The story begins three Jellicle Moons before that night of the Jellicle ball, at the end of which Grizabella was sent to the Heaviside layer. At the beginning, Munkustrap, Demeter, Rum Tum Tugger, and Bombalurina were all of course, younger, and the magical Mr. Mistoffelees was a young kitten just about to reach young adulthood. How Victoria has come into his life and what they had gone through together as they were growing up before that night of the Jellicle moon when Victoria was the one to put her paw in Grizabella's is a sweet and touching tale...
Chapter 1
The fateful meetings on one night
"Macavity!"
Munkustrap jumped up almost simultaneously with Demeter as she suddenly screamed out. He immediately moved closer to her and held her down, calling her, and at the same time, glancing around him, opening his eyes wide for any movement and holding his ears up for any sound. He quickly took the shaking Demeter into his arms and comforted her. Demeter's fur was standing on her back, and she was panting uncontrollably as tiny beams of sweat rolled down her face.
"Demeter," Munkustrap gently patted Demeter's back, "Demeter, it's all right. Calm down. There's no one out there. You must have dreamed again."
"He... he's here! He..." Demeter whimpered and carefully looked around into the darkness surrounding and blinked her eyes hard, nothing but the rustling of the leaves with the blowing of the night wind. The full moon was shining brightly in the sky, with a few pieces of clouds floating by.
"Demeter, what did you dream about again? Macavity is not here," said Munkustrap, holding her tight.
Demeter looked at Munkustrap, and again swept her eyes through the dark.
"See?" Munkustrap said, "there's no one. And even if there was someone, I'm here, what are you worried about? Nothing would dare to come one step close! I'm here to protect you from everything!"
Demeter sighed, leaned her head against Munkustrap's shoulder, and took a deep breath. She was still trying to convince herself that it was no more than another one of her nightmares and that she was now awake and safe. She picked up her catnip mouse that was on the ground by her side and started fiddling with it in her paws, and almost didn't notice when Munkustrap gently licked her face.
"It's all right, it's all right," Munkustrap said gently, as if singing a lullaby, "no one is here to hurt you. It was just a dream."
"Macavity?"
This time, Munkustrap and Demeter both swung their heads around at once. From behind, Bombalurina was dragging a yawning Rum Tum Tugger behind her and was dashing their way. Tugger's fur was all puffy and fluffy and looked as if he had just gone through a perm, and as they ran he lazily tried to straighten it out.
"Macavity? Where?" Bombalurina cried, as Tugger moaned and tried hard to separate his eyelids.
"Oh, it's ok," said Munkustrap, "Demeter was having nightmares again."
"Oh," Bombalurina let out a long breath and bent down by Demeter, "gee, you scared me again! Are you all right?"
Demeter nodded.
"Did you dream about Macavity again?" Bombalurina looked at her sister, her eyes filled with concern, "what did you dream this time? I kind of have a feeling, that every time when you dream about that fiend, something is about to go wrong."
"Bomba, don't say that!" Munkustrap said, patting Demeter's shoulder. "There, you're all right. Just relax, and try to calm yourself. And if there's anything that you need to say, we're all listening now."
Demeter just shook her head and looked at the ground.
"Try to sleep with nothing on your mind," Bombalurina rubbed her head against Demeter. "Then maybe you'll not dream so much. These nightmares of yours have been driving us all crazy."
Demeter nervously chewed the mouse in between her teeth and did not speak.
"Really no Macavity, huh?" Tugger glimpsed around him.
"I guess not," said Munkustrap, but still looked behind him with caution.
"Good," said Tugger as he let out another big yawn, "that son of a Pollicle idiot better not show his ugly face in front of me again, or else..."
"Hey, what happened? Is everything ok?" The four of them all turned toward the direction and saw a white cat with orange and brown stripes crawling toward them, following her was a kitten, looking almost exactly like her, holding a small catnip mouse in her mouth and crawling slowly on the side with her head turning here and there, her eyes twitching with great curiosity.
"Yeah, yeah, Jelly," said Bombalurina, "Demeter screaming in her sleep. Nothing big, nothing to worry!"
Demeter lowered her head. "I'm sorry that I woke everyone up so quick."
"Well, it's about time we're up anyway," Bombalurina yawned, "look, the moon is already out. In fact I think I've slept later than I thought I would. And Tugger, gee. Had I not pulled him up he would've slept till tomorrow night!"
Tugger stuck his tongue out at Bombalurina and she slapped his shoulder. Tugger meowed and pretended a wince of pain.
"Hey, Tugger!" the kitten by Jellylorum's side raised her furry little head, opened her little mouth, wrinkling her freckled little nose at the same time, and gave Tugger a smile so strangely wide that Tugger could hardly repress his giggles, with the picture of the Cheshire Cat clearly displayed in front of his eyes.
"Um, hey, Etcetera, being a good girl tonight?" Tugger nodded at the kitten, gave her the funniest wink, and habitually stroked his mane. Etcetera followed Tugger and began playfully scratching his hind legs with her small paws, with made Tugger twist all over and made Bombalurina glower a bit with warning.
"Etcetera," Jellylorum called, "come over here!"
Etcetera lowered her head and obeyed her mother. Tugger stuck out his tongue at Bombalurina and again put his paws on the silver belt on his waist.
"And you know it's ok, Demeter sweetie," Jellylorum smiled and went over to Demeter and patted her head, "nobody can blame you for dreaming, right?"
"Look at how beautiful the moon is tonight, Mama!" the kitten at Jellylorum's side gazed up at the sky.
"Yes, my dear," Jellylorum licked the kitten's head and smiled, "it's another full Jellicle moon tonight!"
"Jellicle moon is shining bright!" the kitten squealed.
"No, not tonight. Not yet," Jellylorum patted the kitten and smiled.
