Disclaimer: I do not own CATS, any cats in CATS, the junkyard, or anything else in CATS. Is there anything else in CATS? If there is, I don't own them.

The Rum Tum Tugger yawned lazily. He was sprawled out over the hood of one of the multiple cars that had been left to rust in the junkyard. The sun was warm, but not too hot, perfect for lying around and doing nothing. He panned his gaze around, seeing what his fellow Jellicles were doing.

Gus was telling a story to some of the younger kittens, probably the one about the time he saved some kids from a burning building or something. Other that or it was something to give them nightmares, like a tale about Macavity or Growltiger.

Mungojerry and Rumpelteazer were discussing something. The Tugger personally didn't want to know what. The less he knew about their "business ventures", the less he had to feel guilty about.

Old Deuteronomy was seated on his tire throne, and talking to Munkustrap, who was sitting on a wooden crate, absorbing every word the old cat said. The grey tabby was the second-in-command of the Jellicles, and was expected to lead and protected the tribe when the current leader went to the Heaviside Layer.

The elder stood, and Munkustrap was immediately on his paws to steady him, and helped him walk slowly to somewhere out of the Tugger's vision range.

Rum Tum Tugger rolled his eyes. Munk had always hero-worshipped Old Deuteronomy, and it had only intensified as he got older. He was always the one listening to the protocols of the Jellicles, while the rest of the kittens were off playing tag or hide-and-go-seek. It was sad, in a way. But what that crazy tabby did with his life was none of the Tugger's business. All he wanted was a few nice queen cats to look at, and a warm patch of sun. He had both.

He closed his eyes, rolling over so that his stomach would be heated. Bad idea. He had forgotten that Mungojerry and Rumpelteazer, who were also known as the "Demonic Duo", were nearby. One moment he had been pleasantly toasty and dry, and the next he was soaked through to the skin in ice water.

"Damn it!" he cursed, jumping to his four paws as the two scampered away. "I'm going to kill the pair of you one of these days, and I'm going to sell your sorry hides for catnip!"

There were two separate sets of giggles as they bounded away and hid behind a junk pile. They were forever playing tricks on the other Jellicles. That was the third cat they had doused today, the other two being Skimbleshanks and Mistoffelees. Soaking the Railway Cat had been worth it, but they had vowed that they would think twice before pranking the magical cat again. Both of their whiskers had been badly singed.

The Rum Tum Tugger shook himself out, which made his fur puff out in a way that made him look a bit like a leopard-spotted Persian. He growled, cursing Mungojerry and Rumpelteazer under his breath.

"What's wrong, Tugger? Sleep wrong or something?" said an amused voice from behind.

The cat turned swiftly, causing his puffy tail to swing, making him look even more ridiculous.

It was Munkustrap, obviously back from worshiping the ground Old Deuteronomy walked on. He was smirking, very entertained at the sight of the egoistic Rum Tum Tugger looking like he had gone through a spin cycle in a dryer.

"Well, well, well," droned the cat sarcastically. "Look what the humans dragged in. You're just jealous because all of the queens like me and not you."

"I hate to shatter your base of existence, Rumsie, but there is more to life than chasing after females. I know this may come as a shock to you, but if you just put your head between your knees, the dizziness will pass."

"Oh, you're a riot, Munk. You really are. And who are you to talk about stuff like that? You've practically devoted your life to brown-nosing up to Old Deut," he sniffed.

Munkustrap frowned. "I do not brown-nose, Tugger. I try to learn everything I can about the Jellicles and Old Deuteronomy's past as leader so that I can make judgemental decisions when it comes time for me to rule the Jellicle tribe."

"See? There you go again. You're always so serious! Loosen up once in a while; it'll do you a world of good."

The two cats were silent from a moment, the Rum Tum Tugger sitting on the car hood trying in vain to flatten his fur down, and Munkustrap just sitting there.

"Tugger?" Munk asked finally, sound a bit nervous, which was unusual for him. "Have you noticed lately that Old Deuteronomy… hasn't been himself?"

He snorted. "Of course I have, everyone in the junkyard has. Deuteronomy's one old cat, Munk, and by old I mean old. I'd bet a ton of catnip that he's going to send himself to the Heaviside Layer next Jellicle Moon. That's only two weeks away, isn't it?"

"Twelve days, actually," he replied, sounding a bit stunned by the information. "Are you sure that he's going to send himself this year?"

"You can ask him if you like, but if you ask me, Old Deuteronomy's chasing his last ball of yarn. Sure, Gus is old, but he's got a few years left to him. Ol' Deut's old, Munk, and you know he is. Besides, it's not like he's dying or anything. He'll come back in about a year with a brand spanking new body, and all of his memories returned, just like he's done time and time again. He's lived many lives; this isn't something new to him."

Munkustrap sighed. "I know, I know. It's just that… I don't know if I'm ready to lead the Jellicles! What if I screw up so badly that everyone disbands or something, and…?"

"Would you calm down?" Tugger said, rolling his eyes. "There's no one better to lead us than you. I seriously doubt that you could have us on the Eve of Destruction in a single year without Old Deuteronomy. You'll do fine, so quit worrying."

The grey tabby was silent. Most of his life had been spent preparing for this, but he had never really thought it would come. The time when he had to rule without Old Deuteronomy confirming and correcting his orders. He didn't know if he was ready yet, but he had to try. He could see that if delayed another year, the leader would die and return without his memories.

"So," said the Rum Tum Tugger, interrupting his thoughts. "When you're leader, what would that make me?"

"The junkyard idiot," he replied, rising and padding off. "Just like always."