After wandering for a while, Black Snake found something good at a tiny stall.
On a moss-covered rock about two feet high perched a plump little bird. A small pile of seeds lay before it, every seed full and rounded, neatly arranged on a leaf.
The little bird was slightly plumper than a sparrow, with dull gray feathers.
Curious about the seeds, Black Snake brought his enormous head closer and flicked his tongue at them.
He meant nothing else by it. He was simply curious.
The plump little bird had been preening with its head down. Suddenly, it saw a gigantic snake's head right in front of it, the tongue almost touching its face. It chirped in fright and fluttered into the air.
Black Snake raised his head, indicating that he only wanted to look at the seeds.
The plump little bird circled twice before landing on a nearby stump. It flapped its wings a couple of times and smoothed its puffed-up feathers.
Black Snake flicked his tongue.
"What do you want in exchange for the seeds?"
He kept his voice as low as possible to avoid frightening the tiny creature.
The plump little bird hunched its neck and spoke in a thin voice.
"Nuts... nuts with spiritual energy."
Black Snake felt troubled. He had only bothered collecting medicinal herbs and could not even be bothered to glance at nuts, much less take them home to store. Now that he wanted to trade for seeds, he had nothing to offer.
He decided that whenever he encountered anything with spiritual energy in the future, whether herbs or nuts, he would collect as much as he could carry.
They might come in useful someday, and he would not be left staring helplessly as he was now.
For some inexplicable reason, he liked