Summary: In which the second episode airs and everyone's a shipper.

Chapter II

"It's starting!"

"I'm coming!" Alya called out, tapping her feet as the microwave finished popping the bag of popcorn she'd just thrown inside. "Is it recording on the DVR?"

"Yup" Nino answered, before letting out a booming laugh.

"WHAT HAPPENED?"

"Just the summary from last week. You have time." Nino's voice came from the living room, where the TV was already broadcasting the highlights from the previous episode.

Finally, the microwave beeped, done with her popcorn and Alya opened quickly, pouring the contents of the bag into an awaiting bowl, before racing towards the couch where Nino was already waiting at. With the popcorn safely set between them, their drinks poured, it was time to watch their best friend be humiliated on national television.

"My poor friend," Alya looked at the screen, where a very flustered Marinette was measuring an extremely oblivious Adrien on screen. "This was the best and worst thing that could have ever happened to her."

Nino snorted, leaning back on the couch as the show actually began.

The panoramic views of Paris were breathtaking, the camera panning across the great landmarks, before centering on the outside of the Le Grand Paris; current home for all the contestants. The camera entered a room, beds still occupied by the slowly awakening contestants.

The alarm clocks began ringing, and in every room the designers began getting up from their beds.

"What's that?" Elisa, a designer around thirty years old stretched as she approached a box on top of the small table inside of their room; before the camera cut to all the other rooms, as all the contestants began getting out of bed to properly investigate what the present meant.

"This morning we get up, and there's a mysterious box..." Anaís Charpentier's voice narrated, as the camera showed all the contestants getting up, stretching and yawning, most of them still not fully awake. "I'm intrigued and very confused."

"There's a note!" Marinette said, plucking the envelope from inside the popcorn and quickly opening it." Good morning designers," she read, "We're whisking you away on a little adventure. We have arranged transportation for you downstairs, be ready at ten. Hugs and kisses, Heloise and Tim"

The cameras showed everyone chattering around, still in their pajamas, every participant looking through the box's contents. "Look," Marinette said, rummaging through the paper tissue inside. "A captain's hat!"

Anaís plucked the hat from Marinette's hand and put it on her own head. "I'm loving thiiis!"

Raoul appeared on the screen, comfortably settled on the interview room, his monologue used as a voiceover for what was currently happening at the hotel. "Captain hat? Guess we're going for a boat ride." The designer, wearing a green button up shirt, which constrasted nicely with his dark sepia skin, addressed the camera like he was born to do so. "I'm just really hoping we don't have to run through a theatre again, or any kind of obstacle course," Raoul laughed, a dazzling smile lighting up his face, "these people can be vicious"

Back at the hotel, the contestants seemed to be almost ready.

"What do you think we'll do?" Anaís asked Marinette, as she applied foundation to her face, getting properly camera ready.

"I honestly have no idea," Marinette said, standing alongside the other girl in front of the mirror, pulling her hair into a bun on top of her head. "It says nothing about the challenge."

"That's true," Anaís said, frowning a little bit, "What do you think?" She asked, turned to their other roommate, who's been quiet through the whole exchange.

"I think," Noemie said, currently sitting on her bed as she looked at the girls as they finished primping, "that it's getting late and we should start getting ready." With that, Noemie stood up and walked towards the door, leaving both Marinette and Anaís sharing a look before shrugging and going back to their things.

Soon enough they were near La Seine, at Port Henri IV, somewhere close Ile Saint-Louis, where a large yacht was docked by, and its crew clearly waiting for them. Tim and Heloise were waiting on the top deck, bright smiles on their faces as the group quickly made their way onto the large yacht. An impeccably dressed crew helped them in, leading them towards the staircase that led to the open upper deck.

Heloise was wearing a tight fitting blue dress, highlighting her blue eyes perfectly as she greeted them. "Welcome designers!"

"Gather around everyone," Tim spoke up, signaling for everyone to get closer.

"We're on board the Don Juan II, one of the luxurious boats from Yacht de Paris, and our little surprise for today!" Heloise said, as the boat finally lurched into movement, and began gliding along La Seine."

