"Adrien?" The voice was cold and distant and Adrien missed even more the warm and jovial sounds of Tom and Sabine at the bakery.

"Yes father, you scheduled an appointment to see me?" The sarcasm in his son's tone wasn't lost on Gabriel.

"Right, let me get straight to the point. I have been notified today that Audrey Bourgeois and by extension Chloe will be returning to Paris in the next 24 hours and as such, will be attending the New Year Gala." Adrien looked at his father puzzled. Chloe had told him that she wasn't returning to Paris until at least a few days after the New Year. Gabriel could see the question hanging in the air and pinched his nose between his fingers. "It would appear Audrey had an altercation with the hotel manager where they are staying. She claimed that she choose to leave, but I would think asked to leave would be more likely. In her temper, she decided to return to Paris." Adrien rolled his eyes. It wouldn't be the first time that had happened. He felt sorry for Chloe though, she'd really been looking forward to the trip and now she would be patnerless for the gala. Adrien folded his arms.

"If you're asking me to ditch Marinette to take Chloe, I won't do it." Gabriel shook his head.

"No I wouldn't ask that. It would be inappropriate at this point in time." Gabriel was aware of the suspicious look his son was giving him and truthfully it hurt. Gabriel knew he had been hard on Adrien after the failed relationship attempt with Kagami, and he had to acknowledge his part in that. After all he had misread the situation badly but in his defence he reasoned, matters of the heart were nothing more but a distant memory. "I just got off the phone with your Aunt Amelie, she has agreed to send Felix over to partner Chloe. He will be staying with us for a few days." Adrien's mouth gaped open.

"Here? As in Felix is going to be staying here with us?" Gabriel furrowed his eyebrows.

"I thought you said you had been talking with your cousin again? He certainly didn't seem to mind sharing personal family details with you." Gabriel was still annoyed that Felix had felt the need to tell Adrien that it was Emilie's family that had come from wealth when he was still a struggling designer.

"Well the last time I checked I was still family." Adrien mumbled. This whole situation was not what Adrien had wanted right now. Not at all. Not only was he going to have to get Marinette through dinner with his father tonight, but now he was going to have to keep her away from his cousin while said cousin is in his house.

"Besides, talking to my cousin on the phone is one thing, having him in my house and around my girlfriend is totally another." Gabriel wasn't sure he was following what the issue was and Adrien couldn't very well tell him that his cousin had tried to crack onto his girlfriend's superhero side earning Felix a punch in the nose.

"Surely you're not suggesting that Miss Dupain-Cheng isn't trustworthy?" Seriously, he went there. Adrien had to bite his tongue from saying what he really thought about that comment.

"Are you saying Felix is?" He seathed. Gabriel nodded in concession.

"Touché. Nevertheless, Felix will be staying with us and will accompany you, Miss Dupain-Cheng and Miss Bourgeois to the Gala. When he arrives tomorrow I'll send him along to your photoshoot."

"What photo shoot?" This was just going from bad to worse.

"We have some new pieces to be added to the spring line. Vincent is going away for the New Year so it has to be done tomorrow. I will see you and Miss Dupain-Cheng at dinner." Without another word, Gabriel turned and left the room.

"I better hide my cheese before your cousin gets here." Adrien was still looking at where his father had left through the door.

"I think we're going to have bigger problems than your cheese Plagg." He turned to his Kwami, the two of them sharing a worried look. He pulled out his phone to let Marinette know about his cousin's impending visit.

It was right on six o'clock when Adrien heard the driver pull up. He raced out the door to help Marinette out of the car. She had brought the dress in a zipped clothes bag and was holding it nervously in her arms. Snow had begun to lightly fall again as they made their way into the foyer. Adrien was brushing the snow off his girlfriend's head when footsteps echoed through the room.

"Good evening Miss Dupain-Cheng." Marinette startled at the cold formal tone. She stumbled out a greeting feeling like a 14 year old again under his icy stare. Gabriel made no attempt in making her feel welcome. She felt Adrien's arm around her back in a show of support. "If you will be so kind as to give your dress to Nathalie, I thought we could eat dinner first before we get to business."

"Business?" Adrien queried, but his father didn't respond before walking towards the dining hall.

"I'll take care of that for you Marinette." The bluenette turned to the voice to see Nathalie approaching.

"H-hello Miss Sancour." Marinette stumbled out as she held out the bagged dress.

"Please, I think you can just call me Nathalie now." The assistant gave her a small smile which made Marinette relax a little.

"Nathalie what's going on with father? This was supposed to be a dinner for him to properly meet my girlfriend. Why is he treating this like a job interview or a business transaction?" Nathalie shook her head.

