Chapter 1
One day, many many years ago, a young, soft-eyed Jellicle couple rejoiced in the birth of their first and only son. He was an adorable dark gray kitten with black paws and tail and the tips of his ears were also dark. He had coal black eyes. His parents were so proud. "We shall call him Charr-Coal," his mother said with a smile. He was loved by the Jellicle tribe, as were his parents. One day when he was six months old, the leader of the tribe, who was getting old, came to their home, followed by his young apprentice, Deuteronomy.
"I am sorry, sir," the old leader's voice rumbled. "But I have found out about your crime and I have been petitioned to demand your departure from the tribe and your exile from the junkyard. Your wife and son are welcome to stay, but you must leave. You have 24 hours to get your things together and depart." He turned and left, but not before Deuteronomy got a look at the tears welling up in Charr's mother's eyes. His young heart went out to her, but what could he do? He was not the leader yet. He turned and followed his master with a heavy heart.
Meanwhile in Charr's home, his father turned to his mother. "I am sorry, my love," he said with a sigh. "I never meant to get involved with the hench-cats. But that young Macavity and I have really become friends and I am afraid he was not the kind of friend I needed to make. I suppose I really should go. But I can't bear to leave you and our small son. I love you both with all my heart." A lone tear ran down his gray and black face. He kissed his wife's cheek and gave Charr a big hug. "Son, I love you. Take care of your mother. Perhaps we shall meet again on the otherside of the Heaviside." He turned to walk out the door, but his wife stopped him with one word: "Wait." He turned and looked into her beautiful eyes. "I love you," she said. "And I am never going to be separated from you. We are going with you." Her husband started to pretest, but she shushed him with a gentle kiss. Then she gathered her and Charr's things together and the three of them set off for the outer world.
They went to the pipe that led to the hunting ground. Charr's father knew a path to the outer realm from there. As they entered the pipe, their eyes gradually adjusted to the darkness. "I think it is this way," Charr's father said as he turned to the right. All of a sudden, there was a howl from him as his paws hit the slippery slime attached to the bottom of the dank dark tunnel, and he began to slide down an incline. His wife and son were too close behind him to stop so they immediately began to fall also. Down...down...until they landed with a soft thud on the soft grass below.
The three cats sat up and looked around. "I have never been here before," Charr's father said softly. "In fact, I don't believe anyone has ever been here before. Come on, let's look around and figure out where we are." He led his small family into the uncultivated woods and eventually they came upon a small, dry cave. The family went inside and made that their home. They knew that here they would not be bothered, or exiled, for they were already exiled as much as they could be.
The months passed quickly for Charr. He was learning so much about his new habitat. He was also learning how to be an excellent hunter. But, he also knew that something was wrong with his dad. His father spent more and more time in the cave with his mother. He had a cough that kept getting worse and worse and he was getting thin..too thin. By the time Charr was one year old, his father had gone on to the Heaviside to be reborn.
After his father's death, his mother began to miss grown-up cats and the outside world. So she thought that maybe she and Charr could go to the outer world and see what they could find there. But Charr was afraid to be around any other cats because he had grown up with only his mother and father. So he decided to stay in the woods while his mother ventured to the surface. He never saw her again and grew to be distrustful of anyone who might stumble down that pipe into what he thought of as his lair...
