"Boo!" Adrien yelped as he entered his room, almost dropping his popcorn.
"Mom!" Adrien whined as his mother laughed behind the door.
"You're almost 18 now Adrien..." Emilie chuckled. "And you're still such a scaredy cat!"
Adrien put the popcorn on the table as he crossed his arms, "Yeah? Well anyone would get scared from that ugly face of yours!"
Emilie's smile quickly faded into a pout, "You take that back Adrien Agreste!" She lunged forward and attacked Adrien's stomach, earning giggles from him.
"Mom...stop!" Adrien closed his eyes as he breathlessly laughed. "Mom please...the popcorns getting cold!" He continued to laugh as he tried to break free, but his mother was persistent.
"Ok I'm sorry! I'm sorry!" Adrien pleaded with her to stop, "I take it back!" Adrien felt her hands pull away as he slowed down his laughter. He opened his eyes and saw no one there.
"Mom?" Adrien turned around and saw his empty room. "Mom...where did you go?" Adrien shouted, his echo bouncing off his walls.
"Mom!" Adrien shouted once more as he began to wander around his room. He looked behind his sofa, underneath his table and bed, "Mom?"
"I'm right here sweetie..." Adrien turned around with a slight smile, before coming face to face with his dead mother.
"M-M-Mom..." Adrien gasped as he stumbled backwards. He fell onto his behind as he looked up at his mother. His heart raced as he stared at the bullet hole on her forehead. Blood seeped out as it streamed down her pale white skin.
"Mom, I'm so sorry..." His lips began to quiver and his hands got shaky. His bedroom walls collapsed as darkness filled the empty void around him.
"You did this to me!"
"I'm so sorry..." Adrien cupped his face with his hands.
"You just sat by and watched as those thieves put a bullet through my head!"
"I was just a kid mom...I was scared!"
"Coward!" The mom called him as she walked closer.
"I'm sorry..." Adrien cried into his hands.
"How are you going to protect Paris when you couldn't even protect your own mother!"
"I'm sorry mom..." Adrien sniffled. "I'm sorry..."
"I'm sorry..." Adrien muttered in his sleep as Plagg zipped over with a glass of water.
"I'm sorry..." Plagg dropped the water onto Adrien's face. He immediately jolted upright, the warm water mixing with his cold sweat.
"P-Plagg..." Adrien panted as his heart raced. His wide eyes looked out into the distance. "I had that nightmare again Plagg..."
Plagg frowned, "It's okay Adrien...It's okay."
"I'll never forget that day, will I?" Adrien wiped his tears and sweat off his forhead
Plagg snuggled against his Chosen's cheek. "Everything's going to be alright..."
"No it's not Plagg..." Adrien threw off his covers and got off his bed. "Copycat's still out there somewhere, armed with my Cataclysm. Nino is missing along with dozens of other people! Who knows what he might be up to? Best case scenario, he kidnaps someone and calls it a day. Worse case scenario? He uses my Cataclysm on the fucking Eiffel tower, he can kill hundreds!"
Plagg sighed as he rested on Adrien's shoulder as he walked to the kitchen, "Well it's not like you can anticipate his actions or something! There's nothing you can do but follow your plan..."
Adrien poured himself a glass of water, "Yeah...Marinette's my only hope right now of catching him..." He eyed his clock, it was mid-morning. "I still have a couple of hours before I have to meet her...I can patrol until then..."
"You haven't even eaten yet..." Plagg frowned. "Eat something first..."
"No Plagg, what if I get lucky and catch Copycat running around or something..."
"Hello? Kwami of bad luck?" Plagg scoffed. "Plus it's daytime..."
Adrien ignored his Kwami, "Plagg, Claws out!" He made his way over to his balcony, before leaping out.
ooo
"I don't know how I feel about this..." Chat pursed his lips.
"Relax...I know him from lycee," Marinette consoled him. "And if anything happens...you'll protect me right?" Marinette nudged Chat with her arm as she smiled.
"I don't know," Chat looked around the dark alleyway. "What if I don't react in time...or I miss something...or..."
"I'm a big girl now Chat," Marinette huffed. "I can take care of myself too!"
They heard some rustling coming from the end of the alleyway around the corner, "Oh he's here!" Marinette loudly whispered. "Shoo kitty, hide!" She shoved Chat towards the back. He quickly ran and hid behind a big dumpster.
"Marinette!" Kim waved as he walked over to her.
"Hey Kim!" Marinette waved back with a smile. Kim walked up and wrapped his arms around her in a tight hug. "I haven't seen you in so long!"
