"I hate you."
Chat Noir couldn't stop his voice from trembling.
He swallowed and tried again. "I hate you." He still couldn't make it stronger than a whisper. "I hate you so much." Again he faltered and his words came out as barely a whisper, caught in the wind and drowned out by the sounds of the city around him.
It didn't matter though. He was met with silence each time.
With a small sigh, he let his gaze flicker to the side. The city of Paris was dazzling, even at night. Windows, sparkling specks of white and gold and orange—millions of them—dotted the rows upon rows of buildings that stood all across the city. It was almost pretty.
His gaze lowered.
The road beneath him was as busy as ever. The passing cars created blurs of light that made the street glow with colour.
His gaze lowered even more until it reached the edge of the roof he was on. It was only a few meters away from where he stood. The sound of cars zooming by on the road echoed distantly in the wind.
The building was about fifteen storeys high...
No.
Stop it.
Chat shook his thoughts away with a furious jerk of his head before they could completely consume him like they'd almost done countless times before. Stop it.
His turned his gaze back to the person in front of him.
"You're the reason why I'm like this." His voice was stronger now. Harsher and angrier. He felt his claws instinctively tense up. "It's your fault."
A dark ball of energy began forming in his right hand. It danced in his palm, flickering like fire.
Stop it.
His hand clenched into a shaking fist. Was he trying to gather the remains of what little self-restraint he still had or was it just his anger finally crashing down and breaking through?
What the hell are you trying to accomplish?
Was that Plagg speaking to him, or himself? He slowly raised his hand, flexing it with uncertainty before turning it over to stare at his palm. The energy of Cataclysm crackled like sparks between his fingers.
This is pointless.
He knew that. He knew that he was being stupid. He knew that doing this wouldn't solve anything. He knew that he was just wasting his time. He knew—
Stop it. Calm down.
He took a deep breath.
Then a harsh, ringing howl of frustration pierced the air and he slammed his hand into the billboard in front of him. With a huge arc, he dragged his palm across poster paper. As the black magic spread, the colours of the billboard were eaten away by shadows and the paper disintegrated into the air.
Pretty emerald eyes faded into darkness.
A flawless smile dissolved into the night.
That oh so perfect face crumbled into nothingness.
Chat watched as Adrien Agreste was swallowed by darkness and decayed into flecks of black dust. He stood still, holding his breath as the advertisement eroded away, leaving only the bare metal surface underneath.
He could make out his reflection in it.
Eyes that looked far too exhausted.
Tight lips that were trying to hold back a whimper.
"Plagg, claws in." Chat's voice was shakier than ever.
A flash of green, and then Adrien's face was on the billboard once again. It stared back at him.
Haunting him.