Wealth and Influence

Marinette nervously bounced her leg, she felt out of place at the fancy party Adrien had invited her to. She could hear the laughs and jeers the other guests were sending in her direction. With a sigh, Marinette stood up, carefully adjusting the white dress Adrien asked her to wear, and had a bowl of liquid poured over her head.

The resounding laughter nearly deafened her.

"Perhaps, Ms. Dupain-Cheng requires a towel." Drawled Gabriel Agreste, smirking down at the girl, "Or maybe she shouldn't impose herself on her betters."

Adrien started to storm towards the culprit, only to have someone grab his arm in a vice-like grip. Marinette took deep breaths, trying to keep herself calm.

"Have security remove her." Ordered Gabriel, turning to Mdm. Tsurugi.

"Lay a finger on her and your family will be arranging your funeral." Came a cold, imposing voice.

Everyone immediately stopped laughing, an elderly Chinese woman strode forwards, with a man with black-hair, grey eyes and a black beard.

"Mdm. Cheng," Greeted Gabriel, "I'm just making sure we no longer had an unwanted guest making a mess of herself."

"Insult my granddaughter one more time and you won't have enough money to afford clothes." Snapped Mdm. Cheng, "Qiang, take Xuiying and find her some clean clothes."

The dark-haired man nodded, removing his trench coat and draping in over Marinette's shoulders, "C'mon, Little one."

He guided Marinette in complete silence, while Mdm. Cheng glared at Gabriel.

"Lin-"

"You may refer to me as Ma'am or Mdm. Cheng." She snapped, "You have the gall to insult my granddaughter, my family, and think you can address me by my name? Remember who made you, boy!"

Gabriel paled, "M-maybe I was acting rashly."

"Your pathetic attempts at grovelling aren't doing you any favours."

"Perhaps we could come to an agreement?"

"Unless that agreement starts with you cleaning your house with your tongue, I'm not interested."

Adrien watched his father and Marinette's grandmother, he didn't know why his father was so scared of her, but it was a bit refreshing. Shaking his head, Adrien managed to pull his arm from the security guard's hand. Quickly slinking out of the room, as a man with white-streaked brown hair drew level with Mdm. Cheng.

Adrien ignored them and poked his head into rooms as he passed them while looking for Marinette, until he reached one door, poked his head into the room and was greeted by a scream. Adrien's face went red, "Sorry!"

He heard a rustling sound, before Marinette called out to him, "Okay, you can come in now."

Adrien slowly entered the room, "So, um, w-why were you… you know…"

"In my underwear?"

Adrien nodded.

"My dress was stained."

"R-ight!" Adrien's voice broke.

"Adrien, are you okay?"

"Yep, totally, definitely not thinking about your-"

"Adrien, stop."

"Okay."

W&I

"Did you not understand who that girl was?" Asked Giovanni, glaring at Gabriel.

"Mdm. Cheng's granddaughter." Coughed Gabriel, getting a harsher glare from Giovanni.

"That girl is also my great niece." Growled Giovanni, "And even if she wasn't, the Dupain family has more wealth than you have in every way possible."

"I understand-"

"No, you don't." Stated Mdm. Cheng, getting Gabriel's attention, "As of now, I am withdrawing all the investments I have placed in your company."

"As am I." Said Giovanni, "I expect to see the reimbursed investment, and the included interest, in the morning. I'd hate to involve my legal team."

Gabriel swallowed thickly, before nodding. Giovanni threw one last glare, before spinning on his heel, let out a short, sharp whistle and left.

"Don't make a fool of yourself, boy." Sneered Mdm. Cheng, before snapping her fingers and leaving.

Audrey looked at Gabriel, who looked like a ghost, threw back her martini and walked out of the door.

W&I

Marinette pulled her shirt on over her head, Michael had taken Adrien outside so she could have some privacy while she dressed. Personally, she thought Adrien looked a little cute when he blushed, but she didn't to be that intimate with Adrien just yet. Maybe in a few years, after they were done with school. She felt the back of her neck and winced at the sticky feeling of the drying punch.

