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《能言马与男孩》5 科林王子

发布时间:2021-06-26 11:33:54

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CHAPTER FIVE PRINCE CORIN 

五科林王子

"MY dear sister and very good Lady," said King Edmund, "you must now show your courage.For I tell you plainly we are in no small danger."

“我最亲,最善良的姐姐。”国王德蒙说着,“你现在必须拿出你所有的勇气。因为,我要诚实地告诉你,我们现在的处境十分危险。”

"What is it, Edmund ?" asked the Queen.

“怎么了,亲德蒙?”女王问道。

"It is this," said Edmund."I do not think we shall find it easy to leave Tashbaan.While the Prince had hope that you would take him,we were honoured guests.But by the Lion' s Mane, I think that as soon as he has your flat denial we shall be no better than prisoners."

“是这样的。”德蒙回答道,“我并不认为我们可以轻而易举地离开塔什班城。因为王子希望你能够接受他,虽然现在我们仍是他的贵宾,但我以狮子的鬃起誓,一旦他遭到你直接的拒绝,我们的处境将和囚徒没有什么两样。”

One of the Dwarfs gave a low whistle.

这时,一个小矮人发出了一声轻微的口哨声。

"I warned your Majesties, I warned you," said Sallowpad the Raven. "Easily in but not easily out, as the lobster said in the lobster pot !"

“陛下,我告过你,告过你的。”乌鸦萨罗帕德说道,“就如同龙虾在捕虾篓中所说的那样——进来容易出去难啊!”

"I have been with the Prince this morning," continued Edmund. "He is little used (more's the pity) to having his will crossed.And he is very chafed at your long delays and doubtful answers. This morning he pressed very hard to know your mind. I put it aside—meaning at the same time to diminish his hopes-with some light common jests about women's fancies, and hinted that his suit was likely to be cold. He grew angry and dangerous. There was a sort of threatening, though still veiled under a show of courtesy, in every word he spoke. "

“今天早上我一直和王子在一起。”德蒙补充说道,“更加遗憾的是,他一点也不惯自己的意愿遭到忤逆。而且,他对于你长时间的拖延和含糊其辞的答复已经感到恼火了。今天早上他十分努力地想要知道你的心意。我将他的问题放置一边——同时也是为了减弱他的期待——通过说一些关于女人的幻想一类的轻松笑话,来暗示他求婚可能会遭到冷漠的对待,他就生起气来。尽管他仍然带着谦逊有礼的面纱,但是他说的每一句话,都包含了某种威胁的意味。”

"Yes," said Tumnus. "And when I supped with the Grand Vizier last night, it was the same. He asked me how I like Tashbaan. And I (for I could not tell him I hated every stone of it and I would not lie) told him that now, when high summer was coming on, my heart turned to the cool woods and dewy slopes of Narnia. He gave a smile that meant no good and said, 'There is nothing to hinder you from dancing there again, little goatfoot; always provided you leave us in exchange a bride for our prince.

“没错。”图姆纳斯说道,“昨晚我和大臣进晚餐的时候,也遇到了类似的情况。他询问我有多么喜欢塔什班城,而我告诉他,现在,当盛夏降临之时,我的整颗心都向往着纳尼亚凉爽的树林和露珠晶莹的山坡。因为我不能告诉他我憎恨城里的每一块石头并且我又不愿意说谎。他回以我一个不怀好意的微笑,同时说道“小小的羊脚啊,没有什么会阻止你再次在纳尼亚起舞,只要你们给我们的王子留下一位新作为交换。”

"Do you mean he would make me his wife by force ?" exclaimed Susan.

“你是说他会强迫我成为他的妻子?”苏珊大声嚷道。

"That's my fear, Susan," said Edmund. "Wife: or slave which is worse."

“苏珊,这正是我的担心,”德蒙说,“成为妻子,更糟的或者变成奴隶。”

"But how can he ? Does the Tisroc think our brother the High King would suffer such an outrage ?"

“但是他怎么能这样?难道太洛帝认为我们的哥哥至尊王会容忍这种可恶的暴行吗?”

"Sire," said Peridan to the King."They would not be so mad.Do they think there are no swords and spears in Narnia ?"

“陛下,”帕里丹对国王说道,“他们不会那么不理智的。难道他们以为纳尼亚王国没有宝剑和长矛吗?”

