Her Moment of Happiness

by Something Dysfunctional

She knows that the moon will always be there for her. But when her heart tells her something else wants to be there, will Jemima push it away... just because she's growing up? Let her sing her song and dance her dance: she is a Jellicle Cat, after all.

4. Can't Rain All The Time

Her Moment of Happiness
A CATS fanfiction
By: Something Dysfunctional
Chapter Four: Can't Rain All The Time
Disclaimer: T.S. Elliot owns these amazing cats in his book and Andrew Lloyd Webber owns the Broadway story of them as well. Well, well, what are we all thinking about the story so far? Jemima is becoming a little odd-ball kitten, isn't she? I feel she's complex like a teenager, but that's how I view the kittens in the play. And Mistoffelees too...! I live for the drama, so that's what will be in this story! Haha! And trust me, when it will come to the Jellice Ball part, you are going to love it. Emotions will run high and Jemima will find out her true part of the Ball. Please, regard this kindly and review nicely! Happy reading!
-NOTE: Please, please, PLEASE understand that how I'm going about in this story is from inspiration from some fanfiction I've read and adored. The pairing seems not possible, but I think it could. Remember: IT'S A FANFICTION UNIVERSE. You can do whatever you want! : )
--

Jemima never felt anything like it before. This feeling of completion. How secure and safe she felt, and so utterly...

loved.

Not like how her parents loved her, or Tugger, or her friends. But actual love. It was so pure and whole, she feared it to break if she moved. Of course, with Mistoffelees kissing her, it was quite difficult to move. She clung to him as she trembled. Scared, she broke off and gasped for breath, her large brown eyes gleaming, face red from embarassment and happiness. "Wh-what are you... Misto, you're gone batty," she breathed, staring into his white face as if she discovered it for the first time. "Yes. Yes, I have. But only for you, Jemmi. I don't want to be like for anyone else," he said sincerely, bringing her closer to him as if she wasn't already. The kitten bit her bottom lip and played with the fur on his chest nimbly, trying to distract herself. "I didn't think you... you thought that way about me," she said quietly. "I always thought it was Victoria. I mean, she's so proper and beautiful and talented. Dignified and Queen-like for being a kitten," she rambled on, twisting her paws together as she ignored the stare on her face.

"Why would I want a Queen when I could have you?"

Jemima nearly fell over at the statement. He was being serious! Was this how her mother felt when she first was swooned by her father? Shaking her furry head some, Jemima looked away some, the coloring on her face darkening. "Y-you are teasing me, aren't you?," she giggled nervously. She then felt a paw on the back of her head, gently pushing it down onto the downy chest as Mistoffelees held her tightly. His heart beat thumped soothingly, yet fast in her ears, the beat sounding like a song. "Oh...!," Jemima gasped softly, aware of how Mistoffelees was being honest. "No one makes my heart do that but you, Jemmi. Get it through that pretty head of yours," he pleaded some, burying his own against hers. "This... this is a lot to handle... may I please think on it?"

"Until when?"

"... after the Jellice Ball? Please, Misto? It's coming soon, and you will have an answer then of how I feel and want. I promise you," she pleaded timidly, tilting her head up to look at his face. She thought he would be upset, but instead he looked thoughtful. "Hmm... I believe I can do that. I will wait; I have the patience for it. Do think on it, Jemmi. Until the Ball then...," he murmured, slowly letting her go. "Ah! Uhm... I mean, you- oh, never mind," the kitten stuttered, turning away from the tomcat quickly, her tail dissappearing into her paws. "What? What's wrong, Jemmi? Ah... were you expecting a kiss goodnight?," Mistoffelees teased, walking up silently behind her. A series of spluttering and scoffs reached his ears and he grinned. He leaned in beside her neck, feeling her body tense up. "I suposse I can give one away for free," he said bemusedly. Jemima turned her face towards his own, eyes wide and glassy, mouth slightly open in shock.

"Oh," she breathed in the slightest of whispers. Jemima slightly ducked her head as Mistoffelees moved in, her heart thumping wildly under her breast bone. As they met in the softest of kisses, she could feel her head swim and time slow. Nothing mattered but this cat before her. She moved her body and turned into his own, placing her paws against his jawline, pouring more emotion than what she meant to. Mistoffelees was like an electrical charge; she was wanting more with each shock he sent through her. Faintly, Jemima could feel his own arms around her, holding her flush against him. This was too much now for the kitten. Parting gently, Jemima drew in a shuddering breath, closing her eyes in rapt pleasure. At last, she knew Mistoffelees meant her always. "You're driving me crazy, you silly girl...! Go home now before Munkustrap has my head on milk bowl!," Mistoffelees grounded out, pressing his forehead on Jemima's own.

