The following night, Tumblebrutus left the junkyard when he normally did. But this time, Coricopat, Tantomile, and Jemima went with him. Tumblebrutus had succeeded in convincing everyone that he would be leaving on a hunting trip the next day, and that he was allowed to invite three friends to accompany him.
Of course, that night, he was just taking the psychic twins and his queenfriend down to the docks so that Growltiger could fill them in on the details of the mission. They would not be leaving for at least another day.
When they arrived as Westminster, Tumblebrutus led them on board the ship. Two of the ship's security crew spotted the strange faces and ran over to detain them before they got on board.
Tumblebrutus told them "It's alright. They're with me."
The two guards eased down and nodded. One of them said "The Captain is waiting for you in the Meeting Chambers… sir."
"Thank you," Tumblebrutus turned to the others and gestured to continue. They followed him down to the next deck. As he led them to the Meeting Chambers, he said over his shoulder "Sorry about that. But the crew isn't so bad once you get more acquainted with them."
"That's easy for you to say, seeing as how you're fourth-in-command," Jemima commented.
"That may be true," Tumble agreed, "But I know for a fact that they are much friendlier around people they know."
When they arrived in the Meeting Chambers, Growltiger, Griddlebone, Grumbuskin, Ralpharite, Dominev, and Placondgo were already assembled there. The six of them watched as the four Jellicles entered the room.
Tumblebrutus led his friends over to Growltiger. When he stopped in front of him, Growltiger looked at the twins and asked Tumble "Are they the ones you spoke of?"
"Yes, sir," nodded Tumble, "These are the ones that can sense thoughts and emotions."
Growltiger turned back to the twins and watched them closely, as if he was studying them. He spoke after a few moments "What are your names?"
"I am Coricopat," replied the male twin.
"And I am Tantomile," answered the female twin.
Growltiger did notice that Jemima was there, too. He turned to Tumblebrutus and asked to speak with him outside the room for a moment. They went into the hallway. There, Growltiger asked his boatswain "Why did you bring Jemima here?"
"It's… a complicated matter, sir," was Tumble's response. He briefly told his Captain about his short but serious argument with Jemima the previous night. He knew that she was determined to go with him, but he was not sure how his Captain would take the idea of such a thing.
"Sir, believe me; I tried to tell Jemima about the danger of this mission, as well as its intended purpose for me," Tumblebrutus assured the Bravo Cat, "But she refuses to let me go without her. If I do, she'll tell the entire tribe about my work on this ship, and I'm nowhere near ready to tell them yet."
Growltiger stood thinking about all of this for a short while. He then told Tumble "Perhaps it could be possible for her to join and contribute to the mission."
The two of them walked back inside the Meeting Chambers, and Growltiger started explaining the plan, which he called Operation R.E.C.O.V.E.R. He spread out a map of London and its surrounding providences on the table, and used it to present his instructions more wholly.
"Hampton is only a short distance away, but it would take days to get there on foot," Growltiger told everyone, "That is why you will be travelling by train."
"Train, sir?" said Tumblebrutus.
"Yes," Growltiger confirmed. He pointed out a spot in Central London and the map and instructed them "One of the platforms at London Waterloo Station serves as the starting point of the South Western Main Line. At a certain point on that line, the tracks will switch off to the Hampton Court Branch Line, and wind up at the Hampton Court railway station at Hampton itself. Tomorrow night, you will take that train and follow that exact route."
"But Boss, there are a lot of different tracks the South Western Lines could switch off to," Grumbuskin pointed out, "How will we know when to get on at the right time?"
"Don't worry about that, sir," Ralpharite answered for the Captain, "I have a schedule of all the departure times from Waterloo Station. We can use that to keep track of the South Western Main Line's routes based on the time."
"Alright then," Grumbuskin nodded. He turned to Growltiger and said "Please, continue, sir."
Growltiger nodded and referred back to the map "Once you arrive in Hampton, I want you to find a place to make camp for the night. Do your best to look inconspicuous."
"Looking inconspicuous is not our best talent, sir, but we can manage," commented Dominev.
"Right," Growltiger pointed out a certain spot in the middle and Hampton and said "The day after you get there, I want you to spend it looking for Dawlimer, Scurtena, and Bellazni. But at night, you must arrive here at the Bell Inn to handle the business with Vearhin."
"It's going to take place at the Bell Inn this time?" said Grumbuskin in interest.
"Yes," Growltiger nodded, "But Grumbs, remember this carefully: Business first, then a drink."
"Of course, sir," Grumbuskin agreed. Whenever Grumbuskin went to Hampton, he would have a drink at the pub by the Bell Inn. It was one of his favorite places to get a beverage. Down there, other cats would call ordering a round "wetting their beards." However, since Grumbuskin was picking up a shipment meant for him and Growltiger, one could argue that he was "wetting his beard" in more than one way, as that was also the term gangsters used to describe receiving tribute from other gangsters.
