Disclaimer: Last time I checked, I didn't own Cats.
A/N: Yeah, next chappie! Hurray! Thanks to everyone who read and reviewed! We get to see a little more of Elijah's soft side and attitude in this one, for those of you that like this OC! Enjoy!
Rumpleteazer groggily opened her eyes to see the unfamiliar concrete ceiling of her new sleeping area instead of the brick walls of an alley towering over her that she had become accustomed to. She felt a rush of panic surge through her as she tried to remember where she was. Lifting her head to get a better look around, she put it back down almost immediately as she felt it start to pound something fierce. It was like someone was banging a hammer against it, and they wouldn't stop.
She let out an almost inaudible moan of pain as the rest of her body started to wake up. It felt sore all over, and she was shivering constantly even though she knew she wasn't cold. To put it bluntly, she felt horrible. She tilted her head so that she was looking out over the room, and noticed that at least fifteen henchcats were gone. The ones that weren't gone were still fast asleep. 'Teazer figured she was the only one awake. The lightening sky outside the large rectangular window beside her told her that it was still very early in the morning, that it was barely even dawn.
Closing her eyes, she let her new-found exhaustion pull her into a fitful sleep.
After what seemed like a few minutes, she suddenly felt her herself being shaken awake. Someone was faintly calling her name. Opening her eyes, she saw a face almost identical to hers frowning down at her. It was Mungojerrie.
"C'mon sleepey-'ead! You've got ta ge' up! Eloijah's gonna be 'ere any minute!"He said urgently, oblivious to his sister's pain. When all he got was a blank stare and a quiet moan of pain in response, he grew worried.
'Teazer winced slightly as her the back of her brother's cool paw rested on her burning forehead. As quickly as the paw came, it left. She gazed up at her brother for a verdict.
"Oh no...This is bad...Oi'll go ge' Eloijah. Troiy not ta move!"'Jerrie warned her, and quickly climbed down the ladder. When he got to the ground, he took off running, weaving through the numerous henchcats as he made his way to the double-doors.
Mungojerrie looked around frantically for the black, blue-eyed tom he had met yesterday. Unbeknownst to him, he was heading straight for him. Elijah was standing with his back to him, mingling with a group of henchcats.
'Jerrie's frantic search was suddenly cut short as he felt himself collide with another cat. He didn't have time to react as the tom swung his arm around and punched him right in the jaw.
"What the fu-oh it's you, Mungojerrie, I'm so sorry!"Elijah's vulgar outburst was replaced with an apology as he recognized the bewildered calico tom that had crashed into him. He reached a paw out to help him up.
'Jerrie stretched his paw out and let Elijah pull him up, while he rubbed his now sore jaw. "Ya sure can punch, Eloijah. But tha's not whot Oi came to foind ya fo'. 'Teazah got worse. Oi don' know whot's wrong with 'er!"His voice was full of desperation.
Elijah's brow furrowed in concern. "It's alright; she's going to be fine. Let's go see her."He said reassuringly as he led 'Jerrie to the column where his and 'Teazer's beds were. Elijah quickly climbed the ladder and crawled onto her bed. 'Jerrie followed, but sat at the foot of the bed. He gazed at his sister, who looked different than when he left her. He remembered she was shivering quite a bit, but now it looked like her body had gone limp, with only minimal shivering. He also remembered her face was contorted in pain, but now it was relaxed. Her chest rose and fell slightly in correlation with her shallow breathing. She looked eerily peaceful.
Elijah sat beside her and softly called her name. "Rumpleteazer? Can you hear me?"He asked, but only got as much as a twitch of her brow in response. Nodding to himself, he placed the back of his paw on her forehead. As 'Jerrie expected, she winced again and tried to move her head away from the cold paw. Elijah wasn't surprised, though.
He turned to 'Jerrie with his diagnosis. "She's got a fever, the poor thing. It's not a simple cold anymore, it's much worse. I just hope we're not too late."He said morosely as he turned his attention back to 'Teazer. He moved his paw from her forehead down to her chest, where her heart was. 'Jerrie tensed and let out a low warning growl as he observed what he was doing.
Elijah smirked slightly as he closed his eyes to try and block out any distractions or noises other than 'Teazer's breathing and heartbeat. "Don't worry, I'm just checking her breathing and heart rate..."He murmured as he put his free paw up to signal 'Jerrie to be quiet. 'Jerrie stopped growling and studied the black tom's face while he waited. His smirk was still there, but it had turned into more of a content one rather than a cocky one. His face was a picture of serenity as he counted 'Teazer's heartbeats and breaths for a full minute. 'Jerrie was impressed with his calm, gentle treatment of his sister. Any other tom he knew would have no problem touching her in a way that would make him want to beat the tom unconscious.
