Summary: Mistoffelees is kidnapped from his home and is taken away to a school of magic to learn the truth about himself.
Warnings: Character deaths, cursing, violence, slash, multiple pairings. Additional warnings may be added accordingly.
Hello! This is my third cats story so far and I really hope you enjoy it! I worked really hard on it and I am really inspired to write this story. If you are keeping track of my other story, Faith Trust and Mr. Mistoffelees, I'm sorry to say that it may be a while before I update on that. I ran into that story with no idea of a plot and currently I am stumped with what to do with it. For this story, it is different and I have so many places I want to go with this.
First, yes I was inspired by Harry Potter for the idea of the school and title but the similarities stop there. I was more inspired by Stephen King's book Carrie because of the genetics idea. And the idea of it was just too good to resist!
Also there are OCs in this story. Most of them are not mine but are from generous contributors and those are:
kboyer2013 with Chic, Blaze, and Harmonium
CrazyIndigoChild with Aisley
Eraman with Clyde
David Stroud-Swan with Torika, Serinas, and Nitrexis
Toxic-dolls with Tollan and Darhma
Catsnowandforever21 (characters pending)
Please notice that I am not just going to throw all of these cats in here at once but introduce them slowly as the story goes on. In other words, if your character is not in this chapter don't freak out! I will get to them, I promise.
Another thing to keep in mind while reading this story is that the Jellicle cats are really like another human race. They act just like us and interact with us too. It's all for the sake of this story plot as there are not a whole lot of humans in it at all.
With all that said and done, please enjoy!
Sunshine glimmered through the panes of glass; the warm of the rays lighting upon his black fur. It seemed so happy and joyful out there. The outdoors called to him tauntingly through his little window; the window showed him the joyful events of the world but it prevented him from being a part of it all. His little taste of freedom was also a barrier that blocked him from the joy and the happiness. On the other side the view of the city was presented to him. The street bellow bustled with cars and people going about their merry lives. A group of kids gathered on the sidewalk and the tom looked down at them longingly. They seemed to be having such a good time; laughing and joking like that, it made him jealous. There were two boys, one of them was really tall and had a mop of brown hair while the other was kind of short and had blonde hair, one girl, she was very pretty with her ruby red hair, and one tom, a lanky brown tabby with a fast grin.
Quaxo sighed to himself as he watched the little gang make their way out of his sight. He desperately wanted to join them, and he couldn't help but feel a little bit of disappointment as they left. The lonesome tux slumped visibly and his ears drooped from their upright position. Another opportunity, gone.
"Come on dear, why don't you have a piece of cake?"
"I don't feel like it right now…"
Regardless, his mother set the piece of cake on the table next to the window seat. She put her white paw on his shoulder and smiled at him. In all honesty, she was a beautiful cat. Her fur was silky white all around and her torso was long and graceful. No matter what the queen put on herself she was always able to make it work. Right then, her blue eyes looked down on her son lovingly, if a bit worriedly.
"Eat what you can, okay?"
"Okay." He hollowly agreed and cast his gaze into the city once more. Without turning around to look at his mother, he felt bold enough to ask: "Can I go outside today?"
"Honey…" He knew what was coming next. The big fat ugly no; that was what was in store for his feeble attempts. Every time he asked, every time he tried… The answer always remained the same. She would launch into a lecture about how dangerous the city was and how terrible people were. Never once in his life had he remembered being outside their flat. Never. He was homeschooled, he had a nanny for when his parents were away, and his parents bolted the door. Simply, he wasn't allowed to leave. Oh he had believed his parent's stories for a while but when he saw the children outside his window he began to believe it less and less. At this point he could see no point in locking him up forever. It just wasn't fair.
"Victoria gets to." He pointed out plainly before his mother could formulate a reply. The elegant and charming Victoria, while he loved her with all his heart, he naturally couldn't help but feel a little jealous of her. Freedom was what he long for the most, but only his sister was to receive this gift. His constrained heart cried in outrage and despite the fact he knew his parents loved him it was only a matter of time before his relationship would begin to determinate.
"Quaxo, you-"
"I know, I know, it's different," He gathered himself onto his feet and stepped away from the window. Without acknowledging the queen, he brushed past her and stepped into his room. Before he shut the door he was able to see the hurt expression on his mother's face and he felt a twinge of guilt. Then he remembered that it was she who should feel guilty about locking him up all the time.
His room had walls that were a soft baby blue with white stripes going vertically down the walls. White curtains clung about the single window, hiding the small window seat there. A queen size bed sat in the middle of the wooden floor; equally blue bedspread greeted him as he went to sit down on it. The room had many items to try and gain his attention should he get bored. A computer and a desk were pressed up against the far wall. A box of random toys sat in his closet, though he mostly outgrew those. Handheld games littered his nightstand, and the games for them were neatly stacked beside them. A television set hung on the wall and the remote sat on the bed in front of him.
Tempted, he almost went to turn the TV on, but instead decided to read a book from the bookcase that leaned against the wall, adjacent to the computer desk. After grabbing a book, Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone,the tux laid back down upon the bed. Curling up into the soft pillows he began to read his favorite book for the sixth time. As he lost himself into the pages time began to fly by for him. After a while his mother knocked on the door worriedly but he sent her away with a well-placed 'leave me alone'. The hours ticked themselves by as he cuddled into the sheets and lost himself in the book. It was well into the afternoon when his reading was interrupted.
