The noise and light of the TV pulled Fu Peizhi from his nap. That's all his life was, now. A series of drinks and bags of popcorn between his naps. He didn't mind it. It sure beat working and caring about whatever idiots came begging him for a Miraculous. Nope, he had given that life up years ago. Sure, that meant a few of the Miraculous were stolen and he wasn't sure exactly where they were, but who cared? It's not like any of the truly important-

"Master," Wayzz said, worried.

Peizhi groaned. He should never have listened to the floating turtle. It's an honor, it had said, It's a position of prestige which not just anyone can handle. Peizhi snorted. He had listened to the turtle, had taken up the job as 'Guardian of the Miraculous.' Look at him now. 300 years old, living by himself in a crappy apartment on the bad side of Paris, and life didn't seem like it was going to get better any time soon.

"Master!" The kwami sure was persistent. And annoying. Peizhi couldn't imagine how he had lived with the thing for so long. "Why did you give the girl the Ladybug? You said you didn't want to look out for any more of the Inner Circle Miraculous anymore!"

Peizhi's eyes snapped open, thankful that Wayzz no longer insisted on turning the lights on at the crack of dawn. "Wayzz," he said softly. "I'm sure I misheard you. It's impossible that the ladybug Miraculous is anywhere but in my pocket. Impossible."

"Master, you went to Four Dragons yesterday and drunk so much that a young girl had to help you from falling on your face! You insisted she take the Miraculous, and you've been asleep ever since! She even fought off a Makura and Akuma!"

"Wayzz, this is not funny,"

"Master, you know better than anyone that I have no sense of humor, especially about matter this serious!"

Peizhi sighed. The turtle was right about that. Which meant everything Wayzz had just said was 100% the truth. In other words, it was time for the Black Cat to appear in the world once again. He rubbed his face with his hands and groaned as he pushed himself off the couch.

"There was quite a bit of damage yesterday," Wayzz fretted. "Are you positive you will not transform and restore everything to the way it was?"

"No," Peizhi grumbled. "I told you. I am never transforming again."

Wayzz said no more, and instead continued to fret about the room. He mumbled endlessly of the possible repercussions, of how Peizhi should have done this and that and whatnot. Peizhi's head throbbed, so he detoured towards the kitchen and made himself a coffee. Strong, black, no sugar. He took a sip and sighed.

Wayzz floated about, handing him all the pieces of clothing he needed for the day, his toothbrush, deodorant, and shoes. Peizhi did all the necessary movements for getting ready. Then he grabbed the box for the Black Cat Miraculous and strode out the door. Wayzz sat in his coat pocket, silent and unmoving, but Peizhi could still feel his anxiety. He rolled his eyes but ignored it for the most part.

The old man strolled about Paris, keeping one hand on the Black Cat's box. Usually the Black Cat was given a partner first, and then the Ladybug would be chosen based off of who would best compliment the feline. Peizhi didn't think switching the order would be too much of a problem. Either way, the second partner was chosen by the kwami. The kwami could sense the waves from a person, and could instinctually tell which people would harmonize with themselves. In the case of the Ladybug and the Black Cat, however, the kwami would also need to find a person who would be able to work well with the other Miraculous holder. Peizhi didn't think about it too hard. It was on the kwami, not him. He simply had to walk, to show the kwami the options.

Peizi wandered into a park. He carefully picked his way over the shattered pathways and fallen trees, craving a warm bed and a dark room.

The Miraculous box warmed in his jacket, and Peizhi snapped to attention. To the right was a photo shoot. To the left was emptiness. It seemed the Black Cat's holder would be in the fashion industry this time around. Peizhi focused his energy, and slowly the waves came into his view. From the box in his pocket came a flurry of bumps, like you would see on a heart monitor in a hospital. These waves were the resonance patterns coming from the kwami's magic. The waves coming from the people came from their souls since they had no magic of their own. The kwami, however, had found a soul which was compatible with his magic, and could harmonize with the ladybug. Peizhi blinked his eyes and concentrated harder. There were so many people, they were so far away, and Peizhi had forgotten his glasses at home.

He stared for a while longer, deciphering the different waves, tracing the correct wave back to the person the Black Cat would bond with-a model. He was tall and blonde and smiled as sweetly and brightly as the sun. It was certainly a strange choice for the Black Cat but Peizhi could not bring himself to care enough to question the kwami about the choice.

