Miraculous
The Tales Of Ladybug And CatNoir
Creation
Chapter Two
Aftermath And Media
The month of August was painful and slow. When somebody as famous dies it is usually a matter of time before it is all over the media, and the case of Emilie Agrest was no exception. Mariette remembered scrolling through the news shortly after she got home, seeing the flood of headlines that would take over the internet during the month of August.
"French Noble dead at 41! Read more here. World famous actress Emilie Agrest declared dead of unknown causes. The death of Emilie Agrest, illness or murder."
The death of Emilie Agrest took over the world during that August. And no matter where Mariette went she could never escape it. The media began to follow her whenever she left the house. Mariette was used to being followed by strangers while going to the movies or hanging out with friends, but being followed by the press to be questioned about that horrible day was a different kind of harassment. Despite the questionable following of a teenage girl, who the press wasn't even sure had actually witnessed the death, the police did nothing to stop it so Mariette was left with no choice but to wear wigs and heavy make up whenever going out with her friends.
Due to the harassment of the press Gabriel decided that it was best for Adrian that he stay low profile for a while, He put Mariettes lesions on holded as well after seeing a video of her being jumped by an interview team go viral. Outside of the staff around his house the only people Adrian got to see in person over the rest of his summer was, his father, Nathalie, his aunt Amilie and his cousin Felix. Even though he was able to see his school friends in person he still got constant calls over the summer, each one of them wishing him well.
Soon the day of the funeral arrived, it was a fittingly grey day. Mariette and Adrian had not spoken to each other since that horrible day, leaving Mariette feeling a little bit awkward when Gabriel insisted that she sit up with the rest of Emilie's direct family at the front. It was long before the sets were flooded with people. Gabriel told Mariette and Adrian that over two hundred people wanted to come and pay their respects. Mariette could recognize most of the people within the admitted radiance of her. All of her classmates came over to greet her and Adrian. And Gabriel, seeing how they were just consoling them both about death, decided to allow this. Before they knew it a crowd of people sat there before them, teachers, parents, house staff, along with many others, some of whom flew in from across the world to pay their respects to poor late Emilie. Seeing all of these people before her provided Mariette with a great amount of comfort as she went to sit in her seat.
Adrian sat down next to her, he was wearing a black suit with a red tie and his usual messy blonde hair was straight into a slick back low ponytail that sat just below his neck.
"Are you ready Mariette?" he asked her.
"As ready as I'll ever be." Mariette repiled
As the two of them finished talking the crowd started to die down. In confusion the two of them look down the aisle where they see four strong men holding a beautiful glass case.
The crowd began to start whispering.
"Is that her?" Mariette asked Adrian quietly.
Adrian nodded, "Father told me that the edges of the coffin are made of pure gold,"
"It's beautiful." Mariette answered,
"Yeah, only the best for her. Or at least that's what father told me."
Tears started coming down from Adrian's eyes, "She really was the best."
"Yeah, she really was." Mariette said softly. "Adrian are you… Are you worried about what's going to happen next? You know, with school and stuff?"
Adrian looked down at his chair, "Well... I am more worried about not being able to go to school anymore."
"How come?" Mariette asked
"Because father has not been letting me out much since… well you know what" Adrian tilted his head towards the glass coffin, the four men had just finished carrying it up to its stand.
"Well I don't blame him." Mariette said casually. "I personally am getting sick and tired of all this press."
"Press?" Adrian asked.
"Yeah, the press." Mariette responded, "I can't even help with sales at the bakery without getting jumped on by the press. This is my first time going out in about a week actually."
"Really?" Adrian quietly exclaimed.
"Yep… I assume your father hasn't told you about how bad the press has been, has he?" Mariette said.
Adrian nodded, "I cannot say that he has. I guess this is also why your lesions suddenly stopped. I remember hearing my father yelling at the mayor talking about some kind of massive fashion inconvenience."
"Yeah…" Mariette answered, "I think that you and your father should start commuting better."
Adrian gave her a fake laugh, "Yeah.. we probably should."
As the crowd started settling down the two of them took it as their cue to stop talking.
At the front of the podium a small man in white garments and a funny long hat was standing there holding his hand up.
"Thank you," he said once the crowd had completely settled down, "Today we gather to celebrate life, both the life of Emilie Agreste, as well as life in general."
The small man looked down at a paper, the crowd started whispering again.
"Who is this guy?" Adrian wondered out loud, "I thought father said he had hired a bishop."
"Maybe he is from out of town." Mariette answered.
"Well he certainly isn't from London." a smug voice said
The two of them looked behind them. A blonde, proper looking boy sat there. He looked identical to Adrian.
"How long have you been back there?" Adrian asked.
"Since Mariette told you that you have daddy issues." The blonde boy responded,
Mariette stared at the two boys in shock, trying her hardest not to freak out.
Mariette clumsily took a breath, "Who are you?" she asked calmly.
"Oh, this is my cousin Feliix." Adrian answered quietly, "The two of you have met before."
Mariette took a good look at Felix, studying him carefully. The young boy looked identical to Adrian, same hair, same eyes, same height, heck even their smell was similar. It was like they were twins.
"Wait… were you the boy who spent the entirety of one of my lesions trying to knock down the manikins with a basketball?" Mariette asked,
"Probably." Felix answered cheekily
"Felix used to come to Paris regularly when we were little." Adrian added.
"Oh, yeah, I remember you now. You were the cheeky little bastard that ordered our entire stock of croissants." Mariette said.
