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Marinette had been hit with inspiration the last few days and her work space was definitely showing it. She made her way back to the kitchenette and opened the fridge. She closed it almost immediately because it had no more food. She turned instead to the coffee maker. The light was lit to say the coffee was made but the little bit she had left there had long since congealed into sludge in the bottom of the carafe. She checked the time, 4:30 am. She wasn’t sure if she had stayed up all night last night or if she had continued for 2 nights without sleep. She tried to count back the hours but that wasn’t helping. Instead she tried to remember the number of times she had made a fresh pot of coffee but she couldn’t think clearly. She filled a cup with water to get something in her and looked through the cupboard coming up with a small bag of pretzels. She definitely needed to sleep but she hadn’t wanted to stop what she was working on. She should probably head home and refresh. She cleaned up her work space and made some notes. It always worked better if she came back to a space that had been reset from her previous bout of inspiration, no matter how long she had worked or how tired she was when she stopped. It did take awhile, the sky was just starting to show signs of daylight when she stepped out the door. Before heading to bed she pulled some leftovers from her fridge, that hopefully hadn’t been there too long, and then collapsed into bed. The sun was just now rising but she would have to wait to start her day, whatever day it was. — Her alarm woke her far sooner than she would have liked. By the light shining through the window she could tell that it was past midday but she didn’t understand why the alarm was going off. She fumbled around for her phone and made the sound stop. She pushed herself away from the pillows and rolled off the bed, catching herself on her feet before she landed in a heap. She wanted nothing more than to lay back and rest for another few minutes but her history had shown her that it was a trap that she was not equipped to escape from. Her alarm probably meant that she had an appointment she couldn’t miss so going back to sleep was not an option. The coffee maker was her first stop and then directly to the shower while it brewed, before she even checked her calendar to learn why she had to wake herself up. After pouring her first cup of coffee and taking a sip, she looked at her phone to find out why she had dragged herself from the comfort of her bed. She had a client meeting soon. Typically they would be in her workspace but it was a large group and they had preferred to have her come to them. She didn’t have any time to mess around today. Luckily she had her planning sketch book here so she wouldn’t have to go by the shop before the meeting. She got ready quickly, choosing an outfit that was a bit fancier than her typical client meeting. She wanted to make a good impression and if her outfit looked sophisticated then they were less likely to look for signs of her being overly tired. She grabbed her keys and her bag and headed out the door. Just in time, the car they had sent for her was just pulling up outside. When she opened the door, something fell to the ground. She leaned down. There were pink calla lilies wrapped in florist paper. She didn’t see a note but she wasn’t involved with anyone so she thought it must have been a mistake. She set them on the table by the door so they wouldn’t wilt in the heat and headed toward the car. — There was so much going on that Marinette had to focus hard to keep her work straight. Luckily the family butler was dedicated to guest care and had offered her coffee. She never saw the bottom of the cup so she never knew how much she drank. Everytime she returned to it between taking measurements and preferences, the mug was full and piping hot. She would probably be jittery later after her small breakfast with not nearly enough sleep. She had figured out that she had definitely been up for 2 full nights before what had felt like a short nap this morning. By the time she had met with all those she would be designing for it had been nearly 3 hours. She took measurements and noted colors and styles, even making a fairly basic sketch for everyone. She was trying to remember what they had worn to the charity event she had attended recently. She hadn’t known many people but maybe that is how they found her. She had done a few pieces for well-known clients but it was pretty few and far between with the exception of the ones she knew from France as a teen. But creating for the Wayne family for an event they would be attending that would have a televised red carpet entrance was huge. It was unheard of for them to go with such a small designer for something like this. They had her sign a nondisclosure agreement. It looked pretty standard, she had signed them in the past. No one wanted their outfit to be revealed before they were wearing it on the red carpet. She requested that they also keep quiet about her involvement for now. She wouldn’t have as much time to take on more work and she had some concerns about sabotage of her work or business if someone felt like they should have gotten the commissions. She relaxed heavily against the seat when she finally got back to the car. Hopefully she would be able to go directly to bed and get inspiration in the morning. “You wished to go home now or is there somewhere else I should take you?” Alfred