Adrien had settled down in the empty room directly next to Marinette's while he listened. Maybe he should make it his new room, he'd be closer to Marinette that way and the bed was also much more comfortable than the old couch in his current room. He shook his head and decided to pick that train of thought back up when the current crisis had rolled over him. If, at that point, he still was in a state to process anything, and not scared out of his mind, that was.
Félix didn't seem worried about the Miraculous at all, but he had also not been the one at the mercy of a goddess' wrath once upon a time. And really, if Duusu hadn't done anything to Félix yet, then there was only little chance that she'd do something to Adrien, right? Despite those unspoken reassurances, he couldn't help but feel nervous, especially since Duusu hadn't addressed him once. Was that by accident and just the flow of conversation? No, it was probably on purpose. Félix wasn't the one causing Marinette mental distress for most of the day, Adrien however…
With every passing minute, he slowly retreated further into the room, still perfectly able to hear everything, but feeling like more distance between himself and the kwami might be a wise choice. After all, he didn't want her to think that he would endanger her new chosen in any way.
That was how Plagg found him, laying on the floor in the middle of the room, trembling in a tense posture, ready to jump up and run away at a moment's notice if the situation called for it.
"Kid, what are you doing?" He therefore righteously asked with a sigh.
Adrien couldn't look at him. "Nothing," he told the floor.
A hesitant glance to see the kwami's reaction showed that Plagg shook his head in apparent exasperation. As soon as he looked at him again, Adrien averted his eyes. It worked for about a second until Plagg floated down to be on eyelevel with him.
"How much magic have you used these last few days?"
Adrien tilted his head at the sudden topic change—so different to his current train of thought—and then thought about the question.
"Levitation spells and glamours mostly."
"So, small stuff."
"What? Do you expect me to let a corn field wither to ashes or something?!"
"You can keep that snappy tone to yourself, Monsieur!"
Ears flattened, Adrien hung his head in shame. "Sorry."
"Don't worry about it," Plagg waved it off.
"Where are you going with this?"
"You still have that feather curse on you, right?"
Adrien nodded without hesitation. A few days ago, he had encountered feathers and had fallen into a very bad sneezing fit over them. After what he had experienced during his fight with Audrey, where her curses had been eaten away before they could take hold of him, he had hoped that the destructive magic had taken care of that old curse as well. That, however, didn't seem to be the case. Probably because it had already been part of him before he had received this new power.
"Break it," Plagg said simply.
Adrien immediately sat up. "What?!"
The kwami shrugged. "Break the curse."
"Don't you remember what happened last time I tried that?!"
"Yeah, with weak halfling magic that was to be expected. Do you seriously want to tell me that you can't break a seven-rune curse with only one circle now that you're on a Court Chief's magic level?"
Adrien wasn't sure if he should feel embarrassed, insulted or exasperated. So far, the most complicated curse he had achieved to break contained two runes: A minuscule itching curse Félix had once thrown at him when he had been annoyed. In comparison to that, seven runes sounded like much more of a challenge. When compared to what his current magic was capable of, however, which among other things included burning away the curses a Court Chief threw at him…
"I don't know how," he mumbled.
"You're lucky I like you, kid," Plagg muttered with an eye-roll. "Listen, Duusu is here to stay and she's covered in feathers. You can't go around sneezing all day with her here, so that curse has to go."
"Can't you break it?"
"Sure, I could, but then you wouldn't learn anything, would you?"
Adrien sighed. "I don't know how much of your magic I can control."
"It's not my magic anymore, kid. It's your magic now and you control it the same way as you always have: by putting intent into it. Without a goal, magic goes haywire, I taught you that already."
He nodded.
"Okay, then how do I break this curse?"
"Search for the runes within you and then undo them all at once."
"At once?!"
"Do you want to end up coughing up feathers instead of hairballs again? Last time you only changed one rune and it made the curse malfunction. For more complicated curses, that could collapse the spell matrix and even kill you."
"I…think I prefer sneezing to dying, thanks."
Plagg rolled his eyes. "This curse isn't nearly complicated enough for that. Think nine full circles. That could do some damage. Besides, dispelling seven runes at once only takes a bit of concentration for someone without practice like you. Just feel where the spell is located, study it, and then dispel it in its entirety."
Adrien took a deep breath. "Okay, that sounds easy enough," he said hesitantly. "Can you help when something goes wrong?"
"I could, but I'm actually counting on nothing going wrong. You got this, kid."