Felix smiled, "What can I say, you don't get that kind of stuff in London."
"How in the world did you even manage to get that pass the aeroplane security guards?" Adrian asked
"A gentleman has his secrets." Felix replied coolly, "What is not a secret is that something is fishy about that man."
Felix pointed up at the small old man in the white robe. The man looked down tilting his head left towards the floor.
"What do you think his deal is?" Felix asked.
Mariette examined the old man, his face was round and wrinkled, and his hair was a dark grey colour the kind of colour you would associate old black and white photographs with.
"He seems to be chinese." Adrian said bluntly.
"I don't care about his race." Felix said aggressively, "Look at his clothes, those are definitely fake! They aren't made of the fabric to be actually priest garments."
Mariette looked up at the old man who was pulling up some flash cards and holding them up in his hands. Part of Mariettes lessons was learning how to identify certain types of fabrics and knowing what kinds of clothes they are traditionally used to make. Upon further examination of the old man's robes she realised Felix was without a doubt right on the garments being fake.
"Your right," Mariette told Felix, "In Fact the costume isn't even really all that convincing, it is very clear that he got the costume from some kind of Halloween store."
"Really?" Adrian asked.
"It also doesn't help that the tag is still on the costume." Felix said casually.
He pointed back at the man who had bent down to grab the flash card that must have been dropped on the ground sometime during their conversation.
Felix clutched his hand into fists, "I am getting really tired of this press nonsense," he mumbled under his breath. "Is there any reason why they won't just let us mourn in peace. Well other than money of course."
The crowd themselves were starting to realise that something was off, the whispers began to start growing into chatter. The three of them looked over at Mr Agreste, he held his hands up to his face, seemingly too caught up in his own grief to notice the sudden increase in talking that was going on.
"Look at your father," Felix said. "The poor man has not been able to catch a goshdarn break since all of this happened."
"Yeah… He is worrying me." Adrian replied.
"Well since Gabriel isn't in the right mental space to deal with this right now," Felix sat himself up in his chair and clapped his fist into his hand.
"Woah, woah, woah!" Mariette exclaimed, "I don't like what you are implying!"
Adrian looked at the two of them with a confused look on his face.
"Well I don't like that this random guy has just barged into my aunt's funeral. And I think that it is about time that people like him started showing us some damn respect."
"And how are you going to do this?" Adrian asked with an innocent, curious, tone.
Mariette rolled her eyes, "He wants to beat him up."
"You're invited to join me of course." Felix told Adrian
"What!"
"Well I assume that you are probably just as upset about this as I am. I certainly wouldn't be happy if some priest faker was coming to my mothers funeral." Felix said.
"I don't really think that attacking this man is a good idea, Felix."
"Of course it isn't!" Mariette aggressively replied, "You would get into serious trouble, I mean the chief of police is literally at the funeral."
Mariette gestured over at the pair of redheads sitting a few rows down across from them. Who looked completely confused with the ongoing situation.
"Great!" Felix said, "Maybe they will arrest the faker once I am done."
"Or he will arrest you for assaulting a man!" Mariette added,
Felix started to get up, Mariette and Adrian tried to hold the blonde boy down.
Felix shook the two of them off, "You two don't have to join me." he said in an aggressive tone, "But I am going to expose that man whether you like it or not!"
Felix threw the two of them down on the ground, causing a scene in the already confused crowd. The groups of people began to run over to get a closer look at the scene. Nathelie walked up to Felix and grabbed the collar of his shirt.
"What in the world is the meaning of this!" She exclaimed.
Noticing the ongoing drama Gabriel lifted his head up, seeing this Felix pushed Nathalie on to the ground almost effortlessly and walked over to the pale man.
"I am getting far too old for this." Gabriel moaned.
Ignoring his uncle he started to talk.
"That priest is a fake!" Felix exclaimed.
Gabriel stood up and glared down at the young boy, "I would stop causing a scene, young man."
"No!" Felix said definitely, "That priest is a fake! Look at him!"
Mariette and Adrian got up from the ground, bushing the dirt off of their black, formal, clothes. Gabriel stood over Felix, his cold dead eyes emitting an aura that felt as if it would paralyse you on sight. Everyone was now staring at the two men, despite Gabriels cold gaze Felix didn't stand down.
Adrian walked up to stand beside Felix. "He is right, father."
Gabriel rolled his eyes, "Ugh, not you to Adrian."
"B-but, father, I am not lying, I swear."
Adrian looked over at Mariette giving her a pleading look. Mariette felt flabbergasted.
"I-I, I…"
"Keep her out of this." Gabriel said sternly,
"Th-they," Mariette looked back over at Adrian, who mouthed the words "Please" in her detection.
"THEY ARE RIGHT!" Mariette exclaimed.
The crowd turned towards Mariette, her palms began to sweat.
"When you look at the costume carefully, it-its, it's very clear that the garmands that the man is wearing is fake."
Mariette stared at her mentor, his narrow eyes, his slick back hair, his tall structure, she could feel her breath leaving her as she looked at him.
"What have I done?" she thought to herself.
Her heart began to beat as if it were a snare drum making a beat so loudly that the ongoing whispers of the crowd were drowned out.
"Well go on Mariette,"
Mariette looked up seeing an impatient blonde boy staring at her with his arms crossed.
Mariette breathed in a reassuring breath (That honestly didn't help her out all that much) and began to start talking again.
