Chapter Three: Preparations
Stage One: Preparations
Before starting a mission, Marinette liked to gather information on the person she was watching and figure out if there were any materials she would need. The person she…they were required to check out was Nathalie Sancoeur, Gabriel Agreste's former assistant. She'd heard Adrien talk about her once or twice, but she knew for a fact that Adrien wasn't close with her, so she felt better about spying on her.
Nathalie had just recently moved back to Paris after being gone for a few years. No one knew where she had been for these past few years, only that she'd moved back recently. She had been Gabriel's assistant so she was the only person who could have possibly known that he was Hawkmoth. She was staying at the Le Grande Paris Hotel in one of the lower-class rooms.
They would need to spy on her from afar. This would require sneaking into her room to place a bug or two, some flying insect cameras, a few disguises, hidden weapons, and communication devices. She would need to find her old burner phone she and Chat used back in the day. Marinette remembered stashing it in an old suitcase she had in the closet. Thankfully, today was her day off, so she should be able to gather her equipment without Adrien being suspicious.
Marinette woke up at her usual time to make breakfast for her and Adrien. She always made it extra special before she started a mission, in case she didn't make it back. That was one thing that always nagged at her. How would Adrien feel when he realized she had been lying to him the entire time? She shook her head to clear her thoughts. She wouldn't die on this mission. It was just watching a person. She would be fine.
As she was finishing up, she heard Adrien walk up behind her. He wrapped his arms around her waist and laid his chin on her shoulder. She reached up and ruffled up his hair. "Morning, Love," she said. He placed a kiss on her shoulder. "Morning, my Princess." She felt her heart flutter at the nickname. She felt him lean forward. "Breakfast smells good. You trying to make up for something?"
"Only all the times you've spoiled me."
"I don't spoil you. I give you everything you deserve."
She turned around and wrapped her arms around his shoulder. She felt him tighten his grip on her waist. "And what do I deserve?"
Their faces were inches apart when he whispered, "The world." He leaned in until their lips touched. She loved it when he kissed her like this. When they pulled apart, he said, "I'm glad I married you."
"I am too." They kissed again before sitting down and enjoining their breakfast together.
After Adrien left for work, Marinette started her search. She had to be quick and efficient about it. She was suppose to be using today as a spring cleaning day, so she didn't want to waste too much time looking through the closet. Marinette found almost everything with ease except for her burner phone. She knew it was in the closet somewhere. She hid the other things in the place where she usually hid Adrien's Christmas presents.
After a few more minutes of searching, she concluded that her phone wasn't in the closet as she'd originally thought. She gave up for the moment and went about the house tidying everything. When lunch rolled around, she received a message on her phone from an unknown number.
It read: Strawberries and Passion Fruit. It couldn't be. There was no possible way. How had Chat Noir gotten her phone number?!