Chat Noir stared up at the car bumper rapidly approaching his skull, his four legs locked, his tail upright, his eyes wide, his ears flat against his skull, and his fur standing on end. So this is how I meet my end? he thought silently as the bumper came closer and time seemed to slow. Not fighting an Akuma, or battling Hawk Moth, or even as Adrien Agreste…but getting run down in the middle of the street while not even in my own body…

As the bumper came closer, his mind went back to how this had come to pass. It had been such an ordinary day…

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Adrien sighed inwardly as his photographer once more became more and more insistent about poses, expressions, and all the little details that marked the difference between a successful photo shoot and a failure. It seemed like the daily grind would wear away at Adrien yet again, with nothing interrupting it. As the photographer turned to argue with 'the Gorilla' – as Adrien thought of his driver/bodyguard – about being too close and interfering with the photoshoot, Adrien let his hair fall slightly in front of his eyes to hide his frustration. "Sheesh…having me strut around like a peacock like this…wish he could get some idea what it felt like…"

Right in front of his eyes, blasts of magical energy shot down from the sky. 'The Gorilla' was transformed into a genuine gorilla – Adrien had to glance twice to make sure there was a change – and the photographer was transformed into a strutting peacock.

"Huh…" Adrien murmured as he stared. "Maybe I should make idle wishes more often…" As the pair started to panic, Adrien turned to see where the magic had come from, only to wince.

As he'd expected, someone had been Akumatized, but it wasn't an adult or even a teenager as he might have hoped. At best, he estimated the little boy to be five years old, garbed in a dark blue and violet uniform that looked like Animal Control, but furrier. As Chat Noir, Adrien always hated when he and Ladybug had to fight little kids who had been transformed. Not only did it feel wrong to be trying to beat up a little kid, but the younger the Akumatized person the more potent their magical abilities tended to be. Case in point, as the floating boy waved his baton and sent a blast of energy arcing upward before splitting, raining down on more people, turning them into animals.

Adrien managed to roll out of the way of the blast aimed for him, only for his eyes to widen as the blast arced towards him, only to dissipate against the bench he'd been posing on. "Homing magic, too?" he grumbled as he ran for it, seeking a safe place to transform. He had to be more careful than he had been before, as any animal he saw – or saw him – could actually be a human, and thus would learn his secret identity.

Finally, he found a safe place. "We're going to have to be extra careful here," he told the small cat-like fairy creature that flew out of his jacket at his beckon. "There's no telling what could happen if we get hit by that magic while transformed."

"We're going to have to buy time, too," Plaag responded as he stretched, flying around his partner. "I can't sense Tikki anywhere, so she's probably far enough away it'll take Ladybug awhile to even learn this is happening, let alone get here."

"So we have to keep him here, then?" Adrien grumbled irritably. "This is going to be fun. Plaag, claws out!"

One overblown transformation sequence that always felt a minute long but passed in a split second later, Chat Noir spun his baton as he was once more garbed in the black leather cat suit of the Black Cat superhero. He always felt so much more natural – so much freer – like this than as Adrien. "Pity I can't be like this all the time," he found himself muttering as he leapt for battle.

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He didn't really remember much of the battle. He remembered that the boy – calling himself Human Control, and stating he was going to turn people into animals to prove that animals were people too – had tried to turn his magic on him, and he'd tried to use his Cataclysm to counteract it. Then there was an explosion of light.

When he came to, his head was foggy, and he ached all over from the tips of his ears to the pads of his paws to the tip of his tail…

And then he'd freaked.

He was pretty sure that the visual would have been hilarious to look at from the outside as a tiny, ragged, half grown black cat yowled and rolled around, pawing at itself. From his perspective, however, it was rather terrifying.

I'm a cat? I'm a freaking cat? What the hell just happened? Plaag? Where are you? When he got no response, he paused. Okay…I can't talk, I should have realized that. But shouldn't Plaag be able to track me by the ring… It was at this point he'd realized he didn't have the ring. It wasn't on his paw, or hanging around his neck, or on his tail…or anywhere else. Wait…I didn't have the ring when Reflekta transformed me…I'm still Chat Noir! Merde!

Okay, keep it together kitty. All you need to do is find Ladybug and convince her that I'm Chat Noir, and then…what?

As he thought this through, he heard people talking.

"Sorry I didn't make it in time, Mayor Bourgeois. I was at the other end of the city when I got the alert about what was happening…"

That voice? Ladybug! Chat quickly rushed towards the source, seeing Ladybug speaking with the Mayor.

