y of the Fountain joined them and went with them to the court
of the King.

[Illustration]

[Illustration: Sir Lavaine the Son of Pelles:]

[Illustration]

Chapter Third

_How Sir Launcelot and Sir Percival and Sir Ector and the Lady Elaine
progressed to the court of King Arthur, and how a very good adventure
befell them upon their way._

Now, as was said, Sir Launcelot and the Lady Elaine departed for
Camelot, together with Sir Percival and Sir Ector and Sir Lavaine, for
their intent was to return to King Arthur's court. With them went a very
noble court of knights and ladies, and of many attendants of all degrees
in waiting upon them. So it was that whensoever their cavalcade would
make a halt, that place where they would rest would suddenly bloom
forth, as it were, with the glory of their coming. For upon such a halt
there would immediately be spread a number of pavilions of all sorts and
colors for the accommodation of those lords and ladies, wherefore the
green fields and meadow-lands would presently be covered all over with a
great multitude of gay colors of all sorts, bedazzling the eye with
their brightness and their variety. Then all the air would be aflutter
with silken pennants and banners, and all would be bright with the
shining of armor and the movement of gaily clad figures, and all would
be merry with the chatter and music of many voices talking together, and
all would be alive with movement and bustle--some running hither and
some running thither--and everywhere pages and esquires would be busy
polishing pieces of armor, and damsels would be busy in gentle
attendance upon the lady.

[Sidenote: _How they rest within the forest._]

So it was that they made progression in that wise, all gay and
debonnaire, and so one day they made halt toward the sloping of the
afternoon in a certain very pleasant woodland where a fair fountain of
water, as clear as crystal and as cold as ice, came gushing forth from a
mossy rock of the woodland. Here was a very pleasant meadow of lush
green grass all besprinkled with pretty flowers and around about stood
the trees of the forest, ever rustling and murmuring their leaves in the
soft and balmy breezes that caused their ancient heads to move, very
slowly this way and that, as though they were whispering to one another
concerning the doings of those gay travellers aforesaid.

Now as those knights and ladies who had been travelling all that day
were anhunger