A/N: So I know that the Marinette model thing has been done to death, but this twist on it would not leave my head. It is totally not the story I should be working on right now (that's for an entirely different fandom), but I can't help myself. I'm pretty sure the episodes are aired out of order, at least in the US, so in my headcanon, Reverser takes place before Troublemaker and this is the shoot to which Adrien invited Marinette at the end of Troublemaker. I wrote this before I saw the Queen's Battle Trilogy, Sandboy, or Frozor. I don't own anything. Also, my French is very limited and mostly from Beauty and the Beast and Google translate. So there's that. And my knowledge of the fashion industry is from Ladybug and Google and some book I read when I was little (probably Sweet Valley Kids or something, I don't remember).
"Whoa, Mademoiselle. You can't go in there. "
"Oh. Sorry. Um, isn't this the Adrien Agreste photoshoot? My name should be on your list."
The guard raised an eyebrow cynically at the bluenette. He paused for a beat, tapped his pen against his clipboard and then shook his head. "And just what is your name?"
"Oh, right. Sorry. Marinette. Marinette Dupain-Cheng."
"Ah, oui. There you are. Right this way, Mademoiselle. "
Before Marinette had a chance to say thank you, a frantic looking young woman rushed at her and steered her through another door, practically pushing her into a swivel chair facing a well-lit mirror.
"I'm sorry, I think there's been a mistake," Marinette began, but she was interrupted.
"No time for apologies. Hush, now and let us work."
A young man with spiky purple hair removed the ties from Marinette's signature pigtails and began brushing her hair into an elegant chignon, while the woman used a wipe on the teen's face and began to apply fresh makeup.
Adrien did say he wanted to let me experience the whole process. Maybe he arranged for me to see what a shoot is like for a model so I can empathize better with my models when I become a designer? Rather than protesting further, Marinette decided to silently cooperate so she could learn as much as possible.
After hair and makeup, Marinette was taken to another room, where a petite middle-aged woman and a brunette not much older than Marinette herself helped her change out of her own clothes into a GabrielTM dress. Desperate to keep Tikki, her magical kwami (a chibi-like red demigod), hidden, Marinette snapped her purse shut and slid it behind the mirror when the women turned away from her to reach for the clothing.
The dress was tea length, with a wide circle skirt in a sky blue that somehow perfectly matched Marinette's eyes. The drop waist, high collared bodice was a pink and blue floral. There were cutouts over the shoulders that didn't compromise the modesty of the dress, matching floral gloves, and a tiny, flower-shaped headdress with a wisp of filmy veil. Thankfully, given how clumsy Marinette was out of her super suit, the shoes were simple sky blue ballet flats.
As the dressers rushed Marinette out the door, she almost crashed into none other than Adrien Agreste himself. He jumped a bit in surprise, and then his jaw dropped. Marinette couldn't meet his eyes. She began turning pink.
"Wow, Mari. You look… Amazing, " he murmured, rubbing the back of his neck with his hand.
"Thank look. Amazing, too. You. Thank you," Marinette stammered. Her face was fully red now.
"Heh." They both awkwardly chuckled.
Adrien was wearing a tailored GabrielTM vest and slacks in a dove gray, with a shirt the same sky blue as Marinette's skirt. There were small, angular butterflies embroidered in darker gray above the pockets of the vest.
"Adrien!" the voice of Gabriel Agreste's assistant, Nathalie Sancoeur, echoed down the hall.
"Shall we, Pri… Perhaps?" Adrien asked, offering Marinette his arm. Marinette blushed again and linked her hand through his elbow.
Marinette recognized Vincent, who had been taking their class pictures when Juleka was akumatized into Reflekta (and totally not from the myriad photoshoots of Adrien's on which she had spied, nope).
Vincent arranged them in front of the camera, draping Adrien's arm around Marinette.
My face is probably the same color as my Ladybug suit by now…
"Now Adrien, I want you to gaze upon Marinetta like she's your mama's spaghetti!"
"What was that about?" Marinette whispered with a giggle.
