Pouncival woke up, and it was dark around him. The darkness smelt of moist soil, and it was a surprisingly pleasant scent. It was quite cold, but he didn't mind. It felt nice. But where was he?
"Hello, Pounce." It was Mistoffelees's voice. It sounded serious, not a very common thing. "How are you feeling?" He sighed. "Sorry. I shouldn't ask that. It was stupid of me."
Pouncival sat up. He felt dizzy for a moment, but it disappeared soon. He saw Mistoffelees sit next to him. The magician was pale and trembling, and wouldn't face him. Pouncival looked around. He was lying in what appeared to be a lair underneath the ground. It had some pieces of furniture, like a desk and some bookcases, but otherwise it seemed empty, as if someone had just moved in.
"What is this place?" asked Pouncival, rubbing his head.
"It's my new hideout. We're underneath the junkyard. I... brought you here because if they found you near the... the body..." He hesitated. "I'm sorry, Pounce."
Pouncival groaned. "Patti... I failed her. I was supposed to have rescued her, and I didn't..." His voice trailed away. There was a hard knot in his stomach that wouldn't disappear. He swallowed and stood up. "I'm going out."
Mistoffelees frowned. "You can't go out now. The rest of the tribe have just located the... the bodies. They followed your... pawprints, and they saw the Pollicle..."
"I killed it."
"Yes. You did."
"Good." Pouncival looked around for an exit. "How do I get back to the surface?"
"Where are you going?"
"I'm finishing it." Pouncival's eyes flashed orange. "That dog took her away, as if she wasn't important. As if she didn't matter. And they just keep doing that. They just keep killing, and they'll wipe us out completely unless I decide to be strong and defend my tribe. I owe it to Patti."
Mistoffelees took a deep breath. "Jellicles have no place in Pollicle war, Pounce."
"I don't care about that! I was supposed to stop them! That was my purpose, wasn't it? Why I was created? To stop them. I was weak. I failed, and now my sister is dead. How am I supposed to face my dad now, knowing that I could have saved her if I'd just been a little stronger, a little faster, a little more heroic? How can I face my brother?"
Mistoffelees looked at the hero, and it was not a kitten that looked back. Pouncival's face was a mask of resolve, but his eyes gleamed with unshed tears. He was barely holding it in.
"Patti was important," said the magician. "She will be missed, and her death shall not be in vain. But you can't just go out after them. It wouldn't help matters."
"How do you know? It has to be finished. There has to be justice. I am that justice. I was made to be... be the hero, I... I can't just let them..." His voice broke, and suddenly he looked very young and very afraid. He cleared his throat. "I killed her murderer. It was simple. I can do it again, and bring retribution to the Jellicles. We have all lost someone."
Mistoffelees bowed his head. "Don't let your anger and your grief get the better of you, Pounce. The potion did not make you immortal. You can still die. And then your father and your brother would be all alone. Don't do that to them. Don't be another victim."
"How can you say that when she's dead? How can you just pretend that, that things will be okay again? She's gone. I saw her die. Her blood was... it was everywhere, and..."
Pouncival started crying. At first there were no tears, just dry sobs that racked his entire body and threatened to rip his guts out. He was aware that he was falling, but he didn't care. It felt like someone had kicked him in the stomach, and he was fighting not to let the pain show, when his body shook from it. He wanted to throw up, but there was nothing left inside. He wanted to scream and curse, but he had no air to form words with. All that came out was a low, complaining wail, and with that sound came the tears.
His claws scratched in the hard-stamped dirt floor of the lair as the sounds of the battle came back to him. He had been hoping that Pattipaws would keep screaming, for as long as she made sounds she was still alive. That heart-stopping moment when she had stopped replayed again and again in his head until his ears rung with the sudden, echoing silence. He remembered his claws ripping and tearing in dog flesh, and that he had felt good doing it. He was protecting someone. He was being useful. He was proving himself.
But she had still died, and he had still failed. Failed Patti, failed dad, failed Tumble.
"I'm sorry," he whispered. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to, I tried, but they were too many, and I failed, and I'm so so sorry, and if you'd just come back I promise I'd do better next time, if you'd just come back Patti I'd be so good and strong and make everything better, I'm so sorry..."
