Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Are people born wicked? Or do they have wickedness thrust upon them? Are they molded by circumstance, or an unexpected twist of fate? What makes someone wicked? And what, more importantly, makes them good?

xxx

Quaxo fidgeted restlessly with the cuff of his sleeve. He kept his head down as he strode straight for the center of the Shiz commons, trying not to draw any unwanted attention to himself while doing so.

As he'd been reminded several times, he was only here because of Victoria. His sister would need him by her side, as her dance partner, and Quaxo was determined to blend into her shadow. He was determined not to make a spectacle of himself during his time here at the famed school.

His father was speaking with said sister some ways behind him, but Quaxo wasn't really listening. He was eager to arrive and get the initial splash of negative attention over with.

For a moment he'd thought he might have gotten through the crowd without it, however unlikely or impossible that might have seemed, but just as quickly he realized his fellow students had fallen into a hushed silence upon his abrupt arrival.

Other cats had begun to arrive, like him, and had already seemed to form little packs with one another. Pairing off into friend groups, and sorting into traditional social circles.

The popular cats, the loners, the troublemakers… all of whom were now staring at him with various shades of confusion, revulsion, and abject curiosity.

Quaxo would've thought he'd be used to the gaping by now, but that was far from the case.

A hush had fallen over the modest crowd of arriving students, and Quaxo's neck burned under the weight of their stares.

You could hear the sound of a pin drop… until his sister caught up, at any rate.

"What? What are you all looking at?"

Clothed in a white dress that fell to her knees, and a pink vest to complete the look, his sister Victoria was a vision in the two colors. The dress simultaneously contrasted with her brothers black blazer and trousers, and set her apart from the crowd. All the while blending near perfectly with her creamy white fur. 

She was soft, seemingly meek at first glance, but make no mistake… his little sister was a firecracker.

Quaxo liked to think she balanced him out in that regard. Under most circumstances he was much more eager to blend into the background than cause a scene.

Unfortunately for the black and white tuxedo cat, causing a scene was just about all he was ever able to do whether he wanted to or not.

"Vic…" he started as he reached to grab hold of his sister's hand in an effort to hold her back as their father caught up as well.

There'd be enough of a fuss already without his sister's volatile nature causing an even bigger one.

Their father glared at him, however, and Quaxo shrank back.

"Does he have something in his teeth?" His sister continued, completely undeterred. She stepped toward a group of students as if she meant to attack them. The group scattered, and Quaxo couldn't blame them. His sister may be small, but she could be terrifying if provoked.

It was their father's turn to intervene now. He grabbed hold of Victoria's arm, trying to win over the crowd with an equally winning smile in a vain attempt to excuse his daughters actions.

Victoria was fiercely protective of her brother, especially during occasions such as these. Had been ever since she'd been old enough to understand why she should be in the first place.

It was her who'd insisted Quaxo be enrolled along with her, after all. Victoria loved her brother with everything she had. Even in spite of what he was.

"You'd think his fur was green with the way you're all carrying on," she continued, and another group dispersed. Covering their mouths and giggling, they passed by Quaxo close enough that he flinched as one or two of them hit his shoulders with their own.

Some unlucky queen spoke out among the rest, and by the horror in her eyes and the way she tried to cover her mouth, as if asking herself to stay quiet, Quaxo knew what she was going to say before a sound left her mouth. "He… he looks like Mistoffelees!"

The air in the commons went dead for a moment.

Mistoffelees. That name name hung over Quaxo like a hawk ready to strike. The name of a long ago Wizard, one that Quaxo bore a striking resemblance to.

This is how it always went. First the realization, and next would come the rumors. No doubt the other cats were already wondering, holding Quaxo against the atrocities attributed to the name Mistoffelees. Was Quaxo capable of committing them too? Then they'd start asking the real questions.

Were Quaxo and Mistoffelees… one and the same? Had a cat as vile as the infamous Mr. Mistoffelees been given a chance to ascend to the Heaviside layer, and come back anew?

Those were the questions that sent Quaxo's tail-tip twitching, for he almost certainly knew the answer.

How had such a thing happened? Had the current Wizard, the great Macavity, made a mistake all those years ago? When he vanquished the great evil of his former friend, Mistoffelees, had he somehow twisted fate in such a way that he came back? Or had Mr. Mistoffelees been more powerful than anyone had ever realized?

That, Quaxo didn't know. Nor, he thought, did any other cat. Though, they didn't seem to need to know why; enough puzzle pieces had already clicked. They knew who he was, and hated it.

Victoria, it seemed, wouldn't stand for that. She narrowed her eyes, and started lunging toward the queen who had drummed up this mess, and it took their father to hold her back.

"Darling, not on your first day," their father spoke in a hushed whisper. Seemingly hoping to distract Victoria, he reached into his bag to procure the present he'd been carrying around since they'd arrived in the city.

Mercifully it worked, though by this point the crowd had thinned and the novelty of Quaxo's face had subsided. That, and of course the fact that his sister was easily distracted by her newly gifted pair of shoes.

Ballet shoes, to be exact, because if there was anything in this world Victoria loved more than anything else, it was dancing. That was why they were here, after all.

For as long as Quaxo could remember he'd been his sister's partner for almost everything. Dancing had just been the natural extension of that. They knew each other better than anyone else, which was why Quaxo was here with her at Shiz. A school known for its prestigious dance academy.

Smiling a little, despite the eyes he could still feel burning a hole through his dark, near black hand-me-down clothes, he congratulated his sister on her new acquisition. Fawning with her over the perfectly pristine pair of white shoes, and ignoring the weight of his own thrice patched up pair tucked safely in the bag at his hip.

"Now Quaxo listen to me," his father was saying. He used that tone of voice he always used when talking to his eldest child. The one that was somehow both condescending and resigned. It was as if he'd already decided Quaxo was a disappointment and was simply saving himself the trouble of being disappointed further. "You're to stay out of trouble, not draw attention to yourself, and-"

"Look after Victoria, I know," Quaxo finished the instructions he knew almost by heart. After all, he'd been told a variation of them almost all his life.

His father pursed his lips, but didn't scold Quaxo on his interruption. Instead he turned to Victoria, his youngest and most precious child, and began a long and rather sappy farewell speech.

Quaxo knew that Victoria, despite her desire to stick up for her older brother in most instances, truly did cherish the spotlight of their fathers affection. She craved it, and really Quaxo couldn't blame her.

He'd crave it too, if he'd ever gotten a taste.

Letting his mind and gaze wander, Quaxo found himself taking in the courtyard of the school with somewhat curious eyes.

Most of the other cats had already arrived, it seemed, milling about the concrete walkways and freshly cut patches of grass. Most had said goodbye to their parents, or were old enough to have arrived alone in the first place.

He and Victoria were old enough to be on their own as well, but there had been no way their father would have let Victoria go without saying goodbye in person. And, equally as important, he was there to ensure that Quaxo didn't cause too much of a scene.

Continuing to look around, Quaxo began to notice just how tall everyone around him was. Which had his ears pressing flat against his head as nerves got the better of him.

He would have thought that years of being the shortest tom in the room would have prepared him for this, but even some of the queens seemed to tower over him at a distance.

It was intimidating, and made Quaxo inordinately grateful that his sister was somehow even smaller than he was, though admittedly not by much.

There'd be no worry he'd be assigned a dance partner he didn't know if he was far too short to be a convincing partner for anyone but Victoria, so that at least brought some relief.

He didn't know what he'd do without his sister.

As his eyes continued to wander, they caught those of a remaining group of cats by the door that led to the dormitories.

They were part of the crowd that had noticed him earlier, and seemed to be the only ones paying him any attention now after the hype had died down.

Five pairs of eyes were less than what felt like hundreds before, but as far as Quaxo was concerned it was still five pairs too many.

Two queens, one red and one yellow, giggled and whispered to one another, all the while casting glances Quaxo's way. Two of the toms were a little more subtle about it, but the gray tabby and the black and white bicolor cat cast him uneasy glances and seemed to be discussing him amongst themselves nonetheless.

But the fifth cat? The fifth cat stared at him with an expression Quaxo couldn't place. Didn't want to place, considering how it made his skin crawl under the intensity of it.

The tom was clearly their ringleader, given how he sat slightly higher than the others on the set of stairs leading up into the main dormitory. That, and simply the way he carried himself.

His mane was wild, and yet at the same time seemed meticulously groomed even from this distance. Everything about him from the way he sat, to the way he smiled at something the red queen said screamed that he was far more confident than Quaxo could ever be. That he was so far above the tuxedo cat in the proverbial food chain that Quaxo may as well just roll over and play dead now.

Humiliatingly enough, the cat even seemed at least a year or two younger than Quaxo. Closer in age to Victoria, at the very least.

His neck burned, and he could only hope his hackles were smooth by the time their father let them go with a final hug to his daughter.

Following Victoria, Quaxo was surprised his tail wasn't between his legs as they passed by the group of cats on their way inside. All the while he could still feel the tom's gaze lingering on him, and Quaxo could only hope he never saw the maine coon again.

Walking inside, he was relieved to find the halls mostly devoid of other cats. It was just him and his sister for now, and with a slight bounce to his step Quaxo quickly followed behind her down the narrow hall, his eyes scanning the numbers on the doors for their own.

As they walked, his sister's bag was jostled by a passing student. All seemed fine, until Quaxo spotted his sister's ivory water bottle teetering precariously on the edge of falling out.

It was without thought that he reached forward and performed a slight of hand to keep it in place, his sister remaining none the wiser.

Casual magic had been something he'd done ever since he'd been a kitten. Despite his and his family's modest fear of it, it was just second nature.

As a kitten Quaxo could recall playing in the garden; chasing a butterfly, if his fuzzy memory of the incident served correctly. One second he'd been there, and the next he'd been gone. Only to be found several hours later laying out on the lawn as if nothing had ever happened. With absolutely no memory of where he'd been or why.

What he did know, however, was that when Quaxo had returned he'd never quite been the same.

His once normal coat of black sparkled under the light of the Jellicle moon, and his fingers always seemed to buzz with a hidden energy. Like a bolt of lightning just waiting to be unleashed.

He hid his magic for fear of frightening others, and his family never spoke of it, but even so it was almost second nature for him to use it even if he had no real idea how.

As they found their room, it was with another subtle display of casual magic that Quaxo opened the door. Holding it for his sister as she crossed the threshold into what would be their home for the next two years at the very least.

Claiming the bed by the window, Victoria dropped her bag on the floor and flopped on top of the mattress with a soft groan.

"That could have gone better," she spoke as she lifted her head enough to shoot her brother a wry smile.

Quaxo's own smile was a little more reserved as he set his suitcase down gingerly on his own bed and began to unpack. Taking out his shoes first, and then his clothes, he folded them all in neat little piles in the corner of the closet they'd now be sharing.

"No one assaulted either of us, so I think it went alright," he replied, sitting down on the edge of his bed and bouncing on it lightly to test it's firmness.

Arching her back, his sister stretched her arms above her head as she sat upright once more. "There's that, at least," she agreed, but her smile told Quaxo she was teasing him just as much as he was her.

Standing, Quaxo moved across the room and sat on his sister's bed. Wrapping an arm around her shoulders, he pulled her into a side hug. She rested her cheek on his shoulder and both cats took a deep breath as they let themselves try to relax.

"We're gonna be alright, right?" Victoria asked softly, glancing up at him after a few moments.

"We're gonna be alright," Quaxo confirmed as he turned his head and kissed the top of his sister's.

And, for the first few weeks, they were.

xxx

"Step, kick, kick, leap, kick, touch! Again!"

Breathing heavily through the strain in his limbs, Quaxo followed through each movement as best he was able under the watchful eyes of one of their three dance instructors.

Each one, of course, approached dancing and therefore teaching in different ways. Grizabella apparently approached it by pushing her students as hard as she possibly could, drilling them on simple but physically challenging routines until one or more of them simply couldn't take it anymore.

Today that someone was Quaxo.

He'd spent too much of the previous day putting in extra hours with Victoria. Helping her sister nail a fouette in her routine that had been giving her trouble.

All that extra time had made his usually toned muscles feel weak, and Quaxo was struggling to keep up with the rest of the class.

He wasn't the only one struggling, however, as the red queen he'd noticed on his very first day kicked when she should have lept, causing her to fall behind and briefly abandon the routine only to jump in a few moves later.

Mercifully for Quaxo, Grizabella bid them to stop with a wave of her hand and he gratefully stepped over to his dance bag to grab something to drink and maybe loosen up his overworked muscles with a few uncomplicated stretches while the teacher took a moment to speak to the queen about what she'd done wrong.

It was very like Grizabella to bring the class to a halt to focus on one student. It had used to grate on Quaxo, but at least she'd never done it to him.

Letting his eyes roam the room, Quaxo spotted his sister talking with a pair of queens about her own age. Jemima and Etcetera, he thought he recalled from what his sister had told him about her new friends.

He was happy for her, really, but that didn't make him feel any less lonely as he stood by himself at the side of the room.

"Again!" Grizabella called out, clapping her hands together and gesturing for her students to get back into place. "Let's do it one more time, and then we're going to pair into partners and work on lifts."

When Victoria automatically took her place by his side, Quaxo was just glad the older cat hadn't insisted they be paired with someone they didn't already know.

Lifts. He could do a few lifts, right? No problem.

"You got me?" Victoria asked.

"I got you," Quaxo promised. And he kept that promise, just not exactly in the most subtle way.

They'd moved on from the routine and had started practicing lifts in earnest when Quaxo caught his sister in a jump that hadn't felt right from the start.

It was no fault of hers, but Quaxo could feel her falling before her body had even started to slip out of his hands.

Reacting on instinct, he caught her. Only he hadn't touched her at all, and had instead somehow managed to suspend her in midair with a burst of magic he hadn't even known he had in him.

The room fell silent, and Victoria was having trouble looking him in the eyes after he'd settled her back down on the floor and she'd righted herself.

The silence was broken by Grizabella, who all of a sudden had a strange but haunting look in her eyes. "Alright that's enough! No more gawking. Class is dismissed."

Quaxo had tried to grab his bag and leave as quickly as possible, but of course Grizabella stopped him before he'd even begun to move toward the door.

"Not you, Quaxo. I need to speak with you."

Waiting as everyone else was allowed to leave was torture at its finest, not at all helped by the fact that his sister seemed inclined to barely acknowledge him as she passed.

He'd done magic in front of her before, and it had never bothered her then, but for some reason the very public display had clearly rattled her as much if not more than the near fall, and for now he couldn't even apologize.

Ears pressed flat against his head, the second the door latched and the last student had left he turned toward Grizabella and began to speak.

"I'm so sorry," he started with, because he was. He'd disrupted the class, made a spectacle of himself, probably frightened someone. "I lost control for a moment but it won't happen again, I swear."

"Has something like this happened before?" the grizzled older queen asked. Her eyebrows raised.

"I-I mean, yes. Yes ma'am it has, but I-" Quaxo began, lowering his head as he looked down toward the floor. Preparing to be expelled, or worse, because that was clearly where this was heading.

His father was going to be furious with him, not to mention poor Victoria who'd be left high and dry without a partner she could trust, and-

"My dear boy, with a gift like that you could find yourself meeting the Wizard!"

Quaxo flinched, opening his mouth to apologize again before what she'd actually said finally sunk in.

Him? Meet the Wizard? Why would a cat as grand as the Wizard ever want to meet someone as ordinary as him?

Because you've got the soul of a magician in you, a small voice supplied. The magic that flowed through his veins was the same magic that flowed through Macavity's, after all. The same magic that Mr Mistoffelees before him had possessed.

It made him special, some would say it made him dangerous, but more than that it made him different. Different, but maybe with the approval of the Wizard 'different' might be okay.

Not to mention the fact that if the Wizard even considered meeting him, Quaxo might finally get answers to the questions that had often haunted him. Maybe he could even find a kindred spirit in the Wizard.

Maybe the Wizard could find one in him in return, if he was so inclined.

After all, Macavity had been friends with Mr Mistoffelees before everything had gone so horribly wrong. Maybe there was something to be said about two souls destined to interact despite time and circumstance pulling them apart.

But Quaxo? Meeting the Wizard? It made him feel dizzy. Elated, even. Like he was floating on a cloud. "The Wizard? Me?"

"Yes of course you, you silly boy," Grizabella replied as if he was crazy for even asking. As if anything about this turn of events was normal.

A disbelieving laugh forced its way past Quaxo's lips, and all of the sudden he was certain life was never going to be the same.

Chapter Text

Bombalurina had thought Tugger's fascination with the black and white tuxedo cat was strange, at first. She had assumed it would turn out to be a passing fancy, nothing more than simple curiosity, and that Tugger would abandon it when he inevitably grew bored. She herself hadn't paid the other cat any real mind outside of a passing thought of her own. That was, of course, until Quaxo's display of magic that had shocked them all in Grizabella's classroom.

Overnight the school had been thrown into a frenzy and word had spread like wildfire. Soon everyone knew what the cat had done. Not only did Quaxo look like the late Mr Mistoffelees, he had magic like him too. 

The story grew more absurd every time Bombalurina heard it, but it was rather amusing to hear at least three different clearly false versions of the tale that painted Quaxo in an even more extraordinary light. Saying that the magical cat had caught Victoria mid leap, and flown her around the room like she'd been a kite on the end of a string.

The entire school had changed it's tune in the weeks since, and a divide had emerged between students who were now more afraid of Quaxo than ever, and those who were wondering why he'd hidden such a marvelous talent for so long.

Grizabella, as far as Bombalurina was aware, had taken the magical cat under her wing and passed him off to Professor Deuteronomy, a wise and respected old cat who had magical abilities of his own, or at least the means to teach about them. And ever since then Quaxo would often be spotted with his nose in a book and his hands sparkling with unused energy. Learning how to use his gift, Bombalurina supposed, and she tried to pay him no more mind now than she had before.

She wasn't afraid of him, but there was still an emotion she couldn't quite put a name to that swelled in her chest anytime anyone mentioned his name. And anyone, more often than not, turned out to be Tugger.

Bombalurina's long legs were tangled up with the maine coon's as the pair of cats lounged on either side of a loveseat in the corner of the rather large dormitory common room. Both had their noses in a magazine, though one of Tugger's fingers had been absently tracing patterns in the fur on her calf for the better part of an hour and she wasn't actually sure he was reading anything at all.

"What's the most swankified place in town?" Tugger asked suddenly, eyes never moving from their place on the page.

Raising an eyebrow, Bombalurina peered at her best friend, and occasional boyfriend, over the top of her magazine. Tugger's features were devoid of any real emotion, and in fact he still wasn't even looking at her, but Bombalurina had known him since they were both kittens and she knew exactly what that lack of look meant; Tugger was planning something.

"That would be the Ozdust ballroom," Bombalurina replied as she dropped her gaze back to the magazine even though she too was no longer reading it.

"Sounds perfect," Tugger replied absently as if he hadn't actually heard what she'd said. "Let's throw a party."

"It's the middle of the semester," she pointed out, though she had no doubt Tugger already knew that despite the fact that he'd been cutting class almost every day since they'd arrived.

"It'll be a middle of the semester party," he replied with a shrug, though this time he didn't look or sound quite as distracted as he leaned forward and used a finger to push down the top of her magazine until her face was in view. "Me and you, baby. We're meant for the spotlight."

He leaned in with that winning smile of his, presumably going for a kiss on the cheek or lips, but Bombalurina dropped her magazine in favor of placing both hands on his chest, pushing him away with a good natured smirk tugging at her features. "Maybe we could share the spotlight more often if you decided to show up for class once and awhile, baby ."

Tugger leveled her with that irresistible pout, and it was with a groan that Bombalurina caved and agreed to help him plan his little party. She could never say no to that face and he knew it.

Over the next few weeks Bombalurina placed herself in charge of sending out invitations. Of course Demeter, Munkustrap, and Alonzo were all automatically invited considering one was her roommate, one was Tugger's brother, and the third was their collective best friend. But in addition to their little pack she reached out personally to the likes of Jemima, Etcetera, and the calico twins Mungojerrie and Rumpleteazer.

On a whim Bombalurina even invited Victoria, though that was mostly because the red queen had wanted to invite Plato as well and it seemed the tom had gotten close to Victoria in the wake of all the Quaxo hullabaloo.

Bombalurina was in the process of telling Tugger all of this as the pair walked across the darkened campus commons in the direction of their dorms. She'd just gotten to the part about Victoria when the tom spoke up for the first time since Bombalurina had begun. "Did you invite Quaxo?" 

Looking up, Bombalurina squinted at Tugger in confusion. "What? No, of course not."

Why would she invite the cat half the school was afraid of, and the other half wanted to worship at the feet of? Maybe that was a slight exaggeration, sure, but Bombalurina was cat enough to admit that she missed when things had been simpler. When there hadn't been all this fuss about reincarnated Wizards and the like. What was Tugger's fascination with Quaxo anyway? Was it just curiosity? Or was there something else going on? Bombalurina didn't know, and she hated not knowing things.

Tugger was silent for a long moment after that, and Bombalurina thought that would be the end of the discussion thank the Everlasting Cat, but soon enough Tugger was continuing. "You should invite him."

Bombalurina wondered, not for the first time, what was going on in the tom's head.

"Why?" she asked instead of outright starting an argument, though her tone was challenging enough.

