Brace Yourself
Pouncival called out into the air, knowing no one would be able to hear his cries. He could feel the pressure smashing against him as a small trickle of blood ran from his mouth. It felt so cold…not to mention painful as the devilish poison ran down his throat. He choked and mewed loudly, although his throat was as dry as it was. He was desperate for someone to save him from this numbingly powerful pain. To his relief, his human answered...
"Come now, Mr. Boingy," the female human said. "The cement can't be that bad. They're only braces."
'Braces!' Pouncival thought. 'What the heck are braces!'
The poor cat thought back to a recent time in his living room.
"Hon, look at this," the female said to the male human.
Pouncival looked up slightly, not really paying attention as he played with his toy mouse.
"What is it?" the male asked.
The human queen pointed to a spot on the page that she was on. The two humans looked on together before they turned to their cat.
"Here, Boingy!" the human tom called.
Pouncival rolled his eyes. 'I might as well humor them,' he thought as he trotted over and hopped in the girl's lap. What happened next wasn't quite what he expected.
"Now open up," the flesh-queen stated as she pried his mouth open and looked at his teeth. Pouncival gave a gurgled meow from the back of his throat.
"I'm glad they have this new product out," his mistress continued. "Because you definitely need it, Mr. Boingy."
'So that's what they were talking about…,' Pouncival thought as the vet called out.
"All done."
She held a mirror in front of the young tom's face…Most likely to see how he'd react for human humor, of course.
Pouncival gasped.
"Oh no!" he meowed. "What have they done to me! What will the other Jellicles think!...And what are those stinking square things on my teeth!"
Electra and Tumblebrutus sat side by side in the Jellicle Junkyard, sleepily leaning on each other in the summer heat. The young queen of the duo yawned as the tom made the same movement of his mouth…only his open mouth remained.
"Tumblebrutus?" Electra asked worriedly towards the gaping tom. "What's wrong, love?"
Tumblebrutus didn't speak, but continued to gape as he pointed towards the entrance. Electra followed his gaze until her mouth fell open as well.
"Why is Pouncival's mouth so shiny?" she asked. "His teeth aren't that clean, are they?"
"Let's go find out…," Tumblebrutus stated as he took his mate's paw and they trotted over to Pouncival.
"Pouncival!" Electra called. Pouncival turned to his sister, his mouth still closed as he tilted his head.
"Why is your mouth so shiny?" Tumble finished for the queen.
Pouncival stared at the two for a minute before he flashed a huge grin.
"AHHHH!" Electra screeched. "What is all that stuff on your teeth!...I-It's blinding me!" She pointed at Pouncival's mouth while Tumblebrutus stared with wide eyes.
Pouncival sighed.
"My humans call them braces," he said. "They're supposed to straighten my teeth. I've seen human kittens wear them before. So now they have them for us Jellicles."
Electra and Tumblebrutus stared blankly at him for a moment…before the pair burst out laughing.
Pouncival hissed at them…only to make his friends laugh even more, for the effect of hissing with braces on was an amusing endeavor to them.
"What's so funny about them!" he demanded.
Tumblebrutus caught his breath.
"It's just so funny that you've got all that metal stuff in your mouth!...And you're a cat too!...None of us have all that junk!" he said. Electra nodded.
Pouncival huffed and stormed off to a different section of the junkyard, away from the two teasing him. He sat down on the tire and sighed. The young tom was about to lie down when a noise came from behind him…Actually, it was more like a giggle…followed by a:
"Shh!"
Pouncival ignored the sound.
"'Ey, Pounci!" the giggler called to him. "Whoitcha all mopey fa?"
Pouncival sighed. He knew he couldn't ignore Mungojerrie and Rumpleteazer much longer. Therefore, he was found to be correct when Mungo flipped him around.
"Ya 'eard me sista," he said. "So answa 'er."
Pouncival stared at the dynamic duo before he bared his teeth impatiently. Rumpleteazer giggled with delight.
"Yup…," Pouncival stated. "I knew you two would laugh at me as well."
Teazer cocked her head.
"Oi! Oi'm not laughin' at ya," she said. "Oi wanted ta know…Does tha stoiff come oiff?
Pouncival pouted.
"I wish it would…," he muttered.
"Well, moibe we can 'elp wi' tha'!" Rumpleteazer squealed ecstatically. She glanced at her brother, and, after a while, he seemed to understand the "plan".
Pouncival looked at the two curiously.
