6/1/1999
It has been almost 2 weeks since the death of both my parents. I was born an alley cat, but I’m not one of those rough and tumble cats you picture when you think of alley cats. I don’t think I was meant to be an alley cat at all. I can’t stand living every day in fear for my life. I’m sorry, I’m getting off the subject. I was talking about my parents. Like I said, I was born an alley cat. My parents raised me in the streets of the city. My mother’s name was Snapdragon, and my father’s name was… actually, I don’t know what my father’s name was. I feel almost guilty to not know what his name was. But I only knew him for a couple months, or was it only weeks? Same as my mother, but daughters and mothers seem to be closer, and she told me her name. I don’t really think my father told me his name at all. But under two weeks ago, they were drowned in a nearby river. I found my father dead somewhere, washed up on the beach. But I never found my mother’s body. That only convinces me that she is still alive somewhere. She was a fighter, my mother. I am on an endless search for her because I just know she is alive somewhere. I don’t know where, but she is. I can feel it.
Ever since their death, I have wandered the streets looking for both my mother and a home. Someone to love me and care for me. I decided that just in case I don’t survive this life, I will write down all my accounts in this empty notebook I found lying in a garbage can. And if I do survive, then I will be able to remember more vividly what happened.
I know what you’re thinking if you’re reading this: how can this little kitten only five months old write, much less use all these big words? Well, let me tell ya. People love to throw out pens and pencils, so that answers the writing question. And a cat CAN WRITE, believe it or not. As for the big words… hey, I love to read. Yes, a cat CAN READ, and people love to throw away books too. I read anything I can get my paws on, and I have an impressive collection of textbooks, dictionaries, encyclopedias, and novels in my little home I made in the alley. So with the dictionaries and encyclopedias I read, I have an impressive vocabulary for a kitten.
I have to go now. It’s getting dark, and soon it will be hard to see. I’ll continue in the morning.
Saphinora
6/2/1999
Today was rather dreary. It was raining all day long, and I sat in a cardboard box in the alley to keep dry. I’m sorry if these pages are totally soaked, but the wind kinda whisked them away from me into the sheets of raindrops. I saved them just in time. I’m glad I wrote in pencil, because if I wrote in pen the ink would be all over the place.
The only exciting thing that happened to day was a man walked by my place. He looked kinda old and equally grumpy, so I tried my best to avoid him. He just glared at me and I was so afraid that he would kick me I tried to look dead. Luckily he just walked on by with his two Doberman Pollicles following him.
That’s all I have time to write. I slept in too late, and when I woke up I had to find some food and then find my way back here and then write in my journal. But by then the sun was almost set.
Oh drat. I can’t see a thing right now. Forgive me if the writing looks sloppy.
Saphinora
6/3/1999
Today I was discovered. I was just lying down, minding my own business, when I heard someone walk up behind me. I turned around and saw this black and white tom just standing there, staring at me. I was afraid that he was going to beat me up or something, and I was so scared and my heart was beating so loud that I thought he would hear it. Then I decided that he didn’t look like he was there to beat me up, in fact, he looked kind of nice. So I summoned enough courage to say, “Who are you?” He looked startled, like he wasn’t expecting me to say anything. Then he smiled and said, “I’m Mistoffelees.” My heart almost stopped. I remembered that name. My mother always told me to watch out for Mistoffelees. She said he was a Jellicle, and Jellicles were evil. And not only was Mistoffelees a Jellicle, he was a magical one. She said he was even more powerful than Macavity. And I was told to never trust him, no matter what he said. That was the last thing my mother ever told me before she… before she died. And I intended to obey her last words. So then I glared at Mistoffelees and said, “Please leave. This is my home.” Then some fear crept into his eyes, and he turned and darted away.
Sometimes I wonder why my mother told me to never trust Jellicles. The only reason she gave me was that they were evil.
