AN: Okay we do a little bit of ages in this chapter I tried to avoid it but I didn't try hard enough. I looked up cat years vs. human years, but it was like 1 year in cat's equals 15 in human or something like that. I was like damn so I'm gonna use human years for everything, just because cat years drive me insane and they confuse the hell outta me. Okay that's it enjoy the chapter!

The Rum Tum Tugger stiffly walked across the den. Jenny made him stay one more day because of his infected injuries; Munk thought it was for the better so that he could build up more strength. But Tugger was bored as anything and just wandered around the den when Munk was patrolling and when Bomba was with Dem doing Everlasting cat knows what queens do in their spare time. Every now and then he would even work on his dance skills for the Jellicle Ball, but he quickly realized he wasn't nearly as flexible as he was when he had full health.

Sighing one more time Tugger just got too bored to stay and he wandered out of the den. He was walking slowly and with a limp but other then that he was almost fine. He winced and started to bend down to the ground, he rested for a second breathing a little hard when he felt a head rub up against his side. Glancing to his side he smiled slightly at Etcetera rubbing her head against him. She looked up and smiled at her favorite tom.

"Hey Tugger, it's good to see you finally up!" She said smiling broadly looking at him with her sweet brown eyes.

Tugger looked down to the ground and laughed slightly. "Well I'm not exactly up very well right now am I?"

Etcetera blushed and smiled even more at the fact Tugger was talking to her like this. "Can I help you?" She asked when she noticed his breathing and slight winces every now and then. "Want me to go get Munkustrap?"

"Naw… naw… Munk doesn't have to know about this. I'm really not supposed to be up right now." He said and flashed a smile making her blush even more.

Etcy giggled and rolled over onto her side so he was looking down at her instead of eye level. "Are you feeing better?" She asked innocently. "We were really, really worried and then Macavity came..." She trailed off and began to tell him what happened form the kittens point of view."And Skimble tried to fight him but he couldn't, Jenny and Jelly tried to help him but the bad cats wouldn't let them near Skimble. Plato tried, even Pounce tried to help." She said and crawled over to Tugger so she was laying right next to him. "But then Munk came with Alonzo and Demmy and Bomba and we thought he would get Macavity but then he got hurt too and no one could help him because all the mean cats wouldn't let them." Tugger looked down at her with pity in his eyes he didn't often give condolences and sympathy, he wasn't very good at it but he couldn't help it here. "Then you came with Brutus and Misto!" She said sitting up and smiling again. "And then you helped and Misto did his magic thingy and everybody was saved!"

Tugger nodded and looked back down to the ground. "If you didn't come back something really bad, worse then what happened would have happened." She said.

"No, Munk would have beaten Macavity even if I wasn't there." Tugger said. "In my condition al I could do was absolutely nothing."

"That's not true, you helped Munkustrap." Etcy said and rolled on her back sticking her legs up in the air.

"Shouldn't you be somewhere?" He asked her.

"I was playing hide and seek with Jem, Ele, and Vicky but I left the area so they're probably still looking for me." She said and put on a mischievous smile.

"Being a mischievous tom myself, I am proud of you. Ya don't know how much trouble I got into when I was your age, Munk would get so mad at me. Alonzo would more laugh…" Tugger trailed off and Etcy laughed.

"How old are you Tuggy?" She asked bluntly.

Tugger laughed and gave a lopsided smile. "Bold thing ain't ya?" He asked her but she still had that curious look in her eyes. "How old are you?"

"If I tell you will you promise you'll tell me how old you are?"

"You drive a hard bargain but sure."

"You promise?"

"I promise."

"Okay! I am ten years old!" She said proudly. "Your turn!"

"Okay, I'm twenty four." He said and Etcy made a shocked face.

"You're old! But you're still really, really, cute!" She said and rubbed her head in his mane.

"Why thank you I know I am." He said and she smiled. "Hey, you think I'm old, Munk is twenty seven, and Alonzo is twenty five, just a few months older then me, but older none the less. If he had been born a few months earlier or me a few months later I may be in his position right now."

"Really?" Etcy seemed fascinated by this. "Vicky's the oldest out of us, she's thirteen, and I'm the youngest." She said sadly.

"I never would have guessed." Tugger said and Dem walked up to the two cats smiling slightly.

After a pause a thoughtful look went over the kittens face, and that was rare to see. "Tuggy? Wasn't Macavity your brother too?" She asked and Tuggers head snapped up.

"Where'd you hear that?"

"Around."

Tugger took a deep breath. "I wouldn't tell anybody I told you but yes, yes he was."

