"I saw him with my own eyes. Macavity is back." Mistoffelees took a small sip from the mug of tea in his paws as he sat in Munkustrap's den. He was sure that this would be easier to explain if Tantomile was alongside him, but she had already made it quite clear to him that she needed to see Pouncival. So while she was tending to him, it was Mistoffelees' job to convince Munkustrap of their visions.
"You're a mystic." Munkustrap said plainly as he sat opposite Mistoffelees. "Why not just show me?" He was not convinced, to say the least. Munkustrap always seemed to find the time to talk to cats who were in trouble, despite how busy he seemed all of the time. The moment he heard the name 'Macavity' it became his top priority – although the available evidence did not immediately convince him that it was a real threat.
"I can't." Mistoffelees took another sip of his tea and placed the mug down. "He has invaded both of Tantomile's recent visions. I'm scared he's waiting for another vision so he can invade again." He was speaking very matter-of-factly, not wanting to waste any of the protector's time.
"I'm not sure I follow-" Munkustrap started, but Mistoffelees interrupted him. The small tom began to describe what Macavity had done earlier that day. He spared a few of the more grizzly details to describe Macavity's actions, to cover the physical abuse of Tantomile and the murder he had experienced. He only stumbled over his words a few times, wanting to appear brave and calm, emulating the cat in front of him.
After a short while, Munkustrap nodded his head and apologised.
"More importantly than anything, Tumblebrutus is alive." Mistoffelees folded his arms. "Tantomile told me so. She saw him in a vision, Macavity sort of let it slip."
Munkustrap considered this for a little while. He got to his feet, taking Mistoffelees' mug through into the other room and returning with a few biscuits on a plate. Mistoffelees couldn't help but laugh at the stark contrast between his words and the current situation. Tea and biscuits hardly seemed like apt food for a discussion of this magnitude.
Munkustrap sat back down and took a deep breath. "I've taken everything you said into consideration. Though I have no reason to doubt what Tantomile saw, it would be a fool's errand to attempt to retrieve him. As such, unfortunately, I will be unable to assist you." He said everything so cleanly, as though he wasn't actively giving someone a death sentence.
Mistoffelees was not about to let this go so easily. "Tumblebrutus has been tortured for two years." He said, mimicking Munkustrap's tone. The silver tom shook his head, causing Mistoffelees to raise his voice slightly. "Tortured for two years." He reiterated, but again Munkustrap just shook his head softly. Mistoffelees jumped to his feet and yelled at Munkustrap, slamming his fists on the table as he shouted: "Macavity has been torturing Tumblebrutus for two years!"
"You would have me sacrifice the life of another to resolve his?" Munkustrap asked, attempting to soothe the tom in front of him. "We have no knowledge of where he is located, only the hope that Tantomile's vision was accurate. I apologise, but even if he is alive, there is just no good reason to risk another life to rescue him."
Mistoffelees growled. "How can you be called a protector? This is the first time I've ever asked you to help me, and you're completely failing your tribe!" Munkustrap rolled his eyes. He responded with an equal tone, getting to his feet as well. "Tumblebrutus is not part of this tribe anymore. As far as I'm concerned, he is dead. He died. We held a funeral for his family, it was distressing and we moved on. I urge you do the same. Now, if that's everything-" Munkustrap began to show Mistoffelees the door, but the smaller tom moved around the table and stood toe-to-toe with him.
"You're right – we held a funeral for his family, but not for him... because we knew, you knew, that he could still be alive." Mistoffelees frowned and stood his ground. "He isn't dead, he's alive. And he needs saving-" But Munkustrap wasn't interested. He pushed Mistoffelees out of the way. "If Tumblebrutus is truly alive, by now he will be just like Pouncival. Tantomile should know more than anyone that that's hardly living."
Mistoffelees yelled in anger and threw a punch at Munkustrap's gut, but the silver tom easily dodged by grabbing his paw. "Don't be stupid."
Mistoffelees reached forward sharply and grabbed Munkustrap's other paw. He stared at the leader for a moment before shaking his head. "I'm really sorry, but I'm about to do something extremely stupid." He shut his eyes, causing Munkustrap to furrow his brow – within moments both collapsed onto the floor, falling into a trance induced by Mistoffelees.
Tantomile stood outside the infirmary, holding a cake.
The events that had conspired to result in her holding a cake were complicated, to say the least. There could be no doubt that she felt guilty – usually she would spend almost every minute of her waking day with Pouncival. Instead, she had spent all day with Mistoffelees. And there was one thing that made everything so much worse as well...
...it had been the best day she could remember.
Tantomile knocked on the door before letting herself in. She walked slowly into the main room and paused, glancing around. It had been a good day for Junkyard cats it seemed – usually there were four or five cats in need of medical attention each day, but today there were only a couple. As Tantomile walked through the room, she looked left to see Jemima and Etcetera lying side-by-side on a bed. Jemima appeared to have a bandage around her ankle. Without any other adults present, Tantomile turned and locked the main door. She had seen enough of Macavity today to allow herself some slight paranoia.
