Day 2 for this wicked awesome contest! I'm super excited to show you guys what I have lined up for day 3- Oh, and day 4! Day 5 is pretty fun too, and don't get me started on days 6 and 7! Oh, this will be a fun week!
Now on to the festivities!
After a long, grueling night of insomnia (coupled with post-traumatic stress disorder induced flashbacks) Munkustrap decided today he would make Alonzo keep watch and take a day for himself. Unfortunately everyone else, his own mate included, had plans that could not make room for an impromptu day for Munkustrap so he had to make due with his own company.
That's alright because Munkustrap was flexible and could have a perfectly fine time by himself… as sad as that may sound.
He knew of a rather nice place by the pond where he could relax for a few hours, maybe fish, clean the horrid smell that clung to him harder than white to rice, and shake off his post-disaster jitters before the sleep-screaming drives Mistoffelees to kicking him to the doghouse. Heh.
Ambling down the smooth path to the pond he smiled, closed his eyes, and tried to enjoy the calming peace and the finally sunny day. It wouldn't be long now before he could lie in the sun and catch a much needed nap.
Lights flashed behind his eyelids as his nose mashed into his face… followed by the rest of his face and his body squeezing accordion-style, momentarily making a very compact and a not-too-momentarily unimpressed Munkustrap.
"Oooh," he huffed, bringing his paw up to cup his nose and wipe the water from his eyes. Once he could properly see he was free to take a good gander at the tall blurr before him.
It was… a door?
"What the…!" Munkustrap sized up the thing; it definitely was a door. A door he'd never seen before! That was impossible, doors just don't appear out of nowhere… yet here he was pulling splinters out of his cheek.
The frame was slightly wider than any door he'd seen in his days as a housecat, the wood was almost black with age and the doorknob… well there wasn't any. What kind of door doesn't have a knob?!
Curiously he stalked the length of the base, poking his nose here and there but coming up with nothing more than the smell of— you guessed it— a door. The sides were impassable: junk, garbage, and plasticine made a solid wall that completely blocked the path down to the pond. How queer!
"I guess I'll just have to go through it," Munkustrap sighed, reaching up to press himself against the knob-less door. It opened eagerly and soon the pond was in sight again. He thought about playing with the door a little longer, but that wasn't his problem today; he'll have to remember to care tomorrow.
And Munkustrap was off again! One foot in front of the other, and then over the bloody doorjamb, he continued down the path.
As he walked a paranoid chill crept up the ladder of his spine much as Fido's tongue had the day before; it made Munkustrap shiver and stop to try and shake the feeling. Today was all about relaxing. But the feeling wasn't going away— if anything it was getting worse!
He shivered now and his muscles quaked for warmth. Smacking himself in the head hadn't helped so it was either he go find witnesses to his impending mental break or freeze out here alone. At least with witnesses he would make a good show.
When he'd gone back he was met with the knowing mouth of the doorway, grinning like the stupid wooden thing it was. Yeah yeah, he thought as he stepped over the jamb again, let's all just judge Munkustrap and his… huh?
Once over the jamb and making his way back up the path, the chill had completely melted against the glaring sun. Well, if the moment's passed and there's no need to hurry back for the big show he might was well carry out his plans of going to the pond.
Around he turned and began the trek back with a new air of relief. Sticking his tongue out at the wood he grinned and passed through once again. "Thought you'd gotten rid of me, eh?" The spring in his step rusted when again he was met with the creeping cold feeling again.
Panic bubbled inside him: he really was going crazy! Maybe he could talk to the twins: see how long he had left before he finally lost it. Again he found himself getting colder and colder, it became a struggle to keep his teeth from chattering.
Fully freaked out now he booked it back towards the clearing, passing under the door and getting a hard smack to the senses as the heat of sun against his face shocked him back to sanity. He skidded to a stop just inches out of the door's fat mouth.
Munkustrap struggled a moment to make sense of what was happening: his face and chest were warm— hot even, and his rump was freezing. There's no words to describe how incredibly confused and close to throwing his paws up and calling it quits he was.
Okay. So his chest and face, on the one side of the door, were hot. The… erm… back end was on the other side and about to fall off.
He smacked himself with his warm paw. "Of course!" he exclaimed, as if it were the the most obvious, normal thing ever, "It's the door!" Obviously he wasn't going crazy because it was the freaking door! He sure felt silly! Ha ha ha!
Smirking he trotted out the door into the sun, stopped, and turned back to the wooden beast. "You're a clever git, you," he murmured, crouching low on his belly.
With a loud yell he charged the door and soared through the threshold into the winter air. Landing he laughed as snow began to trickle down onto his fur. Once he'd caught enough snow he soared back through the door to watch the snow melt and steam off his fur with a face-cracking grin.
Eager to see what else he could do with this strange door, he passed beneath it again to sit atop the light dust of snow. When he'd frosted enough he slowly slinked back to the door but stopped halfway through and watched the snow melt off the front part of his body and collect on the back.
He laughed. He laughed at the insanity of it— the snow, the cold, the door— and he laughed at how crazy he would sound if he dared speak a word of this to anyone! Even the whimsical and fantastical Mr. Mistoffelees would think him off his rocker!
Ah well! Maybe the junkyard could do with one less loony running around checking for weather-changing doors. He decided then that it was time he put his door to rest and find something more mundane and normal to occupy his time.
Walking back through the door with a quiet chuckle, he waited until the last of the snow melted off his coat to leave. Oddly the snow stuck to him longer than before…
A quick swipe of his paw and the snow was cleared, which reminded him that he needed to give himself another bath before long.
Munkustrap frowned when the white flecks reappeared on his coat. Running his paw back over the fur it came back wet and cool. "…What?"
Looking up the door sat stiffly, unmoving, but the snow continued, floating down the wrong side of the wooden jamb.
What had he done!? He brought the weather in! They couldn't have another winter already, the Jellicle Ball would be snowed-in! And it would all be his fault!
Panicking, Munkustrap threw himself at the door, jumping up for a knob that wasn't there and falling in the shallow snow.
Standing up on his hind legs he reached up and stabbed his claws into the mushy wood, getting a firm hold before awkwardly tip-toeing back to the "warm" side of the door.
He closed the door with a heavy slam and loosened his claws to lower back to all fours and watch the snow fall. The flakes came down thicker and heavier than before.
"Oh no!" Munkustrap gasped. The poor tabby stood on shaky legs, shuffled nervously looking for something to stop the snow, the panic spreading faster with every passing snowflake.
Soon he couldn't handle it anymore and did the first thing that came to mind: he ran.
If he'd kept the door closed none of this would have happened! If he hadn't played with the freaking weather he wouldn't have let it into the junkyard! If he'd just went with being crazy the first time the burden of ruining the junkyard would have been on someone else!
And if he would just look back down the path…
He would have seen Mistoffelees fall off the top of the door, holding his sides and turning blue in silent hysterics.
Mistoffelees is a horrible horrible person. Someone needs to give him a good spanking! I nominate me!