`Yis, pardee,' quod Deiphebus, `wel thow woost,
	In al that ever I may, and God tofore,
1410	Al nere it but for man I love moost,
	My brother Troilus; but sey wherfore
	It is; for sith that day that I was bore,
	I nas, ne never-mo to been I thinke,
	Ayeins a thing that mighte thee forthinke.'

1415	Pandare gan him thonke, and to him seyde,
	`Lo, sire, I have a lady in this toun,
	That is my nece, and called is Criseyde,
	Which some men wolden doon oppressioun,
	And wrongfully have hir possessioun:
1420	Wherfor I of your lordship yow biseche
	To been our freend, withoute more speche.'

	Deiphebus him answerde, `O, is not this,
	That thow spekest of to me thus straungely,
	Criseyda, my freend?' He seyde, `Yis.'
1425	`Than nedeth,' quod Deiphebus, `hardily,
	Namore to speke, for trusteth wel, that I
	Wol be hir champioun with spore and yerde;
	I roughte nought though alle hir foos it herde.

	`But tel me how, thou that woost al this matere,
1430	How I might best avaylen? Now lat see.'
	Quod Pandarus; `If ye, my lord so dere,
	Wolden as now don this honour to me,
	To preyen hir to-morwe, lo, that she
	Come unto yow hir pleyntes to devyse,
1435	Hir adversaries wolde of it agryse.

	`And if I more dorste preye as now,
	And chargen yow to have so greet travayle,
	To han som of your bretheren here with yow,
	That mighten to hir cause bet avayle,
1440	Than, woot I wel, she mighte never fayle
	For to be holpen, what at your instaunce,
	What with hir othere freendes governaunce.'

	Deiphebus, which that comen was, of kinde,
	To al honour and bountee to consente,
1445	Answerde, `It shal be doon; and I can finde
	Yet gretter help to this in myn entente.
	What wolt thow seyn, if I for Eleyne sente
	To speke of this? I trowe it be the beste;
	For she may leden Paris as hir leste.

1450	`Of Ector, which that is my lord, my brother,
	It nedeth nought to preye him freend to be;
	For I have herd him, o tyme and eek other,
	Speke of Criseyde swich honour, that he
	May seyn no bet, swich hap to him hath she.
1455	It nedeth nought his helpes for to crave;
	He shal be swich, right as we wole him have.

	`Spek thou thyself also to Troilus
	On my bihalve, and pray him with us dyne.'
	`Sire, al this shal be doon,' quod Pandarus;
1460	And took his leve, and never gan to fyne,
	But to his neces hous, as streyt as lyne,
	He com; and fond hir fro the mete aryse;
	And sette him doun, and spak right in this wyse.

	He seyde, `O verray God, so have I ronne!
1465	Lo, nece myn, see ye nought how I swete?
	I noot whether ye the more thank me conne.
	Be ye nought war how that fals Poliphete
	Is now aboute eft-soones for to plete,
	And bringe on yow advocacyes newe?'
1470	`I? No,' quod she, and chaunged al hir hewe.

	`What is he more aboute, me to drecche
	And doon me wrong? What shal I do, allas?
	Yet of himself nothing ne wolde I recche,
	Nere it for Antenor and Eneas,
1475	That been his freendes in swich maner cas;
	But, for the love of God, myn uncle dere,
	No fors of that; lat him have al yfeere;

	`Withouten that I have ynough for us.'
	`Nay,' quod Pandare, `it shal no-thing be so.
1480	For I have been right now at Deiphebus,
	And Ector, and myne othere lordes mo,
	And shortly maked ech of hem his fo;
	That, by my thrift, he shal it never winne
	For ought he can, whan that so he biginne.'

1485	And as they casten what was best to done,
	Deiphebus, of his owene curtasye,
	Com hir to preye, in his propre persone,
	To holde him on the morwe companye
	At diner, which she nolde not denye,
1490	But goodly gan to his preyere obeye.
	He thonked hir, and wente upon his weye.

Next: From Troilus and Criseyde, Book II, lines 1492-1568: The gathering at Deiphebus' house