Saphinora
6/4/1999
I saw that tom again today. I wonder why he even bothered to come back? Anyway, Mistoffelees came back. I was scratching letters to my deceased mother, when I sensed his presence. When I looked up, there he was, standing right in front of me. He looked determined, like he had a mission or something. I stared at him blankly, and said, “What are you doing here again?” I was scared. I didn’t know what to expect. He said to me softly, “What’s wrong? Yesterday you were crying… I know you were, don’t try to fool me. Are you okay? Do you want me to help you? Are you lost?” I kind of snorted and stood up to look him in the eye. Even though I could tell he was a teen, he wasn’t much bigger than me. “One question at a time, senior,” I said rudely. He smiled. I could tell that this Mistoffelees character was going to be very difficult. But I’ve dealt with much bigger toms. I could handle him. “Okay,” he said. “First question: are you okay?”
I stared at him hard. “Are you?” I turned away from him and stepped into my lair, which consists of several rusted bikes piled together for shelter, and a thick blanket with holes on it draped over them. There was a pillow with most of the stuffing ripped out of it sitting on the ground in the shelter. I laid down on it.
Mistoffelees wasn’t discouraged. He followed me into my shelter. “There’s something wrong with you, I can tell,” he said knowingly. “I mean, you’ve been hurt or something. Or…” he stared at me quizzically. “Or you just don’t trust me.” I glared at him. “Okay. If you must know, I don’t.” “But why?” asked Mistoffelees. “What have I ever done to make you not trust me?” This guy does not give up! I thought. “Well… nothing,” I admitted. “But I was told never to trust Jellicles. And especially Jellicles like you.” Mistoffelees walked over to me and started circling me. “Why? Who told you this?” “My… my mom,” I answered. “And who, may I ask, is your mom?” said Mistoffelees.
That was it. I had had it. I stood up and glared at Mistoffelees right in his eye. “You’re being incredibly nosy,” I said boldly. “GET OUT OF MY HOME!” I guess that scared him enough because he nodded quickly and darted out of my lair.
I really hope that’s the last time I ever see Mistoffelees. I tell you, magical cats can be unbelievably annoying.
Saphinora
6/5/1999
Mistoffelees didn’t show up today. I have to admit, I was a little disappointed. I was getting used to the company and attention. Plus, it was nice having someone worry about me for once. I wonder if he gave up on me? I hope not, because he was starting to seem kinda nice. Well, except for the fact that he was being nosy yesterday. I can’t stand that!
Since I didn’t have company all day long, I explored the alley. There’s nothing much in it, really. My lair is in the very end of it and it’s not much of a lair. I decided to spice it up a little bit, you know, make it more comfortable. I carefully rearranged the bikes to make sort of a tent and draped an even thicker blanket over them. I took the old blanket and spread to on the ground for a floor. I found another pillow, too, and I stacked that on top of the one I already have. So now it’s looking more like a home. And I want it to be comfortable too, because it looks like I’ll be there for a while.
While I was collecting my treasures, I noticed something. There was a stack of cardboard boxes toward the front entrance of the alley. It looked like someone, or something, was living in it. I wonder if I have a neighbor…
I also found a deck of cards and now I spend my days playing Solitaire and spying on that little home hoping against hope that in it lives a nice cat who can help me.
Saphinora
6/6/1999
I was pretty sorry that I scared Mistoffelees away the other day. So today I decided to go pay the Jellicles a nice visit, find Mistoffelees, and apologize for being a brat. I was walking down the alley in the direction of the junkyard, when who do I see but Mistoffelees and this pretty white cat who looked about my age. And they were walking right to me. I stopped right in my tracks and stared at them. “What are you doing here again?” I asked Mistoffelees, but I wasn’t being mean this time. I was being polite. Or at least, trying to be polite. Mistoffelees said that he and his friend came all the way over here just to talk to me and find out what was wrong. I was delighted. Someone was actually worried about me! So I invited them into my lair.
They followed me and as soon as we reached my home I flat-out said, “What do you want?” The white kitten smiled at me. “For starters, how about your name?” she asked. So I smiled back and said, “My mother called me Saphinora. And when I had an owner, she called me Spark. And my third name is… I mean, I’m not supposed to tell you my third name. What’s yours?” “I’m Victoria,” answered the white kitten. “And that black and white tom is Mistoffelees.”
