A/N: A couple things I'd like to clear up: first of all, Alonzo is a son of Old Deuteronomy in this, and Jemima (even though she's not in this chapter) is the daughter of Munkustrap and Demeter. Enjoy!
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Silhouetted against the rising sun slowly peeking above the horizon, there stood a figure. A tall, strong figure diligently and silently keeping watch over a junkyard. His junkyard.
Munkustrap, the protector of the Jellicle tribe, quietly surveyed the landscape around him. He had lived in this junkyard his entire life – at least, as long as he could remember. And some day, he was going to rule it, just like his father, Old Deuteronomy, his grandfather, and all his great-grandfathers before him. It was in his blood.
"Aaagh! What the –" yelled a voice, shattering the tranquility. From the sound of it, a cat had just been pounced upon.
The victim wrenched his head around to see his attacker: a black tom with a wild mane and leopard spots on his chest and paws. "Tugger!" the victim growled.
Tugger chuckled. "Boy, you should've seen the look on your fa–" he was cut off as the other cat surged up and pinned him to the ground. "Alonzo, get your dirty paws off me!" He batted at the black and white tom.
He jumped off as Tugger stood up. "Who are you calling dirty, playboy?"
A warning growl rumbled in Tugger's throat as he let his claws slide out.
Alonzo screamed.
Tugger gave a little leap forward, causing Alonzo to turn and flee. He chuckled. "Whatcha runnin' from, Lonzy?" With a friendly – yet intimidating – snarl, he streaked after him.
And so a round-the-junkyard chase ensued, both toms nimbly weaving under, over, and in-between obstacles. "This'll teach you to call me 'playboy'!" Tugger threatened.
Alonzo shot a quick glance over his shoulder. "You just don't want to admit it's true! Come on! You know I'm right!"
Tugger growled ferociously and picked up the pace.
Alonzo followed suit, determined to stay ahead of Tugger. Unfortunately, he was too focused on running that he failed to see Munkustrap, who stood staring off into the distance, fantasizing about the day he would rule the junkyard. He slammed into him, feeling Tugger slam into him from behind.
Munkustrap let out a screech as something crashed into him, snapping him out of his daydream and bowling him over. Immediately, he leapt up, brushing the dust off his tabby pelt before glaring down at his attackers. He recognized them as his two younger brothers. "Tugger! Alonzo!" he scolded. "What do you think you're doing?"
They looked at each other. "Um, having fun?" Alonzo ventured.
Munkustrap glared at him. "What's your game called, 'Attack the Jellicle Protector'?"
"Jeez, Munk," Tugger snorted, "didn't you see us coming?"
"What's more important is, why didn't you see me standing there?"
"Oh, sorry." Alonzo was clearly trying not to laugh. "Did we catch you in the middle of thinking about your destiny again?" Something about the tone of his voice told Munkustrap that his brother didn't quite understand the importance of being Jellicle Protector.
"Seriously, bro," Tugger pitched in, "lighten up a little! You gotta try to enjoy yourself every once in a while!"
The tabby snarled at the young toms. "Oh, shut up, both of you! You two low-life idiots wouldn't know destiny if it bit you in the a–"
"Munky?" interrupted a quiet female voice.
"Hi, Demmy!" He immediately put on a grin, trying to act as if nothing had happened as his gold and black mate emerged. Quickly turning to his brothers, he snarled in an ominous undertone, "Listen up. If either of you steps out of line ever again . . ." here he held out a paw and allowed a set of very sharp, scary looking claws to slide out. "Now do us all a favor and leave." And those were his last words before he, once again, faced his mate.
She walked up to him and, purring softly, rubbed her cheek against his.
Munkustrap could hear muted snickering. Obviously, Alonzo and Tugger were still there. He shot them a quick look that said, "Scram!" before finally focusing all his attention on Demeter. He had been awfully short-tempered with his brothers recently, though he had no idea why. It was beginning to seem like everything they did made him want to blow up. And with each passing day, it was only getting worse. He had never uttered a curse in his life; and yet, if Demeter hadn't come along when she had . . .
He sighed. He knew little brothers could be annoying. As he was a full-grown, mature adult and they were scarcely out of adolescence, still struggling with all the responsibilities that came with adulthood, he also knew he really shouldn't be that hard on them. They were just being tomcats, and there wasn't anything wrong with that.
Or maybe . . . was part of the problem him? Was he too strict? Should he lighten up, like they said? It was almost as if he had no idea how to have fun. He felt like such an outcast sometimes.
"Munky? Munkustrap? What's wrong, hon?" Demeter's voice snapped him out of his thoughts.
"Huh?"
"You sighed."
"Er . . . I guess I did. It's, um, it-it's nothing. Really."
He felt her paw squeeze his. She knew something was troubling him.
He looked at her, and his brown eyes met her concerned blue ones. She blinked tenderly.
"Well," he finally gave in, "it's just that . . . do you think I'm too strict?"
Demeter's tail found his. They twined together as she consoled him, "I love you just the way you are."
Munkustrap couldn't help but crack a smile at that, but he persisted: "Do you think I'm too strict on others? I mean, I nearly clawed the noses off Alonzo and Tugger back there when they were just trying to have a good time."
Demeter paused.
"They told me I should lighten up. Do you think that's true? Are they right? Am I just a boring, lifeless work-a-holic who never tries to have fun? Honestly, Demmy, I feel so out of place sometimes. Sometimes I just feel like . . . like I don't belong here."
"What? Munky, don't be ridiculous."
"Well, think about it. Have you ever known me to do something completely spontaneous and reckless? I think I take things way too seriously."
"Now you're just not thinking straight. Listen. You've been up all night and that's probably just made you feel a little crabby. It happens to all of us. And besides, you should know that younger siblings aren't always easy to deal with. Take Bombalurina, for example. She's always telling me about her 'wonderful night out' with the toms. According to her, having a wild late-night party is loads of fun. I just think it's stupid. I remember one time, she came back from her night out long after midnight, and she slept through the whole next day. Sure, the experience itself might be fun, but what about the aftereffects? Look, the point I'm trying to make is, little siblings can make you feel, well, a little 'out of it' sometimes. But the best thing to do is ignore it, and be happy with who you are."
He stared at her for a long moment. "I guess you're right," he finally granted. As he began to pad away with Demeter at his side, a quiet voice sounded inside his head. But why don't I feel convinced?
