In the Home of Chat

Running Agreste

The early morning sunlight filtered in through thin pea green curtains that adorned large gothic windows around Adrien's office. He had been awake all night, and it showed in the thick bags under his eyes. The run in with Alya, which looking back he really should have seen coming, had his mind running in circles around Nino, and Marinette. Nino had always been the one he considered his first best friend since escaping the cage of homeschooling, and Marinette had been one of the first friends he made all by himself. He had missed the wedding, which he was supposed to be the best man during, and he had missed the party that Alya threw for Marinette when she was accepted into ESMOD. He had missed the hang outs with their old group and slowly had grown out of even trying to make it to them. All of this was due to his nightlife as Chat Noir.

He still remembered being shot the day before Nino and Alya's wedding; he was on his way to the bar to meet his best friend for his stag night when the sound of shouting and gunshots had pulled him to a side street. A glass fronted building gave him a clear view of the hostage situation going on inside. He had jumped into action, finding somewhere hidden to transform and rushing into the fray. The police were more than happy to send him in instead of them, and at first it seemed that the ones who held their hostages at gunpoint would listen to what he had to say and lay down their arms. Then there was a scuffle, he was in a fight with the one nearest the doors while the second one screamed at him not to come closer or he would blow a woman's head off. He didn't remember hearing the gun going off by his hip, but the pain had him doubling over and even returned as he thought over the past. It caused him to hunch over his desk and his breaths to come out heavy and strained as his hand moved to cover the area that had long since healed.

Plagg, sitting in a small chair that Adrien had ordered just for him that rested on the former models desk, silently watched his chosen as waves of phantom pain washed through him. Adrien knew that it was all in his mind, but no matter how hard he tried he couldn't resist giving in to it. Neither of the two could stop his thoughts circling around to that day. Plagg had been weak due to a rise in crime and a shortage of camembert, so his healing had been at its lowest and at the same time the suit had been as good as a piece of paper on Adriens skin. The bullet was felt by Plagg before the scorching hot pain registered in Adrien's mind. The kwami blamed himself for these lingering psychological effects that remained in his chosen. It was something he could never forgive himself for, he just could never bring himself to say no to the blonde when it came to transforming. It had been and still remained the boys way of escaping his suffocating life.

"You okay kid?" he asked after a long moment of silence only broken by the blonde's soft grunts of pain. Adrien took a moment to shoot Plagg a sarcastic smile before pushing himself back into a proper sitting position.

"Yeah," he muttered after the kwami was staring a bit too long for his liking, "It's just memories getting the best of me. Again." He added with a shallow sigh. His eyes flicked to the glowing computer screens before him and then down to his desk while Plagg silently watched, waiting for him to say anything at all to continue the conversation. When it became clear to him that the blonde was simply going to dive back into his work without talking about what was really bugging him caused Plagg's fur to stand on end in frustration. He found himself growling in a low feline way as he watched his chosen begin to type out a note on a new design he had been shown, the anger at his utter dismissal lately was boiling inside Plagg's small body until he just couldn't take it anymore.

"WHY ARE YOU JUST IGNORING IT!?" He demanded when it became far too much. Adrien jumped at his kwami's sudden shouting and held his hands before himself in a defensive manner as his wide emerald eyes landed on the small creature.

"Wha- where did that come from all of a sudden?" Adrien asked as he narrowed his eyes. The initial shock of Plagg's outburst was wearing off and now there was only pure confusion swirling around his thoughts. His gaze flicked back to the screen momentarily before lingering on Plagg's scowling features.