He was flattered by Plagg's confidence in his abilities, but wasn't sure if he could really live up to those expectations. After all, he was basically a world champion when it came to disappointing people.
Adrien shook his head.
None of that self-deprecating nonsense now!
With another deep breath he sat up straighter, closed his eyes and concentrated just as Plagg had told him to. Magic was now easier for him to pick apart and sense than it had been before, so it didn't take long to recognise the little smudge inside him that didn't belong. Foreign magic with one circle and seven runes, none of them familiar to him. Familiarity wasn't important though when all he needed to do was to destroy them completely. All at once.
Tentatively he drew on his own familiar magic for the task with only the faintest hint of the destructive magic he couldn't yet control. That tiny bit was important though, as his goal was destruction and perhaps through this, he could show it what it could be used for productively. That might be a better promise than to say that he'd kill rodents eventually and not be able to pull through with it yet. Anything to keep it controlled and at bay basically.
When he was sure that all of his magic was under control, he looked inside the maelstrom of spells, magic currents, enchantments and other things magical inside him that made him him—with a few additions. Once he recognised the part that sang a different tune, that didn't belong, he zeroed in on it. The curse was an odd sight to describe, as it wasn't a sight at all. He couldn't see magic, wasn't sure if anyone could, as it was a feeling. A thought. A knowledge. Just as he couldn't describe what made a colour a colour, he couldn't describe what made one rune different from another, or this spell foreign from the rest of the swirling magic inside him that was him.
Destroy it, he thought as calmly as possible. Destroy that curse and nothing else.
Adrien had expected targeting the curse to be similar to using a levitation spell. Of feeling a pull and a connection to something without directly touching it and being able to twist it to his will. He had expected to crush the curse like he would a dry autumn leaf in his hand, crumbling it into dusty flakes. What happened wasn't anything like that though. It was less a sensation of something getting crushed and more of it dissipating. Being there one moment and not the next. Like blowing out a candle, and just like an extinguished flame, the curse was gone for good, no remnants left. Adrien almost laughed at how anticlimactic it was, especially when thinking about how hesitant he had been to do this just minutes earlier. When he opened his eyes again, he couldn't help but let a breathless laugh escape.
"I did it. I really did it, Plagg!"
"Congratulations, kid," Plagg said with an appreciative grin and patted his head. "I knew it would be child's play if you only tried."
"It was! I never thought it would be that easy."
"That's because it was a pretty simple curse. Like I said, if you would've tried that with a multi-circle one, it would've been incomparably much harder. For you, that is. I can break those with no trouble at all."
Adrien smiled. "I think you can break any curse with no trouble at all, Plagg."
"You're damn right I can!"
Someone cleared their throat behind them and Adrien immediately jumped up excitedly. There, in the doorframe, stood Félix, holding two plates of chocolate cake. One with a very large piece on it and the other with a regularly-sized piece.
"I wasn't sure if you wanted cake, so–" Félix started.
"What kind of insane question is that?! Of course I want cake!" Adrien exclaimed and immediately heard Marinette giggle from the other room. He smiled at the noise.
"Well, now that you can break seven-rune curses, you can celebrate it with a piece of cake. And introduce yourself, I guess. Knowing you, that'll be a disaster," Plagg said.
"Wait, introdu–"
"In a bit," Félix interrupted him. "Can I talk to you first?"
Adrien, by now guessing what kind of introduction was upon him—because, really, there was only one option—nodded. If talking to his brother could prolong the inevitable, then he'd gladly take that opportunity.
There was a giggle from outside that made Adrien's fur stand on end.
"Come on Plagg, let's catch up!" he heard Duusu say before the kwamis' voices disappeared down the stairs.
"You're oddly quiet," Félix remarked after placing the plates with cake on the window sill.
Adrien averted his eyes. "It's just…I'm not really looking forward to a repeat of what happened with Tikki when I met her."
Félix soothingly petted his head and touch-starved as Adrien was from this horrid day, he decided that flopping on his back and purring was the best course of action.
"You don't have to worry about that. From what I was told, Duusu is one of the kwamis who is closest to the fair folk, both from behaviour and influence. I haven't talked to her much before I gave her to Marinette, only to brief her in on the situation, but she seemed very accepting. It's not like with Tikki where she lost a chosen to the fae once."
While he knew that it was supposed to be a comfort, to hear that Duusu was much like the fair folk didn't soothe his worries at all. He'd have to keep an eye out to make sure the kwami wouldn't overwhelm Marinette with her antics.
