Munkustrap sat on the rocking chair, perched on a junk-heap, overlooking the main clearing as he watched over the occupants.
Three weeks had passed since Quaxo had collapsed and had almost died. Three weeks had passed since the Jellicles had found out that Macavity was Quaxo's and Victoria's father.
Sadly, Munkustrap's worries had come true, with the majority of the Jellicles turning against the sweet Quaxo just because of his father. It wasn't something the poor fledgling could control, nor the fact that he had inherited magic, but Quaxo was still treated like an outcast by the majority of the Jellicles, no matter how much Munkustrap tried to persuade them that he was still the sweet, timid, fledging that he had always been.
The poor Tuxedo Tom had become withdrawn and quiet, disappearing from the den he and Munkustrap shared before Munkustrap awoke before returning late in the evening and heading straight to bed.
It broke Munkustrap's heart to see Quaxo suffering like this; he knew how it felt to have been seen as dangerous and having others wanting them to be kicked from the yard.
He didn't know what to do though.
Quaxo wouldn't let him speak to him, to assure him it would be okay, that he wasn't alone.
But he guessed that after a while, those words just seem like empty lies.
"Munkustrap." Munkustrap blinked, focusing, as two cats climbed up the junk pile to sit beside him on the rocking chair.
"Coricopat, Tantomile," Munkustrap greeted softly, nuzzling Tantomile's cheek. The identical twins inclined their heads in reply.
"Is there something wrong?" Munkustrap asked, concerned, as he noted the worried expression on both of their faces. The two twins exchanged glances.
"It is Quaxo," Tantomile spoke up softly, green-gold eyes looking at Munkustrap sadly. Munkustrap frowned, worried now.
"What's wrong?" He asked worriedly, back straightening slightly. He was ready to pounce off at a moment's notice and go find his nephew.
"He hasn't been showing up for his lessons for a fortnight now," Coricopat continued, voice quiet. "We understood that perhaps, given recent events, that he may be worried but as it's getting closer to being a month now since we last had a lesson…"
"…and when we try to go get him to come with us for a lesson, he tells us that he isn't interested and he's not using his magic ever again," Here, Tantomile paused and looked at her brother.
"It's not a good thing, Munkus," Cori took over. "If he isn't using his magic and giving it an outlet, it could overwhelm him and cause him to get really unwell, perhaps even…kill him in its attempt to seek an outlet." Munkustrap's green eyes widened in shock at Cori's revelation.
No, he wouldn't allow Quaxo to do that to himself!
They had almost lost him just a month ago; there was no way that Munkustrap would ever allow him to get that close to death again.
"I'll go speak to him now," Munkustrap murmured. "I'll get him to see how important it is," The twins nodded, looking a tiny bit relieved.
"He's in the far west clearing," Coricopat told him.
"And, Munk, tell him we do love him and we care for him immensely." Tantomile added as Munkustrap stood up, getting ready to leap down from the rocking chair. Munkustrap smiled at them, giving a small nod.
"I will." He reassured them before he leapt off of the rocking chair, landing nimbly on the ground. Munkustrap straightened up, nodding to Alonzo, before he walked off to seek out his troubled nephew.
He found Quaxo where Coricopat said he would be, in the far west clearing. Quaxo was sitting on an upside down wooden drawer, limbs pulled close to him, as he sat hunched over, purple-green eyes blank as he stared at the ground.
Munkustrap silently padded over to him, climbing onto the drawer and settling down beside him.
"Quax?" Munkustrap murmured, gently nudging Quaxo's shoulder with his own. Quaxo blinked before turning his head to briefly glance at Munkustrap.
"What do you want, Munkus?" Quaxo just muttered, rather abruptly. Munkustrap blinked, rather shocked by Quaxo's bluntness, but decided to just move on.
"Cori and Tanto told me you haven't been to a lesson in a fortnight." Munkustrap said gently. "Want to tell me why?"