asked. “Actually, if it isn’t too much trouble would you be able to stop for food. I will come up with a place before we get there and just get home from there,” she responded. “Nonsense Mlle Dupain Cheng. You will eat here. Dinner is already prepared.” “That really isn’t necessary,” Marinette said. Alfred stood and walked back to her door and opened it before responding. “I really can not in good conscience send a guest away hungry when I have just prepared more than enough.” — Dinner had been loud and Marinette felt very awkward the whole time. She was too tired to interact well and she had never had dinner with clients in their home without having known them pretty well but this was something else. She was surprised that there wasn’t a food fight. They all talked over each other, told jokes and made dares. At one point two of them had jumped up at the same time and she thought for certain there was going to be a fight but Alfred had cleared his throat and they sat back down. Bruce had looked away as they mimed being polite and putting their napkins in their laps and sipping their drinks. “So Marinette, you are originally from France?” Bruce asked. “Yes, I grew up in Paris. I have been living here for 4 years,” she responded. “What brought you here?” Dick asked. “A program from fashion school. It was offered to all those who were doing a joint fashion and business program. I applied and moved here when I was accepted,” she said. “You didn’t want to go back to France?” Bruce asked. “Sometimes I do. It is very different here. But mostly I like living here.” She avoided mentioning any of the awkwardness with some of the fashion “greats” in Paris. Audrey Bourgeois had never gotten over her refusal to go to New York with her and remembered that she had sassed her about her treatment of Chloe. She had a similar issue with Gabriel when she did her internship there. The work was fine and she managed well. Both of them had been impressed with her but Gabriel had chewed her out for a mistake he had found on an incomplete garment. Marinette had stood up to him and said that it was not her mistake and that she was not his son so he couldn’t speak to her that way. The rest of the internship had been very awkward and she had gotten the acceptance to the program in Gotham by then. He had offered her a position anyway but it was not a good contract so she didn’t accept. So he got angry and told her to leave and never darken his door again. She found that only too easy. Last time she had talked to Adrien he had told her that his father had been a bit nicer to him. He thought it was because of what Marinette had said or possibly that it had been overheard and more people were interested in the story of what had made top model Adrien Agreste leave the brand to become a physics teacher. — Marinette had forgotten all about the flowers until she got home. The light was still off so she had just put her purse on the table when she came in the door. She fumbled around for the switch when it fell over. She bent down to pick up the mess, wishing she had cleaned the junk out of her purse more recently. Instead of shoving it all back in, she sat on the floor and removed the rest of the things to decide what actually needed to stay there. It didn’t actually take very long. She was embarrassed she had put it off doing such a simple task so long. There was just one little envelope she didn’t recognize. She stood up and opened the small envelope while she dropped her bag back in its spot. The card read:
The pink should match the lace that was on your dress that night
She didn’t know what that could mean. It didn’t sound threatening. She jumped as her bag fell down again. Nothing fell out because she had zipped it closed this time but it was what she needed to look at the table and remember the flowers from this morning. She put it together that the card must have fallen off the flowers. The pink was the same color as the lace from her dress at the charity event recently. She looked back at the card but it wasn’t signed. Someone had seen her and sent her flowers. She tried to think back to the people she had met that night. She had danced with several men, but none of them really stood out to her as interesting or interested. She had not really been the target audience for the charity. She had gone to support Jagged since he was unable to attend. He didn’t want his seat to be empty but Penny had gone into labor early so they were understandably busy. It had worked well with a bit of interest in her dress design so she could talk about herself and also she was able to drop off a check for Jagged to support the chosen charity. She moved to put the flowers in water. She didn’t have to know who they were from or be in love with the person to appreciate how pretty they were. Her apartment had been woefully neglected recently so the color would look nice. — Marinette had nearly put the gift of flowers out of her head. It had been a couple weeks and she had long since removed them after they faded. They had not lasted long after sitting all day without water. The card had ended up in a kitchen drawer when Marinette was trying to clean. She planned to organize it later but she had desperately needed to scrub everything when she woke up the next day. So the card was moved and not seen again. When the flowers faded so had the memory of the random gift. She was much more focused on her work. She had gotten a lot more business after the charity event and she really hated to turn away or delay