"You there, young man?" Being an old man helped Peizhi a lot. He could get away with ruining the photo shoot because the youth were so afraid of being rude to their elders.

The model turned to him and smiled. The guards at the border of the photo shoot walked in front of him and Peizhi stepped back, looking alarmed.

"Oh dear, am I bothering you? I am so sorry, but I just wanted to say I love your work."

The blonde man-boy, he realized-stepped forward and shooed the bodyguards away.

"Sorry about them," the boy apologized. "They don't mean to be rude. Did you come here for an autograph?"

Peizhi shook his head. "No, I had a gift for you-a ring. I do hope you can wear it in your photo shoot."

The young man opened the box and his eyebrows raised. Peizhi internally sighed. He knew the ring wasn't very pretty, but he wasn't the one who designed it or made it, so he was not to be blamed. He was about to spew some story of the ring having some sort of familial meaning to it, but the boy surprised him.

"It's a really neat ring," the boy smiled. He took it out of the box and stuck it on his finger. He pursed his lips then moved it to his thumb. "I'll try my best to get it in the shoot. Did you want it back if that doesn't work out?"

"Oh, no," Peizhi waved off the question. "Please, take it as a gift from an old man with no other family to give it to."

Ha. The boy could never throw it away now, not after hearing that.

The photographer called the model back, and Peizhi said his farewell to the boy. He hummed on his way home. Crisis averted. The Ladybug and Black Cat were in circulation together. He could go back and nap as a reward.


Adrien made his way back to the set, trying not to irritate the photographer more than he already had. The old man had seemed friendly and harmless, which is why Adrien had sent the guards away. But as he had gotten closer to the man, Adrien had smelled the alcohol on him and wondered if he was drunk, or just buzzed. It didn't really matter. Adrien had done his job. He had smiled, been polite, and accepted the ugly ring the man had given him.

The photographer spotted it and ordered it off his model, and Adrien resumed posing for the newest line of Agreste wear. He glanced back at the ring in his bodyguard's hands. It sure was an ugly ring. It was gunmetal gray, but mottled and dull, like it was made of cheap material. All around the ring were pawprints. The left paws were black and the right paws were green. It was a tacky design, and it wouldn't go with most of the outfits Gabriel Agreste designed. That guaranteed Adrien would wear it. If his outfit wasn't perfect enough for the Gabriel Agreste brand, then possibly, his father might talk to him in the morning, if only to get him to take the ring off.

Adrien shifted his pose slightly and the photographer shouted words of encouragement. Adrien paid about as much attention to the photographer as Gabriel paid to Adrien-that is to say, none at all. Adrien couldn't help the stab of pain in his chest as he thought of why this was happening. His father had been, once upon a time, a very doting parent. He had been to every single one of his piano recitals, fencing matches, and modeling shoots. He had personally overlooked his grades, and had taken Adrien fishing every chance he got. Gabriel Agrests had once been a very present parent and then Emelie Agreste disappeared. No one seemed to know where she went, or how, but she was gone, and so was his father.

The same week that Adrien's mother went missing, the Makara and Akuma attacks started, and from there life had only gotten harder. Adrien couldn't move an inch in his house without Natalie watching him, and couldn't so much as tie his shoes without his bodyguards reporting the movement to Natalie. Some might have been mistaken and thought the bodyguards would report to Gabriel himself. No. Gabriel had no time to personally oversee something as trivial as Adrien's safety.

His own thoughts irritated Adrien. On the one hand, he didn't want a bodyguard at all. He was seventeen years old and had lived in Paris his entire life. He didn't need a buff babysitter. On the other hand, as long as he had one, couldn't his father be the one who heard the reports at the end of the day? Couldn't his father pay the bodyguards? Couldn't his father be the one who got upset if he came home past his 4 pm curfew? (As depressing as it sounds, this is no joke. Adrien's assistant had been the one to set this curfew, and his father didn't so much as laugh as how ridiculous it sounded because he didn't so much as listen when Natalie brought it up).

Adrien sighed as the shoot finished up and he was allowed to stretch and change into his own clothes. Simple designer jeans with no stains, no rips, and no wear. A simple designer shirt with the official label on the back. Simple and clean designer shoes which were cleaned every night. The ugliest ring a person could find outside of Claire's on his thumb. Adrien wore the ring proudly and just hoped it wouldn't turn his thumb green by tomorrow morning.


