Walking with Nathalie into the Agreste estate, Adrien was looking forward to getting into a shower and crashing into bed. Akumas had been fairly quiet recently, so he was counting on getting some decent sleep for a change.
"Adrien, Nathalie, come to my office." Gabriel called down ominously from the top of the staircase. Adrien felt himself sinking as he shared a look with Nathalie. His father didn't sound too pleased.
Heading into Gabriel's home office, the man himself stood behind a large computer screen, looking up as the two entered the room. His face was as uninviting as ever.
"Nathalie in the future, please insist that there is no deviation of pre approved questions for interviews. Adrien was put on the spot today, and I want to make sure it doesn't happen again." Nathalie nodded her head silently under Gabriel's steely stare. He then turned his attention to his son. Adrien could see from the look on his father's face he wasn't entirely off the hook.
"Adrien, you do realise that what you say and do is a reflection upon this company. Young fangirls mean money and you being the object of their fantasies has meant big money spent in our stores on our adolescent lines in particular." Adrien shifted his gaze to the floor and shuffled his feet. He was never comfortable with his sex symbol status being plastered in the media, which had become more of a focal point as he got older, and listening to his father talk about it so casually made his skin crawl. Honestly, he felt more like an employee then the man's son.
"Magazines are going to forever want to link you with the girls you are seen with, so it is important that you choose your company wisely." He shoved a magazine under Adrien's nose. The headline read "Adrien's Bevy Of Beauties." The young model was shocked. The article was making him look like he was some kind of Playboy!
Across the double spread there were pictures of almost every girl he had spoken to over the last few years. Chloe was there, of course, draped over him on the school steps and the photoshoot with a Lila, although the pictures looked different somehow, more seductive which made his stomach churn. There was a recent photo of him and Kagami from a week or so ago, although he has no memory of having his arm around her like that. Then there were the girls from school. Seriously these reporters must have been using long range lenses. There was a picture of him laughing with Alya (Nino having been conveniently cropped out of the picture), playing music with Rose and Juleka on the houseboat, and helping Mylene and Alix in a study group at the park (Again Ivan, Kim and Max being cropped out). If it wasn't so serious it would almost have been laughable. In fact, every picture had been photoshopped in some way to make more of the image than actually was. Really, Adrien felt this kind of doctoring of photos should be illegal.
Then there was one picture that caught his eye. It was him and Marinette standing at the Trocadero. He remembered the day well. He had been at a photoshoot last year when he spied her working furiously in her sketchbook. At first when he went over to her she hadn't seen him and almost jumped out of her skin when he said hello. After that though she showed him what she was working on, an autumn dress inspired by the changing colours of the leaves around them. He had just looked up from the sketchbook to look at her when the picture was taken. They were smiling at each other, a slight blush on Marinette's cheeks as they both held the sketchbook. What really stood out to him though was that unlike the other pictures, this was the only picture in the spread that hadn't been tampered with in some way. He wondered if Marinette ever made the dress, she would look really cute in it. Adrien felt a flutter in his chest he couldn't explain.
"You obviously...like these girls?" He heard his father's flat voice but it seemed far away.
"Yeah." He said absentmindedly before his brain caught up to him. "I mean...of course I like them, these are my friends." He rubbed the back of his neck nervously but his father only glared at him.
"Friends is usually where it starts." His father growled and all Adrien could do was blink at him. "In my experience, boys your age don't just stay friends with girls for long. I understand you wanting to play the field and get your feet wet, but the time has come to pick a girl and stick with her, at least for the time being. This is real life here and I'm not in the mood for a scandal. It's time you got off those video games and started to grow up Adrien." His son cowered under the angry undertone of his father's voice. Play the field? Honestly he was shocked his father would think that of him. Gabriel gestured at the article again. "You're too important to this company to be seen as a playboy. Now that Miss Tsurugi will be absent for an extended period you will need to find a suitable date to take to the Jagged Stone benefit concert. That gives you this week to decide on someone." Adrien looked back up at his father questioningly.
"You actually want me to date someone?" He asked, not sure he had understood correctly. Gabriel took off his glasses and rubbed his eyes before fixing them back on.
