Author's Note: I can't tell you how completely AMAZED I am by the wonderful reviews! *sobs* "You like me! You really like me!" (note - that is a very old, obscure Oscar reference so don't sweat it) Anyway, firmly back in reality (or as close as I ever get) - I was very nervous about writing a CATS fic. The ones I'd read seemed to be full of inferences I never saw and pairings that I never saw either. Still, as I said at the beginning, I had this story in mind for a long time before setting it down in words. I'm thrilled beyond belief that you like it.
I have had a few laughs while writing it (out loud laughs, mind you. my kids just kinda look at me funny as I'm writing and shake their heads). Not from the things I put in, but the stuff I didn't. For example, when Grizabella was describing the magic force, I was hard pressed not to make any Star Wars inferences. And the scene with Macavity ("Mistofolees (whoosh whoof whooosh whoof) I am your father.") Anyway, I was very, very good. *pats self on back* Maybe someday I'll parody my own story and let the evil gremlins run loose.
But here it is, almost at the end, and I have to explain some things coming up. If any of you have read any of my Harry Potter stories, you'll recognize Mistofolees' owner, Attivus. If you haven't, well, he's a wizard and that's where he comes from. Just so you know that equal time is being paid, Mistofolees is mentioned in my Harry Potter stories as Attivus' cat. A magical cat for a wizard - LOL. I couldn't resist. Have I sufficiently confused you?
All this nonsense aside, here is part 6. Enjoy! Xanthia
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The Other Side of Midnight
Chapter 6
The Jellicles slowly approached the warehouse. There were, to their vast relief, no signs of any of Macavity's henchcats. On the other hand, it was vaguely troubling. It meant either that Macavity wasn't there, or that he was so unconcerned that his captive would escape, he'd dismissed them to other duties. Both thoughts were daunting. Still, the cats kept going quietly forward. Whatever the stillness meant, they would discover what had become of Mistofolees. A sudden crash from next to the building made them all jump! They all rushed toward the sound and were greeted by Tumblebrutus' chagrined smile.
"Uh, sorry 'bout that," he whispered as he vainly tried to reposition the heavy metal grate he'd dislodged. "Caught meself on the edge."
Munkustrap was getting ready to give Tumblebrutus the sharp side of his tongue when an intense change in the feel of the air about them stopped the words on his lips. To a cat, their hackles rose as something akin to the electric charge of lightning surrounded them. Without warning, the glass windows of the factory shattered. The cats ran, stopping a short distance away to take stock of any injuries. Oddly, no one was cut. But those closest to the windows were covered in a fine shimmering powder.
"The windows . . . " Demeter was explaining as she dusted off her fur, "they were pulverized. There were no shards, only powder."
"Mistofolees!" more than one cat whispered, joyfully. If anyone could shatter glass into sand it was Mistofolees. That meant he was alive! After seeing that all were unhurt, they turned back toward the warehouse, more determined that ever to rescue their friend. But before they could progress ten steps, the building shook. The stunned cats looked on in horror as the walls buckled inward, then exploded outward with a rumble that shook the earth and tossed the Jellicles to their knees. Timber that had once framed the building rained down upon them in pieces no larger than toothpicks. A thick cloud of what smelled like concrete dust obscured their sight and coated their fur. Coughing and choking in the thick haze, the cats fought to stand and squinted through the gloom for any clue as to what might have happened.
Finally, a light wind sprang up and they were able to see a bit. There was nothing left of the old cheese warehouse. Only the cement foundation and a few crumbled walls remained. Munkustrap was the first to move. He ran toward what was left of the building, screaming Mistofolees' name.
The magician was easy to find. He lay in the center of a five-foot circle that was completely free of debris. Munkustrap whimpered low in his throat as he reached out a hesitant paw and gently set it against Mistofolees neck.
"Is he . . . ?" someone asked from behind him.
Munkustrap said nothing. He was concentrating on his fingers, afraid to move lest he miss the telltale sign of a pulse, no matter how thin, against the sensitive pads. Finally, he found it. A small hint of life, barely perceptible, fluttered against his fingers.
"He's alive!" Munkustrap cried, tears of relief making wet tracks on his dusty face.