The rest of his day went on as usual. He was driven home. He commented on the weather and his bodyguard didn't so much as grunt in response. Once inside his mansion, Adrien was greeted by his father's personal assistant, Natalie. Her job was to take care of things which were important enough to be given attention, but not important enough for his father to look at; Natalie was increasingly becoming more present in Adrien's life than Gabriel Agreste himself.

"How was the photo shoot?" She asked, not looking up from the email she was composing on her tablet.

"I got a gift from a fan."

She hummed and absently told him that was nice, and that next time she would make sure there were more snacks for him. Adrien has already started towards the living room. A tutor sat, silent as ever. For the next two hours, she oversaw his studies in math and science. She spoke only when he seemed to be having a problem with a concept. She didn't even ask how he was, or how his day had been. Exactly two hours later, on the dot, she got up and left. A man passed her in the doorway and Adrien was drilled in Chinese for an hour. After Chinese he was handed over to his history and French literature tutor. Two hours later he was escorted to his room by Natalie, who was to listen to him as he practiced La Campanella by Liszt. She sat and slowly filed paperwork as Adrien stumbled through the first three bars of the piece. He hadn't improved much and he had been working on La Campanella for two weeks already. Natalie didn't complain; Natalie didn't notice. Neither did his father.

If it had been a Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, or Saturday, Adrien would have been packing for fencing at this moment. Instead, Natalie walked him to his room and bid him a good afternoon and said his dinner would be served by 6:30. He didn't bother asking if his father would be there. He had given up on that question months ago. The answer never changed.

His room was silent and huge. There was a rock-climbing wall, a widescreen TV, more books than he had ever wanted, a miniature gym, every gaming relevant gaming console on the market, as well as any games he could want to play on any of them. In the corner, dusty and unused was a foosball table. His father had once played with him every night before bed. No one had touched that table in almost two years.

Adrien sighed and shrugged off his shirt, heading to the bathroom. He couldn't sleep yet and he didn't want to read anymore after the hours of tutoring he had. He could always play video games, but the thought of the loud sound effects and voices in such a quiet house made him uneasy, and he was feeling much too lazy for weights. All he could think to do in his boredom and silent house was shower, or possibly soak in the jacuzzi. He felt bad that he was wasting as much water as he was, but at least he never smelled bad, and no one had yet told him to stop.

He was feeling fruity. He picked out an orange scented body wash and lotion, his unscented facial cleanser, and stepped into the shower, ready to wash away the next forty minutes or so. He didn't have much to do in there; his hair wasn't very long and he didn't shave, so mostly he just scrubbed himself over and over again. His shower ended when his skin was too sensitive for the loofa anymore.

He stepped out of the bathroom, smelling fresh and feeling lost. What was he to do now?

"Good, you're finally out," A voice grumbled from his mini-fridge. Adrien froze. He didn't know that voice, and no one in the household spoke to him like that. "I'm starving, and there's nothing in here but energy drinks and yogurt."

His fridge was open, but there was no one crouching in front of it. Adrien looked around the room.

"Don't act like you can't see me,"

"I...can't see you? Excuse me, but who is in my room right now?"

A small black cat stepped away from the open door of his fridge and closed it behind itself. It rubbed its face with its paw and yawned. Then it opened its mouth again and spoke:

"I am. My name is Plagg. I am a kwami. Please don't make me repeat myself."

Adrien stared at the cat. It was cute: black hair, green eyes, and incredibly small with a large-ish head. He blinked. The cat blinked back. Adrien blinked again. It was still there.

"I guess...sure, I'll bite. What's a kwami?"

"I'm so glad you asked," it said and strutted about the room. Adrien watched in fascination. "I'm a magical creature embodying destruction, and I've recently been put back into circulation because the idiot gave some girl the Ladybug while he was drunk. We can't be in circulation without each other because our magic is linked through stuff which would blow apart your puny human mind. You and I are now partners because our wavelengths are compatible with-"

"Mhm," Adrien hummed. He stepped forward, grabbed the cat and stared it in the eyes. "You're so cute," He mumbled and started petting the thing on its head. Plagg fought it, but Adrien was bigger.

