Deuteronomy

Family: Macavity (brother), Munkustrap (son), Rum Tum Tugger (son), Admetus (son - unknown), Fynn (son-deceased), Lorien (daughter),Lucifer (nephew)
(Open to other options and family relations!)

Personality: Deuteronomy has two sides of him. One side is extremely protective, stern and serious. Another term to sum up this particular side of his personality is “all business”. Deuteronomy’s primary focus is ensuring the safety and well being of his tribe. He wants them to feel safe, and for those who have had previous encounters with his brother, Deuteronomy’s goal is to make certain that they remain out of his grasp if they so choose. Granted, he cannot keep personal tabs on all of his members, but he does what he can to keep the yard’ under close watch of a sentinel at all times, rendering the yard’ an over all safe space.

In addition to Deuteronomy’s stern side, he can be extremely intimidating. He can also be stubborn. While he will listen to Munkustrap’s suggestions and heartedly considers them, Deuteronomy always goes with his gut feeling (whatever that may be), and once his mind is made up, his decision is final. He is a wise tom, and while he isn’t void of making mistakes, Deuteronomy has experience in dealing with his brother, and knows Macavity far more than anyone else. His decisions regarding the actions and affairs of his brother, and the well being of the tribe are exceedingly well thought out, and Deuteronomy, while wise and patient, can take offense if his decisions are questioned after his mind has been made up.

The second side to Deuteronomy is a far gentler and charismatic. He has a certain charm about him – a charm that attracts many and makes him approachable. He cares deeply for his children and his tribe, and has grown exceptionally accepting over the years. Any cat, no matter their age or background is welcome to consider the junkyard their home, and should someone need a listening year, years of experience dealing with multiple personalities has turned him into somewhat of a “counselor”. He has a soft spot for the younger cats of the tribe, and cares not when one plops down in his lap or uses his long arms and legs as a jungle gym. He has raised a handful of kittens himself, so he is exceedingly apt to handling children.

Lastly, Deuteronomy has an easiness about him; an underlying vibe that makes him extremely approachable, and he cam make anyone feel good about themselves, or important when having a one on one conversation. He is eloquent and a gentleman. He is patient, and is able to hide his frustration when dealing with a particularly difficult situation. As mentioned above, Deuteronomy has run across many cats in his lifetime. He has the ability to pick up on another’s intentions, whether they be good or bad, and deal with them accordingly. He is by no means a mystic, he is just exceedingly intuitive.

History: Due to his extensive history, many would say that Deuteronomy has lived many lives. He has experienced much, and has turned everything that could have crippled him, both physically and mentally into strengths.

Deuteronomy was born only minutes before his younger brother, Macavity. While they shared the same mother – a pretty black based queen – Deuteronomy and Macavity did not share the same father. It was Deuteronomy’s father though that raised both he and Macavity, though Deuteronomy made it his personal responsibility to look after his smaller brother when neither parent was around.

Deut’s relationship with Macavity started out as any sibling relationship should. He loved him and grew very protective of Macavity, even though he was only a hair taller and a few minutes older. At that age, Deuteronomy felt as if Macavity needed him, and if Macavity wanted him to jump, he jumped. It wasn’t until they began to grow older that their relationship became more strained. Deuteronomy became burdened with the path of leadership, often spending more and more time with his father. Unbeknown to him, Macavity grew bitter and jealous during this time and whatever relationship they had left completely turned to shreds by a queen. Grizabella. Deuteronomy didn’t love her to the same extent Macavity did, and so, when Grizabella left, Macavity did as well, severing his bonds with Deuteronomy.

What neither Macavity nor Munkustrap knew at the time is that Grizabella left out of embarrassment. She was a queen who had ridiculously high standards, and pregnancy was out of the question. After finding out that she was carrying Deuteronomy’s kitten(s), Grizabella left and only returned to hand over the male kit to him when she refused to take care of him herself. Despite pleading for Grizabella to let him raise the female kitten as well, Grizabella refused. Her reason being was that she wanted to raise the little girl to have the life she was deprived of due to her “scandalous” pregnancy. The little tom she cared nothing for. So, without another word, Grizabella left with the female kitten, whom she named Lorien, and left the tom kitten with Deuteronomy.

Said kitten was named Fynn. He looked much like his mother with her dark gray and scarlet markings, and Deuteronomy instantly fell in love with the child. He raised Fynn for two years, and during these two years, Deuteronomy gained leadership over the Jellicle tribe after his father’s death. Also during these two years he began courting a lovely little silver tabby queen named Desdemona. Desdemona was gorgeous. He was instantly charmed by her smile and busty figure, and was even more impressed at how well she interacted with Fynn. Not a year after they met, Desdemona gave birth to a carbon copy of herself – Munkustrap. While Munkustrap’s birth would have been a joyious occasion, Desdemona died during the process along with a still born princess who showed signs of having his mane.

Naturally, Deuteronomy grieved. He grieved for his lost love, and for the daughter he’d never get to know. Despite his sorrow though, Deut knew he couldn’t abandon the two sons he did have. Flynn showed so much promise in becoming the future leader, and Munkustrap was growing up strong and showed much promise as well. While Munkustrap was a daily reminder of Desdemona, Deuteronomy tried his best to honor her by being a good father.

Juggling a tribe and kittens proved to be a hard task. He strived daily to be the best at both, and often went without sleep. When Munkustrap was about 4, Deuteronomy began growing fond of a leopard spotted queen named Cheetera. She wasn’t his Desdemona, but she put adventure back into his life and rekindled a spark in him that he thought died with Desdemona. He knew it wasn’t love, but he cared for her regardless. The Rum Tum Tugger wasn’t planned, nor was he conceived from the same love that produced Munkustrap, but he loved Tugger regardless, and agreed to care for him when Cheetera decided to move away with her humans. She did not think her humans would agree to allow her to bring Tugger along, so she reluctantly handed him over to Deuteronomy in hopes that she would someday be able to see them both again.

So with that, everywhere Deuteronomy went, three little tom kittens weren’t far behind. He loved them equally, but cared for them differently based on their personalities. Fynn and Munkustrap were going to be his warriors, and he was proud of them beyond measure. But Tugger – Tugger was far more carefree and flirtatious. Even as a kit he had to pull his youngest away from queens, apologizing for anything he might have said. Still, Tugger was enduring, and Deuteronomy found joy in the dynamic of all of his kittens.

A few years passed without any hiccups. The junkyard thrived, and while he dealt with a few threats from Macavity, there were none that couldn’t be handled. He had accepted many new members, and became “familiar” with a number of other queens (though if he had any kittens by them, they never told him), and ruled graciously. His world however crumbled when Munkustrap brought the body of Fynn home, and Deuteronomy once more felt the same suffocating grief he felt at Desdemona’s death. This however, was far worse. This was his son – his first son. Deuteronomy could hardly stand it. To make matters worse, Munkustrap had it in his head that Fynn’s death was his fault, and of course, Deuteronomy did not think that to be the case.

In short, it took Deuteronomy a while to get over the death of his son. He never abandoned his duties as the tribe leader, but it took a number of months before he acted like himself. He still often thinks of his son and grieves as any parent should, but now when he thinks of Flynn, he only remembers the good memories. He tries not to linger on the horridness of his death.

With Flynn gone, the role of leadership fell to Munkustrap, and Deuteronomy has been guiding him ever since. Despite the recent fiasco with Macavity, he feels that Munkustrap is doing a good job at protecting the tribe and keeping things relatively peaceful. His son has much to learn still, but he has complete faith in his son, and knows that Munkustrap will make a fine leader one day. Until then, Deuteronomy remains fit for duty and constantly involved.