new clients. It was bad for business because so few would return if she couldn’t schedule work for them. With a large name, it was a show of desirability to turn away most clients and only take a select few orders. But while building a business from the ground without the name recognition, especially for those who didn’t know her work with musicians, it was necessary to maintain a high interest level with a lot of new clients.. She was probably straining herself to make sure she could please everyone. She tried to carefully plan so she wouldn’t miss anything. She couldn’t get sucked into another design frenzy unless it was for planned commissions. Hopefully that large order for The Wayne family. Completing that was half of her work and would hopefully get her a lot of attention so she didn’t have to work quite so hard to get and maintain clientele. It was so much easier to make things for people she already knew. She could practically design for Jagged in her sleep. That was probably a bad plan to think about right now. She had woken up and immediately started designing baby rocker gear. She really wanted to make it but it would be better to wait until she wouldn’t outgrow it in a week. She should probably get back over there soon and hold the baby Dahlia again. She made herself a note to stop by after she finished her work. She could bring them dinner and maybe help out a bit so Penny could rest. She ended up not staying too late. It was clear what they really needed was for her to tell them to go to bed early. Jagged had finished his last tour well before the birth and he had no work to go to for a while so he could take care of Penny as needed. Marinette could tell they were only staying up for her benefit but once she assured them that she would still think that they were rockin’ and that she was headed home to bed herself they all said goodnight and Marinette left. There was a small package by her door when she got home. Once again, it was not marked with who sent it. The card was simple.The front said:
I’ve got designs on you
The U was taking up half the front and had several patterned designs filling the bubble letter. She opened the inside and the handwritten message said
I didn’t get a chance to talk to you then. I wish I had
It was cute, but a bit worrying. She dug out the first card. It was the same handwriting, as far as she could tell. But that had been a couple weeks ago. She didn’t know if the sender had seen her since and was just specifying the event or if it meant that night only. She had met and talked to so many people but there were certainly ones she had not talked to at the busy event. She tried to calm herself with the idea that was what it meant rather than someone watching her. Someone who clearly knew where she lived. — She had definitely pushed herself but she was happy with her work. Penny had read between the lines and realized that Marinette was probably not getting enough sleep or eating properly and started checking up on her. But this week little Dahlia had been going through a growth spurt so Penny and Jagged were too busy and tired to keep mother henning. Jagged had started going back to the studio at just the wrong time so Marinette knew that they were both just as tired as she was. But at least the big order was ready to try on so she could make any necessary adjustments before the finishing touches. This time, they had all decided to come to her. They were all coming at once which worried her a bit. She did not have a large studio and she worried that it would be too cramped. But honestly it was better than trying to get everything ready to transport along with any supplies she would need and then bring it all back and put it away after. It would be much easier to keep organized with any notes if she just did it one at a time. Perhaps 2 at a time if she could get a second changing area set up in the space. That would cut the time needed nearly in half. She decided that was best and quickly set to work setting it up. She heard the bell when they entered and rushed to get down. She nearly stumbled getting off her wobbly step stool. But gentle hands caught her and kept her upright. She looked up at Cass and wondered how she had gotten there so fast after the bell on the door rang. She could hear all the others still coming in. She smiled and whispered a thank you, not trusting herself to say anything else as the other woman smiled back silently. Their eyes stayed on each other’s and Marinette had to tear her eyes away when Mr Wayne started speaking. He was trying to suggest ways to manage it but Marinette cut him off as nicely as she could when the others started breaking in to suggest other methods. She explained that she had set up more space but that would require them to set up in 2 groups which she had already divided. Once they had a plan to follow she tried to manage as best as she could, rushing back and forth measuring and making notes. She put the outfits away as she went, labeling and making notes on her tablet so she wouldn’t get confused later. She was relieved when they were finishing up and decided most of them should go grab a table while waiting on Bruce and Cass to finish. Bruce was thanking her and they made an appointment for the final fitting before he headed out the door. She carefully laid his suit in the bag and was hanging it. Cass was standing behind her when she turned around. Once again she hadn’t made a sound and Marinette was startled that she was there. “Pretty,” Cass said, as she