Join us at the campfire for tales from around the world, told by storytellers of all backgrounds and creeds. From the heros and heroines of old, let us relearn and rediscover the wisdom of our ancestors. Shhh..the story begins..

In the realm of Arthur, the codeword was honour. Throughout the entire country, there was nothing but chivalry and the King and his knights were dearly loved by the people. One fine Spring day, King Arthur was hunting in Ingleswood Forest accompanied by his lords. Suddenly, a deer ran by in the distance and the King took up the chase, calling back to his companions, "Hold you still every man...I will pursue this one by myself!"

Arthur took his arrows and his bow and stooped low like a woodsman in order to stalk the deer, but every time he came close to the animal, it leapt away into the dense trees. All alone, Arthur continued to trail the deer until, at last, he let fly an arrow. His aim was straight and true and the creature dropped like a stone. Arthur raised his bugle to his lips to summon his nobles, but before he could sound a single note, he heard a voice behind him.

"Well met, King Arthur!"

Although he had not heard anyone approach, the King turned to see a knight unknown to him, fully armed, standing only a few yards away. "You have done me wrong many a year and given away my northern lands," the strange knight informed the monarch. "I have your life in my hands. What will you do now, King Alone?"

"Sir Knight, what is your name?" asked Arthur. "I am Gromer Somer Joure," responded the warrior. "Think carefully, Sir Gromer," cautioned the King. "To slay me here, unarmed as I am, will get you no honour. All knights will refuse you wherever you go. Calm yourself. Come to Carlyle and I shall mend all that is amiss."

"Nay," said Sir Gromer, "by heaven, King! You shall not escape when I have you at a disadvantage. If I allow you to go with only a warning, then you will defy me later, of that I am certain."

"Spare my life, Sir Gromer," urged Arthur, "and I shall grant you whatever it is in my power to give. It would be shameful to slay me here, with nothing but my hunting gear, and you fully armed for battle."

"All your talking cannot help you, King," insisted Sir Gromer. "I will tell you true that I want neither land nor gold." The knight smiled. "Still...if you will promise to meet me here, in the same fashion, on a day of my choosing..."

"Indeed yes," said the King quickly. "You have my solemn oath."

"Listen and hear me out," said Sir Gromer. "First, you will swear upon my sword to meet me here without fail on this day one year from now. Of all your brave knights, you will allow none to accompany you. You must tell me, at your coming, what thing it is that women most desire...and if you do not bring the answer to my riddle, then you will surely lose your head. What say you to that, King?" "I agree, though it is a hateful bargain," said Arthur. "Now, let me go and I promise you, as I am the rightful King of this land, that I will come again on this day one year from now and bring the answer you seek."

The knight laughed. "Be on your way then, King Arthur. You do not as yet know your sorrow. But wait for a moment...do not think of playing false with me for, by Mary, I do believe you would betray me."

"Nay," protested Arthur. "You will never find me to be an untrue knight. Farewell, Sir Gromer, and evil met. I will return in a year's time, although it may well be that I will not escape." With that, the King began to blow his bugle so that his nobles could find him. Sir Gromer turned his horse and was gone as quickly as he had come. When Arthur's knights arrived, they found their King alone with the slain deer.

"We will return to Carlyle," announced Arthur. "I have lost my delight in this day's hunt."

The lords knew by their monarch's countenance that Arthur had met with some disturbance, but no one knew of his encounter. They wondered at the King's heavy step and sorrowful expression until, eventually, Sir Gawain, also known as the Green Knight, asked Arthur, "My Liege, I marvel at you. What can it be that is making you so melancholy and sad?"

"I will tell you, gentle Gawain," said Arthur. "In the forest, as I pursued the deer, I met with a knight in full armour and he charged me I should not escape him. I have no choice but to keep my word to him or else I am foresworn."

"Fear not my lord," exclaimed Gawain. "I am not a man who would dishonour you!"

"He threatened me," confided Arthur, "and would have slain me, but I spoke with him since I had no weapons. Then, he made me swear that I would meet him one year from now, alone and unarmed. On that day, I must tell him what it is that women most desire, or I shall lose my life. If I fail in my answer, I have no doubt that I shall be slain without mercy."

"Be of good cheer, Sire," said Gawain. "Make ready your horse to ride into uncharted territory and, everywhere you meet either man or woman, ask of them the solution to the riddle. I will ride another way and every answer I receive, I will record in a book."

"This is good advice, Gawain," said the King, somewhat heartened by the Green Knight's suggestion. They made preparations to leave immediately and, when both were ready, Gawain rode one way and Arthur another...each one asked every man and woman they came across what it was that women most desire. Some said they loved beautiful clothes; some said they loved to be showered with praise; some said they loved a handsome man...some said one thing, while others said another. Gawain gathered so many different answers, that he was obliged to make a great book to hold them all. After many months of travelling, the knight returned to court. Arthur was already there with his book and each looked over the other's work...but no answer seemed to be the right one.

"By God," declared the King, "I am afraid. I will seek a little more in Ingleswood Forest. I have but one month remaining until the appointed time and it may be that I will find some good tidings."

