Chapter Twenty-Three
Plagg was woken up by a shriek from his holder.
His eyes snapped open, the kwami darting into the air– only to find that she was staring at her computer screen, hand over her mouth. His ears fell back, and he drifted back to where he was napping, trying to get settled once more. Why didn't humans have a different sound for 'danger' and 'surprise'? It was so inconvenient.
At least it would keep her focus on something else besides pestering him about Citrine Húlí. That had been annoying. Sure, he had told her about other Miraculouses from time to time to sate her curiosity– but he hadn't expected her or the Blogger-girl to actually piece together anything useful.
Well, Marinette piecing things together wasn't surprising, she was pretty clever at times. And it wasn't like Blogger-girl had actually done anything. Honestly it was more his kitten had figured things out, and Blogger-girl just happened to be there to hear things. Happened to stumble across a batch of luck she didn't deserve. Maybe he could change that... not like Marinette would let him. He still didn't get why she was so fond of Blogger-girl in the first place.
His Kitten's parents also seemed concerned by her shouting– because it wasn't long until there was the sound of her mother coming up the stairs, calling out to her. "Marinette? Marinette, is everything okay?"
"Okay?" Marinette squeaked. "Okay? Mom– Jagged Stone's agent just contacted me!"
Sabine pushed open the trapdoor, smiling slightly as she pulled herself into the room. Plagg scowled, moving to retreat into the shadows so he wouldn't be seen. "That's wonderful, Marinette, but this isn't the first time this happened."
"No no no, you don't understand!" Marinette cried, waving at the open email. "He usually contacted me about glasses, Mom! I just designed him a few glasses based off of different cities for a few concerts, that's all!"
Sabine put her arms around Marinette. "'That's all'? Honey, that's something to be proud of. So, what does Mlle. Rolling want this time? I'm assuming they want to commission you again?"
"She wants me to design Jagged Stone's next album cover!" Marinette cried, tugging at her hair. "Mom, you don't understand– this is a disaster! Glasses are just one thing, it's just for the concerts, only a handful of people see them! The album– that's something everyone sees! Album art is so important! It's what represents their music– how could I design something like that?!"
Sabine laughed. "It means they recognize your talent, dear. Now, make sure you calm down before you reply, you want to send them something polite and professional– make sure you thank Penny for such a wonderful opportunity– but I need to get back to the bakery."
Then she was gone, and Marinette was sinking onto the floor, letting out a whimper. Plagg rolled his eyes, and drifted out of his hiding spot, crossing his arms. "Why are you like this?"
"This is a disaster, Plagg– an absolute disaster!"
"No it isn't," Plagg snapped. "I know what a disaster is, and this isn't it."
"No, I'm going to ruin this!" Marientte whimpered. "I can't say no or else he'll hate me, but I can't design something good enough for Jagged Stone himself! Whatever I make will be horrible and then he'll never ask me to make anything for him again and then no one will ever want me to design anything again because I'll be an absolute failure and Crimson won't want me as a partner and then–"
"Where did that even come from?" Plagg cried, throwing his paws up into the air. "Crimson has nothing to do with your designs– don't connect things with no rhyme or reason!"
"He's going to hate me!"
"Who– Crimson or wannabe musician?"
"Jagged!"
"Okay, that we can work with," Plagg said, floating down next to you. "He won't hate you, and the reason why he thinks you can design for him is because you have." Plagg floated in front of the computer. "Don't think too much about it or else you won't be able to do a thing." He tilted his head. "Look, you got another email."
Marinette sat up straight, leaping for her computer. Plagg was hoping for a distraction, but whoever sent the next email only seemed to make her panic rise again. She let out a whimper, before sinking to the ground, and Plagg let out a groan. He shifted over to the mouse, moving to open the new email.
"Bob Roth?"
"Jagged Stone's producer!" Marinette wailed. "He's going to tell me that all of this was a mistake, and that no one like me should be making album art for someone like Jagged Stone, and to never work with them again–!"
"Actually, he just sent you some reference pictures," Plagg said, reading the email. "'Visuals'... 'The new direction we need'... Huh, says that Jagged requested you personally, kid; he may have a bad taste in music, but he actually seems to know art."
Marinette whimpered.
"Come on, just come take a look at it," Plagg said. "Maybe you'll get some ideas or something, I dunno how this all works. Better than you moping on the ground."
Marinette dragged herself up towards the computer once more, eyes hesitantly scanning the second email. Her eyebrows knitted together, pulling up the images that had been sent, and she frowned. "XY?" She muttered. "Why is he sending this for reference? They're completely different music genres."
