Part I: What she doesn't know.

Marinette was quiet as she got off the metro station near their home. The afternoon was beginning to get colder and her left hand pulled her dark jacket closer to her, shivering at the breeze. Her right hand held on to a worn out black leather briefcase that held her second most treasured possessions. Her sketches.

The first of course, being her miraculous.

As a student of the Ecole de la Chambre Syndicale de la couture parissienne, one of Paris' (and the world's) elites schools for fashion and design, her folder filled with sketches had become something she'd treasured with her life. She was among the top of her class, which would likely ensure some sort of job with a number of labels that picked among the Ecole's graduates. And Marinette was set on fulfilling her dream.

Which meant that she had taken possession of the spare room (More like a big closet, really) in the apartment she shared with Adrien, the blond deciding to stick with a desk where he could work on his own school's work. Marinette's corner? It was stacked with fabric, pencils, papers and sewing materials, as well as half-finished designs. The one time Adrien had nosed around while she worked he'd gotten stuck with a stray needle.

After that, he'd decided to let her have that space. His desk was good enough for his work.

Which brought her to today. She'd been away from their home all day long. As they were nearing the end of the semester, it was time for the students in her year to get settled into the internships they'd work for the next year. Marinette had applied to several, sending copies of her portfolio along with her certifications and recomendation letters from some of her advisors. The week after, she'd gotten the schedule of the interviews she needed to attend, and the places she needed to be at. Most of them were held at her school, two of them at offices downtown, but there was one that called her attention immediately.

Gabriel Agreste, 4:30.

Sure, Gabriel Agreste was still one of the most famous designers around. And sure, it had been one of her dreams to work there when she was younger… but with her relationship with Adrien and the still mending bridges between father and son… she'd thought she'd better stay away fromthat particular situation. So, after a lot of consideration… she chosen not to apply there.

But there it was, clearly in her schedule. Gabriel Agreste, 4:30; and after that, clear as the light of day, Adrien's old address.

She had been at a loss, but after calling the contact number written by the appointment, it was clear that she was indeed scheduled and that they were indeed waiting for her at the set time. Marinette had debated whether going or not, but refrained from telling Adrien. Why? She wasn't completely sure, but she figured that she didn't want him to sway her either way. This was a decision that she should make on her own. And when the morning came, she had still not made up her mind; figuring that she could always cancel before, once she was done with the previous interview and just head on home and be done with this. After all, she'd gotten in almost all the interviews she wanted… she was sure she could get into any of the other internships she'd applied.

She had the qualifications, after all.

And so, the night before her interviews, she'd tried out just about every single piece of clothing she had and modelled them for Adrien, whose input was absolutely useless, unless she was in between outfits. In the end, she'd settled for a flaring black skirt that reached a couple of inches above her knee, paired with a white blouse and a Marsala colored blazer on top of it. Since the weather was getting colder, she put on some sheer black tights and her favorite black booties. There. She looked professional enough for the interviews, but not stuffy. After all, she was a fashion design student, she needed to let her personality shine through her work and her appearance was part of that.

She had finished all her interviews, and somehow she'd ended up outside of the Agreste Mansion. Marinette looked inside her bag, she had brought another copy of her portfolio, after all. She hadn't decided whether she'd go through with it, but just in case… she didn't want to be unprepared. Blue eyes glanced at the mansion, she remembered exactly which one was Adrien's room.

"Yes?" The voice from the speaker was cold and she immediately regretted whatever it was that brought her here. She was already here… might as well see how this went.

"I have an appointment" she began "Marinette Dupain Cheng at 4:30" she said, holding the schedule in one of her hands, her blue eyes scanning to see if for some miracle she'd misread it and could excuse herself from ever coming here; her other hand was gripping the handle on her briefcase tightly. This was not a good idea, she just knew it.

The gate clicked and opened. The dark haired woman frowned, well… she figured she might as well go and see what this was all about. Marinette sighed and stepped through the gate, which closed behind her on their own. She walked towards the front door, which then opened, revealing Nathalie Sancoeur. Marinette recognized Gabriel's assistant immediately, it hadn't been that many years since she'd last seen her, although if the older woman had recognized her, Nathalie made no effort to react. "Monsieur Agreste is awaiting in his office." She said, before turning on her heel and walking towards the office.