"Hey, your family's gone now, right?" Tugger asked.
"Yeah," Jellylorum replied, "they just left this afternoon for that place called Florida in America. They won't be back for at least a week, I think. And Asparagus's family is also away on vacation, and he and Admetus went with them."
"Yeah, our family is gone, too. They've been gone for a while actually, " said Bombalurina as she stretched lazily and glanced at Demeter, "but thank goodness they left the kitty flap open this time. Remember how Demeter and I were locked in the house that last time?"
"Everyone's family is on vacation now, I guess," said Munkustrap, "my family just sent me to our neighbor's yesterday because they had to leave for some place called Canada and didn't want to leave me home alone."
"Spoiled fool..." Tugger mumbled.
"Hey, are you talking to me?" Munkustrap stood up and faced Tugger.
Tugger made a face and straightened his belt, again, and licked his two paws. Bombalurina rolled her eyes.
"Tugger, how many times are you gonna fix that darned belt of yours?" Bombalurina stared at Tugger.
"Hey, it's mine to do what I want with it," said Tugger, "when my humans gave it to me they did it with great pride, too."
"And you call me a spoiled fool," Munkustrap muttered.
"Oh, darn," Tugger said suddenly, looking at the moon and quickly brushed the big mane around his neck with his claws, hastily untangling a few nuts, "I totally forgot! I promised to pick up Misto right when the moon rises!"
"Nice one, Tugger," said Bombalurina.
"What are you picking him up for?" Munkustrap asked.
"To hang out, man," said Tugger, "come on, the kid needs to see the world a little more! A cat like him needs more than sitting at home all day and being pampered rotten with cuddles and kisses and fish treats and stuffed animals!"
"Like someone else I know," Bombalurina muttered and eyed Tugger.
Tugger threw her a look and pretended not to know what she was talking about.
"Is he home alone, too?" Demeter asked.
"Should be," said Tugger, "he told me that his human father was going away to Australia for two weeks, with only his daughter staying home with him, and she always lets him do whatever he wants."
"You sure this is a good idea?" Jellylorum asked, taking her kitten into her arms, "I'd say, he's still kind of young to be out with you guys all night."
"Oh, forget that," Tugger stretched, "the kid's just shy, nothing wrong with that. Say, you're coming along, Jelly?"
All heads turned toward Jellylorum.
Jellylorum shook her head, "someone will have to hang around and keep an eye on things, I guess I'll have to be the one."
"You're all coming, right?" Tugger asked, looking at Munkustrap and Demeter.
"Heck, why not," said Munkustrap, "nothing to do tonight anyway. Old Deuteronomy's human took him with her to her aunt's tonight. So there."
"Man, always Old Deuteronomy..." Tugger shook his head and mumbled. He stroked his whiskers and signaled the others to follow him.
Demeter got up from the ground and licked her paw a few times, and followed closely behind Munkustrap.
"Mama, where are we going?" Etcetera asked, in such a loud voice.
"Somewhere," Jellylorum let Etcetera climb up her back and followed the group
down the street.
The small group soundlessly walked through the silent night, with not a sound of even a bird audible. The neighborhood was dead, Tugger thought.
Mistoffelees gently purred as he licked the delicious Popsicle in his human's hand, and occasionally rubbed his head against the hand that was gently stroking the shiny black fur on his back. He truly loved his human, who called herself his sister. She was different with most of the humans he's seen in his life, and she seemed to adore him above everything else in the world. And now, as usual, the two of them were stretched out on a long sofa in the family room on the second floor of their cozy home, with him sitting on her lap, and her patting him and feeding him sweets, and the two of them enjoying a show on TV, usually involving animals. The girl was a tall, thin, beautiful brunette with sapphire eyes and smooth white skin, with a pair of hands so soft that when they stroked Mistoffelees they almost felt like marshmallows against his body.
"Hey, have you had enough yet, Lestat?" the girl asked, moving the Popsicle away from his mouth.
Mistoffelees never minded the name Lestat ever since it was put on all of his IDs. He knew that he was named after his human's favorite character from one of her all-time favorite book series, of which she's even read several parts to him. He quite liked it actually, and was actually amused by the fact that he was named after a vampire. But it was a dignified name enough. At least he wasn't stuck with a name like "Garfield" or "Tom", like poor Skimble and Tumblebrutus. He always considered "Lestat" as an interesting name, and as far as he knew, his entire human family had quite interesting names. His human father's name was Belmont, his human mother, who had passed away two years ago, was called Sophila, and his human sister, the girl, was called Juliet. But oh well, all human names fascinated him.
Juliet smiled and brought the Popsicle to her own mouth. "You really shouldn't be eating too much ice cream. The vet said too much sweets can really damage those teeth of yours. And besides, you don't want extra pounds put on that lovely figure of yours, do you, sweetie?"
Mistoffelees gently licked Juliet's hand and purred. Juliet kissed his furry head gently and sighed, while continued to run her fingers down his soft ebony back.
"Wonder if Daddy will call tonight," she muttered, as if talking to herself, and looked down thoughtfully at her tuxedoed little feline friend.
Mistoffelees raised his head up and stared at him with his big, dark eyes.
"Figure if you'd know?" Juliet smiled and tapped his little nose with the tip of her forefinger. She gave him another kiss on the side of his face. Mistoffelees rested his head on the girl's arm and closed his eyes a bit, as Juliet kept her eyes on the TV, but Mistoffelees could sense that her mind was on something else.
Suddenly, Mistoffelees's head perked up and his ears stood. Someone was in the front yard! He listened closely while keeping his eyes open. Juliet seemed not to notice anything at all. He hopped down from her lap and walked toward the door.
"You've had enough grooming?" Juliet asked, "all right then, time for you to move around a little anyway, I guess. You've been sitting here for quite long."
