Chapter 14 – Munkustrap's Two Families

It was something interesting when her sister suggested they go to Munkustrap's 'house'. It was odd walking down the streets with Bombalurina and Tugger just after sunset. It was interesting seeing a human house close up, knowing she would have to go into it. And it was scary considering meeting humans that night…

But it was confusing when her sister and Tugger grabbed her and shoved her into the kitty door. It was horrifying realizing she was in human terrain. It was petrifying realizing her exit had been blocked. And when she found out that her sister had done that all on purpose, she was mortified! What in the Everlasting Cat's name was she thinking!

"Tugger!" Demeter whispered loudly. "Bombalurina!" But there was no answer. After making sure that there was no way to get out, the frightened cat dared to look behind her. Crouching down lowly, she shivered at the sight…things she had seen in the junkyard…were actually being USED! A refrigerator was humming lowly in the corner behind a counter. Two couches looked perfectly clean at the other side of the room, and there were no springs poking out of it. Things were not broken. Tables were not torn apart and cast aside. Lamps were not spewing electric wires all over the place. And all in all, while she had no idea what each of these items ACTUALLY did in working theory, they all seemed to be…working.

"Munkustrap?" Demeter tried calling. But her voice came out very slightly. "Munku?" She heard a noise, and looked up hopefully.

Then horror ran through her very veins as she saw a human foot come into the room from out the hallway. "Kitty!" said the tiny human, pointing. After a squeal of delight that sent shivers down Demeter's spine, it came towards her at an alarming rate.

"Oh, Everlasting Cat, am I going to die!" she meowed. Demeter took the chance to race under one of the non-destroyed couches, just out of reach of the inquiring human being. But it followed and bent lowly to try and get at the cat. Demeter hissed, but that was all she could manage at that point, as she was shaking so violently. "Why would my sister do this to me?" she moaned as she curled up in a ball.

"Kitty!"

Munkustrap sat lazily on the foot of the bed, looking up at the two children. A little boy lay in his bed, reading a book. The older girl was sitting to the side on a chair, looking over the boy's shoulder. "No…try it again."

The boy threw his head back and moaned quite audibly in annoyance. "Come on Meagan! This is so hard!"

"It's not hard," the girl named Meagan said. "You're just not trying. Come on, you have a week of homework you still have to catch up on. If mum sees you haven't finished your homework yet, she'll not only kill you, she'll kill me. Now, come on. The phrase is very simple…'I am going to go to the library.' Now write it."

"Is it…Je ne give a damn pas?" asked the boy with annoyance.

"Oh, come on, Jamie!" Meagan said, pointing at the book in his hand. "It says right there practically! All you have to do is write it."

"This is so stupid! Why do I need to learn French? I'm never going to France anyways."

"You might want to learn it so you can PASS your class," the girl answered. "I bet you Edgar can speak better French than you!"

"He's a cat," the boy said in exasperation, throwing the paper that was lying in the book to the side.

"Oh, yeah? Want to bet?" The two turned to the silver tabby at the foot of the bed. "Edgar? Can you translate the phrase 'I am going to go to the library'?"

Munkustrap cleared his throat softly. "Je vais aller à la bibliothèque," he said, though all they heard was a meow.

"See?" Meagan said.

"What? He just meowed!" Jamie cried.

"No, he very clearly said 'miaou', M-I-A-O-U, which is 'meow' in French! You would know that if you studied your French!" Munkustrap smiled at Meagan's creativity, kneading his paws absentmindedly on the blanket he was laying on. "Now, remember, you're using the future tense, and DON'T forget the accents. This is a very simple sentence, Jamie. It gets harder from here on out."

Jamie moaned again while Munkustrap smiled. At least SOMEONE was learning French in this room. "Kitty!" a voice from the living room carried to the room they were in.

"Edgar is in here, Alexie!" Jamie called, before falling into a coughing fit. Meagan sighed and handed him some water to sooth his itchy throat. "Thanks," said the boy when he caught his breath.

"Careful," Munkustrap meowed from where he lay, slightly concerned.

"What did he say this time, Meagan? You know, since you can understand cat language." The boy smirked.

