"To be honest, I've always kind of wanted to be a farm animal," said John, clinching his hands and blushing. He wasn't sure the pet shop even allowed people to become those. Would something like a horse or bull count as a "pet" in this context?
"Oh? That's an interesting concept," said the old man, noticing John's sudden embarrassment. "Most people don't come to my shop looking for livestock," he continued. John's head drooped. The old man smiled knowingly and spoke again: "But you've heard the rumours, and it took some guts to march right up here and cut to the chase the way you did. I take it you believe my little establishment is capable of (shall we say?) more than just conventional pet shop transactions?"
John looked up and smirked with confidence again and said, "Let's just say, stories I've heard about this place are full of surprises!"
"Well, then, if you've heard that you can come to my pet shop and end up on a farm, then we might as well put story that to the test," said the old man with a wink. He reached under the counter and pulled out a tray. On the tray was glass full of green, foamy liquid. Beside the glass was an old plastic ice cube tray with hair clippings in the compartments. Each compartment was labelled with a certain kind of farm animal. Some of the compartments contained not hair clippings but feather pieces. The old man explained:
"Take a hair or feather and put in the potion. It will take a second and a half to dissolve. Drink the potion and your life will never be the same. If you believe the rumours, then you might not be all that surprised. I wasn't lying when I said I have connections, you know. I can find an owner for just about any animal, and I can find an animal for just about anyone who wants one."
John looked closely at the hair and feather samples. He needed to decide, once and for all, exactly which farm animal he truly wanted to be. At last, his eyes narrowed in on one particular compartment in the cube tray. He dropped a sample into the glass, watched it bubble and fizz for less than two seconds, held his breath, and drunk the potion down to the last drop!