"Me too!" Marinette laughed. "How you been?"
"Good, good," Kim backed away from the hug. "Nino told me you became a fashion designer...I'm glad you followed your dreams..."
"Thanks Kim, I appreciate that," Marinette smiled. "So um...do you have the stuff?"
"Straight to the point huh?" Kim glanced around nervously. "You're here alone right?"
"Yeah..."
"Ok good," Kim took out his backpack and began to rummage through it. "What do you need? I've got weed, cocaine, heroin, meth, shrooms..."
Marinette gulped as she watched Kim mouth of names she never even heard of, "I need Catnip Kim...do you have some?"
Kim looked up sharply at her, "No I don't have Catnip...I have other stuff though...I'll give you a friendship discount..."
"Nino told me you had plenty of Catnip..."
"Well I sold out," Kim shrugged. "It has been getting really popular recently..."
Marinette scrunched her eyebrows as she crossed her arms, "You're lying to me Kim..."
"I'm serious...Look believe whatever you want Marinette," Kim picked up his bag and slung it over. "If you don't want anything else then I'm leaving..."
"Chat!" Marinette called out to him.
"Ch-Chat?" Kim raised an eyebrow. He saw Chat jump out from behind the dumpster and land directly behind him. With a swift kick to his knees, Chat made Kim fall onto his knees. He took off Kim's backpack and threw it over to Marinette.
"What the hell is going on here?!" Kim cringed as Chat tightly gripped his shoulders, pressing him down onto the ground. "You know Chat Noir Marinette?"
"Kind of...we just met yesterday," Marinette searched through his backpack. "Aha! I knew it!" Marinette pulled out a bag full of little black ziplock bags with the infamous cat paw symbol on it.
"You don't understand Marinette!" Kim hissed as Chat continued to press down hard. "I'm trying to save you..."
"Save her?" Chat asked. "Explain..."
"You must know what happened to Nino yesterday, right?" Kim paused as Marinette nodded. "It's because he was taking Catnip..." Kim hung his head in guilt. "I already felt bad selling it to Nino, but I can't bear selling it to you too...you're one of the nicest and kindest girls I know..."
"So Catnip is related to the rise of kidnappings..."
"Y-Yeah..."
"You're working for my Copycat aren't you?" Chat grabbed Kim's arms and raised him up. "You sell Catnip for him and then he kidnaps them later! Take me to him!"
"I don't know where he is! I swear..."
"Take us to your supplier then!" Marinette hissed.
Chat squeezed Kim's arm, "Okay! Okay..." Kim hissed. "The place is nearby; it's down this alleyway..." Chat pushed Kim forward as they walked down.
"I can't believe you're working for that guy Kim," Marinette frowned at him. "I thought you were better than that! I know you know what he's done!"
"It's not what it looks like Marinette..." Kim sighed as they took a left turn and continued down the pathway. "I know you think I'm a bad guy...but I'm not..."
"You're willingly giving out drugs to people, knowing Copycat is going to come for them one day!" Marinette spat. "You're helping a murderer!"
Kim hung his head in shame as they came face to face with a small warehouse, "It's inside here. This is where I come to pick up my Catnip..."
They walked up to the door, it was locked. "I need to input a special code into the keypad..." Chat growled as he let go of Kim's arm. He walked up and began to press keys, "I'm sorry for Nino Marinette...I really am..." The keypad beeped red as Kim quickly lunged forward and tackled Marinette onto the ground. Before Chat could react, the door quickly opened and bullets assaulted Chat's suit.
"You need to run! Quick!" Kim helped Marinette up and pushed her back towards the alleyway.
"I'm not going anywhere!" She watched as thugs ran out and attacked Chat. "I can't believe you led us into an ambush!"
"You were never here!" Kim pushed Marinette once again. "Run! Or he'll kill you if he finds out!"
"Who?! Give me his name!" Marinette pleaded. She resisted Kim's insistent pushing.
"I don't know his name..." Kim groaned as Chat's baton struck his ankle, cracking it. Marinette turned around and saw unconscious bodies in front of the open door as Chat ran over to her.
"Are you okay?" Chat breathed hard as he grabbed her by the shoulders and examined her up and down.
"I'm...I'm fine Chat..." He grit his teeth as he turned his attention back to Kim.
"You son of a bitch!" Chat turned around and grabbed Kim. "You could've gotten her killed!" His fists tightened as he pulled his arm back and struck Kim in the face. Blood splattered out of his nose and onto the ground below.
"Chat stop!" Marinette pleaded as she grabbed Chat's arm. "He saved my life! Don't hurt him..."
