A Song for Aveline
A Song for Aveline
A story where the Magus Hwyel sees that the Faire Lady Aveline keeps her word to cause no harm to the local villagers and in turn Hywel keeps his word to put her name to song.
On stage is Hwyel, Agnes, George, Eustice, Randolph, and William Robert.
Hywel needs a ministral and not knowing where to turn he approaches the Bishop of Wells who has been friendly, some say too friendly, with the Wizards of Stranggore. The Bishop suggests they meet up with Prince John's retinue at Malborough Castle and even provides a letter of introduction. On the way Eustace foils a pickpocket then gets lost, Randolf loses a fight with a dwarf acrobat, George buys a token of affection for Valera, Hywel scares a tamed bear while conversing with its trainer's ghostly warder, and Agnes investigates the accuracy of the local fortune tellers and considers it briefly as a profession.
At the castle, they join Prince John's Feast on a board far from the fire. They find a minstral there who tells a stirring tale of a Welsh Giant who steals the Lord of Wells daughter. Eyes turn on Hwyel, who oblivious to his peril and not knowing French, cheers at the end when the Giant wins. Despite his Gift, he is not confronted because the minstral stirs up a rompus dancing song to lighten the mood.
Hwyel sends for the minstral, William Robert, who plays a song for hist table and then listens attentively to the Giant's plee for help. Eustace keenly reads the performer, determining he is vain, and speaks of never ending fame that comes from the songs and stories of Wizards and Faeries. This hooks in William Robert, along with the fact that he earned the ire of a noble after singing a love song to the wrong woman, and so he joined Hwyel's party.
They travelled to Nunnery Hatch where William Robert heard the tale of Aveline's cruelty and how she would turn mortals into animals for her Lord's hunting pleasure. Before composing the song, William Robert wished to behold her to add substance to his song. There he first beheld the tall white slender Lady with the cruel unkind eyes. A lesser man would have ran but he was confident in his song and so they returned to the villiage and he spent the night composing the song of the Faire Lady Aveline.
They returned to the wood and joined the Lady's Court where they found a small mortal girl dancing for the pleasure of Sir Holy's knights. Hwyel saw this a breaking of the agreement that no harm would befall a any of the local villiagers. Aveline argued in turn that no harm can come from dancing. They had reached a stalemate and tempers were rising until young Eustace spoke up both insightfully and compasionately, that human hearts can break from loss of loved ones and no doubt this girl's father will surely die of grief having lost his daughter. This revelation turned not the Faerie's heart, for they have none, but William Roberts who was til then content to let the girl stay. With this change of heart he sang his song to Aveline.
Fair is the Lady Aveline who lives in wooded hall.
Of all the plants the bough and branch she loves them most of all.
She calls them forth to join her court when leaves turn brown and fall,
To join a feast where all can eat and dance and have a ball.
Fair is the Lady Aveline who lives in wooded hall.
And if you wish to dance for her you need just hear her call.
Come to the wood and call her name and soon you'll be enthralled,
And find yourself among the elf, Fair creatures great and small.
Fair is the Lady Aveline who lives in wooded hall.
A mortal guest I can attest came to this wooded sprall,
Was take from her blood and kin to be Sir Holy's thrall,
To join the dance, with some recultance, this maiden light and small.
Fair is the Lady Aveline who lives in wooded hall.
Wise council she, both birds and bees, but one most wise of all,
The wizard tall from Stranggore Hall his name is often called.
The brightest star, the wisest of all, the Fair giant, Sir Hwyel.
Fair is the Lady Aveline who lives in wooded hall.
She heard his plee upon his knee for mortals one and all.
Twas plain to see she heard his plee as one cold tear did fall,
Upon her cheek of silver beech I clearly do recall.
Fair is the Lady Aveline who lives in wooded hall.
At her request she let them rest, the mortals one and all,
And as I sang the girl did ran from Aveline's Fair hall,
She was free, thanks to the plee, of brave Sir Hwyel.
Upon its end, Aveline's Song changed her story from cruel to kind, or at least to not as cruel, and she agreed to free the girl once this song was sung seven times in the seven villiages around her wood. And once this was done, the girl and her father were reunited with much tears of joy, and to this day this song is sung every Autumn so Aveline keeps her word.