"Adrien, let me be perfectly honest with you. Up until now I didn't actually consider that the media was going to be this interested in your personal affairs. After all, you are still at school. In saying that, though, you are eighteen now and our PR department has said that boys your age being seen in steady relationships is seen as quite attractive to young women and I don't need to tell you that the women's young adult sector is our largest market share. It would be foolish not to capitalise on this." Adrien wanted to sink into the ground. His father wanted him to get a girlfriend because it was good PR for the company. Sometimes he wondered if the man felt any emotion at all but he didn't know what argument he could mount. He could hardly tell his father that he has been in love with Ladybug for the last four years. "We need you to be seen as more grown up and mature now and not simply as an adolescent. I don't really care what you do with the girl, just find a companion and stick with her. Am I clear?"
"Yes Father." Adrien sighed, feeling defeated.
"Good." Gabriel nodded curtly, handing the magazine back to Adrien. "Now if you do actually want to date the girl, then I will see that Nathalie puts that into your schedule. If you don't make a decision in time for the concert, however, you will not be attending. That is all." Adrien nodded before leaving for his room. Nathalie had stood silently stunned throughout the exchange, but now approached Gabriel, her eyes heavy with concern.
"Sir, do you really think it's a good idea pushing him into a relationship at his age? Surely these things will happen in their own time?" Gabriel took off his glasses, laying them on the desk before sitting down.
"It's a means to an end, Nathalie. I know my son isn't playing the field, far from it in fact. I have plans, Nathalie, very specific plans that are not going to wait forever for Adrien to decide he's ready." Nathalie looked at him confused, but Gabriel just ignored her. He picked up another copy of the same magazine, flicking back to the article. "So, Miss Tsurugi wasn't the right one." He murmured, more to himself than Nathalie.
"Right one Sir?" She questioned, but he didn't respond to her.
"Surely he must have some sort of an interest in one of these girls, he's known them all long enough. Almost four years at that public school must have been good for something?" Nathalie couldn't read the agitation in his voice, but looked at the pictures before pointing out one to Gabriel.
"This one I know he has shown some interest in." Gabriel looked at the picture of Adrien standing at the Trocadero with a pigtailed girl.
"Who is she? She looks familiar." Gabriel peered intently at the photo. Nathalie couldn't decipher what that look in Gabriel's eye was about, but she wasn't sure she liked it.
"Marinette Dupain-Cheng. She has been a friend of Adrien's for a few years now and has won some of your design competitions." Gabriel regarded the picture. He was struck by the endearing look on his son's face, a look far removed from the other photos. This girl could be exactly what Gabriel was looking for.
"Yes I remember. Quite talented as I recall. Her parents own that bakery Adrien likes to visit with his friends?" Nathalie nodded trying to be enthusiastic.
"I think he really likes this girl. I've seen the way he acts around her and talks about her, it's different from anyone else, but for some reason he hasn't acted upon it." Gabriel rubbed his chin as he continued to study the picture.
"Yes, she might fit into my plans nicely." Gabriel remarked. Nathalie quirked an eyebrow at him. Something was definitely not adding up here. "Is she one of the students on the school work experience tomorrow?" Nathalie nodded again. A strange smirk curled at the corner of Gabriel's lips. "Excellent." He breathed out. "Make sure she is made to feel welcome." Nathalie made a note in her tablet before taking her leave.
Walking to her room, Nathalie couldn't help a strange feeling that washed over her. Something about this whole situation was off but she wasn't sure what. Closing the door behind her she sat at her desk and drummed her fingers.
"Are you alright Miss Nathalie?" A small voice said.
"Yes Duusu, I'm alright." She said, but she wasn't really. The peacock Kwami looked at her with concerned eyes. "I'm just not sure what Gabriel is up to with this. It's not like him to encourage Adrien to build relationships, especially with a girl. And what's this plan he's talking about? I don't know Duusu, something just doesn't feel right." Duusu did a little flip in the air.
"Maybe he is planning for the future. After all, he always says he wants Adrien to be happy and he would feel a lot less lonely." Nathalie shook her head.
"Gabriel isn't a romantic Duusu, not like you." She gently scratched the Kwami on the head. "No this isn't about the future and I doubt it's because he wants to see Adrien happy. I don't know what it is, but I guess all I can do is keep an eye on him...and Adrien." It had been worrying her that Gabriel had been watching Adrien even more closely than he had before, monitoring every move he made and making his schedule more restrictive. Despite technically being an adult, Gabriel was treating Adrien more and more like a child. He was suffocating the poor boy and even though Adrien always smiled his way through it, Nathalie knew this kind of claustrophobic lifestyle would take a toll on him eventually. She had known Adrien long enough to recognise the pain behind those smiles, and it broke her heart to see it.
