She was still smiling when the car pulled up in front of her hotel.

Another well done consultation, a whole new group of friends and victory over Damian.

It had been a spectacular day and that was without mentioning the sewing machine in her lap and the interview.

Alfred started talking when they'd fully stopped.

"Thank you for visiting and may I say it's been quite the interesting afternoon."

"I'm the one that should be thanking you here. The food was amazing and you were all so friendly."

Alfred shook his head and the skin beside his eyes wrinkled.

He looked serene.

"You are a very special girl, Miss Dupain-Cheng. It's makes me very happy that Master Damian has found someone like you."

Ah, that explained a lot.

It was also incredibly touching.

She could already feel a little lump building in the bottom of her throat.

"Someone like me?" She smiled a bit. "You mean a social disaster with a side of fashion?"

She considered it a huge success that she made him laugh so good naturedly.

"I actually meant someone that's patient enough to look further than the surface. Someone that won't let him win all the time and can teach him to let go once in a while." By then she was very close to crying, but he wasn't done yet. "You are a bright young lady. He's very lucky to have you."

"Thanks, but I'm the lucky one. He brings out the best in me."

"I'm glad to hear." He paused. "By the way it was quite the situation you left him in."

"Yeah, it- Wait. How do you know about that?"

Alfred's eyes practically sparkled with mirth. "You will come to find that there isn't much that happens in the manor that I don't know about."

Yeah, she could already tell she wasn't figuring that one out anytime soon.

But it made her think of something else.

"Earlier when you picked me up you already knew about me and Damian." Well, she thought he did at least. "How?"

"We'll call it a hunch for now."

Damian: Well played, Angel.

Me: I just thought you should know that angels don't always play fair;)

Damian: That's good. Neither do I.

She put down her phone with the ghost of a smile still on her lips.

She went through the reception and headed for the stairs.

That meant she passed the front desk where Adrien was badgering an employee. "It's a chunky silver ring. Someone has to have seen it!"

The ring felt heavier than it should on the chain around her neck.

But she didn't regret anything.

Firm steps carried here away from there.

The pencil drew the last few strokes. "And... done. Tikki, what do you think about this?"

The sketchpad showed a more detailed sketch of the jacket she'd decided on with Tim.

Tikki flew over to take a closer look.

"That's really nice Marinette, but are you sure you'll be able to get it done before you leave?"

"Yeah, it shouldn't be a problem if I get the materials tonight."

Her beloved kwami tilted her head. "What fabric store is open at night?"

"None," she answered, "but I happen to know that the owner of a store in the shopping district has been awake late the last few nights to work on a big project in the back."

She was actually counting on him doing the same tonight for this to work.

Tikki shook her little head and sighed. "You sent Plagg to spy on someone again."

"You make it sound like I'm invading someone's privacy. He only went to find a place that would be open for random midnight visits."

She honestly felt a bit bad for Tikki.

The kwami had to deal with situations like these way more than she should need to.

"You and Plagg should never be left alone."

"We're not that bad."

The silence spoke volumes.

Me: Escaped the wolves yet?

Damian: Said the girl that threw me to them.

Me: They can't be that bad.

She sat alone at dinner.

A relief really.

The rest of her class had been seated on the other end of the dining room.

It was impossible to hear a word they said.

Heaven on earth really.

And the food was delicious.

Chicken curry wasn't anything they ate at home, but she might have to find a recipe for something similar.

Bustier had left ages ago and now the rest of the group passed her by on their way to the elevators.

They barely gave her a passing glance.

It didn't bother her.

She'd gotten over them a long time ago.

"WHO TAUGHT YOU PEOPLE HOW TO COOK? SQUIRRELS? SERVE SOMETHING THAT'S EDIBLE TOMORROW OR SO HELP ME!"

Apparently Lila hadn't left with the others as evident when she stormed by.

The poor waitress had her jaw on the floor and her eyebrows in her hairline.

It wasn't the first time she'd heard the italian yelling at the staff and it certainly wasn't the last.

They deserved a raise.

"They already offered you a contract?!" Suffice to say she wasn't expecting that. "They only contacted you yesterday."

