THE GOLDEN BIRD

A certain king had a beautiful garden, and in it stood a tree that grew golden apples. These apples were always counted carefully, and about the time they began to ripen, the king noticed that every night one of them disappeared. This made the king very angry, so he ordered the gardener to keep watch under the tree all night. The gardener sent his eldest son to guard it, but around midnight the young man fell asleep, and by morning another apple was missing. The gardener then sent his second son, but the same thing happened—he too fell asleep, and another apple vanished.

At last, the third son offered to keep watch. The gardener was afraid something bad might happen to him, but eventually he agreed. That night, the young man lay down under the tree to watch. As the clock struck twelve, he heard a rustling sound in the air, and a bird made of pure gold came flying toward the tree. Just as it was pecking at one of the apples, the gardener's son jumped up and shot an arrow at it. The arrow didn't hurt the bird, but it knocked loose one golden feather from its tail before the bird flew away.

The next morning, the golden feather was brought to the king, and the whole royal council gathered to look at it. Everyone agreed it was worth more than all the riches in the kingdom. But the king said, "One feather is no good to me—I must have the whole bird."

So the gardener's eldest son set out, feeling sure he would find the golden bird easily. Before long, he came to a forest, and at its edge he spotted a fox sitting quietly. He raised his bow, ready to shoot it. But the fox spoke up: "Don't shoot me, and I'll give you good advice. I know you're looking for the golden bird. Tonight you'll reach a village with two inns across the street from each other. One will look cheerful and inviting; the other will seem run-down and poor. Stay at the poor one, even though it looks unpleasant."

The young man thought, "What could an animal like this possibly know?" So he shot at the fox anyway, but missed. The fox flicked its tail up and dashed off into the woods.

The son continued on and reached the village that evening, just as the fox had described. One inn was full of music, dancing, and feasting; the other looked shabby and dull. "I'd be a fool," he thought, "to choose that miserable place over this lovely one." So he went into the cheerful inn, ate and drank happily, and completely forgot about the bird—and about his home.

Time passed, and when the eldest son didn't return and no word came from him, the second son set out to try his luck. The same thing happened to him. He met the fox, received the same good advice, and ignored it just as his brother had. When he reached the two inns, he saw his older brother waving at him from the window of the merry inn, calling him inside. He couldn't resist and went in, forgetting the golden bird and his home just as his brother had.

More time passed, and finally the youngest son wanted to try his luck too. At first, his father refused to let him go—he loved this son dearly and feared some misfortune might keep him from coming home as well. But since the young man wouldn't give up, his father finally agreed. When he reached the forest, he met the fox and heard the same advice. Unlike his brothers, he thanked the fox and didn't try to harm it. So the fox said, "Climb onto my tail, and we'll travel faster." The young man sat down, and off they sped over rocks and fallen trees so quickly that the wind whistled through their hair.

When they reached the village, the young man followed the fox's advice exactly. Without even glancing at the cheerful inn, he went straight to the shabby one and rested comfortably for the night. In the morning, the fox met him again as he began his journey and said, "Keep going straight until you reach a castle. In front of it, you'll find a whole troop of soldiers fast asleep and snoring. Ignore them, and head into the castle. Keep walking until you find a room where the golden bird sits in a plain wooden cage. Right beside it will be a beautiful golden cage—but don't be tempted to move the bird into the fancy cage, or you'll regret it." Then the fox stretched out its tail again, and away they went over rocks and logs until the wind whistled through their hair once more.

Everything at the castle was exactly as the fox had described. The young man crept in and found the room where the golden bird sat in its wooden cage. Nearby stood the golden cage, and beside it lay the three golden apples that had gone missing earlier. He thought to himself, "It would look silly to carry off such a magnificent bird in this shabby cage." So he opened the door, lifted the bird out, and placed it in the golden cage instead.

