It was obvious that Kastor and his wife now had money. They bought an abundant
amount of rice and passed it out to the elderly around the village. They were also able to buy
land and hire help.
“How did they come across this money?!” Pollux’s wife demanded to know. “Did your
Father leave it?”
“How should I know?”
“You’re his brother! If you don’t know then who’s going to know?!”
“Fine! We’ll go find out then!”
With that, the couple got ready to pay Kastor and his wife a visit, completely unprepared
for the story that they soon heard.
“What? A bird? A talking bird, nonetheless?” Pollux’s wife questioned.
Kastor laughed nervously. “Yes, odd as it sounds. He ate the star fruit and offered us gold
as payment.”
Pollux’s wife exchanged a look with her husband before saying, “Well, we knew that tree
was beneficial, that’s why we took the land and gave you the tree instead . . . and now that you
and your wife are wealthy enough, how about a switch-a-roo?”
“You want to switch? We still don’t have much, and it’s not as lavish–”
“Oh, it’ll be fine!” she said greedily, eager to see the bird.
“If you want to switch back afterwards, that’s fine, too. Honestly, if the bird came again,
I’d let him eat the star fruit without getting any more gold. That trip to the island was
terrifying. . .” Kastor admitted, embarrassed.
Pollux and his wife gladly traded the keys. The thought of endless gold alone was
enough to almost send them over the edge.
Days passed, and there was no bird to be found. Slowly, the days turned into weeks.
Finally, the star fruit was ripening on the tree, and one day, by the same strong gust of wind, the
bird appeared.
“Please don’t eat the fruit,” Pollux’s wife pretended to beg. “Please.”
“For every star fruit I eat, I will reward you with a piece of gold. Sew a bag that is the
length and width of two of your hands! I’ll be back tomorrow.”
This was what the couple had been waiting for. That night, Pollux’s wife sewed a bag
that was four times larger than what the bird had instructed.
“I don’t know why Kastor is so naïve. He could’ve gotten more gold with a bigger bag,”
his older brother said.
“We’ll be even richer than them after this,” said his wife.
That morning, Pollux waited by the tree like he’d heard his little brother tell him.
Without fail, the bird appeared and commanded him to “Get on.” True to his word, the ride to
the island was indeed scary, as he felt very unprotected on the bird’s back. When they reached
the island, Pollux spotted his endless fortune, shedding a tear of joy. He stuffed his bag with as
much as he could. When he could fit no more, he began to fill his pockets, no matter how small.
“Faster!” the bird boomed.
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