Chapter Three
Satisfactory Won't Bring It Back
A black and white tom was lying next to his beautiful white queen. The tom, Alonzo, was sleeping, but his mate was wide awake. Victoria stretched and slowly stood up. She gave a great yawn, and gently rubbed her head against Alonzo's before padding off for a walk.
The Jellicle moon was shining bright, but Victoria was very tense. She hadn't seen her friend, Quaxo, all day. She heard that he had finally learned who his father was, and she was concerned that he had done something drastic. She let out a long sighed, looking at the junkyard gate.
From the gate a small black and white cat came racing at the speed of light. Before the cat could streak past her, Victoria leaped into its path. The cat came to a halt. A panic-stricken Mistoffelees stood before her, panting heavily.
"Quaxo!" Victoria exclaimed, wide-eyed. "Are you alright? I haven't seen you this frightened since you lit Munk's tail on fire!"
Misto didn't answer at first. After many gulps of air, Misto answered, "I'm fine. Just had a little run-in."
"With what?" Victoria questioned.
Mistoffelees knew that it was no use trying to hide something from his best friend, so he told her everything that had happened since he ran from Deuteronomy's den. Victoria didn't look very happy when he was finished. She looked somewhat flustered.
"Oh that Tugger just makes everything into trouble!" she huffed.
Misto just shook his head. "No, it's not his fault. It's mine. I wasn't very gentlemanly. I was being a complete Pollicle!"
"Don't blame yourself!" Victoria said, her eyes showing concern. "Everyone makes mistakes."
Misto looked away, his gaze casted downward. Victoria saw this and immediately understood the problem.
"Quaxo," she purred, rubbing against him affectionately. "You're not like Macavity, and you never will be. Just because he's your father doesn't mean that you're him."
"But what if I'm becoming him?" Misto questioned. "What if I become just as crazy as he is?" Misto spat in disgust.
"You won't." Victoria smiled at him. "Bustopher raised you very well. You're twice the tom that Macavity ever was."
Misto looked up and gave a small smile, but suddenly a new thought came and wiped the smile away.
"Vic, are the others afraid of me?" he inquired softly.
"What are you talking about?" She gave him a perplexed look.
"Are they afraid of me?" he asked again. "Most of the tribe knew what I was, but now I'm aware and they may think differently of me now. They may start thinking that something's up, and it's bound to get around that I am looking for Macavity. Mercy Heaviside! I should never have asked Tugger for anything..."
"You need to stop blaming yourself," Victoria answered sharply. She gave Misto an apologetic look, and added, "The rest of the tribe should accept you as you are, whether you know who your father is or not. I don't blame you for looking for Macavity, I would look for my father too, but it may not have been the best idea. I could have a talk with Tugger. Where is he, anyway?"
"I'm not sure where he ran off to. The last I saw him, he was holding down that she-cat. I have no idea when he'll be back."
Victoria frowned. "Well, when he comes back, we can talk to him. Do you feel better?"
Misto nodded vigorously. "Oh, yes, thank you very much Victoria!"
The she-cat gave him a grin. "Anytime, Quaxo. I think I-"
She stopped as another tom by the name of Tumblebrutus approached them. The tom nodded to both of them and then turned to the magic cat.
"Mr. Mistoffelees, Munkustrap is sending for you. He says he feels you should be told something."
Misoffelees nooded, stepping towards Tumblebrutus. "Very well, I'll be there in a moment."
Tumblebrutus nodded, and stalked off. Mistoffelees rubbed against Victoria as he said goodbye and departed.
Munkustrap sat waiting on top of a pile of miscellaneous items. The tom had grew bored from waiting, and had begun grooming his silver tabby coat. Misto felt embarrased at arriving late, but filled himself with a solemn air. Munk looked up from his work, and gave Mistoffelees a sad smile.
"Ah, good. You've arrived." The cat sat up straight. "So how have you been faring?"
Misto shrugged, and the older cat chuckled. "I know it must be rough with all this new information."
Misto nodded, but went straight to the point. "What did you call me here for?" he inquired.
The tabby's smile faltered a bit, and he gave a deep sigh. "Ah, yes. Well, you're probably done with the subject, but I need to talk to you about Macavity. You see, I know where you were today."
Mistoffelees froze. "How, if I may ask?"
"When you've grown up with Tugger, it becomes easy to figure out what he's keeping from you. So naturally, when he said, "I'm going to hunt mice with Mistoffelees," I knew he meant that he was doing something he probably shouldn't be."
"So it was wrong to go searching for my father," Misto stated, looking upset.
"It's natural to be curious, but..."
"But what?"
"But sometimes things should be left alone," Munkustrap finished. His usual cheerfulness was gone and was instead set with a rather serious expression.
"I just wanted to see if I could find him," Mistoffelles meowed quietly.
"Some things shouldn't even be found," Munk retorted.
Misto frowned, giving Munk an odd look. "What exactly did you think I was going to do once I found Macavity, if I could even find him?"
Munkustrap remained silent for a long amount of time. Finally he answered, "Honestly, I though you were so upset that you decided you should run away, and who better to run away to than your real father? You are one of his kind, afterall."
A rage began rising in Mistoffelees, which was unusual for him. "What do you mean, 'one of his kind?' "
Munkustrap, realizing he had said something wrong, immediately tried to correct himself. "That's not what I mean, I-"
"What do you mean, then?" Misto interrupted, his eyes narrowed. "Do you think that just because I can do magic like he can, that means I'm just like he is?"
"Not at all!" Munk countered. "I just think you should surround yourself with better influences. Tantomile and Coricopat were cats of sorcerers, they could answer your questions..."
Misto stopped what he was about to say. He gazed at Munkustrap, then asked, "What questions are you talking about?"
"Deuteronomy told me that you were having problems with your magic, and I thought that you were seeing Macavity for that reason. But don't worry, I'm the only one besides Bustopher and Deuteronomy that knows, with the exception of anyone that you've conferred with."
The young tom didn't know what to say. He felt hurt.
"I'm not going to give up," Misto stated firmly. "I don't care what you say. I need to know."
Munk shook his head disapprovingly, which brought back the anger that had been building in Misto earlier. He remembered what Victoria told him, and repeated it to Munkustrap.
"You may not accept me any longer, Munkustrap, but the rest of the tribe should accept me as I am, whether I know who my father is or not."
Munkustrap's face was lined with sadness and frustration. "It's not just I who thinks my thoughts. The whole tribe is beginning to get worried."
Misto shook his head. "I'll be fine as long as Old Deuteronomy accepts me-"
"But he too will start to worry," Munkustrap argued. "You should stop this nonsense before it gets out of hand."
"No!" Misto exclaimed. "I deserve to know the truth, whether any of you accept it or not. I'm sorry to say it, but I need to do this."
"Very well," Munkustrap said. "But don't say that I did not warn you."
Misto sniffed, and turned away. He knew that the situation had become worse, but now he figured that things couldn't get worse than this.
