“You can definitely marry my daughter once, you bring her as fine a horse as you have.” The king proclaimed again.
The boy was sure that nothing could be done about this because he felt that there was no other horse like Dapplegrim.
But he still went to Dapplegrim and told the horse what the king had said.
Dapplegrim nodded. “This can be done, because there is one other horse just like me. It is difficult because the horse is underground.”
The boy was shocked as Dapplegrim continued. “Same as before, you have to get twelve pounds of steel, ten pounds of iron and two smiths to make shoes for me. This time there should be sharp hooks on my shoes.” Dapplegrim continued. “But that is not all. You must ask for twelve sacks of corn and twelve slaughtered oxen.” The horse took a breath. “The oxen must have spikes on them and we also need twelve tons of tar in a barrel.”
This was done and after that the horse and the boy traveled for a long time.
“Do you hear anything?” Dapplegrim suddenly asked the boy.
The boy nodded. “There is terrible whistling around us.”
The horse looked grim. “Those are wild birds sent to stop us.”
The boy was alarmed as the horse continued. “Cut the sack of corn and let the corn flow from it. Once you do that, the birds will go after the corn and leave us alone.”
Many terrible birds flew down when the sack had been cut. But the birds went after the corn and ate it and fought amongst itselves and left the boy and the horse alone.
Thus, Dapplegrim and the boy crossed the first hurdle in search of the other horse.
Adapted from Norwegian Folktales
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