"Alas," said Edmund. "My guess is that the Tisroc has very small fear of Narnia. We are a little land. And little lands on the borders of a great empire were always hateful to the lords of the great empire.He longs to blot them out,gobble them up.When first he suffered the Prince to come to Cair Paravel as your lover, sister, it may be that he was only seeking an occasion against us. Most likely he hopes to make one mouthful of Narnia and Archenland both."

“唉,”德蒙叹息地说道,“我推测太洛帝对纳尼亚王国没有什么畏惧。我们的国土小,而且处在各个大帝国的边缘小国总是对大帝国的君主抱有憎恨,太洛帝想要抹杀并分割这些小国。最初他让王子作为慕者前来凯尔帕拉维尔宫的时候,也许仅仅是为了寻找一个借口来反对我们。很可能他希望一口就将纳尼亚和阿钦兰两个国家同时吞并掉。”

"Let him try,"said the second Dwarf. "At sea we are as big as he is. And if he assaults us by land, he has the desert to cross."

“让他尽管尝试吧。”第二个小矮人说道,“我们在海上和他一样强大。况且只要他从陆地进攻,就不得不穿过大沙漠。”

"True, friend," said Edmund. "But is the desert a sure defence ? What does Sallowpad say ?"

“你说得对,我的朋友,”德蒙说道,“但是沙漠真的是个可靠的屏障吗?萨罗帕德你是怎么看的?”

"I know that desert well," said the Raven. "For I have flown above it far and wide in my younger days," (you may be sure that Shasta pricked up his ears at this point). "And this is certain;that if the Tisroc goes by the great oasis he can never lead a great army across it into Archenland. For though they could reach the oasis by the end of their first day' s march, yet the springs there would be too little for the thirst of all those soldiers and their beasts. But there is another way."

“我非常了解这个大沙漠,”乌鸦说,“在我年轻的时候,我曾在大沙漠的上空飞过,飞得又远又广。”你可以确信沙斯塔听到这里的时候竖起了耳朵。“有一点是毋庸置疑的,如果太洛帝从大绿洲进军,他永远不可能带领一支庞大的军队穿过沙漠进入阿钦兰。因为虽然他们可以在第一天行军的最后到达绿洲,但是那里的泉水对于所有那些饥渴的士兵以及他们的坐骑来说太少了。但是,还有另外一条路径。”

Shasta listened more attentively still.

沙斯塔仍然一动不动,只是更加专注地听着。

"He that would find that way," said the Raven, "must start from the Tombs of the Ancient Kings and ride northwest so that the double peak of Mount Pire is always straight ahead of him. And so, in a day' s riding or a little more, he shall come to the head of a stony valley, which is so narrow that a man might be within a furlong of it a thousand times and never know that it was there. And looking down this valley he will see neither grass nor water nor anything else good.But if he rides on down it he will come to a river and can ride by the water all the way into Archenland. "

“要想找到这条路,”乌鸦说道,“必须从古代国王的坟场出发,朝着西北进发,以保证皮尔峰的双峰总是笔直地在路的正前方。而且,保持这样一天甚至一天多一点儿的骑行后,就会来到一个石头山谷的入口处。那个入口非常狭窄,一个人可能上千次地仅仅距离它只有二百米左右,却仍然无法知道它就在那里。而且,从山谷向下望,也不会看到任何青草、水或者任何好的东西。但是如果继续骑马向山谷下前进,就会来到一条河边,沿着河边骑行就能一路直接到达阿钦兰境。”

"And do the Calormenes know of this Western way ?" asked the Queen.

“卡乐门人知道这条朝西的路吗?”女王问道。

"Friends, friends/' said Edmund, "what is the use of all this discourse ? We are not asking whether Narnia or Calormen would win if war arose between them. We are asking how to save the honour of the Queen and our own lives out of this devilish city. For though my brother, Peter the High King, defeated the Tisroc a dozen times over, yet long before that day our throats would be cut and the Queen' s grace would be the wife, or more likely, the slave, of this prince. "

“朋友们,各位朋友们。”德蒙说道,“讨论这些有什么用呢?我们现在讨论的并不是如果战争发生在纳尼亚王国和卡乐门王国之间,哪个国家会胜利的问题。我们在讨论的是如何离开这个魔鬼的城市,拯救女王的尊荣和我们自己的命。就算我的哥哥至尊王彼得会把太洛帝打败十几次,但是在那之前我们的脖子已经被砍断了,女王也已经成为了王子的妻子,或者更有可能地,成为了他的奴隶。”

"We have our weapons, King," said the first Dwarf. "And this is a reasonably defensible house."

