Disclaimer: I do not own Miraculous Ladybug or it's characters.
Chapter 47,
Gabriel had enough of the mayor's nonsense. After making his point abundantly clear, he dismissed the political figurehead. He picked up his glass of tea and chugged whatever was next.
"Nathalie! I would like another glass of tea please." Gabriel said and he went over to a stack of newspapers and examined a photo of Ladybug and mentally compared her to Marinette. She did have similar facial features, but the personalities were a touch different. Would Ladybug be this nervous about trying to impress him when she stands up to Hawk Moth continuously? Marinette suggested a different venue and she looked like she was gonna have a stroke.
"Nathalie." Gabriel called again and this time he went over to the window and gazed out it.
This fashion show was a large gamble on his part. If it turns out that Marinette isn't Ladybug, then he would have wasted all of this time and resources just on a wild goose chase. And on the other hand, if she was Ladybug, then he would have to steal the Miraculous earrings from her. And once he had done that, he would have to prepare for war. No doubt Ladybug and Cat Noir would retaliate, most likely with the help of their occasional Miraculous super-friends. They would be ready to fight, most likely within hours of the theft. And when that occurs, he's gonna need to plan for the most strenuous battle they have ever fought. Though without Nathalie using the Peacock Miraculous, it was unclear if he can amplify his own power. Perhaps if he found another to use the Miraculous, but he wasn't sure if he'd trust another with it.
"Nathalie?" He asked, glancing around him. It was unlike her to leave him waiting like this. Was she alright? Did she fall and get hurt? He walked into the dining room to ask Marinette if she had seen Nathalie, but to his surprise Marinette wasn't there.
"Nathalie?" Gabriel asked again.
Is it possible that Marinette needed to go home? If that were true, then Nathalie may be doing lessons with Adrien. Then again, it may also be possible that she took Marinette home with Armand, though that may technically be unnecessary, if Marinette had asked Nathalie to go with her, then Nathalie would have gone to give Marinette that peace of mind.
"Nath- hm?" He stopped when he heard the piano being played. However, it was not the traditional piece he's asked Adrien to play. It was some sort of folksy 1920's-1940's, jaunty tune that he did not recognize. He opened the door to Adrien's room, and he almost gasped in shock.
"Belly up- Belly up to the bar boys, better loosen your gut." Nathalie sang. She was the one at the piano, and if that wasn't unusual enough, in front of the piano was Adrien and Marinette dancing along to this strange music.
"Only drink by day or night or somewhere's in between, woo." They all sang.
"Excuse me." Gabriel said sternly and they all started laughing. He blinked at this reaction. Shouldn't they feel nervous or guilty for getting caught like this.
"Gabriel, good timing. We were just going over some different songs to use in the fashion show." Nathalie explained, and Gabriel grew flustered at this.
"You want to sing 'Belly up to the Bar' at a fashion show?" Gabriel said confused and Nathalie stood up with a shrug.
"Hey, it really depends on the outfit. I could have sworn you had some 1920's inspired outfits and I thought that some oldies would work with them." Nathalie said. Gabriel paused and looked at the two teenagers smiling at each other.
"Well... I... I can see how that makes sense, but-"
"Mr. Agreste, there are some children at the door." Armand called up to them and Marinette clapped.
"Oh that's so great." Marinette said and she started to leave the room.
"Did you invite people over?" Gabriel asked and Adrien smiled.
"Not exactly. While we were talking about the music, Marinette realized how much practice we would all need to do the show right. So we thought it would be a good idea to talk to all over friends about what songs they want to perform and figure out the choreography." Adrien explained.
"At my house?" Gabriel asked and Nathalie gently patted his shoulder.
"Don't be silly, they would never invite so many people without your consent. They are just gonna go to the park where there is more room to practice." Nathalie said and Adrien followed Marinette down the stairs. Gabriel glanced at Nathalie.
"And you authorized this?" Gabriel asked and Nathalie blinked at this reaction.
"I'm sorry Mr. Agreste, I thought I was suppose to." Nathalie said and Gabriel found it hard to speak.
"E-excuse me?"Gabriel asked trying not to get too angry.
"Well, I thought you wanted to distract Marinette with this little project. It was my understanding that included Marinette having creative control. Wasn't that what you wanted?" Nathalie asked. Gabriel looked at her sweet, sad face and he exhaled forcibly.
"You... you're right, of course. I'm just... surprised that no one asked me about it first." Gabriel said and Nathalie gave him a small smile.
"Well, you're welcome to come to the park with us if you'd like." Nathalie said. Gabriel was already red in the face from anger, but he knew he was still blush at the thought of being completely surrounded by those teenagers.
"That's alright. I trust that you'll keep a good eye on the children." Gabriel said.
"Thank you for placing such trust in me. I'll be sure to pick up the children's measurements while we're there." Nathalie said. She walked away from Gabriel and when she was down the stairs, her face grew into an impish grin and then silently chuckled her way out the door.