a shepherd boy was walking down the road, looking for a lost sheep.
there was a tree by the side of the road, and a cat was sitting on one of its branches.
the cat, who was really a genie, asked the shepherd boy what he would like to be.
i am what i am, replied the shepherd boy.
nonsense, the cat replied. life is a dream, and you can be anything you want to be. i am a genie, and i can grant you any wish you care to make.
no thank you, the shepherd boy replied.
suit yourself, the cat replied, and the shepherd boy went on his way.
the cat who was really a genie waited in the tree, and a skunk came along.
what would you like to be? the cat asked the skunk. life is a dream, and i am a genie, and i can grant you any wish, up to three wishes.
in that case, the skunk replied, i would like to be a beautiful young princess, with a kingdom of my own. and i would like to be able to bewitch any human male i encounter. and i would like to be able to grant any wish to any man i wish to bewitch.
very well, said the cat, your three wishes are granted. you will find your new kingdom two miles down the road.
the former skunk had no sooner taken the form of a beautiful young princess than she hastened down the road, eager to claim her new kingdom.
she quickly caught up with the shepherd boy, who had been carefully scanning the sides of the road and looking up and down byways for his lost sheep.
you are a handsome fellow, the princess said to him when she saw him, how would you like to come away with me to my new kingdom and be my prince? i can also grant you any other wish you may have.
no thank you, the shepherd boy replied, i am happy to be just what i am.
well, in that case, said the princess, i wish you good day. and she hurried down the road to her new kingdom.
the shepherd boy continued to look for his lost sheep.
but he never found it.
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