"Well, even superheroes can't cross miles instantly," the Mayor allowed genially. "Still, no harm done, right? The villain was dealt with, the transformation reversed…"

"I'm afraid it's worse than that," Ladybug explained. "I wasn't able to deevilize the Akuma. While everyone turned into an animal was changed back, the Akuma got away."

The Mayor frowned. "You mean…like that first one?"

"Yes, like with Stoneheart," Ladybug explained. "Akuma duplicates will spread, creating an army of copies of this…Human Control. And I won't be able to track down the original unless and until it manifests again, and we have the army on the march."

"This is…not pleasant news," the Mayor grumbled, frowning in worry.

"Don't worry, Mayor. I'll be on constant alert," Ladybug promised. "And so will Chat Noir…just as soon as I find him." After one last glance around, she launched her yoyo into the air and swung away.

My Lady! Wait! Yowling out in terror, he gave chase.

As he ran, he heard the Mayor speaking. "You don't suppose…no, Ladybug said all the humans were changed back…"

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Obviously, not all, Chat thought to himself as the bumper continued to approach. Probably the enchantments the baton had laid before it exploded were reversed, but the blast of magic forced my transformation. Dammit, I really should have waited for Ladybug. And that was just the start…

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Chat Noir did not have a good day. Chasing Ladybug proved an exercise in futility, as a half grown cat running on the streets couldn't hope to keep up with a superhero swinging from the rooftops. Eventually, he ran out of breath and could only watch her swing away without him.

Alright, Chat, you can do this, he thought silently. You just need to survive as an alley cat long enough to convince Ladybug that you're you…when you have no idea who she is behind the mask. Maybe that's not the best approach… He thought about his other options. I could instead try to convince someone I know that I'm Adrien…that could work. But who?

He began to pace back and forth as he mentally went over his options. Nathalie? …no, she's all business. Once she's sure I'm out there somewhere and not an animal – and Ladybug's declaration would do that – she'd ignore anything but finding me…which, ironically enough, would mean ignoring any sign I was giving that I was right in front of her. Same with the Gorilla. And I can forget even managing to reach my father like this.

Nino? Well, I might be able to reach him, but I have no idea if I could convince him. And even if I could…he lives really far away as the cat runs, and there isn't much he could do to help me. Well, he could get in contact with Alya, and she could use Ladyblog to try and get through to Ladybug. Alternatively, I could try to get through to Marinette. That would help me the same way, getting through to Alya, and through Alya to Ladyblog and thus Ladybug.

Or I could try Chloe. He paused at that thought. I doubt I could convince her it was me. And if I could…well, I don't really want my condition broadcast to the entire city. Father would never let me leave the house again. So it's Nino, Marinette, or Alya-

His thoughts were interrupted by a loud growl. Or perhaps I should find something to eat first. He glanced at his surroundings. He was in the middle of a busy street, on the sidewalk between a clothing store and a café. Well, maybe I can beg something-

A loud, high pitched barking rapidly coming closer cut off his thoughts. Turning, he saw a tiny, black and white Papillon puppy charging him. At least, he would have considered it tiny if he were normal sized. Presently, it out-massed him by a generous margin. With a yowl, he dashed away from the canine.

Could this possibly any more humiliating? he screamed out in his mind as he raced away from the canine. He lost all track of his surroundings as he raced away, eventually detouring into the street.

And then came the car.

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So this is how I meet my end? Chat Noir, Adrien Agreste, thought to himself as he closed his eyes. With a bang and a whimper, and no one knowing. This sucks…

He heard a horn blaring, felt arms wrap around him as he was pulled into something soft, and the world went end over end. "That was a close one, Minou," a warm, caring voice whispered in his ears. "Are you alright?"

Ladybug? he gasped out hopefully in his mind. The voice – and that nickname – couldn't be anyone else, could it? His eyes shot open and he looked up.

He saw blue-black hair and bluebell eyes, but not quite what he expected. No mask, and no red and black bodysuit. Still, it was someone he recognized. Oh, Marinette. Well, that's good. It's amazing how similar they sound with my eyes closed. He then blinked, and his eyes widened in shock. Wait…MARINETTE dove in front of a car to pull me out of the way? She could be hurt! He immediately began squirming, trying to check her over for injuries.

Marinette chuckled as she stood up. "It's alright, Chaton. I'm fine…and so are you. Come on, let's get you something to eat and a warm bed. You need that after such a scare. My home's not far."

As he was carried off, Chat did his best to get himself comfortable in the grip…and did his best to not pay too much attention to what he was being held against. Alley cat he may be, but he was raised to be a gentleman! Still, I suppose with how today began, it could have ended a lot worse…