Using gradients with the gradient mesh tool

Question

So I have a basic knowledge of using the gradient mesh tool, but in my current project I need the gradients within the object to fade from black to transparent (it will be used for a one-color tshirt).  I've tried to do this a couple different ways.  First, I created a solid white rectangle (no stroke) then created a 1 row 1 column flat gradient mesh on it.  Added the points I needed, even added the color, and the fade is exactly the shape I need, but I can't figure out how to get rid of the white, and just have the black fade to transparent.  I also tried creating a rectangle with a linear gradient fill, clicked expand and selected gradient mesh, but as soon as I press ok it changes it to solid black.  I included a cropped picture of what I'm talking about.  All the tail feathers need to have that black fade but without the white, it needs to fade out to transparent like the other gradients around it.  I put a color background behind the image to make these areas easier to see.  It seems like there should be an easy solution, but I'm not sure how to do it. Any help would be really appreciated.

Answer 1

Edit: set all mesh point to black.
Assuming that your version of Illustrator allows it, you can get what you want by adjusting the opacity of the mesh points, something like this: