As the car pulled up to the mansion, Adrien was on the steps waiting, he approached the car once it had stopped and opened the door. He smiled when he saw Marinette curled up on the seat.
He slid in and gently put his arm around her, shifting her to be able to lean against him as he angled her toward the door for the Gorilla to pick up as he had a better angle.
Once they were all out the Gorilla shifted the sleeping girl into Adrien's arms and he carried her up the steps. Walking to his father's office he set her on the couch before sitting and placing her head on his lap. He sat stroking her hair as he waited for the others to join him.
He had been discussing his father's designs for the new Adrien line when a call from the Gorilla came through, accepting the call, he was angered to hear what was being said as the bodyguard approached Mr. Damocles. Gabriel, sensing the seriousness of the situation, began to record the video call as soon as he could, he knew this could be more evidence to use against Ms. Rossi. Making sure that Adrien was out of the frame of the camera, Gabriel began to assess the situation and plan just as the Gorilla placed his hand on Damocles' shoulder.
During the conversation, which to Adrien was a joy to watch as his father was amazing at taking control of a situation, Adrien, when not enjoying the evisceration of Mr. Damocles, had to be almost physically restrained by Nathalie from jumping up and making his way to the school.
It took everything in him not to summon Plagg and transform right there to go save his wife, secret identity be damned!
Thankfully, he didn't. Damocles will never know how close he came to being on the receiving end of a Cataclysm.
Now he sat and comforted himself in the fact that his father had not only gathered hard evidence of the incompetence of Mr. Damocles but had also terrified the man who had been an annoyance since Lila came.
Adrien was lost in thought when Gabriel and Nathalie walked in followed by the Gorilla. Adrien's fingers were tangled in Marinette's hair as she slept, and he gently touched her head. On his face was a scowl as he contemplated the day's events.
"As a concerned parent," Gabriel began as he sat behind his desk, Nathalie standing off to his side and the Gorilla standing behind the couch Adrien sat on. "I have reached out to the school board to inquire about the proper procedure for a situation similar to the one that Marinette was accused of today. Of course, as I stepped in to rectify the situation, I had to divulge what happened today as well as mention some of the other failings the school's administration has shown. I have been assured by the board that they will take these matters very seriously and will open an investigation into it immediately."
"I think we need to move the timeframe for the plan up," Adrien said as he looked down into Marinette's sleeping face, a look of contentment on her face as she turned to cuddle closer to Adrien. "I saw the video of Lila's attack on Marinette this morning. If she's willing to attack her in broad daylight on school grounds, we have no idea what she may do."
"Yes," Gabriel agreed as he pulled the video up on his tablet, the sound off. "I had the same thought. The video clearly shows Ms. Rossi as the aggressor and Marinette as the victim."
"I spoke to Legal as Marinette was on her way home," Nathalie added, "They have advised us to continue to gather evidence. They have informed me that they are currently working with the others mentioned in Ms. Rossi's lies to build a strong case against her and that almost everyone implicated was on board with moving forward. There are a few minor details to put into place before we can move on this, however, I have been informed by Legal that they have reached out to the Prefecture of Police and have been in contact with them, Lieutenant Raincomprix has been assigned as liaison between the Police and our Legal department."
Adrien nodded as he looked down on Marinette, his thoughts turning a million different ways.
"That's Sabrina's dad, she's in our class and one of the Lila devotees."
"I'll make note of that," Nathalie said as she posted a message to Legal to make sure their liaison did not discuss the potential case or his involvement with his daughter.
Silence reigned for a few moments before Gabriel rose and moved around his desk.
"Well, we have several fashion lines coming out soon, shall we wake Marinette and go over some of the designs?"
Adrien was pulled from his thoughts and was angry at his father for even suggesting it, at least for a moment. He realized that while the events of the day would need to be addressed, there was nothing they could do at the time and that it was best they focus on the work that they could complete.
"Yes," Adrien answered as he looked up at his father, his face blank for a moment before he let out a sigh and a small smile returned to his face. "We do have a lot to do. Speaking of the new lines, I just had a wonderful, terrible idea on how we can trap Lila when we spring the trap. Let me wake Marinette first then I'll tell you all about it."
The adults nodded and left the room to head to the dining room where the various designs and plans had been spread across the table.