After a minute, Elijah retracted his paw from 'Teazer's chest and opened his eyes. He shook his head a bit to clear it and get back to reality. He turned to 'Jerrie with that content half-smile still plastered on his face, and his eyes had a hopeful essence to them. "Her breathing's a bit shallow, but that's to be expected. Other than that, it's fine. Her heart rate is higher than I'd like it, but that's also normal for someone with a fever. It's not too high, so that means the fever's hasn't hit her too hard yet. She has a good, fighting chance."His half-smile turned into a full smile as he made his way over to the ladder. "I'm going to get medicine from Dr. Stanley. We should switch places."He explained as he moved aside for 'Jerrie.
'Jerrie nodded as he crawled past Elijah and took his place beside his sister. Elijah proceeded to climb down the ladder and jog out of the room. 'Jerrie smiled after him, happy that someone other than himself actually cared enough about his sister to help her. You didn't find that kindness out on the streets, where it was every cat for themselves. He switched his attention from Elijah to 'Teazer as he saw her stir from out of the corner of his eye.
'Teazer let a slight sigh escape her lips. 'Jerrie picked up a hint of blissfulness in it as he grinned down at her. She gazed up at her brother again, and this time 'Jerrie saw that there was a little bit more life to her eyes than the last time.
"'Jer...? Who was tha'...? Oi couldn' make out their voice..."'Teazer said in a hoarse whisper as her brother took her paw comfortingly in his.
"Tha' was Eloijah, 'Teaze. 'E said ya 'ave a fevah. 'E checked ya ovah an' evreythin'. 'E's gone ta get medicine fo' ya, so you'll feel bettah."'Jerrie reassured his sister in a soft tone. He chuckled as he saw her nose wrinkle at the sound of the word "medicine".
'Teazer soon relaxed her nose and her lips formed a small smile as she thought of something else. "'Is paw felt so noice...Oi could tell 'e was bein' realleh gentle, jus' loike you."She murmured as she closed her eyes again. Her head went limp and lolled to the side.
'Jerrie's smile faded and was replaced with a frown of concern. He hoped Elijah would get back soon. He glanced down and saw that they were drawing the attention of a small crowd of about five toms. Everyone else had gone for breakfast. "Whot ah' they lookin' at? It's loike they've nevah seen a sick cat beyfore!"He thought as he cocked his head down at them. He noticed they didn't look very happy.
Before he could entertain the thought though, he saw Elijah come through the doors on the other end of the room and jog towards him. As he got closer, he slowed to a walk as he too became puzzled as to why the few toms were gathered around the column of beds.
"There's nothing to see here! Don't you toms have better things to do? Get out!"He commanded in the same voice he had used last night. The toms weren't having any of it. They stood their ground and stayed where they were.
One of the braver toms turned towards him and glared daggers at him, like he had done something wrong. "We should be asking you the same question. Since when are sick cats important? I thought Mac' told us they were worthless, and good for nothing but death? Didn't he tell us that one sick cat could end up killing off half the fleet? That queen up there should be thrown out so she doesn't get the rest of us sick! What the hell are you keeping her for, Elijah?"The gray tom sneered while the other four nodded in agreement behind him.
Mungojerrie could feel his hackles rise at the way the tom was speaking about his sister, but he didn't dare climb down and give him a piece of his mind. He was in no condition to fight, and he knew he was outnumbered anyway. Plus, he noticed Elijah had it under control.
Elijah sauntered up to the tom and stared him straight in the eye. In one swift movement, he grabbed his neck and threw the surprised tom into the metal ladder below 'Jerrie. A dull ring rang out from the metal as the tom's skull collided with it. The other toms gave a warning hiss, but were too submissive to even try to attack their superior.
Elijah kept both paws on the gray tom's neck as he struggled to get free from his grasp. Elijah leered up at the tom as he winced and squirmed beneath his grip. "She's my responsibility, not yours. She has a fever, and you dim-witted toms know that fevers aren't contagious. She's none of your concern, boys. As for you, Jake," Elijah lowered his voice so it was barely above a whisper, "I'll let you off with a warning. Talk to me like that again and I'll make sure that that will be the last time I have to hear your cocky voice. Do I make myself clear?"He asked darkly.
But Jake wasn't about to let Elijah put him in his place that fast. "Someone's a little touchy today! I wonder if Elijah's got a crush on the new queen?"Jake asked loud enough so the other toms could hear. Snickers and whoops could be heard coming from the other four toms standing behind Elijah and Jake.
