports on his tablet. Gabriel looked out of the window, expecting to see his son bouncing off the steps at every moment -ah, there he was. The young blonde was discussing with Marinette as they descended the stairs together, and by the looks of it it seemed to be a very animated conversation, full of laughs. They stopped at the end of the stairs, probably saying goodbye to each other.
Gabriel did not mind waiting a few more minutes, for once. Marinette and her lovely parents had grew on the fashion mogul, to the point he was almost sure he could call them friends. Gabriel Agreste normally didn't do friends, but the two adults seemed to be the only exception. Their kindness knew no bounds, and they were of good advice. More than once, Gabriel had found himself passing by the bakery, and now only ordered his bread there. Sabine and Tom were now registered in his phone contacts, and he had the occasion to even have lunch with them once. The bakers seemed to have notice his struggle to bound with Adrien and offered him advice, without overstepping boundaries, something Gabriel was very glad for. The number of people that the fashion mogul accepted advice from could be counted on one hand.
He was ready to step out of the car to greet his son and Marinette, when he witnessed the incident. The italian girl came like a storm, pretending to trip so she pushed Marinette right into a puddle of mud and water, and held herself to Adrien like a lifeline. Or rather, like a very annoying leech if his son's disgusted expression was any indication.
"Oh, sorry Marinette ! I did not see you there," said Lila Rossi in a very fake innocent tone, drizzling in honey. She returned to stroking Adrien's chest, blabbering some nonsense about homework while Adrien was wincing, trying to get away and help Marinette, but the liar wouldn't let him. Some students had started to laugh at the sight of the girl on the ground, and that was enough for Gabriel Agreste to made up his mind. He stepped out of the car and in two fast strides he was close to the teenagers. He extended his hand to Marinette. The girl looked at him for a few seconds, surprised but then had a sad smile and accepted his hand. He pulled her up and watched as she tried to dust herself, grimacing a little.
"Are you alright, Miss Marinette ?" he enquired politely, clasping his hands behind his back.
"I'm ok, thank you for asking" she replied, her eyes falling on her blue chiffon skirt that was now covered in mud and teared, her knees scratched and red. She looked disheartened, and he could feel the anger taking over her mind.
"I had designed and sewed that," she whispered, and he could see tears of frustration starting to form in her blue eyes, Adrien looking worriedly at her over Lila's shoulder. But she immediately took a deep breath, wiped her eyes and smiled at him, effacing all negative emotion out of her.
"Thank you for helping me, Monsieur Agreste."
"You're welcome, Miss Marinette. That is a lovely skirt you sewed there. It has however room for improvement. May I suggest that…"
Her eyes shone with the same light as Sabine as he praised her and gave her advice, and he could see behind her Lila fuming. Right, now that this was done, now to his son's rescue.
"Adrien, we need to get going now." he said, serving his best cold look to the italian girl, feeling satisfied when she shrunk back a little.
"Yes father," responded the teenager, relief apparent on his face as he wriggled away from Lila.
"See you tomorrow, Adrien. Have a nice day, monsieur Agreste." said Marinette as she hurried in her home direction.
They left a very pissed off Lila in her spot. Adrien was unusually silent during the car ride, staring out of the window lost in thought.
"Adrien… don't think I haven't noticed how uncomfortable you were today, with that girl."
Adrien turned to look at him, surprised. He gulped.
"Son, you know you can say no. What she is doing is clearly making you uncomfortable and is overstepping your boundaries."
Lila Rossi was one of his most powerful champions, but that did not meant she wasn't a terrible young girl.
Adrien averted his gaze.
"Mother… Told me I was to be a perfect gentleman with people. So did you."
Well, he couldn't deny that one thought Gabriel as he mentally winced.
"But that does not mean you have to let people walk all over you. Do you understand ?"
His son raised his head and nodded, a new determination shining into his eyes.
Well, Sabine and Tom's advice had not all been for naught.
The second incident happened a few days after only. Gabriel had been designing for the newest line when he felt a powerful negative emotion, his brooch reacting. He was ready to go into his lair when sound from the main door came to him. He frowned. Adrien was supposed to stay for lunch at his school today, so why was he coming home now ?
"... I'm sorry, Marinette."
He made his way to the door, Nathalie as surprised as him and just has he opened it he could hear Adrien apologizing and soft whimpers.
Gabriel opened the door, making the two teenagers jump out. He was about to admonish gently his son when he noticed the look on the young girl. Or rather, her injuries. She had a swollen eye that was starting to darken, her cornea red. Her lip had been bleeding and she trembled, holding one of her arm. She looked shocked, and not because Adrien was holding her. Gabriel eyes narrowed. Something very wrong had just happened.
"Father ! Marinette needed help, and she needed a place to go so I… I didn't wanted to…" Adrien stuttered, but held his father's gaze, as if defying him to send Marinette back home.
"Adrien. What happened ?" asked the fashion mogul as he approached the two teenagers.
"... Lila attacked Marinette. She h-hit her. I saw it."
Adrien looked shocked as well and he did not stop rubbing circles on his friend's back. So that was the powerful negative emotion he had just felt. Marinette seemed to be shaking even more. And then, as realisation dawned over her, she started to cry.
She was right in the perfect state of mind to be akumatized, thought Gabriel. She would make a powerful akuma… But it would not only endanger his son, but everyone in the house. He hesitated. Adrien would be heartbroken if he did that. Besides, it would put suspicion on him if he retired now. Would he be cruel enough to do that to the young girl he had grew to appreciate ? His decision was taken.
"Go to your room. I'll be right back."
