The Jellicle Chronicles - Year Five

Coming of Age

Augustus never truly liked the mornings. When the sun came up, Augustus was ready for sleeping. While the sun was in the sky, Augustus was always ready for a nap. But, the moment the sun started toward the horizon, the son of the Leader of the Jellicles was ready to party. Nights - now there was the time to be out and about. 

      With his Mother in the Nursery for a couple of moons, Augustus felt restless. As before, his Aunt (or his Father’s Second) became more amorous around the Silver Tabby. Hearing their lovemaking was affecting him more than usual it seemed, so “Augie” waited until the main sleeping room was quiet. Lifting himself out of the one box he called his own, he lowered himself down. Passing by the compact mound of scarlet, white, black and silver, the Rust and Gold Tom quietly slipped out the entryway. 

      When he hit the ground, Augustus stumbled. As he regained his balance, he scowled. Lately, he has been doing that more often, and it was starting to bother him. A lot of things were starting to bother him, and there were no answers. He no longer liked to sleep with his two sisters, especially his twin, Aphrodite. So, he relocated to a smaller box, where he could curl up into a ball on his own. 

      Coming around the corner near the old oven, Augustus launched himself toward a platform halfway up the pile. In a moment, he knew he was in trouble. Somehow, he was going to miss the landing! Horrified, he crashed into the side of a box above the platform, and then landed hard, back on the platform on his side. Laying on the flat surface, Augustus was aware his right shoulder was almost useless. The joint burned and pain radiated from the area. Groaning, he eased back down off the platform, holding his right arm against his chest. Landing on the ground, the jolt nearly caused him to black out. 

      “Oh, great,” he moaned. “I’ll never live this down. Munkustrap’s son hurts himself jumping up on a box!” 

      Carefully, he walked down the path that would take him to the overturned bathtub. He did not even like the look of his shoulder. Blood seeped from the abrasions and small pieces of wood stuck out of the fur. How could he have missed something he did every day without a mishap? 

      Coming through the curtains, Augustus saw Jellylorum near his Mother and new sister. He liked his new sister, but he felt odd when he saw Pettipaws. The little Tiger kitten was always here with Adonis, and now she was sitting on Jellylorum’s pillow all alone. Where was the junior Conjurer? About that time, Jellylorum saw him and the way he was holding his arm. 

      “Augie? Come here, dearest,” Jellylorum called. As he slowly approached her, she gasped. “What happened to you?” 

      “I missed my jump up in one of the piles and hit a box wrong. It hurts!” 

      “Augie?” 

      The Matron saw Demeter starting to get up. “Deme, you stay there with Amanda. Let’s not tempt anything going wrong with you and the kitten. Augie, get up on the pillow here.” 

      The young Tom sat on the pillow that many called the “Examination Table.” Being a flat foam pillow with a nylon surface, it conformed nicely to someone lying on it, and the nylon covering wiped off easily. Jellylorum brought over a small tray on which held a few of her basic instruments. A small pair of tweezers, a small penlight, and a pair of small dental probes acted as her basic tools. A stack of square gauze pads allowed her to swab a wound, place as a sterile pad, and lay debris upon. She took one off the stack, and laid it next to Augustus. Next, she reached up near his neck and the underside of his armpit, and applied a brief bit of pressure. Instantly, he felt most of his right arm and shoulder go numb. Using the tweezers, Jellylorum began picking out the wood debris. Although her touch provided a topical anesthetic, Augustus still winced with each pull of the tweezers.