A sneeze escaped him, causing him to flinch. He blinked open his eyes in a little surprise. Usually he could feel when a sneeze was coming on but- Sneeze. There was another one. Quaxo sat up a little this time after putting his book down safely out of the way. Was it just him or was everything suddenly brighter? Sneeze And did everything just get louder? Sneeze He was beginning to feel the air stir around him but everything he saw was still. He sneeze could feel the presence of Jellicles nearby, his parents more than likely. Sneeze Suddenly he could hear their heartbeats even though he knew they were in another room entirely. Sneeze Then there was pain. So much pain! Every nerve in his body was suddenly screaming at him. Sneeze He felt the freezing air around him, the warmth of the sheet under him, the uneven cover of the book in his lap through his clothing. Sneeze His head was swimming with all sorts of sensations. Sneeze Now the inside of his nose was hurting from all the sneezing. Sneeze He whimpered out for his mother as he squeezed his eyes shut.
Suddenly arms wrapped around him and when he peaked open his eyes he saw it was his father, the great muscular tux with bright gold eyes. Without saying anything the teen pressed his forehead into his dad's shoulder and shuddered as he suppressed another sneeze. He could feel himself being picked up off the bed. He could hear his parents talking but their voices seemed so loud; he couldn't understand what they were saying. As ears began to ring he covered them with his hands, whimpering slightly. He was no weakling by far but all of this was too much, too soon. The tiny tux could have coward into his Dad's strong arms forever but soon he was pressed into a seat in the car. Blinking open his eyes to see the black upholstery, he vaguely wondered how he got there. The moment of consciousness didn't last long because a moment later the engine roared to life. Letting out a scream Quaxo slapped his hands back over his ears but they could not drown out the sound. He could feel the car begin to move but he only relaxed his vice grip over his ears after they were well down the street. While everything was so crystal clear, the thundering of the sensations had dulled a little and the loudest thing he could hear was the simple sound of the blood thumping in his ears just like the aftermath of concentrating too hard.
"We have to get him to Bustopher's."
"Oh, hurry. Please I don't want to lose another one…."
"I know dear. Don't worry."
Their voices where scratchy and sounded like they were whispering, only loudly. Quaxo stared at them blankly, the worry as clear as day on their faces. His line of sight was broken when their car screamed into a sharp turn and the small tux bristled. He had no idea they were going so fast! Before he knew it they were pulling up a very long driveway. The sunlight still have him a headache so he tried not to look out the windows too much but he could see an ocean of green grass out of the corner of his eye. Trees were here and there and all around. He thought weakly that this place was probably super expensive to maintain that pristine green glow. For a moment he felt a surge of joy, he was outside! He was going out! He-
LURCH!
He jerked forward in his seat as they came to an abrupt halt. The door next to him opened just as quickly and soon he was standing outside the car. He shielded his eyes from the sun and tried to see his parents, but they just pushed him forward without saying a word.
"Where-"
"Shhhh," His mother silenced him so he held his tongue. With stumbling steps he walked forward but he gained confidence with each step. That was until he was shoved into a doorway. Quick as a flash the door was shut behind him again, and the feeling of being trapped just as quickly returned. With no time for self-pity, his parents pressed him forward into the large hall presented before him. All was pristine and white without a speck of dust in sight. On the white marble floor was a white couch with a black and white cat reclining into the cushions, delicately eating toast and caviar with his thick grubby fingers. The cat could only be the Bustopher Jones he had heard so much about as a child; the cat that was supposedly his uncle. Upon seeing us he dropped his snack and it splattered onto the floor and ruined the glowing white of the room. Aw well.
"What is the-"
"No time," Quaxo's father interrupted the stout cat before he could complete his sentence. "They know." Suddenly everyone in the room was tense and the sound of a pin dropping could have been heard. It was only Quaxo who was left in a state of confusion as to why. He was just about to ask before he was ushered away by his parents and Bustopher into the arms of the maid. She smiled at him and said her name was Jennyanydots; she was going to get him away and he would be safe. The tux didn't much appreciate her tone for it implied him to be younger than he actually was but the safe part worried him. Should he feel like he was in danger? The ginger queen paid no mind to the now worried expression on his face and pulled him forward to go further into the house. As they went down hallways, across ballrooms, and through libraries the queen mumbled to herself about getting lost in this maze. Slowly, Quaxo was able to tell they were making their way up the house and he was right. Soon they were over the entrance hall on a tiny balcony. Jenny quickly explained that though it was right up front it was the part of the entire place that took the longest to get to. That should have reassured him, right?
Oh dead wrong. His fur nearly stood on end when he heard the door bang open as two cats made themselves known. Jenny ducked out of the balcony and made motions for Quaxo to duck and get out of sight. No sooner did he do so than was the maid gone and he was left alone up on that balcony. The barrier was a sort of mesh that had tiny holes in it so, while it was hard to see what was up there from down below; it was also easy to see out of. Pressing one of his eyes to the holes he could see two ginger, white, and black calicos sauntered into the grand white room.
"Well, well, well," The voice was high and almost squeaked as the girl spoke. She placed two hands on her hips that were covered by a thick rhinestone belt which had a rather large diamond in the middle of it. A short black jacket that only came down to her waist clung about her shoulders. The shirt underneath was just as white as the room but was covered in lace. A short skirt covered her thighs and kept her just from breaking the decency law; black fishnet stockings ran up her legs to end just where the skirt began. Looking to her companion over her black sunglasses she smiled. "What do we have here, Mungo?" Her black heels clicked on the marble floor as she took a few more paces forward.
