When Plagg woke up the next morning with his usual stretch and grumble, he found his charge lying on his back, his face tired and pale, and his eyes staring blankly up at the ceiling. The kwami was pretty sure Adrien hadn't been sporting such dark eye bags the previous day, and he floated down to rest on the boy's chest with concern. Adrien didn't even shift his head at the movement.

"You okay, kid?"

Adrien's chest rose and fell with a heavy sigh, taking Plagg with it. "Couldn't sleep."

"The nightmares, huh?" Throughout the night, Plagg had woken several times to find his charge sweating and whimpering, forehead creased heavily as he dreamt. The kwami had done what he could to sooth him, but, being only centimeters tall, there really wasn't much he could do.

Adrien nodded helplessly, eyes never leaving their fixed spot above him.

Plagg hummed sympathetically. "Are you gonna skip school?"

There was a pause as the boy considered the question, before ultimately shaking his head. "There's no telling what my father would do if I stayed home. At this rate, he'd take it as an opportunity to claim I'm too stressed by it and pull me out."

His kwami nodded. "Better get going then, kid. Nathalie will come looking for you if you don't get a move on."

Adrien's hands grasped for the sheets reflexively as the thought of getting up caused his anxiety to rise. It only rose more when he realized that his sheets did not feel as smooth and silky as they should have. He dared to glance downwards and a loud moan erupted from him when he saw the condition of his bed. There were large holes scattered throughout his fitted sheet, as well as areas where the fabric appeared to have aged by hundreds of years. Stray threads and ash made piles on the mattress as the bedcovers slowly unraveled around him.

The boy's head thumped back down onto his pillow and he raised his hands to cover his face with a sob. "Plagg, I can't go to school like this! What if I hurt somebody?"

The kwami zipped up to nestle himself beneath his charge's jaw, purring comfortingly as he let the boy cry out some of his frustration. When the tears had somewhat subsided, he nudged Adrien's cheek. "It's going to be alright. Go take a shower while I think of a plan."

Adrien nodded reluctantly, wiping his cheeks roughly as he rose from the bed. In a zombie-like state, he grabbed a new set of clothes from his closet, then headed to the bathroom and shut the door behind him.

Plagg listened to confirm that the shower was started before turning back to the bed. He floated above it, staring down at the mangled sheets with his tiny paws on his hips. With a sigh, for this was a bigger job than one kwami could easily do, he set about removing the remains of the bedclothes from the mattress.

By the time Adrien had returned from his shower, looking somewhat more alive, Plagg was covered in a thin sheen of kwami sweat and had managed to make a pile of the sheets on the floor next to the bed. He floated onto the boy's shoulder to catch his breath, and Adrien rubbed his tiny ears in gratitude as he took a seat on the now-bare mattress.

"So, have you come up with a plan?"

Plagg sighed. "Sort of, but first there's something I need you to do." Adrien craned his neck to glance at him questioningly, and he pointed a paw at the pile of cloth on the ground. "We need to get rid of this."

The boy's temperature spiked as he felt his anxiety rise once more. His breathing became faster at the thought of attempting to use his power, even if it was necessary.

Before he could protest, Plagg zipped in front of his face so they were almost nose to nose. "Look, kid, I know you're pretty terrified right now, and I'm sorry, but this is your life now. Having this new power is a big responsibility, and it wouldn't have manifested unless you were ready to handle it. You can't stay afraid of it forever, or you're only going to continue to hurt things and people you love; you have to embrace it, let it become part of you. I know you're scared, but more than anything I know you can do this, because you're Chat Noir, one of the best and bravest I've had. You cannot allow this fear to become more powerful than you." Plagg's ears twitched in what seemed to be embarrassment as he muttered, "I know I don't show it much, but I love you, kid. And I believe that you can take this on."

Tears filled Adrien's eyes once more, thankfully this time from happiness rather than fear. He took a shaky breath, letting Plagg's confidence in him fill him up until he had the courage to move from the bed and kneel in front of the pile. "Okay, tell me what to do."

Plagg grinned crookedly. He really was fond of this one. "Alright. Take two deep breaths." Adrien did as he was told, and Plagg continued, "Now focus on an emotion. Whatever you're feeling most right now is fine, it doesn't matter what emotion it is. Concentrate on it, breath it in and let it run through your body. Feel the energy of that emotion flowing out from your heart like blood, drifting through your veins and pooling into your hands."

Adrien's brows furrowed in concentration, focusing on the affection and tenderness he'd felt after Plagg's speech. A strange tingling started in his chest, slowly spreading across his shoulders and down through his arms. It was somewhat reminiscent of the surges of power he'd felt before, but this was tamer, more controlled. He felt a swell of confidence as his fingers began to tingle with warmth. "Plagg, I'm doing it!"

