No one in the tribe doubted that Macavity and Clemitanie would become mates by the Jellicle Ball. But all the same, the two of them received congratulations from everybody.

So, the very next day, Clemitanie and Macavity made their den as their permenant place of residence.

One could assume that the two of them resided together, raised Alonzo, and lived for many joyful years together to the day they died.

If only it were that simple...

A week later, Grizabella was sitting by herself on her mate's tire. Macavity woke up early that morning to take a walk around the junkyard when he spotted his mother in the clearing. He sauntered over to her and sat down next to her. He smiled and brightly said "Good morning, Mom."

Grizabella looked at her son and smiled back, saying "Good morning, sweetheart." Then she looked toward the sunrise.

Macavity watched the sunrise with her. After a few moments of silence, he commented "Beautiful, isn't it?"

She nodded without looking at him. After another short interval of silence, Macavity turned to his mother and asked her "Is everything alright?"

"Yes, everything is fine," she assured him, but with a note of hesitation in her voice.

"Mom, everything is not fine," he realized, "You can try to convince me that you are alright, but you won't succeed. Please, tell me what is on your mind."

Grizabella gazed at her son; then she merely smiled at him again. She finally decided to tell him her thoughts, "Macavity, you've seen this city from a bird's-eye view several times, correct?"

He shrugged and said "Most of it."

"I am curious to know," she said, "What is the city like?"

Macavity went into a lenghty description of the many wondrous sights London had to offer, as well as some historical or cultural landmarks. When he was finished with the description, he asked his mother why she wanted to know. She explained "Ever since I was a young kitten, I've had a profound desire to explore or see what else is out there."

"You mean what's out there in London?" Macavity inquired.

"No, I mean beyond London," she clarified, "In fact, probably even beyond England. Unforunately, I've never had the ability to fulfill that desire."

"Why not?" he asked.

"I'm sure you know why." Grizabella gazed back at him.

Macavity sat thinking for a minute, and then the answer came to him: the worst crime - and perhaps the only unforgivable one, if there was such a thing - that any member of the Jellicle Tribe could commit was to turn his or her back on the tribe. This was accomplished by leaving the tribe with the intention to never return.

"I understand your situation," said Macavity, "But, Mom, aren't you happy here?"

"Of course, I am," she nodded, "But I sometimes wish I could go somewhere else. You see, there are humans who travel the globe and never reside for too long in any one place."

"I know, but they're HUMANS, Mom," said Macavity. "There are a lot of things humans do that we don't do. Like, we don't drive cars; we don't ride bicycles; we don't use utensils when we eat; we don't swim-"

"Yes, I know," Grizabella politely interrupted her son, "But all the same, I feel that there is this huge gap in my life devoid of something important. I feel that travelling is the only thing that can fill that gap. I have been able to control my aforementioned desire up to this point, but now, it has almost overwhelmed me."

Macavity had always known that his mother liked to get out, but he had not idea that her fondness of getting out was THIS tremendous. An unplesant thought suddenly entered his mind. He said to Grizabella "Mom, are you saying that Dad, Munk, Tugger, and I are the only reasons you've stayed this long?"

"No, of course not," she looked surprised that he would ask such a question. "But I just HAVE to see what is out there with my own eyes. Maybe that gap in my life can be fulfilled after all."

Macavity shrugged and stood up. He told his mother "I would suggest that you just think about this desire, and do whatever you believe is best." Then he went on his walk around the junkyard to leave his mother to her thinking.

The next morning, Grizabella was gone. She had left long before anyone else in the tribe had woken up. She had left nothing behind except a note on the entrance to the junkyard. The note said the following:

"To The Tribe:

I have made up my mind. I am leaving. I do not care if you do not approve; the tribe's 'golden rule' will not prevent me from fullfilling my lifelong ambition.

-G"

Everyone was shocked when they read this note; Macavity being the most shocked of them all. Even Old Deuteronomy was confused by Grizabella's reckless action. However, Munkustrap and Rum Tum Tugger were deeply distraught. They could not believe that their own mother had abandoned them to fulfill some personal objective.

"Of all the crude, selfish, hedonistic things to do-" Munkustrap began to shout.

"This one puts all the others to shame!" Tugger finished for him.

"Guys, I don't think she's serious," Macavity said to his two elder brothers, "In fact, if there's someone you should be mad at, it should be me."

Munkustrap and Tugger quickly went from being angry to being confused and surprised.

"What do you mean, Mac?" inquired Tugger.

Macavity told them about the previous morning when he had spoken with Grizabella. He was also keen to mention how the advice he had given her about "doing whatever she believed was best" must have backfired. He even seem convinced that this mess was his fault. But even after he had finished his explanation, Munkustrap and Tugger were still angry solely at Grizabella.

"You may have given her a few encouraging words, Mac," Munkustrap pointed out, "But she had this desire all her life. All three of us should have known that it was only a matter of time before this happened!"

"Well, one thing is for certain," Tugger said through gritted teeth, "If she ever DOES come back, I won't forgive her."

"Nor will I." Munkustrap concurred with a note of fury in his voice.

"I will," Macavity bravely admitted, "And I don't care if you disapprove of that. She may have left us, but she is still our mother and she loves us all."

Macavity had hoped that his last sentence would make his brothers reconsider their emotions. But his attempt to persuade them failed, and they remained angry at their mother for her actions.

Macavity was very upset for the rest of the day. That night, he was in his den with Clemitanie and Alonzo. Both of them could tell that Macavity was under a lot of stress. They decided to try to comfort him.

"Are you okay, Dad?" asked Alonzo.

"Yeah, I'm fine," Macavity told his son.

Clemitanie stroked her mate on the ear and told him "Tell us what's on your mind."

Reluctantly, Macavity told them how he was feeling. There was so much guilt and sadness on his mind that it felt unbearable to him.

"I was trying to convince my mother that her ambition was a little far-fetched," he said through tear-filled eyes, "Instead, I convinced her to forsake the tribe! You cannot possibly imagine how that makes me feel! My mother is gone, and no one can ever replace her."

Clemitanie and Alonzo sat on either side of Macavity and hugged him. Clemitanie said "Alonzo and I are here for you, Mac. We may not be able to emulate her personality or characteristics, but I can promise you that we can give you just as much love and care as she did."

Macavity looked at Clemitanie and smiled. His tears started clearing up before he said "You mean it, Clem?"

"Of course I do." Both she and Alonzo hugged him tighter. He hugged them back.

Macavity's mother may have been gone, but he found that Clemitanie and Alonzo could fill the gap she had left behind. Now the two of them were his whole world. Secretly, Clemitanie was an much bigger part than Alonzo.