"Long story; I'll explain later," Adrien replied. Then he started to smile at her like… Well, like Chat Noir smiled at Ladybug. Marinette lowered her lashes to keep from being blinded by him. She had to remind herself that he was just following Vincent's instructions, just acting. It didn't mean anything. He did not feel that way about her.
"Perfect! Now, whisper sweet nothings into her ear!"
Marinette fingered the silk of her skirt nervously as her crush leaned closer to her. Then she felt more than heard his breathy, "Donut holes." A slight look of confusion crossed her countenance before she caught on to the terrible pun, followed by surprise that Adrien had made it, and then, as much as she tried to bite it back, she couldn't stop the laughter that bubbled past her lips.
"Silly ki...d. Silly kid," she chuckled. Oops, she'd almost called him "kitty," his joke was so much like something her goofy partner would say.
"Not jokes, Adrien. Woo her!"
"Sorry," the blond said, sheepishly, rubbing the back of his neck. Marinette wasn't sure if he was apologizing to her or to Vincent, as he was avoiding eye contact with everyone. At a signal from Vincent that clearly meant "get on with it," he leaned close to her ear again.
"You really do look very pretty, Mari. You should totally model your own designs when you're famous; everyone would buy them if they thought they could look like you."
Marinette blushed furiously. He sounds so sincere! Maybe he really does think I'm pretty? And he seems so confident that I'll be a famous designer. Adrien believes in me!
"WHAT IS GOING ON HERE?! WHO IS THIS GIRL WEARING MY DRESS!" The shrill voice was coming from a girl roughly Marinette's build, with long blonde curls and similarly blue eyes.
Nathalie marched over to her, heels clicking on the hard floor. Raising her tablet, she asked, "And you are?"
"Céline Dubois! You were here when I had my fitting!"
"Ah, yes. Your name appears to be listed as a guest, and you are severely late. Normally, we would pay half salary for your trouble if we were going in a different direction, but as we would also dock your pay for your tardiness, I'm afraid… "
"YOU HAD BETTER BE AFRAID! WHY, I'LL…"
Marinette stared in horror as a black and purple butterfly flapped toward the model. Before she could think she felt herself diving through the air like she did so often as her alter ego, and she trapped the insect in her hands as she fell to the floor. She heard the expensive, couture dress rip as she landed, but she forced herself not to dwell on that.
Happy thoughts, Marinette. You're having the best day ever. You're at a Gabriel shoot. Adrien was totally flirting with you. Chocolate croissants. Macarons. Tikki. Alya. Ultimate Mecha Strike. Chat purring.
She dared to open her eyes and look around a little. Everyone was staring at her, jaws dropped. Adrien was staring at her with a look of absolute awe on his face. She smiled a little at him. He shook his head as if ridding himself of a trance.
"That was amazing, Mari! I'm, uh, I'm going to go call the police and see if they can reach Ladybug!" And with that, he turned and ran into his dressing room.
Marinette returned to her internal mantra of happy thoughts.
Moments later, a figure in black pole vaulted through the large, open window.
"Bonjour, Purrincess! I thought I heard screaming and I came to investigate. Is everything okay?"
"Chat! I'm so glad you're here! Can you, uh, hold on to this and call Ladybug? I…I need to use the restroom!" She shoved the Akuma into his clawed glove and sprinted to her dressing room. Grabbing her purse, she ran back out and into the ladies room, calling, "Oops, wrong door!" over her shoulder in case anyone noticed.
A bug-like creature with cerulean eyes floated out of her purse as soon as she opened it.
"Marinette, what's wrong?" A sweet, high-pitched voice inquired.
Marinette breathlessly explained that she had caught an Akuma with her bare hands and thought positively until she could pass it on to Chat Noir.
"Oh, my! Marinette! I'm so proud of you! We should go purify it right now!"
"Tikki, spots on!" Marinette cried, brushing her fingers against her earrings. She was grateful nobody had tried to switch them out for different ones for the shoot! A pink light enveloped her, and her couture dress gradually transformed into a skin-tight scarlet bodysuit with black polka-dots. A matching domino mask appeared around her eyes. She turned toward the door, but froze.
"Oh, no! My hair!"
