Hello!
Welcome to Stories Podcast.
I'm your host, Amanda Weldon.
Today's story is a throwback episode.
Tune in to hear one of our classic stories from the archive that you might have missed the first time around.
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Enjoy the episode!
The Cat Bride.
Once upon a time, on the distant starry peak of Mount Olympus, two gods were having an argument.
Of course, when people argue, they might shout or scream.
They might stomp their feet and wag their fingers.
They might even throw up their arms and leave the room in a huff.
When the gods argued, though, it was something else entirely.
The mountain shook like pudding.
The clouds swirled darkly.
The sky was slashed with thunder and lightning.
Zeus could never help that last one.
"'I don't need to be reasonable!' the old god said, slamming down his goblet and splashing a burgundy puddle over the stone tabletop.
"'You don't need to be reasonable when you're right!'
Across the table, Aphrodite sighed calmly, shifting the flowing fabric of her dress away from the spreading spill.
She was used to his bad behavior.
"'Zeus, even you aren't all-powerful.
Changing how something looks doesn't change what's inside.
You can't change a heart like you can change a shirt.'
"'Pah!' spat Zeus, refilling his cup.
"'With a wag of my finger, I can turn a horse into a man and make him lecture philosophy.
With a blink of my eye, I can make a wolf a woman and set her dancing.
How is that not changing the heart of the thing?'
Aphrodite sat back in her chair, an idea beginning to brew behind her beautiful, heavy-lidded eyes.'
Yes, she said, her words nearly a purr.
You are quite talented.
So you admit I'm right.
I can change how something looks, which means I change how it acts.
Possibly, agreed Aphrodite.
Still, there's only one way to know for sure.
Zeus grunted, emptying his goblet in one long gulp.
Fingers of red liquid ran down his chin and stained his snowy beard.
What are you getting at?
Speak plainly, child.
How about a bet, she said.
I'll pick the creature, you perform the change and we'll see in the end if your changes are more than skin deep.
Loser has to fetch drinks to the winner.
Yes, roared Zeus, who always loved a good bet.
Yes, let's do it now.
Pick something.
He stood up from the table and rolled up his sleeves.
The air around him began to prickle and spit and lightning leapt when he clapped his hands together.
Tell me, Aphrodite, tell me who to change.
Aphrodite gazed down at the countryside.
From the top of Mount Olympus she could see clear across all of Greece, and it didn't take her long to find the perfect candidate.
In the heart of the country, in a small farming town, there was a young man who was praying to Aphrodite at that very moment.
She was the goddess of love, after all, and that's what the young man wanted a love to be his bride.
And near the young man snacking on a field mouse was a scruffy black cat, a cat who loved the young man because he always had a scrap or a pat to spare.
"'Perfect,' whispered Aphrodite.
She stood then, pointing across the hundreds of miles.
"'There, that boy.
He is praying to me for a bride, and nearby is that black cat.
What do you say we answer his prayers together?'
What say we do?
Zeus roared again.
He rubbed his hands together, and they crackled with power.
A cat into a bride?
Nothing when you have the might of Zeus.
You'll be fetching my drinks in no time.
Now watch, Aphrodite, as I make this bride a beauty and win our bet.
He gestured, and the power leapt from him with a thunderous crack.
A tail swish later, the cat was gone.
In her place stood a woman, tall and dark and beautiful.
She looked down at her new body in wonder.
And now for a little push.
Aphrodite said extending her powers of love to the young couple, drawing them together.
Without knowing why, they felt familiar already.
Without knowing how, their hands clasped together.
The young man looked around.
This is strange.
I feel... I feel...
I feel we go together like a lock and key.
Our love would grow just like a tree.
I feel you're the fairest maid I ever did see.
Let's get married.
Let's get married.
Let's get married right now.
I feel we go together like a lump in tea.
Our love, sweet honey from a bee.
I feel you set me reeling like a stormy sea.
Let's get married.
Let's get married.
Let's get married right now.
So with a little guidance from Aphrodite, the cat-turned-woman and the young man were fast engaged.
Of course, she and Zeus planned to attend the wedding in disguise to see who had won their bet.
Had Zeus truly changed who the cat was, or had he only changed her shape?
They would soon find out.
The wedding was small, as the town was small.
But there was still a great feast in the old town center.
They laid out long tables and benches and people packed in to eat with their neighbors.
In the center, at their own table, were the bride and groom.
He did all the talking, but she listened patiently, smiling as his hand absently scratched at the back of her ear.
"'See?' said Zeus to Aphrodite, their conversation lost in the clamor.
"'From a cat to a bride, and not a whisker forgotten!'
So you say, she replied.
But what about her heart?
What about who she is deep down?
You think you can turn a hut into a temple with a coat of paint, but you can't.
At the end of the day, that's still a cat.
Zeus sneered and looked down his nose at her.
Can't you just admit you lost the bet?
Now, go fetch me a drink.
You think so?
She asked.
I know so.
Now, about that drink you're supposed to be getting me.
He waved her away dismissively.
Aphrodite smiled back at him and, reaching into the folds of her dress, pulled out a fat white mouse.
A mouse? asked Zeus suspiciously.
What's that for?
Nothing to worry about, Aphrodite replied.
Like you said, a cat to a bride, and not a whisker forgotten.
She lowered her hand and let the mouse scurry onto the ground.
It paused for a moment, sniffing the air, and then skittered across the center of the room, weaving around feasting feet and clattering carts.
Everyone at the wedding seemed content to ignore the mouse.
Everyone, except the cat bride.
When she saw the mouse, she froze.
She tracked it silently for a moment, licking her lips.
"'Uh, darling?' the young man asked.
"'Is everything okay?'
But she didn't answer.
Instead, she let out an ear-piercing yowl and flipped the table in front of her, sending the food and plates crashing to the ground.
"'Honey, no!' he cried.
But it was too late.
Before the room full of stunned guests, the cat bride dropped to all fours in a puddle of stew.
It stained her dress, but she didn't care.
She was off.
Scrambling on her hands and knees, she began to chase the mouse around the room.'
She pushed over tables and scandalized ladies, and even followed the mouse between the elder's legs, knocking him into his own wife and sending the pair tangled to the ground.
My love, the young man called, but it was for naught.
The cat bride continued to tear around the room, finding her human body, much less adept at catching mice than her cat body had been.
So Zeus, said Aphrodite slowly as the cat carnage continued, about that drink you're supposed to be getting me.
You cheated, Zeus grumbled.
If she had been truly changed, she wouldn't have wanted the mouse at all.
Admit it, just because you can change someone's shape doesn't mean you can change their heart.
Only they can do that.
Zeus grumbled, but got up to get drinks.
Aren't you forgetting something?
Aphrodite said, raising her eyebrows at the cat bride still screeching and yowling and scrambling after the mouse.
Right.
Right.
Fine.
Zeus waved absently, and there was a flash of light that blinded everyone in the room.
When people finally blinked their eyes back open, Zeus and Aphrodite were gone, and so was the bride.
In her place, there was a scruffy black cat.
She had finally caught the mouse and was batting it from paw to paw, purring happily.
As the astonished wedding crowd watched, she picked up the rodent in her mouth, raised her proud tail high and strutted out into the night.
It was also strange that no one much talked about it again after that.
Strange things spoken caused more strange things to come, or so they believed.
But some said on quiet nights you could see the young man walking with a mouse by moonlight.
He's peering into the darkness, hoping to see a final glimpse of his black-furred bride.
And when it's quiet, his mournful call ripples across the dark pond of night.
"'Here, kitty, kitty!' or simply tell your friends about us.
Thanks for listening!
