"Poor Grizabella, I really wish they'd forgive her, she didn't do too much in the way of sins, in fact neither did Macavity." He sighed. "But if I were kicked out for what they did... I might want to stay out." He mumbled. "But you guys are probably tired, we can stay over at my place before we go back." James yawned then motioned them to follow. They shrugged and went along with him their eyelids drooping. Soon they found themselves at pile of wood with a small opening, and James ushered them through, inside they found it quite roomy, with a pile of pillows and blankets in the corner.

"I haven't got a bed, so we can divide these." James said as he tossed them three pillows and a thick blanket. Soon everyone had set up the makeshift bed. Harry was making his bed when he pulled out two pictures, hidden a corner. He looked at them. One was of one that looked like James, minus the diamond over the eye, grinning over a large pad. The second of James peering over another large pad. It was as if the two of them had been sketching each other at the same time.

"Who's this?" He asked. James turned and stared at the pictures as if they were something monstrous.

"Just a picture of Mistoffelees, before he left, we were good friends." James said quickly. "I just haven't got around to hanging them. I gotta go now, Munkustrap's waiting." He said before disappearing out the hole. Harry sighed shrugged, before laying down and trying to sleep. But found himself restless. He looked over to see Hermoine staring at the ceiling.

"You can't sleep either?" Harry asked quietly.

"No... something's bothering me about those two, Grizabella and Macavity. Why would they be kicked out for rebellion, and why would James say that if he were in there shoes he wouldn't want to come back? And how come Mistoffelees and Quaxo look so much alike? I think there's something more to this tribe and James than what appears to the eyes." She said softly. Harry nodded.

"And Grizabella's song, I think it's a riddle. And why was Munkustrap talking to her if she was so hated and all?" Harry muttered. At the mention of the riddle Hermoine sat up.

"Really, I thought it was pretty odd, what did you get out of it?" She whispered anxiously. Harry sat up and explained the whole thing, Hermoine bobbing her head in agreement.

"I don't think she wants to come back, I think she wants someone to come with her. To forgive her for leaving them." She stood up. "Come on, we've got to find her." She said.

"Hermoine this is personal business for somebody, and I don't think Munkustrap would be to pleased." Harry objected harshly. Hermoine was getting more and more adventuresome. Hermoine gave a long sigh of human suffering.

"Look, if they've being doing this since 1982 then they aren't gonna stop any time soon! Sheesh it's been about 20 years now. And there isn't a rule to break in this situation. We aren't part of the tribe." She concluded logically. Harry sighed and stood up.

"What about Ron?" He whispered harshly, motioning to the curled up ball, only his bright red hair showing.

"Leave him, he's asleep, we're not." She said with a shrug. Sighing Harry followed. They crept out into the early gleam of dawn, fortunately nobody was around, and they crept towards the dancing proper. On their way they passed Munkustrap, who was sitting on an imposing throne on top of a pile junk, and James standing in front of him. James barely came up to Munkustrap's shoulder when they were on level ground, and now James didn't even come up to his feet. He ranted about something, glaring at James, who stood perfectly still.

"Discussion my wand, that's intimidation." Hermoine muttered, as she glared from the other end of the proper, hidden behind a large can of Lima beans.

"And I thought Snape was bad, come on, the longer we hang about in one place, the more of the chance that we'll be caught." Harry whispered, grabbing Hermoine's arm.

Finally they made it to the proper, which was now darker than it had been during the ball. Carefully they made their way to exit Grizabella had taken, and found a small path. They followed it quickly, occasionally looking around for life. Then the trail stopped and they heard sobbing coming from a ways in front of them. They ran to it, only to stop dead in their tracks a few feet in.

There sat Grizabella sobbing as Macavity had his arms tight around her waist. For a moment they thought he was trying to hurt her, but they realized that he was trying to comfort her. Slowly they stepped into the shadows, since they hadn't seen them, and listened in on the conversation.

"Oh, why won't he come to us Macavity! I didn't even see him there! Munkustrap said he was gone, and that he never wanted to see us, even though he knew that we are his parents!" Grizabella wailed. Macavity rocked her gently.

