《凱斯賓王子》第八章 啟程

CHAPTER EIGHT HOW THEY LEFT THE ISLAND

第八章 啟程

"AND so，"said Trumpkin (for，as you have realized，it was he who had been telling all this story to the four children，sitting on the grass in the ruined hall of Cair Paravel)-"and so I put a crust or two in my pocket，left behind all weapons but my dagger，and took to the woods in the grey of the morning.I'd been plugging away for many hours when there came a sound that I'd never heard the like of in my born days.Eh，I won't forget that.The whole air was full of it，loud as thunder but far longer，cool and sweet as music over water，but strong enough to shake the woods.And I said to myself，'If that's not the Horn，call me a rabbit. ' And a moment later I wondered why he hadn't blown it sooner-"

"事情就是這樣的，"杜魯普金說。到這里你們都該知道了吧，坐在凱爾帕拉維爾城堡廢墟的草地上給四個(gè)孩子講故事的，就是他。"我卸下身上的武器，只帶了一柄短劍，往兜里隨便塞了兩片面包，就趁著暮色，走向森林深處了。我低著頭向前走了很久，突然聽到一種我從未聽過的聲音。那連綿不絕的聲音響徹天空，分外優(yōu)美歡快，有種春風(fēng)拂面的感覺，但又有種足以撼動(dòng)整片森林的力量。我對自己說'我敢打賭如果不是那只號(hào)的神力，你們就管我叫兔子。'我很是不解，他為什么不早點(diǎn)兒把號(hào)角吹響呢?"

"What time was it?"asked Edmund.

"那時(shí)是幾點(diǎn)?"愛德蒙問。

"Between nine and ten of the clock，"said Trumpkin.

"九點(diǎn)到十點(diǎn)之間吧。"杜魯普金說。

"Just when we were at the railway station!"said all the children，and looked at one another with shining eyes.

"那時(shí)候我們正在火車站!"孩子們眼睛里閃爍著激動(dòng)的光芒，異口同聲地說。

"Please go on，"said Lucy to the Dwarf.

"你接著說。"露茜對小矮人說。

I could pelt.I kept on all night-and then，when it was half light this morning，as if I'd no more sense than a Giant，I risked a short cut across open country to cut off a big loop of the river，and was caught.Not by the army，but by a pompous old fool who has charge of a little castle which is Miraz's last stronghold towards the coast.I needn't tell you they got no true tale out of me，but I was a Dwarf and that was enough.But，lobsters and lollipops! it is a good thing the seneschal was a pompous fool.Anyone else would have run me through there and then.But nothing would do for him short of a grand execution: sending me down' to the ghosts'in the full ceremonial way.And then this young lady"，(he nodded at Susan)"does her bit of archery-and it was pretty shooting，let me tell you-and here we are.And without my armour，for of course they took that."He knocked out and refilled his pipe.

"嗯，聽到號(hào)聲之后，我立刻信心倍增，繼續(xù)向前走去，一直走了一天一夜。后來在破曉時(shí)分，我做了一件比巨人還傻的事。我為了省事不去繞那條河，冒險(xiǎn)抄近路。當(dāng)我正穿過一片開闊地時(shí)，就被他們捉住了。不過抓住我的不是軍隊(duì)，而是一個(gè)自命清高的老笨蛋。他駐守在一個(gè)小城堡里，那是通往海岸的必經(jīng)之中，彌若茲設(shè)的最后一個(gè)關(guān)卡。我沒有多說什么，他們也休想從我嘴里聽到任何消息?？墒俏沂切“耍@一點(diǎn)已經(jīng)足夠給我判罪了。但是，哎呀，那個(gè)管事的老家伙還真不錯(cuò)，要是換了別人，我肯定當(dāng)場就被干掉了。可是，他認(rèn)為只有把我送到'幽靈'那兒去才是最大的懲罰。結(jié)果，我就被這位年輕的小姐給救了(說著他沖蘇珊點(diǎn)了點(diǎn)頭)。遺憾的是我身上的盔甲都沒有了，被他們剝走了。"他說著，又為自己的煙斗裝上一斗煙。

"Great Scott!"said Peter."So it was the horn-your own horn，Su-that dragged us all off that seat on the platform yesterday morning! I can hardly believe it; yet it all fits in."