The queen turned to walk through the room again and considered the guilt that she felt for today's events. Surely she should be allowed to spend at least one day away from Pouncival? Perhaps it was unfair to leave him with Coricopat, but surely the consequences of a single day would not be too great? She began to reconcile that the churning feeling in her stomach was not one that she enjoyed, and that this guilt really was not going to work out. Something would have to be done.
She had reached the end of the room. There was a door right in front of her, the door that she knew led directly into Pouncival's room... yet she was struggling to open it. The guilt was too great – even if that guilt was directly caused by her not spending any time with Pouncival today, by pinning him on Coricopat, by spending all of this time with Mistoffelees.
The fact was, she had enjoyed the time with Mistoffelees. The amount of time she had spent with Pouncival was unhealthy, it had turned into an obsession for a cat who hardly even knew who she was anymore. The words Mistoffelees had told her last night had begun to sink in, she had to let Pouncival go.
Tears began to form in Tantomile's eyes as she turned the door-handle and entered the room. She had been so certain that her mind was made up, that nothing could change the way she felt, that this had to stop... until she saw it.
Pouncival was lying on the bed, curled up with his head rested on Coricopat's chest. Both of them were sound asleep and both of them looked remarkably peaceful. Happy. Content.
Tantomile suddenly felt substantially less guilty.
Drawing in a deep breath, Tantomile stepped forwards and placed the cake on the side-table by the bed. She strolled across the room and casually sat in the chair opposite, glancing at the pair of cats and feeling her guilt subside somewhat. The mere fact that they had both fallen asleep for what could only be considered an afternoon nap eased her fears; it clarified that maybe she didn't need to worry quite so much.
Tantomile began to consider exactly how unstable Pouncival had become over the past couple of years. Certainly he had his moments of self-destructiveness and clearly there was something very wrong with his head. But looking at him like this... it gave her hope. Hope that maybe this might all be okay in the end after all, that maybe he might get through this, he might get better and be able to live the life intended for him when he was a kitten.
That idea, of course, made Tantomile feel extraordinarily guilty all over again.
The only way she had been able to internally justify her blossoming feelings for Mistoffelees was by rationalising her relationship with Pouncival as over. By telling herself that he was unable to love her back, by being certain that Pouncival was incapable of being in a relationship at all. That same feeling of hopefulness that had made her so happy for Pouncival was simultaneously making her feel desolate.
For a moment in that chair, she hadn't felt sad or at all broken. She had forgotten about her indiscretion with Mistoffelees, about how awful everything had felt just the night before. Tantomile had managed to rid herself of the negative feelings for only a fleeting moment as they swiftly swept back into her life with the realisation that there were no good directions to go from here.
Tantomile briefly hoped that Pouncival would never get better as that would allow her to attempt a relationship with Mistoffelees. She then mentally screamed at herself for thinking such a hateful and disgusting thing.
The queen loudly sighed as she watched Pouncival snuggling up against Coricopat's chest. A small smile began to creep onto Pouncival's cheeks, which gave Tantomile a flush of excitement. She so rarely saw him smile, it made her heart skip a beat when he did. Watching him like that... it really did make her feel as though he could be alright. That this story could have a happy ending.
Watching that sight unfold before her, why, she had almost even forgotten about Macavity.
But some things were too devastating to forget.
The thought had occurred to Tantomile that she might never be able to use her magic again, certainly if it risked Macavity interfering in the visions. The sight of that horrific tom, bright red fur and a gleaming yellow grin, it made her feel sick. The thought of what he had done to her... made her feel worse. She also briefly considered whether she would ever be able to tell Pouncival about it.
Perhaps not.
Tantomile sighed again and rested her eyes. Today had been hard. She hoped that Mistoffelees would be able to convince Munkustrap that Macavity had returned, that Tumblebrutus needed saving. If they were able to retrieve Tumblebrutus... Tantomile was certain that it would fix Pouncival. The return of his brother from beyond the grave would surely remedy his sickness, it had to. She prayed that it would.
And if it did, if Pouncival regained some of the sanity that he had lost over the years, well... that would leave her with a decision to make.
Mistoffelees did not want that to happen.
In a dimly-lit room, Mistoffelees and Munkustrap were playing cards.
There was not much by way of decoration, instead they appeared to be inside a warehouse of some kind, or a storage locker. The walls looked about as cold as the floor felt under their feet, while a sharp breeze would occasionally make them both feel rather uncomfortable. The two cats were sat opposite one another, each on a chair with a table between them. Various cards and betting counters were set between them, with an ominous third chair to the side.
Evidently, they were waiting for someone.
Munkustrap had initially been extremely angered that Mistoffelees had pulled him into this 'vision', especially after the revelation that Macavity had a habit of appearing and acting ruthlessly violent. As Munkustrap had explained to the tom opposite him, he had no particular interest in being murdered.
Mistoffelees dealt the cards as he reiterated his idea. "It's really simple." Mistoffelees stated calmly. "Yes, we are in a vision. I want Macavity to appear – if he appears, we can do something. Bargain with him, make a deal of some kind. I don't know the specifics... I just know that if we're to have any chance of rescuing Tumblebrutus, this is our best shot."