After our introductions to each other, I told them all about myself. That I am an alley-born cat, my father is dead and my mother is probably dead somewhere, but I never give up hope thinking that I might find her some day. I was afraid Mistoffelees would ask me again who my mother was, but he didn’t. I was relieved. Once they knew all about me, they understood why I hadn’t trusted them at first. But now I can say that they are my friends.
Oh, by the way. I found out Victoria is older than me only by a couple of months. I think we’re going to be close friends.
Saphinora
6/7/1999
Mistoffelees and Victoria didn’t come back today. I was so disappointed! I had done some extra cleaning and made my lair even nicer, with pillows arranged to look like a small sofa and two easy chairs. But they never came! You’d think that after I opened up to them they would be coming back every day. Maybe they’ll come back tomorrow…
So what did I do all day? I played Solitaire with myself. I was planning to play Hearts with Mistoffelees and Victoria when they came, but they never did. After a while I got bored of Solitaire and was feeling very hungry. So I stacked up my cards and put them away on my dresser (which is actually a brick but I call it my dresser) and I set off to find some food. There was nothing very appetizing in the alley, so I made a left turn on the sidewalk to find something to eat.
I wandered all the way to the park, which is about two or three blocks away. There was an empty bench that was only occupied by… a lunch bag! It seemed too good to be true. I ran over to the lunch bag and looked in. Someone had left a bag of chips half full and they looked like they didn’t want the crust of their turkey sandwich. I was in heaven. I took my treasures and hid in a nearby tree to eat. It was like a feast to me!
When I got back to the alley I was bored, so I went digging around in garbage cans, hoping to find something to decorate my lair with I guess. It still didn’t look homey enough, and it seemed like it was missing something. After a short search, I found a small mirror about the size of a human’s hand. I loved it. I took it to my lair and propped it up on my dresser. So all in all, I had a pretty decent day, except for the fact that Mistoffelees and Victoria didn’t show up. I wonder why?
Saphinora
6/8/1999
Today was pretty exciting. Mistoffelees and Victoria did come back. As soon as I saw them I said, “Hi guys! Why didn’t you come yesterday?” They glanced at each other, and then Mistoffelees looked at me. “Can you come with us to the junkyard today? Munkustrap and Old Deuteronomy want to see you to see if they can accept you.” My eyes widened. “You want me to come to your junkyard so I can become a Jellicle?” I asked, not really believing it. They nodded. “I’m pretty sure you’re already in,” said Victoria, “but I think Munkustrap wanted to see what you were like first.” I grinned so hard it felt like my face was going to break. “Wow, this is… this is great! Never would I have thought… For a while I thought I was going to live in the alley by myself for an eternity!” I looked at them questioningly. “Am I still gonna have to live in the alley?”
Mistoffelees shook his head slowly. “I don’t think so. My pets’ next door neighbors are looking for a cat. If we get you washed up and all that stuff, we can leave you on their porch with a note around your neck saying you need a home or whatever, and you’re in.” I smiled even wider. “You mean… I’m actually going to have an owner?” I stopped. “They aren’t going to abuse me or anything?” I was still a little afraid because of my previous owner. Well, she wasn’t an owner but a homeless lady who lived, er, stayed around close to our lair when I still had my parents.
“They better not abuse you!” cried Victoria. “You’re too nice! How could anyone abuse you?” I was flattered. Mistoffelees looked at me. “What do you say?” he asked. “Want to come to the junkyard with us?” I was about to say, ‘great!’ but I then noticed how late it was. It was already getting dark. Well, as I am writing this it’s pitch black outside, but Mistoffelees was so kind to find me a flashlight. “I’m sorry, I can’t come,” I said softly. Mistoffelees looked surprised. “But… but…” I shook my head. “I’ll come tomorrow. Right now it’s too dark. By the time I came back it’d be too dark for me to find my way home.”
“So why don’t you come to the junkyard to spend the night?” asked Victoria. Hmm. I hadn’t thought of that. “Okay!” I said excitedly.
So I followed them for the longest time. By the time we got to the junkyard it was pitch black. Victoria led me to her lair that she said she shared with her mother and her sister. She couldn’t find her mom, but her sister was asleep already. I couldn’t tell what kind of cat she was cuz it’s still pitch black. I tried to fall asleep but couldn’t. I had forgotten my journal!