Alright. No time for pleasantries then. Marinette nodded, feeling uneasy at the echoing sound of their steps as she followed the older woman. The mansion felt so empty. It had never really been lively, not in any case; but she didn't remember it being this quiet. Then again, they had spent all her time here with Adrien. Most of the time, getting a read on the feel of his house hadn't been her younger self's priority.

The young woman had to fight the small smile that threatened to take over her face as she remembered her younger years with Adrien, sneaking around the large Mansion. Such hormonal teenagers they'd been. Monsieur Agreste would definitely not have asked her to come over if he'd known.

They stopped in front of a large set of doors "Wait here" Nathalie informed her, before she stepped inside the office. From outside, Marinette could hear the older woman speak to Adrien's father. "Monsieur Agreste, Miss Dupain-Cheng is here"

"Send her in"

Well, it was certainly too late to leave now.

Marinette squared her shoulders and held her head high as she walked past Nathalie who stepped outside of the office and closed the door behind her. The office was enormous, which she didn't remember from their teenaged excursions around his house, from whenever Nathalie was busy in her own office. But maybe it was because Gabriel Agreste's presence made everything tenser. And the fact that this was serious now. She couldn't help but feel like she was being judged here. Well, she probably was.

The office's flor was a dark, polished stone. A carpet covered the area where Gabriel's desk rested, modern looking bookcases lining one of the walls. The room was bright, thanks to a large window that oversaw Paris' skyline, the Eiffel tower standing tall right in the center of it. She could see some awards on the wall, and some sketched of what she was sure were Gabriel's first designs. There was a small sitting area, but Gabriel was sitting on his desk, his eyes watching as she'd made her entrance.

To be quite honest, if this hadn't the most awkward situation in the world, Marinette would have loved to browse around and look at what Gabriel Agreste kept in his office. He probably had some antiques on the history of fashion… as it was, the designs framed on the walls were calling to her. But it was not something she could do… as it was, there was something else that needed to be done.

She spoke first. "Good afternoon, Monsieur Agreste,"

"Mademoiselle Dupain-Cheng, please take a seat" the older man said, his eyes turning towards her briefly and then to the large seat in front of his desk.

Said desk was larger than any desk she'd ever seen, and quite possibly wouldn't be moved without the intervention of a whole squad of people. It seemed to be made out of solid stone. Shiny, glossy stone. Probably more expensive than everything she owned. Added together.

The young woman sat down, her back straight as she placed the bag by her side. She waited for him to speak, and it seemed that he was awaiting the same thing. In the end, she decided to break the silence. "I brought my portfolio, since I don't believe you have seen it before" Of course he hadn't. She hadn't applied for an internship here.

Gabriel nodded, and received the book that Marinette handed over to him, his finger tracing the spine of the bound book, clearly examining the presentation. After examining the book for another moment, he finally opened it. She figured she'd passed the first test. Don't look nervous, she chastised herself. But she couldn't really help it, even if Gabriel hadn't been Adrien's father, He was an icon. Marinette would have killed for the chance of actually being granted an interview with him.

But Adrien was in the picture; therefore there was much more to consider. Gabriel had not been a good parent. Sure, Adrien had been very well provided for, educated, and had been a celebrity since his early teens. His room had a climbing wall for crying out loud! But he hadn't been there. And Adrien had needed more than arcade games in his room. Gabriel's aloofness had hurt him, and she'd been there to see it; first as ladybug, and then as his partner in life.

It was odd to think just how different Adrien could have turned out, considering everything that went on in his life. He could have been a spoiled, bachelor, jet setting across the world, a beautiful actress or model on his arm… instead of living in the tiny apartment that he shared with Marinette, where he'd have to slouch slightly to make sure he wouldn't hit his head on the low ceiling.

The bottom line, was that Marinette knew who Gabriel Agreste was, and just what he meant in her actual life. She wouldn't be rude, no… he was Adrien's father, after all… but she would not give him the pleasure of seeing her squirm. She was not the timid teenager at a school's design contest anymore.

Marinette looked at him as he carefully examined the pages, her hands demurely folded on her lap. He looked every bit as put together as she'd remembered, though his hair seemed to have greyed out even more. Granted, she'd only really met him via video and pictures; their only face to face interaction had been a curt introduction, during their Lycee graduation. Where she was barely acknowledged by the man.