The morning sun cast every monument around them in a soft light, and the water beneath the boat glimmered.

"Paris is the city of lights, love and most importantly, fashion." Heloise continued, as the Eiffel tower began nearing them, "It's been one of the most important cities in terms of architecture, culture, filmmaking and history. Its importance has been portrayed in several forms of art and, as designers, fashion is our art."

Tim nodded along, "We believe it's important to draw inspiration in everything that surrounds you. And I don't think it'll be too hard to get inspired here."

"For this challenge, you have to draw inspiration from this beautiful city and everything in it, to create a look that fits what you think of Paris."

"You'll have until lunch to sketch some ideas, then we'll have lunch here, courtesy of our sponsors." Tim said, "After that we'll go shopping and back to the workshop."

"You will have one day to finish this challenge," Heloise informed them. "Marinette, you won the last challenge, which means you have immunity and cannot be eliminated." The camera panned towards Marinette before returning to Heloise, "Alright! Have fun and I'll see you all on the runway."

"Well everybody!" Tim said, "What are you waiting, get inspired! Chop chop!"

With that, the group scattered, quickly finding a spot on the upper deck to settle and draw.

There was a cut to the interview rooms and Angelina's voice over took over. "I'm actually looking forward to this challenge. I went to school for architecture, so I can definitely appreciate the Parisian landmarks. I think I can do something very interesting with the concepts offered."

Back on the upper deck of the boat, the designers either walking around, looking for a new angle, or just talking amongst themselves as they appreciated the view. Marinette had found a comfortable spot sitting cross legged on one of the large seats. She modestly arranged her pink flowery dress to make sure it covered everything that it needed to as she sketched, with a secret smile on her face as she alternated her attention between the scenery and her sketchbook.

"Nino. Babe, look at our daughter. Look at how pretty she looks!" Alya gushed, pointing at the screen as they showed Marinette walked towards the location with the rest of the contestants. "

"What are you doing?" Nino asked, glancing as Alya began fiddling with her phone.

"I'm tweeting about her." Alya said, "She deserves all the support social media can offer."

"The show is still being filmed." Nino pointed out. "And it's been like... three weeks since she began filming, she's still doing just fine," an amused smile appeared on his face as Alya tapped a message on her phone. He knew by now that once Alya started on something, there was just no stopping her.

"I'm having a bit of issue with this challenge?" Anaís said, flipping her hair over her shoulder as she looked at the camera. "I lived in New York for five years. I'm not that knowledgeable anymore on France styles? The lines, and everything is just so different..."

The scene switched to Anaís scrapping another design, frowning at her sketchbook. "I'm just worried."

Soon enough, it was time for lunch, and the group sat together on a large table, set on the main deck of the yacht. The meals were served by the wait staff, who brought the exquisitely decorated plates.

"This looks nice!" Matilda, a purple haired designer pointed out, taking a bite out of her plate before groaning loudly. "Tastes so nice too!"

"Good," Raoul said, pouring himself a little bit of wine, "I am starving."

The group ate in companionable silence for a few minutes, enjoying the meal as some of them still poked around with their sketchbooks.

"So, how's your design coming up?" Rémi Giraud asked, looking at all the people on the table, before offering some information of his own, "I'm all set, I just want to look at the fabrics we can work with before I settle on what I want to make."

"I have some doodles," Anaís said, digging into her lunch with gusto. "How about you, Leo?"

The thirty seven year old designer gave a carefully controlled shrug. "I have ideas. I'll be deciding which one I'll pick later. See how it develops as I go."

The scene changed from the lunch to the interview room, where Leo Sagnier sat alone, "I'm here to win," he spoke, his dark blond hair slicked back as he looked at the camera with a bored look on his face. "This is not a place to make friends, as much as these kids might be acting that way. It's a competition and that means that everyone can be an enemy. I'm not about to share my ideas with them, and risk them being inspired by me."

Their tour had almost ended, the yacht reaching port and being carefully maneuvered to allow a safe disembarking. Once they were all on port, and eager to get to the vans, Tim stood up in front of them. "Alright designers! I hope you have your designs ready, because we're going shopping!" The group piled onto the awaiting vans and they were off. Most of the designers were still looking through their sketchbooks, finishing up some last minutes details before they got to the store.

