Disclaimer: I do not own Cats the Musical or any of its characters.
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Of Pearls and Accents
"Ooh!"
"Teazah! Shh!"
"But Mungo! Look at this!"
"Teazah! Do ya want us t'get caught?"
Rumpleteazer fell silent immediately, pouting for a moment before her eye caught sight of her prize again. She giggled, prompting another "Shh!" from her partner in crime, but paid him no mind. She was far too entranced by the sight of the long string of pearls to look away.
"Mungo, Mungo! Mungo, can I take this? Can I, please? It's so—it's so—it's so, so pretty! Can I take it, please?"
"Cor, Teazah! Oi tol' ya, you can taike anything you can git wit'out gettin' caught! Now hush before—"
But it was too late. Hearing what sounded like loud meows to human ears, the owner of the pearls had wandered back into her bedroom. She froze in the doorway, her eyes going first to the two tiger-striped cats and then to the open window.
And then she started shrieking.
Both of the tiger-striped cats took off suddenly, making a mad dash towards the window. In just a few bounds they were through and out, landing on the grass than they would have liked, but going on anyway.
By the time the human got to her window, both cats were out of sight.
In the bushes of a nearby yard, Mungojerrie dropped his sack of loot, and Rumpleteazer flopped onto her side, beginning to untangle herself from the string of pearls that had wound around her legs.
Once she had rolled onto her stomach and stood, Mungojerrie turned towards the younger kitten with a frown.
"Teazah! Oi tol' ya, you can' go shoutin' loike that! We both could'a bin off t'the pound there!"
"I'm sorry, Mungo," Rumpleteazer said, dropping the string of pearls onto the ground and hanging her head in shame. "I just got excited—it won't happen again, I promise! Can we go again, another time? Just once more, and if I do bad then I won't make you take me again!"
Mungojerrie grinned. "Oi suppose tha' could work out. Firs' let's git these things back t'the 'Yard. 'Ere, lemme help you wit' that."
Rumpleteazer dropped the pearls again, looking confused. Mungojerrie picked up the string and dropped it over her head, and the kitten grinned.
"I like this! I can wear it like the humans! How do I—oof!" She grunted as she fell face-down into the dirt for the second time, the pearls once again tangled around her forelegs. Grumbling, she picked herself back up. "Maybe not."
"'Ere," Mungojerrie said again, twisting the string and dropping it over her head again several times, until the pearls were looped three times around Rumpleteazer's neck and she could walk with ease. She grinned, prancing and strutting with her tail held straight up in pride. Mungojerrie said nothing, following her with his eyes. Maybe coming to the Junkyard had been a good idea, after all. It seemed he had a new partner, or a good friend at the very least. And if she could ever manage to be quiet while on the job, he didn't think she'd be half bad at it.
At least, not with him there to teach her.
"Let's get back to the 'Yard now," Teazer suggested. "But we have to sneak in. Mum thinks you're a bad influence on me and if she sees this, she'll be angry. She might even tell me I can't see you anymore, and then we would have to figure out where to meet outside of the Junkyard."
"Roight," Mungojerrie said, feeling strangely proud of his bad reputation in the Junkyard. Only two weeks there and already parents were warning their kittens. "Wot else did ol' Jenny saiy 'bout me?"
"Well, she said that if I spent all of my time with you I would pick up your accent, too," Teazer giggled, batting at her ear with a paw. Obviously, she was embarrassed about what her mother was saying. "But that's ridiculous. You don't get an accent just from hanging around other cats."
"'Oo knows?" Mungo countered, then fell silent as he picked up the bag in his mouth. "You nevah know. Oi mean, Oi picked up my accent from my parents, an' no one else sounded like 'em." Or, that was what he attempted to say. With the cloth in his mouth it was hard to understand. Still, Rumpleteazer seemed to get the gist of it.
"If that was true, Mum would sound just like Dad now. Have you heard him talking yet?"
"Yeah. 'E wanted t'tell me that you're a noice kit an' not t' let you git in any trouble," Mungo said, chuckling. Rumpleteazer batted at her ear again, mortified. Parents.
"Well, then you heard his accent, didn't you?" she asked to cover up her humiliation.
"That Oi did. An' I think your mum does a good job concentratin' on not lettin' 'erself get one loike it."
With that, they fell silent and began the long walk home to the Junkyard, ignoring the still-audible shrieks of the burglarized family.
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A/N: I recently got the Original London version of Mungojerrie and Rumpleteazer (yet, just the one song) because, much as I love Misto, I wanted a version sung by the duo itself. Let me just say, it is fantastic. Nothing like the Original Broadway version or any current versions, but I'm just in love with it. And then I got inspired. And wrote this. By the way, they're supposed to be pretty young in this...still just kittens. Hope you enjoyed it!