第三章 愛德蒙和衣櫥
Lucy ran out of the empty room into the passage and found the other three.
露茜從空屋里奔出來,一口氣跑到走廊里,找到了另外三個人。
"It's all right," she repeated, "I've comeback."
“好啦,好啦。”她連聲說,“我可回來啦!”
"What on earth are you talking about, Lucy?" asked Susan.
“露茜,你大驚小怪些什么?”蘇珊問。
"Why? said Lucy in amazement, "haven't you all been wondering where I was?"
“啊?”露茜感到很驚異,“你們干嗎不問問我到哪里去過?”
"So you've been hiding, have you?" said Peter. "Poor old Lu, hiding and nobody noticed! You'll have to hide longer than that if you want people to start looking for you."
“你躲起來了,是不是?”彼得說,“可憐的璐啊,你就躲這么一會兒,誰也不會理你。如果你想要別人來找你,你就得躲上更長的時間。”
"But I've been away for hours and hours," said Lucy.
“但是我已到那里去了好幾個鐘頭啦!”露茜說。
The others all stared at one another.
三個人都驚訝地瞪起了眼睛,我看看你,你看看我。
"Batty!" said Edmund, tapping his head. "Quite batty."
“發(fā)瘋啦!”愛德蒙拍著他的腦袋瓜說,“真是發(fā)瘋啦!”
"What do you mean, Lu?" asked Peter.
“我是說,“露茜回答道,“吃了早點以后,我走進了衣櫥,我在里邊呆了好幾個鐘頭,人家請我吃了茶點,我還遇到了許多奇怪的事。”
"What I said," answered Lucy. "It was just after breakfast when I went into the wardrobe, and I've been away for hours and hours, and had tea, and all sorts of things have happened."
“別說傻話,露茜,”蘇珊說,“我們剛從空屋里出來,你躲在哪里就這么一會兒工夫。”
"Don't be silly, Lucy," said Susan. "We've only just come out of that room a moment ago, and you were there then."
“她一點兒也不傻,”彼得說,“她是在編造一個很有趣的故事,是嗎,露茜?這有什么不好呢?”
"She's not being silly at all," said Peter, "she's just making up a story for fun, aren't you, Lu? And why shouldn't she?"
“不,彼得,我不是編故事。”她辯解說,“這是一個非常神秘的衣櫥,里面有一座森林,正在下著雪,那里有一個農牧之神和一個女巫,那個國家叫那尼亞,你們來看吧。”
"No, Peter, I'm not," she said. "It's - it's a magic wardrobe. There's a wood inside it, and it's snowing, and there's a Faun and a Witch and it's called Narnia; come and see."
她這么一說,其余的人更加莫名其妙了,但露茜越說越激動,他們就都跟她一起回到了屋里。她急匆匆地搶先推開了櫥門說:“喏,你們自己進去看吧。”
The others did not know what to think, but Lucy was so excited that they all went back with her into the room. She rushed ahead of them, flung open the door of the wardrobe and cried, "Now! go in and see for yourselves."
“你這個笨蛋,”蘇珊把頭伸進櫥里,把皮衣向兩邊撥開說,“這只不過是一個普通的衣櫥,瞧,那兒不是衣櫥的后壁嗎!”
"Why, you goose," said Susan, putting her head inside and pulling the fur coats apart, "it's just an ordinary wardrobe; look! there's the back of it."
大家都朝衣櫥里仔細地觀察了一番,把皮衣?lián)荛_以后,他們都看見——露茜自己也看見——這完全是一只普通的衣櫥。里面沒有樹林,也沒有雪,只有衣櫥的后壁,上面釘著一些衣鉤。彼得跨進衣櫥里,用手指頭輕輕地敲了敲,證實這確實是衣櫥的后壁。
Then everyone looked in and pulled the coats apart; and they all saw - Lucy herself saw - a perfectly ordinary wardrobe. There was no wood and no snow, only the back of the wardrobe, with hooks on it. Peter went in and rapped his knuckles on it to make sure that it was solid.
“你真會說謊啊,璐。”他一邊走出來,一邊說,“我得承認,我們真的被你騙了,我們幾乎聽信你說的話。”
"A jolly good hoax, Lu," he said as he came out again; "you have really taken us in, I must admit. We half believed you."
“我一點兒也沒說謊,”露茜說,“的的確確是真的,剛才的情況不是這樣。我敢發(fā)誓,這是真的。”
"But it wasn't a hoax at all," said Lucy, "really and truly. It was all different a moment ago. Honestly it was. I promise."
