Soft Kitty, Warm Kitty

30 Day OTP Challenge

TuggerxMisto

Disclaimer: Again, I don't own the challenge. I dunno who does but I got it from Batsutousai. I don't own Cats either - that belongs to T.S. Elliot.

CrazyIndigoChild: Aw, please forgive the wait! Hehe, Tuggoffelees… I love that! I hope you enjoy the other 27 days! (26 if you don't count this one) Yeah, there's an actual list, which I guess it what makes up the "challenge" part.

A/N: Gah! I'm so sorry for the wait! I had absolutely no ideas for this one so it took a while to get somewhere. But here's over 1K words full of TuggerMisto fluff!

Day 4: On A Date

The Jellicle Ball, as it does every year, had sent all Jellicle cats into chaos. All of the performers rushed to perfect their acts, then panicked with the thought that they'd mess something up. Adults worried that their kittens would get hurt, or worse – become Tugger fans.

But after the ball, everything calmed down. Cats stopped trying to impress each other- at least, no more so than normal- and adults worried a bit less for their young. The kittens returned to simply having fun, and there had been no Macavity scares at all during the Ball, so everyone had another reason to celebrate.

Unfortunately, one cat wasn't feeling so fantastic when the ball was over. A certain magical tuxedo tom had messed up a move or two during his solo dance, and had been beating himself up over it ever since.

He sat in his den, moping about his performance and worrying that he had let everyone down. All of the kittens- not to mention Tugger- had been really looking forward to Misto's new solo this year. So when he slightly screwed up, it hit him hard.

Even though he had been the victim of the bonding spell, Tugger still knew when Misto was upset. The younger tom was a bit more emotional than he was, and not very good at hiding it. He was a wonderful magician, but a rather crappy liar. So, when the tuxedo would hide out in his den and not talk to anyone, virtually everyone else knew he was upset.

Thus, the Maine Coon made his way to said den to check on his mate.

He knocked on the door, pouting slightly when the younger tom didn't answer.

"Hey, Misto!" he called out.

No response.

"Come on, babe! Talk to me!"

Other Jellicles noticed the flirt trying to contact the magician, and they let him do so. If anyone could get through to Misto when he was in a mood, it was Tugger.

"Not gonna answer, huh? Fine," Tugger grumbled. He used all of his muscle toned body weight to press against the door until whatever was blocking it finally gave in and let the door open. The older tom looked around for his mate, seeing that he wasn't in the main room. He walked through the den, searching, and finally found the tuxedo curled up on his bed. His features morphed into a pained expression at seeing his mate so sad. He moved to the bed and lay beside the younger tom, wrapping an arm around the thin, black waist.

"Hey there, Sparkles," Tugger greeted softly.

Misto groaned in response. "Go away."

"Not a chance," Tugger replied, kissing the back of his mate's head. "You gonna tell me what's wrong?"

The tuxedo shook his head.

Tugger sighed. He used the arm that wasn't wrapped around his mate to support his weight so he could partially sit up. He looked down at the magician in front of him, curled into himself like a scared kitten. The Maine Coon sighed. "It's about your dance, isn't it?"

"I said, 'go away'," the tuxedo replied. Which means "yes," Tugger thought to himself. If Misto insisted that whoever was helping him should leave, said person had most likely guessed what was wrong.

"I'm not leaving, love," Tugger replied. He gently rubbed Misto's side with his thumb, trying to comfort the no doubt embarrassed tom. "No one really noticed your mistake, and the cats that did notice didn't mind."

Misto finally turned to face his mate, if only slightly. "You've never screwed up a dance move in front of the entire tribe. No one has. Everyone else perfects their dance and doesn't trip over their own paws!" With that, he turned away again, angrily facing the wall.

The older tom sighed before letting go of the tuxedo and standing up. Misto's ears twitched at the movement, but he didn't turn his head or move to get up.

"Come on," Tugger said, gently pulling on his mate's paw, "we're going somewhere."

Misto quirked an eyebrow and turned to look at his mate. "Where?"

"That's for me to know and you to find out," Tugger replied. Misto groaned again. He hated that answer almost as much as "don't worry about it."

"Please, Tux? Trust me," Tugger said softly, extending his paws for his mate to grab. He knew Misto couldn't resist the sad, soft side of Tugger.

The younger tom sighed and stood up, grasping his mate's paws. He looked up at the Maine Coon in anticipation, wondering what he had planned.

Tugger simply smiled at his mate and led him out of his den. Misto was reluctant to follow, but what choice did he have?

"I have a surprise for you," Tugger stated as they crossed the clearing. Misto recognized where they were going right away – Tugger's den.

Tugger opened the door to his home and stepped aside, gesturing for Misto to go in first. Before the tuxedo could take two steps inside, the older tom covered his eyes with his paws, blinding the magician.

"What's going on, Tug?" the younger tom asked, sounding a bit irritated.

"I told you, babe – it's a surprise." With that, Tugger led his somewhat annoyed mate through his den to his bedroom.

"Alright, you can look," he said softly, removing his paws from the tuxedo's face. Misto looked around and gave a small gasp in surprise. The room was lighted with half a dozen candles, placed rather strategically about the room so that it was completely visible but not overly bright. There was a small table in the middle of the room with the tallest candle in the center and two plates of Misto's favorite foods on either side – tuna, fish paste,(1) and rice pudding. The tuxedo tom turned around to face his mate with wide eyes.

"You did all of this for me?" he questioned.

Tugger nodded. "You've been really upset ever since the Ball. I wanted to make you feel better."

Misto couldn't help but smile as he practically flung himself into his mate's arms. He wrapped his arms tightly around Tugger's neck, nuzzling his face into the chest surrounded by the fluffy mane. The Maine Coon smiled town at the magician, returning the bear hug happily. He pulled away after a moment, gesturing to the table. "Shall we eat?"

Misto nodded happily and sat down in front of one plate. Tugger sat across from him and smiled again. After a few moments of quietly, calmly eating, the tuxedo looked up at his mate.

"Thank you for this."

"Anytime, babe."

(1) I don't really know what fish paste is so I just added it 'cause it's in Misto's song.