"He said, 'Stop coughing, you twit, and study your French.'"

"Edgar!" the boy looked shocked.

"I didn't say that!" Munkustrap meowed, looking offended. Meagan laughed at the two.

"Kitty!" Alexie said again from somewhere in the house. Munkustrap turned his head to the door. It didn't sound like she was getting any closer to finding the family cat.

The silver tabby got up from the warm blanket and jumped down from the bed. Meagan continued with the study of the apparently elusive French language, "Come on, you have a test next week, and you're going back to school soon. Look! Translations of a descriptive manner… 'La petite chat noir a peur.' What does that mean?"

The silver cat pushed his head through the door that was slightly ajar and went to look for the little girl who was apparently calling him to her.

"Kitty!" Demeter felt trapped by the human that was staring her down. She was cornered! But she could hardly defend herself against it. She was sure Munkustrap would not be very pleased with a fresh wound on his owner's arm. So she hid there, curling up in a corner, hoping to survive the wrath of the unknown human that would dare attack her.

"I'm right here, Alexie," meowed a very familiar voice. The little human turned around, giving Demeter a view of the silver tabby walking up to the couch where the tiny human was crouched down.

That's when time stopped for a moment as the two stared at each other in shock. "Demeter!" Munkustrap obviously seemed surprised.

"Munkustrap! Help me, this thing is attacking me!" Munkustrap stared in bewilderment at the cat that was in his home. After a moment of assessing the situation, he smiled and laughed to himself, before going up to the little human he called Alexie. Purring softly, he rubbed up against the little human and drew its attention away from Demeter.

"She's not attacking you," Munkustrap said as the little human (that was apparently a little queen) patted the silver tabby roughly before climbing onto the couch Demeter was hiding under. "She was just curious. Uh…what are you doing here anyways?" The gold and black queen could see the tabby was embarrassed to be seen so out of his element.

"Bombalurina and Tugger…they said we were just going to visit. Then they locked me in here!" Munkustrap looked over to the kitty door, then walked over to it and pushed it gently with his paw. After another push (more forceful this time), he realized it didn't budge. He then turned to his unexpected house guest, who had by that point gingerly crawled out from under the couch. She could feel her face blushing brightly at the mere sight of Munkustrap… "I didn't mean to intrude like this," she said bashfully.

"No, you're okay," Munkustrap assured the queen. "It's not your fault." Then he sat up stiffly. "Um…I never really entertain guests at my house. Only Tugger and Alonzo have ever been here." He looked very flustered. (A new look for him…she liked it. It put her at ease.)

"Will you family be mad?" she asked, peeking at the little human queen's foot that hung over her head.

"No, no…they won't be…" Munkustrap trailed off as realization dawned on his face. "OH! We should get you out of here!"

"I thought you said they wouldn't be mad!" she said, racing over to him, and looking around frantically.

"No, they won't. But…they tend to…uh…love cats a little too much." But before he could explain more, the two turned their heads to the sound of footsteps falling in the hallway.

"Edgar? Where did you go?" A human kitten called. Demeter guessed she was a queen as well, from its appearance. She then looked over to Munkustrap, whose eyes were down on the floor.

"Who's Edgar?" Demeter asked. But the look on his face gave it away. "That's your everyday name?" Demeter asked, smiling slightly. That's one thing she could always count against humans…bad names.

"Oh, there you are…Oh!" The human queen bent down to look at Demeter, who raced under the couch again. "You brought a friend, huh?" Munkustrap moved over to the couch and sat in front of it where Demeter had hidden herself. "Which one is it? That fluffy one that always comes on by? No, it was too small for that." Demeter saw the human put its paws around Munkustrap and lift the tribe protector up with incredible ease.

Kneeling down, Demeter was face to face with the human queen. "Aww….she's so cute!" She then sat back and put Munkustrap back down. "Is that your girlfriend, Edgar?" she asked, ruffling his fur. She had never seen him look so embarrassed. The queen kitten then got up and raced to the kitchen. Demeter snuck out slightly from her hiding place, looking a little horrified.