"乖乖!"彼得說，"這么說，真的是那只號(hào)--你的那只神號(hào)，蘇珊在昨天早上把我們從站臺(tái)的座位上給拽到這兒來的!簡直讓人難以置信，可這一切的的確確發(fā)生了。"

"I don't know why you shouldn't believe it，"said Lucy，"if you believe in magic at all.Aren't there lots of stories about magic forcing people out of one place-out of one world-into another? I mean，when a magician in The Arabian Nights calls up a Jinn，it has to come.We had to come，just like that."

"我不明白你為什么會(huì)不信，"露茜說，"你是相信魔法的呀。好多故事都有說魔法能帶人離開某個(gè)地方，或者是某個(gè)世界，再到另一個(gè)世界去。比如《一千零一夜》中的魔法師一念咒語，精靈馬上就會(huì)出現(xiàn)在他的面前。我們會(huì)回到納尼亞，正是同樣的道理。"

"Yes，"said Peter，"I suppose what makes it feel so queer is that in the stories it's always someone in our world who does the calling.One doesn't really think about where the Jinn's coming from."

"沒錯(cuò)，"彼得說，"我覺得奇怪的是念咒語的總是我們這個(gè)世界里的人，可到底有沒有人認(rèn)真想過，精靈到底是從哪兒來的呢。"

"And now we know what it feels like for the Jinn，"said Edmund with a chuckle."Golly! It's a bit uncomfortable to know that we can be whistled for like that.It's worse than what Father says about living at the mercy of the telephone."

"現(xiàn)在我們都知道精靈的感受了。"愛德蒙笑了，"天哪!拿起號(hào)角就那么一吹，我們便不受自己控制地來了，這還真的有點(diǎn)不太自在。比爸爸說的被電話呼來喚去的還不好受。"

"But we want to be here，don't we，"said Lucy，"if Aslan wants us?"

"但是我們都愿意來這兒，不是嗎?"露茜說，"如果是阿斯蘭要我們來的呢?"

"Meanwhile，"said the Dwarf，"what are we to do? I suppose I'd better go back to King Caspian and tell him no help has come."

"那現(xiàn)在怎么辦?"小矮人說，"我想我最好馬上回去，告訴國王我們并無援兵可指望，只能另想辦法。"

"No help?"said Susan."But it has worked.And here we are."

"沒有援兵?"蘇珊說，"那號(hào)角不是已經(jīng)把我們召來了嗎?"

"Um-um-yes，to be sure.I see that，"said the Dwarf，whose pipe seemed to be blocked (at any rate he made himself very busy cleaning it)."But-well-I mean-"

"嘿......嘿......是的，當(dāng)然啰，我知道啊。"小矮人說，他的煙斗似乎是堵住了(他努力假裝自己正忙著清理煙斗)，"但是......那個(gè)......我的意思是......"

"But don't you yet see who we are?"shouted Lucy."You are stupid."

"你現(xiàn)在還不知道我們是誰嗎?"露茜叫道，"你可夠笨的!"

"I suppose you are the four children out of the old stories，"said Trumpkin.And I'm very glad to meet you of course.And it's very interesting，no doubt.But-no offence?-and he hesitated again.

"我猜你們就是傳說中的那四個(gè)孩子吧，"杜魯普金說，"我當(dāng)然很高興見到你們。毫無疑問，這很有意思。可是......我沒有意思冒犯你們吧"他又猶豫了。

"Do get on and say whatever you're going to say，"said Edmund.

"你想說什么，就說出來吧。"愛德蒙說。

"Well，then-no offence，"said Trumpkin."But，you know，the King and Trufflehunter and Doctor Cornelius were expecting-well，if you see what I mean，help.To put it in another way，I think they'd been imagining you as great warriors.As it is-we're awfully fond of children and all that，but just at the moment，in the middle of a war-but I'm sure you understand."

"嗯，那個(gè)......我不是故意冒犯你們，"杜魯普金說，"你們知道，凱斯賓國王、特魯佛漢特和克奈爾斯博士都在期待，你們知道我在說什么--他們在期待著強(qiáng)有力的援兵，也就是說我原本以為你們應(yīng)該是那種高大威猛、驍勇善戰(zhàn)的勇士?？涩F(xiàn)實(shí)是你們還只是孩子。沒錯(cuò)，我們都很喜歡孩子，但是在這樣緊要的關(guān)頭，在戰(zhàn)斗中你們又能做些什么呢?你們能理解我的意思吧。"

"You mean you think we're no good，"said Edmund，getting red in the face.

