"Admit the truth," the wise man advised. "Your daughters are famous for their beauty. They will have no problem finding men who will marry them, even without dowries."

Luko Tashima would not hear of it. "How very humiliating--I would rather die than have everyone know that I am not rich. There must be a more pleasant alternative."

The wise man, reluctantly, gave Luko Tashima further advice. "I have heard tales told of mysterious beings, in the giant bamboo

forest, granting wishes to humans. You may wish to visit there. Be very careful, though, with WHOM you make deals," cautioned the wise man.

Luko Tashima did not give the matter another thought. He headed for the forest right away. When he saw a blue bird, he said, "I'm looking for a superior being who can grant me a wish."

"You'll have to wait. The fairy is away," answered the blue bird.

"I can't. My matter is most urgent! Isn't there anyone else who can help me?"

"The wicked-snake. But, I wouldn't have anything to do with that sly fellow. You had best wait for the fairy," replied the blue bird.

Just then a long, green, thin, ugly wicked-snake dropped down from a bamboo tree, hissing, "You . . . wish to see me?"

"Run, Luko Tashima, run! Run from the devil!" the animals in the giant bamboo forest cried in unison. But it did not do any good.

Luko Tashima lacked the courage to face reality. He agreed to remain in the forest to serve the wicked-snake. In return, the wicked -snake would provide his daughters with large dowries.

"You do understand that you can NEVER return to your family. As far as every one is concerned, you are dead. Aaahhh! How deals like this always make me feel new all over," fizzed the wicked-snake. At that, his outer skin turned into a hard shell and he crawled out from inside it, revealing fresh, shiny, young skin. He rejoiced.

Masumi was heart broken when a messenger (sent by the wicked- snake) showed up with her father's cashmere overcoat, a small apple tree, and the sad news. "A poisonous snake has taken your father's life. Your father has already been buried in the forest, as he had wished it. His other wish is that you sisters look after this tree--your dowries," said the messenger.

Nayoda, who was always very proud and arrogant, only became angry. "This tree--half dead? This is to be our dowries? You can throw it in the dump on your way!" she complained bitterly.

Masumi quickly offered to care for the apple tree. "It is our father's wish. We must obey."

"You can have it. I don't ever want to see it again," scolded Nayoda.

Masumi buried her father's overcoat, which the messenger had brought back from the forest, in the local cemetery. She also had a beautiful tombstone put up, honoring her father. She, then, devoted her attention to the apple tree. She gave it water, fertilizer, and sun. She even talked and sang to it. In one week, leaves grew out. In two weeks, there were blossoms. In three weeks, there were apples. Masumi was thrilled. She went to share her joy with her sister.

"I have no interest in your silly apple tree!" shouted Nayoda, sending Masumi away.

Early next morning Masumi came skipping and grinning. She asked, "My dear sister, you once told me that I may obtain your consent to get married before you do, if I can come up with my own dowry. Has this changed?"

"If you have the dowry, until then, trouble me no more," Nayoda replied.

"I do have it!" Masumi led her sister to the front yard. She pointed to two strong yaks that were yoked to a wagon, which was loaded with goods.

"How . . .? Who . . .? From where have you stolen them?" questioned Nayoda, nearly speechless.

"My dear sister, I did not steal. The merchant insisted that it was worth more than he could give me."

"The merchant? Insisted on WHAT . . . that was worth so much?"

"One of the twelve apples, my dear sister," Masumi answered.

Nayoda demanded to see the apple tree. As soon as she saw it, she shouted, "You fool! These are no ordinary apples. They are gold! How dare you steal my treasure? Give it back this instant!"

Masumi apologized and she offered both the apple tree and her own dowry to her sister.

"If you promise not to tell anyone about my golden apples, then I will give you permission to get married. You can keep the dowry, too," Nayoda bargained. Masumi was ever grateful for her sister's generosity.

As Nayoda was afraid that someone might discover her treasure, she hid the little tree in a closet. There she let it sit, while she fantasized about the fine things she could soon get with her gold. In doing so, she neglected the apple tree altogether. She also missed attending her sister's wedding.

