Author's notes: I've decided Etcetera will have to face cats from her past. I know that's a little vague but I don't want to give the game away. Attempting to write emotional termoil so please be kind in your reviews. Enjoy!

Etcetera dabbed a damp cloth over her mother's head. She pulled an old thin cover over her sleeping form and fluffed the pillows carefully under her head. She yawned and took a swig of rum from the bottle on the table next to her. Then she turned and offered it the tom who was sitting on the floor near her. He politely refused and, shrugging, Etcetera downed the rest of the rum.

Etcetera glanced back at the tom that had, only moments before, carried Griddlebone's limp form into the house. He was fairly tall and very well built, though his fur was slightly matted and very dirty and grey. Etcetera could just make out the darker lines of his stripes through the dust. His emerald green eyes flashed at her from under the cloak he had refused to remove, making the fur on the back of her neck stand up. He reminded her of someone she used to know but she couldn't think who. She turned away back to her mother when the nameless tom spoke.

"So… Etcetera is it?"

"Who wants to know?" Etcetera replied defensively.

"I do."

"And why is that?"

"I couldn't call you 'it' or 'kit' can I?" He said a smile with obviously on his face by the tone of his voice.

"You could but I'd probably end up killing you for such an insult." Etcetera answered dryly.

"You must have that from your father."

"What do you know about me or my father?" Etcetera snapped angrily, turning her head sharply to face the tom.

"Your mother would never threaten someone who was almost twice her height or three times as strong. Also, those faint stripes in your fur kind of give you away."

Etcetera took a quick glance down at herself. The tom was right; she did have very faint silvery stripes in her fur. Being almost the same colour as her fur they were near invisible.

"Also the fact that you don't have your mother's eyes. Hers are blue and yours are green."

"Ok, ok, you don't have to make a list." Etcetera grumbled, not seeing any tom to compare her looks with. "Anyway, you haven't told me who you are yet."

The tom shifted uncomfortably where he sat, diverting his eyes away from the young queen. "You don't need to know any more about me than you already do."

"What? I don't know anything about you." Etcetera said puzzled.

"You know more about me than you can ever imagine my little Etcetera."

The young queen gasped at the use of her mother's pet name for her and sprang to her paws.

"Don't be scared little one, don't you recognise me?" the tom stood and started to walk slowly towards Etcetera.

Almost tripping over her tail Etcetera spun round and ran for the kitchen door. He grasped at her tail but couldn't get a hold. Etcetera fled towards the door and skidded slightly on the lino flooring.

"Etcetera, why do you run? Are you afraid of me? Don't look at me like that; I'm not going to kill you."

Etcetera found that very hard to believe so she ran faster. Out of the house she ran, leaping over the clumps of thorns as she went. The tom's paws pounded closer to her and although she was running her fastest the tom was gaining steadily.

She wasn't sure how long she'd run for but before she knew what was happening she was running towards to West entrance of the junkyard. Etcetera slowed down and looked back over her shoulder. The tom was no longer in sight.

"Gezz, I really need a drink now." Etcetera rubbed her burning throat and stared up at the gate leading to the West side of her former home. The high rusty gate loomed over her casting a cold shadow over where she stood. Etcetera shivered involuntary and took a step backwards. 'I haven't seen the junkyard or any of its inhabitants for over two years, how would they react to me?' Etcetera thought, 'Would they accept me readily after years of no contact? They don't know if I'm dead or alive, how would they react when I come marching in demanding water? What about mum, is she safe? She can look after herself; she'll be fine… won't she? Would they accept her back in again?' All sorts of questions raced through her mind as she debated whether or not to enter the junkyard again.

"Um miss."

Etcetera jumped at the sound of a small voice coming from the junk.

"Who's there? Come out I won't hurt you." Etcetera called.

"Promise?"

"Cross my heart and hope to die." Etcetera said, acting out the movements to the phrase. She worked out that the voice belonged to a young kit so she used kittish phrases to gain its trust.

