Animal Instincts, Chapter 16

Chapter 16: Sparring and Philosophy


Rubena paced around the den she had recently started sharing with Alyzria. She hadn't heard anything new about her twin's antics since the time she had seen her in Tantomile's "crystal ball", which was never a good sign, and always a good reason to feel restless. There was nothing she hated more than waiting for an attack to come. The only thing she could do was be as well prepared as possible.

Resisting the urge to pull out her headfur with frustration, she grabbed the two long, curved blades hanging on the wall and went searching for someone to practise with. A grey and black tabby caught her eye and the tigress smiled mischeviously.

"Oh, MUN-kus!" she called in a high-pitched innocent voice, surreptiously placing her scimitars behind her back where the leader's son couldn't see them.

Munkustrap turned to look at the tigress, who was wearing her best wide-eyed innocent look, and slowly walked towards her.

"Hello Rubena, what sort of horrible schemes are you planning to involve me in?" he asked in his usual polite manner. The corner of his mouth rose as he noticed the tip of a blade sticking out from behind Rubena's back. Rubena's eyes widened even further as if in surprise.

"How can you even suggest such a thing?" she asked incredulously, then replaced her innocent look with a grin of the utmost wickedness.

With the ease of practise, Rubena threw one of the scimitars at him. Munkustrap's reflexes allowed him to catch the unexpected blade.

"Spar with me?" the tigress asked pleadingly.

"Well, I don't - " Munkustrap started, then grinned devilishly at the tigress's imploring look.

"Why not?" he said, slashing downards at Rubena's head, as though to cleave it in two.

Rubena blocked it easily and returned with a swipe to his torso, which Munkustrap gracefully dodged, and promptly swung his blade up where the two met with a resounding 'clang'.

They kept exchanging blows for a while, neither of them gaining an advantage, until Rubena's blade came to a sudden stop only millimetres away from Munkustrap's cheekbone, and both of them froze in place.

"You're getting lazy," the tigress scolded.

Munkustrap grinned and pointed his thumb at the approaching group of felines; Alyzria, Mistoffelees, Mungojerrie, Rumpleteazer and Coricopat. "I blame it on them for distracting me."

The group in question came to a halt in front of the pair. Rubena opened her mouth to say something to Munkustrap, but Alyzria silenced her.

"No, let me say it." The Siamese turned to Munkustrap, stood as tall as her small build permitted, gave the silver tabby a stern look and almost roared, "You should never let anything unnecessarily distract you in battle, and explanations are excuses and should therefore either not be used or not found necessary in the first place!" She turned back to the tigress and asked mildly, "Did I leave anything out?"

Rubena blinked, dumbfounded. The rest of the feline group burst out laughing at the sight of a speechless Rubena and a meek-looking Munkustrap.

Munkustrap saluted Alyzria crisply. "Yes, ma'am."

Rubena finally found her tongue, which had grown quite indignant in its absence. "I never said that!"

Alyzria smiled mysteriously like a black, blue-eyed sphinx. "Ah yes, but you thought it many, many times."

"Ooookay..." Rubena moved towards Coricopat in an attempt to get as far away from the Siamese as possible. "Has your mind-reading sister been hanging around my friend more than usual lately?" she inquired.

Coricopat stroked his chin in thought. "Now that you mention it..." Rubena looked at him in horror.

She turned back to the Siamese.

"Okay, spit it out, have you been poking around in my mind lately?"

Alyzria laughed.

"Don't worry, I don't really want to know what's going on in that head of yours."

"I don't know whether to be relieved or insulted," the tigress admitted with a pout, causing the calicos and the magic cat to chuckle evilly. They only stopped when both Munkustrap and Rubena gave them looks sharp enough to shave the Great Rumpus Cat's head.

"As much as I love this little display of tempers," Mungojerrie said, "We really came here on matters of business."

Rubena raised an eyebrow at him. "Oh? What kind of business? Did you raid an armory and decide that you could try and barter your stolen goods to us?"

Rumpleteazer grinned. "You, my friend, are verrry close," she told her.

Rubena's eyebrow went even higher. "Ooookay... what to you have for us?"

Mungojerrie could tell that he had the tigress's interest. "Do you promise not to tell anyone?" he asked mysteriously.

Rubena eyed him critically. "Depends," she conceded.

Mungojerrie leaned closer to her, while the other Jellicles (except for Rumpleteazer) strained to hear what he was saying. However, Mungojerrie took excellent care that nothing he said leaked out, leaving the rest of the group mystified as Rubena rocked back and suddenly started laughing out loud and wiping tears from her eyes.

