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The next night and the next, Aponibolinayen cooked the stick, and Ini-init became greatly troubled for he saw that though the stick always supplied them with fish, it never grew smaller. Finally he asked Aponibolinayen again why it was that she cooked the stick instead of the fish he brought, and she said: "Do you not know of the woman on earth who has magical power and can change things?"
They commanded the betel-nuts, and they oiled them, and sent them. Not long after the betel-nut, whom they sent, arrived above, who went to call Ini-init. And the betel-nut said, when he arrived, "Good morning, Sun, I do not tarry. The reason of my visit is that Ebang and Pagatipánan, who make balaua, send me. If you do not wish to come, I will grow on your head."
He began to be troubled, however, to know where the food came from, for though he brought home a fine fish every night, Aponibolinayen always refused to cook it. One night he watched her prepare their meal, and he saw that, instead of using the nice fish he had brought, she only dropped a stick into the pot of boiling water. "Why do you try to cook a stick?" asked Ini-init in surprise.
And when he arrived in their house he found Aponibolinayen, who was cooking, and he saw that she still broke up the fish-stick, which she cooked. Ini-init asked her, "What are you doing with that stick which you are breaking, which you put in the jar?" and Aponibolinayen replied, "I cook for us both to eat," and the sun laughed, because she cooked the stick.
This brings us to a most interesting question, namely: Are the chief actors in our tales to be considered as celestial beings and spirits, or as human heroes? We have already made note of the fact that in the first tale Aponitolau is identified with Ini-init whom, we are told, was "the sun," "the man who makes the sun," "a round stone which rolls."
Not long after the betel-nut jumped on the head of his pig, and the pig began to squeal because it could not carry the betel-nut which began to grow on its head. And Ini-init said, "Ala! get off my big pig and I come." The betel-nut got off the pig. Not long after they went and Pagatipánan carried the baby near to the gate.
That day Aponibolinayen stole again to the house of the Sun and cooked food, and when she returned to the betel-nut tree she left rice and fish ready for the Sun when he came home. Late in the afternoon Ini-init went into his home, and when he found pots of hot rice and fish over the fire he was greatly troubled. After he had eaten he walked a long time in the fresh air.
He walked softly when he went up the ladder. He slammed shut the door. He reached truly the woman who was cooking in the house. He went quickly and the woman said to him, "You cut me only once, so that I only cure one time, if you are the old enemy." "If I were the old enemy, I should have cut before," said Ini-init, and he sat near her who cooked.
You know it is the stick which I cook, which is fish, which we ate, before you arrived again with fish. Throw away the fish which you caught, for this stick is many fish which I cook." After that Ini-init said, "Why do you order to throw away, that which serves the purpose to which we put it, even though you cook many sticks?" "If you value it, hang it on the hanger, and you come and eat."
"Ala! now all you who have arrived, rich men, you divide the prepared betel-nut which is covered with gold," said Ini-init. Not long after Pagatipánan cut the betel-nut and chewed, and the quid of Ini-init went to the quid of Pagbokásan, and the quid of Aponibolinayen went to the quid of Pagatipánan.
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