Adrien leaned down and gently kissed her temple, drawing a smile to her face.
She rolled over on his lap and ended up on her back, her arms reaching above her head in a stretch and her eyes fluttered open like a kitten.
"Hey," she said as she looked at him.
"Hey yourself," he answered as he leaned down for a kiss.
Marinette smiled as the kiss lasted a few minutes.
Finally breaking it he pulled away and cupped her cheek, kissing her forehead.
"We have work to do, and I have an idea for entrapping Lila when the time is right."
"I'm too comfortable," she play-whined even as she sat up.
Adrien laughed and took her hand to stand once she was fully up. Keeping hold of her hand he led her to the dining room and the adults waiting there.
"So, here's my idea," Adrien began as he led Marinette to the table and looked at the others gathered, a wicked, Cheshire grin breaking across his face as he laid out his plan.
.o.0.o.
The following day, Adrien and Marinette arrived separately as Marinette had to stop by the bakery for some supplies she had in her room. She also needed to get some macarons for Tikki as well as for Adrien and herself. That and she missed her parents, she spent several minutes telling them all about what was happening with their grand plan. She knew that Nathalie was keeping them informed, but she just wanted an excuse to see her parents.
With hugs and kisses, she left the bakery with a small box of pastries for her and Adrien and a few extras for the Gorilla who was currently a few feet behind her.
Smiling at the man, she gave him the box once she had reached the school grounds and hugged him as he watched her enter the building before returning to the car to enjoy his morning snack.
Marinette was smiling as she slipped into the room several minutes before the bell was to ring and made her way to the top of the stairs and her waiting seat.
With a grin, she pulled a wrapped pastry from her bag and slid it to Adrien. She giggled as his eyes lit up before he took a bite.
"Mmmmm," he said as he savored the flavor. "I forgot how good these are," he said as he closed his eyes in bliss.
Marinette laughed as she took out her pastry.
"But you had some for breakfast the other day, once Nathalie and the head chef tried one it was a sure thing you'd have them every day."
"I know," he replied as he took another bite, "but with how close the bakery is to the school they are so much fresher, these are the second-best thing I've tasted."
"Oh, and what's the first?" she asked as she rose to his bait.
He flashed her a Chat Noir grin before wiggling his eyebrows and leaning forward to whisper in her ear.
"Your lips," he said as he sneaked a kiss to the shell of her ear, his comment making her blush. He pulled back with a grin and returned to his pastry, ignoring the confused looks on his classmate's faces as they watched Marinette turn a bright shade of red after he whispered into her ear.
Regaining her composure she shot him a look as she took a shaky bite from her pastry.
Thankfully, Lila had not shown up yet, however, Alya was shooting her a strange look. Marinette ignored her as she did not have time for people who were no longer her friends.
Finishing the pastry she turned to Adrien to see that he'd taken their math homework out and was checking over it.
Marinette leaned over to see which problem he was looking at. She pointed to various places and asked how he got that answer before comparing it to her attempt.
They were still comparing homework answers when a visibly upset Lila stormed in followed by Ms. Bustier.
"Class," the teacher called to get their attention, it took a few moments for the varied conversations to die down. Once they did the teacher continued.
"Mr. Damocles has called a short school-wide assembly in the gymnasium. We are all to head there at once as a class. It should not take more than a few minutes."
The class was talking amongst themselves trying to figure out what it could be about. Adrien and Marinette just shared a look, both hoping that the assembly was what they hoped it was.
Adrien gave a subtle nod to her jacket pocket and the tape recorder hiding there, she nodded back to confirm she had it and that she'd start it once they were in the gym. She hoped that Max had the foresight to ask Markov to record it as well.
Resisting the urge to grab the other's hand, they each stuck their hands in their pockets and made idle chatter as they walked, speculating about what the assembly would be about.
Soon, the entirety of the school was sitting in the gym in folding chairs as they awaited the principal. There was a dull murmur as people continued to speculate, especially since many of the assembled had also been witness to the incident between Marinette and the Principal the day before.
The silence broke across the students like a wave as a somewhat humbled-looking Mr. Damocles stepped onto the stage and made his way to the podium and microphone set up in the center of the stage.
"Good morning," he said as he shuffled his notes and looked out into the audience, his eyes finding those of Marinette and holding her gaze a moment before sliding away in shame.