"你的意思是你認(rèn)為我們什么忙也幫不上。"愛德蒙說話的時(shí)候，臉都?xì)饧t了。

"Now pray don't be offended，"interrupted the Dwarf."I assure you，my dear little friends-"

"不要生氣，"小矮人打斷了他的話，"我向你們保證，親愛的小朋友們......"

"Little from you is really a bit too much，"said Edmund，jumping up."I suppose you don't believe we won the Battle of Beruna? Well，you can say what you like about me because I know-"

"'小'朋友!你也太小看我們了吧!"愛德蒙跳了起來，"我認(rèn)為，你不會(huì)相信是我們打贏了柏盧納戰(zhàn)役吧?你愛怎么說就怎么說好了，我知道......"

"There's no good losing our tempers，"said Peter."Let's fit him out with fresh armour and fit ourselves out from the treasure chamber，and have a talk after that."

"現(xiàn)在不是發(fā)脾氣的時(shí)候，"彼得說，"咱們先給他配一套盔甲，然后我們也馬上武裝起來，別的以后再說。"

"I don't quite see the point-"began Edmund，but Lucy whispered in his ear，"Hadn't we better do what Peter says? He is the High King，you know.And I think he has an idea."So Edmund agreed and by the aid of his torch they all，including Trumpkin，went down the steps again into the dark coldness and dusty splendour of the treasure house.

"我看不出這么做......"愛德蒙這話剛出口，露茜立刻對他輕輕耳語："咱們應(yīng)該按彼得說的去做。他是我們的至尊王，我想他已經(jīng)有辦法了。"愛德蒙當(dāng)即點(diǎn)點(diǎn)頭，拿起手電筒帶領(lǐng)大家和杜魯普金，又一次走下臺(tái)階，來到那個(gè)又黑又冷，滿是灰塵的寶庫。

The Dwarf's eyes glistened as he saw the wealth that lay on the shelves (though he had to stand on tiptoes to do so) and he muttered to himself，"It would never do to let Nikabrik see this; never."They found easily enough a mail shirt for him，a sword，a helmet，a shield，a bow and quiverful of arrows，all of dwarfish size.The helmet was of copper，set with rubies，and there was gold on the hilt of the sword: Trumpkin had never seen，much less carried，so much wealth in all his life.The children also put on mail shirts and helmets; a sword and shield were found for Edmund and a bow for Lucy-Peter and Susan were of course already carrying their gifts.As they came back up the stairway，jingling in their mail，and already looking and feeling more like Narnians and less like schoolchildren，the two boys were behind，apparently making some plan.Lucy heard Edmund say，"No，let me do it.It will be more of a sucks for him if I win，and less of a let-down for us all if I fail."

小矮人一看到架子上那些寶貝，眼睛就開始放光(盡管他要踮腳才能看到)，嘴里不斷地念叨著："可不能讓尼克布瑞克看到這些，絕不能!" 很快孩子們就給他找到了一套合身的鎖子甲、一頂頭盔、一把寶劍、一塊盾牌、一張弓和滿滿一筒箭，這些都是專為小矮人們量身訂做的。所以不僅大小合適，而且做工非常精細(xì)，材料也是上乘的。銅制的頭盔上還嵌著寶石，劍柄是純金鑄成的。杜魯普金這輩子都沒見過，更沒想過能擁有這么奢華的東西，所以他高興得都不知說什么了。四個(gè)孩子也相繼穿上盔甲。一柄鋒利的寶劍，以及一塊小巧的皮質(zhì)盾牌歸了愛德蒙;一張弓是為露茜準(zhǔn)備的;彼得和蘇珊早已帶上他們各自的寶物。當(dāng)他們順著臺(tái)階走出寶庫時(shí)，身上的鎖子甲叮當(dāng)作響，儼然是納尼亞最好的勇士，哪還像是只知道讀書玩耍的學(xué)生。兩個(gè)男孩跟在后面，很快他們就制定了一套行動(dòng)方案。露茜只聽愛德蒙說道，"不，讓我來，要是我勝了他就顯得更丟人。萬一我輸了，也不至于很丟臉。"

"All right，Ed，"said Peter.

"那好吧，愛德蒙。"彼得同意了。

When they came out into the daylight Edmund turned to the Dwarf very politely and said，"I've got something to ask you.Kids like us don't often have the chance of meeting a great warrior like you.Would you have a little fencing match with me? It would be frightfully decent."