“国王,我们也有我们的武器。”第一个小矮人说道,“而且这是一个完全可以用来防御的房屋。”

"As to that,"said the King,"I do not doubt that every one of us would sell our lives dearly in the gate and they would not come at the Queen but over our dead bodies. Yet we should be merely rats fighting in a trap when all' s said."

“关于这一点。”国王说道,“我毫不怀疑,我们每一个人都愿意在门口拼上我们的命,除非敌人踏着我们的体过来,否则休想侵犯女王。然而我们不过是已经中了圈套而在陷阱中战斗的老鼠罢了。”

"Very true," croaked the Raven. "These last stands in a house make good stories, but nothing ever came of them. After their first few repulses the enemy always set the house on fire."

“的确是这样,”乌鸦哇哇叫道,“那些在房子里坚守到最后的人,虽然成为了美谈,但却没有一点效果。当他们最初几次打败敌人之后,敌人总是直接将房屋付之一炬。”

"I am the cause of all this," said Susan, bursting into tears."Oh, if only I had never left Cair Paravel. Our last happy day was before those ambassadors came from Calormen. The Moles were planting an orchard for us---oh---oh. " And she buried her face in her hands and sobbed.

“都是我造成的。”苏珊哭着说道,“啊,要是我从未离开过凯尔帕拉维尔就好了。那些卡乐门的大使们到来之前,是我们最后的欢乐时光。摩尔人也正在为我们种植一个花园……啊……啊。”她双手捂住自己的脸啜泣道。

"Courage,Su, courage," said Edmund. "Remember-but what is the matter with you, Master Tumnus ?" For the Faun was holding both his horns with his hands as if he were trying to keep his head on by them and writhing to and fro as if he had a pain in his inside.

“勇气,苏珊,你要有勇气,”德蒙说道,“记住……但是图姆纳斯师傅,你怎么啦?”因为那个半羊人正在用双手紧紧握住他自己的两只角,就好像它要借此来保住它的脑袋。同时它左右扭动着自己的身体,就好像它身体的部都在疼痛一样。

"Don't speak to me, don't speak to me," said Tumnus. "I'm thinking.I'm thinking so that I can hardly breathe. Wait, wait,do wait. "There was a moment' s puzzled silence and then the Faun looked up, drew a long breath, mopped its forehead and said:"The only difficulty is how to get down to our ship—with some stores, too—without being seen and stopped. "

“不要和我说话,不要和我说话。”图姆纳斯说道,“我正在思考,思考得快无法呼吸了。等一等,等一等,请等一下。”令人感到困惑的缄默只持续了一段时间,半羊人抬起头来,长长地吸了口气,然后擦了擦它的前额说道:“我们唯一的困难是如何在不被人看见也不被人阻止的情况下将一些储备运到我们的船上。”

"Yes," said a Dwarf dryly. "Just as the beggar's only difficulty about riding is that he has no horse."

“对啊。”一个小矮人干巴巴地说道,“这就好像是乞丐想要骑马,唯一的困难是他没有马。”

"Wait, wait," said Mr. Tumnus impatiently. "All we need is some pretext for going down to our ship today and taking stuff on board.""Yes," said King Edmund doubtfully.

“等一等,等一等,”图姆纳斯先生极不耐烦地说道,“我们需要的只是找到一个借口今天上船,同时携带一些东西到船上去。” “哦。”国王德蒙怀疑地应道。

"Well, then," said the Faun, "how would it be if your majesties bade the Prince to a great banquet to be held on board our own galleon, the Spendour Hyaline, tomorrow night ? And let the message be worded as graciously as the Queen can contrive without pledging her honour: so as to give the Prince a hope that she is weakening."