Mistoffelees turned around and stared at her. What he had felt a moment ago seemed to be coming closer.
"And if you need to go out, the kitty door's open," Juliet called after him as he walked out and jumped down the flight of stairs. He slowly trotted into the living room, where a window was left open, and listened. He recognized the sound that his sensitive ears have long picked up that was coming from outside just on the front lawn. Suddenly, a smile rose on his face. Yes! He knew it! He quietly made a leap onto the window sill to the opened window.
"Hey, Misto! Misto boy!" Tugger called in a low voice when they stopped in front of a tall, yellow house.
"You think he's awake?" Bombalurina asked.
"That kid is always awake, I know that for sure," Tugger mumbled and stretched his neck out to try to look through an opened window not too far above the ground.
"Misto! It's me! Can you hear?" Tugger called again, this time, a bit louder.
Suddenly, a bright flash of lightning spark shot out through the opened window and struck the ground right next to Tugger's feet. Tugger hopped up at least three feet high and let out a loud growl, and the other cats simultaneously let out a gasp. Etcetera hopped onto Jelly's head and held tight to her fur, while her own was standing up and she stared with great fear at the spot where the lightning had struck so suddenly without any warning. White smoke was rising slowly from the spot where it was already burned black, and the cats shifted their eyes slowly from there to the opened window.
"Very funny, Mistoffelees!" Tugger cried, while wiping his hind legs hastily and stumping his feet.
Bombalurina, who was the first to recover from the small shock, stifled her giggle as she looked at Tugger.
"Greetings, everyone!" a small black shadow shot out of the opened window and landed in front of the group, so fast that almost no one even caught his movements. Tugger frowned and shook his head.
"Show off..." Etcetera mumbled.
"What?" Mistoffelees glanced at the kitten with wide eyes.
"Listen, kid," Tugger bent down so he could be of equal height with the young tom, "if you do that to me again..."
"Hey, hey, come on, it was just a joke!" Mistoffelees gave him a grin and looked at the other cats. "And Tugger, can you stop calling me kid?"
"When you stop acting like one," said Tugger as he straightened his mane.
"I don't act like a kid! And I'm but a few years younger than you!" Mistoffelees said indignantly, raising his voice. Munkustrap and Demeter looked at each other and restrained their laughters.
"All right, do we have to get into a fight the moment we get together?" Jellylorum went forward, "Misto, you control yourself, too. Remember what happened the last time you went overboard with your magic?"
Mistoffelees was silent for a while. No matter what, he could never forget that time a couple of years ago, when he collapsed after having too much fun with his lightning.
"All right, sorry, Tugger," Mistoffelees rubbed his head against Tugger's leg, and Tugger bent down to pat him on the head.
"Always a kit," Tugger said, but couldn't help stroking the small black and white cat lovingly. "What are you gonna do when one of these days, I'm no longer behind your paws, and you gotta face the world on your own?"
"Oh, no, you'll never be not behind my paws," Mistoffelees said, smiling again. "Imagine, what am I gonna do without you?"
"Huh, then think twice before shooting another lightning bolt at me next time!" Tugger laughed and tapped Mistoffelees's nose.
"Say, where is Alonzo?" Mistoffelees glanced around and asked.
"Well, he and Cassandra have to watch Jemima and Electra for a night while Jenny and Skimble go pick some medicine for Electra's cold," said Munkustrap, "so he wouldn't be coming."
"Pity," Mistoffelees mumbled.
Tugger swung his head around a couple of times, brushed his mane, and made a ridiculous face at Bombalurina that made her couldn't help glaring back.
"Ok, anyway, are we going to do something tonight or are we just gonna sit here staring at each other?" Demeter asked.
"I wonder if anyone else is at the junkyard at the moment," said Munkustrap.
"Humph, don't we have some new places to go?" Tugger rolled his eyes, "it seems like that junkyard is the only place where we can have fun!"
"Where do you want to go to have fun, mister? Down at the square?" Bombalurina asked, and took out a small file and started to meticulously run it back on forth on her perfect and sharp nails.
"Huh, at least there are some pigeons to catch down there," Tugger stared at the sky, "for Heaviside's sakes, everybody's either gone or busy at whatever. I'm getting bored to death sometimes. Napping becomes fun these days!"
Munkustrap and Demeter again turned their faces to each other and simultaneously shook their heads.
"Let's just take a stroll," Mistoffelees suggested, "maybe we'll run into something on the way!"
The group sauntered down the streets together.
"Hey, do you hear that?" Mistoffelees suddenly stopped on his tracks and twitched his pointy ears, those black ears on that black, furry head of his that looked somewhat like the Devil's horns. He sniffed around him and opened his eyes wide; those eyes that could see perfectly in the dark.
"Hear what?" Munkustrap also stopped and came toward Mistoffelees to listen, and Demeter followed from behind.
"Shh, listen!" Mistoffelees glanced around and started creeping about, sniffing here and there on the ground.
"Hey, Misto, what you got there?" Tugger asked.
"You find something unusual?" Bombalurina got down close to the ground next to Mistoffelees and followed him in his directions.
"Do you hear?" Mistoffelees asked; his face carried on an expression of mysteriousness. He continued looking about and sniffing here and there.
"Now that you say it, I think I do kinda hear something," Munkustrap said, listening hard through the dark, "sounds sort of like something... crying or whatever."
"Really?" Demeter crawled next to Munkustrap and listened.
"Hum, who could be crying out here at this hour?" Tugger asked, following along.
"Suppose it's another lost kitten?" Jellylorum asked.
"I kind of feel it might be something of that sort," Mistoffelees said, moving slowly toward a garbage dump on what looked like a neglected spot on the end of the road.