"You're such a mystery-monger, Fé," Adrien said instead of voicing that thought and playfully swatted at Félix with his good foreleg. "When were you going to tell me that you knew about more Miraculouses?"
His brother shrugged. "It wasn't my secret to tell. Still isn't, actually."
"Fair point."
"You really did get smaller by the way. Whatever you're doing, it's working," Félix said.
He grinned. "I'm glad it does! I've been practising with my magic this whole week to get enough of it together to shift. Maybe if I'm the size of a normal cat again, Marinette won't get triggered and things will be easier."
While he wasn't as monstrously big as a week ago anymore, he was still the size of a lion or, at the very least, a Great Dane.
"Before you know it, you'll be able to look human again."
Adrien rolled back on his stomach and sighed.
"One step at a time. I'm more worried about you, still. Sleep-deprivation isn't a good look on you."
"Ha ha," Félix deadpanned.
"I'm serious, Fé. Helping you out during Akuma attacks only works if you can keep yourself standing. Take it from someone who fell off a rooftop multiple times out of the same reason. And if your Ladybug is anything like Marinette, she'll give you an earful for it."
"She's not my Ladybug."
Adrien growled. "Listen, I don't care if you like Bri or not, but she's your partner. If you put petty grudges in front of your duty to protect her, you'll not like the advice I'm going to give you. Whether you like it or not, you're Chat Noir now, so get a grip!"
Félix scowled at him but he could see the resignation lingering behind his gaze.
"But you already know that," Adrien continued. "What you really need is some sleep and a clear head." He then got up and nudged Félix to do the same. "And for that you better go to bed right this instant. It's getting late already."
His brother sighed and then stood up.
"Very well. Let's hope I'll be able to sleep tonight then."
"I'm sure you will!" Adrien said, hoping his optimism wasn't misplaced, and rubbed his head against Félix.
"What about me?" Plagg asked, suddenly having appeared in the doorway as well.
"Good night to you too, Plagg," Adrien said and arched up his head to nudge the kwami affectionately. Plagg returned it with a short, quiet purr.
"And me?" A cheerful voice piped up and suddenly Duusu was there, hovering in the doorway as well. Adrien, while backing towards the furthest wall, only faintly registered how Félix took the plates with cake and set them down on the floor.
"Adrien, breathe," Félix said while Adrien could do little else than to keep putting distance between himself and the blue kwami, to lay himself flat on the ground and prepare to beg for mercy.
A strange sense of déjà-vu overcame him, as it was so much like when he had met Tikki. Begging and praying was all he had against a literal goddess after all.
"Come on, kitten. Let's let the two figure things out," he heard Plagg say and for a second wanted to beg him and Félix to stay. But no, this was his fight. Duusu was Marinette's kwami now and he would therefore try everything to not be on hostile terms with her.
When there was a gasp directly above him, he barely dared to glance up and look at the goddess. Unlike Tikki, who had almost human-like eyes, Duusu's eyes were a dark blue with soft pink irises. Those same eyes drew his gaze to them like black holes, not giving away hints to her real thoughts at all. It was unnerving to say the least. And as if that wasn't enough already, things quickly worsened when he watched those same eyes begin to shimmer with tears.
"You're so beautiful."
Adrien stared at her, not knowing if he had heard correctly. Not only was that one of the last things he had expected her to say, he also hadn't thought those words to be spoken in a reverent tone, as if she was in awe of him. Despite his immense confusion and even slight fear, his vanity was deeply flattered.
Once upon a time, he had been a majestic cat and a handsome boy, but those days had ended. Now he was a monster, even in the Court's eyes, and a beast at best. Dangerous, predatory, frightening. Those were the words that came to mind when he looked in a mirror these days. If he was to believe Marinette—and he always believed her—then soft and cuddly applied as well. Soft and cuddly sounded nice, but were they really true? After all, he knew for a fact that, deep down, she was still scared. No one had ever called him beautiful in this form. Not until now.
After two days of trigger desensitisation with Marinette where she had spent a lot of time staring at him in absolute horror and fear, there was no doubt left in him that his appearance was anything but monstrous to people. And today, where he had not even been able to be in the same room as her, hiding away because his appearance was too triggering, hadn't helped that at all either.
And then he was called beautiful.
"What?"
The word was the quietest of whispers when it fell from his lips, not quite believing what was happening and also, desperately, searching for the explanation as to why.
"Oh, where are my manners?" She said and made a little twirl in the air. "You may call me Duusu, I'm the goddess of emotion. And you're Adrien, the former Chat Noir. I heard so much about you!"