"How old was he?" She asked and Tugger's smile returned.

"Old."

"How old."

"Twenty nine."

"Wow!"

Tugger laughed at her reaction when Demeter spotted them and walked over.

"What are you two doing down there?" She asked and leaned down.

"Tugger looked upset so I decided to come over and cheer him up!" Etcy said cheerfully.

"That's very sweet of you but I can handle it from here, why don't you go over and play with the girls. I know for a fact they're looking for you." Dem said to Etcetera.

"Okay!" She said quickly saying goodbye to Tugger and she ran away over the piles of junk to the other side of the 'yard. "Do you need some help down there Tugger? Ya look a little stuck."

"As much as I hate to say and you know I do, yes I do need some help." Tugger replied looking up at her.

She bent down and allowed him to put one arm around her shoulders he moaned as she helped him up. "Why are walking around like this? It can't be good, I don't want you wasting to much of your energy you still have to get back to your humans."

"Well that's why I left, one I got bored and two I wanted to find Munk to tell him I was leaving, obviously I didn't get very far." Tugger said.

"Well he's patrolling with Alonzo, right around the corner I think." Dem said.

"Okay then let go."

"What? No you're still too weak."

"But if he sees I need help like this I'll never get out of here." Tugger pleaded and Dem nodded slightly. She hated lying to Munk but it was true ever since the 'incident' Munk had been very protective over everything, especially Tugger.

"Fine, but I'm staying close until someone else comes by your side."

"Ya know if this were about a week ago you would never do this for me." Tugger said. "You are startin' to like me, a lot, might I add."

She rolled her eyes and the two spotted Munk and Alonzo walking around the corner. Munk saw them first. "Tugger! What's wrong is everything okay?"

Tugger looked to his brother with an annoyed face as he rushed over. "Munk I'm fine, I just came to tell you I'm leaving. Where's Bomba?"

"I'll go get her." Dem said and ran off to go find her sister.

"Sure you're up to leave?" Alonzo said still a little worried for his brother.

"I'm fine, honestly. I don't need to be treated like a kitten. I am a grown tom-" Munk scoffed. "Hey, I am."

"Not mentally, mentally you're still a kitten. Strutting around, showing off." Munk said and.

"Hey, Alonzo is just as bad." Tugger argued.

"Hey don't drag me into this," Alonzo said.

"He may be flirtatious but he's not the sex symbol of the tribe." Munkustrap said.

"Cool, I'm the sex symbol! Well, now that I think about it, it's not really a surprise." Tugger said and ran his paws through his mane a few times.

"You are so cocky." Munk said sighing.

"I know."

"Tugger!" Bomba yelled and ran over to him. "How are you?"

"I'm just fine and I wish people would stop asking me that." Tugger said as they rubbed their heads.

"I'm sorry, baby, it's just I worry." She said as they parted. She gave him a quick look over deciding whether or not she wanted him to leave. "You don't seem to bad, but then again you've always been good at hiding things from me."

"But I really am perfectly fine."

"And I trust you." She smiling sweetly. "We'll walk you back to your humans, me and Dem should be heading back as well. Munk are you coming?"

"Yeah, I should make a quick pit stop at my humans, let them know I'm alive." Unlike everyone else's humans Munk could go a little over a week without going back. His humans knew he was an outdoor cat and can be gone days and days at a time. But they also had another cat who was an indoor cat named Jay. She liked being an indoor cat and had no interest in being a Jellicle, but she did love the stories Munk told her when he came by. One time he and Tugger even managed to sneak her out of the house so she could watch the Jellicle Ball one night when their humans were away.

"Okay, I'll stay and keep an eye out on the 'yard." Alonzo said, unlike them he had no humans and that's the way he liked it. "I think I'll go find Cassandra first though." There was a big rumor around the 'yard they had something between them, but neither of them had even confirmed it.

Tugger smiled and looked at Alonzo clearly asking if there was anything happening with them. Alonzo lightly hit him on his shoulder and walked away.

The group was about to leave before Tugger stopped. "Wait where's Misto, I wanna say bye. I may not be back for a while. Knowing my humans they might want to take to the-" Tugger visibly shuddered, "the vet."

All the cats shuddered visibly. "Well…" Dem said. "It may not be bad, maybe they won't so anything to bad ya know? Maybe they'll even help ya get better faster."

"Yea, or maybe they'll do something else." Tugger said and Munk's eyes went wide.

"I'll scratch their eyes out of they do." Bomba said acidly.

"But anywhere, back on the matter at hand." Tugger said. "Where's Misto?" He asked again as the group left the borders of the junkyard.