"It seems to me," His voice rich with the accent which was clearly from the other side of the tracks. In one swift motion he took off his own sunglasses and tucked them into his leather jacket pocket, the edge of it gaudily lined with diamonds. On the corner of his lips he wore a grin as he slid his hands into his black jeans which were also lined with diamonds. His jacket parted and revealed the white shirt underneath as he leaned forward in mock curiosity, rocking on the heels of his boots as he did so. "That these foolish Jellicles are trying to hide our prey from us, Rumple." With a sharp gasp Rumple raised a manicured hand to her red colored lips.
"Oh no!" Her voice rose in fear before she let out a loud bubbly laugh. Taking off her sunglasses, she gave Bustopher, who was standing flustered in the middle of the white marble, a meaningful look and the glint in her eyes gave away her evil intent. Opening her jaws slightly she took in a great big gulp of air, her eyes also fluttered closed momentarily before focusing on the aristocrat upon their reopening. "We have our ways, Fatty."
"Say, Rumple, do you smell something?" Mungo had his eyes closed and was sniffing the air with a delighted grin on his face almost like he was a kid in a candy store. His companion nodded solemnly and took in another deep breath.
"Oh, I do. It reeks in here, Bustopher," She grinned mischievously at the stout tux. Her tail flickered behind her as she clicked further across the floor, sniffing like a bloodhound. The host looked absolutely flustered as she said so.
"I assure you-"
"Can it, Gramps." Mungo silenced him. He held a hand up as though the wind had changed direction as he sniffed the air. His hand wavered as concentrated on the smells of the room; with an evil smile he pointed up to the balcony. The company of the servants looked on in stony fear but would not reveal the difficulty of how to reach the location. "By the way Bustopher, you should get better staff. Your little errand boy over there wet himself." One of the little boys shied away out of sight at that comment.
The two moved in sync and with great speed, like they could tell what the other was going to do before they did it. Mungo ran forward, surprisingly light on his feet for wearing boots and Rumple was quick behind him. At the last moment Mungo stopped and bent forward. Unhesitant, Rumple ran up onto his back and used him like a springboard as he shot back up the moment she tapped his shoulders with the tips of her shoes. The calico was flying in the air before anyone could stop her and she landed with amazing grace on top of a white grandfather clock. Now she was only a few feet from her goal. As she was making preparations to jump, Mungo launched himself up a white bookcase on the other side of the balcony. Rumple leaped just before her brother and both were able to grab a hold onto the balcony.
Meanwhile the poor Quaxo watched in sudden fear as the two suddenly launched themselves towards him. Surely they couldn't be after him, could they? He wasn't too keen on sticking around to find out. He threw himself at the door that would lead him out of the balcony only to be brought to a halt. The handle was locked! Probably to keep them from coming in the way he did but Jennyanydots couldn't have thought they would pull a stunt like this. What would have been his salvation suddenly became his downfall as he waited like a sitting duck for the two, to finish their climb. It didn't take long for them to. In unison the two swung one leg over the rail and pulled their bodies up. Two mischievous grins were presented in front of his eyes. The queen purred and giggled to Mungo.
"Oh he's a cutie," She remarked before putting her sharp gaze back on the tux. Quaxo had to bristle at her comment. He was fifteen and definitely wasn't cute. He opened his mouth to say so when a large hand grabbed him by the scruff of his neck. All the words he was about to say died into a frightened gurgle as he was lifted to be face to face with Mungo. Boy that tom must be strong. The male calico sneered at him for a moment.
"Are you sure that he is a teenager?" He teased him before giving a chuckle. Before the tux even had time to think about responding to that statement he was sailing in the air. Letting a frightened screech he wriggled in the air until he was going to land on his paws. It was all for nothing as he landed with a soft puff from landing on the cushioned white sofa. Soon two more puffs followed his and the two calicos were lounging beside him. Rumple came and snuggled up to the little tux, much to his displeasure.
"He's so cuddly!"
"Oi, share won't you?" Suddenly he was engulfed by both pairs of arms as he was cuddled and snuggled practically to death. Who were these creeps?
"Let go of my nephew at once! This is-"
"I thought I told you to can it, Fatso."
"We're only playing, Busty. We might schedule a play date later or even take him with us. He is too cute to resist!" Rumple snuggled into the top of Quaxo's head to prove her point. At this point the poor black and white tom had, had enough.
"I'm not cute!" He sputtered indignantly. Immediately the two calicos began to coo over him.
"Oh of course you're not, sweetie!"
"Just a little bit adorable," Mungo pronounced it more like 'door-ee-ble'.
Bustopher stomped his foot down, trying to gain some composer, but no one was fooled. The old and stout cat was obviously worried and frightened by the appearance of these two calicos. He pulled his jacket though it was hopeless because it simply would not cover him all.
"I demand you to leave at once!" The two notorious cats guffawed at his statement. They writhed around on the sofa like a couple of excited kittens from their enjoyment. Even if they were being childish, neither one of them removed their hold on Quaxo so when he tried to wiggle free they clamped down on him tightly.
"'I demand you to leave!'" Mungo recited in a snotty and high pitch imitation of Quaxo's uncle.
"'You really shouldn't be here!'"
"'Leave at once!'"
"'Eh-hem, no, no don't do that!'" Rumple was surprisingly good at mimicking the clearing of Bustopher's throat. They kicked their feet in their air with glee as their fits of giggles began to subside.
