Chapter 53
"Alright, semi-formal first, then formal, then casual." Claudia Hurst said, and she started ushering the models into line. "Adrien, you're here, and Marinette, you're beside him." she said a few moments later, then moved on the the other models setting them in line.
"I walk down with you?" Marinette asked, and Adrien nodded with a smile. "That will make this easier."
"Madame's and Monsieur's, I present to you, the Spring and Summer line from Gabriel Fashion." the announcer said, then started rattling off descriptions of the various outfits as they went down the catwalk.
"Remember, keep to the beat of the music." Adrien said, and Marinette nodded.
"She is wearing a formal gown with a deep sweetheart neckline and a snug, backless, bodice that flares out to a floor length skirt." the announcer said as Adrien and Marinette started down the catwalk. "Done in silk, and available in four colors, with matching jewelry and shoes. This is the fourth offering from Mademoiselle Marinette Dupain-Cheng, who is also modeling her gown tonight. Beside her is her boyfriend, Adrien Agrest, in a basic black ensemble with a blue shirt to compliment his lady's gown, an offering from Janette Deveraux."
Marinette heard all that clearly, and as they were walking down she heard Adrien start to say something, but stopped.
What Adrien was going to say was to remind Marinette to smile as she went down the catwalk, but he shut up when he saw that she already was. His own smile grew as he realized that she was really enjoying herself despite the almost constant strobe of camera flashes.
When they reached the end of the catwalk, Marinette released his arm, and they both turned to give the audience a side-view from both sides, then Marinette saw that Adrien held out his hand to her.
"Twirl, right." he said softly as she took his hand, and he raised their hands. Marinette twirled to the right, ending up along side him, and re-taking his arm. He smiled at her, and they headed back down the catwalk.
The applause was thunderous.
A short time later, Marinette came out of the make up room, after having her makeup put back to how she looked before she was called on to model. She was stunned to find a small crowd of the models waiting for her, and they started applauding when they saw her.
"Come on, Marinette, you have somewhere to be." Kira, the brunette model said, coming forward and taking her hand after giving her a hug.
"Wait, what now?" she asked, reluctant to go anywhere without Adrien.
Kira stepped close and whispered. "Adrien told me to say this." she said. "This is your night to shine, Princess. I'll be watching and with you soon, mon cherie." she related then stepped back. "Those pet names are simply adorable."
"Okay, then. Lead on I guess." Marinette said.
Kira grinned, and led Marinette through the backstage area toward the catwalk. As they went Marinette noticed that two other models had joined them. One of them she recognized from earlier in the week. Amber was a blonde haired beauty with laughing blue eyes. The other was Jenna. She was a blonde with bright green eyes, that she realized even rivaled Adrien's.
She tensed a little when she realized that she was being led to the man who announced the designs for the show.
"Ah, excellent you're here." he said when he saw Marinette. "Now when I nod, all you have to do is walk out to the end of the runway, and let the photographers take some pictures." he told her. "Oh, and congratulations."
Marinette watched as he took his position, then spoke into a microphone. "Madame's and Monsieur's, I am pleased to present, the designer chosen by you as the Designer of Note for this show and the Gabriel Spring/Summer line. . .Miss Marinette Dupain-Cheng!" he announced then nodded to her.
After a moment to get over her initial shock, Marinette started walking down the runway. Realizing what being chosen as the shows Designer of Note would mean for her career, she smiled broadly as she walked to the end of the catwalk. She stood there for a moment, blushing at the applause, then dropped into a deep curtsy. She held it for a moment then stood and looked out over the crowd.
Almost instantly she found who she was looking for, and then some. In the front row, and almost directly in front of her stood, Adrien, Alya and Nino, and she was stunned to not only see Vivian LeBeau, but Liliana Roxcell as well.
Marinette was in shock. Yes she was a fan of Madame LeBeau, as a designer, but the younger, Liliana was a fashion critic that rivaled even Audrey Bourgeois.
With a wave, and a smile, Marinette said thank you, but she doubted that anyone heard the words over the applause. She turned and walked back down the catwalk.
As she reached the backstage area, Marinette again found herself the center of attention. Most of the models were there to offer their congratulations for her accomplishments.
"And when you make it as a designer, don't forget about us here in the trenches." Kira said, giving Marinette a hug.