Chat turned to look at her, "He put you in danger! You could've died!" Chat raised his arm again.
"He jumped in front of me Chat!" Marinette grabbed hold of Chat's arm. "If anything, he's the one who could've died..."
They stopped arguing when they heard a sniffle coming from Kim. "What have I done...?" Kim cried.
Chat dropped Kim onto the ground, "He's going to kill her..."
"Kill who...?" Marinette crouched down and put her hand on Kim's shoulder and rubbed it. "Talk to me Kim...Tell us what's going on..."
"You think I want this? You think I want to work for that...that bastard..." Kim wiped his tears.
"Well you were more than happy selling Catnip to Nino and everyone else..." Chat scoffed.
"I had to..." Kim told them. "You don't understand..."
"Help us understand then..." Marinette softly talked to him.
"I...I was just a small time dealer...I only dealt weed, nothing too serious..." Kim sighed. "But then my dad died and I had bills to pay...I had to take care of my family you know?" Chat leaned against a wall and Marinette kept rubbing Kim's back as they heard his story.
"I began to deal more, make more money and move up in the ranks ...I made enough to pay for my business school, where I met Chloe again...we re-connected and fell in love..."
"Yeah I heard about that, you used to work for her father right?" Marinette asked.
"She showed me a better life, a more honest life...I quit dealing once she got me an honest paying job for the mayor..."
"Then why do this? Why go back?" Chat inquired.
"Copycat kidnapped Chloe..." Kim sniffed once more. "He came to me and asked to help start selling his new drug or else he would kill her...I hooked him up with some old contacts of mine and found this small abandoned warehouse for him...I basically made all of this possible!"
"So you didn't have a choice; you were just trying to protect Chloe..." Marinette soothed Kim.
"I willingly sold people Catnip knowing Copycat was going to come for them..."
"Help me then, make up for everything you've done," Chat said. "Tell me everything you know..."
"He's going to kill her now...He'll know Chat was here and..."
"Not if you help us Kim..." Marinette told him. "Me and Chat can stop him...Just tell us what we need to know..."
"O-Okay..." Kim sighed as he got up, "F-Follow me..."
He led the two inside the warehouse, "We don't cook it, Copycat just brings it to us in a big bag and we package and distribute it from here." Kim pointed to a long conveyor belt attached to a machine at the end. There were boxes of Catnip and empty ziplock bags littered around the ground.
"Where does he cook it then?" Chat asked.
"I don't know," Kim shrugged. "He never told me..."
"You said he comes to drop off the Catnip right?" Marinette asked.
"Yeah, he comes once a week..." Kim walked over to a calendar on the left side of the wall. "He's coming in two days..."
"Great, I can ambush him here and catch him..."
"But what about until then?" Marinette pointed to the unconscious men outside. "If they tell Copycat then Chloe..."
"They won't," Kim told her. "Copycat has something on all of them too...I can talk them into not saying a word if I promise Chat would defeat him..."
"That's great...until then don't sell anyone anymore Catnip...got it?" Chat told him as Kim nodded.
"There's probably something else I should show you," Kim walked over to a door at the far edge of the wall. He took out his keys and unlocked it. The office lights came on as Kim walked over to his table and grabbed a binder.
"He made me keep a list of all the people that took Catnip and the date I first sold it to them," Kim gave Marinette a binder.
"Oh my god..." Marinette flipped through the many pages of names as Chat looked over her shoulder. "So many people..."
"Do you know who he's going to kidnap next?"
Kim shrugged, "I don't know...it's just random I think..."
"I'm going to take this...Maybe I can figure something out," Marinette told Kim.
"Sure..." Kim walked over to a couch at the end of the room. "There's one final thing I need to show you..." Chat and Marinette walked over to him. There was a sleeping figure on the couch, with a large sheet placed over him.
"Please tell me he's sleeping..." Marinette gulped at the still body.
"I like to think he is..." Kim pulled the sheet off.
"What the fuck?" Marinette stumbled back a bit as she and Chat flinched. Before them lay a purple coloured statue of the man it used to be. The clothes, hair and skin were purple as the statue lay on the couch in a sleeping pose.
"That is...was my friend," Kim frowned.
"That's a human being?" Chat scrunched his eyebrows.
"When Copycat approached me six months ago...he was the first one to take Catnip...and then last week I find him like this..."
"Did...Did Catnip do this to him?" Marinette asked.
"Maybe? I don't know..." Kim shrugged. "I haven't seen anyone else like this though..."
"This just keeps getting worse and worse..." Chat shook his head.
