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 to greet the prince . Then the witch stretched out her hand , and cut off a lock of the maiden 's hair , and in an instant the girl sprang up , a pea-hen once more , spread her wings and flew away , while her sisters , who were busily stripping the boughs , flew after her . When he had recovered from his surprise at the unexpected disappearance of the maiden , the prince exclaimed , ` What can be the matter ? ' and , looking about him , discovered the old witch hidden under the bed . He dragged her out , and in his fury called his guards , and ordered them to put her to death as fast as possible . But that did no good as far as the pea-hens went . They never came back any more , though the prince returned to the tree every night , and wept his heart out for his lost love . This went on for some time , till the prince could bear it no longer , and made up his mind he would search the world through for her . In vain his father tried to persuade him that his task was hopeless , and that other girls were to be found as beautiful as this one . The prince would listen to nothing , and , accompanied by only one servant , set out on his quest . After travelling for many days , he arrived at length before a large gate , and through the bars he could see the streets of a town , and even the palace . The prince tried to pass in , but the way was barred by the keeper of the gate , who wanted to know who he was , why he was there , and how he had learnt the way , and he was not allowed to enter unless the empress herself came and gave him leave .
A message was sent to her , and when she stood at the gate the prince thought he had lost his wits , XXXXX there was the maiden he had left his home to seek .
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