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: Everyone thinks to be able to conjure would be great, but Quaxo cannot confirm that. To him magic only means pain, loss and loneliness. It started ruining his life since he was a kitten. Will his broken spirit be mended when Tugger and Munk stumble upon him?

WordCount: 1945

Warning: Angst, Hurt/Comfort, but mainly Fluff – a lot of it.

Author'sNotes: Again, I'm sorry for the delay. My laptop broke down and lectures started again. The last few weeks were pretty eventful but now things are quieting down and I've finally found the time to write. Also, my own Misto costume is almost finished. That took up a lot of my time as well. Anyway, I hope you enjoy this chapter! Thanks to everyone who reviewed on the last!

Chapter 13: Yellow Wool

When Munkustrap arrived at his den that night the Rum Tum Tugger was sitting in the entrance and gazing at the stars. When he saw his brother approach Tugger stretched lazily before he made his way over to the tabby.

"How's Quaxo?" Munkustrap asked at once. He glanced nervously at his den. "Is he asleep?"

"Yes," Tugger said slowly. "Finally. He's a terror, that one. Wouldn't stop crying once you left and threw a tantrum. Apparently he thought you'd left him for good."

Munkustrap's eyes went wide. "What? You should have brought him to me immediately," he said accusingly. When Tugger only grinned in response Munkustrap frowned. "You're having me on, aren't you?"

Tugger's grin became wider. "Got you!" he said.

"That's not funny."

"Aww, come on, Munk! You know the furball. I don't think he even knows how to cause trouble. Enjoy that while it lasts. With Tumble and soon Pouncival as friends, it'll come to an end quite soon, I'd wager."

Munkustrap glared at him. "Still, you shouldn't joke about that. You know I worry about him." He sighed. "So, he is asleep then, right?"

Tugger rolled his eyes. "Of course he is. Ate his mice like a good little kitten and then went to bed. I even told him a bedtime story." When he saw Munkustrap grimace he added, affronted, "I'll let you know that I'm very good at telling bedtime stories. Just ask Quaxo."

"I probably will," Munkustrap said. "Which one did you tell him?"

Tugger grinned evilly and batted his eyes at his brother. "The one about how Growltiger and Griddlebone found true love."

Munkustrap narrowed his eyes. "You didn't."

"Of course I didn't," Tugger said patiently. "I told him about the Everlasting Cat and the Jellicle Ball. He seemed quite enraptured by it, to be honest. He wanted to know if he could dance at the next ball."

Munkustrap chuckled. "Now that's something I'd like to see. Clumsy as he is now I think he'll grow up to be quite a graceful dancer, given time."

Tugger smirked. "The ladies will swoon all over him."

"Jealous?"

Tugger snorted. "Of the furball?" He shook his head. "Quaxo may be cute, but I'm sexy as hell. Sexy always trumps cute. No competition there."

"If you say so," Munkustrap said. "I think I'll better go check on the 'furball'. Get some sleep, Tugger."

Tugger nodded and stood before turning once more to his brother. "You never told me about the meeting. Anything exciting I should know about?"

"Well," Munkustrap said slowly, "it's likely we'll get three new additions to the tribe tomorrow. Kittens, to be specific."

"Didn't know you had it in you, Munk!"

"Ha ha," the tabby said drily. "They're the litter of Bomba's sister. Her humans want to put them down, so if father gives his okay they will come to stay with us. New fans for you, Tugger. You should be delighted."

"Oh, I am," Tugger assured. "The more kittens the better. Maybe even some little queens for Jemima to play with. I'm sure Dad will allow them to stay with the tribe."

Munkustrap nodded. "The kittens will most likely be brought here tomorrow. Care to help Bomba get them?"

"Sure, no problem."

"Good," the tabby said. "Then I guess we should both get some sleep. Goodnight, Tugger."

"Night, Munk."

When Tugger disappeared around the corner Munkustrap made his way over to his new den. Stepping inside, he saw Quaxo's wide eyes watching him. A happy smile lit up the kitten's face when he saw the tabby and Munkustrap found himself smiling back.

"You're supposed to be asleep, you know?"

Quaxo lowered his head. "I missed you," he admitted. "Tugger's not as ... fluffy as you are. I couldn't sleep."

Munkustrap almost snorted. "Well, congratulations for fooling Tugger. He most certainly thought you were far away in dreamland."

"Sorry," Quaxo said, blushing.

Munkustrap nuzzled the kitten's head. "Nothing to be sorry for. Just don't tell him you were awake or that tactic won't work again." He winked at Quaxo. "But now it's time for bed, don't you think?"

Quaxo nodded and tried to get comfortable between the pillows and blankets. He did not close his eyes, however, until Munkustrap lay down next to him. Then, the little tom moved closer and snuggled into the tabby's side. It only took a few minutes for Quaxo to fall asleep. Munkustrap gazed fondly down at him.

'No trouble, hm?' he thought. 'Tugger clearly underestimated his furball'.

The next morning started with quite a lot of visitors. Just after breakfast they heard voices from the direction of the centre of the junkyard and a moment later Jenny walked around the corner, followed by three eager kittens. Quaxo smiled when he saw Tumble waving at him excitedly.

"Ready to meet some new friends?" Munkustrap asked his charge quietly while they waited for the others to approach.

"Tumble said they're nice," Quaxo replied. Still, Munkustrap could see how warily the kitten regarded Jemima and Pouncival.

"They are," Munkustrap reassured him. He stood up and greeted Jennyanydots with a nuzzle. "Good morning!"

"Good morning to you, too!" Jenny laughed. "I have here three enthusiastic kittens for you to look after. Think you'll manage?"

"We'll see," Munkustrap grinned.

