Disclaimer: I do not own Cats. Everything else is fictional.
The Cat On Mellowash Street
"I have heard tell of a cat on Mellowash Street,
His fur is wet, smelly and rot from dead meat,
His paws reek, nails trimmed to fairness,
Watch out, he belongs to his master- Awareness."
- Excerpt from The cat on Mellowash Street; Unknown
Munkstrap walks down the alley. He stops to look back at the entrance of the junkyard and shakes his head (Rum Tum Tugger is at it again). He looks ahead and starts to move forward again, but he stops. A cat with black fur and white stripes sits on the edge of the alley, watching people go by from time to time. He meows quietly, begging for a meal, but there are no scraps for him at this hour. He is alone. The junkyard cat shakes his head and takes to approach him in a kind manor.
"What are you doing?" Munkstrap whispers to the cat, "Are you new to getting food from other places?"
The other cat looks to his fellow associate. The junkyard feline can see his face is distorted, third degree burns. With a quick look to the ground his nails show a strange careful compassion, but his face, it tells another tale. Also, from his body is a strong odor that makes Munkstrap cough hard.
"I'm new to this area, but not to begging," replies the cat.
"Where are you from?"
"Mellowash, it's on the other side of London."
"I've never heard of that place."
"It's a street that dives down into an area for the simple minded," the cat looks at a puddle reflecting his reflection and splashes it. He watches it ripple with a full moon that's high above the pair. "Like me, I'm simple minded, but that's ok."
"Don't put yourself down, I'm sure there's lots of brains in you."
"Sure, or at least there used to be till my master destroyed some."
Munkstrap backs up and hisses. "I knew it!" he screams. His associate looks at him, turning his head in curiosity and opens his mouth to speak, but shuts it feeling he'll get his answer to his question. "A human has mistreated you! Right? Some human has beaten you up and hurt you! Right? Don't worry, we can get 'em back."
"No…"
"No? Don't you want to make them pay for what they did?"
"They didn't hurt me…my master is of another sort."
"Whose your master if it's not a human?"
The beggar looks around and does a quick shake of his head. "Follow me, I have something I want to show you."
"Where are we going?"
"Mellowash Street, its magical at night, trust me."
The junkyard feline watches his sidewalk talker take off straight ahead towards the other pavement, but something stops him from following, (this cat…). "Um, why can't you just answer my question from earlier then me coming over to your place?"
The other cat stops on the other side of the street. "My master is waiting- let's hurry."
Munkstrap takes off joining his associate by his side. "Tell me, what's your name?"
"Sunlight."
"I see, well I'm…"
"Munkstrap, yes, I've seen your face at the junkyard."
"And you've never bothered to come in?"
The other cat turns and looks his night friend straight in the eyes. "I have work to do, every night. A cat like me needs to be at action within action in action making sure action takes place."
"I…see…"
"Come with me to Mellowash so you can meet my master."
"You keep saying that…" before Munkstrap can finish his sentence, Sunlight takes off, this time running, wafting the horrible smell over to him. "Yeah, 'throw that scent at me' please."
The cats travel taking off into the night. The moon continues to shine above. It's fullness casts the animals shadows onto the ground. They spread out, reaching into the street, passing over human beings that are drunk, and homeless that are fast asleep. (Don't wake earthlings, you can walk straight up tomorrow morning. Tonight the cats play).
The two felines feel the wind pick up. It blows right through them, does it want to stop them in tracks? (Something isn't right when the weather kicks up in a dark night, but then again you can never tell what it's thinking.) They make it to the bridge leading towards the other side of London. They stop to rest their paws and feet. Splash, splash; water flows smoothly in the canal under the bridge. (Soon they'll be on the other side then the junkyard cat can meet the master of the smelly cat.)
