Chat Noir flung himself towards his window. His body slammed against the window sill, his feet slipping for purchase while he grappled the glass. His chest heaved with exertion as he gently slid the window up and nearly collapsed inside. His ring beeped feverishly before giving out, revealing the blonde boy to his vacant bedroom.

"Need… Cheese…" Plagg fluttered through the air, extending his paw dramatically into the air. Adrien caught his breath, glaring at his kwami wearily. He opened his mouth to calm his kwami, before sudden footsteps approached his door. Plagg instantly shot under the bed, right as the door swung open.

Nathalie stood in the doorway with a lethargic expression, her sharp gaze shooting from the open window to the boy on the floor. "Adrien, why is your window open? And why do you look so… Unkempt?"

Adrien carefully ran a hand through his tangled blonde locks at an attempt to tame them. His mind worked quickly to form a response. "I- fell… Out of bed. And I left the window open because it was… Getting stuffy in here."

Nathalie narrowed her eyes at him before marching over to the window and shutting it tightly. "I will decrease the temperature to your room, but leave the windows shut. Clean yourself up, your father is expecting you for breakfast in fifteen minutes. Don't keep him waiting."

Adrien ducked his head, "Okay. Thank you, Nathalie."

She gave him a small nod, turning and leaving the room. The door shut quickly behind her.

"Yeesh. What crawled up her butt and died?" Plagg emerged from under the bed, crossing his arms.

Adrien sighed as he got up, "She's just doing her job. I'm more concerned with why father wants to eat with me."

Plagg moved to the nightstand beside Adrien's bed and pulled open the drawer containing camembert. He began to help himself to the delicious treat, his mouth full of cheese as he responded, "Father thon bonding, ithn't that what you want?"

Adrien shrugged off his nightshirt and moved to his dresser. Father would be anticipating his cleanest clothing. He fitted himself with his usual black t-shirt, assuring there were no wrinkles or lint. He slipped on his white jacket and smoothed out the crumples. Finally he put on pants and moved to his bathroom.

Adrien's eyes were bloodshot, dark bags hanging under his eyes. Another night spent keeping Paris safe, another night without sleep. A yawn split open his mouth as he rubbed at his face. He turned on the faucet, splashing the cold water over his face before opening the cupboard. Makeup decorated the inside, Adrien grabbing the concealer and quickly applying it to hide the black shadows under his eyes. Once satisfied, he put it away and brushed his hair rapidly with a comb.

Adrien took one last look at his reflection. He had to put on his mask. He forced himself to smile, although it didn't reach his eyes. C'mon, Adrien, you have to be a perfect son. Adrien finally allowed his eyes to crinkle in the plastered smile. It was good enough. He finished by brushing his teeth before slipping on socks and shoes and exiting his room. Plagg ducked under his jacket. The gorilla was waiting for him, allowing Adrien to continue ahead before following closely behind. The house rest in a blanket of silence, their footsteps echoing off the empty halls. Adrien entered the dining room, the table already set with two plates on opposite ends of the table. The Gorilla paused in the entryway, watching as Adrien moved to his usual seat. His father's chair was empty. Adrien seated himself and ensured that his posture was as rigid as he could make it. Nathalie entered with a clipboard, her face unreadable behind her glasses.

"Your father is unable to join you, but he has left me with the message he wanted to inform you." Nathalie moved beside the table, adjusting her glasses as she began to read off her clipboard. "Gabriel has made an agreement with a famous photographer from Hollywood in the United States. He is coming here in two weeks, and needs you to be in perfect shape. In recent photoshoots, he's noticed that you've been stretching your clothing and growing quickly. He's adjusted your diet to his vision for you. He's also signed you up for a prescription of sleeping pills to help you at night since you seem to be more groggy in the morning. You're chinease lessons will be halted, and replaced with weight training to help even your frame."

Adrien sunk in his chair. He was growing because of his late-night endeavours as Chat Noir. All the battles have toned his muscles and made him stronger. But his father didn't want him buff, he wanted him thin and perfect body weight.

Nathalie had a hint of remorse in her voice, "He wishes he could've been here to discuss this important matter, but he has other issues to deal with."

"What other issues?" Adrien snapped, harsher than he intended.

Nathalie straightened slightly, "The public has begun to come up with wild fantasies and conspiracies surrounding your father and his isolation. His public appearances has lessened to the point of suspicion. In light of these events, your father is planning something to clear these false accusations."

Adrien knit his brows. Of course. The public opinion is more valuable than time with his son. Adrien slid his chair back from the table, anger pulsing through him.

"Adrien, your meal hasn't-"

"I'm going to school." Adrien interrupted.

Nathalie hardened her eyes, "Adrien. You must eat your breakfast. I'd hate to get your father involved."

Adrien balked, his fists clenching as he let his shoulders sag and returned to the table.