"You see, Mr Agreste, part of our lessons is learning how to identify different types of fabrics and what they are used for." Mariette took another deep breath in, she was entering the zone.
Mariette walked up to the small man, "Take a cool at this." she said, regaining a confident tone, holding up the man's sleeves, "Priestly garments are made up of a mixture of dyed wool and fine linen. This gives the robes its light flowy look, while still making sure that the body is well insulated for harsh weather conditions."
The crowd looked up at Mariette examining the man's clothes. Gabriel walked up to the man, examining the sleeve that Mariette was holding carefully. Mariette stared at his face nervously. Gabriels mouth went agape he couldn't believe what he was seeing. He looked back at Mariette who was trying her hardest to hide her nervousness with a big sloppy grin. Gabriel couldn't help but smile at her, "Charming as ever." he thought to himself.
"It looks like it is only a matter of time before the student surpasses the master." He told Mariette in a surprisingly cheerful tone.
"Wh-wha…" Mariette stuttered.
Gabriel stood up to address the crowd, "My apprentice here is right, the garment that this man is wearing is far too thick. In fact when you are up close like I am right now the garment that you are currently isn't even all that convincing. It is a wonder that I didn't catch you on your way in." he said to the small man, who looked even smaller beside Gabriel.
"It also doesn't help that the tag is still on his clothes." Felix shouted to Gabriel in a smug tone.
Gabriel rolled his eyes before checking the back of the garments, pulling the small tag off.
"Couldn't even be bothered to buy a costume that was Agreste branded I see."
The small man trembled, his brown eyes met Mariettes as if begging for her to help him. As Mariette reached out her hand towards his Gabriel stepped between them.
"Don't you dare get my apprentice involved in this." Gabriel said aggressively.
Mariette jumped back in shock, unsure of what to think of this current situation. On one hand she was honoured that Gabriel Agreste cared enough about her to jump in to protect her like that, but on the other hand she was horrified for the sake of this old man. She knew how rash and down right violent that Grabriel could get, it seemed as if Grabriel killing a man at his wife's funeral would be a likely outcome.
Gabriel aggressively grabbed the man up by the collar as he hung in the air like an ugly bird.
"Tell me what news outlet you work for!" He demanded.
The old man began to panic, "I don't work for a news outlet Sir, I swear."
"Don't lie to me!" Gabriel yelled "Tell me what news outlet you work for THIS MINUTE, or else."
The man swung around in panic, "Put me down."
Mariette stood there in shock of the ongoing situation. The crowd was roaring loudly, most of them talking to each other blocking out the sounds of the old man's pleas from their ears. Mariette could also hear another sound, although she wasn't really sure what it was. It sounded like some kind of engine running, but the sound was seemingly coming from the sky so that couldn't possibly be right. A young lady with long red hair and light brown skin ran up to Mariette joining her on the stage. She pulled her phone out of a pocket on the side of her formal black dress which matched the colour of her glasses.
Mariette stared at her disapprovingly. "What the heck are you doing? Don't you know that it is impolite to film a funeral without asking?"
"Mariette, I hate to break it to you but this has become anything but a funeral." She said while pressing the record button on the screen of her phone.
"Ugh, you really drive me crazy sometimes, Alya."
Alya covered Mariettes mouth with one of her hands, while still holding the camera up with the other one. "Be quiet Mariette, Your voice is interfering with the auto of the video."
Knowing the damage that this video could cause, Mariette walked up to the two men, her hair blowing in a sudden burst of wind while she walked.
Adrian, realising what Mariette was planning on doing, jumped up on to the stage pulling himself up using its edge. The two of them noticed each other and gave the other one a firm nod, constructing a master plan without the use of words.
"Father!" Adrian shouted.
Gabriel let the man go, rushing towards his son, in an extremely panicked manner. While Gabriel was distracted Mariette rushed over to the man, dragging him away from the danger of Gabriel Areste that lay ahead.
"Adrian!" Gabriel shouted, "You aren't hurt are you."
As Adrian was about to open his mouth, a sudden screeching sound came from across the park. Followed by a sudden bang as if something just crashed. The entire crowd turned around to investigate the sudden shock.
"This just keeps getting better." Alya said while turning her phone over to record the general site.
Mariette turned towards Alya in disgust, "You are still recording!"
Alya didn't answer, instead opting to continue staring at the area she was recording.
"At least give me a response!" Mariette yelled frustratedly
Alya opened her mouth, trying to say a few words, before just pointing towards the crash site with her mouth agape. Mariette rolled her eyes before looking over at what she was pointing at. Her heart suddenly began racing, a young woman was running towards them in a blaze of glory. Her hair was bright gold like the sun, her eyes were emerald green the colour of spring grass. It couldn't possibly be…
The crowd seemed to have the same reaction that Mariette did. Whispers filled the air in a mixture of shock and excitement. Mariette looked over at Gabriel, for a brief second she could have swore that she saw pure joy on his face. The next minute it was gone, being replaced by sadness as he stared at the glass coffin. Mariette walked over to the coffin, Emilies body was still there. Alya followed her, recording that glass coffin on her phone.
"If Emilie is still here, then who is she?" Alya asked while pointing towards the blonde woman running towards them.
"I remember that Emilie told me that she had a sister." Mariette said in a gloomy tone, "I guess that they must be twins."
"Oh," Alya responded in a disappointed tone.
The woman ran up to Gabriel, her face was bright red and her black suit looked sweaty.
