the old man longed for children. but he and his young wife had none, so he invited his nephew to live with them. this infuriated his wife, who had a vile1 temper. when her hu*and welcomed the young man with great affection, she turned pale with jealousy2. her eyes narrowed and her head flattened3. and when she licked her lips, her nephew saw that her tongue was forked. from that day on, the young man spent as much time as possible with his uncle and tried to avoid his aunt. but she seemed to enjoy startling him, suddenly appearing when he least expected her.
one *ning, the nephew returned to the house quite late. he lit a candle and started up the stairs. halfway4 up, he tripped on what seemed to be a coiled rope. imagine his horror when that rope uncoiled and slithered up the steps in front of him! then he saw it glide5 across the hall and under the door of his uncle's bedroom.
"wake up! wake up" the young man shouted, and he knocked on the door until his knuckles6 hurt. but when his sleepy uncle finally let him in the bedroom, there was no snake in sight.
his aunt seemed to be sleeping, so the young man whispered in his uncle's ear. "i saw a snake." but his uncle was too groggy7 to respond, and he slid back under the covers. the young man searched the room quietly, looking into drawers and cupboards and corners. he peered under the bed and behind chairs. he was beginning to think he was going mad when suddenly his aunt sat up in bed, narrowed her eyes, and gave him an evil look that made his flesh creep.
"i'm sorry to bother you," he cried, racin* to his bedroom and firmly shutting the door.
when he awoke the next morning, he noticed that the bottom of his bedroom door was arched up in the center, leaving just enough * for a snake to slither through. he bolted out of bed trembling. when he went downstairs, he was shocked to see that *ry door in the house had a snake-sized arch beneath it.
his aunt was sitting at the table, eating. "your uncle left for the day," she said, licking her lips with her forked tongue. the young man was too terrified to speak, but his silence only made matters worse.
"i don't like the way you treat me," she said and grabbed his arm. then she pressed her fingernails so deeply into his skin that he felt as if he were being *tten. he rushed outdoors and saw his arm was swelling9. his hand and fingers were beginning to throb10.
he knew he must seek *, so he ran into the forest to find the wise old hermit11 who lived there. the old man examined him carefully and handed him some leaves. "these are best for snake*te," he said "*nd12 them around your arm and keep them wet."
"but i wasn't *tten by a snake," said the young man. "those marks were made by my aunt's fingernails."
the old hermit shook his head in despair. "the touch of a snake-woman is *n worse," he said, "but try these leaves. they should *"
the young man was appalled13. "is my aunt really a snake- woman?" he asked.
"if you want to find out," the hermit replied, "stay awake tonight, and if a snake enters you room, cut off the tip of its tail."
the young man wasn't sure how this would *, but he thanked the hermit for his advice and returned to his uncle's house. by afternoon, he was happy to see that the wet leaves had reduced the swelling.
he watched his aunt closely that *ning, but he didn't notice anything strange until she tasted her soup. she said it needed * "ssssseasoning" and lingered on the "s" as if she were hissing14. her nephew felt gooseflesh rise from the tips of his toes to the top of his head. he excused himself from the table and went up to his bedroom, but not to sleep.
he planned to watch for the snake all night long.
there was just enough moonlight for him to see the bottom of his door, so he blew out his candle and unsheathed his sword. then he stood waiting.
he watched for hours wondering what the snake might do. what if it slithered through the window instead, crept up behind him, and struck him with its venomous fangs15? what if it slithered to the top of the wardrobe and *ped down from above? he was thinking of fleeing for his life, when he finally saw the snake glide under the door-first its head, then its body, then its tail.
slash16! he swung the sword so quickly that the snake had no warning. and the tip of its tail began writhing17, all by itself, there on the floor. the snake raised its head as if to strike, but then it hissed18 viciously and slithered out of the room. and when he looked down the hall, he saw it disappear under his uncle's door.