Guingamor, Lanval, Tyolet, Bisclaveret: Four lais rendered into English prose — John Shaqi
Guingamor, Lanval, Tyolet, Bisclaveret: Four lais rendered into English proseMarie, de France, active 12th century
General
Guingamor, Lanval, Tyolet, Bisclaveret: Four lais rendered into English prose
Marie, de France, active 12th century
Arthurian romances; Knights and knighthood -- Poetry
Now when a long time had passed the king had occasion to hold a solemn
court; he summoned all his barons from far and near, and among them
came the knight who had betrayed the were-wolf, and wedded his lady; he
had little thought that his rival was yet in life, still less that he
was so near at hand. But as soon as the wolf beheld him he sprang upon
him savagely, tearing him with his teeth, and would have slain him if
the king had not called him off, and even then twice again he would
have seized him.
Every one in the castle was astonished at the rage shown by the beast,
which had always been so tame and gentle, and a whisper went round that
surely there must be something which no one knew against the knight,
for the wolf would scarce have attacked him without cause. All the time
the court lasted the wolf had to be kept in close guard. When at length
it broke up the knight who had been attacked was one of the first to
leave--and small marvel it he were. But when the knight had gone the
wolf was once more as tame and friendly as he had been from the first,
and all the courtiers made a pet of him as they had done aforetime, and
forgot, as time went on, that he had ever shown himself so savage.
* * * * *
At length the king bethought him that he would make a progress through
his kingdom, and at the same time hunt for a while in the forest where
he had found the wolf. As his custom was he took the beast with him.
Now the lady, the were-wolf's treacherous wife, hearing that the king
would abide some time in that part of the country, prayed for an
audience that she might win the royal favour by presenting rich gifts,
for she knew well that the king loved not her second husband as he had
loved the first.
The king appointed a day and hour for the audience, but when the lady
entered the presence chamber suddenly the wolf flew upon her, and
before any could hinder had bitten the nose from off her face. The
courtiers drew out their weapons and would have slain the beast, when a
wise man, one of the king's councillors, stayed them. "Sire," he said,
"hearken to me--this wolf has been long with us, there is not one of
us here who has not been near to him, and caressed him, over and over
again; yet not a man of us has he ever touched, or even shown ill-will
to any. But two has he ever attacked, this lady here and the lord, her
husband. Now, sire, bethink thee well--this lady was the wife of the
knight thou didst hold dear aforetime, and who was lost long since, no
man knowing what came to him. Take my counsel, put this lady in guard,
and question her closely as to whether she can give any reason why the
wolf should hate her. Many a marvel hath come to pass in Brittany, and
methinks there is something stranger than we wot of here."
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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