Chapter 15 - How Demeter Got Her Collar

It sounded like complete chaos when the children began screaming in the quiet, quaint house. (They were apparently easily excitable). What's more, the love affair taking place right before them seemed ten times more interesting than anything they could watch or read, and it dripped with sweet sugary cuteness. And it was their cat that was living it! It's enough to make anyone jealous when they're cat leads a more interesting life than they do. (And how often that seems to happen…)

The two cats couldn't even look at each other. Their kitten-hood shyness had definitely passed through to their cat-hood selves, and that took over their demeanor for the moment. They only finally lifted their blushing faces when Jamie fell into a coughing fit, causing Meagan to send her brother back to bed (in two different languages to make a point with him.)

Munkustrap glanced sideways to the young cat beside him and smiled gently. "I'll be right back…are you okay by yourself?"

"Huh?" Demeter said, obviously not all there at the moment.

"You'll be fine," Munkustrap smiled, avoiding eye contact before jumping off the table and obediently following Jamie (and a nagging Meagan) to the bedroom. It seemed in the event of the boy coughing so frantically, Demeter was easily forgotten among the other two girls. Thinking it better than staying with the two younger girls, (with whom she would rather not entrust her life to), she followed Munkustrap to the boys' bedroom.

The door was slightly ajar, (probably out of habit to let the silver tabby in and out of the room with ease). Meagan was taking her brother's books away and making sure the boy went into the bed. She then gave him medicine while Munkustrap jumped up on the bed. Jamie took the silver tabby up in his arms and hugged him like a teddy bear. It didn't seem like the cat could breath for a moment until he left out a soft meow (that translated into "I'll die if this keeps up"), and the boy let go. He then meowed a thank you, and the boy rested his head, drifting off to sleep.

Meagan turned off the light before walking to the door. Panicking, Demeter raced down the hall and into the living room where she was quite suddenly scooped up. "Ah!" she meowed. The second oldest girl seemed to be very interested in her fur.

"She's such a pretty color," Katie said. "Imagine if they had kittens, how cute they would be?" Demeter struggled to get out of the grip of the girl, not having time to digest what she had said. (Not that she much liked her possible progeny discussed in such an informal setting.) Reluctantly, the girl let her go into a nice padded little basket. The gold queen curled up in the basket and looked up at the girl, ready to hiss at her. But a pair of green eyes caught her attention. Hesitating for a moment, Demeter smiled sheepishly at the silver tabby coming over to her.

Munkustrap sat by the basket and looked down, blushing. Demeter thought she saw a slight smile on his face. But still, she wondered why… "Why did you do it?" she asked the tom. In her experience, a flirt was simply that, a flirt. There was no special sentiment behind it, and she was hardly as pretty as the other queens (or so she thought). There was no reason for her to be the likely candidate for attention aside from the tom wanting to test out a line on her.

So she very much expected him to pretend he didn't know what she was talking about. But sure enough, he knew. "I wouldn't just do that to please them, if that's what you're wondering," Munkustrap said. Her blue eyes met his green eyes, and for a second were locked in a gaze they could not break, before she forced herself to turn away. Munkustrap smiled teasingly and gave the queen a gentle nudge. "You know, you're in my bed?"

Demeter flushed slightly, jumping out of the bed as though it were going to bite her tail off. Munkustrap laughed at her eagerness to get out of his bed, and the black and gold queen frowned. "Don't laugh at me," she pouted, playfully batting at him. But he backed away. For a moment, Demeter sat back and assessed the cat along with the situation.

"What?" he asked, laying down on the floor in pouncing mode.

"Remember when we were kittens and you never wanted to play with me?" she asked, pretending to be insulted by the memory.

Munkustrap stared for a moment, before getting a far off look on his face as the memories came back. Then he smirked. "You were a ball of energy!" he defended. "And I wasn't. But I wouldn't mind playing now." After thinking about that statement for a moment, he blushed furiously. "Like kittens play, I mean! Innocent playing."

Demeter laughed at his embarrassment. "What kind of games? See who can stay quiet the longest?" Again, Munkustrap had to think about this for a moment before grinning at the memory. "You were mean," Demeter feigned a pout.

