Chapter 8: A Night to Forget and Remember
The night ended the way it was predicted by both Adrien and Gabriel Agreste… a complete disaster. Gabriel thought that he might actually find a way to bury the hatchet with Amélie Dufayel, but, in the end, his best efforts backfired on him. But, he was not the only one on that night with problems.
Down in the sewers, hidden from the rest of the world, Hawk Moth remained locked up in his chambers. He had not left that place ever since Gargantua had been defeated, and it was not because he did not want to… it was because he could not risk it. A few days after his massive monster was defeated by the Miraculous Team, he began looking for a way to destroy them. He feared that Reptile and Madame Romani together would not be enough to do the job… so, he decided that he himself would go up against those infernal teenagers himself. But, he found out that he had expended too much energy when he recruited his lieutenants and created his Akuma butterflies to do his bidding; power that was not coming back as quickly as he hoped for. He was still quite strong, but not strong enough to take Ladybug and all her comrades on his own, and that would just not do.
"Though this body has remained strong and ageless while I was turned into stone, it's now starting to be affected by the sands of time, and I'm not strong enough to cast the proper spell that will allow me to regain my full strength back instantly… at least, for a little longer." -Hawk Moth thought to himself. That was the reason why he had only asked Reptile to go looking for another target… he was weak, and needed someone to stay and protect him, and that someone was Madame Romani. Hawk Moth gained strength from every one of his creations when they were either around him or doing his bidding, but running so low on power, he had to keep one of his lieutenants around in case something happened. His pride had prevented him from even discussing what was going on. He preferred to suffer in silence, and let his lieutenants believe that he just wanted to be left alone. In his twisted mind, to show that he was weak went up against everything he defended, and he could not let his lieutenants' see him in that state. –"I must remain here until my power is full restored. And until then, I must keep Madame Romani near me… her power grows as each day goes by, and it will help me gain my strength back as well Reptile's power is quite strong, but hers is a power that is more like mine, and for that, I chose him to go around doing my bidding, instead of her." -he told himself. –"But it's not enough… Reptile must find me another target so you can akumatize at will, my pretties, and soon. The next person who's heart I take control of not only will replenish my full power, but it will also destroy those infernal kids, once and for all."
Approaching the huge oval mirror that was existed in that room, Hawk Moth lifted his cane and with its top, touched the mirrored surface, make it wobble, as if the mirror itself was made from liquid metal. Soon, it started to swirl and an image appeared. The image was none other than the image of Ladybug and the rest of her team on the very first time they met him. He looked at her eyes and the eyes of every last one of them; the way they glistened with confidence and determination, the same confidence and determination he planned to crush and extinguish from them.
"Yes, Ladybug… you and your friends think that you're invincible and that you can handle anything I can throw at you, just because you destroyed one of my creations." -he mused to himself. –"But believe me, when I say that you haven't seen anything yet… I promise you that you will regret the day that you went up against me, for I will unleash Hell upon the Earth if needed, just to destroy you and those blasted miraculouses of yours!" -he yelled, as he in anger created a small sphere of purple energy and threw it at the mirror, shattering it into a thousand pieces.
The sound of the explosion alerted Madame Romani, who was using her crystal ball to try and watch television. Though she had changed in ways that she never imagined possible, some of her old tastes, like watching cheesy soap operas remained intact, and she recently had found that her powers enabled her not only to contact other through the crystal ball, which projected her image wherever she wanted to, but also allowed her to pick up television and radio signals. Dropping what she was doing, she quickly run to see what was going on. Not seeing anything out of place, she quickly assumed that the noise had come from her master's chambers. Knocking at the door, she said:
"Master Hawk Moth, sir?! Is everything alright?" -Madame Romani asked him.
"I'm fine!" -Hawk Moth answered her.
"Are you sure? It sounded like a mighty explosion…" -she insisted on the matter.
"I said I was fine! Has Reptile come back yet?" -he asked her, trying to change subject.
"N-Not yet, master."
"Well, then, when he comes back, let him know that I'm losing my patience…" -he told her, with a low and menacing tone of voice.
"Yes, master." -Madame Romani responded, as she walked away from the door and headed back into the main chamber. –"If this keeps up, and Reptile does fail his assignment, not only he will be punished, but I will be able to prove to Master Hawk Moth that I am much more reliable than he will ever be." -she thought to herself, not even imagining the real reason why Hawk Moth had sent Reptile to do his bidding, instead of her.
