The Decameron, Volume II

gallants thendismounted and entered the inn, and having first looked to their horses,brought out some supper that they had carried with them, and supped withthe host.

  Now the host had but one little bedroom, in which were three beds, set,as conveniently as he could contrive, two on one side of the room, andthe third on the opposite side, but, for all that, there was scarce roomenough to pass through. The host had the least discomfortable of thethree beds made up for the two friends; and having quartered them there,some little while afterwards, both being awake, but feigning to beasleep, he caused his daughter to get into one of the other two beds,while he and his wife took their places in the third, the good womansetting the cradle, in which was her little boy, beside the bed. Such,then, being the partition made of the beds, Pinuccio, who had taken exactnote thereof, waited only until he deemed all but himself to be asleep,and then got softly up and stole to the bed in which lay his beloved, andlaid himself beside her; and she according him albeit a timorous yet agladsome welcome, he stayed there, taking with her that solace of whichboth were most fain.

  Pinuccio being thus with the girl, it chanced that certain things, beingoverset by a cat, fell with a noise that aroused the good woman, who,fearing that it might be a matter of more consequence, got up as best shemight in the dark, and betook her to the place whence the noise seemed toproceed. At the same time Adriano, not by reason of the noise, which heheeded not, but perchance to answer the call of nature, also got up, andquesting about for a convenient place, came upon the cradle beside thegood woman's bed; and not being able otherwise to go by, took it up, andset it beside his own bed, and when he had accomplished his purpose, wentback, and giving never a thought to the cradle got him to bed. The goodwoman searched until she found that the accident was no such matter asshe had supposed; so without troubling to strike a light to investigateit further, she reproved the cat, and returned to the room, and gropedher way straight to the bed in which her husband lay asleep; but notfinding the cradle there, quoth she to herself:--Alas! blunderer that Iam, what was I about? God's faith! I was going straight to the guests'bed; and proceeding a little further, she found the cradle, and laidherself down by Adriano in the bed that was beside it, taking Adriano forher husband; and Adriano, who was still awake, received her with all duebenignity, and tackled her more than once to her no small delight.

  Meanwhile Pinuccio fearing lest sleep should overtake him while he wasyet with his mistress, and having satisfied his desire, got up and lefther, to return to his bed; but when he got there, coming upon the cradle,he supposed that 'twas the host's bed; and so going a little further, helaid him down beside the host, who thereupon awoke. Supposing that he hadAdriano beside him:--"I warrant thee," quoth Pinuccio to the host, "therewas never so sweet a piece of flesh as Niccolosa: by the body of God,such delight have I had of her as never had man of woman; and, mark me,since I left thee, I have gotten me up to the farm some six times." Whichtidings the host being none too well pleased to learn, said first of allto himself:--What the Devil does this fellow here? Then, his resentmentgetting the better of his prudence:--"'Tis a gross affront thou hast putupon me, Pinuccio," quoth he; "nor know I what occasion thou hast to dome such a wrong; but by the body of God I will pay thee out." Pinuccio,who was not the most discreet of gallants, albeit he was now apprised ofhis error, instead of doing his best to repair it, retorted:--"And howwilt thou pay me out? What canst thou do?" "Hark what high words ourguests are at together!" quoth meanwhile the host's wife to Adriano,deeming that she spoke to her husband. "Let them be," replied Adrianowith a laugh:--"God give them a bad year: they drank too much yestereve."The good woman had already half recognized her husband's angry tones, andnow that she heard Adriano's voice, she at once knew where she was andwith whom. Accordingly, being a discreet woman, she started up, andsaying never a word, took her child's cradle, and, though there was not aray of light in the room, bore it, divining rather than feeling her way,to the side of the bed in which her daughter slept; and then, as ifaroused by the noise made by her husband, she called him, and asked whathe and Pinuccio were bandying words about. "Hearest thou not," repliedthe husband, "what he says he has this very night done to Niccolosa?""Tush! he lies in the throat," returned the good woman: "he has not lainwith Niccolosa; for what time he might have done so, I laid me beside hermyself, and I have been wide awake ever since; and thou art a fool tobelieve him. You men take so many cups before going to bed that then youdream, and walk in your sleep, and imagine wonders. 'Tis a great pity youdo not break your necks. What does Pinuccio there? Why keeps he not inhis own bed?"

