Summary
Kagami makes some not-so-thinly-veiled threats. Felix is up to no good. Adrien and Marinette go fabric shopping.
"I strongly suspect that Kanté left the stolen information at Chez Adrien. I would suggest you search the club immediately and thoroughly," Tomoe Tsurugi told her daughter.
Kagami stared out of the office window, seemingly lost in thought.
"I even suspect that Adrien himself may have hidden it, given the way Kanté begged him for help during the arrest," Tomoe continued.
"If Adrien hid the stolen information, he is much too smart to let us find it laying around his nightclub," Kagami countered.
"You give him credit for too much cleverness," Tomoe chirped back. "My impression was that he's just another blundering French bachelor with no sense of discipline."
"Quite so," Kagami agreed. "But we mustn't underestimate French blundering, mother. They are quite good at that."
Tomoe did not laugh at her daughter's joke, instead continuing with her instructions.
"As for Couffaine, we want him watched twenty-four hours a day."
Kagami glanced down at an app on her phone before reassuring her mother.
"It's already been arranged," she promised. "He has just now arrived downstairs."
Tomoe nodded in approval.
After only a few minutes, the secretary had ushered Luka Couffaine into the office. He was accompanied by the same girl he had come to the club with last night.
"Luka, Marinette! I'm delighted to see you both," Kagami greeted them, shaking Luka's hand and exchanging kisses with Marinette. "Please, have a seat."
The couple took their seats across the desk from Kagami, while Tomoe remained seated behind her daughter.
"Did you have a good night's rest?" Kagami asked.
"I slept very well, thank you," Luka answered.
"That's strange, No one is supposed to sleep well in Paris," she laughed at her own joke. Luka and Marinette did not.
"May we proceed with the business?" Luka suggested in a brief tone.
"Very well, M. Couffaine," Kagami agreed, leaning forward in her seat. "I will not mince words. Our company takes its brand image very seriously. As such, any influencers or creators we partner with are of course heavily vetted."
Kagami paused, but Luka made no objection.
"When you expressed interest in an entertainment visa, we ran a… quite standard set of background checks," Kagami continued. "We will first need to discuss those results with you. Perhaps your… friend would like to wait outside for this conversation?"
Marinette straightened her shoulders, but it was Luka who replied.
"Whatever you need to discuss with me, Marinette can be here for," he asserted.
"Very well," Kagami pursed her lips. "We found several reports suggesting that you may be heavily involved in an illegal anti-government organization known colloquially as The Resistance."
She noticed a look of concern flash across Marinette's face but the woman quickly composed herself. Kagami wondered if this girl really knew what she was getting herself into when she started a relationship with the pop star.
"I won't claim to be up-to-date on all today's politics," Luka started. "But if I remember correctly, The Resistance is an anti-Hawkmoth organization, not an anti-government one"
"So you are familiar with it, then?" Kagami pressed.
"Only in passing, of course," Luka said, his expression perfectly composed. "I'm certainly not involved."
Kagami plastered on a tight-lipped smile. Luka wasn't going to make this easy, but she never shied away from a challenge.
"In that case, I regret to inform you, but that organization is technically classified as a terrorist group, and therefore, any association with it, even a rumored one, is enough to deny a visa application." Kagami said, never taking her eyes off Luka, watching every expression. "China especially, is very strict with these kinds of things. Tsurugi Corp. could seriously damage its relationship with the government there even just by sponsoring you."
"That is unfortunate," Luka replied, finally showing disappointment on his face. "Well, perhaps I will like staying in Paris."
"And Mademoiselle?" Tomoe asked, turning to Marinette.
"You don't need to be concerned about me," Marinette quipped. Perhaps she was rethinking her association with Couffaine? Kagami had noticed her good looks last night, but even now in the unflattering office fluorescent lights, it was clear that Marinette was an incredibly beautiful woman and could definitely do better than dating Jagged Stone's nepotism project.
"Is that all you wish to tell us?" Luka interrupted Kagami's train of thought as he moved to stand up.
"Do not be in such a hurry." Tomoe finally chimed in. "You have all the time in the world. You may be in Paris indefinitely, or you could leave for Shanghai tomorrow. On one condition."
"And that is?" Luka raised his eyebrows.