Munkustrap scowled. "You do know that you are playing with fire?" He begrudgingly took the cards into his paws. "You have gone over this plan with me for the past hour or so, and yet have you noticed that Macavity is not here? Perhaps for both of our sakes, your suicidal plan has not worked. Maybe you could just end this vision and I can get on with my day?"
Mistoffelees shook his head. "I will not end this vision until we have something. We will draw out Macavity, it's important that you see him and you know he's back, that he sees you and knows you're going to stop him. It has to be you. You're our protector." Mistoffelees paused as he examined his cards, before adding: "I'm too worried for Tumblebrutus, and I'm too worried for Tantomile to let this end."
Munkustrap tossed a card on the table and drew another from the pack. "Are you in love with her?" He said calmly, speaking the words with a simple tone. "Because you haven't shown any desire to assist Tantomile in over a year, yet all of a sudden you seem rather hell-bent on helping her."
Mistoffelees' ears twitched and he stared at his cards, not wanting to look up at Munkustrap. "I'm not in love with her," he said simply, still refusing to maintain any kind of eye-contact. "But what if I do have feelings for her? Would that be so bad?"
"Are you asking me whether it is bad to have emotional feelings for a queen who is mated to someone else?" Munkustrap raised an eyebrow. "Because I would have thought that you knew the answer to that question."
"Pouncival is ill." Mistoffelees reiterated. "He is incapable of being in a relationship."
"And what would you do if your plan was successful?" Munkustrap swapped out another card and rearranged them in his paws. "What if we did bring back Tumblebrutus, alive? What if that proved to be the catalyst that made Pouncival get better? What then?" He placed his cards on the table, revealing three kings.
Mistoffelees looked up at Munkustrap and tossed his cards on the table as well, revealing a flush of hearts. "I would be ecstatic for Pouncival and nothing else would matter." He scowled. "I believe it's your deal-"
"Actually, if it is the same to both of you, I would rather deal this hand." Both toms looked to their side to see the previously-empty chair occupied by a large, ginger-furred cat. Mistoffelees began to press the cards together and push them across the table, but Macavity interrupted him by grabbing the cards from his paws and shuffling them.
"I believe what Munkustrap was trying to tell you was very clear." Macavity stated as he shuffled the cards. "You see, Mistoffelees, my brother was attempting to get across to you that if I return Tumblebrutus to you, Pouncival would surely become fit as a fiddle. At which point, Tantomile would really have no purpose for you, would she?" He winked and dealt the cards out.
Both cats tried to speak, but Macavity interrupted them both again. "Tantomile made her choice a few years ago – she picked Pouncival, not you. So why, after standing by his side through all these years of torment, would she suddenly give him up for you?" He picked up his cards and licked his lips, eyeing up Mistoffelees' body. "It just seems so unlikely. I mean, who in their right mind would pick you? Of course I would pick you in a heartbeat, but I'm not in my right mind. All I would want to do is smother you in honey and take a big bite out of-"
"If you intend on killing us, could you get it out of the way now, please? I have meetings all day." Munkustrap snapped as he blankly stared at Macavity, entirely unwilling to give him the satisfaction of abusing Mistoffelees. "Congratulations, you can bully a teenager. I'm sure you must feel rather proud of your achievement."
Macavity responded to this with a standing ovation, jumping from his chair to hammer his paws together and yell "Encore!" at the top of his lungs. "C'est magnifique!" He widened his eyes at Munkustrap. "Your wonderful wit knows no bounds, evidently it has blossomed since we last spoke!" He began yelling and clapping louder before suddenly stopping completely dead silent.
Munkustrap flashed a glance at Mistoffelees before turning his attention to Macavity. "It has been two years since I last saw your hideous face. Please could we cut to the chase?" The tom rolled his eyes as he leant back in his chair, giving no attention to the fact that the ginger tom was still standing up. "I was so happy when there was a chance that you might have had a heart attack and vanished forever. You know, if there's any situation whereby you vanish forever after today, I would adore hearing it."
Macavity laughed again as he sat back down in his chair, his moment of manic madness reduced to a calm exterior as his laugh subsided into a mere chuckle, which itself reduced into a grin. "Should I rape and murder you both now, or should I save that for later?" He asked with bright wide eyes. "Or should I just leave here this instant and return to an unguarded Junkyard to kidnap a new pet?" He threw his cards down on the table, revealing a set of aces.
Mistoffelees glared at Macavity and slammed his cards face-down on the table, though his resilience swiftly turned into fear when Macavity lashed out and grabbed his wrist. "Would Pouncival be a good pet for me to take?" He murred, squeezing Mistoffelees' wrist tightly. "Or should I take Tantomile?"
Mistoffelees' ears perked at the mention of her name and he yanked his paw from Macavity's grip. "Do you mind?" Munkustrap quickly interjected before Mistoffelees could make the situation worse. He wanted to warn Mistoffelees that this could easily descend into something terrible, that if Macavity so wanted this could become a bloodbath. "You have had no issue with tormenting my tribe before. Perhaps the reason you haven't attempted to take Tantomile is that you are unable to? Or else why wouldn't you have tried already, rather than playing all of these games?"