"No, no I saw him there, he was with some human friends of his. He's gone off to practice magic I would suppose, with Dumbledore of Hogwarts. Which is good for him." Macavity cooed. Harry's eyebrow's had risen to the top of his head. They were the humans there and James was the only that had been there with them, and James did say that Dumbledore had visited his world. He looked to Hermoine, and could see that she was thinking the exact same thing. He looked at the couple. Macavity was tall and lean, very much like James, except for the tall part, and their noses were exactly alike, long and pointed. Grizabella was very small, and also very lean, and she had a white face and washed out green eyes. Gulping, Harry stepped out to stand in
front of them. Both of them looked up and stared at him with mixed shock and worry.

"I'm here with my friend, nobody knows." Harry said calmly, pulling Hermoine out from the shadows.

"Why did you come here?" Macavity barked.

"We're friends with James, he's the one that brought us here. We thought something was funny with you two, and we decided to check it out." Hermoine said softly. Grizabella looked to them and then to Macavity with hopeful eyes.

"Does he speak about his parents?" Macavity asked sharply. Harry shook his head.

"No, he thinks he was orphaned, his parents and brother killed in an accident, I don't think Munkustrap's ever told him." Harry said appologetically, and watched as both faces fell. Macavity looked extremely angry.

"This is why we rebelled, Munkustrap's no good, won't even let him know who his parents are." he hissed angrily. "To say we died in an accident, that's horrible and far from the truth." He growled, and Harry was reminded of the time when Hagrid had blown up at Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon after he found out that they told him that his parents had died in a crash, instead of the truth (which they knew) which was that they were killed by Voldemort.

"He wasn't being honest about his brother. Mistoffelees died only a few years back. We don't know how though." Grizabella sighed, a deep pain in her eyes. Harry imagined it must be horrible for her not knowing how her sons fared, or how they died. Harry and Hermoine exchanged a look, but made no comment. Grizabella looked at them with pleading eyes. "So he doesn't know about us. What did he say about us?" Grizabella asked softly.

"He said that he doesn't understand why you were kicked out, and why you'd want to come back, although I don't think he realizes that you want him to come with you. He doesn't say much about you, sir, except for about your song, although I don't think he thinks you are as bad as the others say you are." Hermoine said clearly. The couple brightened. "Why don't you go see him yourself?" She asked. Macavity sighed.

"We can't, Munkustrap's made sure Quaxo's home is right beside his home so if we do see him we'll be dragged off. It's part of our punishment to never see our children again, after what we did." Macavity sighed.

"Oh... What did you do?" Harry asked.

"We disagreed with Munkustrap's leadership, and said so openly. We tried to get other adults to join in, but anyone we talked to Munkustrap had gotten to first, and so they came late at night ripped Quaxo and Mistoffelees out of my arms and threw us out here into the forbidden zone. Every year we go back and try to coax them, or him back." Grizabella said, obviously holding back tears

"And I try to kidnap Deuteronomy so I can trade him for our son, but we haven't been successful so far."

"Which is why you stopped when James stepped in front of Deuteronomy, looking ready to fight you for him, isn't it?" Harry asked, and Macavity bowed his head.

"I couldn't take him like that, and I couldn't swat him aside. So I left." He said softly. Harry looked around before staring at the two.

"You can't get close to James, but we can. We could tell him, he'd believe us, I'm sure he would." Hermoine said determinedly. Grizabella and Macavity brightened again.

"You would?" Grizabella said anxiously. Harry and Hermoine nodded.

"Tell him that we aren't allowed to see him, but that we love him very much, and it wasn't our choice to be like this." Macavity said softly, a grin breaking out on his face.

"Come on, Hermoine, we'd better go, it's getting brighter and we've got to get back before Munkustrap has finished lecturing James." Harry said before dragging Hermoine off. Out of the corner of his eye he saw that Grizabella and Macavity's faces had become worried again.

Indeed it had been a nasty lecture, James thought to himself as he clutched his arm tightly to his side, and limped towards his house on one leg. Munkustrap had hit him hard repeatedly with a loose metal pipe for bringing in threatening people to their leader to the junkyard, even though James was sure that his friends wouldn't be a threat. Standing straighter, and biting back the pain, he strode into his house, and smiled weakly at them before falling into a chair.

Ron was about to shout at Hermoine and Harry about where they had been and why they hadn't taken him, when James had entered, and obviously didn't know what had happened, and so he clamped his mouth shut. Harry and Hermoine were relieved to find James hadn't arrived back yet. However they all became concerned when James came in, looking like he was in horrible pain as he clutched his side, even though he tried to make it look casual by crossing the other over it.

"What happened?" Hermoine snapped, motioning to his clutched side. James looked down as if he hadn't even known it was there.