I was about to leave to get it, when Mistoffelees showed up. He handed me my journal and a flashlight. “Thought you might want this,” he said. “Thank you!” I said happily. “Good night.”
Now, I am done writing. Victoria’s sister is snoring and it’s incredibly loud. But I’m so tired. I think I’ll go to sleep now.
Saphinora
6/9/1999
Wow. I slept in longer than I thought. When I woke up, I was staring straight into Victoria’s face. She smiled and said, “Ready to get to know the other Jellicles?” I agreed right away. She took me to Mistoffelees, who was pacing around outside his pipe. When he saw us he said, “You must love to sleep, huh Saphinora? It’s about 3:45!” My eyes widened. “Yikes. I must have been tired!” I exclaimed. “You must have,” agreed Victoria. “Well… let’s get started.”
I followed them around the junkyard until we ran into a queen with tiger stripes and leopard spots and another queen who looked like a mix. “Oh!” squealed queen #1 when she saw us. Queen #2 ran right up to me and started circling me. #1 wasn’t too far behind her. “Oh, aren’t you darling!” gushed queen #2. As I was being poked at, and groomed and petted, Mistoffelees laughed and said, “Saphinora, meet Jennyanydots and Jellylorum.” “A little over-excited, aren’t they?” I said. “Who is who?” The striped and spotted one looked me in the eye. “I’m Jennyanydots, and that’s Jellylorum,” she stated. Then they went back to playing with me like I was a doll.
When Mistoffelees and Victoria finally managed to detach the crazy queens, they took me over to two kittens that looked about my age. “That one’s Electra.” Victoria pointed. “And she’s Etcetera.” They were following this little brown mouse around, and barely looked up to say “hi.” Victoria and Mistoffelees hurried me on.
The next Jellicle I met was this sassy Siamese who I don’t really like much so far. She slinked up to us and looked me straight in the eye. “How do you do, newcomer,” she said rudely. Then she slinked along her way. “That,” said Mistoffelees, “Was Cassandra.” I kept staring at her, as she walked up to this other tom and started flirting with him. “I don’t think she likes me much,” I said glumly. “She doesn’t like new people,” said Victoria gently. “Just let her get to know you. She’s okay once you’re not new.” “If you say so,” I said.
Then I met these other two really nice cats. The female was Rumpleteazer, and the male was Mungojerrie. Rumple was so nice to me, and she offered to take me mouse hunting later. Mungojerrie grinned at me and told me that he was going to get me some chocolate for a little welcome present. I guess he was joking, because he never got it for me. Oh well.
I’m gonna have to finish up pretty quickly, because I have to go on that mouse hunt with Rumpleteazer. She said it was going to be me, her, and two queens named Demeter and Bombal-something. So I’m just gonna wrap it up.
I met the leader of the Jellicles. He seemed very nice, and said I could have six weeks to pass the Jellicle initiation. The second-hand leader (I can’t remember either of their names) just kept smiling and nodding. He didn’t have much to say.
And then… oops, Rumpleteazer is calling me. Gotta go.
Saphinora
6/10/1999
Today was fun! I met all the rest of the Jellicles, and they were all so nice to me. Well, all except for this young calico who is about my age who’s been ignoring me the whole time. She’s the same one who’s Victoria’s sister. She’s been giving me the cold shoulder, and I didn’t even do anything wrong to her! It’s not really fair. Mistoffelees told me her name was… actually, I can’t remember her name. Something like Jemora I think. I can’t remember.
The mouse hunt was great yesterday! We didn’t catch anything, but I had a terrific time! The Jellicles are really great to me and they’re so nice. I can’t understand why my mother was always so weary of them. I’m just so confused. But the Jellicles… they’re just so nice and hospitable and generous and fun to be around. At the mouse hunt I told a funny joke about something and Rumple and Demeter and (I remember her name!) Bombalurina cracked up and were rolling around on the ground from laughter. So that was really, really fun. But now, back to today.
