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“Electra!” A voice called. Electra looked up from the glowing toy and smiled at her older brother.

“Look, Misto!” she said happily. “I can make it shiny!”

“I know…well done.” Misto said. Electra frowned a little. Why did he sound sad? She thought the toy looked prettier this way… “Come with me, we’ve things to do.”

“Really? What things?” Electra jumped to her feet and followed Mistoffelees out of the door of their den. “Are you going to show me some magic?” She asked excitedly. Misto sighed and rubbed a paw over his eyes. He wished he didn’t have to do this magic. She was only a kitten! But Munkustrap had made him understand, there was no other way. He knew things about magic that Misto didn’t. Munkustrap knew that magic as strong as Electra’s could turn bad, turn her like Macavity, the evil cat that Misto had never seen in all the six months he and his baby sister had lived in the Junkyard. But he didn’t need to meet Macavity to know all about how dangerous and terrible he was. The Jellicles had all told him stories, and Misto knew he couldn’t let Electra go the same way. Although as he looked down at her innocent, eager face, he couldn’t imagine her ever going evil.

“Yes…you’ll see some magic,” he whispered. Electra jumped for joy, sparks flying from her fur. “Watch out!” Misto warned. The little sparks couldn’t hurt him, because he was magic too, but they would sting any other cat.

“Oops…sorry.” Electra said, her face falling. She couldn’t help making those sparks. They happened whenever she was happy, and then her friends ran away.

“It’s ok,” Misto said, keeping his tone light. “The spell I’m going to do will stop you from sparking. You won’t need to worry about it any more.” Electra’s eyes widened with hope.

“You can do that?” She asked, trying to hold her excitement down before she started sparking again. “The other kittens will play with me!” Misto smiled. It’d be great for Electra to have friends her own age, who weren’t scared of her.

“Up here,” He said as they arrived at the huge tyre that overlooked the cleared area of the Junkyard. Munkustrap was waiting on the side of the tyre. The Junkyard was silent. Munku had warned all the Cats to stay away tonight, while Misto did his magic. Electra looked at the ring of unlit candles on the tyre rim, and saw magical protections glittering with Misto’s electric blue light around them.

“This is a powerful working,” she said, a tinge of awe in her voice. Munkustrap looked at her gravely.

“Um…” Misto began, he was still a little nervous of Munkustrap, “I think it’s best if you leave now. I’ve done my best to protect the tyre, but I don’t know how protective my barriers will be. Magic could still leak out a little way and it could affect things close by.” Munkustrap nodded.

“I’ll wait there,” he pointed to Pouncival’s chair. Misto watched him leap gracefully up the pile of junk, then turned to his sister.

“Sit inside the ring, right in the middle.” He told her. She obeyed, spotting the pentagram drawn in magic and sitting in the centre. She’d never had magic done on her and wondered what it felt like, but she completely trusted Misto. He stepped into the circle and made a small gesture with his paw. Every candle around them flared and began burning. Electra would have giggled – Misto usually made such a song and dance about doing magic that it was funny to see him do anything so quietly and efficiently – but the expression on his face distracted her. She had never seen him look so sad.

“Misto…?” she asked quietly. He looked at her, his eyes black wells in the candlelight. Then suddenly she was swept into a fierce hug.

“I love you Electra!” He whispered.

“I love you too,” she said. “But why are you sad?” He hesitated, stood back up and pointed his paws at her.

“Sleep…” he whispered, and she fell into darkness.

Misto paced around the sleeping kitten. Three times clockwise, three times widdershins, containing her magic in a soul circle. He sat in front of her and shut his eyes.

Inside his magic he saw her, a towering golden blaze of light. She dwarfed his own electric blue flame and cast a brilliant radience that was barely restrained by the blue threads of his soul circle. For a while Misto just stared in awe. He had no idea how powerful she’d become. He hadn’t looked at her through magic since she was born, and she had grown a lot. Misto hadn’t even known magic could grow! He sighed and took up some thin blue threads of magic. This wasn’t going to be easy.

He wove the threads around her like a net, tightening it as he did, forcing her power downwards. Electra cried out, her pain echoing oddly in Misto’s trance. He gritted his teeth and kept working, though his eyes stung with tears at her cries, and she soon she fell silent.

Misto, down to the tiniest bits of magic left in him, finished the net. Her golden flame was now compressed in a tight blue net, trapping it from her use. His knots strained, fighting to stay together, threatening to undo all his work. He gasped and reached inside himself, flung a pulse of magic at his net. It shimmered, and strengthened, locked. It was done, but something was happening to him…with a chill of fear, he realised he had used up too much of his power…while Electra still glowed that brilliant gold, and his magical bonds shone blue, the magic inside him was down to quivering embers, casting no light into the darkness that drew over his vision like a veil, and then he knew nothing.

