Day by day her heart grew heavier and her cheeks paler , and one evening , when she had waited for him in vain , she put her water-pot on her shoulder and went slowly down to the spring . On the path in front of her stood the fairy who had given her the pin , and as she glanced at Tephany she gave a little mischievous laugh and said : ` Why , my pretty maiden hardly looks happier than she did before , in spite of meeting her lover whenever she pleases . ' ` He has grown tired of me , ' answered Tephany in a trembling voice , ` and he makes excuses to stay away . Ah ! granny dear , it is not enough to be able to see him , I must be able to amuse him and to keep him with me . He is so clever , you know . Help me to be clever too . ' ` Is that what you want ? ' cried the old woman . ` Well , take this feather and stick it in your hair , and you will be as wise as Solomon himself . ' Blushing with pleasure Tephany went home and stuck the feather into the blue ribbon which girls always wear in that part of the country . In a moment she heard Denis whistling gaily , and as her aunt was safely counting her cabbages , she hurried out to meet him . The young man was struck dumb by her talk . There was nothing that she did not seem to know , and as for songs she not only could sing those from every part of Brittany , but could compose them herself . Was this really the quiet girl who had been so anxious to learn all he could teach her , or was it somebody else ? Perhaps she had gone suddenly mad , and there was an evil spirit inside her . But in any case , night after night he came back , only to find her growing wiser and wiser . Soon the neighbours whispered their surprise among themselves , for Tephany had not been able to resist the pleasure of putting the feather in her hair for some of the people who despised her for her poor clothes , and many were the jokes she made about them . Of course they heard of her jests , and shook their heads saying : ` She is an ill-natured little cat , and the man that marries her will find that it is she who will hold the reins and drive the horse . ' It was not long before Denis began to agree with them , and as he always liked to be master wherever he went , he became afraid of Tephany 's sharp tongue , and instead of laughing as before when she made fun of other people he grew red and uncomfortable , thinking that his turn would come next .
So matters went on till one evening Denis told XXXXX that he really could not stay a moment , as he had promised to go to a dance that was to be held in the next village .
Brittany Denis Solomon Tephany cabbages day evening jests night water-pot