Marinette's insides trembled as Mr. Agreste entered the room. This was her fault after all, she's almost gotten his son killed and his wife gone too... Marinette didn't even want to think about how angry he must be.
"Adrien." Mr. Agreste's voice demanded attention. Marinette and Alya and Nino stepped away from Adrien's bed. Adrien was reluctant to let Marinette so far away, after everything that happened, he didn't want her to be out of his reach.
"Father." Adrien wasn't sure what kind of reaction his father would have to all of this. It was everything he was afraid would happen to Adrien. Instead of yelling, or blaming Marinette as both she and secretly Adrien had been fearing, he embraced his son.
"Are you okay?" he asked Adrien.
"I'm fine, just a few scratches." Adrien hugged his father back and Marinette limped backward to lean against the wall.
"What's wrong with your ankle?" Mr. Agreste's eyes didn't miss a thing. Adrien looked over and found Marinette favoring her left foot.
"Um..." Marinette looked down, "it didn't hurt before." She said, but then nothing hurt before. The pain had slowly come to her attention as the hours passed as if her body hadn't figured out what happened to it yet.
"Nathalie." Mr. Agreste snapped "get the doctor in here."
"He hurt your ankle too?" Adrien growled, never in his life had he felt so much anger at someone.
"The door closed on it when he pulled me in." Marinette explained "I didn't think anything of it before."
"Geez, Mari, you can barely stand on it." Adrien tried to push the blanket aside and get up to help her but one sharp look from his father made him stop.
The doctor walked in a moment later, of course no one was going to make Gabriel Agreste wait.
"Mr. Agreste." The doctor smiled at the stoic man.
"Why is it no one can seem to do their job until it's demanded of them?" he snapped at the doctor.
"I-I-I'm sorry, Mr. Agreste, was Adrien complaining of something else?"
"Mademoiselle Dupain-Cheng has a bad ankle she's been allowed to walk around on, didn't anyone think to check her over completely, are you now aware of shock?" Mr. Agreste yelled at him.
"I'm sorry, Mr. Agreste." The doctor sputtered, hurrying over to Marinette, he eased her back onto the chair and pulled her leg out. Marinette winced when the doctor prodded at it.
"We'll have to get an X-ray." The doctor muttered to himself.
"Well, look at that, she's been here for hours!" Mr. Agreste yelled "did you make the same mistake with my son?" he demands.
"No, of course not." The doctor stood and tried to maintain some dignity but Mr. Agreste had a way of taking that away.
"well..." Mr. Agreste growled "what are you waiting for, get her X-ray."
"Right away Mr. Agreste." The doctor scampered out and left Marinette in the chair and Adrien kind of glad for his father's power and intimidation factor. Alya smirked at Marinette from afar as if she knew something Marinette didn't.
"Mademoiselle Dupain-Cheng." Mr. Agreste addressed her.
"Yes sir." Marinette drew herself up a little taller.
"it's my understanding that you assaulted Ethan Baldock."
"What!" Alya exclaimed for Marinette "she was getting kidnapped, you can't be serio—" Nino clapped a hand over her mouth, he did not want to see Mr. Agreste go off on his friend.
"Yes." Marinette said and for the first time since this whole thing started, she didn't feel bad for doing something to hurt him. He'd hurt her and he's hurt Adrien and by extension both Adrien's and her parents.
"Ethan's father is a power man as well, you're aware." Mr. Agreste went on. Marinette nodded "You may be facing serious charges."
"Are you serious!" Alya yelled around Nino's hand.
"Alya." He hissed trying to get her to calm down.
"I had to get back to Adrien." Marinette said without hesitation.
"I see." Mr. Agreste looked back at the police hiding just passed the door. "Seeing as the situation warranted self-defense I don't see that Mademoiselle Dupain-Cheng has broken any laws."
"What's happening?" Adrien asked suspiciously.
"Marinette Dupain-Cheng assaulted me and potentially ruined my modeling career." Ethan's voice froze Marinette in place, Adrien stared open mouth at Ethan standing in the doorway with his father. Nino tightened his grip on Alya.
"Are you insane!" Alya yelled at him, the first to break the silence. "Marinette has a restraining order against you, you creep!"
"Alya, no!" Nino pulled her back into the chair and locked his arms around her.
"Restraining order?" The police looked at Ethan and his father.
"If your department had done your jobs to begin with, none of this would be an issue." Mr. Agreste growled at the police. He maintained his composure and approached Mr. Baldock.
"What are you proposing?" Mr. Agreste asked staring down at both Baldocks.