“那么,这样,”半羊人说道,“如果我们的陛下邀请王子出席明晚在我们自己船上‘灿烂晶莹号’举办的一个盛大筵席,这个理由怎么样?而且要让这个消息的措辞尽可能地亲切,就好像女王可以放下她的尊荣。这样就可以给王子一个希望,认为女王的心已经在软化了。”

"This is very good counsel,Sire," croaked the Raven.

“陛下,这确实是个很好的主意。”乌鸦嚷道。

"And then," continued Tumnus excitedly, "everyone will expect us to be going down to the ship all day, making preparations for our guests. And let some of us go to the bazaars and spend every minim we have at the fruiterers and the sweetmeat sellers and the wine merchants, just as we would if we were really giving a feast. And let us order magicians and jugglers and dancing girls and flute players,all to be on board tomorrow night."

“而且这样的话,”图姆纳斯兴奋地继续说道,“每个人都会希望我们整天都待在船上,为迎接我们的客人们做准备。我们中的一些可以到市场上去,在水果店,糖果店,酒商那里花光我们所有的钱,就好像我们真的要开一个盛宴一样。我们也要预约一些魔术师、杂耍演员、舞和吹长笛的乐师们,请他们明晚都到船上来。”

"I see, I see," said King Edmund, rubbing his hands.

“我懂了,我懂了。”德蒙边着双手边说道。

"And then," said Tumnus, "we'll all be on board tonight. And as soon as it is quite dark—"

“接下来,”图姆纳斯说道,“我们今晚将都在船上。只要天一黑……”

"Up sails and out oars—!" said the King.

“就扬起篷帆,划起浆来……”国王说道。

"And so to sea," cried Tumnus, leaping up and beginning to dance.

“然后就到了海上。”图姆纳斯大声说道,蹦蹦跳跳的,并且开始跳起舞来。

"And our nose Northward," said the first Dwarf."Running for home ! Hurrah for Narnia and the North !"said the other.

“奔向家园啦!奔往纳尼亚和北方!”另一个说道。

"And the Prince waking next morning and finding his birds flown !"said Peridan, clapping his hands.

“等到王子第二天早上醒来,就会发现他的鸟儿全都飞走了。”帕里丹拍着双手说道。

"Oh Master Tumnus,dear Master Tumnus," said the Queen,catching his hands and swinging with him as he danced. "You have saved us all. "

“噢,图姆纳斯师傅,亲的图姆纳斯师傅啊。”女王握住图姆纳斯的手,仿佛和他跳舞一样摇晃着他的身体说道:“你救了我们所有人。”

"The Prince will chase us," said another lord, whose name Shasta had not heard.

“王子将会追捕我们的。”另外一个王爷说道,他的名字叫什么,沙斯塔还没有听说过。

"That's the least of my fears," said Edmund. "I have seen all the shipping in the river and there' s no tall ship of war nor swift galley there. I wish he may chase us ! For the Splendour Hyaline could sink anything he has to send after her—if we were overtaken at all."

“那是我最不担心的事情,”德蒙说道,“我观察过河流里所有的船只,那里既没有一艘高大的战船,也没有快速的大帆船。我倒是希望他会追捕我们。因为‘灿烂晶莹号’有能力击沉一切在他后面追踪的船,如果我们被追上的话。”

"Sire," said the Raven. "You shall hear no better plot than the Faun' s though we sat in council for seven days. And now, as we birds say, nests before eggs. Which is as much as to say, let us all take our food and then at once be about our business."

“陛下,”乌鸦说道,“即使我们坐在评议会里商议七天,你也不会听到比半羊人的计策更加高明的了。现在,就如同鸟儿们说的,要想生蛋,先要筑巢。也就是说,我们必须先吃饭,然后立即着手办事。”

Everyone arose at this and the doors were opened and the lords and the creatures stood aside for the King and Queen to go out first .Shasta wondered what he ought to do,but Mr.Tumnus said,

听到这里,每个人都站起来了,旁门打开之后,王爷和其他的随从主动站在一边,以便让国王和女王先行通过。沙斯塔想知道他应该做什么,但是图姆纳斯先生说道:

"Lie there, your Highness, and I will bring you up a little feast to yourself in a few moments. There is no need for you to move until we are all ready to embark."Shasta laid his head down again on the pillows and soon he was alone in the room.