looked up from smoothing her dress. Marinette had to stop herself from blushing. She was clearly talking about the design even though she had looked right at her. “It looks really nice on you,” she gestured to the curtained area. “We can do the measuring behind the curtain if that is more comfortable.” With a nod they stepped into the makeshift changing area and Marinette checked the fit. It was very quiet after all the others had left. Cass remained silent and always moved just before she would have said what she needed to see. They managed to do the fitting in complete silence. Even their movements barely made a sound. She wondered if Cass was more accustomed to fittings than the others. They had all needed prompts for movement so Marinette could check all the angles. She had barely stepped outside the curtain and pulled up her previous notes on the design when Cass was behind her. She kept her voice quiet when confirming the final design. WIth a smile and a nod as confirmation, Marinette made her notes and put the outfit away. The shop was empty when she finished and she went to lock it. Even the small movement made the bell jingle but she had not heard it when Cass had left. — Marinette had taken a morning to relax. She brought home no work. She finished all her cleaning last night and was just sitting on the couch playing video games when there was a knock at the door. She checked the time. She still had an hour before She was supposed to join Jagged, Penny and Dahlia out for lunch. Looking down at her pajamas, she paused. When there was another knock she shrugged and headed to open it. She didn’t know the man who was there. “Hello, are you Marinette Dupain-Cheng, the designer?” he asked. He had a clipboard with him and he had glanced down at it, presumably to get her name right. He had stretched it out to focus on the pronunciation while he read it. “I am,” she said cautiously, offering no further information. “I have a package here for you. A custom order that was supposed to go to your studio today. When I called to say the shop was closed, I was given your home address.” “I didn’t order anything.” “It’s all paid for. I just need you to sign that you received it. There is a card with it.” Marinette signed and took the small package from him. It was a beautiful piece. It would weave into her hair and when in place it would display her signature almond blossoms that she used for her business. She couldn’t imagine who had sent it. She looked around for the card. It was under the wrapping in the box. She opened the envelope and read the message.
Your hair was falling down. It would have been too forward to push it away from your face for you
The handwriting was the same as the other 2 cards. There was no way that someone would be so attached to her from the charity event that they would still be sending random gifts, especially since they said they didn’t even talk.. She didn’t know what to think about it. She remembered that she had part of her hair loose at the charity event, but also several times since then. It was at an awkward stage that would often slip down. She didn’t want to think about the gift right now or whomever might have sent it. But she was up so she put it in her hall closet and went to get ready. Maybe she would tell Jagged and Penny about the notes and gifts. She hated to worry them when they had a baby to worry about now but they could talk her down if she was just being overly concerned about it. — Her week had been so busy that she barely had time to eat. Her lunch was delivered late and the Waynes were early so it just sat there while they did the final fitting. Luckily it was mostly cold food anyway so she could just stick it in the fridge. She was feeling frazzled but they all seemed happy and she would be once she had the check for their order. It was definitely her biggest order yet and she didn’t know how that would change her business. Even if there was a bump when the designer was revealed she would not be able to rely on that long term. But she definitely wanted to get something nice for herself after all this. She stopped at her desk between rushing around to check final fit and repacking the clothes and drank an entire water bottle. It probably didn’t look very professional. Hopefully no one saw her but even if they did it was far better than collapsing in the middle of the studio. Of course Cass saw her. It seemed that every time she turned after realizing she did something silly with them around, Cass was standing behind her. She had to be moving using magic because she never made a sound. Even when she came into the shop with the bell on the door. The other woman smiled at her and her eyes danced. So much for no one seeing her do something ridiculous. She seemed so put together it made Marinette feel embarrassed just to be near her. Then, of course, she was more prone to accidents. She tried to ignore the feeling and gestured to the fitting area. She stumbled slightly and knocked over a small container of buttons. She shoved them out of the way with her foot, grateful that they were metal ones so she could find them with a magnet. But for now, with them out of the way, she would focus on getting the group ready to go. Cass put her hand on her arm and squeezed gently. Marinette couldn’t believe that the graceful woman understood how it felt to be so clumsy but she appreciated the gesture of trying to help her calm after. She smiled back and patted her hand. She suddenly felt like taking it and holding it. That