A Play of Heresy by Margaret Frazer

of you,” Sendell was saying as they gathered themselves to leave. “The sooner you can play without your script in hand, the better we’ll be when the day comes. You can have tomorrow’s evening, most of you, to work at learning your words instead of being here, because I want to work only with the Angels, Mary, and Joseph then. Master Joliffe, too. I’d like you here to work with Tom Maydeford on being Mary. Right enough? Good. I’ll see all the rest of you the evening after that. With all your words learned.”
    A few good-humoured groans answered that as nearly everyone made for the gate. Only Richard Eme did not. Instead he was closing on Sendell with protest in his every lineament.
    Joliffe unashamedly escaped out the gate, leaving Sendell to his fate.
     
     
    Because he and Sendell had agreed that finding a gown for the prophetess Ane was something Joliffe could do for himself, he readied himself to spend part of the next morning at it. He tried to persuade Rose to go with him, but she flatly refused, saying she had too much to do. Piers showed willing, but Joliffe tousled Piers’ curls in the way Piers hated and deftly dodged a kick at his ankles while saying, “My thanks, but no thanks. That much mocking I can do without,” and went on his way laughing at Piers’ general indignation.
    Before the morning was done he had provided laughter in his turn to several fripperers, all of them taking his quest in good part once he had explained it, so that at the end he had what he thought would suit an aged woman visiting a temple: a plain-cut yellow gown with close-fitted sleeves and high collar to wear under a loose, sleeveless russet over-gown edged with a tired fur that the seller swore was not cat. Any dark, soft-soled shoe would suffice for the feet, and a wimple and veil would be small trouble to come by; some wife among the weavers would likely gladly loan her nearly-best if Sendell asked for the favor.
    That duty done, the rest of the day he wandered around the town, spending time in various taverns and at cookshops, drinking not much and eating slightly but all the while listening and sometimes easing into talk with one person or another. So far as hearing any worries about any merchant presently late in returning to town or finding any likely way to ask about Sebastian’s missing Master Kydwa, the day was a waste, but he made a good start at learning his way around the town, and at afternoon’s end he felt free to tell himself he had done what he could for now and went cheerfully to the evening’s practice, Ane’s garb tidily bundled under his arm.
    He was early and glad to find Sendell in a cheerfulness to match his own, greeting him with, “You escaped fast enough last night. It took me a goodly while to talk Richard Eme around to believing your foolery served to make him look noble and profound. If I can keep him believing that, we’ll be fine. Did you find a gown and all?”
    Joliffe had just time to unfold and shake out the gown and over-gown, and have Sendell’s approval for them and agreement that, yes, asking for loan of a wimple and veil from someone’s wife would probably serve and he would see to it, before Ned Eme and young Hew came into the yard.
    “My brother is not best pleased with you,” Ned said at Joliffe with light, mocking sternness.
    “I grieve to hear it,” Joliffe said, not troubling to sound grieved at all.
    Ned laughed. Tom Maydeford arrived, bringing an old gown got from his mother to practice in as Mary. Sendell sent him and Joliffe to the yard’s far end to work together while Sendell gave his own heed over to Ned and Hew.
    Joliffe, not altogether unexpectedly, found Tom greatly uncomfortable with having to wear a woman’s gown. It did not help that his mother must be both wider and taller than her son; Tom had to use his belt to gather in the excess and hitch the skirts clear of his feet. While he did, Joliffe put on Ane’s over-gown, wearing it being the