Sir Gawain:
A knight of the Round table, Sir Gawain is known for his bravery, honesty, charming humour, and a notorious reputation with women. He is first knight before Lancelot
Secrets of Camelot, Chapter 7:
I immediately noticed Gawain was also at our table, right in front of us. He was whispering to the young woman next to him. She laughed and blushed, looking down. Then, he turned his attention to us and bowed his head.
“My dear queen.” Gawain smiled.
“Don’t even think about it!” Arthur said, and they both laughed.
“It’s nice to see you here, Gawain. I hardly recognized you yesterday.”
“Why? You didn’t think I could pull off a knight’s attire?”
The lady beside him giggled. Elaine observed him, curiously.
“I’m…just glad to see you as part of our court. I welcome you,” I said.
“Thank you. I am not just part of the court.” Gawain’s large blue eyes observed Arthur, and his boyish, overly curved lips smiled in gratitude.
Arthur turned to me. “I’ve asked Gawain to become my first knight.”
“What? I mean…that’s great.” First knight? Really? I looked at his shoulder, where the symbol of Camelot had an extra sword in it. That was Arthur’s way—since the knights were equal, the first knight did have a rank that showed, but you had to look twice. Still, it came as a surprise.
Gawain beamed at Arthur. “I will not let you down, sire. I will do anything it takes to be a good source of leadership to the Round Table.”
Arthur meets Sir Gawain
The two fighters were right in the middle of the path, moving fast, circling each other, and blocking the way. Their swords met time and time again.
“Impressive. Fabulous footwork,” Kay mumbled, looking at one of the fighters. He seemed the faster of the two. Young, less than twenty to be sure, and his strong grip of the sword showed he was not new to it. A moment later, he disarmed his companion and pointed the sword to his face.
Arthur rushed forward. “By order of the king, do not kill this man.”
The fighter looked at him for a moment, then glanced right back to his opponent. “Wasn’t going to. It would be too easy!”
The other man spat in his direction.
The fighter shook his head. “Oh, just let it go.”
“Never!”
Arthur was with them now. “What seems to be the quarrel that would justify such means?”
Sophisticated words again. I ignored the thought.
“Who are you?” the fighter said without looking.
“I am King Arthur, son of the late Uther Pendragon, and this is my brother Kay.”
“Glad to meet you.” The man held out his free hand and shook Arthur’s, while still looking at his foe below him.
I suppressed a laugh.
“And you are?”
“Oh, sorry. I’m Gawain. Son of the late King Lot.” He matched Arthur’s introduction.
“Pelleas.” The young man on the ground put his hand up.
Arthur bent and shook it. This was getting comical.
“This man tricked me.”
“Did he?” Arthur asked.
“He promised to help me with a lady, to persuade her to see me. Instead, he courted her for himself. I caught them naked in the woods this morning, and here we are.”
Arthur turned to Gawain. “And you. What do you say for yourself?”
“I am a very honest man, sire.”
Arthur looked at him, puzzled.
“I mean, I won’t lie about it.”
“Then, what this man says is true.”
“Word to word. I promised Pelleas to speak with that woman in his favor. I kept my promise and said very nice things about him.”
“Liar!” Pelleas yelled.
“I did, really,” said Gawain.
“Then, how did you end up laying together?”
“That was afterward. She still wants to see you. She’s very nice. I think you should give her a chance.”
I chuckled quietly, my hand covering my mouth. There was something completely absurd about the whole situation. Partly because Gawain was, how to put it…incredibly ugly. There was something about his face that just disturbed your eyes. The size of his eyebrows, the shape of his eyes, the length of his nose: it just didn’t fit together! But in a strange way, it gave him an edge. His ugliness was a form of masculine roughness. His features were fascinating and clearly, he knew it.
Pelleas spat in Gawain’s direction again.
“Oh, don’t be like that,” said Gawain. “It was just a one-time thing.”
“And what about my sister?” Pelleas growled.
“That, too, was just one time.”
“Monster!”
“What! She’s happily married now. She forgot all about me. I don’t see why you’re complaining. Anyhow, I’m glad you came by, my liege. I have learned the art of the sword and wish to join your order.” He smiled at Arthur.
“You?! A knight?!” Pelleas sniggered. “You can’t even think with your brain, or hold your—”
“I can hold a sword.”
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