"Why not?" was Tugger's reply as he fluffed up the long fur at his neck to combat against the chill in the air. The leaves would be falling soon. Bombalurina pulled her baby pink jacket tighter around her body, absently chewing on her lower lip before opening her mouth to speak again.

"I didn't think you'd care if he was there or not," she finally replied, finding that she didn't have an answer for him other than the obvious. "He'd only be a distraction."

There was silence again, but it didn't last as long and eventually Tugger nodded, shrugging a shoulder as if to agree with her. "I don't care, I was just wondering."

As they reached the steps that led up to the dorm, Tugger leaned down to place a light kiss on Bombalurina's cheek, leaving a perplexing emotion stirring in her chest as they parted ways toward their respective rooms. Was it jealousy? No, that wasn't quite it. Why would she, a cat who had everything she ever wanted, ever need to be jealous of a cat like Quaxo? Regardless of the way he'd caught the attention of everyone in the school including Tugger, apparently. She wasn't jealous, but she certainly wasn't going to invite Quaxo either way.

However the following week, after receiving a truly heinous article of clothing as a gift from her mother, Bombalurina finally had the push she needed to go through with the invitation of Quaxo after all.

"Have you ever seen something so… so…?" she began, struggling to find a word strong enough to convey her loathing.

"Smart?" Munkustrap supplied, though shrank back as Bombalurina gave him a dirty look and corrected him with the word she'd settled on, "Ugly."

"It's not so bad," Demeter began as she crossed the dorm room the two queens shared, trying to get a better look at the black bowtie Bombalurina held in her hands. "It's… preppy."

Bombalurina scoffed at that, holding the tie to her neck as she looked around the room and practically dared anyone to try and tell her she didn't look ridiculous. "Ugly," she corrected again.

The five of them often gathered in Demeter and Bombalurina's shared dorm room. Technically they were meant to be studying, but there was never much of that going on… except on Munkustrap's part, of course. The gray tabby rolled his eyes and turned back to the homework he'd spread out on top of Demeter's desk. "Right," he conceded, and Bombalurina resolved to ignore her roommate's boyfriend.

"Everlasting, what am I ever going to do with this?" Bombalurina lamented as she lowered her hands and moved to gather the wrappings of the 'present' her mother had sent.

"Donate it?" The ever practical Alonzo spoke up from where he was sitting on the edge of Bombalurina's bed. He wasn't studying either, much too preoccupied searching through a basket of Bombalurina's clothes for a jacket she'd told him he could borrow for the party that had finally reached them. Tomorrow night was the night, and almost the entire school had been buzzing about it.

Bombalurina considered his suggestion, but in the end she'd made another face and shook her head with finality. "No, I couldn't even give this to my worst enemy."

"It would look nice on Quaxo." Four sets of eyes turned as one to stare at the speaker, and Tugger, who had been lounging comfortably on the windowsill up until that moment, looked oddly uncomfortable under the weight of their stares and the center of their attention. "You know… because he's a tuxedo cat?" he continued as he gestured to his own spiked collar as if that proved some sort of point. "Bow tie?" 

Scoffing again, Bombalurina tossed the piece of cloth in Tugger's direction more out of spite than anything. She was so tired of hearing about the great Quaxo, and for Tugger to bring it up now, of all times? On the eve of the party she still hadn't invited Quaxo to in the first place? "If you really think so, why don't you just give it to him then?"

Catching the bowtie with a surprising burst of speed, Tugger seemed to actually consider that option before tossing the tie back to its original owner. "Why don't you? You invited the whole school, even some of the teachers, you might as well invite him too."

Bombalurina scowled, but then again Tugger wasn't wrong. She'd invited nearly everyone she knew. Everyone except…

Eyes falling to the tie in her hands, Bombalurina suddenly began to entertain a rather wicked idea.

xxx

Professor Deuteronomy, affectionately called Old D by most of his students, was one of the kindest, gentlest, purest souls Quaxo had ever had the honor to meet. The elderly cat had lived many lives, or so the story went, and no one knew how or why he'd ended up here teaching Ozian history at a school like Shiz. But not a single soul would have dreamed of turning him away.

Deuteronomy had traveled the world, seen many Wizards rise and fall, but most crucially to Quaxo, Old Deuteronomy had magic. And not only that, over his many years Deuteronomy had trained more than one cat to harness the oftentimes tumultuous energy inside of them. Even, if rumors were to be believed, Macavity and Mr Mistoffelees themselves.

Grizabella had known nothing of such things, only that the Wizard would want Quaxo's magic controllable before he'd agree to an audience or even a meeting of any sort, and so she'd handed him off into the care of Deuteronomy. That was agreeable to Quaxo, who would have spent any amount of time with Old Deuteronomy regardless of potential personal gain, and saw reason in his being able to better control his gift.

To start, Deuteronomy had provided Quaxo with a book so ancient it's pages were constantly threatening to tear or fall out completely, but despite it's appearance the old book was more precious and more valuable to Quaxo than anything else in this world. Inside were pages upon pages of spells and enchantments, and complicated phrases Quaxo had a sneaking suspicion might be written in Latin. It was akin to a holy grail, and Quaxo spent many a long night pouring through it, soaking up every little scrap of information he could in an effort to prove he could do this. That he should do this.

During this time, Quaxo wasn't so caught up in his new studies to fail to notice Victoria's distance as of late. His sister was spending more and more time away from their dorm and hanging out with friends than she did with her brother. He told himself this was natural. Victoria was young, finally out from under the watchful eyes of their father, it made sense that she'd want to spread her wings a little. But Quaxo knew the distance had started ever since that day in Grizabella's class when his gift had come out in full force and changed… everything.

Though his sister insisted it wasn't the case, Quaxo knew the whole thing must have upset her more than just the initial shock and mild embarrassment.

Quaxo had tried to talk to Victoria about it, but in the end he'd realized it was the both of them that were growing apart. He couldn't place all the blame on Victoria's shoulders, even if that would lessen the burden of guilt. He told himself it was natural that siblings, even ones so close, would grow apart overtime. He told himself it was natural, and tried to ignore the voice telling him it wasn't.

xxx

"In short, the battle of the Pekes and the Pollicles was thwarted by the efforts of…?" Deuteronomy began, old eyes searching the group of seated students for one with the answer.

Munkustrap was the first to raise his hand, supplying the answer before Deuteronomy had even called upon him. "The great Rumpus Cat."

"Correct," Deuteronomy replied with a smile, a smile that looked to Quaxo's eyes like he might be sharing a private joke with himself. As if he was amused by something none of them could understand.

Munkustrap looked proud, at any rate, and Quaxo resisted the urge to roll his eyes as the self proclaimed 'Rum Tum Tugger' shot the gray tabby a look and very deliberately mouthed the word 'nerd' in his direction.

Quaxo still caught the maine coon staring at him on the rare occasions Tugger actually showed up to class, and if Munkustrap weren't so closely associated with Tugger, Quaxo maintained that they could have been friends. As far as Quaxo was aware, he and Munkustrap might be the only cats enrolled who cared as much about their other classes as they did their dancing career.

To his credit, Munkustrap didn't seem as amused by Tugger as the rest of the class, but still. Tugger was a menace at best and an annoyance at worst and Quaxo's efforts to avoid him worked well, but only when the maine coon cut classes. Which, to be fair, happened quite a lot. As far as Quaxo could see, Tugger had come from privilege and touted that same privilege wherever he went, seemingly of the mind that he could coast through life with little to no consequences for his actions. The most infuriating part was that he wasn't necessarily wrong.

Leaving class that day, Quaxo stayed behind a moment to slip on warmer garments in an effort to combat against the changing seasons. For a cat as small as he was he got chilled quickly and even though the walk from Old Deuteronomy's class back to his dorm wasn't a long one, it was long enough to take precautions.

Quaxo had been about to step outside when his way was blocked by an approaching figure. At first he thought it was only his sister, then for a brief terrifying moment he thought it could be someone who meant to do him harm... or worse, actually attempt to strike up a conversation with him. In the end he was half right, but mostly wrong as he found himself staring up at the lithe form of Bombalurina. She was wearing the whitest and tightest pair of pants the tuxedo cat had ever seen, accented by a baby pink blazer cinched at her waist by a silver belt that sparkled every time the light caught it. 

If Tugger was considered the king of the school, and Tugger himself would argue that he most certainly was, Bombalurina was his queen. She was just as powerful, just as popular, and Quaxo couldn't fathom why she'd be here clearly wanting a word with him.

Quaxo may have gained favor in some cats eyes after his display of power, but not enough for this. To say Quaxo was intimidated by Bombalurina in this moment was an understatement, even more so as she finally got around to speaking. "Are you aware that we're having a party tonight in the Ozdust ballroom?" 

Quaxo stared dumbly for a moment, then began to nod. He was sure he'd heard Victoria mention it in passing. And if she hadn't, almost the entire school had been invited so he must have heard it from somewhere. Quaxo hadn't been paying the entire thing much mind, and he wasn't sure why he should now. "I'm not going, if that's what you're worried about." 

Surprisingly Bombalurina didn't look relieved with that information in hand. In fact she actually looked a little overly disappointed. If Quaxo could find a reason for it, he might have thought she was exaggerating the emotion… but to what end he couldn't say. "Oh, no! You've got to come, I've got just the thing for you to wear!"

Quaxo had no idea what expression could possibly be plastered all over his face, but if he had to guess he'd say it must look somewhere between a grimace and a fake smile as Bombalurina produced a black bowtie from her pocket and held it up for him to see like a freshly caught mouse. A gift, he realized. She was trying to give him a gift.

"It's really uh, sharp, don't you think?" She was saying, but Quaxo wasn't sure he was listening anymore even as she went on. "Did you know black is this year's pink? You'll be so ahead of the curve, and stylish too. You simply have to come."

Quaxo didn't have to do anything, and yet all of a sudden he found that he might want to. He couldn't fathom how something as simple as a gift could change his mind so suddenly, but it had. The kindness of the gesture was touching, and thoughtful, and everything he'd prejudged Bombalurina for not being. Quaxo was happy to be wrong in his opinion of the queen, but that made him wary all the same. There were still students at Shiz who saw his magic as something to be feared, and how was he to know this wasn't an elaborate ruse to get his guard down? To humiliate or shame him in some unknown way?

Nevertheless, Quaxo reached up to take the tie from the queen. Carefully running his thumb across the soft velvet of the bowtie and trying not to openly gawk. He didn't think he'd ever held something so soft in his entire life. "I'll… think about it."

Without looking back, Quaxo quickly brushed past Bombalurina out into the chilly afternoon air. Trying to keep a smile from spreading across his features even as Bombalurina called "You're welcome!" after him. 

Well that had certainly been a twist of fate he hadn't seen coming, and Quaxo had been all smiles upon reaching the dorm he shared with Victoria only to be abruptly blindsided by the bombshell of an announcement his sister dropped in his lap. He blinked. "You…. don't want to be my dance partner anymore?"

"Not… exactly like that," Victoria was saying, but what Quaxo had heard was that she wanted to replace him with someone better. A tom who could keep up with her, maybe wasn't as much of a freak as her magical older brother. She wanted Plato as her partner, Plato who she was going to the party with tonight in addition to using him to leave Quaxo high and dry. There was no way Quaxo could find a partner to replace his sister, not anyone he could trust as much as he trusted her, anyway. 

To her credit, Victoria looked genuinely torn up about it, but that did nothing to stop the feeling of betrayal that had settled deep in Quaxo's chest. The heavy weight of something almost like resentment, but that wasn't entirely fair to his sister. 

"I really like him," Victoria continued, seemingly oblivious to Quaxo's internal struggle. "And I think he likes me too."

Regardless of that, the feeling of betrayal still lingered even though he truly did feel happy for his sister. She deserved this, she deserved to love and be loved by someone in return, but that didn't mean it didn't sting. He loved her too, after all. Was the love of her brother not enough? Of course not, he scolded himself. Why would it be if the love of her brother wore the face of Mr Mistoffelees and all the attention that went with it? But maybe he was being too harsh.

"Oh, Quaxo," Victoria was continuing. "Please try and understand…"

Taking a deep breath, and a moment to school his features, Quaxo squared his shoulders and offered her a nod and a small smile, about to lie to her for perhaps the first time in his life. "I do."

He didn't. Not at all, actually. Quaxo wouldn't have dreamed of letting anything come between them, let alone a pretty boy. To throw away everything they'd worked towards together just to spend more time with a tom they hardly knew… it was horribly unkind. And Quaxo ignored the small voice that told him he'd let magic, and his potential meeting with the Wizard, do the same thing to her, preferring to wallow in self pity for a little while longer. Unbeknownst to Victoria, of course, who moved about the room getting ready for the party with the assurance that her brother was alright. Maybe Quaxo would be someday, but not tonight.

Quaxo dropped the gifted bowtie on his desk and vowed not to think anymore about it… he certainly wouldn't be going, not if he'd only be in the way of his sister and her new date. His resolve held until the hour struck and everyone who was anyone filed out of their rooms and made their way to the Ozdust ballroom. Quaxo could see the lights from here, and he'd be lying if he said the entire thing wasn't even a little bit appealing. 

His resolve was strong… strong enough to last him another solid hour until he'd dressed, throwing on a pair of white and black leg and arm warmers to combat the chill, and quickly strode from the dorms toward the large circular building in the distance.

He told himself he was going because he was technically betraying his promise to their father by letting Victoria go alone and unsupervised. Even though she was a fully grown cat, Quaxo couldn't help but be overprotective when it was all he'd ever known. Even after what had happened between them earlier, she was still his little sister after all.

He also told himself that a part of him wanted to go out of spite. He wanted to go with his gifted bowtie on and head held high to show the other cats of Shiz what he was really made of. Prove to them once and for all that he was Quaxo, and not even a little bit like Mr Mistoffelees. That he was normal, despite all of the hullabaloo as of late.

Neither of those reasons were quite the whole truth, of course. Really when it came down to it, Quaxo just wanted to go. He wanted to join his fellow students and actually feel normal for once. Maybe even feel accepted. He wanted to dance under the bright lights and feel free, the kind of freedom he only ever felt when dancing. 

So, drawn to the building like a moth to flame, Quaxo found himself peering through a window to look inside. He spotted Victoria almost immediately, dancing with Plato near the center of the room, her white fur standing out among the crowd and under the bright lights. She looked happy, really happy, and Quaxo told himself he could go back now that he knew his sister was safe. He told himself he could leave, not cause a scene by arriving late and only ambiguously invited, but then of course he didn't, and he was still staring through the window as a voice broke the relative silence.

"Meow."

Nearly jumping out of his skin, to his horror Quaxo turned and found himself staring at none other than the Rum Tum Tugger himself. All looks, all swagger, all overconfidence… all a combination that had Quaxo stepping back from the window as though he'd been caught doing something he shouldn't have been. 

"Everlasting!" He exclaimed as he brought a hand to his chest and took a small step back from the tomcat. "You scared me half to death!"

The other cats grin only grew wider at that, and Quaxo could feel the back of his neck heating up the longer he was the subject of the cats gaze. Curiously enough, the tom didn't seem to be staring at Quaxo with the fascination or even the wariness that he was growing used to. He didn't even seem all that fazed by Quaxo's appearance at all, actually. Or what he knew he could do. Tugger hadn't been in class that day, surprise surprise, but everyone in the school had heard the story from one cat or another.

"Sorry," the tom replied, but somehow Quaxo got the feeling he really wasn't. Tugger was leaning casually against the wall, and Quaxo wondered how long the other cat had been there, and how long he'd been being watched without his knowledge… in the end he decided not to ask.

"You know the party's inside, right?" Tugger continued as he pushed off the wall and strode toward the tuxedo cat, an easy smile on his face as his thumbs hooked casually through his suspenders. Somehow, Quaxo marveled, the tom managed to look vaguely alluring and definitely intimidating even when it didn't seem like he was trying to. He hadn't even dressed up for the party, still wearing the same brown suspenders and tight green shirt he always did. Though, Quaxo noted, Tugger had donned a slightly less spiky collar and fingerless gloves that weren't made out of expensive looking leather to really round out the 'not a care in the world' element to his look. Maybe that was the point, he mused, and decided not to ask about that either. In fact, he'd rather not be here talking to Tugger at all.

"I know," Quaxo finally replied, because it seemed as though the other cat was expecting him to answer. "But I like the view better from out here." He didn't know where that last bit had come from. It was flimsy defense, and one he didn't even need. But even so, Quaxo gestured vaguely to the window he'd been looking through as if that proved his point.

Oddly enough the other tom decided to humor him, striding over to the very same window and peering in. Even going so far as to nod in agreement. "Can't argue with that," he replied and then, turning to face Quaxo, held out his hand to be shaken. Smiling all the while with those insultingly perfect teeth. "I think the view's better out here too."

Suddenly Quaxo was beginning to feel a little queasy, though he had no real idea why. 

"I'm Tugger, the Rum Tum Tugger, but most people just call me Tugger. You're Quaxo, right?"

Staring at the hand, it took Quaxo a painfully long time to reach out and take hold of it. Not quite sure what was happening here, or why the other tom was giving him the time of day. Or… technically night, he supposed. First Bombalurina, and now Tugger? Had both cats been biding their time and for some reason choosing now to strike? Was this some sort of elaborate cat and mouse game where Quaxo was undeniably the prey? Had Tugger put Bombalurina up to the invitation in an effort to get Quaxo here? None of this made any sense, and Quaxo feared any answers would only confuse him more.

"Right," he replied to the question as Tugger shook his hand. "I know who you are," he continued, because everyone knew who the Rum Tum Tugger was. He was a legend in his own right, after all. You'd have to have your head buried in the sand to not notice or at least hear about the most popular cat in school.

Ever since laying eyes on Tugger on their first day, Quaxo had labeled him as no good. Though to be fair he'd labeled Bombalurina the same and so far he seemed wrong about her. Maybe he was wrong to pre-judge Tugger as well. 

"Right, of course," Tugger replied, and maybe Quaxo had imagined it but was that disappointment in his eyes? No, it must be a trick of the light. Or lack of light, really. The school was unnaturally dark, the only real light to speak of coming from inside the building. That or the light of the moon and stars, which bathed both cats in a sort of eerie glow that had Quaxo's fur standing on end.

"Well, I should be heading back now, thank you," Quaxo was saying, watching another strange and unexpected emotion pass over Tugger's features at his words but it was gone before Quaxo could put a name to it.

"Aw, come on, kitten," the other tom protested, and Quaxo nearly huffed at the unexpected nickname. He knew he was short, but Everlasting! He was older than the other cat by at least a year and clearly more mature. "Don't you wanna dance?" Tugger continued, and even went so far as to add a little hip shake as if that would change Quaxo's mind. It didn't, though it did manage to amuse him. A little, anyway.

"No, thank you, I actually can't dance," Quaxo replied so deadpan that it clearly startled the other tom. Just for a moment, because after that moment Tugger began to laugh. And in the end even Quaxo found himself smiling at his own joke. But really he was smiling at how much it had clearly amused the other tom.

"I've seen you dance, we both know that's not true," Tugger replied, and Quaxo raised an eyebrow in response to that.

"You've been in class long enough to see me dance? Why, Tugger, I'm surprised at you," Quaxo teased, and... could he have already grown comfortable enough around the other cat to be able to tease him like they were old friends? Outside of Victoria, Quaxo had never had a friend before. It was strange, but there was something nice about it all the same. "How do you manage to pass class when you barely attend? Do tell, I'm sure the tale is riveting."

Tugger, to his credit, didn't take any of Quaxo's words harshly. In fact, it almost seemed like the tom was thrilled Quaxo had even noticed his lack of attendance. "You know the trouble with schools, star?" He asked, using a new nickname Quaxo didn't quite hate as much as the first. "They always try to teach the wrong lesson and, believe me, I've been kicked out of enough of them to know." He chuckled to himself. "Some of us like to have a little fun before we kick the bucket one day. Me? I'm one of those kinds of cats. Dancing through life is a lot easier to do when you know nothing matters. It's just life, after all."

Bristling at that, Quaxo stood a little straighter and fixed Tugger with a glare. "You think things come easy to you because you've been handed everything your entire life," Quaxo replied, and this time he wasn't smiling or teasing. And he certainly wasn't asking a question. "Cats like you make cats like me have to work twice as hard to even compare."

Tugger's words were a timely reminder of why the tuxedo cat had made his judgements on the maine coon and his friends in the first place. Cats like Tugger never worked hard for anything, and yet somehow they had everything Quaxo had ever wanted. Popularity, good grades, friends and family who loved them… it wasn't fair, and Quaxo was certainly predisposed to holding it against 'cats like that.'

Tugger's face fell, and Quaxo knew before the tom even began to speak that he was planning to apologize. Too little too late as far as Quaxo was concerned.

"What? No, I- I mean maybe a little but that's not- I'm not- that's not who I am."

Tugger sounded earnest, of course, but Quaxo was already turning to leave when he felt a hand grabbing hold of his arm. Quaxo flinched away from the contact, eyes wide as he turned to face Tugger again. Tugger who had a rather distressed look on his face that almost made Quaxo feel bad for the harshness of his own behavior.

"You're right," the maine coon admitted, and Quaxo found his own eyebrows raising in surprise. "You're right, Quaxo."

Tugger didn't say more than that, but Quaxo could see genuine earnestness in his eyes nonetheless. It surprised the tuxedo cat, and he found himself staring at Tugger for a moment before his eyes began to narrow. "Is that supposed to be an apology?"