She laughed softly and looked up at him with a smile. "Okay. Are you sure you can wait til the Jellicle Ball?," she asked faintly, pulling away from him. "I think I can. In the meantime, my thoughts will be consumed of you," he stated firmly, holding her paws. Jemima's smile widened and with a small curtsy, she reluctantly let go of his grasp to scamper off into the night back home.

This was something thrilling! She never felt like this at all...! So alive and wired. Is this what it felt like when you found your one and only? Jemima would have to ask around tomorrow to the other Queens to get different opinions. With a meow of happiness, she ran up to her family's make-shift home to hopefully sneak in without a Munkstrap sitting up waiting for her.
--

"You got tha' look on yo' face!," sang Rumpleteazer some mornings later in her rougish accents, stopping her playing with a string of pearls she boasted of burglaring from her and Mungojerrie's home. Jemima paused from her dance routine to stare in shock at the orange, black, and white tabby kitten. "Excuse me?" Rumpleteazer sighed and sat up, her face that with a look of dissaproval. " 'er now, I can' always be excuz fo wha' I say. The 'look'! Th' one where yo' are in luv!," she giggled, hugging the pearls to her chest gleefully as if she discovered this all on her own. Jemima scoffed, looking away so Rumple wouldn't see her blush. "I don't know what you're talking about... I was just thinking of Tugger... and when he's coming back home," she finished on a sad tone, sitting down gracefully. Rumple frowned, remembering the lanky Mane Coon that Jemima so loved dearly. "I'm sure he will come 'ome soon, ya know? It's almost time fer th' Jellicle Ball... he should get a part. All of th' cats do."

"Even you?"

"Course! Didn't ya know? Bomba's been teachin' me fer years and I've danced in it fer two years now," Rumple said with a note of pride in her voice. Jemima shook her head. "I didn't know. You and Mungo are always gone, trifling through houses and you are never home in the Junkyard that much anymore," she stated with the wistful tone. "I know, luv. I'm sorry, but it's jus' whot me and Mungo do...," Rumpleteazer trailed off, seeing Jemima's form slouch. Getting up from her spot, the cat burglar sat down beside her friend and hugged her around the shoulders. "Now, now. No need to be gettin' all sad an' such. You got to keep them spirits up an' think 'bout the cat you're in luv with... which I know it's true. I'm smart like that!," Rumple poked at Jemima, both kittens laughing and tickling each other.

"Jemmi!"

Pausing, the kitten turned and saw her father standing aways near the broken oven, motioning her towards him. She told Rumpleteazer she would return and trotted over to Munkustrap. "Yes, Father?," she acknowledged, rubbing her head against his arm. "I have a surprise for you, darling. I know you've been upset for awhile, but I thought this would work," Munkustrap said happily, putting a paw on his daughter's shoulder. "What is it?," Jemima asked, curious all the while when she saw a shadow approach them. Blinking against the mid-day sun, the kitten strained to see who it was until she realized that it was the one...

"It's...no, way... TUGGER!," she shrieked and bounded forth to pounce on her uncle, laughing and crying loudly. The loud and masculine tone of Tugger's voice rang throughout Jemima's ears like music and she clung to him, eyes wide on his face. "You really did come back! Like you said you would..."

"Now, would I have lied to you, kit?," the cat purred, hugging his niece tighter. Jemima laughed merrily, burying her face in his chest. "No! Not at all... oh, Tugger, I'm glad to see you're safe. You are staying for the Ball, right?!," she asked eagerly, her face alight. "Depends on what your father says, really," the Mane Coon said dryly, looking at Munkustrap with a look in his eyes. The silver and black tom stood his ground straighter, his shoulders tense in case of ripping Jemima away. "What?! Oh, but you have to! You have to see me dance, Tugger! Oh, Father, please let him stay. If he doesn't I'll go mad!," the kitten cried out, embracing the cat tightly to ger small frame, her eyes gleaming with unshed tears as she turned to Munkustrap.

"That's not up for me to really decide, sweetheart. Deuteronomy has already been here, Tugger. You may stay, but there is no part for you in the Ball."

Jemima's heart stopped suddenly and her paws slipped down Tugger's back as they fell limply to her sides. A low rush began in her ears like a roaring ocean, pulling back before a tidal wave. Something snapped within her like a firecracker popping and the next thing she knew, Jemima stood before her father, every hair bristling high, claws out, and her mouth ripping out a startling snarl that made both cats jump at the sound coming from the tiny kitten. Munkustrap didn't move from the angry stare his daughter gave him, her back arching up for not getting her way. "Let-Him-Dance...," she emphasized on the words, her pupils tiny against the sudden darkness of her earthy eyes. "That's not my decision, Jemima. I told you that. Now, stop misbehaving right now. Would you want your mother to see?," Munkustrap said calmly, hoping to not irritate her anymore.

