Will there be a Unicorn? and Other Tales

The Tortoiseshell Cat

A tortoiseshell cat that belongs to a witch,
Who lives in a hut by an overgrown ditch,
Is walking alone in the forest one day
When he bumps into something that's blocking his way.

A huge pair of feet that smell worse than old cheese
And two hairy legs that are taller than trees,
A big hairy body that's solid and strong
And two hairy arms that are muscly and long.

A head like a boulder with eyes of dark green,
The two biggest ears that the cat's ever seen.
Its nose is enormous; its sharp teeth are bared
'A troll!' says the cat but the cat isn't scared.

The troll bends his head and he roars and he roars
The tortoiseshell cat blocks his ears with his paws.
'I'll eat you for dinner!' the hairy troll yells
(You couldn't imagine how bad the troll smells!)

'Oh great!' says the cat. 'I've had such a bad day
But who would have thought it would finish this way?
Oh, how have I earned such a terrible fate?
I'm going to end up on a stupid troll's plate!'

'Stupid?' the troll says. 'Who's stupid? Not me!
I'm clever, not stupid. I'll prove it! You'll see!
I know lots of magic that's terribly clever.
I've never been beaten at magic, not ever!

Just watch me!' the troll says. 'You'll get a surprise.
I'll show you! You'll hardly believe your own eyes!
I'll turn myself into a dragon. Watch this!'
The troll waves his hands. There's a noise like a hiss.

A puff of green smoke and the troll disappears.
The cat stands and looks till the smokiness clears
And where the troll stood, there's a dragon instead
With scales and a tail and a big dragon head.

'Ta da!' sings the troll, 'I can tell you're impressed.'
'Really?' Cat yawns. 'Are you trying your best?
A dragon, dear Troll, well it's just a big lizard.
I bet you that even the stupidest wizard

Could turn himself into a dragon like you.
Now come on and show me what else you can do.'
'I'll turn myself into a lion right now!'
Says Troll, 'I can do it! I can! I know how!'

The troll (who's a dragon now) waves his front paw
And suddenly Cat hears a noise like a roar.
A puff of green smoke and the troll disappears.
The cat stands and looks till the smokiness clears

And where the troll stood, there's a lion instead
With fur and a mane and a big lion head.
'Ta da!' sings the troll. 'I'm a magical ace!'
But Cat only yawns and then washes his face.

'A lion, dear Troll, well it's just a big cat.
I'm sure you can do something better than that.
It's easy to turn into something that's big:
A bear, a gorilla, a gigantic pig.

But only the cleverest wizard of all
Can turn himself into a creature that's small:
A mouse or a mole or . . . I don't know . . . a rat?
Now that would be really impressive!' says Cat.

'Of course I can do that! Enough of your cheek!
The troll waves his paw. There's a noise like a squeak.
A puff of green smoke and the troll disappears.
The cat stands and looks till the smokiness clears

And where the troll stood, there's a rat there instead
With ears and a tail and a tiny rat head.
'Ta da!' sings the troll. 'Now I've shown you, old cat . . .
But Cat isn't listening. He jumps on the rat.

And that is the end of the terrible troll.
The tortoiseshell cat
has
swallowed
him
whole.

✨🧡🐱 🐉 🦁 🐻 🦍 🐷 🧡✨

I hope you enjoyed my reworking of a part of the Puss in Boots fairy tale 😊😊😊

It's a common trope in folklore: the little guy tricks the predator/genie into turning himself into something very small so he can eat him/trap him in a bottle etc.

I just love stories where the underdog outwits the scary bad guy 😉😄

Thanks for reading 😊

✨🌿⭐️🌺🌸💛🌸🌺⭐️🌿✨