"You have to stop him Chat..." Kim stared into Chat's eyes. "You're our only hope now...If you don't stop him when he comes to visit in two days then...then he'll kill Chloe..."
"I'll defeat him..." Chat placed his hand on Kim's shoulder. "I promise you..."
Kim slightly smiled, "Thank you..."
Marinette's cellphone rang, her ringtone echoing off the empty walls. "Hey Alya..." She greeted her friend with a smile. But that smile quickly faded, "No, I'm not at the Louvre why? Ok Alya, slow down..."
Chat curiously listened, before Marinette sharply turned her head to face him. She stared into his eyes, "What? The Louvre is under attack by Chat Noir?" Chat's fists clenched as he quietly growled under his breath.
"Oh no...that fucking bastard..." Kim leaned against the wall as he buried his face into his hands.
"Y-Yeah I can meet up with you..." Marinette motioned Chat to go with her hands.
He didn't need to be told twice; he quickly took out his baton and ran out the warehouse.
ooo
Chat landed outside the Louvre. More than half of the pyramid was already disintegrating as Copycat's cataclysm quickly spread outwards, eager to devour the entire museum. Screams and sirens filled the air as the ground underneath him shook.
"Chat Noir! You're under arrest!" Chat ignored the officer behind him as he ran inside.
He only had one goal and that was to save as many people as possible. He ran through the lobby, his eyes searching through the falling debris for anyone in need of help. He spotted a man stuck underneath a flipped desk and Chat went over to help.
"No! Get away from me!" the man cowered at the sight of him.
"I'm here to help..." Chat grabbed the desk and flipped it off. He watched in sadness as the man screamed and ran away, ran away from him.
Chat looked around in horror and heartache as they ran for their lives towards the closest exit they could find. Those that noticed his presence amidst the chaos screamed even louder as they actively avoided him. He stood still, repelling everyone around him.
"Chat Noir!" He turned around to see Marinette waving at him from around the corner.
"What are you doing here?!" He ran over to her. "You have to get out now! It's too dangerous..."
"I can help!" Marinette told him. Her eyes looked behind him, "Chat look out!"
He turned around just in time for a police officer taze him against the suit. He hissed as he felt the slight pain shoot up his body. "You're under arrest Chat Noir!"
Chat grabbed his arms and pushed him back, "Listen to me...I didn't do this, there's a Copycat..." Chat hissed again as the cop shot him again with the tazer. "Stop it! I don't want to hurt you!" The cop lunged forward and tackled Chat to the ground.
"Stop resisting!" The cop took out another tazer as Chat grabbed his arms, stopping him from hitting Chat again.
Chat held back his strength as he pleaded with the cop. "I'm not your enemy here, I'm trying to help!" The words didn't get through as the cop continued to push forward with his strength, eager to taze Chat again.
He saw Marinette walk up behind the cop and raise a steel beam, and with a swing she knocked the cop unconscious. He gently pushed the man off him and placed him on the ground, "Why did you do that! You hurt an innocent police officer!"
"He was hitting you..." Marinette frowned.
"He was just doing his job," Chat sighed.
"Oh no! Chat!" She pointed to a woman screaming further inside the museum. They ran over to her to find a metal pipe going straight through her leg.
"Ma'am everything will be alright..." The woman screamed even louder at the sight of him.
"I'll get her out; you look for more people in need of help!" Marinette helped the woman to her feet. Chat watched as Marinette dragged her away towards the closest exit. He turned back around, scanning the museum for anyone else in need of help.
The walls disintegrated around him as paintings fell and disappeared as well. He spotted a woman struggling to walk, "Ma'am do you need help?" He walked over to her. She screamed and started to run away from him as he approached her. She collapsed on her broken foot.
"Let me help you," Chat wrapped his arms around her.
"Get away from my wife!" a man struck Chat from behind. He dropped the woman as the man picked her up and ran away from him.
"Chat! Are you alright?" He heard Marinette run up to him.
"Yeah I'm fine..." he frowned. They looked around, most people had already evacuated by now.
"Chat Noir! Come out with your suit off! We have you surrounded!" He heard someone shout through a megaphone. The sunlight shone through the top as the only thing left of the building was the slowly decaying walls.
"Chat we have to go! Most people have fled already..."
"There could be people trapped inside..."
"Leave it to the firefighters! We have to go or else they will start attacking you!" Marinette argued.
Chat looked around what was left of the Louvre. The inside was vacant save for the fallen debris. The outside was packed with police, ambulances and firefighters as they serviced those in need. Marinette was right; there was nothing left for him to do here anymore. The destruction was almost complete and everyone had already evacuated. He grabbed her and leapt away, hoping no one was severely injured...or worse.
