LUCY ran out of the empty room into the passage and found the other three.
“It's all right,”she repeated,“I've come back.”
“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'sa 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, fung 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 kepton 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, fshing, 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 isto do.Then he began feeling about for Lucy in the dark.He had expected to fnd 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 fnd 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 fnding himself stepping out into the spare room he found himself stepping out from the shadow of some thick dark fr 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 fne 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 fre 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 Edmundwith the bells jingling and the dwarf cracking his whip and the snow fying up on each side of it.
“Stop!”said the Lady, and the dwarf pulled the reindeer up so sharply 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.”
露西從那個空房間跑出去,來到外面的走廊上,見到了其他三個人。
“沒事了,”她重復(fù)說道,“我回來了?!?/p>
“露西,你究竟在說什么?”蘇珊問。
“啊?”露西驚訝地說,“難道你們剛才不是一直在找我嗎?”
“你剛剛藏起來了,對不對?”彼得說,“可憐的露妹妹,自己藏起來,卻沒人注意到!你要是想讓別人去找你,下次可得藏久一點(diǎn)兒!”
“可是我都離開這里好幾個小時了?!甭段髡f。
大家你看看我,我看看你。
“你瘋了吧!”埃德蒙拍了下自己腦袋,說,“真是瘋了!”
“露,你在說什么???”彼得問她。
“我說,”露西回答說,“剛吃完早飯,我就進(jìn)入了那個衣柜,我已經(jīng)走了好久好久了,這期間,我和別人喝了茶,還發(fā)生了好多事情?!?/p>
“露西,別傻了!”蘇珊說,“我們剛從房間里走出來,剛才你還在里面?!?/p>
“她一點(diǎn)兒都不傻,”彼得說,“她只是編了個故事逗大家開心,露,是不是?再說,她怎么就不可以這樣逗逗大家呢?”
“不是的,彼得,我沒有編故事,”她說,“那是——那是一個魔法衣柜。衣柜里面有樹林,下著雪,有半人羊和白女巫,那個地方叫納尼亞,走,我們一起去看看。”
其他人根本不知該作如何想,而露西特別興奮。大伙兒在她的感染下,都跟著她回到那個房間。露西沖在最前面,她猛地一把拉開衣柜門,大聲說:“你們現(xiàn)在自己進(jìn)去看!”
“呃,傻孩子,”蘇珊一邊往里面鉆,一邊用手撥開衣服,然后說,“這不就是個普通的衣柜嘛。瞧,這就是衣柜后壁呀。”
大家聽蘇珊這么一說,都把頭伸進(jìn)去,撥開兩邊的衣服,大家眼前看見的——包括露西看見的——就是一個普通得不能再普通的衣柜,里面沒有樹林,也沒有雪,衣柜后壁就在那里,上面還掛著掛鉤。彼得走進(jìn)去,用手指關(guān)節(jié)敲了敲,確定衣柜后壁是實(shí)心的。
“露,這法子可真高明,”他說著從里面出來,“我得承認(rèn),你成功把大家騙了。我們幾乎都相信你了?!?/p>
“可這根本就不是騙局,”露西說,“這是千真萬確的事情,剛才和現(xiàn)在根本就是兩個樣,剛才不是這樣的,我向你們保證?!?/p>
“露,別說了,”彼得說,“再說就有點(diǎn)兒過了。你和我們開玩笑,已經(jīng)騙到我們了,現(xiàn)在你是不是該承認(rèn)自己在說謊了?”