Macavity threw the cards and chips from the table, leaving it bare. He jumped up onto the table in their place his flash of anger suddenly subsiding into nothing short of obedience as he rolled onto his back. "Oh but Munkustrap..." he murred, moving his head to nuzzle against the silver tom's paw. "The games are the best part."
Mistoffelees pushed himself away from the table as he looked at the figure in front of him. Macavity was behaving incredibly differently to how he acted in Mistoffelees' vision. If the small tom was frightened of him before, now he was simply terrified. To see Macavity as a threatening beast was one thing, but to see him lying on this table lavishing an affectionate nuzzle on Munkustrap... was weird. Weird and terrifying and Mistoffelees was completely certain that he was in way over his head and this had been an awful idea.
Munkustrap maintained eye-contact with Macavity as he raised his paw to rest it on the ginger tom's head. He patted him a couple of times and drew in a deep breath so as not to be repulsed by the feeling of his dirty, neglected fur. "Just tell me." Munkustrap said quietly, keeping his focus on Macavity's eyes rather than his hideous fur. "Tell me what it would take for all of these games to be over. Tell me what I need to do and I might just do it."
Macavity rolled onto his side and swished his tail against Mistoffelees' face. "You know what it would take, darlin'." He jerked upwards suddenly and darted forwards, wrapping his great arms tightly around Munkustrap and pressing his mouth against the silver tom's ear.
Mistoffelees jumped back again. He could see that Munkustrap's claws were dug into the table, he was clearly restraining himself from attacking Macavity. Mistoffelees couldn't see his face, it was obscured by Macavity's fur, nor could he hear what was being said. He felt sure that Macavity was whispering something to Munkustrap so quietly, so utterly silently, that there was no way he could possibly hear. He had to do something. He couldn't be alone with Macavity again, not after before and especially not after what he had seen now. The ginger tom was clearly insane. Mentally insane.
"I want to know if Tumblebrutus is alive!" Mistoffelees yelled suddenly, causing Macavity to release Munkustrap. He turned swiftly and crawled across the table, biting his lower lip and falling onto his front. The smaller tom pushed himself as far back in his chair as he could, a look of absolute fear on his face. This was getting to be too much for him...
...and Macavity knew it. "And I want to know how you make your fur all fluffy." The ginger tom purred as he pressed his paws on the end of the table and dragged himself forward, tilting his head sideways. "You're pretty, you know that?" He murred, completely lolling his body to look as relaxed as physically possible. He outstretched his paw and placed it on Mistoffelees' knee, causing the smaller tom to jump off the chair and stumble onto the cold floor.
Macavity rolled off of the table and landed on his feet. He began to offer to help Mistoffelees to his feet with an outstretched paw, but was interrupted by Munkustrap grabbing his wrist. The silver tom yanked Macavity away from Mistoffelees and growled. Macavity turned to face Munkustrap and matched the growl, clenching his fist. His ginger fur flared up, puffing up like his chest so as to look big and fierce. "You are not pretty." Macavity was no longer smiling.
Munkustrap released Macavity's paw and the two began to exchange words, with the silver tom attempting to assuage the ginger tom and calm him down. Mistoffelees, now sitting upright on the floor, had wrapped his arms around himself and backed up against the wall. He was now cowering in fear and more or less having a panic attack.
And why not? Mistoffelees was now very certain that he was in way over his head. Taking on Macavity had seemed like such a brave and noble thing before, but even more it had seemed like such an achievable thing. He had truly believed that this would be simple, that Macavity was simply an angry and vengeful cat. He now understood that he was much more – not even evil, but utterly insane. Mistoffelees shut his eyes and breathed deeply, beginning to wish that this would just end.
But how little he knew that his fear was only feeding Macavity's depraved imagination.
"Please let us make a deal." Munkustrap said as he walked Macavity back around the table and offered him the chair to sit on. Macavity calmly sat as his fur relaxed flat against his form. Munkustrap sat as well, folding his arms and drawing Macavity's attention away from Mistoffelees. "We believe that Tumblebrutus is still alive. If this is the case, we would like him returned to us."
Macavity looked utterly bemused as he made an exaggerated shrug of his shoulders. "Because that sounds like something I would do!" He blurted out, cocking his head at Munkustrap. "Apparently, you now believe me to be reasonable! I can assure you that I am most certainly not."
Munkustrap sighed loudly as he repeated himself. "Let us make a deal." He said with a solemn tone. "Perhaps there is something that I personally could offer you... other than what you whispered to me earlier." He glanced to see Mistoffelees still cowering across the room. Macavity caught his gaze and glanced too. A horrible idea began to engulf his mind.
"Okay." Macavity purred as he turned his head entirely to look at Mistoffelees. "I will return a living, breathing Tumblebrutus to your Junkyard's infirmary on one simple condition." His pupils dilated as he flexed his claws. "You, Munkustrap, punish that ugly tom for being so petulant by slitting his wrists."