他們又重新來到陽光下。這時(shí)愛德蒙很有禮貌地把身子轉(zhuǎn)向小矮人，對他說，"我有個(gè)請求，希望你同意。要知道我們這樣的小孩子，是不可能常常遇到像你這樣偉大的勇士的，你愿意和我比比劍術(shù)嗎?這樣比較合乎禮儀。"

"But，lad，"said Trumpkin，"these swords are sharp."

"可是，小朋友，"杜魯普金說，"這些劍都很鋒利呢。"

"I know，"said Edmund."But I'll never get anywhere near you and you'll be quite clever enough to disarm me without doing me any damage."

"我知道啊，"愛德蒙說，"我的劍不可能碰到你，而你也可以輕松地解除我的武裝，卻不傷我半分。"

"It's a dangerous game，"said Trumpkin."But since you make such a point of it，I'll try a pass or two."

"這個(gè)游戲很危險(xiǎn)，"杜魯普金說，"不過既然是你提出來的，我就陪你玩?zhèn)€一兩局吧。"

Both swords were out in a moment and the three others jumped off the dais and stood watching.It was well worth it.It was not like the silly fighting you see with broad swords on the stage.It was not even like the rapier fighting which you sometimes see rather better done.This was real broad-sword fighting.The great thing is to slash at your enemy'slegs and feet because they are the part that have no armour.And when he slashes at yours you jump with both feet off the ground so that his blow goes under them.This gave the Dwarf an advantage because Edmund，being much taller，had to be always stooping.I don't think Edmund would have had a chance if he had fought Trumpkin twenty-four hours earlier.But the air of Narnia had been working upon him ever since they arrived on the island，and all his old battles came back to him，and his arms and fingers remembered their old skill.He was King Edmund once more.Round and round the two combatants circled，stroke after stroke they gave，and Susan (who never could learn to like this sort of thing) shouted out，"Oh，do be careful."And then，so quickly that no one (unless they knew，as Peter did) could quite see how it happened，Edmund flashed his sword round with a peculiar twist，the Dwarf's sword flew out of his grip，and Trumpkin was wringing his empty hand as you do after a"sting"from a cricket-bat.

一時(shí)之間，兩把寶劍"唰"地一下子被抽出來，另外三個(gè)孩子則跳下臺(tái)來，在一旁觀戰(zhàn)。這可是一場真槍實(shí)戰(zhàn)，跟戲臺(tái)上用木頭道具打給人看的小把戲完全不同，甚至連運(yùn)動(dòng)會(huì)上的擊劍比賽也不可比擬，這可是一次戰(zhàn)士間的格斗。最精彩的便是用寶劍劈對方的腿和腳，因?yàn)橹挥心抢餂]有盔甲防護(hù)。當(dāng)對方用劍劈來的那一刻，你必須迅速跳起來，這劍才會(huì)從你腳下快速掠過。這對小矮人是有利的，因?yàn)閻鄣旅蓚€(gè)子高，不得不蹲下身子去攻擊對手。如果是在一天前，他和杜魯普金進(jìn)行比賽，愛德蒙根本沒什么勝算。 可他們一來到小島，納尼亞的空氣便潛移默化地給了他很多魔力。他回想起從前的戰(zhàn)斗，胳膊和手指瞬間恢復(fù)了力氣?，F(xiàn)在，他又像是當(dāng)年的國王愛德蒙了。兩個(gè)戰(zhàn)士在打了幾個(gè)回合后，蘇珊(她怎么也沒法喜歡這種事情)不停地高聲提醒道，"噢!小心啊!"就在一眨眼的功夫，愛德蒙使了一個(gè)花劍招數(shù)，打飛了小矮人的劍。杜魯普金看著自己空空的右手，只能無辜地眨著眼睛。

"Not hurt，I hope，my dear little friend?"said Edmund，panting a little and returning his own sword to its sheath.

"沒受傷吧，我親愛的小朋友?"愛德蒙輕喘著氣，把寶劍插進(jìn)劍鞘。

"I see the point，"said Trumpkin drily."You know a trick I never learned."

"我看懂了，"杜魯普金灰溜溜地說，"你的這招我根本沒學(xué)過。"

"That's quite true，"put in Peter."The best swordsman in the world may be disarmed by a trick that's new to him.I think it's only fair to give Trumpkin a chance at something else.Will you have a shooting match with my sister? There are no tricks in archery，you know."