"Oh, really, Bustopher ol' chap, you are a riot!"
"We simply must come back another time!"
"Shame that we now have our reason for being here in the first place." At this Mungo tickled Quaxo under his chin which simultaneously sent chills down his spine. The nervous tux shuffled away from the tom but leaned more into Rumple as he did so. The queen was quick to use this to her advantage and grabbed his head to rub her cheek on his. Bustopher's eyes widened and his attendees looked on with confusion as to what they were supposed to do. No one had the courage to approach the trio on the couch. Who know what other things the two calicos had up their sleeves? Suddenly Rumple gave a reluctant sigh.
"Oh well, this was fun, but we simply must go now!" She apologized mockingly.
"Too-da-loo, Fatso!" The calicos stood up abruptly from the sofa both of them had their arms laced through Quaxo's. When the two stood up at their normal height the tux dangled in the air with his toes just barely being able to scrape the ground. Without further delay Mungo and Rumple made their way towards the door and the forced teen had no option but to follow. He was desperate for another option though. These cats were trying to kidnap him! He wasn't stupid! These crazy cats could do anything to him. Anything. The two had already proven they were probably mentally unstable and Quaxo wouldn't ever put his life in their hands willingly.
The tux struggled against them. He jerked his arms to try and break their hold. The pair stopped slowly and turned to their quarry. Both of them held like stone and smiled at the tux's feeble attempts. Rumple brushed her fingertips over the diamond on her belt as Mungo brushed his over the diamond lining over his pockets. Both gleefully grinned at each other.
"At least we know these do something, eh Mungo?"
"Right you are, Rumple." They both resumed their steady pace to the door. Now the staff was frantic and some of the males tried to go after them and stop them. Mungo unhesitatingly tripped one of them before delivering a swift kick to their stomach. Rumple was just as ruthless as she calmly punched out and hit one of the toms in the gut. The calicos didn't even appear to be trying. Panic began to settle in for the poor tux and his struggling became more frantic. The window of his opportunity was rapidly closing as the door loomed nearer. Hysteria bubbled in his throat as it approached. He screamed and kicked and struggled and wriggled.
"Oi, calm down, Cutie, before you hurt yourself."
Okay. That's it.
"My. Name. Is. Quaxo!" He yelled at Rumple. Rage and fear poured off of him in waves and it was like lightning struck in the air as his vision suddenly turned red. A pulse left his body and shuddered through the room. To Rumple and Mungo, the objects of his anger, they merely stumbled for a second then looked at each other. The servants around them were suddenly thrown back like an invisible group of giants simultaneously back handed them. For poor old Bustopher he was thrown back into the wall with a sickening THUD and then abruptly all came to silence. One by one the servants all began to moan and wail from either pain or shock. Quaxo strained to turn around and when he was able to he was frozen in place. The Jellicles around him were all bruised and battered, some of them were even bleeding, but that wasn't what he was looking at. He was looking at the limp tux who was slumped up against the wall, not moving. The maid he knew as Jennyanydots was slowly walking toward his uncle. Now he could barely breathe. She knelt down and grabbed the wrist of the once great cat. A moment went by before she shuddered and let out a barely audible sob. That was all the confirmation he needed. Quaxo recoiled within himself as he realized his uncle was dead.
"Look and see what you've done now?" Mungo scolded him as they resumed their walk forward. Quaxo's eyes remained fixated on the limp, lifeless form of Bustopher Jones and the despairing form of Jennyanydots. The worst part about it all was, he knew it was his fault. He wasn't sure how exactly but it was. His eyes remained glued even after the door shut behind them, the image pressed into his mind. Vaguely he noticed himself being put into a car and Mungo and Rumple climbing after him. The windows were very dark and were tinted both ways so no one could see in and the poor tux couldn't see out. Not that he really wanted to anyway. He looked around him without interest. He was in a limousine and the window to the driver was closed and also tinted. Maybe it was even his uncle's own limousine. The thought made him shudder. No, best not to think like that. Instead he blankly let himself be cuddled up to by Rumple and pulled to sit in Mungo's lap. The two carried on like before, joking around like nothing had happened. The only difference this time was Quaxo ignored them completely. In his mind, he was alone.
XXX 11111111XXX
It seemed like hours before the vehicle came to a stop, but that may have been because of the mindset of the teenage Quaxo. All he knew was that the rumble around him ceased and he was suddenly reintroduced into the light as the door to his right was opened. What must have been the driver's face peeked into the doorway. His face was white and framed by tabby ginger fur. He seemed like the gentle sort of cat and Quaxo looked at him nervously, still entangled within the calicos' grasp. The ginger tom reached a paw in and the tux gratefully placed his paw into the other's. Soon he was out of the reach of Rumple and Mungo who sat pouting in their seat at his leaving.
"Visit us some time, Hun." Rumple insisted with a smile.
"Always a pleasure, Cutie." Mungo winked at him and Quaxo pretended not to see. Simply he nodded politely as the driver brought him around to face the biggest building he had seen in his life. The great building was made entirely out of stone and was probably old enough to be an actual castle from the Dark Ages. Around the majestic castle was green grass and in the distance there were some hills covered in trees. Off to the right he could see what looked like the walls of another building but he wasn't so sure. When the driver tapped him on the shoulder, Quaxo blinked. He didn't realize he had been staring. With a polite smile he apologized though if the driver looked a little too long into his eyes he could see it wasn't heartfelt. Regardless if the ginger cat noticed or not, the driver continued to guide the tux up to the building, past the grand fountain sitting in front of it. Up the stair cases and suddenly he was in the entrance hall.