"No! Er- yes?" Tugger tried as the tom raised a hand to absently scratch at the back of his neck. The movement seemed to make him grimace, but Quaxo found himself nodding with only slightly exaggerated thoughtfulness. 

"Well… I'll let you know if I decide to accept," Quaxo finally said, though Tugger's apology would obviously mean nothing if the other cat didn't actually make an effort to change along with it. Tugger caring about anyone but himself? Anyone outside of his group of friends? That would certainly be the day.

Quaxo took another step back, but there was a very faint wisp of a smile tugging at his features again. It was a sad sort of smile, however, because he found that somehow he was beginning to pity the maine coon. "You can't always dance through life, Tugger. One of these days you're going to have to run."

Tugger looked genuinely thoughtful at that, and Quaxo had been about to turn to finally leave when a nearby door opened and closed with a loud slam.

All of the sudden Quaxo could see Bombalurina walking toward the pair, and she looked positively furious. "There you are! I've been looking everywhere for you, you beast!" She exclaimed as she strode toward Tugger, but faltered for a moment as she saw Quaxo. Her angry expression fading into a look of total shock. "And… Quaxo! You actually came… and you wore the tie."

Raising a hand to his throat, Quaxo realized with a jolt that he was in fact wearing the bowtie he'd been gifted. The look on Bombalurinas face was hard to read, but Tugger's was less so as he wrapped an arm around the queens waist. "What's all the commotion about, baby? I was only gone for a minute, don't tell me you just missed me."

Quaxo suddenly felt uncomfortable in the presence of the pair. Tugger's flirting with the queen making him feel a little strange.

"As if," Bombalurina replied with a roll of her eyes, and Quaxo couldn't tell if she was being serious or not. "But your guests are, and you've definitely been out here for more than a minute." 

She glanced at Quaxo then, but whatever earlier expression she'd had was replaced with a smile as she extracted herself from Tugger's grip and moved over to the smaller cat. She grabbed hold of his arm and led him toward the door before Quaxo could voice any objections.

"I hope he hasn't been causing any trouble," Bombalurina was saying at the same time Quaxo was attempting to protest, but by then it was too late and he was already inside. He turned to glance behind him, probably foolishly looking to Tugger for help, but suddenly everything went deathly quiet in the Ozdust ballroom as every single cat turned to look at him.

Quaxo met Victoria's eyes through the crowd, but his sister quickly looked away and Quaxo was left without a single cat he could turn to, until he felt a hand on his arm and turned to look up at Tugger. Tugger, who was looking around the room with an expression that almost seemed challenging. Like he was daring anyone to try anything, or say anything, and all of the sudden Quaxo could feel himself being led further into the room and away from Bombalurina.

Quaxo was staring at Tugger, he knew that, but the other tom wasn't giving him much of a choice in the matter. This behavior was so unlike what Quaxo knew of the other tom, and as his eyes frantically glanced around the room for a moment he could tell from his brief look at Bombalurinas expression that he was right to find this new and a bit alarming.

"What are you doing?" Quaxo asked, his voice a hushed whisper as he leaned a little closer to Tugger as the tom stopped. Quaxo only then realizing then that they were now in the center of the room and still very much under the gaze of almost everyone in the school. 

"Dancing," Tugger replied, and Quaxo paled as the other tom suddenly began to move, still pulling Quaxo with him, and at this point Quaxo wasn't really sure there was a point to protesting. He'd gone this far, and he didn't think Tugger was going to let go long enough for him to slip away anyway.

Oddly enough he didn't think this was an attempt to humiliate him, and in fact he got the feeling that this was somehow an attempt to normalize Quaxo at the gathering. The only problem? The tuxedo cat couldn't for the life of him think of a reason why. Why would Tugger risk being associated with him just for the potential hope of a reward?

But as they moved, dancing to a rhythm only the two of them could hear, the ballroom slowly came back to life. And as the music picked up, Tugger finally let go of Quaxo's arm. "Sure you won't stay?" he asked, and Quaxo could see what looked like a genuinely hopeful smile on the other cats face. A smile Quaxo was having a hard time saying no to.

Biting his lip, and flushed from all the dancing, Quaxo found himself nodding. Taking Tugger's hand of his own free will now as he picked up where the pair had left off. 

The dance itself was uncomplicated, just something the students had been learning from their instructors for the annual Jellicle ball. What was complicated was that Quaxo had decided he was staying. As Quaxo danced with Tugger, and many of the other cats that eventually approached him, he couldn't find himself regretting a moment of this.

Dancing through life might not be so horrible after all. 

Chapter Text

The Emerald City had been built long before the reign of the great and terrible Mr Mistoffelees, a rein that had been ended not all that long ago. The city had stood since the days of old, and it would continue to stand for centuries to come, or at least that was what Macavity would have the good citizens of Oz continue to believe.

The Emerald City had long ago been carved from its jeweled namesake. Built from the precious resource, it stood as a testament to the power and strength of their original Wizard. But emeralds didn't last forever. Rather than standing forever, as was foretold, the once great city was beginning to fall apart at the seams. Macavity was trying to fix it, of course, but so far his efforts had proved less than effective.

The truth of the matter was that emeralds were in short supply, and what ones Macavity did have access to were far too old and weak to do much good in making major repairs. Instead he'd been forced to turn to other stones, and rubies most of all. Macavity had always hated the city's natural green, much preferring the rich red of a ruby, which was why he'd used the stones most often to fill the cracks in the sleek emerald surface of the city he called home. Unfortunately the red and green minerals were never meant to coexist, and the quick fixes and sudden clash of color could only do so much for so long to maintain the illusion of a prosperous city. Without a new supply of emerald gemstones, the likes of which Oz had never seen even before their previous Wizards demise, this was simply the way things had to be.

Until such a time as the city fell to actual ruin, Macavity intended to press on as if nothing was amiss. He had much more important matters to deal with, after all. 

Standing near a large window overlooking the city square, Macavity's ginger fur seemed to gleam in the sun. It was meticulously styled in the latest fashion, and the long ruby encrusted coat he wore showed off his natural color to its fullest extent and struck an imposing silhouette in addition. Only his collar, jeweled with the same green emeralds that had built the city, clashed unnaturally with his otherwise red hue. The emerald collar had been worn by every member of the long line of Wizards that had preceded him, so Macavity wore it as a reminder of what he'd overcome. 

It was true that the ginger cat had overcome much, but it was also true that in the process Macavity had lost more than he'd ever thought possible. It had been at this very window that he'd stared out at the city with Mistoffelees, after all, and it had been at this very window that the two cats had made each other promises that had never been kept.

Macavity sensed a member of his guard approaching before he heard her, but didn't immediately turn to acknowledge the queen as she came to a halt a respectable distance away and cleared her throat to get his attention. Macavity waited for a moment, then turned with an exaggerated flourish to face the cat that had presumably brought him news. She too, like all of his personal guard, wore red. A powerful shade that reminded Macavity of simpler times and happier days. Not that he had many of the latter.

A short bow preceded her holding out a scroll, but Macavity immediately found himself wishing she'd skipped all the customary formality as the information she carried was revealed. Snatching the piece of parchment from her hands, Macavity's eyes scanned the page hungrily. For him to be disturbed here there must be something of great importance that required his attention, and as he read further his suspicion was proved correct.

At long last the one he'd been searching for had come out of hiding and revealed himself, and at long last Macavity might finally have found the remaining piece he needed to complete his puzzle.

Rolling up the scroll once more, Macavity tucked it into the sleeve of his coat and strode past the guard who quickly turned and struggled to match the hurried pace of his much longer legs. There were plans to be made, and no time to waste, and as Macavity strode down the winding hallway past a series of cells, he found himself smiling. 

If only Mistoffelees were here to see him now.

xxx

Being suddenly included in Tugger's friend group, for Quaxo, meant learning everything about them.

Everything like, according to Tugger, the fact that Demeter and Munkustrap were sickeningly in love. The maine coon's brother and Bombalurina's roommate were seemingly made for one another, and there was nothing in all of Oz that could separate the two. Even though they'd been dancing around actually dating for the better part of the last three years, as Tugger told it, their bond seemed unbreakable even in Quaxo's eyes. They were kind to him at the party, and Quaxo considered them both friends by the end of the night.

Tugger and Bombalurina's situation was a little more complicated than that. They were on again and off again, that much was clear to Quaxo at the very least, except neither one ever seemed to know which they were at any given time. Whether they were together, or taking a break, it felt wrong to apply the label 'friends with benefits' to two cats who genuinely seemed to care deeply about each other beneath it all, but in the end Quaxo did anyway just to make things simpler and lighten his confusion as the pair oscillated between dating and breaking up faster than Quaxo could complete a single fouetté. 

Bombalurina had seemed warm to him after acceptance had been given, and Tugger… well, Quaxo considered them both friends too.

Alonzo, on the other hand, seemed like an outsider in the group at first glance. But he was Munkustrap's best friend, aside from Demeter, and he was often found arm in arm with Bombalurina though Quaxo was nearly positive that the two had never dated. The bicolor cat was charming, and had been one of the first to approach Quaxo at the party after the ice had been broken, and it wasn't long before Quaxo considered him a friend too. He considered all of them friends, which felt like a bigger shock than finding out his magical ability might grant him an audience with the Wizard.

In the immediate aftermath of the party, there had been a dramatic change in the way the students at Shiz had begun to treat him. Gone almost completely were the strange looks and wary behavior from the remaining cats who'd only seemed to need permission from their more popular peers to welcome Quaxo with open arms, and overnight Quaxo actually found himself popular, though that popularity was thanks in large part to Tugger.

The maine coon had started attending class with far more regulatory as of late, and even managed to find Quaxo a new dance partner to replace Victoria in the form of a lovely queen named Cassandra. She ended up being quite the match for Quaxo, despite the fact that she stood a good foot taller than he did, and it wasn't long before Quaxo considered her a friend too.

But with popularity came attention, and now that he was the sixth member of Tugger's little pack, Quaxo often found his days filled with more companionship than he knew what to do with. He enjoyed the attention, he wasn't about to deny that, but he did find himself missing the way things were from time to time.

His relationship with Victoria remained more or less the same, in the meantime. The queen seemed distant, but to be fair they were both busy and didn't have as much free time as they were used to. That, and though Tugger and his pack could often be found hanging out with an ever revolving door of other cats, Plato and his own friend group were rarely one of them. 

No matter what, the best part of Quaxo's days remained the hour or two he spent with Old Deuteronomy. The older cat had continued to teach him about his magical gift, helping Quaxo read spells from the ancient book he still carried with him almost everywhere. With the acceptance of his peers, Quaxo was confident enough in his skill that he'd begun showing off a little from time to time. Other cats had begun to take notice, but instead of fear Quaxo's gift was almost always met with awe and excitement as they began to realize what all he could do. That admiration was spearheaded by Tugger, of course, who had turned out to be Quaxo's self proclaimed biggest fan.

"I give you…" With a dramatic pause that seemed a little much even to Quaxo, Tugger had the other cats gathered in the hall hanging on his every word. "The magical..." Tugger continued, looking toward Quaxo and giving him a faint nod as if to tell him that was his cue. Quaxo nearly rolled his eyes, but he obliged the other tom and sent a shower of sparks into the air that rained down on the group of assembled cats like glitter. "The marvelous…" Tugger added, and this time Quaxo couldn't help but smile faintly as he repeated the same action much to the continued delight of their audience. "Quaxo!"

With a final flourish, light flooded the darkened hallway from a ceiling lamp that had been the owner of a faulty lightbulb for the better part of the past week. Quaxo knew it often took the school faculty months to actually get around to addressing trivial student complaints, so he'd taken it upon himself to be the unofficial Shiz handyman, or as Tugger liked to call him, their official mini Wizard. 

Quaxo had originally intended to be in and out of the lightly trafficked hallway in a matter of seconds, but he should have known Tugger well enough by now to know that the other tom would never pass up an opportunity to show Quaxo off. The entire "production" had seemed a bit much to Quaxo, but Tugger had insisted. The coon maintained it was both simple fun, and good practice for the future. A future which Tugger insisted would be bright for the tuxedo cat. Quaxo didn't see why anyone in Oz would ever be that excited to watch the reincarnation of Mr Mistoffelees perform cheap parlor tricks, but it made Tugger smile to show him off and Quaxo had found recently that he loved to see Tugger smile.

"How many cats does it take to change a lightbulb?" Quaxo asked dryly as Tugger turned to face him with a triumphant grin, but there was a faint smile on Quaxo's face as he began to pull back on his blazer, and it was obvious that his humor was just that in the wake of his small feat of skill.

Tugger laughed, swinging his arm around Quaxo's shoulders and feigning thoughtfulness. "Well, let's see… one incredibly talented future Wizard, one dashingly handsome hype man…" the maine coon began, holding up a pair of fingers in sequence as he named the both of them. "If my math's right that seems like two, kitten."

"Shut up," Quaxo replied, placing both hands on Tugger's side and shoving hard enough that he was able to slip out of the other toms arm and return to straightening his jacket. The other cats in the hallway had lost interest in Quaxo after his show of skill had concluded, and seemed to be vying for Tugger's attention now. Surprisingly Tugger didn't even pause to give them the time of day, his attention still on Quaxo and Quaxo alone. Quaxo supposed that was how Tugger acted with all of his friends, or maybe that was due to the genuine change that had taken place in the other cat. Tugger no longer skipped class for weeks on end, and there was no more talk of simply dancing through life with little to no consequences… for the most part, anyway. Whatever had brought about this change in Tugger was most assuredly welcome, and Quaxo couldn't be more grateful for having found a friend in the cat that had initially both intimidated and annoyed him.

"Your fan club's waiting for you," Quaxo continued as he found his eyes darting toward the nearest clock on the wall. He was going to be late for his private tutoring with Old Deuteronomy at this rate, and he'd hate to be the thing standing between Tugger and his groupies.

Tugger actually looked a little startled to turn around and see the group of queens and toms not far away and clearly desperate to be the center of his attention, but he was grinning as he turned back to face Quaxo which was much more in character. "And so they are," Tugger replied as he hooked his fingers through the band of his suspenders.

Quaxo had noted earlier, and he made note now too, of the new color Tugger had incorporated into his wardrobe. His shirt, usually a vibrant green or brown, had more recently been exchanged with a lovely yellow or occasionally a muted salmon as the season had once again changed. It was the former now, and a rather beautiful shade of honey yellow at that, and Quaxo couldn't help but notice how it complimented the golden hue of Tugger's fur and somehow made the red streaks in his ruff stand out all the more. It was a good look, and Quaxo knew he wasn't the only one who'd noticed.

For his part, Quaxo hadn't changed his wardrobe at all. Though more often than not he was now wearing the bowtie he'd been gifted in addition to his usual blazer and white collared shirt.

"I'll see you later then, oh mighty Quaxo," the maine coon continued, and Quaxo felt his neck heating as the other tom gave an exaggerated bow in his direction. 

"Tugger…" Quaxo practically hissed, but once again there was a smile on his face and he was more amused by the other tom than anything. Tugger was all swagger and a cheesy grin as he straightened and shrugged a shoulder innocently as if he hadn't just made a fool of himself. 

"What? I call it like I see it," the coon replied, reaching up to straighten Quaxo's bowtie which only served to heat the back of Quaxo's neck further.

"You're unbelievable," Quaxo muttered, but he was fighting valiantly to keep a smirk at bay as he gathered his bag and quickly made his way down the hall. Quaxo didn't turn to look, but he could picture Tugger's self satisfied smile all the same.

xxx

"Something bad is happening in Oz."

The words were as startling to Quaxo as the cat who'd said them, and his head snapped up from where he'd been hunched over on the floor trying to read a rather complicated spell from his prized book of magic. "I'm… sorry, what did you say?" He finally managed, certain he must have heard the wizened old cat wrong.

Old Deuteronomy said the strangest things from time to time, and though he sounded far more serious than Quaxo had ever heard him… surely the other cat didn't truly mean it. Nothing bad could ever happen in Oz, not with Macavity in power and Mistoffelees dead and gone.

"Something bad is happening in Oz, I fear," Deuteronomy repeated, and Quaxo felt something shift in the very air around them like it was crucial that he pay attention. Though Quaxo didn't understand the feeling anymore than he understood the words, he tried his best to pay attention. "Under the surface, behind the scenes, can't you feel it in the air?" Deuteronomy continued, but Quaxo only blinked at the other cat and remained unsure of where this was coming from.

Deuteronomy wasn't even looking at him, Quaxo suddenly realized. The old persian cat was looking somewhere past him, but when Quaxo turned to look there was nothing there. Suddenly feeling uneasy, Quaxo looked back at the other cat with uncertainty in his eyes. "Professor…" he began as he shook his head faintly. This sort of talk could be considered treasonous, not that Quaxo would ever let it leave the room. "If something bad is happening in Oz," he continued, deciding to at least try and humor the older cat. "Someone has to tell the Wizard. Surely Grizabella could write another-"

But as Quaxo spoke, a dark expression overtook Deuteronomy's features. It had Quaxo falling still, though he shivered as a sudden chill seemed to fill the air.

"Listen to me closely," Deuteronomy began, and Quaxo swallowed and nodded to show that he was as the older cat continued. "Some things are not always what they seem. A Pollicle is not always mindless beast, a Jellicle is not always a blameless saint, a friend is not always a friend… and sometimes very bad things can come of even the best of intentions."

"Professor…" Quaxo began again, slowly and much more carefully. "Nothing all that bad could ever happen in Oz, not under Macavity's rein."

Was Quaxo too confident in this? Maybe, and Quaxo could have sworn Old Deuteronomy's expression turned desolate for a moment. If it had, the emotion was gone in an instant and all of the sudden the soft and lovable old teacher was back in place of… whatever that had been.

"Perhaps you are right," Old Deuteronomy began with a faint shake of his head. "Perhaps I have the paranoia of an old and sentimental man. Forgive me, and please, go back to your studies."

Quaxo did turn his attention back to his book of spells after a moment of pause, and tried his best not to dwell on the other cat's words. But try as he might, he couldn't fully shake the feeling that something was amiss… or that something was going to be.

xxx

"Good news! Wonderful news, my boy!"

Quaxo had gotten used to Grizabella's eccentricities, and had learned to humor the way she tended to over exaggerate even the smallest of things, so it was with a slightly forced smile that he turned in the hallway and allowed the older queen to grasp hold of his arm.

As Grizabella showed him the parchment she'd been holding in her hand, Quaxo had been prepared to fake a smile and feign interest, but as he got a better look at the text he realized her excitement was no exaggeration at all. Heart leaping into his throat, Quaxo very nearly dropped his bag in favor of grabbing hold of the letter with both hands and taking it away from Grizabella's grasp. He read it once, and then twice, and then one final time before he believed it could possibly be real.

The Wizard had finally replied, and the Wizard wanted to see him.

Grizabella was looking at him with smug satisfaction, but Quaxo didn't care in the slightest as a disbelieving laugh forced it's way past his lips and he felt more giddy and light than he'd felt… ever, really.

"The Wizard wants to meet me," he said out loud, as if that would finally allow him to believe the truth of the matter. "The Wizard wants to meet me."

"Well, I should hope so," Grizabella was saying, but Quaxo was hardly paying her any mind. "After how many letters I sent to the Emerald City, Macavity would be a fool not to allow you an audience," the older queen continued as she raised a hand to lightly dab under her eye. Presumably in an attempt to fix her running mascara, but from what Quaxo could see that was a hopeless cause.

Quaxo didn't care about any of that, and though he was grateful, surely, the tuxedo cat could only think of one thing he wanted to do right now as he re-read the parchment a fourth time. He could only think of one cat he wanted to tell this exhilarating news to first. 

With that in mind, Quaxo thanked Grizabella profusely before turning and running off to find Tugger.

He found the coon, wearing a salmon colored shirt that drew Quaxo's attention, sitting with both Bombalurina and Munkustrap on the edge of the fountain that marked the middle of campus. Quaxo was both literally and figuratively buzzing with energy, and it was probably a miracle that Tugger and the others were able to understand what he was saying. But eventually they got it, and it was just as much of a thrill as he'd hoped it would be to watch Tugger's features spread into the widest grin Quaxo had ever seen. Tugger stood, and all of the sudden the taller cat was pulling Quaxo into a hug.

"What did I tell you?" Tugger was saying when he let go in favor of clasping both of Quaxo's shoulders with his hands. "You're magical, star! I knew you could do it."

Quaxo beamed, too delighted by Tugger's praise to feel anything but well deserved pride. Quaxo was going to meet the Wizard, and the Wizard thought Quaxo was worth taking up even just a moment of his time.

"When are you going?" Munkustrap spoke up to ask, ever the more level headed and practical of the group even though he was clearly excited about Quaxo's sudden fortune too as he stood to join his brother.

"And what are you wearing?" Bombalurina spoke up from where she was still sitting, ever the most fashion conscious member of the group. "Because you absolutely can't go in that."

She gestured to all of him as she spoke, but Quaxo was too happy to even feel the flush of potential embarrassment. By now he thought he knew Bombalurina well enough to know she meant things kindly, even if they may come off a little rude.

"Tomorrow, if Grizabella can get me out of my classes," he replied to Munkustrap first, his grin never fading even though his hands had begun to shake from all the sudden excitement. He was probably glowing, drawing unnecessary attention to himself, but he decided he didn't care. Let others stare, let them all hear. "And…" he continued, though he wasn't quite sure how to reply to Bombalurina. "I mean, I was thinking about it."