"沒錯(cuò)，"彼得說，"世上最好的擊劍手也有可能被一個(gè)他不知道的絕招給擊潰。這樣吧，再給你一次機(jī)會(huì)，咱們換一種武器比試，這樣才公平合理，對不對，朋友?你想要和我妹妹比射箭嗎?那可沒有花招可耍了，相信你很清楚。"

"Ah，you're jokers，you are，"said the Dwarf."I begin to see.As if I didn't know how she can shoot，after what happened this morning.All the same，I'll have a try."He spoke gruffly，but his eyes brightened，for he was a famous bowman among his own people.

"哈，開玩笑啊，你......"小矮人說，"她今天早上救了我，那時(shí)我就知道她有多厲害了。不過，沒關(guān)系，我也愿意再試一試。"他一副不高興的樣子，但眼里卻滿是欣慰，因?yàn)樗芨杏X到自己的陣營里多了幾個(gè)不容小覷的主力軍。

All five of them came out into the courtyard.

他們五個(gè)一同來到了院子里。

"What's to be the target?"asked Peter.

"用什么當(dāng)靶子呢?"彼得問。

"I think that apple hanging over the wall on the branch there would do，"said Susan.

"我覺得樹枝上那只蘋果就行。"蘇珊說。

"That'll do nicely，lass，"said Trumpkin."You mean the yellow one near the middle of the arch?"

"那不錯(cuò)，"杜魯普金痛快地答道，"是說靠近樹杈的那只黃蘋果嗎?"

"No，not that，"said Susan."The red one up above-over the battlement."

"不是那只，"蘇珊說，"我指的是樹頂上的那只紅蘋果。"

The Dwarf's face fell."Looks more like a cherry than an apple，"he muttered，but he said nothing out loud.

小矮人的臉色當(dāng)即沉下來，嘴里喃喃地說著，"這蘋果比櫻桃還像櫻桃。"但他沒有說出來。

They tossed up for first shot (greatly to the interest of Trumpkin，who had never seen a coin tossed before) and Susan lost.They were to shoot from the top of the steps that led from the hall into the courtyard.Everyone could see from the way the Dwarf took his position and handled his bow that he knew what he was about.

他們決定用擲硬幣來決定誰先射箭。杜魯普金很有興趣，他還從來沒有玩過這種游戲。結(jié)果是蘇珊在后。他們必須要先選好角度才能射中蘋果，因?yàn)閺拇蟮畹交▓@之間有一段臺(tái)階。就憑小矮人的站位和拉弓的姿勢，大家看得出來他也是個(gè)行家。

Twang went the string.It was an excellent shot.The tiny apple shook as the arrow passed，and a leaf came fluttering down.Then Susan went to the top of the steps and strung her bow.She was not enjoying her match half so much as Edmund had enjoyed his; not because she had any doubt about hitting the apple but because Susan was so tender-hearted that she almost hated to beat someone who had been beaten already.The Dwarf watched her keenly as she drew the shaft to her ear.A moment later，with a little soft thump which they could all hear in that quiet place，the apple fell to the grass with Susan's arrow in it.

"嗖"的一聲，箭射出去了，這一箭很漂亮。一箭過去，小蘋果只是擺了一擺，倒是旁邊的一片樹葉飄然落下。下面到蘇珊上場了。她站到了臺(tái)階上，拉開了弓。她對這場比賽不太有興趣，倒不是因?yàn)樗龥]有信心射中蘋果，而是她心地善良不想去傷害已經(jīng)吃了一場敗仗的對手。小矮人仔細(xì)地看著她。蘇珊把弓弦拉到耳邊，只一瞬間，一聲弦響，那顆蘋果便應(yīng)聲落地了。蘇珊的箭正中蘋果中心。

"Oh，well done，Su，"shouted the other children.

"哦!做得好，蘇珊!"其他幾個(gè)孩子歡呼起來。

"It wasn't really any better than yours，"said Susan to the Dwarf."I think there was a tiny breath of wind as you shot."

"我沒有你厲害，"蘇珊對小矮人說，"因?yàn)?，你射的時(shí)候，我感覺到一陣風(fēng)。"

"No，there wasn't，"said Trumpkin."Don't tell me.I know when I am fairly beaten.I won't even say that the scar of my last wound catches me a bit when I get my arm well back-"

"不，沒有風(fēng)，"杜魯普金說，"你不用安慰我，我知道你們已經(jīng)打敗我了?？晌覄偛攀且?yàn)榧绨虻膫械胶芡?....."

