The new Queen in the Junkyard [Alonzo/open]

[eliaza]

Alonzo's paw went out instinctively to assist the queen when she seemed to stumble. But she just as quickly righted herself, and he withdrew his paw and turned to scan the area, hoping she hadn't noticed. Queens didn't often seem to want or need his help: they preferred to be independent and were insulted when a tom treated them like they couldn't look after themselves. There had only been one queen who had wanted his protection, and well, he remembered how that had turned out... Shaking his head to clear it, he asked Fireheart, "Any luck from the view up there?"

[dodd4]

the gray and black striped tom suppressed a grin of his own as
he had himself stepped to where he would be able to catch her if she fell. he gave a shrug and remained quiet, waiting for Fireheart's answer. despite his earlier heartache his mood was definitely improving with the good company. he liked Fireheart and Alonzo they reminded him of some of the best among Growltiger's crew, the ones who had taken to heart Captain Tigers
notions of plying the trade honorably.

[Deleted]

She had noticed both toms move as if to catch her when she stumbled and once again she blushed under her fur. She liked when a tom seemed keen on helping her, even though she prided herself on getting along just fine with her leg. She shook her head and said "The junkyard is to big to see completely from here." As she moved to get down, she stumbled again but this tine didn't have time to catch herself. She fell right onto Alonzo with a soft "oof." Moving carefully off of Alonzo she muttered "sorry." She felt her leg twinge slightly and thought to herself 'Just fantastic.' Though she tried not to let it show her leg ached slightly.

[eliaza]

Alonzo turned to Grumbus and was about to start making suggestions about where else they might search, when he felt sudden weight falling against him and turned just in time to grip her shoulders and stop them both falling to the ground. He immediately let go when she regained her balance and moved away. She looked about as embarrassed as he felt, and for a moment he was at a complete loss what to say. He couldn't help noticing her leg seemed to be troubling her, but would she only get angry if he mentioned it? Glancing at Grumbuskin as if begging for help, he replied to Fireheart, "Please, think nothing of it - I trust you're all right?" Hopefully that was vague enough not to embarrass her further by calling specific attention to her leg.

[dodd4]

the scarred tom looked away to give the youngsters a moment to settle themselves, then he scratched his chin speculatively. "might he be with that human a his at
tha Vicarage?" he asked turning back to them. "try ta avoid tha monkeys me self, oh
Ah have known some good one true, but to many are na worth a spit!" he said then he shrugged "but that be beside tha point, so ya thoughts lad?"

[Deleted]

"I'm alright thanks" she replied as she smiled at him. Call her silly but she was starting to like Alonzo. She listened as Grumbuskin spoke. When he mentioned humans she rinkled her.nose a little. It was due to humans that her leg was bad. She kept quiet, scratching at the collar she still wore from her days of.living with humans.

[eliaza]

Alonzo shrugged at Grumbuskin's comments about humans. He knew a lot of Jellicles considered them the bane of all existence, while some others thought of them as the most wonderful beings on earth, and others (namely Mungojerrie and Rumpelteazer) thought of them as useful for their own purposes - such as collecting treasures. Alonzo was rather indifferent towards the creatures: they'd never really done him any good, but they'd never hurt him or anyone he loved, which was more than he could say for certain of his fellow cats. Returning to the matter at hand, he nodded at Grumbus' idea about Old D. possibly being at the vicarage. "It's a possibility he went there, but it seems I saw him in the junkyard only a little while ago. Over by the Tire, or the Pipe, perhaps?"

[dodd4]

Grumbuskin nodded, "well then lets go try tha Pipe!" he said.
"an besides learin tha lay of tha land tis a good thing! after all ifin Ah'm ta pull me weight Ah need ta know my way around donn Ah?" he added waiting for the harlequin to take the lead.
then he gave a delicate cough, "ahem does either a ya know much about Miss Jennyanydots an her druthers? she's a splendid cailín
she is! and courtin her Ah am though Ah did stick ma paw in it Ah'll tell ya! but do ya know what kind vittles or colours she may be partial to? it's been ahwile, ta be honest ya both would have still bein weaned tha last time!" he said with a bashful cough.

[Deleted]

As the two toms spoke, Fireheart licked at her paw thoughtfully. She shook her head and said, "I'm afraid I'm going to be no help there, being so new myself." She scratched her ear softly as she started to wonder if the harleyquinn tom had anything he was overly fond of. Shaking her head she stood up, careful of her right leg. She looked around and caught site of a pale red bit of cloth and pulled it out from beneath some rubbish. Smiling she placed it by the tire and said "we can start a pile here for you Mr Grumbuskin. We can collect it all later for you."

