by Lightfoot
...and there's how you address a cat!
After the bowing and smiling, the Jellicles resumed their normal way of living. Everyone had different ideas about Grizabella the Glamour Cat, who had just been chosen to journey to the Heavy-side Layer. Mostly it was the girls who were gossiping around about her. "We shouldn't have treated her so badly," said Jemima. "She was alright really... and had a beautiful voice."
"Yeah, she was quite nice," agreed Victoria dreamily. She was dazed and happy to be the first Jellicle to touch and accept Grizabella.
"And so beautiful still," added Electra.
"Beautiful?!" hissed Bombalurina. "Didn't you see that the border of her coat torn and stained with sand? Didn't you see the corner of her eye twist like a crooked pin?"
"You didn't sound so unforgiving then," remarked Rumpleteazer.
"Huh. In front of all those people? Certainly not."
"Look!" There came a cry from the car trunk. Etcetera bounded up. Jemima and Electra hopped up immediately, but Victoria hesitated. Since the Mating Dance with Plato during the Jellicle Ball, she had half become an adult. She wasn't sure whether to stay with the kittens or join the adult cats.
"Come on, Vic!" called Etcetera, noticing Victoria's hesitation. "What're you waiting for?" Reluctantly, Victoria joined her old playmates. But she was soon enjoying herself again drooling over the Rum Tum Tugger as before.
Demeter slunk away from the other Jellicles to find Alonzo. She had to thank him for saving her from Macavity, who had appeared unexpectedly in the middle of the performance and tried to cat-nap Demeter. "Er... Hi, Alonzo," said Demeter, approaching the black-and-white tom. "Are you okay?"
"Yeah, I'm fine, thanks. How about you?"
"Thank you for saving me, Alonzo," said Demeter, blushing a little.
"You're welcome," smiled Alonzo. Then he added, worried, "How's Munkustrap? He seemed pretty hurt."
"I don't know. I haven't seen him since the Addressing."
"I bet it hurt. Too bad Macavity showed up right at the night of our performance. Of all the days he could come, he had to come then. We worked on it so hard!"
"Heh heh. The audience thought that that bit was rehearsed!"
"Yeah. It made our show even better!"
"Let's go find Munkustrap and see how he is."
"Okay." The two cats padded off silently into the distance.
Part Two -- Kitten Rush
If you looked out on the Junkyard at dusk, you would see a group of noisy kittens surrounding a tall black cat -- the Rum Tum Tugger and his troupe of kitten fans. The cats sing and dance all over the Junkyard, making quite a racket. But wait -- why are there so many kittens? Weren't there only Jemima, Victoria, Electra and Etcetera? Actually, there have been new batches of kittens this year. Many of them have taken to drooling over the Rum Tum Tugger, like the old four. Victoria has quit Rum Tum Tugger's fan group, as she has new kittens! Some of them are together with the other Rum Tum Tugger fans, too. Jemima doesn't have kittens yet; she is too young. Look! There is a kitten who stays close to Jemima. She is Scarletta, Bombalurina and Rum Tum Tugger's offspring. She is bright red like her mother with streaks of black and a glittery, majority black tail, which she inherited from her father. She is very popular with the other kittens, and has many good friends, but her greatest friend by far is Jemima, whom she treats as her older sister.
Scarletta followed Jemima everywhere, going where she went, doing what she did. Jemima liked her very much and chatted and played with her. The Junkyard was a picture of peace in those days. Jemima loved to tell Scarletta about Grizabella the Glamour Cat. "She had a lovely voice," she used to say. Jemima loved to sing. She had a beautiful crystal-clear voice. Her favourite song was Memory. Sometimes Scarletta would find Jemima standing on the top of the platform she used to stand on, singing Memory to the Jellicle Moon. Jemima taught Scarletta to sing, too. She was pleased to find that although she didn't have the crystal-clear voice Jemima had, she had a strong, slightly sexy voice with an American edge to it, like a mixture of her parents' voices. Jemima taught Scarletta to sing Memory, and together the two friends sang and sang under the Jellicle Moon.
Part Three -- What's the Jellicle Ball?
The news buzzed round the Junkyard. The season of the Jellicle Ball was approaching! Jemima was very excited. When Scarletta questioned her, she replied, "The Jellicle Ball is when all the Jellicles gather together and sing and dance. Then Old Deuteronomy comes and makes the Jellicle Choice."
"The Jellicle Choice? What's that?" asked Scarletta curiously. "And who's Old Deuteronomy?"
"Old Deuteronomy is the Jellicle Leader of the Jellicle Tribe. He has been the Leader for many generations. He's really old and kind. He's a cat who has lived many lives in succession, he was famous in proverb and famous in rhyme, even before Queen Victoria's accession!"
"I didn't know Victoria was a Queen!"
"Neither did I. I guess he meant another Victoria. Victoria is the name that the family use daily, you know. It's possible that someone else has the same name."
"Mm. I guess so," agreed Scarletta. "Then what's the Jellicle Choice?" she added.