definitely wouldn’t be professional. Instead she pulled back without trying to make it seem like she was desperate to get away. She wouldn’t want to offend her. She managed to get through the rest of the visit without another incident. She really liked the look of the amount on the receipt. It was a lot of work but that was a great payoff that made it worth it. Instead of cleaning up tonight she decided to just leave it and show up early tomorrow. She might even pick up a pizza on the way home and spend the evening relaxing. — When Marinette got in the next morning she started along one wall and moved around the entire shop from top to bottom. She was putting everything in order as she went and she should be able to reorganize during breaks between appointments. She didn’t pay any attention to her desk until last. She wanted to have everything else done first. There were only a few minutes left when she finally glanced at it to make sure it was presentable. It had actually managed to stay pretty tidy, probably why she hadn’t noticed it before. The only thing out of place was an envelope that she definitely hadn’t seen before. She pulled out the card. She immediately recognized the writing.
I saw you dancing. Perhaps you would enjoy ballet
Included was a ticket to tomorrow’s ballet opening. She wasn’t very familiar with the ballet seating to know if it was a good seat but she had always wanted to go and she was very curious about the sender. She told herself she shouldn’t go. She moved on with her day and met with several new clients and one came for a fitting of a design she had been working on. It was all pretty easy work and had plenty of breaks for her to not plan on going tomorrow. But by the end of the day she had decided what she would wear and had looked up information about the show. When she went to bed, she was still telling herself that she wasn’t planning to go. — Putting on the dress had been easy. Even her make up had gone on flawlessly. But when it came time to do her hair, she paused. She had been planning a simple loose knot at the back of her head but when she went to the closet she saw the hair piece that had been sent to her. That made her wonder if she shouldn’t do something a little fancier. It definitely would go perfectly with her dress and would be a perfect nod to her business which was always a plus. But she didn’t know who had sent it or how they would react if she wore it. She turned away and went to look over her other options. She had one she had worn to Alya’s wedding that would work fine. She put it on her vanity and began pulling up her hair. She reached down for it but knocked it onto the floor trying to reach for it without dropping her hair. She continued trying to keep her hair up while looking around for it. She transferred the hair into one hand and used the other to lift the long dress so she could locate it. She did locate it. Unfortunately it was by stepping on it with her bare foot. She cried out as she jumped away. She threw herself onto the bed and screamed into the mattress before she lifted her foot to inspect it. The skin wasn’t broken but had the impressions of the metal in it. She had felt the piece flatten under her foot. She knew her foot would be okay except for a bit of soreness. It was already fading some so she moved to where the hair piece was. It was bent and when she tried to bend it back, the clasp broke. She could possibly fix it, but not in time if she was still going to go tonight. She didn’t know if she should consider this an omen. She typically thought omens were silly but maybe this was a bad plan to meet a stranger tonight. Standing and preparing to remove her dress and make up, she looked back over to her closet. Perhaps the sign was to wear the gifted piece instead. She had just enough time to finish her hair and she was already dressed. It would be a shame to miss the opportunity. Once she decided that she was still going to go, the rest of the getting ready went smoothly. Her hair went up with no trouble and ended up looking really nice. She was very happy with it. The foot was still sore but her heels were low so it didn’t seem to bother her much. Hopefully that would stay that way. She was headed for the door when she decided that she should probably call a cab instead of walking. It wasn’t dark yet but she didn’t want to end up halfway there with a really sore foot. She saw a flash of movement just as she was about to turn back inside. There was a car waiting out front. A man in a uniform had moved quickly to straighten up when he saw her. He nodded in her direction and opened the door for her. It was unexpected but didn’t seem much more risky than calling a cab and her dress would probably be better off in this one than a possibly sticky seat in a cab. She texted Penny to let her know about the ride, just in case and then again when she arrived safely at the performance building. — There was a huge crowd at the main entrance. There were cameras flashing and the elite were entering and getting the paparazzi in a frenzy. But the car stopped at a door off to the side. The chauffeur said that it was still an entrance but would help her avoid the crowds. She was still surprised that it opened. It was a rather long quiet hallway but it led to the same entry way that the main entrance had. There was a man there to take her ticket. He directed her to an usher who showed her to her seat. He gave her a smile when he left her there. On the seat was a single rose and another card.