"You're doing great, Kitten." Try as he might, the kwami couldn't hide the pride in his voice. "Don't lose focus, now. Keep concentrating on that emotion, will it into your hands, and touch them to the cloth."

Adrien bit his lip, determined not to lose this progress. He redoubled his focus on his emotions, feeling the tingling grow into a strong tide of warmth rushing through him. It was almost alarming, but he forced himself to trust that he could control it. He could do this.

Something inside him told him the heat was enough, and he gently placed his hands on the sheets. His jaw dropped as he watched them slowly decompose beneath his touch.

"It's kind of...beautiful," he said in awe, and Plagg nodded beside him.

"Destruction isn't always a terrible thing. It can lead to rebirth, and renewal. That's why you shouldn't be afraid of it."

"There is beauty even in death," Adrien quoted quietly.

"You got it, kid."

The two sat in silence as they watched the remaining tendrils of cloth waste away into ash. Adrien pulled his hands away, letting them rest on his legs as he stared contemplatively at the pile.

"We really should have put that in a garbage can first."

"You were the one who decided to burn it right there on the floor."

"You put it there and told me to do it!"

Plagg shrugged flippantly as he flew a loop around the pile. "Hurry up and clean this up or you're going to be late."

As if on cue, a knock sounded on the door. "Adrien, you're expected downstairs in five minutes for breakfast."

"I-I'll be right there, Nathalie!" Hurriedly, Adrien jumped off the floor and grabbed the waste basket and a piece of paper. Using the paper as a makeshift shovel, he cleaned what he could off the floor. While he was at it, he figured he should dispose of the evidence of his temper tantrum the previous night, and began chucking pieces of his destroyed game in the bin as well. When the room was as tidy as it would get, he shoved the trash into the back of his closet, vowing to dispose of it later as Chat Noir, and rushed to grab his things and get downstairs. Slipping into his shoes, he called Plagg to hide in his pocket and ran for the door.

When he opened the door and lurched into the hallway, he almost barreled into Nathalie, who had returned to collect him in his tardiness. He was mere seconds late, but his father demanded that things run on time in his household, even if he was not present.

"Sorry, Nathalie, I couldn't find my shoes."

"Please remember that your father prefers your room to be kept tidy. A place for everything, and-"

"Everything in its place, yes, of course," Adrien rushed to finish as he began trotting down the stairs. "Speaking of tidiness, would you please have someone clean my room today? I...spilled my eraser dust collection this morning, and I need new sheets as well."

Nathalie paused in her descent down the staircase as she took in this questionable information. With hesitance she replied, "Of course, Adrien."

Lord knows she didn't get paid enough to try to figure out what went on in the mind and life of a teenage boy.

The boy thanked her as he headed to the dining room, taking his seat quickly and proceeding to inhale his breakfast. He wanted to get to school early so he had the maximum amount of time to get his head cleared and calm before his classmates showed up. When he finished, he popped out of his seat, shrugging into his coat and scarf and swinging his bag over his shoulder before heading for the front door.

Nathalie looked as though she didn't quite know what to make of his nervous energy, but nevertheless summoned his driver to take him to school.

When Adrien was settled in the back of the car, he allowed himself a moment to sink into the soft leather and relax. He kept his breaths deep and even and tried to remain calm, cool, and collected, even when a startling thought popped into his head.

"Plagg," the boy whispered as he made a show of casually looking out the window. He felt movement beneath his coat and shortly the kwami's soft ears could be felt against his neck. "You never told me about your plan for staying safe at school."

"Don't worry, I've got it in the bag." Plagg chuckled at his clever joke, but upon receiving no response from the boy, he added, "Seriously, kid, look in your bag."

Adrien frowned as he reached into his school bag, pulling out handfuls of gloves, presumably stolen from his closet while he was in the shower. "So, your plan is what exactly?"

Plagg huffed. "These are your first line of defense until you learn to control your power. If you wear these and get too emotional, the gloves will burn before anything else. That should give you time to notice and collect yourself."

"That's...actually not the worst plan."

"Gee, thanks," Plagg muttered as he burrowed back into his hiding spot in Adrien's coat.

The boy placed most of the gloves back in his bag, slipping one pair into his pockets and another onto his hands. He supposed it would look odd to his classmates for him to be wearing gloves indoors all day, but he figured being a temporary fashion disaster was a small price to pay for not accidentally defacing school property or hurting anyone.

When they pulled up to the front of the school, Adrien thanked The Gorilla and hopped out before the man could make his way around to open the door for him. With a quick wave, he bounded up the stairs, making a beeline for his classroom.

Unfortunately, he hadn't made it very far when a familiarly shrill call sounded behind him. "Adrikins!"

He groaned quietly as he slowed to a stop, trying to smother his irritation before his hands went haywire. He'd lose his confidence if he started burning through gloves this early in the day.

