"Well, you seem okay dear. You don't have a concussion, and nothing seems to be broken," the nurse said as she checked over Morgana. Said girl was sitting on the small bed in the office with Marinette sitting in the corner on a chair.
"Thank you," Morgana said stiffly.
"Are you going to go to the principal about this?" the nurse asked but she just gave a shrug in response.
"She's just shaken up. I'm sure something will be done," Marinette said quickly, seeing how Morgana was twitching in her seat.
The nurse nodded understandably and patted Morgana on the shoulder. Both girls stood up and headed to the door, with Morgana getting a small lolly as she went. As soon as the door shut, Morgana let out a puff of air as she took the wrapper off the lolly and stuck it in her mouth.
"That was perfect," she said with a smile. Marinette seemed flabbergasted.
"What do you mean?" Marinette asked.
"While I did not see Agreste for the aggressive type, he is digging his own grave. If he hadn't done that to me, he would have done it to you. Acting on impulse," Morgana said as she sucked the sweet.
"I never thought of it that way. I didn't think it would happen a second time," Marinette said. Morgana patted her shoulder, although she seemed to dislike the idea of human contact.
"There, there," Morgana said. Marinette merely chuckled at her attempt of comfort. Morgana had already comforted her massively just by helping her.
"So, what is your plan now?" Marinette asked.
"Well, Agreste's reputation is down the toilet so I can check that off my list. Something tells me that the fashion brand is going to take a hit. I think it's the perfect time for another MDC appearance," Morgana said with a smile.
Marinette struggled to hold in her excitement but was right to do so as the girls rounded the corner. Morgana was quick to hunch over and Marinette placed an arm over her. It was noted that Lila was leading the group. Juleka was still there but she didn't look happy.
"Oh my gosh, how are you Morgana?" Lila asked, instantly pulling Morgana away from Marinette. Morgana merely whimpered and covered her eyes.
"The nurse checked her over. Nothing broken!" Marinette said cheerily.
"That's great!" Rose said as she hugged Morgana who did everything in her power not to push her away.
"Ummm... Marinette?" Juleka said as she shuffled forward. Marinette tensed slightly but was surprised when she hugged her. Lila visibly twitched at this, however.
"Thank you for defending Luka," Juleka whispered. Marinette smiled and hugged her back.
"You're welcome," Marinette said warmly.
"Aw..." Lila faked cooed.
This wasn't good. She was hoping to pull a stunt so Marinette would end up being even more of an outcast. But what Adrien just did put a real wrench in her plan. She didn't see what all the fuss was about with the blue haired guitarist. He was weird and mumbled about music too much. Getting him kicked out of his own band was one of her best lies yet. Well maybe she couldn't make them hate Luka...but maybe she could make Luka hate Marinette. Yes! That was perfect!
"If you don't mind me asking, do you know what's happening with the boys?" Marinette asked politely. Alya chose not to answer her, still taking a stance that she was a bully and didn't deserve to know. Rose however didn't share that idea.
"I think they're back in the class now. Miss Bustier is telling him off," Rose answered and Marinette nodded in understanding.
"What? Not going to defend Adrien?" Alya sneered and Marinette blinked at this. Clearly, they hadn't heard about her declaration of distaste for Adrien. Ooh this would be a treat when they found out.
"No, I am not. It was a very unkind thing to do. I am sure Nino will give you all the details that you've missed anyway. I'll meet you back in class. I know Morgana is in great hands now," Marinette chirped as she walked past the surprised group.
None was more surprised than Lila. Where was the love for Adrien? The one thing Lila was looking forward to the most was outing Marinette's crush to everyone. What had she missed? She needed to find out right away.
.....
Now back in class, Marinette watched Adrien sit at the front with hunched shoulders. While she had missed the lecture from the teacher, of which she was fairly certain she would make Morgana apologise for some bizarre reason. Adrien turned his head, who looked sore from crying but Marinette chose not to look at him. This only made him more upset. Her mind wandered to the competition. She had voted for Aurore on outstanding student and filled in students from other classes. She didn't vote for anyone in hers. Obviously. She wondered who they would vote for. Lila obviously.
