We heard no more from Macavity for a long while, & life pretty much went back to normal. Before I knew it, spring had arrived, & soon there were several new mothers -& members! - in the tribe. 1st, Old D - as I now called him - met a queen, a black & white, called Sphincter, & before long, she was expecting kittens. About the same time, Jenny-anydots announced that she was also expecting - by Skimble.
Jenny's kittens came 1st - 2 little queens, a ginger & a black & gold calico. The ginger was called Bombalurina, & the calico Demeter.
And, then, when Demeter & Bombalurina were about a week old, Sphincter also gave birth. It was a difficult birth, & by the end Sphincter was dead. I was rather sad, for I'd been quite fond of her (& she'd been the 1st one to point out, while rather giggly, that I was starting to grow a mane!), but, for now, I turned my attention towards the four kittens. The oldest was a black & white mix who Deuteronomy named Alonzo. Then, there was a pair of black tabbies - twins, one male, the other female. Old D named the male Coricopat & the female Tantomile, & told me that they would be mystical cats, capable of telepathy, & other such things that I didn't really care about. I just supposed they got it from him.
The last one, a little black & white tuxedo cat, & who, Deuteronomy told me, would also be a magical cat, was called Mistoffelees. I smiled slightly, as the little tux snuggled up to my leg, & fell asleep on my foot. I let him remain there for a moment or 2, before gently pulling my foot away. At once, the kitten made a desperate attempt to sit up straight, &, when he could not, he flopped on the floor & started to mew pitifully. This made me think of something. Turning to Old D, I said "Deuter-onomy, these kits are gonna need milk. Who's gonna feed them?"
He thought for a second, then said "I will ask Jenny if she can feed them. She has only 2 of her own, &, hopefully, a lot of kindness in her heart. Yes, if you will watch over the kittens, I will go see Jenny."
I nodded that I would, & Deuteronomy left. I stared at the doorway for a moment or so - then nearly jumped a foot in the air as Mistoffelees once again snuggled up to my leg. As he curled up on my foot, I couldn't help but smile broadly. He was actually kinda cute, for a tiny hairball! (Little did I know that Misto, when older, would be 1 of my best friends.)
Anyway, as it turned out, Jenny took in the kittens, & raised them with her own, although she made it quite clear that she wouldn't take responsibility as their mother, but, when they were old enough, she & Old D would tell them everything.
Now, with summer, came the 1st big event in my life - the Jellicle Ball. An annual event, it takes place every year at the end of August. I was really looking forward to the Ball, as it was to be my 1st, &, when I'd heard about it from Jelly & Jenny - 2 of the small majority of cats who didn't still regard me as an outcast! - , it'd sounded really fun, different, apparently, each year. Sometimes there would be entertainment provided, sometimes the members of the tribe would be singing & dancing. Also, there would be an initiation for any first-timers, & newcomers, this year it would be me & the other kits attending - Munkustrap, Plato, Admetus (my cousin, a grey & white tom), Bombalurina, Demeter & Alonzo. The twins & Misto were old enough to attend, but they said that they weren't quite ready, so they stayed at Jenny's home (luckily, the old queen's humans had been tolerant of her bringing 4 extra kittens into the house).
On the day of the Jellicle Ball, I'd been considering making a big entrance, but, after studying myself in an old mirror, I decided that my mane, although growing rapidly, was still just a little too short to be of transfixed interest. Besides, the only young queens in the tribe were Tantomile, Demeter & Bombalurina, but they were only 4 months old, & as I'd decided that 1 of my main intentions in life was to become a 1st class flirt, I figured I'd have to wait a little while. So, this time, I decided to hang back & 'be part of the crowd', if we were doing dancing ourselves.
That night, I crept out of my makeshift 'home' (a large cardboard box), & into the main 'arena' part of the 'Yard, to find it empty, & silent. I was just thinking about going to look for another Jellicle, when a huge shadow loomed out of the darkness on the other side of the 'arena'. I strained my eyes against the darkness - then shrunk back in terror as I realised it was a Pollicle - a dog, of a wolf-like appearance. Too late, I realised it had spotted me, as it gave a long, loud howl, then charged, full speed & growling ferociously, in my direction.
I gave a terrified yowl, then sped off in the opposite direction. Blindly, I ran, my aim purely to shake off the beast that pursued me, gaining on me rapidly. Suddenly, it seemed, it was right behind me, & at least twice its fangs snapped a mere inch away from my tail. Adding the fact that I was tiring fast, I thought my days were numbered. Suddenly, there was a loud popping noise, & the dog stumbled then collapsed. I skidded to a stop, & turned to look at the brute, which now lay on its side, but no sooner had I got my senses back, I felt a searing pain in my side, accompanied by another pop, & the world went fuzzy. Suddenly, I felt very drowsy, but before I could react, I collapsed onto my side, & all went black.