The group quietly moved toward where Mistoffelees was indicating. The smell of the garbage pile made Bombalurina and Demeter feel so sick to their stomachs that they had to put a paw in front of their noses. Tugger sneered at the garbage pile and checked carefully the ground on which he was walking, not willing to get one little piece of filth onto the bottom of his paws.
Mistoffelees battled the reeking odor and continued moving forward.
"It sure is dark here," Jellylorum said, while gently coaxed the kitten on her back who was sneezing and complaining about the foul smell in the air.
"Something's in here!" Mistoffelees exclaimed. Munkustrap moved forward and looked closely. Mistoffelees grabbed a piece of broken chair leg beneath a tall garbage can and flung his paw at it. A net of sparks flew out from in between his fingers and in one second, the end of the piece of wood was in flames.
"Good, at least now we got some light," Munkustrap took over the torch and lit it from corner to corner. Suddenly, in the dim light, he spotted a torn paper bag that appeared to be moving.
"And Misto," Tugger whispered, "that was good. But remember what we've told you. No more for the day, ok, kid?"
Mistoffelees nodded absentmindedly, for all of his attention was on that bag in front of him. Munkustrap pointed at the bag and Tugger looked closer at it with curiosity. Etcetera, holding her nose tight, also stretched her head out as far as possible on her mother's back.
"Mama, what is that?" Etcetera whispered by Jellylorum's ears.
"I don't know, baby," said Jellylorum, "we'll have to see."
Mistoffelees carefully tapped the paper bag with his paw, and it immediately twisted almost violently. Mistoffelees backed of a couple of steps and looked at Munkustrap.
"Something's under there for sure," said Munkustrap as he moved closer to it and handed the torch to Mistoffelees, "we need to take a look!"
The cats all looked at Munkustrap tensely, and Demeter almost held her breath. Mistoffelees held the torch at a good angle by the bag and Munkustrap cautiously moved his paw toward it, and in a sudden, lifted it up. Everybody was suddenly stunned by what was revealed in front of their eyes below the light of the fire.
It was a small kitten, white from ears to tail and looked almost only half as big as Mistoffelees, and her white fur was smeared with mud and her faces filled with dust. Munkustrap stared with shock in his eyes at that little thing, who was staring back with her big blue eyes filled with fear. Beneath her thin, shivering fur, Munkustrap could see her ribs sticking out as if attempting to break the skin above.
"For the sake of the Everlasting Cat!" Jellylorum gasped. Demeter and Bombalurina turned to each other, then back to the kitten, who was glancing from one to another nervously, and her eyes, now on top of fear, also filled with questions.
Mistoffelees stared her agape. This small, helpless, yet strikingly beautiful white kitten in front of him had suddenly grasped him completely. Carefully he moved closer to her and attempted to move his nose to her. But the kitten immediately backed away and leaned against the wall as far back as possible and huddled up into a small ball.
"Hey, hey, it's ok," Munkustrap said, with his voice as gentle as he could make it, "take it easy there. Nobody's gonna hurt you."
The kitten still stared at him with doubt and confusion.
The rest of the cats all attempted to come closer to her.
"Why are you here?" Munkustrap asked, his tone soft and chiding. "Where are your parents?"
The kitten was still silent and did nothing but stare.
"We're not going to hurt you, little one," Demeter crawled next to Munkustrap and looked at the kitten lovingly. She was about one year old at most, she guessed, couldn't be older than Mistoffelees.
"Can you at least tell us your name and where you come from?" Munkustrap asked patiently, again attempted to move closer to the seemingly terrified little white thing.
"You can trust us," Mistoffelees said. He was suddenly filled with affection toward this little stranger. "Tell us, who are you, and how did you end up here and all alone?"
"I... I don't know," the kitten shook her lips and finally squeezed out a few words. Her expression loosened up a little as she continued looking at the group of toms and queens surrounding her, but still wondering what was going on.
"What's your name?" Bombalurina asked.
"Vi...Victoria," the kitten said shakily and blinked those beautiful eyes of hers.
"Victoria," Bombalurina mumbled, "well, I've never heard of any Victoria around here. Have you, Tugger?"
Tugger shook his head. "Well, then you're not from here, I'd guess, little one?"
"Where are you from, sweetie?" Jellylorum asked.
"I don't know," the kitten replied. She tilted her little head and moved her watery eyes from one to another. Who were they, and what did they want from them? She glanced from Munkustrap to Tugger to Mistoffelees, then to the queens, not knowing what to do at all.
"Well, it's obvious that she's an outsider," said Tugger, "she's probably not even from London. I mean, she doesn't even seem to know where herself is."
"Do you know how you got here by chance?" Munkustrap asked.
"I... I remember falling from a truck and..." Victoria whimpered and wiped her face with her dirty paws.
"You got lost or something?" Mistoffelees asked.
"I... I guess so," Victoria said, "I don't know anyone here, and I don't even know what place this is. I think I've been here for a long time though."
"Well, you're in the city of London," Munkustrap said gently, "and from the look of you, I can see that you've gone through quite a bit. You've been staying in this stinky dump all this time?"
Victoria nodded. "It's really scary out there. There are big dogs everywhere, and loud noises, and..." she lowered her head, buried her face in her paws, and started sobbing; the sound of which seemed could break humans' hearts.
"Hey, there," Munkustrap moved over and took her into his arms, "it's ok. You know what? We're here. You won't be alone anymore. You have us. We'll be your family and friends and take care of you, and you'll be introduced to our Jellicle tribe and live as one of us. You won't have to be afraid of those dogs because we'll protect you, and hopefully we can even find you a human family to stay with and be loved, too."
Victoria looked up at the big silver tabby through her tears, and noticed him smiling at her warmly. Jellylorum stroked her soft furry head, and Demeter licked the mud off of her little face.
"Can I really stay with you?" Victoria asked unbelievingly. She was now smiling, such a sweet smile, too. Demeter wiped her wet eyes and handed her that cat nip mouse that she's been carrying with her.
