CHAPTER 18
For a little time there was a pause of deep silence, during which thefluttering leaves came drifting down from the broken arbor above.
It was the Lady Anne who first spoke. "Who art thou, and whence comestthou?" said she, tremulously.
Then Myles gathered himself up sheepishly. "My name is Myles Falworth,"said he, "and I am one of the squires of the body."
"Oh! aye!" said the Lady Alice, suddenly. "Me thought I knew thy face.Art thou not the young man that I have seen in Lord George's train?"
"Yes, lady," said Myles, wrapping and twining a piece of the broken vinein and out among his fingers. "Lord George hath often had me of lateabout his person."
"And what dost thou do here, sirrah?" said Lady Anne, angrily. "Howdarest thou come so into our garden?"
"I meant not to come as I did," said Myles, clumsily, and with a facehot and red. "But I slipped over the top of the wall and fell hastilyinto the garden. Truly, lady, I meant ye no harm or fright thereby."
He looked so drolly abashed as he stood before them, with his clothestorn and soiled from the fall, his face red, and his eyes downcast, allthe while industriously twisting the piece of clematis in and around hisfingers, that Lady Anne's half-frightened anger could not last. She andher cousin exchanged glances, and smiled at one another.
"But," said she at last, trying to draw her pretty brows together into afrown, "tell me; why didst thou seek to climb the wall?"
"I came to seek a ball," said Myles, "which I struck over hither fromthe court beyond."
"And wouldst thou come into our privy garden for no better reason thanto find a ball?" said the young lady.
"Nay," said Myles; "it was not so much to find the ball, but, in goodsooth, I did truly strike it harder than need be, and so, gin I lost theball, I could do no less than come and find it again, else our sport isdone for the day. So it was I came hither."
The two young ladies had by now recovered from their fright. The LadyAnne slyly nudged her cousin with her elbow, and the younger could notsuppress a half-nervous laugh. Myles heard it, and felt his face growhotter and redder than ever.
"Nay," said Lady Anne, "I do believe Master Giles--"
"My name be'st Myles," corrected Myles.
"Very well, then, Master Myles, I say I do believe that thou meanestno harm in coming hither; ne'theless it was ill of thee so to do. An myfather should find thee here, he would have thee shrewdly punished forsuch trespassing. Dost thou not know that no one is permitted to enterthis place--no, not even my uncle George? One fellow who came hither tosteal apples once had his ears shaven close to his head, and not morethan a year ago one of the cook's men who climbed the wall early onemorning was shot by the watchman."
"Aye," said Myles, "I knew of him who was shot, and it did go somewhatagainst my stomach to venture, knowing what had happed to him.Ne'theless, an I gat not the ball, how were we to play more to-day atthe trap?"
"Marry, thou art a bold fellow, I do believe me," said the young lady,"and sin thou hast come in the face of such peril to get thy ball, thoushalt not go away empty. Whither didst thou strike it?"
"Over yonder by the cherry-tree," said Myles, jerking his head in thatdirection. "An I may go get it, I will trouble ye no more." As he spokehe made a motion to leave them.
"Stay!" said the Lady Anne, hastily; "remain where thou art. An thoucross the open, some one may haply see thee from the house, and willgive the alarm, and thou wilt be lost. I will go get thy ball."
And so she left Myles and her cousin, crossing the little plots of grassand skirting the rosebushes to the cherry-tree.
When Myles found himself alone with Lady Alice, he knew not where tolook or what to do, but twisted the piece of clematis which he stillheld in and out more industriously than ever.
Lady Alice watched him with dancing eyes for a little while. "Haply thouwilt spoil that poor vine," said she by-and-by, breaking the silence andlaughing, then turning suddenly serious again. "Didst thou hurt thyselfby thy fall?"
"Nay," said Myles, looking up, "such a fall as that was no great matter.Many and many a time I have had worse."
"Hast thou so?" said the Lady Alice. "Thou didst fright me parlously,and my coz likewise."