“你過來,璐,”彼得說,“這樣就更不對了,你說了謊,還不想改正。”
"Come, Lu," said Peter, "that's going a bit far. You've had your joke. Hadn't you better drop it now?"
露茜急得滿臉通紅,她想爭辯,但又不知說什么好,忽然,她大聲哭了起來。
Lucy grew very red in the face and tried to say something, though she hardly knew what she was trying to say, and burst into tears.
以后接連好幾天,露茜一直悶悶不樂。如果她不顧事實隨口承認這個故事只是編出來讓大家開開心的,那她就很容易隨時與大家和好。但露茜是一個非常誠實的小姑娘,她堅信自己是對的,她不肯隨便亂說??墒莿e人呢,都認為她在說謊,而且是說了一個非常愚蠢的謊,這使她感到非常的委屈。彼得和蘇姍批評她說謊并不是有意奚落她,但愛德蒙卻是有點故意找茬,這次,他抓住了把柄似的不斷取笑露茜,一次又一次地問她是不是在屋內別的櫥里又發(fā)現了別的國家。那幾天本該是非常令人愉快的日子,天氣很好,他們從早到晚都在外邊,洗澡啦,釣魚啦,爬樹啦,掏鳥窩啦,躲在石楠樹叢中玩啦,但露茜對這些卻一點也不感興趣。這樣的情況一直延續(xù)到以后的又一個陰雨天。
For the next few days she was very miserable. She could have made it up with the others quite easily at any moment if she could have brought herself to say that the whole thing was only a story made up for fun. But Lucy was a very truthful girl and she knew that she was really in the right; and she could not bring herself to say this. The others who thought she was telling a lie, and a silly lie too, made her very unhappy. The two elder ones did this without meaning to do it, but Edmund could be spiteful, and on this occasion he was spiteful. He sneered and jeered at Lucy and kept on asking her if she'd found any other new countries in other cupboards all over the house. What made it worse was that these days ought to have been delightful. The weather was fine and they were out of doors from morning to night, bathing, fishing, climbing trees, and lying in the heather. But Lucy could not properly enjoy any of it. And so things went on until the next wet day.
那一天,直到下午,雨還沒有停,一點也沒有轉晴的跡象。他們決定做捉迷藏的游戲,其他三個人躲,由蘇珊負責“捉”。大家剛散開,露茜就走進了放衣櫥的那間空屋。她并不想躲到櫥里去,因為她知道,如果那樣做的話,就只會使旁人再次談論起那件令人難堪的事來。但她很想到櫥里去看一看,因為這些天來,她開始懷疑那尼亞和農牧之神只不過是個夢罷了。她想,房子這樣大,結構又是這樣復雜,可躲藏的地方多得很,先到櫥里看一看,再躲到旁的地方,時間總是來得及的。但她一走進衣櫥,就聽見外邊走廊里有腳步聲,她沒有別的辦法,只好跳了進去,并順手帶上了櫥門。她沒有將門關嚴,因為她知道,即使這不是一個神秘的衣櫥,一個人把自己關在衣櫥里也是非常愚蠢的。
That day, when it came to the afternoon and there was still no sign of a break in the weather, they decided to play hide-and-seek. Susan was "It" and as soon as the others scattered to hide, Lucy went to the room where the wardrobe was. She did not mean to hide in the wardrobe, because she knew that would only set the others talking again about the whole wretched business. But she did want to have one more look inside it; for by this time she was beginning to wonder herself whether Narnia and the Faun had not been a dream. The house was so large and complicated and full of hiding-places that she thought she would have time to have one look into the wardrobe and then hide somewhere else. But as soon as she reached it she heard steps in the passage outside, and then there was nothing for it but to jump into the wardrobe and hold the door closed behind her. She did not shut it properly because she knew that it is very silly to shut oneself into a wardrobe, even if it is not a magic one.
