(A/N: HAHAHAHAHA! FINALLY! After the long wait, your beloved Alexiel has returned…WITH A FANFICTION!
…
Whoa…sorry, little sugar high there. Anyway, it's been a long while since I've submitted anything…the last being the Rurouni Kenshin one. Ah, it's been such a long while since I've tried my hand at writing. Well, here we go.
…DON'T FEAR THE REAPER!
A few minor notes:
"Blah" – Speech
'Blah' – Thought
(Blah) – Author Notes They start with "A/N:"
Enjoy! )
Prologue
As humans, we are believed to be the most advanced creatures on this planet, excelling in the fields of science, literature, history, song, dance, and story-telling. Oh, but woe to the man who's not heard of a Jellicle cat.
What's that? You say you've never heard of the Jellicle cats? Well, it's lucky you came here! This story about those very same creatures who best humans in every song and dance ever to be performed.
Jellicle cats come in all different shapes and sizes. To the human eye, they look like any ordinary stray or pet. Every so often, one Jellicle cat is chosen to go to the 'Heavy Side Layer' and be reborn into a much happier life. The process of choosing that one special cat is the event of the Jellicle Ball, where the most talented of the Jellicle Toms and Queens tell stories of Jellicle lore and legend. The last cat to be chosen was an old queen, or female Jellicle (the males are referred to as 'Toms'). Her name was Grizabella the Glamour Cat. She was so very sad, until Old Deuteronomy, the leader of the Jellicle tribe, chose her for a better life.
Ah, but this isn't the story you're about to read, dear humans. This is the story of the Rum Tum Tugger and the young stray who stole his heart. Her name was Sahara, the small queen who had no title, and her sister was Salome, the Harlequin Cat…
It had been a long while since Grizabella the Glamour Cat was sent to the Heavy Side Layer. Life after that was pretty normal for the Jellicles, full of its own comings and goings. Kittens were born and given special names and various titles. Every so often, the 'Hidden Paw' Macavity would make an unwanted appearance to the Jellicle tribe. And sometimes, strays would become part of the large Jellicle family.
Sahara and Salome where two of those strays, sisters of the same littler and age, though Sahara was smaller (she was the runt of the litter). Sahara's fur was a strange sort. The dark patches of fur on her arms and most of her legs spread like fire and slithered about her like snakes while her front was mostly white with a brownish tinge. Her eyes were dark and often compared to black diamonds. Her short mane was tangled and slightly frayed, but it only added to her wild charm. She was tough and didn't like to be called small, for it wasn't her fault that she was that way! But nevertheless, she had an innocent face and a kind disposition, though she was naturally suspicious of strangers and humans.
Her sister, Salome, was known as the 'Harlequin Cat', and she certainly lived up to her title. Her eyes were a smoky sort of blue and her light red and brown fur speckled her tall frame like checkers, spreading over her back and leaving her chest and stomach white, like a Harlequin jester. And what a clown she was! Her sweet smile and ability to make jokes at the drop of a hat made her the center of attention at large gatherings, however rare they were.
The two sisters had been on their own for quite a long while, after they had come of age and left their parents, Toselinuvus and Fauvelinee.
Sahara had heard of the famous Jellicle Ball in a land far away and she was determined to attend. After long travels across the skid rows of every metropolis and countless encounters with fierce Pollicle Dogs, they arrived upon a large, somewhat familiar junkyard…
And so…the story of Sahara, the Queen of no title and the Harlequin Cat Salome begins…
The two queens entered the junkyard cautiously, slinking about and exploring. The moon was a waning crescent in the slightly clouded sky. There seemed to be no one about at the moment.
"Salome, are you positive this is where that old tom said to go…?" asked the smaller queen Sahara.
"Well, sure I am! As sure as I am honest," replied Salome as she hopped onto a rusty old oven and looked about for any other signs of life. Sahara slunk to a large tire, limping just so slightly. "But…it's so…," she began, and then paused, taking a moment to think.
"Well…we've seen worse junkyards, I suppose…," she commented as she climbed onto the tire. Once there, she began carefully grooming her left forepaw which was the cause of her limp.
Salome cast a glance at her sister and saw her tending to her wound. "Does your paw still hurt, Sahara?" she inquired. Sahara replied with a small smile and a nonchalant shrug of her slight shoulders.
"Only a little…if I stay off of it, it should be fine." As she continued to nurse her paw, she remembered how she came to receive such an injury. It was a few days ago, and the both of them were rooting through a turned-over garbage bin to find a few scraps of food. It wasn't long before a haggard old man came out shouting at them. When they didn't retreat right away, the old human threw a golf shoe in their direction to scare them off. Salome escaped without a scratch, while poor Sahara's paw was torn by the sharp prongs on the bottom of the shoe.
The small queen sighed a little as her sister hopped down from the oven. "It's very quiet here…," she remarked, almost to herself. Sahara climbed off of the tire and joined her sister in the clear area of the yard. Her ears sunk a little as a thought struck her.
"…well…maybe this isn't the right place after all…," she commented sadly. Salome looked at her sister, smiling kindly.
"Hey! When have I ever been wrong?" she said while nudging Sahara's shoulder with her forehead. After a millisecond of thought, Salome quickly added, "…wait. Don't answer that."
This provoked a small fit of laughter from Sahara. She nudged the Harlequin Cat back. "You silly thing…," she said with a cheerful tone. Salome smiled, seeing that her effort to cheer her sister had worked flawlessly.
The cheer was ended when a few pieces of garbage unexpectedly fell from a waste bin at their left. Sahara was immediately on her heels, her back arching slightly as she hissed softly. She was a feisty young queen, for she had learned to always be on guard when in unfamiliar surroundings. Salome, however, was naturally calmer than her sister, but she was on guard as well, crouched as her arms spread out wide as she prepared herself should anything attack them.