In truth, what he had on was probably the nicest thing he owned. Sure it's color may be fading and it's edges may be frayed a touch here and there, but Quaxo had never really paid it much mind before or had any real reason to be this conscious about it.

Bombalurina made a disapproving noise, but it was Tugger that jumped in to rescue him from whatever the queen had been about to say next. "Come on," the coon said as he grabbed hold of Quaxo's hand and began to tug on his arm. "I'm taking you shopping. My treat, kitten. Think of it like an early birthday gift."

Quaxo had half a mind to protest, but it was for purely selfish reasons that he found himself allowing Tugger to pull him along and away from the others. He had no idea what sort of outfit Tugger may have in mind and perhaps that should have worried him, but for now Quaxo let himself be dragged along at the mercy of the younger cat's whims. 

Quaxo was going to meet the Wizard, after all. He should look his best for such an important event, and it wasn't like he had anything else to do.

xxx

As Bombalurina watched, the speed with which Tugger had dropped everything to react to Quaxo's news, and the speed with which he'd whisked him away on an unplanned shopping spree, was almost fascinating. Almost, because while watching she was again reminded of why she hadn't taken a liking to Quaxo in the first place. He took up far too much of Tugger's time and energy for her liking, and though Quaxo's inclusion in their friend group had gone far smoother than she'd thought it would, she found part of herself resenting him anyway.

Huffing, she turned to Munkustrap. "I still don't understand what he sees in him," Bombalurina said as she crossed her arms and watched Tugger pull Quaxo along until the pair were out of sight.

For a moment Munkustrap said nothing, but it was ironically the silence that gave Bombalurina more clarity than the gray tabby's words. The sheer obviousness of the answer to her unasked question left her stunned, and confused as to why she hadn't realized it before now for herself.

"He likes him," Munkustrap replied with a shrug, and it was with those three words, spoken so nonchalantly by Tugger's older brother, that Bombalurina finally began to see what had literally been staring her in the face this entire time.

Tugger liked him.

xxx

Victoria should be happy for her brother, and she would argue that she was, but ever since they'd arrived at Shiz everything had changed at a pace too rapid for her to keep up with. She loved her brother more than anyone, that hadn't changed, and she'd always been fiercely protective of him besides that, but all of the sudden it felt like he no longer needed her. That realization hurt more than she'd expected.

Yes, maybe she'd been the one to branch off and make friends of her own first, but that didn't mean he'd had to go behind her back and make a spectacle of himself.

And that's exactly what he'd done, hadn't he? Ever since that fateful day in class all Victoria ever heard was Quaxo this and Quaxo that, and she was tired of suddenly having to live her life in her brother's shadow. Everywhere she went, and anyone she talked to, just wanted to talk about the magical cat she had for a brother. They never wanted to spend time with her, get to know her, or learn about her dreams or desires. 

So yes, she was happy for her brother, but some small part of Victoria had grown to resent him. That wasn't fair, she knew that, but the feeling was there nonetheless. Etcetera had told her she was acting like she was jealous, which was impossible! Victoria had never been jealous of anyone before, and she hadn't started now.

Frustrated with herself nonetheless, Victoria sat hunched over her desk trying to take out her frustration on a homework assignment due tomorrow. She was not so caught up in that task, however, to fail to notice Quaxo returning to their dorm with… shopping bags in tow? Victoria shook her head faintly to clear it and paid them little mind in favor of turning to face her brother as the black and white tuxedo cat began to talk to her animatedly as if there wasn't an invisible wall between them. A wall that Victoria hadn't intended to put up in the first place, but a wall that was there nonetheless.

"Vic!" the tom was saying, all smiles as he dropped the bags on his bed and seemed to buzz with untamable energy. He was literally glowing, she realized. Her brother's black coat often had a sparkle to it, but usually it was only brought out by the light of a Jellicle moon, not excitement.

Quaxo continued, but Victora already knew what he was going to say. The entire school knew that he'd received a summons from their Wizard. Word had spread like wildfire, and once again Victoria wanted to be happy for him… except she couldn't quite believe she was the last cat he was telling. He'd gone on a shopping spree, apparently, before deeming his sister worthy of the most exciting news he'd probably ever received.

"I've been summoned to Oz! The Wizard wants to meet me, isn't that exciting?"

Feigning a convincing and happy smile, Victoria nodded as she turned back to her homework. Her voice was less convincingly happy, and she could almost feel Quaxo's disappointment and confusion from here. "That's great, Quaxo."

There was silence, a silence that lasted a full minute before either of them spoke. In hindsight Victoria would have rather they'd just let it lie and gone to bed, it would have saved them both quite a lot of heartbreak.

"I thought you'd be more excited for me," Quaxo said, and though Victoria didn't turn to look she could hear him sitting down on the edge of his bed. 

"Excited for you? Or excited with you?" She muttered in reply, not intending Quaxo to hear that part but as she turned around and saw the look on his face she realized he had. Nevertheless, she continued and began what would turn into an argument that had been a long time coming. "The entire school already knows, Quaxo. I've known for hours."

Her brother looked somewhat confused, like he was wondering why that mattered, but his tail was twitching with uncertainty behind him and his ears were pressed flat against his head so Victoria knew a part of him understood, at least.

"You used to tell me things first, Quaxo."

In hindsight, Victoria should have left it at that. Or instead, opened the discussion much more calmly. Then maybe the pair could have come to a peaceful resolution to this complicated mess of hurt feelings. Unfortunately, that was not what Victoria did.

"Who did you tell first? Bombalurina? Did she take you on a little shopping spree to celebrate? Forgive me, oh great and mighty future Wizard, for not finding the news as exciting when my own brother decided not to tell me the news himself."

Quaxo's expression morphed slowly, but as it did that was the first indicator to Victoria that the both of them had crossed a line there was no going back from.

"I didn't even know where you were!" the tuxedo cat replied, and though he was almost yelling, his words were only spoken at a slightly higher pitch. That slightly higher pitch may as well have been a shout from the likes of her usually meek brother, but he wasn't done yet. "Everlasting forbid that I think you'd be happy for me!" he continued, and slowly but surely his voice began to rise in volume. "You were probably off with Plato doing Everlasting knows what. Plato who, by the way, I haven't told dad about!"

"Oh spare me from the wrath of our overprotective father," Victoria replied sarcastically, matching his volume and turning to face him fully as a glare spread across her features. "I can take care of myself, Quaxo. I don't need you anymore, in case you haven't noticed."

"Oh I think I noticed when you decided to replace me for a tom you fancy," Quaxo fired back, and Victoria had never seen her brother so worked up about anything before. "Do you think that'll make him like you? Or was it just to have an excuse to get away from your freak of a brother!?"

Victoria's hands balled into fists, her gaze turning icy and hard and it was this moment and this crucial choice that changed everything forever. If she'd kept her head, kept calm, perhaps things would have been different. But unfortunately Quaxo's words had struck a nerve she hadn't even realized was there.

Plato was kind, and gentle, and understood her in a way no other cat ever had. He made her happy, and he made her laugh, and he was the only one who treated her like she was normal. He treated her like she was more than just Quaxo's little sister. What the pair had was special, and Victoria was too angry to see Quaxo's words as anything but an attack meant to encroach on their happiness.

"Yes!" she yelled, and the word hung between them for an excruciatingly long time before she continued. She'd gone too far to back out now, after all. "Yes he was, and he's a better dance partner than you ever were!" 

By now Quaxo's face had again morphed. Disbelief was present, and then a deep sadness that Victoria paid no mind to. She would later regret that.

"I wish you weren't my brother at all!" she yelled impulsively, and that was the final nail in the proverbial coffin. Victoria hadn't even realized she'd said the words until Quaxo was standing slowly, and the very room they were in began to grow dark. Suddenly the only light to speak of was filtering in from the window, causing Quaxo's unnaturally green eyes to gleam in the moonlight, and for the first time in her life Victoria felt afraid of her brother. As she shrank back and closed her eyes, she found herself wondering if this was how people had felt in the presence of Mr Mistoffelees.

The silence that fell seemed to stretch on for an eternity, but by the time Victoria opened her eyes, Quaxo was no longer there.

It was then that she promptly burst into tears.

xxx

Quaxo's lungs burned as the tuxedo cat raced across campus away from Victoria, away from their dorm, and away from the nauseating pain that filled him every time he replayed his sister's hurtful words. 

He hadn't been blameless in the argument, he knew that, but Victoria's proclamation of wishing he'd never been her brother had struck true and hurt Quaxo more deeply than he could have ever imagined.

His lungs burned, and his fur was wet with tears as he finally came to a stop at the edge of campus and realized what a crisp Ozian night this was, and how directionless he'd suddenly turned out to be. Breathing heavily, he struggled to both catch his breath and ward off a panic attack in the same desperate attempt to remain calm. 

He couldn't go back to Victoria, that much was clear, but he had to go somewhere. He tried to think, but it was turning on his heel and beginning to walk that Quaxo realized he only had one destination in mind, one place he felt he wouldn't be turned away from.

Breaking into Tugger's dorm room was easy, a quick flick of his wrist and the door unlatched like it hadn't even been locked in the first place. Quaxo didn't think the coon would mind, as it was dark as he stepped inside, but peering through the darkness Quaxo could clearly see the shape of Tugger's sleeping form curled up on his bed. 

Tugger was snoring softly, Quaxo realized, and why did that realization make him want to burst into another round of tears?

Quaxo didn't know why Tugger was one of the only students on campus without a roommate, he'd never asked, but the coon's father was supposedly a high level cat of importance so perhaps he'd called in a favor. Either way, as Quaxo snuck into the room and crawled into the spare and unoccupied bed shoved against the wall, he felt comforted by the sound of the soft noises Tugger made while he slept. The other tom was seemingly oblivious to the world, and even though Quaxo had just been with him less than an hour ago, that was somehow endearing despite all of this.

Quaxo wasn't sure how long he'd been laying there before he suddenly heard Tugger shifting, the other cat's breathing going back to normal as golden eyes peered at him in the darkness. "Quaxo?" the coon asked, voice a little bleary from sleep and though Quaxo didn't look, he was sure the other toms fur was a sleep tousled mess.

Quaxo was silent for a moment, trying to find the right words to explain what had happened, but before he could he promptly burst into another uncontrollable round of tears instead. The only other sound in the room was the soft creak of the bed as Tugger moved from his own to climb in with the tuxedo cat, providing Quaxo with a literal shoulder to cry on as the larger cat wrapped his arms around him.

Quaxo told him everything then, and Tugger listened, and by the end of his tale Quaxo didn't feel quite as much like the world was falling apart around him. He may have lost his sister, but he still had his friends. He still had Tugger. It didn't take away the pain, but it soothed the ache.

The pair were quiet for a long time after that, and Quaxo was beginning to wonder if the other tom had fallen back asleep when Quaxo finally broke the silence once more with a question that had been on his mind since he'd entered the room.

"Tugger?" he asked softly, and he was relieved as he heard the coon shift, and his voice answer him almost immediately.

"Yeah, kitten?" Tugger replied, and Quaxo tried not to smile at the strange sort of comfort brought to him by the use of that persistent nickname even though, once again, Quaxo was the older of the two and it wasn't his fault he was so short. What had he ever done to deserve a friend like Tugger, and how could he possibly thank him? Well. Quaxo had at least one idea.

Quaxo shifted to look at the younger tom, and as golden eyes met green, he began to feel calmer than he'd felt all day. "Will you come to the Emerald City with me?" Quaxo asked, and even before Tugger's features spread into a smile, Quaxo knew that the coon's answer would be yes.

Chapter Text

The Emerald City was everything that Quaxo had ever dreamed it would be, and yet somehow so much more. 

"Emerald" may not quite be the right word to describe the way the green spires rose high into the air, marbled by a deep ruby red that somehow stirred foreign emotions in Quaxo's chest, but beautiful was an apt description, and beautiful was the word that fell from his lips like a gasp.

"It's beautiful," Quaxo breathed, and not even the laughter coming from Bombalurina could cause him to shy away in any sort of embarrassment for his outburst.

The red queen had invited herself along with their small group, currently consisting of Tugger, Grizabella, and of course Quaxo, but something was different about her and, oddly enough, Quaxo didn't mind her tagging along. Though, it had only been Tugger that he'd invited. Tugger who, for most of the trip, had split his time equally between his two friends, only slightly favoring Quaxo. The tuxedo cat chalked that up to Tugger's touching concern ever since the events of the previous night. Quaxo didn't know if Tugger had told Bombalurina anything about what had happened, but the queen was acting awfully nice to him so he assumed he must have.

Grizabella, for her part, merely scoffed. "When I was a kitten there was none of that infernal red. The Emerald City was just that, emerald. They're letting the place go to the Pollicles, I say."

Quaxo was the only one in their group who'd never traveled to the Emerald City before now, and he was the only one who'd never seen what it had looked like before the apparent redecoration, but he stood by his proclamation of the city being beautiful despite perhaps losing some of the charm of its original name.

Quaxo had never liked green all that much anyway.

The weather had favored their little ragtag pack of cats, and Quaxo had even shed the sparkly blazer he'd purchased with Tugger yesterday, as it got hotter the further south they'd rode the train. The blazer was mostly black, and heavily encrusted with enough fake gems to give it the effect of a disco ball if it caught the light. It made Tugger smile, and Quaxo didn't hate it as much as he may pretend. Tugger, on the other hand, wore a shirt of heather blue which marked the only real difference in his ensemble. Bombalurina had, surprisingly, ditched the pink and gone with a yellow dress that fell to just above her knees and reminded Quaxo of a sunflower, and Grizabella… well, the older cat hadn't stopped complaining about the heat since they'd left Shiz, yet she refused to be parted with her expensive looking gray coat.

Regardless of what the others thought, for some reason as they entered through the Emerald City's gate Quaxo felt like he was coming home.

They didn't go straight to the Wizard, which Quaxo was grateful for. He needed some time to adjust to the city, and he desperately wanted to explore, so the group wandered around for a while, taking in the sights, the sounds, and the colors. Quaxo wasn't nervous so much as he was… well, alright, he was a little nervous. Could anyone blame him? He was about to meet the Wizard! But he enjoyed the tour, and he couldn't wait to explore the city further.

"Hey! Check this out," Tugger broke through Quaxo's train of thoughts and grabbed his attention by swiping a pair of ruby red glasses from a vendors cart. The coon put them on, a self satisfied grin on his face. Quaxo waited for the punchline with a raised eyebrow, but it seemed like one wasn't forthcoming.

"Check what out?" Bombalurina asked for the both of them, her hands finding her hips and though she was clearly amused with Tugger's antics as much as Quaxo was, there seemed to be irritation underneath of it.

Quaxo had asked Tugger on the way here whether or not he and Bombalurina were together, and whether or not that was why she'd tagged along. Surprising Quaxo, Tugger had informed him they were on a semi-permanent break. That of course could mean nothing and the pair could be back together within the hour, but even still Quaxo wondered what had caused the sudden shift in their relationship from closer than friends to just… friends.

Tugger grinned as if they both should be in on the joke, and it took Quaxo another moment for it to finally dawn on him.

"Seeing red!" he exclaimed, probably a little too loud, but Quaxo could have cared less what others around them thought of him. Let them stare, as they had been since he'd arrived. Let them wonder if Mr Mistoffelees had been re-released into their streets and was here to give them their final judgement as he wandered through aisles of vendors selling cheap souvenirs. For today Quaxo was determined to feel normal, and he was determined not to be labeled as something he wasn't.

"Bingo," Tugger replied with a grin as he pointed a finger in Quaxo's direction. Bombalurina rolled her eyes, and Quaxo probably would've too, if he didn't have the satisfaction of being the one to figure out the play on an old saying. 

"You two are unbelievable," the red queen said, but Quaxo could tell she meant it at least a little fondly as they turned and continued to walk. Quaxo made note of how Tugger slipped the glasses into his pocket, and after the coon paid the vendor, Quaxo found a similar pair being slipped into his own pocket as well.  As he looked at Tugger questioningly, the coon just put a finger to his lips. Quaxo shook his head faintly, starting to insist that Tugger shouldn't shower him with gifts that the tuxedo cat certainly couldn't have afforded for himself, but he was silenced as Bombalurina nearly shrieked with delight and grabbed hold of his hand.

Tugging Quaxo along, with Grizabella and Tugger following soon after, she led them toward a big tent in the center of the town square. "Come on! We're going to be late for Whizomania!" she exclaimed.

Quaxo had no idea what that was, but he let the more experienced guides lead the way as he lost himself in the hype and forgot almost completely about Tugger's gift.

xxx

He was here in the city, that much Macavity knew. He could sense him even now, and he was surprised the feeling wasn't mutual as he watched the reincarnation of a cat he'd long ago thought dead, wandering through the streets of Macavity's city with an entourage in tow and soon disappearing from his sight.

Macavity stood in a window, one overlooking the city and offering him the best vantage point of both it and the world beyond, waiting for the one calling himself Quaxo to seek him out and at last provide him with exactly what he needed.

"Make sure he's brought here alone," the ginger cat spoke as he spared a glance in the direction of the nearest member of his personal guard. Rather than being alone, as he so often was at this window, Macavity was currently surrounded on all sides by guards both large and small. They were here for his protection, but it was for the restraint of one single cat that there were so many in the relatively small room. Macavity didn't turn as the voice of their special guest broke the silence, but he did allow himself a private smile as he thought of how handedly he'd already won.

"The boy is strong, far stronger than you are." Old Deuteronomy, hands bound in silver chains, spoke up from where he stood behind Macavity between two of his guards. "He will not be twisted to fulfil the role you have your heart so set upon for him. You will fail now, Macavity, as you failed then."

Macavity turned, but didn't stoop low enough to let his irritation with the much older cat show on his face. "I did not fail then, I only lacked the proper knowledge."

It was useless to debate the cat, Macavity knew, but he pressed on anyway because he hated to see that look in Deuteronomy's eyes. A look that was somehow both pitying and defiant, and infuriating to the ginger cat most of all.

"I have the boy, soon I will have the book, tell me again why I need you?"

Sentiment was the answer to the rhetorical question, but Macavity waved his hand in a dismissive manner after posing it and the guards began to lead the old cat away without another word being spoken.

Macavity didn't need Deuteronomy, and the truly sentimental course of action would have been to let the old cat waste away at a run down school like Shiz for the rest of his natural lifetimes. But Macavity wanted the old cat to watch, as at long last victory was nearly within his grasp.

He turned back to the window. Now, it was only a matter of patience.

xxx

Quaxo truly belonged here amongst the city, amongst the finery and splendor. It was a fact Tugger had been thinking about ever since they'd first caught sight of the structure in the distance and he'd watched Quaxo's face light up at the sight of it.

The city really was beautiful, just like Quaxo. 

Tugger had been here countless times with his father and brother, and the city had lost some of its appeal. It was still beautiful, of course, but having seen it already so many times it was bound to lose some of its charm.

Seeing it through Quaxo's eyes made him smile, though, even if Tugger spent most of the time staring at the smaller cat rather than the beautiful architecture.

Quaxo truly belonged here amongst the finery of the city, while Tugger on the other hand truly felt as though he himself did not.

Quaxo? Yes. Bombalurina? Definitely. But Tugger? Tugger knew it was to be expected of someone like him to learn to love a place like this, but the city overwhelmed him and he much preferred rolling hills and idyllic countrysides. He'd never admit that, of course, and Tugger had long ago mastered the art of hiding his true feelings. At least, he hoped they were hidden, since the last thing he wanted to do was put a damper on Quaxo's obvious excitement.

The coon was avoiding looking at Bombalurina, who seemed to all of a sudden know a little too much about the situation Tugger found himself in. She kept giving him a knowing look, or a self satisfied smile, and while that was better than anger or jealousy, Tugger almost would have preferred that over all this coyness.

"I believe we've kept the Wizard waiting for far too long," Grizabella cut in, and Tugger had almost forgotten about their true reason for being here. Quaxo was to meet the Wizard, and Tugger… Tugger feared he may never have the chance to say what he wanted to before Quaxo was whisked away to better and much more important things.

No matter, he told himself, what was a broken heart when Quaxo was so clearly and giddily happy?

"First day of the rest of your life," Tugger cut in as he slung his arm around Quaxo's shoulders and pulled the tuxedo cat a little closer. Quaxo was wearing one of the jackets Tugger had bought him, the one that had turned out to be Tugger's favorite, and that stubborn bowtie that always seemed to be crooked whenever Tugger laid eyes on it.

Though, was it really crooked, or did Tugger just like the excuse to reach out and correct it?

"How are you feeling, kitten?" he continued, pitching his voice as if he were a reporter hungry for their next scoop. 

"Nervous," was Quaxo's immediate reply as his ears twitched atop his head with clear uncertainty. "Excited," the tuxedo cat continued. "Maybe a little scared."

That all sounded pretty normal to Tugger, but it probably wouldn't be all that helpful to say so. Instead he found himself clasping Misto's shoulder with his hand, pulling back from the sideways embrace he'd pulled the other cat into.

"You're gonna do great, Quaxo," Tugger told the smaller tom, and there was no doubt in Tugger's mind that he would. Quaxo was amazing, after all, so impressing an all-powerful Wizard shouldn't be that hard.

