Yvain
Page 13
For he couldn't have followed on foot.
He'd filled his shield with ferns 4655
And moss, and made it a litter,
The softest bed he could manage,
And laid the lion gently
Down, and carried him, lying
Full length on the inside of the shield. 4660
And so his horse bore him
Away, and he came to the door
Of a handsome house, a strong house.
The gate was closed, so he called,
And the porter opened it for him 4665
So swiftly that he never needed
To say another word.
And he held out his hand for the reins,
Saying: “Good sir, come in!
My lord’s house is open to you, 4670
Should you care to dismount.” And Yvain
Answered: “I'm pleased to accept,
For this is something I very much
Need, this offer of shelter.”
And so he went through the door 4675
And saw all the people
Of that household coming to help him.
They greeted him, and helped him dismount,
And laid down his shield, with the lion
On it, on a stone bench. 4680
And some of them took his horse
And brought it to a stable, and others
Took his weapons and his armor,
Exactly as they ought to. And then
The lord of that house heard 4685
That he'd come, and as soon as he knew it
Hurried to the courtyard to greet him.
And his wife hurried after him,
And all her sons and daughters,
And many others, a crowd 4690
Of all sorts, happy to welcome him.
And they put him in a quiet room,
Seeing how sick he seemed,
And behaved equally well
By putting his lion in with him. 4695
And two young girls, daughters
Of the master of the house, both of them
Wonderfully skilled in medicine,
Were put in charge of his cure.
How many days did he stay there? 4700
I don't know, but until he
And his lion were cured and could leave.
But during this time it happened
That the Lord of Blackthorn was so fiercely 4705
Attacked by Death that it forced him
To yield, and he died. And dying
He left two daughters, and after
His death the older of the two
Said that everything he had owned 4710
On earth was hers, free
And clear, to have and to hold
For life, and nothing belonged
To her sister. And her sister said
She'd go to King Arthur’s court, 4715
Seeking someone to help her
Defend her rights. And the older Sister,
seeing she couldn't
Prevail without a struggle,
Was terribly worried and decided 4720
That if she could she'd get
To Arthur’s court before her.
So she got herself dressed and ready
And neither delayed nor waited,
But hurried off to court. 4725
And the younger sister followed
As fast as she could, but her journey
Got her nowhere, for her older
Sister had already argued
Her case to my lord Gawain, 4730
And he had bound himself
To do as she wished. But they
Had also agreed that should she
Tell anyone else what had happened
He would never defend her again, 4735
And she had sworn to those terms.
And then the younger sister
Arrived, wearing a short
Woolen gown, trimmed
With fresh ermine. It was just three days 4740
Since the queen had come back from imprisonment,
Stolen by Melegant and held
Along with his other prisoners;
Only Lancelot had been left
Behind, treacherously locked 4745
In a tower. And the day the younger
Sister came to court
Was the very same day they heard
The news of the cruel, evil
Giant, killed in battle 4750
By the Knight of the Lion, at whose
Directions and in whose name
His nephews had greeted Gawain,
Telling him the great service
Done them by that knight, and his great 4755
Bravery. And his niece told him
Everything, explaining that he knew
This knight well, though not his name.
And the younger sister heard
All this talk, which left her anxious 4760
And worried, desperate, bewildered—
Thinking to herself, what sort
Of help could she find at court
If all the best knights were away?
And more than once she'd approached 4765
My lord Gawain, begging him
For love and for charity to help her.
And he'd said: “My friend! You're wasting
Your time. There’s nothing I can do.
I've taken on something else, 4770
And I'm not about to leave it.”
And she left him as quickly as she could
And came directly to the king.
“Your Majesty!” she said. “I’ve come
To you and your court seeking 4775
Help. I've found none. I'm astonished
That no one here will help me.
And yet I'd be acting improperly
If I left without your permission.
For my sister might have known 4780
That love could have gotten her whatever
She wanted, anything I owned,
But force will never make me
Abandon my inheritance, never—
If only I can find assistance!” 4785
“You've spoken wisely,” said the king.