He sheepishly went over to her, but Demeter was too scared to be embarrassed along with him. "I've never seen one so close before!" Demeter exclaimed. "What is she going to do to me? Am I in trouble?"

"No, no," Munkustrap smiled tentatively. "She is grabbing food right now." He then cleared his throat, trying to regain his composure. "She's the oldest of the five children."

"Children?" Demeter asked

"Er…human kittens," he explained. "There are three girls and two boys." Demeter must have looked confused, because he went on to say, "Er, a girl is a little queen and a boy is a little tom." Demeter nodded…she had heard of these things before from the other cats and Bombalurina, but never had any context to put it to.

The human queen…er…girl, came back over and set down food for Demeter. While she certainly WAS hungry, she was wary of this easily offered food. Looking over to Munkustrap, he smiled to reassure the young cat, nodding over to the food. She smiled shyly in return and sniffed the offering. It smelled like nothing she had ever smelled! And then she tasted it! It was like nothing she had ever caught or found in the trash. Not knowing what to think, she tried to accept that no matter what, free food was free food!

Or perhaps nothing comes free…

"Jamie! Katie!" the girl bellowed. "Come over here! Edgar brought a friend!"

"Technically, I didn't bring her," Munkustrap meowed in correction. Then he looked over to Demeter. "Not that I didn't want you to come!" he said quickly. She really didn't think of it in a bad way. It was true; technically she wasn't invited.

The two children who were called came out, one boy and one girl. "Kitty!" Alexie on the couch announced as the two came in. Demeter, whose heart had all but stopped, couldn't eat another bite of food. The children were talking so fast over one another, so that she barely understood what they were saying. Edgar…er…Munkustrap walked out in front of her after seeing her apprehension, shielding her as much as he could from the onslaught of adoring children.

"Aww! They're so cute together," the one apparently named Katie said. "Do you think mom and dad will let us keep her?" She bent down to check out the black and gold queen, holding out a hand to let her sniff it. Demeter backed up under the couch again. The tiny human on top of the couch squealed with delight.

"Of course," said the boy, Jamie, coughing slightly. "How can they deny a member of his family?" (By his, they meant Munkustrap, of course).

"What, you think they're related? Married, maybe?" the oldest said, laughing. She bent down to see where Demeter had gone, fishing a hand under the couch to try and get her out. Munkustrap got up on all fours and made a low warning growl. To Demeter, it sounded very forced, as though he had never done it before…or probably not to the children at least. But his warning was hardly headed by the girl, as she flicked Munkustrap's ear. "Don't growl at us because of your girlfriend," she chided.

"Ow," Munkustrap said under his breath. Demeter felt bad that Munkustrap had to take so much stress from his family simply because she was there. So, for his sake, she made a split second decision to be brave for him…and came out to the line of fire. Sitting next to him and nuzzling him lightly, he turned to her in surprise.

"Are you okay?" she asked.

Blushing furiously, he simply said, "yeah…" Now bracing for the sure handling she was about to receive, she tried hard not to look too tense. But luckily, at that moment, a horrible sound came from off in the distance. The oldest got up and sighed.

"Come on, I need help to go check on the baby," she said. The others groaned but got up to help their sister. All the kids left, including the littlest one, going to answer the cry of the baby.

Taking a deep breath, Munkustrap seemed to be trying to calm his nerves. It must be odd having to try and live between two completely different worlds… Demeter nudged him lightly for encouragement. Looking over to the young cat, he smiled and nodded towards the table that was by the kitchen. Taking the cue, Demeter obediently followed the silver tabby.

The two jumped up on the table, sitting near the edge. "I have to apologize for them," he said sheepishly. "They're just kids, and they can be very intrusive at times." He looked off to where the kids had gone in unison. "The oldest one is Meagan. She's about sixteen, and takes care of the others while her parents are at work." Demeter thought this sounded a lot like Munkustrap's role in the tribe, and smiled to herself.

"The second oldest, Jamie, is the reason I've been away," he continued. "He's been really sick for the past two weeks, but he's finally getting better. And then there's Katie, the middle child. She's ten…an animal lover…The reason why I'm here. You met Alexie first...she can be a little rough at times. And the youngest is little Devon, who they're with now. He's turning one in the next moon."