"Of course you will," said Mistoffelees, "whatever happened to you, don't think about it anymore. You'll be happy with us, and you'll soon learn what a wonderful clan we make. Old Deuteronomy would love to have another kitten joining in, too."
Victoria blushed as Mistoffelees talked. She stole a few glances at the handsome, slim, small black and white tom, whose face carried on an expression that she could not explain, while Etcetera curiously tapped her here and there with her little paws.
"And I'm sure you'd make a wonderful playmate for my daughter," Jellylorum smiled, "and my nieces would love to have another friend to play with them everyday, too. You'll soon fit in with everything in no time!"
"Well," Munkustrap clapped his paws, "let's start by introducing ourselves first. You'll meet the others later, but for now, you just hang with us, and we'll show you around, ok?"
Victoria nodded. For the first time, she was appearing comfortable in front of this group of strangers.
"My name is Munkustrap, and this here is my mate, Demeter," Munkustrap said, and Demeter glanced at him and gave Victoria a gentle smile.
"I'm Rum Tum Tugger," Tugger said proudly and habitually placed his hands on his belt. "The Jellicles like to call me Tugger here."
"I'm Bombalurina, Demeter's older sister," said Bombalurina, "and, you might say that I'm a... 'friend' of Tugger's."
Tugger stuck his tongue out and Bombalurina squeezed her eyes. Munkustrap and Demeter couldn't help chuckling on the side.
"I'm Mistoffelees," Mistoffelees smiled, and Victoria smiled back shyly and hid her face behind Munkustrap.
"And I'm Jellylorum, one of the mother Jellicles of the tribe," Jellylorum smiled, "and this, as you might already know, is my little daughter, Etcetera."
Etcetera gave Victoria a silly smile and rubbed her little head against her arm. Mistoffelees's eyes were still fixed on Victoria, his mind was somewhat overwhelmed.
"We'll need to find her some place to stay," Munkustrap said, looking up at the darkened streets, "Jelly, do you think you can take care of her for one night? I know that Jenny's not home, or else I'd take her there right now."
"I don't know," Jellylorum looked at Etcetera, "I mean, there's nobody home at my house, and my humans probably wouldn't want strangers in the house while they're gone. Besides, she'll need a bath and maybe some examinations, and without my humans I cannot do anything."
"Well, Tugger?" Munkustrap asked.
"Sorry, I'd like to, but my humans have specifically demanded me not to bring another cat home," said Tugger.
"This is gonna be hard," said Demeter, "we have no humans home, and she definitely seems to need a human's care."
"Hey, I have a human home," Mistoffelees said suddenly, "you've forgotten about me again?"
"Will she let her stay, even just for one night?" Munkustrap asked.
"I think there should be no problem," Mistoffelees replied confidently, glimpsing at Victoria. "You don't know Juliet. She is crazy about all animals, and she definitely would not mind having another cat at home. I don't know about her father though, but he's away right now."
"Well, at least we can get her through tonight," said Munkustrap, "all right then. Victoria will go with Mistoffelees for the night, and as for us, we'll try to find as many of the tribe as possible so we can bring them together to have her meet them. Old Deuteronomy will have to be informed first, too."
All the cats got up and prepared to move, but Victoria remained in her old spot. Bombalurina went over and put a paw on top of Victoria's and gently stroked her head. "Hey, sweetie, you go with this nice back and white cat here and stay in his house for the night, ok? All of us won't be far, and you'll see us again tomorrow."
"Yes, we'll all be around within hearing distance," Munkustrap said promisingly.
"Yeah, come along, Victoria," said Mistoffelees, trying hard to press down the happiness inside that Victoria was actually going with him, "it's not far."
Victoria eyed Munkustrap, who gave her an encouraging smile, and she slowly rose and followed behind Mistoffelees.
"All right, we'll see each other again in the morning!" Munkustrap called.
"And Misto," Tugger called, "if either of you need anything, you know where to find me! Take care of the little one!"
Mistoffelees nodded. "Good-bye for now!"
"Good night, darling," Jellylorum nuzzled Victoria gently and went away with Etcetera on her back.
Munkustrap walked off with Demeter, and Bombalurina went away with Tugger. Mistoffelees and Victoria were soon left alone on the road. Mistoffelees had to turn around every three steps to make sure that he was still being followed. The entire way to the house Victoria did not say a word.
"All right, here we are," Mistoffelees said when they reached the big yellow house. "Listen, we're gonna go in through this little door down here. Juliet's home, and she's the kindest human you'll find, so don't be afraid. We're going straight to where she is and when you see her, just relax and act normal, and I'll take care of the rest, get it?"
Victoria nodded nervously, and went through the little door after Mistoffelees.
"Juliet's a very nice human," said Mistoffelees, "she's a college student, but she lives at home. She's often very busy, but she still spends a lot of time playing with me. She loves all the Jellicles, and I think she'll like you, too."
Victoria again nodded, but still said nothing. She soon found herself in a wide, well-lit room, with white tiled floor and tall, strange looking things around her. Well, it was definitely better and warmer than that garbage pile where she's been staying. Her nose caught a scent of what she believed to be ham, and she couldn't help sniffing a little and licking her lips. But Mistoffelees was calling for her to move on, and she didn't have much time to linger and find out everything.
They walked through a wide, carpeted hall, and Mistoffelees hopped one after another up the wide stairs. Victoria followed with small steps, panting as she tried her best to keep up with the swift tom. She was obviously exhausted, and was probably too weak to move too much to begin with. For the last few steps Mistoffelees had to get behind her and push her up. And when they reached Juliet's room, Victoria looked almost like she was about to faint.