"Hypothetically," Kagami started. "If these reports were true, and you did have knowledge of The Resistance, you would know the leaders of the underground movements in Prague, in Berlin, in Amsterdam, in Brussels…"
"..even in Paris," Luka finished, a look of determination forming on his face.
"Yes, even in Paris," Kagami confirmed, holding back a smile. "If you were to furnish me with their names and their exact whereabouts for the Special Task Force I lead… I could make some phone calls to the Embassy, and you could have your visa in the morning."
"And the honor of having served the public good," Tomoe added.
"Well, it's too bad the reports were mislead," Luka replied with a smirk. "They must have been referring to someone else."
"They must have," Kagami agreed with false sincerity. "But whoever it is, organizing these types of activities, he should keep a watchful eye. Paris is no longer a friendly place for those who claim to support Ladybug. Unfortunate things happen to people all the time."
"Yes, but perhaps Hawkmoth has learned his lesson about disappearing resistance leaders," Luka countered. "He certainly wouldn't want to create another martyr, that didn't go well for him last time."
"You're quite right," Kagami agreed. Luka had a point. She remembered the series of brutal battles following Viperion's death and the virtually uncontrollable populace of Paris. Weeks of public outrage and several close calls of one of their team being revealed or their operatives being discovered.
Luka and Marinette stood to leave, but before they turned away Kagami also rose to make one last point.
"By the way, last night you expressed an interest in Max Kanté?" she asked.
Luka's expression hardened, but he begrudgingly answered in the affirmative.
"I believe you have a message for him?" Kagami pressed.
"Nothing important, but may I speak to him now?" Luka asked.
"You would find the conversation a bit one-sided," Kagami admitted, folding her hands in front of her. "Max Kanté is dead."
That. That look on Luka's face was exactly what she was looking for from him. His stunned expression revealed she'd finally gained the upper hand.
"I am making out the report now –" Kagami continued, before he could respond. "We haven't quite decided yet whether he committed suicide or died trying to escape."
"I believe we are done here," Luka growled, grabbing Marinette's hand as they quickly exited the office.
"For the time being," Kagami called after them. Her surveillance would keep an eye on him for now.
"He still needs the information he came to Paris for," Tomoe asserted once it was only her and her daughter in the office. "Undoubtedly his next step will be to the Black Market."
"Of course, mother," Kagami agreed. "My team will be following his every move. As soon as he makes a trade we'll be there to catch him in the act."
Tomoe nodded in acknowledgment.
"Your performance thus far has been satisfactory, Kagami," the mother confirmed with no warmth in her tone.
"Thank you," Kagami bowed and Tomoe exited the office.
Kagami's secretary called on the intercom only moments later.
"Excuse me, ma'am. An accounting problem has come up," the secretary informed her.
Kagami took a quick look at her reflection in her phone screen and adjusted her hair and blouse before deciding she was satisfied with her appearance and replied,
"Show her in."
Adrien walked through the bustling Marché Bastille as he made his way to his cousin's office. He never liked market days. The streets were always too crowded and the vendors too loud. He usually avoided coming here in person as much as possible, but Felix had figured out his game and started delaying shipments of various products to his nightclub, forcing him to come check up on the status himself.
He squinted and covered his ears as he rounded a particularly busy corner filled with chattering tourists and loud-spoken affluent parisians who could afford to shop at this market's somewhat inflated prices. He was still suffering from the effects of the large amount of alcohol he consumed the night prior, and his head was killing him.
Finally deciding he needed some water before putting up with a conversation with Felix, Adrien stopped at a grocery stall to fork over 6 euros for a 0,5L bottle. He was so preoccupied with telling the vendor that he was sure he didn't want anything else, he almost missed the two women coming out of the Gabriel Retail office.
"Adrien!" a pink bundle of a winter coat and scarves crashed into him. "We haven't seen you in forever!"
"Rose, Juleka!" Adrien recognized the couple. He returned Rose's hug, but Juleka stayed a few steps away, only giving a small wave in recognition of seeing Adrien.
"It's so good to see you, how are you doing!" Rose continued to gush.
"I'm doing alright, how are you two?" Adrien asked, trying to be polite. He hoped his hangover wasn't too painfully obvious to his old school friends.