That made her stop, eyes focusing to normal, but her stance didn't change. "Mama...?," she murmured lightly and cocked her head to the side as if hearing someone talking to her in the distance. What she heard was not Demeter, but the sudden gasp of shock and whimper coming from near the stage for the Ball. What she heard and saw was Mistoffelees with Victoria, both staring at her with bewilderment. Making a choking sound in her throat, the red, black, and white kitten looked at her father then her uncle with fear etched on her young face. Whirling back, she saw Victoria cowering before her and Mistoffelees staring at her with such disdain and horror that Jemima's stomach turned and ever limb shook.

"I... I-I d-didn't mean... that, uh... Father, Tugger... I...," she trailed off, staring down at her paws. Closing her eyes, she kept seeing Mistoffelees's face and Victoria terrified of her. Crying out a small wail, Jemima took off towards the car and leapt high on the hood, then over it to bound off towards the city. She vaugely remembered hearing her name being called out, but by whom, she didn't know.

And then, in the far distance, thunder rumbled against a wall of dark clouds approaching the city.
--

Within twenty minutes, the sunshine vanished and was replaced with a endless void of gray and hurling rain. People rushed along the sidewalks and the roads were littered with cars trying to get home. The lights from stores and posts barely shown through the thick sheets of water. And Jemima sat in a large, vast park, alone, head hung in shame as her tears mingled with the thunderstorm rain. Sniffling, she lifted her face as the shower continued to pelt her. "I'm... such a baby... I can't much more of this... it's too much pressure. The Ball, Misto, Tugger finally coming back, making Father and Mother pleased with me, keeping Victoria's friendship... I want to go away...," she sobbed quietly, thin shoulders quaking. The heaviness of the down pour lightened into a soft, gentle coaxing of water. Silence of the city was heavy on Jemima's ears as she continued to cry out her exhaustion and feelings. That is, until something broke her thoughts-

"Now, now... what's a sweet little kit like yourself doing in the rain like this?," asked a husky, scratched voice from behind Jemima. Looking behind her quickly, Jemima saw a wiry-haired feline with wild hair, his coat neglectful and tangled whiskers. He stood before her with such brooding eyes of gold despite the dirty and wet fur of scarlet, black, white, brown and blonde. The more Jemima stared at him, the more her brain screamed at her the obvious. It was Macavity! The description Munkstrap and Demeter always told her off fitted him perfectly.'Now, act natural... no sudden movements... be simple. That's it. And then run! Run home!' Jemima shrugged and looked away. "Just felt like it. No more."

"I don't think that's the cause, kit."

"Would you please stop calling me that?! I do have a name," she huffed, irked that this cat called her by Tugger's pet name for her. Her heredity of Demeter's anger was about to get the best of her."Pray tell then; what is it?," he asked, walking closer to her. Shivering, Jemima bit her bottom lip, unsure. 'Lie! Say a fake name! Any name will do, you dolt!'

"Victoria."

'Stupid... stupid, stupid.'

"That's a rather beautiful name for one such as yourself. May I assist you home, then? Or would you rather come with me?," the cat said off-handedly, now sitting beside Jemima, his gold eyes on her with no expression in them or on his face. Jemima looked at the ground instead, thunder rumbling around her head like drums. "No, I'm okay. I can get home my self..."

"Are you sure? I do believe it would be sight to walk into the Junkyard with you. Munkustrap wouldn't know what to do with himsef-"

Jemima let a hiss escape her mouth and she jumped away from him, every muscle tense in her body as she faced Macavity, claws extended out and fangs bared. "You leave my father alone!," she threatened with a screech. Macavity chuckled darkly, standing up and grinning maliciously at the tiny cat. "Of course, the best look would be on your lovely mother's face. Haven't seen Demeter in awhile. Might want to catch up, or... catch her instead," the mysterious feline sneered, circling Jemima. She kept her front to him, never her back, as she followed him with her eyes. "My mother has nothing to do with you anymore. You just stay away from my family! From all of them!"

"Why? You're just a weakling of a kitten. Never to own up to your name and become something more... you'll be forgotten as another dances in the spotlight, taking everything you ever wanted and then some. You'll always be alone. Just like me-

Jemima."