Munkustrap flashed Macavity with the same look of bemusement that his brother had showed him mere moments earlier. As they briefly bickered about the logistics and fairness of something so seemingly awful, Mistoffelees began to pull himself together. This was not a bad compromise, he considered – though it would hurt, it would put an end to this vision as had happened before. It was an out.
Besides that, dying in a vision did not mean dying in real life – it simply meant waking up, and Mistoffelees was eager to do that. He knew it would be painful, he knew it would be regretful, but he also knew that it was a real chance to save Tumblebrutus. And after talking such a big game earlier, here he was being presented with the opportunity to be a hero. Mistoffelees never considered himself brave, but this was his chance and damn it all if he was going to squander it.
Mistoffelees pulled himself to his feet and nodded his head. "I accept those terms." He managed to say quietly before forcing himself to walk across the room and retake his place at the table. There was no doubt in his mind that he was utterly terrified of the ginger tom sat across from him, but he had to remember that this was bigger than fear. This was about a real life that could be saved.
With that in mind, Mistoffelees began to explain to Munkustrap how this really wasn't such a bad idea. He clarified that dying in the vision did not mean dying in reality, as well as explaining that the only awful thing would be that he could feel pain. Neither of those factors prevented Munkustrap from asking his primary question: "Would you feel yourself dying?"
Mistoffelees thought for a moment and then nodded his head. After all, this had happened before – when Macavity had slaughtered him in that vision only a few hours earlier. "Yes, I did." The fact that he used the past tense told Munkustrap enough for him to know that this was viable. He knew now that this would be a terribly painful experience, but if it meant saving a life...
"Why are you doing this?" Munkustrap asked Macavity, who did little more than give a minor shrug. The ginger tom glanced between them both. "My magic allows me to prevent others from using their own magic, but it allows me very little by way of mind control." Macavity began sheathing and unsheathing his claws as he spoke. "It would arouse me to watch you murder someone."
Mistoffelees felt sick. "But why are you giving up Tumblebrutus so easily? You keep him for two years and then just happily give him up?" The whole thing seemed suspicious somehow, though nothing could have prepared Mistoffelees for what Macavity said next. The answer to his question seemed to basic, so plain, and yet so upsetting all at once.
Macavity began purring. "I'm truly unconvinced I could hurt him much more than I already have."
Mistoffelees launched himself forwards and took a swipe at Macavity, catching the ginger tom across the face with a couple of claws. Munkustrap quickly restrained Mistoffelees and made him sit back down, forcing him to calm and urging him not to do such idiotic things. Awfully, Macavity touched his face to feel blood. He began tapping the bleeding wound and then slapping it roughly and forcefully with his open palm, causing blood to litter his paw as he laughed hysterically.
"Here's your lesson for the day!" Macavity yelled as he jumped to his feet, grabbed the chair he had been sitting on and threw it at Mistoffelees. Munkustrap got in the way, taking the full force of the hit and falling to the ground, making him unable to do anything as Macavity dashed over to Mistoffelees and pressed his bloody paw in the tom's face, dirtying his white fur with red so urgently and forcefully that within moments Mistoffelees' face was a different colour. Macavity started roughly punching the small tom in the face before Munkustrap could find his feet and dart in-between both of them, leaving Mistoffelees nursing an awful injury to the jaw and Macavity still laughing manically.
"I'm big, you're small. I'm amazing, you're disgusting. I love nothing and I hate you." Macavity hissed as he leapt up onto the table. Standing head-and-shoulders above both of the other toms in the room, Macavity yelled out a hideous scream. "You are nothing! Neither are your friends, neither are your families, neither is that wretched wreck of a cat Tumblebrutus. He is nothing, he is pointless, he has no purpose for existence. The mere fact that I allow him to continue breathing is a favour and nothing more!" He stomped his feet on the table, just as a young kitten would have a tantrum.
"Your petulence is disgusting and it makes me MAD!" Macavity yelled as loud as he could and his fur flared as before. Munkustrap was now standing perfectly in front of Mistoffelees in order to block him from Macavity's view, truly acting as protector to the smaller cat. He turned his back to Macavity and lifted his paw to Mistoffelees' face to inspect the injury. "This can end now if you want." Munkustrap said quietly as he caught Mistoffelees' gaze. "We don't have to do this."
"We have no choice." Mistoffelees replied with an equal tone. Tears were welling in his eyes again as his jaw swelled where Macavity had hit him. "His magic blocks mine... we can't leave the vision until he does." Munkustrap lifted his paw to cup Mistoffelees' other cheek and stroked it softly. "That's fine." He said with a soft, low tone. "You will be safe and fine. I will make sure of it."
Munkustrap turned to see Macavity sitting on the end of the table. His fur was completely flat against his form and, just as soon as the anger had come, it was gone. He stared across to Munkustrap and made a sad face. "He will die." Macavity said quietly, a hushed dulcet tone to match the way the other two toms had been speaking. "Making me bleed has guaranteed Tumblebrutus' death."
