upon her wrist, and now that she was rested and at ease, looking even
more beautiful than she had done on the day of the burning.

So we met and passed, I glancing at them idly and guiding my horses to
the side of the road. When there were perhaps ten yards between us I
heard Lady Blanche cry:

"Oh, my hawk!" I looked round to see that the falcon on her wrist had in
some way loosed itself, or been loosed, and being hooded, had fallen to
the ground where one of the dogs was trying to catch and kill it. Now
there was great confusion, the eyes of all being fixed upon the hawk and
the dog, in the midst of which the lady Blanche very quietly turned her
head, and lifting her hand as though to see how the hawk had fallen from
it, with a swift movement laid her fingers against her lips and threw a
kiss to me.

As swiftly I bowed back and went on my way with a beating heart. For a
few moments I was filled with joy, since I could not mistake the meaning
of this signalled kiss. Then came sorrow like an April cloud, since my
wound which was in the way of healing was all re-opened. I had begun to
forget the lady Blanche, or rather by an effort of the will, to thrust
her from my thought, as my confessor had bidden me. But now on the wings
of that blown kiss thither she had flown back again, not to be frighted
out for many a day.

That night I slept at an inn at Tonbridge, a comfortable place where the
host stared at the gold piece from the bag which I tendered in payment,
and at first would not take what was due to him out of it, because it
bore the head of some ancient king. However, in the end a merchant of
Tonbridge who came in for his morning ale showed him that it was good,