"Oh... I bumped into something on my way here, it kinda hurts." He mumbled "So... what did you think of the ball?" James asked brightly, prying his hand off his side slowly. Hermoine glared sharply at him. Harry looked to Hermoine nervously before clearing his throat.

"James, we got something we need to tell you about your parents..." Harry said softly. James stared at him as if he'd lost his mind.

"My parents died when I was very little along with my brother, you know that." James said suspisciously.

"No they're not dead, James, and we know your brother didn't die until recently." Hermoine said softly, standing. Ron watched with curiosity, for he didn't know anything that was going on. "You see we talked to them, while you were out." Hermoine said in almost a motherly way. James bit his lip.

"Is this a practical joke? If it is, it isn't funny." James snapped his ears beginning to fold back.

"No, we're serious. James, Munkustrap hasn't told you the truth. Grizabella and Macavity are your real parents, they were banished and you were taken from them." Harry said softly. James' eyes began to water and his ears had slicked down to the sides of his head. He sat stock still on his seat for a moment, before snapping to his feet.

"Well there's only one way to know for sure isn't there?" He said, sounding like he was trying to control the hysteria coming into his voice. He stormed off and the three followed quickly, lurking in the shadows. As James entered the proper where Munkustrap's throne room, Hermoine pulled them to the vantage point that they'd looked in from earlier. On their way there, Ron whispered harshly:

"You went to go see Grizabella and Macavity?" Harry and Hermoine nodded and shushed him as they came to the vantage point. There sat Munkustrap, his mate Demeter looking severe, and Victoria, Jemima, Electra and Etcetera sitting beside her on smaller chairs. James appeared and cleared his throat.

"Yes, Quaxo?" Munkustrap drawled severely.

"I.. I... I've b... b... b... b... been th... thin... thinking th... tha... that, I've been wondering, sir, i... if... p... p... p... possibly that Griz... Grizabella an...and M... Ma... Macav... Macavity could... maybe... b... b... be my p... p... parents?" He said softly, stuttering in fear, as his tail drooped and his ears were perked all the way forward. The air changed and the four kittens had ceased talking between themselves, Demeter
had gasped and glared harshly at James, and Munkustrap had stood stiffly and stared at James with blazing green eyes.

"Where would you get an idea like that?" Munkustrap deadpanned as he jumped to the floor, clutching something behind his back with one hand that they couldn't see. James took a step backwards, and they could hear a whimper escape his tight lips.

"I... I... I... was j... j... j... just... com... compar... comparing t.. their f... f... features... an we l... l... l... look a lot..." James stuttered, but wasn't able to finish, as the object behind Munkustrap's back appeared and crashed into his side. It was a long lead pipe. There was crash as James flew across the floor and into one of the walls. Munkustrap quickly followed and dragged James back into the center of the floor. Demeter had relaxed somewhat and an evil smirk appeared on her face. Victoria's face copied her mother's, while Jemima, Electra, and Etcetera stared agape.

Harry, Ron, and Hermoine stared as well as Munkustrap landed heavy blows upon James' hunched back as he covered his head with his arms. 

"Don't mention those traitors in my presence!" Munkustrap bellowed as he crashed the pipe into James' tail, causing him to yip and shoot up to his knees. Munkustrap grabbed James by the back of his neck and flung him on his back, and raised his pipe again and smacked into the side James had been clutching earlier. James howled loudly in pain. "You little ingrateful rat! We clothed you, we fed you and your worthless brother, unlike your mother and father who abandoned you and decided to rebel against the fair leading of our good leader!" Munkustrap shouted. By this time James had gotten in a crouched position, tears streaming down his face. "We let you go to Hogwarts, you should be grateful! We could have let you starve! We should
have." He said, ending with a hiss. By this time James' sobbing had gotten louder.

"Papa! Let him be!" Electra, Etcetera and Jemima shouted as they jumped on him, Electra wrestling the pipe out his hands. She succeeded but Munkustrap bellowed and threw them back into a box which snapped shut as they all hit the back of it, also trapping the pipe. He glared at James.

"You even turn my daughters against me." He growled before punching James in the face, causing him to yelp. Munkustrap continued to punch him repeatedly in the face and chest, and James whimpered appologies between each blow, looking like he was about to pass out. Harry, Hermoine, and Ron felt frozen, they didn't know what to do, they'd left their wands at Hogwarts, and who knows what Munkustrap might do if they interfered. They needn't have fear. Suddenly there was a black and white blur that grabbed Munkustrap and pulled him off James. It was Alonzo.