The kitten growled low in her throat and stooped low, her hunches raised. "Think you're pretty smart, Macavity? You may kill me, but the other's will find out. I'd do anything for them. All of them. I may be the smallest and I might not be the best, but I know that I have those who love me for "me"! And... I wouldn't regret any of them. I love them all and my father won't stand for your tyranny any longer!," she yelled, ready to attack. Macavity laughed, tossing back his head. "Oh, ho ho! You think you're a clever kitten, don't you? Big words and speeches to throw me off. Don't you realize that I don't care? Getting rid of anything close to Deuteronomy and Munkustrap is a goal of mine. And taking back what's mine," he said throatily, stalking towards Jemima.

With a yowl, she flew up and ran her claws against his face, digging them in the fur and flesh, dragging them down as she twirled away hurriedly, ignoring his howls of pain and shoved them in his back, over and over as the blood poured freely from the Mystery Cat. Adrenaline rushed in Jemima as she defended not only herself, but her tribe. Her clan. Flashes of memories went through her with each swipe- Munkustrap, Demeter loving her and caring for her. Victoria- the late night giggles, whispers and dancing. Cassandra- her silent figure assuring her nerves and kind words of encouragment. Mistoffelees- his kind face and protective arms. His kiss...

Crying out, the kitten pulled away, stumbling away from the tall frame of Macavity as he turned to her, his teeth gleaming in the dim rain water and his golden eyes burning. "You... are going... to pay for that, darling Jemima," he sneered and pounced on her. Cries and yowls echoed the air as she felt the slap against her face and the twist of claws in her side. Everything then blurred together as the rain stopped, and through the tumble of clouds, a sliver of a new moon shone out. With that bit of light, Jemima saw the flash of silver, gold, red, orange, white, black and brown as the colors blended together and shoved Macavity away. Hisses and growls and cries rang in the air as a pair of gentle paws picked her battered body up. She could smell the smoky scent of a Burmese and knew Cassandra was near. Tears pricked her eyes and like a baby, she sobbed out loud. "Oh, my darling... you are going to be okay," came the syrupy voice of her friend. Paws smoothed back her dissary mane of fur and then, piercing through the darkness was Demeter voice of pain, seeing her daughter from Macavity's attack.

'She must've seen me... oh, Mama...,' Jemima thought brokenly as kisses scattered about her face and her mother's paws wrapping around her own. "My precious girl! Oh, Jemmi! Are you okay?! Please speak...," cried Demeter, holding her head against Jemima's own. "Mama," she whispered in a thin voice. "Jemmi! Thank God! Did he hurt you too bad? Everything will be okay, I promise." Demeter and Cassandra were walking with the kitten in their arms when the moonlight shone through better, Jemima turned her head and saw the impressive figure of black and silver scanning the park with his strong eyes. Macavity had gotten away. Beside him was Alonzo and Skimbleshanks, keeping guard. When she saw him, Jemima felt regret and remorse. All she wanted was him. To know and hope that he had forgiven her. To feel his strong arms around her and his fierce heart beat that calmed her. "F-father!," she wailed, reaching for him from Cassandra's arms.

With a whip of his head, Munkustrap saw his daughter and ran to her, scooping her into his arms, holding her close to him. "Oh, my Jemmi," he breathed, relieved that she was alive. Tears fell faster and she clung to him, burying her face in the crook of his neck and shoulder. "I'm sorry!!! For everything! I didn't mean to do what I did!," she wailed, embarassed. "It's fine! I'm glad you aren't too badly hurt... for taking on Macavity yourself, you did a marvelous job," he said softly in her ear. Foot falls approached them as a voice broke out in the darkness. "We checked the perimeter, Munkustrap. I don't think he or any of his henchment are there," Bombalurina said. "But we need to get back to the Junkyard quickly in case something happens," said Demeter, worry in her tone. "Okay. Jemmi, we're going to run now. Will you be fine with the joustling?," Munkustrap asked gently, pressing a kiss on her forehead. "I... think so... hurry, please? If... something happens to them...," she mumbled thickly, her head spinning from all of her energy spent.

In a flash, as the thunder clouds rolled off into the distance, the cats dashed back to their beloved Junkyard with the tiny shape of the moon guiding them as best as it could.
--

I know it was a short chapter, but it seems meaningful. A lot of peopel are convinced that Macavity and Demeter borne Jemima, but who knows? Maybe I'm just throwing that idea for kicks. I still think Munkustrap is her father... just a feeling. Haha!
If you want, there's a fanart up of Jemima that I drew on DeviantArt! Type in this in your search engine. And remember, the spaces are NOT included-
http : / / defying3gravity. deviantart. com
On the front page should be Jemima's picture that I did.
---the moonlight carries the message of Love.---

Later Days....!
SD