"I'm hoping that shopping goes well. Because... I'm not very inspired." Anaís confessed, sitting beside Marinette who then peeked at the girl's sketchbook.

"You just need to pick the right color, it would work!" She encouraged Anais. "That part looks really pretty!"

At the store, the designers were received by Tim, who encouraged them to pick some shopping baskets. The large store was closed for them, and the shop keepers were alert and ready for the requests the group might have. "Designers, you'll have thirty minutes to shop. I hope you're ready, because your time begins now!"

The group disappeared between the aisles, eager to take advantage of the little time they had to shop. There were several fabrics of many, many colors; along with several other types of materials that they were eager to get their hands on.

"I'm getting more ideas now!" Beaufort announced as he plucked several rolls of fabrics from the shelves. "Don't you just love it when that happens?"

Unfortunately, that wasn't the case for everyone. "Have you ever been given so many options, that you just get blocked?" Rémi Giraud said, as he looked at a wide selection of blue toned fabrics. "Because that's a thing that happens, and it is happening to me now." A loud bleep censored whatever it was he was going to say, but the message was loud and clear. Rémi was frustrated.

Noemie Roitfeld, seemed to be on the same boat. "This color, I can't match this damned color!" She muttered, as she browsed through the wide selection of lining that the store offered.

Marinette was shamelessly standing on top of a cutting table, looking at the fabric she wouldn't have been able to reach otherwise. The skirt of her pink vintage inspired dress swished around her as she picked at different kinds of fabric, feeling it between her fingers as she tried to settle on one. She pulled two rolls of fabric and set it on the table behind her, before jumping off the table, her hands securing the dress' skirt to her body; only then noticing the camera. "Oops." she said, blushing as she smoothed the skirt of her dress.

"Chop chop designers!" Tim's voice was loud and urgent, "you have five minutes left!"

Raoul seemed to have already finished picking his fabric, and was currently browsing through the rest of the materials, brown eyes clinically examining them against his chosen fabric, before tossing them inside his shopping basket.

"Designers, time is up! Everyone needs to be at the checkout counter now!" The few designers who still weren't done shopping, rushed towards the checkout counter and paid their purchases, and soon everyone was ready, all of them carrying bags of material in their hands. "Alright everyone, time to get back to the workshop!"

The camera cut straight to the workshop, and at once, all the designers began organizing their worktable, placing their purchases on top as they prepared to get to work. There was excited chattering, as they began to work with new energy. Their lovely morning probably helped with that mood.

"I have a good idea for what I'm doing," Matilda said, as the camera showed her placing the black fabric on top of her work table. "I've just never worked with this type of fabric before... so, I just hope it behaves for me."

The camera showed at every designer beginning to cut, and put the scraps of fabric on their dress forms, trying to get a feel of what they were trying to achieve.

The interview cut to Marinette, "I have a good idea on what I'm going to do, but I'm afraid it might not be as architectural or grand as some other designers are shooting for?" Marinette frowned, looking at the camera as she pulled her hair into a bun, weaving a pencil through it. "I've lived in Paris my whole life. I'm just... it's more than just the landmarks, and I'm going to try and show that through what I'm trying to do."

Back at the workshop, everything seemed to be taking shape, until Daniel gasped loudly. "Is that blue tweed?" he asked Elisa, who nodded, confusion clear on her face. "I'm making a tweed skirt." Daniel finished, looking concerned as he glanced at the extremely similar fabric.

A loud bleep censored Elisa's answer as she walked over to Daniels' work table. "Mine's a jacket," Elisa said, holding her fabric to Daniel's, "It's almost the same fabric!"

Daniel covered his face with his hands, panic obviously beginning to set in. "I didn't even see you around it when I picked it!"

"I did it first thing!" Elisa said, looking through her sketchbook to compare it with the other contestant. "What are you pairing it?"

The camera panned around the room, as Elisa and Daniel tried to solve their little problem, while the rest of the designers tried to keep away from the drama, but most were simply unable to look away.