Myles hesitated for a moment, and then blurted out, "Thereat I grieve,for thee I would not fright for all the world."
The young lady laughed and blushed. "All the world is a great matter,"said she.
"Yea," said he, "it is a great matter; but it is a greater matter tofright thee, and so I would not do it for that, and more."
The young lady laughed again, but she did not say anything further, anda space of silence fell so long that by-and-by she forced herself tosay, "My cousin findeth not the ball presently."
"Nay," said Myles, briefly, and then again neither spoke, untilby-and-by the Lady Anne came, bringing the ball. Myles felt a greatsense of relief at that coming, and yet was somehow sorry. Then he tookthe ball, and knew enough to bow his acknowledgment in a manner neitherill nor awkward.
"Didst thou hurt thyself?" asked Lady Anne.
"Nay," said Myles, giving himself a shake; "seest thou not I be whole,limb and bone? Nay, I have had shrewdly worse falls than that. Once Ifell out of an oak-tree down by the river and upon a root, and bethoughtme I did break a rib or more. And then one time when I was a boy inCrosbey-Dale--that was where I lived before I came hither--I did catchme hold of the blade of the windmill, thinking it was moving slowly, andthat I would have a ride i' th' air, and so was like to have had a fallten thousand times worse than this."
"Oh, tell us more of that!" said the Lady Anne, eagerly. "I did neverhear of such an adventure as that. Come, coz, and sit down here upon thebench, and let us have him tell us all of that happening."
Now the lads upon the other side of the wall had been whistlingfurtively for some time, not knowing whether Myles had broken his neckor had come off scot-free from his fall. "I would like right well tostay with ye," said he, irresolutely, "and would gladly tell ye that andmore an ye would have me to do so; but hear ye not my friends call mefrom beyond? Mayhap they think I break my back, and are calling to seewhether I be alive or no. An I might whistle them answer and toss methis ball to them, all would then be well, and they would know that Iwas not hurt, and so, haply, would go away."
"Then answer them," said the Lady Anne, "and tell us of that thing thouspokest of anon--how thou tookest a ride upon the windmill. We youngladies do hear little of such matters, not being allowed to talk withlads. All that we hear of perils are of knights and ladies and jousting,and such like. It would pleasure us right well to have thee tell of thyadventures."
So Myles tossed back the ball, and whistled in answer to his friends.
Then he told the two young ladies not only of his adventure upon thewindmill, but also of other boyish escapades, and told them well, witha straightforward smack and vigor, for he enjoyed adventure and loved totalk of it. In a little while he had regained his ease; his shyness andawkwardness left him, and nothing remained but the delightful fact thathe was really and actually talking to two young ladies, and that withjust as much ease and infinitely more pleasure than could be had indiscourse with his fellow-squires. But at last it was time for him togo. "Marry," said he, with a half-sigh, "methinks I did never ha' sosweet and pleasant a time in all my life before. Never did I know areal lady to talk with, saving only my mother, and I do tell yeplain methinks I would rather talk with ye than with any he inChristendom--saving, perhaps, only my friend Gascoyne. I would I mightcome hither again."
The honest frankness of his speech was irresistible; the two girlsexchanged glances and then began laughing. "Truly," said Lady Anne, who,as was said before, was some three or four years older than Myles,"thou art a bold lad to ask such a thing. How wouldst thou come hither?Wouldst tumble through our clematis arbor again, as thou didst thisday?"
"Nay," said Myles, "I would not do that again, but if ye will bid me doso, I will find the means to come hither."
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"Nay," said Lady Anne, "I dare not bid thee do such a foolhardy thing.Nevertheless, if thou hast the courage to come--"
"Yea," said Myles, eagerly, "I have the courage."
"Then, if thou hast so, we will be here in the garden on Saturday nextat this hour. I would like right well to hear more of thy adventures.But what didst thou say was thy name? I have forgot it again."
"It is Myles Falworth."
"Then we shall yclep thee Sir Myles, for thou art a soothlyerrant-knight. And stay! Every knight must have a lady to serve. Howwouldst thou like my Cousin Alice here for thy true lady?"