She rushed to the mirror, only to find that her hair was back in her customary twin tails.
"Hmm… I'll have to ask Tikki about it later."
Ladybug searched the room for another exit, and found a window she could just fit through. Racing around the building, she used her magical yo-yo to swing in through the portal her teammate had used. When he saw her, his shoulders sagged in obvious relief.
"Ah, M'Lady! You got my message. I wasn't sure how much longer I could think happy thoughts when I was pining for you!"
Ladybug rolled her eyes. "Down, Kitty. Where's the Akuma?"
"You remember Marinette Dupain-Cheng?"
Ladybug feigned shock. "Oh, no! Has she been akumatized?!"
Chat grinned. "No! She caught the Akuma!"
"Impressive!" Ladybug could barely hide her smirk as she paid herself the compliment. "Let's see it."
The blond released the butterfly from his hand. Ladybug quickly caught it in her yo-yo.
"No more evil doing for you, little Akuma." She set it free and gave a little wave as a now snowy white butterfly fluttered away. "Bye-bye, little butterfly."
She and the boy in the black cat suit bumped fists. "Pound it!" they said in unison.
"I'd like to thank Marinette. Which way did she go?" Ladybug asked.
Following the pointed fingers to the ladies room, she ran in, double checked that she was alone, and dropped her transformation.
"Great job, Marinette!"
"Thanks, Tikki." Marinette looked at her hair in the mirror, now back to the style from the hairdresser. "Tikki, why didn't I know you could change my hair as well as my clothes?"
Tikki giggled, "It never mattered before, since you wear your hair the same way every day."
"Tikki, I wore my hair the same way every day because I didn't want anyone to notice that Marinette changed her hairstyle the same day as Ladybug!"
"Oops, sorry."
"You're forgiven."
Marinette handed her kwami one of the cookies she always kept in her purse, then inspected the dress.
"Oh, dear. I did hear a rip when I fell. Luckily it's just a seam; maybe they won't be too angry if I repair it myself."
Marinette exited the washroom and rejoined the group.
"Where's Ladybug?" inquired Vincent.
"Oh, she left out the bathroom window. Where are Chat Noir and Adrien?"
Nathalie responded, "Chat Noir left the way he came. Adrien is still in his dressing room."
Just then, the boy in question ran up… strangely breathless for as close as his dressing room was to the room they occupied now.
"Here, I am. The police said they had no way of contacting Ladybug. That's something they should work on. Where's the Akuma? Is everyone still OK?"
"Ladynoir and Chat Bug, I mean Lady Chat and Bug Noir… I memean, the heroes came and fixed everything," Marinette stammered.
"Oh, bummer. I wish I hadn't missed them."
Marinette thought there was an odd twinkle in his eye, as if he was not quite as disappointed as he said. Weird. I know he is a fan of Ladybug… Maybe he dislikes Chat Noir?
"Now that's all settled, Mademoiselle Dupain-Cheng, it's time we discussed how you ended up modeling this dress in lieu of Mademoiselle Dubois."
"I'm so sorry! I was going to, and I thought, but then I had given my name, so I thought maybe I was… I'm I'm sorry."
"Nobody is blaming you, Mademoiselle Dupain-Cheng. There was a clerical error and your names were switched on the paperwork. However, that does present rather a dilemma. I have shown the photos Vincent took of you to Monsieur Agreste, and he has decided that they are adequate for the campaign. The only problem is that you are still a minor, and we cannot use the photos without your parents' consent. I would like you to contact them and make sure that they are free for dinner tonight, say, Le Meurice at 19:00?"
Marinette's jaw dropped lower with each sentence uttered. When Nathalie finished, she opened and closed her mouth a few times before managing to speak. "I… I don't think my parents can afford that restaurant."
"Don't worry about that; we consider it a business expenditure. The company will provide your meals."
"Oh! Um, thank you! I'll go call them now!" She turned to leave, but stopped in her tracks when she heard Adrien's eager plea, "May I come, too, Nathalie? Please?"