A couple of hours later, Tim Gunn stepped into the work room. "Well, you seem focused today!" he exclaimed, as none of the designers seemed to react to his arrival. The older man chuckled, "Let's see how we're doing!"

The first designer to get inspected was Angelina. Her mannequin held a wide skirt with an exposed hoop skirt. "What's going on here?"

"I'm drawing inspiration from the Eiffel tower," Angelina explained, "So It's the bones will be exposed and part of the look,"

"I see," Tim said, "it's very conceptual, which can be very good. But you need to make sure that your outfit doesn't get lost in the concept you're trying to make. Do you understand?"

"I do,"

"I do like the skirt part... just try and merge it properly with the top."

With that, the mentor walked towards Raoul's table, "What do we have here today." His eyes glanced between the sketch and the half made pink dress. "It's very busy... but in a good way."

Raoul smiled, "I'm just trying to get some Marie Antoinette vibe going on... but make it more current."

"I can see that." Tim said, tapping his chin thoughtfully, "I think you need to be really careful with the construction of the skirt, keep it balanced so that it doesn't throw the whole outfit off."

Raoul nodded, "I can do that."

"Keep up the good work!" Tim said, before turning away towards the next table.

The scene cut to Raoul's interview. "I really think I have a good chance to win this one. I've worked in Architecture before, so I understand how to work structures and lines." He chuckled, "And Tim didn't hate it, so that's always good."

Back at the workshop, Tim had approached Elisa's table. "Well... this fabric looks very familiar." He said, before heading over to Daniel's table. "What happened here?"

The two designers looked bashful, but Elisa spoke up, "I think we both really liked the tweed," she rubbed the back of her neck, "I'm just trying to modify my outfit as much as possible so that it doesn't look related."

"I see that... I can see the differences in the fabric here, but I'm not sure whether they'll show on the runway." Tim pointed out. "You need to make sure your own style shines through enough so that the judges don't notice the similar fabric."

Marinette's turn was next. On her mannequin, there was a long light brown coat, "I can see what you're doing in here. Very Last Tango in Paris," He looked at the coat, his eyes examining the sewn seams. "It's simple... which isn't necessarily bad... but if you're making things simple, you need to be very, very polished. Or else simple becomes sloppy."

"Okay," Marinette nodded. "Maybe work on a hat or something?"

Tim looked thoughtful for a second, "Just make sure your finishing details are well done and accessorize properly." He nodded and carried on towards the next table.

"So, how are you doing today, Leo?"

Leo looked up from his work, as he sewed some lining on top of a delicate brocade fabric. "I'm doing alright with this."

"What's your inspiration?" Tim

"I enjoy the arches on Notre Dame," Leo said, "So I tried to incorporate them into this look."

"It's working very well," Tim said, "I'm looking forward to seeing this on the runway. Keep up the good work."

The camera panned to Anaís, who was currently looking at the interaction between Leo and Tim. "Leo is veeery mysterious." She laughed, "He wouldn't even tell Tim about his design. I mean... we're not going to steal it! And even if someone did try to steal it? We have less than a day to present it, so it's a bit... you know. Too much." Anaís burst into laughter as the camera panned back towards the workshop, where Tim simply turned away from the silent designer.

Back at the front of the room, Tim turned towards the work tables and adressed the group. "Well, designers... I think you're all doing a phenomenal job." he told the whole group, "Sure, some of you have a little more work to do, but the ideas are there. You can do this. And I can't wait to see where you take this." He clapped his hands. "Keep up the good work, and I will see you all in the morning!"

With four hours left in the day before they had to return to the hotel, the designers were beginning to get a bit antsy. "Ugh!" Marinette huffed, before two loud clunks were heard and her height diminished by at least three inches. "My feet are killing me."

"You have a perfectly good seat right there." Raoul pointed out, comfortably settled in front of his own work table.

"I can't sit down." She whined, wiggling her toes as she walked barefoot around her table. "I can't sit down when I'm stressed."

