A/N: This fic is a lot of fun to write, and has been filling my need for conventions. (Thank you Remasa for the idea! I love your "Unconventional Scenarios" stories.)

Chapter 5

Adrien was having the time of his life. He hadn't felt this free (outside of being Chat Noir) in who-knows-how-long. The Gorilla, while around, was unobtrusive - or as unobtrusive as one could be with a build like his. If he wanted to ditch the Gorilla he could - the sheer number of Chat Noir costumes made it easy. Plus, he did it all the time anyway. Fortunately, the Gorilla was easy to spot, if Adrien needed him. He was wearing a Gorizilla costume, for heaven's sake.

He looked at his convention schedule. He had a couple of hours before he had to be to his next panel as Adrien, and he didn't really want to go to any as Chat until tomorrow, so he continued to browse the Dealer's Room. He loved seeing all the specialized merchandise brought in for the occasion.

Of course there was all sorts of Ladybug and Chat Noir themed merchandise, as well as the other Miraculous heroes - how could there not be with the current guest lineup. But he enjoyed seeing the merchandise from other shows that he loved. While he was checking out the gaming section, he heard a familiar voice.

"You are going down, Ladybug!"

He heard a chuckle. "You wish, little Gamer."

That… was not his Lady's voice. It sounded like...

Adrien peeked his head around a corner to see what looked like The Gamer and Ladybug throwing the smackdown on each other over Ultimate Mecha Strike III, but when he looked closer the hair was wrong. He moved further into the room.

'Ladybug' did some sort of special combination move he had rarely seen before in competition, though it looked awfully familiar. GAME OVER blinked on the screen. She stood up, holding her controller.

"Boo yah! Gotcha kiddo."

Adrien had to laugh seeing Sabine Cheng take down Max like that. "Madame Ladybug strikes again," he said as he sauntered over to the players. Heading straight for Sabine, he summoned a bit of his Chat Noir persona and took her hand to kiss it. "Milady is a fierce competitor."

"Now I see where Marinette gets it," Max said good naturedly.

"Excellent costume, Max. Where did you get it?" Adrien asked.

"Marinette made it for me in exchange for helping her with some technical aspects of the Lady WiFi costume she was working on."

Adrien smiled. He knew Marinette was talented! And she's a really good friend to do several costumes for their classmates. Plus her skill has only improved since she created that feathered derby hat.

"Can I play you, Milady?" Adrien asked Sabine.

"I'm sorry, Adrien. This was the last game before a special event."

"Actually, I'm glad you're here," Max commented. "While I am 94% sure that this will be received well, I am also 99% nervous about it."

"What's going on, Max?"

In reply, Max simply checked his phone, then went up to the announcement area. "Hello, fellow Gamers!" the host of the gaming area said. "I am Gerard LeBeau, Head of Marketing for Ubisoft. Today I am pleased to announce the release of Miraculous: All-Star Brawl, a fighting game based on the real life supervillains Hawkmoth has akumatized people into. The creator of this game is based right here, in Paris."

"Woah, Max! You never said you'd sold the game."

"I wasn't 100% sure if it would go well," the game designer said. "But I was able to make a deal. Ubisoft distributes the game and receives 30% of the profit, while I retain creative control. This will allow me to add more akumas to the game and adjust power sets, if Hawkmoth ever changes their powers like he did with Stormy Weather." He paused. "And me."

"Let's bring the game's creator up on stage, shall we?" the gaming company representative continued. "Let's give a big Miraculous welcome to The Gamer himself, Max Kante!"

As Max headed up to the stage, Markov came out of hiding to hover by his human friend.

"I am 99.6% sure you will find this an enjoyable game. I know I had a fun time creating it. I want to thank all of my beta testers for their assistance as I developed the game. The initial release will be a PS5 exclusive," said Max.

LeBeau continued from there. "We have another special surprise for everybody right here," he announced. "For those interested in purchasing the game, we have a one-time coupon for 50% off while supplies last. The 50% discount applies only if you purchase it at our booth during Convention du Comique. Once the convention ends, the coupon will be good for 20% off through our Website, so if you want the larger discount come grab your coupon, then head on over to the Ubisoft booth in Electronics Corner a.s.a.p."

Adrien didn't hesitate to grab a coupon, then headed over to the Ubisoft booth to buy the game. Now he had to make sure he got a PS5… but that was a problem for later.