Amélie Dufayel was absolutely furious when she exited Agreste Manor. When Gabriel Agreste asked her to have dinner with him and his son, she had hopes that he had finally agreed to bury the hatchet, and admit that she was superior to him when it came to fashion. Unfortunately, he did no such thing. Instead, he did quite opposite; he criticized her style and her taste. He did it so in a rather polite way, but still, a critic is a critic and the redhead had always hated critics. Ever since she had entered the world of fashion, she had met various fashion critics who had tried to destroy her place in the world of fashion by pointing out the numerous things they did not like about her work. But, she had managed to obliterate them all, by making her work known and by reinventing things that were considered the fashion standard. And, as she made her way up the food chain, she made many enemies and rivals, all of which she despised and saw as above her. But none of them deserved more hatred and contempt for, than Gabriel Agreste.
"That bourgeois pig! He'll regret the day he ever said those things about my work!" -she thought to herself. –"Step on it! I must get home at once!" -she yelled at her driver.
She was in a hurry to get home, not because she wanted to, but because she needed. Though she had worked to make her spring/summer collection the best she had ever conceived, and believed it to be so, during the heated argument she had with Gabriel Agreste, he pointed out something that was on a creation, a very particular and important creation, she had come up with for that collection, and should not be. And if there was something she hated more than her rivals to point out flaws on her perfect designs, was she herself not having noticed it a flaw, when she created it. That flaw could ruin everything, and it had to be dealt with, immediately.
Amélie Dufayel lived in an old mansion in Versailles. She had bought it a couple of years before, and it had turned it into both her residence and her workshop, where she supervised all her creations. The building itself had been built in the beginning of the 18th century, just before the fall of the monarchy, and as such, it reflected the opulence and wealth of that time, both on the inside and outside, matching the owner's personality and ego. And as she arrived, Nina Vincent, her assistant was about to leave. Nina was the latest of Amélie Dufayel's assistants, and by assistant, it meant that she was to do everything she was told to do, from reviewing her speeches to bringing her a soy latte, even if that meant going to the other side of Paris just to pick it up. Due to her temperament, most assistants she hired would not last long around her, because she would fire them over the tiniest mistake, or they would just quit. Nina was with her for only 4 months and that was a record. She did not like her boss, and she had thought about quitting multiple times. Still, if she wanted a shot of making her name in the fashion industry, she would have to endure certain things, even temperamental bosses.
She had been asked, or better yet, ordered by Amélie Dufayel to supervise the rest of the dresses that were going to be worn by the models on the following day and make sure that they were all properly shipped to the event. It was nearly 10 o'clock when she finally shipped the last box through the moving company. She was nearly deadbeat and could not wait to go home and sleep for a couple of hours, before coming back to work. As she grabbed her things, she envied the seamstresses that worked for Miss Dufayel, especially because they had finished work by 6 o'clock. Still, that work day had come to an end, and she could now go home… or at least, that was what she thought.
"Where do you think you're going?!" -Amélie asked, as she got out of the car.
"Oh, Miss Dufayel… I was about to leave." -Nina answered her.
"Well, you're not leaving anymore!" -Amélie shot at her. –"Tell me, is the Rosenberg ready?" -she asked. The Rosenberg dress was the dress that Dufayel had decided would end her show and close Paris Fashion Week. She had named it like that, not because it had any particular meaning, but because it sounded appealing to the ear, revealing just how brilliant, and at the same time, how futile she could be. She worked on it for nearly a month, sketching it and overlooking its entire production herself.
"Almost. There are just a couple of minor details that haven't been sewn, but the seamstresses said that it would be finished by tomorrow morning, so the model can try it." -Nina said, forcing a smile on her face. She was exhausted and just wanted to go home. –"What do you mean by…"
"Call them back immediately and tell them that I want them in my workshop in an hour! We're going to redesign it from scratch and start working on it tonight!" -she exclaimed. You could hear the rage and the fury in her voice. One would not need to be a psychic to figure out that the dinner had ended in a disaster.
"T-Tonight?!" -Nina asked, stuttering. –"B-But, Miss Dufayel, I-I was already on my way out, and the seamstresses…"
"You're not going anywhere, you hear me?!" -Amélie yelled at her. –"I'm going to need someone to help me and to make sure that those blasted seamstresses don't screw up anything! I've got less than 48 hours to prove to that Gabriel Agreste that I'm superior to him in every way, and by God, I won't let anyone stop me from doing it!" -she kept yelling at her, her eyes seeming like they were about to pop out of their sockets.