Nathalie hesitated, "I would not want to make Mademoiselle Dupain-Cheng feel uncomfortable…"
Marinette turned. Adrien was staring at her with "baby doll eyes," just as she could never resist when babysitting Manon. He reminded her of a stray kitten begging for affection.
"I would like Adrien to come," she said quietly. It would make her uncomfortable, but probably not the way Mademoiselle Sancoeur meant...and even if she were inclined to pass up an opportunity to spend time with Adrien, she couldn't have disappointed him when he was making that face. I wonder why it's so important to him?
An hour later, Marinette had called her parents, changed back into her regular clothes, and was ready to leave. But she wanted to say goodbye to Adrien, so she waited at the edge of the room.
"That's a wrap!" Vincent yelled.
Adrien immediately bounced across the room to her, like a cat high on catnip.
"Nathalie? May I walk Marinette home?"
Mademoiselle Sancoeur looked startled. "I don't think that's a good idea…" Seeing the disappointment on his face, she continued, "But you may ask Gagnon to drive you both home in the town car. I will also speak to your father about allowing you to attend this evening."
"Thank you, Nathalie!" Adrien called, grabbing Marinette's hand to pull her to the parking lot before the executive assistant could change her mind.
The ride to the Patisserie Boulangerie was filled with an awkward silence. When they arrived, Marinette reached for the door handle, but Adrien shouted, "Wait!" He leaped from the car and ran around to open her door from the outside, extending a hand to help her out. Marinette giggled and blushed.
"Such a gentleman!"
"Always, M'la-Ma-Marinette." Adrien's ears turned pink and he rubbed the back of his neck.
He walked her to the front door of her parents' bakery. Before she could talk herself out of it, she stood on her tiptoes, quickly pecked Adrien's cheek, and ran inside, without stopping until she had climbed the three flights of stairs to her bedroom, where she flung herself backwards onto the chaise and screeched.
Promptly at 19:00, the Dupain-Cheng family entered Le Meurice. Marinette had designed their clothing herself, and they all coordinated. She did not want to miss this opportunity to showcase her work to her favorite design house. Tom's outfit was probably the least creative, but still striking-a three piece suit with a red satin vest and tie accented with gold embroidery, with black slacks and coat and white shirt. Marinette had made his vest and tie for Christmas, although the rest of the outfit was off the rack. Sabine wore a qípáo of red satin with rhinestone roses instead of the traditional embroidery, also a Christmas gift from their daughter (it had taken days to get those roses just right, using a 1980's Bedazzler her Nona had picked up at a flea market on a trip to the United States). Marinette's dress was a twist on a traditional Chinese style, but it had an asymmetrical hemline, and the button front was curved to mimic a yin-yang symbol. There was a ruffle of red chiffon along the bottom of the skirt, and a chiffon rosette just below the right shoulder and just above the left hip completed the allusion to the symbol for opposite yet complimentary energies. Marinette had been inspired to begin creating the dress shortly after meeting Tikki and Chat Noir, as Tikki had explained that the teens and their Miraculouses were two halves of a whole that balanced each other. After over a year as Ladybug, she'd finally had time to finish the outfit last week, so this was her first time wearing it besides fittings.
Le Meurice was beautifully decorated, with white antique furniture, elegant chandeliers, and murals. As the maître d' led them to their table, Marinette gasped and whispered to her mother, "That's THE Gabriel Agreste. He never leaves his atelier, they say, but he's here! He didn't even come to the bowler hat competition; I've only met him once at his house when I was delivering a book for Adrien!"
Adrien and his father stood up politely as the Dupain-Chengs approached. Nathalie was there as well, and Gagnon stood in the corner.
"Good evening," Gabriel said formally, as he pulled out a chair for Sabine. "Adrien, where are your manners? Pull out a chair for the young lady."
Adrien pulled out a chair next to his own for Marinette. She blushed as she sat down and he sat next to her.
"I thank you for taking the time to join us this evening. As perhaps your daughter has already explained, a clerical error on our part and tardiness on the part of our, ahem, professional model, caused some confusion in which Mademoiselle Dupain-Cheng ended up posing for several photographs for our spring campaign. Besides our wish to reimburse her for her trouble, we would like to use those photographs in our advertisements and magazine spreads. Obviously, your permission must be granted before this could occur, as she is a minor. My assistant Nathalie has the standard contracts. We would appreciate moving forward on this as soon as possible so as not to delay the release of our new line, but of course you must feel free to take time to go over the terms with your attorney."