"Let off of him Munkustrap." He growled menacingly.

"'e day'serves ta know da truth an' we won' le' you keep it, from 'im, Munkustrap!" Mungojerrie bellowed appearing out of nowhere, Rumpelteazer at his side.

"Traitors." Munkustrap hissed at both of them. Rumpelteazer had since departed from Mungojerrie's side and began checking on James, who had passed out. His face was bloody from where Munkustrap had busted his nose.

"Oh can it Munkustrap!" She screeched. "You tweren't ta goo' leada anywa'! You don' care 'bout tus, an' if anyone quest'ions yer rulin ya beat dem inta submission." She motioned to the sprawled form of James. "'e's jus' a chil' fer 'Eaviside sake!" She screamed.

"Mungojerrie! Get your stupid airhead mate to shut her mouth like a proper woman!" Munkustrap barked. Rumpelteazer was practically fuming and glared at Mungojerrie, challenging him to obey Munkustrap's order. Mungojerrie hoisted James' limp form on one shoulder, and Rumpelteazer took the other.

"No, Munkustrap, I won'. We've live'ed unda yous system longa nuff. Dis is opan rebellion!" He shouted. Alonzo nodded and shoved Munkustrap into a pile of cans, before taking up James' feet. The trio left and Harry, Hermoine and Ron dashed to meet them. They gasped when they saw James' condition, it looked much worse close up. When he breathed he made a wheezing sound, his eye had swollen up, the blood from his nose had turned the surrounding area of white fur pink.

"Dere yous guys are." Mungojerrie said in a remorseful tone. "We 'oped we didn' 'ave to look fer ya. Come on, we gotta git outta 'ere an' get 'im to 'Ogwarts so dey can 'elp 'im." Mungojerrie said motioning them to the edge of the borders, clearly marked by the large pieces of junk piled high and tightly together.

"I've got to get Jellylorum, and maybe I can talk Skimbleshanks into coming, I know he's not to happy with Munkustrap's rulings..." Alonzo said as he placed James' legs into Ron's arms.

"We're coming too." Said three voices. Everyone turned to find Etcetera, Electra, and Jemima standing resolutely. "We can't take it." Alonzo nodded. "Awlroight, come on. You guys squeaze through dere firs'." Mungojerrie said motioning to the pipe. The three ex-princesses nodded and went into the pipe quietly. Alonzo had disappeared, and moments later, he came back with Jellylorum who was holding tightly to his arm, the lanky Skimbleshanks who was trailing at his side, and Bombalurina sauntering behind him. Mungojerrie ushered Bombalurina and Skimbleshanks inside.

"Alonzo, this is amazing... you're Munkustrap's guard! Are you sure you know what we're doing?" Jellylorum said softly, looking up to Alonzo's face.

"I have to. We have to. We've lived under Munkustrap's dictatorship for too long. Look what he did to James when he asked who his parents were." Alonzo said, motioning to the still unconcious James. Jellylorum gasped and put a hand over her mouth, and looked like she was about to cry.

"How could he?" She whispered.

"See what I mean, we're right, and we should have run off with Grizabella and Macavity long ago. We were only young kittens then, but were not now." He said before kissing her on the lips, Jellylorum returning the favour.

Ron, Hermoine, and Harry looked away, thinking that now was not a good time for a romantic moment.

"Come on 'ere!" Rumpelteazer said impatiently, motioning to the pipe. Jellylorum skidded in and Alonzo followed. "Okay, kits, 'old on tigh' an think 'appy though's!" She said, and the gray mist snapped back up, and they felt the ground move again. They reappeared in the center of the dininghall, where everyone was eating breakfast. Everyone stopped and stared as Mungojerrie and Rumpelteazer placed James on an empty table.

"Dis fella nee's med'ickl a'tension!" Mungojerrie shouted before he and Rumpelteazer disappeared with a loud pop.

Professor McGonagall and Professor Dumbledore ran over, and McGonagall nearly passed out at the sight of James. Dumbledore grabbed James' ankles.

"Come on Professor McGonagall, we'd better get him down to Madam Pomfrey at the infirmirary." Dumbledore sighed. McGonagall nodded stiffly, and picked up James' shoulders.

"You three stay here and eat." Professor McGonagall snapped, coming to her senses at the top of the stairs.

Chapter 10