On the second day of the month of March, the day following the Feast of Saint David, a Feast was held in the Realm of Albion. Its theme was 'Monsteres and Fantastick Beastes' and many gentles of the Realm wore masks representing creatures both fearsome and fell; in the dim light of the Feast Hall twas a fearful sight.
Many gentles had returned to the Realm from Abroad and there were a number of visitors from the Southern Realms and from Egaill. This ensured a busy evening. As the court prepared itself to enter, in my own case no easy feat due to the complexity of assembling my mask, Corwyn the Steward entertained with a game of Tierce.
The opening court was in itself a masque of the most elaborate kind. Lady Albion had cunningly switched places with the lady Kallista and, as they were both masked, only revealed the subterfuge after the opening. The surprise amongst the guests was so great that many were open mouthed in wonderment.
They did not remain so for too long however as the food soon arrived. There was many a fine dish, including rabbit and a seemingly endless supply of sweetmeats.
As they ate the guests were entertained by singing, dancing and storytelling. The Perfidious Albion singers performed a lullaby intended for the younger members of the audience which by all accounts had its effect on everyone else. Kallista told the extraordinary tale of how her nunnery came into being.
Business for the evening consisted of first judging the Subtlety competition, the winners being Kallista and Lady Brisena for their spectacularly monumental marine beast, closely followed by Horatio's epic piece entitled "Moominroc" notable for its sweeping armies of jelly bears. The mask competition was won by the lady Tamara with her terrifyingly dark dragon-bird. Words cannot describe its appearance.
The court was also presented with Sir Alastair and Lady Magdelene's new daughter, Mary, who didn't appear too over-awed by the Monsters surrounding her.
Lady Magdelene was made a member of the Order of the White Sparrow. Corwyn was surprised and delighted not only to be made a member of the Order of the Golden Spydere for his bardic talents, but to be knighted too.
An excellent night was had by all. Lady Magdelene and her assistants were congratulated on their culinary skills. Even those Gentles whose team had been beaten in a local ball game were not too unhappy.