"B-But Miss Dufayel, with all due respect, redesigning the Rosenberg on such short notice… it's an impossible task. We'll never have it ready for the show in two days."
"Don't tell me what's possible or not, you imbecile! The only thing that'll make it impossible is you not having called those seamstresses already! Now call them back, immediately, and then come into my office. I'll pull an all-nighter if I have to finish the redesign, and you're going to help me, whether you like it or not!"
"But…"
"Do it, or I find someone to do your job! There are hundreds of girls who would sell their soul just to be in your shoes right about now!"
"Doubt it, with your attitude…" -Nina thought to herself. –"Yes, Miss Dufayel." -she answered her.
"Well then, what are you waiting for?! Call those seamstresses! Call them!" –Amélie yelled, as she entered the house –"And once you're finished, go to my office and wait for me there! Imbeciles… I'm surrounded by imbeciles!" -she went on.
As she called the seamstresses to come back, Nina could not help but to think just how much she hated her boss right then. If only she had gotten out a few minutes before, she would probably not have to stay and do an all-nighter. But, knowing Amélie Dufayel, she would most likely call her and demand that she would turn around and come work.
"Stupid witch! One of these days you'll get what's coming to you." -she told herself
Dispensing desert, Gabriel Agreste excused himself to his son and retired to his studio, Adrien himself also dispensed desert and went to his room. Just before opening the door, he heard the television was on; Plagg had turned it on to watch something. Turning the handle and opening the door, he saw that he was right. The TV was showing an old black and white movie, which Adrien quickly recognized. It was the 1934 version of The Count of Monte Cristo. Closing the door behind him, Adrien went to the couch and sat next to Plagg, without uttering a single word.
"It was that bad, huh?"
"What do you think?"
"I think that both her and your father have a good set of lungs… although, if that was a competition, I bet that she would have won easily." -Plagg tried to lighten the mood of that conversation.
"I don't even know what sparked that fight… it could have been my dad telling her that her shoes did not match, or it could have been that his latest collection was not to her taste, I don't know. But I can tell you this, Plagg, the way she acts and yells at everybody, she needs a psychiatrist." -Adrien told his kwami, as he took off his bowtie.
"Look on the bright side of things. That way you won't put on weight and you are sure that you father will never remarry, at least not with her." -Plagg joked about it, making Adrien crack a smile.
"Well, you do have a point… the odds of my father remarrying with that woman are absolutely none." -Adrien said. –"hey, could you turn up the volume a bit? That's my favourite part."
Until then, the night had been anything but pleasant to Adrien, but now that the dinner was over and that crazy Amélie Dufayel was gone, he could at least enjoy some quality time with his kwami, before going to bed. The two of them went on watching movie, when they both heard something hitting against the window. Looking up to one of the windows, the two of them were startled to see someone knocking against it… and that someone was none other than Queen Bee, Chloé's superhero alter-ego. When she saw that they had both seen her, she signalled Adrien to open the window for her to enter. ´
"What are you doing here?" -Adrien asked her, as he opened the door and let her in.
"Came here to give you something." -Queen Bee told him, as she landed on the floor.
"Something? What is it?" -Adrien asked her, as he closed the window.
"Hold on, Adrien, first, let me turn back into my good old self." -Queen Bee said, when Plagg flew over and hovered in front of her.
"Are you sure you didn't just come by to flirt with him?" -Plagg joked.
"Don't be silly." -Queen Bee told him. –"Although it wouldn't be a bad idea, if you think about it." -she thought to herself, as a naughty smile appeared in her face.
Turning back into her civilian form, Chloé then gave Adrien a huge hug, and planted a kiss on his left cheek. Smiling, she then let Pollen land on the palm of her hand. It amazed Adrien just how the blonde and her kwami became inseparable, especially given her apiphobia. It was only thanks to Master Fu, and plenty of support from Sabrina, that Chloé had gotten over her fear of bees. She was still a little bit afraid of them, but not as before, and more importantly, she was not afraid of her kwami, who looked a little bit tired.
"Are you tired?"
"A little… but nothing that a little honey won't fix." -Pollen told her with a smile.
"Hold on, you little glutton." -Chloé told her, as she reached for her purse and took out something small from it. It was a piece candy, wrapped in golden paper, with a beehive stamped on it. –"I know it's not the same, but this honey-flavoured candy will have to do for not. Once we get home, I'll give you some real honey, okay?" -she said, always with a smile.