Plagg perked up. "Real music?"
Marinette gave him a grim smile. "If you don't like Jagged, then trust me, you won't like XY's music." She flipped through a few of the images. "Man, this looks like one of Adrien's perfume ads."
Plagg blinked. "Yeah, even I know that doesn't match Jagged Stone's so called 'music'."
"Did he accidentally send the wrong pictures?" Marinette muttered. "I mean, Bob Roth is both Jagged and XY's producer, but..." She scanned the email again. "'We're trying to take Jagged Stone's image in a more modern direction, hopefully this can give you some inspiration'... but that's not what Penny said–?"
She flipped back to the email from Penny which firmly stated that they felt that she could capture the classical 'rocking' image that Jagged wanted. Plagg frowned, before letting out a sigh as he heard Marinette let out another whimper.
"Come on," he snapped. "Only one unreasonable breakdown per day, okay?"
"But what am I supposed to do?" Marinette said, running her hands through her hair as she paced the room. "If I don't do what Jagged Stone wants he'll hate my design and not trust me to design for him again! But Bob Roth is technically Jagged Stone's boss, so if I don't do what he asked then there's no way I'll be approved. So which one do I do? Just take a risk and take one and have it not work out? I'm cornered, Plagg!"
Plagg stared at her. "...Or you could email them back and ask for clarification?"
Marinette paused.
"Isn't that the whole point of this electronic mail?" Plagg asked, waving at the computer. "To communicate? Just tell them that you need to know exactly what you're supposed to be doing. I'm sure they'd rather have that than a confused designer."
"Plagg– you're a genius!"
"Nah, you humans just don't like to see the obvious," he paused as she slid into the computer chair, hitting the reply button. "But since I just helped you, I surely do deserve some cheese, don't I?"
"One minute, Plagg, I want to reply right away so they don't think I'm slacking."
"But cheese!"
"I'll get you camembert, just give me a minute!"
One minute was actually ten– Marinette going through several different attempts at a reply to Penny. Even after she had carefully read through her final one, she still looked hesitant, eyes flickering across it even though Plagg had watched her edit it multiple times.
"Um, Plagg, how does this sound?" She asked.
He zipped over, landing by the mouse. "Let's see."
"'Penny Rolling, I received two emails regarding designing Jagged Stone's newest album, an opportunity I'm excited to have. However, the email sent by you and M. Bob Roth contains what seems to be conflicting infoma'– PLAGG!"
"There," Plagg said as he pressed 'send'. "Now you don't have to stress about it."
"What if there was a mistake somewhere in it–!"
"Then it was a minor one they probably won't even notice because you didn't in the five million times you read through it," he crossed his paws, tail swishing. "Now, I believe I was promised some cheese?"
"Give me one reason why I shouldn't stuff a macaron down your throat."
Plagg did end up getting his promised camembert, though, Marinette slipping down into the kitchen to grab the promised cheese– not without being teased by her parents for her sudden love of cheese. Plagg had to hold back a snicker as they headed back upstairs, seizing the camembert as it was slipped into her pocket.
"She replied!" Marinette exclaimed once they were back in her room, hurrying over towards her computer, opening up the newest email.
"Well, have all of your deepest fears been confirmed?"
"Ha ha," Marinette said dryly. "She says: 'Thank you for bringing this to our attention, Mlle. Dupain-Cheng. I am afraid that the images that M. Roth sent you were indeed the wrong ones, but were not a mistake. This has been a point of conflict between M. Stone and M. Roth lately, but I will take care of it. Enclosed are the actual visuals we wish you to take inspiration from. Just have all future communications go through me, then that way you will not have to deal directly with M. Roth. Signed, Penny Rolling'."
"How long do you have?" Plagg asked.
"Um..." She flipped back to the first email. "She'd like to see two to five concept pieces in two weeks, and we'll discuss further design possibilities from there."
"See, kid, you worry too much," Plagg said. "They ain't expecting perfection in a day, and they ain't going to leave you on your own throughout all of this."
Marinette smiled, leaning back in her chair. "Yeah, I feel a lot better about all of this. And these new pictures honestly give me a lot more to work with." She smiled up at Plagg. "Thanks, sorry you have to put up with my crap."
Plagg snorted. "Meh, you have to put up with mine– let's just call it even."