"Oh, we're doing well, we were just here for a quick meeting," Rose replied, not specifying why she and Juleka had a meeting at a Gabriel office of all places. "But we really need to catch up sometime!" Rose insisted.
"Yeah, sure," Adrien agreed. "I, uh, actually saw your brother last night, Juleka, he was at my club."
Adrien had only been trying to make small talk, but clearly this news was a surprise to Juleka. She mumbled incoherently for a moment before he could finally make out something along the lines of "oh, that's where he was?"
"Uh, yeah, he came in close to closing last night," Adrien continued, almost rambling now to fill the awkward silence. "He, uh, was with Marinette."
"Juleka, you didn't tell me Marinette was here with him?" Rose playfully accosted her partner.
Juleka shot Adrien an unreadable look before mumbling something back to Rose that Adrien can't quite hear.
"You're right," Rose answered Juleka. "I'm sorry Adrien, but we're in a bit of a rush, we'll have to catch up later!"
They quickly said their goodbyes and rushed off, disappearing into the crowd of the busy market.
Adrien was certainly flustered by the sudden encounter with two acquaintances he hadn't seen in years, but he had already spent too much time recently dwelling on the past, and didn't have time to consider it further. He quickly downed half the bottle of water before hurrying into the warmth of the office.
"Good morning, Adrien," his cousin greeted him almost immediately after Adrien arrived on the fourth floor.
"Hello, Felix," Adrien returned, trying to hide the hoarseness in his voice. "I see the truck came in. I can take my shipment with me today."
"No hurry," Felix dismissed his concern. "I'll have it sent over. Have a drink with me."
"I'm not drinking this early," Adrien denied the invitation, annoyed at his cousin's dismissiveness. "And every time you send my shipment over, it's a little short."
"Carrying charges, cousin, carrying charges," Felix answered with the stupid grin he always wore when he felt he had outsmarted someone. Despite having an almost identical face to Felix, Adrien truly had no idea how he managed to make it look so unlikable.
"Let's go back to my office, I have something I want to talk about with you, anyway," Felix insisted, ushering Adrien through the open office floor toward the back windows where his private office was.
Adrien grumbled a half-hearted protest, but had learned a long time ago it was easier just to go along with listening to his cousin's over-involved business pitches than to try and make up an excuse to get out of it.
Adrien sat down in the uncomfortable office chair across from Felix's desk as Felix closed the door behind them and flipped the blinds shut.
"Paranoid much?" Adrien asked.
"I've told you before, you're not paranoid enough," Felix insisted, rolling his eyes.
"You know, I've always wandered, how do you pull that off?" Adrien asked.
"The paranoia?" Felix asked, taking his seat behind the desk.
"The carrying charges, as you call it" Adrien clarified.
"Don't worry about it," Felix waved him off. "It's a business thing, not something for your pretty face to worry about."
"We have the same face," Adrien reminded him. "And really, you know what I mean. Father told me-"
"Your father doesn't tell us the same things, Adrien" Felix cut in. "And that's not what I want to talk about."
Adrien dropped the issue, instead staying quiet and crossing his arms as he slouched back in his seat.
"The news about Max upset me very much," Felix stated.
"You're a hypocrite. You don't feel any sorrier for Max than I do," Adrien scoffed.
Felix eyed Adrien closely, trying to read his expression before responding.
"Of course not." Felix agreed. "What upsets me is the fact that Max is dead and no one knows where the information he stole is."
"Practically no one," Adrien said, completely dead pan.
Felix leaned forward and put his elbows on the desk, weaving his fingers together into a tight fist in front of him.
"If I could get my hands on said information," Felix continued, "I could… address it appropriately, before the Tsurugis got involved."
"The Tsurugis are already involved, the information was on their servers."
"Yes, but it was information they had not yet shared with Gabriel. But now…"
"They'll have to address it." Adrien confirmed. His cousin had clearly thought this through more than he had, he realized.
"I have a proposition for whoever has the stolen dosier." Felix spoke in an even tone. "I will handle the entire transaction, get rid of the file, take all the risk–"
"-Why would you do that?" Adrien interrupted.
"That is the proposition I have for whoever has the dossier," Felix repeated.
"I'll tell him when he comes in," Adrien answered drily.
"Adrien, I'll show my hand. I think you know where the dossier is."
