ce he fled away
To save his life, and, ay, to save thine too.
Forgot thee. Queen Iseult, and thy great love
And wed another in a foreign land.

ISEULT.
They call her Isot of the Fair White Hands.

[A pause.]

PARANIS.
When I'm a man, and wear my gilded spurs
I'll love and serve thee with a truer love
Than Tristram did.

ISEULT.
How old art thou, my child?

PARANIS.
When I first came to serve thee as a page
Thirteen I was; that was a year ago.
I'm fourteen now, but when I dream, I dream
That I am older and I love thee then
In knightly fashion, and my sword is dull'd
And scarred by blows that it has struck for thee.
My heart beats high when I behold thy face;
My cheek burns hot or freezes ashen pale.
And then, at other times, I dream that I
Have died for thee, only to wake and weep
That I am still a child!

ISEULT.
Listen to me,
Paranis. Once, wandering, a gleeman came
Two years agone and sang a lay in Mark's
High hall; but, see! I said not it applied
To us, this song of his. A song it was
And nothing more. This lay told of a queen,
A certain queen whose page once loved her much,
With all the courtesy of Knighthood's laws;
Whose every glance was for his lady's face;
Whose cheeks alternately went hot and cold
When she was near. But when the King perceived
His changing color and his burning looks,
He slew the boy, and, tearing out his heart,
Now red, now pale, he roasted it, and served
It to his queen and told her 'twas a bird
His favorite hawk had slain that day.

PARANIS.
Tell me,
I pray, my lady, when a Knight has won
His spurs may he write songs?

ISEULT.
Ay, that he may.

PARANIS.
Since that is so, I'd rather sing than fight.
I'll go from court to court and sing in each
How Tristram was untrue to Queen Iseult!
I will avenge thy wrongs in songs instead
Of with the sword, and every one who hears
My words shall weep as thou, my queen, has wept.
I like the lay about that page's heart
Thou toldst me.

ISEULT.
Remember it, my child;
Brangaene knows the melody thereof.
An