Marinette did not know all the details of what was happening between Bob Roth Records and Jagged Stone, but what she was seeing on social media did not seem like the most promising things. With XY currently holding the number one spot on the singles chart, and Jagged being pushed to number two for the first time in three years, people were talking. A few online comments from Bob Roth were passive aggressive at the very least, and Jagged Stone didn't hold anything back on his online accounts– publicly declaring that he had no intentions of doing a duet with a 'non-rocker' and for people to stop wasting his time.
Marinette didn't understand why anyone wanted a collaboration between the two of them anyways– pop and rock didn't blend that well together, in her opinion.
She got an email from Bob Roth once more, asking her to stick to the images he had sent and not Penny, and while Marinette had found herself panicking Plagg had taken it upon himself to send a reply– a surprisingly formal, though blunt, email stating that all communication through them would be best through Penny, as Marinette was not an official employee of his company.
Despite the tensions growing in the music world, Marinette's potential designs for the album cover were coming along well. As the end of her two weeks rolled around, she had three she was happy with, and one that while it wasn't completed she felt it could go somewhere. With the max being five she had been tempted to make one along the lines of what Bob Roth had requested, just in case– but Plagg had deleted the file a few minutes after she had started it.
"Don't worry, honey," Tom said with a smile, beaming down at his daughter. "They're going to love what you have, and I'll be here the whole time."
Marinette nodded, looking up at the large intimidating building they were heading towards. It turned out there were a lot of things different when it came to albums compared to designing sunglasses. She couldn't just send the designs off, but rather she would be meeting with Jagged himself to look over what she had come up with. As a minor, her father was going to attend the meeting as well, but even then she still felt nervous.
But soon they were heading in the building, sliding into the elevator as it took them up. Marinette looked up at her father, who had nothing but a proud look in his eyes, an arm around her shoulder. She smiled in reply, before closing her eyes, trying to calm her nerves. This was nothing to worry about, just meeting with one of her favorite singers ever, showing off artwork that could be critical to establishing her future career, all of this happening right as the singer and producer seemed to be in the middle of a fight of some kind.
"There's my girl, Marinette!" Jagged boomed as soon as they stepped out the elevator, the rock star stepping forward. Marinette froze up slightly as she was suddenly pulled into a hug by the man, but before she could process it he stepped back, hands on her shoulders as he beamed at her.
"H-hi, Jagged," she said uncertainly– the most she had communicated with him since she had made his original sunglasses had only been through email and phone, both of which he had been just as enthusiastic, but still she was startled by the warm welcome.
"I can't wait to see what you've created," Jagged said, an arm around her shoulder as he led her down the hall. "You just have this raw artistry that we don't see enough these days– and it's rocking!"
"Heh, I just try my best..."
She was ushered into a room, where Penny Rolling, Bob Roth, and Fang the crocodile were waiting. Marinette did not know what to make of being in a room with so many big names, but soon she and her father were seated in chairs that felt way too plush, everyone getting settled.
"Um... is that thing tamed?" Tom asked uncertainly, glancing down at Fang.
"Don't worry, Fang is the rockin'est croc out there!" Jagged said, scratching the monstrous animal right between the eyes. Fang closed them, letting out a content grunt. Jagged beamed, before leaning back in his seat. "Now, let's see what you got, Marinette."
"I have four designs," Marinette, pulling out the folder she had brought. She wasn't sure if they wanted to look at physical copies or digital, so she had brought both. "Three of them I am really happy with, and while the fourth one does need some work I thought the concept was good enough to at least show."
"Didn't we ask for five?" Bob Roth snapped, and before Marinette could reply, both her father and Penny had jumped to her defense.
"I read that email, and it said two to five," Tom growled.
"Mr. Dupain is right," Penny said, before smiling at Marinette. "You're doing just fine, please continue."
Marinette nodded, before presenting each design. Jagged immediately started beaming as she pulled out the first one, while the others stayed silent. Her father squeezed her shoulder reassuringly, and she continued. She was shaking slightly, but her voice was steady, which she thought was the most important. The second and third one earned a hum of approval from Penny, while Bob Roth was silent the whole time. As the fourth and final design came out he scoffed, speaking for the first time.
"What do you call this? That one isn't even completed!" Bob Roth snapped. "This isn't some art class, girl, if you want to be doing professional work you have to be showing professional content!"
"Bob, she told us that the last one needed more work," Penny said.
"And this design has such potential!" Jagged said, holding up the laminated paper. "Look at it, like a chord waiting to be written into a song. Don't you think this could be combined with the first one, Penny? That one had plenty of room for more design."