It was immense and grand. The floor beneath him was solid stone, as were the walls but everything seemed warm. Flags hung off the walls and carpets lined the floors. Plants, armor, and statues filled the empty spaces, but what most intrigued him were the cats. Every single one he could see was a tom and not a single one could be hardly older than him. The toms ranged from all sorts of sizes and ages; their pelts being of varying colors and patterns as well. There was one common fact with all of them, though. They were all staring at him. Now for a cat who had never been outside his home before the attentions of Mungo and Rumple were enough but for all these cats looking at him… His pelt seemed to burn from their intense gazes.
The driver beckoned him forward and so he moved forward. The pair continued to march forward and up to a grand staircase as all of the little pairs of eyes continued to watch. A couple whispered. A couple snickered. One even outright laughed.
"I think you picked up the wrong cat, Skimbleshanks!" A tom called out from the silence. Quaxo nervously turned to look and was met with a sneer. The tom was all grey with the slightest hint of blue and his amber eyes bore down onto the poor little tux. He chuckled to his nearby friends who laughed back with him as they realized the new comer was looking at them. As the cat was on the second story and looking down into the hall, he leaned over the rail to point at Quaxo. "Yeah, you! Aren't you a little too old to be coming here all brand spanking new?"
Skimbleshanks looked back at Quaxo pityingly as the tux ducked his head at their new roar of laughter. He held an arm out and guided the teen up the stairs. They continued in silence, the laughter dying behind them and the talking resuming then fading as they moved further away.
"Don't mind, Serinas." Skimbleshanks said quietly. "He's just a little misguided." Quaxo had nothing to say to that so he simply said nothing and let the silence engulf them once more. The tom sure had seemed like he meant to hurt Quaxo all just for a good laugh. Maybe he wouldn't have to stay here long. Maybe they'd let him go back home. Maybe-
"Okay here you go," Skimble announced as they stopped in front of a grand oak door. Nervously the tux rubbed his arm. He didn't have to go in there, did he? "Just knock on the door and enter when you're told, okay?" Great, looks like he did have to go in there. The teen nodded in solemn acknowledgement before Skimbleshanks turned around to leave him by going back the way they came. Alone, Quaxo was left to face the door alone. He hesitated for a second but brought up the courage to knock on the door once… Knock! The noise seemed loud compared to the silence. Twice. Knock! Still no answer came from behind the door. Just as he raised his hand to knock again a voice called out.
"Enter."
Nervously he grabbed the handle to the door and rotated it and pushed it. In once sweeping arch the door opened and revealed the regal office it had hidden. Shelves of books and books lined the walls as well as a fireplace which crackled warmly. A desk was presented in front of him and all sorts of papers and pens and inkwells and other things he could not name littered about it. He expected someone to be seated in the grand chair placed on the other side of the desk but no such person was there. Instead a voice called him to look towards the fire. Three large, comfortable looking chairs were arranged cozily around it. It took him a moment to realize, but one of the chairs was occupied. Under the blue eyes of Quaxo the figure rose to full height. It was a tall, slender, and young looking tom. His eyes glittered gold in the firelight and his fur reflected the light to make them too, appear like gold. A loose black blouse was fitted on him and did nothing to hide the slender muscle underneath it. Nor did the slim black pants hide the powerful muscles on his legs. The figure took a step forward, his eyes intense on Quaxo before he walked over to the desk. The golden and black tail flicked around his legs sophisticatedly as he leaned over to read something.
"Quaxo, is it?" His voice sounded like velvet now that it wasn't muffled by the door. The tux straightened upon hearing his name and nodded in response to the question.
"Y-yes."
"Ah," The older tom said with a smile. "Well that name is now, let me see, Mistoffelees. And from what I heard, Mistoffelees, you caused quite a commotion upon your collection." The tux wasn't sure about this new name thing but it was obvious the tom wasn't going to call him Quaxo again so he better get used to this Mistoffelees thing. It didn't seem terrible, but just a mouthful to say. "With only saying your first name… Amazing." The tom gave him an admiring glance before looking back at the paper.
"Uh… Who are you?"
"Me?" The tom looked up for a moment, fixing him with a fierce stare. "I am called the Rum Tum Tugger. I am the headmaster of this school." As Quaxo or Mistoffelees, whoever he was supposed to be, looked at him in confusion the headmaster gave a sigh.
"You don't know anything, do you?" He waited for Quaxo to give him a negative shake of his head before he continued. "Mistoffelees, you are gifted with the power of magic. All the toms at this school are. You see, this magic is a strictly Jellicle gene. So if a Jellicle mated with a human there is no chance of passing it on. A Jellicle with another Jellicle is another matter entirely. If the gene is present in one of the parents the resulting children are carriers of the gene but do not actively possess the gene and thus do not have magical powers. When both parents carry the gene the resulting children are magical. The only thing is there are no queens here, are there? The gene is active only in males, and the females are merely carriers. It is a one in seven hundred thousand chance that a Jellicle possessing the gene with mate with another who also carries the gene, but if they do the chance is one hundred percent the first born child will be a male and the male will have magical abilities. The rest of the offspring follow the normal patterns." Mistoffelees paused to think for a second but looked up as the headmaster spoke the last few sentences.
