Disclaimer: I don't own anything except the stupid demon in this story! I don't own Cats! I repeat, I do not own Cats!
Part 2: Changing Fortunes
Macavity sat inside a star painted on the pavement outside his warehouse home, tapping his black sneakers with white stars on the ankles on the ground impatiently. "Hurry up, Hellfire," he growled, gazing up at the sky. Just then, a dragon soared over head, a great huge dragon with... there must be at least five of them, and... a baby dragon?! Who were these people? Hellfire's smiling flaming mask appeared in front of Macavity, who thrust one gloved hand at the disappearing dragons. "Who're they?"
"Jellicles, I think." Hellfire said. "The witch is called Tanto, short for..." He paused tauntingly.
"Short for what you worthless son of a..."
"Tantomile. Witch cat."
"And the others?" Macavity snarled, grabbing the Hellfire's flaming mask in his gloved fists.
Hellfire's smile became a frown. "Alonzo, George..."
"And which one they are you worthless..."
"Alonzo, the dragon. George, the baby dragon. Sillabub, the genie. Coricopat, a sending. Cassandra, a fairy. And Exotica, a fortune teller." Macavity released the demon who began to smile again.
"Thank you. Now, you say they're Jellicles?" Macavity asked, relaxing.
Hellfire didn't answer.
"Are they Jellicles you..."
"Yes. What else did you think they were? Most magic users in this area are Jellicles, he's the only Cleric in the area..."
Macavity growled and cut him off with an angry thrust of his hand. "I get the POINT!" He stood up and stalked out of the star. "Do you think I should go after them?"
"I don't answer questions like that..." Hellfire teased.
"Should I go after them you rotten little mongrel..."
"Yes." Hellfire smiled, and disappeared.
"Hey! I didn't say you could leave yet!" Macavity shook his head and scuffed dirt over the star, he couldn't even control his element, fire! And there was a witch in town with that many summonings? Life just wasn't fair when you were the Napoleon of Crime. He shook out his black jacket and put it on over his black sweater, the days were getting cold, and headed off in the direction of the junkyard.
Shortly, Tanto and her friends had made their landing outside the junkyard and were now all in cat-person form, ready to pass through on their way to Tanto's place. As they walked through, the new kid, Bill Bailey chased after a lost frisbee and ran smack into Alonzo. He wasn't wearing his gloves at the moment either, and his hand brushed Alonzo's arm in a moment of panic.
Abruptly, and to everyone watching's surprise, Bill Bailey turned into a dragon. And so did Alonzo. Alonzo hurriedly changed back, but Bill Bailey didn't, apparently unable to. Tanto grabbed him by the muzzle and dragged him into her place, followed by her crowd.
"What just happened?" She demanded of the lanky looking small dragon.
The dragon shrugged, and opened it's mouth as if to speak. Instead, a jet of flame burst out of his mouth. Tanto flung her hands up and tried to remember whether she was immune to fire or not. But the fire never hit her.
Suddenly, the stream of flame changed direction and began to whirl about someone, a man in black. Tanto frowned, and glanced at Exotica, who held up a burning card and mouthed, "Macavity."
Macavity stepped forward out of the ring of fire, and it dispersed. "Well, well. What have we here? A fortune teller, a genie, two dragons, a sending, a witch, and..." He smiled to himself and reached out to pat Bill Bailey's shoulder. "...a power stealer. Quite the company you've gathered, Tantomile."
"You know who I am?" Tanto demanded harshly.
"Of course I know who you are." Macavity narrowed his eyes.
"He's a Warlock, element of fyre, as yoi've provably already giessed." Copat's voice was barely audible, a bare whisper in Tanto's ear. "But what Y'm willing to bet yoi don't know he mostly simmons demons."
"Demons? There was a demon in here the other day. All smiley and mask shaped..." She snapped her fingers together in an effort to recall the name, then remembered that she didn't know him.
Exo turned another card. "He knows." She nodded at Macavity.
Macavity brushed his hair out of his face. "Hellfire? He's a nuisance. Everything has to be a question, a rude one... And there's millions of things he won't answer. Doesn't have an opinion on anything..."
