AITVARAS
Lithuanian Folklore
This is the name of a flying dragon of Lithuanian folklore that assumes various shapes according to his environment. In the home he is described as resembling a black cat or black cockerel, but when traveling outside he may take on the appearance of a flying dragon or serpent with a fiery tale. These are the physical manifestations of a supernatural "luck bringer" that may be "purchased" from the DEVIL for one's soul. Like the BASILISK of Medieval European folklore, the AITVARAS is hatched from an egg of a seven-year-old cockerel or brought home unrecognized until it is too late. Once in the home, it is dislodged only with great difficulty if the occupant is an honest God-fearing person. The AITVARAS'S responsibility is to make his owner rich by any means. This task is usually accomplished by the theft of milk, corn, and gold, frequently at the expense of the neighbors. He demands only the sustenance of omelets in return for the goods he brings. The first mention of this supernatural creature was in an account of 1547, when the suspicious acquisition of wealth by a villager was investigated. Another account described how a wife could not understand why the grain she was grinding from the corn bin for her new mother-in-law never ran out. Taking a consecrated candle from the church, she investigated the contents of the bin, where an AITVARAS was seen disgorging constant streams of corn. The sacred candle was the instrument of it's demise, for the AITVARAS rose up in the air and was never seen again. The mistress of the house grieved for the loss of her wealth as well as for the damnation she incurred for pledging her soul as payment for the riches the AITVARAS would bring.
Source: Giants, Monsters, and Dragons: An Encyclopedia of Folklore, Legend, and Myth