The rest of the Jellicles I met are just as nice as the ones I met yesterday. Mistoffelees’ uncle gave me a welcoming treat. It was a huge sucker about the size of Europe! I accepted it, though I don’t know how I’ll ever finish eating it. Mistoffelees’ uncle is pretty fat (I would never say that to his face) and that lollipop was bigger than him! It was pretty funny, watching him struggle to drag the candy along with him.
Mungojerrie ended up giving me a piece of chocolate after all. He told me that Skimbleshanks the railway cat gave it to him. Skimble is always hanging out on a train and he managed to get this really rich chocolate imported from Spain. It was very delicious and I don’t know how I’ll ever pay Mungojerrie for his kindness.
After all the excitement of meeting everyone, I wandered around the junkyard a little. I spotted this one strange cat spying on me (strange as in I didn’t know her, ok?). She was trying to hind behind this unhealthy tree on a hill near the junkyard. When she saw me looking at her, she turned away. I’ll have to investigate this more…
I also got the scare of my life from an annoying tom that Demeter called “Pounce”. I think I’m going to try my best to avoid him for now…
Saphinora
P.S. I think I’m going to love being a Jellicle!
6/11/1999
Mistoffelees hasn’t been in the junkyard for the past two days. I was a little worried, and I admit, a little scared. Mistoffelees is really the only Jellicle besides Victoria that I know. I mean, Demeter, Bomb, and Rumple are very nice to me, but I just don’t feel like I know them that much. So I guess I kinda panicked when I realized that Mistoffelees and Victoria were nowhere in sight.
I eventually found Victoria helping out that one queen with tiger stripes and leopard spots (was her name Jennyanydots or was she Jellylorum?) train these weird mice. I asked if they knew where Mistoffelees was, and they said they didn’t. Victoria said that he might be at his pet’s house and that we could go check. So Victoria led me to his house.
It was a really big house! We walked all the way around it until we spotted Misto in this nice sunny window. Victoria got his attention by throwing some stones at the window that she found on the ground. Mistoffelees opened the window and yelled out it, “Go AWAY, Tugger, I don’t want to be teased anymore…” Then he stopped when he saw it was us. “Oh, hi,” he said, sounding embarrassed. “Um… I didn’t know it was you guys. Tugger was just here and he was kinda…” “Teasing you?” Victoria broke in. Misto grinned. “Yeah. Teasing me. But what can you expect from him? Anyway… what are you doing here?”
“We just wanted to know if you were okay,” I said softly. “You weren’t at the junkyard, and nobody else knew where you were. We were kinda… worried.” Mistoffelees smiled at me. “Well, there’s nothing to be worried about. See? I’m fine. Now why don’t you two get back to the junkyard and tell everyone I’m alive so nobody else decides to ruin my nap.”
I was pretty relieved to know where he was and that he was just fine. I don’t know, I just don’t know that many Jellicles yet and I needed a friend. Maybe I should stop worrying so much.
Saphinora
P.S. Today I also met Skimble. He was incredibly nice to me, and gave me an expensive bottle of perfume as a gift.
6/12/1999
Mistoffelees came back to the junkyard today. He kept shaking his head and muttering, “Humans. They never realize that a cat might need his space.” I decided that maybe I should leave him alone for a while. He looked pretty steamed.
So I ran off to play with Victoria. She was playing ball with Etcetera and Electra and that one small calico that was acting kinda weary of me before. The ball was a little beat up, but that’s probably because Victoria found it in a trashcan. Anyway, I asked if I could play and Victoria said, “Sure! You’re on Jemima’s team.” She gestured over to the calico. Jemima seemed to shrink away from me a little bit. “It’s okay. I may be an alley cat, but I’m certainly not tough,” I joked, trying to lighten the mood. Jemima raised her eyebrows, then smiled a really tiny smile. “I’m sorry I was acting really weird,” she said softly. “I guess I was a little afraid.” At this I cocked my head at her. “Why?” I asked. She shook her head and laughed. “Forget it. Let’s play some ball.” She smiled brighter at me and I knew that I had made another friend.
We kicked the ball around for a while. I think the game we were playing was similar to soccer. I was the goalie on my team, and Victoria was the goalie on the other team. Etcetera and Jemima were running around, playfully batting the ball around and trying to make it in each other’s goals. Electra was scorekeeper. We played for a long time, until it was almost dark. We decided to call it a draw, since Electra couldn’t remember what the final scores were. Victoria invited all the other kittens to her and Jemima’s place for something to eat. Of course, we all accepted. We started making our way across the junkyard over to the car trunk.