Luka chuckled. "Yep. They want to give me some time to read it and see if there's anything I feel needs changing, but it won't be long until everything's signed."

"They really can't wait to make you a pop star, huh?"

"Yes and no," he answered. "They're eager to get the project started though I'm not going to be a pop star. No tours in my future."

Kagami was evidently confused too. "Then what are you going to do?"

"Let's put it like this. You two know me better than most if not all others. When you really think about it do I seem like a person that would enjoy the life of a performer?"

They both thought about it for a moment, but reached the same conclusion.

"It feels a bit too stressed and people pleasing now that I think about it... It doesn't feel like something you'd enjoy."

"I agree. That does not sound like a life you'd want to live." Kagami took a breath. "Music means something else to you."

"Damian talked to me for ten minutes and said the same thing," he confessed. "He also said that the way my music speaks would be better suited for the soundtrack to movies. That I could bring them to life. I hadn't even considered that an option before, but now it's something I really want to do."

"If that's what you want to do, then you should. W.E is huge. They'll open so many doors for you."

"Your support means a lot, but enough about that," their brother in all but blood told them. "Nette, how's it going with Damian?"

"Well, finding out he's my client's brother and that I met his family without strictly knowing they were his family was a bit of a surprise though I did get him back for the cafe thing so there's that..."

Kagami laughed. "You found out that you're dating Damian Wayne when you were in his house?"

"Okay, one. That place is too big to just be called a house. It's an understatement. Two. How did you know who he was? I get how Luka found out."

"I'm a Tsurugi. I know the name and face of a lot of relevant people."

"Huh... While we're on the topic, how's your mum?"

The Japanese girl sighed. "The doctor gave her a few months if she's lucky, but we don't think she'll make it that far."

"Is there anything we can do?" Luka asked her.

"No, but thank you for offering. It's just a bit much right now. We're trying to find a solution for after she... after she's gone. I don't really want custody to end up with some distant relatives in Japan."

"Okay, but if you ever need anything you know we're here for you."

Damian: The interrogation's over. You'd be surprised how much paperwork I've had to obliterate.

Me: Paperwork?

Damian: Adoption papers.

Me: I thought they were kidding about that!

Damian: I can assure you they weren't. They decided to keep them as a back up plan if our relationship should fail. They had multiple copies I had to find and destroy.

Me: What if I wanted to be a Wayne?

Damian: On my dead body will that be through adoption. Only through marriage.

Me: Okay, then I'll just have to marry Tim. He proposed earlier anyway.

Damian: HE DID WHAT?

Me: Yeah, he went down on one knee and everything.

Damian: Excuse me. I have to commit a murder.

Me: Don't expect my help with hiding the body.

"It went great. They're going to give me a call within a few days to tell me if I got in."

Both her parents were happy to hear that.

They'd been more supportive than she'd expected about this.

"They'd be crazy to not accept you," papan full belly laughed.

Her maman was excited as she was. "Gotham might be your home soon. You just have to remember what I taught you and you'll be fine."

Basic martial arts might not be enough against all threats, but she had more tricks up her sleeve for when that should fail.

But it was time to tell her parents about something else.

Something they needed to know.

"Mama. Papa," she got their attention. "I've met someone."

"You're already making friends! That's incredible."

"No, mama." She made sure to accentuate it clearly this time. "I've met someone."

It clicked.

Her mama was speechless and a bit teary eyed.

The same could not be said about her papa.

"You have? This is... We knew this day would come someday. Oh, this is so exciting! What flavour do you want your wedding cake to be?"

Papa had handed her mama the tissue box while he was talking and she was now wiping away a couple of tears.

"We only met a few days ago." She paused. "But for the record dark chocolate is one of both our favourites."

"You ready, Tikki?" The kwami nodded. "And Plagg you won't get into any trouble while we're gone?"

Plagg looked at her. "No promises."

"Good enough." She made sure to concentrate on a different and darker version of her suit. "Tikki, spots on."

As she was leaving she caught sight of herself in the reflection of a window.

Huh.

That looked really good.

She might actually keep it like this.

But she could think about that later.

She had fabric to get.