By: broadway_bound

My mother left me. That’s how my life started out. My brother and I found an old seemingly abandoned junkyard, and formed a population there, of cats of course. Jellicles. That’s what he called them. Of course I was the Glamour Cat, I always loved Glamour. I was known as Grizabella the Glamour Cat to everyone there, mostly the kittens, because we mainly took in abandoned kittens. We were no longer kittens. My brother and I were in charge of the Jellicles, after one year, we put together a ball and sent one cat, who deserved it the most, to go to the Heaviside layer. Slowly, I was put out of the picture. For no given reason, everyone slowly started judging me for everything I did, as if I had to be perfect.
I started talking to the cats less, and stopped socializing so much because I knew a single mistake would get me shunned. What I couldn't figure out was why everyone started criticizing me for everything I did. Once in a while I'd even take trips outside of the tribe. My brother, Deuteronomy, tried to find out why the cats started disliking me. It turns out they were jealous because I was the Glamour cat, I never bragged about it, and I never rubbed it in their faces, I never asked to be the glamour cat, that's just the way it turned out.
"Deuteronomy, I'm leaving, They don't want me here, and I aim to please, I'll come back someday, and I just hope I'll be accepted." I told my brother.
"Grizzy, you can't do that to me, I can't care for the cats all by myself." Deuteronomy replied.
"I'll stay one more day to find a cat that can help you in any way you'll need it, it'll be a kitten. It'll be one of the orphaned ones." I explained.
"All right, but promise you'll come back someday." Begged Deuteronomy.
"Fine." I said. And I left for the place where the orphan kits were. I immediately saw one that would work. Strong, handsome, defensive (He stood up for his goofy brother), friendly, and perfect for the job. I went to get the cat and he stared at me.
"Hey, I need you for a very important job okay kit?" I asked the kit in a small voice to sound friendly.
"Well, okays. What'll I do?" The kitten questioned.
"Work for Deuteronomy." I told him.
"Okay." The kitten replied. I took his hand and led him to Deuteronomy.
"Good bye brother, I'll see you again someday, at least I hope so anyway."
"Yes sister, so this is not good bye, but a farewell for now." Deuteronomy told me trying to hold back tears. I walked through the city until I found an empty trash can in an abandoned alley, That was my new home...for now.
About a year later, I found a beautiful kitten lying on the street half alive. She was red, black, and white. Most of her chest and stomach were white and coated in blood. She had large beautiful eyes.
"Excuse me dear, who are you?" I asked softly.
"M-my name is umm Jemima." Jemima told her.
"What happened?" I questioned.
"I w-was r-running from Macavity a-and one of his Hench cats caught me. I bit him to let go and he scratched my side." Jemima explained. After that she winced in pain.
"Well, I'll take care of you, and once your well I'll take you to the Jellicles so you have more protection. Okay?" I asked. Jemima almost fainted from the pain. I could lift her, but barely and took her back to where I called home. Although I was huffing and puffing and nearly collapsed from exhaustion, I ran as fast as I could to get bandages for the kitten. I ran back and doctored her up.
“The first thing you need is rest, so come, you will sleep in my bed tonight.” I carried her over to a box with a tattered blanket and almost flat pillow. I set her down gently and scavenged for food. I caught a rat and gave it to the young kit.
“Thanks.” She whispered.
“No problem sweety.” I smiled down at her.
The next day, Jemima woke to singing. A beautiful song.
“Memory, all alone in the moonlight, I can smile at the old days, I was beautiful then, I remember the time I knew what happiness was, let the memory, live again.” I sang. After a while, I had sung all the verses and she was singing. After about two days, I started to show her how to dance although I was getting old and couldn’t do as much. I also gave her lessons in singing. Soon, she was better than me. And she had healed almost completely.
“Come on!” I whispered to Jemima.
“Your going to leave me here aren’t you?” Asked Jemima softly.
“I must, I am not yet ready to return to my real home. But I have made a promise that I plan on keeping. So you’ll see me soon. I will look different though, and hopefully you’ll recognize me.”
“I will, I promise, and your song will stay within my heart forever, that is a promise as well.” Jemima promised, she reached over and gave me a hug.