"What?" Alyzria demanded, looking at her friend, who seemed to have no intention of stopping her whoops of mirth. Finally, Rubena calmed down and looked at Mungojerrie, still chuckling.

"Alright, you notorious thief, let's see what you've got in those bags."

The calicos didn't have to be asked twice. They emptied their bags with teir usual flourish, revealing various intricately carved sheathes containing long, thin swords. Rubena unsheathed one of them and tested the edge. She nodded her approval as the blade neatly sheared off a small section of the fur on her paw.

"So... what did you intend to give them to us for?" she asked in a business-like tone.

Rumpleteazer scuffed her foot. "Just a tiny itsy-bitsy however-so-crucial little service on your part," she informed her. "We want you and 'Lyz as sparring partners. I swear you two fight almost as mean as Macavity! Maybe even just as mean!"

Rubena grinned. "Is that all? Well, you do have my service." She turned to Alyzria. "What about you?"

The Siamese grinned too. "Wild Pollicles couldn't stop me from getting one of these," she said, fingering one of the intricate blades. "What about you, Misto?" she asked the Magic cat, who had been silent so far.

The black mage gave the blades a contemptuous look, then held up his paw which was abruptly engulfed in bolts of lightning. Suddenly, the sparks vanished, and Mistoffelees was holding an ebony sword with a pearl-studded hilt.

"I supply my own weapons," he informed them loftily and twirled the blade in his paw. Rubena shrugged.

"Suit yourself," she said. She then grabbed two of the stolen blades which were fairly similar, and experimentally swung them through the air. Alyzria took two likewise, leaving three swords on the ground.

"Freeforall!" Mungojerrie shouted, diving for the pile. Rumpleteazer did likewise, and apparently Munkustrap had managed to join the fray, for by the time the dust kicked up by the calicos had cleared, He was holding a blade as well.

Alyzria surveyed the darkening sky overhead. "Well, it's too late for a sparring session now," she said decicively. "I'm going to hit the sack." With that, she walked off. Munkustrap, Mistoffelees, and the calicos went their seperate ways, leaving Rubena alone with the psychic twin standing only a few feet away, his back turned to her. The tigress walked over to the black and white tabby, leaving her two new swords behind. She was about to open her mouth to say something when he shushed her with one finger.

"I know what you're going to ask," he said quietly. "And let me tell you now, the answer is no. You're the fighter, not me. I'd rather help the tribe in a more peaceful way."

Rubena found herself slightly taken aback. She looked intently at Coricopat's face, which was turned slightly down and towards the side. She had to look up to do so, which was a rare thing with her height. Finally, she trusted herself to speak again.

"It's a good thing, I guess, the tribe's already got a whole pack of fighters," she almost whispered, though she had no idea why. "Your powers are unique, which makes you valuable."

Coricopat lifted his gaze from the ground. "It's more than just that," he informed her as quietly as he had before. "I couldn't handle a real fight. I'd probably freeze up or collapse or something. And if I did happen to win, I could never bring myself to... to finish the job."

Surprising herself, and certainly Coriopat, Rubena gave the large tom a quick, fierce hug. "You know what?" she told him, still in a whisper. "When I hear you talking like that, I really start to question my own nature, and I wonder if the fact that I enjoy a fight to a certain degree makes me a sort of a bad person."

The psychic tabby shook his head. "No. From what I can see, you're not cold-blooded. I think you just like the adrenaline rush, am I right?"

The tigress chuckled, and to her vast surprise found herself wiping a tear from her eye. "That's about it," she admitted.

"Well, you see, that's not my kind of thing. You happen to be a warrior, while I'm a bit more on the peaceful side."

Rubena continued to chuckle. "It's almost like we're the two poles on a magnet. Though our roles were switched around, I think."

Coricopat grinned, his teeth briefly flashing in the darkness which had so rapidly approached. Rubena tugged a strand of her headfur.

"Well, I'd best go find Alyzria. Knowing her, she'll be having trouble with her dinner."

Coricopat gave a little laugh. "You really got her hooked on bats, didn't you."

The tigress grinned wickedly. "Remind me to invite Misto for dinner sometime." She gave him one last brief hug, then sprinted off to find her Siamese friend, leaving the psychic tom standing in the darkness, listening to the retreating clatter of the swords she carried.


Chapter 17