Sunlight Through the Trees in Summer Summer was almost over. The heat was almost gone, but the sun still rose high in the sky and was beautiful as it set. Munkustrap and Demeter were happily raising their family, and had no worry on dating and such. Neither did the kittens, they didn’t care for love. Except… “NO!” Jellylorum screamed at Etcetra. “But I love him!” Etcetra yelled back. “Don’t you yell me! You are not ready for love! And he’s too old for you, and he’s riff-raff prankster, and no daughter of mine will get married at this age!” “But I need him and he needs me! And I’m not too young. I’m eleven months old! And it doesn’t matter. I love him and that’s all.” “It does matter! You can’t get married till you are two years old! Understand? No mating either!” “That’s not fair!” Etcetra was nearly in tears. “Plato and I are ready to be together! It doesn’t matter what you all think! Our love is stronger than all of you!” “Don’t call it love!” Jellylorum snapped intensely. “So stop calling it that.” Etcetra was at loss of works. She was so angry and depressed at the same time she just stormed away. “I hate you!” she yelled as se stomped off to her and Electra’s room. She flopped on the bunk. “This sucks!” she buried her face in the blanket. “What’s up?” her older sister asked, looking away from the latest copy of ‘Catnip’. “When you were my age, were you allowed to get married?” Electra looked surprised. “Gee, I don’t know. I never found the right one. I still haven’t.” “And didn’t you have your own room?” “No, you were born by then. “But I deserve my own room! I’m almost an aduly and she treats me like a little kitten!” She cried harder. “Sorry sis. But don’t worry. I’m going to Scotland for 2 months and you’ll have the room all to yourself! You can check in when Ma’s not here and make out with Plato!” Electra suggested happily. “Sorry, I can’t. Ma’s havin’ me trailed. Spy cameras. Don’t trust me,” Etcetra told her sister. Electra nodded unhappily. “That’s not fair.” “I know. Aren’t you allowed to make out with your boyfriend?” “No. Not till I move out. And I don’t have a boyfriend.” “Me neither—I have a fiancee`! Etcetra exclaimed. Electra lifted her eyebrows. “Don’t worry doo. Once you’re a year old, you can move out.” Electra set her magazine down. “Why haven’t you yet?” “Oh I don’t know. I’m looking around now. Where do you suggest?” “I don’t know. I plan to be with Plato. But I’ve gotta hurry if we wanna have a family, he’s getting fixed soon,” Etcetra explained with fretting face. “Eew,” Electra said, thinking of horrible it must be to not be able to have a family because your husband got neuered. “And Ma won’t let you, cos you’re too young?” Etcetra nodded. “I know. Ma did the same to me. Good t hing, I never now want to marry Pouncival! I asked if I could when I was three months old! “But that’s different! I’m almost an adult!” “Not really. You’re not a full cat until two.” “But I’ll be half way there!” “That’s why she says you’re too young. But don’t worry. There’s a saying a dog once told me. ‘What is meant to be will always find a way.’ And it will.” Etcetra decided to believe Electera. She was older than Etcetra. She was by four months. She didn’t look it. It was hard to see her and believe she’d be full grown in eight months. The next morning, Matty walked to Jellylorum’s little cave thing, made of old tires. “She never was very handy,” Matty thought. She knocked the door. Electra happily answered. “Hi Matty!” she greeted. “Could you drop me off at the train station on your way to the lake?” “Sure! Where’s Etcetra? Mungo and I are startin’ out soon?” “She’s very sad…” Electra looked back and forth and leaned towards Matty quietly. “…Ma won’t let her marry, make out, or mate with Plato.” Matty nodded as if she understood, but she had no idea what love felt like. “Here I is!” Etcetra cried as she hopped down the stairs (well, actually they were little card board boxes stacked up) joyously. “Let’s go!” Electra wondered how she got so happy. She shrugged as they walked out. Suddenly Jellylorum burst from her room. “Excuse me!” she cried out. “Huh?” they all turned around. “Etcetra! I told you you can not go outside! And especially not with Matty, because she hangs around with those Toms, and probably that moron you call a ‘love’.” Matty looked offended. “Excuse me, Jellyorum, but I assure you the only Tom going on this trip is Mungojerrie, and even if there were more, they are all ver ynice and kind Toms, and would never touch your daughters!” “”You do not know that! I don’t mean to be mean, but Etcetra is banned from going outside unti l further notice.” “How could you?!” Etcetra screamed as she ran to her room. “You may go Electra.” Matty and Electra ran out of the house fast as they could. While Matty and Mungojerrie fished, Etcetra was crying, not being able to believe she was banned from seeing her future husband. I’m not to young. Mother will never understand. It’s the love that’s inside. I love Plato. She can’t see how special he is to me and I am to him. She liked him before he and I fell in love. She just wants to ruin my life. She continued to pout, when she thought of the saying Electra told her. What is meant to be will always find a way. Yeah! She ran to the window and jumped out (you didn’t expect there to be glass to pull up did you?). I’ll go to Plato myself. If it’s meant to be, than it will. We’ll be together forever no matter what everyone thinks. She found Plato at the Kitten Bar talking to Admetus about new laws. “Plato!” she called. “Etcetra!” he turned around with joy and surprise. Sh ejumped in his arms like akitten hugging her daddy. “I missed you so!” She licked his neck and kissing him. Before they knew it, they were making out. Mungojerrie and Matty walked in the bar. “Yeah, that was a great cathcj!