Marinette laughed along with the brunette. "You know me better than that. I won't forget any of you for the help you've given me." she said. "Has there been any word on Ilsa, and her knee?"
"As a matter of fact." Amber said, and the small knot of models moved aside to revel the redhead in a wheelchair.
Marinette gasped in surprise when she saw her, and she crossed over to her and knelt on one knee beside the chair to give the redhead a hug.
"Ilsa!" she cried happily. "How's the knee?"
"Much better, thanks to you." Ilsa replied. "Congratulations on Designer of Note."
"Thanks." Marinette said, and was helped to her feet by a couple of the models.
"You need to get out there and be seen." Kira said. "Besides, Adrien is waiting for you."
Marinette nodded. "I'll swing by the hospital and see you tomorrow." she said to Ilsa, and followed Amber and Jenna.
"Well, here you go." Jenna said as they reached the entrance leading to the ball room from back stage. "Knock 'em dead." she added, giving Marinette a hug.
"Hey! There she is!" a voice shouted and Marinette was almost blinded by the flashes from cameras.
Caught by surprise, Marinette froze, which was actually a good thing as it gave the photographers a chance to get a good still shot of her.
A shouted question brought her back to herself.
"Miss. Dupain-Cheng, how does it feel to be the youngest designer chosen to be Designer of Note?"
"Umm, well, I'm still processing that, and I do thank those that selected me for this honor, and I hope to continue to live up to their expectations. I also want to thank Gabriel Agreste for giving me the chance."
"Okay, that's enough for now, there will be a press conference tomorrow and a press release before that." Nathalie said as she appeared at Marinette's side. "Please give her the time to celebrate." she added, and Marinette noted that she didn't say privacy.
"Thank you." she said, as the crowd of journalists dispersed.
Nathalie gave her a small smile. "You're welcome. I understand that you're not used to dealing with the press, and we'd prefer that you don't say or do anything that will impact the brand negatively.
"Of course." Marinette said, then gave a surprised squeal as she was lifted into the air and spun around.
"Totally rock and roll, little M! I knew you had it in ya!"
Marinette looked down into the smiling face of Jagged Stone.
"Jagged, put the girl down!" Penny scolded. "You scared her half to death."
Marinette laughed at the blush on the man's face as he set her on her feet, then wrapped her in a hug.
"Sorry about that, M, it's just that I am so happy for you."
"That's okay, Jagged." Marinette laughed. "I should have realized you were here and expected that."
Marinette saw the look that the rock star gave his assistant, and Penny's slight nod.
Jagged leaned in and whispered into her ear. "Please keep this secret. Penny and I are engaged, and we want you to design our wedding clothes. Do you accept?" he asked. "Remember, tell no one."
Jagged moved back, and Marinette's gaze moved between his and Penny's hopeful looks. They relaxed when she smiled and nodded.
The next person to greet Marinette was only a little less enthusiastic. Clara Nightingale danced her way over and gave her congratulations in her rhyming way.
"When this gown I saw was your design, I knew right then I'd make it mine. So you became Designer of Note, I tell you now you had my vote."
Marinette smiled at her. "In my gown you are truly beautiful, and for your support and friendship I am truly thankful." she said and the two girls hugged.
"There's my princess!" Adrien called as he, Nino and Alya walked up.
"Adrien!" Marinette cried and seeing that he was slightly ahead of her other two friends she quickly closed the distance between them and wrapped him in a hug, not caring about the several flashes that went off.
"I told you the press would be looking to you soon." he said softly into her ear, then kissed her cheek.
"That's my girl!" Alya gushed taking Marinette's hands.
"Way ta go, dudette!" Nino said.
The three of them moved aside when someone cleared their throat.
"It seems I should have been the one paying honor to you before." Vivian LeBeau said as she came up.
Marinette smiled at the older woman. "As I said before, your using a paste3l pallet for the base colors of your Fall/Winter line was a bold move giving it more color, yet keeping it subdued, a stoke of genius that I would never have thought of."
"Talented, intelligent and humble." Liliana Roxcell said. "I know you're underage, and still in school, but when you decide to start producing, give me a call, and I'll back you." she added, handing Marinette a business card. "I can see that we can expect good things from you.
"Thank you, Miss. Roxcell." Marinette said with a small curtsy.
"I wouldn't expect to much from her. I gave her those designs."
All eyes turned to the speaker.