Tugger couldn't tell if his words had had the desired effect on the other cat, but Quaxo smiled up at him and Tugger could only assume that they had. The coon pulled his hand back, realizing he'd let it linger for what was probably too long, and offered Quaxo a winning grin in return. 

By this point they'd reached the large gate that Tugger knew from experience kept the citizens of Oz out of the Wizard's private chambers and the throne room where he often received the rare guest. Tugger had never been inside, and it didn't look like he'd get the chance now. As Grizabella introduced them to the red clothed guard at the gate, it was quickly made obvious that Quaxo was going to have to go alone.

Grizabella seemed none too happy about that development, no doubt hoping to get to meet the Wizard for herself, but she was quickly resigned to her fate. Tugger could have cared less whether or not he met the Wizard, and he knew Bombalurina wouldn't mind all that much either, which left only Quaxo who, ironically, was left the only member of their little group who remained uncertain.

"Keep your chin up, and your smile on," Bombalurina was informing the magical cat. "Tugger helped you pick out the perfect outfit, Quaxo. You'll be the talk of the city later, I'm sure of it," she continued, and spread her arms out for a hug. 

Her advice may seem shallow, but Tugger knew it came from a good place. Thankfully Quaxo seemed to know that too, as the magical cat smiled and nodded and stepped forward into Bombalurina's embrace. The pair hugged for a moment, and Quaxo turned to Grizabella as the glamorous older cat gave him final instructions Tugger couldn't hear, and then it was his turn.

As Quaxo turned to him and met his eyes, Tugger swallowed back the advice he'd been going to give, suddenly nervous. This felt like a turning point of some kind, only Tugger couldn't for the life of him fully grasp why. Sure, Quaxo was about to meet the Wizard, but it wasn't like Tugger wasn't ever going to see him again. Right?

Tugger opened his mouth, then closed it again, standing as still as a statue for a moment before quickly stepping forward and pulling Quaxo into a hug before he lost his nerve. He heard the smaller cat make a soft noise as their bodies made contact, then heard Quaxo's voice break the silence even as Tugger's ears pressed flat against his head.

"Tugger… you know this is only gonna take a few minutes, right?"

Tugger had, since a very young age, often been plagued by what he'd eventually learned to call visions. Some might call them prophecies, Tugger called them warnings. They were never very clear, and they never lasted very long, and most of the time Tugger wasn't able to decipher them until whatever they'd tried to warn about had come to pass.

He had one of those warnings now.

There was fire, or at least smoke, the coon could smell that much. Someone was yelling, but he couldn't tell whether it was a queen or a tom and he couldn't make out what they were saying. He heard his own voice, "Quaxo!" and then nothing once more as the vision faded away.

"Yeah, I know," he said, forcing a smile as he pulled back and playfully nudged Quaxo's shoulder with his hand. "That's just in case you end up forgetting about me."

He couldn't tell if Quaxo believed him or not, judging by the tom's expression, but the magical cat was soon smiling and rolling his eyes, and Tugger relaxed now that he'd seemingly managed to get away with the little white lie. His visions were never consistent, some never even came to pass, so it was best not to worry anyone else about them, and especially not Quaxo.

"Like I could ever forget you," the tuxedo cat replied, leaving Tugger feeling strangely warm as the smaller cat turned to go.

"Quaxo!" Tugger called impulsively as the other tom reached the gate. Quaxo looked at him expectantly, that easy and now carefree smile on his face, and Tugger found that his throat was suddenly dry as he shook his head faintly and abandoned his original planned declaration. "Good luck."

Chapter Text

It was cold. That was the first thing Quaxo noticed as he began to follow his escort down a long and winding hallway. The green walls were almost completely covered in red banners or glittering with rubies, but the floor was paved with an odd mix of both yellow and red bricks that had Quaxo staring almost memorized as they twisted and weaved together in a pattern he couldn't discern. 

It seemed familiar, somehow. This entire place felt familiar.

His nerves had left him with Tugger's goodbye, but they returned with a vengeance as he found himself left alone in what was clearly meant to be a throne room of some kind. Waiting for the Wizard, no doubt, but who knew how long that could take. In the meantime, Quaxo decided to have a look around, his fingers fidgeting restlessly with the cuff of his new jacket. Remembering how it was a gift from Tugger seemed to help, and oddly enough it gave him some comfort to think of the fact that the coon was right outside and waiting for him when this was all over. Whatever this was, anyway.

The throne room was massive, walls and ceiling carved from emeralds but the floor and any decorations were all a rich ruby red that had Quaxo mesmerized by the oddity of the two very different colors that seemed almost at war with one another.

The silence in the room was suddenly broken by the sound of a heavy door unlatching, but it was with little other fanfare that the Wizard himself strode into the room like he owned the place. And he did own the place, Quaxo reminded himself with a faint shake of his head to clear it as the other cat drew closer. Was Quaxo meant to bow? He really should have paid more attention to Grizabella's lessons on proper etiquette in situations such as this.  

Fortunately for Quaxo, as the Wizard came to a stop before him the older cat didn't give Quaxo the chance to even attempt a bow as the ginger cat reached out to place a finger under Quaxo's chin. Quaxo held perfectly still, even though he had no idea what was going on, and Macavity seemed to stare at him thoughtfully.

"Everlasting…" the Wizard breathed, shaking his head faintly. "It's the eyes. You look just like him, right down to the eyes."

Quaxo was used to revulsion upon people realizing who he looked like, and what he was, so this quiet contemplation, verging on awe, was completely foreign to him. Nevertheless, the tuxedo cat felt his ears pressing flat against his head and heat creeping up the back of his neck.

"I'm sorry," Quaxo replied, because it couldn't be easy for Macavity to be seeing the ghost of a cat who'd betrayed him not so very long ago. Perplexingly, Macavity only shook his head. 

"Don't be sorry, my boy," the Wizard spoke, now a little less contemplative as he pulled his finger back and instead moved to clasp Quaxo's hands. "This is wonderful indeed, isn't it? A second chance for the both of us, I think."

Quaxo wasn't sure how to answer that, so he simply nodded and smiled and that seemed good enough for the Wizard, who finally let go and began to take a few steps back.

"Now, I believe someone mentioned something about magic in the multitude of letters I was sent?" Macavity asked, his glittering ruby red coat catching the light as the ginger cat sat down atop the emerald throne that marked the middle of the expansive room. Quaxo might have felt intimidated were it not for how casually the other cat was sitting, and he straightened and swallowed as he prepared to answer.

Quaxo couldn't figure out the Wizard, couldn't get a read on him, but the tuxedo cat supposed that might be the point. Who was he, a mere aspiring magician, to question the great and powerful Wizard of Oz?

"Yes," Quaxo finally replied, pulling at the strap of the bag he'd brought with him until it was close enough to pull his precious book of spells from inside. He wasn't sure whether to finally bow now, or simply get on with a demonstration, but once again Macavity interrupted him before he could decide.

"Ah yes, your Grizabella mentioned something in one of her letters about that book of yours," the ginger cat spoke from his throne, and Quaxo could only nod and hope Macavity wasn't disappointed that he'd brought it. The tuxedo cat felt out of his element, felt like an impostor wearing the face of an old friend and taking advantage of a cat who's grief might still be raw. But when he looked at Macavity and saw a peculiar look in his eyes, almost like anticipation, Quaxo wasn't so sure who might be taking advantage of who. He shook that thought away as soon as it came, and nodded again as he cracked open one of the pages.

"I haven't gotten good at reading it yet, but I'm hoping-" he began, but Quaxo ended up being interrupted by Macavity once more as the Wizard suddenly stood and walked toward him, holding out a book of his own that he'd seemingly conjured from thin air. Macavity reached for Quaxo's book, presumably to trade, but Quaxo was still hesitant.

"Try this book," the ginger cat said, his tone leaving no room for argument and leaving Quaxo with no choice as he switched books with the wizened Wizard. "It belonged to an old friend," Macavity continued, and Quaxo's ears perked up.

It couldn't possibly have belonged to… And yet as Quaxo opened to the first page, the former Wizard's name was scrawled in the upper right hand corner. "Mistoffelees," Quaxo murmured, and Macavity nodded even though the tuxedo cat hadn't needed the confirmation. As Quaxo looked up at Macavity, there was an odd look in the other cat's eyes he couldn't place, and so he looked back down at the new book of spells with renewed interest so he wouldn't have to think about it.

"It was his personal journal of spells," Macavity spoke, and Quaxo almost shuddered at the implications of that. "I've never been able to read it properly, but you…" the Wizard continued, then stopped as it seemed Quaxo understood what he was implying.

Quaxo did understand, but for the moment he wasn't sure whether he should feel flattered that the Wizard was trusting him with such an important task, or betrayed that perhaps the other cat had only wanted to meet him because of his connection to Mistoffelees. He knew the latter was silly, of course Macavity would have wanted to meet the reincarnation of his old friend regardless of the potential gain. Quaxo had to imagine he'd have done much the same thing, if given the opportunity.

Returning his attention to the book, Quaxo turned through a few pages and read a few lines of surprisingly neat penmanship before nodding his head to confirm that he could indeed read it. "Yes, I can read it," he informed the other tom, fingers lightly tracing across some of the yellowed parchment.

"Excellent!" Macavity replied as he snapped his fingers, clearly some sort of cue, as the large door opened once again and a guard strolled out with… Everlasting! Was that a Pollicle? It had to be, for the lumbering creature could be nothing else as it drew closer. Quaxo tried not to shrink back from it, eyes wide with confusion.

He knew Pollicles were real, of course, but he'd never seen one. Not since Macavity had increased security on Oz's borders. Surprisingly, a Pollicle looked an awful lot like a Jellicle, only with canine features, of course. This one was hunched forward, and seemed almost to walk on all fours like a mindless beast. Pollicles were dangerous, everybody knew that, so it made no sense as to why Macavity had one in chains in his throne room.

Seeing his shock, Macavity smiled in response as he answered Quaxo's unasked question. "Curious creature, isn't it? A poor little dog." 

Quaxo wouldn't go so far as to say poor, as the creature had clearly deserved what had been coming to him. After all, Pollicles threatened their very way of life. They didn't deserve to be treated with any sort of kindness… right?

"I want you to make him fly," Macavity continued as he stepped forward, reaching out to flip through the book in Quaxo's hands until he reached a page clearly marked with instructions on how to do so. He must have noticed Quaxo's confused face, because Macavity laughed brightly and shrugged as if the answer to the silent question was the most obvious thing in the world. "Everyone deserves the chance to fly, even a sickly creature such as this one."

Quaxo had come here with so many questions, and out of all of those questions, none had been answered. Now with this development… Quaxo was starting to fear he'd be leaving here with even more questions than when he'd arrived. Why had Macavity brought him all the way here just for him to perform cheap parlor tricks on a Pollicle? Why was Macavity even experimenting with Pollicles in the first place? He opened his mouth to voice one or both of those incredibly pressing questions, but only ended up closing his mouth and nodding mutely. The Wizard was all knowing, Macavity must have his own reasons and Quaxo was in no position to question him, even if every instinct was screaming at him that this was wrong.

Turning his gaze back to the page, Quaxo shifted where he stood before slowly moving down to his knees and placing the book in front of him on the floor so he'd be able to use both hands as he began to read the spell out loud. This was all clearly to the delight of Macavity, who looked at him as though Quaxo was a mouse that had wandered into his path.

Quaxo tried to ignore that and focus as he began to read the spell out loud. His hands moved in small circles over the pages of the book, and his green eyes flashed dangerously as he felt himself get lost in the spell and the magic flowing through him to the point of losing touch with reality around him. But a howl of pain shocked the tuxedo cat, and he looked up with wide eyes as his spell suddenly took effect to clearly painful results as the Pollicle shuddered and whined and wings sprouted from it's back. A winged Pollicle. That certainly wasn't something you saw every day, and certainly hadn't been what Quaxo had intended. He felt a sudden stab of guilt and as he scrambled to his feet, clutching the book of spells, he almost moved closer. He was prevented by Macavity's hand as the Wizard placed it on Quaxo's chest. 

"It's hurt! I hurt it!" Quaxo protested, though that much was obvious and what was becoming more obvious was that Macavity didn't care. Meanwhile, the Pollicle fell to the ground, it's wings crumpling with it, and Quaxo felt like he was holding his breath before he saw the telltale signs of the creature breathing. So it was still alive, thank the Everlasting Cat.

"Unfortunate," the tuxedo cat heard Macavity murmur, and at first he thought he hadn't heard him correctly as the Wizard finally turned to regard Quaxo once more. No longer was his gaze friendly, instead it was cold and sent a shiver of faint recognition down Quaxo's spine. "I had hoped you would be my second chance, my new Mistoffelees," the Wizard said as he stepped closer, and Quaxo's ears pressed flat against his head as the Wizard towered over him. Macavity wasn't finished, and yet Quaxo was already beginning to feel like a fool. "But you have his heart, don't you?" the Wizard sneered, and his eyes held a threatening glow as he spoke.

Macavity was horrible, that much Quaxo was very quickly realizing with a jolt, and it took all of his wits to force a placating smile and do the only thing he thought he could do: lie.

"No, not at all," Quaxo replied as his ears perked up and his smile grew. He couldn't stop his tail from twitching behind him, however, so he was hoping Macavity wouldn't notice that. "It startled me is all, but it was… thrilling."

Everlasting, he hoped this was working, and for the moment it seemed to, as Macavity paused in his advance and peered at him curiously. 

Quaxo used that temporary lapse in concentration to cause a new distraction. Extending his hand, a loud crack broke the sudden silence and smoke enveloped the room, providing Quaxo with the perfect cover to slip into the cloud and stride toward the guard that had been holding the Pollicle. Disarming the guard with another quick flick of his wrist, Quaxo grabbed the arm of the thankfully now conscious Pollicle and began to half drag, half lead him along, the dog's chains trailing behind them on the floor.

Luckily for Quaxo the dog seemed to know he was being rescued, and the pair broke into a run as they heard Macavity scream, the sound echoing down the hall and probably throughout the building. 

Tugger, Quaxo thought to himself. He had to get Tugger. So, bringing the Pollicle with him, he raced back the way he came, trying to ignore how Macavity's rage felt white hot against his back.

xxx

The Emerald City was on fire. Well, not literally on fire, but the heat being produced from the heart of the emerald stones was enough that it might as well have been as Macavity's rage manifested itself in the very walls of the building. There was smoke, so thick Quaxo could barely see, but he didn't need to see as he raced higher and higher on some sort of instinct he hadn't known he'd possessed. Was this from Mistoffelees? Quaxo knew it wasn't unheard of for reincarnations to share feelings or emotions with their predecessor, so could instincts be shared as well?

It didn't matter now, and he didn't dwell on it as he raced higher and higher through the city until he'd reached the highest point with both the Pollicle dog and Tugger in tow. Quaxo hadn't seen Grizabella, or Bombalurina, so for all he knew they were still in danger, but he could feel a much more pressing danger approaching and there was no time to go back. He promised himself that once the Pollicle and Tugger were safe that he would, assuming he could get them all out of here in the first place, anyway. 

Barricading the door with both an overturned table and his magic, Quaxo began to frantically look around the room to find something he could use to get them out. They'd been cut off at every turn, forced higher and higher until they'd reached a spire that looked as though it had been the home of an observatory long since abandoned. They were trapped, unless he could find some other way out. Perhaps his new book of spells could be the answer, but Quaxo's train of thought was interrupted by Tugger once the coon had caught his breath.

"What's going on, Quaxo? Why are we-" but the coon was cut off by the sound of footsteps echoing in the hall. Macavity's men would be on them soon, and Quaxo's barricade would only last for so long. They needed to move.

The Pollicle whined, and at first Quaxo thought it was just in fear, but as he moved closer he realized the dog was trying to direct his attention toward an old broom. Quaxo stared in confusion for a moment, but then the dog was flapping it's now mostly functional wings and Quaxo understood. "Everyone deserves the chance to fly," he murmured as he grabbed the cleaning implement from where it lay. 

"Quaxo, seriously," Tugger spoke up again, and Quaxo was reminded that the poor coon really didn't have any idea what was going on. "Talk to me, kitten, what's going on?"

Turning to face Tugger, Quaxo marched towards him, dropping his new book of spells to the floor for use later. "I can't explain it all now, I need you to trust me," Quaxo began as he knelt where he'd dropped the book and began to murmur a spell under his breath. His hands moved slowly, and then a little faster as he waved them over the broom, and then all of the sudden he was abruptly stopped as Tugger grabbed hold of his wrist and knelt at his side. The coon was angry, that much Quaxo could see, but not threatening. He was confused, and he was lashing out, which was more than fair but didn't make Quaxo's job any easier. 

"No," Tugger insisted with a faint shake of his head. Outside, the sound of footsteps grew louder, and the heat in the room increased, but Quaxo was no longer sure that was all just Macavity's doing. "No, I need you to tell me what's going on," the coon continued.

Quaxo was quiet for a moment, his mouth opening to give Tugger an abridged version of the days events, but the Pollicle dog interrupted, whining and turning Quaxo's attention to it as delight spread across his features and he realized what was happening. The broom had begun to float. It hadn't grown wings, it hadn't disintegrated into a hundred tiny pieces, it was hovering above the ground and it was Quaxo's only means of escape. With a delighted laugh, he pulled his hand away from Tugger and stood as he grabbed hold of the broom and beamed triumphantly as he held his prize. He may have no clue where he was going, or what he should do next, but he had a way to escape and that was enough for now.

"Hop on," Quaxo said as he turned to Tugger, holding the broom out between them with a wide grin. A wide grin he now realized Tugger wasn't returning. In fact, Tugger was looking at him like he didn't even know him, and it sent a chill down Quaxo's spine. No longer was the room warm. As if changed by Quaxo's very emotions, it was as cold as ice and the tuxedo cat couldn't surpress a shiver as it spread across his body.

"You're trembling," Tugger murmured, and while Quaxo wanted to scream at the coon to hop on the flying broomstick and leave with him before it was too late, Quaxo didn't say a word as Tugger glanced around the room, laid eyes on what he was looking for, and brought over a worn black cape which he wrapped around Quaxo's shivering shoulders with the care of a… with the care of someone who cared.

Blinking up at the coon, Quaxo was struck suddenly by the realization that Tugger wasn't coming with him. Panic rose in his chest, and his eyes grew wide, and before he realized it the entire story was spilling from his lips in a rush. Well, not the entire story. Given the increasingly loud sound of footsteps that had also begun to include banging on the barricaded door, Quaxo told the quick version as best he could.

When he was finished, Tugger's features had twisted into a grimace and Quaxo could practically see the indecision written all across the coon's face. 

It terrified him.

"Tugger, please," Quaxo spoke after the silence had dragged on for too long. The tuxedo cat stepped closer, and horrifyingly Tugger stepped back. Quaxo blinked, staring at the sudden distance between them and trying not to succumb to the despair that coursed through his veins. Despair that very quickly gave way to anger as Tugger finally began to speak.

"Quaxo, listen," the maine coon began, but Quaxo was tired of listening, he was tired of blindly following the whims of cats who thought they knew better than him. Clearly Tugger intended to stay, and clearly he didn't believe one word out of Quaxo's mouth. So much for what Quaxo had thought was a rock solid friendship, their bond unbreakable. It turned out Tugger was more like Victoria than he'd realized.

"Stop," Quaxo replied, and something changed within him as he spoke the word. He was tired of being Quaxo, he was tired of being weak and ridiculed… and he was tired of getting his heart broken. The obvious solution came to him like a bolt of magical lightning as he stood before the other tom, nevermind how Tugger's features were currently twisting in horror as if he suddenly realized what Quaxo was about to do.

He would no longer be Quaxo, he would no longer be weak, and he would never again give his heart to someone else. He would become the embodiment of the cat that all of Oz feared, and that all of Oz had clearly been wrong about. It was time for Quaxo to become Mistoffelees.

"My name is Mistoffelees," he spoke as he shook his head very faintly and hoped the action would hide his tears. "Not Quaxo, and I will not listen."

Standing up straighter, the new Mistoffelees rose to his full height and held the broom at his side as all trembling ceased. "Are you with me, or against me?" he continued, and watched with a carefully guarded expression as Tugger opened his mouth to reply.

"It's not that simple, kitten," the coon was saying, but Mistoffelees had heard more than enough to judge the tom for his lack of action. Turning away, he strode toward the Pollicle who'd been testing out his wings in the corner of the room. He didn't even know if the dog understood him, mute as it was, but the dog seemed to get the gist of what Mistoffelees was saying as he pointed in the direction of the open window, and nodded his head. Mistoffelees would follow its lead for now, and go from there once he had an actual plan in mind. Right now he just had to leave. 

Straddling the broom, Mistoffelees made sure his new book of spells was secure in his jacket pocket as he prepared to go, with one last look in Tugger's direction. A last look that turned out to be longer than he'd anticipated, as Tugger was suddenly standing next to him and grabbing hold of his arm once more. Mistoffelees held out hope for a brief moment that the coon might have changed his mind, but the determined set to Tugger's shoulders told him otherwise. 

"Quaxo! Are you crazy!?" the coon yelled, and that was the last straw as something else changed in Mistoffelees, and for the first time he glared at the other tom with hatred in his gaze. He may have despised Tugger, he may have loathed him, but he'd never felt this driven to hate him before. 

