Title: Conjuring Pain
Author: Ailendolin
Rating: T (PG-13) … just to be sure.
Disclaimer: I do not own cats and do not make any money with this story. I only own the little plot bunny.
Summary: Being a conjuring cat isn't a gift. Quaxo should know. All magic ever brought him was pain, loss and loneliness. It started ruining his life when he was a kitten. Will his broken spirit be mended when Tugger and Munkustrap stumble upon him?
Word Count: 1573
Warning: Angst, Hurt/Comfort, but mainly Fluff – a lot of it.
Chapter 02: Little One
It had been a quiet but successful night so far. He had even managed to catch a few mice. But then, a few minutes ago, it had begun to rain, slowly at first with only a few droplets that had quickly turned into a downpour. The rain fell so heavily that it made it hard to see where one was going and impossible to hunt. He knew he had to be on guard and careful now. Running more or less blindly around on the streets was one of the few situations he dreaded and was afraid of. He liked to see what was around him so he could be in control of anything that happened. Now he could only see a grey curtain of rain and it made him uneasy. Thankfully his ears told him that nothing dangerous seemed to be near but he still remained alert.
The tabby knew from experience that these streets were no safe place for a cat. Numerous dangers lurked in the corners and it felt like a million eyes were observing his every move. Warily he kept on walking, hissing at every sound that seemed unusual. He was glad that the junkyard was not that far away anymore. Only a few more streets and he would be safe. Then he would be able to lie down inside the dishwasher he called home and dry himself off. Like most cats he was not fond of rain.
His ears picked up a strange sound and he halted, his body tense. After a moment the sound came again. It almost sounded like a wail. The voice was faint and he looked into the direction it seemed to be coming from.
'It could be a trap,' he silently thought, but when he heard the tiny voice crying out in pain and distress again he threw all cautions into the wind and crossed the street. A few seconds later he stood in front of a dark alley. The cries were definitely coming from inside it and, after looking nervously to his right and left, he entered the narrow place. Luckily the rain was not as bad in there as it was on the open streets and he took a look around. The alley was like any other: dark, wet and gross. Everywhere lay trash the humans had put there and when the smell of bad food hit him his nose wrinkled in disgust. He forced himself to move forward when a soaked box caught his attention. A little black tail with a white tip came out of it and as lightning lit the alley up for a moment he could see that the tail belonged to a very small black cat.
'A kitten,' he realized. He carefully walked over to the box, trying not to frighten the young cat.
"Hey," he called softly. Immediately, the drenched kitten withdrew himself even further into the box, the tail vanishing from view.
"I won't hurt you," he tried again. He carefully looked inside the box to find deep dark eyes staring fearfully back at him. He frowned when he saw how violently the small kitten was shivering. He briefly wondered who left their child alone on the streets during a storm.
"Where is your Mom?" he asked.
The eyes of the black-and-white kitten filled with tears and the tabby feared that his mother had been killed by pollicles. The actual answer, however, shocked him more than anything a pollicle could have possibly done.
"She left me." The kitten sniffed. "She … she didn't want m-me anymore."
Munkustrap's face softened at this and he felt tears stinging his own eyes. He could not understand how someone could abandon this tiny kitten that was way too young to be on its own.
"Oh, little one ... I am sorry," he said quietly and nuzzled the drenched back of the kitten.
"Can you m-make her come back? Love me again?" the kitten asked hopefully.
It broke Munkustrap's heart to hear those words. This kitten was in so much emotional pain the tabby wanted to tell him everything would be alright. But that would have been a lie and he could not do this to the young one.
"I'm afraid I can't," he replied truthfully.
Tears fell down the white face of the small cat and sobs wracked his whole body. Concerned, Munkustrap watched the kitten for a moment, observing him intently. He finally came to a conclusion: He had to get him out of the rain and somewhere warm. The kitten was too young to be able to survive a night in the rain, or a day alone on the streets.
"I will take care of you, if you want me to," Munkustrap offered quietly.
He began to lick the black fur softly and waited patiently for a reaction. The young cat looked at him with teary eyes.
" I am not worth your time. I was n-not worth Mommy's time," he hiccupped.
"Yes, you are. Your Mom just did not see it," Munkustrap said gently but firmly.
The little tom cast his eyes downward. "I will just be a burden to you," he said.
"No, you will not," Munkustrap assured. "How can someone you care for be a burden?"
The kitten glanced up to find the grey tabby smiling softly.
"Come on, let's go somewhere dry."
Munkustrap smiled gently at the rather lost-looking kitten and waited for him to stand up and come out of the box. When he tried to, however, his legs gave way and he fell onto the floor. Alarmed, the tabby checked him over for possible injuries.
"Are you hurt somewhere?" he asked.
"My paws …"
The black-and-white kitten held up one of his front paws to let Munkustrap take a look at it. The tabby sighed. He did not know where the small kitten could have burnt his paws but it was clear that he could not walk on them.
"Well, then I'll have to carry you, hm? Can you crawl out of the box for me? I can't reach your neck," the tabby asked and watched how the small cat slowly came out of the box, sometimes wincing in pain. The little one was a tuxedo cat, he noticed, almost everywhere black except for three paws, his chest, face and the tip of his tail.
"That's good, very good," Munkustrap praised the young cat. "Now let's get out of here."
He grabbed the kitten with his teeth at the neck and once he had a firm grip he began to run out of the alley. The last few minutes he had not even noticed the rain, but now that he was back on the street again it came pouring down on him with more force than before. He felt the kitten shiver and heard his teeth chattering. Silently he prayed that he would be at the junkyard in time. He did not want the little one to get sick or, even worse, die.
The streets were very slippery and under normal circumstances he would have been a bit more cautious and attentive to his surroundings, but this time he did not bother with that. By now they were in the area of the junkyard which was guarded very well. No pollicle or other danger passed those borders. They were safe.
A little bit more carefully he made his way over to the dishwasher a moment later and once inside he laid the little kitten down on one of the fluffy pillows that lay everywhere.
"We're there, little one," he said softly and started licking the black-and-white fur dry. His own could wait. The Everlasting Cat knew how long the young tom had been alone out there.
"Better?" he asked after most of the fur was dry. The little cat nodded and started licking Munkustrap's paw dry which brought a smile to the tabby's face. He started drying himself while he let his new charge work on his paw. The shivering had ceased, he noticed, and after they were both dry Munkustrap placed one of the blankets in his den above them, sharing also his body heat with the black kitten to get him warm.
"What's your name?" he asked a moment later, realizing that he did not know.
"Quaxo," the little one yawned and snuggled closer to the warm body of his new-found protector.
"I'm Munkustrap," the tabby replied, nuzzling Quaxo's head.
"Will you stay with me, Munkus?"
The little kitten sounded so insecure and Munkustrap silently cursed the queen which once called herself his mother.
"Of course I'll stay with you," he said and put all his sincerity into his voice.
"Thank you," came the almost inaudible reply before the tabby felt the breathing of the little tuxedo even out signaling that he was asleep. Sighing, he smiled lovingly down at the kitten and once again nuzzled his head.
"Good night, little Quaxo. May your dreams be happy."
He laid his head down and watched the kitten sleep. Tomorrow they would have to go to Jenny and Jelly so they could take a look at Quaxo's paws. He had no intention to let them get infected and when someone truly knew how to tend to them then it was these two queens. With one last look at the fragile kitten that laid curled up at his side he closed his eyes and fell asleep to the sound of the rain.
TBC