原來是愛德蒙跑進來了,他走進屋內,剛好看見露茜的身影消失在衣櫥中。他急忙追上去,這倒不是他把衣櫥看做是躲藏的好地方,而是因為他想繼續(xù)嘲笑她編造的那個國家的故事。他拉開櫥門,里邊像平常一樣掛著外套,還有樟腦丸的氣味,黑糊糊,靜悄悄的,不見露茜的人影。“她以為我是蘇珊來找她的,”愛德蒙自言自語地說,“所以她一直躲在衣櫥里不吱聲。”于是,他一步跨進去,關上了門,也忘記了這樣做有多傻。他隨即在暗中摸索起來,他原以為不消幾秒鐘就能摸到她,但使他吃驚的是,他怎么也摸不到。他想去開門,讓亮光透一點進來,可他沒能找到櫥門。他氣得四下亂摸,還高聲喊著:
Now the steps she had heard were those of Edmund; and he came into the room just in time to see Lucy vanishing into the wardrobe. He at once decided to get into it himself - not because he thought it a particularly good place to hide but because he wanted to go on teasing her about her imaginary country. He opened the door. There were the coats hanging up as usual, and a smell of mothballs, and darkness and silence, and no sign of Lucy. "She thinks I'm Susan come to catch her," said Edmund to himself, "and so she's keeping very quiet in at the back." He jumped in and shut the door, forgetting what a very foolish thing this is to do. Then he began feeling about for Lucy in the dark. He had expected to find her in a few seconds and was very surprised when he did not. He decided to open the door again and let in some light. But he could not find the door either. He didn't like this at all and began groping wildly in every direction; he even shouted out, "Lucy! Lu! Where are you? I know you're here."
“露茜,璐!你躲在哪里呀?還不出來,我知道,你就在這兒。”
There was no answer and Edmund noticed that his own voice had a curious sound - not the sound you expect in a cupboard, but a kind of open-air sound. He also noticed that he was unexpectedly cold; and then he saw a light.
沒有回答,愛德蒙發(fā)現他的聲音非常奇怪,不像你所想象的在櫥里的那種聲音,而像是在曠野里發(fā)出來的。他感到冷的出奇。正在這時,他看見前面有一線亮光。
"Thank goodness," said Edmund, "the door must have swung open of its own accord." He forgot all about Lucy and went towards the light, which he thought was the open door of the wardrobe. But instead of finding himself stepping out into the spare room he found himself stepping out from the shadow of some thick dark fir trees into an open place in the middle of a wood.
“謝天謝地。”愛德蒙說,“一定是櫥門自己蕩開了。”他已經將露茜忘的一干二凈,只顧朝著那亮光走去,他還以為那里就是開著的櫥門呢。但他馬上發(fā)現,他并沒有走出衣櫥返回空屋,而是從濃密的樅樹蔭里走進了林中的一片空地。
There was crisp, dry snow under his feet and more snow lying on the branches of the trees. Overhead there was pale blue sky, the sort of sky one sees on a fine winter day in the morning. Straight ahead of him he saw between the tree-trunks the sun, just rising, very red and clear. Everything was perfectly still, as if he were the only living creature in that country. There was not even a robin or a squirrel among the trees, and the wood stretched as far as he could see in every direction. He shivered.
他的腳下踩著又干又脆的雪,樹林上也堆著一簇一簇的積雪,頭頂上空是一片蔚藍的天,這就像人們在冬天晴朗的早晨看到的那種天上的顏色。太陽剛從正前方的樹干間升起,鮮紅鮮紅的。四周一片寂靜,好像在那個國家,除了他以外,什么生靈也不存在了。在樹林中間,連一只知更鳥和松鼠也沒有,森林向四面八方伸展開去,一望無際。他不禁打起了寒戰(zhàn)。
He now remembered that he had been looking for Lucy; and also how unpleasant he had been to her about her "imaginary country" which now turned out not to have been imaginary at all. He thought that she must be somewhere quite close and so he shouted, "Lucy! Lucy! I'm here too-Edmund."
這時他忽然想起,他是來尋找露茜的,他也想到,他對她講的故事是多么反感,而現在周圍的一切證明她講的情況原是真的。他想露茜一定就在附近什么地方,所以他高聲喊叫著:“露茜!露茜!我是愛德蒙,我也來了。”
There was no answer.
沒有回答。
"She's angry about all the things I've been saying lately," thought Edmund. And though he did not like to admit that he had been wrong, he also did not much like being alone in this strange, cold, quiet place; so he shouted again.
“她是因為我最近錯怪了她而生我的氣吧。”愛德蒙想。雖然他不愿意承認自己錯了,但也不想一個人孤零零地站在這個陌生、寒冷而又孤寂的地方,于是他又喊了起來:
"I say, Lu! I'm sorry I didn't believe you. I see now you were right all along. Do come out. Make it Pax."
“喂,露茜,以前我不相信你說的話,請你原諒。現在我已明白,你說的是對的。趕快出來,我們和好吧。”
Still there was no answer.
仍然沒有回答。
"Just like a girl," said Edmund to himself, "sulking somewhere, and won't accept an apology." He looked round him again and decided he did not much like this place, and had almost made up his mind to go home, when he heard, very far off in the wood, a sound of bells. He listened and the sound came nearer and nearer and at last there swept into sight a sledge drawn by two reindeer.