"Please work on improving your behavior. This attitude may reflect on certain privileges, such as school." Nathalie watched him closely.

Adrien felt the anger fizzle out of him, leaving him tired and empty. He nodded weakly, "Yes, ma'am. I apologize for my outburst."

Satisfied with his response, she jotted something on her clipboard and retreated from the dining room. Adrien was left in the silence.

There was another attack at school. The alarms began ringing throughout the building- alerting of an akuma. Adrien was at his desk, head propped up on an elbow, staring at the board with his eyes glazed over. The rush of students began for the door in the mandated evacuation. Nino jumped to his feet, shaking Adrien.

"Come on, dude! We gotta get out of here!" He glanced nervously to his girlfriend. Alya was amid the mass of students exiting. Adrien blinked, slowly getting to his feet and nodding sluggishly.

"You good, man? We gotta go!" Nino tugged Adrien towards the door. Their teacher, Miss Bustier, stood by the door, ushering them out with a worried expression. Nino and Adrien joined the last of the students gathering in the hallway.

"Remember the drills! Nice and orderly!" Their principal was yelling over the crowd of students making their way to the exit. It was the perfect time to slip away. Adrien shrugged Nino off and ducked into the crowd. Elbows and shoulders brushed by him as he made his way to the men's bathroom.

Adrien fled into the empty restroom, opening his jacket and allowing Plagg to fly out.

"Yes! Freedom! I think I was about to fall asleep during that quiz." Plagg complained.

Adrien rolled his eyes and clenched his fist, "Let's get this over with. Claws out."

The flash spilled over the tiles of the restroom as Adrien was transformed into his alter ego. He burst out of the bathroom, feeling the usual superhero adrenaline kick in. The hallway was packed with students, Chat Noir making his way to a nearby exit and running outside.

Ladybug was already in the street, eyeing down the villain. The akuma stood hovering over the cars left abandoned in the road, pedestrians fleeing the scene. He was wearing thick glasses with a light gray costume, his eyes angry and frightened.

Chat dropped beside Ladybug, revealing his cheshire grin, "Come here often, m'lady?"

Ladybug scowled, "Come on, cat, we don't have time for this. We have to find the akuma."

Chat's smile died on his lips. Right, she doesn't like my puns. Stupid. Stupid.

"You will all respect the pages!" The akumatized boy yelled, opening his bag and reaching inside. Chat took a defensive stance. The villain pulled out a book and flung it towards fleeing students. It hit someone in the head, and they suddenly disappeared, the book falling to the cement with a thud. As he reached back into his book bag to hit another innocent bystander, Chat Noir stepped forward.

"Hey! Looking for us!" Chat taunted, twirling his tail.

The outline of a butterfly appeared over the akuma's face, no doubt Hawkmoth instructing him to pursue the superheroes for their miraculous.

"Chat, what are you doing?" Ladybug held her yo-yo at the ready.

"What I do the best, bug-a-boo," Chat gave her another grin, this one more forced. "Cause a distraction."

The book-themed akuma charged them, instantly Chat Noir leaping onto all-fours and scampering away from the students trapped on the front steps of the school building.

"Give me your miraculous, cat-boy!" The villain snarled.

"Oh, I would," Chat called behind him. "But I'm a little booked!"

The akuma hurled books at him, Chat Noir's reflexes igniting as he danced around. He had successfully led the akumatized boy away from the school. Ladybug was following from the rooftops, utilizing the high ground as an advantage.

The akuma had given up his distance and swooped down towards Chat Noir. He began chucking books at him. Chat snapped out his baton, spinning it quickly and deflecting the barrage. The villain kept coming, keeping Chat busy with books and leaving his defenses down. The akuma slammed his book bag into the side of Chat, sending him sailing over the road, and right over the railing of the Seine River.

He hit the water instantly, the cold shock running through him. His head reeled while he tried to gather his senses. There was water all around him. He was sinking down into the black water. He held his breath as the freezing liquid engulfed him. After the panic subsided, Chat Noir felt… Bliss. There was a tranquility in the silence. All the sound was muffled. It was so… Peaceful. No one watching him, judging him. No rules. No strict guidelines he had to follow. Nothing was the icy water against his skin. And it was dark and murky. His lungs began to burn. He needed to go up for air. Didn't he? Did he really want to leave this world of calming silence. A part of him, the reasonable side, was screaming at him to swim up and breathe. Live. Keep fighting. But wasn't he tired of fighting? He just felt this deep, aching exhaustion, something sleep couldn't fix.

Chat Noir began to relax, ignoring the pain in his chest and closed his eyes. He could just fall asleep down here. Just for a little bit. Then he'd have more energy. It would be okay. Everything would be just fine. His mouth opened on it's own, sucking in a breath of water. And he began to drown.