John blinks. "This is the strangest tale that ever I heard."

Hal hangs his head and laughs softly. "This is the strangest fellow, brother John." He gives Falstaff a long-suffering smile. "Why then, that's Percy dispensed, and Falstaff reformed. If the Hotspur be too tiresome for Hell and its devils to bear, perhaps we may look to see if he's been tossed back. But I think he must be gone, if Sir John speaks any truth in his life."

Under his light tone, though, lingers something uneasy, itching like the skin beneath his boots.