“真是女孩子氣,”愛德蒙自言自語地說,“一個勁地鬧別扭,人家向她賠禮道歉了,她還是不睬人。”他又看了看四周,感到實在沒有必要在這里逗留。他正要準備回家的時候,聽見遙遠的樹林里傳來了鈴兒的響聲。他仔細傾聽著。鈴聲越來越近,最后他看見,一輛雪橇由兩匹馴鹿拉著疾馳而來。
The reindeer were about the size of Shetland ponies and their hair was so white that even the snow hardly looked white compared with them; their branching horns were gilded and shone like something on fire when the sunrise caught them. Their harness was of scarlet leather and covered with bells. On the sledge, driving the reindeer, sat a fat dwarf who would have been about three feet high if he had been standing. He was dressed in polar bear's fur and on his head he wore a red hood with a long gold tassel hanging down from its point; his huge beard covered his knees and served him instead of a rug. But behind him, on a much higher seat in the middle of the sledge sat a very different person - a great lady, taller than any woman that Edmund had ever seen. She also was covered in white fur up to her throat and held a long straight golden wand in her right hand and wore a golden crown on her head. Her face was white - not merely pale, but white like snow or paper or icing-sugar, except for her very red mouth. It was a beautiful face in other respects, but proud and cold and stern.
這兩匹馴鹿和謝德蘭群島的矮種馬差不多大小,它們身上的毛比雪還要白,它們頭上的叉角在朝陽的映照下閃爍著紅光。它們脖子上的套具是用深紅色的皮革制成的,上面帶著鈴鐺。坐在雪橇上趕鹿的是個肥胖的小妖,如果他站直了的話,大約只有三英尺高。他穿著北極熊皮做的衣服,頭上圍著一條紅色的頭巾,長長的金黃色的穗子從它的頂上垂下來;他的大胡子一直垂到兩膝,簡直可以當作一條圍巾來使用。在他后面,在雪橇中間一個高得多的座位上,坐著一個與眾不同的女人,她比愛德蒙以前見過的任何一個女人都要高大。她也全身穿著雪白的毛皮衣服,右手握著一根又長又直的金棍,頭上戴著一頂金冠。除了她那血紅的嘴以外,她的臉就像雪、紙或冰糖一樣白。她的臉孔還算漂亮,但卻顯得十分驕橫和冷酷。
The sledge was a fine sight as it came sweeping towards Edmund with the bells jingling and the dwarf cracking his whip and the snow flying up on each side of it.
雪橇向愛德蒙疾馳而來,鈴兒“叮當”“頂當”地響著,小妖“噼噼啪啪”地揮著鞭子,雪向雪橇的四邊飛濺,看上去真像一幅美麗的圖畫。
"Stop!" said the Lady, and the dwarf pulled the reindeer up so sharp that they almost sat down. Then they recovered themselves and stood champing their bits and blowing. In the frosty air the breath coming out of their nostrils looked like smoke.
“停!”坐在雪橇上的那個女人說,小妖猛地拉了一下馴鹿,馴鹿幾乎都坐了起來。它們很快恢復了原狀,立在那兒,“格格”地咬著嘴里的嚼子,呼呼直喘氣。在這種嚴寒的天氣里,它們鼻孔里呼出來的熱氣看起來就像煙霧一般。
"And what, pray, are you?" said the Lady, looking hard at Edmund.
“喂,你是干什么的?”那個女人問,兩眼緊盯著愛德蒙。
"I'm-I'm-my name's Edmund," said Edmund rather awkwardly. He did not like the way she looked at him.
“我,我,我的名字叫愛德蒙。”愛德蒙局促不安地說。他很不滿意她打量他時的那種神情。
The Lady frowned, "Is that how you address a Queen?" she asked, looking sterner than ever.
那女人皺起了雙眉,“你就這樣對女王講話嗎?”她說,樣子顯得更加嚴厲了。
"I beg your pardon, your Majesty, I didn't know," said Edmund:
“請原諒,陛下,我不知道你是女王。”愛德蒙說。
"Not know the Queen of Narnia?" cried she. "Ha! You shall know us better hereafter. But I repeat-what are you?"
“不認識那尼亞的女王?”她尖聲喊道,“哈,很快你就會認得的?;匚业脑挘耗愕降资歉墒裁吹?”
"Please, your Majesty," said Edmund, "I don't know what you mean. I'm at school - at least I was it's the holidays now."
“陛下,”愛德蒙說,“我不懂你的意思,我在上學——確實是這樣,陛下——這幾天學校放假。”
Chapter 3: Edmund and the Wardrobe
Lucy ran out of the empty room into the passage and found the other three.