露西的臉變得緋紅,想說點(diǎn)兒什么,但又不知道該說什么,最后哭了起來。
接下來幾天,露西都悶悶不樂。其實(shí)任何時候,只要她肯承認(rèn)一切都是自己圖好玩瞎編的,大家很容易就會和好如初。但是,露西是一個非常誠實(shí)的女孩,她知道自己說的都是實(shí)話,所以沒法走到大家面前,說自己在撒謊。其他人都以為她在撒謊,而且是很愚蠢的謊話,這讓露西很不開心。年齡稍大點(diǎn)兒的兩個孩子說露西撒謊并不是有意,但埃德蒙有時候很壞,在這件事情上他就是很壞。他對露西冷嘲熱諷,不斷問她是不是又在碗柜里發(fā)現(xiàn)了其他新的國家。這幾天,天氣都很好,大家從早到晚都待在室外,曬太陽、釣魚、爬樹,或是躺在石楠花叢里,露西本來可以玩得很開心,可因?yàn)檫@件事情,她根本沒法從中享受到任何樂趣。每天都是這樣,直到又一個雨天到來。
那一天,直到下午,天還沒有放晴的跡象,大家決定玩捉迷藏。蘇珊第一個蒙眼數(shù)數(shù),其他人迅速跑去找地方藏起來。露西跑進(jìn)那個放衣柜的房間里,她并不想藏在衣柜里,因?yàn)樗廊绻菢幼?,只會讓其他人再次提起那件令自己煩惱的事情。不過,她確實(shí)還想再去衣柜里面看一看,因?yàn)樗查_始懷疑納尼亞王國和半人羊是不是只是自己的一個夢而已。這座房子很大,構(gòu)造也很復(fù)雜,到處都是藏人的地方,露西心想,自己先去衣柜里面看看,出來還有時間找其他地方躲起來??伤齽傋叩揭鹿袂?,就聽到外面走廊里傳來了腳步聲,她沒有選擇,只好跳進(jìn)衣柜,掩上門。她并沒有緊鎖上門,因?yàn)樗腊炎约烘i在衣柜里是一件十分愚蠢的事情,即使這是一個魔法衣柜。
露西聽見的是埃德蒙的腳步聲,他走進(jìn)那間屋子時,恰好看見露西消失在衣柜里。他當(dāng)下決定跟過去——倒不是因?yàn)樗X得那是個藏起來的好地方,而是因?yàn)樗肷锨叭⌒β段飨胂笾械耐鯂?。他拉開衣柜門,里面和平常并無二致,掛著大衣,散發(fā)著樟腦球的味道,靜悄悄、黑乎乎的,不過他并沒有看見露西。“她以為我是來捉她的蘇珊?!卑5旅勺匝宰哉Z道,“所以就安靜地躲在后面?!彼M(jìn)衣柜,關(guān)上門,完全忘記把自己鎖在衣柜里是一件多么愚蠢的事情。接著,他開始在黑暗里摸尋露西,心想用不了幾秒鐘就能抓到她,可一直沒有找到她,這讓埃德蒙很吃驚。于是,他打算打開衣柜門,透點(diǎn)兒光線進(jìn)來,但是他找不到門在什么地方。這可不是埃德蒙喜歡的情況,他開始朝各個方向摸,甚至大叫起來:“露西!露!你在哪里?我知道你在這里?!?/p>
任憑埃德蒙大叫,也沒有任何回應(yīng),他注意到自己的聲音聽起來很奇怪——并不像是在柜子里,倒像是在空曠的野外,他還感覺到異常冷。這時,他看見一處亮光。
“太好了!”埃德蒙說,“門肯定自己開了?!彼耆浤翘炻段髡f她朝一盞燈走去的事情,他只以為是門自己開了。埃德蒙向那亮光處走去,但是他并沒有走出衣柜,回到空房間里,而是發(fā)現(xiàn)自己正從大片茂密的冷杉的樹蔭走出,走到樹林中央開闊處。