"Oh，are you wounded?"asked Lucy."Do let me look."

"啊，你受傷了嗎?"露茜問，"快給我看看。"

"It's not a sight for little girls，"began Trumpkin，but then he suddenly checked himself."There I go talking like a fool again，"he said"I suppose you're as likely to be a great surgeon as your brother was to be a great swordsman or your sister to be a great archer."He sat down on the steps and took off his hauberk and slipped down his little shirt，showing an arm hairy and muscular (in proportion) as a sailor's though not much bigger than a child's.There was a clumsy bandage on the shoulder which Lucy proceeded to unroll.Underneath，the cut looked very nasty and there was a good deal of swelling."Oh，poor Trumpkin，"said Lucy."How horrid."Then she carefully dripped on to it one single drop of the cordial from her flask.

"小姑娘，你看了也沒用。"杜魯普金此話一出，立即感到不妥，然后趕緊改口，"對不起，我又說傻話了。你的哥哥是出色的擊劍家，你的姐姐是了不起的射手，我猜你應(yīng)該是個(gè)高明的醫(yī)生。"他坐到臺(tái)階上，解開鎖子甲，脫掉了貼身的小襯衫，像水手一般多毛且肌肉發(fā)達(dá)的胳膊露了出來。大家看到他肩膀的傷口被馬虎地包扎著。露茜解開看了一下，繃帶下是一條很深的刀傷，已經(jīng)發(fā)炎了，周圍都又紅又腫。"哦，可憐的杜魯普金，"露茜說，"這傷口好可怕。"說著她從手中的小瓶里小心翼翼地倒出一滴神水，滴在傷口上。

"Hullo.Eh? What have you done?"said Trumpkin.But however he turned his head and squinted and whisked his beard to and fro，he couldn't quite see his own shoulder.Then he felt it as well as he could，getting his arms and fingers into very difficult positions as you do when you're trying to scratch a place that is just out of reach.Then he swung his arm and raised it and tried the muscles，and finally jumped to his feet crying，"Giants and junipers! It's cured!It's as good as new."After that he burst into a great laugh and said，"Well，I've made as big a fool of myself as ever a Dwarf did.No offence，I hope? My humble duty to your Majesties all-humble duty.And thanks for my life，my cure，my breakfast-and my lesson."

"哎，嗯?你剛才做了什么啊?"杜魯普金說著轉(zhuǎn)過頭來，卻不由大吃一驚，"咦，我的傷口怎么不見了?"他擺動(dòng)著小胡子到處看來看去，還仔仔細(xì)細(xì)把胳膊摸了一遍。最后，他舒展著胳膊活動(dòng)了一下肌肉，跳起來大喊道，"神啊!我身上的傷口好啦!我的胳膊現(xiàn)在跟沒受傷一樣!"接著他又大笑著說，"啊，我怎么這么笨!你們都別跟我一般見識(shí)，我向各位陛下致敬......雖然這敬意微不足道。非常感謝你們救了我，治好了我的傷，用豐盛的早餐款待我......還有給我'上了一課'。"

The children all said it was quite all right and not to mention it.

四個(gè)孩子都說，這只是小事，不值一提。

"And now，"said Peter，"if you've really decided to believe in us-"

"那么現(xiàn)在，"彼得說，"你應(yīng)該已經(jīng)相信我們了。"

"I have，"said the Dwarf.

"當(dāng)然。"小矮人說。

"It's quite clear what we have to do.We must join King Caspian at once."

"我們必須馬上啟程，好盡快與凱斯賓國王會(huì)合。"

"The sooner the better，"said Trumpkin."My being such a fool has already wasted about an hour."

"而且越快越好，"杜魯普金說，"我真是個(gè)傻瓜，已經(jīng)耽誤了將近一個(gè)鐘頭的時(shí)間。"

"It's about two days'journey，the way you came，"said Peter."For us，I mean.We can't walk all day and night like you Dwarfs."Then he turned to the others."What Trumpkin calls Aslan's How is obviously the Stone Table itself.You remember it was about half a day's march，or a little less，from there down to the Fords of Beruna-"

"如果沿你的來路過去，大概要兩天時(shí)間，"彼得說，"但我們無法像你們小矮人那樣日夜兼程。"說著他轉(zhuǎn)向其他人，"杜魯普金說的阿斯蘭堡壘應(yīng)該就是那個(gè)大石桌。你們應(yīng)該還記得，從那兒往下走，到柏盧納渡口只要半天就夠了。"

"Beruna's Bridge，we call it，"said Trumpkin.

