'Welcome! welcome! grandson!' said she; 'get up and rest yourself, for you have had a long walk, and I am sure you must be tired!' So the boy sat down, and ate some food which she gave him in a bowl. It was quite different from anything he had tasted before, and he thought it was delicious. When he had eaten up every bit, the witch asked him if he had ever fasted.
'No,' replied the boy, 'at least I have been obliged to sometimes, but never if there was any food to be had.'
'You will have to fast if you want the spirits to make you strong and wise, and the sooner you begin the better.'
'Very well,' said the boy, 'what do I do first?'
'Lie down on those buffalo skins by the door of the hut,' answered she; and the boy lay down, and the squirrels and little bears and the birds came and talked to him.