"Hey, Lestat! Where have you been?" Juliet looked up from her book and called, but she suddenly hopped up into a sitting position the next moment. By her door stood not one, but two cats; an all white and much smaller one standing next to her black and white one. Juliet stared at her with surprise, and gently walked toward the two.
"Hey, who is this?" Juliet asked, glimpsing from one cat to the other, "Lestat, who is she? Did she follow you back here?"
Mistoffelees rubbed his head against Juliet's hand and meowed. Victoria blinked her big eyes, which now carried an apparent look of helplessness and fatigue, and stared nervously at Juliet.
"Oh my God, look at how small you are, and how skinny! You're nothing but fur and bones!" Juliet gently picked Victoria up and stroked her rough, messy fur, "who are you? Where did you come from? Did Lestat find you?"
Victoria looked at Mistoffelees with great confusion. Lestat, who was Lestat? But Mistoffelees gave her a gentle look which soothed her, and she realized that Juliet was stroking and patting her so gently and lovingly that she couldn't help wanting to purr. This human appeared to like her, she thought to herself.
"Aw, what a sweet little thing," Juliet stroked her little head, "look at you, you're surely a mess. Are you homeless?"
Victoria was intoxicated by such loving caress and such soft talk. No one has ever been so nice and kind to her before. She closed her eyes, allowing Juliet to continue caressing her and patting her, while Mistoffelees watched with great relief.
"Look at you, you must be starving," Juliet said and gently put Victoria back down, "thank Lestat for finding you. I'll go get you some food, and meanwhile, I'm gonna prepare you a nice warm bath to clean you up, ok?"
Victoria looked at Mistoffelees, who gave her a nod, as Juliet walked out of the door, signaling the two to follow. She picked Victoria up and carried her down the stairs and into the kitchen. She took out two small bowls from a cabinet and poured into each some milk from the refrigerator, and put the bowls into the microwave.
"She's getting us food," said Mistoffelees, "it's milk, which I'm sure you like. She's gonna put the bowls on the dining table there and we'll both drink our milk on the table. Juliet always lets me do that when her father's not home."
Victoria was almost drooling at the smell of fresh milk when Juliet placed the bowls on the table. Smelling food made her realize how hungry she really was. Juliet again picked Victoria up and placed her on the table, and Mistoffelees leaped up right after. Victoria licked the milk in the bowl almost violently the moment she was in front of it, nearly choking herself twice.
"Gosh, how many days have you gone without food?" Juliet asked. Her voice was filled with pity. "Hey, slow down there, sweetie. You don't want to choke!"
Mistoffelees drank his milk rather slowly, and constantly looked at Victoria from the corner of his eye. His heart was filled with sympathy toward this small white queen, whom he felt he was liking more with each second.
"Tomorrow morning I'll see if I can get you to the vet," said Juliet as she gently scratched Victoria's neck as she finished her milk. "You might need some vaccinations. And gosh, how I wish you can tell me, if you're hurt or not."
Victoria rubbed her head against Juliet's hand and purred gently. The milk was warm inside her stomach and how good it had felt to have her stomach full!
Juliet picked Victoria up again and carried her into the bathroom, where she put some warm water into a bathtub and placed Victoria in there. Victoria kicked her paws when they first touched the water, but soon calmed down once she realized how warm and cozy the water had felt. She closed her eyes as Juliet gently rubbed some strange looking green gel onto her fur. It smelled good, like some fruit.
"That is my shampoo," Mistoffelees smiled as he sat on the edge of the tub and watched, "it'll make your fur shiny and silky."
Victoria stared at Mistoffelees's black fur which gleamed under the light and smiled. How she wanted to thank him!
Juliet wrapped Victoria in a soft cream towel and gently dried her. Her fur, with dust now totally washed off, was suddenly snow-white. Juliet took out a tiny brush and ran it up and down her back, and Mistoffelees was still sitting aside, with his eyes almost glued to the now clean and even more beautiful little white queen.
"That's my hairbrush, too," said Mistoffelees, and Victoria couldn't help chuckling.
"I'll make an appointment for you at the vet's first thing in the morning tomorrow," Juliet said as she placed Victoria on her bed. "You can sleep here if you want, since Lestat loves it so much. And Lestat's basket is right over there, and I'm sure he'll be willing to share it with you."
Mistoffelees paced back and forth in the room. Juliet was giving Victoria more attention than he had wanted. He wanted himself to be around Victoria more, not her.
"Oh, my," Juliet smiled and looked at the timid little thing sitting on her bed, "you don't even have a name yet, do you?"
Victoria stared at Juliet, even more confused. She had a name, she thought. Her name was Victoria! What was she talking about?
"All Jellicle cats have three different names," Mistoffelees hopped onto the bed and whispered into her ears, "the name that you have now is a name that only cats use, and no humans know. But what you need is also a human name, a common name that the family will call you by. Like me, my name is Mistoffelees, but my humans call me Lestat. And as for your third name, that is a name that only yourself know. No second being on earth can ever find out. It's something that's only deep inside you. And once you join our tribe, you'll learn more about that."
Victoria nodded, though not fully understanding.
"Let's see," Juliet thought for a moment, "you're all white and pure, and that should immediately lead to innocence. That's it! Phoebe! I'll name you Phoebe, the goddess of the moonlight and purity!"
Victoria stared at Mistoffelees, then back at Juliet.
"Phoebe, perfect! How do you like it?" Juliet scratched behind Victoria's ears and pressed a small kiss on her forehead.
Victoria purred and gently licked Juliet's face. She noticed Mistoffelees still smiling at her on the side.
"Listen," Juliet picked her up again and held her close, "Daddy might not be too happy when he sees you. But you need not worry about that at all. I know that Mommy would love to have you, and I can do with a little sister in the house, too!"
Juliet scratched Mistoffelees's back with her free hand, and he purred at her as well. He couldn't believe his ears when Juliet said that she wanted Victoria to stay.