At that moment, the rest of the class poured in. Everyone looked at Adrien warily but said nothing as they took their seats.
"Alright class, I need to go and talk to the principal to see if I can talk to Adrien's father on the phone. No fighting while I am gone," Miss Bustier said as she headed out of the room. There was a long pause. Then someone broke the silence.
"So, Adrien, if you disagree with me about something, should I be wearing my helmet around you now? Wouldn't want to get knocked over," Alix said with a frown.
"I didn't mean to!" Adrien said in exasperation.
"Sure, you didn't," Kim said with a glare.
"You haven't even said sorry to Morgana!" Sabrina said, causing a stir of agreements to go about the classroom.
That thought hadn't even crossed Adrien's mind with everything that Marinette had told him. He turned his head back to see Morgana looking at him with her green eyes. It was almost as if they were staring into his soul.
"Morgana, I am really sorry for what happened. I don't know what came over me," Adrien said. It was a sincere apology, and he was hoping he wouldn't be pulled out of school for this.
"Alright. A-Aren't you forgetting...someone?" Morgana asked; everyone being aware that she didn't accept his apology. Not that anyone blamed her. Bar Lila of course.
"Uh...?" Adrien said in slight confusion. Marinette connected the dots, however.
"Luka," Marinette answered.
"What about him?" Adrien asked, a little annoyance coming back at the mention of that guy. It was his fault for making him mad in the first place.
"You insulted him a lot today. You owe him and Juleka an apology. Although she doesn't want to speak to you so that's her decision," Marinette said, looking at the girl in question, who smiled in thanks.
"Right... Juleka, I am sorry I was rude about...Luka," Adrien said, although a twitch in his brow wasn't missed by some.
"That didn't sound as sincere," Max said warily.
"Apology not accepted," Juleka muttered, turning her head to the window.
"That is fair," Marinette said calmly.
"Oh, come on Marinette, just because you like Adrien, doesn't mean you have to rub your new boyfriend in his face," Lila said teasingly, making some girls, aside from Rose and Juleka laugh.
"Thank you, Lila but I don't like Adrien. Nor do I have him as a crush anymore," Marinette said firmly.
Cue the breaks in the girls' heads. Marinette was slightly annoyed at them. While Lila knew from the start that she had liked Adrien, Alya had broken her promise to keep the crush details a secret, as had the other girls. Lila still wasn't done stirring the pot. She was so sure Maritrash was dating Luka just to make Adrien jealous...but that didn't seem the case now.
"Girl, please, you've always loved Adrien," Alya said with a scoff, having the same thoughts as Lila but she was smart enough not to say things like that in front of Juleka.
"I did. But now I see what kind of person he is. I think you all have," Marinette said, making Adrien feel smaller than he has ever been. Plagg was peeping out, silently cheering Marinette but being cautious of any akumas.
"It's true Alya, you missed it all in the cafeteria when you left," Nino said. Alya was about to question him until all the boys nodded in agreement with him. How come Marinette never even mentioned it to her? So rude, that girl.
"Not shouting pays off..." Morgana whispered. She had gone over the details with Marinette with dealing with confrontations. Keeping a cool head was key. Speaking of cool heads, she was 100% that a certain someone was being informed of the situation now.
.....
Gabriel sat at his desk after Nathalie has just come off the phone. He was NOT happy. Not only had he been furious about the information that had come to light recently but now Adrien was in trouble for hitting someone in school? He had sensed the feeling of despair and loneliness but when he found out it was coming from Adrien, he had refused to send one out. At least he knew why he was like this now.
"What should we do?" Nathalie asked, not expecting this behaviour of Adrien.
"I don't know. It's not something I thought I would have to deal with," Gabriel muttered as he leaned forward on his desk.
"Why didn't you akumatise the girl?" Nathalie asked.