Then, Adrien had that break from his father, moving out of the mansion and into their life together. Marinette had been there, while the blond dealt with all the issues that his father had left him. It hadnot been pretty. And it had not been easy. And just recently, a couple months ago, the older man had offered an olive branch, an attempt to talk to his son… Adrien, her lovely, kind, amazing Adrien had agreed, because despite everything he actually wanted his father to be a part of his life.

She guessed she had to understand, even if she couldn't completely relate. Her family was normal, by every standard, her parents were hard working people who had always given her the support she'd needed, and they'd welcomed Adrien with open arms.

But she figured that it just wasn't the same. There would always be that nagging doubt in Adrien's mind if he didn't at least try. This accounted for the couple of dinners Adrien had shared with his father, these past few months. Granted, it was a tense affair, even by Adrien's own admission, but it was something. And yes, Marinette was happy that he was finally reconnecting with his father, it was something he clearly had wanted; she was just wary.

God help that man if he ever hurt Adrien again.

All this made her wonder just why, she was sitting at the very Gabriel Agreste's office, pondering how to find out whether all her misgivings were true. Gabriel was still looking at her portfolio, probably the evening wear, if she remembered the order correctly. Still… it felt weird to be here.

Screw this. "I don't remember applying to your label, Monsieur," she spoke, sounding more confident than what she actually felt like.

His eyes left the book to look back at her. "You didn't" he answered. "I had my assistant call the Ecole's authorities to set it up."

Well, that made sense, if a label contacted asking for a specific student, she figured that they would try to set up the interview. Even if the student hadn't requested it. Gabriel was a former student, and was incredibly rich and famous in the fashion world… of course they were going to accommodate him. Still, she wasn't done with this yet "Why?" There had to be a lot of willing and eager people who would have loved a chance at this interview. People who would have applied for it.

"I do remember your work on that contest Mademoiselle Dupain Cheng," he said "You do have talent." His hand rested on top of the portfolio. "We could definitely use your talents at the label."

Well, that she could believe. She was among the top of her class, and the recommendations she'd gotten for all her interviews could ensure that she'd get at least a couple of offers. And if everything went well, maybe she'd get a job once she graduated. She had worked hard and she was proud of herself. The young woman nodded, but she said nothing, so Gabriel continued.

"The position would have you assisting our design team." He said "I see here that you're proficient with digital software as well. That's a good skill to have." His eyes scanned the resume, reading her skill set she'd listed. Marinette, however was yet to say anything. Gabriel took a breath, the look on Marinette's face was reluctant, to say the least. "This is a great opportunity" he pointed out. "May I ask then, why you came here, since you're evidently unsure?"

"I was curious," she said, no reason to hide her motives.

"It's not a secret that you are a very important person to my son" he said, the book still open, but resting flat on his desk.

"He is very important to me too." she pointed out. They had been together for around five years now; and while she wanted to get her foot into the design world, she wasn't about to sell Adrien out to get there. "Which is why I'm confused. You never cared much for me before."

There. She'd said it.

Gabriel didn't seem surprised at that, his face betraying no emotion as he answered, "You'll have to forgive me for that. It's not the norm that young relationships last as long as yours has" He hadn't seen the reason to get to know Marinette. He'd figured that whatever was going on would be over before they started their upper education. But… here they were now…

Gabriel was a proud man. He had not looked for his son once he'd left; he'd figured he'd return once this relationship had ran its course. Once Adrien had gone through whatever rebellious stage he seemed to be going through. But then years began going by, and Adrien had stood by her. He'd seen the paparazzi pictures, Adrien on location, and the petite Mademoiselle Dupain Cheng by his side. It had brought echoes of another relationship, from what seemedcenturies ago.

To tell the truth, he'd been very surprised to find that Adrien kept on modelling, it had always been somewhat of a chore when he was younger. But he figured that bills needed to get paid, and he had enough contacts, talent and good looks to get good bookings. Granted, had Gabriel wanted, he could have easily blacklisted Adrien… he had enough influence that most photographers and other labels would have avoided him, but he hadn't. Adrien was his son, and despite not being the definition of a warm figure, he was not a monster.

