"Sir," Nathalie says louder this time, "are you alright? I mean I saw the news. I know you lost but you have never had this sort of reaction before."

"I'm fine, Nathalie," he insists, now standing up straight, as much as it hurts to let her go, he has to do this, he can't risk a future like the one he saw.

"That was the end of Hawkmoth, though, I'm tired, I can't do it anymore," he drops his transformation and removes the brooch, he doesn't know what to do with yet.

"That's absurd, your goal is still achievable sir, if only you would let me-"

"End of discussion, Nathalie," Gabriel tells her.

Nathalie straightens a little bit with his harsh tone. She doesn't understand what brought upon this sudden change but he almost seems colder than he did before.

Nathalie gets better, soon she can stand again and her life goes back to the way it was before the peacock brooch. Except, she realizes, Gabriel is only more cold to her. He tries his best for Adrien, and he only does virtual meetings when he is trying to fill his day with meetings, and he almost smiles, and he almost laughs again, but when she's around it all stops. Around her, Gabriel isn't lighter, he is somewhere between cruel and cautious.

Nathalie tries to leave, why should she be stuck here with a boss that clearly couldn't care less about her. He lets her leave, it's safer for them this way.

It hurts them both.

They both cry as every trace from Nathalie disappears. He had prevented the future he had seen but at what cost? The cost of a future was high, neither really gets over it too.

Nathalie swears she sees Gabriel in every billboard she passes. No boss is like Mr. Agreste either, maybe that's a good thing because if they were, maybe she would miss him even more. She takes her life one day at a time, almost like how she used to when she thought each day could be her last. It's easier that way, trying not to focus on the past.

Gabriel tries hiring a new assistant, but nobody can replace her though. Nathalie was incredible at everything she did. He stops trying, working by himself is easier than trying to teach a new person every week how to do it. Nobody else can deal with his temper the way she could. The business becomes a little sloppy without someone reminding him of his agenda. He has to make it work. He is saving them from a future of hurt, no matter how much this hurts.