"Waiting up there, is the Heavyside Layer full of wonders one Jellicle only can see. Who will it be? The Jellicle Choice is made every year at the Jellicle Ball to determine the lucky Jellicle," explained Jemima.
"Wow! I hope it will be me," said Scarletta excitedly.
"No, I don't think you'd really want to go there so soon," laughed Jemima. "Only old Jellicles go there. Once you go there, you can't go back. It's like the place you go after you die, only if you get there by the Jellicle Choice, you won't die first."
"What about the non-Jellicles?" asked Scarletta. "Don't they get to go to the Heavyside Layer too?"
"I don't know, I guess if they're good they do," said Jemima thoughtfully. "But if they're bad they're punished, and their spirits have to stay on Earth and roam around, I guess, like ghosts." Scarletta shivered. Jemima put her paw around her and said, "I guess it is quite scary," she added, staring out into space.
There was a silence between the two of them for a moment, as they each pictured the scary cat-ghosts. Then Scarletta shook herself and looked at her Jemima. She tried to cheer her friend up. "What do we need to prepare for the Jellicle Ball?" It obviously worked. Jemima jumped up.
"Come on! Let's talk to Munkustrap about it. He's in charge of everything around here." The two friends rushed over to where Munkustrap was already surrounded by excited Jellicles.
Part Four -- Preparations for the Ball
Scarletta was completely occupied with the Jellicle Ball now. She had just gone to see Munkustrap with Jemima.
"Hi Scarletta! What would you like to do for the Jellicle Ball?" asked Munkustrap. Apart from being popular with the kittens, Scarletta was a great friend among older Jellicles too.
"Hello Munkustrap. What can I do for the Ball anyway?"
"Well, most of us sing or dance. Which do you want to do?"
"Um... Both, please!" said Scarletta after much consideration.
Munkustrap laughed. "Sure! But what do you want to sing?" He told Scarletta about the songs that they had sung last year. "WeÕre going to sing some of them this year, too. Some of the new ones, like the kittens or the Jellicles who just joined the Tribe, are doing new songs. Some kittens are joining their parents in the songs. For example, Rumpleteazer's kits are singing an adaptation of 'Mungojerrie and Rumpleteazer' with their mother and uncle. Victoria's kitten Blizzard is composing a new song for her friends and herself. What about you?"
Scarletta thought and thought. Finally, she decided what she was going to do. "I'm going to sing Macavity with Momma and Auntie Demeter. And I'm going to sing with the Rum Tum Tugger. 'K?"
Munkustrap laughed and nodded. "Sure! You can tell Bombalurina and Demeter."
Scarletta darted off, leaving Jemima to arrange her stuff with Munkustrap. "Momma, Momma!" she yelled. "Can I sing Macavity with you guys? Munkustrap said yes."
Bombalurina glanced up. "Yeah, sure! Let's practice, then. Do any of your friends or sisters want to join?"
"Me, me, me!" hollered one of Scarletta's littermates, who had been listening to the conversation.
"Sure, Estarriol! Come on then, Demeter, we're going to arrange it for two adults and two kittens, and then we're going to rehearse," nodded Bombalurina, running off and pulling Demeter with her.
Now, Scarletta and her brother Estarriol were pouring over the score of "Macavity" -- over their mother and aunt's shoulders! The four of them were trying desperately to figure a way for all four to sing the song together. Scarletta was so excited! In moment, now, they would be rehearsing the song, and then in a moment it would be time for the Jellicle Ball, and then in a moment it would be their turn to sing; in a moment they would have finished the piece, and everyone would have enjoyed it; in a moment...
Part Five -- The Jellicle Ball
Jellicle cats come out tonight, Jellicle cats come one, come all.
The Jellicle Moon is shining bright, Jellicles come to the Jellicle Ball.
Yes, it seemed only a moment to Scarletta before her first Jellicle Ball began. But once it began, it seemed ages before it was she and her family's turn. Nevertheless, she enjoyed it a lot. This time, Macavity didn't come to wreck the Ball, to Scarletta's relief, but also to her disappointment. She'd been looking forward to some excitement and fighting! Finally, after 'The Rum Tum Tugger' and 'The Old Gumbie Cat', which Scarletta held some small part, it was 'Macavity'. The lights dimmed, and the mysterious music started. The four of them -- Bombalurina, Demeter, Estarriol, and, of course, Scarletta -- had been rehearsing a lot lately, and Scarletta was very busy indeed the past couple of weeks. Besides 'Macavity', there were the other group songs, like 'Jellicle Songs for Jellicle Cats', 'The Song of the Jellicles' etc.
'Macavity' was truly a great hit. Many of the cats enjoyed the strong alto singing and the sexy dancing, but most of all they liked the tense, mysterious air which hung about the song. Scarletta sang her best that night, though she had butterflies in her stomach. Afterwards, her brother Estarriol said he was worse: he had snakes in there!