I’ll find you after. Enjoy the show.
The crowd entering was loud in the atrium but as they entered, most hushed their voices to match the formal atmosphere in the theater. She looked around when she heard several voices before they were silenced by a tired sounding older man. She recognized them as the Waynes. She was not the only one who had turned to see the commotion. Jason turned and gave a wave to those watching and Dick pulled him along to their seats. Once they sat and were less noticeable, the interest in them faded. Marinette had forgotten that they were coming to the opening night of the ballet. They had said that was what they wanted the new outfits for but she had let the information get lost after finishing the designs. She had thought it odd that they wanted all new outfits for it but accepted the commission anyway. She couldn’t help but be proud at how everything had turned out. They definitely looked great in the clothes. Thinking about it, they probably looked great in most clothes but she thought she had done a rather impressive job of adding to that. She sat back in her seat when others arrived in the row with her. She ended up next to a small family with their child sitting beside her. He seemed a bit nervous so Marinette smiled at him and shifted herself closer to the aisle, gesturing for him to have access to the arm rest. She forgot all about him when the show started. She was entranced by the performance. It wasn’t until Cass took the stage that she put together why the family was so dressed up for opening night. They were there to support her. Marinette was completely lost in the performance. She had thought before that Cass showed amazing gracefulness but she severely underestimated her. She flowed with the music and Marinette could feel everything. She wiped away tears at the beauty and stood with the crowd at the end. She had forgotten all about the secret notes that brought her here. The audience was still clapping and shouting “brava!” when the dancers exited the stage and then returned for their curtain call. The clapping got louder as the dancers came and took a bow. Marinette was smiling as she watched. She was already planning to visit the ballet again soon. Cass paused as she was lifting herself from the bow and made eye contact with her and smiled broadly. It was a brief moment but her heart must have stopped in her chest before it started again. She stood fully and the dancers waved to the crowd. Ushers moved to the edge of the stage and presented flowers to the dancers. All the others moved past Cass and exited. She looked back once more and her eyes found Marinette’s again. It was longer this time. Several people turned to look at her but when she moved past the curtain Marinette looked at the flower that had been in her seat. It was exactly the same as the ones Cass had. She could be wrong. There could still be someone else in the crowd who was looking for her. But still, she moved towards the stage area. Several of the dancers were appearing and greeting those who came to wish them well. Many were trying to get pictures with the dancers. Cass came out last and the Wayne family crowded forward, excitedly praising her performance. Marinette stopped moving forward and looked around. She was nervous to be right and nervous at the thought that the gifts had come from someone else. She looked back one more time but Cass was no longer surrounded by her family. She was right in front of her. “I’m glad you came,” she said. “You were wonderful. It was a great show.” Cass looked back at her family, who were failing at appearing to not be watching them. “I wanted to talk to you before. That is why I suggested the new outfits. They look nice but nothing compares to how you looked in the audience.” Marinette took a breath to manage her reaction to the very clear compliment to herself and her designs. But she had to ask what she had wondered about. “If you were wearing a dance costume, why did you have me design you an outfit for tonight?” Cass moved her hand up and pushed a piece of fallen hair back from Marinette’s face. Her fingers brushed against her cheek. “I wanted something nice to wear when I take you out after this.”