บทที่ บทที่ 13 · NOW IS THE HUNT UP

. NOW IS THE HUNT UP

Next morning was he up betimes, but he was cast down and heavy of heart,

not looking for aught else to betide than had betid those last four days.

But otherwise it fell out; for when he came down into the hall, there was

the lady sitting on the high-seat all alone, clad but in a coat of white

linen; and she turned her head when she heard his footsteps, and looked

on him, and greeted him, and said: "Come hither, guest."

So he went and stood before her, and she said: "Though as yet thou hast

had no welcome here, and no honour, it hath not entered into thine heart

to flee from us; and to say sooth, that is well for thee, for flee away

from our hand thou mightest not, nor mightest thou depart without our

furtherance. But for this we can thee thank, that thou hast abided here

our bidding and eaten thine heart through the heavy wearing of four days,

and made no plaint. Yet I cannot deem thee a dastard; thou so well knit

and shapely of body, so clear-eyed and bold of visage. Wherefore now I

ask thee, art thou willing to do me service, thereby to earn thy

guesting?"

Walter answered her, somewhat faltering at first, for he was astonished

at the change which had come over her; for now she spoke to him in

friendly wise, though indeed as a great lady would speak to a young man

ready to serve her in all honour. Said he: "Lady, I can thank thee

humbly and heartily in that thou biddest me do thee service; for these

days past I have loathed the emptiness of the hours, and nought better

could I ask for than to serve so glorious a Mistress in all honour."

She frowned somewhat, and said: "Thou shalt not call me Mistress; there

is but one who so calleth me, that is my thrall; and thou art none such.

Thou shalt call me Lady, and I shall be well pleased that thou be my

squire, and for this present thou shalt serve me in the hunting. So get

thy gear; take thy bow and arrows, and gird thee to thy sword. For in

this fair land may one find beasts more perilous than be buck or hart. I

go now to array me; we will depart while the day is yet young; for so

make we the summer day the fairest."

He made obeisance to her, and she arose and went to her chamber, and

Walter dight himself, and then abode her in the porch; and in less than

an hour she came out of the hall, and Walter's heart beat when he saw

that the Maid followed her hard at heel, and scarce might he school his

eyes not to gaze over-eagerly at his dear friend. She was clad even as

she was before, and was changed in no wise, save that love troubled her

face when she first beheld him, and she had much ado to master it:

howbeit the Mistress heeded not the trouble of her, or made no semblance

of heeding it, till the Maiden's face was all according to its wont.

But this Walter found strange, that after all that disdain of the Maid's

thralldom which he had heard of the Mistress, and after all the threats

against her, now was the Mistress become mild and debonaire to her, as a

good lady to her good maiden. When Walter bowed the knee to her, she

turned unto the Maid, and said: "Look thou, my Maid, at this fair new

Squire that I have gotten! Will not he be valiant in the greenwood? And

see whether he be well shapen or not. Doth he not touch thine heart,

when thou thinkest of all the woe, and fear, and trouble of the World

beyond the Wood, which he hath escaped, to dwell in this little land

peaceably, and well-beloved both by the Mistress and the Maid? And thou,

my Squire, look a little at this fair slim Maiden, and say if she

pleaseth thee not: didst thou deem that we had any thing so fair in this

lonely place?"

Frank and kind was the smile on her radiant visage, nor did she seem to

note any whit the trouble on Walter's face, nor how he strove to keep his

eyes from the Maid. As for her, she had so wholly mastered her

countenance, that belike she used her face guilefully, for she stood as

one humble but happy, with a smile on her face, blushing, and with her

head hung down as if shamefaced before a goodly young man, a stranger.

But the Lady looked upon her kindly and said: "Come hither, child, and

fear not this frank and free young man, who belike feareth thee a little,

and full certainly feareth me; and yet only after the manner of men."

And therewith she took the Maid by the hand and drew her to her, and

pressed her to her bosom, and kissed her cheeks and her lips, and undid

the lacing of her gown and bared a shoulder of her, and swept away her

skirt from her feet; and then turned to Walter and said: "Lo thou,

Squire! is not this a lovely thing to have grown up amongst our rough oak-

boles? What! art thou looking at the iron ring there? It is nought,

save a token that she is mine, and that I may not be without her."

Then she took the Maid by the shoulders and turned her about as in sport,

and said: "Go thou now, and bring hither the good grey ones; for needs

must we bring home some venison to-day, whereas this stout warrior may

not feed on nought save manchets and honey."