But the bird let out such a loud screech that all the soldiers woke up at once. They seized him and dragged him before the king. The next morning, the court held a trial, and after hearing everything, they sentenced him to death—unless he could bring back the golden horse, a horse that could run as fast as the wind. If he managed that, he would be given the golden bird as his reward.

So he set out again, sighing heavily and filled with despair. Suddenly, his friend the fox appeared and said, "You see now what happens when you don't listen to me. Still, I'll help you find the golden horse if you do exactly as I say. Go straight to the castle where the horse is kept in its stable. The stable boy will be lying beside it, fast asleep and snoring. Lead the horse away quietly, but be sure to use the old leather saddle instead of the golden one sitting right next to it." The young man climbed onto the fox's tail again, and they raced off over rocks and logs until the wind whistled through their hair.

Everything went smoothly, and the stable boy lay snoring with his hand resting on the golden saddle. But when the young man looked at the magnificent horse, he thought it seemed a shame to use the plain leather saddle. "I'll give him the good saddle," he decided. "He deserves it." The moment he lifted the golden saddle, the stable boy woke up and shouted so loudly that all the guards came running and captured him. The next morning, he was brought before the court again and sentenced to death. But the court agreed that if he could bring back the beautiful princess, he could live—and keep both the bird and the horse as his reward.

He set off again, feeling very sad. But the old fox found him and said, "Why didn't you listen to me? If you had, you'd already have both the bird and the horse. Still, I'll give you one more piece of advice. Keep going straight, and by evening you'll reach a castle. At midnight, the princess goes to the bathhouse. Approach her and give her a kiss—she'll agree to run away with you. But whatever happens, don't let her go say goodbye to her parents." The fox stretched out its tail once more, and they raced off over rocks and logs until the wind whistled through their hair again.

At the castle, everything happened just as the fox had predicted. At midnight, the young man approached the princess on her way to the bath and kissed her, and she agreed to escape with him. But she begged, with many tears, to be allowed to say goodbye to her father first. He refused at first, but she cried harder and harder and finally fell at his feet, until at last he gave in. The moment she stepped into her father's house, though, the guards woke up, and the young man was captured once again.

He was brought before the king, who declared, "You will never marry my daughter unless, within eight days, you dig away the hill that blocks the view from my window." This hill was so enormous that all the people in the world together couldn't have moved it. After seven days of digging with barely any progress, the fox appeared and said, "Lie down and sleep. I'll finish the work for you." By morning, the hill was completely gone. Overjoyed, the young man went to the king and announced that since the hill was cleared, he must now hand over the princess.

The king had no choice but to keep his promise, and the young man and the princess set off together. Then the fox came and said, "We should take all three—the princess, the horse, and the bird." "That would be wonderful," said the young man, "but how could we possibly manage it?"

"Just listen," said the fox, "and it can be done. When you reach the king who has your horse, and he asks about the princess, tell him, 'Here she is!' He'll be delighted, and he'll let you mount the golden horse. As you're about to leave, shake hands with everyone to say farewell—but make sure to shake the princess's hand last. Then quickly pull her up onto the horse behind you, spur the horse's sides, and gallop away as fast as you can."

Everything went perfectly. Then the fox said, "When we reach the castle with the bird, I'll wait with the princess at the gate while you go in and talk to the king. When he sees you have the right horse, he'll bring out the bird. Just ask to hold it for a moment to check that it's the real golden bird—then once it's in your hands, ride away."

This, too, worked exactly as planned. They rode off with the bird, the princess climbed up behind him again, and they continued on toward a great forest. There, the fox appeared and said, "Please kill me now, and cut off my head and feet." But the young man refused to do any such thing. So the fox said, "Then let me at least give you one final piece of advice: never pay to free someone from the gallows, and never sit down beside a riverbank." With that, the fox went on its way. "Well," thought the young man, "that shouldn't be hard to remember."

He continued riding with the princess until he reached the village where he had left his two brothers behind. There, he heard shouting and commotion, and when he asked what was happening, the people told him, "Two men are about to be hanged." As he got closer, he saw that the two men were his own brothers, who...