Once the resting is over the pair take to the bridge. They move quietly, quickly and without hesitation. Yet again does the weather pick up, blowing strong winds and growing much colder than before. (Press on, forget the numbness in the body, there is something much better on the other side. Better yet, an answer to the question, who is Sunlight's master?). Once they over the bridge Munkstrap collapses. His body is weak. His friend takes notice and picks him up.
"Don't worry Munkstrap, all will be better," replies the smelly cat. He throws his friend over his shoulder and the pair takes off down the street. "I'll get us to my master, but first, let's find some place warm."
"I- I - I can make it on my own," the junkyard cat mumbles. "I want to know whose this master of yours."
"You'll meet him- just…"
"I can do it!" screams Munkstrap. Sunlight lays his friend down on the ground and watches him get up, (a little shake to wake). "Take me to him!"
"As you wish, Munkstrap."
The duo continues to walk down the street. Finally they come to it. A sign that reads the name: MELLOWASH STREET. Loud, group, meowing can be heard echoing out through the area. (How can no human take a look, then again, perhaps they are, who knows really?). The junkyard cat begins to shiver and his heart stops, his eyes widen, the scene he sees frightens him.
Cats of all kinds dance around a statue of a man wearing a fisherman's outfit. He holds a bucket of fish and smiles widely. Every other tooth from the statue is broken. The arms are cracked. The eyes are wide open. It stands 4' 6," but the question in all is, who is he?
"What's going on?" inquires the junkyard cat, "Who is he? Why are they dancing?"
"This area is full of lowly cats, cats that are nothing, are dead to society," replies the smelly cat. "One day this statue arrived on our street and forever it has remained here. Humans pass it by, ignoring it for reasons we do not know. A fisherman whose fish we can eat with a name we give Awareness."
"Awareness?"
"'To be at action within action in action making sure action takes place' remember that?"
"Yeah?"
"Well, that's what he does for us and what we've learned should be done as well."
"But what is that action?"
"Whatever he demands, he is our main help after all."
Munkstrap looks away shaking his head. "This just isn't making any sense," he replies with watery eyes (so much confusion. Such high stress to figure out where its all going). "Tell me, how has he helped you? Any of you? He's just a statue?"
The smelly cat and his friend turn to see every dancing cat stop moving. They take off into homes only to return with sharp deadly objects with razor sharps points. They shiver, shake, twitch and do the most horrific thing that Munkstrap has seen. They begin to dismember themselves little by little. They cut off a paw, trimming it down even more and begin to eat it.
"What's going on?" screams the junkyard cat, "Why are they eating themselves?"
Sunlight walks over to one of the cats whose meowing and crying in pain while munching on his left paw. "'To be at action within action in action making sure action takes place,' so what is tonights action?"
"To eat away our self as felines who dance waiting for master Awareness to come."
"You know that makes no sense, right?"
"Yes, it doesn't, the pain makes it hard to think."
"But you need to punish yourself, or else he won't feed us."
"What about you?"
"What about me?"
"Don't you need to hurt yourself?"
Sunlight walks overt and gets in the face, making the in pain jump. "Does my face say something different?"
"Y- Y- You always were his favorite!"
"The only meal you're getting is that paw," replies the smelly cat. He pats the other cat that's lost in eating himself on the head. "Now, I shall dance for our new member, receive an answer and…" he trails off to look at Munkstrap. "Ask if you can come join me."
"Hell no! This is madness!" screams the junkyard cat. "You're all insane!"
"No, we're not!" Sunlight cries with glee. He runs to the statue and begins to dance around it. "Join me Munkstrap! If you can make it on the way over! Then you can make it through years of hell at Mellowash Street!"
The dancing continues and within minutes a terrifying display happens. Within an instant the statue explodes. The explosion kills Sunlight. Chunks of the stone fisherman kill members of the mad band of self mutilators. Other dancers die by flames from a sparked roaring fire on the street. Munkstrap collapses onto his knees, looking up at the statue and begins to laugh.
"Yes," the junkyard cat screams and begins to meow hysterically. "I see it! The mad fisherman! The master known as Awareness!"