"Well, you're in good company. Kagami and Tomoe probably think so too. I came here to give them a chance to ransack my place."
"Adrien, don't be a fool." Felix raised his voice in frustration. "Take me into your confidence! You need a partner."
But Adrien wasn't listening. His eyes were locked on a familiar figure outside the window, down on the streets of the market.
"Felix, I don't want your help," Adrien spat back, standing up to leave. "This is my problem, I can take care of it myself."
Felix stood up quickly, matching his cousin's height and looking him directly in the eyes.
"It stopped being just your problem when you gave Gabriel my amok."
Felix had barely spoken louder than a whisper, but the anger and truth in his words buzzed in the air like a ringing alarm.
"You know I didn't have a choice," Adrien rebutted through gritted teeth.
"I know he didn't tell you to do that until after you lost your miraculous," Felix stabbed back.
That comment hurt more than Adrien was willing to admit to his cousin, because he knew it was true. He took a deep breath, and then another, and another, but couldn't seem to find the words to reply.
"I've made peace with my situation," Felix finally broke the silence. "But this dossier… that miraculous, it could change everything. For now, Gabriel leaves us alone, but if he gets the ring back…"
"...you think he'd make you use it." Adrien finished.
"I don't know what Gabriel would do, that's the point," Felix corrected. "He's not exactly firing on all cylinders at this point."
"I don't have time for this right now," Adrien shook his head and moved to open the door to the office.
"Adrien you can't just run away from this!" Felix hissed.
"Make sure to send my shipment to the club," Adrien reminded him loudly, continuing out the door as if they had only finished a simple business discussion.
"Adrien!"
But Adrien was already out the door and headed for the stairs, and within view of far too many people for Felix to continue to make a scene.
As Adrien was collecting his coat from behind the front desk, he ran into none other than Luka Couffaine. He supposed he shouldn't have been surprised.
"Fathom's office is on the fourth floor, on the left," Adrien told him before Luka could even get out a greeting.
He didn't stick around to hear Luka's reply. His pulse was still racing with adrenaline from his fight with Felix, and he needed to get out the door. He needed to find Marinette. He knew he had seen her out the window, and Luka's presence here only confirmed that she was likely close by.
He didn't have to search far. Less than a block from the entrance to the office, Adrien found her, absentmindedly leafing through linens at a market stall selling various tablecloths, lace, and napkins. She wore a wide-brimmed hat, and her hair down around to cover her face, but Adrien could recognize her anywhere.
"You will not find a treasure like this anywhere else for this price. Only 70 euros!" he heard the vendor tell her.
"You're being cheated," Adrien said in a low voice as he approached from behind her.
Marinette did not look up, instead continued to study the tablecloth in her hand in detail
"It doesn't matter, thank you," Marinette said in a short tone.
"Ah, you're a friend of Adrien's?" The vendor cut in, recognizing Adrien immediately. "For friends of Adrien we have a small discount. 70 euros, did I say? You can have it for 20."
Sometimes Adrien wondered how he ever managed to maintain a secret identity in this city, with the ease so many people were able to recognize him on site.
"I'm sorry I was in no condition to receive visitors when you came by last night," Adrien continued, ignoring the vendor.
"It doesn't matter," Marinette clipped back, still not looking up at him.
Not deterred by their lack of interest, the vendor cut in again, "Oh, for special friends of Adrien we have a special discount - 10 euros, it's my best price."
Adrien tried to wave the man off and continued speaking only to Marinette.
"Your story left me a little confused. Or maybe it was the Bourbon," Adrien admitted.
"I have some other tablecloths, or some napkins–" the vendor insisted, motivated by what looked like Marinette's intense interest in the stitching of the table linens.
"Thank you, but I'm really not interested," Marinette tried to tell him.
"Only one moment," the vendor assured her. "I have some things at my other booth, I'll get them and show you!"
The man rushed off, leaving Marinette and Adrien alone at the fabric stall. Even without the pretense of shopping, Marinette continued to closely inspect the materials, refusing to look up at Adrien.
"Why did you come back?" Adrien asked her. "To tell me why you ran out on me at the train station?"
"Yes," Marinette answered immediately.
"Well you can tell me now. I'm reasonably sober."