"In your dreams, Rossi." Alya said. "Marinette has more talent in her little finger than you do in your entire body."
"Besides, her gown was designed on the Gabriel system." Nathalie said.
Adrien noticed that Marinette's eyes narrowed as she looked at Lila.
"Where did you get that gown?" she asked angrily.
Lila smiled sweetly. "Why I designed it myself." she said twisting slightly showing it off.
"Um, no, you didn't." Marinette shot back. "That's mine."
"Really, Marinette, you have to realize that there are other designers out there other than you." Lila said, then looked around. "She likes to think that all good designs are hers."
"Yeah, well, I can prove that's my design."
"Go ahead, Marinette." Nathalie said.
Marinette nodded then stepped closer to Lila. She grabbed the tail end of the sash that went around the brunette's waist. "Here in the stitching is my signature." she said, holding it up so that it could be seen. "And another here." she added, turning the neckline hem over by Lila's right shoulder. "And lastly, my monograph." she said then pointed it out in the pattern of the lace at the cuff of the short sleeves of the gown. "Besides, if she wants to claim that she designed it, she's admitting that she's a sloppy designer." she went on. "As you can see there are places where it really doesn't fit."
"The bodice and at the hips, really stand out." Kira said as she and a few other models walked up. "They're too loose and it ruins the line of the gown."
"These stitches are exquisite, what machine do you use?" Vivian said, looking closely at the seam between the collar, bodice and sleeve.
Marinette worried her bottom lip and blushed slightly. "Umm, with it being a school project, I had to hand stitch it." she said softly, and found herself the focus of several sets of eyes.
"You hand stitched this entire gown, yourself?" Liliana asked incredulously. "How long did it take you?"
"About a month and a half." Marinette said softly. "I could have had it done sooner, but I only had so long each day that I could work on it."
"Oh, yes I definitely want to back you." Lilian said.
"Okay, it's obvious that you didn't design it for her, so who did you make it for?" Kira asked.
"I'd rather not say." Marinette replied, an almost panicked look on her face. "It's a gift for someone and I'm hoping it'll be a surprise."
"Come on, Mari." Alya cajoled. "Who's the lucky girl?" She almost regretted asking when she saw the look on her best friend's face.
Marinette took a ragged breath, then looked Alya in the eyes. "It's for you. I made it as a gift for you for our fourth year anniversary in September."
"Girl, I'm sorry that the surprise was ruined." Alya said, giving her a hug.
"Are gifts like this common?" Liliana asked.
"Maybe not quite this big, but yeah, she makes us all gifts for birthdays and such." Adrien said. "A couple years ago, she made me a pair of gloves and a hat to go with a scarf that I had." he went on. "She even managed to match the color."
"Yeah, I remember those." Alya said, as she and Marinette exchanged a look.
Unfortunately that was the distraction Lila had been waiting for, and several things happened almost at the same time.
With a frustrated growl Lila lunged at Marinette, intending to punch her. The blow never landed because Nino reacted and caught her fist with his hand.
Marinette was surprised when she felt herself grabbed from behind and pulled back, to rest against Adrien's chest with his arms around her. Her eyes widened when she saw Sean and Colleen each take one of Lila's arms, restraining her.
"Lila Rossi, what do you think you're doing!" a woman's voice demanded.
"Madam Ambassador, your daughter attacked Miss. Dupain-Cheng." Sean said.
"They accused me of stealing this gown." Lila said. "I told you how I was working on it at school."
"And it's been proven that you're lieing about that." Vivian said, and Mrs. Rossi was shown the tags that proved that it was Marinette's.
"I see." she said. "Young lady, I wish to apologize for my daughter's behavior and congratulate you on the honor you've received."
"Thank you."
"Now with the scene that your daughter caused I'm afraid she's going to have to leave." Nathalie said. "Of course she'll have to change out of that gown, as I'm certain that Marinette would like it back. She'll be escorted back to the changing rooms and given clothes to wear out."
"I see. Thank you."
"I'll go with her." Colleen said seeing that Marinette was about to go.
"So will I." Kira added. "You've got some schmoozing to do."
Adrien stepped beside Marinette and offered her his arm. "Your public awaits, Princess."
A/N I have no idea if there is such a thing as the "Designer of Note" at one of these things, so I guess I invented one.
Also Lila is a conniving little twit.