"She's the one who brought the information to light. This is beyond me Nathalie. What this girl is doing is serious...while I love Emile and want her back more than anything... it must wait. When Friday comes, I want you to wield Nooroo. You must determine if we need the mass akuma storm," Gabriel said firmly.
"I understand Sir. Are you going to akumatise anyone in the incoming days?" Nathalie asked.
"No. Ladybug and Chat Noir are lucky. There are more important things to worry about. Then there's this MDC character..." Gabriel muttered.
"Indeed. With this incident in school, it is bound to damage the reputation. We need to do a little early preview of the fashion launch tonight," Nathalie said, which made Gabriel scowl. While he did admire the work of this new designer, he didn't like that it was... well better than his.
"Fine. Schedule it for later and announce it online. It should bring more of a focus on our brand," Gabriel said.
Boy was he wrong.
.....
"You want me to do what?!" Marinette shrieked.
"Please shout louder, I would love to go deaf," Morgana said with an eye roll.
After leaving school, Morgana had invited herself over along with Luka and Kagami. Chloé was on via tablet and was being held by Luka. After being briefed at what happened in school today, (hence why Luka was holding the tablet and not Kagami, who nearly crushed it), they were all now listening to Morgana's plan for MDC's second appearance. Which to be honest, sounded insane.
"What you're asking is a bit crazy," Kagami asked.
"I think it sounds amazing," Chloé said with a laugh.
"I don't like it," Luka said, extremely concerned for his melody's safety.
"My parents wouldn't let me do this," Marinette said quickly but her heart sank when she met Morgana's smirk.
"Your parents were hard to convince but I managed. Jagged thinks it's a great idea and he is more than happy to help with it," Morgana said.
"How did you even think of this?" Kagami questioned.
"Seem reason how Alexander Bell thought of making the telephone. He was smart," Morgana said with a shrug.
"Makes sense to me," Chloé said.
"Not helping," Luka frowned.
"Marinette when you agreed to do this all with me, one of my conditions was that you would do anything I said. None of this is without reason," Morgana said, almost sternly. Marinette gave a defeated shrug and sighed.
"I guess so. I have the outfit in the back ready," Marinette said as she went to go and fetch it.
"It isn't nice to make peer pressure," Luka said, and Morgana scoffed.
"Oh please. When coal is put under pressure, it turns into a diamond," she said. Luka went to object but annoyingly, that comparison really suited Marinette. It was basically what Morgana was doing to her.
"I have to ask. What did the vermin have to say about all this today?" Kagami asked.
"Not much. She knew she couldn't weasel him out of that. She tried outing Marinette's crush but that stone cold rejection she gave Adrien was the icing on the cake," Morgana said.
"Really?" Luka asked.
"If you want, we can turn our backs while you do a happy dance," Chloé said, making Luka blush. While he angry at Adrien, he was happy that Marinette stood up for herself. He was always scared he was dreaming and that Marinette would go back to Adrien.
"Here it is!" Marinette said brightly as she pulled out the outfit.
Everyone turned to admire it. It was a sky blue ballgown, decorated with butterflies that were hand crafted and sprinkled with glitter. It had a sweetheart neckline, and the blue train was wrapped around the waistline of the dress, almost as if it was mist. To top it off, a jewelled mask with a butterfly headpiece.
"You'll make quite the spectacle. Perfect time to outshine Gabriel," Morgana stated. Time froze at that.
"Huh?" Chloé even said.
"Ah, of course you weren't paying attention. Mr Recluse is launching an early outfit for his collection. Most likely due to Adrien's stunt. No doubt it has damaged the brand media wise," Morgana stated.
"I didn't even think of that," Kagami admitted.
"Of course, you didn't," Morgana said, making Kagami twitch slightly. Marinette laughed nervously as did Luka as they saw the girls stare at each other.
"Are we going to do this or what? I am getting bored!" Chloé complained.
"Yes, we are. Get Jagged on the phone. The game is in motion again," Morgana said darkly.
.....
Four Hours Later:
"Raven to Red Sparrow," Morgana said into her earpiece.