"Is it safe to come in?" Called Michael, making Marinette jump.

"Almost." Replied Marinette, quickly grabbing her jeans and hurriedly pull them on, "Okay, you can come in now."

Michael walked in, with Adrien shuffling in behind him. He kept looking at the floor and wouldn't look at Marinette.

Marinette opened her mouth, when Adrien looked up, blushed and looked back at the floor. Michael noticed Adrien examining the floor and rolled his eyes.

"Uncle Gio and Zumu are waiting for us outside," Said Michael, "Maman said to bring the wimp."

"He's not a wimp." Protested Marinette, moving over to stand with Adrien.

"Yeah, he is." Grinned Michael, "He's a big ol' scaredy cat."

Marinette glared at Michael, before kicking his shin. Adrien watched the two interact, confused why they were hitting each other.

W&I

Sabine quietly scribbled out the bakery's expenses, frowning at a few of the numbers, before grabbing her phone and opening an app.

"Everything alright?" Asked Tom, putting a basket of laundry down.

"One of the American branches is operating at a loss." Said Sabine, "I'm trying to contact Javier, but he's been unusually quiet for the past few weeks."

"Maybe he's been sick." Suggested Tom, "Seattle's going through a bug, right?"

Sabine hummed, before dialling a number and placing her phone to her ear. She frowned again, before hanging up, "The number's saying it's invalid."

Tom hummed, before freezing, "What?"

"The phone said it's invalid." Repeated Sabine, "I'm going to try and contact the branch itself."

Tom nodded and hummed, before going back to the laundry, "Oh, Michael's bringing Marinette and Adrien here with my mother."

Tom looked at Sabine, "I thought it was Skye travelling with your mother."

"She's dealing with a case."

W&I

"No, no, Signore Ricca," Nathalie rubbed her forehead, "I'm sure we can reach an agreement."

Gabriel silently watched her pace around his office, trying to convince at least one of their investors to stay.

"I understand what Monsieur Agreste did was unforgivable, however," Nathalie froze, "Signore? Hello? Hello?"

Putting the phone down, Nathalie paced around, while Audrey and Tomoe sat across from Gabriel.

"They'll be back," Dismissed Gabriel, unbothered, "once they see the trash that child-"

Nathalie slammed a document and a book in front of Gabriel, before stalking out. Almost dismissively, Gabriel picked up the paper and almost dropped it in shock, "She's handed in her notice."

"Then she's not worth your time." Dismissed Tomoe, oblivious to Nathalie going into Gabriel's lair, collecting the rings, Kwami and tome and leaving through a concealed exit.

"Nathalie knows too much." Stated Gabriel, getting to his feet and advancing towards the door, only to run into Amelie, "What do you want?"

"How the hell did you destroy my sister's company?" Demanded Amelie, seething at Gabriel.

"They're no big loss." Dismissed Gabriel, only to get a full-on punch to the face. Amelie grabbed his arm before he hit the floor and buried her knee into his gut.

Amelie discreetly slipped the Adrien's amok ring into her pocket, while her other hand gripped the back of Gabriel's head and slammed his face into the wall. Breathing heavily, Amelie glared at Gabriel and slid onto the floor.

"This house is in my families name." Growled Amelie, "You have a day to leave."

Turning, Amelie stalked away, heading for the front door, intent on finding Adrien. When she reached her car, she looked at Felix and his new friend, Kagami, "Where does Adrien's girlfriend live?"

W&I

Lin looked around Qilin's living room, Qiang and Suyin were arguing about the course of action, while Xuiying was curled up next to her boyfriend.

"Gabriel's stock price has tanked," Said Michael, as their mother placed a tray to tea on the table, "we should wait until it's lower before going forward with the suit."