That very day, Arthur rode forth into Ingleswood and there, he met with a lady...by far the ugliest woman that the King had ever seen. Her face resembled an animal more than a human being. She had a pushed-in nose and a few yellowing tusks for teeth. Her figure was twisted and deformed with a hunched back and shoulders which were at least a yard in breadth. No tongue could ever have described the foulness of that lady, but she rode gaily on a palfrey set with gold and precious stones and, when she spoke, her voice was exceedingly sweet and soft.

"I am glad that I have met with you, King Arthur," said the lady. "Speak with me, for your fate lies within my hand. I know of your situation and I warn you that you will not find the answer if I do not tell it to you."

"What to you want with me?" asked Arthur, taken aback by the lady's boldness. "Merely to speak with you, Sire," she replied. "You will die if I do not save you, I know it very well."

"What do you mean, my lady?" stammered the King. "Why is my fate within your hand? Tell me, and I shall give you all you ask."

"You must grant me a knight to wed," said the lady slowly. "His name is Sir Gawain. I will make this bargain: if your life is saved another way, then you need not grant my desire...but, if my answer saves your life, then you must grant me Sir Gawain as my husband. Choose now, King Arthur, for you must soon meet your enemy."

"By Mary," declared the King, "I cannot grant you Sir Gawain. That choice lies with him alone. He is not mine to give. All I can do is carry your request to that noble knight."

"So be it," replied the lady. "Go now and put the proposition to Sir Gawain. My appearance is foul, but my nature is merry and, through me, he may save your life or ensure your death."

"Alas!" cried Arthur. "That I should cause Gawain to wed you, for he will not say no. I know not what I should do." "Sir King," said the lady, "you will get no more from me this day. When you come again with your answer, I will meet you here." Arthur hesitated for a moment. "Will you at least tell me your name?" he asked the lady. "I am called the Dame Ragnell" she replied, "and I have never yet betrayed a man." "Then farewell, Dame Ragnell," said Arthur. Thus, they parted company, but the King returned to Carlyle with a heavy heart and the first man he met upon his arrival was Gawain.

"Sire, how did you fare?" asked the gallant. "Never so ill," responded the King. "I fear my fate is to die at the hand of Sir Gromer." "Nay," protested the Green Knight. "I would rather die myself for so great is my love for you." Arthur regarded his champion gravely. "Gawain," he began, "I met today with the foulest lady I ever saw. She said she would save my life, but first she would have you for her husband."

Gawain laughed heartily. "Is this all?" he asked. "Then I shall wed her and wed her again, if need be. Though she were a fiend, though she were as foul as Beelzebub, I shall marry her. You are my king and I am your friend. It is my part to save your life, or else I am a false knight and a great coward. Even if she were the most loathsome woman that ever a man might see, to ensure your safety, I would spare nothing."

"Thank you, Gawain," said Arthur softly. "Of all knights that I have found, you are indeed the finest. You have saved my life and my love will not stray from you, as I am king in this land."

The day soon arrived when Arthur was to meet the Dame Ragnell and bear his answer to Sir Gromer. Gawain rode with him to the edge of Ingleswood Forest, but there Arthur bid him a fond farewell saying, "I must go west, Gawain and you must go no further." "Then God speed you on your journey," said the knight regretfully. "I only wish that I could ride with you." The King had gone no more than a mile when he met the Dame Ragnell. "Ah, Sir King," she said, "you are welcome here bearing, I trust, the response of Sir Gawain."

"Now," responded Arthur, "since it can be no other way, tell me your answer, save my life, and Gawain shall wed you for so he has promised. Tell me in haste and have done, for I may not tarry here long."

"Sire," said the Dame Ragnell, "now you will know what it is that women desire most, high and low. Some men say we desire to be fair, or to wed, or to remain fresh and young, or to have flattery from handsome men. But, there is one thing that is every woman's fantasy: we desire of men, above all other things, to have sovereignty, for then all is ours. Now be on your way, Sir King, and tell that knight what I have said to you. He will be angry and curse the woman who revealed the secret, for his labour is now lost. Go forth without fear. You will not be harmed." Arthur spurred his horse on with great haste until he came to the appointed place where Sir Gromer was waiting.

"Come, come, Sir King," said the knight sternly. "Now let me have your answer, for I am ready." Arthur pulled out the two books for Sir Gromer to see. The knight looked over each and every carefully recorded response and then said, "You are a dead man, Sir King, for the correct reply is nowhere on these pages."

"Wait, Sir Gromer," said Arthur. "I have one more answer to give." "Then give it," responded the knight, "or so God help me, you shall bleed here and now."

"Above all things," began Arthur, "women desire sovereignty, for that is their liking and their greatest desire; to rule over any man. This, they told me."

Sir Gromer was silent for a moment, seething with rage, but then he cried out, "And she that told you this, Sir Arthur, I pray to God that I might see her burn in a fire, for that was my very own sister, the Dame Ragnell. God give her shame...I have lost much labour. Go wherever you like, King Arthur, for you are spared. Alas that I ever saw this day, for I know that you will now be my enemy and hunt me down."