Adrien, a little intimidated at her excited chattering, ducked his head a little more.
"You heard about me?"
Of course she has, idiot! Fé said he filled her in!
"Only good things, I promise! Your brother and Plagg hold you in the highest regard!"
"Oh, I see," he said quietly, trying to sort his thoughts on how to progress from here.
What Félix had said jumped back into his mind: that Duusu was much like the fair folk. The emotional part definitely checked off, though what else was fey about her? He'd have to stay wary and tread extremely carefully before he knew for sure. Because if she was impacted by 'thank you' and 'you're welcome' in the same way as the fae treated these expressions, he was screwed.
Without warning, Duusu suddenly flew to the other side of the room and then proceeded to push the bigger piece of cake in his direction.
"You can stay there, but we're still having cake!" She declared when coming to a halt with the plate in front of his paws, before immediately flying back and shoving her own plate closer as well. "Anyway, it's amazing to finally meet you!" Duusu then chirped with a grin as she settled down behind her own plate.
Adrien, in response, bowed so low he almost accidentally faceplanted into his cake.
"It's an honour to make your acquaintance," he said, staying polite, and felt his fur fluff up anxiously.
Duusu, either not noticing or ignoring his anxiety, quickly turned back to her cake and started to devour it.
"Bon appétit?" He said with trepidation before nibbling at his own piece.
His hunger came back with a vengeance at the first taste and it took a lot of self-restraint to not stuff the whole piece of cake into his mouth at once. Instead, he savoured the taste on his tongue, trying to guess the individual tastes of the different layers with his eyes closed. Sweet bliss, that's what it was, and three different types of chocolate, and vanilla. It was heaven. Every careful bite was relished in that way until he licked the plate clean of its last chocolatey remnants.
Duusu giggled, reminding him once again of her presence.
"It's funny that you eat cake," she said, still giggling.
Adrien nervously pinned his ears back and lowered his head. "I'm a Cat Sidhe...we're not like regular cats."
"Oh, I know, I know!" She said in obvious amusement and started flying circles around him. "It's just funny thinking how you are a descendant of Plagg but have a sweet tooth like Tikki instead of preferring stinky cheese."
Some of his tension melted away as the meaning of her comment sunk in. In that case, he was eternally glad for his sweet tooth as well. When she continued, though, Adrien couldn't help but tense once more.
"It's been so long since I've seen a Cat Sidhe and look how beautiful you are! Your fur shines in such an ethereal blue, just like a midnight summer sky," she swooned as she stopped before his face once again, her tail fan wagging in excitement. "Just like Marinette's hair too! You two match!"
Adrien raised his head curiously, though not one bit less wary. He had never even thought about that before, but now that Duusu mentioned it, she was right. Marinette's hair and his fur really were similar. Not that it mattered much, in this form, where she couldn't even look at him…
"And those green eyes!" The goddess went on and sighed dreamily. "Like a spring meadow."
More like poison, he thought when he remembered the many times Marinette had looked into exactly those eyes in the last few days only to immediately break down.
Duusu deflated. "Oh, you don't like your eyes? They're making you sad."
Adrien didn't know if it was rude to lie down on the floor and curl up into a ball of sorrow while in the presence of a goddess, but that was what he did.
His thoughts unbiddenly spiraled back to the beginning of the day and that, despite improvement, it had still been one of the worst days in his life. After all, there was little worse than getting a taste of what you desperately yearned for, especially when it was everything you hoped and dreamed of, only for it to be ripped away from you again.
Adrien had experienced this scenario more times than he could count, but never had it hurt as badly as it did right now. Not because he hadn't been in worse situations, but because he was rendered more than just helpless once again. Walls and doors had to be kept between himself and Marinette at all times, never letting her glimpse even a hair of him and vice versa. He understood the precautions, was even the one who had suggested them in the first place, but that didn't mean that the separation didn't hurt. To be so close and yet so far.
Being only metres away from her, to hear her suffer, and to not be able to do anything more but trying to talk her through it while not even sure if she heard him? If he had to define the word torture and give examples, then this scenario would be near the top of his list.
Things had improved and things had gotten worse, both in waves. There was no sense or logic to it, which was a concept he could work with, but Marinette couldn't. Its irrationality distressed her further, worsening the entire situation. She was a person of sense and plans after all, not of chaos and impulsiveness. Rolling with the punches was only something she could do if the punches were predictable. Triggers and flashbacks were anything but.
