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That han swich oon y-caught with-oute net;

And be ye wys, as ye ben fair to see,

Wel in the ring than is the ruby set. 585

Ther were never two so wel y-met,

Whan ye ben his al hool, as he is youre:

Ther mighty god yet graunte us see that houre!'

`Nay, therof spak I not, a, ha!' quod she,

`As helpe me god, ye shenden every deel!' 590

`O mercy, dere nece,' anoon quod he,

`What-so I spak, I mente nought but weel,

By Mars the god, that helmed is of steel;

Now beth nought wrooth, my blood, my nece dere.'

`Now wel,' quod she, `foryeven be it here!' 595

With this he took his leve, and hoom he wente;

And lord, he was glad and wel bigoon!

Criseyde aroos, no lenger she ne stente,

But straught in-to hir closet wente anoon,

And sette here doun as stille as any stoon, 600

And every word gan up and doun to winde,

That he hadde seyd, as it com hir to minde;

And wex somdel astonied in hir thought,

Right for the newe cas; but whan that she

Was ful avysed, tho fond she right nought 605

Of peril, why she oughte afered be.

For man may love, of possibilitee,

A womman so, his herte may to-breste,

And she nought love ayein, but-if hir leste.

But as she sat allone and thoughte thus, 610

Thascry aroos at skarmish al with-oute,

And men cryde in the strete, `See, Troilus

Hath right now put to flight the Grekes route!'

With that gan al hir meynee for to shoute,

`A! Go we see, caste up the latis wyde; 615

For thurgh this strete he moot to palays ryde;

`For other wey is fro the yate noon

Of Dardanus, ther open is the cheyne.'

With that com he and al his folk anoon

An esy pas rydinge, in routes tweyne, 620

Right as his happy day was, sooth to seyne,

For which, men say, may nought disturbed be

That shal bityden of necessitee.

This Troilus sat on his baye stede,

Al armed, save his heed, ful richely, 625

And wounded was his hors, and gan to blede,

On whiche he rood a pas, ful softely;

But swych a knightly sighte, trewely,

As was on him, was nought, with-outen faile,

To loke on Mars, that god is of batayle. 630

So lyk a man of armes and a knight

He was to seen, fulfild of heigh prowesse;

For bothe he hadde a body and a might

To doon that thing, as wel as hardinesse;

And eek to seen him in his gere him dresse, 635

So fresh, so yong, so weldy semed he,

It was an heven up-on him for to see.

His helm to-hewen was in twenty places,

That by a tissew heng, his bak bihinde,

His sheld to-dasshed was with swerdes and maces, 640

In which men mighte many an arwe finde

That thirled hadde horn and nerf and rinde;

And ay the peple cryde, `Here cometh our Ioye,

And, next his brother, holdere up of Troye!'

For which he wex a litel reed for shame, 645

Whan he the peple up-on him herde cryen,

That to biholde it was a noble game,

How sobreliche he caste doun his yen.

Cryseyda gan al his chere aspyen,

And leet so softe it in hir herte sinke, 650

That to hir-self she seyde, `Who yaf me drinke?'

For of hir owene thought she wex al reed,

Remembringe hir right thus, `Lo, this is he

Which that myn uncle swereth he moot be deed,

But I on him have mercy and pitee;' 655

And with that thought, for pure a-shamed, she

Gan in hir heed to pulle, and that as faste,

Whyl he and al the peple for-by paste,

And gan to caste and rollen up and doun

With-inne hir thought his excellent prowesse, 660

And his estat, and also his renoun,

His wit, his shap, and eek his gentillesse;

But most hir favour was, for his distresse

Was al for hir, and thoughte it was a routhe

To sleen swich oon, if that he mente trouthe. 665

Now mighte som envyous Iangle thus,

`This was a sodeyn love; how mighte it be

That she so lightly lovede Troilus

Right for the firste sighte; ye, pardee?'

Now who-so seyth so, mote he never thee! 670

For every thing, a ginning hath it nede

Er al be wrought, with-outen any drede.

For I sey nought that she so sodeynly

Yaf him hir love, but that she gan enclyne

To lyke him first, and I have told yow why; 675

And after that, his manhod and his pyne

Made love with-inne