Aungel grimaced. ‘It was not that colour last night! Goodwyn will be disappointed — he wanted red, so he could daub rude messages about the townsfolk on the guildhall’s door.’
‘If he does, I shall expel him.’ Bartholomew looked at the mixture. ‘What is in it?’
‘I cannot remember. We filched wine from the kitchens, and added pinches of this and glugs of that. Goodwyn had some powders of his own, which he
‘But what?’ Bartholomew sensed he was about to be told something he would not like.
‘But he does not have much money now his fees are paid,’ confided Aungel unhappily. ‘And Brother Michael keeps fining him. I think he may have stolen them. I know he was in Apothecary Eyer’s shop with your nephew. He might have palmed a few things then, for mischief.’
‘Richard was his accomplice?’ Bartholomew was horrified.
‘Oh, no, sir! He was there to purchase a hangover remedy. I imagine Goodwyn pinched the stuff while Eyer was serving him.’
Bartholomew sniffed the blue mixture cautiously, and recoiled at its toxic stench. He wondered what to do with it. He could not pour it down the drain, lest it did something terrible to the river. Irritably, he shoved it on the top shelf behind the pennyroyal, thinking it would have to wait until he had time to dispose of it in the midden.
‘It was not my idea to conduct those tests,’ said Aungel sheepishly. ‘I said we should ask you first, and so did most of the others, but Goodwyn told us…’
‘If he suggests anything else, refuse. You are the senior student, not him.’
‘Yes, but he is older than me,’ said Aungel miserably. ‘He and the other new men did the trivium and most of the quadrivium at Oxford, which is why Master Langelee took them. He can charge advanced scholars higher fees, you see.’
‘If they are trouble, I shall send them down, along with anyone else who follows them into mischief,’ said Bartholomew warningly. ‘So do not let them lead you astray.’
Aungel nodded, but it was clear the task might be beyond him. ‘They are an evil influence. They met up with Mistress Stanmore’s apprentices last night and caused trouble in the Cardinal’s Cap. They escaped before the beadles arrived, but I heard them sniggering about it afterwards.’
‘Then tell Langelee. We do not want them bringing disgrace on the College.’
‘Very well. But if Goodwyn finds out that I am a sneak, and I am forced to flee in fear of my life, I shall want a refund on my fees.’
The wind was still strong when Michaelhouse’s scholars processed to church, but the gusts were moderating. It had blown leaves into rusty piles in the corners, while small twigs and bits of branch littered the streets. The students burst out laughing when Langelee, wrestling with the temperamental latch on the porch door, released a string of obscenities that would have made the most foul-mouthed of guttersnipes blush.
‘Thank God you are going to see the locksmith today,’ he muttered to Hemmysby, inspecting a torn fingernail. ‘We shall be pinched, sliced and maimed no more.’
‘I am afraid it will have to be tomorrow,’ said Hemmysby apologetically. ‘There was not enough time for everyone to speak at the debate yesterday, so the Chancellor suggested that we resume again this morning. I am called to clarify certain points from Ockham’s
‘Tynkell really is inept,’ said Michael in disgust. ‘He failed to restrict the discussion to new arguments, so inexperienced debaters like the men from Winwick Hall dredged up lot of old material. And for the first time ever, the Cambridge Debate will span two days.’
‘It is partly your fault, too, Brother,’ said William. ‘You plan to ban apostolic poverty after Tuesday, so everyone is keen to have his say before the injunction comes into force. It is a poor decree. There is nothing wrong with a bit of theology.’
‘It is not a bit of theology,’ said Michael crossly. ‘It is heresy, and I have no wish to share Linton Hall’s fate. But I wish Tynkell had kept the debate on track. I do not have time to monitor it myself, what with catching killers and making arrangements for the ceremony next week.’
‘And looking for our hutch,’ added Langelee pointedly.
‘Moreover, my choir needs to rehearse the
‘They will disgrace themselves by opening their mouths,’ muttered Thelnetham. He spoke a little louder. ‘Do you have any of that remedy for biliousness, Bartholomew? The thought of those heathens performing has made me feel quite sick.’
‘It is all the poison inside you,’ declared William. ‘If you were a nicer man, you would not need a tonic. Biliousness is a sign of a disagreeable character.’