"Aye," said Myles, eagerly, "I would like it right well." And then heblushed fiery red at his boldness.
"I want no errant-knight to serve me," said the Lady Alice, blushing,in answer. "Thou dost ill tease me, coz! An thou art so free in choosinghim a lady to serve, thou mayst choose him thyself for thy pains."
"Nay," said the Lady Anne, laughing; "I say thou shalt be his true lady,and he shall be thy true knight. Who knows? Perchance he may serven theein some wondrous adventure, like as Chaucer telleth of. But now, SirErrant-Knight, thou must take thy leave of us, and I must e'en let theeprivily out by the postern-wicket. And if thou wilt take the risk uponthee and come hither again, prithee be wary in that coming, lest inventuring thou have thine ears clipped in most unknightly fashion."
That evening, as he and Gascoyne sat together on a bench under the treesin the great quadrangle, Myles told of his adventure of the afternoon,and his friend listened with breathless interest.
"But, Myles," cried Gascoyne, "did the Lady Anne never once seem proudand unkind?"
"Nay," said Myles; "only at first, when she chid me for falling throughthe roof of their arbor. And to think, Francis! Lady Anne herselfbade me hold the Lady Alice as my true lady, and to serve her in allknightliness!" Then he told his friend that he was going to the privygarden again on the next Saturday, and that the Lady Anne had given himpermission so to do.
Gascoyne gave a long, wondering whistle, and then sat quite still,staring into the sky. By-and-by he turned to his friend and said, "Igive thee my pledge, Myles Falworth, that never in all my life did Ihear of any one that had such marvellous strange happenings befall himas thou."
Whenever the opportunity occurred for sending a letter to Crosbey-Holt,Myles wrote one to his mother; and one can guess how they were treasuredby the good lady, and read over and over again to the blind old Lord ashe sat staring into darkness with his sightless eyes.
About the time of this escapade he wrote a letter telling of thosedoings, wherein, after speaking of his misadventure of falling from thewall, and of his acquaintance with the young ladies, he went on to speakof the matter in which he repeated his visits. The letter was wordedin the English of that day--the quaint and crabbed language in whichChaucer wrote. Perhaps few boys could read it nowadays, so, modernizingit somewhat, it ran thus:
"And now to let ye weet that thing that followed that happening thatmade me acquaint with they two young Damoiselles. I take me to the southwall of that garden one day four and twenty great spikes, which PeterSmith did forge for me and for which I pay him fivepence, and that allthe money that I had left of my half-year's wage, and wot not where Imay get more at these present, withouten I do betake me to Sir James,who, as I did tell ye, hath consented to hold those moneys that PriorEdward gave me till I need them.
"Now these same spikes, I say, I take me them down behind the corner ofthe wall, and there drave them betwixt the stones, my very dear comradeand true friend Gascoyne holping me thereto to do. And so come Saturday,I climb me over the wall and to the roof of the tool-house below,seeking a fitting opportunity when I might so do without being in toogreat jeopardy.
"Yea; and who should be there but they two ladies, biding my coming,who, seeing me, made as though they had expected me not, and gave megreatest rebuke for adventuring so moughtily. Yet, methinks, were theyright well pleasured that I should so aventure, which indeed I might nototherwise do, seeing as I have telled to thee, that one of them is mineown true lady for to serven, and so was the only way that I might cometo speech with her."
Such was Myles's own quaint way of telling how he accomplished his aimof visiting the forbidden garden, and no doubt the smack of adventureand the savor of danger in the undertaking recommended him not a littleto the favor of the young ladies.
After this first acquaintance perhaps a month passed, during which Myleshad climbed the wall some half a dozen times (for the Lady Annewould not permit of too frequent visits), and during which the firstacquaintance of the three ripened rapidly to an honest, pleasantfriendship. More than once Myles, when in Lord George's train, caughta covert smile or half nod from one or both of the girls, not a littledelightful in its very secret friendliness.