Demeter smiled warmly to the cat she once thought she knew so well. He spoke of this other family of his with such love… "I can't imagine what it would be like having a human family."

Munkustrap chuckled at this. "Oh, they would want to adopt you, I know," he assured her, much to Demeter's chagrin. Again he laughed. "They're not that bad…but then again, I've been with them since I was a kitten, so I guess I'm used to them. You would probably like a family without kids…they can be a handful. But they're my family…and I can't imagine life without them." Munkustrap must have realized how sentimental he was sounding as he stopped and looked down at his paws.

"What about the tribe?" Demeter asked. "Aren't they your family?"

Munkustrap smiled to the young cat and nodded. "I'm lucky. I have two families. Many cats don't really appreciate what it's like being owned by humans…like Tugger. And some aren't lucky to find great humans, or any at all…like Alonzo.

"They love me, and I care for them," he explained. "There is something special about being owned by a family that loves you. They consider me a part of the family, even though I'm nothing like them. It's…hard to explain. Unless you have a chance to really feel it." Demeter realized she was staring at the silver tabby, but she couldn't help it. This was definitely a side of him she never knew. She thought it was sweet…almost made her wish she had what he had.

"You really have your hands full, though," she commented.

"It's not that bad when you feel affection for them," he said, sighing. "And you can really see love," he added, "When they give you as cruel a name as Edgar." Demeter laughed at this a little harder than she meant to, causing a dark cloud to hover over the silver tabby. Then he looked up to see the children streaming back into the room.

"Look, they're sitting together!" Katie called gleefully.

"Oh," Demeter meowed to Munkustrap. "That reminds me, what do they mean by married?"

Munkustrap blushed furiously again, before looking shyly back at Demeter. He opened up his mouth to explain it, but it was too much for him to say. When he tried again, his voice seemed a little higher than usual. "It, uh…means that…they think that you're my mate."

"What?" Demeter shot up, shocked. The two then looked away from each other, both equally embarrassed.

"Do you think they'll kiss each other?" asked Jamie before he coughed lightly. Out of the side of her eye, she saw Munkustrap stiffen.

"That would be so cute! Come on Edgar, kiss your girlfriend," Katie egged him on.

By this point, Munkustrap had gone beyond a point of blushing (if it is possible to become phosphorescent), while the younger of the two children exclaimed that they wanted to see the cats kiss.

"Cats don't kiss," Munkustrap meowed at the same time that Meagan spoke it in human words.

"What's a kiss?" Demeter asked Munkustrap. The horrified look on the silver tabby's face made Demeter want to know what sort of punishment was intended to them. "It can't be that bad, can it?"

With the children egging them on, Munkustrap took a few seconds to catch his breath. He then nervously leaned close to Demeter and gave her a quick nuzzle. He then touched his nose to hers, before licking her cheek. (Now, it was Demeter's turn to blush furiously.)

"I think," Munkustrap said, his eyes bashfully looking at his feet, "that is what a cat can appropriately call a kiss." Their moment of embarrassment and elation were drowned out by the hoots and hollers of the children who were quite entertained by the whole scene.

Ultra Special Blah-Blah-Blah

Again, I went over my limit on pages. Okay, now 8 pages is my limit.

Demo: Do you mind if I don't spell out your entire name? I know some people are quite proud of their name in entirety. "Oh, catnip!" Yes, use the phrase, spread it around, and when it comes up in a block buster movie in ten years, we'll have done our job of making a new slang phrase! ((smile)) You made me laugh when you said the phrase back to me, lol.
Ekeli-kitsu: Lol, everyone feels so bad for Demeter's intervention! And yeah, being a cats fan girl does do weird things to you...I think it should be studied. But I'm glad you knew what I was talking about. I thouht I would sound weird.
Krissy4: Lol, um, I have no idea if that was sarcasm or not on chapter 12's review. Oh, and I had a hat tipped off to me! Yay!
Satin-n-Crimson: Yes... ((grin)) Where has that ginger cat been lately...huh ((tries to hide her smirk)) Patience, my dear. For all will reveal itself in due course.