"What are you going to do?" he asked anxiously, afraid of what the troublesome duo might unleash upon him.
"Oi, it won' 'urt…moich…," Jerrie grinned mischievously. The queen of the two calicos pinned Pouncival down while the tom prepared to pry the "shiny" metal out of his mouth.
Pouncival meowed in protest, but it was to no affect.
'Great,' he thought. 'This is going to hurt so much…'
Demeter padded softly into the junkyard, slightly calmer than usual. She began to trot towards the TSE 1 when she heard a cat's cry of pain to her side. The black and gold queen jumped, making herself panic by assuming it was Macavity. She cautiously turned her head, sighing with relief when she saw Mungojerrie and Rumpleteazer over… 'Wait! What are they doing?' Demeter thought, making her way over to the two. She then realized that they happened to be hovering over Pouncival, whom was mewing loudly.
"What are you doing!" she demanded.
Jerrie and Teazer turned abruptly when they heard the queen's voice. They smiled innocently and backed away from their captive before running off into the junk piles.
Demeter rushed towards the young tom.
"What happened?" she asked worriedly.
Pouncival groaned slightly from his place on the ground. He bared his teeth in despise towards the two cat burglars, and Demeter gasped.
"Everlasting Cat!" she squealed. "What happened to you?"
Her eyes then became dark and cloudy as she whispered in a mysterious tone.
"Macavity didn't get to you…did he?"
Pouncival rolled his eyes and smiled.
"No, Dem," he said. He then explained what he had explained to so many others about his braces.
Soon the Jellicle Ball arrived for the tribe. Pouncival was his hyper self again by the time Jellicles began to arrive for the dancing festivities. The young tom bounced down from his chair and chatted with his friends as Tugger made his usual entrance…with some difficultly, seeing as Etcetera had a hold of him…
One by one, the Jellicles made their way towards the clearing of the junkyard. Electra and Tumblebrutus left Pouncival on his own after a while so they could dance together in the moonlight.
Pouncival sighed.
'I knew these braces would be trouble…,' he thought back. 'Now I'm left all alone…at THE Jellicle Ball…without my friends…'
The young cat showed signs of trouble in his expression, unnoticing of Old Deuteronomy's entrance.
Deuteronomy entered the junkyard, cats nuzzling him this way and that. The old cat began to step towards his tire-perch when Demeter shrieked.
"MACAVITY!"
The cats arched their backs at Demeter's warning, fleeing from the clearing. Pouncival awakened from his trance and realized what was going on in a matter of seconds. He turned to flee with the rest, but a large mound of fur blocked his passage.
"Hey!" he yelled involuntarily. The young tom then froze as he recognized the fur mass in front of him. He turned his face slowly upwards to meet eye-to-eye with none other than The Napoleon of Crime himself!
'I can't show that I'm scared…,' Pouncival thought frantically as Macavity grinned evilly down at him. Pouncival bared his teeth and hissed in self defense, knowing it was no use…BUT!
"AHHHH!" Macavity yelped upon seeing the reflection of the sun on Pouncival's braces.
"It's. To. Bright!" he screamed. Pouncival then realized what he was talking about and smiled as widely as he could.
"No!" the ginger cat continued to scream as he started to back away. "That stuff is too bright! I'm never coming back here again!"
He then fled the junkyard, tripping over various objects here and there in his desperate attempts to get out. The tall ginger tom finally escaped past the gates of the junkyard, and Pouncival closed his mouth, for the smile was starting to hurt.
The other Jellicles gawked at where the Napoleon of Crime had just been, eventually averting their gaze to Pouncival, whom was smirking like a mad cat.
Electra finally spoke against the silence.
"D-did he just say that he's never coming back?" the young queen stuttered. She looked anxiously at Pouncival as he slowly nodded, realization dawning.
The cats turned to look at Demeter, waiting for a confirmation, for they knew that Deme could sense if Macavity really meant it.
The golden queen held a very sober expression on her face, and the Jellicles became worried UNTIL Demeter suddenly broke into a wide grin and meowed her reassurance that they would no longer be bothered by the ginger cat.
And so it became that Pouncival was worshipped as the "Savior of the Jellicles", every year on that night was one of celebrating, and walking sugar cookies became a custom in London………Uh…disregard that last thing.
The Moral of the Story: Never give me sugar before I write a fanfic…'cause this is the result…MUHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! cough
What?
Pouncival: glares at me
ET: What did I do!
All: Get her!
ET: Meep!
The End