"I don't think I will, Adrien"
"Why not? After all, I was stuck with the train ticket. I think I'm entitled to know."
"Last night I saw what has happened to you. The Adrien I knew, I could tell him. He'd understand…"
Marinette trailed off, finally turning her head to meet Adrien's gaze. Her eyes were clouded with emotion, but she spoke in a controlled and measured tone.
"But the Adrien who looked at me with such hatred–" Marinette shook her head and looked back down at the fabrics. "I'll be leaving Paris soon. We'll never see each other again. We knew very little about each other when we were in love in Paris. If we leave it that way, maybe we'll remember those days – not last night."
"Did you run out on me because you thought I couldn't take it?" Adrien asked her. "Because I know what it would have been like – hiding from the police, running away all the time. I was prepared."
"You can believe that if you want to"
"Well, you're not running away any more. And I'm settled now, above a nightclub but, walk up a flight some time. It's not too bad."
Marinette ignored his invitation and began refolding the fabric she had unspooled on the table.
"You don't trust me," Adrien realized.
Marinette dropped the fabric in frustration and turned to fully face Adrien.
"Adrien, you know that's not what this is about," Marinette spat back, her voice low but now ringing with emotion.
"Obviously I trust you," she continued. "You've kept my most valuable secret for years, and I lo–" she cut herself off.
"We had… we had something so special," she finally said, "and I know you're a good man."
"But that wasn't enough for you?" Adrien spoke in almost a whisper, trying to keep his composure.
Marinette had no answer for that. She just stared at him. Was that pity in her eyes? Adrien felt pitiful. Standing here in the street on the verge of tears, begging for even a scrap of her attention. But Marinette still said nothing, so Adrien spoke again,
"All the same, someday, you'll lie to Couffaine too. You know that day will come."
"No, Adrien, it won't"
"How can you say for sure? With the kind of work you do, it's only a matter of time."
"You don't know what you're talking about," Marinette insisted, her voice stern.
"I know what kind of reputation he has," Adrien rebuffed. "I know that you have to have other plans, and I know you didn't come back to Paris just to tag along on an entertainment visa."
"Adrien, what do you want me to say?" Marinette demanded.
"I want the truth! I want to know what I did wrong-"
"Adrien, you– you didn't do anything wrong," Marinette choked out, tilting her head back to blink back tears. "I'm the one who– I shouldn't have– oh it's all my fault!"
Adrien reached out an arm to comfort her, resting his hand on her shoulder. He wanted more than anything to pull her into an embrace, but he wasn't sure she would accept that from him now.
"Marinette, don't cry," Adrien assured her. "I'm sorry, you're not to blame, I'm just angry… and confused. But what we had, it was real. I can't just throw that away. We could still have something, I know that"
"No Adrien," Marinett shrugged his hand off of her.
"No, what?"
"There is nothing between us, Adrien. Luka Couffaine is my husband…"
Adrien was stunned by this revelation, but nothing could have prepared him for what she said next.
"...And he was my husband, even when you and I were together that summer."
The world seemed to slow as he processed the words Marinette had just spoken.
"But you're– and she was with– but that would mean Luka is–" Adrien stumbled over his words.
"He's alive?"
Marinette gave him a sad smile and nodded in confirmation.
"But how?" Adrien whispered.
Marrinete grabbed a bundle of decorative lace from the table before leaning in close to Adrien's cheek. She did not kiss him, instead only whispering,
"Vive la résistance."
Marinette quickly dropped the lace into Adrien's arms and turned on her heel, taking advantage of Adrien's stunned stupor to disappear into the crowd.
Before Adrien could go after her, the stall vendor had returned and, seeing Adrien Agrest holding a pile of his merchandise, excitedly launched into another sales pitch of his wares.
The man probably had some very persuasive points, but Adrien heard none of it. He was too busy replaying his conversation with Marinette in his head, unable to believe the truth she had just revealed.
Viperion lived.
"I was just telling Mr. Couffaine, that unfortunately, I am not able to help him," Felix told Marinette when she joined them in his office.
"Oh no," Marinette replied, letting her concern show as she took a seat next to Luka. She had not expected Felix to help them, but Luka had been hopeful that someone like Felix would have connections that could help them complete their travel.
"Word has gotten around– about my reputation," Luka clarified.