"我們把那兒叫做柏盧納大橋。"杜魯普金說。

"There was no bridge in our time，"said Peter."And then from Beruna down to here was another day and a bit.We used to get home about teatime on the second day，going easily.Going hard，we could do the whole thing in a day and a half perhaps."

"在我們時(shí)代，那兒還沒有橋，"彼得說，"那時(shí)從柏盧納到這兒需要一天，通常我們都是在第二天吃晚飯時(shí)到家的。如果走得快一點(diǎn)，一天半應(yīng)該可以趕到那兒。"

"But remember it's all woods now，"said Trumpkin，"and there are enemies to dodge."

"可現(xiàn)在到處都是森林，"杜魯普金提醒說，"而且還有敵人在那兒呢。"

"Look here，"said Edmund，"need we go by the same way that Our Dear Little Friend came?"

"我想問，"愛德蒙開口道，"我們只能走這位小朋友來時(shí)走的那條路嗎?"

"No more of that，your Majesty，if you love me，"said the Dwarf.

"陛下別再叫我小朋友啦，留點(diǎn)面子給我吧。"小矮人說。

"Very well，"said Edmund."May I say our D.L.F.?"

"好吧，"愛德蒙說，"那我能管你叫我們的小不點(diǎn)嗎?"

"Oh，Edmund，"said Susan."Don't keep on at him like that."

"喂，愛德蒙，"蘇珊說，"干嗎總是對人家不依不饒的。"

"That's all right，lass-I mean your Majesty，"said Trumpkin with a chuckle."A jibe won't raise a blister."(And after that they often called him the D.L.F.till they'd almost forgotten what it meant.)

"沒關(guān)系的，小姑娘......哦，我是說女王陛下。"杜魯普金笑著說，"這只是在開玩笑，沒關(guān)系的。"(從那以后，他們就親切地叫他小不點(diǎn)了，以致于到后來，這個(gè)稱呼的真正含義倒是幾乎被忘掉了。)

"As I was saying，"continued Edmund，"we needn't go that way.Why shouldn't we row a little south till we come to Glasswater Creek and row up it? That brings us up behind the Hill of the Stone Table，and we'll be safe while we're at sea.If we start at once，we can be at the head of Glasswater before dark，get a few hours' sleep，and be with Caspian pretty early tomorrow."

"我剛才是要說，"愛德蒙繼續(xù)說，"咱們不用走那兒，只要乘船向南經(jīng)過清水溪，然后逆流而上，就可以直達(dá)大石桌的后山。我覺得我們走水路會(huì)比較安全。如果我們馬上出發(fā)，在天黑之前就可以趕到清水溪的入口處，然后休息幾個(gè)小時(shí)，明天一大早就可以見到凱斯賓了。"

"What a thing it is to know the coast，"said Trumpkin."None of us know anything about Glasswater."

"真了不起啊!你知道那么多關(guān)于海岸的事。"杜魯普金說，"我們還對清水溪這一路一無所知呢。"

"What about food?"asked Susan.

"還有，食物問題又怎么解決?"蘇珊問。

"Oh，we'll have to do with apples，"said Lucy."Do let's get on.We've done nothing yet，and we've been here nearly two days."

"噢，我們還有蘋果，"露茜說，"快點(diǎn)走吧，都過了兩天了，我們還什么事兒都沒做呢。"

"And anyway，no one's going to have my hat for a fish-basket again，"said Edmund.

"不管怎樣，誰也別再用我的帽子當(dāng)籃子了。"愛德蒙說。

They used one of the raincoats as a kind of bag and put a good many apples in it.Then they all had a good long drink at the well (for they would meet no more fresh water till they landed at the head of the Creek) and went down to the boat.The children were sorry to leave Cair Paravel，which，even in ruins，had begun to feel like home again.

于是，他們把雨衣改成了一個(gè)袋子，裝了很多蘋果，又到井邊喝足了水，因?yàn)樵诘竭_(dá)清水溪之前，很可能沒有淡水。然后，他們上了小船，望著將要離開的凱爾帕拉維爾城堡，孩子們的心里不禁悵然。雖然那兒已是一片廢墟，可還是像他們的第二故鄉(xiāng)一樣親切。

"The D.L.F.had better steer，"said Peter，"and Ed and I will take an oar each.Half a moment，though.We'd better take off our mail: we're going to be pretty warm before we're done.The girls had better be in the bows and shout directions to the D.L.F.because he doesn't know the way.You'd better get us a fair way out to sea till we've passed the island."

