Demeter's Capture
"Munkustrap!" I heard my brother, Tugger, calling me. I turned to see him running towards me, looking worried. Unless he was worried about which queen he should go out with first, then this wasn't like him. He stopped in front of me, breathless.
"Bomb….. worry….Dem."
I laughed. "Come on bro, out with it."
Once he could breathe again, he took a deep breath.
"Bomba said she hasn't seen Demeter all day. She's really worried!"
Oh god I thought. Demeter was Bomba's sister, and Tugger really liked Bomba. I sighed.
"Okay Tugger, I'll go out and look for her. You tell Bomba that I'll find Demeter."
Tugger smiled with relief.
"Thanks bro!" He walked off, probably to go see Bomba. As I walked out of the camp, I passed Alonzo talking to his mate Cassandra.
"Hey Lonz," I called over my shoulder. He turned to me.
"What's up Munku?"
I explained about the whole Demeter thing then said, "If I'm not back in an hour, get some of the other Toms together and come help me look." Alonzo nodded. I thanked him, and headed for the forest.
I'd been walking for a while when I heard a muffled scream. "Who's there?" I called out.
Nobody answered, but there was another muffled scream. I ran towards the sound, until I got to a clearing. Macavity was there. He held Demeter in a tight embrace, one hand on her back and the other holding her head against his broad shoulder. He was whispering something in her ear over and over, and Demeter was shaking her head, looking frightened. As I watched, horrified, he tilted her head up and kissed her, holding her head firmly with one hand. She was struggling, banging against his chest with her hands, but it did no good.
"Get away from her!" I yelled.
He looked up at me, frowning.
"Back off Munku!" he growled, clutching her tighter.
She turned to me fearfully.
"Help me Munkustrap," she whimpered" Get him away! He's hurting me!"
"Get away from her!" I repeated.
He smirked.
"And what if I don't? Would you fight me?"
I looked at Demeter. She was crying.
"Yes," I said. "Now move!"
Macavity let go of Demeter, who fell limply to the ground. When he realized what he'd done, he bent down to help her, but she just backed away from him on her hands and knees.
He turned to me.
"Okay, here are the rules. First one down loses."
I nodded. "Ready? One. Two. Three!"
He lunged at me, but I quickly ducked, swinging one of my legs up. I guess I was hoping to break his nose, or something. There was a sickening crack, and he was on the ground, clutching his arm and trying not to cry. I realized that I had broken his arm with my kick. Bending down, I sneered,
"You lose!" Then, as usual, he disappeared in a flash of sparks. I ran over to Demeter, who had apparently fainted.
"Demeter?" I whispered cautiously. Nothing.
I took her shoulders, and shook them gently. "Demeter?" Still nothing.
"Oh no, Dem! No, no, no!"
But, then I heard her shallow breathing. Her hazel eyes blinked, slightly misted with fear.
"Munkustrap?" Her voice was hoarse.
I smiled with relief. "You okay?"
She nodded, unsurely, rubbing her head. "I-I think so."
I helped her to her feet. "Good. Let's get you back to the Junkyard. Bombalurina's really worried about you. And you know what happens when Rina gets worried."
She smiled faintly. "Yep. Tugger gets worried."
I laughed. "Yeah, so let's get going before he starts stress-shedding his mane"
That time, she actually laughed. Suddenly, she leaned over and kissed my cheek. I was surprised. Demeter wasn't exactly a romantic Queen. She blushed at my surprise. I blushed too. I had thought about her a lot lately. I don't know why, but I had just been thinking about her. She wasn't her sister, the heartthrob of the Queens, but she was beautiful. Right now her gold fur was shining like sunshine cutting through the stripes of black, and her hazel eyes were lowered demurely. She nervously tried to tuck a strand of her striped headfur behind her ear with one ginger paw. Unsure why, I reached up my own silver paw and brushed it out of her face. She slowly looked up at me. Her face was just inches from mine, and I could smell the faint scent of lavender coming off of her. Than, at the same time, we leaned forward, our lips meeting. Hers were soft and gentle.
We broke away after a moment, and we were both blushing.
"I've been…."
"I ment to…."
We realized we were both talking at the same time, and laughed quietly. I extended my paw, as if telling her to go first. She understood.
"I've wanted to tell you, Munkustrap," she whispered. "I've been thinking about you lately, and I was taking a walk. I was wondering if I was good enough for you, and Macavity came out of nowhere."
I nodded sympathetically. Macavity was out to get Demeter, who knows why, but he was. There was a question on my mind.
"What was he whispering to you, Dem?"
She closed her eyes, as if holding back tears. "H-he was telling me th-that I wasn't good enough for you. He said that he would take me back to his Empire and that he would love me, that you wouldn't love me." She started crying.
I reached forward and embraced her.
"But I do love you."
She looked up at me, tears streaming down her beautiful face. "Y-you do?"
I nodded. "That's what I wanted to tell you. I've been thinking about you too."
She smiled and we kissed again.
. . . .
A few weeks later, it was the night of the Jellicle Ball. The Coming of Age dance was about to begin, and it was Demeter's year to become a Queen. She was standing nervously in the middle of the Junkyard. I took a deep breath and walked forward. She was facing in the other direction, and I tapped her shoulder gently. She turned around. I could tell she was scared. The chosen Queen didn't know what Tom she would dance with until the dance started. When she saw it was me, the most beautiful smile spread across her face. I bowed, she curtsied, and we danced. At that moment, we both thought the same thing: That we were finally with the one who loved us. I knew that I loved her and she knew that she loved me. We would always be together.