"I don't know Adrien." She said in a low voice. "Maybe he doesn't know how else to handle it." It then occurred to Adrien that his father perhaps didn't know how to handle this. Adrien's disastrous date with Kagami had been entirely engineered by his father as, what he could see now, a business venture. He had not even taken emotions into account, least of all Kagami's. Gabriel had chosen Kagami as a suitable candidate for his son as she ticked certain boxes he thought made her a perfect choice. He hadn't even thought about what Adrien wanted. Adrien wouldn't be surprised if Kagami's mother had also been involved. This, however, was entirely different. Gabriel had no hand in this relationship whatsoever. Marinette was Adrien's choice because love was the driving factor. The more Adrien thought about it, the more he realised his father was worried about losing control of the situation. What his father hadn't realised yet though was that he already had, because Adrien had permanently lost his heart to his Lady.

As Nathalie left with the dress Adrien took Marinette by the hand, giving her a loving smile with a gentle kiss to the inside of her wrist. "You look beautiful by the way m'lady." He said giving her a soft kiss on the lips.

"Adrien I'm scared." She whispered. Adrien smiled at her, tucking a stray hair black behind her ear. She had worn her hair down tonight and it was all he could do not to whisk her away to his room and just kiss her all night.

"Just be yourself Bugaboo and I'll be right here beside you, as always."

Gabriel sat at the head of the long table. There was a place set near him that Adrien assumed must have been for Nathalie. He was glad she would be there too in case his father got out of hand. Adrien was sat at the other end as usual, with Marinette by him. It was so formal compared to the cosy table at the bakery. Once Nathalie returned and took her place, the meals were brought out. At first there was just silence hanging in the air, with only the sound of cutlery clinking on plates. Nathalie could see that Gabriel was not going to initiate a conversation, so she began asking Marinette about her designs and future plans. Adrien gave his girlfriend an encouraging nod and Marinette soon began to open up. She took out her design book, handing it to Nathalie for her and Gabriel to look at. He hid his thoughts behind his poker face, but Gabriel had to admit to himself that there was more talent here than what he gave the girl credit for. Just looking at the sketches of the New Year dress he already knew that it would be the talking point of the night.

Throughout the exchange Gabriel stayed silent, but watched Marinette as she talked. She was in her element when talking about fashion, and wasn't stuttering at all. She had passion, Gabriel had to admit, and she seemed genuine in her ambitions, but what really stuck him was the look on Adrien's face. He watched as his son hung off her every word, a look of pride and pure love in his eyes. When Marinette would turn her head to look at the blonde, Gabriel saw the same look reflected in her own eyes and it made something in the older Agreste stir. Was it jealousy? Perhaps...Gabriel wasn't sure, but what he was sure of was that this was not the kind of look one would expect from a seventeen year old for his new girlfriend. This ran a lot deeper. Gabriel remembered Nathalie had mentioned Adrien and Marinette had been friends for some time and he recalled Adrien mentioning her different times, always with great fondness. Still, he had to be sure.

"And how do you propose to pay your tuition Miss Dupain-Cheng?" Gabriel lifted his eyes from his plate and looked intently at Marinette over his glasses.

"Father, really! Don't you think that's a bit inappropriate?" Adrien exclaimed. His protective Chat side automatically kicked in and he made a move to stand when Marinette reached out and stopped him.

"It's alright Adrien. Your father doesn't know me and I understand his concerns." Adrien shook his head.

"It doesn't make it right Mari..." Marinette shushed him with a finger to his lips before turning back to the older Agreste. Gabriel had not expected that kind of reaction out of Adrien but Marinette had the ability to calm him down instantly.

"To answer your question Mr. Agreste, I intend to apply for a scholarship initially. If that falls through, then I will work any job I can to see my dream through." Adrien reached out and took her hand.

"You don't have to do that Mari, you know I'd help you." She smiled at him. For a moment she forgot about his father and assistant, cupping her hand on his cheek and losing herself in the love of his emerald eyes.

"You're too good to me, but I can't ask you to do that. This is my dream, I have to make it happen myself." Adrien put his hand over hers, wrapping his fingers around and bringing it to his lips, gently pressing a kiss to it.

"Your a stubborn Princess, but it's one of the reasons I love you." He whispered. Their moment was interrupted by Gabriel clearing his throat. The two teens both went slightly red in the face, though Nathalie clearly had delighted in the whole situation as desert was brought out.

Gabriel continued to observe the scene before him and he noted with some frustration that he had once again misread the situation badly. This girl was no gold digger and she wasn't after Adrien for social status or fame. Gabriel was hit with a slight prang of guilt. He could see so clearly his younger self in Marinette and he was sure Emilie would have liked this girl, just like Nathalie obviously did.