Yanking his arm away, Mistoffelees' gaze turned hard and threatening and he watched with no satisfaction as Tugger shrank under it. For a moment Mistoffelees could see Tugger gathering the courage to speak, but the moment was over as the carefully barricaded door was finally burst open.

Everything happened so quickly afterward that Mistoffelees was having trouble keeping up, but he clearly saw two guards grabbing Tugger, though the coon fought valiantly to free himself. He saw a flash of red and gray, and knew that Grizabella and Bombalurina had followed the guards here, or had been brought into custody just like Tugger was being currently. Despite the sting of betrayal, Mistoffelees' next words rang true.

"It's not them!" he called over the noise. Raising a hand, he rose into the air atop the flying broomstick and Mistoffelees had no time to fully appreciate the sensation as he continued to project his voice around the small room, his new ink black cape fluttering in a nonexistent breeze. "I'm the one you want!"

Despite what seemed like compete rejection, Mistoffelees didn't want Tugger or the others hurt for the crimes that the tuxedo cat alone had committed. He was high above them now, and as he heard the sound of wings flapping Mistoffelees knew the Pollicle couldn't be far behind. Time was up, and time was really up as Macavity himself finally strode into the room. 

"If you care to find me, look toward the Westarn sky," Mistoffelees continued, now knowing full well that he'd go West and take the Pollicle home to its people. He looked directly at the ginger Wizard as he continued, and knew the other cat would understand the significance of his words. "As someone told me lately, everyone deserves the chance to fly."

"Quaxo!" Tugger called, but Mistoffelees only spared him a passing glance. He had no idea how to fly this thing, but acting on instinct seemed to work as he shot forward through the open window and into the light of day. The Pollicle was ahead of him, and Mistoffelees couldn't suppress the whoop of delight that passed his lips as he looked down and realized just how high he was. It provided a distraction from the pain, at the very least.

As the tuxedo cat raced through the sky, he tried to leave everything else behind, including his very heart. And, as the Emerald City shrank in the distance, he found he had succeeded.

Chapter Text

Tugger couldn't have been happier. Oz itself couldn't have been happier, if one was to ignore the sudden shift in the wind. The shift in the wind that indicated something had changed, and things were never going to be the same again.

For all intents and purposes, Mistoffelees was back and more evil than ever according to their great Wizard and the gossip on the streets. The rumors, and speculation, and the fear that drove the good citizens of Oz to believe the wildest of rumors. Bombalurina had more patience for those rumors and accusations than Tugger did, and she always seemed to know just what to say while at the same time saying nothing. Nothing that would cast suspicion over them under Macavity's ever watchful eyes, anyway.

"I hear some rebel Pollicles are giving him food and shelter!" a maltese cat informed the pair, unbidden and unprompted like so many of the other rumors that ran rampant through the city, passed between cats like idle gossip. It took everything in Tugger not to roll his eyes, but Bombalurina cut in with a smile as she delicately placed her hands on Tugger's arm in an effort to keep him calm. 

"Oh?" she asked innocently, as if the information was new to her despite being one of the cats Macavity spoke to regularly about the real rumors regarding Quaxo's whereabouts. "Well hopefully that means we'll be able to find him all the quicker and bring justice back to our great Oz."

Again, Tugger nearly rolled his eyes at the comment, but he managed to plaster a smile on his face as Bombalurina squeezed his arm. This was all just for show, he reminded himself, a game they were playing with the aim of being Quaxo's inside cats who could help him defeat Macavity once and for all. At least that had been the plan, and would have been the plan if Quaxo hadn't flown off the handle and listened to what Tugger was trying to say that night all those months ago. Now there was no plan, because not even Macavity himself could find Quaxo now. Tugger would have been proud of that fact, proud of Quaxo for being so unfindable, but he wasn't very proud of anything these days.

"I heard his soul is so unclean, pure water could melt him!" another cat continued, and this time Tugger simply couldn't stand it anymore as he pulled his arm free and abruptly turned to storm from the room without a second's thought. He could hear Bombalurina making a rushed excuse on his behalf, but all Tugger cared about was slipping into a nearby abandoned alleyway and pulling frantically at the collar of his shirt to free himself of the restricting fabric. That was when the tears started, and those tears quickly turned into full on sobs as the maine coon sank to the ground and pressed his back against the wall, giving up on trying to rid himself of the red uniform of the Wizard's guard. 

Bombalurina found him there, and where there would have been teasing months ago there was only sympathy now as the red queen dropped to her knees, seemingly uncaring in the slightest that she'd get the hem of her green dress dirty, and pulled him into a hug that Tugger had sorely needed. 

Crying into the queen's shoulder should have felt unnatural, but Tugger had grown far beyond his usual displays of pride. He didn't care what she'd think of him, he didn't care what anyone thought of him… anyone but Quaxo, who was lost to him for what might turn out to be forever.

"They're so empty headed," Tugger said after a few moments, once the worst of his crying had let up. "They'll believe anything," he continued bitterly. 

"I know," Bombalurina replied, her fingers gently brushing through his fur in what seemed to be an attempt to soothe him. Tugger didn't feel very soothed, but he supposed it was the thought that counted. "He'll be alright," the red queen continued. "Quaxo is smart, and he'll be alright if he can keep his head straight."

Tugger knew that, Tugger told himself that every day, but that wasn't what worried him. He knew that Quaxo could disappear, never to be seen again. What Tugger was worried about was never seeing him again. That was selfish, surely. What were Tugger's desires in the face of the very real and horrible danger that Quaxo was in right now? But even so…

"I know," Tugger replied, repeating her own words back to her because it was all he could do to keep sane. 

"Come on," Bombalurina continued as she pushed herself to her feet and reached for his hand to help him up in return. "We've got to be careful. If anyone finds us…"

Tugger nodded and took the offered hand as he pushed himself to his feet. If anyone found them like this, they'd be killed, or whatever was worse than being killed. So far Macavity seemed none the wiser to their true feelings, Tugger and his group of friends having convinced the Wizard that they were on his side, but there was no telling how long that would last. Especially if Tugger kept losing his composure like this. Tugger quite honestly didn't even know what had happened, what Quaxo had seen or experienced that day, but Tugger trusted him. He trusted Quaxo to be right, and he'd seen his own fair share of odd moments from the Wizard that had him scratching his head.

Roughly brushing his arm across his face, Tugger rid himself of any remaining tears as he stood straighter and prepared to re-face the crowd. 

Everlasting, he hoped Quaxo was alright. Freeing Pollicles was dangerous work, clearly, and if Macavity was as unhinged as Tugger was beginning to suspect… well, he wouldn't even consider it. 

Rejoining the party thrown in honor of their great Wizard, Tugger smiled, nodded, and flirted with the guests like he was meant to do. A new chapter in his life had just begun, and Tugger couldn't have been happier.

xxx

Mistoffelees couldn't have been happier. He was finally free of expectation, free of the judgment of the cats of Oz, free from the pressures of fulfilling a certain role. He was happy, except for the fact that he hadn't expected to miss his old life this much. He hadn't expected to miss his friends this much, and he hadn't expected to miss Tugger so much.

Tugger who'd forced him to leave alone, Tugger who hadn't believed in him and stayed behind, presumably in the service of a Wizard that would discard him the moment he no longer needed him. That had been Tugger's choice, a life like that, over leaving with his friend for a better life and a brighter future. A future that involved freeing the Pollicles from their wronged imprisonment, which was what the new Mistoffelees had begun to do to make a name for himself. The rumors on the streets amused him, the names they called him and the fear that he spread. He was doing this for good, why couldn't anyone see that? He was freeing Pollicles, poor little dogs that had done nothing but exist and had asked for none of this. 

Mistoffelees still had no idea what Macavity's plans were for the animals, but Mistoffelees had become their protector and had made a name for himself in the north with the nearest Pollicle tribe. It was fulfilling work, rescuing captured dogs and bringing them home, and Mistoffelees couldn't be happier. Wasn't happy what happened when all of your dreams came true? He'd never dreamed this exact scenario, to be fair, but he was using his magic for good, helping animals who couldn't help themselves, and it was fulfilling in that way… Mistoffelees only wished he didn't feel so alone.

He had the Pollicles, he had the life he'd created for himself over the past several months… but he missed his sister, he missed his friends… he missed Tugger. Tugger was safe, and probably very happy if rumors of his imminent engagement to Bombalurina were true. Mistoffelees, on the other paw, was far from safe, even if it seemed as though he was from time to time. He couldn't say he'd wish the danger he faced onto his former best friend, but he did often wish he wasn't so… alone.

xxx

"... If we could find his weakness," the Wizard was saying, and Tugger made an effort to be quiet as he quickly moved into the Wizard's elegant throne room to join the others already in attendance. Currently spread across the red and yellow brick floor was an enormous map, oversized to the point where you could walk across it and almost feel like you'd travelled the world. That would have been something Tugger would have loved to witness with Quaxo, but then again there were a lot of things he'd have liked to witness with Quaxo.

For the moment Macavity sat in his throne, gazing down at the worn parchment, while members of his guard and various advisors moved about the room and pointed out locations. Tugger had slipped in unnoticed, it seemed, and he moved to Munkustrap's side as his brother gave him a brief summary of what had just transpired and what was going on. "The Wizard is tired of waiting for Quaxo to make his move, he's planning a trap."

Munkustrap didn't look all that happy about it either, but the news hit Tugger like a punch to the gut. It was all he could do to school his expression as he suddenly found himself under Macavity's direct gaze. 

"Tugger," the Wizard spoke, and his voice echoed across the room as everyone else fell silent. "It's true that you were his friend, was it not? Tell me, what sort of lure do you think will work best for our little Quaxo?"

Tugger's throat felt dry, and even as he swallowed and stepped forward it didn't seem to relieve the situation at all. With wide eyes he briefly glanced toward Munkustrap, but for once Tugger's older brother seemed as uncertain as he was. Eventually Tugger's eyes found Macavity's, and Tugger straightened under his gaze. "His sister, sir," he replied, and Everlasting he hoped Quaxo would forgive him for this.

Munkustrap looked surprised by Tugger's answer, because it was the truth, but Tugger wasn't deterred. Macavity may think he was setting up a trap for Quaxo, but Tugger was the one who wanted the tuxedo cat found once again. Found so that Tugger could make things right and go with him.

Macavity appeared thoughtful for a moment, tapping his chin with his finger before beginning to nod slowly. "Victoria, correct? Perhaps it's time we paid the young queen a visit, hmm?"

Tugger wasn't sure what he'd just gotten Victoria into, but he couldn't quite find the will to care. Maybe that made him brainless, or maybe that made him wise, but Quaxo's flight had caused him to start seeing things through different eyes, and right now those eyes were looking at the big picture, a rarity for the coon, which meant he had to be very, very careful about how he proceeded.

The meeting disbanded shortly, a plan to create a trap by using captured Pollicles as bait already well in motion, and Tugger just hoped he'd done the right thing… he found that he couldn't be so sure anymore.

xxx

It was supposed to be an easy mission, a quick in and out operation to free a group of Pollicles near a fairly populated village that just so happened to be not all that far from the great Emerald City. Mistoffelees had freed the dogs, but just when he'd thought they'd gotten away the magical cat had been spotted and an alarm had been raised. Now Mistoffelees was on the run, literally this time as the cat raced through the trees and let instinct guide his footsteps as the sound of what were surely Macavity's guards behind him grew louder. The mission had been a trap, or at least that seemed the most likely conclusion, and Mistoffelees had fallen right into it. 

It didn't matter what happened to him in the end, he supposed. The Pollicles had made it away, the guards clearly more interested in capturing Mistoffelees, but there was no way of knowing what Macavity would do to him once he was captured. Mistoffelees wasn't all that keen to find out what the evil Wizard had in store. 

Instinct guided him, but Misto's instinct had been suspect as of late and he found himself racing toward the one place he'd thought he'd never return to… home. The home of his childhood seemed largely unchanged, though that was to be expected considering that it hadn't really been all that long since he'd been here. It felt like a lifetime ago, however. Another lifetime that he'd first left this place with his sister for Shiz. After everything that had happened since then, Mistoffelees didn't know what kind of welcome he'd find here. If any at all.

Nevertheless, he had no choice but to enter the structure nestled cozily in the woods far enough from the City that Mistoffelees had never before seen it's Emerald glow, and it was with a spell muttered under his breath that he disappeared from the forest outside, and reappeared inside the home of his childhood a few moments later. At first all seemed fine, no one even seemed to be home, and then Mistoffelees caught sight of white fur out of the corner of his eyes and he knew before he'd even turned that it was Victoria. 

She looked largely unchanged, but then again so did Mistoffelees. He'd changed quite a bit, just not on the outside. It wasn't lost on him that he hadn't seen his sister since their dramatic fight months prior, and it didn't seem lost on her either as her surprised expression morphed into one of apprehension.

"What are you doing here?" she asked, but Mistoffelees wasn't about to give her the truth for an answer… not when the truth could get the both of them killed. 

"What are you doing here?" he asked instead, turning the question around and hoping that would work. It seemed to, much to his relief, as Victoria answered in the midst of crossing her arms. 

"I live here," she replied, and with a quick glance around Mistoffelees realized that almost everything that had made the house theirs had been stripped away and changed to make the house hers. Not that Mistoffelees was hurt by that, quite the opposite in fact, but it was surprising. He wanted to ask what had become of their parents, but all of the sudden Mistoffelees was afraid to know. Wasn't that silly? The infamous reincarnation of the greatest terror Oz had ever faced, afraid? But as Mistoffelees had learned, the original Mr. Mistoffelees hadn't been what he'd seemed to be, either. It seemed history was destined to repeat itself.

"Oh," he replied lamely, because for once in his life he wasn't sure what to say to the queen who'd once been his only confidant and who now seemed afraid of him. 

"Oh," Victoria echoed, and for a moment the two cats just stared at one another in perfect silence. Mistoffelees didn't know what to say, and clearly Victoria was in the same boat as both cats stood locked in stoic silence… that is, until Plato walked in the door behind her. 

Victoria seemed startled, for some reason, even though Plato clearly lived here, but that was nothing like the rage on the other tom cat's face. Scrambling backward as the larger cat advanced, Mistoffelees raised his hands as if he meant to attack the other cat in self defence. Victoria, to her credit, was able to stop her mate more effectively than Mistoffelees had. She whispered something to him that Misto couldn't hear, but was grateful that it worked, even if Plato still glared at him like he was prey. 

Straightening the collar of his shirt, Mistoffelees rose to his full height once again and feigned confidence and control over the situation. He must have looked a sight, he knew that. Amidst the normalcy of his childhood home, here he stood with a cape and a bowtie and a magical aura that had most cats shivering in fear the moment they saw him. But not Victoria. Not anymore, anyway. 

Plato was another story, but his sister seemed to warm to him as she stepped forward and reached hesitantly for Misto's arm. Against his better judgement he let her take it, and it was then that he realized she was trembling, that her smile seemed forced, and it was then that Mistoffelees realized what horrible trouble he was surely in.

His childhood home hadn't been a surprisingly perfect place to hide and wait out the coming storm, it had been a trap designed specifically for him. He'd thought the trap had been at the village, but it seemed the true lure had been his sister. His sister . Just when he thought Macavity couldn't have stooped any lower.

"He was here, wasn't he?" Mistoffelees asked, not expecting Victoria to answer. She didn't for a moment, but her eyes told him everything he needed to know and the slow clapping from the corner confirmed his worst fears. 

"Well done, Quaxo," Macavity spoke up, and Mistoffelees was ashamed to admit he had no idea how long the other cat had been there. Victoria seemed spooked, so Misto could only assume he hadn't been blinded by childhood nostalgia so completely that he'd been blind to everything else and somehow missed the obvious. No, Macavity had just appeared. That was evidenced by the magic still sparkling around his body as he lounged in the corner with a wicked grin. Mistoffelees moved to push Victoria behind him protectively, but the young queen slipped away from him almost immediately in favor of Plato.

"Macavity," Mistoffelees hissed, hands flexing rhythmically at his sides. He was prepared to use his magic should Macavity attack, but the ginger cat seemed calm for the moment. Looks could be deceiving, however. "Let her go," he continued, green eyes briefly darting toward Victoria, who had buried her face in Plato's chest. It hurt to see them together, but Mistoffelees could only feel gratitude that at least someone was protecting his little sister. "I won't let you get away with this."

"Oh you won't, will you?" Macavity replied, a mocking laugh falling from his lips as he shook his head, his ginger fur catching the light. "It looks like I already have, haven't I?" 

Mistoffelees opened his mouth to speak, to insist that Macavity hadn't succeeded despite what it might look like, but before he could get the words out a sudden yell broke through his train of thought. Ears twitching, Mistoffelees frowned. It seemed that Macavity, too, was confused as to where the noise was coming from. It wasn't a frightened yell, in fact it almost sounded triumphant, or at the very least confident, the louder it got and the closer whoever was yelling presumably got. This time it was Macavity's turn to open his mouth, but the question he was bound to have asked was interrupted by the sound of shattering glass and a scream of fright from Victoria.

In a blur of red clothes and yellow fur, Mistoffelees watched in abject disbelief as Tugger landed on the floor and rolled across it before standing and placing himself firmly between Mistoffelees and their Wizard. "Let the magic cat go," Tugger said once he was standing, and once again Mistoffelees was left staring in complete confusion at this seemingly random turn of events. Why was Tugger here of all places, and why had he chosen now to get involved? Mistoffelees didn't have the answers, yet it seemed like Macavity might, as the evil Wizard had the audacity to laugh in the face of Tugger's bold entrance.

"You think you've surprised me, I expect," Macavity began, and Mistoffelees almost shuddered at his vile tone as the taller cat moved closer. Mistoffelees wished that Tugger wasn't standing in front of him so that he could see the coon's face, to know what he was thinking, but for now Mistoffelees allowed the scene before him to play out as Macavity continued.

"You think I didn't know about your… relationship ?" 

The word was sneered, and this time Mistoffelees did find himself flinching. Apparently Macavity knew more about Tugger's character than he did, if he'd known the coon would eventually do something this ridiculous, and Misto wasn't sure if that made him feel better or worse.

"You think I don't know everything that happens within my walls?" Macavity was continuing, but Misto's eyes had shifted past the ginger cat to find the eyes of his sister. Lovely, sweet Victoria who hadn't asked for any of this. Victoria who Mistoffelees loved almost more than anyone else in the world. As their eyes locked, Victoria raised one finger and twirled it very subtly. To anyone else the gesture would be meaningless, but not to Mistoffelees. He'd been executing conjuring turns almost since he'd first learned to dance. It hadn't been until later that he'd learned to use them in conjunction with his magic to disappear, and he'd never done it with someone else in tow, but now was as good a time to try as any.

"I am Macavity!" the Wizard was continuing, "Nothing can ever-"

Not allowing the man to continue, Mistoffelees lunged forward and grabbed hold of Tugger, earning a soft yelp from the coon. As Mistoffelees spun once in a circle, forcing Tugger to move with him, the last thing he saw before vanishing from his former home was the joy on Victoria's face and the anger on Macavity's as the latter lunged for the pair with his claws out and ready to strike. Just before they made contact, however, Mistoffelees and Tugger were suddenly somewhere else. Somewhere far, far away from the murderous cat.

Letting go of Tugger, the pair stumbled to the ground in a gasping mess of tangled limbs and fur. Mistoffelees was exhausted from the extensive display of magic, and Tugger, he was sure, would be overwhelmed by the sensation of his first bout of magical travel.

"Could you do that the whole time?" the coon gasped out after a moment, raising his head a little to look at Mistoffelees. "Or did you just force us to walk halfway across Oz to get to the Emerald City just for fun?"

Mistoffelees didn't dignify the questions with an answer, hissing instead as he shoved Tugger's ridiculously long legs away and from him and pushed himself to stand as he began dusting off his clothes. "Are you insane?" he demanded as he glared at the coon. "Stupid? No, I already know you're stupid."

"Hey! I'm not-" Tugger began, still on the ground, before shrugging a shoulder as if conceding the point. "Okay, maybe you're right, but I'm not insane! Leave that part for Macavity, thank you very much."

Hissing again, angry that Tugger could be taking all of this so lightly, Mistoffelees grabbed hold of the other cat and shoved him against the wall. Pinning him there with his arm, Mistoffelees glared at the taller tom before his expression relaxed a little and his grip loosened. He realized where they were; where Mistoffelees had taken them, even if he hadn't known it.

"This is my room," Tugger said softly, unknowingly giving voice to Misto's thoughts. It was the coons room. His room from school, that Mistoffelees had only seen the inside of once, on the night of the fight with his sister that felt like a lifetime ago. Why had he brought them here? He hadn't meant to bring them here. "Why'd you bring us here?" Tugger continued, and Mistoffelees sighed as he let go of the cat completely and took several steps back.

"I didn't. Sometimes I can't control it, it just brings me to places that I… that I feel safe."

Misto's ears pressed flat against his head, his tail swaying uneasily behind him as silence fell. But fortunately Tugger was here to do what Tugger did best, fill the silence.

"I'm sorry," the coon said, and Mistoffelees was grateful that he didn't further address the tuxedo cat's confession. He was less grateful that they were digging into what had happened between them now, but he supposed now was as good a time as any.

"I didn't believe you at first, and then when I did I was… afraid. I tried to convince myself that I was staying behind to protect you from the inside, but really I was just afraid, Quaxo."