We were no more than about halfway there when I heard a timid, unfamiliar voice call out, “Hello? I… I need to speak with the leader of this tribe. It’s urgent.” All eyes turned to stare. There was a small brown and white kitten standing in the middle, not too far away from me. She looked hopefully from face to face of all the hushed Jellicles. Munkustrap strode over to her. “And who might you be?” he asked her cautiously. She told him her name (I’m sorry, I can’t remember her name right now but I know it began with a “J”) She looked up at him with pleading eyes. “Please sir, my mother told me that I was destined to become a part of your tribe… please, just give me a chance.” Munkustrap looked deep in thought for a moment. “All right,” he said. “Follow me and I can show you to Old Deuteronomy.”
I wanted to stay and watch with all the adult and teen cats, but Jellylorum and Jennyanydots were busy shepherding all the other kittens into their lairs. They all groaned and complained, but nevertheless, they ended up going sulkily to their homes. I thought since I was new maybe I could get away with staying out, but Jenny looked me straight in the eye and said, “That means you too, Saphinora. You’re a kitten also, don’t you forget.” She led me to the lair she shared with Jemima and Victoria. “You can stay with us tonight. You might not want to be left all by yourself in your own empty lair.” I was about to protest, when I felt eyes burning into my back. I whirled around and caught the strange cat staring at me. I gasped. That was the same cat that was spying on me! She gave me a little sad smile and said, “Nice to meet you, Saphinora.”
Okay, I admit. It shocked me a little when she said my name. But Jenny had just said my name, so of course she knew it. But it still surprised me a little.
I allowed myself to be dragged off by Jenny. It wasn’t so bad though, because I played truth or dare with Jemima and Victoria. Now they’re giggling because they see their names in my diary.
Jemima wants to write something: SOMETHING!
Ha. Ha. Very funny. Now, I’m going to get some sleep.
Saphinora
6/13/1999
I miss my books.
When I lived in the alley not too long ago I got bored a lot. And I mean a LOT a lot. So I started a collection. I collected books. I took whatever I could find. I had an almost complete encyclopedia set; three dictionaries that had pages ripped out; a really long romance novel that was missing its front cover; a ripped up picture book that looked like it was meant for kids who were two; five school textbooks; and another adult novel that had the last chapter torn out of it. So, you can see I had quite a collection. And I really missed my books.
I told this to Mistoffelees and he just smiled at me. “Don’t worry,” he said. “We can get your books tomorrow. Right now we’ve gotta find you a home.” “A home?” I echoed. “But I have a home. Right here in the junkyard.” My little lair wasn’t much. When Mistoffelees showed it to me he said it was only temporary. After all, it was only a refrigerator box. He said that he’d surprise me with a new lair someday, but not now. So I thought that when he said he was going to get me a home it meant that he was going to get me a new lair in the junkyard. But he said, “I know. But that’s your… well, your junkyard home. We’ve got to get you a family.” A family? My heart nearly stopped. It sounded too good to be true. “But where?” I asked. “And who?” “My pet’s next door neighbors have been looking for a cat for ages,” explained Mistoffelees. “We just put you in a nice gift basket and leave you on their front porch.”
So Mistoffelees led me to his neighborhood. Not only is his neighborhood a nice one, it’s a neighborhood of mansions! He and Victoria lived across the street from each other. She lived in a mansion too. And now I was going to live in a mansion! Right next to two of my best friends! It sounded too good to be true. Anyway, just as Mistoffelees said, he got a big wicker basket tied up with a pink ribbon for me. I followed him to his neighbors’ front porch. “Get in the basket,” he told me. I got in. He carefully pinned a note to the pink ribbon. “What’s it say?” I asked, curious. “You’ll find out,” he said. “Now, curl up in a tight ball and look up at the human’s with sad eyes. They love that. They think it’s the cutest thing.” I did what he said and curled up. I heard him walking over to the door. I heard him jump up, then I heard a doorbell ringing. “Okay,” he whispered. “Here we go.” Then I heard him jump into the nearby bushes.