"Stop that!" Plagg yowled. "I'm trying to tell you something important!" Adrien would have stopped, but Plagg started purring, and there was no way Adrien would do anything to stop that.

"I did hear stuff coming out of your mouth," Adrien admitted. "But it got a little complicated and I realized I didn't really care. You're in my room and you're adorable. I've never had a pet before. What should I feed you?"

"I like cheese, the stinkier and moldier the better. And I'm not a pet! I'm a kwami!" The cat was purring so loudly through all of its words it was almost difficult to make out what it was saying.

"Cheese, huh? Why?"

"It's the most chaotic of foods! The older and stinkier it is, the better the quality of the cheese."

"You know, I've heard that cats are lactose intolerant. What about twinkies-they're plenty chaotic."

"I'm not a cat!"

"Could've fooled me," Adrien smiled, gently petting Plagg all over his head, chest, and back. The kwami pushed into Adrien's hand wherever it went, and the black cat almost rolled over in content. "It's 6:30, time for dinner. Come on."

Plagg followed Adrien out his door. No one was in the hallway. No one was on the stairs. No one was in any of the rooms Adrien and Plagg passed. No one seemed to occupy the entire mansion. Adrien was used to the silence. Plagg was not. The kwami moved closer to Adrien. It was almost relieved when it heard the sharp clack clack of heels on the tiled floor.

"You were running late," Natalie said in an almost apologetic tone as she met him in front of the dining room. "I was just going to check on you."

"It's no problem," Adrien said, brushing past her. She spotted the creature at his feet and inhaled sharply. Adrien turned to see what the problem was. She pointed down with her stylus.

"What is that?"

Adrien looked down, then paused for a moment before answering. "I got a dog."

Natalie pursed her lips together. There was silence between them for a moment, then she said, "I'll order food for you right away. Any preferences on what we buy for it?"

"Cheese. Blue cheese, camembert, epoisses. The stinkier the better."

"Dogs don't eat cheese," Natalie said. Adrien shrugged.

"This one does. It told me so." Natalie rolled her eyes, but before she could ask anymore questions, Adrien stepped past her and requested that she have the cheeses stocked in the fridge in his room as soon as possible. He thanked her then sat at the dining room table. No one else was in the room. Plagg jumped up into Adrien's lap.

"I'm not a dog!"

"Well you said you weren't a cat, and I only know so many animals." Adrien grinned as Plagg grumbled.

"Do you eat asparagus?" Adrien asked, holding the vegetable in front of Plagg enticingly. It thought for a moment.

"It's not nearly as chaotic of a food as I'd prefer, but it'll do." Adrien couldn't help but pet the creature as they ate. For once, dinner was pleasant. Plagg kept trying to tell Adrien the details of its existence, its purpose, and their partnership, but Adrien was not interested in the slightest. He cared more about the fact that he finally had someone to talk to-it didn't matter that it was a talking animal.

Once back in Adrien's room, Plagg ran to the couch and flopped down on it. Adrien sat next to him and attempted to pick him up.

"No! Listen to me," it said. Adrien sat back and sighed.

"I can't listen when you're so fuzzy and soft and not in my arms for me to hold."

Plagg jumped into Adrien's waiting arms. "There, better?"

"Yes, now what did you want to say?"

"It seems like you have a short attention span, so I'll keep this brief: Ladybug is in circulation. That means that the ladybug kwami has a partner, like I have you. She's decided to become a superhero, and since we're linked, we have to help her."

"Almost none of what you say seems like something I want to do," Adrien rubbed the kwami's back, and Plagg huffed.

"Claws out."

"Claws out?"

A shadow surrounded the young model, and the scream froze in his throat. The all-consuming black stayed around him, blocking his view. It only lasted for a second, and then it was gone. He looked down, and yelped.

He was suddenly in a suit-an ugly suit. It was skin-tight and made of a material which looked like leather, but didn't feel like leather. This meant only one thing: faux-leather. Around his waist was a chunky belt, filled pockets all around. The concept was uncomfortably close to a mix of a fanny pack and Bob the Builder's tool belt. His hands were covered in gloves-thick, rubbery gloves with spikes down the sides. Hideous. He ran to the nearest mirror. His face was covered in a tacky mask which in no way would have hidden his identity if his eyes had not turned completely neon green, and his hair had not grown shaggier and changed color to a deep obsidian. His gaze traveled down, almost dreading what would be on his feet. His boots were fine. Adrien was conflicted on how he felt about this. While a good pair of shoes was necessary to complete an outfit, a good pair of shoes did not save an outfit.

