Once, there lived a tinker who, when he wasn't busy mending kettles, spent his time wooing Belinda, a most appealing young widow. Many an evening, they'd sit by candlelight in his workshop, amidst the pots and pans. They'd talk of travels, of exquisite foods, and the frilly nightgowns the palace handmaidens were said to wear to bed.
Sometimes, they would even talk of themselves. Saying, perhaps, when the widow's official period of mourning was over, they might explore the possibilities of romance.
However there was a new resident of the village. Gervis the Falconer was famous as the trainer of the King's falcons. He'd often appear at a gathering, telling stories of his adventures. He was himself, a widower, and would sometimes speak of his grief. Here he found a sympathetic ear in Belinda.
The Tinker began hearing rumors about the Falconer. That his servants lived in fear and that any mistake they made was punished by beatings. But the worst of these rumors was that he wasn't a widower at all, but put his wife away in a dark tower.
One day, Belinda entered the Tinker's workshop. She was smiling and seemed overjoyed. "Gervis," she said, almost bursting with excitement, "has invited me to his villa for the upcoming holiday."
The Tinker was very concerned and Belinda realized that. "Oh, don't be silly," she chuckled. "Gervis and I are just friends. We've both lost a spouse, which is a common ground you simply can't understand."
The Tinker knew it would be pointless to argue. Belinda had her mind made and was going, regardless of his fears.
The holiday arrived and Belinda and Gervis went off to his villa. But that very night, she burst into the Tinker's workshop, tears flowing down her cheeks.
"What happened?" the Tinker asked.
"It was just awful," she cried.
"Did you see how mean he could be to his servants?"
"He hires a bunch of bumbling oafs who should be lucky to be working for him."
"Then you met his wife, locked away in the dark tower?"
"A raving lunatic," she replied. "He put her there for her own safety."
"What then is wrong?" the Tinker asked.
"Well," she said, still sobbing, "we were in the bedroom he'd prepared for me. He moved in close to me."
"I don't think I want to hear this," the Tinker stated.
"Please," she said, her eyes glazed with tears. "He put his arm around me. And then he whispered in my ear how glad he was to have me for a friend. And with that, he left and went to sleep in his own bed."
The tinker looked at her. He put his arms around her, but his hold was loose, simply going through the motions of a comforting gesture.
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