…” they were talking as they walked in. “Wrong way!” Matty said as she dragged Jerrie out. Etcetra pulled her mouth away from Plato. “It’s okay! We’re done.” “We are?” Plato asked with a fake pouty face. She slapped him playfully. Mungo and Matty walked back in. “Your mom’s gonna kill you!” Matty yelled. “I don’t care. I love Plato too much to let this pass by me. All I can have will be mine and his as long as I go with him now. “We’d like some burgers,” Mungo told the barmaid, Maria, as always. Matty shrugged. “It’s your funeral. But I ain’y payin’ for the stone.” “Matty! Don’t you understand? I love him! And no one can stop me from that.” “But Etcy, they can stop you from marrying him,” Matty warned. “I don’t care! They’ll have to kill me before they can stop our love from taking over.” “But Etcy. How do you know it’s love, and not tongue workout?” Matty knew she shouldn’t said that. It was meant to be a joke, but then she knew Etcetra wouldn’t look at it that way. “Of course we’re in love! In fact, we’re in love so much I won’t even argue about it with you!” Etcetra declared. Then she and Plato began necking. Matty looked away in disgust (it wasn’t something she cared to see unless she was broadcasting across the British nation). Mungojerrie looked to her in a loving away, lookin gher up and down like a tree. “Matty…ya wanna go robbin gwith me tonight?” he asked. Etcetra and Plato didn’t find that like a great date idea, but Matty found it fantastic. “Can I?” she asked exhilarated. Mungojerrie and Rumpelteazer never let anybody one their robbing sprees. “That’s what I’m asking you.” Matty looked stunned. He sounded like he was asking her out. He always said ‘kid’ at the end of his sentences when he talked to her. Thinking no more of it, she was very honored to be asked on the robbing act. Then Mungojerrie cooled off. “See ya at ten kid.” “Thanks, golly!” Matty smiled. Etcetra and Plato stopped staring, shrugged, and started sucking mouth again. Mungojerrie had left and Matty was just dazed. “Wow,” was all she contrived. Plato and Etcetra rolled their eyes. That night, Plato took Etcetra to a drive-in where they sat on top of a car and were kissing through the whole movie. As the movie ended, Plato got down on his knees, put his paw out and spoke gently: “Etcetra—will you marry me?” “Of course!” Etcetra grabbed him into a long, fiery, passionate kiss. Through all this mushiness, Rumpelteazer, Mungojerrie and Matty were creeping through an Oxford performance school. Mungojerrie showed let Matty first then stepped in front of his sister, making Teazer the last to go in. As they were snatching up a Ming vase, Etcetra chased Plato down the parkin glot, both laughing. Etcetra jumped on Plato, flipped him over and pinned him down. Then he laughed and threw her off lightly. They chased each other into the forest and up to a cliff. When they stopped at the edge, they could see the beautiful, shimmering lights of London. “Aren’t they beautiful?” Etcetra asked pleasingly. “None more than you,” Plato grinned, knowing Etcetra would grab and kiss him, as she did. Just then, Mungojerrie and Matty came meowing and hissing kittenishly. Plato and Etcetra jumped, but Plato began to slip. He began to fall, but he gripped the edge with his claws. “PLATO!!!” Etcetra screamed. Matty and Mungo ran over to her aid. He was slowly losing grip. He started to slip more, and his fingers loosened on the edge. “NO!” He quickly began to loose control. His last few fingers held tightly. “I’m sorry Etcetra. Maybe I’ll see you in another life,” Plato managed. “I’m sorry we can’t get married.” “You’re going to make it out alive! Don’t worry.” “No Etcetra. Don’t make yourself believe it,” he choked. “I’m gone.” As he said, his fingers lost and he began to fall. Matty and Mungo grabbed for him. He began to plunge for the earth below. But Mungo’s long arm caught his paw. With full force, they all pulled him up to safety. Etcetra hugged him, barely conscience. “Thank-you so much,” he wheezed. “I don’t know how I’ll repay you.” “Just follow your heart and do the right thing.” Mungojerrie smiled. “That was beautiful, I didn’t think I ha dit in me,” he whispered to Matty. Plato pulled Etcetra close. “I love you baby.” “I love you more.” “No, I do!” “I do!” they giggled romantically and laughed. They stumbled home. “That’s sick!” Matty joked. Mungojerrie laughed. “Will you go out with me?” he blurted out. Amtty was shocked. “No—I mean, what do you mean?” “Just once. I know I’m with Tantomile, but we’re gonna date someone once, and then get back together. I wanna date you.” “ONLY ONCE,” Matty clarified. “Yes.” They hugged friendly. They turned to see the beautiful picture of sunlight through the trees in summer.