"I was not," he said, lifting his head and frowning.

"Yeah, you were," Demeter said, still pouting. "All I wanted to do was spend time with you."

"Really?" Munkustrap asked, his face brightening up. She was slightly astonished that her confession was accepted so happily, and so she simply nodded her response. The silver tabby smiled warmly at her, making the queen feel at ease. It seemed as though everything was just as it should be at that moment.

"WHO WANTS TREATS!" Then she remembered the humans were there. Munkustrap looked up with some annoyance at Katie, who was shaking a bag of kitty treats. Then he looked over to Demeter with a dismayed look on his face.

"Those things taste awful," he said. "But they seem so happy when I eat them." Just as he meowed this to Demeter, the little girl must have thought it was a sign that he wanted a treat. So she opened the bag of artificially flavored cat treats and placed one down for her pet, the other for the house guest. Before bending down to take the treat, Munkustrap shook his head at Demeter, who was about to eat the treat. He then ate the overly processed, sorry-excuse-for-food with a grimace on his face.

"Aww," Katie picked up this cute little kitty and hugged him. (Demeter thought it was too bad he was too cute for the humans to pass up picking him up as they pleased.) "Did my wittle baby wove his tweat?" she asked. Munkustrap played the part by licking his lips twice. With a giggle, the girl put the cat down. She then looked over to Demeter.

The queen gave the girl one of those classic snooty cat looks. She then pawed at the treat lazily as though it were a toy. "I don't think she wants it," Meagan said, watching from the kitchen.

"It will go to waste," Katie pouted. The two girls looked over to Munkustrap. With a crestfallen look on his face, he sighed and walked over to the artificial chicken-smelling treat and ate it for his owner's sake. "I'm so glad he likes these things," Katie said as she gave him two more before walking off.

"Oh, Everlasting Cat," Munkustrap said, staring in bewilderment at the two extra treats on the floor.

"Why do you eat them if they don't taste good?" Demeter asked, trying to hold back a laugh.

"They…uh…" He seemed to have lost his train of thought, staring at the dessert he would inevitably have to guzzle down. Demeter repeated the question, and he drew his attention back to the cat. "Oh, I never really liked any of the treats they gave me, and their father complained about wasting money on them. Katie looked upset she couldn't find a treat I liked." He eyed the two treats with dismay.

"I'll help you eat them if you don't like them!" Demeter said, grinning. "I'm sure they're not that bad."

Munkustrap chuckled at the irony of it all. "Alonzo will eat anything, right?" Demeter nodded. "Meet the one thing he won't eat." Demeter stared at the treat in disgust. But the silver tabby had a job to do. And so, he took a deep breath, went over and ate the two treats, before sitting back on his haunches.

"Are you okay?" Demeter asked, walking over to him. He had a glazed look on his face.

"I think I died for a moment," he said. Demeter laughed and nudged the over-dramatic cat. He smiled to her. She then nudged him with her paw. He nudged back.

Surprised, she batted at his face playfully. He did the same to her.

Challenged, she got up and pushed the sitting cat over on his side. She then pinned him and bit gently on his ear, tugging on it as though pretending to rip it off. Munkustrap feigned defeat on his side, only muttering, "Bah," at his defeat.

Then he lay perfectly still. Demeter smiled and nudged him. But he didn't move. She nudged him again. He didn't move. "Munku?" she asked. She expected him to pop right up, but he didn't. The thought of her having killed a cat right in front of his family flashed through Demeter's head, and she panicked slightly.

She put her face close to his, hoping to see his eyes flutter open. "Munku?" she asked, a little more panicked this time. But his eyes shot open and he licked her on the nose, before getting up and racing off to grab a cat toy that looked brand new. He attacked the toy with full force before rolling on his back and tossing it in the air. Demeter watched, shocked and amused, before rolling on her side and laughing. She had never seen Munkustrap so playful before. And by the excited clamor of the children, she would have to guess that they never did, either.

