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Page 162
around them and left the confusion behind for the peace of the chapel. Here they stood quietly, waiting for the priest, as pale light and sharp cold filtered through the stone fretwork of the windows. About twenty others were also waiting, the better sort of folk in the front and center of the room, where their brilliant cloaks made a summer garden patch in the midst of the cold, dim chamber. The servants were back against the gray stone walls or hunched in corners.
Sometimes Walter wondered at the arrangement. One would think the crude serfs would be more in need of God's blessing than the ladies and gentlemen. This thought passed through his mind again, and his lips twitched. Perhaps not. If he were going to joust, he would have needed to confess his evil desires and his evil deed of the preceding night to cleanse his soul. Mayhap the serfs, who worked hard all day, had less energy for such desiresand then again, mayhap not; they certainly bred fast enough.
A gentle tug on his cloak wakened Walter to the facts that the priest was already singing the Mass and the congregation was kneeling. Walter went down, grimacing with pain, and then had to be helped to his feet by his companions when it was time to stand. When they left the chapel, he realized he had not heard a word of the Mass. Had he made the responses? He must have done so without even realizing it. For a moment this troubled him, but then the feeling dissipated into the usual confident warmth that followed hearing Mass. He had been there. God would have seen his body, heard his voice, and blessed him with the others.
From their expressions, Walter doubted that any of his companions had heard the Mass, either. They had been the first group, but others were pushing past them to enter the chapel. There would be many Masses sung this morning.
Walter's thoughts were interrupted by William saying he would go down to the stables to ready his horse.
"For what purpose?" Walter asked. "Surely you will not allow your destrier to stand out in the cold until the last moment. Have some wine first, then run down and see if the heralds have made up the order of jousting. Come back here then to tell us whether or not they are ready. If you then choose to stand outside and let your muscles stiffen, that is your affair, but I do not advise it."
Geoffrey's mouth had opened just as Walter spoke, but he

 
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