When a month had passed, Nayoda decided that the golden apples had had ample time to grow larger. She would now take them down to the merchant to make an exchange for all the luxurious things she had dreamt of having. "What has happened?" Nayoda cried out. Something awful had happened to her precious apple tree. Its roots were dried up; twigs, broken off; leaves, fallen; apples, wrinkled and turned charcoal- black.

Nayoda reached out to pick up one of the apples. It crumbled, exposing three gleaming, golden apple seeds. "All has not been lost! Now I will have thirty-three golden apple trees." Without delay, Nayoda dug up and discarded the heavily-laden corn stalks in the fields and planted the golden apple seeds.

The seeds started to germinate in only days. Immediately, Nayoda had tall, thick walls put up all around her property, so no one could see what she had. She could not trust anyone, so she saw no one and talked to on one. She had all her necessities delivered to her door. She locked herself in, guarding her fortune-to-be.

With each stage of the trees' growth--branches, limbs, leaves, flowers, and finally fruit--came additional stress and fear. Soon, the singing of a bird would send Nayoda's heart racing. "Go away!" she would yell and throw rocks at the bird. When it got really quiet, she would feel very lonely and frightened, even of her own shadow. "Quit sneaking around me! Stop following me!" she would demand and try to chase the shadow away. She could not rest or eat in peace.

One day, while dreaming of the mansion she would soon have built, an idea came to Nayoda and she jumped out of her chair. "I can get more golden apple seeds. I know just how!" She rushed to cover the golden apples with cotton cloth to prevent them from getting any sunlight. She also stopped watering and feeding the trees. It did not take long for the trees to die and the apples to wrinkle and turn charcoal-black.

"Fantastic!" Nayoda went to gather her golden apple seeds, but she found only ordinary, black ones. "Someone has put a curse on me. It's got to be my sister. She's the only one who knows my secret, and she must be jealous. She'll pay for this!" Nayoda swore. She then took a bag-full of the black apple seeds to her sister. "Masumi, you must accept a gift from me. I want to make up for missing your wedding. Here, shower yourself with these seeds. They will bless you with a healthy, strong boy," Nayoda offered.

Masumi happily accepted. Nine months later, she, indeed, gave birth to a strong, healthy boy. For this Masumi was very happy, but Nayoda was agitated. "If I had known that the black seeds could bring good fortune, I would have kept them." Nayoda decided to reclaim the black seeds. "Have you by any chance kept the bag-full of seeds I gave you?" she asked her sister.

"Yes!" Masumi got the bag out of her dresser.

"I would be glad to stay for tea," Nayoda said, prompting her sister to leave the room. Masumi rushed to prepare tea. The minute Masumi left the room, Nayoda showered herself with the black seeds. "Magic seeds, magic seeds, make my eyes see the color of gold!"

The seeds fell out of the bag, onto Nayoda's hair, down to her shoulders, legs and feet, before they scattered all over the floor. "I can feel something magical . . . happening!" Nayoda exclaimed, joyfully. Then, all of a sudden, she found herself seeing eye-to-eye with the legs of her sister's dresser.

"What has happened? This cannot be! I have been turned into a black bird!" screamed Nayoda. She flapped her wings and flew up to the mirror. "No, not my beautiful face! Not my shiny hair! My gorgeous figure . . . my pretty feet! Oh, no, no! Not my eyes!" As Nayoda had so wished, her beautiful brown eyes were replaced by two of bright yellow --much like the color of gold. "If I can't have what I want, then nobody can!" She flew back down and started to swallow the seeds.

"My dear sister, tea is ready." Masumi came merrily to fetch her sister. "Where are you, my dear sister?" Masumi looked about, then she spotted the black bird. "What? A black bird with yellow eyes--how strange! Where have you come from? What have you done? Shoo! Shoo! Get out of here!"

"How dare you chase me away? I'm your sister!" Nayoda shouted, but it was no good. She sounded like a black bird, yakking, "Auuk . . . Auuk!"

No one has seen Nayoda since. Soon after her disappearance, the authorities declared that she was dead. Masumi buried the black seeds in her sister's grave, next to her father's. Every time she went to the cemetery, the very same black bird would perch upon her sister's tombstone, attempting to communicate with her harsh cry.

And . . . this is how the black bird with its golden eyes came to be.

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