tuggoffelees oneshots

thirteen: caught part 1/3

hi babes, cunningalien765 requested this and i really liked their idea.
    it was about misto, instead of being loved for his magic, the other jellicles don't like him;
     sorta like good ol' grandma griz (grizabella. grizabella is what i meant. i am so sorry).
also just a note: quaxo is his second name and mistoffelees his third. tugger and jemima are the only ones who knows it. and vice versa

demeter pov
     i watch in horror as the cat we knew to be quaxo, a shy and quiet cat, creates lightning from his paws, use some unseen force to explode seemingly random props. i'd seen him and tugger hurrying off and wondered what they were up to. so i'd followed them into a nearby wooded park.
     i've seen this before; this... curse. a shudder runs through my whole body and i close my eyes. macavity. i have to warn the others.

    i seek out bombalurina and jellylorum almost immediately. they notice my panicked expression.
     "what happened?"
     "are you alright?"
     "are you hurt?"
     i shake my head quickly in response to their last question. "quaxo. magic. macavity," i pant.
     the last name comes out very quiet and my hands begin to shake harder.
     jellylorum takes them and rubs her temple against mine. "it's alright, dear."
     bombalurina puts a reassuring hand on my shoulder and nods.
    "i- i don't know what to do! quaxo can't be any less dangerous than, than him" i stutter.
    jelly nods determinedly. "we have to get rid of him. was anyone else there?"
    "yes. tugger was with him."
     bombalurina gasps, her eyes wide. "are you sure?"
     i nod. "very."
      jellylorum is equally as surprised. she starts toward where munkustrap and jennyanydots are chatting. jelly repeats everything i'd said almost to the word. all those days of gossiping about idle things must've paid off.
    "quaxo??" jenny exclaims.
    "my brother was there..?" munkustrap says more quietly.
    skimbleshanks trots toward us merrily. "hullo!" he chirps. however, upon noticing everyone's distraught faces, he says, "what's th' issue?"
    once again, jelly tells him, with input from jenny.
     "well. i nev'r woulda' expected 'im" (im sorry idk why he sounds like a cowboy. please pretend i know how to write in a scottish accent) skimble says.
     "we have to do something about this!" jenny says a little too loudly. she draws the attention of a few of the younger toms.
     plato, pouncival, tumblebrutus and coricopat (cori and tanto are still psychic, but they're hiding it, better than misto 🤭) come trotting over to see bomba and jelly holding me upright, and i just know that my face gives away everything. coricopat lowers his voice "macavity?"
jenny shakes her head, and for the hundredth time, explains what's happening.

before i know it, munkustrap has arranged a search party to find quaxo. it consists of himself, skimbleshanks, cori, tumble, plato, pounce, bomba and me. i tried to tell them i didn't want to go, but they insisted. they convinced me that i was the only one who knew the general location, which was true. and so, we set off.

tugger pov
i smile as mistoffelees nuzzles his muzzle (rhymes!) against my cheek. he closes his eyes and purrs. when he pulls away, he whispers, "should we go back? they'll notice our absence soon; especially yours."
     "yeah, we probably should."
     but just as we're standing, we hear a stampede of cats barreling towards us. we exchange a horrified glance. when they burst through the trees, someone shouts, "there he is!"
      mistoffelees starts to panic, his breathing becomes rapid and his eyes get very wide. i subtly grab his hand.
     "demeter, tell them what you saw, dear," jenny encourages, though it was more of a command. all eight of the other cats part to reveal a terrified demeter. she looks to both sides, as if waiting for someone to pull her back into the fray.
     "i- i saw quaxo using... magic," she murmurs, "like macavity."
     i can almost hear mistoffelees' heart shatter. i squeeze his hand tighter in an attempt to reassure him.
     munkustrap pipes up. "quaxo. as you must understand, you are a hazard to your fellow jellicles. we ask you to leave." his voice breaks on the word 'fellow,' as if misto was already an outcast.
     "he's done nothing wrong!" i protest.
     "no, tugger. it's okay. i should go." mistoffelees says, squeezing my hand one last time before trudging away, tail drooping.
      "no, wait!" i say, reaching to grab his arm, but munkstrap is faster. he stands between me and my mate.
     "come, tugger. let's go home now." he says, making a point to stare intensely at me.
     "i'm going with him." i state, standing up a little taller.
     there are audible gasps from the others.
     "i love him. i'm pretty sure he loves me too. i believe he would never try to hurt me."
     "see that's where you're wrong. you say he wouldn't try, but i don't think you know how cats like that works. he'll wait till he's got you. got you so invested in him, then he'll kill you. then he'll make it look like an accident. he'll come crawling back to us, begging us to let him back in. then, once we accept, he'll pick us all off, one by one, until he's the jellicle choice. it's in his nature." munkustrap growls, his face inching closer to mine with every word.
     "but he's not like that—"
     "tugger, just drop it. you know, deep down, that you're wrong." bombalurina coos. she holds out her hand to me. "come on. let's go home." she smiles.
     i scoff. i think about spitting at them, i have to fight very hard to resist that urge.
    "if it helps, i do love tugger, i wouldn't—"
    "shut up quaxo" almost everyone, excluding myself, says in unison. (god i'm getting heathers vibes and i'm not sure how to feel about it).
     munkustrap sighs. "it was nice knowing you, tugger. have fun in hell, with him" he gestures to mistoffelees, "dont say i didn't try to protect you, though."
      "if you think he's dangerous, then you'd better check yourselves." i retort, turning on my heel and storming away. mistoffelees follows close behind me.

     and that concludes part I! i hope you liked it!
     i'll probably post part II in a few days, so keep a lookout for that!

word count: 1,050
-jazzy <3