One Way or Another

A Horrible Tragedy and A Genuine Reaction

"Alright," he said. "But just remember one thing. You need to fight the fights that you can win. Ladybug might be injured, but she's still Ladybug."

She narrowed her eyes.

"Look, you have the Butterfly Miraculous, so you can do whatever you want. If you decide to go after Ladybug, I can't stop you. But I'm warning you right now, that path is a dead-end. If you go after her, she won't rest until you're back in jail, or worse. That's a guarantee. If you decide to go after Marinette, however, that path leads you to a world where Adrien is single again."

And that caught her attention.

"So think it over," Gabriel continued. "You know where to find me if you decide to accept my proposition." And he went back to his desk and started working at his computer.

But when Lila didn't leave, he looked up again.

"We're not done," she said. "I told you that I came here for two reasons. Ladybug's identity was only the first one."

He sighed, annoyed that she was still there. "And what is the second reason?" he asked in irritation.

"I want you to hire me as a model for your brand again."

And his eye twitched involuntarily. "You can't be serious."

"I am serious. And it was actually an idea that I got from your beloved daughter-in-law. She's a peach, isn't she?"

A pause. "Marinette gave you the idea?"

"Uh huh. Not on purpose, of course. She just mentioned how before I went to jail that I had a good thing going for me. And I actually agree with her. I liked being a model, and I liked being close to Adrien. So I figured, why shouldn't I do that again?"

"You want to work for me?"

"No one else will hire me. But you, you're a special type of person. Someone willing to overlook the wrongdoings of my past, and who will give me a second chance at life. Isn't that correct, Mr Agreste?"

He shook his head. "It will seem too suspicious if I hire you..."

"Well the important thing to remember is that you have no choice," she seethed. "Not unless you want me to proceed with the interview that I rescheduled for next month. You might think that it's an empty threat, but I know that it's not. You're not as indispensable as you think, Mr Agreste. Now come on, I think hiring me is the least you can do. Especially if I agree to your proposition."

Silence for a minute where he didn't respond.

So Lila continued. "I'll take that as a 'yes.' Now since that's settled, I suppose I should go home now. Don't get me wrong, I thoroughly enjoy our time together, Mr Agreste. But I don't want to have bags under my eyes at my photoshoot tomorrow. So I hope that you have a lovely night." Then she walked out of the room and left.

After listening to her leave through the front door, Gabriel exhaled. And he watched her on the security cameras on his computer screen as she left the property.

Now that Lila was definitely gone, he finally spoke. "All clear."

And for a moment nothing happened, but then the five miniature versions of Multimouse that were scattered about the room came together. Once back at her normal size, the superhero looked at Gabriel. "You think she bought it?"

"Hard to say," he murmured. "I guess we'll have to wait and see."

Multimouse nodded before she said the detransformation phrase. In a flash of pink light, she turned back into Marinette. "Thanks Mullo," she said to the kwami who suddenly appeared in front of her.