"You can ask Lestat, and then you'll know," Juliet sighed, "my mother left me no brother or sister, and it was because of my increased loneliness and boredom that Daddy had agreed to get Lestat. But still..."
Victoria rubbed her head against Juliet's chin. She couldn't understand all that Juliet was saying to her, but she knew that it was nothing bad.
"She's saying that you can stay with us," Mistoffelees said, sensing her slight confusion, "aren't you happy? You get to stay with me all the time now!"
Victoria at first did not get why did Mistoffelees seem even happier than she was.
"Really? I'll get to live here forever?" she asked, still finding it hard to believe.
Mistoffelees nodded wildly. Ecstasy was immersing him.
"Hey, you know what? It's still early," said Mistoffelees when Juliet turned off the light in the room. "I know you can't go to sleep right now. Wanna go out and take a look around?"
Victoria glanced around in the dark, not knowing what to say.
"Come on, just for a while," said Mistoffelees, "I want to show you our yard, and there are some things that I want to tell you."
Victoria was reluctant at first, but finally gave in. She followed Mistoffelees down the stairs, with much more strength in her legs this time, and the two again crept through the cat flap and went out into the yard.
The full moon was shining with full brilliance and elegance in the dark blue night sky, and small breezes would blow here and there once in a while. Mistoffelees and Victoria walked on the soft grass and listened to the crickets chirping around them, and Victoria was no longer scared.
"This is my home now?" she asked. It was the first time she's spoken since she followed Mistoffelees home.
Mistoffelees nodded at her. "Yes," he said, "and you'll be happy here, I can assure you. Juliet will love you and you'll have good friends everywhere. Tomorrow night you will meet the rest of the whole Jellicle tribe, and in no time, you'll have your first Jellicle Ball, which is the biggest event for us every year!"
"Jellicle Ball?" Victoria asked.
"Yes," said Mistoffelees, "it's a night when the entire tribe get together and rejoice. We will sing and dance and celebrate, and at the end, just before dawn, Old Deuteronomy will make what is called the Jellicle choice, and announce the cat who will be reborn and come back into a different Jellicle life." He looked up at the sky and smiled. "Up there, is the Heaviside Layer, filled with wonder and only one Jellicle every year can see. And we always wonder, who will it be."
"Wow!" Victoria was totally fascinated, "we'll sing and dance and celebrate? Tell me more about it! Jellicles? Heaviside Layer? What are those? What about them?"
"All cats are Jellicles," Mistoffelees smiled, "and all dogs are Pollicles. And when you are one of our tribe, you'll become a true Jellicle cat. And well, during the ball, we have the most fun we shall have all year. And some of the kittens who are old enough will mate to move into young adulthood. When at the end, when Old Deuteronomy makes the Jellicle choice, one cat will be chosen to go up to the Heaviside Layer to be reborn. The Heaviside Layer to the Jellicles is I'd say, like Heaven to the humans. Although I've never seen it, but I know that it is a beautiful, dazzling place, where every Jellicle would love to be. And hopefully, that day will come to us in the future."
"We can be reborn?" Victoria asked.
"Yes. After we go to the Heaviside Layer, we can be reborn into new Jellicles," said Mistoffelees, "Now, I'm surprised that you know nothing of this. Hasn't your mother or anyone told you anything about what us Jellicles can do? Like we can live many lives in succession, and be reborn even after we die?"
Victoria lowered her head and heaved a sigh. Mistoffelees suddenly noticed that her big eyes were filled with tears.
"Hey, hey," Mistoffelees moved closer to her and gently tapped her shoulder with his paw, "don't cry, please! Have I said anything wrong? I'm sorry, did I make you sad? Victoria, please..."
"No, no," Victoria wiped her eyes and squeezed out a smile, "it's not you, really. It's just... you mentioned my mother, and that reminds me..."
"What is it?" Mistoffelees asked.
"My mother died not long after my birth," Victoria started to sob, "she only had enough time to name me and nurse me, and then she just left me. I don't even know how she died, and for a while I just couldn't understand what happened. I know that she's been abandoned by her humans, and I was left all alone in the world after she died. I have no idea whom my father is, and I could find no one who could take me in. So I strayed from one place to another, not knowing where to go or what to do. I didn't even know who I was, or where I was. Day after day, I just roamed about, never on a full stomach and never spent one day at a place that is warm and clean. I was chased by dogs, kicked by humans, hit by stones, yelled at by some other animals, and I'd fallen into mud and water puddles more than once. Until... until that day, when I fell off of that truck while sleeping on it, and discovered that garbage place where I could hide and be safe from everything that was running around and terrifying me. I stayed in there for how long I don't even know, until you found me tonight."
Mistoffelees could feel his own eyes wet as Victoria talked. When she finished, he gently rubbed his head against hers and tried his best to get her to stop the sobbing that he felt was tearing his heart apart. Victoria sniffled a few times, and Mistoffelees reached up to wipe her eyes with his paw.
"For Heaviside's sakes, what have you done to deserve all these?" Mistoffelees stared at her, and gently pulled Victoria into his arms.
Victoria's sob slowly diminished, and Mistoffelees put a paw on top of hers on the ground as she raised her head to look at him.
"You'll never have to go through any of those again, Victoria," said Mistoffelees, his dark eyes looking into her blue ones. "Now, you have a home, a human who will take care of you, and you will have numerous friends who will be closer than your family. We'll be here for you whenever you need, and we will protect you from all dangers. You can forget about all those terrible things that had happened in the past, and start anew with our tribe. And I'll be with you always, watching after you and being your closest friend. Trust me, you will be happy from now on."