[eliaza]

Alonzo let out a bit of an embarrassed cough as Grumbuskin spoke of his and Jennyanydots' courtship. He really knew little of Jenny's likes and dislikes - other than that she, like Jellylorum and most of the older queens, adored kittens and hated disorder. Still, he cast about in his mind for something to contribute - he really did want to help Grumbus since the older tom was so willing to help him. He especially felt the need to say something when Fireheart mentioned being too new to the Yard to know Jenny well, yet still found the piece of red cloth to give Grumbus. "She enjoys caring for the mice," Alonzo said finally. He felt even more embarrassed now, knowing that most other Jellicles enjoyed eating mice. Still, he persevered, "She prepares them little dainties - I recall her speaking of a mouse-cake recipe that included bread and dried peas - perhaps you could prepare some of the little cakes for her? It would save her some trouble, and she would be delighted to see someone appreciating the mice's needs as much as she does." He fell silent, scarcely daring to look at Fireheart or Grumbus - no doubt they both thought he had just said the most foolish thing possible. Perhaps Grumbus couldn't even cook? Besides, now he had just distracted them even further from their task of finding Old D., which a moment ago he had been speaking of as urgent - and it was urgent! "Erm... I agree, we should look by the pipe," he added, almost mumbling the words .

[dodd4]

the scarred tom nodded slowly, "all right Lad Ah'll give that a try. actually met one of tha little buggers last night when Munkustrap an some a tha others did that rescue while ya were pullin guard duty here," Grum said as the began to move along.
"his name was Johnathan Friseby it was and ya may think me daft but tha little blighter could talk! na really, just like us only right proper!
darndest thing. but tha Tribes business comes first! that's one a tha reasons Sweet Jenny an Ah suit, we both understand responsibility an duty!"


((referring to events in Oh Taxi and the Assault on Stalag 17 in the Dead Threads,
they were in a period when we didn't have an active Alonzo so your remaining on guard in the seems reasonable))







munkustrap

[eliaza]

Alonzo gave the tom an odd look - not because he had trouble believing a mouse could talk, but because it sounded familiar somehow. "Frisby?" Just where had he heard that name before...? And not just the name, but in his mind's eye he could picture, clear as day, a mouse riding on the back of a large black bird - not as if he had actually seen such a thing, but as if someone had shown him a painting once. He turned to Fireheart. "Does that name ring a bell with you? ... Grumbus, this mouse you met, was he perhaps wellknown and legendary among mice?" He felt foolish for treating this as if it were so important, but he could not help feeling that it held some significance that he couldn't remember.

((Yep, he keeps going off on tangents... Sorry!!! I couldn't resist having a bit of a geek moment over one of my most favourite stories ))

[dodd4]

as they walked along Grum grinned his scars rippling,"Legendary amongst his kind...Ah donn know. but Ah'll say this Johnny Boy twas a brave one, those queens we rescued last night? he helped he did! then he went back to his own. an Ah taint embarrassed ta say when Ah catch a mouse now Ah talk ta it afore eatin! ifin it's Johnny's kin it has a pass from me!" the scarred tom said, then he paused to get his bearings.
"aright if ya take that path it loops back ta tha dens by tha Gate right? an this one goes ta tha pipe?"

((feel free we geeked out for an entire arc having a blast making a boatload of crossreferances!

[Deleted]

As they spoke she tilted her head to the side and her ears pricked in interest. She shook her head when he asked if it sounded familiar. "Only talking mouse I've heard of is Desperote." She said and she suddenly realized how that sounded. "But that was only because my old humans would tell his stories to their babies." She didn't think.it strange that Grum spoke to mice. She had met another cat moons ago that did too.

[eliaza]

Humans! That was it. Alonzo nodded at Fireheart. "Yes, I believe I heard of the name Frisby from an old storybook that a human had thrown away. Well, I couldn't read myself, but my--" He froze, remembering. Because she had had to be in hiding so much, his mate Purreeta had found all she could to keep herself occupied. One of her favourites was digging old books out of rubbish cans and teaching herself to read. He bit his lip, trying his best to suppress the memories. "My friends found the book and showed me," he finished lamely. He cleared his throat and returned to the task at paw. "Yes, Grumbus, that path goes--" Suddenly he caught sight of movement near the front gates. "Say, I think I've just spotted Old D.!" he said to the other two, pointing.

((...that's assuming they can actually see the front gates from here... XD))