Munkustrap sat on the chair, his tail occasionally twitching. He could sit still for hours without getting stiff, but boredom was another factor entirely. Electra’s heartrending cries had quietened hours ago, and Munku was glad. He hated hearing the kitten in pain, even though he knew it was for the best. The last thing anyone needed was another Macavity on their hands. Especially Mistoffelees, Munku knew. The black and white magician, not much more than a kitten himself, still greived over the death of his and Electra’s mother, and losing the sister he loved so dearly would finish him.

Suddenly Munku jumped to his feet in alarm. Misto had fallen and lay motionless on the tyre, and every candle had simultaneously gone out. Something was wrong.

“Mistoffelees!” He called, leaping down to the tyre. He hestitated on stepping into the circle, knowing that if the magic was still working it could be dangerous for everyone. But he couldn’t just leave the kit there! He stepped into the cirlce and called into Misto’s ear. No response. Was he dead? Anxiously Munku bent down and listened for his breath. It was faint, but there.

Electra woke first, after a few days of sleep. Demeter and Munkustrap, who had been looking after her, soon realised the difference in the kitten. She appeared to have no memory of ever having magic, and her strange mature insights and compassion were gone too. Now, she was just an average kitten, and soon made close friends with their own kitten Jemima, and the others her age. She was upset that her beloved brother was ‘sick’ as Demter put it, but no more worried than any kitten would be, and assumed he would get better soon.

Jennyanydots, who had taken in the small tom, was worried however. He slept without moving or appearing to dream, and it was all Jenny could do to get enough water into him. As time went by he became thin from lack of food, and she was scared he would die if he didn’t wake up soon.

Look what happened. Ama sounded petulant. I chose that queen-kitten specially, and now that annoying little tom has gone and trapped her soul.

He didn’t mean to. Lai said. He wanted to protect her, he thought her magic would become tainted if he didn’t.It’s interesting…he shouldn’t have been able to work such a strong spell.

He did it out of love, Ama sighed, and love is so unpredictable. Even we can’t control love in mortals. But I really didn’t expect this.

The tom is dying, Lai observed. Why not let him live? After all, he wasn’t to know you’d picked her.

You’re too nice, Ama complained. I don’t want him interfering again.

That’s easy to fix, Lai said, and sent a wave of magic down to the mortal cat.

Oh Lai! Ama sighed. You always had a soft spot for that one. Lai grinned.

And you’ve not had your favourites over time? I never agreed with killing the mortals when they did something wrong anyway. Even though they do like it better up here, they should still get their chance at living their whole life. Oh, let’s not get into that debate again, Ama said. They get reborn anyway, it’s not like it matters! She shrugged. Oh well, the kitten will come into her own someday. The power of the Feliosphere isn’t so easily stopped. And it just might be more interesting this way. Harder on Electra, but good may come of it.

“Mistoffelees? Misto…wake up…” the words echoed through his mind. The voice was familiar…he struggled to wake. His eyelids were heavy and didn’t want to open. “Misto.” The voice came again, loud and close. He opened his eyes.

“Mother?” he asked, trying to blink the blurriness away.

“No, dear, it’s Jennyanydots,” she said, and a spark of hope died. Confused and slightly embarrassed, he tried to sit up but she pushed him back gently.

“You should rest. You’ve been sleeping for a long time. We were worried.” She told him. Misto frowned.

“What happened? I’m not sure…how long have I been asleep?” Jenny hesitated.

“Nearly two weeks. Don’t you remember the spell?”

“I remember falling,” he said. “I must have hit my head.” Jenny bit her lip. Now that he mentioned it she did remember his fall…and more clearly now. Of course, he had slipped from the tyre and managed to strike his head on the corner of the metal steps. What had she been thinking? She must have dreamed him casting a spell. Why would he cast one on his own sister anyway? How silly.

“Are you hungry or thirsty?” she asked, changing the subject away from her mistake. “There’s water there,” she indicated a small bowl beside the ragged blankets he lay on, “and Skimbleshanks caught a mouse last night.” She wrinkled her nose, “You can have it.” Misto smiled, knowing Jenny didn’t like to eat the mice and tried to persuade her mate to only eat rats or birds. “Thank you,” he said, the memory of his weird dream about two tall, glowing cats staring at him already disappearing.

The event began to fade from everybody’s memories and soon if you had asked any cat what had happened to Misto and Electra that night, the answer would have been that Misto fell and knocked himself out, and Electra had slept off a fever for a few days. Electra was just a normal kitten now, and played with the other kittens happily. If anything she was the most normal kitten in the Junkyard, and caused the least trouble. If she had ever shown any tendency towards becoming another Macavity, it was gone now, locked away with her magic and her soul.

- the end -