"Do we have any leads on where to begin the search?" inquired Placondgo.
"Baltrow told us just before he died that a cat by the name Roshedam who lives down there seems to know something about where my children are located," Growltiger recalled, "So I'd suggest that you look for him first. Ask around and such. But be careful who you trust."
"Is that where we come in?" asked Coricopat.
"It is, indeed," Growltiger said to the psychic tom. He spoke to the others "Now, because none of you has ever seen my children before, Griddlebone and I have made some sketches of them, so that they may serve as a guide."
There, Griddlebone pulled out three expertly-drawn sketches of three young cats. She told the others "I drew them from memory as best I could. There may be a few minor errors, but I believe these are close enough."
The seven other cats took the drawings and studied them closely. From there, they got a good idea of what each of the three missing cats looked like.
Dawlimer had gold and red stripes, which he had inherited from his father, but he had a white chest and paws from his mother. Scurtena was white with patches of gold and red along her body, giving her a lovely combination of both her parents' coats. Bellazni had a coat composed entirely of patches of red, gold, and white, which complimented her figure nicely. It was easily to detect the Persian features they had inherited from their mother, which made Grumbuskin, Ralpharite, Dominev, and Placondgo feel a little uneasy.
Growltiger noticed this and told them "Gentlemen, I know what you are thinking. They may have foreign blood, but they are still of my line. I want you to commit these drawings to memory."
It did not take long for the other seven to manage that order. Once that was accomplished, Growltiger told the others "Once you have found them, I want you to come to the docks at West Molesey. It is only a few miles south of Hampton, so it should be an easy walking distance."
"Why do you want us to go there, sir?" asked Tumblebrutus.
"Because the Demagogue will be waiting for you there," replied Growltiger, "Once we rendezvous there, we can bring aboard Vearhin's shipment and my children at the same time."
"Why couldn't we just travel back by train, sir?" asked Placondgo.
"Because humans are not likely to ignore the sight of a group of cats loading heavy crates onto a train," Growltiger answered straightly, "I want you to remain as inconspicuous as possible."
"But why don't we just travel the Thames to West Molesey on the Demagogue?" inquired Dominev, "Why do the rest of us have to travel by train, sir?"
"Because it would take at least three or four days for the Demagogue to travel that far down the river," Growltiger explained, "And I predict that it will take you about that same amount of time to find my children and pick up the shipment. The way I see it, if you travel by train and the rest of us travel by the river, you should be able to complete the mission by the time we arrive in West Molesey. It would save a lot of time. The less time this takes, the sooner I can see my children."
Everyone understood Growltiger's reasoning. So they did not question his orders.
After a pause, Growltiger stated "Grumbuskin, Ralpharite, Dominev, and Placondgo, you are all dismissed. Tumblebrutus, I would like to have a word with you and your friends."
The room was quickly cleared of all but the Jellicles, Growltiger, and Griddlebone. The Bravo Cat asked Jemima to stand directly in front of him. She complied, and he began to study her. As he did this, he thought about what role she could play on this mission. He found this to be a difficult matter. To him, she just appeared to be a young, innocent, slightly naïve queen that would never harm anyone.
Growltiger finally spoke: "Tumblebrutus has told me of your desire to accompany him on this mission."
Jemima replied: "That is correct, sir."
Growltiger paused a moment and spoke again: "Why do you wish to go along?"
"Because I love him, sir," Jemima said simply, "And I want to be there for him. It's the only way I can assure myself of his safety."
"That is admirable, Jemima," Growltiger told her, "But there is something I must know: What skills do you have that could benefit the others on this mission?"
Jemima answered straight away: "I'm a fair hunter and tracker, sir. I can catch any rodent not matter how elusive it is, and I can determine if there is danger at the end of a trail without actually going to the end myself."
Growltiger found these to be remarkable skills. Perhaps Jemima could be of some use on this mission after all.
He looked up and asked his boatswain "Can you vouch for her claim, Tumblebrutus?"
"Absolutely, sir," he replied, "She is very good at hunting and tracking. So good, in fact, that you'd have to see it yourself to believe it."
Growltiger nodded in interest, and looked down at Jemima. He asked her "Would you be willing to be away from your family for an entire week? Perhaps even longer than that?"
She nodded, saying "I am willing, sir. As long as I am with Tumblebrutus, I will be willing to endure any and all hardships on this mission."
The Bravo Cat was deeply impressed by Jemima's spirit. She possessed the very qualities he looked for in a sailor. He told her "Then I grant your request to join the group."
She smiled up at Growltiger and told him "Thank you, sir. You must know how much this means to me."
Growltiger nodded and, looking at Griddlebone out of the corner of his eye, said "I know how it feels to love a person so deeply that you would go to incredible lengths to assure yourself of their safety."
