Puss in Boots
Once upon a time, there lived a poor miller who had three sons. He loved all his three sons dearly. But one day, the poor miller died leaving a mill to his eldest son, his donkey to his second son, and only a cat to his youngest son. The eldest son was happy at his father’s decision and sent his two brothers away keeping the mill to himself. The second son took the donkey and set off in search of his fortune while the third sat down on a stone and sighed, “A cat! What am I going to do with that?”
All of a sudden he heard the cat say, “Not to worry master. You keep seeing and I will show you that I am far better. And I will prove that to you too. Give-me a cloak, a hat with a feather in it, a bag, and a pair of boots and you will see what I can do.”
The young man had no other choice but to agree with what the cat said. He gave the cat what he asked for and as he strode away, confident and cheerful, the cat said, “Now you will see what I mean,” and swift of foot as he was, the cat caught a fat wild rabbit, popped it into his bag. Then he ran as fast as a cheetah and knocked at the castle gate and went before the King and, removing his hat, with a sweeping bow, he said, “Sue, the famous Marquis of Carabas sends you this fine plump rabbit as a gift.”
“Oh,” said the King “Thanks so much. Please give my regards to him”
“Sure, I will certainly do that,” replied the cat as he went out.
And the next day, he came back with some partridges tucked away in his bag. "Another gift from the brave Marquis of Carabas,” he announced.
The Queen was already very pleased with the cat and she said, "This Marquis of Carabas is indeed a very courteous gentleman. In the days that followed, Puss in Boots came to the castle daily, carrying pigeons, hares, skylarks, and other small gifts presenting them all to the King in the name of the Marquis of Carabas. The Queen, the King, and everybody in the palace was wondering with astonishment as to who this Marquis of Carabas was. Everybody was already pleased with him and was praising him.
“He must be a great hunter,” someone remarked.
"He must be very loyal to the King," said someone else.
And yet another, “But who is he? I’ve never heard of him.”
At this, someone who wanted to show people how much he knew, replied, "Oh, yes, I’ve heard his name before. In fact, I knew his father.”
The Queen was very interested in this generous man who sent these gifts. “How is your master to look at?” she asked the cat.
“Oh, he is very young and handsome. And very rich, too,” answered Puss in Boots. “In fact, he would be very honored if you and the King called to see him in his castle.”
The cat soon returned home and told his master that the King and Queen were going to visit him. He was horrified listening to that and said, “What on the earth have you done my dear boy? Whatever shall we do?” he cried.
“As soon as they see me they will know how poor I am.”
“Leave everything to me,” replied Puss in Boots as usual, “I have a plan.”
The cat continued giving the gifts to the king daily. One day he discovered that they were taking the Princess on a carriage ride that very afternoon. The cat hurried home in great excitement.
“Master, come along,” he cried. “It is time to carry out my plan. You must go for a swim in the river.”
“But I can’t swim,” replied the young man.
“That’s all right,” replied Puss in Bools. “Just trust me.”
So they went to the river and when the King’s carriage appeared the cat pushed his master into the water.
“Help!" cried the cat.
“The Marquis of Carabas is drowning.”
The King heard his cries and sent his escorts to the rescue. They arrived just in time to save the poor man who really was drowning. The King, the Queen, and the Princess fussed around and ordered new clothes to be brought for the Marquis of Carabas.
“Wouldn’t you like to marry such a handsome man?” the Queen asked her daughter.
“Oh, yes,” replied the Princess.
However, one of the ministers remarked that they must find out how rich he was.
“He is very rich indeed,” said Puss in Boots. “He owns the castle and all this land. Come and see for yourself. I will meet you at the castle.”
And with these words, the cat rushed off in the direction of the castle, shouting at the peasants working in the fields, “If anyone asks you who your master is, answer…the Marquis of Carabas. Otherwise, you will all be sorry.”
And so, when the King's carriage swept past, the peasants told the King that their master was the Marquis of Carabas. In the meantime, Puss in Boots had arrived at the castle, the home of a huge, cruel ogre. Before knocking at the gate, the cat said to himself, “I must be very careful or I'll never set out of here alive.”
When the door opened, Puss in Boots removed his leather hat, exclaiming, “My Lord Ogre, my respects!"
“What do you want, cat?” asked the ogre rudely.
“Sire, I’ve heard you possess great powers. That, for instance, you can change into a lion or an elephant.” “That’s perfectly true,” said the ogre, “and so what?”
“Well,” said the Cat, “I was talking to certain friends of mine who said that you can’t turn into a tiny little creature, like a mouse.”
“Oh, so that’s what they say. Is it?” exclaimed the ogre.
The cat nodded, “Well. Sir, that’s my opinion too, because folk that can do big things never can manage little ones."
“Oh, yes? Well, just watch this!" retorted the ogre, turning into a mouse. In a flash, the cat leaped on the mouse and ate it whole. Then he dashed to the castle gate, just in time, for the King’s carriage was drawing up.
With a bow, Puss in Boots said. “Sire, welcome to the castle of the Marquis of Carabas!”
The King and Queen, the Princess and the miller's son who, dressed in his princely clothes, really did look like a marquis, got out of the carriage and the King spoke, “My dear Marquis, you're a fine, handsome and young man. You have a great deal of land and a magnificent castle. Tell me. Are you married?"
“No.” the young man answered, “but I would like to find a wife."
He looked at the Princess as he spoke. She in turn smiled at him.
Thus the miller’s son, now Marquis of Carabas, married the Princess and lived happily with her in the castle. And from time to time, the cat would wink and whisper, “You see. Master, I am worth a lot more than any scruffy donkey or half-ruined mill. Aren’t I?"
And his master would say, “Very well. No one would dare say no...Would they?"