THE TALE OF NOTAIL

There once was a cat with no tail. His name was NoTail.  He had a father, a mother, and a litter of brothers and sisters who loved him very much, but NoTail was very sad. He didn’t think he was a real cat if he didn’t have a tail, so one day he said good-bye to his family and went to find his tail.

He searched everywhere. He swam far out into the ocean to ask the great blue whales if they’d seen his tail, but they had not. He safaried into the deepest, darkest jungle to ask the monkeys if they had seen his tail, but they had not. He snowshoed to the top of the North Pole to ask the penguins if they had seen his tail, but they had not. He trekked the hottest deserts to ask the camels if they had seen his tail, but they had not. His tail was nowhere to be found, so he swam, safaried, snowshoed and trekked all the way back to his home where his family was very happy to see him. But NoTail couldn’t stop thinking about his missing tail.

Then one day, he was walking down a city street when he heard a cry for help. He ran to see what was the matter and saw an enormous tiger cat with a mouse in its paws. NoTail couldn’t let the mouse be eaten, so he jumped on the tiger cat’s back scaring him so badly he dropped the mouse and ran away.

Now it just so happened the mouse was the King of all the Mice in all the cities in all the world, and as a reward for NoTail’s bravery, he granted him one wish. NoTail told him all about his search for his missing tail and the Mouse King promised that he would ask all the mice in all the world to look for it.

The very next day, the Mouse King summoned NoTail to his palace. NoTail was very excited! Finally, he was going to be a real cat with a real tail. When he arrived at the palace, the Mouse King was sitting o a tiny throne in a tiny hall surrounded by hundreds of tiny mice. One by one they came forward. They’d climbed the tallest mountains, searched every city, they’d even sailed to the far off islands in the far off seas, but the tail had not been found. NoTail was very sad. And then a tiny country mouse came forward, and in tiny voice told the Mouse King he knew where NoTail’s missing tale was. Everyone cheered and the Mouse King ordered the tiny country mouse to take NoTail to his tail straight away.

They walked for a day and a night until they came to a farm, and then they walked for another day and a night until they came to a large pond surrounded by tall reeds, and lily pads.

This was it! At long last, NoTail would have his tail! He raced to the edge of the pond, but though he looked through the tall reeds, and around the lily pads, his tail was nowhere to be found.

“It’s not here,” he told the tiny country mouse.

“Look into the water,” the tiny mouse replied.

NoTail did what the mouse said, but all he could see was another cat staring back at him. A cat without a tail just like himself.

“Who is he?” NoTail asked.

The mouse replied that it was a very great cat. A brave cat who’d swum the seas, a clever cat who’d climbed the tallest mountains, a cat with a kind heart, and a family who loved him very much. A real cat!

“Me?” NoTail asked.

“To a whisker,” the tiny mouse replied.

“I’ve found my tail!” NoTail jumped with joy.

“Almost,” the country mouse said running on his tiny feet to a tall reed. With his tiny teeth he cut it down, dragging it over to NoTail. “This will chase the flies away, keep you cool in the sun, and scratch behind your ears just like a real cat’s tail,” the mouse promised NoTail.

And it did!

All the way home, for a day and a night, and a night and a day… and happily ever after.             

THE END