"None of these are what I said you needed!" Bob Roth snapped, leaning across the table. "I told you that if you want to stay with Bob Roth Records you need something more modern. You told me that this school girl could combine modern with your, well, 'image', but this is nothing like that. If you work for me then you need something that sells!"
"Don't you dare do Marinette dirty!" Jagged snapped. "She comes in with these rocking designs, when all you gave me was the trash that was XY's albums with my face copy and pasted on! Marinette knows my style, she gets rock!"
"You act like Jagged being number two is a problem," Penny said in a low voice. "You're XY's producer as well– it doesn't matter if it's him or Jagged at number one, you're getting the same amount of sales."
"It's XY that's selling, and if Jagged wants to keep that up then he's going to need to change."
"Or you will just drive away the fans that Jagged currently has," Penny replied. "Marinette's both the target audience age and someone that loves Jagged's music– she knows what his fanbase wants more than you do."
"Also, ain't XY your son?" Jagged asked. "Why do you want me to push him out of the number one seat so badly? I mean, not that I wouldn't want to, but..."
"I warned you that I would not keep you on board Bob Roth Records if you weren't going to keep with the times. Your contract is almost up, and I'll happily end it if I have to."
"Then end it," Jagged snapped, causing Bob Roth to freeze. "You think you're the only record label out there? I think any of them would like to have a number two artist."
"Well now, let's not get hasty," Bob said. "We just need to find a middle ground, something we both agree on." He reached for Marinette's fourth design. "This one isn't quite complete, so I could hand it off to some of our official designers. Still have the basics of the designer you wanted, but with the modern edge you need–"
"Wait–" Marinette began.
"Excuse me," Tom said in a low voice. "Please hand over my daughter's design right this instant. I don't believe she gave you permission to use any of her ideas, nor did you ask her to do a collaboration of any kind."
Bob let out a snort. "Sir, don't get all worked up. Your daughter getting to work with some professionals will be a great opportunity–"
"Working with me will be a great opportunity," Jagged said, pushing himself to his feet, grabbing the page from Bob. "Her art on the cover of the rock album that the people have been waiting for– the very album that will be pushing your precious XY out of number one once more!"
"Now wait a second–"
"My album ain't set to come out until after our contract is up," Jagged said. "And it won't be coming out with Bob Roth Records. Penny, I need you to get searching for a new producer, one that won't try to stifle my rockin' ways!"
"Of course, Jagged," she said, pulling out her tablet.
"Jagged, stop this now," Bob Roth said. "You're going to regret this–"
Jagged raised an eye. "I thought you said you were going to drop this contract if I don't do your stupid 'modern' look, and I'm not. Seems like to me you're the one regretting this."
"What? All because you think some school girl can–"
"Don't you dare insult Marinette!" Jagged snapped. "She's part of my family of rock 'n roll now, just like Penny." He glanced at her. "You two can go now, we ain't dealing with this lug. Don't worry, we're going to still use one of your designs, is it okay if we meet another time?"
"Y-yeah–"
"That would be wonderful," Tom said, pulling his daughter close as they rose to their feet– clearly wanting to not be roped into this drama. Marinette could only nod as her father ushered her from the room.
As the door shut behind them they could hear shouting rising from Bob and Jagged, though the exact words were muffed.
"I'm glad we won't have to be dealing with that man anymore," Tom said stiffly.
"Same," Marinette said tightly.
Of course there had to be a dragon.
Well, Plagg insisted that it wasn't a dragon, but a winged crocodile, but as far as Marinette was concerned it was a dragon. Scaled, winged, sharp teeth, fire breathing– definitely a dragon.
When Plagg replied that it looked nothing like a 'real' dragon she just decided not to ask, and simply transformed.
"Rockin' rift, baby!" the akuma roared as he strummed his guitar, a blast of glowing energy being fired out of the end of it. It seemed that whoever he blasted started 'rocking out'; not the most dangerous power she had seen– but it could definitely be limiting to her and Crimson if they were hit themselves. And there was also the flying black dragon to consider.
Lady Noire watched everything happen down below, her stomach tied up in knots. Jagged Stone becoming akumatized... it just didn't seem like something that could happen to him. He was also so upbeat and cheerful, unwavering. But there he was below, firing off attacks from his guitar. He didn't look too different, his outfit having a slightly more metal edge. His hair was now a deep red, the thick strands seeming to almost glow as he went about.
"Akuma in the guitar?" Crimson asked as he arrived, landing on the roof next to her as she watched the akuma make his way down the streets.
"Definitely," Lady replied, and together they leapt forward to meet the akuma.