But before she could do anything, Munkustrap threw the toy aside, and caught sight of his new prey…the one he was staring at right in the eyes. "Erk…" was all Demeter could manage before the cat pummeled right into her, sending to two rolling about.

The next half hour was spent with the two racing about, playing like kittens, jumping in the air, and tackling the other, giving into the inner kitten they both ignored so often.

"Okay, it's a giant mouse that's attacking the city," the silver tabby told the gold and black queen. They were staring at a bright pink bracelet that lay under one of the couches. Well hidden, the two didn't want to give away their position as they were about to attack their prey.

"A giant pink mouse?" Demeter asked in a hushed voice. "Do they exist?"

"Right now, it does," Munkustrap lowered his voice as Demeter had. "And we have to save the world from this menace..."

"Because we're the only hope?" Demeter asked.

"Nice touch," Munkustrap said, impressed.

"I read it out of a Rumpus Cat Kitty Comic," she informed him. After a grin from the normally serious cat, he looked over to the "pink mouse" and wiggled his shoulders, ready to pounce. Demeter did the same, as she was going to aid her fellow 'defender of the world'.

And like lightening, the two raced after the pink terror, their claws extended. Of course, Munkustrap got to it first, but Demeter tried so hard to beat him to it, she ended up crashing into him and the two ended up in a pile, the pink "mouse" stuck to the silver tabby's claw. "Ow," they both said at the same time. Munkustrap rubbed his head where he had apparently hit it. The gold queen smiled warmly and started licking the spot on his head where he was hurt.

For a minute, that was all that existed…the two of them together, her attending to his wounds after a "perilous fight", and him being the one cared for. And Demeter had never felt more content being with her kitten hood friend.

"Come on, I'm tired," Munkustrap said abruptly. He had suddenly turned serious again. Demeter looked at him with confusion, but the cat walked off with his head down, towards his bed.

Demeter wasn't sure what to make of his sudden attitude change, but followed him obediently (as it was his house). The cat curled up and closed his eyes in his little basket, and the gold and black queen naturally assumed she was meant to sleep in his bed. After all, even though his sudden change in demeanor scared her a little, she had no where else to sleep. So she gingerly crawled into the bed and lifted up his arm, curling herself up next to him

"Huh?" he exclaimed. "No, I didn't mean….well….yeah, I meant go to bed, but--"

"Is something wrong?" Demeter looked at the tabby with a determined look in her face. She felt if he could simply turn from playful to icily serious at the drop of a hat, she could be determined about innocently sleeping in the same bed. (Though she had to admit, her heart was racing a mile a minute). But Munkustrap bowed his head and looked away, before laying his head down and saying nothing.

The obvious tension between the two was becoming far too much to take. Even though she was right under his arm, they seemed so very far away from each other, and pushing even farther. Though she wanted to get up and leave, she stayed as long as she could bear the unwanted feeling. But finally, the feeling became too much for her and she made a move to get up to leave him to sleep in peace. But he pulled her back towards him, not letting her get up.

"Munkustrap?" she turned her head to look at him, confused.

"Go to sleep, Demeter," he said, using a tone of voice she didn't recognize. It was gentle, yet stern. There was something in it that told her that she should listen, and shouldn't be afraid. So contemplating this for a moment, she finally tossed out all reason and just assumed he was being a moody tom, laid her head down, and slept.

Demeter woke up with a sound she wasn't familiar with: a door closing. Katie raced up to two humans who had walked in. "Who put the gnome in front of the door," the new human queen asked her. (What had she heard them called before? Ah, woman.)

"Mum, Edgar brought home a girlfriend today! Can we keep her, please?" Katie seemed very bent on the idea.

"A female? And what are we going to do, have a bunch of kittens running around?" the woman asked her daughter. (Again with the discussion of her progeny…what is it with humans and kittens?)

"Aw, mom, she's so cute!" Katie pointed over to the cat who was staring at them. Demeter looked over to Munkustrap, but he seemed fast asleep. Looking back up, the queen saw the woman sigh to her mate before coming over to the cat. She held out a human paw for the queen to sniff, before patting her on the head. Demeter did her best not to pull away as not to wake Munkustrap.

