Marinette's head felt fuzzy. She could vaguely register that something was bumping her arm as if it were trying to get her attention. In her slumber, she rolled away from it but it followed her. She didn't want to get up. Her bed was so warm but hard at the same time. Odd, very odd. Maybe she just needed a new mattress. The bumping continued and finally, Marinette opened her eyes a tiny bit. She was greeted by the color yellow. As her vision focused she realized it was Cat's head-butting her arm. Confusedly she sat up with a yawn. Cat stopped what he was doing and grinned at her sheepishly.

"Sorry, just following instinct," he explained as they both stood up.

"What time is it?"

"Eleven,"

Marinette froze on her way to the kitchen. She was late for work AGAIN. Oh, no she was so fired. She would be evicted from her apartment and have to move back in with her parents and become the laughing stock of Paris. Then Cat wouldn't be able to stay with her any longer and he'd end up starving in an alleyway somewhere. OH, NO. Marinette made a mad dash for her phone which was still on her nightstand. Apparently, she had received a text from Alya:

Don't worry 'bout your job Mari I've got you covered. Now. Get well soon.

Ah, Alya what a friend. Happily knowing that her job was safe and secure Marinette returned to the kitchen where she made Cat and herself a late breakfast. She was surprised to find that he had somehow managed to get tangled up in the yarn ball she had given him, despite the ball being smaller than he was.

"Help?" he asked grinning at her.

"Hang on Kitty, I'll get the scissors," Marinette laughed.

Cat Noir was soon cut free of his entanglement and sipping on his usual glass of milk. As Marinette finished her food she eyed Cat who had become entertained by a patch of sunlight that shifted due to the clouds.

"Cat?"

"Yeah?" he asked in a daze.

"How-how-" Marinette faltered not sure how to ask the question on the tip of her tongue.

"How was I cursed?" he questioned snapping out of his daze.

"y-yeah,"

"I knew you were going to ask at some point,"

"It's fine if you don't want to talk about it,"

"No, it might help me to talk about it,"

…...


Adrien grabbed the shiny black one in the center and that is when his luck went south.

"Thief," a voice roared throughout the cave.

Adrien looked around trying to locate said voice but he had no luck.

"Since you disobeyed the warning you shall be cursed. You shall live your days as an oddity, a mix of two things, only the good luck of a friend can free you,"

A sharp pain filled Adrien. His head was pounding as two black cat ears mushed their way through his head. The same pain erupted from his backside as a tail burst forward. This was followed by the sharping of his teeth and the changing of his eyes. His vision increased which was a good thing given that he had dropped the torch he had been holding. He, he was a monster and it frightened him. His father cast him out when he returned, nothing but shame in and loathing in his steely blue eyes. Thus, Cat as he now preferred to be called was forced to live on the streets. It was in this setting that he realized he now had many, many cat-like urges. Would he ever fix this?

…...


"Oh, I'm sorry I asked," Marinette sighed.

"It's okay Marinette I'm not angry with you,"

"It's just so awful,"

"Not all of it,"

"How?"

"Because I met you,"