If Marinette would have to say something about Gabriel, it would be that the older man was certainly intimidating. But she wasn't about to give up here… she hadn't been sure why she'd come here in the first place, but now that they were talking, she was definitely sticking up for her boyfriend. If Gabriel thought he could sway her into fighting in his corner by making what was a very good job proposal, he was sorely mistaken.

"Even if I were to take the internship" she began, stressing the 'if' part of the sentence "I won't help you reconnect with Adrien" That was Gabriel's job and his job alone, if he wanted it so much. "That's a decision that Adrien will make, and I support whatever he decides to do"

Marinette from five years ago would have just kicked herself. She was possibly dismissing a chance at one of the world's best fashion labels. And quite possibly offending someone with the power to destroy just about every bit of her dreams. Marinette from the present was sure of what she was saying.

Gabriel's left eyebrow twitched almost imperceptibly. He knew that the girl was protective of Adrien, he'd heard it from good sources; he hadn't expected that she'd pull that on him. It would have made him laugh, considering the unimpressive size of the female sitting in front of him. Easy to ignore too, if it wasn't for the fact that the petite young woman was staring him down with a force that greatly mismatched her appearance.

"As I said before." Gabriel continued, leaning forward on his desk, addressing the young woman directly. "Yes. You are talented, and Adrien mentioned you were applying for internships."

"He did?" she said, clearly taken aback. She hadn't expected to have popped up during these conversations.

"He did. And I know the Ecole's curriculum. You have to take an internship as a requirement" Gabriel pointed out, his voice steady as he simply listed out the facts. Marinette needed an internship. She was talented which would be good for his company. Adrien didn't seem to take an interest in the creative aspect, and should this relationship prosper... well. It was the smart thing to do. "Adrien mentioned you had sent in your applications. I am offering you a position"

"But why now?"

"As I said… You are an important part of my son's life." Gabriel said "And I want my son back in my life. It would seem you're part of the package now."

In the end, Gabriel had reiterated the offer again; which she'd agreed to think about. She wasn't sure whether it was a good idea, but it was a little difficult to let go of one of your childhood dreams. She had walked towards the Metro station in a daze, as she finally made her way back home, her mind in turmoil at all the things that had happened today. She still couldn't quite process what had happened back at the Agreste Mansion, but she had come out of the mansion with a very good prospect. Working with the creative team, in a paid internship… that was the best possible scenario for everything. She wasn't sure that she could get a better offer in any of the other labels. She was also pretty sure that she would be among the few students who were offered an internship at Gabriel's label. If any. But what did it mean?

Gabriel had said that Adrien had talked about her with him, though he didn't go into specifics, and she didn't ask for them. And by simple math, Adrien's last dinner with his father had been somewhat two weeks ago, which would have given Gabriel the time to set everything up with the school.

But the question that plagued her mind was just one. Had Adrien asked for this? There was no one that knew just how much she wanted this in her life other than him, who saw firsthand just how much she worked to achieve her dreams. So, the question remained, was this some sort of retribution for all of Gabriel's shortcomings before? Adrien did know just how badly she wanted to succeed in the fashion design world. But not like this.

But he wouldn't... would he?

That would just negate everythng she'd done so far! She'd succeeded in school, and had worked all through her final year at the Lycee to build a proper portfolio to present at the Ecole for Admissions. She'd spent monthsof sleepless nights, between her school work, being ladybug keeping up with a somewhat normal social life and having a stable relationship.

Her hands had been full!

But she'd made it work; and now her schedule was filled with classes, working to pay for their bills and schooling (though her parents had decided to help her out with that, bless them for their help), her ladybug duties, old and new friends and the same relationship.

Her hands never ceased being full.

There was a strange feeling in the middle of her chest; and she didn't want to think about it. But as it usually happens with feelings like this, it was all she could think about. She was sitting on the one available seat on the Metro, waiting for her stop when she felt a buzzing coming from inside her bag. Marinette opened her bag, looking down at Tikki's worried eyes. She picked up the phone, looking at the notification on the main screen.

Princess, how did the interview go?