As the girl approached, he turned and pleasantly asked, "Hey, Chloe, what's up?"

"Ugh, what's up is that I was forced to come in early to make up that stupid quiz for history class!" She raised the back of one hand to her forehead dramatically while latching on to his arm with the other. "Honestly, I can't believe it. Doesn't she know a girl needs her beauty sleep." With a snarky smirk, she followed up with, "Well, I guess looking at her we can assume she doesn't."

Adrien felt a twinge of annoyance in his chest, and a strange mixture of panic and irritation began to rise in his belly. Dealing with Chloe was tiring on the best of days, but handling her on the extremely minimal amount of sleep he was currently running on? In his current volatile state, that was just asking for someone to get hurt.

Shrugging his arm out of her grasp, he went for a gentle, if somewhat insincere, pat on the shoulder. "That sucks, but at least it's done now, right?"

She huffed in response. "I suppose so. If she ever tries that sort of nonsense again, my father will hear about it." This statement was punctuated by a flip of her ponytail, the blonde strands lashing across Adrien's face and doing nothing to subdue his rising ire.

Forcing in a deep breath, the boy pasted on a smile. They say that if you smile, you'll start to feel happier, right? He prayed that wasn't just an old wives tale as Chloe continued to trail after him to their classroom, chattering nonstop about how stressed she was and how she just needed a break from everything and, oh, you understand don't you, Adrien?

Boy did he ever.

He could feel the power starting to make its way through his body, honestly surprised he'd been able to hold it off that long. Without bothering to wait for a polite moment to interrupt Chloe's stream of chit chat, he declared, "I'm going to the bathroom," and promptly bolted away, leaving her to huff and stomp her way into the classroom alone.

Once safely locked in a stall-he settled on the one at the far end of the room as his favorite, since he had a feeling that he was about to be spending a whole lot more time in there-he leaned against the wall and let out a deep breath.

Plagg nonchalantly floated out of his coat and buzzed around over his head. "Wow, look at you, M. Bigshot. Five minutes in and you're still on pair one, impressive." He settled casually on the bag hook on the door, lounging on the small bar of metal. "Points off for already being holed up in the bathroom, though."

"Not helping."

"Well, I couldn't let you get used to that or you'd expect it all the time." The kwami rolled onto his back, big eyes boring into Adrien as he stared at him upside down. "So, is this the plan for the rest of the day? Not the worst place for a nap, I guess."

Adrien sighed. "No, I just needed a break from Chloe." "A break already? It's only going to get worse, you know."

Gritting his teeth, he replied, "Yes, I know that. I just need to get myself together before everyone else shows up."

Plagg's next surely sarcastic comment was cut off by an earsplitting sound that caused Adrien to cry out and double over, clutching at his ears.

"Ah, yes. This."

The boy almost didn't hear the comment over the ringing in his ears, but managed to catch it, asking, "What's that supposed to mean?"

Plagg sighed, his tone becoming somehow even more indifferent. "One of the new powers that many Chat Noirs gain when they begin to further develop is heightened senses in their civilian forms."

Normally, Adrien would be excited about something like that. After all, what teen didn't want super hearing or night vision? But the fact that it was showing up at the same time as his far more stressful and dangerous new power made it more inconvenient than exciting.

The boy groaned as the shock caused him to lose control, resulting in his gloves becoming burnt and unraveled. Tears of irritation pricked his eyes before he could stop them, and he squeezed them shut as he took the deepest breaths he could.

After collecting himself for a moment, he looked up at Plagg with renewed determination and reached into his bag for his second pair of gloves. Sliding them on, he sucked in another breath. "I think that horrifying noise was the bell. Let's go, Plagg."

The kwami smiled slightly, proud of his charge's resilience - not that he'd tell him that. He slipped into Adrien's coat and made himself comfy as the boy exited the bathroom and made his way to his classroom.

Adrien sank heavily into his seat with a low sigh, forcing himself to go through the motions and extract his tablet from his bag, setting it up to take notes during class.

As if he'd be able to concentrate.

Optimism, he scolded himself. Maybe garnering all his strength to focus on the lesson would lend him the distraction he needed to keep his demons at bay.

Laughter echoed at the front of the room, and two familiar pairs of glasses bobbed into view. Steeling himself, Adrien stuck on the most realistic smile he could manage to greet his friends.

"Dude, major eye bag alert," Nino commented with a look of concern as he and Alya stopped in front of the blonde's seat. "You alright, man?"

Inching his smile wider yet, he managed to reply in a light tone, "Yeah, just a rough night. Stupid bird outside my window wouldn't stop making noise."

Okay, so it wasn't his best lie, but to his credit the fake smile had stayed in place as he wove what was surely to be only the first line in a very large and tangled web.