Once again, she was in her desk chair, watching the scene unfold. Currently, she was looking at the screen, where Lila was standing in Gabriel's newest outfit. She looked like a walking domino. If not for Marinette, she would never understand fashion. Having Lila model was intriguing to Morgana. Gabriel was clearly unhappy about the model but the fact that he was doing it...that gave an advantage for Morgana.
"Red Sparrow to Raven. Over," Kagami said.
She was currently managing the MDC account. She wanted to make sure that the screen grabs were clear for the post. They had suggested to do some modelling shoots for the whole display, but Morgana was strongly against it. Having a photoshoot with an upcoming icon was too risky in public. When Luka suggested a green screen in the room, Morgana glared so hard at him, he flinched. Apparently, a green screen could be easily edited, so people could see the true location.
"Peregrine to Raven," Luka called. Morgana huffed in annoyance. He was currently at home as having him associated in the helicopter would immediately link him to Marinette, revealing her identity.
"Raven to Peregrine, this had better be important," Morgana snapped.
"I'm sorry, I'm just worried," Luka said.
"So are her parents but they are being calm and watching the television for Marinette. They've been briefed by Penny about the whole thing and the safety. They are worried but not making a fuss!" Morgana hissed.
"Blue Jay to Raven?" Marinette said.
"Raven to Blue Jay, what?" Morgana said in exasperation.
"Can you not yell at each other? You're stressing me out," Marinette said weakly.
"Sorry Melody," Luka said.
"I'm in charge, I am not sorry now let's go! We are a go in..." Morgana started.
.....
"As you can see, this preview features just one of the reflective pieces in the upcoming collections," Gabriel said, with little enthusiasm. His tone was noted, and the camera were flashing but not rapidly.
"It is stunning, isn't it?" Lila said as she batted her eyelids.
.....
"Three."
.....
"Can we see other people model this outfit?" a reporter asked.
"I'm the only one who can model this good!" Lila bragged.
.....
"Two."
.....
"Gabriel when can we see other designs released?" another asked.
"You will be able to see other designs later this year. I guarantee they will be the most talked about collection this year," Gabriel stated.
.....
"One."
.....
A loud horn ran out as music then came to everyone's ears as they all looked up. A helicopter was now flying above the showcase, making Lila's outfit blow in the wind. She shrieked in annoyance, but the camera was now up on the sky. Lights shone from the helicopter as it was now apparent that something was hanging from the base of it.
"This is so rock and roll!" Jagged yelled as he shook his fists in the air.
Penny laughed slightly as she flew the helicopter. She was super nervous but excited for Marinette as this stunt was sure to trend for days. When the idea was proposed to her over the phone by the green-eyed girl, she wasn't sure what to make of it. But as soon as Jagged heard it, he wanted to do it. He was so happy after the debut; he couldn't wait to do another one.
"You ready MDC?!" she called over the whir of the engine.
"Yes!" Marinette called back, from her position on the edge of the helicopter. It was time to go!
.....
"Look! There is someone on the edge of the helicopter!" a reporter yelled.
"It looks like a bird cage! It looks so pretty!" another said.
"What about me?!" Lila yelled but her voice fell on deaf ears. Even Gabriel wasn't looking at her.
The said bird cage, decorated with flowers and jewels, was now being lowered from the helicopter, had MDC perched inside it, with her gorgeous dress on all the turned-on screens right now. Kagami was screen grabbing the live feed for the posts while Marinette's parents were beaming with pride. Morgana was watching the tweets pour in. MDC was trending once again. It was amazing. People only had to look at her and they knew who she was. But now for the closer.
Marinette, who was strapped firmly in around her waist, safely secured, couldn't believe what was happening. Sure, she had been at heights as Ladybug but not for something like this! Remembering the last part of the plan, she unfurled the train of the dress. As it spun out, it separated into three massively long cloth banners, which had been made in Jagged's suite. They read:
THANK YOU EVERYONE!
LOVE YOURSELF!
BE YOURSELF!
And with that, MDC had once again, taken the world by storm.