"Deal, Chloé." -Pollen smiled, as she unwrapped the piece of candy, and began to lick it.
"Sorry, where were we, Adrikins?" -the blonde asked Adrien, treating him by the nickname she had given him.
"You were going to give me something you brought me." -Adrien told her.
"Oh, right, here." -Chloé said, as she went through her purse and grabbed the Shùn Yi stone. -"This is for you. Marinette told me to give it to you; it's from Master Fu."
"What is it?" -Adrien asked her.
"Ha, I know what it is! It's one of the Shùn Yi stones." -Plagg exclaimed, recognizing it.
"It will allow you to teleport to the Garden of the Ancients and back, from wherever you are." -Pollen said.
"That way we don't have to stop by Master Fu's place, every time we need to go training." -Chloé told him.
"And, how does it work?"
"You just need to touch it and it will be absorbed into you. After that, you just need to think of the Garden of the Ancients, and you'll be transported there." -Plagg explained him. –"Then, you can also use it to teleport to the place you were before, but you can't use it to teleport to other places. It doesn't work that way."
"That was the part that Kim hated about it, because he thought that with it, he could stay in bed longer and then show up in school, a minute before classes began." -Chloé told him about it.
"I kinda sympathized with that part… it would be cool if we could actually use it to get to places, other than the Garden of the Ancients." -Adrien said, as he looked at the sphere that rested on Chloé's open hand. –"Just need to touch it, huh? Okay, I can do that."
Doing it, as soon as Adrien's fingers touched it, the sphere disappeared and a small burst of energy was felt by him, coursing through his body.
"Whoa, it tickles."
"A little." -Chloé said. –"Oh, one more thing and this is important. Once you've used its power, you need to wait 30 minutes to use it again… thank God time in the Garden of Ancients moves independently from the time here, or that would be a very big problem." -she said.
"Dully noted, thanks." -Adrien smiled at her.
"Well, that's that. I guess I should be going now." -Chloé told him, though she hoped Adrien would invite her to stay a little longer. It was no secret that Chloé liked Adrien, and he knew that. As for him, he only saw her as a friend; a good friend, but still only a friend. Chloé knew that, but that did not mean she would not try to change that.
"Hey, could you stay a little longer?" -Adrien asked her. Over the course of that week, he had only been able to talk to his friends for a few minutes. The one he had spoken for longer was Nino, because when it came to her, Sabrina and even Marinette, he was only able to speak to them for a couple of minutes.
"Well, I don't have to go already." -Chloé told him. –"You want me to stay?"
"Yeah, if you don't mind."
"You got it, Adrienkins!" -Chloé said, as she sat on the couch, with Pollen landing on top of her head.
The two then sat down to talk for a bit. He told her about what had happened at dinner. Then, her asked her about what she had been doing and what the rest of the class had been up to, and Chloé filled him in as best as she could. She told them what had been happening in school; how Kim had hurt his back, how he and Alix were both trying to record a video to enter a competition; how Marinette had learned to use the power in the Ampulla Amulet, among other things. He really felt sad while hearing her. He hated the fact that he was missing on all of that, because of the Paris Fashion Week. He was eager for the end of the event, so he could go back to school and back to his second family, as he liked to call his friends… but most of all, he was eager to go back to being able to turn into Chat Noir and roam the streets of Paris on patrol, either alone, or with one of the members of the Miraculous Team. During that week, he had only one chance to do so, and when he came home, he wished that that week would be over in a blink.
"You guys have been having all the fun." -Adrien sighed. –"What I wouldn't give to be part of that video, or to just hang out with one of you guys after school."
"Oh, Adrien, don't say that. I'm sure you're also having a little bit of fun at the event. I know I would." -Chloé giggled, as she imagined herself at the event, surrounded by all those beautiful clothes and accessories. One of her wildest dreams was to one day talk on a runway, while wearing a beautiful designer's dress, spreading glamour and beauty with each step she took. If she was not the Mayor's daughter, that would be an impossible dream. But being who she was, if the opportunity risen, all she had to do was ask her father, and he would make sure it would happen.
"I know you would, but I bet that even you would get tired of doing nothing but walking on a runway and doing various photoshoots all day, after a while." -Adrien told her.