“And while she’s here, I advise her,
And I beg her, to let you have
What is rightly yours.” But the older
Sister, sure of having 4790
The very best knight in the world,
Answered: “My lord! May God
Blast me if I'll give her anything
I own, a castle or a town
Or a forest, or a square of burned land, 4795
Not even a tree! And if there’s
A knight who'll defend her, though I doubt it,
Anyone who'll support her right,
Let him come forward, and now!”
“Your offer is distinctly improper,” 4800
Said the king. “More time is required.
According to the judgment of all
Our courts, she can take as long
As forty days to find
A champion.” And she answered: “Your Majesty! 4805
You have the right to proclaim
The law as it pleases you, and seems right.
And it’s not for me to tell you
Your right seems wrong. I have
No choice. I consent to a delay, 4810
If she demands one.” And the younger
Sister said she definitely
Wanted a delay. And then
She commended the king to God
And left his court, determined 4815
To hunt all over the world
For the rest of her life
For the Knight of the Lion, he
Who strove to help a woman
Anywhere who truly needed it. 4820
And so she began her quest,
And travelled through many countries,
But heard nothing of him,
Which caused her such pain that she sicke
ned
And grew ill. Yet that was lucky, 4825
For it brought her to a friend’s house,
Where she was dearly loved, and they saw
At once, looking at her face,
That her health was not very good.
And they made her stay, against 4830
Her will, till she'd told them everything.
And then another young woman
Took on the journey she'd begun,
Carrying on her quest.
And so while one woman rested 4835
The other rode the whole day
Long, rode fast, rode alone,
Until the darkness of night
Fell, and she was frightened.
And then frightened still more 4840
When it rained as hard as God
Could make it rain, and she
Was deep in the forest. And the night
And the forest worried her, but worse
Than either the forest or the night— 4845
Far worse—was the rain. And the roads
Became so foul that sometimes
Her horse was almost up
To its belly in mud, which might
Thoroughly frighten any 4850
Young woman alone in a wood,
With no escort, in such weather and on such
A night, so black that she couldn't
See the horse she sat on.
And so she prayed to God, 4855
And then she prayed to His mother,
And then to all the saints
She could think of, a litany of prayers
For God to give her shelter
And get her out of that wood. 4860
She prayed until she heard
A horn, which filled her with joy,
Sure there was shelter to be had
If only she could get to it. She headed
Toward the sound, and came 4865
To a paved road, and that road
Led her directly to the horn
She'd heard blowing in the night,
Sounding three long blasts,
Loud and high and clear. 4870
And riding straight toward the sound
She came to a cross, standing
Just to the right of the road.
And she thought that the horn and whoever
Had blown it must surely be near. 4875
So she set her horse to galloping,
And soon she came to a bridge
And saw the guardhouse and the white
Walls of a round castle.
And so, by pure chance, she got 4880
To the castle, following the sound
Of the horn, which led her along.
And that blasting horn had been blown
By a watchman mounted high
On the walls, and had caught her ear. 4885
And as soon as the watchman saw her
He hailed her, and then came down
And took the key to the gate
And opened it, and said: “Welcome,
Young woman, whoever you are! 4890
Tonight, your lodging will be good.”
“Tonight, I want nothing else,”
Said the girl, as he let her in.
And after all the hardships
She'd had that day, finding 4895
Shelter was a stroke of luck,
For they looked after her well. After
She'd eaten, her host addressed her,
Asking where she was going
And what she hoped to find. 4900
And then she answered his question:
“I'm seeking someone I've never
Seen, I think, and never
Known. There’s a lion with him,
And they tell me I can truly trust him, 4905
If ever I can find him.” “Ah!”
He exclaimed. “I can tell you it’s true—
For here in my time of great need
God sent him to me, too.
May they be blessed, whatever 4910
Paths led him to my house!
He took revenge for me on a mortal
Enemy, and made me happy
By killing him in front of my eyes.
Tomorrow, outside that gate, 4915
You can see the body of an immense
Giant, whom he killed so swiftly
That he hardly worked up a sweat.”
“For God’s sake, sir,” cried the girl,
“Can you give me any news, 4920
Have you any idea where he went
Or where he might be staying?”
“Not a thing, as God is my witness!
But tomorrow I can put you on the road
He took when he left here.” “And may God,” 4925
She answered, “take me anywhere
Where I'll truly hear where he is!