“Go on, and don’t tell them of me, when I left they for some reason shunned me. Oh, and tell the silver tiger striped tabby, that someone will be visiting at the ball this year but don’t tell him who.”
“All right.” Jemima said almost bursting into tears, “I love you Grizzy, I’ll always remember you. Until we meet again.” Jemima disappeared into the junkyard. Grizabella started to eavesdrop so she would know that Jemima would be okay.
“Hello, my name’s Jemima, I was wondering if I could possibly be a umm Jellicle?” Jemima asked.
“If you give me your history and reason to want to be a Jellicle.” A strong voice explained.
“Well, I was attacked by one of the Hench cats of Macavity,” Began Jemima showing her fresh scar on her side to prove herself. “I was taken care of and told that the Jellicle tribe would be a good source of protection. So I came here in hopes of possibly becoming a Jellicle.”
“Well, I also need your name. My name is Munkustrap.” Explained the tabby.
“Jemima. Am I a Jellicle now?”
“Yeah sure, here I’ll introduce you to the rest of the tribe.” Munkustrap told her. I left for my home and for the first time in a while I looked at my reflection. Looking back at me wasn’t the cat I recognized. This cat was old, gray, and the corners of her eyes twisted. I looked down at my coat which used to be sleek and black. Now, it was tattered and old. I put on a coat that I had found in a dumpster. The border was torn up and stained with sand. I looked at my hands, My nails were still red and my hands still soft.
“Next week,” I promised myself. “I will make an attempt to return to the Tribe.”
The following week, I was busy grooming myself in hopes of seeing my brother, Jemima, and the cat who I had given the job of helping Deuteronomy.
I heard them singing about a cat named Rum Tum Tugger. I didn’t know what to do so I walked out. All eyes turned to me. The music stopped, the fun stopped, the laughter, it all stopped to glare at me. I decided to talk to the cat I recognized as the kitten I selected before I left.
“You see, the border of her coats torn and stained with sand. And you see the corners of her eyes twist, like a crooked pin.” I sang. Several kittens made an attempt to touch me but the silver tabby kept them away. Then I saw Jemima singing back to me also making an attempt to touch me. She too was shoved away. I left, I’ll try again later.
Again I attempted to join their fun, but was totally shunned. They all left and I was left in the middle of the junkyard. I could feel them watching. I wanted to show them that I could still dance as they did. I tried and hurt my back, I tried to simply shake my tail. It didn’t shake. I decided to sing:
“Midnight, not a sound from the pavement, has the moon lost her memory? She is smiling alone...in the lamplight the withered leaves collect at my feet, and the wind, begins to moan. Every street lamp seems to beet a fatalistic warning, someone utters and the street lamp gutters and soon it will be morning.” After that, I turned to leave. I felt someone following me, but was probably again being mocked. I left. I would return to see Jemima and Deuteronomy. I promised them both.
I returned just as My brother was announcing the cat to be reborn. As I got closer, the Jellicles got up to leave. I looked at my brother. He didn’t recognize me, he had a small crowd of cats gathered around him. I knew what to do to make him recognize me:
“Sunlight, I must wait for the sunrise, and I must think of a new life, yet I mustn’t give in, when the dawn comes tonight will be a memory to. And a new day will begin.” He was beginning to recognize me but all the other cats hated me. I fell on my knees crying, when all of a sudden a familiar soprano voice filled the air:
“Sunlight through the trees in summer, endless masquerading.” I joined her.
“When the dawn comes then tonight is over, the memory is fading!” And by myself I sang:
“Touch me it’s so easy to leave me, all alone with the memory of my days in the sun, But if you touch me you’ll understand what happiness is, look a new day has begun.” I turned to leave, defeated, when I felt a hand in mine. I turned to see a white queen with my hands in hers. Slowly, all the cats began to line up around me, to touch me. I got to the kitten who I selected for my brother, Munkustrap (Who’s no longer a kitten) and he gave my hands to my brother.
“Your going to Heaviside!” He told me with joy.
“What, I don’t really think that’s necessary.” I explained.
“You can restart your life Grizabella! You can start over.” He said smiling. A glittering hand reached down to me. I climbed the stairs, not looking back. I got to the top. I’m in Heaviside.
The End

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