"You're going to get stuck with a needle on your feet and I'm not taking any blame." Raoul said, before focusing on the fabric lined up in front of him. "Then, you'll have to go to the doctor and will miss most of the working time. Tetanus shots hurt like a bitch, by the way."

"Well, don't drop any then." Marinette replied, her tone sassy and defiant and Raoul snorted. "Problem solved."

It was then that the models arrived. Quickly, all the designers stood up, grabbing their outfits from the tables and throwing them on the models. There was no time to waste and the fittings needed to be as precise and fast as humanly possible.

Adrien was already wearing the shirt Marinette had designed, and was currently slipping on the coat.

"Oh..." The words might have been bleeped out by the censors, but it didn't take much effort to figure out just what Miss Dupain Cheng had just said. "It's loose on your shoulders."

There was a second where Adrien just looked shocked, but after that wore off, he simply burst out laughing. "I don't think I've ever heard you curse."

Marinette's face flushed, her hands covering her mouth for a second, before she began to apologize. "Sorry, I'm just..."

"No, it's okay, It's just new to me."" he reassured her, shaking his head, the smile still on his face. "I don't mind, I bet you're stressed." Adrien grinned at her, and Marinette looked up at him with a bashful smile on her face.

"You have no idea," She breathed out, rubbing the back of her neck, before she clicked back into designer mode. "Right, I need a pencil," Marinette said, looking around her work table for one, lifting the material to see where it had rolled into.

"Like this one?" Adrien said, plucking the pencil from her hair, causing it to cascade down from the bun she had secured it into, to its full lenght, right below her shoulders.

"...yeah," Marinette breathed out, nervously taking it from his hand and successfully knocking her box of supplies onto the floor. Again. Down went the needles, measuring tape, elastic band and spare buttons, scattering around her feet and flustering her even more than she was already.

Adrien glanced down. "Wait, you're barefoot?" he asked, "Don't move, you'll get hurt," he told Marinette before he kneeled down to help pick up most of the needles that were currently surrounding her.

Marinette stood by, her cheeks flushing prettily as she pointedly avoided looking at the camera. But of course, the camera then focused on two other contestants, Raoul and Beaufort, who were currently watching the scene unfold, silently laughing at Marinette's misfortune.

Back in the interview room, Beaufort burst into laughter, "Bring some water into the work room because the thirst is unreal."

Soon after, the models were gone and the designers were back to work. There were only two more hours until the end of the day. "I think I might have bitten off more than I can chew." Raoul's voice sounded concerned but slightly amused. "The skirt didn't look as great as I thought on the model's body, but I can still work with it. I might need to cut down on some other details though. I don't know if I'll have enough time."

The next morning, all the designers hurried towards the workroom, anxious to finish their work in the time they were given until they had to take everything to the runway. As usual, it was never enough time.

Tim arrived soon after, ready to remind the designers of the schedule for the day. "Alright designers, You have five hours, but you have to take your models to hair and make up to get them properly ready for the runway. Style carefully and thoughtfully. And, that's it! I can't wait to see you on the show!"

"I did not sleep enough," Marinette appeared on the screen, "But I'm almost..." A yawn interrupted her and she covered her face with both arms as she waited it out. "...ready. But I think it will look okay." She frowned, "I don't think I'll win this one, to be honest, but it's still good. I definitely stand by it."

Hair and make-up were a flurry of instructions, but the artists were good and professional and soon the models were back in the workroom getting ready, with only thirty minutes until the runway show.

Adrien was currently fully dressed, his hair was casually tousled and Marinette was fussing with the coat, popping the collar up and then pressing it down as she tried to decide on the complete runway look. "I can't pick."

"Designers," Tim interrupted, as Marinette was holding a bag and a hat in her hands. "Time to go to the runway now"

"Marinette," Adrien said, taking the hat from her hands, "You're overthinking things..."

"I know," she sighed, biting her lower lip anxiously. "I'm just nervous."

"Well, you won the last one." Adrien reminded her, patting her on the shoulder comfortingly. "You're safe... relax."

"Marinette..." Tim's voice cut right through their little moment and Marinette squeaked.