"I'm so sorry Gabriel, they caught me on my way here." She told him.
Gabriel looked confused, "Amilie, what in the world are you talking about."
"Did you not get my text?" She asked him while wiping off a bit of sweat off her face. "There was a mix up with the dates of the funeral, so I had to go pick up the priest."
A man in white garments appeared behind her, the wind began to pick up.
"I am very sorry about the inconvenience, Mr Agreste." He said politely
Gabriel Agreste turned back around as the old man hid behind Mariette. Gabriel glared down at him
"I thought I told you to leave my apprentice out of this." He grumbled.
Mariette gave Gabriel a pleading look, "Gabriel, sir, please think rationally."
"Step aside Mariette, a young lady like you has no place in this conflict."
Mariette stared at Gabriel as he walked over towards her, completely unsure of what to do.
Adrian, seeing Mariettes panic, instantly grabbed his fathers arm pulling him away from the two of them.
"Adrian! Not you too!" Gabriel said
"Stop this father, mother would have never wanted this." Adrian replied.
Hearing his son's words he stopped momentarily.
"But Adrian," he began.
"Mother wouldn't have wanted you to become a murder at her own funeral, she wouldn't have wanted you to become a murder at all."
The crowd went completely, quietly staring at the grief struck man. His face began to settle down a bit, Adrian let out a sigh of relief.
Gabriel looked back at the old man, his rage still beaming out of his eyes "Your lucky son is so merciful."
The old man still stared at him in fear.
"Well, go on now." Gabriel said in a passive aggressive tone.
The man, realising this was his cue to run, turned around and quickly bowed to Mariette.
"Thank you," he said quietly, before running off the stage.
The old man ran as fast as he could muster while looking down at the ground, presumably in shame. Gabriel turned towards Mariette, Adrian followed behind him.
"Are you alright Mariette?" he asked in a calm tone, "that man didn't do anything to hurt you, did he?"
Mariette shook her head, "don't worry I am fine. I have had worse experiences with the press."
Alya put her phone down, probably hiding it from Gabriel Agreste who she knew would punish her dearly for recording all of this.
"About the press…" Alya said, "They are um… here right now." Alya ran off of the stage as Gabriel, Mariette, and Adrian turned forward, in front of them was a news van being followed by a helicopter. A Young woman came out of the van holding a microphone, her camera man followed behind her.
Amilie looked up at Gabriel, "I am sorry." she mouthed to him.
"Of course!" Mariette suddenly exclaimed, "A helicopter! That was the weird sound coming from the sky."
Gabriel rolled his eyes, "You have got to be kidding me."
Gabriel walked up towards the news reporter and her cameraman.
"Excuse me." Gabriel said formally, "This is a private event, I would politely request that you leave here immediately."
The crowd stared at the TV crew, some of them waved happily at the camera, others stared at it furiously.
The young woman turned towards the camera, "Don't be amused, it's just the news," she said cheerfully. "I am on the air with Mr Agrest, world famous fashion designer, at the site of his late wife's funeral. How does the passing of your wife make you feel, Mr Agrest?"
Gabriel stared at her as if she was the gum at the bottom of his shoe. Felix climbed up the stage and sat down promptly by his cousin, motioning for the two of them to sit down with him.
"Well, this escalated quickly." Adrian said casually while sitting down next to Felix.
Mariette sat down beside Adrian, the sound of sudden thunder booming behind them.
"Great," she said sarcastically, "Now it's raining. As if we haven't already been through enough today."
The rain began to start pouring, lightning flashed behind the stage. Members of the crowd started leaving one by one, and it wasn't like any of them could blame them either; this was probably the worst funeral imaginable.
"I, Gabriel Agreste, order you to leave this instant."
Another struck of lightning flashed behind them, the formal outfits that they were all wearing were now soaked.
The news reporter, realising that they weren't going to end up getting any good news out of Gabriel. Looked around for a new target. And of course, much to the three teens dismay, the new target turned out to be them.
"Adrian Agreste," The news reporter lady said, while running past Gabriel. "How does the recent passing of your mother make you feel?"
As Adrian struggled to give an answer more and more news crews came to the site, soon they were surrounded. Gabriel tried to get over towards the three teens, but was unable to reach them through the crowd of reporters. One by one the reporters approached them.
"What does this mean for the future of the Agreste brand?"
"Will the death of your mother affect the rest of your summer plans?"
Adrian began to back up, unsure of what to say.
"Well… um…" Adrian struggled as the press surrounded him.
Mariette stared at Adrian. She was so sick of the press that she couldn't stand it. Felix looked over at her, making it very clear that he had no clue what to do.
Mariette stood there, a tear dropped from her eye. "What do I do?" she whispered.
Felix's face dropped, as if he had just broken his mother's vase.
"He doesn't know how to handle the press." He answered.
"How does that help us?" Mariette asked.
"You do." he said bluntly
Mariette paused for a moment, "But I am not the one they want to interview."
Felix looked up at her, "Gabriel has hid the rumours from you, hasn't he?"
Mariette looked at him with a confused gaze.
"Rumours?" She asked, "What rumours?"
Felix pulled out his phone, "See this picture."
Mariette took his phone to get a better look. Upon seeing its context she nearly dropped it in shock.
"How in the world did they manage to get that photo?" She asked Felix who gave her a shrug.
"I don't know." he answered bluntly, "As far as I am concerned the Agreste manor is the most secure place on earth. But I guess that it is safe to say that the rumours are true? That you were actually there on the day she died."