  Whereupon Adriano, in his turn, seeing how adroitly the good womancloaked her own and her daughter's shame:--"Pinuccio," quoth he, "I havetold thee a hundred times, that thou shouldst not walk about at night;for this thy bad habit of getting up in thy dreams and relating thydreams for truth will get thee into a scrape some time or another: comeback, and God send thee a bad night." Hearing Adriano thus confirm whathis wife had said, the host began to think that Pinuccio must be reallydreaming; so he took him by the shoulder, and fell a shaking him, andcalling him by his name, saying:--"Pinuccio, wake up, and go back to thybed." Pinuccio, taking his cue from what he had heard, began as a dreamerwould be like to do, to talk wanderingly; whereat the host laughed amain.Then, feigning to be aroused by the shaking, Pinuccio uttered Adriano'sname, saying:--"Is't already day, that thou callest me?" "Ay, 'tis so,"quoth Adriano: "come hither." Whereupon Pinuccio, making as if he weremighty drowsy, got him up from beside the host, and back to bed withAdriano. On the morrow, when they were risen, the host fell a laughingand making merry touching Pinuccio and his dreams. And so the jest passedfrom mouth to mouth, while the gallants' horses were groomed and saddled,and their valises adjusted: which done, they drank with the host, mountedand rode to Florence, no less pleased with the manner than with thematter of the night's adventure. Nor, afterwards, did Pinuccio fail tofind other means of meeting Niccolosa, who assured her mother that he hadunquestionably dreamed. For which cause the good woman, calling to mindAdriano's embrace, accounted herself the only one that had watched.

  NOVEL VII.

  --Talano di Molese dreams that a wolf tears and rends all the neck and faceof his wife: he gives her warning thereof, which she heeds not, and thedream comes true.--

  When Pamfilo had brought his story to a close, and all had commended thegood woman's quick perception, the queen bade Pampinea tell hers; andthus Pampinea began:--A while ago, debonair my ladies, we held discourseof the truths that dreams shew forth, which not a few of us deride; forwhich cause, albeit the topic has been handled before, I shall not spareto tell you that which not long ago befell a neighbour of mine, for thatshe disbelieved a dream that her husband had.

  I wot not if you knew Talano di Molese, a man right worthy to be had inhonour; who, having married a young wife--Margarita by name--fair as e'eranother, but without her match for whimsical, fractious, and perversehumours, insomuch that there was nought she would do at the instance ofanother, either for his or her own good, found her behaviour mostgrievous to bear, but was fain to endure what he might not cure. Now itso befell that Talano and Margarita being together at an estate thatTalano had in the contado, he, sleeping, saw in a dream a very beautifulwood that was on the estate at no great distance from the house, and hislady there walking. And as she went, there leapt forth upon her a hugeand fierce wolf that griped her by the throat, and bore her down to theground, and (she shrieking the while for succour) would have carried heroff by main force; but she got quit of his jaws, albeit her neck and faceshewed as quite disfigured. On the morrow, as soon as he was risen,Talano said to his wife:--"Albeit for thy perversity I have not yet knowna single good day with thee, yet I should be sorry, wife, that harmshould befall thee; and therefore, if thou take my advice, thou wilt notstir out of doors to-day." "Wherefore?" quoth the lady; and thereupon herecounted to her all his dream.

  The lady shook her head, saying:--"Who means ill, dreams ill. Thou makestas if thou wast mighty te
nder of me, but thou bodest of me in thy dreamthat which thou wouldst fain see betide me. I warrant thee that to-dayand all days I will have a care to avoid this or any other calamity thatmight gladden thy heart." Whereupon:--"Well wist I," replied Talano,"that thou wouldst so say, for such is ever the requital of those thatcomb scurfy heads; but whatever thou mayst be pleased to believe, I formy part speak to thee for thy good, and again I advise thee to keepindoors to-day, or at least not to walk in the wood." "Good," returnedthe lady, "I will look to it," and then she began communing with herselfon this wise:--Didst mark how artfully he thinks to have scared me fromgoing into the wood to-day?