uz, and see if there is any one following
us."

Raduz turned and looked. "There's nothing following us," he said, "but
a black cloud in the sky."

"A black cloud? That's the old man on the black horse that rides on
the clouds. Quick! We must be ready for him!"

Ludmila struck the ground with Yezibaba's wand and changed it into a
field. She turned herself into the growing rye and made Raduz the
reaper who was cutting the rye. Then she instructed him how to answer
the old man with cunning.

The black cloud descended upon them with thunder and a shower of
hailstones that beat down the growing rye.

"Take care!" Raduz cried. "You're trampling my rye! Leave some of it
for me."

"Very well," the old man said, alighting from his steed, "I'll leave
some of it for you. But tell me, reaper, have you seen anything of two
young people passing this way?"

"Not a soul has passed while I've been reaping, but I do remember that
while I was planting this field two such people did pass."

The old man shook his head, mounted his steed, and flew home again on
the black cloud.

"Well, old wiseacre," said Yezibaba, "what brings you back so soon?"

"No use my going on," the old man said. "The only person I saw was a
reaper in a field of rye."

"You booby!" cried Yezibaba, "not to know that Raduz was the reaper
and Ludmila the rye! How they fooled you! And didn't you bring me back
just one stalk of rye? Go after them again and this time don't let
them fool you!"

In the meantime Raduz and Ludmila were hurrying on. Suddenly Ludmila
said:

"I wonder why my left cheek burns? Look back, dear Raduz, and see if
there is any one following us."

Raduz turned and looked. "There's nothing following us but a gray
cloud in the sky."

"A gray cloud? That's the old man on the gray horse that rides on the
clouds. But don't be afraid. Only have ready a cunning answer."

Ludmila struck her hat with the wand and changed it into a chapel.
Herself she changed into a fly that attracted a host of other flies.
She changed Raduz into a hermit. All the flies flew into the chapel
and Raduz began preaching to them.

Suddenly the gray cloud descended on the chapel with a flurry of snow
and such cold that the shingles of the roof crackled.

The old man alighted from the gray steed and entered the chapel.

"Hermit," he said to Raduz, "have you seen two travelers go by here, a
girl and a youth?"

"As long as I've been preaching here," Raduz said,