"Um, he's out wandering the streets. Yeah he just needed some time to clear his head." Munk said obviously coming up with that off the top of his head.

"You're lying." Tugger said.

"No, he's really not." Bomba said. "Misto isn't here, but I'm sure Alonzo will tell him you said goodbye when he does get back."

"You're all lying to me but I'll play along." Tugger said and they all walked down the road. After a few minutes Tugger began to get tired again and Bomba silently told him to lean on her a little and he gratefully accepted.

About five more minutes went by and the two girls had to leave down another road. They rubbed noses and heads affectionately with their mates and left. Munk that when Bomba left Tugger was walking slower and he knew he was leaning heavily on her. "Come on Tug, no need to torture yourself. Lean on me." Munk said and walked to Tugger's side.

Tugger smiled and leaned on Munk, the two brothers walked down the road until they reached Tugger's home. Munk should have broken off at the last road but he didn't want to leave to walked back on his own. "I'll see you in a few days?" Munk asked as Tugger began walking up the stone path to the cat door.

"You will." Tugger said looking back and smiling. Munk nodded and walked back to head to his home. Tugger walked up to the cat door and pushed it open, he immediately smelled fresh cat food.

"Oh no…" He moaned. Fresh food can only mean one thing, there's a little kitten brat wandering around in my home somewhere.

Walking into the living room he heard a squeal and he turned around. "Ace!" Cried a woman, named Sarah, in her mid twenties and she ran over to the mane coon cat. "Oh my gosh you're back! I thought I would never see you again!" She hugged Tugger making him wince slightly and hiss a little. "Oh, I'm sorry baby I know you don't like that, but I'm just so glad to see you. Dave! Come in here! Someone wants to see you."

A man walked in his mid twenties as well. "Ace! Buddy you're back!" he walked over and scratched him behind the ears. "Oh what's this?" He said and stared to examine Tugger's back and the various wounds on him. "Looks like he got in a bit of a fight with another cat, hope ya kicked his ass, Ace."

"Wasn't alone, but yeah he's gone and he ain't comin' back." Tugger said mumbled even though the humans only heard it as a meow.

"Yeah, he kicked his ass that's my boy." Dave said.

"We should make a vet appointment." Tugger meowed. "Baby, I know you hate the vet but we have to have someone look at those nasty cuts of yours." Sarah said.

Tugger looked at Dave with a pleading look. "Hey don't look at me buddy." Dave said. "Come on he should meet the new member of the family."

"Oh here it comes…" Tugger said.

"I'm sure you'll love him, Ace, you can be a big brother now." Sarah said.

"Easy for you to say." Tugger said dully.

"His names Blake." She said.

"Oh well that's just peaches and cream." Tugger mumbled, they walked into a room and Tugger furrowed his brow. Wait, this smells familiar… He thought and they turned another corner.

Tugger's eyes widened when he saw the familiar black and white tom laying on a big pillow. "Misto?" He asked.

"Hey Tugger!" he said cheerfully.

"W – w – what are doing here?"

"I'm the new cat." Misto said, "They found me on the street when they were gonna go pick up another cat from the shelter today and decided I was much more cute then any cat there."

"That is great! I was worried it would be some little brat, but now I know it's just some little magical brat, that is much better." Tugger said.

"Shut up!" Misto said smiling.

"But I bet these people didn't expect to have their own magician wandering around. Just go easy on them in the beginning." Tugger said.

Misto laughed. "I will." He said smirking.

"What have you done?"

"Just a few missing socks nothing to big."

Tugger laughed and slapped his friend on the back. "Everlasting Cat, I thought these humans got enough torture from me, they are in for a ride."

The two cats laughed and Sarah and Dave watched them. "They seem chummy." Sarah said. "Hey you know, Blake was a stray, and Ace does wander outside a lot. Maybe they know each other!"

"Honey, don't be silly." Dave said and he led her out of the room.

AN: I wrote a super long chapter here for you guys, I hope you people liked. I'm still not sure if I should make an epilogue if one doesn't go up within a week or so then I probably won't. But the odds are leaning toward I will. Okay guys and girls I'm glad you liked this and maybe if I write more CATS stories in the future I'll see you there too. And for Victoria's age, I picked thirteen casue it symbolizes going into your teenage years and this takes place after the Jellicle Ball so she did the mating dance and everyhting. I don't know it's just what I think. Now to my loyal reviewers I thank you: Quaxo Mistofelees and Bombalurinasara. And thanks to all those who do not review I love you just the same! Well, I'll see you!