“殿下,请躺在这里。我稍后就替你送来佳肴。在我们大家准备好之前,您无需行动。”沙斯塔只好将他的脑袋重新放回到枕头上,不一会儿屋子里就只剩下他一个人了。

"This is perfectly dreadful/' thought Shasta. It never came into his head to tell these Narnians the whole truth and ask for their help. Having been brought up by a hard, closefisted man like Arsheesh, he had a fixed habit of never telling grown-ups anything if he could help it: he thought they would always spoil or stop whatever you were trying to do. And he thought that even if the Narnian King might be friendly to the two horses, because they were Talking Beasts of Narnia, he would hate Aravis, because she was a Calormene, and either sell her for a slave or send her back to her father. As for himself, "I simply daren't tell them I'm not Prince Corin now," thought Shasta. "I've heard all their plans. If they knew I wasn't one of themselves, they'd never let me out of this house alive. They' d be afraid I' d betray them to the Tisroc. They'd kill me. And if the real Corin turns up, it'll all come out,and they will !" He had,you see,no idea of how noble and free-born people behave.

“这情况极其可怕。”沙斯塔心中想着。他从来没有想过告诉纳尼亚人全部的真相,并且请求他们的帮助。从小被一个心肠坚硬,拳头大的男人带大的他,养成了一个固定不变的惯,如果他能够找到方法,他就什么都不会告诉成年人。他认为成年人总是会破坏或者是阻止一切他想要尝试去做的事情。而且他还认为,即使纳尼亚的国王可能很友好地对待两匹马,因为它们是纳尼亚会说话的动物。纳尼亚的国王仍然会憎恨阿拉维斯,因为她是一个卡乐门人,而且不是把她当做奴隶卖掉就是将她送回到她的父亲那里去。至于他自己,“我简直不能告诉他们,我现在不是王子科林。”沙斯塔想,“我已经知道了他们的全部计划。如果他们知道我不是他们的一员,他们绝对不会让我活着离开这间房子。他们会担心我将他们出卖给太洛帝。如果真正的王子科林出现,一切就都拆穿了,他们会杀掉我的。”你看,他对于高尚且天生自由的人们如何为人处世,毫无概念。

"What am I to do ? What am I to do ?" he kept saying to himself. "What-hullo, here comes that goaty little creature again. "

“我该怎么办呢?我该怎么做呢?”他不断地对自己说着,“怎么回事……呀,那个羊一样的小家伙又回来了。”

The Faun trotted in, half dancing, with a tray in its hands which was nearly as large as itself. This he set on an inlaid table beside Shasta's sofa, and sat down himself on the carpeted floor with his goaty legs crossed.

半羊人双手捧着个几乎和他身体一样大的盘子,一边跳舞,一边小跑地走进房间。他把盘子放在沙斯塔沙发旁边的一张镶嵌着螺钿的桌子上,然后就交叉着羊坐在铺着地毯的地板上。

"Now,princeling/' he said. "Make a good dinner. It will be your last meal in Tashbaan."

“现在,小王子,”他说,“好好地吃一顿晚饭吧,这将是你在塔什班的最后一餐了。”

It was a fine meal after the Calormene fashion. I don' t know whether you would have liked it or not, but Shasta did. There were lobsters, and salad, and snipe stuffed with almonds and truffles, and a complicated dish made of chickenlivers and rice and raisins and nuts, and there were cool melons and gooseberry fools and mulberry fools, and every kind of nice thing that can be made with ice. There was also a little flagon of the sort of wine that is called"white"though it is really yellow.

这是一顿具有卡乐门风味的美餐。我不知道你是否喜欢,但是沙斯塔喜欢。这里有龙虾,沙拉,肚子里塞了菌类和杏仁的鹊,有鸡肝,米粒,葡萄干,果仁炒的什锦,还有甜瓜冰凌,油醋栗,油桑葚,以及每一种能够与米饭一起煮来吃的好东西。还有一小壶被称为“白葡萄酒”,尽管实质是黄的一种酒。

While Shasta was eating, the good little Faun, who thought he was still dazed with sunstroke, kept talking to him about the fine times he would have when they all got home;about his good old father King Lune of Archenland and the little castle where he lived on the southern slopes of the pass. "And don't forget," said Mr.Tumnus,"that you are promised your first suit of armour and your first war horse on your next birthday. And then your Highness will begin to learn how to tilt and joust. And in a few years, if all goes well,King Peter has promised your royal father that he himself will make you Knight at Cair Paravel. And in the meantime there will be plenty of comings and goings between Narnia and Archenland across the neck of the mountains. And of course you remember you have promised to come for a whole week to stay with me for the Summer Festival, and there'll be bonfires and all-night dances of Fauns and Dryads in the heart of the woods and, who knows ? We might see Aslan himself !"