"Right!" she said, "Thanks!" she added, squeezing Adrien's forearm for a second in silent appreciation, before running behind the rest of the designers, ready for the show.

"That's it. I ship it." Alya said, still holding her phone in her hands.

Nino snorted, turning his attention towards Alya as the designers on the screen took their positions on the runway. "You've always shipped it. We've always shipped it." Nino said, taking a sip of his drink as he watched Alya tweet something. "What is it now?"

"Hashtag. Adrienette." she told him, a devilish smile lighting up her face.

"What are you writing?"

"Only the truth babe, only the truth."

Nino reached for his own phone, looking for the tweet in question as fast as possible. His only answer to Alya was simply say: "Marinette will kill you."

The message was sent from Alya's personal account, which, considering her status as sole administrator of the Ladyblog and the fact that she usually posted several videos and news... well, let's just say, Alya had a lot of followers on her social media accounts. The tweet read:

Aren't DesignerMarinette and her model the cutest thing ever? #Adrinette, #IShipIt.

"Worth it." Alya said, "Might as well, since I'm already going to meme the hell out of her."

At the runway, Heloise did a dramatic entrance as required, standing in front of the designers who were already sitting and waiting for the show to begin.

Welcome to the runway," Heloise greeted them. "As you know, in fashion, one day you're in and one day… you're out. There are fifteen of you here, after this show, there will be fourteen."

"For today's challenge, you had to create a look based on Paris, bringing your own touch to what the city makes you feel. You had freedom to choose your materials, which means we're expecting a high quality show. Marinette, you have immunity for this challenge, which means you cannot be eliminated today."

Marinette nodded, a small smile on her face as the camera panned to her.

"Alright," Heloise continued. "Let's say hello to our judges. We have the creative director for Mode Magazine, Tatiana Geiger. Next to her, we have the creative director for S.E.L.F. Fashion, and famed designer, Thierry Leclère; and today's guest judge, famous actress, Arlette Botrel,"

"Hello," Arlette greeted the designers with a smile and a small wave.

Heloise continued, "We also have Tim Gunn, but as you know, since he's your mentor; he will not be judging you. That said, he will have one Tim Gunn Save. If at some point he disagrees with the judges, he can bring an eliminated designer back to the competition." She said, "We also have an anonymous runway. That means, that the judges don't know which designer created which look. Let's start the show!"

There were a couple of obvious show stoppers. Adrien's outfit looked great, the dark red t-shirt and blue pants mixing oddly well with the brown long coat, giving him an old Hollywood kind of appeal. Raoul's pink rococo dress was extremely well received by the judges. Same with Leo's dress. And just like there were showstoppers, there were obvious failures. Unfortunately, Daniel's outfit was seemingly not well received and Anaís outfit generated a clear frown from Heloise.

Finally, the designers were standing on the runway, waiting for the judges' words. Heloise spoke. "If I call your name. Please step forward."

"Noemie, Matilda, Rémi, Elisa, Claudette, Max, Alexander, Beaufort, Jean Philippe, and Angelina." The named designers stepped forward, and she continued, "Your scores have qualified you to move to the next round. You may leave the runway."

The group left, leaving five designers on the runway. There was a beat of silence before Heloise spoke up again. "Marinette. You are safe this week, but you were not one of the highest scores. The judges feel that your outfit looks well made, but it was lazy and uninspired. It feels like something that could have been bought out of any store and put together by any person here. It was far too simple, and that just won't cut it in the cutthroat world of fashion. But since you have immunity, you cannot be eliminated." Heloise waited for Marinette's acknowledgement. "You can leave the runway." She waited for Marinette to exit the stage before addressing the rest. "The rest of you. You are the two highest and lowest scores. Anaís, explain what happened."

Marinette stepped into the room, just minutes after the safe designers had exited the runway, causing a small uproar. "Oh my God!" Matilda exclaimed, "You're back already? What happened?"

The younger designer shrugged, her pale cheeks tinging red as she sat down quietly, looking dejected after being chastised on television. "They told me it was boring and uninspired. I'm safe because of immunity but... you know. It should have been better."

"Aww," Claudette patted Marinette's shoulder comfortingly, as the younger girl looked around, frowning as she settled in.