He was currently blasting a group of people with another wave of energy from his guitar, all of them immediately jamming out as if they were in the middle of a rock concert. Lady and Crimson each took to different sides of the street, Crimson using his yoyo to propel himself forward, while Lady found herself falling to all fours, the burst of speed giving her the edge to get ahead of the akuma.
She and Crimson leapt down from the building, landing right in front of akumatized Jagged Stone, blocking his path.
"So you're the heroes Monarch was yammering about," the akuma said, fingers lightly strumming the guitar– which still produced a loud electric hum. "I'm Molten Rock– and Monarch says I need those Miraculouses of yours so I can never stop playing!"
"Molten Rock?" Lady echoed.
Molten Rock grinned at them. "Monarch had a few other ideas for my new and true name– but none of them were rocking! Had to take matters into my own hands." He played a few more chords, firing the energy up at the buildings around them– shattering glass. "It's an absolutely perfect name! I'm the Rock, and Fang's the Molten!"
As if on cue, the dragon swooped over Molten Rock's head, a liquid-like fire dripping from his fangs. It sizzled as it hit the streets, and both heroes raised their weapons, though the dragon made no effort to attack them. Fang just flew right over their head, off to another part of the city.
"Awesome solo!"
Molten Rock then aimed his guitar at them, forcing the heroes to dodge the waves of sound that were launched at them. Molten Rock took the opportunity to charge forward, clearly wanting to regain some ground, sending out another blast as they turned towards him once again.
Not the most impressive escape ever, as the akuma seemed no faster than an average civilian, but the effects of his weapon were enough to keep the heroes on edge. As he rounded the corner, the heroes shared a glance, before running to pursue them, the people around them dancing away as if heavy metal were blasting across the streets.
They turned the corner themselves to see Molten Rock riding off into the sky on Fang's back.
"...Didn't he just say that Monarch wanted him to take our Miraculouses?" Crimson asked with a huff.
"Well, to be fair, it is Jagged Stone," Lady Noire replied. "I don't think he likes being told what to do."
Crimson grinned. "Yeah, he's gotta do everything in his own rocking way."
They both drew their weapons, vaulting and swinging after the dragon flying.
Molten Rock seemed to have no set destination in mind– his goals seemed to be to get as many people 'rocking' as possible, having Fang cover Bob Roth Records building with his lava-like fire, playing his songs on random rooftops– then flying off on Fang whenever the heroes got close.
"See, Tikki," Crimson muttered to himself as they watched Molten Rock racing off again for the fifth time. "This is why my transformation should have wings."
"No getting wings unless I get wings."
"You're a cat, cats don't have wings."
"Well, wings or no wings, the akuma is getting away," Lady said, watching as Fang flew towards the ground off in the distance. A few moments later the dragon flew back up, no sign of his rider on his back. "Okay, he's probably going after more civilians again– maybe we can catch him off guard if he gets focused enough."
Crimson gave a nod, and both of them once again took off towards where Fang had dropped off Molten Rock. They were most certainly getting a workout, and Lady knew that she was going to be sore tomorrow morning. She and Crimson were working their way across the roofs in silence, and it wasn't long until they reached the street where Fang had landed.
They saw a bunch of Parisians banging their heads to an unheard tune, but no sign of the akuma.
"He couldn't be too far, Fang hasn't circled back yet," Crimson said. "Let's check the nearby streets."
Their search from the rooftops didn't yield them much except for more civilians rocking out, with no clear direction of which way Molten Rock had been moving. They slowly moved down from the roofs to the streets, hoping they could find someone who hadn't been hit, and could tell them which way the akuma had gone.
"Lady– look out!"
Lady Noire didn't have time to turn, Crimson Noire slamming into her. He sent them tumbling across the street just as a shadow fell over them, and as they came to a stop she could see a large black shape descending down onto the street.
Fang folded in his wings, orange eyes almost glowing as he looked about. Crimson raised his yoyo, but Lady placed a hand on his wrist before he could attack. He glanced at her, but her eyes were locked on Fang.
The crocodile-turned dragon was rooting through the street, tossing a car over with his large snout. He let out a low rumble, glancing about, a slightly distressed look in his gaze as his tail started lashing.
Lady swallowed, taking in a deep breath as she pushed herself to her feet. "Hey! Fang! Come here boy!"
"Lady–!" Crimson hissed as the crocodile's head whipped towards them. The dragon regarded them, before letting out a cry, bounding towards them.