I sat as still as I could. The door opened, and a lady’s soft voice said, “Oh my! What’s this?” She knelt down next to my basket and stared into my face. “It’s a little kitten!” she exclaimed. I looked up at her the way Mistoffelees had instructed. I even threw in a pitiful “mew” to make it more affective. The woman smiled and stroked my head. “Why, we’ve always wanted a cat,” she murmured. Then her eye caught the note. “’Dearest Friend,’” she read aloud. "I found this poor kitten abandoned in an alley. I am afraid that I am not capable of caring for such a beautiful creature, and I thought that maybe you could give her the love and caring that she deserves. Please, all I ask is that you give her a wonderful home and love her always.’” She looked back down at me. “Well, with a letter like that I couldn’t bear turning you down. Let’s go inside.”
She gently picked me up out of the basket and carried me inside her mansion. I was fed wonderful canned tuna, and I now have a small basket with a pillow inside that serves as a bed. I think I have died and gone to the Heaviside Layer.
Saphinora
6/14/1999
Today I got my books back! Mistoffelees was so nice to help me lug them from my old lair to my new lair in the junkyard. And he must’ve been feeling extra generous because he helped me to totally remodel my lair. Well, move it is more like it. Yes, I got a brand-new lair in the junkyard. I moved into the stove. I was surprised that nobody had moved into it yet, because it makes such a great lair. All my friends even helped me too. Victoria donated a fluffy red rug that was just the perfect size. She said she found it in the back of the junkyard, and nobody was using it. Rumpleteazer contributed a 3-D illusion poster that I hung up on one of the walls. Etcetera and Electra both gave me a nearly new lamp that I hung up in the stove to use for some light. Jemima let me have a really nice dresser that I could store all my books in. Skimble presented me with a brand-new wooden clock that I hung up immediately. Mungojerrie gave me a beautiful Victorian mirror (I think he took it from his family). Even Pouncival gave me something, although I’m not sure why he gave what he did. He gave me a huge pile of batteries. (I don’t know why he gave me some batteries, he just said that I seemed to like them) I’m not in need for batteries unless—
Well, what do you know? Bustopher just gave me a walkie-talkie that I could use to contact him. I guess I’ll have a use for batteries after all!
Saphinora
6/15/1999
Oh my gosh! I had forgotten all about Mistoffelees supposed to give me my first initiation test! Well, he was supposed to give me the test about five days ago, but he didn’t. Munkustrap was really mad at Mistoffelees. He called him into his “office” to have a word with him. I followed them silently as they walked off over to the tire. I watched them slip into the center where anybody who can’t see them, can’t hear them. I snuck up on them and spied on their meeting. I hid behind a trashcan someone had stuck right next to the tire. Here’s what I heard them say:
Munkustrap: I’m getting tired of this, Misto.
Mistoffelees: I’m sorry. Really, I am. Those first two times I didn’t test her weren’t really my fault. But the others… I really am very sorry Munku.
Munkustrap: I’m afraid that if you don’t give her the first initiation test soon, I’ll have to give somebody else the assignment (at the mention of that, Mistoffelees hung his head, ashamed). I’ll give you three days. Three days to give her the first test. And if you don’t…
Mistoffelees: But Munkustrap, she has six months to go through all of the tests! Why do we need to rush things?
Munkustrap: She has six months, and fifteen tests altogether. I don’t see why we have to procrastinate, and wait until you only have one week left.
Mistoffelees: (sighed) Yes. I will give her the first test tomorrow.
Munkustrap: I sure hope you do.
And that’s when Munkustrap leaped out of the tire and went off on his own. Mistoffelees came out looking dejected and miserable. I figured that maybe he needed some time of his own, so I didn’t bother him for the rest of the day.
I kept looking around for Jemima to ask her if she wanted to play a game or something, but I couldn’t find her at all. But I did find Victoria and we played dress-up for a while. The clothes we used were pretty dirty, and all ripped. But, well, this is a junkyard, so what do you expect?
Saphinora
Back Home
Go to Part 2
Back to Jellicle Journals