Slowly but surely a small face poked out of the junk and a small body followed. Etcetera smiled warmly down at the kitten as it approached her. The kit was a tiny and slender young queen with small paws. She had long deep mahogany fur and large comically rounded ears. When she glanced up at her, Etcetera caught a quick glance of her large bright honey coloured eyes.

"What's your name?" Etcetera asked gently.

"Ebony."

"That's a very nice name."

"What's your name?"

"Etcetera. Why did you call to me earlier?"

"Because I thought you were someone I knew but you're not so I'll leave you alone."

The kitten turned to go but Etcetera wanted to get to know this kitten. "You're not bothering me Ebony. I'd like to talk if that's what you want."

Ebony's face lit up, "Yeah and we can make daisy chains and play hind-and-go-seek and be best friends..."

Etcetera was a little taken aback by this onslaught of ideas. All she knew about this kitten was her appearance and name.

"…And then we can go eat back at mine and when you sleep over we can tell each other ghost stories and have midnight feasts and…"

"Ebony, are you a Jellicle?" Etcetera quickly interrupted.

"Yeah."

"Do you always talk so much?"

"No I'm just a little hyper at the moment."

Etcetera raised her eyebrow. This kitten reminded her of herself when she was that age. "A little? Well you could have fooled me. "

Ebony giggled and an idea came to her head. "You need to be a Jellicle as well, come on I'll take you to our leader."

"Well actually I'm not ready…" Etcetera began to say. She wasn't quite prepared to face everyone just yet.

"Don't be silly Etcetera, they'll love you. I'll take you to mum first."

"Who's your mum then?" Etcetera asked biting her lip.

"You'll see."

Ebony led a nervous Etcetera through the gate and down a worn looking path. The little kitten pulled Etcetera along by her paw and led her up to the door of a house in the junk. She talked non-stop.

"Wait here." Ebony whispered quietly. She knocked on the door and opened it slowly when she heard her mother call. "It's me mum; I've got a friend, can we come in?"

"Oh that's nice dear, bring her in, I'll just put the kettle on."

Ebony took Etcetera's paw in her own. "Come on, mum makes lovely teas and cakes."

Etcetera allowed herself to be led into the small homely interior. There was an old brown sofa sticking out of the wall and a wobbly looking table next to it. There were a few pictures on the walls and a pair of slightly stained lace curtains hanging over the entrance to the kitchen.

"Ebony could you show our guest to the sofa… oh."

Etcetera raised her eyes to see Ebony's mum standing in the kitchen doorway in front of the lace curtain. She seemed about Etcetera's age and was carrying two mugs of tea in her paws. The calico eyed Etcetera with a mixture of suspicion and curiosity. This queen looked familiar to Etcetera also but she just couldn't put her paw on it.

"Hello dear." The calico said, "Would you like some tea?"

Etcetera stared at the queen for a moment. She'd expected to be asked what her name was and why she was making friends with her daughter. "Err, yeah, tea will be fine."

The calico queen smiled and handed Etcetera her mug then Ebony's. "Do you want to become a Jellicle?"

'Ha, I knew she'd ask that question eventually' Etcetera thought smugly to herself. "Actually I was a Jellicle but under the circumstances I was forced to leave. I don't know if they'll accept me or my mum back now."

"Your mum dear?"

"Yeah, that's why I left, to be with my mum. All I want is for her to live in the junkyard with me so we can be a family again." Etcetera sniffed and accepted the tissue the queen handed her. 'Why am I finding it so easy to talk to this queen?' Etcetera thought with curiosity.

"I'm very sorry to hear that, I knew someone once who'd dream every night about their mum but one day she just vanished and I haven't seen her since."

Etcetera stared up at the queen for a moment.

"So what's your name then dear?" The queen said changing to subject.

"What's yours?" Etcetera asked.

"My name's Electra and…"

"Electra?" Etcetera stared gob-smacked at the beautiful young queen that stood before her. Although she wasn't the slightly plump kitten she used to know, the now slender figure was Electra through and through. "Oh my God you've changed so much."

Electra looked fearfully at Etcetera, "What do you mean?"