Nathalie took her hair pins out and picked up her brush. As she ran the bristols through her dark locks she pondered over the last few years. Gabriel had slowly grown more and more obsessed with getting the miraculous of Ladybug and Chat Noir and even though she had promised to always help him, she herself had begun to have doubts about it.
Since the Peacock Miraculous had been fixed, she had been able to keep Duusu with her all the time, and had grown very attached to the happy little Kwami. She also loved the freedom of being Mayura, but she worried about Gabriel's ultimate motives. He had become more closed off and reclusive than ever, expecting Adrien to take his place at all major events which was a lot of pressure on a teenager who still had school. She would try to rearrange his schedule so he could spend more time with his friends, but Gabriel was making it more and more difficult. Now with the added responsibilities at the company, he had hardly seen his friends at all outside of school hours and Nathalie feared he may start to feel isolated again, especially after graduation.
Emilie had been her friend, and she missed her as much as anyone else, but it felt like something had changed. Was this really just about bringing Emilie back? Ever since she had retrieved the decoded Miraculous book from the old guardian, Gabriel had read it over and over obsessively, not allowing her to even look at it. What was he hiding? Add to that, she had to seriously consider that even if they brought Emilie back, what she would think of all this.
Just over a year ago, Gabriel had insisted on Nathalie taking up residence in an empty wing of the Agreste mansion. At first she had hoped it might have been because he was taking an interest in her. How foolish that had been. Gabriel was only interested in night time akumas and for Nathalie to create the occasional sentimonster, feeding off the nightmares of the citizens of Paris. She could start to see the lack of sleep evidenced in the dark circles forming under her eyes as she looked at herself in the mirror. It wasn't just from the akumas and amoks though, it was also a lack of sleep from worry.
More recently, Gabriel hadn't been sending out many akumas, less than one a week in fact, and she feared it was because he was planning something else, something dare she say deadlier, and although she couldn't imagine what it was she honestly wasn't sure she wanted to be part of this anymore. Adrien had been put at risk several times as it was and she wasn't prepared to let that keep happening. It was one of the biggest reasons she struggled to sleep, and Adrien was now her only reason for staying.
Nathalie rubbed her temples. She tried to reassure herself that perhaps there could be a silver lining in this situation for Adrien, if she could make it work. Since Gabriel was willing to at least entertain the idea of Adrien having a girlfriend, even if the motive was off, she would be able to schedule him some more free time. Gabriel had no idea just how much Adrien needed someone to love him and Nathalie just prayed she wasn't pinning her hopes on the wrong girl again.
"I can't believe him." Adrien practically threw the magazine on his desk as he flopped into his computer chair, letting momentum spin him around. "He wants me to use one of my friends to help improve his image."
"Well I would recommend taking a nice wheel of Camembert to the concert, but I don't like sharing." Adrien sat up and glared at the black cat Kwami.
"That's not very helpful Plagg." He scowled. "I can't date just anybody. Besides, what about Ladybug?" Plagg stopped mid bite to look at his chosen.
"What about Ladybug? I hate to break it to you kid, but she's not your girlfriend." Adrien rolled his eyes.
"I know that Plagg. I mean me needing to leave as Chat Noir. How am I supposed to explain to a girlfriend that I have to disappear during an akuma attack? Not very chivalrous." Plagg just chewed his cheese as Adrien continued to huff and puff. Honestly, Plagg was getting done with this whole secret identity thing. He really thought that when Ladybug became the guardian she would have thrown that little rule out the window, but she was hesitating. He knew Tikki had mentioned it, but she couldn't get Ladybug to change her mind. As much as his Sugarcube meant to him, she could be frustratingly stubborn when it came to their chosen's finding out their identities insisting she wouldn't push the issue or interfere because it had to happen organically. But this wasn't cheese they were talking about and it's always his kittens that had to suffer for it.
"You know kid, you are entitled to a life outside of being a hero." Plagg floated up folding his arms in front of Adrien's face. "There is more than one variety of cheese you know. Maybe a girlfriend isn't such a bad idea." Adrien spun away from his Kwami, standing up and walking over to the couch.