Mr. Baldock merely smiled "Agreste." He purred as if he had a winning hand. "mademoiselle Cheng simply not press charges for the... misunderstanding and Ethan won't press charges for the assault.
"I'll show you assault!" Alya broke free of Nino's grasp and charged Ethan but one look from Mr. Agreste and she froze in place.
"Mr. Baldock..." Mr. Agreste placed his hand on Mr. Baldocks shoulder in a gesture that was far from friendly. "I will not rest until I see you and your son locked in the darkest hole this country has to offer for trying to hurt my son and his girlfriend." Mr. Agreste looked to the police.
"Now do your jobs and enforce the order." he growled. Mr. Agreste turned as the police guided Ethan and Mr. Baldock away.
Marinette, Adrien, Alya and Nino just stared at him.
He really cares Adrien thought as his father stood beside his bed and his friends sat in the chairs. Adrien hated watching Marinette go to get the X-ray but there was no way his dad was letting him out of this bed until the doctors reran all the tests and checked him over.
Nino and Alya had to go home, Marinette's parents had let Mr. Agreste handle the doctors and the police. They were okay to hover in the background now that their daughter was okay. At least for this moment Adrien was in the bathroom changing back into his normal clothes from the hospital gown and that left Marinette with Gabriel Agreste, her idol, her crush and friend's father. She wasn't sure what reason made him more intimidating.
"Mademoiselle..." he trailed off and sighed "Marinette." He said, "I blamed you after you told me."
Marinette nodded "I blame me too."
"I swore he would never see you again, you two would never so much as cross paths again..." he trailed off again.
Marinette just nodded "I understand."
"but then... then I remember why I allowed him to get involved." Gabriel Agreste was as stoic as ever but there was the slightest hint of compassion in his eyes.
"My wife and I, we met in school, she was beautiful and coveted but she chose me and not everyone wanted to accept that."
"Adrien's mom?" Marinette asked. Gabriel nodded "he did a lot of the same things as Ethan did to you, notes and gifts, showing up at her house in the middle of the night... although he never dressed in a cat suit and snuck into her room." He cocked his brow at her.
Marinette turned bright red. "how did..."
"I had all of your phone records retrieved, Marinette, even the ones between you and your friend Alya... even the ones between you and Chat Noir." Gabriel Agreste watched the girl's face get more red, red as ladybugs costume.
"I..." Marinette didn't know what to say.
"I know you're not Adrien's girlfriend." Gabriel said.
"Then why..." Marinette trailed off.
"because he needs help seeing how much you care about him... and how much he cares about you."
Marinette's heart was like a jack hammer in her chest.
"Unless..." Gabriel watched her carefully as she tensed "unless you care more for Chat Noir."
"No!" She said much louder than she intended.
"Everything okay out there?" Adrien peaked out of the bathroom, his hair dishelved and his shirt not yet on. Marinette kept her eyes firmly on Mr. Agreste.
"Hurry up." Mr. Agreste said sharply. Adrien rolled his eyes and closed the door.
"Chat Noir is just a friend." Marinette said, "he gets lonely I think, I don't think he has anyone he can talk to."
"I see." Gabriel Agreste nodded and his alter ego began concocting plans to use Marinette against Chat Noir but... that might put Adrien in danger as well, if Adrien tried to go off and be a hero and save Marinette on his own. Gabriel wouldn't put it passed his son.
"I'm not angry at you anymore, Gabriel said "but I don't want you or your friends talking to him the next few days."
"I understand." Marinette said "he's spent all his time with me the last few weeks, it's your turn."
"Thank you." Gabriel patted her hand as Adrien came out.
"What going on?" Adrien asked.
"Let's get you two home." Mr. Agreste led the way out, Adrien hurried over to Marinette and helped her to her feet.
"There we go." Adrien smiled at her "we'll give you a ride home."
"Thanks, Adrien." Marinette allowed him to help her out, her ankle was just bruised, nothing broken but Adrien still fussed over her. Marinette only wished that this wasn't how they finally got to know each other.
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Authors thoughts
Ethan... you jerk... just tried to pull something like that on Marinette?
ARE YOU INSANE
Adrien was about to throw hands and then Gabriel was all... I got dis son.
Oh... and people better start doing the jobs before they anger Mr. Agreste.
...
Okay... okay I think there like two more parts to this, really this time. Part 15 and 16(maybe 17) one will be a MariChat and Maybe... maybe we'll be ending with a bit of LadyNoir. if there is a part 17 in here then that will most like be a little Adrienette and will be like an aftermath type thing for closure purposes.