当沙斯塔吃饭的时候,善良的小半羊人认为他仍然因为中暑而头晕目眩,便不断地讲一些事情给他听:他们大家一起回到家乡后,他将会拥有的美好时光;讲起了他那善良的老父亲,阿钦兰的国王伦恩,以及在要隘南坡国王所住的小城堡。

When the meal was over the Faun told Shasta to stay quietly where he was. "And it wouldn't do you any harm to have a little sleep," he added. "I'll call you in plenty of time to get on board. And then, Home.Narnia and the North !"

“但是你可别忘了,”图姆纳斯先生说道,“承诺过你的,在你下一个生日时,你会得到你的第一套盔甲和第一匹战马的。然后殿下你就要开始学骑马持矛冲刺和比武了。几年以后,如果一切顺利的话,至尊王彼得已经答允你的父王,他要亲自封你为凯尔帕拉维尔的骑士。在此期间,会有许多侠士在纳尼亚和阿钦兰的山之间来回穿梭。当然你记得你曾答应要来和我一起待上一个星期,过盛夏节,那时会有很大的篝火,在森林的中心会有半羊人和树的通宵跳舞,而且,谁知道呢?说不定我们还会看到阿斯兰本人呢!”

Shasta had so enjoyed his dinner and all the things Tumnus had been telling him that when he was left alone his thoughts took a different turn. He only hoped now that the real Prince Corin would not turn up until it was too late and that he would be taken away to Narnia by ship. I am afraid he did not think at all of what might happen to the real Corin when he was left behind in Tashbaan. He was a little worried about Aravis and Bree waiting for him at the Tombs. But then he said to himself, "well, how can I help it ?" and, "anyway, that Aravis thinks she's too good to go about with me, so she can jolly well go alone," and at the same time he couldn' t help feeling that it would be much nicer going to Narnia by sea than toiling across the desert.

吃完饭后,半羊人嘱咐沙斯塔安静地待在原来的地方休息。“你稍稍睡一觉也没事,”他补充说道,“我要过好久才会来叫你上船呢。上了船后,就能回家了。直奔纳尼亚和北方!”沙斯塔十分享受他的晚饭以及图姆纳斯告诉他的所有事情,以至于当他一个人在房间的时候,他的思想发生了截然不同的转变。他现在只是希望真正的王子科林迟迟不要到来,这样他就可以通过船只被带到纳尼亚去了。恐怕他压根儿就没想到:被留在塔什班城的那个真科林会碰到什么样的危险。他只是有点担心在坟场上等候他的阿拉维斯和布里。但马上他又跟自己说道,“哎,我能帮上什么忙呢?”还有,“不管怎样,那个阿拉维斯觉得她太善良才愿意跟我混在一起,现在她便可以高高兴兴地独自走了。”同时,他又忍不住地想到,从海上坐船到纳尼亚去比辛辛苦苦穿越大沙漠舒服多了。沙斯塔想着这一切的时候,不知不觉地睡着了。

When he had thought all this he did what I expect you would have done if you had been up very early and had a long walk and a great deal of excitement and then a very good meal,and were lying on a sofa in a cool room with no noise in it except when a bee came buzzing in through the wide open windows.He fell asleep.

如果你也曾经大清早起身,行走了漫长的路,经历了极大的兴奋,然后又吃了一顿美餐,同时还躺在凉快房间里的一张沙发上,四周都寂静无声,只有一只从打开着的窗户飞来的蜜蜂在小声地嗡嗡叫着,你也会睡着的。

What woke him was a loud crash. He jumped up off the sofa, staring. He saw at once from the mere look of the room— the lights and shadows all looked different—that he must have slept for several hours. He saw also what had made the crash: a costly porcelain vase which had been standing on the window-sill lay on-the floor broken into about thirty pieces. But he hardly noticed all these things. What he did notice was two hands gripping the windowsill from outside. They gripped harder and harder (getting white at the knuckles) and then up came a head and a pair of shoulders. A moment later there was a boy of Shasta' s own age sitting astride the sill with one leg hanging down inside the room.