"What do you mean, power stealer?" Tanto asked, pulling at a long strand of hair. "Are you talking about Bill Bailey?
"Whatever are you talking about?" Macavity put on an annoying smiling face that betrayed nothing more then the fake smile of a very bored clown.
"The power stealer, that's the boy. A ryght powerfil one, Y'd bet." Copat murmered.
"What's a power stealer?" Tanto asked, still confused.
"Someone who's magycal talent ys to steal others magycal talent..." Copat watched Macavity intently with his amber eyes.
Exotica appeared to be studying her cards, ignoring them stubbornly. "The Napolean of Crime, you are? Ever heard of a Necromancer?"
Macavity frowned at her. "No. But I suppose I could speak to Hellfire... or those... horrible cats, I believe they're called."
"Horrible cats?" Silly looked nervous.
"You're Tanto's not the only one with friends." Macavity tossed his hair out of his face (it was definitely time for a trim) and grinned. "We'll find this Necromancer for your fortune teller friend."
Sometimes Tanto wished that Copat wouldn't talk with that annoying accent. She couldn't even put a name or a region to it, it was just weird. And why did she always obsessively compusively wear black?
"All magyc users wear black. Yt's tradytynal." Copat mouthed in her ear.
She shrieked. "Don't do that!" As her breathing slowed she glared at him. "How'd you know what I was thinking?"
Copat gave her a superior look. "Trade secrit."
"Why don't you learn to talk normal?" She demanded.
"Y do. You talk strange. Y talk the same Y always have."
"Yeah, yeah, shifts in the language, and all that." Tanto frowned and swept her hand across the table, scattering papers everywhere.
"On the shelf. Inder the Lyst."
"Thanks." Tanto reached over underneath List and pulled out the thick book entitled, Weilder's of Magic and Their Specialties. "I never believed that Macavity was a magic user. I guess I'd better do my homework. What can he do with his specialty of fire? Theoretically, I mean."
"Fyre ys a very tempermental element. One of the most dyffycult to control. Yt took me nearly one hindred years to master the more complex spells. Fyery blast in partycular ys not only dyffycult, but rysky. Typical of fyre magyc, yt wyll destroy both fryend and foe."
"Great. Do you suppose Macavity can do that?"
"Possybly, but not lykely."
She flipped open the book. "'A Witch or a Warlock will often have elemental specialties.' What? I don't have any elemental specialties. I'm just good at summoning. 'Fire is the rarest and most often misused of the elements, its weilders tend to be tempermental loners.' Blah, blah. Could of told you that." She skimmed down the page. "Oh, look. Here you are. 'Only a few witches and warlocks in history have had nearly complete control of all the elements, the Warlock summoner Coricopat is the only recorded.' That's you."
"And you."
"What? I don't have complete control of the elements."
"You have the potentyal."
"Oh, go away. I'm trying to read. Where is it... Here it is. Power stealers..." She settled down to reading, brushing her hair out of her face. So engrossing was the material that she didn't even notice that Copat was watching her intently. "What do you make of Exo's Necromancer? Is it a good omen, or a bad one?"
"There was one Necromancer who rose above the rest when Y was alyve. Look yn your book, yt wyll tell you." Copat took the book from her hands and flipped it deftly to the section on necromancers.
"'The necromancer calls upon the souls of the dead, forcing them into his service. Some necromancers work with spirits as equals, but most prefer to enslave spirits.' Okay, where is he..." She skimmed along the page until she found it. "The Necromancer was a magic wielder once known as Lord Gokhan. He attempted to use the spirits of the dead to ensure eternal life, but found it to be draining. He was responsible for the hunt of magic wielders as he desired to attempt to use their power to enhance his own.' Uggh, that's awful."
"He styll hunts." Copat told her seriously. "Untyl he dyes, he wyll never be satysfyed."
"And Exo thinks we should find him? Why?"
"Perhaps to kyll hym?" Copat suggested.
"What do you think I am? Some kind of hero?"