How happy I'll be, if I find him.”
And so they spoke a long time
And finally went to bed. 4930
And just as soon as dawn broke
The girl arose, filled
With a deep determination
To find the man she'd been seeking.
And the master of the house rose, 4935
And all his household with him,
And they set her straight on the road
To the spring under the pine tree.
And she rode as hard as she could
Straight toward the castle town 4940
And, coming there, asked the first men
She met if they could give her
News of the knight and the lion
Who always travelled about
Together. And then they told her 4945
They had seen him fight and defeat
Three knights at once, right there
On that very same ground. And she answered
Them immediately: “Oh God!
Please: tell me everything, 4950
Now that you've told me so much.
Hide nothing, tell me what you know!”
“Nothing,” they said. “We know nothing
Except what we've told you. Whatever’s
Become of him we have no idea. 4955
And if she for whose sake he came here
Can't give you any news, then no one
Here possibly could.
But if you wish to ask her
Yourself, you haven't far 4960
To go, for she’s come to pray
To God and hear Mass in that church,
And she’s been inside so long
That her prayers must have been long ones.”
And then, while they were speaking, 4965
Lunette came out of the church,
And they said: “There she is!”
And the girl went to meet her,
And they greeted each other. And the girl
Immediately asked for the news 4970
She needed, and Lunette answered
That as soon as she had a horse
Saddled and ready, she'd gladly
Ride with her and bring her
To an enclosed place where she'd left 4975
That knight. And the girl thanked her
With all her heart. The horse
Was quickly saddled and ready
And Lunette mounted at once.
And as they rode, Lunette 4980
Explained how she'd been accused
And called a traitor, and the pyre
Had been heaped and lit, and they'd meant
To put her in and burn her,
And the knight had come to help her, 4985
Just when she needed him most.
And as she spoke she led her
Along, and brought her directly
To the road where she'd left Yvain.
And having taken her so far, 4990
She said: “Follow this road
Until you come to some place
Where, if it pleases God
And the Holy Ghost, you'
ll hear
Truer news than I 4995
Can tell you. I remember leaving him
Right here, or very nearly
Here, but I've not seen him
Since then, and what he’s done
I don't know. I know that when 5000
I left him he was wounded and needed
Help. I send you after him:
God grant that you find him healed,
If that be His will, today
Or tomorrow! Go! I commend you 5005
To God. I can follow no farther,
Or my lady might be angry.”
And so they left each other,
Lunette to go home and the girl
To go on alone until 5010
She came to the house where Yvain
Had stayed and recovered his health.
She saw people in front of the gate,
Knights, and ladies, and squires,
And the lord of that house, and she greeted 5015
Them all and asked them to tell her
Anything they could, whatever
They might know, of a knight she was seeking,
A knight she needed to find.
“Who?” they asked. “He 5020
Who travels with a lion, they tell me.”
“Good Lord, girl!” said the lord,
“He left us just now. You might
Be able to catch him, if you know
How to follow his tracks and you're careful 5025
Not to waste any time!”
“My lord!” she said. “God forbid!
Just tell me in what direction
I should go!” And they told her: “That way,
Right straight ahead,” and they asked her 5030
To give him their greetings. But their words
Meant precious little to her.
She paid them no attention,
But immediately set off at a gallop.
To her the pace seemed terribly 5035
Slow, although her horse
Galloped very well.
And she galloped through muddy fields
Just as she galloped when the road
Was level, until she saw him, 5040
He and his lion together.
And she cried out, happily: “Help me,
Oh Lord! I finally see him,
After hunting and searching so long.
But suppose I hunt but don't win, 5045
What good will it be if I catch him?
Oh Lord, for nothing, nothing!
If I cannot get him to join me,
All my trouble will be wasted.”
So saying, she hurried ahead, 5050
And her horse was dripping with sweat,
And she came where he was and greeted him.
And he answered her at once:
“God keep you, pretty one! and guard you
From worry and care!” “And the same 5055
To you, my lord, who I hope
Will be able to free me from such things!”
Then she drew her horse near his
And said: “My lord! I've sought you
All over. The fame you've earned 5060