To the surprise of both, the only thing to reveal itself from behind the can was a sweet, pure white face framed by soft black fur.
Sahara relaxed slightly. 'Oh good…,' she thought to herself, '…not a pollicle dog.' Salome relaxed as well, seeing the face belonged to a Jellicle Tom.
The rest of him emerged from behind the garbage bin. He was mostly black, excluding his face, chest, and three of his four forelimbs, which were all white. "Hello," he called politely with a sweet, kind voice. "Who are you two? I don't think I've met you before…" he added as he stepped out. His movements where incredibly graceful and flowing as he closed most of the distance between himself and the two queens.
Salome was the first to speak. "Oh, hello," she replied cheerfully. "My name is Salome, and this here is my sister, Sahara," she said while gesturing to herself and her still crouching sister. Sahara no longer saw any danger and stood next to her taller sister.
"And who are you?" Sahara inquired in a friendly manner. The handsome tom smiled and gave the both of them a grand bow, replying, "Mistoffelees, the Conjuring Cat, at your service. It's nice to meet you both." He lifted his head and smiled sweetly at the queens, to which Salome returned an equally cheerful grin. Sahara, however, was preoccupied with the question on her mind.
"We've been looking for the setting of the Jellicle Ball…is this where it's held, Mistoffelees?" she asked hopefully.
"Yes, this is the right place," said a strong voice to their right. All three Jellicles in the clearing of the yard turn their heads towards the voice. Sitting now on the large tire was a tall, silver and black tom, who looked to be very strong indeed. Salome smiled proudly and whispered to Sahara, "See? Didn't I tell you this was the place?"
Sahara nodded a little, smirking, before turning to the silver tom. "Who are you? I'm-"
"Sahara, right? And that's Salome." The silver tom interjected with a smile. "I heard. My name is Munkustrap. I'm the protector of the tribe that lives here."
"And going back to your question, Sahara," Mistoffelees chipped in, "I'm afraid the ball isn't going to be held for quite some time." The two sisters looked at eachother for a moment, then back at the Conjuring Cat. Sahara's ears lowered just a little bit. The Harlequin Cat noticed her sister's slight dismay and turned to Munkustrap, whom to her seemed to be a cat of authority.
"Um...Sir…," she began. "We, that is, my sister and I...we really have nowhere else to go. Might we be allowed to stay here, until the ball?" Munkustrap considered for a moment, and then smiled kindly. Well, we aren't ones to turn those without a home away…" he paused again, thinking. "However…we don't really know that much about you…"
Sahara was quick to respond. She didn't want to lose her only chance at attending the ball! "We're just a couple of strays…we've been that way since the day we were named," she said.
Mistoffelees smiled and looked up to Munkustrap. He knew he was only assuring the safety of the tribe, but the Conjuring Cat had already come to like these two new queens. "Well, I don't see any harm in letting them stay, Munkustrap! Let's give them a chance, hm? They've both very honest faces," he added with a smile. Munkustrap smiled and nodded in agreement. "Like I said, we aren't ones to turn away those without a home."
At that moment, Sahara's eyes lit up. This was exactly what she had waited for all her life! She could barely contain her elation! "Oh, thank you! Thank you so much! You have no idea what this means to us!"
Salome was equally pleased. And just to assure the older tom, she exclaimed, "We won't be any trouble, we promise!" Sahara excitedly agreed. "Yes!" she added happily, "We won't get in anybody's way or cause any trouble! Cross our hearts and hope to be eaten by a pollicle!" And at that, both sisters drew an 'X' over their chests with their forepaws simultaneously.
The toms laughed heartily and Munkustrap stood, his arms spread in a welcoming gesture. "Then on behalf of the Jellicle tribe, I welcome you." "And we're glad to have you with us!" Mistoffelees added with a charming smile.
After a few moments of celebration between the two sisters, Salome looked around a little. "So!" she inquired, "Where exactly is everybody?" Sahara looked about as well as she hopped into an old cereal box, hobbling a little due to her injured paw.
As if to answer Salome's question, a pure white queen peeked out from behind the old Ford. She was quite shy, as Sahara and Salome could tell. Mistoffelees looked over and smiled instantly.
"Victoria, there you are! I was looking for you…," he said as he extended a paw towards her. The white queen he called Victoria elegantly crossed to him, stretching her own paw out and touching his. Mistoffelees then turned to the sisters and introduced her formally. "My sister, Victoria," he said as the small white queen smiled shyly and gently made contact with Salome's paw. Salome smiled and bowed her head, "Nice to meet you." Mistoffelees told Victoria the names of the two new queens and she happily greeted each when she was told that they were going to live there with the tribe.
After a time, the two sisters found a large shoebox to stay in for the night. Salome was tuckered out and she curled up in a warm corner. Sahara remained awake, nursing her paw as she thought of the day's events…
"So what do you think?" Salome asked her sister before she gave into her fatigue. Sahara was snapped out of her thoughts. "Hm? About what?" she asked back.
"This. Can this be home?"
Sahara thought for a moment, and then crawled over to sit beside her tired sister. She nuzzled her ear a bit, and then looked up at the crescent moon above them.
"…it's…different than what I had pictured…," she admitted, speaking softly and whimsically. "But…at least there are others here who like and accept us…"
"Yes…," Salome yawned and finally gave into the land of dreams that called to her. Sahara curled up beside her sister and she too fell into a lighter slumber, at peace for the fist time in a long while…
(WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! First chapter done! Well, I really hope you like it! I haven't written anything in awhile, so let me know how I'm doing! Ta!)