"As many of you know there was an incident yesterday involving myself and one of your classmates. I wanted to hold this assembly to clarify a few things. First, I would like to personally apologize to Ms. Marinette Dupain-Cheng for the way I acted yesterday."
Among the whispers that broke out a rather irate exclamation of 'what?' came from the direction of Lila before she was shushed by her neighbors.
"My actions were not those that an educator, let alone the principal should have done. I publicly humiliated you and cast shame upon you without investigating the matter before approaching you. For that, I am truly sorry."
A murmur rose as the students whispered to each other; over the din, Marinette could feel the heated glare of Lila as she tried to burn a hole through her head.
"Second," Mr. Damocles said, "the school Governing board, in light of yesterday's events, has decided to hire a new staff member who will be in charge of investigating all accusations of assault or bullying. This new staff member will work independently from the rest of the school and will not be influenced by myself or other staff members in order to create a fair and honest investigation system. However, the rest of the staff will work closely to provide any support this new team member will need."
He paused to allow the students to take this information in.
"Third and finally," Mr. Damocles said as he set aside his notes and looked out into the gathered staff and students. "There has been a very generous donation from the community to upgrade the in-school camera system to allow for improved coverage and better detail from the cameras. Thanks to this donation, the camera system will be updated over the rest of this week, so please be aware that there will be numerous workers installing the new system. I ask that you do not interfere with them and allow them to do their jobs."
Clearing his throat he looked out at the students once more.
"Thank you for coming, that is all."
As the students were rising, Mr. Damocles returned to the microphone once more.
"One more thing," he began as the students sat down once again. "Mr. Gabriel Agreste has generously decided to offer tickets to all staff and students for the upcoming Agreste summer line reveal, if you are interested in attending please see your teachers so that we can get an exact number for the tickets. All students and staff will be allowed to bring one other person with them. That is all, you are all dismissed to class."
Adrien was smug as he turned to Marinette.
"Oh, shut up," she said with an eye roll as she shoved his shoulder, a grin on her face. She was going to reach into her pocket to stop the tape but decided to let it record. She indicated with a nod to the pocket that the tape was still going, and Adrien nodded back.
"I can honestly say I'm shocked by the apology, who knew he had it in him," Adrien was saying as they walked back to class.
"Well, your dad did lay it out pretty clearly that he had no choice," Marinette answered back as she casually allowed her hand to brush his as they swung by their sides.
He grinned back at her and brushed her hand.
"He can be very convincing."
"Just like someone else I know," she replied in a teasing tone, her hand brushing his for longer than necessary. She sighed as she thought about the announcements.
"You do know that the tickets will be all anyone can think about now, right?"
"Of course," Adrien replied with a predatory grin, "that's the plan. Not only will Lila take credit for convincing my father to provide them, but it'll also keep her not focused on the apology you got."
Marinette smiled. How did she ever get so lucky to fall in love with such a wonderful, yet diabolical, boy?
"You're evil, you know that?"
Adrien laughed as he pulled her into a side hug, the safest thing they could do in school. Marinette squeaked and blushed.
"Of course I do," he replied as he released her, dropping his voice as he added the next part, "What else would you expect from the host of the god of destruction?"
Marinette rolled her eyes and could almost feel the eye roll from Tikki and she could definitely hear the snicker from Plagg, she laughed as she pushed Adrien away and they continued to class, bantering back and forth.
Once back in the classroom, Ms. Bustier tried to call the room to order but had to give up when almost the entire class mobbed Lila asking about the tickets.
Sighing in resignation, Ms. Bustier pulled a sheet of paper from her desk and sat and waited, listening in to the conversation taking place as she did.
"Lila," Alya said as she pounced onto the Italian as soon as she had sat down. "Girl, how come you didn't say anything? How'd you convince Mr. Agreste to give us those tickets?"
"Oh, it was nothing," she replied demurely, "all I did was suggest that the students would love to see the show that Adrien and I have worked so hard on."
"You?" Alya asked, "I didn't know that you were involved. I thought you were only modeling."
"Oh, I am," Lila said excitedly, "But with our relationship being what it is, Gabriel thought I should take a more active role in planning the shows. He wants me to help Adrien run the company once he gives it to us after all."
"After the wedding?" Sabrina asked.