"The longer we wait, the greater the chance of Agreste getting off." Argued Skye, "He'll have time to concoct a version of event that paints him in a positive light. He could then use that to sue both Zumu and Zio for damages against his brand."

"I'm with Skye on this one." Called Toby from the kitchen, talking around the sandwich in his mouth.

"Toby, swallow your food before you speak." Reprimanded Sabine, sitting next to Tom, "I agree with Skye, the longer this carries on, he'll believe he's gotten away with it."

"Ya' know," Toby swallowed, "I thought you'd know this, since you're a cop and all."

Michael threw him a glare, before glancing at Adrien, "Did you know?"

Adrien violently shook his head, "No."

Michael frowned, before sighing, "Alright. Why were you moving so quickly?"

"Mike, Mari had someone dump a bowl of punch all over her, and she was wearing white." Sighed Skye, rubbing her brow.

"I saw them drop something in Marinette's drink." Said Adrien, making them freeze, "It looked like a large clump of salt."

"But, you don't think it was salt."

"It could've been anything, thallium, potassium cyanide, various pest poisons." Adrien nervously looked around, "There aren't any bugs, are there?"

Michael frowned, glancing around, "I'd hope not, most insects don't make it past Marinette's fly traps."

"That's not what he meant." Said Marinette, speaking for the first time, "He means surveillance devices."

"Why would there be surveillance devices here?" Asked Skye, frowning.

"Father has them put everywhere I go, but he mostly keeps me inside," Said Adrien, "He's tried pulling me out of school and banning me from leaving the house."

Skye leaned back, before grabbing her phone and dialling a number, "Hi, Malcolm, I think we might need to get the police to search the Agreste home."

W&I

Roger frowned as numerous guests were spoken to, while Detective Jonas examined a broken glass with what looked like salt in the bottom. Roger could hear Gabriel Agreste yelling at the two officers questioning him.

"Bag this." Said Jonas, pointing at the glass.

"Ma'am?" Said Roger, frowning.

"I want everything to be gone over with a fine-toothed-comb." Said Jonas, glancing at Roger, "Where's the culprit?"

"He ran off," Answered Roger, "As soon as he saw us. Jared's chasing him down now."

"Who the hell runs from Police after a prank?" Jonas frowned, "Especially since we didn't know who it was."

Roger shrugged, as his radio went off.

"This is Officer Bordeaux," Came the voice of one of Roger's colleague, "be advised, the culprit has been apprehended. He also mentioned something about potassium cyanide."

Roger and Jonas stared at each other, before Roger grabbed his radio, "I'm sorry, could you copy that? I thought I just heard you saw he'd admitted to attempted murder."

"He mentioned the Potassium Cyanide after we cautioned him." Said Bordeaux, over the radio, "He said his boss told him to poison someone."

Roger and Jonas stared at the radio, just as they heard Gabriel Agreste's shouting get louder, before they heard a loud thud. A minute later, a screaming Gabriel Agreste was being escorted out of the hall.

Glancing around, Jonas sighed and walked after the fashion mogul, leaving her colleagues to direct the rest of the scene.

W&I

Detective Jonas did her best not to yawn, she'd gone to the intended victim's home in an attempt to break the news, that someone made an attempt on her life, as gently as possible. She hadn't expected to see a former colleague, a lawyer, the suspect's son and a minor celebrity eating cheese puffs with chopsticks.

She also didn't expect the suspect's son to yell, "I knew it!"

"You're," Jonas paused, "taking this better than I expected."

"W-well," the Intended victim, Marinette, said, "Hawkmoth's still out there."

Jonas nodded, "Normally, we'd ask if you'd want to press charges, but, given it's likely to be considered attempted murder, we're going to be pressing charges anyway."

"W-why did he change his mind?" Asked Marinette, looking confused.

"He didn't," Said Jonas, "his… 'fall guy' had a change of heart after spiking your drink and chose to prevent you from drinking it in a fashion that wouldn't cost him his job."