So the Maid went her way, taking care, as Walter deemed, to give no side

glance to him. But he stood there shamefaced, so confused with all this

openhearted kindness of the great Lady and with the fresh sight of the

darling beauty of the Maid, that he went nigh to thinking that all he had

heard since he had come to the porch of the house that first time was but

a dream of evil.

But while he stood pondering these matters, and staring before him as one

mazed, the Lady laughed out in his face, and touched him on the arm and

said: "Ah, our Squire, is it so that now thou hast seen my Maid thou

wouldst with a good will abide behind to talk with her? But call to mind

thy word pledged to me e'en now! And moreover I tell thee this for thy

behoof now she is out of ear-shot, that I will above all things take thee

away to-day: for there be other eyes, and they nought uncomely, that look

at whiles on my fair-ankled thrall; and who knows but the swords might be

out if I take not the better heed, and give thee not every whit of thy

will."

As she spoke and moved forward, he turned a little, so that now the edge

of that hazel-coppice was within his eye-shot, and he deemed that once

more he saw the yellow-brown evil thing crawling forth from the thicket;

then, turning suddenly on the Lady, he met her eyes, and seemed in one

moment of time to find a far other look in them than that of frankness

and kindness; though in a flash they changed back again, and she said

merrily and sweetly: "So, so, Sir Squire, now art thou awake again, and

mayest for a little while look on me."

Now it came into his head, with that look of hers, all that might befall

him and the Maid if he mastered not his passion, nor did what he might to

dissemble; so he bent the knee to her, and spoke boldly to her in her own

vein, and said: "Nay, most gracious of ladies, never would I abide behind

to-day since thou farest afield. But if my speech be hampered, or mine

eyes stray, is it not because my mind is confused by thy beauty, and the

honey of kind words which floweth from thy mouth?"

She laughed outright at his word, but not disdainfully, and said: "This

is well spoken, Squire, and even what a squire should say to his liege

lady, when the sun is up on a fair morning, and she and he and all the

world are glad."

She stood quite near him as she spoke, her hand was on his shoulder, and

her eyes shone and sparkled. Sooth to say, that excusing of his

confusion was like enough in seeming to the truth; for sure never

creature was fashioned fairer than she: clad she was for the greenwood as

the hunting-goddess of the Gentiles, with her green gown gathered unto

her girdle, and sandals on her feet; a bow in her hand and a quiver at

her back: she was taller and bigger of fashion than the dear Maiden,

whiter of flesh, and more glorious, and brighter of hair; as a flower of

flowers for fairness and fragrance.

She said: "Thou art verily a fair squire before the hunt is up, and if

thou be as good in the hunting, all will be better than well, and the

guest will be welcome. But lo! here cometh our Maid with the good grey

ones. Go meet her, and we will tarry no longer than for thy taking the

leash in hand."

So Walter looked, and saw the Maid coming with two couple of great hounds

in the leash straining against her as she came along. He ran lightly to

meet her, wondering if he should have a look, or a half-whisper from her;

but she let him take the white thongs from her hand, with the same half-

smile of shamefacedness still set on her face, and, going past him, came

softly up to the Lady, swaying like a willow-branch in the wind, and

stood before her, with her arms hanging down by her sides. Then the Lady

turned to her, and said: "Look to thyself, our Maid, while we are away.

This fair young man thou needest not to fear indeed, for he is good and

leal; but what thou shalt do with the King's Son I wot not. He is a hot

lover forsooth, but a hard man; and whiles evil is his mood, and perilous

both to thee and me. And if thou do his will, it shall be ill for thee;

and if thou do it not, take heed of him, and let me, and me only, come

between his wrath and thee. I may do somewhat for thee. Even yesterday

he was instant with me to have thee chastised after the manner of

thralls; but I bade him keep silence of such words, and jeered him and

mocked him, till he went away from me peevish and in anger. So look to

it that thou fall not into any trap of his contrivance."

Then the Maid cast herself at the Mistress's feet, and kissed and

embraced them; and as she rose up, the Lady laid her hand lightly on her

head, and then, turning to Walter, cried out: "Now, Squire, let us leave

all these troubles and wiles and desires behind us, and flit through the

merry greenwood like the Gentiles of old days."

And therewith she drew up the laps of her gown till the whiteness of her

knees was seen, and set off swiftly toward the wood that lay south of the

house, and Walter followed, marvelling at her goodliness; nor durst he

cast a look backward to the Maiden, for he knew that she desired him, and

it was her only that he looked to for his deliverance from this house of

guile and lies.