Chapter Text
Cat Noir was getting less and less enthusiastic about fighting evil alongside Ladybug, and her other 15 sidekicks or whatever.
Everytime he was lonely, or he couldn't sleep at night, this thought would come creep up on him, and he was guilty of it.
What happened to "It's only you and me, m'lady?"
"Lucky Charm!" said, or rather shouted Ladybug for the hundredth time (or more). Sick. He was sick of hearing that word. The word that was like some sort of replacement for Cat Noir, to lower his dignity, to come fix the mistakes he was supposed to fix. Alongside Ladybug.
He felt dumb for being sad about such a small problem, yet he didn't realize how his feelings were absolutely valid.
He grew up as a child deprived of love and affection. Always under the spotlight. Loved for his looks, but not his personality. Not for his interests. Not for his- sometimes he just wanted to say “Someone love me”.
With all these thoughts, Cat Noir didn't pay attention to his surroundings. Subconsciously thinking that Ladybug would fix everything, that he was just…there. But the villain took this opportunity to strike him with his power.
Before having the chance to process what was happening, Cat Noir felt himself sinking in the ground, faint screams and gasps surrounding him. The world warped around him. In a matter of seconds, Cat Noir found himself in a completely unknown area.
He stayed calm and upon scanning the surroundings, it appeared that the place he was in was some sort of street, the slums, whatever the place was named. Cat Noir didn't care about that detail. He just wanted to go back to where he was.
As soon as he stood up, he heard a faint chattering and laughing and soon, a figure appeared in the distance.
The figure, a man, immediately stopped laughing as soon as he saw a furry in the back street.
Awkward silence.
The man laughed again, much more wholeheartedly this time. Cat Noir stared at him, confused. Upon further looking, the man was actually a boy around his age, with long strands of brown curly hair falling down his face, casting an ominous shadow. He had a brown eyee too- but what caught Cat Noir's attention were the bandages everywhere- on his neck, on his arms, on his...other eye?
“Hey, Mori-san ?” called the boy. “We've got an intruder here.” Pause. “With…specific tastes.” he chose to add.
Cat Noir finally decided to speak. “Hey!! What do you think you are, making fun of me ?”
“Hm ?” the boy turned his head again towards him. He shrugged. “Nothing. It's just out of the ordinary to have a furry intruding our space.”
“I-I'm not a furry!” protested Cat Noir. “For your information, I'm a superhero who saves Paris. With…Ladybug. Or..-”
“Paris ?” the boy interrupted him. “You're either another French spy, which is unlikely, or just a delusional teenager.”
“Hey, no fair! You're a teenager too! Doing…Whatever- you do!!”
“Me ?” laughed the boy. “Oh right, I didn't introduce myself.”
With that, he stood in a proud and exaggerated pose, and said:
“My name is Osamu Dazai, 15 years old known as the youngest mafia excutive.”
Cat Noir stared at him. “Mafia ?”
“Yes.” said Dazai, brushing invisible dust off his suit.
“Are you…like..for real ?”
“Duh. Are you slow or something?”
Just at that moment, another man appeared. Much older, and especially much scarier.
“Oh, hello Mori-san!!~” greeted Dazai cheerfully as he pointed to the other completely distraught boy. “Here's the intruder I was talking about. How should we deal with him ?”
The man, known as Mori, scanned the teenager up and down.
“He doesn't seem that threatening. An intruder of that level would be suitable for you to deal alone with, Dazai.” he said, brushing off the intruder and walking away.
Dazai was shocked. “H-hey!! Don't compare me to this guy's level!”
“Mmh.” simply said Mori in the distance, not caring to waste his time on Cat Noir.
Dazai and the other stayed alone.
“So- um. What's your name, exactly? And why are you here ?”
Cat Noir, adamant on preserving his innocence, started talking almost immediately.
“I-I'm Cat Noir, and I-uhh- I'm just. A superhero. From Paris.”
“Tsk. Superheroes ?” scoffed Dazai. “What are you, a toddler ?”
“It's true!!” protested Cat Noir again. “I can prove it!!”
“And how?~” sing-songed Dazai.
“I can reduce you to ashes, right now, right here.” said Cat Noir with a determined grin.
“I'd like to see it then.”
“Well, you asked for it.”
Dazai watched gleefully as Cat Noir leapt in his direction with all his force, building up a powerful punch. However, instead of hitting him, Cat Noir slowed down at the last second simply to touch his face with a single finger.
A noise.
Dazai watched in horror as the bandages on his right eye crumpled up slowly, turning black, to indistinguishable ashes.
“But-” said Dazai. “I was supposed-” he suddenly felt vulnerable without his bandages. Pointing at Cat Noir helplessly is all he could do.
Cat Noir grinned. “Told you.”
What Dazai didn't know though was that Cat noir never planned to destroy him. Ever since the Heroes Day incident, he knew how is power would probably be much worse that what the illusion showed. And so, he made a vow to never use his power on living beings.
Instead of acknowledging his defeat, Dazai smiled.
“You could make a great ally, Cat Noir.”
“W-what ?” blurted out the other boy in visible shock.
“If you plan on removing that fursuit of yours, though.” added Dazai with a judgmental look at his outfit.
Cat Noir stared with a stupid expression plastered on his face.
“I-I’m a superhero, why would I join a bunch of criminals ?”
“Of course”, reassured Dazai. “That was just a consideration. But that doesn't mean we're just going to let you go. You have great potential.”
“But who in their right mind would work with the mafia?!”
Dazai grinned.
“Tell me, do you hate anything in this world?”
“H-huh…?” The question left Cat noir wondering.
The other looked at him silently.
“I-I mean…” he started.
Yes. I hate my life. I hate the spotlight. I hate the fame, I hate my dad, I hate-
Ladybug.
But he still loved her.