In way, she understood what he was saying. He was in that because of his father, to help him, the same way she also showed up next to her father whenever one of his personal assistants felt that he needed to promote his image and the values he defended.
"Don't worry, it'll be over soon, and you'll be back with us in that boring classroom." -she chuckled.
"Boring seems great right about now."
Chloé was about to say something, when they both heard a knocking. There was someone knocking at the door.
"Adrien? Can I come in?" -a voice asked. It was Gabriel who was knocking at the door.
"It's my dad… hide!" -he whispered to Chloé.
"What?!" -she said.
"Hide! He can't see you here." -he answered in a hush. –"Sure dad, let me just open the door for you."
With no time to lose, Plagg and Pollen got out of sight, hiding beneath the couch. As for Chloé, she looked around for a place to hide before Adrien's dad entered in his room. There multiple choices, but all of them were too small for her to hide. Right then, she wished she had not turned back into her civilian form. As Queen Bee, she could shrink to the size of a quarter. Still, she only had maybe five seconds before he entered, so transforming into Queen Bee was out of the question. Looking around once more, she saw Adrien's bed. Making a dash for it, she practically slid underneath it.
Just before opening the door, Adrien looked behind his shoulder, to see if Chloé and the kwamis were out of sight. Not seeing them, he unlocked the door and open it.
"Sorry it took me so long to open it." -he told his dad.
"Can I come in? I need to talk to you." -Gabriel insisted.
"Sure." -Adrien stepped out of the way to let his father in.
Hidden underneath Adrien's bed, Chloé could only see Gabriel's feet, but that was enough for her to start panicking. Still, she tried to remain calm, covering her mouth, so she would not slip a single syllable, while hiding. The two of them sat on the couch.
"Adrien… I… I just want to apologize for what happened tonight." -Gabriel said.
"It's okay." -Adrien told him. He knew it was not his dad's fault.
"No, it's not okay. I let that woman get the best of my nerves, and you ended up watching a fight that wasn't even supposed to happen… I blame myself for it."
"Dad, it's not your fault that woman is clearly obsessed and has an ego the size of France."
"I know that, but even so, that doesn't excuse the way I acted tonight… if your mother was still alive, she would probably have scowled me for sinking to her level." -Gabriel declared in a low and sad voice. You could see that he missed his wife very much.
There was an awkward silence, following that last sentence, which lasted for a couple of seconds.
"Anyways… I wanted to come here and apologize to you for what happened, and… to maybe, make it up to you." -Gabriel declared.
"You mean it?" -Adrien asked.
"Yes… I noticed on the day that your friend came to deliver you, your homework that you've been alone by yourself most of the day during the whole event." -Gabriel went on. –"And, well, given that Saturday is the last day of the event, I was wondering if you would like to invite your friends from school to hang out with you." -he suggested.
Hearing those words, Adrien hugged his dad. It was not often he could do that, because Gabriel was not the kind of man to show emotions, at least, not when he was accompanied or in the presence of someone else. Still, when he had the chance, he would do it. Gabriel hugged him back, to demonstrate that he was there for his son, even though he was not always around, when he needed him.
"Thanks, dad."
"Is that a yes?" -Gabriel asked him, with a smile on his face, something that did not happen often.
"Yes, it is."
"Very well, then. Tell Nathalie all the names of your friends, so she can make arrangements for them to attend the event on Saturday." -he told him.
"I will. Thanks again, dad."
"Well, it's the least I could do." -he said, as he got up. –"I'll let myself out. Don't stay up until late. Goodnight, Adrien."
"Goodnight -Adrien said, as Gabriel left.
He waited a couple of seconds to make sure his dad was really gone, before he went to his bed and pulled out the covers, letting Chloé, who was underneath it, to come out.
"You can come out now… were our accommodations to your liking, Miss Bourgeois?" -he joked with her.
"Very funny, Adrien, very funny." -Chloé answered him in a sarcastic tone, as their kwamis showed up and laughed at just how messy her hair looked, from being underneath Adrien's bed. –"What? What's so funny?!"
"You should look yourself in the mirror." -Plagg laughed.
"What?" -Chloé asked puzzled.
"If I were you, I wouldn't go out right now." -Adrien chuckled, as he kept looking at just how messy her hair had gotten.
"What are you… Oh my God! My hair!" -Chloé exclaimed, when looking at her own reflection on one of the windows. –"Pollen, grab my comb that's in my purse, I can't be seen looking like this!" -she exclaimed, as that kwami did as she was asked.