He landed on Marinette's balcony as she quickly took out her phone and answered a call from Alya. Chat grabbed her tv remote and turned on the news to look at the damages.
"...We're looking at dozens of people injured and two confirmed deaths so far..." the news anchor talked into the camera.
"Oh my god..." Chat stared at what remained of the Louvre behind her. Besides the debris, the Louvre was basically non-existent. He covered his mouth with his hands as Chat watched injured people being loaded onto ambulances.
"...Hospitals are full as..." The anchor paused. "I've just been told that mayor Bourgeois is giving an emergency public address. We will being cutting to that shortly."
"The mayor?" Marinette got off her phone as she sat down next to Chat. "I wonder what he thinks about all of this..."
"He probably hates me as much as everyone else..." The live news cut to the mayor standing outside the Grand Paris hotel. Chat watched with attentive ears as the mayor began to address the public.
"...I've just been informed about what has occurred at the Louvre, about what Chat Noir, our once beloved hero, has done to this city..." The mayor paused as Marinette frowned. "I also have reason to believe that my missing daughter has actually been taken by Chat Noir..." Dozens of reporters raised their hands as the mayor calmed them down. "After recent events, it is safe to say that Chat Noir is a menace and a danger to all of Paris. Because of this, I am dedicating a special task force to specifically fight Chat Noir. We have our best scientists researching a way to combat Chat Noir, identify any weaknesses as well as identify the strange source of his powers. I can promise you that his days are numbered and that he will face justice for the crimes he's committed. Any questions?" Reporters raised their hands once again as the mayor began to answer their questions.
"They all hate me..." Chat stared off into the distance.
"They don't hate you," Marinette softly spoke as she entwined her fingers with his. "They hate Copycat and when we catch him, everyone will know the truth."
Chat stared at the tv as footage cut back to the Louvre. Injured men and woman were still being treated on the scene. "I couldn't protect them..."
"There was nothing you could do...You can't predict what Copycat was going to do..." Marinette rubbed Chat's back.
"It's my job to protect the people of Paris...And I...And I..." Chat's lips began to quiver as tears flowed from his eyes.
"Oh Chat..." Marinette brought her hand up to wipe his eyes. She grabbed his head and buried it in her shoulders.
"I-I-I can't protect a-a-anyone," Chat started to hyperventilate as he wept into her shoulder.
"Take deep breaths Chat," Marinette patted his back. "There there...Don't cry Chat, you're going to make me cry..." Marinette sniffled as bit as Chat desperately grabbed onto her shirt, burying his head farther as he continued to weep. Marinette continued to console Chat as he emptied his tears onto her shirt.
He was filled with warmth and love as he cried away years of pent up sadness and loneliness. He was reminded of Marinette's kindness as she accepted him in his moment of weakness and cared for him. The last time he remembered crying was years ago in his mother's embrace. And now those same affections of love were returning as unwanted feelings began to surface within him.
He backed away from the hug and looked at her through his watery eyes. His eyes widened as his face contorted in pain. He saw a stream of blood running down from her forehead.
"Chat?" She scrunched her eyebrows at him. "What's wrong?"
"I-I-I have to go..." Chat quickly wiped his tears and got up, taking out his baton.
"You don't have to go..." Marinette got up and hugged him from behind. "Stay..."
He broke free from her hug, "Thank you for everything, Marinette...But I can't..." Chat told her before he ran out her balcony.
"Chat wait!" Marinette ran after him as he leapt away.
He couldn't get the image of his dead mother out of his head, and now it was merging with Marinette's. He internally cringed at the thought of Marinette getting hurt because of him. He'd never allow her to get hurt. He couldn't protect his mother, but he'd protect her with his life if he had to.
ooo
"Here I've got another one for you," Copycat put down a purple statue next to Hawkmoth's bed.
"You're going too fast Copycat!" Hawkmoth argued as he struggled to sit up straight. He coughed into his hands, "At this rate you'll destroy all of Paris before I've recovered!"
"Can you relax, I'm just destroying his morale...It'll be easier to take his ring when he's weakened..."
"Or you're making him angrier, more determined, more dedicated to taking you down!" Hawkmoth argued.
"Guess we'll just have to see, won't we old man?"
"And what will you do to him once you've gotten his ring for me?" Hawkmoth asked. "Kill him?"
"Oh I won't do a thing; it's all of Paris who will have a field day with him. They'll tear him apart for everything I've done..." Copycat chuckled as he left the room, leaving the man shaped statue behind.