"Do you have a mother, Mistoffelees?" Victoria stared at Mistoffelees through a fog of tears. Her voice sounded unusually sweet. Her heart was deeply moved by what she had just heard. She wanted to say something more to him, but didn't know how to open her mouth. This handsome black and white tom had given her a feeling that she's never felt before; a feeling that she wasn't even sure what it was.
Mistoffelees sighed and shook his head, "I never knew who my mother was. In fact, I'm not sure who my father is either. The only family whom I know is my uncle who lives on St. James Street, but he doesn't seem to have a clue about my past any more than I do. I probably just came to the world as an orphan. Old Deuteronomy might know something, but he's never told me or anyone anything. I can't really remember anything before I was taken into the Jellicle tribe or how I got in it either. Well, some Jellicles like to joke about me and Tugger being brothers, since we've always been so close. But I seriously doubt even the possibility of it. All I know is that, ever since I could remember, I was a magical cat, and Munkustrap and Tugger and the other older queens in the tribe took care of me when I was a very little kitten until I was taken in by my current human family. Juliet found me while I was alone at the junkyard one night and took me home with her."
"Magical?" Victoria's eyes grew wide, "Mistoffelees, did I hear that right, that you said you are magical?"
"Yeah, I guess I didn't get to tell you," Mistoffelees said, "I'm a magical cat, and I'm commonly known among our tribe as the magical Mr. Mistoffelees. When I use my magic I look and act different from I am right now."
"You have magic?" Victoria asked, with great amusement in her voice, "oh wow! I can't believe it! Can you show me?"
"Uh..." Mistoffelees scratched his right ear a few times, "I usually don't show anyone my magic until the Jellicle Ball..."
"Oh, please," Victoria begged, "just let me see a little."
"All right," Mistoffelees could not resist Victoria, and with a wave of his paw, a cup suddenly appeared in his palm.
Victoria gasped and stared with her eyes as wide as two light bulbs.
Mistoffelees tapped the cup with his fingers and suddenly, a multicolored ray of light shot out of it, jumped up right into the sky, and exploded into numerous little fire sparks.
"How did you do that?" Victoria was greatly impressed and amazed. She fixed her eyes on that cup, which looked plain as any cup, and then stared at Mistoffelees.
"With my magic," Mistoffelees smiled, and in a second, he had disappeared in front of Victoria's eyes.
"Mistoffelees?" Victoria suddenly scared by something so unexpected, "Mistoffelees!" she cried, "where are you?" Mistoffelees!"
"Over here!" Victoria swung her head as she heard a voice coming from behind. Mistoffelees was sitting on top of a flowerbed and grinning at her.
"How..." Victoria ran toward him, "what just happened?"
"With my magic, I can move faster than any eye can catch," Mistoffelees smiled. He loved the look of surprise in Victoria's eyes, for with that, she looked almost as ethereal as a white angel. "But these are just small tricks, so I don't need to change into a different look."
"A different look?" Victoria asked.
"Yeah," said Mistoffelees, "you'll see on the night of the Jellicle Ball."
"Why a different look?" Victoria asked, "I mean, you look fine right now!" she ran her eyes up and down at the small tom's sleek black coat, which seriously made him look like he was wearing a tuxedo.
"Well, um, you'll see at the ball, I promise!" said Mistoffelees, and licked his paw a couple of times.
"Oh, please, can you show me some of your big magic now?" Victoria asked, blinking her big, beautiful eyes.
"I've already done more than I should have today," Mistoffelees sighed, "Tugger has long forbidden me to use too much magic unless necessary. Every bit of magic costs a bit of my strength. The last time, when I went too far, I basically collapsed."
"Oh, ok, then," Victoria said. She was a bit disappointed, but she told herself that she would wait till the night of the ball. She really felt she wanted nothing bad to happen to Mistoffelees.
"Will I be at the ball to watch you when it comes?" Victoria asked.
"Why, of course!" Mistoffelees smiled, "I think you're old enough to attend. And by then, I promise I'll show you all my best tricks!"
"You will?" Victoria asked, growing excited.
"Of course! I'd love to," said Mistoffelees as he gently tapped her thin little white shoulders with his paw.
"Hey, Mistoffelees?" she gently called.
"What?"
"What's a vet?" she asked.
Mistoffelees couldn't help wanting to giggle. "Vets are doctors for us, well, dogs, too, and many others. They're all in these big buildings with these strange rooms. They treat you when you're sick and give you medicine, and once in a while they check you to make sure you're ok. Occasionally they give you shots if you need them."
"Shots?" Victoria's head jerked up.
"Yeah, you know, needles?" said Mistoffelees, "you've never had them, have you?"
Victoria's face tightened. "Do they hurt?"
"Well, depends on where they're poked," said Mistoffelees, "whenever they give me shots in the shoulders they always hurt a little, but when here," he pointed to his behind, "it's usually just a poke."
Victoria couldn't help laughing at his movements.
"None of us like to go to the vets, but we all have to admit, it's for our own good," Mistoffelees said, smiling at her.
Victoria gave him a timorous smile back. How beautiful she looked at that moment! Though still skinny and small, her face was already carrying on a new expression of ease and happiness. Mistoffelees didn't want to say anything more. He gently put his arms around her again, which she did not resist, and felt her soft body against him, her soft breath beneath his chin. He looked down at her pure white body, and allowed her to put her head on his shoulder.
"Are you happy staying here with me?" Mistoffelees heard himself ask.
Victoria raised her head and her eyes met his. She did not speak, but instead, placed on his cheek a gentle kiss. This surprised Mistoffelees so much that he nearly pulled away from her. But the tickle of her little lips lingered on Mistoffelees's face, and Mistoffelees suddenly felt an unusual warmth wrapping around him almost like an invisible blanket. He stared at her, feeling his tail flicking about, and not knowing what to do or say but just sat and stared at her, at the beautiful young queen whom he was still holding in his arms; a white dove, a white belle...