Munkustrap continued to block either tom from the other's view by standing between them both. "Your point earlier was that if Tumblebrutus has no more purpose to you, it makes no difference for you to return him to us." Munkustrap stated as he turned around, his arms spread wide to continue to visibly protect Mistoffelees. "There is no need for your anger. You made us an offer. Let us negotiate it."
Macavity shook his head. "That offer has been rescinded. If you are so hell-bent on new terms, I will now only be satisfied by watching the life drain from your eyes as the tom you're currently 'protecting' slits your wrists." Munkustrap's eyes widened at the suggestion and Macavity licked his lips. "Go on, confer with your pet. I'll expect you both to be seated within the next minute or the deal is off and Tumblebrutus dies." With that, Macavity got to his feet, picked up his chair, walked around the table and sat comfortably to await their decision.
Munkustrap begrudgingly turned his body to look at Mistoffelees. The smaller tom began to shake his head desperately. "Please, no." He said weakly, but Munkustrap nodded his head knowingly. "When you told me about your visions, about feeling the pain, you mentioned that dying would only lead to waking." Mistoffelees nodded his head. Munkustrap took the smaller tom's paws in his and squeezed them. "I'm sorry for what I said earlier. If it will save Tumblebrutus from this monster, I can take this pain."
Mistoffelees wanted to tell Munkustrap that it wasn't fair, that the silver tom should not have to take such intense physical pain... when another, darker thought suddenly crept into his mind. If Mistoffelees were the one to die in this vision, upon waking it would leave Macavity and Munkustrap alone together in the ginger tom's dominion. Surely unspeakable horrors would happen to him.
No, that could not happen. Mistoffelees reasoned with himself that Macavity will ultimately overpower and kill whoever is left standing, like he did before. It would be better if Munkustrap went first. Briefly he considered what Macavity might do to him, torture him, beat him. He visibly gulped before closing his eyes. It would be better if Munkustrap died first. It was a controlled death, an easier death, an simpler death... a less painful death.
"We agree." Mistoffelees said solemnly as tears began to form in his eyes and Munkustrap helped him to his feet. They walked back to their original seats around the table and sat, maintaining eye-contact with one another and not Macavity. Mistoffelees knew what he had to do, even if he couldn't face the idea of doing it. Taking in a sharp breath, he asked aloud: "How can we trust you?"
Macavity smirked. "You can't. I suppose that's what makes it such excellent fun! But then, you have probably also realised that this is your last and only chance of ever seeing that cat alive. As I promised to you earlier, your swipe at my face signed his death warrant. This is the only situation whereby he lives to breath another day, this is the only way I will consider allowing him life and this is the only thing you can do to stop me from killing him right now." Macavity began to laugh quietly, a broken laugh that refused to fit his voice at all. "Now do it. Slice his wrists open."
A moment of silence fell upon the room. Mistoffelees was unmoving, looking to Munkustrap for guidance as if there were some way the older tom could shield him from this. He knew – they both knew – that what they would do here would haunt them for years to come. This would not flutter away like a bad dream, this would stay with them. Yet as Munkustrap offered his outstretched arms, paws facing upwards, he did so without trepidation. His calm exterior was constructed to assuage the tom opposite, and his words were as soothing as his acceptance. "Mistoffelees," the silver tom whispered. "You can do this. I promise it won't hurt."
Mistoffelees looked between his paws and Munkustrap's arms. Much unlike the silver cat, he did not appear calm. He unsheathed his claws and reached across the table as Munkustrap had done. It really wasn't that wide; he could easily reach Munkustrap's shoulders. Macavity, meanwhile, was not speaking a single word. He merely watched with childlike delight as he watched Mistoffelees' claws press against the muscle of Munkustrap's upper arms.
Within a moment, the pain began. Mistoffelees' claws pressed into Munkustrap, piercing flesh and drawing deep red blood.
Munkustrap caught Mistoffelees' gaze and drew a deep breath. "Look at me, Mistoffelees, don't look at what you're doing. Just look at me. See how calm I am? Listen to my voice, you can hear that it doesn't hurt. You're not hurting me, I promise you that I cannot feel any of this. You can do it. I promise you that you can do it, just draw your claws down until you reach my paws. That's all you have to do, just do it."
Just do it.
The tears that fell from Mistoffelees' eyes as he stared sadly at Munkustrap spoke wonders for how this was affecting him. Never had he imagined himself capable of causing harm to another, let alone in this incredible way. He followed the silver tom's instructions to the letter, maintaining that important eye-contact and not looking at the blood that was beginning to pool on the table. He had to avoid that sight. His claws were drawing down Munkustrap's arms, their sharp edges cutting through him like a knife through butter.
Munkustrap glanced down to move his arms, essentially guiding Mistoffelees' claws along his veins. Completely in control of this torturous torment, pretending with a burning passion that he could not feel anything. He continued to urge Mistoffelees on, telling the tom that this did not hurt, lying through a burning pain that he did not want to cry. It was only when his wrists were met, when the slicing was finished, that he could allow himself a loud, piercing scream of agony.
