The Lad Of The Gad. Alan Garner
feed her, and he took exceeding care of the falcon. And when the giant saw how well he was caring for her, he thought he would trust him altogether, so he gave the falcon to John for him to keep her, and John took exceeding care of the falcon.
The giant thought that each thing was going right, and he went from the house one day.
Then Upright John said, “It is time to go,” and he took the falcon. But when he opened the door and the falcon saw sunlight, she spread her wings to fly, and the point of one of the feathers on one of her wings touched one of the posts of the door, and the post let loose a screech.
The Giant of the Five Heads, the Five Humps and the Five Throttles came home running, and caught Upright John and took the falcon from him.
“I would not give you my Blue Falcon,” said the giant, “unless you could get for me the White Sword of Light that the Seven Big Women of Jura keep.”
And the giant sent Upright John away.
John went out again, travelling the waste, and the Foxy Lad met with him, and he said, “You are sad, Upright John. You did not, and you will not, as I told you. Bad is the night on which you have come. I have only a trotter and a sheep’s cheek, but they must do.”
They blew a fire heap, and they roasted flesh and ate the trotter and the sheep’s cheek. And the next morning the Foxy Lad said to the king’s son, “I shall grow into a ship and take you over the sea to Jura.
“And my advice to you,” said the Foxy Lad, “is that you say to the Big Women that you will be their polishing-lad, and that you are good at brightening iron and steel, gold and silver, at burnishing and at making all things gleam. Be nimble. Do every job with exceeding care. Then, when they trust you with the White Sword of Light, run away with it: but see that the sheath touches no part that is of the inside of where the Big Women live, or your matter will not go well with you.”
“I shall do all those things,” said Upright John.
The Foxy Lad grew into a ship, and they sailed across and came to shore at the Rock of the Flea on the north side of Jura, and Upright John went to take service with the Seven Big Women there.
He struck at the door. The Seven Big Women came out and asked him what he wanted.
“I have come to find if you need a polishing-lad,” said John.
“What can you polish?” said they.
“I brighten, make clear shining, gold and silver, or iron, or steel,” said John.
They said, “We have a use for you,” and they set wages on him.
He was nimble for six weeks, and put everything in exceeding order; and the Big Women said to each other, “This is the best lad we have ever had.” Then they said, “We can trust him with the White Sword of Light.”
They gave the White Sword of Light to Upright John, and he took exceeding care of it until one day that the Seven Big Women of Jura were not in the house, and he thought that then was the time for him to run.
He put the White Sword of Light into the sheath, and lifted it on his shoulder; but when he went out of the door, the point touched the lintel, and the lintel let loose a screech.
The Seven Big Women of Jura came home running, and caught Upright John and took the White Sword of Light from him.
“We would not give you our White Sword of Light,” said the Big Women, “unless you could get for us the Yellow Horse of the King of Irrua.”
John went out again to the shore, and the Foxy Lad met with him, and he said, “You are sad, Upright John. You did not, and you will not, as I told you. Bad is the night on which you have come. I have only a trotter and a sheep’s cheek, but they must do.”
They blew a fire heap, and they roasted flesh and ate the trotter and the sheep’s cheek. And the next morning the Foxy Lad said to the king’s son, “I shall grow into a ship and take you over the sea to Irrua.
“And my advice to you,” said the Foxy Lad, “is that you go to the house of the king and ask to be a stabling-lad to him. Be nimble. Do every job with exceeding care, and keep the horses and the harness in exceeding order, till the king trusts the Yellow Horse to you. And when there is the chance, run away: but take care that no morsel of the horse touches anything that is on the inner side of the gate but the hooves of its feet, or your matter will not go well with you.”
“I shall do all those things,” said Upright John.
The Foxy Lad grew into a ship, and they sailed across to Irrua.
John went to the king’s house. He struck at the door.
“Where are you going?” said the gatekeeper.
“To see if the king has need of a stabling-lad,” said John.
The king came out and said, “What can you do?”
“I clean and feed horses,” said John, “and I shine tackle.”
“I have a use for you,” said the king, and he set wages on him, and John went to the stable, and he put each thing in exceeding order and took exceeding care of the horses, and fed them, kept their hides clean and sleek, and he was nimble with the tackle.
The king said, “This is the best stabling-lad I have ever known. I can trust the Yellow Horse to him.”
The king gave the Yellow Horse to John for him to look after, and he looked after her until she was so sleek and slippery, and so swift, that she would leave the one wind and catch the other.
Then the king went hunting one day, and Upright John thought that was the time to steal the Yellow Horse. He set her with a bridle and saddle and all that belonged to her, and when he led her out of the stable and was taking her through the gate, she gave a switch of her tail, and a hair of it touched the post of the gate, and the gate let loose a screech.
The king came home running, and caught Upright John and took the Yellow Horse from him.
“I would not give you my Yellow Horse,” said the king, “unless you could get for me the Daughter of the King of the Frang.”
John went out again to the shore, and the Foxy Lad met with him, and he said, “You are sad, Upright John. You did not, and you will not, as I told you. Bad is the night on which you have come. I have only a trotter and a sheep’s cheek, but they must do.”
They blew a fire heap, and they roasted flesh and ate the trotter and the sheep’s cheek. And the next morning the Foxy Lad said to the king’s son, “I shall grow into a ship and take you over the sea to the Frang.”
The Foxy Lad grew into a ship, and they sailed across to the Frang.
The Foxy Lad ran himself high up the face of a rock, on dry dried land, and he said to John, “Go to the king’s house and ask for help, and say that your steersman has been lost in a storm and the ship thrown on shore.”
John went to the king’s house. He struck at the door.
“What are you doing here?” said the king.
“A storm came upon me,” said Upright John, “and my steersman was lost, and the ship has been thrown on shore and is there now, driven up the face of a rock by the waves, and I have not the strength to get her down.”
The king and the queen, and the family together, went to see the ship. And when they looked at the ship, exceeding sweet music was heard in her.
There were tunes with wings,
Lullaby harps, gentle strings,
Songs between fiddles
That would set in sound lasting sleep
Wounded men and travailing women
Withering away for ever
With the piping of the music
The Foxy Lad did play.
And