"Don't you recognise me Electra?"

"Um, well… err, no I don't. I get the feeling we've met but that's it. Um, you're scaring me could you please stop looking at me like that."

"Tell me what your friend dreamed." Etcetera persisted.

"I can't she swore me to secrecy and I don't intend to break that promise."

Etcetera beamed inside; at least she knew Electra could keep any promise. "Did she, by any chance, dream that she was a week old and in the glass junk pile? Did her dreams always seem to end at a curtain point and she could go no further? Did she always trust in you to keep her secrets and you in her? Was she called Etcetera?"

Electra stared at her with a mixture of confusion and fear. "What are you trying to tell me?" She needed to be told straight what she was hearing; she didn't want to jump to the wrong conclusion.

"I'm trying to tell you that I'm Etcetera…" Etcetera was nearly knocked over as Electra flew at her and wrapped hr arms crushingly round her.

"Oh Etcetera I thought you were dead! We all did!"

"It's ok Electra don't cry, I'm here." Etcetera held the queen close to her and gently stroked her head.

"Etcetera it's been over two years, why didn't you come and tell us you were safe? We thought Macavity had killed you! Oh Etcetera why didn't you return, if only once why?"

Etcetera glanced over at the little kitten who she'd just remembered had been present for all of this. "Um, Ebony, do you think we could have a few minutes alone please?"

The kitten looked between Etcetera and Electra. "Ok, I'll be outside. Can you come and play with me later?"

"Of cause Ebony." Etcetera smiled.

The kit grinned, walked over to the door and gently closed it behind her.

Etcetera turned to her friend and told her everything, from when she climbed the junk pile up to the point where the strange tom had visited her. She conveniently missed out to small detail of Macavity's request.

When Etcetera had finished Electra shook her head. "This seems so unreal, I used to pray that you would return and I always wondered what would happen and what would be said. This is not what I expected."

"What's happened to you since I've been… away?"

Electra studied the queen before her. She had changed so much, no longer was she the plump screaming little kitten she used to know. "Well, shortly after you disappeared we were attacked. Macavity and a band of his henchcats stormed the junkyard and he nearly killed Old D. Thankfully, Tugger returned with a group of queens they'd met at one of the catnip bars. These queens were extremely tough creatures and within minutes the henchcats were running. I couldn't help but laugh."

"And where did the kit come from?" Etcetera took a glance at the door as she said this.

"Well, shortly after the attack Old D deemed it safe to go to town alone. I was walking alone then…" Electra trailed off, Etcetera could see her eyes well up with tears.

"Then what?" Etcetera asked gently.

"I was attacked and raped!" Electra wailed, crumpling to the floor in a pile of misery.

Etcetera fell to her knees and took the queen up in her arms. She held her tightly, as though she were daring anyone to ever hurt her again. She didn't know what to think, all sorts of thoughts flew through her mind, confusing her as to what should be done.

"I wasn't going to get rid of the kittens; they couldn't help being brought into a cold world in such a cruel way." Electra said her voice shaking as she held back the tears. "I love my darling Ebony and she's the kindest kitten I have."

Etcetera stared at Electra. "What do you mean by that?"

"I… I had two other kittens."

Etcetera closed her eyes for a moment. She couldn't believe what she was hearing; her best friend had been raped and was mothering three fatherless kittens. "What are their names?" Etcetera felt lost for further words.

"I… I have three little queens, Ebony, Kadia and Xia-Sera."

Etcetera blinked at her friend. "Interesting, what do their names mean?"

"I'll let you figure them out for yourself, each means something special. I chose their names carefully, they are so special to me and they deserve names that inspire magic and passion."

"Wow, you've thought this through haven't you?" Etcetera said.

"Yeah, it's something I yell at those who try and tell me the kittens aren't worth a tuppence."

"Don't worry; I'll stick up for you."

Electra smiled and hugged Etcetera. "You always have."

For those of you who don't know what 'tuppence' means, it's two pence. Electra's saying that some cats think her kids aren't worth two pence... or nothing basically.