Mistoffelees began desperately sobbing as he squeezed Munkustrap's paws, apologising a hundred times over for what he did to the older tom. Munkustrap did not answer, instead giving out another yell of pain as Macavity began to laugh. The laughter got louder as he pounded his fists on the table, the raucous sound only fettered by the saliva that was forming in his mouth at the sight – and smell – of blood.
Munkustrap knew that he was dying, but also that it would be slow. Though he had considered how much this would hurt, he had completely failed to consider how long it would take. He wanted to beg Mistoffelees to do more damage, but knew the smaller tom would not be mentally capable of doing any more. And though his arms were exceptionally weak, he felt that he had one powerful swipe left in him before his arms would not function anymore.
With that in mind, Munkustrap belied the fact that he was visibly dying to kiss Mistoffelees on the side of the head and nuzzle him softly. Munkustrap lifted his paws to the smaller tom's cheeks and weakly touched them. As they stared at one another, the only sound other to Macavity's hideous laughter that fell in the room was the incessant dripping of blood onto the table. There was too much lost already, Munkustrap knew he had little time to execute... this part of the plan.
Staring Mistoffelees in the eyes, Munkustrap managed a half-smile. "When you die... you wake up?" He asked softly, so weak that he could not manage a louder voice. Mistoffelees nodded his head gently. Too many emotions were flooding his head, he could not muster any kind of response other than the slow nod.
The half-smile on Munkustrap's face turned into a wicked smile. "I promised..." he whispered, his body shaking as he made a small wink. "...you would come... to no harm." Suddenly his paw dropped to Mistoffelees' neck, and sharp outstretched claws viciously and violently sliced across his throat. Both toms collapsed into a heap on the table, Mistoffelees coughing and spluttering for moments before his movement stopped and both cats were left near-motionless in a pool of their own blood.
Macavity's laughter stopped abruptly. He had been outsmarted – he had planned to do horrific things to Mistoffelees, to mentally and physically torture him. But now...
"A deal's a deal." Munkustrap uttered as he forced himself to turn and face Macavity. "You really think... I'd have left him... alone with you?" He tried to force a laugh like the ginger tom had before. This was the reason Munkustrap had accepted the new terms – he knew he would be able to minimise Mistoffelees' suffering by slitting his throat.
Macavity began growling as he got up from his chair and began to approach Munkustrap, though he stopped in place. "You cut someone's throat, they'll die in around fifteen minutes. A swift way to die, reasonably painless as no blood reaches the brain. Why, you're an evil genius." Macavity was grinning. It was unnerving. "But let me tell you this – you've got a similar amount of time before you bleed out too. Which means I have about fifteen minutes to wreak some havoc while your tribe's best defences are preoccupied."
Munkustrap began to panic. Macavity just laughed again. "But don't worry, I won't reneg on our deal – I will simply return Tumblebrutus to your tribe in person. Sayonara."
With that, Macavity vanished.
Munkustrap was in a frenzy. This was not good. This was worse than not good. Macavity had just promised to return to the Junkyard for the first time in two years and he was unable to do anything about it. Worse still, his only possible ticket out of this hellish, incredibly painful vision was currently lying seemingly unconscious beside him on this table.
Munkustrap attempted to reach forward, but his attempts at grabbing Mistoffelees only caused the smaller tom to fall off the table and collapse onto the floor below. Munkustrap screamed in agony as he tried to draw a breath and lost his balance as well, falling backwards and collapsing off the table, onto the concrete floor.
Munkustrap drew another sharp breath as he rolled onto his front, glancing across at the motionless form of Mistoffelees. "Wake up!" He yelled, grimacing in pain. But Mistoffelees would not wake up, he would only lie there.
Looking across at the small tom, Munkustrap began to lose the ability to fight the pain. He lied on the cold, hard floor, feeling his life fall away drip by drip. He glanced at his body, it was a horrible murky red. This wasn't right. He drew a deep breath. Macavity would be at the Junkyard by now... he couldn't be given this much time. Munkustrap knew he had to do something, anything. He had to try and get through to Mistoffelees to end this vision.
Munkustrap drew his right arm forward and pressed it into the ground. With a sickening, pained scream he used his brutalised arm to drag himself forwards and towards Mistoffelees. The tears on Munkustrap's face did not do justice to the pain he felt, to the utter agony and devastation that taunted him. But he knew what was at stake. This was his role, this was his life. He had to protect his tribe.
Little by little, he edged closer. Blood stained the floor underneath him as his arms became tools to propel him forwards, tools that caused torturous pain each time he used them. For every press, every pull, he felt a newfound burning torment that coarsed through every fibre of his body.
But finally, after what seemed like an eternity, Munkustrap managed to get to Mistoffelees and collapsed beside him, using all of the strength he had left to press his mouth against the motionless tom's ear.
