Notes: I'm back again! I'd like to really, really, really, thank Leslie who's email about my first story gave me enough confidence to write another, I hope you like this one as well! Again, please please please email any and all responses to diamondrope@hotmail.com because my main AOL account will not accept Internet mail. If you have AOL or AOL Instant Messager and you'd like to say something to me, feel free to, I'm: Lifegoeson. This story focuses in on another character with little background: Etcetera.
Pretty much, this story is a good ending to a bad day. It's not quite as serious or sad as my last, and it's not nearly as dramatic, but it puts in perspective what an everyday love must be like for these cats.
"And then you slip the right hand loop through the left hand loop and.." Etcetera looked out of the opening in the oven wearily. *I'm not a cockroach, why do I have to know how to crochet? I'm not a mouse either! Goodness, I am so bored and look at Pouncival out there, not a care in the world. It's not fair. It's simply not fair. *
"So, Etcetera, dear, what do we do to fix this problem?" Jennyanydots asked Etcetera, looking at her poignantly. Etcetera grimaced. *Well, I can say I don't know and get yelled at for not paying attention and sit it out, or be smart and get kicked out. What to do, what to do..*
"By...letting me out of class?" *Ok, so I'll be smart.* Rumpleteazer was playing with Mungojerrie when a small white heap of fur landed on her and knocked her down, followed by an angry voice yelling.
"And stay out! No more lessons for you!"
"What in the Heaviside?" Mungojerrie asked, pulling his love out from under the kitten.
"May I ask the same?" Rumpleteazer said, rubbing her head.
"I was fresh to Jenny. I think I'm finally out of that class for good!" Etcetera said, silly smile plastered on her face. The duo groaned.
"Stupid troublemaker." Mungojerrie muttered and then looked surprised. So did Rumpleteazer.
"What did you eat for breakfast?" Etcetera asked, equally surprised.
"I don't know, but Rumple, never, ever, ever, EVER let me eat that again!"
"Aye aye!" Rumpleteazer saluted him and they scampered off, supposedly to cause trouble.
"POUNCIVAL! I'M COMING TO GET YOU!" Etcetera yelled as loud as she could, letting the other kitten know that he was going to be pounced. *Hehe, he's so funny and _so_ cute!* She crept through the tires and blankets, silent as the night, until she came upon his crouched gray form. Or, well, what she thought was his crouched gray form. *He looks a little different, his coats a bit too dark, but I guess it's him. Must have gotten dirty. * she thought, and readied herself to pounce. With a cry she pounced of the form who jumped and threw her off.
"Ohh," she groaned as she sat up from her hard fall, "You're not Pouncival." She shook her head and looked up into the cat's eyes. *Oh no, not..*
"No, I'm not." Munkustrap said to her, looking down in a very 'I-am-not-at-all-pleased-nor-amused' sort of way. Behind him, she saw, was Jennyanydots. *Oh no, this is very bad. Very very very bad.* She was aware of her tail swishing faster now and sat on it to hide her fear. It hurt too much so she stood up.
"I-I'll just go look for P-Pouncival right now.." She said, backing away slowly. She bumped into another form behind her, only to turn around and see that Jellylorum was standing there. *Oh boy, I'm in for it now!*
"Etcetera, Jennyanydots has just informed me of your expulsion for her school."
"Yes, sir."
"For being fresh."
"Yes, sir."
"Why were you being fresh?"
"Before I tell you, sir, I am permanently expelled, am I not?"
"Yes, you are."
"So therefore I have no chance of returning to ruin?"
"No.." Munkustrap's eyes were narrowing in frustration and in confusion.
"Well, sir, have you ever sat through one of her classes?" Munkustrap and Jennyanydots both recoiled as if shot. Then the strangest thing started to happen. While Jennyanydots still looked appalled, Munkustrap's mouth started to twitch. Etcetera cocked her head to the side, as if to figure out what was wrong. When his shoulders started to shake, Etcetera became worried. She had never seen him act like this before. His noble silver face was turning pink and with a gasp he started laughing so hard that he could stand on his own and had to lean on a tire for support.
"Uh, Munkustrap?" Jellylorum asked him. He shook his head and tried to stop laughing but one look at the faces of the cats around him set him off again. It took him quite a while to calm down and when he did he wiped the tears from his face and whiskers and turned back to the somewhat frightened kitten.
"You're dismissed, Etcy, go find the right cat to pounce now." She smiled and scampered off, still not quite sure what had just happened.
This time, Etcetera was sure she had the right cat in front of her when she crouched. The pounce was perfect not a sound from her and the other cat just rolled her off. Etcetera got up and walked over to where Pouncival was hunched over gloomily.
"Pouncy? What's with you? Damn it, what's with everyone today?! They're all acting so weird! Mungojerrie was acting like Munkustrap, Munkustrap was acting like Mungojerrie and you're being all gloomy! What next, an insecure Tugger?! "
"I thought you liked him?" Pouncival's angry answer was.
"He's cute. Sorry, he's sexy. But that ego has got to go!"
"So you don't like him?" Pouncival looked up at her hopefully. She scratched her chin.
"Not really. He's fun to admire though. You gotta admit, he's got a pretty cool song!"
"Yeah."
'What is it?! Goodness, why can't you act normal!? Can't we play that really fun game of ours that goes: I pounce you, you pounce me and so on and so forth?"
"Yeah..why not?" His cheerfulness returned and he jumped her quite unexpectedly.
A while later they collapsed in giggles and pants on a tire.
"I'm (pant pant) so (pant) tired! Jeez, you (pant) never (pant) played that hard (pant pant) before!" Etcetera groaned as she rubbed her sore shoulder.
"Yeah, well (pant) you weren't at (pant, pant, pant) your slowest (pant) either!" He retorted. They giggled and she laid her head on his shoulder.
"I really like you, Pouncy." She said, just spitting it out.
"Really? That's good because I have this new game that we could play."
"Really? Wowie! I think that last round really wore out the old one."
"But you gotta tell me first: _how_ do you like me?"
"Whaddaya mean, how? I like you!"
"Like me, or LIKE me."
"I donwanna say."
"OK, well I guess I can tell you how this game goes."
"Kay."
"Well, it's only for you and me, kay?"
"OK.."
"And it goes something like this: I love you, then you love me, then we both love each other and-" Giving a happy purr she cuddled up to him and nuzzled his nose.
"I know, I know: and so on and so forth."