Both she and Crimson stiffened, but she kept a firm hold on Crimson's wrist, both of them staying still as the dragon raced up to them. The large reptile stopped short of them, nostrils flaring as he took in their scent. There was no recognition in the croc's gaze, not that Lady expected him to, but she was well aware of how Jagged interacted with his unusual pet.
"Hey, Fang," she said in a voice she usually saved for greeting dogs. "You're a good boy, aren't you?"
"Lady Noire–" Crimson said as she held out her hand to the giant maw, but the dragon only sniffed it. She pressed a hand against the warm scales, making her way down his snout. Crimson watched her with a mix of disbelief and worry, and she came to a stop on the side of Fang's head. A single orange eye watched her as she reached up, pressing as hard as she could as she scratched him right between the eyes as she had seen Jagged do before.
Fang let out a loud bellow, before rolling over onto his side. The action sent Lady and Crimson stumbling back to avoid giant clawed legs, but she swiftly approached once more to rub his belly.
"Didn't know you were a dragon tamer, M'lady," Crimson remarked.
"He's not a dragon," Lady replied with a smile. "Just a big winged crocodile, aren't you, Fang? You're just looking for Jagged, aren't you? You miss your dad, don't you?"
She had to lean into the dragon for him to actually feel her scratches, but the giant dragon was like putty in her hands. She couldn't help but laugh, moving from the belly back up to his head, encouraging Fang to flip back over onto his legs.
"I don't think the akuma's affecting his mind at all," Lady said, stroking his snout. "He's just Fang still, aren't you? Do you think you can take us to Jagged, sweetheart?"
"You want to bring the dragon back to the akuma?" Crimson protested.
Lady turned back to him and smiled. "Well, why don't you summon a Lucky Charm, and let's see if it gives us any other ideas then."
Crimson flicked out his yoyo once, before tossing it up into the air with a surge of pink light. "Lucky Charm!"
A giant bundle of red spotted leather came flying down, forcing Crimson to back up to avoid getting hit. He reached down, picking it up to try to get a better look at what it was, paling slightly as he saw the way it all connected.
"Rhh?" Fang asked.
"You have to be kidding me," Crimson muttered.
"A harness for a dragon, huh?" Lady said with a laugh. "Your Lucky Charm can really do anything! Come on, let's get him all hooked up."
"If he eats me, it's going to be your fault," Crimson said, dragging the harness over towards Lady and the dragon.
Fang seemed pretty confused by the whole process, scuttling about to get a better look at what they were doing, which only made it harder to put the Lucky Charm on. However he had no protest as the leather straps were looped about his scaly form. A bridle going about his head, and the harness wrapping around his legs and wings. The scutes on his back, gave them the perfect grip to pull them up onto the dragon's back, to stiffened up slightly as they did so.
Instincts seemed to kick in the crocodile, wings flaring open as the dragon took to the sky, leaving Lady Noire and Crimson Beetle only moments to grab the harness to keep themselves secured as the dragon took to the sky.
The fight from there was easy– Fang taking no more than a few minutes to find Molten Rock, and a surprise tackle and Cataclysm shatter the guitar.
There seemed to be a strange tension in Paris following the deakumatization of Jagged Stone.
Bob Roth hadn't had any further complaint about Jagged not renewing their contract, happily dropping it himself now that Jagged had been touched by one of Monarch's butterflies. It seemed to be the one thing people were talking about in the media, how the famous singer had gotten akumatized– but no matter how deeply Marinette had dug, she couldn't find a general consensus on what people thought of the matter.
There were photos of his akumatized form, especially of Fang. She had found a few comments of those who said they'd always be Jagged fans, but just as many of those who had declared they would be renouncing his music. Those usually had an avalanche of replies themselves, though– ranging from 'how could you?' to rants about how the music had nothing to do with Jagged himself.
Paris' view of the akumatized victims had changed since this all began, with Stoneheart's first attack– Alya's video having been the front of the change, but it had yet to fully shift to a perspective that Marinette felt comfortable with. There were still those who gave Ivan nervous glances in the hallways, and while Alec once again could live his life without people scrambling away from him, could actually leave his house, be with his daughter; he had yet to find another job. The man seemed to have mostly retreated to an online presence for living and livelihood, and like Alec, Jagged was a well known figure. Even more so than the TV host– and Marinette was waiting to see how the city would react to a once beloved singer.
Jagged himself seemed unconcerned, usually on the ground, playing with Fang or strumming away on his guitar whenever Marinette and her father came by with the current status of the album cover.
"You worry too much, Pen," Jagged said as Penny nervously paced the room. "We'll be fine."