Alya squinted at him, opening her mouth to say something and then seemingly thinking better of it. With a gentle clap on the shoulder as she passed, she murmured, "I know a guy, if you need some help with that bird."

Relief just about drowned him as Nino gave him a sympathetic smile that said "I'm not gonna call you on your shit because I love you, but I'm here if you need me" and followed his girlfriend up the steps, smile turning strangely sly.

In his state of exhaustion, he ignored the deviation from their normal routine and focused back in on his tablet, drawing aimless lines with his stylus as he waited for class to begin. He was counting down the seconds until the bell rang, when hurried footsteps and the swish of fabric against wood beside him startled him out of his trance.

"Morning, guys!" Marinette huffed, catching her breath from her typical last-second mad dash to class. Nino and Alya responded in kind as Adrien stared dumbly at the girl next to him.

His sleep deprived brain was very observant and helpful in his time of need, producing in response to her greeting, "You're not Nino."

A somewhat nervous chuckle sounded from behind him, and Marinette eyed Adrien in befuddled amusement, taking in his bedraggled appearance for the first time. Shifting her eyes to the pair behind them, she noted their shaking heads and bad pantomiming of sleeping and...was that supposed to be a parrot having a stroke?

She was about to attempt a joke in rebuttal when the bell sounded suddenly. That in itself wasn't anything special that would call her attention, but the way Adrien shrunk in on himself with a moan, clapping his hands to his ears as his eyes screwed tightly shut, was certainly unusual.

She exchanged concerned glances with Nino and Alya, the three of them leaning towards their friend hesitantly.

Placing a gentle hand on his shoulder, she asked, "Adrien, are you alright?"

If I never hear that noise again I'll be the happiest man alive, the boy thought to himself with a grimace. After checking to make sure that his gloves had remained intact, he looked up to three perturbed faces and slapped on another smile. Or at least, what he hoped resembled a smile.

"Who knew you could feel this hungover without ever being drunk," he quipped, and his friends all cracked small grins at his attempt at humor.

Fortunately for him, the teacher entered the room and immediately called their attention, postponing any further questions as to his wellbeing, at least momentarily. He noted Marinette sending him concerned glances from across the bench, but tried to stay focused on losing himself in the topic of the lecture.

A worried frown taking over her face, Marinette scooted imperceptibly closer to the boy next to her. Maybe she should've taken the time to talk to him like she had promised last night. What if something had happened with his father and that was why he was so out of sorts today? What if he had been counting on her message and she had let him down in his time of need?

Thoughts muddled with unease, she tugged a sheet of paper from one of the notebooks in her bag, slipping out a pen to write a quick note on it.

Something hard prodding his elbow startled Adrien, but he managed to avoid burning his gloves and taking his stylus with them. Breathing deep, he glanced warily to his left, noting a small slip of paper resting at the edge of the table. A glance at Marinette gave nothing away, so he discreetly slid the paper over and unfolded it to read the message inside. Scribbling a harried response, he slipped the paper back across the desk as casually as possible.

Marinette opened the note, eyes glancing over her original message asking after his wellbeing to read his response. In handwriting that looked shakier than normal, he had written "Just a bad night, don't worry about it."

Guilt sank in the pit of her stomach, now convinced that she could have done something to help had she kept her promise to him. She wrote back, "Wanna talk about it?"

The note was returned instantly, the message a sharp and almost jagged "No."

The girl tensed in shock at the terse reply, which was much more snippish than Adrien would have normally been. Her guilt doubled, and though she was hurt she simply wrote, "Well, I'm here when you do :)" and returned the slip to his side of the desk.

Adrien read the note, feeling a small trickle of remorse for his brusque responses when all the girl wanted was to help. Because she cared about him, and he'd do well not to mess that up just because he was having a shitty day, he reminded himself.

Scooting towards her, he let his elbow drift over to bump hers, offering the most apologetic smile he could manage. She returned it with a look of obvious relief and sympathy, edging closer to him as well so that their arms could touch more fully.

The contact grounded him, and with it came an odd sense of reassurance, not unlike what he had felt the previous night with Ladybug. He wasn't sure how a feeling could be so foreign and comforting all at once, like something that was his but only to borrow.

Unbeknownst to him, Marinette was having a similar moment of confusion as something between gratitude and relief niggled at the back of her mind. It could only be the shared emotions from Chat again, wherever he was, and she wondered just how far they were able to transmit. What were the conditions for this strange power to work? She wished Tikki had been more forthcoming with information about it- she needed to know if it had the potential to be a threat to their identities or a tool they could use to strengthen their fighting techniques.

They both pondered the strange feelings for the remainder of class, not making much progress in the area of hypotheses, but at least remaining suitably distracted.

As the bell assaulted Adrien's poor ears for the third time that morning, he sighed in resignation. One period down, six more to go.