Mariette looked around, making sure that the press were all distracted before giving him a curt nod.
"Well then you do have information that the press wants. You should have seen the website last week. This picture was among the first to get leaked confirming her death, it drove the media nuts." Felix told her.
Mariette sighed, "I just wanted to be left to mourn in peace."
"I know," Felix answered, "I think that we all wanted to be left alone in peace. But Adrian needs you."
Mariette looked over at Adrian struggling to get away from the press, stuttering as he backed up with a scared look in his eyes.
"You're right." Mariette said sadly, "You go pull Adrian away while I distract them."
Felix nodded. "Thanks Mariette, I know that this is a lot to ask of you."
Mariette looked back at the remorseful young man, "It is what has to be done." she said in a sad blunt voice.
Mariette walked over to the middle of the stage. Her heart started pounding again, palms sweating; with every step she took she could feel the pressure greater.
"Heavy…" she thought to herself, "Why do I feel… so heavy?"
Mariette felt as if she was about to collapse again, she was damp with sweat, the sound of her heart pounding was impairing her hearing, panic began to flood into her.
"Should I really be doing this? What if I end up messing up? What if I just end up making things worse?"
She looked over at Adrian, his green eyes were desperate, he was nearing the back of the stage. It became clear to Mariette that the press wasn't going to stop, they wanted their story and Adrian was their target. At this rate they would end up chasing Adrian off the stage and he wasn't looking behind him. Knowing what she had to do she stopped and took a deep breath.
"H-hay," Mariette said
Not a single person on the press turned, Mariette looked over at Felix who mouthed the words "Be louder." to her.
"HAY!" she shouted at the top of her lungs, "D-Do-DO YOU GUYS WANT A STORY OR NOT!"
A member of the news team turned over to her. "Hey look, it's Mariette, Mr Agrestes pupil!" they exclaimed.
Before Mariette could really process what was happening she was surrounded by reporters, each one of them asking a different question then the last. It was honestly very hard for her to comprehend. Mariette breathed in deeply again, beforing talking to them in a formal tone.
"I am willing to answer any questions that you have for me, I just ask that you do it one at a time."
Mariette knew that for the most part asking the press this would never work but at least now she could actually make out some of their questions.
"How would you say that the death of Emilie Agreste has affected the future of the Agreste Brand?" A man with brown hair asked her
"I-I, well, I guess that I am not entirely sure."
Mariette glanced over at Adrian, who was being pulled off the stage by Felix.
"But I assume that it has affected it negatively." She continued while trying her best not to stutter.
Another news reporter, this one being a blonde lady went up to her holding her microphone.
"Info from a reliable source tells us that you are a student at the Agreste Academy. How do you believe that the sudden death of Emilie Agreste will affect the future of you and your peers?"
Mariette paused, despite the fact that the death of Emilie Agreste was all that she had been focusing on for the last two weeks this very thought had yet to come up in her mind. Tears began to trickle down her cheek as the new found sense of panic began to set in.
"I don't know." she answered, "I guess I haven't really thought about it up until now…"
"Well you better start thinking about it," A sarcastic camera behind the blonde lady said.
"Things are going to start changing, for better or for worse."
Mariette's heart started pounding again, "Changing?" she mumbled quietly
The camera man laughed. "Stupid kid."
The blonde news reporter did nothing to stop her partner, continuing to push the mic into Mariette's face. Her formal dark eyeliner began to stain her face as her tears ran down. She looked over to where Adrien and Felix were, the two of them were gone. Realising that she had no reason to be there anymore Mariette started backing away from the crowd, soaking herself in the heavy rain. Upon turning around to escape off of the crowd stage she was jumped by a woman with short red hair in a blue suit.
"Hello there Mariette, I am Nadja Chamack and if you don't mind I have some questions to ask you regarding the rumoured photos."
Gabriel Agreste looked up at the struggling Mariette as she gave Nadja the biggest fake smile she could muster.
"I would love to Nadja, but look at the weather, If we stay out here any longer we're going to catch a cold." Mariette said in the sweetest tone she could muster, "None of us would want that."
"Oh don't worry Mariette, I promise you that it won't take long."
"Sorry Nadja, I have to run."
Mariette started to bolt off of the stage, her formal dress getting muddy as she walked. When suddenly she stopped. A force was pulling her back. in fear she looked behind her, where that one camera man stood holding her back. Trembling, Mariette tried her best to struggle out of his massive arms, but it was no use, her small thin body didn't stand a chance against his strong, horrifying, grip. Gabriel, seeing that she was in danger tried to run over to her, but he too was surrounded by a group of camera men. The blonde woman ran up to her cameraman, trying her hardest to pull Mariette out of his tough grasp.
"Robert, what is the meaning of this!" She exclaimed as another cameraman caught her in their grasp.
Robert threw Mariette down onto the hard mud-covered ground. "You know as well as I do that if this story isn't a hit then the layoffs are happening!" he shouted at the blonde girl.
"And like always, it's the camera men who are first to go. I REFUSE TO LOSE ANOTHER JOB OVER SOME RICH GIRL WHO REFUSED TO TALK!" he shouted.
Mariette slowly lifted her head from the puddle, the blue blush that she was wearing was now a concerning colour of purple.
"I AM GOING TO GET LITTLE MISSY TO TALK IF IT IS THE LAST THING I DO!"