"Marinette, are you comfortable with all of this?" Tom inquired.
"I...I think I would like it, Papa. I want to learn all sides of the fashion business, and maybe the name exposure would help me when it's time to look for an internship during Université."
"You have an interest in design, Mademoiselle?" Monsieur Agreste inquired.
"Mari's an amazing designer, Father. You think so, too. She won your bowler hat competition!"
"Ah, yes, the ingenious signature that foiled Mademoiselle Bourgeois. You sign all of your designs that way, do you not?"
"Yes, sir."
"Mari designed our clothes for this evening, Monsieur. Her signature is along the hemline of my qípáo and the collar of her dress," Sabine stated proudly.
"She's even designed for Jagged Stone!" exclaimed Tom.
"Jagged Stone? I've designed several of his...costumes, myself. Which ones were yours, if you don't mind my asking.
"None of his costumes, sir, but his line of sunglasses and two cd covers."
"Two?!" Adrien asked eagerly. "I only have the one that you signed."
"Oh, um, well, the other one hasn't out come yet. Come out yet. Mademoiselle Penny called to apologize about the...um, the TV show...and Jagged shook the tone...I mean took the phone from her and begged me to design the cover for his next album."
"That's amazing, Mari!"
Marinette blushed.
"That is quite impressive for a teenager. May I be permitted a closer look at your dress?"
Marinette nodded and stood up. Gabriel stood as well, and walked slowly around her. "Unique twist on a timeless design. Careful workmanship. The materials are clearly...economical. But superior crafting given what you had to work with and your age. Mademoiselle Dupain-Cheng, tell me, what are your plans for your summer break before you enter lycée?"
"Oh, um. I'll probably work in the Boulangerie Patisserie, and spend my free time with my friends or designing."
The fashion tycoon turned to Marinette's parents. "Could your daughter be spared from her summer job in your bakery?"
Tom replied, "Well, she's a good worker and we'd miss her help, but we muddle through when she's at school, so we could manage over the summer as well."
"Mademoiselle, how would you feel about a summer internship at Gabriel? Nathalie, how long would it take to draw up a contract for that?"
"Well, sir, I knew that Mademoiselle Dupain-Cheng had an interest in fashion and had won your bowler hat competition, so I took the liberty of bringing an internship contract along."
"Ah, I appreciate your efficiency, Nathalie."
"Thank you, sir."
"Well, Mademoiselle? What do you think?"
"That would be amazing!"
The business talks completed, the group settled in to enjoy their dinner. An appetizer plate of gourmet cheeses and pastries arrived first. Marinette snuck a flaky brioche under the table for Tikki. As she looked up, she thought she saw Adrien slipping a wedge of Camembert into his jacket. Poor Adrien! They must not be feeding him enough! They probably have him on some silly model diet that isn't enough for a growing teenage boy. Maman is always commenting that he looks too skinny, and he's never allowed to come with us for Andrè's ice-cream.
After a delightful meal in the elegant dining room, Monsieur Agreste offered the Dupain-Chengs the use of his limousine for the ride home.
"May I go with them, Father?"
"Have you finished your homework and your piano practice?"
"Yes, sir."
Gabriel nodded.
During the limo ride, Tom stuck his head out of the sun roof and whooped, making Sabine giggle. Marinette was about to apologize for the embarrassing behavior when Adrien began to laugh; the same beautiful laugh as when his umbrella closed on her the day she fell for him. That genuine laugh was rare, and she wasn't about to take away from it.
After bidding Adrien goodnight, Marinette raced to her room shouting, "Gotta call Alya!" over her shoulder.
In her bedroom, Tikki flew out of her purse. "Do you really have time to call Alya? You don't want to be late for patrol with Chat Noir!"
"I know, Tikki. Calling Alya was just an excuse to keep my parents from trying to talk to me and make me late."
