She always
cherishes in her remembrance the hour when Cliges went away, and
the leave he took of her, how he changed colour and grew pale,
and how tearful his expression was, for he came to weep in her
presence humbly and simply upon his knees, as if constrained to
worship her. All this is sweet and pleasant for her to remember
and think about. And afterward, as a little treat, she takes on
her tongue instead of spice a sweet word which for all Greece she
would not wish him to have used contrary to the sense she had
understood when he first had uttered it; for she lives upon no
other dainty, and there is nothing else that pleases her. This
word alone sustains and nourishes her, and assuages all her pain.
She cares to eat and drink of no other dish or beverage, for when
the two lovers came to part, Cliges had said he was "altogether
hers." This word is so sweet and tastes so good that from the
tongue it stirs her heart, and she takes it into her mouth and
heart to be all the more sure of it. Under any other lock she
would not dare to store this treasure. Nowhere could it be
lodged so well as in her own bosom. She will never leave it
exposed at any price, being in such fear of robbers and thieves.
But there is no ground for her anxiety, and she need have no fear
of the birds of prey, for her treasure is not movable, but is
rather like a house which cannot be destroyed by fire or flood,
but will always stay fixed in a single place.
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