my daughter with you. You have earned her."

They put the castle back in its place, the shepherd stopped playing, and
mountain and valley stood still. They took the King's daughter and
departed, and each hero returned to his dwelling-place, and he who had
pierced the steel shield with the steel spear took the maiden and came
again to the King of the East. And the King of the East gave him his own
daughter, whom the youth had long loved, for his wife. So he had two
wives--one was the daughter of the King of the East, the other the
daughter of the King of the West.

At night, when they lay down to sleep, he said: "Now, I have one sun on
one side and another sun on the other side, and a bright star plays on
my breast."

In the morning he sent for his parents and called also the King to him,
and said, "Now, I will tell my dream." "What was it, then?" they all
said. He answered: "I saw in my dream one sun on one side of me and
another sun on the other, and a bright star played on my breast."

"Had you such a dream?" they asked.

"I swear I had such a dream."

And three apples fell from heaven: one for the story-teller, one for him
who made him tell it, and one for the hearer.


* * * * *