"I'm sorry your secret means lying to your parents; I know how much you hate lies. I'm just afraid of what would happen if Hawkmoth ever akumatized them."
"I don't blame you, Tikki. Do you think I'll ever be able to tell anyone? Like when Hawkmoth is defeated?"
"Maybe? I don't know what other threats we might have to face in the future…"
"What about if I get married someday? Or have kids? Will I have to keep it a secret from them, too?"
"Oh! I hope Hawkmoth is defeated by then, but it's probably better not to tell your children… At least not while they are young and might not understand why it is so important to keep it secret… But… I guess… You should probably tell your husband. I would not want to be responsible for hurting your marriage with lies."
"That's good to know… But it's a long way off. Right now I should get to patrol. Tikki, spots on!"
Ladybug climbed out of the skylight onto Marinette's rooftop balcony and swung her way to the Tour de Eiffel. Chat Noir was waiting for her, chin resting thoughtfully in his hands.
"Oh, hello, M'Lady," he greeted her, with slightly less enthusiasm than usual.
"Is everything alright, Kitty? You seem… Preoccupied."
"I'm purrfect now that you're here, Bugaboo."
"You can tell me if something is bothering you."
"Nothing is bothering me, purr se. I've just been thinking about some things and I'm feeling confused."
"Civilian things? Can I help without you compromising your identity? Or Miraculous things?"
"Both, actually. I was just wondering if… Well, we're not going to be kids forever. How are we supposed to date or marry-each other or anyone else - - if we have to keep this huge secret forever?"
"Chat, I…"
"And that's the other thing that I am confused about… I still really like you… But lately...well, you said you liked someone else… And there's this girl in my class… But how could I ever ask her out without telling her so she knows why I have to bail on her all the time?"
"Oh." Ladybug was startled. Just startled, that's all. Her heart belonged to Adrien, and there was absolutely no way she was feeling even the teensiest bit jealous that Chat Noir was showing interest in another girl. She wanted him to get over her. This was a good thing.
"M'Lady?"
Ladybug gulped. "You… You like a girl in your class?"
"Are you jealous?"
"No!"
Chat leaned forward into her face, narrowing his eyes. "Are you lyyying?" he inquired with a smirk.
Why does that give me déjà vu?
"No! Of Norse cot! Of course not! I told you I like someone else!"
"Just teasing. I understand, don't worry." He slung his arm casually over her shoulder.
Alarm bells started going off in Marinette's brain. Seriously, why do I feel like we've had this conversation before?!
"T-t-tikki, m-my kwami said that if I got married, I would not have to keep the secret from my husband… for whatever that's worth."
"That's good to know. My kwami, Plagg, never tells me anything useful. He just yammers on about Camembert. In fact, if I hadn't snuck him some at dinner tonight, he probably would have just flown out of my jacket and exposed me to a whole restaurant full of people!" Chat chuckled.
"Oh! You were at a mestaurant tofight?"
"A restaurant tonight? Yeah."
"That's what I said. Guestaurant."
"M'lady?"
Ladybug took a deep breath. And then she bolted.
Chat raced after her, pole vaulting across the rooftops with his bo staff. "M'Lady! Wait!"
Ladybug dodged around chimneys and buildings until she was certain he'd lost her trail, then headed home. Sliding through the skylight to her bed, she cried, "Tikki, spots off!"
"Marinette, are you okay?"
"Tikki, you know who Chat Noir really is." It wasn't a question.
The red deity nodded.
"Do I know him outside the mask?"
Tikki cringed.
"Tikki, I need you to answer me honestly. Do I know Chat Noir outside the mask?"
The bug nodded sheepishly.
"Has he… Has he figured out who I am?"
"I'm not entirely certain. He may have figured it out subconsciously? But I don't think he knows for sure."
"How dangerous is it for us to know each other's identities?"
"Aside from the fact that Chat has been mind-controlled by multiple Akuma? Remember what you did to The Owl? When you got worried, you called him Principal Damocles in front of everyone!"
"Oh." Marinette flushed guiltily.
Crickets chirped outside the open skylight.
Then Marinette whispered, "But what if I just figured it out?"