"You are wrong, Sir Gromer," replied Arthur. "You will never find me an attacker." With a final "Farewell," the King turned his horse into the forest again. Soon, he met with the Dame Ragnell, in the same place as before. "Sire," she said, "I am glad you have sped well. I told you how it would be and now, since I and none other have saved your life, Gawain must wed me."

"I will not fail in my promise to you," said Arthur. "If you agree to be ruled by my council, you shall have your will." "No, Sir King," said the Dame Ragnell, "I refuse to be ruled. I know what you are thinking. Ride before and I will follow to your court. Think on how I have saved your life and do not disagree with me for, if you do, you will be sorely shamed."

Arthur was mortified to bring such a loathly lady openly into his court, but forth she rode until they came to Carlyle. All the country wondered from where she had come...never had they seen so foul a creature...but she would spare no one the sight of her. Into the Great Hall she went, saying, "King Arthur, it is time to fetch in Sir Gawain, before all the knights, so that you may troth us together. Come forth Gawain my love, for I will not wait any longer."

Sir Gawain stepped forward then and said, "Sire, I am ready to fulfill the promise I made to you." "God have mercy," whispered the Dame Ragnell when she saw Gawain. "For your sake, I wish I were a fair woman for you are of such good will." Then, Sir Gawain wooed her, for he was a true knight, and the Dame Ragnell's happiness was beyond compare.

"Alas!" said Queen Guinevere and all the beautiful ladies in her elegant bower. "Alas!" said both the King and his knights, that the handsome Gawain should be obliged to wed such a foul and horrible woman.

The Dame Ragnell declared that she would be wedded openly, with announcements to be made in every town and village, and insisted that the entire nobility of the land come to Carlyle for the banquet and ceremony. Guinevere begged Dame Ragnell to be married in the early morning as privately as possible, but the lady would have none of it. "By heaven," she said, "I will not, no matter what you say. I will be wedded openly, as the King promised. I will not go to the church until high-mass time, and I will dine in the Great Hall, in the midst of all the court."

At the wedding feast, there were lords and ladies from all estates, and the Dame Ragnell was arrayed in the richest manner...richer even than Queen Guinevere herself...but all her splendid clothes could not disguise her foulness. When the celebrations began, only the Dame Ragnell ate heartily, while the knights and squires sat like stones. After the wedding feast, Sir Gawain and his bride retired to the nuptial chamber that had been prepared for them.

"Ah, Gawain," said the lady. "Since we are now married, show me your courtesy and come to bed. If I were fair, you would be joyous...yet, for Arthur's sake, kiss me at least." Sir Gawain turned to his lady, but instead of an ugly hag, there stood in her place the loveliest woman the knight had ever seen. "By God," cried Gawain, "what are you?"

"Sir," responded the woman, "I am your wife, surely. Why are you so unkind?" "Lady, I am sorry," said Gawain. "I beg your pardon, my fair madam. For now you are a beautiful lady and yet earlier today, you were the foulest woman that ever I saw. It is well, my lady, to have you thus." So saying, Sir Gawain took his wife into his arms and kissed her with great joy.

"Sir," she said happily, "you have half-broken the spell that was placed upon me. Thus shall you have me, but my beauty will not hold. You may have me fair by night and foul by day, or else have me fair by day and, by night, ugly once again. You must choose."

Sir Gawain sighed. "That is a most difficult choice," he said. "To have you fair on nights and no more, that would grieve my heart and shame me. Yet if I desire to have you fair by day and foul by night, then I could not rest. I know not what in the world I should say, but do as YOU wish. I lay the choice in YOUR hands."

"Thank you, courteous Gawain," said the lady with delight. "Of all earthly knights, you are blessed, for now I am truly loved. You shall have me fair both by day and by night, and ever while I live as fair. For I was shaped by witchcraft by my stepmother, God have mercy on her. By enchantment, I was to remain the foulest creature until the best knight of all England had wedded me and given me the sovereignty of all his body and goods. Kiss me, dear husband...be glad and make good cheer, for we are well." Then, the two rejoiced together and thanked God for their fortune.

The next day, King Arthur himself came to call them down to breakfast, wondering why the knight had chosen to tarry so late alone with his loathly bride. Sir Gawain, holding the hand of his lady, opened the door to greet the King. Arthur stared in wonder at the woman before him...tall and slender with delicately pale skin and softly curling red hair spilling down to her knees. "Lo," said Gawain, "this is my wife, the Lady Ragnell, who once saved your life." And then, Gawain recounted to the King the story of the lady's enchantment.

"My love shall she have, for she has been so kind," said Arthur, and Queen Guinevere added, "You also have my love forever, Lady, for you have saved my beloved Lord Arthur." From that time on, at every great feast and festival, the wife of Sir Gawain was counted among the fairest of the women in attendance...and for the rest of his life how the Green Knight did love and cherish his bonny Lady Ragnell