hast slain him who
stood in thy way, as thou deemedst. Thinkest thou that I rejoice at
his slaying? O no! I grieve at it, for all that I had such good cause
to hate him."

He said: "My own heart! my own heart! Half of my heart biddeth me
slay thee, who hast made me slay him. What wilt thou give me?" She
knit her brow and spake angrily: "Leave to depart," she said. Then
after a while, and in a kinder voice: "And thus much of my love, that
I pray thee not to sorrow for me, but to have a good heart, and live as
a true knight should." He frowned: "Wilt thou not go with me?" said
he. "Not uncompelled," she said: "if thou biddest me go with threats
of hewing and mangling the body which thou sayest thou lovest, needs
must I go then. Yet scarce wilt thou do this."

"I have a mind to try it," said he; "If I set thee on thine horse and
bound thine hands for thee, and linked thy feet together under the
beast's belly; belike thou wouldest come. Shall I have slain my
brother-in-arms for nought?"

"Thou hast the mind," said she, "hast thou the might?" "So I deem,"
said he, smiling grimly.

She looked at him proudly and said: "Yea, but I misdoubt me thereof."
He still had his back to Ralph and was staring at the lady; she turned
her head a little and made a sign to Ralph, just as the Knight of the
Sun said: "Thou misdoubtest thee? Who shall help thee in the desert?"

"Look over thy left shoulder," she said. He turned, and saw Ralph
drawing near, sword in hand, smiling, but somewhat pale. He drew aback
from the Lady and, spinning round on his heel, faced Ralph, and cried
out: "Hah! Hast thou raised up a devil against me, thou sorceress, to
take from me my grief and my lust, and my life? Fair will the game be
to fight with thy devil as I have fought with my friend! Yet now I
know not whether I shall slay him or thee."

She spake not, but stood quietly looking on him, not unkindly, while a
wind came up from the water and played with a few light locks of hair
that hung down from that ruddy crown, and blew her raiment from her
feet and wrapped it close round her limbs; and Ralph beheld her, and
close as was the very death to him (for huge and most warrior-like was
his foeman) yet longing for her melted the heart within him, and he
felt the sweetness of life in his inmost soul as he had never felt it
before.

Suddenly the Knight of the Sun turned about to the Lady again, and fell
down on his knees before her,