But every morning the fruit was gone , and the boughs were bare of blossom , without anyone being able to discover who was the thief . At last the emperor said to his eldest son , ` If only I could prevent those robbers from stealing my fruit , how happy I should be ! ' And his son replied , ' I will sit up to-night and watch the tree , and I shall soon see who it is ! ' So directly it grew dark the young man went and hid himself near the apple tree to begin his watch , but the apples had scarcely begun to ripen before he fell asleep , and when he awoke at sunrise the apples were gone . He felt very much ashamed of himself , and went with lagging feet to tell his father ! Of course , though the eldest son had failed , the second made sure that he would do better , and set out gaily at nightfall to watch the apple tree . But no sooner had he lain himself down than his eyes grew heavy , and when the sunbeams roused him from his slumbers there was not an apple left on the tree . Next came the turn of the youngest son , who made himself a comfortable bed under the apple tree , and prepared himself to sleep . Towards midnight he awoke , and sat up to look at the tree . And behold ! the apples were beginning to ripen , and lit up the whole palace with their brightness . At the same moment nine golden pea-hens flew swiftly through the air , and while eight alighted upon the boughs laden with fruit , the ninth fluttered to the ground where the prince lay , and instantly was changed into a beautiful maiden , more beautiful far than any lady in the emperor 's court . The prince at once fell in love with her , and they talked together for some time , till the maiden said her sisters had finished plucking the apples , and now they must all go home again . The prince , however , begged her so hard to leave him a little of the fruit that the maiden gave him two apples , one for himself and one for his father . Then she changed herself back into a pea-hen , and the whole nine flew away . As soon as the sun rose the prince entered the palace , and held out the apple to his father , who was rejoiced to see it , and praised his youngest son heartily for his cleverness . That evening the prince returned to the apple tree , and everything passed as before , and so it happened for several nights . At length the other brothers grew angry at seeing that he never came back without bringing two golden apples with him , and they went to consult an old witch , who promised to spy after him , and discover how he managed to get the apples . So , when the evening came , the old woman hid herself under the tree and waited for the prince . Before long he arrived and laid down on his bed , and was soon fast asleep .
Towards midnight there was a rush of wings , and the eight pea-hens settled on the tree , while the ninth became a maiden , and ran XXXXX greet the prince .
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