And they were lost in astonishment.
When the meal was over, they sat down upon the divan which stood before the window.
Now, the scarlet-robed princess had given an embroidered handkerchief to the fairy prince, which the invisible prince took from the divan and hid in his bosom.
When the two discovered that it was gone, they began searching for it. Everywhere in the room they looked; but nowhere could it be found.
The invisible prince then remounted the goatskin, struck it with his whip, mounted into the air, and sailed out of the window. By this time it was night. As the prince reached the point directly above the pomegranate tree, he seized and pulled it up by the roots.
At this the tree began to cry; and the bear, delighted with the misery of the tree, began to laugh with all its might. So the brave prince suddenly thought that he would like the bear as well. Seizing [[126]]hold of that with his other hand, he ascended into the sky bearing them both.
Within, from the window, the fairy prince and the scarlet-clothed princess saw the tree and the bear ascending, as if without hands. In great frenzy they called to the soldiers:
“Strike! Stand not still!”
And the soldiers, seeing no one whom to attack, became confused and fought one with another. They believed, in the dim light, that an enemy had come upon them. During it all, the two stood at the window, helpless. When they saw the tree disappear, they exclaimed:
“Alas! Alas!”