"If you're still here, Mistoffelees, if you're still with me..." Munkustrap started, peppering his words with occasional sobs. "Macavity is gone now. He is gone. You need to... end this vision. Use your magic. Listen to me, fight this, use your energy... and end this. The tribe is in danger... all of them." Munkustrap turned and spat on the floor as he continued to cry. The pain was getting completely unbearable. "Demeter is in danger... Pouncival is in danger... Tantomile is in danger-"
Pouncival was woken by a devastating crash.
Coricopat was woken by Demeter yelling 'Macavity'.
Tantomile was woken by Pouncival screaming.
Tantomile felt a burst of adrenaline as her eyes darted open. She dashed across the room and leapt onto the bed, instinctively grabbing Pouncival and pulled him close to her. She kissed him between the ears and held him tightly. "He's not taking you away from me." She said quietly, her breathing heavy and fast. "Nobody is taking you away from me."
Pouncival began to cry as he rested in Tantomile's arms. "I don't want to die!" He sobbed, turning his body and clinging on to the queen. This had been his nightmare every time he closed his eyes, that Macavity would return for him. Now it was happening, he knew from the crash alone that Macavity was back. He couldn't bear it. "Please please please please please please please don't let him no please I don't he can't you won't please please oh please-" He began to mumble madness, shaking his head and shuddering. He very quickly became incomprehensible, which terrified Tantomile.
Thud.
Thud. Thud. Thud.
The sound was coming from the main room. The front door to the infirmary was being pounded on. The sounds outside were now turning from murmurs into screams of worry and yells of anger. There was no fighting that could be heard, but the fear permeated. There could be no doubt that Macavity was not only in the Junkyard, but that he was currently trying to gain entrance to the infirmary.
Coricopat got to his feet and walked around the bed, moving to the door. He cautiously opened it, glancing into the main room to see it empty, save for Jemima and Etcetera lying together, cowering on that sole bed. "I'm going to get the kittens out of here..." he said with a dull tone, looking only at Tantomile. "They can't get caught in the cross-fire of this."
Coricopat entered the main room and walked swiftly towards the two queens, trying his hardest to ignore the hammering at the locked door. "Hey, you two, come on." He said, ushering the queens off the bed. Jemima immediately stumbled on her bandaged ankle, causing Etcetera to stumble as well. "I can't, it hurts!" Jemima howled. "There's no time-" Coricopat started to say, but was stopped in his tracks when the door swung open.
Suddenly and desperately, Coricopat pushed both of the queens onto the floor. On his paws and knees, Coricopat forced them to hide under the bed. "Be silent, don't move, no sounds." He told them with a hushed voice. No sooner were the queens safely under the bed that Coricopat jumped to his feet, seeing a sight that he had only half-expected – for nothing could have prepared him for what he actually saw.
Macavity was stood in the middle of the infirmary. Three or four burly, black-furred cats were standing in the entrance, evidently blocking any of the Jellicles from entering. But what was really surprising, shocking even, was that Macavity was cradling Tumblebrutus.
And Tumblebrutus, though clearly not conscious, was breathing.
"I have come to return something." Macavity purred as he approached the bed beside Coricopat, not realising that there were two cats hiding underneath. He placed Tumblebrutus gently onto the mattress and turned to leave, making about as far as the door before stopping in his tracks. "The thing is, though, I do so hate to leave empty-handed..." He glanced at Coricopat and licked his lips.
Coricopat growled. "If you want me, you'd better expect the fight of your life." He unsheathed his claws and closed the distance between Macavity and the bed, essentially protecting the two kittens underneath. Macavity smirked. "Or, I could just go into that little room over there..." He purred, pointing at the room containing Tantomile and Pouncival. "And just take whatever I find. Or, better still, I could set this whole place on fire and everyone will burn. Would you like that?"
"I sure would not." The door to the small room opened and Tantomile stepped out. She growled. "You think you can take on both of us?" She stood protectively to block off the door just as Coricopat was standing in front of the bed. The twins both knew that four young lives were at stake here, not including their own. Tantomile wanted to scream for joy that Tumblebrutus was back, but this was only half the battle. Now they had to secure survival.
"Hey, Tants," Coricopat said aloud, keeping his glare on Macavity. "I love you." Tantomile stuttered as she drew a sharp breath, keeping her eyes fixed on the ginger tom as well. "I love you too, Cori."
Macavity began to laugh as he raised his paws into the air. "Just returning a cat without taking someone in his place... that really doesn't seem like something I'd do. Instead, allow me to make a deal. One of you comes with me, right now, and nobody else has to die. Just think about it..." His laughter continued as his paws appeared more than just red – a hot red, a burning red, a fire red. Flames appeared in his paws as though he were on fire himself.
"You will never take any of us ever again!" Tantomile shouted as she unsheathed her claws as well. "If it's a fight you want, we will gladly oblige!" Coricopat chimed in as the twins suddenly started to move in union, their bodies almost intertwined despite the physical distance between them – they were in absolute mental synchronisation. And they spoke, this time their words joining together. "Let's do this."
"This place is going to burn to the ground and everyone is going to die." Macavity grinned horrifically as fire began to drop from his paws onto the ground below, starting small flames in the infirmary. "Bring it, furballs."