"Once the wedding is over, Gabriel is going to sign the company over to Adrien and me as a wedding present."
Marinette and Adrien both fought hard not to retch at the words coming from the lying Italian girl, especially since Marinette was still recording the conversation.
"If you are going to help run the company, who is going to design the clothes?" Rose asked once the fervor over the wedding had settled down again.
"Well, I am," Lila replied.
"You're a designer too? Girl, what can't you do?" Alya asked with a dropped jaw.
"Of course," Lila added with a smirk, "I just didn't want to say anything since some people might get jealous."
Marinette just ignored the comment directed at her as she worked on a few of the designs she'd made for the initial line of Mari, incorporating some of the suggestions Gabriel had made the night before. Adrien was leaning back in his chair just watching what was happening, both to watch his classmates and also to watch for any trouble that might come for Marinette.
"Tell us about the tickets," Juleka asked. While she was heavily into music, she had always wanted to see a fashion show, it would be one of those once-in-a-lifetime things. She also wanted to entrap Lila more in her lie, especially since she knew Adrien had been the one to get the tickets.
"Oh, well," Lila hesitated for a moment before conjuring another lie, "all you need to do is tell Ms. Bustier that you are going and she'll write it down."
Adrien rolled his eyes; Mr. Damocles had already told everyone that part.
"What about the other person, can it be anyone we want?" Sabrina asked in eager anticipation.
"Of course," Lila said, "Gabriel could only give so many tickets away, but I was able to convince him to let everyone bring one other person."
"Girl, you are too much," Alya gushed as she pulled Lila into a side hug, a smile on her face. Lila's face shifted into a grimace as Alya touched her, but it quickly shifted back into a smile.
"Yes, about that," Ms. Bustier managed to break in, "I will need to know how many of you are going and if you will be bringing another person with you."
As one, the class raised their hands, most of them anyway.
Ms. Bustier started writing the names of the students with their hands up and added a plus one next to each name. She paused when she noticed which names were not on her list once she had finished.
Lila and Adrien were obvious since they would be in the show, but Chloé and Marinette surprised her.
"Chloé? Marinette? You didn't raise your hands."
"Oh, I know," Chloé replied as she filed her nails, "Daddy already has my tickets."
Ms. Bustier made a note on the sheet before turning to Marinette who was still focused on her designs.
"Marinette?" she asked to get the girl's attention. Adrien snickered and nudged her shoulder, her head shot up and her attention turned to Adrien who nodded toward the teacher.
"Yes, ma'am?" Marinette asked as she put her papers away and focused on the teacher.
"You didn't raise your hand for tickets to the show."
"Oh," Marinette replied, glancing toward Adrien who shrugged. She'd have to come up with an answer on her own.
"I… I can't make it," she said as her mind put together a small plan of her own, "I have to be someplace for a work event."
Adrien smirked, not a lie, but also not very convincing.
"I see," Ms. Bustier said as she noted that Marinette would not be attending.
"Well, now that we have that out of the way, we can start with our lesson so we can get as much done as we can today."
A collection of groans met her declaration. Marinette just smiled and reached into her coat and turned the recorder off.
.o.0.o.
"Can you believe the Jagged Stone concert is tonight?" Alya gushed as she strode into the classroom a few weeks later, Nino on her heels.
"I'm so excited," Nino replied, "I got us tickets weeks ago, not as good as what Lila got, but at least they aren't nosebleed."
"Babe, you're the best," Alya said as she kissed her boyfriend.
As she looked around she was surprised to see that both Marinette and Adrien were already in their seats. She also couldn't help but note that Marinette seemed to be wearing a new outfit, made from very expensive material if she were any judge.
Flopping down into her seat she sighed as she thought about the way life was going.
Ever since Marinette had become jealous of Lila their friendship had all but evaporated. Alya could not for the life of her figure out why Marinette would be jealous of Lila and all the amazing things she's done. Sure, Marinette has done some of the same things, but wouldn't that mean they'd be even better friends?
Realizing that there was no way she'd be able to get answers, especially not from Marinette, Alya pulled up her phone and began to scroll through the Ladyblog.