He felt a soft paw on his shoulder, and he looked up. Mistoffelees looked down on him, and his eyes were warm and gentle and soothing.
"Sleep, brave little hero," he murmured, and Pouncival felt how a wonderful exhaustion came over him. "Sleep so that you can be strong for your family. They will need you."
So Pouncival closed his eyes and gave in to his fatigue. He saw Mistoffelees's kind face in front of him as he lost consciousness, and allowed himself to sleep.
Pouncival sat in between Asparagus and Tumblebrutus at Pattipaws's memorial. It was his duty now, as the oldest sibling. He should be what kept the family together, for it was falling apart. Asparagus sat staring at a point far away, perhaps trying to see his daughter looking back for just one moment. He had barely spoken since he'd heard the news. Pouncival wanted to comfort, but he felt just as lost and sad himself.
Tumblebrutus was serious and silent. It was strange to see him like that, for he had always been so vibrant, so full of energy. Now he looked drained. His grief emptied him of everything that had made him Tumblebrutus.
Next to Asparagus sat Gus, the old theatre cat and Pouncival's grandfather. He had come the long way to the Jellicle junkyard to say goodbye to Pattipaws, who he had always adored because she had reminded him of his most beloved daughter-in-law Noilly. The old cat sat surprisingly straight next to his son, looking at Munkustrap, who was leading the ceremony. Old Deuteronomy was still not back from his journey with Grizabella.
"We stand here today to say goodbye to a young queen who was taken away too soon," said the grey tabby and bowed his head in respect. "She was a good daughter... a loving sister... a dear friend."
Victoria, who had been Pattipaws's closest friend, sniffled loudly and was comforted by Jellylorum. The marmalade queen dried a tear from her eye herself. Once upon a time, not too long ago at all, Pattipaws had been a kitten living in the TSE 1. She had been just like one of Jellylorum's own.
"Her soul has gone to the Heaviside," continued Munkustrap. "She is a part of the Everlasting Cat. Though she will be missed and remembered forever, we shall feel grateful for having her, if only for such a short time."
Pouncival didn't hear the rest. His mind was completely blank. There was an unpleasant pain in his stomach that wouldn't go away, a feeling that he wanted to run and never stop. He wanted to do something. He wanted to fix this. The vacant look on Asparagus's face and Tumblebrutus's silence were too much to bear.
The young tom stood up, and quietly he left the junkyard. He couldn't take this feeling any longer. He knew that he was not guilty of Pattipaws's death. That had been the Pollicle's fault entirely. But he still felt responsible, and he wanted to make it better.
"Pounce?" said Mistoffelees's tentative voice from behind.
Pouncival turned around and smiled weakly. "Hi M."
"Hey. Are you okay?"
"No. I think it will be a long time before any of us are okay." Pouncival sighed. "My family has been through tough times before, though. We bounce back. It just... feels weird. It feels like she's just on holiday or something. Visiting a friend. Like she'll come back any day and wonder why we're all so sad." He paused for a moment. "But I suppose she won't."
"I'm sorry."
"Yeah... Everyone's sorry." Pouncival sighed and looked at the rest of the Jellicles. They were sitting there in front of the TSE 1, listening to Munkustrap and occasionally wiping a tear away. "Everyone's sorry. Everyone understands. They've also lost someone. I remember when Skimble's brother was killed. Dad thinks I was too small to remember, but I do. It was just like this then. Everyone cried. But no one did anything about it, because the culprits were dogs, and dogs are much stronger than cats..."
"You can do something."
"But I'm not strong enough. I'm not ready. I thought I was, but when it came to it, I lost control. I killed. I wasn't supposed to. I wanted to. It felt good. I felt justified. But I'm not supposed to kill things, that was not why the potion was created. It does not give me the right." He looked at the magician. "I need to be more prepared. I need to know my purpose."
Mistoffelees nodded thoughtfully. "I wish I could show you, Pounce, I really do. But that lies outside my territory. I'm not much of a psychic. You'll need the Twins for that, or other Javaneses. They know what they're doing, even though they rarely give you answers you understand."
