Moments of Happiness
Delilah's Story
"Quit stallin' an' open the damn thing! I can't wait ter see wot Grizzy got yer!" Hades bounced excitedly, his coarse fur stiff with anticipation. Delilah, a sleek white queen, smiled sweetly.
"Alright. But hush, Hades!"
"Yeah! Mum'll hear you!" the littlest kitten agreed, half sliding off the car boot. Minou, a sleek grey queen picked him up gently by the tail.
"Shush, Tugsy. You know I'm meant to be babysitting-to think I gave up Gus' party for all this!" she smiled, rolling her eyes.
"Ah, but ya love us really!" the roly-poly black kitten grinned. Minou rolled her eyes again.
"Please, Delia, put me out of my misery, and just open it!" she begged Delilah. Delilah nodded excitedly to the older queen, and tore open the parcel.
"Wow!" A sparkling white collar, studded with rhinestones, slid out the package. Delilah's aquamarine eyes widened as she held it up in the moonlight. Immediately, two more kittens clustered round, begging not to be left out.
"Lemme see!" the black one, Hades called. A little red kitten eyed it speculatively.
"It's sure pretty, Delilah-when I grow up, though, I wanna red one for my first Jellicle Ball!" Tugger grinned at her, in an attempt at suavity.
"I'll buy ya one for a wedding gift!"
The teenage scarlet queen wrinkled her nose in disgust.
"Back off, furball!" she spat, stalking off to the top of the car. Delilah laughed.
"You'll never win with her, Tugsy."
"No way-Bom loves me!" he beamed. Delilah nudged the adolescent gold and black queen closest to her with a white paw.
"Hey, Demi, would you like to try the collar on?" she asked. The queen looked up, breaking off from a daydream.
"Ooh, yes please!" she cried. Gently, Delilah fitted the collar around her little friend's neck. Even on the tightest setting, it fell loose, onto her shoulders. Grinning, Hades held up a piece of broken mirror.
"Whaddya think, Demi?"
"I dunno..it's gorgeous, but it's a bit big.."
"I think it looks beautiful." Everyone jumped as Munkustrap, Delilah's younger brother, appeared around the corner in the gloom. He stood on the ground, looking both embarrassed and bold, as he stared at Demeter. Then, Delilah leapt down beside him.
"Munk…listen, I know we're meant to be asleep…but don't tell on me, will you?" she coaxed the kitten.
"I won't, Delilah-I promise…but Mama…"
"Mama won't know! And if you're good… next time Old Mistoffelees does one of his magic shows…I'll take you with me!" Munkustrap bounced with glee, and the others let out small squeaks of envy.
"I wish we got to join in more…" Munkustrap said suddenly.
"You can, next year." Delilah said. Minou gently unclipped the collar from Demeter's neck.
"She's right. Next year, Demeter, you will go too, with Munkustrap and Bomba, no?"
"And me," Tugger said impatiently. Minou smiled, reclining gracefully in the moonlight.
"Yes, and you Tugger… isn't that Griz?" Bombalurina perked up her ears, and hopped about in glee on top of the car.
"It is, it is!"
"Tu voudrais aller voir Grizabella avec moi?" Minou asked, turning to Delilah. Delilah nodded, honoured.
"Oui, merci." She stammered, in the little French she knew. Minou smiled fondly and brushed her cheek with a silver paw.
The pair crossed the Junkyard towards Grizabella, who, surrounded by unknown toms, and glittering with diamonds, was at the centre of a noisy group.
"Dahling!" she exclaimed upon the two queens, and, planting perfumed kisses on their cheeks, drew her friends towards them. Bombalurina preened, and stalked down the car bonnet with as much elegance as she could muster. Tugger narrowed his eyes at the toms. Huh. Bom certainly seemed to like them.
Delilah was in heaven, suddenly the centre of attention amongst the adult strangers. A lean red tom, his arm draped around Grizabella's shoulders, smiled slyly at her.
"So, you are the beautiful Delilah…" he drawled, leaning closer to her. Her eyes widened. "I've heard a lot about you. Care to join me for-" Minou suddenly intervened, bridging the gap between them. Griz seemed a little tipsy.
"I do not think so," the French Silver queen, began, when Griz batted him playfully with one paw.
"No, dahling! Her first Ball isn't for weeks, yet! That's right, my love, isn't it? So, which of the Jellicle boys will you be enchanting?" she asked, patting the white queen's cheek. Delilah reddened, a little embarassed. She did like one tom in the Junkyard, but he wasn't one she'd ever be allowed to dance with.
"I don't really like any of the younger t-"
"Of course not, darling! No mere kittens for our Delilah! You want a real tom, my sweet, no?" She looked hastily at the tom, and narrowed her eyes a little. "I told you, darling, she's innocent. So you see, hun, you'll have to wait a while before you start any of that." The tom didn't reply, merely smiling and making a slight bow. Minou maintained her protective stance in front of the younger queen, saying:
"You're playing a dangerous game, mon ami; elle est la fille unique au Old Deuteronomy." The red tom raised one eyebrow, and rolled his gaze from Minou's poised features to the White Queen's wide-eyed countenance, lingering on the Silver queen's icy mask with amusement.