Elijah took a deep breath before he lost his composure to this tom. "He just wants attention again. Don't give him the satisfaction. Control yourself before you snap...Oh, what the hell, this bastard deserves to get beaten up a bit!"Elijah thought as he stared the tom in the eye once more. "You just crossed the line."He smirked as his composure just got thrown out the window. "So much for not giving him the satisfaction...This is going to be fun..."He thought as he removed his right paw from the tom's throat, but kept his left in place.
In the blink of an eye, he punched Jake three times; two in his face and one in his stomach. For each punch Jake tried to fight back, but Elijah was too quick. By the time he punched him in the stomach, Jake hadn't moved so much as his arm. 'Jerrie felt the metal frame of the bed shake with the force of Elijah's punches. Elijah then threw him across the floor, making him stumble and skid on his back, humiliating him in front of his posse. The other toms gave another hiss and stepped back, afraid.
Jake recovered enough to stand up again, albeit shakily. He rubbed his paw across his broken nose and stared down at it wide-eyed as it became smeared with blood. He narrowed his eyes at Elijah who looked back at him, smirking. "You'll pay for this! This isn't over!"The gray tom threatened as he ran out of the room, followed by his posse.
Elijah chuckled as he climbed the ladder to 'Teazer's bed. When he noticed 'Jerrie's bewildered expression, he smiled even more. "Don't worry; they won't be back anytime soon. This isn't the first time I had to deal with Jake. We have our little tiffs every now and then. It's good to have a rival when everyone else is scared of you, I guess."He shrugged.
"Tha' was...impressive. Oi 'ave ta 'and it ta ya; 'e looked tough."'Jerrie complimented as he smiled as well. He cocked his head as he noticed a canteen of water on Elijah's belt that wasn't there before.
Elijah followed his gaze and his face lit up. "Oh, right! 'Teazer's medicine! Sorry, I kind of got sidetracked back there. Help her sit up, ok? She needs to take a pill."He explained as he unclipped the canteen and unzipped his fanny pack to take out a small plastic jar of red-coloured pills. He crawled over to 'Teazer's side as 'Jerrie slid a paw underneath her back on her other side and helped sit her up.
Elijah popped the jar's lid off and took out one of the pills. He replaced the lid and set the jar down as he reached for his canteen. Unscrewing the cap, he put the pill in 'Teazer's mouth that 'Jerrie held open for him and poured some water in her mouth as well. He rubbed her throat until he felt her swallow the pill and then screwed the cap back on his canteen.
'Jerrie set his sister back down as he looked gratefully at Elijah, who was putting the jar of pills back in his fanny pack. He clipped his canteen back on his belt before he noticed 'Jerrie. "What?"He asked, cocking his head at him.
"Thanks. Ya saved moi sistah's loife, ya know. If it wasn' fo' you, she'd be dead, one way or anothah."'Jerrie said softly as he smiled down at his sister.
"No problem. You'd probably do the same for me, anyway. If you want, I can get you something to eat. We both haven't had breakfast, and there's not much more we can do for 'Teazer."He offered, beginning to make his way over to the ladder.
'Jerrie chuckled mirthlessly at his modesty. "'Ardly. Oi don' know a thin' 'bout illnesses. But yeah, Oi would loike some food. Oh yes, can ya get 'Teazah a blanket? She looks cold."He said as Elijah climbed down the ladder.
Elijah nodded and headed off toward the door. Alone, and with nothing else to do while he waited, he began stroking his sister's headfur in an effort to comfort her. After a few minutes, he heard the metal doors slam shut and saw Elijah walking back with two grilled mice in one paw, and a green blanket in the other. He threw one to 'Jerrie and quickly ate the other himself before he threw the blanket up and climbed the ladder.
While 'Jerrie chewed his mouse, he gazed out the large window and over the other buildings of London. He had a good view, so he knew he wouldn't get bored anytime soon while he watched over 'Teazer. When he finished, he reached for the blanket, but saw that Elijah had already laid it on 'Teazer.
Elijah looked past 'Jerrie and out the window. His blue eyes grew wide as he noticed the position of the sun. "Oh shoot, I'll be late for patrol. I'll be back in a few hours, alright? Your sister should be fine for now; just remember to keep her warm and hydrated."He explained as he quickly unclipped his canteen and tossed it over to 'Jerrie. He slid down the ladder and jogged out of the room without another word.
'Jerrie caught the canteen with ease and laid it down beside him. Yawning, he stretched himself out beside 'Teazer and decided to take a nap. The morning's excitement had tired him out considerably. He decided his sister would be fine without him for a couple hours. Closing his eyes, he drifted off to sleep.