Le Fresne - Marie de France

Le Fresne was an easy and intriguing read that kept me from picking my eyes up from the paper. To think that it was so obscure for woman to have twins is crazy! Meanwhile during our time, it is very common to see and awknowledge a woman who is giving birth to twins.

"It's quite true, as we all know well, that never was, or will we hear tell, nor could it happen on this earth that one woman in a single birth had two separate sons, except where two seperate men had put them there."

"Twins? What are those?" would be a common response from people during the time of Le Fresne. During this time, there was no such thing as twins. It wasn't "possible" for woman to have two children in the same pregnancy. Little did they know, it was happening right in front of their eyes. In fact, the very woman who spread this crazy idea of twins about another woman across all of Brittany, soon became pregnant with twins herself.

"My lord and all his relatives will never believe me now, for sure, once they hear of this adventure, for I have judged myself a criminal; I spoke ill of all women, all -- for didn't I say that it's never been nor have we ourselves ever seen a woman who bore two children unless she had known two men?"

Now, she was at a loss for words to explain to her friends and relatives that she was actually pregnant with twins! She decides to send one of her daughters off with a maid with a ring and silk brocade. The maid would bring her to the abbey and drop her under an ash tree, where of course she obtained her name from.

While she is at the abbey, later in her life, the Lord of Dol falls in love with her quickly. In order to see her discretely, he endows the abbey and they end up talking all day while he is there.

"Now come live with me! Come, leave! You know, as I think and believe, if your aunt discovers our affair, it'll be so hard for her to bear, and if you should get pregnant here she'd be so angry, having you near."

He convinces her to run off to his castle, where they are happily living. Until his people said they wanted a heir.

"His one daughter's his heir, as it stands -- with her you could get vast lands. She's called La Codre, the Hazel Tree, no damsel for miles is so lovely"

Little did they all know who La Cardre is, the twin of Le Fresne who were separted at birth. It doesn't take long for everyone to realize the truth of this story. Le Fresne sets up the bed for La Corde on their wedding night and lays the silk brocade and ruby ring. Soon the mother comes in and realizes that Le Fresne is her daughter who she saddly sent away as a baby.

"Thus separated was wife from man and he married his dear, next day, and her father gave the bride away, for his heart was warm toward her; he made her his half-inheritor. He and his wife and their daughter stayed till the medding-fest was over. Then they returned to their own country, taking La Coudre, the Hazel Tree; they found her a fine rich groom and married her off nearer home."

In the end, Le Fresne can happily marry her lover while her twin sister can be sent back home with her mother and father and marry a man who she truly loves closer to home. And... everyone lives happily ever after!