"We may have to find a new label outside of France, Jagged," Penny replied, pausing to watch as the rocker attempted to pull a rope toy out from Fang's jaw in a one-sided game of tug-a-war. "Your next concert for Paris goes on sale tonight– if we don't meet your usual numbers, then that means your reputation here in Paris has truly been impacted."
"I don't care about that," Jagged replied. "That was all Roth, caring about the views, the tickets– all the numbers. I just want to rock out with my fans that appreciate the music!"
"Paris is home," Penny replied softly. "World wide numbers probably won't be impacted... but I know you love it here, Jagged."
Marinette glanced up from the tablet she was working on, having had permission to work with Jagged and Penny for the afternoon, so they could provide direct feedback. They had narrowed the album cover down to one of her concept pieces, but Jagged had wanted to find a way to incorporate the elements of some of the others into it as well.
Penny looked downright distressed, and Marinette could understand. She had a new album that was ready to be released– but no record label to work with in the moment. Had it been at any other time, there probably would have been a dozen that would have pounced on the chance to have Jagged Stone's name with their company, but with his akumatization no one seemed to dare to accept him. From what Marinette understood, no one had directly said 'no' yet, everything resting in a strange limbo.
It all seemed to come down to the concert sales tonight. The number of tickets sold would show if France's love for the singer was still the same– and would probably decide if the center of Jagged's career could remain here in Paris, or if they would be shifting their focus to the rest of Europe– though while wary of the idea of akumatization, those from outside of Paris didn't seem to carry the same bias towards those Monarch had controlled.
Jagged pushed himself to his feet, looking down at Penny softly as he saw the stress the woman was trying to keep hidden. He wrapped his arms around her, causing his agent to let out a slight surprised yelp, and Marinette turned to focus back towards the album cover.
"Paris is home," Jagged said softly. "It's where everything all began for us. Me, you, Nanarky." He pulled back a bit, smiling. "And if anyone thinks some unrockin' butterfly will keep us from rocking out here in Paris– they got another thing coming! We're going to rock our way to number one here once again! I trust my fans, they won't let me down! We got Vivica rocking with us now, Marinette's art, Fang by us as always– nothing will go wrong."
Penny was smiling as Jagged turned back to Fang. "I hope you're right."
"Well, you can definitely count on me buying a ticket, Jagged," Marinette said warmly.
"No way," Jagged said, glancing at her. "You're part of the rock family– you get free tickets!"
"I couldn't–"
"I can't hear you!" Jagged said, raising his voice. "All I can hear is Penny making a note that you always get tickets to all my concerts!"
Penny smiled. "Don't try arguing," she said, pulling up her tablet. "He'll outstubborn you with ease."
"Rhh!" Fang rumbled out, nudging Jagged with his snout. The man turned his attention back to his crocodile. Penny made her way over towards the table Marinette was working at, sitting down with a sigh as she looked down at her tablet.
"I'm sure everything will be okay," Marinette offered.
"I've just seen how this city has reacted to akumas," Penny said with a tight smile. "And with Jagged in the spotlight there's really nowhere to retreat, you know? People are going to have their opinion, and there's nothing to do about that."
"Isn't that how it always is?"
Penny smiled. "You're a good kid, Marinette," she looked down at her watch. "Oh boy, five minutes until tickets go on sale."
"He's going to get a crowd," Marinette promised. "His fans just aren't going to vanish off of the face of the earth."
"I know," Penny muttered. "But this sell is probably going to be the deciding factor on if we can get a new record label here in Paris or not. If numbers are too low, I don't think anyone will take the gamble of signing an akumatized victim if they won't make a profit."
"It's too bad everything is about money," Marinette said.
Penny shrugged. "As you said, it's how it always is."
They fell into silence after that– Marinette drawing away, Penny nervously watching the clock, and Jagged leaning up against a curled up Fang as he strummed away on his guitar. As the clock turned over to the hour Penny noticeably tensed, eyes locked on the screen. Marinette forced herself to keep working, not wanting to appear to be slacking or a bother, but she couldn't help but be worried too. She had tried to buy tickets before, but she knew just how quickly they usually sold out, sometimes in minutes, especially in a major city like Paris.
"Okay," Penny said. "Everything's looking good so far..."
Marinette's attempts to focus on her drawing weren't working, and she set down the tablet pen, watching Penny instead. The woman had risen to her feet, now pacing as her eyes remained locked on the screen. Jagged didn't look up from his guitar, but the tune he was playing seemed to shift to something calmer as he played on.
