雙語讀電影 《沉睡魔咒》第07章 :斯戴芬和皇后生了個孩子

CHAPTER  7
With Diaval to be her eyes and ears, Maleficent was no longer in the dark. A wave of her hand and he could be changed back into a raven, allowing him to fly over the countryside with ease and gather news of the kingdom.
Returning home from his first flight to the castle, Diaval flapped down into the ruins. As soon as Maleficent turned him back into a human, he began to tell her the news he’d learned.
“Mistress, Henry’s dead. Apparently, he decreed Stefan would succeed him,” Diaval reported to Maleficent.
A look of pain flashed across her face. As the information sank in, Maleficent clenched her fist, her long nails digging into her palm. The truth of Stefan’s betrayal was now crystal clear.　
“Now he will be king! He did this to me so he would be king!” It infuriated her that his betrayal continued to surprise her. How had she not seen this coming? He was just like every other human, trying to steal to have more. More riches, more land, more power. Letting out a piercing scream, she raised her staff, shooting a lightning bolt into the dark sky.　
“Now what, mistress?” Diaval asked.　
Her rage purged for the moment, Maleficent slowly lowered her staff, panting and exhausted from the effort. She had been a fool to think the trouble with the humans was over. History was repeating itself once again. It was only a matter of time before Stefan and his army came after the Moors. He knew better than Henry what riches lay there. And that meant it was time to go home.　
Maleficent and Diaval arrived at the beautiful Faerie Mound in the center of the Moors as night fell. The plants were brittle and brown, clearly undernourished; the streams had stopped flowing, pooling into dark, dirty spots of water; many of the creatures lay about listlessly. The energy in the atmosphere seemed to have been sucked dry. It was clear that the faerie world had begun to unravel in the weeks during which Maleficent had been gone, and was now in rough shape. But that was all about to change.
Stepping forward, Maleficent made her way toward the Mound. On her shoulder, Diaval the raven squawked nervously as all around her the faeries began to whisper. “Her wings!” one said to another. “They’re gone!” a dew faerie whispered loudly.
Maleficent ignored them, gliding to the center of the Mound, a hard look in her eye. Dead tree branches suddenly rose from the ground, writhing together like snakes. They formed a tall throne behind Maleficent, and she lowered herself onto it while keeping her gaze in front of her.　
The Fair Folk looked up at her cold gaze, the command in her presence. She was barely recognizable anymore. They bowed to her instinctually, quaking in fear. The Moors had a self-appointed leader now.　
Over the next year, Maleficent hardly noticed that the other Fair Folk seemed wary of her. She spent most of her time alone or with Diaval, who she sent on nearly daily missions to the castle to bring back any news, hearing all about Stefan’s new life as king, and his beautiful wife, King Henry’s daughter. It took all Maleficent’s energy to quell the infuriating surge of hurt within her. Maleficent had more important things to think about, such as the well-being of the Moors, and just what Stefan would do when he had settled in at the castle. While she was doing all she could to keep the Moors safe and had brought some semblance of peace and restored order, she remained pensive and often distracted. It was hard to focus on the Moors when danger was so close.
She was sitting on her throne, rubbing its rough edges, when Diaval returned from one of his trips. Waving her hand, she transformed him into a human. He stood in front of her, nervously twitching and scratching at his skin. Even though he had been changed dozens of times, he still had a hard time adjusting to the human form. However, that day he seemed even more uncomfortable.
“Tell me,” Maleficent said, instantly on the alert.
“I’ve been to the castle,” Diaval began.
Maleficent sighed. “I know,” she said, trying to remain patient. “I sent you there. Tell me what you saw.”
“I saw nothing,” he answered, running his hands through his hair. “But I heard ...” He coughed nervously. “There’s been a ...” His voice trailed off.
“What?” Maleficent demanded. She was growing impatient.　
“A ... um ...” He looked down at his feet, then up, his eyes meeting the intense stare of Maleficent’s. “There’s been a ...” He pretended to see something on his shoulder and flicked at it.
That was it. Maleficent couldn’t take any more. “Speak!” she commanded.　
Diaval snapped to attention. “Child,” he said. “King Stefan and the queen have had a child.”　
“Oh?” Maleficent said, at once surprised by the wave of jealousy that washed over her and angry that Stefan could still affect her feelings that way.　
Sensing that Maleficent was unhappy, Diaval plunged ahead, his words running into one another in his rush to get them out—and then get far, far away. “There will be a christening in one month’s time. They say it’s to be a grand celebration.”
A celebration? For a baby? It is all just so wonderful, isn’t it? she thought. They will parade Stefan’s baby around like a prize. The baby that is the result of so much betrayal and so much pain. Another human put on the Earth to harm and destroy our kind. Oh yes, it is just so wonderful. Maleficent’s lip curled.
But not if she had anything to do with it ...