It was an unusually quiet evening in the city of Paris. After an exhausting city wide akuma attack the day before, the excitement had taken quite some time to die down. Now, as a period of fragile peace settled over its citizens, people were all too happy to finish up dinner, prepare for bed, and tuck themselves into the reassuring safety and comfort of their homes. As such, not many people lined the streets of the infamous City of Love tonight.
You would not have been on the streets that day, at that time. Nay, you most likely would have gone to bed without a single thought about your next day. But had you been on the streets, by some strange chance had you happened to look up, you would have spotted Paris' beloved black cat running into the rapidly darkening night, basking in the freedom that the leather-like catsuit and destruction magic brought to him.
To put it simply, Adrien Agreste was bored.
45 minutes ago, Gabriel Agreste, world-renowned fashion designer and the very symbol of elegance and class had confined his son to the vast emptiness of his room. 45 minutes ago, that very son had sunken into his sheets and groaned his misery to the world. And then, 30 minutes ago, the exasperated mutterings of a certain kwami filled the room, followed by a green glow that enveloped the teenage boy for a split second. In less than a minute, mild-mannered Adrien had been replaced with the ever cocky, pun-loving, superhero extraordinaire Chat Noir.
At least, that was what the blond haired boy kept telling himself.
Adrien couldn't remember a day when his father wasn't cold and strict to him. Never had he granted Adrien the freedom to roam unsupervised. Seldom did he hug him. Words of encouragement? Those were a treat, something reserved for only the best and most brilliant deeds he had accomplished in life. Then again, Adrien supposed that he couldn't blame his father. His mother, the light of his and Gabriel Agreste's life, had disappeared around a year ago. There was no letter, no goodbyes, not even the slightest warning. She had left, and with her went all the joy in the Agreste household.
Adrien's father had always been somewhat lacking in the affections department. However, ever since Emilie Agreste's mysterious disappearance, it seemed that the stone cold fashion mogul had only distanced himself more. And so, he kept his son close and under watchful eyes. Adrien was not to mingle with the outside world. He was not to enjoy simple privileges if they included the public. He was not to leave Gabriel, not allowed to break free for a single moment lest he was lost forever. Gabriel smothered each and every restriction with "You are my son" and "I will not have you mixing in with the riff-raff downstairs", but deep inside, Adrien could see that he was hurting too. The cut was deep, the wound was deep, and Gabriel was trying his best to make sure nobody else could ever hurt him again by distancing himself as much as possible. And so, fearing the possibility of disappointing his already forbidding father, Adrien tried his best to excel at everything. Fencing? Top of the class. Chinese? Fluent in Mandarin, and proficient in Cantonese. Tutoring? He nailed every answer, every quiz, every time. Such was the same with photoshoots, sports, any publicity event mandated by his father, etcetera. He overextended himself daily to gain approval, to make his father proud and happy, to earn a little bit of freedom in terms of visiting the outside world.
Slowly, his father had given ground. He was allowed some basic freedoms, such as school, friends, and the ability to spend time with said friends. However, the slightest mistake would immediately kill off the chance of ever obtaining them ever again. That was what Adrien feared the most. After a little taste, he wasn't ready to give up his newfound joy just yet. So, when the great gods had granted him the kwami Plagg and the ability to transform into the wild and carefree superhero Chat Noir, he had been ecstatic. As Adrien, he was confined, restricted, forced into a mold that his father had carefully crafted out of ideals, disappointment, and pain. As Chat, he could run rampant in the streets and people would cheer. He could talk openly, flirt with his Lady, save the citizens of Paris without so much a word from his frigid father. He loved Gabriel, sure. But he also loved the world outside of his room. He loved his friends, and his school and teachers. He loved the crisp, fresh air, the crinkle of falling leaves, the vibrant shades of nature, the towering majesty of the Eiffel Tower. Strangely, it was outside that he felt most at home. He had friends out there. Unlike being inside, outside, he was never lonely.
And oh, how he hated being lonely.
Speaking of lonely, he could have definitely used the company. Running on the rooftops during the night was fun and all, but only for so long. It was a better experience when shared with his Lady, the love of his life. She was everything he was not, the yang to his yin, the water to his fire, as Plagg had once too often described it. Whilst not without flaws, she was brave, compassionate, reliable, resourceful, smart, and talented. She deserved the world, while he was stuck in a small corner of it. Ladybug was a rare gem to come by, and he made sure to get that in as much as possible whenever he saw her. But now, there was no Ladybug. There was only the cold, dark night and the lonely shadows that Chat Noir had often used to disguise himself from excitable civilians and nosy journalists. He sighed and sat himself on the edge of the building he was on. Dangling his legs and waving his arms, he made little airplane noises to amuse himself until even that got boring.
"So much fur a fun night," he chuckled. The resulting smile gradually faded as he made to get up and leave, to return to the solitude of his barred confines. As he prepared to extend his staff and vault over 3 buildings in a single leap, he happened to spot light in a familiar balcony right above a certain bakery. The cool cat's Cheshire grin suddenly grew wider than it ever had.
"Well, what do you know? Looks like this trip wasn't a lost claws."