突然“砰”的一声,一个响亮的碰撞声把他惊醒了。他立即从沙发上跳起身,瞪着眼睛环顾左右。单从房间里的情形来看,光和影看起来都不一样了,他立刻明白他肯定已经睡了好几个时辰。他才发现了是什么弄出的啪啦声:原本放在窗台上的一个昂贵的瓷花瓶,在地板上被摔碎成了数不清的小碎片。但他却没有在意这些事情,他注意的是有两只从外面进来的手,正抓住窗台。那两只手愈抓愈紧,指关节都开始发白了,接着就出现一个脑袋和一副肩膀。几分钟之后,便冒出一个年龄同沙斯塔相仿还跨坐在窗台上的孩子了,一条正伸到房间里面。

Shasta had never seen his own face in a looking-glass. Even if he had, he might not have realized that the other boy was (at ordinary times) almost exactly like himself. At the moment this boy was not particularly like anyone for he had the finest black eye you ever saw, and a tooth missing, and his clothes (which must have been splendid ones when he put them on) were torn and dirty, and there was both blood and mud on his face.

沙斯塔从来没有在镜子里看到过他自己的脸。即使他曾经看见过,他也可能意识不到这个孩子在平常时候几乎和自己长得一模一样。此时此刻,这个男孩并不特别像任何其他人,因为他拥有你见过的最漂亮的黑眼睛,还掉了一颗牙齿,他的衣服破破烂烂的,尽管他穿到身上的时候挺华丽的,而且他的脸上既有鲜血又有污泥。

"Who are you ?" said the boy in a whisper.

“你是谁?”那孩子低声询问道。

"Are you Prince Corin ?" said Shasta.

“你是王子科林吗?”沙斯塔问道。

"Yes, of course," said the other. "But who are you ?"

“是啊,我当然是王子科林。”那孩子说道,“但是你是谁呢?”

"I'm nobody,nobody in particular,I mean," said Shasta."King Edmund caught me in the street and mistook me for you. I suppose we must look like one another. Can I get out the way you' ve got in ?"

“我谁也不是,我的意思是,我不是什么特别的人。”沙斯塔说道,“德蒙国王在街上逮捕了我,并且错把我当作是你。我猜想我们肯定长得很像对方。我能从你刚进来的地方出去吗?”

"Yes, if you're any good at climbing," said Corin. "But why are you in such a hurry ? I say: we ought to be able to get some fun out of this being mistaken for one another."

“可以,如果你会攀登的话,”科林说,“可你为什么这么匆忙呢?你听我说,我们应该就人家把我们误认这一点找点乐子啊。”

"No, no," said Shasta. "We must change places at once. It' ll be simply frightful if Mr. Tumnus comes back and finds us both here.I' ve had to pretend to be you.And you' re starting tonight-secretly.And where were you all this time ?"

“不,不要,”沙斯塔说道,“我们必须立刻换回位置。如果图姆纳斯先生回来,发现我们两个都在这里,那情形简直就叫人害怕了。我曾经不得不假装是你。而且你今天夜里就得出发——秘密地。你这段时间去哪里了?”

"A boy in the street made a beastly joke about Queen Susan," said Prince Corin, "so I knocked him down. He ran howling into a house and his big brother came out. So I knocked the big brother down. Then they all followed me until we ran into three old men with spears who are called the Watch. So I fought the Watch and they knocked me down. It was getting dark by now. Then the Watch took me along to lock me up somewhere. So I asked them if they' d like a stoup of wine and they said they didn' t mind if they did. Then I took them to a wine shop and got them some and they all sat down and drank till they feel asleep. I thought it was time for me to be off so I came out quietly and then I found the first boy-the one who had started all the trouble-still hanging about. So I knocked him down again. After that I climbed up a pipe on to the roof of a house and lay quiet till it began to get light this morning. Ever since that I' ve been finding my way back. I say, is there anything to drink ?"

