They took the kitten into the house, where the very old woman gave it a warm bath and brushed its fur until it was soft and shiny.
Every day they gave it plenty of milk—
—and soon it grew nice and plump.
“And it is a very pretty cat, after all!” said the very old woman.
“It is the most beautiful cat in the whole world,” said the very old man.
“I ought to know, for I’ve seen—
Hundreds of cats,
Thousands of cats,
Millions and billions and trillions of cats—
and not one is as pretty as this one.”