It was funny, not only had Hawk Moth not Akumatized a single person in weeks, but neither Ladybug nor Chat Noir had been seen in public. Looking at the subscriber count for the Ladyblog, Alya was dismayed to see that she had lost another dozen. She'd have to ask Lila if she could talk to Ladybug about an interview, after all, there was no way Adrien could make good on his threat to get the heroes of Paris to blacklist the Ladyblog, was there?
Putting her turned-off phone down, she was pulled to the entrance of Lila.
"Girl," Alya said as she almost jumped from her seat, "can you believe the Jagged Stone concert is tonight?"
"It is?" Lila asked in a panic, "I mean… it is! Isn't it exciting? Did you get tickets?"
"Yeah, Nino got them," Alya replied, "Not as good as your tickets, but still pretty good. I can't wait to see you at the show tonight."
"Yeah, heh he, it'll be amazing, Jagged and I put in a lot of work on the show. He even had me design a new outfit for him."
"I thought Marinette was his designer," Myléne said.
"Oh, she was," Lila started, "but when he saw my designs, he had to have me design for him instead. I feel bad for Marinette though, that was one of the few things she did well."
Marinette and Adrien rolled their eyes, and they could both see Max, Nino, and Juleka rolling theirs.
"I can't wait to see what you all think of the show, but, unfortunately, I won't be there."
"What? Why?" Various students asked once Lila admitted she would not be attending the concert.
"Well, since I know Jagged so well, and have been to so many of his shows, I decided to give my tickets away to someone who couldn't get any. I'm sure you heard the show is sold out. So, I told Jagged's manager to have mine given away to someone who couldn't get tickets."
"Girl," Alya began, "you are just too good for this world."
Lila smiled at the praise, knowing that the truth was that she couldn't convince anyone to give her any tickets so she had to figure out a way to not be there and still be the hero.
Alya was going to add more when Ms. Bustier walked into the door and dispersed the students back to their seats.
With a shake of their heads at the lies, Adrien and Marinette settled in for a long day of lessons before the concert that evening.
Later that night, Marinette found herself mildly stressed as she waited in line to get into the venue. Next to her, Adrien gave a smile from inside his hoodie. They had both agreed that he should wear something to blend in a bit and since the evening was promising to be chilly despite the onset of warmer weather, a hoodie had been chosen.
When Gabriel saw him in the hoodie his eyes lit up and he rushed to his office to begin designing some casualwear. Adrien just laughed at Marinette's expression. Gabriel had discovered a new passion for casualwear recently, Adrien had explained.
Currently, Marinette was bouncing in excitement, but also stressing over the fact this was the first time she and Adrien had been out in public like this since they were married weeks before.
"Mari," he said as he put his hand on her shoulder, the same blouse she had worn to school that day barely ruffling. He had to admire her talent, the cut, and design were perfect for her figure. "It'll be okay, it's just a concert. You've been to them many times."
"I know," she said with a small whine that he found so very cute. "But this one is different."
"How so?" He asked as he took his hand back and placed it into his hoodie pocket instead of taking her hand.
"Jagged and I worked so hard on the outfits for the show," she admitted as she turned to face him. "I just don't want him to be disappointed in the designs."
"Mari," he gently chided her as he took her hand and kissed the back. "I've seen the designs, they are amazing. Jagged will look great, not to mention the dancers. Your outfits will be the talk of the music world after tonight."
"Ugh," she said as she buried her face into his hoodie. Adrien could only laugh as he patted her back.
"Cheer up, we both know the show will be amazing, besides, I think I see Penny talking to the Gorilla over there." He told her as he subtly pointed toward the doors to the venue and where his bodyguard and Jagged's manager were talking, well the Gorilla was nodding and tapping at his phone in response.
Marinette's head popped up and she turned to where he pointed. Sure enough, they were indeed in a discussion of some kind.
"How is he replying?" she asked as they watched.
"He types on his phone," Adrien replied as he saw the bodyguard show the manager his phone. She nodded and left, disappearing into the arena. The Gorilla looked up and spotted them in line.
As he began walking their way the doors to the arena opened and the lines began to move slowly inside. As the Gorilla finally reached them, Marinette and Adrien had been watching his approach with interest, especially when the line parted without a sound to let him pass.
Despite the size of the crowd, the venue staff was doing a great job getting people inside and they were nearing one of the doors when the Gorilla finally arrived.
Adrien nodded to him as the other man held out a written note, presenting it to Marinette.