"Come on Plagg, you know I still love Ladybug." He sighed heavily, flopping down on the couch. Ever since that first day Ladybug had crashed into him he had told himself she was the only girl for him. Although he loved the close friendship they shared, he couldn't deny that it hurt his heart not to have the same connection with someone that his best friend Nino had with his girlfriend Alya. Yes he loved Ladybug, and he wanted all those things with her, but can it really be love when the feeling isn't being returned? He hung his head. "How do I move on Plagg? Ladybug is a huge part of my life, I can't just switch that off."
"I'm just a Kwami Adrien. This is a question only you can answer, but how can you love someone you don't really know?" Adrien tugged at his hair before falling back into the couch.
"I feel like I know her. She's my best friend Plagg, and that means everything to me but sometimes I feel I'm going to die sad and alone, the unwilling CEO of a company I never wanted, trapped in a life I never asked for." Sometimes Plagg didn't know what to do with such a dramatic kid, but on the other hand he knew Adrien needed someone in his life. Kittens need attention after all, and Plagg knew that this kitten wasn't getting much love at home. Plagg didn't mind Kagami, but he knew she wouldn't have been right for him in the long run. Besides, Dragons and Black Cats were too similar and it never worked out. He needed his true other half, his Ladybug, but if she wasn't going to take the masks off then Plagg knew the right someone to point his kitten towards.
"You know." Plagg dragged out in a contemplative way. "I'm sure pigtails likes you more than you realise." Adrien took his hands from his face and shook his head.
"I don't think so Plagg, I'm pretty sure Marinette doesn't see me that way." There was an undertone of sadness in his response, but Plagg could hardly contain his smirk.
"Who said I was talking about Marinette?" Adrien swung his head around wide eyed. Why had he assumed they were talking about Marinette when they had just been talking about Ladybug? Plagg cracked up in laughter.
"Admit it kid, you have a type." Adrien realised he had been played, but it didn't really annoy him as much as it probably should have. He couldn't really deny that there had been something there between him and Marinette, just bubbling under the surface. He had noticed it at the start of the school year when she helped Chloe defeat Lila to become school captain. He didn't understand why Marinette didn't run herself, but she selflessly put her past differences aside and really supported Chloe displaying confidence and ingenuity. Their mutual dislike for Lila and her lies made them unlikely allies and for her part, Chloe had actually been a great co-captain with Kim. It warmed his heart to see Chloe grow and become more mature, even becoming more kind to Marinette. Since then he had seen his shy and quirky friend in a new light, but if the feelings ran any deeper, he had boxed them up in his mind. He couldn't run the risk of his heart being hurt again. Ladybug might have rejected him romantically, but he at least knew where he stood with her, Marinette on the other hand?
"I don't know Plagg. Marinette is amazing and smart and talented and everybody loves her, but I can't just pretend I don't still have feelings for Ladybug" His voice trailed off as he looked out the window.
"Let me put it to you this way." Plagg floated up in front of his chosen's face. "There are many kinds of cheese in this world and I've tried them all. I love all cheese - I love Cheddar and Brie, Gouda and the stinkiest of Blue Vein, but if I could only pick one for the rest of my life, it would be Camembert because I love it more. There is something special and different about it from the rest of the other cheese. If I were you I'd take another look at the bakery girl. Get to know her better, you might just like what you find."
Plagg pushed the magazine back at Adrien. He took it and looked back at the photos. That blush on Marinette's face really was adorable and she was such a sweet and caring girl, always there for their friends. He knew his heart would skip a beat whenever she entered a room, even if he tried to deny it. Not to mention her dad made some of the best croissants in Paris. Yeah, he could picture dating Marinette if he was being totally honest, but he still wasn't sure she felt the same way and he would never want to lose her friendship.
Adrien then pulled his eyebrows into a frown, turning to his kwami. "Wait...what's in it for you?" Adrien asked, suddenly becoming suspicious of the black cat's motives.
"Cheese puffs." He said flatly, closing his eyes and folding his paws with his nose in the air. Adrien burst into laughter scratching the mischievous Kwami between the ears.
"Why am I not surprised?" Throwing Plagg and extra piece of camembert, Adrien washed the day away in a hot shower, but his mind couldn't help but wander back and forth between his Lady and his school friend. Getting a girlfriend now wasn't originally part of the plan, but he wasn't as opposed to the idea as he thought he might have been. Yes he still loved Ladybug, she meant the world to him, but maybe it wasn't the love he thought it was, or the one he really needed.