Each minute that passed seemed to stretch on, and the way Penny's fingers tightened seemed to be a sign that sales were slowing. Still her eyes stayed on the screen, no one seeming to be the one to want to break the silence.
Finally Jagged spoke up. "Well?"
"Three fourths of the tickets have been sold," Penny said slowly, looking up. "We're usually sold out by now for a Paris venue."
"That's still good numbers though, isn't it?" Marinette said uncertainly.
Penny smiled sadly. "Technically, yes, but for the league Jagged is in this isn't a good thing." She glanced at him. "Ticket numbers are still going up, though, so maybe..."
She trailed off, and Jagged's music took on a slightly heavier tune. Marinette had no idea of what she could say, and so she returned her focus to her drawing. She doubted that she would be getting any feedback tonight– her father would be picking her up in an hour, and clearly Penny had much more important things to worry about than an album cover at this point.
"What we looking at right now, Pen?" Jagged asked after a long stretch of silence.
"Ticket numbers are still rising," she said. "Albeit slowly."
"Hmm," Jagged said, frowning. "Well, my fans just have to keep all the numbers up. We still have a while until the actual concert."
"One that should have been sold out fifteen minutes ago," Penny said. "I mean, once ticket sales open up to those outside of France of sure numbers will jump again– but it's these numbers we need to do well."
The sales may have been slow, but the increasing number of tickets sold didn't seem to be slowing down. Anytime Jagged asked about the numbers, Penny reported nothing but progress, and the tension in her voice didn't seem quite as stiff. The sales were continuing to climb, seemingly those who might have had possible hesitations returning to buy their tickets regardless, and Penny's hope seemed to be returning.
Just after Marinette got a text from her dad reporting that he was in the parking lot, Penny looked up from her tablet with a smile, showing it to Jagged happily. "May have taken an hour, sir– but we're officially sold out."
"Woo!" Jagged cheered, playing a loud chord on his guitar. "Ha– I knew that people wouldn't care about the stupid butterfly lady!" He turned towards Marinette, grinning. "So, what would you say about drawing animals?"
"H-huh?" Marinette stuttered, in the process of packing up her tablet. "Um... I think I do fine? I'm usually best with clothes, though..."
"Do you think you could draw Fang out as a dragon?" Jagged asked excitedly. "I saw the videos of when we were akumatized and he was just awesome. The heroes rode on his back to come and save me– it was like a reverse fairy tale!" He grinned. "I'm already working on a bonus release for my album– The Cat, the Dragon, and the Bug!"
"Huh?" Marinette blinked again.
"Paris is just full of rocking heroes, man!" Jagged said excitedly. "And now that I know that the people of Paris know it then it's time to show it." He wrapped an arm around Marinette's shoulder, pulling her in close as he held out his other hand. "Just imagine it– the bonus release, and a poster of dragon Fang to go with it! Who wouldn't love that? You would draw me something, won't you Mari?"
"I, um, I don't know if draw something like that–"
"You're an awesome artist–"
"If you think she's such an awesome artist, then trust her judgement, Jagged," Penny said, looking at Jagged pointedly. "She knows where her strengths are– and a whole poster is a tall order."
"But she did such a rockin' job on my cover!"
"Which was very abstract, not a whole scene with fantasy creatures," Penny replied. "If Marinette wants to, that's one thing, but don't pressure her into doing anything. Remember, she's a kid. She has school and life to worry about, not a job."
Jagged glanced at Marinette, before rubbing the back of his head. "Pressure? Sorry Mari, I didn't mean to sound like that at all. Just had an idea in my head just got all excited– I mean, what isn't awesome about Fang being a dragon? I wish I could remember riding on his back!"
Marinette smiled, her mind flashing back to her own memories of the dragon. "I really am flattered that you think so highly of me, M. Stone, but I do have to agree with Penny. A full poster... I think it is just a bit out of my reach right now."
"Besides, you already know plenty of people who can make you a fantastic poster, especially on short notice," Penny replied.
"Yeah, I know," Jagged said, and he glanced at Marinette. "Don't think we'll be forgetting about your skills, though. I don't want this to be my last Marinette-designed cover!"
Marinette didn't know if it was awe or nerves that made her feel so light, but she just nodded. "I'd be honored to do more commissions for you in the future, M. Stone."
"Bleh," Jagged said. "Enough with that 'M. Stone', like I said you're part of my rock family!" He slapped Marinette on the back, holding a hand out dramatically. "Honorary niece! Bringing her rocking artistic skills for all of the EU to see!"
"Jagged, stop overwhelming the poor girl, she looks like she's about to faint!"