Mistoffelees bristled at the use of his old name, the name of the weak cat he'd abandoned, and for once Tugger seemed to sense that he'd made a mistake and tried to correct it.

"I care about you, Mistoffelees, and I… I want to help you. Bomba too, even Munk. We all know something's up, and… and it's time we did something about it."

Mistoffelees was quiet for a moment, quiet and unsure. He wanted to trust Tugger, he really did, but he was finding it unbelievably difficult to do so. Tugger had hurt him, betrayed him in ways Misto hadn't thought possible, and yet he couldn't shake the feeling of fondness. He couldn't, even now, look at Tugger and think anything except 'friend.' 

"If you come with me," Mistoffelees began, and tried to ignore how his heart soared at the hopeful expression that had taken over Tugger's features. "You'll have to do as I say. Listen to me, even if you think I'm crazy." Tugger was nodding before he'd even finished, and Mistoffelees held up a hand to stop him from speaking just before the coon had opened his mouth. "I need your word, Tugger. As a friend. As my… as my best friend." 

Where there had been authority there was now only uncertainty, and for a moment Mistoffelees felt like Quaxo again. Maybe Tugger could see that, because as the coon stepped forward and reached out to fix Misto's ever stubborn bowtie, Mistoffelees almost felt like nothing had changed.

"You have it," Tugger replied, voice soft and almost even gentle as his fingers lingered on the tie before falling back to his side. "And you have me."

Mistoffelees took a moment to breathe, took a moment to search Tugger's eyes with his own for even a hint of doubt, but in the end he found himself nodding his head and a very small smile tugging at his lips. "Okay. Welcome to the team."

"Oh, there's a team?" Tugger was quick to respond, the moment of peace gone and their easy banter returning as if they'd never been apart. "In that case maybe you don't need me, all powerful reincarnation of our great Wizard."

Rolling his eyes, Mistoffelees pulled his cloak tighter around himself and shrugged a shoulder. "Careful, Tugger. Now that I've accepted my rightful place as the all powerful reincarnation of your great Wizard, I've been feeling quite… wicked."

Letting the unspoken 'threat' hang, Misto was worried for a moment, when Tugger didn't respond, that his joke might have been in poor taste considering everything that had happened, but in the end a wide grin broke across the other tom's features and Tugger even went so far as to laugh.  

"That's not funny," the coon said as he began to calm down.

"It's a little funny," Misto countered, and knew now more than ever that whatever happened next he would always have Tugger by his side. "Now let's go kill the Wizard."

Chapter Text

Ash, fire, the sound of screams. Noises that awoke the cat more often than not as Oz raged and seemed determined to tear itself apart. The rolling hills of his youth were scorched and charred, no longer smelling of sweet poppy's or growing grass, and as he and his mother moved on as the war did he found himself missing the simplicity of his youth. Being caught in the middle of a battle between what felt like unfeeling Gods was certainly a stark contrast to warm nights by the fire and a mug of warm milk.

"Macavity!" his mother had screamed in the midst of an unexpected raid, and that was the last time the amber cat had ever seen her.

The young cat was alone after that, always staying one step ahead of danger until he suddenly wasn't and everything came crashing down. Literally in this case as the roof of the small inn he was staying within collapsed and, surrounded by other refugees from the war, Macavity was suddenly advanced upon by the Pollicle army. The young ginger cat had tried to run, to flee with the others, but unfortunately the attack was too sudden for any of them to do anything but fall prey to their enemies.

As a particularly large Pollicle advanced, Macavity was prepared to lay down his life. He wasn't afraid to die by Pollicle claws. But as he braced for the end Macavity found that it was prevented by an unseen ally. As he opened his eyes, he was struck by the feeling of seeing an angel in the flesh as a black and white tuxedo cat held out his hand to help him from the grimy ground.

"What's your name?" his rescuer had asked, and Macavity had told him against his better judgment, bewildered by the way the other cat smiled at him. Smiled in the middle of an active battle as if claws and teeth weren't being bared all around them.

"I'm Mistoffelees," the tuxedo tom had told him later, barely even batting an eye as Macavity continued to remain glued to his side even long after the battle had been won. He and Mistoffelees were dreamers, he soon found. Dreamers who shared a common goal… until that too came crashing down around him.

"I'm sorry my friend," Macavity had murmured as he'd let the other tom go where he himself could never follow… not yet, anyway. "But I'll see you again. I'm sure of it."

And in the end Macavity had gotten exactly what he'd wanted, even though it had come with unforeseen complications. No matter, he would prevail in the end. He always did.

xxx

Mistoffelees hated that the first place they needed to go was the last place that he'd ever want to, but they needed help. The kind of help not only Pollicle dogs can provide. They needed, regrettably, Grizabella. Tugger was no more keen on this than the magical cat, but he trusted Mistoffelees now and Misto was grateful to be spared the argument. So many things had changed, but thankfully that wasn't one of them.

Still that didn't stop Tugger from complaining even as Mistoffelees explained for the hundredth time why they needed to do this.

"I know that," the coon whined, practically dragging his feet as he walked across the largely abandoned campus behind an ever alert Mistoffelees who didn't trust that the area was as abandoned as it seemed. "But why can't we ask someone else for help? Griz is a bore!" 

"Grizabella is also the only cat that could get us into Oz without causing a fuss," Mistoffelees replied once more, and thankfully this time the gentle admonishment seemed to stick as Tugger sighed, albeit overdramatically, and fell silent after that for the most part. 

As Mistoffelees had anticipated, Grizabella was her usual dramatic self when she opened the door to find the pair standing on the front step. She'd ushered them inside, and simply wouldn't hear a word until they'd both been provided a cup of tea. Tugger barely touched his, as Misto recalled the coon wasn't fond of the drink, but Mistoffelees sipped at his gingerly a few times and found it calming to his frazzled nerves.

Grizabella knew exactly why they were here almost before Mistoffelees had even spoken, and the tuxedo cat was relieved to find she needed no convincing. "That Macavity has been suspicious from the start," she'd said, and that had been the end of it. 

She'd insisted they stay the night before beginning their journey, and though Mistoffelees was inclined to keep moving as quickly as possible he allowed them the quiet night of peace before the inevitable storm. Sharing Grizabella's guest bed with Tugger felt familiar and… safe. Despite not thinking it would be possible, Mistfofeless slept soundly through the night listening to the sound of Tugger's steady breathing.

It's raining the next morning, and Grizabella fusses over them suitably before they retrace their steps and once again begin the journey toward Oz. 

"You musnt get wet, dear," she tutted as she opened an umbrella and held it over Misto's head until he finally took it from her. He didn't see the point in that, but Tugger stepped closer to share the dry space and Misto decided the extra warmth wasn't so bad. 

On the journey Mistoffelees remade contact with several of the Pollicle dogs he'd befriended. Tugger in particular was wary around them at first, but relaxed once Mistoffelees made proper introductions. Misto couldn't blame him for being nervous, after all the war between Jellicle cats and Pollicle dogs was recent history, but Mistoffelees knew the truth of the matter. The awful misunderstanding and the lies that had started the conflict in the first place. The great Jellicle cats had been afraid of the Pollicles, and the awful battle between them had lasted for far longer than either side had anticipated. But at the heart of the matter was a lie, a lie so simple in its deception that simply talking to one another would have righted all wrongs.

The Pollicles believed that the Jellicles had killed one of their puppies, and the Jellicles believed that the Pollicles were after the coveted Heaviside layer. Both sides were wrong, but alas a war had begun anyway. It had ended before Mistoffelees had been born, but he wondered whether or not Grizabella remembered it with any clarity. She certainly didn't seem in the least bit threatened by the dogs that occasionally walked with their small party, so he couldn't be sure.

Mistoffelees had promised the dogs their freedom once more, and if he could just rid Oz of the evil influence of Macavity the cats might be able to see the dogs for what they truly were. Just like them, simply with a different shape. 

Accomplishing that might be difficult, but the further they walked, and the more Tugger grew comfortable around the dogs, Mistoffelees was beginning to realize that Tugger himself might be the key to all of this. Tugger was liked by almost all, loved by many, and if he showed kindness and compassion to the Pollicles, the poor little dogs might stand a chance at rebuilding their image once Macavity was gone. That was why it was crucial that Mistoffelees be blamed for the death of their great Wizard. Not a single Pollicle need be involved in order to restore their good name. Mistoffelees hadn't mentioned that part to Tugger yet, and so far the coon hadn't seemed to realize that once the tuxedo cat killed Macavity… there would be no going back.

Mistoffelees wasn't looking forward to the moment when he did.

Entering the city of Oz was easier than Misto had anticipated, Girzabella had many old friends who were more often than not sneaking in and out for themselves. It was a new side to his former teacher, and in realizing that Misto also realized that he didn't know as much about her as he'd thought. Once not all that long ago he would have called Grizabella merely odd and nothing more, but now she was as invaluable to him as any other member of his band of misfits. She'd hugged him before they'd departed, both of them knowing she could go no further. 

"I'll find your Victoria for you, dear," she promised, her hand briefly coming to rest on Misto's cheek as she offered him a small smile. "If Macavity has taken her, or if she's still safe at home, I'll make sure she's safe for you."

Mistoffelees smiled, nodding his head faintly and preparing to move back, but something in Grizabella's eyes caused him to pause and all at once Mistoffelees realized that the older queen knew exactly what ge truly planned to do. How, he wasn't sure, but as she grasped hold of his hand and pulled him closer she was as serious as Misto had ever seen her. "Don't get wet, my dear," she said, voice low enough that only Misto could hear her. As his ears twitched, and his tail swayed behind him in understanding, Misto nodded and gave Grizabella's hands a final squeeze.

As the older cat walked away, joined dutifully by one of the Pollicles, Mistoffelees felt a twinge of sadness. If all went according to plan, this would be the last time he'd ever see her. 

He was aware that Tugger was antsy behind him, and he was also aware that Tugger was practically dying to ask what that had been about, but Misto couldn't answer the coon's questions. Not right now, anyway. It would simply hurt too much.

"Here," he said instead, turning to hold out the book of spells that the original Mistoffelees has created to the other tom. A precious bit of cargo, but something that would hopefully help the coon in the long run after all of this was over. "Keep it for me?" he asked, offering Tugger a smile that actually managed to meet his eyes. 

Tugger took it, as Misto knew he would, and tucked it almost too reverently into the space between his belt and his pants. "I'll keep it safe," he promised, and Misto had never seen Tugger act so seriously. 

The pair moved forward after that, slipping through a crack in the emerald and ruby surface of the city and finding themselves moving through a series of catacombs that Grizabella had given them detailed instructions for navigating.

Even so, Mistoffelees felt uneasy. This was all too convenient, too simple and far too easy. He couldn't help but fear that something was wrong about the whole thing… something wrong with Oz.

"Something bad is happening in Oz," he murmured softly, but his voice carried enough in the small space that Tugger cocked his head and looked over at him curiously. Tugger who'd been eerily quiet up until now, and Tugger who Mistoffelees was beginning to suspect might… well, suspect that there was more at play here than met the eye at first glance.

"What are you going to do?" Tugger asked, and before Misto could answer he was continuing. "After it's all over, I mean. When Macavity is gone… what then?" 

Misto wished he could have an answer for that, he wished that he could at least lie and tell Tugger that everything would go back to the way things were… but he couldn't. Nothing would ever be the same again. How could it, when so much had changed all around them?

"I don't know," he told the coon, shaking his head faintly as he tugged restlessly at the cuff of his sleeve as they continued to walk. "Maybe…" he continued, trying to offer Tugger something he might be able to cling to, but his words were interrupted by a fiendish laugh that had his hackles raising and his hands reaching to maneuver Tugger behind him. But his hands met empty air. Heart hammering in his chest, he turned just in time to see Tugger disappear in a shower of sparks much like the kind that appeared when Mistoffelees travelled from place to place in the blink of an eye. There was no doubt about it, Macavity had taken him.

"Tugger!" Misto screamed, the name torn from his throat as he lurched forward as if he could bring the other tom back if he could just reach him in time. "Tugger!" he screamed again, his heart feeling like it was being ripped in two. This wasn't supposed to happen, Tugger was supposed to be kept safe, but instead Tugger simply wasn't there at all. 

Despair welled within him, but then determination overtook it as Misto straightened his shoulders and was determined to press onward. This wasn't part of the plan, but then again Mistoffelees hadn't planned on Tugger being here in the first place. It was a setback, a horrible nightmare, but he had to continue onward. Too much was at stake, after all. He'd simply have to work rescuing Tugger into his plans as well. That should be easy, right?

xxx

Tugger, to his credit, remained as calm as he could as he was suddenly whisked out of existence against his will and deposited smack in the middle of Macavity's throne room. Quaxo's voice echoed in his ears, and they flattened against his head as he turned and finally spotted the ginger cat lazily lounging atop his throne seemingly without a care in the world. Tugger couldn't wait for Quaxo to wipe that stupid grin off the other cats face.

Quaxo, or maybe Tugger should finally begin to call him Mistoffelees. It was the name he'd chosen for himself, after all. 

The silence was long, and frankly a little intimidating, but Tugger didn't betray any hint of how truly nervous he was. He oozed confidence in his everyday life, why would now be any different? 

"Just so you know," Tugger began, bringing his hands to his suspenders as he hooked his thumbs through the dark leather straps and stood far more casually than the situation called for. "Mistoffelees is going to kick your butt," he continued, taking a moment to look around the throne room and take in the scenery.

Not much had changed since the last time Tugger had been here. It was a little darker, a little dirtier, but otherwise it held the same mixture of malice and decay as it usually did. Tugger was unimpressed. This was meant to be the bad guy? This was meant to be what stood between Misto and his goals of freedom for all? Pathetic. What did Macavity even want, anyway? 

"Oh, I'm sure he'll try," Macavity replied, and Tugger could have almost sworn the ginger cat had rolled his eyes. "Try to "kick my butt," apparently," the cat continued, and Tugger found himself glaring at Macavity once more as the other cat mocked him. "After everything I've tried to do for him, and for you, I suppose it's all been thrown away. Oh dear."

Macavity's words may have been meek, but he spoke them with a sarcasm that had Tugger bristling under the heat of it. Macavity still saw himself as perfectly in control, Tugger realized, and for the first time Tugger was starting to worry that maybe he was. That worry only increased, as suddenly the book of spells that Misto had given to him disappeared in a shower of sparks and reappeared in Macavity's waiting hands. Tugger's eyes grew wide, his tail twitching behind him, but otherwise he forced himself to remain still and not react as Macavity so clearly wanted him to.

"You have so much faith in him, so much trust," Macavity was continuing, beginning to flip through the pages of the book as if Tugger wasn't even there at all. Come to think of it, there was not a single other soul in this room at all. Not guards, not aides.. no one. They were alone, and ironically that made Tugger more nervous than if the room had been filled to the brim. That meant that Macavity was so confident in his abilities that he didn't feel the need for even a single guard as backup, and suddenly Tugger was beginning to feel a little small. Misto could still take him, of that he had no doubt, but in the meantime Tugger had nothing to do but stand here and wait for what felt like the inevitable. 

"He's going to disappoint you, you know," Macavity added, continuing to casually flip through pages and barely pay any attention to Tugger at all. "You remind me of me, and of course we all know how greatly my Mistoffelees disappointed me." 

Tugger didn't know, and frankly he didn't care, but apparently that didn't matter to Macavity as the ginger cat slammed the book closed with a huff and stood, his ruby trench coat glittering in what little sunlight there was left as he strode down from his throne to be on the same level as Tugger. 

"You think he loves you, but you're wrong. He only loves himself, and his goals, and nothing more. He's a monster who will use you and abuse you until you're spent, and only then will you realize how many mistakes you've made along the way. Like trusting him in the first place."

Tugger stood straighter, meeting Macavity's intense gaze as evenly as he could as he maintained his casual grip of his belt. Though his grip may have tightened just a little. 

"You're wrong," Tugger said confidently, because no matter what Macavity said Tugger knew that with utmost certainty. "He's nothing like your Mistoffelees. You'll see, and you'll be sorry."

Macavity clicked his tongue, taking a step back from the coon and seeming to appraise him for a moment before he spoke. "I suppose we'll both see, won't we?"

Tugger didn't like the certainty of that statement, not one bit, but as Macavity returned to his throne and sat back down just as casually as before, Tugger maintained faith in his Misto. The tuxedo cat had never let him down before, Tugger saw no reason for him to do so now. Misto was going to come, and Misto was going to bring down Macavity once and for all for the greater good of all of Oz. Tugger could only hope he'd hurry. 

xxx

As Mistoffelees crept down the winding corridor, he was guided by instinct just as much as logic as he made his way in what he hoped was the direction of the Wizard. Tugger too, of course, but it was the Wizard who Mistoffelees felt a strange connection to that he couldn't explain. Like he was being pulled toward him by forces unknown, led to Macavity like a moth to a flame in a manner that made him feel unsettled and almost wary. He pressed onward anyway, and tried not to dwell on it.

Eventually he reached a long corridor that seemed to stretch on far into the distance. He had been about to turn and go the other way, he didn't recognize this place in the slightest, until he caught sight of someone he never thought he'd see again.

"Old Deuteronomy?" he breathed, and it was only a moment before Misto raced forward and clutched the bars of what he now realized was a cell as he looked the older cat over and tried to determine if he was hurt. The persian simply smiled at him, as if equally delighted that Misto was here and as though he'd already known that he was going to arrive. Misto was glad to see that not much had changed with the old cat, he would have hated for him to be hurt because of Macavity's single minded hatred. 

"My dear Quaxo," the older cat began, then smiled like he knew everything that had transpired outside of these walls despite being imprisoned within them. "Or should I call you Mistoffelees?"

"You can call me whatever you'd like," Misto replied, too overjoyed by finding the other cat unharmed that names were the very last thing on his mind. "Let me just-" he continued, moving to unlock the gate and free his former professor, but gentle hands were suddenly placed on top of his own and stilling him. Through the gate, Old Deuteronomy smiled once more and Mistoffelees had the strangest feeling that the older cat had been waiting for him. As though despite being captured and imprisoned, this was where he'd been meant to be. Old Deuteronomy smiled at him, and even before he'd spoken Mistoffelees knew exactly what he was going to say. 

"I'll make my own way, Mistoffelees. It's you who has a difficult road ahead of you. The choices you must make for the good of Oz will come at much too high a cost. You think you know this, you think you are prepared, but listen well to what I'm about to say," Old Deuteronomy began, his eyes kind and his smile gentle as he squeezed Misto's hands as best as he was able. "Do not confuse sentiment for weakness, do not mistake love as a flaw, and above all else…" he trailed off a moment, Mistoffelees leaning forward to better hear what he was about to say. "A little rain never hurt anyone."

Blinking, Mistoffelees absorbed the information as he gazed at the older cat and suddenly understood every piece of wisdom he was trying to impart. Taking a step back from the cell, Mistoffelees nodded once before bowing in the most reverent way he could manage. "I won't let you down," he told the persian, but as he straightened there was mirth in the other cats eyes.

"No, not me. Yourself."

With that final bit of wisdom, Mistoffelees was back on his way. If he'd have turned around, he'd have seen the older cat shimmering seemingly out of existence as Old Deuteronomy disappeared from the confinement he could have escaped at any moment prior. Mistoffelees had already been sure of his plan, but now he was doubly so. Oz would be freed from the Wizard, and Misto… well, Misto had always known which way this was going to go.

xxx

When Mistoffelees entered the room, Tugger felt twin emotions of relief and further worry. Macavity was still lounging all too casually on his throne, flipping idly through the pages of Misto's book of spells, and Misto… well, to Tugger's eyes Misto looked confident. Whether that was an act or not was still to be determined, but nothing had stopped Tugger from believing in the other tom before, and nothing was going to stop him now.

"Are you alright?" the tuxedo tom asked him, and Tugger nodded and offered him a smile that was only a little strained.

"As alright as I can be," Tugger replied, shrugging a shoulder and maintaining his casual air. "The Wizard and I were just talking about how you're going to kick his butt."

There was the softest of smiles that graced Misto's features, and Tugger was reassured by that alone that everything was going to be alright. He didn't know what the tom's play was, he didn't know what Macavity's play was, but if Tugger were a betting cat he'd place all his chips on Mistoffelees every time. The black and white tom reached his side, Macavity had barely looked up at either of them but was quite obviously aware that both were here, and to Tugger's delight reached out to take the coons hand and give it a light squeeze. 

"Misto…" Tugger began, because even though they weren't alone in the slightest and now wasn't exactly the time, they might never have another time. "I-" he continued, but was cut off as Mistoffelees reached up to bring a finger to Tugger's lips. 

"I know," the tom told him, and Tugger dearly hoped that he did. 

"Now then," Macavity spoke for the first time since the tuxedo tom had arrived, and as he stood he tossed the book aside and allowed it to slam onto the floor with a bang. "Shall we get this over with?"

And all at once the room engulfed in flames.

Chapter Text

The room was burning. For a moment it was the only thing Mistoffelees could think about, the flames licking at his heels and the blaze surrounding both him and Tugger in a semi-circle of amber and gold. Tugger stepped closer, it seemed out of instinct, and Misto was grateful for it as he moved to shield the coon from further attack… whatever form that attack might take.

When he'd entered the room, full of confidence and maybe a little bravado, the very last thing he'd expected was for Macavity to do something like this. The Wizard was unpredictable by nature, but fire? Not some complex, never-before-seen spell puzzled out over his years of study?