Marinette gave a shaky nod, making Jonas stand up, "I'll have a colleague come over in the morning to collect a statement."

Marinette glanced at her parents, before giving a shaky nod.

W&I

Lin glared at Amelie Graham de Vanily, the woman had arrived asking to see Adrien.

"Whatever defence you have for Gabriel can wait." Snapped Lin, shortly.

"I'm not here to defend him." Stated Amelie, wincing, "I know we haven't had an official meeting, but I have more contempt for him than you'd believe."

"Doubtful."

"I had to watch him destroy my parent's life work, drive my sister in an early grave and-" Amelie's voice cracked, "and emotionally abuse my son because he was too incompetent to produce a child of him own!"

Lin levelled Amelie with a stoic look, "The British branch still exists, does it not?"

"It does." Amelie replied, stiffly.

"Then re-expand to France." Lin turned and stalked back into her daughter's bakery, as a tired looking police officer left, "Suyin," the woman jumped, "I need you to contact all my investees, if any of them support or agree with Gabriel Agreste in any way, they will have all of the funds we have supplied rescinded."

Suyin nodded, pulling her computer out and started typing up an initial email. Lin frowned as Tao moved on from cheese puffs to mustard covered bread sticks.

"You okay, Toby?" Asked Qiang, frowning at his brother.

"Yeah," Grumbled Tao, "apparently Jack's not allowed to adopt, something about a stipulation in his modelling contract. So, after a fuck-"

"Language." Scolded Qilin, frowning at him.

"-ton arguments, discussions and yelling, I've agreed to temporarily stop my treatments so we can try for a kid."

"…Okay?" Said Qiang, frowning.

"And, thanks to the stop in the treatment, I've gotten this really shitty cravings."

His family looked at him, "Tell me, before these started, did you throw up really easily?" Asked Suyin.

"Skye, how do you know that?" Asked Tao, through a mouthful of food.

"I think you should get yourself checked." Suggested Qiang, before looking around the room, "Where's Marinette gone?"

"She went up stairs with her boyfriend." Said Suyin, not looking up from her laptop.

W&I

Marinette gently stroked Adrien's head, he'd overheard his aunt, mother, speaking with her grandmother. His panicked breaths had started to even out, he'd tried to move, only to slump against her.

"I'm sorry." Adrien's voice was small.

"You haven't done anything to apologise for." Soothed Marinette, "You've just had your world destroyed. Twice."

"…I love you." Marinette sighed, wrapping her arms around Adrien.

"I love you too, Chaton."

W&I

Jonas quietly tapped her arm, waiting for Ladybug to arrive. The duty sergeant had noticed Gabriel Agreste's broach had changed when he touched it and alerted her to it. The sound of someone landing on the roof, skidding, hitting something and cursing told her that Ladybug had arrived.

"Do you kiss your mother with that mouth?" Asked Jonas, frowning at the teenager.

"Sorry." Apologised Ladybug, straightening up, "You said you had a lead on Hawkmoth."

Jonas held up an evidence bag and showed Ladybug the broach.

Ladybug let out a small gasp, "Holy shit."

W&I

"It's been quite the turn of events, hasn't it?" Said a Talk show host. They had the tv on as back ground noise as they redecorated Adrien's room, "Gabriel Agreste had been confined to prison for the rest of his life, for being Hawkmoth, kidnapping his nephew, attempting to solicit the murder of said nephew's girlfriend. And, to cap it all off for the deplorable human being, his company has gone bankrupt."

"That's not all, Tom." Said the co-host, "Emilie Agreste has been laid to rest, his house has been offered to Ladybug as a base for her and her team, should they accept it, and sixteen of his previous employees had come forward alleging that he harassed them."

"Ooh, the tea keeps getting sweeter-" Amelie turned the tv off, "Those idiots are going my head in."

"I quite liked it." Sniffed Felix, as Adrien tried to unscrew a bolt on the bed, "You need to turn it the other way."