"小不點(diǎn)a，最好由你來掌舵，"彼得說，"我和愛德蒙劃槳。雖然路不遠(yuǎn)，咱們最好還是脫掉身上的鎖子甲，不然劃不了多久就會(huì)熱得受不了。你們兩個(gè)女孩子，就坐在船頭，給小不點(diǎn)指示方向吧，他還不知道方向呢。你們最好讓船直接駛進(jìn)大海里，繞開這座島。"

And soon the green，wooded coast of the island was falling away behind them，and its little bays and headlands were beginning to look flatter，and the boat was rising and falling in the gentle swell.The sea began to grow bigger around them and，in the distance，bluer，but close round the boat it was green and bubbly.Everything smelled salt and there was no noise except the swishing of water and the clop-clop of water against the sides and the splash of the oars and the jolting noise of the rowlocks.The sun grew hot.

很快，他們把這座森林覆蓋的綠色小島遠(yuǎn)遠(yuǎn)拋在了后面，小船在海浪中顛簸著。周圍的海域愈發(fā)遼闊了起來，向遠(yuǎn)處眺望那藍(lán)藍(lán)的海水望不著邊際。近處有小船蕩起的碧波，浪花在船邊上翻滾?？諝饫锸呛Ｋ南涛?。海上非常寂靜，只有海水撞擊船舷、船槳拍打水面的嘩嘩聲和船槳發(fā)出的嘎吱聲。天氣更熱了。

It was delightful for Lucy and Susan in the bows，bending over the edge and trying to get their hands in the sea which they could never quite reach.The bottom，mostly pure，pale sand but with occasional patches of purple seaweed，could be seen beneath them.

露茜和蘇珊開心地坐在船頭。她們彎下身把手伸在到船邊，想要玩玩海水，可總是夠不到。不過她們可以清楚地看見海底月白色的沙子，是那么地純凈。當(dāng)然，偶爾還能看到一片片紫紅色的海藻。

"It's like old times，"said Lucy."Do you remember our voyage to Terebinthia-and Galma-and Seven Isles-and the Lone Islands?"

"好像時(shí)光倒流的感覺呢，"露茜說，"還記得我們航行到特里賓西亞......還有卡爾馬......還有七群島......還有孤獨(dú)群島的時(shí)光嗎?"

"Yes，"said Susan，"and our great ship the Splendour Hyaline，with the swan's head at her prow and the carved swan' wings coming back almost to her waist?"

"當(dāng)然記得，"蘇珊應(yīng)道，"還有我們的'輝煌海爾蘭號(hào)'，

"And the silken sails，and the great stern lanterns?"

那船頭鑲有天鵝頭雕塑，雕刻出來的天鵝翅膀一直伸到船的中部。"

"And the feasts on the poop and the musicians."

"有綢子做的帆船尾還有個(gè)巨大的燈籠?"

"Do you remember when we had the musicians up in the rigging playing flutes so that it sounded like music out of the sky?"

"還有擺在甲板上的盛宴和那些樂師。你們記不記得，有位樂師還爬到船帆的纜繩上去吹笛子?那聲音簡直就像天籟。"

Presently Susan took over Edmund's oar and he came forward to join Lucy.They had passed the island now and stood closer in to the shore-all wooded and deserted.They would have thought it very pretty if they had not remembered the time when it was open and breezy and full of merry friends.

他們邊走邊回憶，當(dāng)蘇珊去接愛德蒙的班劃槳的時(shí)候，他們已經(jīng)過了一大半路程。海岸越來越近了，他們記得當(dāng)年的這里還只是一片開闊地，很多人在此聚會(huì)。現(xiàn)在卻雜草叢生無比荒涼，讓人頗為感慨。

"Phew! This is pretty gruelling work，"said Peter."Can't I row for a bit?"said Lucy.

"呼!這活兒還真是累人。"彼得說?！?quot;那讓我來替你一會(huì)兒吧?"露茜說。

"The oars are too big for you，"said Peter shortly，not because he was cross but because he had no strength to spare for talking.

"不行，你劃不動(dòng)。"彼得的話很簡短，并不是因?yàn)榘l(fā)火，而是累得沒力氣說話了。