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雙語·銀椅 第二章 吉爾得到一項任務(wù)

所屬教程:譯林版·銀椅

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2022年05月06日

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CHAPTER TWO: JILL IS GIVEN A TASK

WITHOUT a glance at Jill, the lion rose to its feet and gave one last blow. Then, as if satisfied with its work, it turned and stalked slowly away, back into the forest.

“It must be a dream, it must, it must,” said Jill to herself. “I'll wake up in a moment.” But it wasn't, and she didn't.

“I do wish we'd never come to this dreadful place,” said Jill. “I don't believe Scrubb knew any more about it than I do. Or if he did, he had no business to bring me here without warning me what it was like. It's not my fault he fell over that cliff. If he'd left me alone we should both be all right.” Then she remembered again the scream that Scrubb had given when he fell, and burst into tears.

Crying is all right in its way while it lasts. But you have to stop sooner or later, and then you still have to decide what to do. When Jill stopped, she found she was dreadfully thirsty. She had been lying face downward, and now she sat up. The birds had ceased singing and there was perfect silence except for one small, persistent sound, which seemed to come from a good distance away. She listened carefully, and felt almost sure it was the sound of running water.

Jill got up and looked round her very carefully. There was no sign of the lion; but there were so many trees about that it might easily be quite close without her seeing it. For all she knew, there might be several lions. But her thirst was very bad now, and she plucked up her courage to go and look for that running water. She went on tiptoes, stealing cautiously from tree to tree, and stopping to peer round her at every step.

The wood was so still that it was not difficult to decide where the sound was coming from. It grew clearer every moment and, sooner than she expected, she came to an open glade and saw the stream, bright as glass, running across the turf a stone's throw away from her. But although the sight of the water made her feel ten times thirstier than before, she didn't rush forward and drink. She stood as still as if she had been turned into stone, with her mouth wide open. And she had a very good reason; just on this side of the stream lay the lion.

It lay with its head raised and its two fore-paws out in front of it, like the lions in Trafalgar Square. She knew at once that it had seen her, for its eyes looked straight into hers for a moment and then turned away—as if it knew her quite well and didn't think much of her.

“If I run away, it'll be after me in a moment,” thought Jill. “And if I go on, I shall run straight into its mouth.” Anyway, she couldn't have moved if she had tried, and she couldn't take her eyes off it. How long this lasted, she could not be sure; it seemed like hours. And the thirst became so bad that she almost felt she would not mind being eaten by the lion if only she could be sure of getting a mouthful of water first.

“If you're thirsty, you may drink.”

They were the first words she had heard since Scrubb had spoken to her on the edge of the cliff. For a second she stared here and there, wondering who had spoken. Then the voice said again, “If you are thirsty, come and drink,” and of course she remembered what Scrubb had said about animals talking in that other world, and realized that it was the lion speaking. Anyway, she had seen its lips move this time, and the voice was not like a man's. It was deeper, wilder, and stronger; a sort of heavy, golden voice. It did not make her any less frightened than she had been before, but it made her frightened in rather a different way.

“Are you not thirsty?” said the Lion.

“I'm dying of thirst,” said Jill.

“Then drink,” said the Lion.

“May I—could I—would you mind going away while I do?” said Jill.

The Lion answered this only by a look and a very low growl. And as Jill gazed at its motionless bulk, she realized that she might as well have asked the whole mountain to move aside for her convenience.

The delicious rippling noise of the stream was driving her nearly frantic.

“Will you promise not to—do anything to me, if I do come?” said Jill.

“I make no promise,” said the Lion.

Jill was so thirsty now that, without noticing it, she had come a step nearer.

“Do you eat girls?” she said.

“I have swallowed up girls and boys, women and men, kings and emperors, cities and realms,” said the Lion. It didn't say this as if it were boasting, nor as if it were sorry, nor as if it were angry. It just said it.

“I daren't come and drink,” said Jill.

“Then you will die of thirst,” said the Lion.

“Oh dear!” said Jill, coming another step nearer. “I suppose I must go and look for another stream then.”

“There is no other stream,” said the Lion.

It never occurred to Jill to disbelieve the Lion—no one who had seen his stern face could do that—and her mind suddenly made itself up. It was the worst thing she had ever had to do, but she went forward to the stream, knelt down, and began scooping up water in her hand. It was the coldest, most refreshing water she had ever tasted. You didn't need to drink much of it, for it quenched your thirst at once. Before she tasted it she had been intending to make a dash away from the Lion the moment she had finished. Now, she realized that this would be on the whole the most dangerous thing of all. She got up and stood there with her lips still wet from drinking.