"But my sister is older than me. How can that be true?" The headmaster didn't even look down.
"It's rather obvious. You are not the second born, but the third. Your parents had a son before you. He came here as well. I met him." His gaze bore into Mistoffelees but the younger tom felt that somehow the coon wasn't looking at him.
"What happened to him? Why have I never met him?"
"He died," The headmaster sighed and looked away. "He died, Mistoffelees." A sudden rush of cold ran up Mistoffelees' spine. He had a brother. He had a brother who died and his parents never once spoke about him. Not even in passing. "And that is the reason why your parents hid you all these years. How they did it is a miracle in itself. The cake you ate every year suppressed your magical abilities until your birthday came again the next year. Normally a magic cat would gain his abilities as early as the age three and as late as age nine. To suppress your magic for so long is remarkable and I'm honestly surprised you haven't died."
"Oh." So his parents had shut him up away to protect him. To keep him. Because they loved him…. Oh how stupid the reason for hating them seemed now. They were just trying to love him and keep him from following his brother's footsteps. It was sweet, but he wished he had known.
"Yes and it's an illegal thing to do. Did you know that? There is a law saying that after the age of five if a cat has magical abilities they are to be given to the nearest School of Magic? That's where we come in," The tom gestured around him. "This is Elliot's School for Gifted Toms, owned and operated by yours truly." The Maine Coon offered the tux a smile that was not returned, but the tom continued on regardless. "And from now on until you reach… reach the proper age you will be staying here."
"Until I reach the proper age?" The headmaster looked down on him sternly, his jaw set in a firm line.
"Yes."
"Oh." To Mistoffelees it sounded like the coon had something more to say but it was becoming clear that he wasn't going to say anything. The headmaster sighed and pressed his palm to his forehead.
"You need to stop saying that."
"What?"
"Oh."
"Oh- I mean okay."
"Don't start on that one either."
"Y-yes, um, sir?"
"Better," The coon shook his head and looked back down to the desk to shuffle through the stacks of information until he came across a certain paper. Quickly he separated it from the rest and held it out to Mistoffelees who took it curiously. Across the paper was his name:
QUAXO MISTOFFELEES XXXXXX
With a finger he pointed to the name and looked up to the Rum Tum Tugger who raised an eyebrow in return.
"Why are both Quaxo and Mistoffelees on here?"
"Ah, you really are green aren't you?" The headmaster shook his head sadly. "Your parents certainly made this difficult for us. You see, every cat has three names. The first is the most common kind of name, the kind humans use. The second is unique to each cat but it is still commonly used. The third name is the only name that the Jellicle himself knows and would never tell anyone." Mistoffelees popped open his mouth but the coon raised a hand before he could.
"I know you don't know. Quaxo is your first, Mistoffelees your second, and the third is left over for you to discover yourself. I can't tell you what it is." Once again the coon looked away from Mistoffelees' eyes. This tom was starting to do that so often that warning bells would go off in the tux's mind. He's keeping something from you! Mistoffelees shook off the thought.
"Oh- I mean okay- I mean I understand." The headmaster sighed and took a step closer to the younger tom. With a large hand he reached out and cupped Mistoffelees' chin. The act alone was so sudden and bizarre it caused a little bristle to go up the back of the tux's neck. For Mistoffelees the seconds ticked by slowly with just the tom looking dead into his eyes with no emotion. It didn't take long for the teen to become uncomfortable and look away. "Um…"
"Right," The headmaster released his hold and the tux gratefully pulled his chin back down. The coon turned his head to yell over his shoulder but his eyes remained fixated on Mistoffelees. "Macavity."
Silently a tall figure stepped up from somewhere behind the headmaster. The tom easily could tower over Mistoffelees and if that weren't enough his entire being screamed that he was fierce. The fur covering his face was a chaotic array of stripes of red and black and as the fur fanned out away from his face the colors grew with shades of white and gold. It was a wild look but it seemed to fit the cat just fine. The tom in question appeared very much at ease and looked over at Mistoffelees with an aristocratic eye.
"You called?" His voice was surprisingly deep and smooth despite the crazy pattern on his fur. The voice alone made him much more sophisticated so Mistoffelees thought it couldn't be all bad. The intense, yet lazy, gaze kind of frightened him though. His eyes appeared to be the ones of a madman; the tux desperately wished this was not the case. The headmaster finally looked away from the tux to greet the newcomer.
"Yes, take Mistoffelees here and show him around."
"Of course," The striped cat replied easily but gave Mistoffelees a sideways glance and a faint grin.
'I'm not sure what that look means…' Mistoffelees thought a little to himself and inwardly shrunk away from the cat. 'But I don't think it's a good sign.'
The headmaster tapped a finger thoughtfully on the large ruby ring he wore on his left hand. Upon closer inspection there were smaller stones surrounding it. Mistoffelees didn't know a whole lot about stones but he could see that one was a white diamond, another was a sapphire, and there was even a topaz set in the ring as well. The ring had so many stones in it that there were three left over that Mistoffelees could not name: a brown looking stone with stripes of lighter shade of brown, one stone was a deep evergreen with splashes of what looked like red paint on it, and an almost completely blue stone that swirls with all shades ranging from baby blue to a deep Navy Blue. The ring itself was almost gaudy looking but the headmaster wore it so well that it was almost easy to look over it.