Turning in a circle, Mistoffelees used a small burst of magic to tame the flames most near to them, all the while keeping Tugger at his back. The coon shifted restlessly, but Mistoffelees was more preoccupied with spotting where Macavity had disappeared to than keeping Tugger calm.

"Misto…" the coon started to say, but Mistoffelees didn't have the chance to hear him finish.

In one swift motion, claws sank into Misto's shoulders and Macavity leapt through a gap in the flames, sending both himself and the tuxedo cat tumbling into a different section of the room. Misto landed with a soft cry of pain, but instinctively he found himself using a burst of magic to push Macavity off of him, and scrambled to his feet. Now on equal footing, the two magical cats circled one another, neither one stepping closer to make a move.

"You don't have to do this," Mistoffelees tried, even though he knew that reasoning with the mad cat was hopeless at this point. "You can stop all of this while you still have the chance."

After everything that Macavity had done, everything that Macavity had done to him , to offer him a chance at redemption seemed almost too kind. But perhaps that was Misto's ultimate weakness. Perhaps no matter how much he'd changed, and how much he'd gone through, he was still that wide eyed little schoolboy with a big heart and even bigger dreams. He'd wanted to meet the Wizard. Mistoffelees supposed that now he had, and yet the Wizard he met was nothing like the Wizard he'd dreamed of.

At his plea, something in the ginger cat's expression changed, and for a brief moment Mistoffelees thought he might have gotten through to him somehow, but the expression was gone in the instant that it took Macavity to blink.

"You're not him," Macavity spat, his gaze hardening. "You're not him, and don't you dare try and pretend to be." 

As he spoke, Macavity waved his arm. Had Misto not been so distracted by the words the older cat was saying, he might have noticed that Macavity had changed the game. No longer were they simply fighting for dominance, or even any sort of right to rule. No, now they were fighting for the one thing that Macavity wanted more than anything else. A ticket to the Heaviside layer. A chance to start a new life. To be reborn.

While Misto reeled from the implications of what Macavity had said, the other cat used the moment of distraction to pounce. He seized Misto by the collar of his jacket and the two tumbled end over end, barely missing the raging flames. The jewels on Macavity's coat reflected the light of the fire, a dazzling flash of red that engulfed Mistoffelees' vision. Stone met his back and claws gripped at his fur, and when the world righted itself, Mistoffelees had been pressed against the ground and Macavity straddling him from above.

"I'm going to take everything from you," the older cat hissed, bringing both hands to Misto's head.

Before the tuxedo cat knew what was happening, the greatest pain he'd ever experienced in his life shot through him. The black and white cat screamed.

xxx

It was the scream that alerted Tugger. Misto was in trouble.

In a moment, the coon's sense of self preservation dissolved. Hair standing on end, he made a desperate search for a way through the fire that licked and snapped at every turn. "Quaxo!" he yelled, and it was at that moment he was reminded of his brief vision from so long ago.

Fire, check. Screaming, double check. Despite the flames surrounding him, Tugger suddenly felt very, very cold.

"Tugger!" a decidedly female and very familiar voice called over the noise of the raging fire, and though it clearly wasn't who he'd intended to find, Tugger had never felt more relieved in his life when he turned and spotted Bombalurina and Munkustrap trying to make their way to his side. Relieved, sure, but that didn't stop the panic that welled up within him at the thought of what might be happening to Quaxo right now. To… Mistoffelees.

"Bomba!" he yelled, and as he moved in her direction he found himself pulling the queen into a tight embrace, an embrace that was sorely needed.

It only lasted a moment, however, because as Tugger looked around he realized they were no longer the only ones here. Several of Macavity's guards were entering the room, some looking confused at the state of it and others looking at Tugger and the cats they could only view as traitors to the Wizard, hatred in their gazes. No longer would Tugger be able to go to Quaxo's side. Not if these cats had anything to say about it. Unless… 

Looking toward Munkustrap, Tugger found his big brother already standing protectively between them and the other guards. "Go," Munkustrap told him, and as Tugger let go of Bomba she too turned to face the direction of the cats who intended to do them harm.

"Get Quaxo," she said. "We'll have your back."

Tugger was frozen, paralyzed to the spot, staring at his brother and his friend with wide eyes. They didn't have to do this for him, they didn't have to risk anything on pure faith that Misto knew what he was doing, and yet here they were doing that anyway. Tugger almost didn't want to leave, but another scream from Quaxo had his heart leaping into his throat and his head bobbing in a nod. "Be careful," he told the both of them before he turned and began to make his way through the flames toward the sound of Quaxo's suffering. 

Fire licked at his shirt, and though nothing caught aflame his sleeves were rapidly becoming stained with soot and ash and turning black. The smoke was making him cough, and the further he went the harder it was getting to breathe, but Tugger could now see Mistoffelees on the ground with Macavity overtop of him and nothing was going to stop him from reaching the two toms.

So far Macavity seemed oblivious to his presence, which suited Tugger just fine as he crouched down and prepared to do something. Well, something stupid. It was what he was best at, anyway.

Taking as deep of a breath as he could, Tugger counted to three before pouncing over a wall of flame and grabbing hold of Macavity, ripping the older cat away from Quaxo who still lay immobile on the floor. 

As the pair tumbled away from the tuxedo cat, Tugger barely had time to look up before Macavity's eyes were on him, his fury seeming to glow from within like a ruby caught out in the sun. Instantly Tugger knew the ginger cat was going to make him pay for attacking him, but Tugger didn't care. Quaxo was safe for the moment, Misto could have a precious second or two to recover, and whatever happened to Tugger now was inconsequential.

Bracing himself for whatever would come next, Tugger closed his eyes and looked away from the harsh glow that only seemed to grow brighter as the Wizard began to… laugh? Opening his eyes again, Tugger was stunned to find Macavity grinning like he'd already won. Like he'd already won, or that Tugger simply wasn't in on the joke. 

"Oh you silly, silly little boy," Macavity said, eyes glittering, his voice full of both amusement and pure delight. "I told you he doesn't care for you. I tried to warn you and yet here you are risking yourself anyway. It's almost too much."

Before Tugger had realized what was happening, Macavity was standing above him, pressing his foot to Tugger's chest to keep him down.

Hissing at the other tom, Tugger's tail swiped angrily behind him, even as his ears betrayed his fear by flattening tightly against his head.

"It's too late," the ginger cat continued as if Tugger hadn't been struggling beneath him, not a hint of exertion in his tone.

In the corner of Tugger's eyes he saw Mistoffelees rising from the ground. He was moving slowly, a bit oddly, but he was alive and that was all that mattered. He didn't dare look any further the tuxedo cat's way, lest Macavity catch sight of him as well, but it was comforting to say the least that Misto would be at his side in mere moments.

"I've taken everything I need," Macavity went on, but Tugger wasn't really listening anymore. "I've taken everything I need and… oh dear, it looks like I've given something back too."

Before Tugger could process that last bit, Macavity let him go from under his foot. Confused, Tugger didn't have time to move before a new body was pressed on top of his. A familiar one, and one that Tugger would recognize anywhere.

He found himself staring up at Mistoffelees as the tuxedo tom dug his claws into Tugger's shoulders to keep the larger cat still. Dimly Tugger could hear Macavity laughing, could feel the pain of Misto's claws, but all Tugger could register was the unfeeling glint in Misto's eyes. Like everything that had been the cat he knew and loved was gone and replaced with… with… nothing.

"He's mine now," Macavity continued from somewhere above them but Tugger refused to take his eyes off of Misto. "A nice little trick I learned from my Mistoffelees. I've taken his magic, and his soul. He's my ticket to the Heaviside layer, he always has been. His power combined with mine is enough to open the door, and his soul is enough to grant me a new life without sacrificing my own. I'll come back stronger than ever and I'll remember everything. I'll be the most powerful cat in Oz, and nothing will stand in my way."

Tugger's heart was hammering a mile a minute, Macavity words sinking in and terrifying the coon in a way he hadn't expected, but the true source of his panic was the lack of recognition in Quaxo's eyes. Eyes that no longer seemed to recognize him no matter how hard Tugger silently pleaded that they would. "Quaxo," he found himself whispering, and yet nothing. Macavity cackled again, but still Tugger couldn't look away. 

"I think I'll have him kill you," Macavity continued, moving to stand closer to the pair. His imposing silhouette blocked out most of the light shining in from a window behind him, and despite the flames he still cast a long shadow over the two cats on the floor. "Won't that be delicious? But first, how about we take a glimpse at the other side?" 

The ginger cat stepped over the two of them, spreading a hand out and causing the flames to make an imperfect circle around the three of them. Then, he held both hands up and created what appeared to be a crack in the very fabric of reality. Light poured in and framed the tom in a kaleidoscope of colors, so bright that Tugger found himself looking away and back toward Quaxo. Ordinarily, Tugger would find such a colorful display mesmerizing, but he couldn't bring himself to call anything about this situation mesmerizing.

As Tugger looked at Quaxo, his heart leapt into his throat. The other cat's ear twitched. Just a fraction, and just for a second, but it gave way to a look in Quaxo's eyes that Tugger could read just as well as any other.

The tuxedo cat was asking him to play along.

xxx

Mistoffelees had fought Macavity with everything that he'd had in him. He'd fought tooth and claw against the mental hold the other cat had gripped him with. In the end Macavity had managed to drain him, strip away most of his magic and leave him relatively defenseless, but his soul? No, his soul was right where it belonged, thank you very much. Tugger was never in any danger, and it was Macavity who remained first on Misto's list of cats to inflict harm upon. 

The ginger cat was nearby, but Misto didn't dare take his eyes off of Tugger until the time was right. Macavity had to be unsuspecting if this was ever going to work, and so far he was. Misto just hoped he could keep him that way.

"It's beautiful, isn't it?" Macavity was continuing, and if Misto could turn his head he would see the other tom reaching out to touch the crack as it grew wide enough for a full sized cat to slip through. Mistoffelees knew from his reading of the spell book that this was not the proper way to open or manipulate the Heaviside layer, but when had Macavity ever done anything the proper way?

The ginger cat retracted his hand and moved closer to the pair on the floor, the flames around them starting to close in as Macavity manipulated the fire to his bidding. "Now," the Wizard began, voice oozing with confidence. "I think it's time that you die."

He was talking to Tugger, and Misto knew that his one and only chance was drawing near. He just had to wait, hold off for the proper moment… and hope everything in his newly revised plan went off without a hitch. 

xxx

It was hard to see over the flames, but Bombalurina thought she could see Tugger lying on the ground and Quaxo, or Mistoffelees, or whatever he was calling himself these days, pinning him there. Between herself and Munkustrap, they'd managed to fend off most of the guards and the rest had retreated once the flames grew too far out of control. Even now, her determination to see this through never having been higher, Bombalurina was starting to regret not following them. Her once red coat of fur was stained nearly wholly black, and each breath was met with a cough that was echoed twice over by Munkustrap. But Tugger was in danger, and Bombalurina wasn't going to let him stay that way.

Moving as one, she and Munkustrap began to make their way toward the Wizard and their friends, but as Bombalurina watched, two things happened in rapid succession. First, Mistoffelees seemingly shook off whatever had possessed him to pin Tugger down in the first place, launched himself into a standing position, and swiped hard at the Wizard with his claws. Even from this distance Bombalurina could see the blood as it sprayed from the cut on the red tom's cheek. Second, with a single swipe of his hand and a flawless pirouette given the circumstances, water fell like rain from an unseen cloud and doused the raging inferno. It managed to drench them all in the process, but Bombalurina would take a little rain any day over the stifling heat of the flames.

Then a third thing happened that she didn't think anyone had suspected, least of all Macavity. As she watched with wide eyes, frozen to the spot in shock and a fair bit of awe, Bombalurina watched Mistoffelees go toe to toe with Macavity… and win.

The magical cats fought tooth and claw, fur flying and tails whipping through the air, but Macavity strayed too close to the mystical opening of pure light, and with one well placed kick Misto sent him falling backward into the opening. Bombalurina was stunned, as were they all, and for a moment there was complete silence in the throne room, broken only by the steady sound of rain hitting the floor. 

And then something wicked happened. 

A hand reached back through the portal of light, a ginger-furred hand and jeweled red sleeve, that gripped tight to Misto's sparkling jacket. The tuxedo tom looked startled for a moment, and as the hand pulled he began to stumble backwards. She saw his eyes lock with Tugger's, even as his hands moved in what looked like an attempt to produce some sort of magical spell, but it appeared it was too late. Spinning once in a circle to face the light, Mistoffelees hit it seconds later and seemed to flash out of existence as the crack closed, the rain stopped, and all was silent.

xxx

Tugger could remember so clearly the first time he'd seen Quaxo walking across the Shiz commons and drawing the attention of everyone. The set of his shoulders, his determination not to be seen and not to draw a crowd, while his sister had other ideas entirely. Tugger could remember catching his eyes. It was just for a moment, but it was enough for the coon to have the color of Quaxo's eyes seared into his memory. That impossible shade of green seared on his heart. 

Tugger would always remember the last time he'd seen Quaxo too. 

Their eyes had locked, only for a moment, but it was long enough for Tugger to see the fear in Misto's eyes as he was pulled backwards into the opening to the Heaviside layer. There'd been determination too, but fear was the expression that Tugger would remember the most. 

In the end Tugger wasn't sure who screamed louder, himself or Bombalurina, but as the tense silence was broken by his own voice he sank to his knees in shock as he stared at the place that Quaxo had been standing only seconds prior. His heart felt heavy, his body felt numb, and he hadn't noticed that he was crying until Bombalurina's delicate fingers began to brush away the tears streaming down his cheeks.  

"He's gone," he heard himself say, but even so the words sounded foreign and the meaning of them was lost. "He's really gone," he continued, and as he tore his gaze away and looked toward the red queen Tugger finally allowed himself to break. Crumbling inward, he pressed his face into Bombalurina's chest and cried for the loss of his… of his…

Mistoffelees had been so many things, choosing a single label was impossible. All Tugger knew was that it hurt, and as far as he was concerned he might never recover. 

Tugger felt the hands of his older brother on his shoulders. Munkustrap knelt behind the coon while Bombalurina sat in front of him and held him while he cried. Neither of them could fully understand, but they understood enough that their presence was soothing, to a degree. Whether that would be enough only time would tell, but for now Tugger let his friends hold him. That is, until the soft pad of paws had Tugger's ears twitching and his head raising to see Misto's Pollicle friend moving into the room.

They were what this had been for, Tugger knew. Not only for the cats of Oz, but for the dogs that had too long been cast out as their enemy. Mistoffelees had done this for them, and Tugger was going to honor that sacrifice until his dying days.

"Bomba…" he began, but the red queen was one step ahead of him as she stood and cautiously walked toward the dog and began to make a proper introduction. She would make a good leader, Tugger realized. He was surprised that he'd never noticed before how effortlessly she slipped into that role, and just how good she was at living up to it. Oz would be in good hands, Tugger knew. He just wished Misto were here to know that for himself. 

Tugger shook off Munk's touch, and the gray tabby let his brother go as Tugger stood and made his way across the room to gather the book of spells that had been tossed aside before this scuffle had begun. The book was probably the last thing Tugger had of Misto, and as he pressed it to his chest he clung to it as if it would somehow bring the other tom back. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath that somehow managed to calm him.

The pain was still there, it would probably always still be there, but for now Tugger was able to function even with it. 

Things would be different now, he realized. Not just without Mistoffelees, but without Macavity. Things would change, and it was up to Tugger to make sure that they changed for the better. Just as Tugger had been changed by meeting Quaxo, so too would Oz be changed by his sacrifice. That would have to be enough.

xxx

Oz had recovered tremendously from the wound delt to it's capital. The Emerald City was no longer a scorched and tainted reminder of Macavity's rein, but instead it glittered green and bright in the moon and was beginning to house Pollicle refugees from all over the world. Dogs and cats living together should have been the cause for mass hysteria, but with new leadership in the form of the well loved Bombalurina, the transition went remarkably smooth.

There was still the odd tension that would flair up, tempers that would cause the odd squabble to break out, but this new normal was becoming the new normal far quicker than even Tugger had anticipated. 

Mistoffelees would be proud, and that was more than enough for the coon.

To mark the two week anniversary of the transition from a monarchy to something resembling a bit of a democracy, Tugger once again found himself in the Ozdust ballroom dancing the night away… only this time without Mistoffelees by his side. It had been Bombalurina's idea, an event to show Oz that even though many things had changed, dancing and merriment remained the staple of the Jellicles life. Even the Pollicles, having of course been invited, were getting into the festivities in their own doggish way. 

Victoria was there, slow dancing with Plato regardless of the style of music as the two gazed into one another's eyes. Tugger had never been close to Victoria, but shared grief was a powerful thing and when the white queen caught his eyes and offered him a small smile Tugger returned it easily. 

Bombalurina had been trying to get Tugger to join in the dancing for the past hour, tugging on his arm and using that face that Tugger could never say no to, but Tugger didn't much feel like dancing. Not when he didn't have a partner. Eventually the red queen gave up, and Tugger could see her dancing animatedly with Demeter and a Pollicle near the center of the floor. She looked happy, full of life and hope, and it made Tugger smile all the more.

He caught the ever knowing eyes of Munkustrap, his older brother silently asking whether or not Tugger was alright. Tugger responded by shrugging a shoulder and offering Munk a small smile in return. He wasn't alright, but he was here, and he was slowly beginning to shed the guilt he felt whenever he allowed himself to feel happy. Munkustrap smiled in return, then turned back to Alonzo and resumed whatever conversation they'd been having. 

Grizabella was standing against the wall, her eyes scanning the room as if she might want to join in but never quite working up the courage. Tugger owed a lot to her for helping Quaxo when they'd needed her most, and he knew that Misto would have been grateful for the way the older queen had given shelter and solace to Victoria just like she'd promised. A Pollicle, the same one that had accompanied them for part of their journey, the same one that had been the first to enter the throne room, was leaning against the wall with her, and as Tugger watched he could have sworn Grizabella was hiding a smile behind her glass of milk. 

Oz had flourished in the wake of all that had happened, and Tugger was proud to have been a part of it, but the music and the lights were beginning to be too much for the coon. Tugger made his way across the room, intending to slip outside. He grabbed his jacket on the way out, draping the black fabric over his shoulders much like a cape. His fingers briefly found the green lining on the inside, a shade Tugger had been drawn to for its similarity to Misto's eyes.

He shook his head to clear it of the noise of the party as he stepped into the cool night air, then began to walk the length of the building. His hands slipped into the pockets of his black pants, in lue of having suspenders to play with instead. Tugger had forgone them tonight, feeling as though he might've outgrown them to an extent, or maybe he'd just needed a change to reflect how different life was now that Mistoffelees wasn't in it. 

He'd met the tuxedo cat out here. Or, officially exchanged words with him for the first time. Slowing to a stop outside of the very same window Tugger had caught Quaxo staring in what felt like a lifetime ago, the coon watched through the glass and wondered if this was how Quaxo had felt back then. Like an outsider who desperately wanted to belong, but wasn't sure how. Fingering the collar of his white shirt, Tugger was deep in thought when he heard a voice from beside him. 

"Meow."

Nearly jumping out of his own skin, Tugger turned and found himself staring at… Mistoffelees . 

The tuxedo cat was a vision, cape and jacket gone and replaced with black pants and a matching black shirt, accented by black suspenders that were covered in silver sparkles. His bowtie too was black, but adorned with so many sparkles it may as well have been silver. 

There was no way even Tugger's wild imagination could come up with an outfit like that, which meant that Quaxo really was here. Really standing two feet away from him and leaning casually against the wall just like Tugger had the first time they'd spoken. Blinking, Tugger confirmed that the other tom didn't disappear like a mirage, and it was only then that the coon felt a relief and a joy so palpable that it brought tears to his eyes. 

"Hey kitten," Misto continued, but by then Tugger was moving forward and reaching out to cautiously touch Misto's shoulder to confirm once and for all that the tom was really here and real.

"How…?" Tugger gasped desperately, not sure he could manage to say anything else. Mistoffelees seemed to look a little sheepish for a moment, almost guilty and maybe just a little bit mischievous. 

"Conjuring turn," the tom replied, spinning his finger. Tugger thought back to the moment before Misto had disappeared, thinking back to the look of determination and the way he'd spun to face his doom. It all made so much sense Tugger was mentally kicking himself for not seeing it sooner. 

"Why...?" the coon gasped next, desperate to know just why it had taken Misto so long to return to him. So long to make his presence known and make everyone aware that he was indeed alive. That guilt was back in Misto's eyes, an apology written plainly on his features, but it didn't matter because Tugger had already forgiven him a million times over.

"I'm so sorry, Tugger. I wanted to come back right away, but I wanted to be sure that Oz was able to heal. I wanted to make sure that I didn't take the attention away from what truly mattered and I-"

The tuxedo cat was cut off as Tugger stepped forward and pulled the smaller tom into an embrace that finally, really confirmed that Misto was here, and allowed Tugger's tears of joy to slip from his eyes without fear of them being seen.

"I hate you," Tugger spoke after a moment, and as he felt Misto's arms wrap around him in return and the smaller cat nuzzle his cheek against Tugger's own, Tugger knew they both knew that he didn't.

"You love me," Mistoffelees replied, and Tugger did.