She didn't answer. Marinette wasn't sure how she could answer. She was about to place the phone back, but Tikki's worried glance got to her. Thankfully it was just their exit, so she stood up and walked out, exiting quickly through the crowds. Once she was back on the street, and Tikki was securely on the inside of her jacket, instead of the bag, Marinette picked up the phone and put it to her ear, mimicking a conversation "Tikki…"

"What's wrong?" the tiny kwami asked, the girl's behavior once they left the mansion had been worrying her all through the trip back home.

Marinette sighed, but decided to dive straight into it "I think Adrien asked his father to offer me that job" She waited for the kwami to say something, but there was silence so she continued "I don't need favors Tikki, I need this to happen because I'm good."

"You are good though" Tikki said. "He should have told you before probably"

The young woman sighed, "I don't know Tikki, I mean, I hope that hewouldn't have done that, but… what if he did?"

"You need to talk to him" Tikki said "You're going twisty now"

"I know." Marinette sighed "We're almost home now, I guess we'll see now."

Because Adrien should know better than that. Marinette had managed to get a good reputation for her at school. She had earned everything. And she knew that the fact that she was dating Adrien might be seen by some other people has having an edge… which might be true, but she'd never used it. But this? She could just see people saying that she used her connections. Mainly because people weren't really aware of the rift between Adrien and his family; so it would make sense to think that he would pull some strings with his father.

Then again, not many people really knew Gabriel Agreste.

Her phone buzzed again, another text message coming through, she peeked at it, a frown taking over her face.

Are you getting home soon? I got some take out

To tell the truth, she didn't really feel hungry now. She was far too preoccupied with everything to really enjoy whatever it was he'd gotten. She entered the old building, sparing halfhearted greeting to the neighbors she ran into as she walked towards the elevator to the last floor, where their apartment was located and opened the door. "I'm home!" she called out.

"Kitchen!"

Marinette kicked off her shoes and walked towards the kitchen, from where she could hear plates moved around; Adrien was serving out what she could figure was the food he'd gotten.

"Hey princess" he said, "How did everything go?"

"It went good" she said, her voice cautious as she sat on the stools by the table.

"You look weird" Adrien pointed out, as he placed at plate in front of Marinette "Did something happen?"

"I met with your father"

Adrien froze in the spot. "You… did?" he said, green eyes glancing curiously at his girlfriend. He was pretty sure she hadn't applied to his father's company; she would have told him if she had. At least he thought she would. "I didn't know you wanted to try there"

Marinette frowned, he was being weird about this, and she was sure "I didn't. He set it up" Adrien's eyes widened and Marinette continued "called the ecole, and got it set up," she explained "It was added to my interview's schedule today".

Well, he had mentioned it. Marinette had popped up quite a bit during his last conversation with his father, and Gabriel had asked several questions that Adrien was not ready to relay to her right now. Just what had his father told Marinette? The blond looked shifted uncomfortably in his spot. "What… uh… what did he want?" he asked, hoping his voice didn't betray any nervousness.

It did. Marinette could just see that he looked shifty. Blue eyes studied him carefully, he was acting weird today, and he really was. "He offered me a position."

He looked positively relieved. "Well, that's good, isn't it?"

"It would have been, but I didn't apply for it!" Marinette exclaimed, standing up from her seat, definitely not approving of the way Adrien looked so at ease with the idea. "What did you say to him?"

"We just talked!" Adrien said, confused green eyes looking at his girlfriend. "I don't get why you're being weird about that!"

"Because…" Marinette exhaled loudly, her brows furrowed in exasperation "I didn't ask for that, there's a reason I didn't!"

Now, Adrien was sure his father had said something that he shouldn't other than the job offer, he wasn't exactly sure what had happened."Marinette?"

"I don't need that kind of help Adrien," She continued, After looking at the look on his face, she pushed her plate away from her "I'm just… not hungry right now." She said, and stood up, set on going to her room.

"Mar… Marinette!" he called after her, stopping by the kwami's resting spot, addressing the tiny red one "Tikki, what did just happen?"

The red kwami floated until she was able to land on his shoulder. "She thinks you asked your father to help her"

"… But I didn't..." Adrien said, frowning in confusion.

Tikki gave the blond a look… well, he looked sincere, maybe he needed a bit of help here. "Well, he sounded like he was definitely doing this for you"

The blond sighed loudly as he ran his hand through his hair. Everything was beginning to piece itself together in his head, but that didn't help the fact that he had a very upset woman to deal with. "I see now" he said, "Thanks Tikki."