"It's all right," she repeated, "I've comeback."
"What on earth are you talking about, Lucy?" asked Susan.
"Why? said Lucy in amazement, "haven't you all been wondering where I was?"
"So you've been hiding, have you?" said Peter. "Poor old Lu, hiding and nobody noticed! You'll have to hide longer than that if you want people to start looking for you."
"But I've been away for hours and hours," said Lucy.
The others all stared at one another.
"Batty!" said Edmund, tapping his head. "Quite batty."
"What do you mean, Lu?" asked Peter.
"What I said," answered Lucy. "It was just after breakfast when I went into the wardrobe, and I've been away for hours and hours, and had tea, and all sorts of things have happened."
"Don't be silly, Lucy," said Susan. "We've only just come out of that room a moment ago, and you were there then."
"She's not being silly at all," said Peter, "she's just making up a story for fun, aren't you, Lu? And why shouldn't she?"
"No, Peter, I'm not," she said. "It's - it's a magic wardrobe. There's a wood inside it, and it's snowing, and there's a Faun and a Witch and it's called Narnia; come and see."
The others did not know what to think, but Lucy was so excited that they all went back with her into the room. She rushed ahead of them, flung open the door of the wardrobe and cried, "Now! go in and see for yourselves."
"Why, you goose," said Susan, putting her head inside and pulling the fur coats apart, "it's just an ordinary wardrobe; look! there's the back of it."
Then everyone looked in and pulled the coats apart; and they all saw - Lucy herself saw - a perfectly ordinary wardrobe. There was no wood and no snow, only the back of the wardrobe, with hooks on it. Peter went in and rapped his knuckles on it to make sure that it was solid.
"A jolly good hoax, Lu," he said as he came out again; "you have really taken us in, I must admit. We half believed you."
"But it wasn't a hoax at all," said Lucy, "really and truly. It was all different a moment ago. Honestly it was. I promise."
"Come, Lu," said Peter, "that's going a bit far. You've had your joke. Hadn't you better drop it now?"
Lucy grew very red in the face and tried to say something, though she hardly knew what she was trying to say, and burst into tears.
For the next few days she was very miserable. She could have made it up with the others quite easily at any moment if she could have brought herself to say that the whole thing was only a story made up for fun. But Lucy was a very truthful girl and she knew that she was really in the right; and she could not bring herself to say this. The others who thought she was telling a lie, and a silly lie too, made her very unhappy. The two elder ones did this without meaning to do it, but Edmund could be spiteful, and on this occasion he was spiteful. He sneered and jeered at Lucy and kept on asking her if she'd found any other new countries in other cupboards all over the house. What made it worse was that these days ought to have been delightful. The weather was fine and they were out of doors from morning to night, bathing, fishing, climbing trees, and lying in the heather. But Lucy could not properly enjoy any of it. And so things went on until the next wet day.
That day, when it came to the afternoon and there was still no sign of a break in the weather, they decided to play hide-and-seek. Susan was "It" and as soon as the others scattered to hide, Lucy went to the room where the wardrobe was. She did not mean to hide in the wardrobe, because she knew that would only set the others talking again about the whole wretched business. But she did want to have one more look inside it; for by this time she was beginning to wonder herself whether Narnia and the Faun had not been a dream. The house was so large and complicated and full of hiding-places that she thought she would have time to have one look into the wardrobe and then hide somewhere else. But as soon as she reached it she heard steps in the passage outside, and then there was nothing for it but to jump into the wardrobe and hold the door closed behind her. She did not shut it properly because she knew that it is very silly to shut oneself into a wardrobe, even if it is not a magic one.
Now the steps she had heard were those of Edmund; and he came into the room just in time to see Lucy vanishing into the wardrobe. He at once decided to get into it himself - not because he thought it a particularly good place to hide but because he wanted to go on teasing her about her imaginary country. He opened the door. There were the coats hanging up as usual, and a smell of mothballs, and darkness and silence, and no sign of Lucy. "She thinks I'm Susan come to catch her," said Edmund to himself, "and so she's keeping very quiet in at the back." He jumped in and shut the door, forgetting what a very foolish thing this is to do. Then he began feeling about for Lucy in the dark. He had expected to find her in a few seconds and was very surprised when he did not. He decided to open the door again and let in some light. But he could not find the door either. He didn't like this at all and began groping wildly in every direction; he even shouted out, "Lucy! Lu! Where are you? I know you're here."