After the song, Scarletta had another thing to look forward to greatly -- the arrival of Old Deuteronomy! She could hardly wait until he came as they were singing 'Memory', led, as of last year, by Jemima. As Scarletta looked up at Jemima, admiring her beautiful crystal-clear voice, she felt proud of this beautiful kitten, her best friend, who had had a solo to sing when she was not even one year old. Suddenly -- 'I believe it is Old Deuteronomy!' sang Mistoffolees. All the Jellicles lay down serenely on the floor, listening to Munkustrap and the Rum Tum Tugger. And then -- the moment they had all been waiting for, that the shole Jellicle Ball was centered around -- 'Well of all things, can it be really? Yes! No! Ho! Hi! Oh my eye! My mind may be wandering, but I confess, I believe it is Old Deuteronomy!' Yes, it was Old Deuteronomy! As the Jellicles ran to greet him and throw their arms round his soft thick fur, Scarletta was filled with a happiness and security that she had never known. She took a seat at the old leaders' feet as Munkustrap began to sing again.
During the past year, there had been another terrible battle of the Pekes and the Pollicles and the Pugs and the Poms! 'Of the aweful battle of the Pekes and the Pollicles, together with some account of the participation of the Pugs and the Poms, and the intervention of the wicked Macavity!' This time, Macavity was drawn to the scene first. His sudden appearance scared away all the dogs, but the result was far from great. 'The Hidden Paw' went on to rouse the Jellicles and steal their kittens. Many of the new kittens were killed, including most of Scarletta's littermates. She and Estarriol were the only surviving kits of their litter. Scarletta shuddered and cuddled closer to Old Deuteronomy as she heard the story being retold. And so the happy night went on, singing and dancing and dancing and singing...
Part Six -- The Jellicle Choice
Now, Old Deuteronomy, just before dawn,
Through a silence you feel you could cut with a knife
Announces the cat who can now be reborn
And come back to a different Jellicle Life.
It was time for the Jellicle Choice, and the whole Junkyard was buzzing with the cats' guesses on who would be the lucky one. 'It will be old Gus, I know it is!' 'How do you know? I personally think it will be Munkustrap. He's quite as old as Grizabella was, and he's done a lot for the Tribe already.' 'Nonsense, Old Deuteronomy's saving him for the next Jellicle Leader!'
... ...
Well, now they would know who was right and who wasn't for Old Deuteronomy was making the Choice. 'Moonlight, turn your face to the moonlight!' Old Deuteronomy passed the Choice magically through the ground to Victoria and Mistoffolees first. They stared up at him in disbelief, which then changed to sorrow as the old leader nodded, with a sad smile. The two young Jellicles obediently passed the message to Cassandra, Coricopat and Tantomile, and then finally Jemima. All of these turned to Old Deuteronomy, surprised and sad, and Jemima suddenly choked on her singing, but carried on bravely. 'What's the matter?' asked Scarletta, but all she got in reply was a shake of the head from her best friend. Soon the whole Junkyard knew the Choice, and all, one by one, stopped, until only Jemima's clear voice was left. As she finished the song, the whole Junkyard lapsed into silence.
Finally, Munkustrap got up and voiced what everyone already knew. "I'm sure we are all very sorry to see our wise old Leader who has been with us for so many years now, leave for the Heavyside Layer..." Munkustrap, who loved Old Deuteronomy with all his heart, broke down in mid-sentence. Old Deuteronomy comforted the Jellicles, saying, "Yes, I know you are all sad, but I've lived many lives in succession, and I have been Leader for a good many years now. It is time for me to leave. After all, some day this was to have happened. But there is good news for you all, too..." So saying he passed another message through the ground to the Jellicle Tribe -- but kept it purposely from Munkustrap.
Alonzo rose and announced, "Although our old Leader is leaving us for a different Jellicle Life, a new Leader will come to take his place. Let us welcome our new Jellicle Leader -- Munkustrap!" The Junkyard burst into tumultuous applause and cheers, as Munkustrap first looked surprised and then happy and then embarrassed as the Jellicles began to shout out. "A speech, a speech! A speech from the new leader!" "Three cheers fot Munkustrap!" Munkustrap actually blushed and turned away.
Old Deuteronomy was glad to see the Jellicles all cheered up, but his joy was short-lived. Pretty soon all the cats remembered that Old Deuteronomy was going, and the noise stopped as suddenly as it had started.
Just then a strong but kittenish voice cut through the silence. "Up, up, up, past the Russel Hotel, Up, up, up, up to the Heaviside Layer." The Jellicles looked around for the owner of the unfamiliar voice. Scarletta stood up, still singing, and bravely smiling at Old Deuteronomy.
Part Seven -- Epilogue
Everyone turned and saw the little red and black kitten, and they were all filled with wonder. How could such a young kitten be so much braver in facing reality than any one of them? Slowly, little by little, the other Jellicles joined in. Munkustrap led Old Deuteronomy up the glittering silver ladder, past the full and shining Jellicle Moon to the Heaviside Layer. The Ladder slowly rose and pulled the cat who, for so long, was the loved and respected Jellicle Leader, to the Jellicle Heaven.
The mystical divinity of unashamed felinity
Round the cathedral rang.
Vivat!
Life to the everlasting cat!
Up, up, past the Jellicle Moon, up, up to the Heaviside Layer. Up, up, up...
And he was gone.
