Stranica 45 [45]
YVON AND FINETTE
they are still more headstrong is a justice that none will
deny them. It was useless for poor Finette to plead in
her most loving tones; she was forced to yield. She resigned
herself with a heavy heart, and said to Yvon:
‘Go without me, then, to your castle, but only stay long
enough to speak to your friends; then go straight to the
stable, and return as soon as possible. You will be sur¬
rounded by people; act as if you saw no one, and, above
all, do not eat or drink anything whatever. Should you
take only a glass of water, evil would come upon us
both."
Yvon promised and swore all that Finette asked, but he
smiled in his heart at this feminine weakness. He was sure
of himself; and he thought with pride how different a Bre¬
ton was from those fickle Frenchmen whose words, they
say, are borne away by the first breath of the wind.
On entering the old castle he could scarcely recognize its
dark walls. All the windows were festooned with leaves
and flowers within and without; the courtyard was strewn
with fragrant grass; on one side was spread tables groan¬
ing under their weight; on the other, musicians, mounted
on casks, were playing merry airs. The vassals, dressed
in their holiday attire, were singing and dancing and danc¬
ing and singing. It was a great day of rejoicing at the
castle. The baron himself was smiling. It is true that he
had just married his fifth daughter to the Knight of Ker¬
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