There was a pause for a moment, and then Growltiger told the Jellicles "Report back here tomorrow night at nine o'clock sharp. I will inform you of any minor details we have left to cover, and then I will see you and the others off on the mission."
The four Jellicles agreed to this arrangement. Growltiger let Tumblebrutus leave the ship early that night so that he could take the others home.
By the time they arrived, everyone else was already asleep. Coricopat and Tantomile went to bed, too, but Jemima and Tumblebrutus decided to stargaze for a little while.
As the two of them laid on top the hood of the TSE-1, they pointed out different constellations and talked to each other. Tumble turned to Jemima at one point and said "Jem, can I be frank with you?"
"Of course," she nodded.
"I was still very skeptical about you coming along on the mission until the meeting tonight," he told her, "But now that Growltiger seems to have confidence in you, I find myself supporting the idea of you joining us. I wonder why that is?"
"Maybe it's because Growltiger is an intelligent tom," she theorized, "Or, maybe you cannot bring yourself to disagree with your captain."
"That could be it," he admitted, "But anyway, now that you are officially coming with us, I want you to just promise me one thing."
"Sure, Tumble," she responded, "Anything."
He leaned over to her ear and whispered "Promise me you'll always stay within five meters of me while we're there. That way, I can focus on the mission with the assurance that you are right by me."
She agreed to this request, as it was a reasonable one. After a while, they finally went to sleep.
The next morning, Tumblebrutus presented his "hunting trip" story to the rest of the tribe. He made sure to mention that he, Jemima, and the psychic twins would be gone for at least a week. Fortunately, the other members of the tribe all seemed to believe his story, even Jellylorum.
After working out a deal with Jemima's parents Skimbleshanks and Jennyanydots, the two of them agreed to let her join him on the trip. Coricopat and Tantomile had come of age long ago, so they did not need permission to leave the tribe, as long as they had plans to return.
At eight-thirty, the four of them left the junkyard and travelled to the docks at Westminster. When they arrived on the bridge of the Demagogue, they found the other four members of their group waiting for them.
Eight travelling equipment packs had been brought up to the bridge. They were each composed of a map, some basic camping supplies, enough rations to last for a week, an emergency first-aid kit, a blanket, and a rolled-up cat-sized sleeping bag. Ralpharite's pack included some of his reports of the activity around Hampton and West Molesey. Placondgo and Dominev had brought along some small weapons, "just in case." They simply liked being prepared. Grumbuskin had brought along a little catnip, just in case he needed something to help him stay calm if he got too much stress on the mission.
Once everyone was suited up and ready to depart, Growltiger faced them all one more time. He told them "I am not expecting you to encounter any trouble on this mission; it's a simple search and retrieve. I wish you all the best of luck on it, and that you may return from it safely and successfully."
"We shall, Captain." Grumbuskin assured his Captain. "Your children will be found and returned to you very soon."
"I am grateful to know that, Grumbs," Growltiger told his First Officer, "But if – when you find them – they voice any sort of desire NOT to see me, I do not want you to force them to come with you. You must first make them feel comfortable with the idea of seeing me again."
"Do you think that will actually happen, Captain?" queried Ralpharite.
"It would not surprise me, Ralph," answered the Bravo Cat, "That arguably was their reason for running away in the first place."
Tumblebrutus told his Captain "When we find them, sir, we'll tell them about all you have been doing to try and bring them home. I am certain that that will do away with any anger that they may feel towards you."
Growltiger smiled down at him. He was obviously grateful to have heard that.
A few moments later, the search party piled off the ship one at a time. Jemima was the last to leave. Just before she left, Griddlebone handed her a few folded pieces of paper and gave her the following instructions: "Jemima, when you find our children, please give them these letters. We feel it will help them realize just how much we miss them, even if they do not reciprocate the feeling."
Jemima promised Griddlebone right on that spot that she would see to it herself that her children got the letters. Then she left the ship to join up with the others.
The eight of them made their way across town and arrived at the London Waterloo Train Station. That was the same train station where Jemima's father Skimbleshanks worked at night, but he was not due to arrive for another hour, so they would not have to worry about encountering him at the station.
Once they arrived at Waterloo Station, they put their equipment packs on a dolly, which was taken into the station a moment later. Then they all entered through the main entrance one at a time. They figured that they would look less suspicious this way. By making it appear as though they were travelling with different owners, they felt they would be less noticeable.
Soon, they recovered their equipment packs and made their way to Travelcard Zone 6 and boarded an empty train car.
After Grumbuskin made sure that everyone was accounted for, he told them dramatically "This is it. We're off to Hampton, in all its history and beauty."
"Swell," said Ralpharite sarcastically, "Just let me know when we get there. I'm going to study my reports of the area."
"Right," Grumbuskin agreed, "We'll be there in about thirty or forty minutes."
As the train set off, the eight cats watched as the sight of London slowly disappeared from their view.
That was the last time two of them ever saw London.