"No problem" the kwami answered before flying off again, pausing a little to hover in front of him "I don't think she wants people to think she can't do it on her own"

"I … can see that" Adrien sighed, he knew her well enough to know that it was a reaction she would definitely have. "I'm going to talk to her," he said, before picking up Tikki and placing her on their little home.

The door to their bedroom was closed and Adrien braced himself. Good God, he loved that woman, but she could go crazy sometimes. It probably had to do with the stress of the applications and interviews, but seriously. She could work herself up without any help from him whatsoever. And it was times like these that she made herself so hard to reach, which meant… the longer he let her stew in it, the worse it could get.

He had a long night ahead.

The blond knocked on the door, "Marinette…" he began "Can I come in?"

"No. I'm changing." came the answer from inside, making Adrien blink repeatedly.

"… I have literally lost count of how many times I've seen you naked." He deadpanned. He knew the amount and locations of birthmarks on her. He'd drawn on said birthmarks and helped wash it off. It was safe to say that other than times they wanted to surprise one another, clothes changing was rarely an ocasion to be shy.

A loud huff was heard from the other side of the door, but she didn't reply, so Adrien opened the door carefully. First, she was certainly not changing. And second, judging by the way she purposefully avoided his glance, she did not want to talk right now. Adrien leaned against the doorframe, successfully blocking the way out.

Marinette stood in front of the door, her blue eyes regarding him carefully, and he just knew that she was thinking an escape plan. "Nope." he said, the p sound popping loudly and earning him an annoyed look from his girlfriend. "We're talking." Well, Good. She was being irrational, he'd be annoying. Maybe that way she'd talk.

Marinette eyed him, she did not want to do this now. Her eyes turned towards the large window… perhaps she could transform and just leave hisstubborn meddling face for a while. "I don't want to talk about it." She said, before she realized that Tikki was in the kitchen, damn it all. There went that plan.

"What did my father say?" Adrien pressed; he got the basics from Tikki, but she needed to talk to him, for crying out loud.

"I… you're so stubborn!"

"Me?!" Adrien stammered, "I'm trying to talk to you, woman!" he threw his hands in the air, unsuspectedly providing just enough room for Marinette to slip through. "Oh no" he said, before reaching for Marinette and doing the first thing that popped into his brain and wrapped one arm around her waist and pulled her back against his chest, and his other arm wrapped across his shoulders.

There were many errors to this strategy, thus proving that there was a reason Ladybug was the strategist and not Chat Noir.

Marinette was quick to point the first flaw in his plan. "Adrien I will bite you if you don't let me through."

"And I will enjoy It." he deadpanned, not able to resist the opportunity, and judging by the low sigh that left her, she did not appreciate his humor right now. "Mar, this is stupid, talk to me"

She still didn't seem convinced, but deflated considerably, which he took as a small victory, before he led her back to their bedroom, closing the door behind them.

"Alright" He said, running his hand through his hair "Are you mad because of the job offer?" He asked, because… while Tikki explained, he wanted her to explain just exactly what set her off. His father was certainly not warm and fuzzy like Marinette's parents were; and Gabriel's extremely curt manners could easily lend themselves to confusion from time to time. But even if hehad asked for that favor, (which, he hadn't), he didn't think it was that big of a deal.

"Yes."

"I thought that getting an offer was a good thing?"

Marinette sighed "You don't get it." she began, "I didn't ask for that. I would have applied if I wanted."

"I didn't ask my father to give you that job" he said, watching as her expression turned confused "But if I did, would it be so bad?"

She gave him a tired look, "Adrien, you don't see it. But I do." she said, "I've worked so hard for this" So many sleepless nights sewing or cleaning up her designs to present them at class; she had subsisted mainly on coffee for days at a time during the end of the semester, (It was the main reason they had splurged on a good coffee machine; cheap alternatives just weren't cutting it). "And I know I can make it. But there's always going to be people that say and think that I got where I am because you model, or because of your father's connections." Even if that wasn't the truth, she had definitely seen some odd looks headed in her direction, and she didn't want a dark cloud hanging on top of her tentative success. She'd seen the way people looked at her and Adrien when they attended events together. "Even if he didn't do anything, people are going to think he did" There was a reason she hadn't built her portfolio with Adrien's help. It would have gotten attention immediately in every interview she took, but she was not going to do that.