Gabriel, desperately trying to get past the cameraman's goons, shouted in the loudest tone that Mariette had ever heard him use.
"I Demand You To Leave her Alone!"
A camera man grabbed him, in fear Nathalie ran over to him trying to get him free. The two of them struggled and struggled to no avail, ultimately she couldn't pull him free. As Mariette looked up at the two of them in fear, Adrian and Felix exited from the back of the stage. Gabriel noticed this.
"Go protect Adrian, Nathalie. I promise I will be fine."
The red haired woman noticed this and ran over to the two boys, very few people tried to stop them while doing so. Mariette sat there on the ground, fear still flowing through her body. While Gabriel struggled to break free from the cameraman's grasp. With tears in her eyes, Mariette got up.
"Fine… I will tell you what you need to know. Just put Mr Agreste down!"
The cameraman looked at her as she tried her best not to faint from the amount of stress she was in.
"Tell us about the rumours first," he said.
Mariette opened her mouth, beginning to speak.
"The rumours are true, I was there that day that Emilie died." she said loud enough for them all to hear.
The were a few gasps from the crowd as well as quite a few "I told you so" and "No ways"
"Tell me more." The man demanded
"I was at the manor for one of my lessons with Mr Agreste, it was a shock when it happened none of us expected it." Mariette began to feel something rising in her, "I was one of the last people she ever talked to! She said that she viewed me as a daughter and I had no idea she had. I am such an blind, stupid naive girl, not to mention clumsy and incapable."
Gabriel looked down at her, "Let me go!" He demanded, "Has she not already said enough!"
"Quiet old timer!" the large man said,
Mariette continued, "Although I wasn't in the room when she died I could hear the moment that her soul left her body, it was traumatising. Shortly after the death happened I was driven home. I haven't had the chance to cope with the death at all due to your guys obsession with following me around, this is actually the first time that I have left the house in weeks!"
The man holding Gabriel began to let him go. Despite this,, Mariette continued, she was in too much mental distress to notice.
"Oh! And I guess that is also not enough for you either! Do you want to hear about how my lessons have been temporarily cancelled, or maybe about how the bakery is so badly behind on deliveries that my parents couldn't come to the funeral, or maybe about how I wanted to use this funeral as a way to heal the shock of this pain. You know, LIKE THE ACTUAL PURPOSE OF A FUNERAL IS! Not like I expect you to understand though, all you guys have ever cared about is the money you get from invading other people's lives."
The whole crowd stared at the emotionally destressed young lady as she began to run away past the cameraman.
"I hope that interview will suffice." She said quietly towards the cameraman.
Filled with fear, shock, anger, and sadness, Mariette ran out of the park, sobbing. The guilt ridden crowd of press began to start packing up their things and entering their vans. Soon there was no one left but Gabriel Agreste, who stood out there in the cold rain.
"Oh, Emilie…" he said sadly, "What am I supposed to do without you?"
"Well you can alway start by getting out of the rain and putting some warm clothes on." A formal voice said from behind him.
"Nathalie?" he exclaimed. "I thought that I told you to protect Adrian!"
"And she did father."
Gabriel turned around behind him four people, three of which being blonde, stood behind him. Tears began to run down his face.
"Oh Adrian," he said, rushing over to embrace his son. "You aren't hurt are you?"
Gabriel desperately checked the condition of his son. Adrian laughed while Felix rolled his eyes.
"I am fine, father, they didn't lay a finger on me." Adrian smiled.
Gabriel let his son out of his embrace, "Oh good, I would have never forgiven myself if something had happened to you."
The two smile at each other before being interrupted by Felix, his mother holding his shoulder.
"This is cute and all but what exactly is the plan now? I hate to break it to you but I am pretty sure that this funeral itself needs a funeral now. Not to mention the fact that you were just brutally attacked, uncle. Shouldn't our first objective be getting you a doctor or something."
"Felix, honey, don't be so rude to your uncle!" his mother gasped.
Gabriel sighed, "He is right though. I would've never imagined that something like this could have happened…"
Nathalie placed her hand on his shoulder, "You have no reason to worry, while in the car I contacted all of the guests and told them to meet us at the manor. I have also contacted the priest and the movers so we can relocate the funeral there. It wouldn't be exactly what we had in mind but we can all still have a lovely time."
Gabriel looked up at Nathalie, "I don't know what we would do without you." he said softly.
Nathalie smiled, "I am just doing my job sir."
Adrian and Felix looked up at the two of them.
"Looks like you might be getting another mother sooner than we thought." Felix whispered in Adrians ear.
"Now is not the time, Felix." Adrian whispered back.
"I am just saying that Mariette would agree with me if she we-"
"Oh shoot!" Adrian exclaimed. "Mariette!"
"Don't worry I have already contacted the guests about it, not to mention the fact that her interview was streamed on live TV. It is pretty safe to say that she will be found one way or another."
"Wow," Adrian said in an admiring tone. "Father is right, I really don't know what we would do without you."
Nathalie nodded at the young boy, "I think that it is time that we all get going. We have been in the rain for long enough and Mariette was right about not wanting to catch a cold."
The four of them smiled at each other while walking towards the limo, it was clear that for one movement they had forgotten the pain of this day.
While the close family of Emilie were entering the limo the adrenaline had stopped running for Mariette. She sat down on the sidewalk, exhausted from all that had just happened to her. Regaining her scenes, Mariette began to look around her.
"Where am I?" she wondered out loud.
