Fatal Dreaming [[OLD]]

Chapter 2: Fatal Dreaming

When Chat Noir arrived at the windows of his large bedroom, he felt very disoriented and exhausted from the fight, more so than usual.

Even after the two heroes finally defeated Lucid and parted to go their separate ways, Chat had been feeling so distressed by the flashbacks in his head. Thoughts of his previous horrifying nightmare still filled his mind, along with an intense wonder and worry of what had happened to him. Was this a one-time spell that the vicious little girl had cast on him, or was this something permanent?

He stepped down from the window sill and into his room, detransforming in a flash of neon green as he did so. His cat-like kwami, Plagg, immediately appeared from his ring miraculous and zipped off, collapsing against the bed in exhaustion. Now Adrien Agreste, he approached the weak kwami and looked down at him in worry.

He could hear his small friend muttering a few words, but he decided not to delve deeper into it, assuming he was simply hungry or complaining about something. Adrien gave Plagg a light pat on the head before walking over to his window-plastered bedroom wall and looking out at the lights of Paris.

Adrien lightly groaned and stretched his arms a bit as they ached. He knew his situation made full sense. He recalled how he had jumped in Ladybug's way to protect her from Lucid's powerful magic, so he should've expected to feel extra sore.

Being a hero has to come with a cost of some kind, he thought to himself.

The longer the blonde boy stood and watched the city, the harder it was for him to keep his eyes open, despite falling asleep during the akuma fight.

His body and mind just too exhausted to try and fight it, Adrien surrendered to the feelings and fell over onto his bed, still fully clothed. His head felt light as the softness of the mattress beneath him made him smile with relaxation.

Adrien let his eyes rest, giving in to the temptation of sleep. He didn't realize at the moment, but that decision was a big mistake.

---

When Adrien reopened his eyes, he found himself on the cold ground, not sure how and why he was even there. His body ached, and he was left with barely any energy, but he knew somehow that he had to get up. There was definitely something wrong, which he began to realize as he came to his senses.

He wasn't in his room anymore, nor was in his civilian clothes. He noticed how his hands that rested near his head were clad in black, his ring glowing with a bright green paw print. Adrien was transformed into Chat Noir, but he had to memory of ever calling, "Claws out!" to Plagg.

All he could do was lay there against the cold just like in his dream before, slowly coming to his senses while all sounds around him rang in his ears.

Chat Noir lay in front of a desk, and having enough energy to lift his head and look around, he found himself quickly recognizing the surrounding area. He was sitting alone in his classroom at school. How? Why?

He had to push his questions aside.

The floor beneath Chat felt as if it was practically shaking like the entire building was about to collapse. The ringing in his ears silenced just as he noticed the cracks indented into the wood floor, and realized with horror that the entire building was about to collapse.

He could hear the walls and ceiling creaking almost agonizingly as the support beams groaned and cracked in protest, folding in on itself. A chuck of heavy rubble fell near his face and he bolted up, finally taking in the danger of his situation. He had to get out of here now, making sure there were no other civilians as well.