Marinette caught up to her mother in the game room, just as the area organizers were announcing the release of Miraculous: All-Star Brawl.

"Mom, is this what you and Max were working on a few months ago?"

"Yes, it is. Sorry I couldn't say anything. He'd asked for our help since your father and I run a successful business, so I gave him some advice." She looked at the young man proudly. "I'm glad it worked for him."

"Did I hear them say they'll have some at the Ubisoft booth?"

"Yes."

"Come on, then, 'Ladybug'. Let's go check it out! You know Dad will want a copy."

"Right you are, 'Antibug'," Sabine smiled fondly at her daughter as they made a beeline for the booth in question. The line was huge, but as they got closer, Max waved them over.

"Marinette! Mme Cheng! We're glad you're here."

"Indeed," said Markov, hovering close by his friend-and-creator's shoulder.

"Marinette," another very familiar voice said, startling the bluenette. "How did your panel on design go."

"A-A-Adrien!" She took a breath after being startled by his oh-so-gorgeous green eyes. "It went great! I even made a contact at Mode. She was one of the other panelists."

"You never cease to amaze me," he said. "Oh, before I forget. This is for M Dupain," he said, handing over a bag with the Ubisoft logo on it to Sabine.

"Wait, is that what I think it is," Marinette asked.

"You didn't have to do that for us, Adrien," Sabine said. "We'd have purchased the game anyway."

"Well, I know he had to stay behind, and I had the coupon anyway. It's really no trouble. Besides, I wanted to thank your family for all you have done for me."

"That's really no trouble, Adrien. We enjoy helping Marinette's friends."

Adrien's hand rubbed his neck as he blushed a little. "It really means a lot to me, though. Especially when… um…" he looked up in a slight panic, then relaxed as he saw someone come into sight. "Well, things seem to be getting better in that area. But seriously," he said, looking into Sabine's eyes, "thank you. Besides, I have to spoil 'My Lady', don't I?"

There was some general laughter in the area at that.

"Well I have to agree 100%," exclaimed Max. "The Dupain-Cheng family have helped me out a lot. In fact, the reason I wanted you up here is this," he said as he led Marinette and Sabine into the Ubisoft booth. "There is a demo of the game set up in the booth to draw in customers. I'd love it if the two of you would play a round when you get the time."

Marinette checked her convention schedule and was so happy she rubbed her hands in glee. "I happen to have about an hour available right now. Show me that controller, 'Gamer'!"

"Adrien," the stern voice of Gabriel Agreste spoke up. "My business with Nathalie is concluded. Is there anywhere else you need to be in the near future?"

"Um, not right now," Adrien said after checking his schedule. "I was going to try playing the demo game here at the booth, actually."

Gabriel knew it would be a long time before he could confront the Miraculous Heroes at the main event. Taking Nooroo's advice to not akumatize anyone at the convention was hard, and he needed a stress reliever. Knowing that it would also go a long way to rebuilding his relationship with his son, Gabriel decided to try the game. Besides, it actually looked interesting. Checking the convention schedule on his own phone, he said, "I would at some point like to see this cosplay event they have going on. Until then, perhaps you can teach me to play this game?"

Adrien's smile could have lit up all of Paris. "Hey, 'Ladybug'! 'Antibug'! We've got next game, okay?"

"Oh, you're going down, 'Cat Noir'," Marinette laughed. "I didn't get all of my gaming chops from Papa, you know."

Gabriel Agreste had to admit that the game was a fun way to release some stress. Especially since the "big bad" was Hawkmoth and he ended up playing against his son as Ladybug. Perhaps he should look into doing something like this more often.

A/N: My original one-shot said something about Sabine finding Max in the game room and "laying the smackdown on him". I honestly didn't think about Max releasing the game until I was in the middle of writing this chapter.

I headcanon that Sabine helped Max start the business for selling his game concept, but that Adrien asked Nathalie for advice on the legal aspects for his friend ... and maybe Nathalie (and Gabriel) used their company lawyers to help Max make a deal. You know they'd set it up so Gabriel gets something in return.

(My spouse/person-I-bounce-ideas-off-of suggested Gabriel got exclusive rights to design the costumes for an upcoming "Assassin's Creed" movie sequel.)