There was no answer and Edmund noticed that his own voice had a curious sound - not the sound you expect in a cupboard, but a kind of open-air sound. He also noticed that he was unexpectedly cold; and then he saw a light.
"Thank goodness," said Edmund, "the door must have swung open of its own accord." He forgot all about Lucy and went towards the light, which he thought was the open door of the wardrobe. But instead of finding himself stepping out into the spare room he found himself stepping out from the shadow of some thick dark fir trees into an open place in the middle of a wood.
There was crisp, dry snow under his feet and more snow lying on the branches of the trees. Overhead there was pale blue sky, the sort of sky one sees on a fine winter day in the morning. Straight ahead of him he saw between the tree-trunks the sun, just rising, very red and clear. Everything was perfectly still, as if he were the only living creature in that country. There was not even a robin or a squirrel among the trees, and the wood stretched as far as he could see in every direction. He shivered.
He now remembered that he had been looking for Lucy; and also how unpleasant he had been to her about her "imaginary country" which now turned out not to have been imaginary at all. He thought that she must be somewhere quite close and so he shouted, "Lucy! Lucy! I'm here too-Edmund."
There was no answer.
"She's angry about all the things I've been saying lately," thought Edmund. And though he did not like to admit that he had been wrong, he also did not much like being alone in this strange, cold, quiet place; so he shouted again.
"I say, Lu! I'm sorry I didn't believe you. I see now you were right all along. Do come out. Make it Pax."
Still there was no answer.
"Just like a girl," said Edmund to himself, "sulking somewhere, and won't accept an apology." He looked round him again and decided he did not much like this place, and had almost made up his mind to go home, when he heard, very far off in the wood, a sound of bells. He listened and the sound came nearer and nearer and at last there swept into sight a sledge drawn by two reindeer.
The reindeer were about the size of Shetland ponies and their hair was so white that even the snow hardly looked white compared with them; their branching horns were gilded and shone like something on fire when the sunrise caught them. Their harness was of scarlet leather and covered with bells. On the sledge, driving the reindeer, sat a fat dwarf who would have been about three feet high if he had been standing. He was dressed in polar bear's fur and on his head he wore a red hood with a long gold tassel hanging down from its point; his huge beard covered his knees and served him instead of a rug. But behind him, on a much higher seat in the middle of the sledge sat a very different person - a great lady, taller than any woman that Edmund had ever seen. She also was covered in white fur up to her throat and held a long straight golden wand in her right hand and wore a golden crown on her head. Her face was white - not merely pale, but white like snow or paper or icing-sugar, except for her very red mouth. It was a beautiful face in other respects, but proud and cold and stern.
The sledge was a fine sight as it came sweeping towards Edmund with the bells jingling and the dwarf cracking his whip and the snow flying up on each side of it.
"Stop!" said the Lady, and the dwarf pulled the reindeer up so sharp that they almost sat down. Then they recovered themselves and stood champing their bits and blowing. In the frosty air the breath coming out of their nostrils looked like smoke.
"And what, pray, are you?" said the Lady, looking hard at Edmund.
"I'm-I'm-my name's Edmund," said Edmund rather awkwardly. He did not like the way she looked at him.
The Lady frowned, "Is that how you address a Queen?" she asked, looking sterner than ever.
"I beg your pardon, your Majesty, I didn't know," said Edmund:
"Not know the Queen of Narnia?" cried she. "Ha! You shall know us better hereafter. But I repeat-what are you?"
"Please, your Majesty," said Edmund, "I don't know what you mean. I'm at school - at least I was it's the holidays now."
第三章 愛德蒙和衣櫥
露茜從空屋里奔出來,一口氣跑到走廊里,找到了另外三個人。
“好啦,好啦。”她連聲說,“我可回來啦!”
“露茜,你大驚小怪些什么?”蘇珊問。
“啊?”露茜感到很驚異,“你們干嗎不問問我到哪里去過?”
“你躲起來了,是不是?”彼得說,“可憐的璐啊,你就躲這么一會兒,誰也不會理你。如果你想要別人來找你,你就得躲上更長的時間。”
“但是我已到那里去了好幾個鐘頭啦!”露茜說。
三個人都驚訝地瞪起了眼睛,我看看你,你看看我。
“發(fā)瘋啦!”愛德蒙拍著他的腦袋瓜說,“真是發(fā)瘋啦!”
“我是說,“露茜回答道,“吃了早點以后,我走進了衣櫥,我在里邊呆了好幾個鐘頭,人家請我吃了茶點,我還遇到了許多奇怪的事。”
“別說傻話,露茜,”蘇珊說,“我們剛從空屋里出來,你躲在哪里就這么一會兒工夫。”
“她一點兒也不傻,”彼得說,“她是在編造一個很有趣的故事,是嗎,露茜?這有什么不好呢?”