"If we are done here, perhaps Miss Dupain-Cheng can show us this dress she is proposing to wear. There is a mannequin in my office for you to prepare the display. Adrien, if you could show her the way I will give you a moment to organise." Marinette nodded and rose with Adrien who led the way to Gabriel's office. Gabriel was about to follow when Nathalie reached out and grabbed his arm.

"Gabriel I don't know what you have been about tonight, but your son clearly has very strong feelings for this girl. I've seen it evolving for quite some time. The way he would talk to her, the way he looked at her I could see that she meant more to him than just another one of his friends. Had you have been more active in his life you would have seen it for yourself, rather than having tried to force Miss Tsurugi onto him." Gabriel opened his mouth to speak but couldn't find the right words. There was a fire in Nathalie's eyes he had rarely seen and he wasn't sure challenging it was a good idea. "You said to me you didn't want to lose Adrien from the company. The company mind you - but mark my words Gabriel if you keep this up you will not only lose him from the company, you will lose him from your life because that girl loves him and he craves that love more than you can imagine." Gabriel looked away from his assistant and at the family portrait on the wall. He really needed Emilie's guidance here.

"I guess I didn't know how to approach any of this. He's my only son Nathalie, but I should have trusted your judgement about Marinette and I'm sorry. It's quite obvious by the sketches that she is extremely talented." He rubbed his forehead with his hand and let out a sigh. "I see now that she was not using Adrien to get into the industry, she's perfectly capable of doing that herself." Nathalie pinched her nose with her fingers. Why was it that the Agreste men were always so slow to see the obvious? "He really loves her, doesn't he?" Gabriel looked at Nathalie with an expression that told of a far away pain. Nathalie knew that look, she sees it on his face whenever he looks at pictures of Emilie.

"Yes he does, and she loves him just as much. For years I've watched you push him away, building an emotional wall between you. She has brought joy to his life. I've never seen him more happy than when he is around her." Had Gabriel really not seen it? Had he been that all consumed in his work and being Hawk Moth that he couldn't see how much Adrien needed this girl in his life? How much he wanted her in his life?

"We're ready for you father." Gabriel was startled out of his thoughts by Adrien's voice. Adrien could see the fierce look in Nathalie's face and what almost looked like confusion in his father's. "Is anything wrong?"

"Everything is fine Adrien." Gabriel said curtly before he and Nathalie followed Adrien back to the office.

Gabriel walked over to the dress. He could see Adrien watching him closely as he inspected it. Adrien almost looked ready to pounce at him if he dared say anything negative.

"You did all of this work yourself?" Gabriel asked.

"Yes Mr Agreste. It's entirely my own work." Marinette answered.

"I can vouch for her father." Adrien added, wrapping his arm around her back. "I've watched her work and I know how much effort she puts into everything she does." Gabriel gave one more look over the dress before approaching Marinette and Adrien. He stood with his hands behind his back and the bluenette could feel her nerves start to fray again.

"Miss Dupain-Cheng, do you mind if I call you Marinette?"

"Not at all." She smiled. It was the first time he had used her first name. Maybe this was progress after all.

"May I suggest that you not to enter this dress into competition." Mainette's face dropped and she could feel the tears coming. Adrien held her closer.

"Father, how could you..." He began in her defence before Gabriel put a hand up to stop him.

"If you would let me finish Adrien." Adrien put his boiling anger on simmer. "If Marinette agrees, I would like to add this dress to the spring collection as a Gabriel original. Of course, your name Marinette will be listed as the designer and you will be paid accordingly." Marinette blinked in disbelief.

"My dress...a Gabriel original?" Gabriel nodded. His face still showed no expression, but there was a softness around the eyes that wasn't there before. Adrien pulled her into a tight hug.

"I told you he would love it." He whispered in her ear.

"There are some minor flaws which are to be expected from an amateur designer, but I believe the garment can hold its own. Bring the dress to the photoshoot tomorrow. Perhaps Marinette can keep your cousin company during the shoot." Adrien wasn't thrilled with that idea, but at least he could keep an eye on her.

After finishing with particulars, the hour was late and Adrien escorted Marinette to his driver. The snow was getting heavier, so he used an umbrella to protect them. "I told you he would love you m'lady. Even an old iceberg like my father can be melted by you." Marinette giggled at his analogy.

"Maybe Kitty, or maybe he just liked the dress." Marinette put her hand out to the snow. "I think we might call off patrol tonight. I don't think either of us want to be out in this." She whispered as she got in the car. Adrien nodded though he would miss seeing her. "And don't worry about your cousin. I think I can handle him just fine." Adrien's face split into a wide grin.

"I know you can m'lady." He leaned in to give her a kiss before closing the door and watching her drive away.