"He's alive!" the Jellicles echoed around him, though they weren't sure how it could possibly be. Even from a few feet away, the magician's injuries were obvious. A long, deep gash in his side, ragged claw marks along his cheek, a crooked arm that was obviously broken, a deep dent in his chest that screamed of broken ribs. And his graceful paws, always fastidiously clean and manicured, were blackened and burned and oozing red.
"Let me through! Let me through, I say!" Munkustrap heard the gumbie cat yell as she pushed aside the cats who blocked her way. "I can't help him from back here, now let me through!"
Jennyanydots broke free of the circle of stunned cats, her breath catching in her throat at the sight of what had been done to the Magical Mr. Mistofolees. It only took a second for her to regain her composure, however, and she was down on her knees, her expert paws gently taking inventory of the injuries.
"Well aside from the obvious," she told herself, "there's some harsh breath sounds on this side. I shouldn't wonder if one of those broken ribs hasn't punctured the lung. There's some deep bruising on the legs and stomach, possibly some internal bleeding if I'm not mistaken."
With each pronouncement of Mistofolees' many injuries, Munkustrap's heart fell. He knew that if Jenny was right, and she always was, there was nothing they could do for him. They could take him to one of those veterinarians - he suppressed a shudder at the thought - but he doubted that Mistofolees would survive being carried that far.
"He's going to die, isn't he?" he asked Jennyanydots in a choked voice.
The gumbie cat looked in his eyes and nodded. "I don't know what I can do to save him," she admitted sorrowfully. "It's beyond my power to heal."
"Perhaps I can help," came a quiet voice from behind the circle of cats.
The Jellicles turned, and hissed in startled surprise. A human! A human was standing behind them!
Munkustrap strode forward. "Who are you?" he asked suspiciously. "How did you come to be here?"
"I brought him, Munkustrap." Old Deuteronomy shuffled up to the human and stood beside him, showing all by his pose that he was taking responsibility.
"But he's a . . . a human," Munkustrap whispered, as if the man couldn't hear them. "Humans cannot see us as we truly are."
"This one can," Deuteronomy assured him. "He is Mistofolees' family. And he is a doctor. If anyone can save him, he can."
"What does a human doctor know about Jellicles?" Jennyanydots demanded to know. "We are not the same as humans."
"Much of us is the same. Besides, he isn't just a doctor, Jenny," Deuteronomy assured her, "he is also a magician, like Mistofolees. He has magic that can help as well as skill. You must let him try."
The human stood by silently as Munkustrap, Jenny, and Deuteronomy debated. The Jellicles, to a cat, never let their eyes leave him. They studied him closely, although he seemed not to see them. His eyes rested only on the small, injured tom in their midst. His concern for their fallen brother was evident in his bright violet eyes, despite their being hidden by blue triangular spectacles. He had flaming red hair that was tied back in assorted pony tails all over his head. The red hair along with the unusual coloring of his blonde beard and black mustache made him appear almost, well, calico in their eyes. He was also very short for a human man, and there were those among them who wondered if he could possibly have ancestors who had been Jellicles. For there were old nursery tales of Jellicles who'd forsaken their feline half to live the remainder of their lives as humans. Could this man be one of the lost tribe?
Their time to silently debate the issue was over when Deuteronomy held up a stern paw. "Enough!" he commanded to Munkustrap and Jennyanydots, both of whom had been loudly protesting the man's help. "Mistofolees is dying and you are debating nonsense. Mistofolees trusts this man enough to be his family. I trust this man enough to share our secret. You will let him save Mistofolees if he can." With that he took the man by the arm and escorted him to Mistofolees' side. "Do what you can, Attivus," he encouraged quietly. Deuteronomy then shooed the cats back a few feet and they stood still and silent as the man worked.
From the depths of his robes, the man Old Deuteronomy called Attivus took a long wooden stick.
He held it over the long gash in Mistofolees' side and murmured something under his breath. There was a bright flash and they could see that the wound had stopped bleeding. He touched Mistofolees again in several other places and, after several long moments, he stood. "I can do no more for him here. I need to take him home."
"Do as you must, Attivus," Deuteronomy said calmly.
"Can you save him?" cut in Cassandra.
"Yes, can you?" asked several other cats, their worry evident in their anguished voices.
Attivus smiled, a brilliant smile that made the violet lights in his eyes dances. "Yes. His injuries are grave but I believe I can save him." And with a strength that did not seem to fit his small stature, he gently scooped up the unconscious Mistofolees in his arms - and vanished.