“街上有个孩子对女王苏珊开了个恶劣的玩笑,”王子科林说,“所以我就把他打倒在地。他边跑边哭地进了一幢房子里,他的哥哥从里面跑出来。我也把那哥哥打倒在地。接着他们两个都来追我,直至我们撞见了三个被称为卫的持矛老人。我就和卫打起来了,卫把我打倒了。这时天变得暗了下来。卫们把我带走,要把我关在什么地方。所以我就问他们是否愿意喝壶酒?他们说,喝喝也没事。于是我就带着他们去了一家酒馆,帮他们要了些酒,他们便都坐下来开始喝酒,一直喝到都睡着了。我想,这正是我逃跑的最佳时机,于是我悄悄地走出了酒馆,便发现了那第一个孩子——就是引起这场麻烦的小家伙还在附近闲荡,所以我再次把他打倒在地。紧接着,我攀着一个水管一直向上爬,到了一幢房子的屋顶上,然后在屋顶上静静地躺着,一直躺到今天早晨快要天亮的时候,之后我一直在找回家的路。我说,这里有什么可以喝的?”

"No, I drank it," said Shasta."And now,show me how you got in. There's not a minute to lose. You'd better lie down on the sofa and pretend—but I forgot. It'll be no good with all those bruises and black eye. You'll just have to tell them the truth, once I'm safely away. "

“没,我把酒喝了。”沙斯塔说,“现在你来告诉我,你是如何进来的。一分钟也不能耽搁了。你最好还是躺在沙发上吧,假装……但是我忘了,你脸上那青一块紫一块的,眼眶都发黑了,没办法隐瞒下去了。一旦我安全地离开后,你就要把真相全部告诉他们。”

"What else did you think I'd be telling them ?" asked the Prince with a rather angry look. "And who are you ?"

“你认为我会告诉他们其他的什么吗?”王子带着相当愤怒的神问道:“你究竟是什么样的人?”

"There's no time," said Shasta in a frantic whisper. "I'm a Narnian,I believe;something Northern anyway.But I've been brought up all my life in Calormen. And I'm escaping: across the desert;with a talking Horse called Bree.And now, quick ! How do I get away ?"

“来不及说了,”沙斯塔用激动得快要发疯的声音低声说道,“我是个纳尼亚人,无论如何我相信我是在北方出生的。但我已经在卡乐门长大。我正要逃跑,要穿过一个大沙漠,跟一匹叫做布里的说人话的马儿一起走。现在,快!我怎么出去?”

"Look," said Corin. "Drop from this window on to the roof of the verandah. But you must do it lightly, on your toes, or someone will hear you. Then along to your left and you can get up to the top of that wall if you' re any good at all as a climber. Then along the wall to the corner. Drop onto the rubbish heap you will find outside, and there you are. "

“你看,”科林说道,“从这个窗口跳下去,就可以到游廊的屋顶上。但你必须要轻轻地走,踮着脚尖走,要不然别人就会听见的。然后你一路向左走,就可以爬到墙头上去,如果你是个爬墙高手的话。然后沿着墙头一直走到角落里。你就会看到墙外有堆垃圾,你就往下跳,这就可以了。”

"Thanks," said Shasta, who was already sitting on the sill. The two boys were looking into each other' s faces and suddenly found that they were friends.

“谢谢。”沙斯塔说道。他已经坐在窗台上了。这两个孩子互相看着对方的脸,突然发现他们已经成为好朋友了。

"Good-bye," said Corin. "And good luck. I do hope you get safe away."

“那再见了,”科林说,“希望你好运,我真希望你能安全地走出去。”

"Good-bye," said Shasta. "I say, you have been having some adventures."

“再见,”沙斯塔说,“我说,你已经度过危险,但危险还没有完全过去呢!”

"Nothing to yours," said the Prince. "Now drop;lightly I say," he added as Shasta dropped. "I hope we meet in Archenland.Go to my father King Lune and tell him you're a friend of mine. Look out !I hear someone coming."

“跟你的危险相比,那根本算不了什么。”王子说,“你现在往下跳吧,轻轻地——嘿,”沙斯塔跳下去时,王子补充道,“我希望我们能在阿钦兰境见面。你去见我的父王伦恩,然后告诉他你是我的朋友。小心点!我听到有人过来了。”

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