Adrien was thankful for every little bit of improvement she had made during the day, so that she was almost back to something he could call stable right now. But even when Félix had helped with bringing cake and a Miraculous of all things, the distance between him and Marinette remained.
And despite the reassurances he whispered to her, he still couldn't get rid of the fact that it was indirectly his fault.
"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have mentioned it," he heard Duusu say.
"She can't even look at me right now without suffering," Adrien said quietly, having to give his misery a shape in the form of words before it would spur on the destruction inside him.
He tensed when he felt a light weight drop down on his head and only relaxed slightly when a small paw started petting him. This…this wasn't how things were supposed to go. He was a Cat Sidhe and Duusu was a goddess. She should be wary of him, not comfort him.
"You love her so much that it hurts you," she said in a voice that sounded as forlorn as he felt. "It's so sad."
Was she crying?
Oh no, I made a goddess cry! What do I do?!
"I'm sorry, I won't–"
"No," Duusu interrupted him.
It wasn't the dismissive kind of 'no' that his father often used, nor a harsh one. Neither was it the angry kind that silenced wise ones. It was firm, but managed to be gentle at the same time. Still, coming from a goddess, it immediately made him tense. Had he made a mistake?
"You can't help your emotions, Adrien, and it's healthy to let them out. With the magic Plagg gave you, it would even be dangerous to bottle it all up. Let it out and voice your sorrows. I'll listen if you need an ear."
Adrien was stunned. Duusu was nothing like he had expected her to be, especially not judgmental like Plagg and Tikki had been. She just accepted him—called him beautiful even—and treated him like a person.
"I don't want to hurt her, but I still do. She's your chosen now, so how doesn't that bother you?"
The goddess sighed. "Félix said that Marinette received my Miraculous because my powers are closest to Tikki's from all Miraculouses. That's not entirely true though. You two might be out of commission, but that doesn't mean that you're not still fighting. Your battle, right now, is a mental one with emotions running wild. They're both your enemy and your salvation, though recognising them correctly and taking them apart is difficult. I'm here to help with that as well. You both have guilt and fear to fight right now, but I promise that neither of you are doing the other harm. Besides, I could never resent someone for looking out for their loved one and wanting to help them get better."
Adrien thought about all that for a bit and a small wave of relief overcame him. Duusu didn't hate him.
"I still feel horrible for causing her pain," he said quietly.
"With how much you love her, I'd be surprised if you didn't. Being devastated about that is completely normal, especially when you're feeling helpless on top of it. Though be at peace with the knowledge that you did everything you could."
"I want to be near her again," he said so quietly that he at first thought Duusu hadn't heard it.
She petted his head in response though.
"Shh," she soothed, "You will be, but that's a worry for tomorrow."
Adrien couldn't tell why, but her voice inexplicably calmed him all of a sudden, making his eyelids droop.
"Let me sing you a lullaby that guarantees peaceful dreams," she said softly while stroking his fur. "All you kids are so terribly exhausted and desperately need some rest."
The sigh she let out at that was melodious and even if he would have paid attention, he couldn't tell when it had turned into words and a song. He knew that it was magic, charming to be more precise, but he couldn't seem to care. It was peaceful, grounding and safe.
Green evening meadows, golden sunlight and a laughing blue bird flying right in front of him as if to dare him to chase it were the only implications that he was slipping away and fast. But it wasn't Tír na nÓg that he slipped into, only a dream. Dreams were safe, dreams were grounding—as ironic as that was. He sighed blissfully and then gave chase, running like he had never run before and enjoying the wind in his fur and the grasshoppers and butterflies he scared off in the process.
The blue bird with the long tail gave a thrilling laugh.
"That's right, run, catling! Frolic and bask in bliss until the morning light wakes you."
Laughter echoed across the meadow and faded as the bird disappeared in a sparkling blue flame.
Adrien happily sang along with the song on the radio as he stood in the kitchen and did his best for the quest of attaining breakfast. He had just woken up from what was definitely the best night's sleep he had had in weeks and that alone warranted a celebration of some sort. Unfortunately, most food in the fridge wasn't exactly made for unnaturally large cats and he didn't dare experiment with levitating bowls or even cutlery around. While there were the pastries Félix had brought over the previous evening, he wanted to wait for Marinette to pick out whatever she wanted from them first before he'd eat anything of it. After all, what if he'd accidentally pick something she had been craving and then ruin her day? No, he definitely couldn't risk that! With a sudden idea for an alternative, he sang a few notes even more joyously and closed the fridge. Instead, he turned his attention to the small cupboard in the corner which he knew contained all sorts of sweets. The thought alone made him as giddy as a child on Christmas.