"It's okay," Marinette said, wrapping her arms around "I guess I can see their point. I still like how it looked, though."

There was a small shared look between Beauford and Claudette, but neither said anything. In the end, Remi spoke up, successfully changing the subject. "I think either Raoul or Leo are going to be the winners." Rémi spoke up, earning the agreement from everyone there.

"Anaís wasn't that bad though," Claudette commented, "Compared to Daniel's…"

Beaufort agreed. "Daniel's was just... not finished."

"I think the fabric thing really threw him off." Marinette pointed out. "He spent so much time trying to make it more original, that he really didn't get to finish what he wanted."

Elisa nodded, looking concerned. "I really didn't see we picked the same fabric."

"They did end up looking very different on the runway," Matilda said, "But we really need to not let this happen again, it's one of my worst case scenarios, along with coming up with the same concept."

It was then that the designers stepped back into the room. Between the four of them, there was a wide range of emotions. Raoul was beaming, Leo was serious but content and Anaís and Daniel were absolutely distraught.

"What happened?" Claudette asked, as Anaís sat between her and Marinette.

"I'm in the bottom two," Anaís said as her eyes swelled with tears, prompting both Marinette and Claudette to wrap their arms around the girl. "They said it looked like a Mime costume,"

Beaufort winced, but the look on his face clearly conceded the point.

"She'll be alright though." Daniel said, running a hand through his hair, "They said mine was trying to be several styles and failed to commit to any of them."

"Ouch." Marinette frowned. Judges didn't pull any punches.

"They loved Marie Antoinette," Raoul said, in a clear attempt to break up the bad mood; looking thoroughly pleased with himself as he leaned back on one of the seats.

"I did love the ruffley peplum waist." Marinette pointed out. "It was a good look."

There was an echo of agreement around the room, and Raoul acknowledged her compliment with an elaborate hand wave, just as Tim Gunn appeared on the back room. "Designers, back to the Runway."

The commercial break was usually used to check social media, but since Marinette hadn't been on the top scores for this week, Alya had almost stopped paying much attention to the judging. "Mari's outfit was not boring!" Alya defended, barely containing the urge to throw popcorn at the television set. "You'd wear it, right?"

"Yeah, I guess." Nino said, leaning back as Alya's legs fell onto his lap, as she got comfortable to watch the end of the show. "You know I'm really the worst option to be discussing technical stuff here, you know. But it looked good."

"Ooh, it's starting again. I really want that Leo to leave." Alya said, "He seems kind of... dickish."

"He barely talks." Nino said, "How can he be dickish?"

"Exactly." Alya said, "They've been pretty much living together. They should talk even a little."

Back at the show, the remaining designers were awaiting the results, and as required, Heloise took her time. "Daniel, Anaís, Raoul and Leo. You have the highest and lowest scores in this challenge. Raoul... your dress showed a great understanding of the challenge and you were able to use a style as difficult as Rococo and make it into something fresh and tasteful. Leo, you took the arches from Notre dame, and constructed a gorgeous cocktail dress. Leo, you're the winner of this challenge, this means you have immunity for the next one and cannot be eliminated.

"Anaís, your outfit seemed more like a costume than an actual outfit... but you're in. you may leave the runway.

I'm sorry Daniel that means you're out." Heloise stood up from her seat and walked towards the eliminated designer, "Au revoir."

Daniel walked off stage and back into the backroom, where he was hugged by all the designers and Tim, before he was sent to clean his work space.

"Aww, I feel bad for him." Nino said, as they watched the designer's final walk out of the show. "It was just shitty luck. I hope something like that doesn't happen to Marinette." Because it was one thing to be eliminated because of bad work, but luck played a big factor on these competitions. "Though she's usually pretty lucky."

Alya wasn't listening, since she'd stopped paying attention after Leo had been declared the winner. "Oh my God!" Alya almost screamed as she reached for Nino's arm.

"What?" he answered, as he carefully untangled his arm from her death grip.

The only thing Alya did in response was hold her phone up to his face.

#Adrienette was a trending topic.