Despite having lived in Paris her whole life, Mariette could safely say that she doesnt recognize this place at all. Mariette sat down by an alley way as the rain soaked her, a newly found panic starting to set in.
"What have I gotten myself into?" she cried.
The thunder from the storm started roaring above her, causing lightning to dance from rooftop to rooftop. A cold chill began to enter Mariette's body as she cried softly into her hands.
"Mariette?"
Mariette looked forward, a long, luxurious, red, car was parked in front of her. A young girl her age was staring at her from a rolled down window.
"What are you doing out here in the rain?" She asked calmly.
Mariette looked up at the girl. She was expecting that somebody would eventually come to find her, but due to the fact that her friend here was supposed to be stuck in Japan due to flight issues, she was among the last people that she expected.
"Kagami? I thought that you were supposed to spend another week in Japan…"
The young girl nodded, "I was, but mother managed to get me onto an earlier flight."
"That's good…" Mariette said quietly.
The two girls stared at each other in near silence, the only sounds breaking it being the zooming of other cars and the splashing of rain on the roadway.
"Well, are you getting in?" Kagami eventually asked,
Mariette looked up at her with a confused glance. "Wha-"
"I saw the interview. I and likely the entire world for that matter" Kagami interrupted, "I would have thought that you would have taken shelter indoors, but I guess that you were to mentally distressed for that. You are talented at many things but handling your anxiety has never been one of them."
"Don't you think that saying I have anxiety is a bit much?" Mariette asked.
Kagemi shook her head, "No, not at all. Now, come in the car. Its freezing out there."
Mariette had never been so revealed to see her close friend's brown eyes. A swerve of energy gave her the strength to stand up and walk towards the car. Kagemi opened the door and moved over, handing the soaking Mariette a towel as she sat down.
"Here," she said calmly, "You're soaking."
"Thanks," Mariette replied gratefully.
Mariette wiped the dirt and grime off of her face, another red substance came off as well. Kagemi looked down at the towel.
"Mariette is that-"
"What! No!" Mariette sheepishly laughed, "Of course it isn't."
Kagemi stared at Mariette sternly. Her brown eyes in a near glare.
"Let me have a closer look." She said strictly.
Kagemi reached out to touch the red streak on Mariette's face. Once she was finished examining Mariette she elegantly bent down to pick her bag up. Upon straightening up her navy blue hair she pulled out a white cloth to clean up Mariettes wound.
"Do you know how this happened?" She asked Mariette in her usual tone of voice.
Mariette shrugged, "Well to be completely honest with you it's all a blur, but my best guess would be that I scraped myself on a sharp rock when that man threw me into the puddle."
"I see…" Kagemi answered as she finished cleaning up the wound. "Well, as you know you are the only other girl that my mother allows me to hang out with, thus making you my only friend who I am allowed to share in the joys of being female with, you being my only female friend thus makes you my best friend. As such it is my job, as you are my best friend, for me to take care of that wound."
Mariette stared at Kagemi. For as much as she has learned to love her sweet yet socially awkward nature, somedays it sounded as if she was speaking utter nonsense to her.
"The wound is deeper than your average cut, but I definitely have seen worse."
She said well, attaching a bandage to the wound. "I understand why you would feel intimidated being called out on this stuff from someone like me, but even so I ask of you not to hide it."
"Sorry…" Mariette answered awkwardly.
"It is much alright." Kagemi said formally, "I understand that you have been under a lot of stress today and the wound should be nothing to be ashamed of. You handled that situation rather elegantly, not to mentone with a confident look for the public too. You should be proud Mariette.
Mariette started quietly at Kagemi, completely unsure of how to respond. For as much as she trusted Kagemi she wasn't sure whether or not she was truly being genuine or if she was just trying to make her feel better.
"Thanks." Mariette said quietly as small tears ran from her eyes.
Kagemi nodded, "Tatsu, would you mind taking us to the Agreste manor?"
"Of course Kagemi-san." A robotic voice replied. "Redirecting location to Agreste manor."
Mariette jumped up a bit as the self-driving car began to move, although Mariette has caught a ride with Kagemi several times over the years that they have known each other she has never really gotten used to the sensation of a self-driving car.
"Why are we heading to the Agreste manor?" Mariette asked timidly.
"After you ran off Nathlie sent out texts to all of the guests that they decided to relocate the funeral to Agreste Manor. Kagemi answered, "She also sent us all texts asking us to look for you and contact him if we found you."
"Oh, that was nice of him." Mariette said.
"And that reminds me, Tatsu, would you send a message to Mr Agrest?"
"Please insert your message Kagemi-san."
"Hello Mr Agreste, this is Kagemi. I am unsure whether mother has messaged you this yet but she had managed to get me on an earlier flight so that I may offer my condolences about your wife's death. Well on my way to attend the funeral I ended up finding Mariette so you can now end your search, Mariette and I are on our way."
"Your message has been sent!" Tatsu said.
Less than a minute later the car chimed again.
"You have gotten a message from Mr Agreste! Would you like me to read it out to you?
"Yes please." Kagemi answered.
"Hello Kagemi-san, I can not thank you enough for finding Mariette on your way here! I wasn't aware that Tsurugi-san had sent you here but I thank you dearly for your condolences. Adrian has told me that he would like to greet you two at the door when you two arrive. Look forward to seeing you two there.
Kagemi smiled, "I don't think you understand exactly how much he adores you. It seems to upset my mother that he adores you so much, I guess that she wanted that for me."
