Gareth had no little boys or girls to play with, for there were no houses near his mountain home.

But Gareth was happy all day long. Some-times in the bright summer mornings the streams would call to him. Then he would follow them up the mountains, till he found the place where the streams ended in tiny silver threads.

Sometimes the birds and beasts, his woodland friends, would call to him, and then Gareth would wander about in the forest with them till evening came. Then he would tell his mother the wonderful things he had seen, and the wonderful things he had heard in the forests and on the mountain-sides.

Gareth's mother, the Queen of Orkney, loved the little prince so much that she was never dull. She had no one to talk to except her little son, for her husband was old, so old that he could not talk to his Queen. And if she talked to him, he was almost too deaf to hear what she said.

But though the Queen was never dull, she was sometimes unhappy. She was afraid that some day, when Gareth was older, he would want to leave her to go into the world, perhaps to go to the great King Arthur's court, as his three brothers had done.

Now Gareth had already heard stories about the brave deeds of King Arthur's knights. He knew that they were strong men, and that they fought for the weak people, and that they often had great adventures, when they were sent to punish the King's enemies. And Gareth longed to be a man, for "when I am a man, I will be one of Arthur's knights, too," he thought.

At last, one day, his mother knew that what she had been afraid of had come to pass. She knew that Gareth would not be content to stay among the mountains much longer. But when he threw his arms round her, and coaxed her to let him go, she thought, "Surely I can keep him a little longer." And she said, "Your father is old, and your brothers have left me, you will not leave me alone, Gareth. You will stay and be a great huntsman and follow the deer: But all the time her heart whispered, "He will not stay."

And Gareth said, "Let me go, sweet mother. Now I am a man, I must do a man's work. 'Follow the deer!' No; now I must follow the King."

But still his mother would not let him go. "The next time he asks me, I will try another way," she thought. And when Gareth came again and pleaded to be allowed to go to the court, she said, "Yes, you may go, if for one whole year you will tell no one your name, or that you are a prince, and if for that whole year you will go into the King's kitchen and work there." "These things will be too difficult for my princely boy," she thought.

But Gareth wanted to go so much, that he promised not to tell any one his name, nor that he was a prince. "And I will go to the court, only to work in the King's kitchen for a year," promised Gareth proudly. And then his mother knew that her plan had failed, and she wept.

But Gareth was glad. He got up early one morning, and without saying good-bye to his mother, for he could not bear to see her sad face again, he left his mountain home, and went out into the wide world.

When three men, dressed like ploughmen, left the castle, no one would have known that one of them was a prince. For Gareth had left all his beautiful clothes behind him, and was dressed just like the two servants he took with him. But still he was glad, for though he remembered he was going to work in a kitchen, he thought a year would soon pass, and then, perhaps, King Arthur would make him one of his knights.

On a certain day, every year, there was a great feast at Arthur's court. Now the King would not sit down to feast till he had heard if any of his people were in trouble, and if they wished one of his knights to go to help them. And on this day too, people could come into the King's presence to ask for any boon or good thing they wished. Gareth reached the court, with his two servants, on one of these feast-days.

"The King will listen to my wish to-day. "I will go to him at once," thought Gareth. And leaning on the shoulders of his servants, so as to look less princely, he came into the large dining-hall.

"Grant me only this boon," Gareth entreated the King, "that I may work in your kitchen and eat and drink there for a year. After that I will fight."

And King Arthur looked at Gareth, and saw that though he leaned on his servants he was tall and strong, and that though he wore rough clothes, he was as noble-looking as any of his knights.

"You ask but a small boon," said the King. "Would you not rather serve me as my knight?"

And Gareth longed to say "Yes? But as he could not break the promise he had given to his mother, he said again, that the only boon he asked was to be allowed to work in the King's kitchen.

Then the King sent for Sir Kay, the steward of his kitchen, and told him to make Gareth one of his kitchen-boys. But Sir Kay did not wish this noble-looking lad in his kitchen, and he made fun of him and mocked him, because he would not tell his name, nor where his home was.

But Sir Lancelot, the noblest knight in all the land, was kind to Gareth, and Gareth's brother, Sir Gavaine, who had gone to Arthur's court long ago, was kind to him too. Yet Sir Gavaine did not know that Gareth was his brother, for the little prince he had left at home looked very different to the King's new kitchen-boy.

In the kitchen Gareth soon began to find out what a difficult task he had undertaken, for the sake of one day being a knight. He ate his meals with rough kitchen-boys, and as Gareth's mother had taught her little prince daintily, he did not like their rough ways; and at night he slept in a shed with dirty kitchen-boys.

And because Sir Kay did not like Gareth, he would bustle and hurry him, and make him work harder than any of the other lads, and give him all the roughest work to do. It was Gareth who had to draw the water and cut the wood, while the other servants played.

But when at last his work was done, Gareth would listen gladly as the servants talked of Lancelot and the King. He loved to hear how Lancelot had twice saved the King's life, and how since then there had grown up a great friendship between the King and his brave knight.

And Gareth was glad when he heard that though Lancelot was first in all the tournaments or mock battles, yet on the battlefield his hero King was mightiest of all.

But when the servants' talk was rough and rude, Gareth would not listen, but sang some of his old mountain-songs, carolling like any lark, and the servants stopped their talk to listen.

It seemed a long year to Gareth, the longest year in all his life, but at last it came to an end. A whole year had passed, and another of the King's great feast-days had begun.

Gareth woke up on that morning, thinking, "Now at last I can be one of King Arthur's knights; now at last I am free."

In the dining-room he sprang eagerly to the King's side. "A boon, King Arthur, grant me this boon," he cried, "that I serve you no longer as a kitchen-page, but as a knight."

Arthur loved the noble-looking lad, and was pleased with his eagerness. "I make you my knight, to win glory and honour for our land," said the King. But the secret of Gareth's knighthood was to be kept from all but Sir Lancelot, till the new knight, Sir Gareth, had won for himself great fame.

"You shall begin at once," said the King. And he promised Gareth that he should be the first of all his knights to leave his court that day.

As he spoke, a beautiful lady called Lynette came into the hall, in great haste. "A knight to rescue my sister, King Arthur," she cried.

"Who is your sister, and why does she need a knight?" asked the King.

And Lynette told Arthur that her sister was called the Lady Lyonors, and that Lyonors was rich and had many castles of her own, but a cruel knight, called the Red Knight, had shut her up in one of her own castles. The name of the castle in which she was a prisoner was Castle Dangerous. And the Red Knight said he would keep Lady Lyonors there, till he had fought King Arthur's bravest knight. Then he would make Lyonors his wife. "But," said Lynette, "my sister will never be the bride of the Red Knight, for she does not love him."

Then Arthur, looking round his knights, saw Gareth's eyes growing bright, and heard Gareth's voice ringing out, "Your promise, King."

And the King said to Gareth, "Go and rescue the Lady Lyonors from the Red Knight."

"A kitchen-page go to rescue the Lady Lyonors!" shouted Sir Kay in scorn.

When Lynette heard that, she was angry, and said, "I came for Sir Lancelot, the greatest of all your knights, and you give me a kitchen-boy." In her anger, she walked out of the palace gates, and rode quickly down the streets. She neither looked nor waited to see if Gareth followed.

"I will wait for nothing," thought the new knight, and he hurried after Lynette to the palace gates, but there he was stopped.