"Good morning, Adrien! You have such a beautiful singing voice."
He almost jumped out of his skin…or fur. A jump that, unfortunately, made him land on his broken leg. Instead of the sharp pain he anticipated, however, there was only a hollow ache—not comfortable in the least, but still much less intense than it had been the day before. Confused, he lifted it up and regarded it curiously. Was it finally healing?
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to startle you," Duusu giggled and then flew up to nuzzle his face.
While Adrien was perplexed at the sudden affection and even familiarity, he was also much more at ease with the kwami's antics than he had been just the evening prior. It was as if a big heap of the tension he had been carrying for weeks now had just vanished overnight.
"Good morning, Duusu. Did you sleep well?"
She nodded enthusiastically. "I did! And you did as well by the looks of it."
The knowing grin she sent him made him narrow his eyes.
"You had something to do with that, didn't you?"
Duusu giggled again. "I did!" Seeming to notice his less than happy reaction to that piece of news, she visibly deflated. "Oh, I'm sorry for not asking in advance if it was okay, but I presumed that charming you into a peaceful sleep wasn't anything bad. I didn't mean to force it upon you out of any ill will, I promise! I only wanted to help!"
While she was obviously apologetic and this night's sleep really had done him a lot of good, Adrien still didn't know if he should feel violated or thankful. After all, he had done something similar for Marinette multiple times at this point—he definitely would have to talk to her about it and specifically ask for permission in case he ever had to do it again—so was he really allowed to judge Duusu for it? It would be extremely hypocritical! Now that it had been done to him though, he found that it really was somewhat creepy. Meaning well and doing well definitely weren't always terms that were on the same page.
"I guess you're right with that," he eventually said with a sigh. "Water under the bridge now, but please ask next time."
Duusu nodded sheepishly before her demeanour changed again—her sudden mood swings were as drastic as those of any fae he had ever encountered, himself included. She now wore what he could only describe as a motherly smile.
"Marinette is still asleep."
Adrien couldn't help a small grin. "Don't worry, she's always been like that and old habits die hard. Wake her up before eight in the morning without her asking you to if you want to invoke her wrath."
Duusu giggled. "So, my fledgling isn't much of an early bird then, is she?"
He chuckled at the pun and shook his head. Turning around to the cupboard that contained what really shouldn't be considered breakfast in any way—not that he cared—he accidentally put a little too much weight on his broken leg and winced. So much for improvement, it was still very much broken.
Suddenly the goddess gasped and flew down to inspect the slightly loose splint of his left foreleg in worry. "Oh dear, is this too bad? Can you even walk?"
This prompted Adrien to look at his broken leg once more.
"It's actually a lot better today than it was the day before? Is that your doing as well?"
Duusu shook her head. "Tikki is the healer, not me. I can only heal very small things like cuts or bruises, not broken bones. This is probably your own doing."
He tilted his head. "My own?"
"You broke a curse yesterday. It wasn't a difficult one, but it made you use more magic than you otherwise would on a daily basis." She flew up again and circled his head with a cheery expression. "And the more magic you use, the closer you come to being able to shift again. Your brother said you've been in this form for weeks now and that's not healthy for a shapeshifter, so your body and magic automatically strive for a shift, when also a slow one. And you know how injuries don't transfer from a shifted form to another because you re-form your body, right? You could re-form it with an injury but that would just be insane! Who'd want an injury when they could as well be healthy?!"
Adrien's eyes grew wide. It wasn't that he got injured very often—except as Chat Noir, but that was something else—so the concept had never really occurred to him, especially since all kinds of injuries healed quickly for him anyways.
"So, you mean that if I just use more magic like that, I'll be able to heal my broken leg with it?"
Duusu nodded. "Maybe try moving around more with it now that it's getting better. Oh, how about we go on a house tour? Plagg didn't want to show me around yesterday." She pouted at the last part.
"Actually, I haven't been downstairs since we first got here," Adrien said thoughtfully. He faintly remembered there being another kitchen there though. Maybe he would find something to eat there and if not, he'd just have to wait until Marinette got up and made breakfast.
His decision made, he took the basket—it had been cleaned after he collected flowers in it—from the corner of the kitchen to carry whatever he'd find back upstairs with him.
"Let's see what's down there, shall we?" he asked Duusu, his voice slightly muffled from the basket's handle in his mouth.
The kwami made an excited whoop and flew several loop the loops in the air before settling on his head.
"What are we waiting for? Onward!"