Tumble looked at Munkustrap with a frown. "Why isn't Quaxo coming out of the den? Is he sick?"

Munkustrap shook his head. "He's just hiding."

"Why?"

"Because he's shy, dear," Jenny said. "He's a bit nervous about meeting new cats."

Tumble thought about that for a moment. Then he declared, "That's rubbish. I'm going to get him."

With that he stalked determinedly towards Munkustrap's den where Quaxo was lurking in the shadows. The tabby and the Gumbiecat watched on in amusement while Pouncival and Jemima observed the situation curiously. They were behaving extraordinarily well, Munkustrap thought. Especially Pouncival who was not known for his patience. Jenny had obviously talked to them before the visit.

"Are you sure they'll like me?" Quaxo asked quietly and Munkustrap turned to watch Tumble pulling the tuxedo kitten out of his hiding place.

"Of course!" Tumble said with a long suffering sigh. "They're not monsters. Well, Jemima might be one, but that's just a guess. Queens are so weird."

Jemima glared at Tumble. "I am not a monster. You're just stupid."

"Now, now, don't fight, you two," Jenny admonished them.

"Sorry," both Tumble and Jemima mumbled.

Munkustrap used that moment to walk over to Quaxo. "Come on, little one. Let's say hello."

"Hello," Quaxo said shyly while looking at the ground.

"Hi!" Pouncival beamed. He came over to Quaxo and Munkustrap and tried to catch Quaxo's eyes by crouching low and gazing up. "Tumble's told me about all the fun you had! I'm so glad to finally meet you! You sound like a great guy."

Quaxo looked up. "Thank you," he smiled.

Jemima chose that moment to nudge Pouncival aside. She smiled shyly at Quaxo. "Hi! I'm Jemima. Here." She offered him a ball of bright yellow wool. "It's a present from Pounci and me. Well, and from my parents too, I guess. Mum said you could use some more things to play with."

Quaxo took the ball of wool from her and examined it. "It's so soft and fluffy."

"So," Tumble said, "want to play with it?"

"Without waiting for a reply he took the ball out of Quaxo's paws and threw it as fast as he could. The four kittens immediately went after it.

Jenny chuckled. "Well, I guess you won't have any trouble with them for a few hours until they get bored."

"Yeah, probably not," Munkustrap agreed. "Has someone told you about the meeting yesterday?"

Jenny nodded. "Jelly and Skimble did when I picked up the little ons. Three new kittens is great news, Munkustrap. For Jemima's sake I do hope they're not all toms, though. Poor thing, always having to play with boys."

"It's not like she doesn't have fun," Munkustrap remarked with a nod in the direction of the kittens. Jemima and Tumble were wrestling with each other, trying to get to the yellow wool while Pouncival was cheering Tumble on. None of them noticed Quaxo tiptoeing around them on his bandaged paws. He crouched low for a moment before he jumped at the ball, and quick as lightning he ran away with it, followed by three outraged kittens. Munkustrap winced when they all tumbled onto him but Quaxo just laughed and yielded the ball to Pouncival.

"Yep," Jenny said, "they will be inseparable. Just imagine the three new kittens playing here as well."

Munkustrap shrugged. "Skimble aready told me my den's becoming a daycare centre for kittens."

"Well, looks like he's right," came a new voice from behind them. Jenny and Munkustrap turned around to find Plato grinning at them. "Morning, you two."

"Good morning, Plato," Munkustrap replied while Jenny nodded. "What brings you here?"

"Just wanted to let you know that Bomba's already back from Old Deuteronomy's. He agreed to let the kittens stay so Bomba's on her way to her sister's now, together with Tugger and Admetus. She said they'll be back sometime this afternoon."

"That's good. Is everything prepared for the kittens?" Munkustrap asked.

Plato nodded. "Jelly's preparing Bomba's den right now together with Demeter." The young tom startled when something yellow flew past his head, closely followed by four kittens running him almost over. "Oh my," Plato said with a laugh, "those are a handful. Although I have to admit that that ball of wool does look rather enticing." He looked longingly after it.

Jenny hit his ear lightly. "It's the kittens' toy, Plato. You're too old for playing with wool anyway."

Plato glared at her and grumbled, "Spoilsport. One is never too old for playing."

"Well," Munkustrap said, "I need someone to look after Quaxo this afternoon when Bomba and the others are back. I'm sure he'd love to play with you."

Plato stared at him with wide eyes. "You really want me to look after him?"

"Sure, why not?"

The young tom grinned. "I'm already looking forward to it."

"Good," Munkustrap said. "You can come over after your guard duty ends." He turned to Jenny. "Maybe you or Jelly could pick up the kittens around that time as well?"

"Sure, no problem."

"Okay, then that's settled."

Plato and Jenny said their goodbyes, the former one having to relieve Alonzo of his duty while the latter one had to teach her mice some manners. Munkustrap watched them go before he chose a shaded place next to his den where he could observe the kittens. So far they seemed to get along more than fine. Whenever Quaxo lagged behind because of his hurt paws the others slowed down, giving him a chance to catch up.

Munkustrap made himself comfortable. He was curious how Plato would fare that afternoon. The young tom was at a difficult stage in his life, having just grown up but still acting playful and childish sometimes. A lot of responsibility already rested on his shoulders because of the ever-present threat of Macavity attacking the junkyard and Munkustrap was all for giving Plato the opportunity to help the tribe out in ways that were more fun than guard duty. He was sad that the present times required the young members of the tribe to grow up faster than they were supposed to. The tabby knew that Plato did not have it easy, only growing up with his brother Admetus as a guardian after their parents had been killed.

'Another sad story,' Munkustrap thought, watching the kittens play in the sun. 'It's about time we get some happy ones, as well.'

TBC