Disclaimer: Oops, I forgot to do this last chapter. Oh well, I'm sure you would have (rightly) assumed that I do not own CATS or any of the familiar names you read in this story.
Sillabub was only a young Jellicle. And, she noticed as she watched all the other Jellicles file into the big hall for breakfast, most probably the youngest Jellicle here.
She was lucky for the fact that she had her older brothers, Pouncival and Tumblebrutus, to look after her. However, she was still too young to have been taken away from her mother. Her mother, unfortunately for Sillabub, wasn't a Jellicle. Her mother, who up until recently had no idea that her three adored children where anything but normal. Tears filled her eyes quickly at the thought of her mother, and the more painful memory of how they were separated.
"We have to tell Mum," Jake spoke solemnly as Ellie sat, watching the news on television, with tears in her eyes. Matt crawled from the couch where he had been sitting to give his little sister a hug.
"No," she sobbed. "They will take us away!" The thought was so scary it made her feel physically sick.
"We have to, El. You can understand what they're saying, can't you?" Matt asked, nodding his head towards the television, which was showing a politician talking about the 'Jellicle Issue'. "If we don't tell them, and they find us out, they'll kill us!" He winced as these words made her cry even harder. Jake put his head in his hands. They were all too caught up in their own thoughts to hear their mother come home. She walked into the living room with a tired smile on her face, which disappeared the second she saw the tears running down her daughter's face.
"Ellie, darling, what is it?" She dropped to the ground to comfort her only daughter, not noticing the equally devastated looks on her sons' faces.
"Mum, we have to tell you something. Something pretty important," Jake spoke, surprised at how calm his voice sounded. He had to be brave; he was the oldest child. Their mother looked at him in slight confusion and worry, before moving to turn down the television, which was still blaring news about the Jellicles. Jake stopped her. "No, leave it, this kind of has to do with that," he spoke, ignoring the fact that his words were a huge understatement. He went on, trying not to notice the look on his mother's face as she tried desperately not to jump to conclusions. "We're Jellicles, Mum."
Their mother shook her head, dismissing what had been said. "No," she spoke quietly, but franticly. "No, not you. Not my children." She kissed Ellie's forehead. "Stop crying, darling. Please stop crying." When she finally pulled her eyes away from her daughter, she almost screamed to find a giant cat-like creature in the place of her eldest son. Matt sat quite calmly next to the seemingly new creature in their family room, though he looked pale. "Jake! No, this can't be happening!" She cried, devastated. Terrified. "Please stop this Jake!"
"I'm not Jake, Mum. I'm Tumblebrutus."
"We're sorry, Mum," Ellie spoke in a small voice. She hated seeing her mother upset. "I'm not Ellie I'm Sillabub." She changed as well. Her mother backed away, biting her lip, now crying uncontrollably.
Matt watched, too upset at seeing the heartbroken look on his mother's face, to say anything.
They had tried to go into hiding. Their mother had bought two tickets to Australia. As far away as possible. No one knew about the tightened security in the airports. They had been questioned. Why were they packing up all of sudden? And without further warning, had been arrested. All four had been suspected of being Jellicle. Full moon came around. The three children tried to resist the pull to change to their natural form. They almost got away with it as well. However Ellie, being the youngest and therefore weakest to the pull of the Jellicle Moon, had eventually succumbed. Her mother tried to hide her. Matt sighed, and looked miserably at Jake. They knew what they had to do. They couldn't abandon their little sister. It was now their duty to protect her, because their mother would no longer be allowed to. None of the children would ever forget the anguished cries of their mother as she saw for the first time, all three of her children as nature had truly intended them to be. Three cream colored Jellicles with various grey and brown markings over their bodies and faces.
Sillabub climbed onto her bunk bed, still wearing the tatty pajamas that exposed the red 'J' that was imprinted on her skin. She flinched slightly, still remembering all too well the pain when she had been branded as a Jellicle, even though the scar was extremely faded. Behind her, she heard the slam of the bars to her room, and then the heavy retreating footsteps of a guard. Sillabub had spilt her porridge (if you could call it that) at breakfast, and had been punished accordingly for the mess she had made. She sighed. She really had to stop being to clumsy and careless, she thought as she softly touched her cheek, flinching when she touched the sore skin from where the guard had hit her. She looked up when she heard footsteps coming her way, softer ones this time. Soon Pouncival stood in front of her cell, the bars separating them. He held out an apple.
"I figured you'd be hungry," he spoke, handing her the apple through the bars. "You barely got a mouthful before you dropped your breakfast."
"Thank you," she replied, biting in the fruit. It didn't taste very good. None of the food tasted good here.
"You gotta be more careful, Sil," Pouncival sighed, resting his head against the bars. At that moment he looked so much older than his fourteen years. "You know how these guards can be," he added, looking miserable. "I was worried you would be hurt. That guard looked furious when he dragged you out of the breakfast hall."
"You don't need to worry, I'm perfectly all right," she smiled weakly. Pouncival looked at her and she suspected, from the look of his anger on his face when he glanced at her cheek, that a bruise was already forming on her face.
"HEY!" Both Pouncival and Sillabub jumped when they heard the angry yell. "Hey you! You're not supposed to be here, boy!" A guard was walking down the hall to where Pouncival was standing. Pouncival looked for a moment like he might run away, but his hands held tight onto the bars of Sillabub's cell. Sillabub touched his hand gently.
"I was just talking to my sister," Pouncival spoke quietly.
"Well, sorry kid, you ain't at home anymore," the guard grabbed Pouncival by the scruff of his shirt. "You can't just do as you bloody well want!" he spat, barely giving Sillabub a glance as he dragged Pouncival back towards the breakfast hall, where he could be supervised with all of the other Jellicles.
Sillabub sighed. They certainly weren't at home anymore. It had taken awhile to settle into the routine of KooKooIn Camp. The children (who were often coldly referred to as kittens by the guards) had taken to sarcastically calling their new home the Cocoa Inn. But there was no way it could be called a home. The camp was set up like a prison. Upon being deported to an unused detention centre in Australia, the thirty two Jellicles were categorized alphabetically, and according to this order were allocated rooms in which four would sleep. Sillabub wished she could have stayed with one of her brothers. Or at least Jennyanydots. The older woman had been somewhat of a mother figure to all the younger children since they had came to be here. Sillabub shared a room with the Rum Tum Tugger, Skimbleshanks, and Rumpelteazer, the last of whom Sillabub shared a bunk with. Rumpelteazer had been kind enough to offer Sillabub the top bunk.
Still chewing on the apple, Sillabub climbed into her bunk. She figured she could get some sleep. She hadn't gotten much the night before, the guard's had beaten someone. They had done it loudly as well. She couldn't tell from the groans who had been beaten, but Victor had been sporting a black eye and a split lip this morning. Yawning, she curled up on her mattress. Her last conscious thoughts were of her family. She thought of her two older brothers who were only children themselves, but had both abandoned childhood in their attempts to look after her. She also thought of, and longed for, her mother. A tear ran down her bruised cheek. Sillabub was only twelve, and she missed her mum.