"I am an influential and respected man in Paris." Felix continued. "It would not be worth my life to do anything for Mr. Couffaine at this point. You, however, are a different matter." He gestured to Marinette.
"Felix thinks it might be possible to get you a visa to Shanghai," Luka told her.
"You mean– for me to go on alone?" Marinette asked.
"And only alone," Felix asserted. "If my assumption is correct, and you do still have business there, even without Mr. Couffaine?"
Marinette swallowed. How much did Felix know about what they were up to? She knew Luka would have told him as little as possible, but she still had a sinking feeling about how helpful Felix was being. She had only met him once before in collège, though she doubted he remembered that. Everything else she knew about him was from the papers or from what Adrien told her… neither of which had painted a particularly philanthropic picture of him.
"I'll stay here, Marinette, and keep on trying." Luka said. "Perhaps in a little while–"
"We might as well be frank, Luka," Felix interrupted. "It will take a miracle to get you out of Paris now, and Hawkmoth has outlawed miracles."
Well, Adrien had said his cousin did tend to be dramatic.
"We're only interested in two visas, Felix," Marinette asserted.
"Please, Marinette, we shouldn't be hasty," Luka argued.
"No, Luka," Marinette stated firmly.
"You two will want to discuss this," Felix conceded, standing up from his seat. "I'll give you a moment, I'll be just outside."
He quickly exited the office, leaving Marinette and Luka alone.
"No, Marinette, you can't stay here." Luka insisted. "You have to get to Shanghai. Our lead there… we can't lose that. And believe me – somehow – I'll get out – I'll join you…"
"Luka!" Marinett interrupted, firm but keeping her voice low. "If the situation were different - if I had to stay and there were only a visa for you - would you take it?"
"Ye-es, I would."
"You're a terrible liar."
"Always have been," Luka smiled, reaching up to rub Marinette's shoulder affectionately.
"Well, I love you very much, Marinette"
"Your secret is safe with me," Marinette promised, giving Luka a loving smile and a wink.
They sat there for a moment, neither speaking. Marinette stared into the eyes of her loving husband, and couldn't help but feel a twinge of guilt from the secret she kept for him. It's for his own good. She told herself. Telling him would only hurt him.
"Felix is waiting on our answer," Marinette finally broke the silence, standing up to leave the office.
They quickly found Felix in the open office area and approached him.
"We've decided, Mr. Fathom, for now we'll go on looking for two visas," Luka told him. "Thank you very much."
"Well – good luck." Felix replied, shaking his head. "But be careful – You know you're being shadowed?" His eyes flicked to the window facing the street.
"Of course. It becomes an instinct," Luka assured him.
Marinette took Luka's hand and squeezed it reassuringly.
"I observe that you, in one respect, are a very fortunate man," Felix commented, noticing Marinette's gesture. "Mr. Couffain, I'd like to make one more suggestion, why? I do not know. Because it cannot possibly benefit me. But… have you heard about Max Kante's arrest?"
Felix had a strange look on his face. Like he was trying to look sad, but couldn't quite get his features right, creating a creepy uncanny effect.
"Yes, I heard something," Luka answered, not giving away too much.
"The information he stole from the Tsurugis was not found on him when they arrested him," Felix revealed.
How would he know that? Marinette thought. She was already suspicious of Felix, and this line of questioning was only worsening her suspicions about his motives.
"Where else could it have been?" Luka asked. Marinette squeezed his hand again, this time in warning. They shouldn't be sounding too keen about getting the information about the lost miraculous.
"I don't know for sure," Felix admitted, "but I will venture a guess – that Max left that file with my cousin Adrien."
Marinette felt her pulse quicken. How did Adrien keep getting wrapped up in this business? She had been trying to keep him away from all this miraculous-mess.
"Adrien Agrest?" Luka asked, raising his eyebrows.
"He is a difficult man, Adrien." Felix nodded in confirmation. "One never knows what he will do, or why. But it is worth talking to him, if you're interested."
"Thank you very much," Luka shook his hand as they headed for the stairs.
"Thank you, Felix," Marrinette also offered her hand to shake, out of politeness.
Felix shook her hand and smiled at her in a way that seemed almost genuine – a strange look on Felix.
"No, thank you, Marinette."