After several restless nights, The Tugger finally managed to make it to the square unharmed. The dangers were limitless in the loud busy city; with speeding vehicles, endless construction sites, and animal pound vans at every alleyway, it was nearly impossible for a cat to find its way safely. He slithered his way across the street, dodging the legs of countless humans in a rush to get to work.
Once he crossed the street, he finally found the antiquated underground railway. "This must be it!" The Tugger remarked. He slid under the caution tape which blocked off the access for others. Before it closed down, it was a small stop between two other stops. People stopped using it the older it got and the authorities decided to shut it down from the public. Occasionally stationmasters stopped there to fix something on their train or take a break from the previous platform.
The Tugger hopped down the grimy marble stairs and eventually tumbled down due to lack of traction on his velvety, smooth paws. "Ouch." He said rubbing his head once he landed. He took a moment to fix his fur and fluff up his main before he continued on with his journey.
Suddenly, a bright light came from the tunnel. It appeared to be slowing down to this platform. The Tugger immediately dodged behind a wooden crate and hid.
A manly, Scottish voice said, "Ah drat! Another break down and God only knows what I'll do!" His shoes clicked against the dusted marble as he bent down to check the wheel on his train. "Luckily it's just you and me this time." He said. The Tugger shut his eyes and tried to breathe as steadily and quietly as he could.
"What is it, eh?" The man said. The Tugger closed his eyes and inhaled as much air as he possibly could. The scent that came along with this deep inhale was a familiar cat-like scent. The Tugger furrowed his brows and tried to detect who this feline was.
"Tugger! Lad! I haven't seen your jolly face in… well…Everlasting only knows" A Scottish tabby popped it's head from the other side of the crate with a bubbly expression.
"S…" The Tugger began.
"…Skimble! Yes! That's my name!" Skimbleshanks finished.
"Yeah… So… what you doin' around these parts of the city?" The Tugger asked. He facepalmed after he processed what he said.
"I live on the railway!" He replied, giving the Tugger an of-course-you-should-know voice. "So what are you doing here?" Skimble asked, raising his eyebrows and tilting his head.
"I'm looking for a queen." The Tugger replied regretfully.
"Tugger… I may not know much about impressing young lasses but I do know that you won't find at least one in the railway station!" Skimble said smugly.
"Yes! I know that! I'm looking for Sapphira!" The Tugger replied impatiently.
"Who? Sapphire?" He asked with a concerned look on his face. "Are you on Magic Mushrooms? You can't find gemstones here either!" Skimble replied, nearly losing his mind.
"No, Skimble I'm not on Hash or Magic Mushrooms! It's the new Jellicle queen in our tribe!" The Tugger said, offended by Skimbleshanks's interpretation of Sapphira's name.
"Oh, I must've been in Peru when she arrived… Why is she here?" Skimble questioned, again, wondering if The Tugger got his paws on ultra-strong catnip.
"Macavity." The Tugger said rolling his eyes.
"That twat catnapped again?" Skimble asked with an unbelievable facial expression. The Tugger simply nodded at him and Skimbleshanks immediately decided to take action. "Let's show that bastard not to mess with our Jellicle tribe anymore!" And so, they set off to find Sapphira.
To be continued…
This one has mild-ish language in it and I apologize but Skimble is a Scotsman and he does hate Macavity so of course he would call Macavity rude names and all of that.
Anyways, thanks for reading and I also got an Instagram fanpage for Cats and other musicals called .jellicle and I hope you follow it!