As the sun began to set over the Paris rooftops, Marinette's day was not finished yet. The initial consultation had been fine, if tiring. Though she had been confused, she was able to come back after lunch with her mother, who had a much easier time understanding the framework of the contract, as she renewed the bakery permits each year. After muddling through a very serious, very boring meeting, Marinette knew then that a legal career was not in her future; it was a very good thing that fashion had caught her fancy so long ago.

Of course, on the trip from the bakery Marinette had to endure an earful about why she hadn't said anything sooner about her sojourn into modeling. A one-time job wasn't overly important, but contracts were certainly a big deal, her mother argued, and perhaps a bit of warning would be nice the next time? Though Marinette found herself stumbling through an explanation about how she hadn't a clue it would go this far, she secretly was warmed by her mother's word: next time? All in all, she was thankful that she had received a positive, even supportive, response.

A veritable mountain of paperwork was set in front of the pair of women, who were hard-pressed to keep up with the tide. Page after page required signatures from both of them, some pages even needing more than one signature. Marinette had always loved her name, even practicing writing autographs as a little girl, but she would be quite happy if she didn't need to write it again in the foreseeable future. Tired and with a worn wrist from the paperwork, Marinette hadn't gotten much of a break. The same crisply dressed aide from before had whisked her along with Adrien to yet another room in the manor. Marinette much preferred this new room to the rest of the house. It was filled with racks of different clothes, and had about twice the color as the rest of the house did combined. She perked up a bit- perhaps she would get to explore?

As it turned out, not for a while. The woman, introduced as Nathalie, spent quite a while discussing the premise for the shoot that apparently was starting that same day. Though excited for the clothes, Marinette was unsure of what to expect for this shoot. In the park, it had felt natural and had come easily. But how would she be able to pose in a sterile room under lights with people watching and really caring? She trusted Vincent, but she wasn't sure if she felt ready to try her hand at posing in front of people. Especially in some of the attention-grabbing numbers she saw in this room...

Marinette was mostly quiet, even when Nathalie left the room to fetch something. She snuck a glance over to Adrien, who appeared calm and collected. He turned and though she tried to avert her gaze, caught her eyes.

"Second thoughts?" he joked.

"Maybe a little," Marinette squeaked out.

"Don't worry," he reassured, "I'm a little nervous too. The nerves never really go away."

Marinette noted that he certainly didn't seem to be nervous, especially in the way that he carried himself. Still, it was sweet of him to try to soothe her nerves.

She didn't have time to react when Nathalie entered again, trailed by lanky man.

"This is Paolo," she said in her clipped tone. "He'll be doing your makeup."

Before Marinette had a chance to protest, she was sat down in the corner of the room. Her face was quickly smeared with an unending cycle of products. She didn't think she would be able to identify what they did if they had been presented to her, but Paolo applied them rapidly with a deft hand. She had never been much for makeup because it added an extra step to her already busy day, and she could guarantee that she had never worn so much in her life. Still, when Paolo presented her a hand mirror, she greedily inspected her features. Could this really be her? She felt so beautiful.

Marinette wouldn't lie and say that all her nerves had vanished, but she was definitely distracted by her own appearance. This is not to say that she was vain, but rather that it was such a departure from her normal self that she couldn't help but stare and try to compare. She was hustled to the other side of the room, where a rack of brightly colored dress stood. A woman appeared seemingly out of nowhere, carefully helping Marinette into a voluminous blue gown so as not to ruin Paolo's handiwork. Before Marinette could get a glimpse at herself, she was led down the hall to the courtyard outside.

The garden was absolutely gorgeous, and seeing the flowers growing there, Marinette understood why they had chosen her dress- it complemented well. Her eyes were quickly drawn to the silhouette under the tree. More people fussed over her hair, putting a pendant around her neck and long gloves on her hand. Marinette couldn't keep herself from looking Adrien's way.

He was clad in a white suit so reminiscent of the fairytale books that she had enjoyed as a child. Despite his prim appearance, his tousled hair led her to see the image she had been so desperately trying to recreate in her own collection. He would have made a wonderful prince, dashing figure and bright grin just begging for a maiden to be saved.

The crowd of attendant dispersing, Marinette made her way over to the tree, brushing aside the long tendrils of willow. Adrien looked up from the ground, eyes flashing straight to hers.

Adrien heard light footfalls coming his way, but his curiosity abated the moment he laid eyes on her. She was resplendent, arrayed in a gown worthy of a children's story and a stream of the fading sunlight illuminating her as it filtered through the branches overhead. His breath caught, and he hardly felt conscious of his staring, though it felt he had been standing there for minutes.

He didn't realize just how close they had drawn to one another until her soft breath tickled his cheek. Still, he didn't feel uncomfortable. This felt right.

A bright flash of light caused her eyes to widen, and she moved to step back. Not knowing what possessed him, he grabbed her wrist and they locked eyes again.