“不,彼得,我不是編故事。”她辯解說,“這是一個非常神秘的衣櫥,里面有一座森林,正在下著雪,那里有一個農牧之神和一個女巫,那個國家叫那尼亞,你們來看吧。”
她這么一說,其余的人更加莫名其妙了,但露茜越說越激動,他們就都跟她一起回到了屋里。她急匆匆地搶先推開了櫥門說:“喏,你們自己進去看吧。”
“你這個笨蛋,”蘇珊把頭伸進櫥里,把皮衣向兩邊撥開說,“這只不過是一個普通的衣櫥,瞧,那兒不是衣櫥的后壁嗎!”
大家都朝衣櫥里仔細地觀察了一番,把皮衣?lián)荛_以后,他們都看見——露茜自己也看見——這完全是一只普通的衣櫥。里面沒有樹林,也沒有雪,只有衣櫥的后壁,上面釘著一些衣鉤。彼得跨進衣櫥里,用手指頭輕輕地敲了敲,證實這確實是衣櫥的后壁。
“你真會說謊啊,璐。”他一邊走出來,一邊說,“我得承認,我們真的被你騙了,我們幾乎聽信你說的話。”
“我一點兒也沒說謊,”露茜說,“的的確確是真的,剛才的情況不是這樣。我敢發(fā)誓,這是真的。”
“你過來,璐,”彼得說,“這樣就更不對了,你說了謊,還不想改正。”
露茜急得滿臉通紅,她想爭辯,但又不知說什么好,忽然,她大聲哭了起來。
以后接連好幾天,露茜一直悶悶不樂。如果她不顧事實隨口承認這個故事只是編出來讓大家開開心的,那她就很容易隨時與大家和好。但露茜是一個非常誠實的小姑娘,她堅信自己是對的,她不肯隨便亂說。可是別人呢,都認為她在說謊,而且是說了一個非常愚蠢的謊,這使她感到非常的委屈。彼得和蘇姍批評她說謊并不是有意奚落她,但愛德蒙卻是有點故意找茬,這次,他抓住了把柄似的不斷取笑露茜,一次又一次地問她是不是在屋內別的櫥里又發(fā)現了別的國家。那幾天本該是非常令人愉快的日子,天氣很好,他們從早到晚都在外邊,洗澡啦,釣魚啦,爬樹啦,掏鳥窩啦,躲在石楠樹叢中玩啦,但露茜對這些卻一點也不感興趣。這樣的情況一直延續(xù)到以后的又一個陰雨天。
那一天,直到下午,雨還沒有停,一點也沒有轉晴的跡象。他們決定做捉迷藏的游戲,其他三個人躲,由蘇珊負責“捉”。大家剛散開,露茜就走進了放衣櫥的那間空屋。她并不想躲到櫥里去,因為她知道,如果那樣做的話,就只會使旁人再次談論起那件令人難堪的事來。但她很想到櫥里去看一看,因為這些天來,她開始懷疑那尼亞和農牧之神只不過是個夢罷了。她想,房子這樣大,結構又是這樣復雜,可躲藏的地方多得很,先到櫥里看一看,再躲到旁的地方,時間總是來得及的。但她一走進衣櫥,就聽見外邊走廊里有腳步聲,她沒有別的辦法,只好跳了進去,并順手帶上了櫥門。她沒有將門關嚴,因為她知道,即使這不是一個神秘的衣櫥,一個人把自己關在衣櫥里也是非常愚蠢的。
原來是愛德蒙跑進來了,他走進屋內,剛好看見露茜的身影消失在衣櫥中。他急忙追上去,這倒不是他把衣櫥看做是躲藏的好地方,而是因為他想繼續(xù)嘲笑她編造的那個國家的故事。他拉開櫥門,里邊像平常一樣掛著外套,還有樟腦丸的氣味,黑糊糊,靜悄悄的,不見露茜的人影。“她以為我是蘇珊來找她的,”愛德蒙自言自語地說,“所以她一直躲在衣櫥里不吱聲。”于是,他一步跨進去,關上了門,也忘記了這樣做有多傻。他隨即在暗中摸索起來,他原以為不消幾秒鐘就能摸到她,但使他吃驚的是,他怎么也摸不到。他想去開門,讓亮光透一點進來,可他沒能找到櫥門。他氣得四下亂摸,還高聲喊著:
“露茜,璐!你躲在哪里呀?還不出來,我知道,你就在這兒。”
