Wolf Knight

Chapter 8

"You... You want me, you want me to be your page?" Wolf seemed flustered at the opportunity.

"Of course I do. If I'm going to be responsible for you and your education, I need to see you often and this is the best way to do it." The Raven let that sink in. "Well, what do you say?"

"Yes, yes, Sir, I'll do it."

"Good, we'll talk more after supper. For now, go find Red and the two of you report back to me."

Wolf set out to find the squire. Nobody seemed to know her location. He searched the camp before he eventually found her at the girls camping area, talking to a short stocky woman, who had long brown hair braided into a ponytail, her face weathered and lined, and older than the Raven.

The woman wore a tunic with the badge of an animal that Wolf didn't recognize. Wolf approached and Red who quickly introduced him to the woman. "Lady Knight Wolverine this is page, Wolf."

"So, you are The Boy Who Sleeps with Wolves. I am so glad to meet you."

"Thank You," he replied, trying to be polite.

The Lady Knight grimaced then corrected the boy, "Thank You, Ma'am."

Red explained that Wolf had not yet been instructed informal manners. The Lady Knight ordered, "Give him a lesson in manners by this time tomorrow."

"Yes, My Lady," Red replied smartly with a bow.

The Wolverine turned back to Wolf and asked, "Why are you here?"

"The Raven wants Red."

The Lady Wolverine couldn't take it any longer and sharply said, "When addressing a Knight, or Lady Knight, you will use Sir, or Lady before their name, even if Sir Raven does not insist on proper formality."

"Yes, Ma'am," he replied, visibly shaken.

Red made apologies to the Lady Knight, grabbed Wolf by the arm, and trotted him off for the Raven's tent. When they were out of earshot of the Lady Knight, she hissed, "Thanks a lot; it'll take me a month to get back in her good graces. You may never be able to do it.

Do you know what a wolverine is? It's a member of the weasel family that's so fierce, even bears won't mess with it." With that, she grinned at him, and with a smile said, "But, I think we'll survive this time."

They reached the Raven's tent, where Red informed the knight of the encounter at the girl's camp. He thought a minute and said, "We have a lot to do to make him presentable to the Wolverine, and not much time." He then gave the students a series of orders to carry out by tomorrow and ordered them to return with their supper for the boy's first lessons in manners.

The horn blasted three times for supper, and they ran to their tents to gather their mess kits. After being served, they returned to the Raven's tent. There they had a sit-down supper at the small table, with Red playing the part of the lady, and the Raven the part of the gentleman. They put on a good, but exaggerated, show for Wolf. He almost felt that some of the things he would have to do were pointless. The Raven assured him of the importance of knowing the reasons and seriousness of customs and manners. The lesson well taken, Wolf learned proper table manners before the evening ended.

When they left the Raven's tent, Red informed Wolf they had to separate. After dark, no girls were allowed in the boy's camp and no boys in the girl's camp. There were squires posted on sentry duty at each camp throughout the night who could carry messages. This suited Wolf fine, and he went off to find his tent.

When he arrived at his tent he had just enough energy left in him to crawl into his bedroll and fell asleep before the other three pages who shared his tent, including Wart, arrived. They were hoping to talk with Wolf but were disappointed when they found him asleep. They were not disappointed when they awoke in the morning to the horn blast and found a wolf sleeping beside the boy's cot.

Before the boy could wake up, the wolf stood up and hobbled out of the tent. When the pages opened the flap of the tent, the wolf had disappeared. They went back into the tent, awoke Wolf, and told him about the animal. He did not believe them at first, but they showed him the footprints in the dewy grass just outside the tent. The pages could tell from the tracks that one leg didn't match the pattern formed by the three other legs. Wart pointed it out to Wolf and it seemed so clear once he saw it.

By breakfast, the story had spread throughout the camp and Wolf had become a celebrity. He had to tell the whole story of the wolf that keeps appearing in bed with him and disappearing in the morning. There was a lot of speculation as to why the wolf kept appearing and disappearing and why it limped, but Wolf didn't give any hints.

After the horn blew to end breakfast, everyone left to do their assigned duties. Wolf reported to the Quarter master's tent, where he explained his mission. The man helped Wolf trace out on black cloth the outline of a raven. He showed the boy how to sew it to a white square and stitch it to his uniform. The man gave him enough cloth with needle and thread to do his other uniforms and coat. He also gave Wolf some good bits of advice on dealing with women. The most important of which is, the woman is always right, even if she isn't.

"Why do all the women get such special treatment?"

The Quartermaster looked down at the boy with furrowed eyebrows and took a deep breath. "Wolf, what is the difference between the Wolverine and the Raven?"

Wolf knew that her gender was not the right answer. It didn't seem to be what the man had asked. He finally guessed, "He's a lot larger than she is."

"Right. Most men are larger than most women. That alone demands that women should have certain rights and privileges. We have manners in part to protect women. It teaches us all that strength is not an acceptable way to deal with women."

Wolf looked down, "Oh." I didn't think about that.

"Maybe you will the next time you talk to a girl. Now go on your way."

Wolf then reported to Lady Jane, an instructor, and chaperon, for further lessons in etiquette. She was a short woman with black hair and wore a dress patterned on the standard uniform, the only woman or girl Wolf had seen at camp who wore one.

Lady Jane taught him the proper way to bow, to set a table, the difference between a Mister and a Sir. He learned the difference between a Miss, a Mrs., a Lady, and Lady Knight. He learned when to use Ma'am and Sir, and how to address a lady depending on whether they were wearing a dress or trousers.

Wolf went to his tent, washed up, and put on his best uniform. He borrowed a page's formal cap and went off in search of the Wolverine. He found her in the stables wearing riding clothes and grooming Cloud, her horse. He approached ten feet of her, stopped and turned so he faced at a right angle to her, and stood quietly. She ignored him until she had finished grooming the stallion and saw to his feeding.

She approached the page and asked, "What is your message?"

Wolf bowed to the woman; "Lady Knight, I carry greetings from my master, Sir Raven, and bear invitation to dine with him in such a manner as one Knight would expect to be entertained by a fellow Knight. That such an adventure should be pleasant; this page is to accompany My Lady at the time of your choosing."

The Lady Knight replied, "Inform your master that the Lady Knight wishes to arrive promptly at six o'clock."

"He shall be informed. He also would know what time this page should arrive to escort you."

The Lady Knight smiled thinly. "I will be ready at five forty-five. You are dismissed to return to your master."

"Thank you, My Lady." With a deep bow, he excused himself and retreated at a respectable pace then ran to return to Raven's tent.

The tent had been transformed. It had been cleaned to a spotless condition. The table small and simple had been covered with a cloth with two candles in the center. Red carefully set the table, making sure both settings were equal.

The Raven stepped out from the sleeping part of his tent, dressed up in a military uniform that showed off his excellent physique. Red immediately took Wolf to the back chamber and straightened him out. She gave him a pages dress tunic that had the Raven's symbol embroidered on it and combed his wild hair.

She showed him the food that had been prepared. There were fresh salad and fruits, small cakes, cooked vegetables, and best of all, two rabbits cooked in a sauce with wild onions. Red quickly showed Wolf his duties for the evening.