"Where are the Twins now?"
"They have a basement flat near the park. Do you want me to take you there?"
"Yes."
"You might not get proper answers, you know."
"I know. But it's better than nothing."
The pale sun was sending a few rays into the small basement flat, casting shadows into the far corners. The place had an underlying smell of dampness, but it was disguised with various scented candles and spices. It was chilly, and the cold worked wonders on Pouncival's befuddled mind. He suddenly felt that he was thinking more clearly now than back at the junkyard.
Mistoffelees trampled nervously on the ground and tried to squint into the darkness. Usually he would be able to see through it just as easily as he saw things in daylight, but something had been done to this darkness, and he couldn't pierce through it.
"Hello?" he called out hesitatingly.
"Hello Quaxo," said a kind voice. "You have not been visiting for a while."
"Quaxo?" repeated Pouncival and looked at Mistoffelees.
The magician coloured ever so slightly. "The name my mother gave me," he murmured.
"I didn't think you knew who your mother was."
"I don't. But they do." He nodded towards the shadows and said out loud: "Greetings, Twins."
Pouncival became aware of two pairs of yellow-green eyes that watched him intently. The darkness re-shaped and created faces around the eyes, and suddenly one tom and one queen stood in front of Pouncival and Mistoffelees. They were Coricopat and Tantomile. They were the Twins.
"Hello Pouncival," said Tantomile and gave him a friendly nod. "It is nice to have you here."
"We have been awaiting your arrival," said Coricopat.
Pouncival bowed, not sure of what was expected of him. "Greetings to you, Mystical Twins," he said. "I suppose you know why I am here as well?"
"Yes," smiled Tantomile. "We know of your fourth name, Rumpus Cat. We saw how you fought to save your sister, when she was not meant to have been saved. We have seen how you have helped London, although you are still very young. We know about the potion as well."
The Twins turned as one to look at Mistoffelees, who suddenly seemed even more nervous.
"Making that potion was extremely dangerous," said Coricopat sternly. "We thought that we had taught you better than that, Quaxo. Had not Pouncival drunken it, who knows what would have happened?"
"Macavity," mumbled Mistoffelees.
"No, you would have drunken it," corrected him Tantomile. "And it would have destroyed you. You already possess so much power, little Quaxo. You do not need any more."
"I was careful..."
"You were not. You did not think it through. You were careless. But that is in the past now." She smiled kindly. "As it is, things worked out quite satisfactorily."
"You wish to learn more," said Coricopat, looking at Pouncival. "You are not fully learned yet. There is only so much that Quaxo can teach you. You need training. You need us."
"Yes," nodded Pouncival. "I want to learn how I can be a real hero. I've got the strength. I just don't know..."
"How to use it," finished Tantomile. "Yes. Well, we can help you. There is more to the Rumpus Cat than magic tricks. We can teach you how to disappear completely, how to make sure that your scent goes by undetected. But we have to do it fast. We are running out of time."
"The Pollicles are going to war," said Coricopat and nodded. "It shall be a grand battle. We have seen this. We know it won't be stopped. Not by anyone."
"I will stop it," said Pouncival.
"The war has gone on for a long time. They have been preparing for months. Any deaths that have occurred were not intended. Just mistakes. The leader of the Pollicles, Queen, is too stricken with grief for her killed mate, so she does not see things clearly. It is clouding her judgement. She needs someone who can show her the horrors of war."
"I do not want to kill," said Pouncival calmly. "I have done that once. I will not allow myself to do it again, and cause more damage than I already have."
"We will teach you how to cause damage, but you will have to learn how to decide when you shall use it yourself. That is what will separate you from cats like Macavity. In the end, you shall be more powerful than he is."
The Twins smiled identical smiles. Pouncival nodded.
"Thank you."
"You shall come here now," said Coricopat. "Every day, until we tell you that you are ready, you shall come here to practice. You will be working hard, much harder than before. Quaxo may be a skilled magician, but he knows little of battle. You shall not speak of your visits here. Not to your family. Not to your friends. We have little time. Soon it will break out."
The Twins smiled again.
"But you will be ready when it does," they chorused.