"What did you do to me?" He asked, horrified. He turned around, ready to shake Plagg until he gave him back his regular clothes. The couch was empty. His eyes widened. "It was a demon. A fashion demon."

I'm not a demon, Plagg's voice sounded from somewhere inside his head. Oh god, Adrien was haunted. I'm not a demon, I just told you-I can't haunt anything!

Adrien paced his room. This wasn't happening. It simply wasn't happening. This was all a dream-a nightmare. He would never be caught dead in this. A thought entered his mind and his head snapped towards his door. He would never be able to live again if Natalie or anyone else barged into his room. Granted, no one had barged into his room for more than a year, but there was always a possibility.

Listen to me! Plagg's voice, once cute and adorable, now sent a shiver of fear down Adrien's spine. Was the outfit punishment for not listening to him earlier? Uhh, yes. I'll do much worse if you ignore me again-I'll give you cat ears and a tail, too. Adrien's heart thudded in his chest. He. Would. Die.

"I'll do whatever you want," He promised.

Go to your window. We're going out for a bit.

Adrien didn't question the kwami, didn't say anything to potentially anger the fashion demon any further. Plagg led him through the city, showed him how to use his staff in various ways, taught him how to not fear falls from on top of buildings. Adrien drank up the freedom. Natalie would never have allowed him such fun. Neither would his father.

Now swing left and enter the building.

"How?"

The ends of the gloves are sharp-the claws aren't just there for fun, you know. Just cut the glass.

"What about alarms?"

I'll take care of them. I'm made of magic, remember?

Once he crawled inside the dark room, he flipped the light switch. Then he noticed who the patients were and froze. "We're in the Akuma sector of Trousseau Hospital. The forbidden sector of the hospital."

I need to show you why we need to join Ladybug. Repeat after me…

"Cataclysm." A chill ran down his right arm, stopping at his fingertips. There was nothing much different about his fingertips, except the edges were blurred, as if Adrien were looking at the glove with his father's glasses on. The colors around him faded, and Adrien blinked, assuming he'd just kept his eyes open for too long.

Now we have to be careful. Find a jar, hold it in your left hand. This is the tricky part. Each Akuma has a weak spot. It's our job to find it and destroy it with our cataclysm. Be careful, though. There's people underneath, and if we hit the wrong spot, they'll die.

Adrien's hand shook as Plagg convinced him to look over the Akuma. Just like the rest of the room, it was slightly blurry, and a dark gray. Except for one bright spot.

You've found it, Plagg said. Make sure you don't touch anything else.

It was nerve-wracking, and Adrien felt stupid. At least, if someone caught him, they wouldn't know it was Adrien Agreste close to killing someone. They would just see a dweeb in a leather suit stealing from an Akuma. Yeah, that was much better.

The Akuma whose belt he had just destroyed stayed just as still as ever, but a white butterfly flew from the destroyed strip of faux-leather. Adrien grabbed a jar and trapped the bug inside of it, as per Plagg's directions.

"Now what?"

Now it's up to our partner to come and purify it. That's how we free the people from the Akuma.

"So let's do more! We're right here, we can't stop now!"

You're still too new at this, you can only use cataclysm once per transformation, and then we change back. There's a time limit-we have to get you back to your house in the next ten minutes. See your ring? There's five sections of the paw. When all of them disappear, you'll be forced to transform back.

Adrien nodded, and started looking around the room.

Did you hear what I said? You have to leave, or you'll be caught. No one can know who you are!

"One minute," Adrien said. "I've just got to find...aha!" Adrien fell silent for a minute, and then straightened. "Alright, let's go home.


The next day, Ladybug and a team of firefighters once again entered the Akuma sector of the hospital. They had been coming everyday, trying to guess what object was to be destroyed, and then using all sorts of brute force to try and break that object. It had proven to be near impossible, and the last object (a wooden toy car) had taken nearly three days to crack. So, it was understandable when, as they entered the room, they found a jar with an Akuma already fluttering inside. Next to the jar was a note.

I'll be back tomorrow to free more Akuma. See you in the next battle, partner.
-Cat Noir