"Because I'm never using my magic again." Quaxo answered simply, looking anywhere but at Munkustrap. "I hate it, everyone hates it, and so I'm not going to use it."
"Buddy, it can kill you," Munkustrap told him. Quaxo shrugged, not seeming to care. Munkustrap was shocked now. Quaxo didn't seem to care about his life anymore. His fur was ungroomed and slightly dirty, not in its usual immaculate state, he looked tired and now he didn't care if the magic took his life?
No, Munkustrap wouldn't stand for this.
"Quaxo, you need to have lessons, you need to look after yourself." Munkustrap told him firmly. Quaxo shook his head, getting to his feet.
"No, I'm never using magic again, I don't care." He muttered before he went to walk away.
"Quaxo, sit down!" Munkustrap ordered. "I'm not done talking to you yet!" He hated to order the young Tom around, but he needed to get through to Quaxo, to show him that he was still cared for.
Quaxo spun around, purple-green eyes flashing dangerously.
"No!" He snarled. "I'm not talking about this! I'm not using my magic again! I'm not turning out like him!" Munkustrap tilted his head.
"Turning out like who?" Munkustrap pressed calmly, though he knew exactly who the young Tom was referring to.
"Macavity!" Quaxo shouted angrily. "I'm angry and upset because everyone hates me, but are still fine with Vicky, and I don't want to use my magic like this because it'll intensify and it'll consume me like it did Macavity and I don't want to hurt anyone!" Quaxo exploded, not bothering to take a breath. Quaxo panted harshly, still fuming, as Munkustrap stared at him, starting to understand.
"You don't want to use your magic because you're angry," Munkustrap murmured. Quaxo gave a nod.
"Quax, anyone in your position would be angry; you've been treated so unfairly by the others…" Munkustrap started to say before Quaxo suddenly cut him off.
"Don't even start, Munkus, you don't know what it's like to be treated like an outcast!" Quaxo cried out, frustrated. "You don't know what it's like to be seen as dangerous and have everyone wanting to kick you out from the yard!" Quaxo spun around to walk away again, when Munkustrap's calm, but sad, voice reached him.
"Actually, I know that rather well." Quaxo paused at Munkustrap's words, the anger slowly starting to ebb away after his outburst. He looked over his shoulder at Munkustrap, finding his uncle and best friend still sitting on the drawer, his shoulders hunched in slightly as he looked at Quaxo with sad green eyes.
"W-What?" Quaxo panted slightly, turning to look at Munkustrap properly. Munkustrap patted the wooden drawer next to him. Quaxo walked over and sat beside him.
"When Old Deuteronomy first brought me to the yard, about two-thirds of the Jellicles wanted him to throw me out," Munkustrap started to explain slowly.
"B-But why?" Quaxo questioned.
"Because I was a slave." Munkustrap looked at his paws, which were entwined in his lap. "They had meetings about it where they told Deuteronomy that they wanted me gone, because they thought I was dangerous and would hurt, or even kill, them." Quaxo blinked, shocked.
"Deuteronomy didn't believe that though, he knew that I would never hurt anyone, I was far too meek for that." Munkustrap gave a small smile at that. "Even when you were still a kitten, some cats still wanted me gone from the yard." Quaxo looked at his paws.
"I-I never knew that they wanted to kick you out." Quaxo murmured. Munkustrap gave a small shrug.
"They didn't know who I was, all they saw was the slave," Munkus continued. "But I never stopped being me because they hated me for my past, I was going to prove to them that I wasn't the dangerous cat they thought I was, that just because I was a slave didn't mean I didn't have a heart." Munkustrap looked back at Quaxo.
"Parentage doesn't determine what you'll turn out like, Quaxo," Munkustrap reassured him. "I didn't turn out like my mother, which I'm grateful for every day." Quaxo looked back at his paws.
"I'm scared, Munk, I don't want to turn out like him." Quaxo admitted weakly. Munkustrap wrapped his arms around his young charge, holding him close.