"Ah," he smiled, "le français. Well, ma chère, if you so insist…" He slipped past Minou with a speed no-one, least of all Delilah had anticipated, and took her in his arms, speaking in a low, urgent voice.
"Voulez-vous couchez~" The next words turned into a furious yowl, as all twenty of Munkustrap's sharpened claws embedded themselves in the ginger stranger's back. The group sprang apart, the injured tom lashing out at Munkustrap in anger. Fortunately, the kitten had leaped far enough away to avoid such a blow, and snarled at the far larger tom from a safe distance. Winded, and vengeful, the tom started towards him, but was checked as Delilah threw herself between the two, touching his paw pleadingly. The red tom looked from his young attacker to the beautiful Queen staring at him in horror, and evidently decided humility was the best option. With a smile tinged with the merest hint of sarcasm, he bowed to Munkustrap, and glanced over the group who had run forwards from the car in horror.
"Touché, young one." He smirked, watching him with veiled loathing. Munkustrap watched him suspiciously. Suddenly, and surprisingly, the Red Stranger touched Delilah's paw gently.
"I apologise, Miss Delilah, if I startled you, or offended you in any way." He raised Delilah's cool white glove to his mouth, and pressed a kiss onto it. Munkustrap started, then checked himself. The red tom was watching him out of one eye, awaiting his reaction, and ready to attack. Tugger had appeared by his side, fur bristling, and Hades was not far away. Despite his followers, Munkustrap doubted very much if they could best the toms, and wasn't about to risk a battle. He looked searchingly at Delilah, who flashed him a placating look. She seemed unable to move, gazing fixedly at the tom. Behind him, Tugsy gave a low growl. The tom raised one eyebrow.
"It would appear my apology is insufficient. A pity, but nevertheless I take the hint." He released Delilah's paw, and gave her a look frightening both in its tenderness and intensity. Delilah murmured faintly.
"Vaminos, chicos,"The stranger beckoned the toms. Two large toms, and a younger one, all strays, came to his side. Their leader went to kiss Grizabella, but Minou stood guard before the two queens. Grizabella pouted, but Minou didn't move. Shrugging, the males left.
As they left, the Red Tom gave the three younger queens, Demeter, Delilah and Bombalurina, a long, lingering look. Demeter felt a shiver down her spine, and looked hastily away. Bom held his gaze, following Grizabella's lead. Suddenly, the tom darted back, and before Munkustrap could move, had broken past Minou, and planted a kiss- a real kiss on Delilah's mouth. Grizabella gave a jealous, protective hiss, but Macavity leapt up with almost supernatural agility, over Munkustrap and Tugger's heads, past Hades and onto a ledge. He was obviously very young, but strong, and lean. The silver tabby kitten heard Demeter cry out, and raced back towards the others. Delilah, her eyes wildly unfocused, was falling into Minou's arms, apparently hypnotised. Munkustrap, torn between the desire for revenge, and love of his sister, stood for a moment torn, when Tugger, fiercely jealous of Bom's gaze resting on the Red Tom, murmured to his older brother.
"You go to 'Lilah, I'll sort Bristle-Britches out!" With a grateful purr, Munkustrap ran, but the little leopard-kitten couldn't keep up with the Bristle-Britches. Scrabbling up the junkpile, he almost made it to the summit, when the pursued tom whirled around, connecting two cables with a bang! A flash of blue sparks exploded over the Junkyard floor, taking Tugger, and a lot of debris, with them. The clustered cats shielded themselves from the blast, Munkustrap throwing himself across the others as a shield. When the crackling subsided, they sat up.
"Woah." Hades, the black tom, breathed. Bom wriggled out of the pile, her face a teenage tableau of distress.
"Tugger!" she called, freeing herself, and racing across the Junkyard towards the empty space where Macavity had loomed. "Tugger?" she repeated, digging into the pile of rubbish created by the explosion.
"You called?" Tugger asked with profound smugness, poking his head from under an old fishbone. The strange bits of fur that spiked around his ears were positively curling with pride.
"Tugger!" Bom squawked happily, and threw her arms around him. Tugger swelled with joy, when suddenly she wrinkled her nose.
"What's that smell? Yuck, Tug, you stink of old fish!"
Tugger sighed. He couldn't win, he really couldn't.
"Come on, mon amie, hush, now, look up, speak, speak," Minou cooed as she raised the wide-eyed Delilah from the ground. Grizabella passed a slim hand in front of Delilah.
"Not a stir.." she said slowly, and in horror. Munkustrap butted Delilah's white head anxiously. She gave a low moan, and stirred slightly. Minou sighed with relief, and lifted the younger queen easily. "Bed." The younger kittens nodded silently. What they had just seen frightened them too much to argue. Tugger shot Hades a look as they filed away.
"What the hell happened there?" Hades shrugged.
"Hush," Bom whispered. "You okay Demi?"
Demeter didn't reply. "DEMI?" Bom repeated. Minou frowned. She was watching Demeter narrowly but tried to stay calm.
"Allez! That's enough excitement for one night."