"Thank you," she said as she took it and began to read it. Adrien removed his phone from his pocket and pulled up the digital tickets on the app. When they arrived at the door he presented it to the staff member there who scanned the QR code and waved them in, only pausing a moment to take in the security badge that the Gorilla wore.
Once inside, Adrien directed them toward the concession stand. As they waited their turn Marinette looked up from the note.
"Penny says that Jagged wants to see us after the show. She says that she put our names down for backstage access."
"I wonder what they want to talk about," Adrien asked as he looked over the menu, noting the items the Gorilla pointed to.
"Probably the thing with Lila," Marinette said as she tucked the note into her handbag and looked at the menu as well.
Once they had their snacks, the couple bid the Gorilla farewell as he went off to perform some tasks as security in the VIP area.
Marinette and Adrien made their way to their seats, while he could have afforded the more expensive front-row seats, Adrien had settled for seats further back, that while not right in front of the stage, still allowed them to see Jagged and the other acts as they performed.
They were careful to exchange idle chatter about school and pop culture, carefully staying away from anything that might be able to identify them to anyone who overheard.
Eventually, the concert began, and the opening act took the stage, Marinette and Adrien grinned at each other as the music swelled into the building. With a wink, his hand found hers and held it as they stood and cheered for the band.
Later, when Jagged Stone finally left the stage after two encores, Marinette and Adrien made their way toward the VIP area and the access backstage.
Laughing as they talked about the various songs they liked, and how good the costumes Marinette designed looked, they approached the VIP security.
"Hi," Adrien said as he approached, a grin on his face. "We're here to see Jagged."
"Sorry, kid," the burly man replied without even bothering to ask if they were on the list in his hands, their outfits telling him they were not rich enough to be on the list. "VIPs only, shows over, so get lost."
Adrien's smile slipped a little before it grew again.
"I believe that if you check your list you will find that we are on it. I would hate for anything bad to happen should you not let us in."
"Are you threatening me, kid?" The man, who apparently had a power trip demanded as he squared up as though to attack Adrien.
"No, not a threat," Adrien replied as he kept his smile on his face and hands in his pockets. "A promise, you see, you are being very rude right now and I am sure that both Penny and Jagged would take offense to the fact that you kept Jagged's honorary niece and personal designer from seeing him when he was the one who asked to see her."
Adrien smiled even brighter as he saw the Gorilla start to approach.
"Now, I don't want to cause you any trouble, so I recommend that you check your list again, or perhaps speak to the gentleman behind you about our access."
The power-tripping guard turned and met the stern glare of the Gorilla, the man simply pointed to Adrien and Marinette's names on the list. The guard swallowed as he only came up to the Gorilla's shoulder and was half his size.
He looked down at the names and his eyes widened as he recognized Adrien's name. Swallowing he stepped aside and allowed them through.
"Thank you," Adrien said as he took Marinette's hand and led them backstage, the Gorilla following as he was working backstage security.
Later that night, as they lay side-by-side in bed, Adrien and Marinette laughed at the reception they received from Jagged.
"I can't believe he got us backstage just to congratulate us in person," Marinette said with a laugh as she rolled to her side to look at her husband.
"I thought his appreciation of your designs was the best part. You did amazing on that." He replied as he turned to her and kissed her nose.
She giggled as she cuddled into his side.
"I'm not surprised he wanted to see us with everything going on, but I was most surprised that he didn't mention it at all."
"Well, I think that was more due to advice from Legal. I'm sure he had a lot he wanted to address, but there were other people around, so he had to be very careful about what he said."
She sighed as she thought over the night's events.
"That's true," she replied with a yawn, "ugh, I wish I wasn't so tired. I want to talk so much."
Adrien laughed as he held her.
"Mari," he said with a kiss on her forehead, "we've been married for weeks now. We can talk anytime we want. But, you are right, it's late and we have a lot to do tomorrow. I am so glad Jagged scheduled the concert for Friday."
"Are you thinking about sleeping in, Mr. Agreste?" She asked with a smile as she looked at him.
"Only if it means I get to hold you longer, Mrs. Agreste," he replied. He grinned as she blushed before kissing her and pulling her against him.
Settling into their pillows and blankets they relaxed and let sleep slowly overtake them, content that they were able to hold each other.