'"I warned the King," said he, "what would come of giving England to us
Norman thieves. Here art thou, Richard, less than two days confirmed in
thy Manor, and already thou hast risen against thy overlord. What shall
we do to him, _Sir_ Hugh?"

'"I am a swordless man," said Hugh. "Do not jest with me," and he laid
his head on his knees and groaned.

'"The greater fool thou," said De Aquila, and all his voice changed;
"for I have given thee the Manor of Dallington up the hill this
half-hour since," and he yerked at Hugh with his scabbard across the
straw.

'"To me?" said Hugh. "I am a Saxon, and, except that I love Richard
here, I have not sworn fealty to any Norman."

'"In God's good time, which because of my sins I shall not live to see,
there will be neither Saxon nor Norman in England," said De Aquila. "If
I know men, thou art more faithful unsworn than a score of Normans I
could name. Take Dallington, and join Sir Richard to fight me tomorrow,
if it please thee!"

'"Nay," said Hugh. "I am no child. Where I take a gift, there I render
service"; and he put his hands between De Aquila's, and swore to be
faithful, and, as I remember, I kissed him, and De Aquila kissed us
both.

'We sat afterwards outside the hut while the sun rose, and De Aquila
marked our churls going to their work in the fields, and talked of holy
things, and how we should govern our Manors in time to come, and of
hunting and of horse-breeding, and of the King's wisdom and unwisdom;
for he spoke to us as though we were in all sorts now his brothers. Anon
a churl stole up to me--he was one of the three I had not hanged a year
ago--and he bellowed--which is the Saxon for whispering--that the Lady
AElueva would speak to me at the Great House. She walked abroad daily in
the Manor, and it was her custom to send me word whither she went, that
I might set an archer or two behind and in front to guard her. Very
often I myself lay up in the woods and watched on her also.

'I went swiftly, and as I passed the great door it opened from within,
and there stood my Lady AElueva, and she said to me: "Sir Richard, will
it please you enter your Great Hall?" Then she wept, but we were alone.'

The knight was silent for a long time, his face turned across the
valley, smiling.

'Oh, well done!' said Una, and clapped her hands very softly. 'She was
sorry, and she said so.'

'Aye, she was sorry, and she said so,' said Sir Richard, coming back
with a little s