"You won't lose yourself to your magic, Quaxo, you don't have the darkness in you that Macavity did." Munkustrap murmured in his ear. "And besides, your father isn't completely evil, he still does have a good heart…at times." He added as Quaxo gave him a look.
"You know, Macavity was my protector when I first brought to the yard," Munkustrap began to tell him. "He was my friend, making sure no one made fun of me and that I never felt like I was alone." Quaxo rested his head against Munkustrap's shoulder, feeling emotionally drained.
"He even fought against one of my ex-master's as he tried to grab me from the park." Quaxo's head shot up at that, shocked.
"What?!" He exclaimed. Munkustrap hugged him close.
"We were at the park with the other kittens, plus the adults, and were playing hide and seek, when one of the ex-master's found me," Munkustrap told him. "I fought and started screaming as he grabbed me, trying to pull me away, when Macavity suddenly appeared, lunging at him." Munkustrap told the rest of the story of how Macavity had fought back, even though he was getting hurt, until Deuteronomy and the other Toms had come to their aid.
"He ended up with cracked ribs and a few gashes, but he did his best to save me from being taken away." Munkustrap finished, looking at Quaxo. "Not to mention he just helped to save your life, when he could have walked away." Quaxo blinked, taking all of the information in. Munkustrap gently ran his paw through Quaxo's slightly grimy head-fur, brushing it out, the small actions soothing Munkustrap's worries.
It appeared to be calming Quaxo as well, each stroke brushing away the stress and worry from the last few weeks. Quaxo leaned against Munkustrap, his body sagging as he final succumbed to the emotional exhaustion.
"I'm sorry I caused you to worry, Munkus," Quaxo mumbled as he wrapped his arms around Munkustrap's waist, hugging him close. Munkustrap wrapped his arm around Quaxo's shoulders, pulling him close.
"I was extremely worried about you, Quax," Munkustrap admitted. "I almost lost you a month ago; I don't want to lose you again." Quaxo nodded. They both sat there in silence, watching the sky.
"I...I'm just scared of losing myself to the darkness, Munk," Quaxo murmured. "I'm just so angry and annoyed that they're judging me for something I can't control." Munkustrap nodded in understanding.
"How are you feeling now?" Munkustrap asked. "After getting all of that out?"
"Better," Quaxo admitted. "Not so angry now, but I feel exhausted." Munkustrap nodded in understanding.
"It's always exhausting to keep emotions hidden for so long," He revealed. "I had that happen to me quite a bit when I was younger,"
"What do I do, Munk?" Quaxo questioned, unsure.
"Whenever you feel overwhelmed or ready to burst like that again, come and find me to ramble to," Munkustrap winked, squeezing Quaxo. Deuteronomy had said the same thing to him numerous times and now it was time to help his nephew, especially since he knew what it felt like to be so overwhelmed with emotion. Quaxo nodded.
"Hey, Munk?" Quaxo spoke up timidly a few moments later.
"Mm?" The silver tabby responded, looking at the young Tuxedo Tom. Quaxo hesitated for a moment.
"H-How do I get the Jellicles to like me again?" Quaxo questioned weakly. Munkustrap was silent as he thought of what to say.
"Just keep being you, Quax," Munkustrap responded finally. "They'll finally see that you're still the same lovely Quaxo you've always been." Quaxo frowned, giving a small shake of his head, his purple-green eyes thoughtful as he looked around at the growing shadows around the clearing.
"No, they associate Quaxo with Macavity now." Quaxo murmured, more to himself than Munkustrap. Munkustrap frowned, looking at the young tom in concern. Quaxo looked back to Munkustrap, his face determined but his purple-green eyes thoughtful.
"Maybe it's time they met Mistoffelees."
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Woo, another update…sorry for the wait!
Thanks to those who reviewed!
Please read and review!
Love,
HGP