"Go then. I have things to take care of," The headmaster turned to look further into the study and walked up to one of the shelves of books, clearly intent on finding a particular volume. Mistoffelees watched him walk away and then slowly, almost dreadfully, he turned to Macavity. The fellow teen gave him a soft, lazy smile before walking out of the office. As the door threatened to close behind Macavity, Mistoffelees gave himself one hesitating moment before he decided to follow and proceeded to dash out of the room to follow in the other's wake.
XXX222222XXX
Macavity led him through all sorts of different halls, and there seemed to be one for every occasion imaginable. There was the Hall of Feasts were all of the meals were held, the Hall of Mastery which really was just a hallway filled with portraits of famous Magic Cats in history, the Hall of Time could also really be called the library but a long time ago there was a reason for it being named so but it had long since become a mystery, the Hall of the Arts was a large room that usually was filled with instruments and art supplies because it doubled as a classroom for both music and art but on certain occasions all of that was cleared and it would be used as a ballroom, the Hall of Games was more of like a storage area for the trophies for the different sports played at the school and the area to store equipment for such games- when Macavity went on to list the different sports played, Mistoffelees was lost. He had not heard of any of the games before-. The last area they stopped at was outside of the school.
As they headed out past the fountain, Macavity pointed to the distant structure that Mistoffelees had noticed before.
"Over there is our Duel Arena for where we hold our competitions with the other schools. Our Dueling Team also practices there," As if on cue an array of sparks flew out from the center and exploded into the sky like fireworks. Mistoffelees was a little lost for words at that. They used magic on each other here at this school? The inevitable flashback to the fate of his now late uncle ran through his mind and was quickly accompanied by a shudder. He would rather not go through all that again.
"And here is the Game Zone," Macavity swept his arm in an arch in front of him. Mistoffelees peered but was a little disappointed at what he saw. In front of them was just a simple little section of wood fenced off. It didn't appear to be anything special.
"What's that all about?" Macavity gave him another of his signature grins that still had not ceased to make the tux's skin crawl.
"That, my dear Mistoffelees, is where all of the dangerous beasts are held for our Annual Right Ceremony and other occasions," Macavity walked up to the fence and placed a hand on the lock that sealed the gate into the Game Zone closed. "You see, every year we have a competition of sorts for all of the Jellicles who think they are ready to graduate. We throw them in here," he taps the gate and it shudders as the links clink together. "And whoever survives the night passes."
"W-what if they don't?" Mistoffelees asked quietly and Macavity took a terrorizing step towards him, bringing their faces just inches apart. If the tux's heart could have stopped beating out of fear, right then would have been the moment.
"Then they are dead."
Dead silence echoed around them and Macavity held his stance for a long while. The terrified Mistoffelees couldn't pull his eyes away from the bright amber gaze of Macavity so the taller tom was the first to break away and look towards the castle.
"Let me see your schedule so we can get you to the proper classes tomorrow."
"Tomorrow?" Macavity sighed.
"Yes."
"I thought they would have-"
"Given you a break? No the school year is well underway. Just hand me your schedule." Reluctantly Mistoffelees handed over the paper he had been toting around for the entire day. Carefully Macavity undid the folds that the tux had made and skimmed through the paper. The funny thing was that the moment he looked at the top he smiled. A genuine grin with pure radiating glee and it turned Mistoffelees' blood into ice. That definitely wasn't a good thing. The other cat said nothing, though; it didn't take long for the grand cat to finish reading through the paper before handing it back to the tux.
"They have you getting up early with the younglings to attend the Magic Safety class," He stalked off for the castle, leaving Mistoffelees to fumble with the paper before running after him. "That class is on the first floor with the rest of the younger classes. You do not need to feel so bad. We were all there once."
Mistoffelees rubbed his arm quietly. It was true he felt kind of dumb when Macavity mentioned that it was on the first floor with the young kids. Being called cutie by Rumple and Mungo was enough but now he was being put with the little kids. Oh how he could hear the laughter of Serinas and his crew again. Wasn't he just off to a fantastic start?
The pair walked back into the entrance hall and Macavity turned off to the side to lead him through a hallway. The door that now appeared in front of him was closed and had a sign on it:
Magic Safety Class
(1st, 3rd, 5th, 7th)
"What's with the numbers?"
"The numbers are for the periods the class will be in session. You have the first block," Macavity said simply and leaned over the smaller tom's shoulder. The taller tom tapped on the paper in Mistoffelees' hand to not the time. "That's when you are to be in the class, seated, and waiting for instruction." The other tom was so close that Mistoffelees could easily scent the warm spice that seemed to radiate off of him. It was intoxicating and seemed to suit the cat's personality very well. Mysterious yet refined.
"Okay," The heavy presence slowly moved away from his shoulder and Mistoffelees let out a sigh of relief.
"Onto the next class then…"
They went around to his different classes then. For his second block he had Basic First, whatever that was about; He had Music third, how odd to have a normal class; Animal Studies as his fourth; Survival for fifth; His six block was free and he was allowed to do as he pleased; and Stones of the World was his seventh. For all of his classes they at least made a little sense but Stones of the World? What in the world was the purpose of that?
"I suppose I have to show you where you're going to be staying now," Macavity said as he looked over the paper one last time to make sure he didn't forget anything. His tail flickered as he handed the paper carelessly back to Mistoffelees once again and made his way forward. By now Mistoffelees could fold the paper without looking at it and walk after the tom so he didn't have to chase after him. They made their way across the third floor and headed to the stairs to go to the fourth.