"I can't change who I am" Despite the fact that he was distanced from his father, he was still known as Gabriel Agreste's son; and while that had helped him greatly with modelling gigs, and paying the bills; there was a reason he wasn't going into fashion as a career."And screw other people. There will always be someone acting like a asshole."

"I know" she said, her voice quieter and thankfully lacking the exasperated edge it had earlier tonight. "The way he said it… I just thought that…"

"We did talk about you" he offered, "but nothing like that" Gabriel had asked Adrien, just how serious his relationship was. Adrien had, of course, replied that it was very, very serious. Marinette was definitely a permanent part of his life, and Adrien had no issues explaining to his father the extent of her permanence.

The older man had then asked him how her schooling was going, which was when he told him that she was setting up her interviews for the internships. Despite their attempts, conversation had never quite flowed between the two of them, so after saying his piece, they kept on discussing other matters. "I did say that you were going to start your internships soon, but I didn't ask him to give you one" From what little information he could gather, this had been Gabriel's attempt to get to know Marinette.

She was silent for a couple of seconds, "I don't want anything I haven't earned." She finally replied.

"Mari, you know very damned well, that even if you didn't have what it takes, I could have begged and it wouldn't have made a difference if he didn't want to hire you." Family or no family, the brand was something Gabriel took very seriously, and Adrien had first hand knowledge of the fact. He probably was impressed with her work; after all, he had been wearing a jacket she'd made during their last interaction. Gabriel had examined it thoroughly during what had been a very awkward five minutes. "Besides, you don't have to take it, you know" Chance were, that she'd get more offers soon.

"I know." Marinette said, shoulders dropping slightly "It was hard though; I didn't want to think about you doing that, because I know you better than that, but then your father said how you talked about me and all that and I couldn't help but think that..."

"Then think about It." he shrugged, "you do have to choose an internship. And at least it's good to have one secure offer." He regarded the look on her face "And you are kind of a big deal in my day, you know. I'm obviously going to bring you up from time to time"

"I guess…" Marinette rubbed her right hand up her left arm, her face deep in thought. It was this whole Gabriel thing, really. He had never really been involved in their lives, but it seemed that that fact might be about to change.

"You always do this when you're stressed, you know. You fixate on one thing and then make a big deal about it" he mused, "You could have just asked me. I didn't even know you were going there today." He looked at his girlfriend, who looked a right mixture between embarrassed and still clinging to the las remaining shred of the dignity of a (not so) rightful anger. "Can I touch you without you biting me?" he asked flashing amused green eyes at her, thoroughly enjoying the guilty look on her face.

"I wasn't really going to bite you" she said, a faint blush tinging her cheeks as she regarded the look on his face "…that hard" To tell the truth she might have, especially if it meant that she'd be able to get him off her back to continue ruminating in her anger. "And if you didn't ask him for the job, then why did you get weird when I asked you about it?" she asked, just as Adrien stood up from their spot on the bed.

"Come on, let's go finish dinner" he said, the expression on his face showing pure amusement as he stretched his hand to help her back on her feet. "Liar. You always bite." he said, laughing as he pulled her back up, and wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her back to his chest as he led her back to the kitchen. "I mean, I don't mind the nibbles, but I have a photoshoot on Friday. It would have been cat-astrophic" He felt her freeze next to him, so in turn he tightened his hold around her waist, nuzling her neck innocently.

"Adrien…" she warned. So help her if he started with the stupid puns…

"What?" he asked, innocently, biting back the chuckles that threatened to spill out. He brushed his lips agaisnt her neck, smiling against her skin, knowing fully well the path he was going now would close that door for tonight. "I'm just saying, It would have been…"

"Don't"

"…Clawful." Adrien laughed as Marinette untangled herself from his arms muttering something about how she was not dealing with this right now,and called after her "Oh come on Purrncess!" he continued. "I'm just kitten"

"STOP!" her voice came from the kitchen, and Adrien grinned, quite pleased with himself. Sure, it was cheesy as hell… but at least the puns had gotten her sidetracked from that previous line of questioning. Adrien wasn't ready to explain just exactly what he thought his father had mentioned to her. There was more he needed before they could go down that road.