Mariette sighed, "But isn't it weird. I mean I have my own family and parents and all of that, and I know so many other people who have broken families. Like you, for example your father disappeared when you were little to never be seen again. Shouldn't it be someone like you who has a father-like bond with a mentor figure?
"That is definitely one way of viewing it, but have you ever considered that it could be the other way around?"
Mariette shook her head, "What exactly do you mean by that?"
"My mother told me that Gabriel and Emilie wanted to have a much bigger family than just the two of them and Adrian but were unable to. I believe that you are more of Gabriel's daughter then he is your father." Kagemi said
"I guess that makes sense." Mariette replied, "It's just that… well…"
"You still feal guilty for being a part of another family when you have your own?" Kagemi filled in.
Mariette nodded slowly, unable to make eye contact with Kagemi.
"There is no shame in loving multiple people, Mariette. The beauty of love is that it can be expressed in many ways and be felt for many different people. There are very few elements in this world that can do that, this makes love among the most powerful things in our world. You should never let anyone stop you from loving people." Kagemi said strongly
As the car turned towards the block of the Agreste manor Adrian and Felix sat on the steps by the door way. Adrian was holding an open black umbrella as Felix was scrolling through some pictures on Adrians phone.
"So this is Kagemi?" Felix asked Adrian, pointing at a picture of a young girl holding on to one of Adrians shoulders.
"Yes, that would be her." Adrian responded cheerfully. "I am surprised that you haven't met her before."
"I can't say that I am too surprised. After all, the journey to Paris from London is a long trip. I wish I had met her before though, because damn is she cute!"
Adrian stared at his cousin. "Um, what."
Felix smiled at him. "I mean look at her, for one, the bob she has going for her is great. Her fashion sense is steller, and her facial features give her a nice calm and collected look. She is generally cute!"
"Kagemi is definitely what people would describe as perfect, but I don't think she is for me. Although if it was up to her mother she would say otherwise." Adrian said
"So is she still on the table?" Felix asked in a carefree, mischievous tone.
Adrian laughed at the thought of this. Knowing exactly how opposite the two of them were was too much to handle. He couldn't imagine a world where the two of them were together.
"Well, I definitely don't intend on trying to stop you. But that said, I think that it is unlikely that it would work out."
Felix laughed. "I think you underestimate me cus. I may not be a model but I do have a thing with the ladies."
Adrian also laughed, "Just do me a favour and don't try to flirt with her during the funeral."
"Of course not, who do you think I am? Nadja Chamack? I still have common decency you know."
The two boys laughed even harder, not even the loudest sounds of thunder could block out their cheer.
"Hay, Felix." Adrian said shyly, "Do you think that you will be able to start coming over to Paris more often again?" He asked timidly, "I know that it is a long flight from London to Paris and all that but I can't tell you how much I've missed this."
Felix smiled at his cousin and put his arm around him.
"I would like nothing more." He answered, "After all, if I am going to win over Kagemi with my super awesome charm I am going to need to come over more often, aren't I?"
The two boys laughed and playfully nudged each other as a shiny red car stopped in the driveway in front of them. Adrian and Felix cheerfully went down to greet them as Mariette and Kagemi exited the car. Both automatically getting soaked from the heavy rain.
"Here," Adrian said sweetly, holding out his umbrella towards Mariette.
Mariette stared at him, her mouth gaping, as she began to glow a brilliant shade of light pink.
Kagemi went up to whisper in Mariettes ear, "I think you are supposed to take the umbrella he is offering you." she said quietly.
"Right." Mariette said, snapping back into reality. "Thank you Adrian."
Felix laughed, "I bet that she was too busy thinking about the point of using an umbrella when she is already soaked. You are horrible with the ladies!"
Adrian rolled his eyes, "Alright then Mr "Ladies Man" He said sarcastically. "Why don't you show me how it is done then."
"Watch and learn," Felix said while holding out his own umbrella to Kagemi. "Why, hello there miss. I couldn't help but notice that the heavy rain has messed up your beautiful hair and complexion, not to mentone what a shame it would be if someone as beautiful as you ended up catching a cold. Would you like to use my umbrella in these trying times?"
Kagemi gave him the most dead, cold, and intimidating look she could muster. Despite this Felix's charming smile and pose didn't even flinch.
"I don't see the point of using an umbrella when I am already soaked." Kagemi said in a hilariously blunt tone.
The four of them laughed as they began to head inside, with the two umbrellas evenly spaced between them to keep them all dry. Once they had all finished going inside a small old man peeked around the white van beside where they once were, a strange green fairy-like thing peeked out from his bag.
"You know what master?" The green fairy thing said. "For how convoluted your plan was, I think that it actually worked nicely. Those two truly are meant to be."
"Thank you Wayzz, but there is still a lot more work that has to be done before we can call it a success. It looks like things have begun to slow down a bit, hopefully long enough for me to conduct a way to get the Miraculous of the Ladybug and Black cat to them.
"I have full confidence in you master!" Wade said enthusiastically. "If you are able to get away with pretending to be a fake priest at the funeral for one of the most famous people in France without getting arrested then getting these two Miraculous should be a piece of cake!"
The old man smiled and rubbed the green fairy thing on the head.
"Let us hope so, Wayzz. The sooner they get to them the better."
The old man walked out of the parking lot and back into the actual street. Although the walk home from here would be a long and cold one it would at least give him the time he needs to figure out what to do.