Adrien lead his crying friend to the stairs and to his bedroom, guilt filling his mind. He sat her on the edge of his bed and then crouched in front of her, holding gently her hands. That was his fault, he thought. If only he hadn't told her to just endure Lila's lies and taunts, without saying anything, maybe they wouldn't be there at the moment. Marinette wouldn't have been bullied. That was his fault, his fault.
"Marinette, I'm so sorry. I should never have told you to take the high road. That was a mistake."
A knock at his door interrupted him, and his father entered, holding a first aid kit and ice cubes in a washcloth.
"Here, miss Marinette, apply it on your eye." said Gabriel as she took the washcloth. She shivered at the contact of the cold on her skin and sniffled, crying silently now.
"Where else did she hit you ?" he asked, getting out some medical bandaging out of the kit.
Marinette sniffled but dried her tears, then took off her blazer jacket, showing them the arm she had been holding, where purple bruises had started to appear. Adrien felt anger boil in his veins. He wanted very hard to curse, but restrained himself. Instead, he settled for scenarios where he was very tempted to use cataclysm on Lila.
His father was now wrapping up Marinette's arm in bandages carefully. Tears formed in her eyes again.
"I'm sorry, Monsieur."
"Nonsense. If it was Adrien in that situation, do you think your mother or father would not take care of him ?"
"No." she answered, a finally a very tiny smile made it's way on her face. Gabriel had finished wrapping up her arm now. He looked seriously at the two teenagers.
"Now, tell me what happened."
Gabriel's face stayed neutral the entire time, not interrupting them once as they retraced the previous hour events, allowing her to stop when she cried again, Adrien now sitting beside her, rubbing her back in comfort. Marinette had been outside of the school for lunch when Lila had started to hit her, and Adrien had witnessed it. He had confronted the girl about it, when she had pretended it was Marinette that had attacked her, and when Adrien had believed none of it she had gotten angry. Adrien had decided to take Marinette to their home because it was closer than the bakery, and the rest was history.
Gabriel felt anger flare up in his chest, but for the sake of the children, showed none of it.
"Thank you for telling me." he finally said when they finished their story. Rain had started to fall and water was rippling on the large windows of Adrien's room.
"Have you warned your parents, miss Marinette ?" he then asked, checking the hour on his phone. Class had started again now, but that was the least of his worries. A glance at her face learned him she didn't.
"I… I don't know how to tell them," she said. Gabriel had never seen her looking more defeated than now.
"I'll call them. Meanwhile, you stay with Adrien, alright ? I think, given the circumstances, you two are allowed to skip school for this afternoon."
The two teenagers nodded, the faint guilt look on their faces telling him they hadn't thought about school at all. Gabriel then searched for Sabine's phone number and hit the button "call".
She took the call not even after the first tonality.
"Gabriel, have you seen Marinette ? She hasn't come home for lunch and her school just called me telling me they haven't seen her in class this afternoon. She won't answer my calls" said the mother, sounding frantic and panicked.
"Calm down, Sabine, she's with Adrien and me at our house. Adrien brought her home."
He heard her sigh of relief and then her calling out to Tom. Ha patiently waited for her to reassure her husband and to speak again.
"Thank you Gabriel, but why ?"
"Marinette has been hit by one of her classmates. Adrien thought it was safer to bring her here."
An stunned silence followed his declaration. And then Sabine let out a series of angry curses in mandarin. Gabriel did not blame her one bit ; he had thought of those too.
"Who did that ?" she spoke bit by bit, her voice boiling with anger, and Gabriel thought Lila Rossi would never knew what hit her.
Gabriel gave her the name of the culprit, and Sabine cursed again.
"I'll be coming to get Marinette back home," she said, and she hung back as soon as the fashion mogul gave her his address.
"Marinette, your mother is coming here." said Gabriel, passing his head through the door of Adrien's bedroom. He was greeted with a tender sight ; Marinette's head was resting into the crook of Adrien's neck, and he had his arms around her protectively.
"Thank you, Monsieur Agreste." she whispered tiredly.
Soon Sabine was at their door, and she actually hugged Gabriel when he came to greet her.
"Thank you for taking care of my daughter," she said and he returned the hug awkwardly. That was too many people thanking him today. Sabine rushed to Adrien's bedroom and immediately took her daughter in her arms as Marinette started to cry again. Adrien closed the door behind him, leaving them a bit of privacy as he came by his father. A moment of silence passed.
"That was my fault," then whispered his son.
"And how exactly would that be your doing ?"
"I'm the one that told Marinette she should ignore her lies and pretend nothing happened, because her lies were just words. And, now, she just told me she had even threatened her before. And I did nothing. I'm the worst of friends" he finished bitterly, wiping angry tears out of his eyes.
Gabriel sighed, then put his hands gently on Adrien's shoulder. The boy looked at him.
"Son, you have to realize that words do hurt. But realizing it is already one step ; you can change that. Own up to your mistake, make it up to her. I know you can."
Adrien's lower lip started to shake, and Gabriel took him in his arms as the child started to cry. He held him for a moment, stroking his hair to calm him down.
"Thank you, dad." whispered Adrien, as Marinette and Sabine came out of the room, mother and daughter holding each other's hands.
"Adrien," Sabine called, "thank you for bringing Marinette to safety."
Adrien blushed as he approached the two women.
"Marinette… Are you going to be ok ?" he asked, concern on his face.
"Don't worry about me, Adrien. I'll be fine, eventually." she answered, but her smile was too tiny to be true.
"Can I visit you tomorrow ?"
"You are always welcome home, dear" chirped Sabine as Marinette turned beet red and stuttered. Gabriel and Adrien walked them back to the door, and watched them go. The plotting light in Sabine's eyes hadn't escaped Gabriel, and one Lila Rossi was about to have a very rotten life, he thought. Hell hath no fury like Sabine Cheng.