On their way back from visiting Mungo and Teazer, Misto and Tugger were confronted by a very angry Bombalurina who was burning holes into Tugger with her look of fury.

"What in Everlasting Cat's name are you doing? How dare you settle down and leave me behind! And even worse, you left me for a Tom! A Tom! Me, the most beautiful queen around, gets dumped for a tiny little tuxedo cat! Tugger, I can't believe you – you've got to be screwing with me, aren't you? But what's scary is that it isn't a joke. It's no secret that you're mating with him – Misto isn't exactly the quietest when he reaches climax, so we get to broadcast Bombi's rejection around the junkyard. You know, you really don't have any sense of loyalty, do you?"

Tugger just stood there holding Misto's hand, absolutely stunned as Bombalurina continued her tirade. Starting to lose his temper, he shouted back, "Bombi, shut up. You know as well as I do that we were never going to have a real relationship. You're not the right personality for me, because, well, look at you! You're pacing back and forth with steam practically coming out of your ears! I can't continue sleeping around forever – I've got to settle down a bit with one singular mate, and guess what? It isn't you, it's him. So go huff off, cool down, and find a nice alley cat to sleep with tonight."

Bombalurina replied in a dangerously low voice, "Tugger, you can be such an asshole. You don't even consider the needs of others. I'm never going to find a partner better in bed than you, but you could care less."

Misto's temper rarely flared up, and when it did, he tended to keep it tucked away and bottled up. But today was different; he could feel his fur stand up a bit with genuine rage. He cut in, "Bombi, shut up and listen to me. Take notes if you're not clever enough to get it the first time. Tugger's my partner. Mine. And if you ever insult him again, I'll have your hide. Got that?"

Bombalurina stood there and looked a bit stunned at the assertive tuxedo cat that was usually so quiet. Before she could come up with a clever comeback, Misto and Tugger disappeared in a black plume of smoke, something that would later become Misto's signature of uncontrolled anger.

Looking around his and Misto's den with a confused expression, Tugger said, "Hey, thanks for that. Bombi wasn't going to shut up, and I appreciate you sparing me any more of her furious tirade. But what I'm really curious about is how you got us back here – I thought your magic didn't mature until you became a Tom..."

Misto replied, "I did too, but I wouldn't be surprised if today was my birthday and Macavity had it wrong all these years – it would be just like him to not pay any attention to a day that was special to someone other than himself."

Tugger smiled and said, "Well, let this be your first happy birthday. Happy birthday, love," and then they kissed.

Misto broke away from the kiss first and said with a mischievous smile, "Let's go find a small, secluded clearing and see just how far my magic goes."

They walked for a while through the heaps of junk until they found a clearing well-suited to their purposes. Misto picked up an old can and placed it in the middle. "Stand back; let's see how much damage I can inflict on that metal can."

Misto closed his eyes and held his paws in front of him, palms facing out. Sparks started to dance around his fingers, casting a blue light over the white parts of his fur. When he opened his eyes again, looking like he was in deep concentration, his normally-amber eyes were shocking blue. He pulled his paws back a little and then pushed them forward abruptly, sending a stream of what resembled lightning at the can. Within a few seconds, it was replaced by a small pile of grey ash. Misto turned around to face Tugger, his eyes returning to normal, and he smiled with satisfaction. "Let's try something a bit more impressive. Any ideas?"

Tugger, with a look of awe, said, "Judging from what you just did, I'm going to guess that your magic is about 30% more powerful than your father's. If you're confident, I suppose you could try to make it rain lightly."

Misto smiled and said, "Sure, that sounds fun. Give me a minute." He started to make rather grand gestures in the air, and within a few seconds, he conjured dark clouds that started to rain lightly everywhere except the small circle in which he stood. "You don't mind getting wet, but it makes me cold."

"Well, I've never seen anything like this. You're amazing! Hey, why don't you try conjuring Munkustrap over to see this? Maybe we could incorporate it into the upcoming Jellicle Ball in a month or so."

"I'd like that; hold on." Deeply concentrating again, Misto conjured Munkustrap, but slightly misjudged location and dropped him onto the ground from about two feet in the air. Not expecting the sudden change in scenery or the drop, he fell far from gracefully.

Standing up, quite disgruntled and confused at not being in his den, he spotted Misto and said, "What the hell happened? I'm either a sleepwalker or something really strange is at work."

With an expression of satisfaction touched with a bit of embarrassment, Misto said, "My real birthday is actually today – I just found out – and as a result, my magic was amplified. I'm a lot more impressive now; I conjured you from your den to here with only a moderate amount of effort. Sorry about my aim, it needs practice – I didn't mean to make you fall."

Still trying to wrap his head around how he got there, Munkustrap said, "It's okay; I'm just a little disgruntled. Mind if I see you do a bit of magic? You've peaked my inherent feline curiosity."

Misto replied, "Sure; what do you want to see?"

Wondering how far the little tuxedo cat's magic really went, he said, "Can you disappear and reappear a few feet away?"

Nodding his assent, Misto closed his eyes in a most profound state of concentration. He spun on his right heel once and disappeared in a shower of sparks, instantly reappearing to the left of Munkustrap, and smiled at the striped tabby's look of wonder.

Munkustrap said, "Well, I've never met a cat so clever as who I think can be appropriately referred to as the Magical, Marvellous Mr. Mistoffelees. You're one hell of a cat, Misto. You know, I think you should get your own song at the next Jellicle Ball; how comfortable would you be with performing for others? You'd have about two months to prepare."

Misto beamed and said, "I'd love to! But I'm afraid I can't really perform, dance, and sing at the same time. Hey Tugger, would you narrate for me?"

After Tugger responded with, "Of course; I love singing", Misto eagerly stated that he wanted to start right away. With that, he immediately began to practice fouettés en tournant, which are exceptionally difficult.

As Tugger and Munkustrap sat there watching the elegant Misto dance, the former leaned over and said quietly, "He really is beautiful, isn't he?"

Replying without looking away, in a somewhat mesmerized state, Munkustrap said, "You really know how to pick 'em, Tugger. I don't think you could have done any better."

There will be more chapters in a little while, so check back often. Any suggestions for where the story should go are also welcomed.