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before she turned to gaze admiringly into her husband’s
eyes. Next, he found himself presented to the dignitaries
surrounding the royal couple, among them Hubert Walter, the
Archbishop of Canterbury; Geoffrey FitzPeter, the king’s justicar;
and most notable and impressive of all, the very paragon of
knighthood itself, William Marshal, Earl of Pembroke and Lord of
Leinster.
    The earl took a keen interest in Royce and
was just expressing his interest in hearing of the latest
developments in the East when a fanfare of trumpets, drums, and
pipes signaled the ceremonials for dinner to commence.
    The king and queen led the procession into
the hall, followed by the dignitaries and nobles in descending
order of rank. Royce held back, waiting for the others to pass
before he himself joined. But the king halted and gestured him
forward, indicating he should remain near.
    The White Hall proved to be a great aisled
chamber, high-ceilinged and of significant expanse. Tapestries and
painted screens enlivened the cold stone walls, warming them by
color, if not in fact.
    Tables, draped with snowy linens,
lined the length of both sides of the hall. At the far end, the
king’s high table held place of precedence, situated upon a raised
dais beneath a crimson canopy. Left of the dais stood the aumbry , a sideboard crowded with
gold vessels, exhibiting the king’s wealth. To the dais’s right
stood a separate table intended for the honored guests who, like
the sovereigns, would be clearly visible to all in the
hall.
    As the king and queen assumed their places
upon the dais in the sole company of the Earl of Pembroke and the
Archbishop of Canterbury, Royce again found himself at a loss,
wondering where exactly he should assume a place. Just then, the
Marshal of the Hall appeared with his white wand and led him
forward to the table of honor. Royce seated himself, amazed to find
himself in company with such important personages of the realm.
    A fresh flourish of trumpets announced the
beginning of the rituals. Issuing from the kitchen passage at the
opposite end of the hall emerged a procession of noble servitors
and squires of gentle birth. First came the ewerer and his
assistants, white cloths over their arms, bearing lavers and
pitchers for the washing of hands. The king and queen were first
attended then the other lords and ladies, their hands cleansed with
fragrant herbal water.
    Next in the cadre came the carver and
cupbearer, the pantler and butler, and the almoner, who led the
chamber in prayer. More servers followed bearing great platters of
food and tureens of soups, comprising the first course — offerings
of flesh, fish, and fowl. While the meats were sauced and broken,
two noble youths paraded a subtlety around the room then set it
upon a stand for viewing. Robert de Beaumont, Earl of Leicester,
who sat beside Royce, informed him that the marzipan sculpture was
of the queen’s dower castle, gifted her upon her recent marriage to
the king.
    The bustle continued in the hall with a
constant traffic of servers coming and going. The mingling of harp,
dulcimer, and lutes played in the background while guests partook
of the feast and chattered with their table mates. Minstrels,
jugglers, and dancers entertained between courses while servers
paraded the subtlety round the hall again. Trumpets heralded each
new course, the multiplicity of dishes continuing — lampreys and
eel dishes, venison pastries, stuffed pig, puddings, capons,
woodcock, jellies and tarts, quince in comfit, almond cream, fried
minnows, and more, all washed down with spiced wine and ale.
    Royce restricted himself to a light sampling
of a few dishes for the variety was staggering and more than he
cared to manage. Throughout the meal he gave himself to answering
his companions’ questions. As he was discussing recent events in
Jaffa, he caught sight of the two women who’d taken a sharp
interest in him earlier in the antechamber. They sat with a third
woman, a