Puss in Boots

-Erik Bernhardt

Once, along time ago, in a mythical kingdom now lost to all but a few recollections, there was a humble old miller who had three sons. The miller and his son’s lived a rather happy, quiet life, but one day, the old miller passed away, as all mortal men must do, and left his small estate to his three sons, that they may divide it up as they wished.

The miller, although a good and hardworking man, was very poor. So, his “estate” consisted of very little, namely a mill, a donkey, and a cat. As in custom of such kingdoms at the time, the eldest son got the mill, the second eldest the donkey, and the youngest the cat.

Now, the youngest son was not too happy with this, and pled with his brothers to help him out.

“Brother’s, said he, “please, let me come to work under you, for surely, after I kill, eat, and skin this cat, I will have nothing left to eat” The cat, was, naturally, distraught at this, so quickly he said to his master that if he would only spare the cat’s life and supply the cat with some boots and a pouch, he would increase his master’s fortune greatly. Now, after getting over the shock that he had inherited a talking cat, the youngest son agreed, seeing as in order for the cat to talk, it must be pretty intelligent.

The cat, upon receiving its boots and pouch, went out in the fields and caught a rabbit. He then Oh so nonchalantly waltzed the royal palace and presented the king with the rabbit.

“Good king!” cried the cat, “I come from the Marquis of Cabasa bearing this gift for you. The king, astounded at the talking cat and rabbit, could openly stare in wonderment. So, this went on for some time. The talking cat would catch some animal, and bring it to the king. Once, upon visiting the castle, the cat overheard plans for a trip the king was making with his lovely daughter. The cat raced home to his master, and told him if he would only bathe at a certain place that the cat told him, his fortune would increase tremendously.

So, on the day that the king and his daughter were traveling, the master was bathing near the road. As the king approached the spot, the cat ran into the street and shouted for help, claiming that the Marquis of Cabasa was drowning.

The king and his attendants hurried to the spot where the miller’s son was bathing and asked what was the matter.

“Robbers have come and stolen my poor master’s clothes!” wept the cat, “Oh, what terrible men!”

The king called for his royal wardrobe, and dressed the young man in finery. Only one look at the miller’s son, and the princess fell madly in love with him. The king invited “the Marquis” for a ride, and the master promptly accepted.

The cat came up with a cunning plan to win his master more wealth and fame. The cat ran ahead of the carriage and threatened horrible, slow, terrifying deaths to all the people in the fields if they did not say that the fields belonged to the Marquis of Cabasa when the king asked.

He did this all along the road until he came to a splendorous castle where an ogre dwelt.

“Great ogre,” he asked cunningly after gaining an audience with the ogre, “ I had heard that you can change into event the smallest creatures, say, a mouse, or a rat.”

Ogres aren’t the most cunning creatures.

“Why of course!” said the ogre, and to prove his point he turned into the tiniest mouse.

The cat promptly gobbled the mouse up.

Now, presently, the king, Marquis, and princess came to the castle. They were all quite impressed with the Marquis seeing as all the fields so far they had been told belonged to the Marquis. The peasents were still afraid that they would die horrible, slow, terrifying deaths, and were so to the end of their days. When they came to the castle, the cat ran out side.

“Behold!” cried the cat, “the castle of the Marquis of Cabasa!”

The Marquis married the princess that very day, and they all lived happily ever after, except for the peasants, seeing as they were afraid they would all die horrible, slow, terrifying deaths.