"We can't keep any cat that just waltzes in here," the woman said to her daughter. "She might have a family. And we can't afford two vet bills. And do you remember what that Maine Coon did to Jamie's goldfish?" Katie groaned and followed the tired woman to the bedroom, saying things like 'she's so cute' and 'Edgar loves her,' hoping they would be reason enough for her to stay.

Munkustrap stirred in his sleep and pulled Demeter closer to him, purring softly. Taking a few deep breaths to calm her nerves, she laid her head down and let sleep take its course once again.

The next morning, the two cats were up early. Munkustrap couldn't return to the junkyard that day, as he wanted to make sure Jamie was okay. So he went with Demeter to the cat door, the parents of the children watching them. (They were getting ready for work). Munkustrap peeked through the kitty door along with Demeter to make sure Bombalurina was out there. Sure enough she was. "Do you want me to talk to her about pushing cats into other cat's homes?" the Jellicle protector asked, frowning at the red queen who hadn't noticed the two cats staring at her.

"No, I'll deal with her," Demeter assured him. "You can deal with Tugger when you get back."

"And I plan to," he smiled to her, nuzzling her once before letting her leave the house. Demeter sat outside the kitty door and caught her breath, trying to remind herself not to let everything that happened the night before get to her. Then she looked at her sister, who had smiled to her. It was time to deal with more pressing matters…

"Did you have fun?" Bombalurina asked sheepishly. There was hardly any time to react before Demeter had pummeled her and knocked her down. "Hey! What was that for?"

"You locked me in there and thought you would get away with it?" Demeter smiled mischievously.

"I'm sorry!" Bombalurina said, before examining her sister. She then smiled. "Though I must say you don't look too sorry that I did."

Demeter blushed and looked down at her paws. "I had fun," Demeter said.

Bombalurina seemed to huff up. "If he lay one paw on you, I'll--" She started making her way to the kitty door. But Demeter grabbed her tail. "Why does everyone keep grabbing my tail!" she tugged her tail back into her possession, before turning to the queen who had committed the atrocity.

"No, nothing like THAT happened, Bombie. Munkustrap is always a perfect gentlemen, and will continue to be so." Demeter gave a content smile to her sister, but that only seemed to infuriate her more. "Nothing happened!" she assured the red queen. "We talked and I met his humans, and then we played like kittens again."

"Munkustrap?" Bombalurina asked, a smile slowly drawing across her face. "Playing like a kitten?" Demeter reproached herself for saying that. She wasn't supposed to tell anyone…the silver tabby was a little embarrassed he let himself revert back to such a carefree mode. But he HAD been locked up with humans for a week…and he seemed happy when they played together…

"Anyways," she changed the subject. "His family was…nice."

"Oh," Bombalurina said, apparently glad to hear this. She then put her arm around her sister and started walking her off. "Did I ever tell you about my family? They have no children, and it's a very nice couple…and they're looking for another cat. Remember, I told you once?"

The introductions went very well, and the tribe was both surprised and delighted to see that Bombalurina and Demeter now had matching collars.
Authors Note (got tired of the same blah blah blah, heh):

I was looking in Wikipedia for info on cats when I came across bicolor cats…it says, and I quote, "A black-and-white bicolor cat is often known as a tuxedo cat or a Jellicle cat." I just thought that was interesting…no matter what, Mistoffelees will always be a Jellicle.

Demo: "Oh, catnip" will spread sooner than I thought...this is good...my diabolical plan is working.
Enkeli-kitsu: Specimen one, Oh Catnip new user. I'm very happy!
Satin-n-Crimson: Heh, glad you liked it! I just had to, they are too cute together.
Krissy4: --Bringer of love. Anyways, ok, sorry to think it was! I couldn't tell, honestly. Glad you like it.
Ice Goddess: Tugger must flirt as it is his way, lol. And everyone is calling it a kiss! Lol, spoiler in the reviews ((cringe))

Anyways, I need sleep, as I got 3 hours last night, and my hand hurts royally from all the writing I did to finish my Lab Notebook. Procrastinators Unite!...Tomorrow...