腳下是松脆干燥的雪,而樹枝上的積雪更多。他的頭頂上方是淡藍(lán)色的天空,就像是冬日晴天早晨的天空一樣。他望向前方,樹干縫隙中,太陽剛升起。太陽紅紅的,陽光透徹。四周如此靜謐,就好像他是這塊土地上唯一的活物一樣。樹林朝各個方向無限延伸,但樹叢間既沒有一只知更鳥,也沒有一只松鼠。埃德蒙打了一個寒戰(zhàn)。
他這才記起來自己在找露西,同時也想起自己如何嘲笑露西口中那個“想象國度”,而現(xiàn)在的情況表明那并不是露西想象出來的。他以為露西一定就在附近,于是大聲喊起來:“露西!露西!我也在這里——我是埃德蒙?!?/p>
四下里沒有任何回應(yīng)。
“我最近總是嘲笑她,她肯定生氣了?!卑5旅尚睦锵?。雖然他并不想承認(rèn)錯誤,不過相比之下,他更不愿意孤零零一個人待在這個冷森森、靜悄悄的陌生地方,所以他又開始喊。
“我說,露!對不起,我之前沒有相信你。我現(xiàn)在知道你一直都是對的。快出來,我們和好吧?!?/p>
依舊沒有任何回應(yīng)。
“真是個小女孩,”埃德蒙自言自語,“生氣了,還不愿意接受別人的道歉。”他又環(huán)顧一周,他實(shí)在是不喜歡這里,差不多打定主意回去了。就在這時,遠(yuǎn)處樹林里傳來一陣鈴聲。他聽見聲音越來越近,直到兩頭馴鹿拉著一輛雪橇進(jìn)入視野。
兩只馴鹿的體型和設(shè)得蘭矮馬差不多大,它們身上的毛特別白,甚至連白雪與之相比,都不算白了。兩只樹杈一樣的鹿角顏色絢麗,在陽光的照射下,就像是搖曳在火光中一樣。兩只馴鹿身上套著深紅色皮革挽具,上面掛著鈴鐺。坐在御座上的是一個胖胖的小矮人,站起來估計也就三英尺高。他身披由北極熊皮毛制成的外套,頭戴紅色頭巾,頭巾頂上有一條長長的金色流蘇。那大胡子都垂到了膝蓋處,反倒起了毛毯的作用。不過,在小矮人身后略高處,在雪橇的正中央,卻坐著一個與小矮人迥然不同的人——一個身材高大的女人,她比埃德蒙見過的任何女人都要高。這個女人也穿著白色的皮毛大衣,從脖子到腳都裹得嚴(yán)嚴(yán)實(shí)實(shí)的,頭上戴著金冠,右手拿一根長長的金魔杖。細(xì)看她的臉,除了嘴唇是紅色,其余都是白色的——不是單純的蒼白,而像是白雪、白紙或是糖霜那樣的白。這是一張優(yōu)美的臉,只不過透著驕傲、冷漠和嚴(yán)厲。
小矮人揮動鞭子,駕著雪橇從埃德蒙眼前疾馳而去,鈴鐺叮當(dāng)作響,雪花向路兩邊飛揚(yáng),這場景煞是好看。
“停!”那個女人命令道,小矮人急忙拉住韁繩,動作如此快速,以致兩只馴鹿兩腿騰空,幾乎跌坐下去。不一會兒,它們平復(fù)過來,站在那里一邊咬著嘴里的嚼子,一邊喘氣。在寒冷的空氣中,它們鼻子里呼出的熱氣像極了一縷縷輕煙。
“你是誰?”那個女人問,眼睛狠狠盯著埃德蒙看。
“我是——我是——我叫埃德蒙!”埃德蒙結(jié)結(jié)巴巴地回答。他不喜歡這樣被別人盯著看。
那個女人眉頭一皺?!耙姷脚?,你就是這樣行禮的嗎?”她問道,看起來比之前更嚴(yán)厲。
“尊敬的女王,請原諒我,我并不知道您是女王?!卑5旅烧f。
“竟然不知道我是納尼亞的女王?”她大聲喝道,“呵!你接下來就知道我們是誰了。我再問一遍——你是什么來歷?”
“稟告女王,”埃德蒙說,“我不知道您是什么意思。我還在念書——至少之前是——現(xiàn)在是假期?!?/p>
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