"So…" Mistoffelees began and Macavity raised a brow as a way of an acknowledgement. "How old are you?"
"I am seventeen."
Silence.
"I'm fifteen," The tux offered but the older tom just looked back at him disdainfully.
"That is nice."
Silence.
"Do you ever see your parents?"
At this Macavity halted and gave Mistoffelees a harsh glare. Suddenly the taller tom seemed to loom dangerously over the tux, who shrank a little inside.
"Never ask me that again. Understand?"
"Okay, whatever you say, Macavity!" Mistoffelees held his hands up protectively until the other tom slowly backed off and continued walking. With a relieved sigh Mistoffelees quickly followed after. With the failure of his attempt at conversation he let himself and Macavity walk in silence.
The walk was mostly uneventful… mostly.
Macavity opened the door to Mistoffelees' room slowly. He peeked his head in before he let the door continue in its arch. The pair walked into the circular room and the tux took in the sight of what was going to be his home for a while. It was pretty much what he expected: beds and trucks arranged around the room. A few windows lined the walls and these were heavily curtained. Besides the beds the furniture in the room was plain. A furnace sat in the middle to warm the room; nightstands stood by every bed. It was all the same and screamed at Mistoffelees: UNIFORMALITY!
Obviously the current occupants of the room didn't get the memo. One of the beds was littered with books and books and more books. The nightstand didn't go unscathed either because it was littered with sheets of paper as well. Despite the fact the pieces of literature were everywhere; it was surprisingly set in neat orderly piles- no doubt alphabetical as well. The bed next to it was extremely different. Whoever was the owner had discarded the cream sheets and quilt that was on every bed but instead was completely black. He had even painted the frame black. It was like a dark spot on the rest of the room. Another subtle difference was that the black curtains hanging around the frame were drawn around it, announcing that the owner was home. Nervously Mistoffelees shuffled away from that bed, but Macavity had other ideas.
The tall tom marched right up to the curtains and whipped them back in a flash. The sight revealed made Mistoffelees' face grow hot and immediately he looked away. Macavity glared down, unabashed, at the two toms on the bed. A small white tom squeaked at the sudden light, his black ears pressed down frightfully on his head. His big emerald eyes looked up at Macavity and nearly squeaked again. Immediately the tiny tom began to writhe as he was caught… underneath a fellow tom. The lanky black tom had barely changed his position since the sheet was flung open. Lazily the tom turned his head to look up at the intruding figure. The black tom had his hand still up the white tom's shirt, revealing the cute little black heart on the short tom's chest, and a hand in the fur on his head. The smaller tom was currently occupied with the task of trying to pull his shirt back down, blushing all the while.
"Get a room, Clyde." Macavity's said, Mistoffelees was sure even though he had turned away. The floor was really interesting from this angle…
"This is a room, Mac," Was the easy reply. That obviously had to be the black tom.
"You know I wouldn't be able to sleep knowing you guys were fooling around back here."
"W-we weren't doing anything terrible!" Squeaked the new voice and Mistoffelees had no doubt that it was the white tom. Aw, surprisingly his voice was really cute.
"…Says the tom with a hand up his shirt."
"Clyde!" The white tom whined.
"Sorry Harm." There was a soft shuffle of clothing and Mistoffelees turned around to find the two now sitting up. Clyde was sitting up comfortably and looked like nothing had happened while Harm picked at his now wrinkled blue t-shirt. Macavity shook his head and gestured to the pair for Mistoffelees.
"This is Clyde," A sort of half-hearted wave from Mr. Black. "And Harmonium." At this the white tom dipped his head shyly. "Clyde, Harmonium, this is Mistoffelees." Mistoffelees had half a mind to duck away as well but forced himself to smile and offer a tiny wave. The two nodded at him and mumbled in a way of greeting. Clyde meanwhile slipped his hand over Harm's and the white tom blushed. Macavity sighed and rested his hands on his hips.
"Well go on then, get out of here and find somewhere else to frolic," Macavity suggested a bit sternly but the two were obviously used to it and immediately Clyde swept to his feet and pulled Harm after him, and so the two left the room, hand in hand. Now that Mistoffelees and the striped tom were alone again, the tux turned, wide-eyed, to his companion.
"What was that! Those were two guys! Doing… Doing… That!"
"Calm down, Mistoffelees," The older tom raised his hands to silence the shorter cat. The tux looked up at the taller tom with large blue eyes, begging for an explanation. "It is called homosexuality, or being gay. When a guy like other guys or when girls like other girls."
"Well why would they go and do something like that?"
"Sometimes it is all they know from being here as long as they remember," Macavity said wisely and looked away from the blue orbs with a sigh. "Look, I got to go. I have a class to get to. Make yourself at home. The empty bed is yours."
With that the tom turned and left the room as well, and Mistoffelees was alone once again. With a sigh the tux sat on the only vacant bed and looked around his living quarters quietly with nothing to do but wait. He didn't even have any of his belongings from his home to distract him. So the tux sat in idle thought as the day slowly waned away.
It's finally all done! I hope I didn't go out of character with anyone, I tried really hard not to. Let me know what you think!
By the way this was 24 pages in Microsoft word. That's a lot of writing for one chapter! No wonder why it took so long!
As for the next chapter, I probably won't be able to get it up until after christmas because I'm leaving the day after christmas and coming back Jan 3. The entire time I will be gone I will have no access to the internet, but I will have my laptop so I will try to work on it.
Review please!