沒有回答,愛德蒙發(fā)現他的聲音非常奇怪,不像你所想象的在櫥里的那種聲音,而像是在曠野里發(fā)出來的。他感到冷的出奇。正在這時,他看見前面有一線亮光。
“謝天謝地。”愛德蒙說,“一定是櫥門自己蕩開了。”他已經將露茜忘的一干二凈,只顧朝著那亮光走去,他還以為那里就是開著的櫥門呢。但他馬上發(fā)現,他并沒有走出衣櫥返回空屋,而是從濃密的樅樹蔭里走進了林中的一片空地。
他的腳下踩著又干又脆的雪,樹林上也堆著一簇一簇的積雪,頭頂上空是一片蔚藍的天,這就像人們在冬天晴朗的早晨看到的那種天上的顏色。太陽剛從正前方的樹干間升起,鮮紅鮮紅的。四周一片寂靜,好像在那個國家,除了他以外,什么生靈也不存在了。在樹林中間,連一只知更鳥和松鼠也沒有,森林向四面八方伸展開去,一望無際。他不禁打起了寒戰(zhàn)。
這時他忽然想起,他是來尋找露茜的,他也想到,他對她講的故事是多么反感,而現在周圍的一切證明她講的情況原是真的。他想露茜一定就在附近什么地方,所以他高聲喊叫著:“露茜!露茜!我是愛德蒙,我也來了。”
沒有回答。
“她是因為我最近錯怪了她而生我的氣吧。”愛德蒙想。雖然他不愿意承認自己錯了,但也不想一個人孤零零地站在這個陌生、寒冷而又孤寂的地方,于是他又喊了起來:
“喂,露茜,以前我不相信你說的話,請你原諒?,F在我已明白,你說的是對的。趕快出來,我們和好吧。”
仍然沒有回答。
“真是女孩子氣,”愛德蒙自言自語地說,“一個勁地鬧別扭,人家向她賠禮道歉了,她還是不睬人。”他又看了看四周,感到實在沒有必要在這里逗留。他正要準備回家的時候,聽見遙遠的樹林里傳來了鈴兒的響聲。他仔細傾聽著。鈴聲越來越近,最后他看見,一輛雪橇由兩匹馴鹿拉著疾馳而來。
這兩匹馴鹿和謝德蘭群島的矮種馬差不多大小,它們身上的毛比雪還要白,它們頭上的叉角在朝陽的映照下閃爍著紅光。它們脖子上的套具是用深紅色的皮革制成的,上面帶著鈴鐺。坐在雪橇上趕鹿的是個肥胖的小妖,如果他站直了的話,大約只有三英尺高。他穿著北極熊皮做的衣服,頭上圍著一條紅色的頭巾,長長的金黃色的穗子從它的頂上垂下來;他的大胡子一直垂到兩膝,簡直可以當作一條圍巾來使用。在他后面,在雪橇中間一個高得多的座位上,坐著一個與眾不同的女人,她比愛德蒙以前見過的任何一個女人都要高大。她也全身穿著雪白的毛皮衣服,右手握著一根又長又直的金棍,頭上戴著一頂金冠。除了她那血紅的嘴以外,她的臉就像雪、紙或冰糖一樣白。她的臉孔還算漂亮,但卻顯得十分驕橫和冷酷。
雪橇向愛德蒙疾馳而來,鈴兒“叮當”“頂當”地響著,小妖“噼噼啪啪”地揮著鞭子,雪向雪橇的四邊飛濺,看上去真像一幅美麗的圖畫。
“停!”坐在雪橇上的那個女人說,小妖猛地拉了一下馴鹿,馴鹿幾乎都坐了起來。它們很快恢復了原狀,立在那兒,“格格”地咬著嘴里的嚼子,呼呼直喘氣。在這種嚴寒的天氣里,它們鼻孔里呼出來的熱氣看起來就像煙霧一般。
“喂,你是干什么的?”那個女人問,兩眼緊盯著愛德蒙。
“我,我,我的名字叫愛德蒙。”愛德蒙局促不安地說。他很不滿意她打量他時的那種神情。
那女人皺起了雙眉,“你就這樣對女王講話嗎?”她說,樣子顯得更加嚴厲了。
“請原諒,陛下,我不知道你是女王。”愛德蒙說。
“不認識那尼亞的女王?”她尖聲喊道,“哈,很快你就會認得的。回我的話:你到底是干什么的?”
“陛下,”愛德蒙說,“我不懂你的意思,我在上學——確實是這樣,陛下——這幾天學校放假。”