“Come here,” said the Lion. And she had to. She was almost between its front paws now, looking straight into its face. But she couldn't stand that for long; she dropped her eyes.

“Human Child,” said the Lion. “Where is the Boy?”

“He fell over the cliff,” said Jill, and added, “Sir.” She didn't know what else to call him, and it sounded cheek to call him nothing.

“How did he come to do that, Human Child?”

“He was trying to stop me from falling, Sir.”

“Why were you so near the edge, Human Child?”

“I was showing off, Sir.”

“That is a very good answer, Human Child. Do so no more. And now,” (here for the first time the Lion's face became a little less stern) “the Boy is safe. I have blown him to Narnia. But your task will be the harder because of what you have done.”

“Please, what task, Sir?” said Jill.

“The task for which I called you and him here out of your own world.”

This puzzled Jill very much. “It's mistaking me for someone else,” she thought. She didn't dare to tell the Lion this, though she felt things would get into a dreadful muddle unless she did.

“Speak your thought, Human Child,” said the Lion.

“I was wondering—I mean—could there be some mistake? Because nobody called me and Scrubb, you know. It was we who asked to come here. Scrubb said we were to call to—to Somebody—it was a name I wouldn't know—and perhaps the Somebody would let us in. And we did, and then we found the door open.”

“You would not have called to me unless I had been calling to you,” said the Lion.

“Then you are Somebody, Sir?” said Jill.

“I am. And now hear your task. Far from here in the land of Narnia there lives an aged king who is sad because he has no prince of his blood to be king after him. He has no heir because his only son was stolen from him many years ago, and no one in Narnia knows where that Prince went or whether he is still alive. But he is. I lay on you this command, that you seek this lost prince until either you have found him and brought him to his father's house, or else died in the attempt, or else gone back into your own world.”

“How, please?” said Jill.

“I will tell you, Child,” said the Lion. “These are the signs by which I will guide you in your quest. First; as soon as the Boy Eustace sets foot in Narnia, he will meet an old and dear friend. He must greet that friend at once; if he does, you will both have good help. Second; you must journey out of Narnia to the north till you come to the ruined city of the ancient giants. Third; you shall find a writing on a stone in that ruined city, and you must do what the writing tells you. Fourth; you will know the lost prince (if you find him) by this, that he will be the first person you have met in your travels who will ask you to do something in my name, in the name of Aslan.”

As the Lion seemed to have finished, Jill thought she should say something. So she said, “Thank you very much. I see.”

“Child,” said Aslan, in a gentler voice than he had yet used, “perhaps you do not see quite as well as you think. But the first step is to remember. Repeat to me, in order, the four signs.”

Jill tried, and didn't get them quite right. So the Lion corrected her, and made her repeat them again and again till she could say them perfectly. He was very patient over this, so that, when it was done, Jill plucked up courage to ask:

“Please, how am I to get to Narnia?”

“On my breath,” said the Lion. “I will blow you into the west of the world as I blew Eustace.”

“Shall I catch him in time to tell him the first sign? But I suppose it won't matter. If he sees an old friend, he's sure to go and speak to him, isn't he?”

“You will have no time to spare,” said the Lion. “That is why I must send you at once. Come. Walk before me to the edge of the cliff.”

Jill remembered very well that if there was no time to spare, that was her own fault. “If I hadn't made such a fool of myself, Scrubb and I would have been going together. And he'd have heard all the instructions as well as me,” she thought. So she did as she was told. It was very alarming walking back to the edge of the cliff, especially as the Lion did not walk with her but behind her—making no noise on his soft paws.

But long before she had got anywhere near the edge, the voice behind her said, “Stand still. In a moment I will blow. But, first, remember, remember, remember the signs. Say them to yourself when you wake in the morning and when you lie down at night, and when you wake in the middle of the night. And whatever strange things may happen to you, let nothing turn your mind from following the signs. And secondly, I give you a warning. Here on the mountain I have spoken to you clearly: I will not often do so down in Narnia. Here on the mountain, the air is clear and your mind is clear; as you drop down into Narnia, the air will thicken. Take great care that it does not confuse your mind. And the signs which you have learned here will not look at all as you expect them to look, when you meet them there. That is why it is so important to know them by heart and pay no attention to appearances. Remember the signs and believe the signs. Nothing else matters. And now, daughter of Eve, farewell—”

The voice had been growing softer towards the end of this speech and now it faded away altogether. Jill looked behind her. To her astonishment she saw the cliff already more than a hundred yards behind her, and the Lion himself a speck of bright gold on the edge of it. She had been setting her teeth and clenching her fists for a terrible blast of lion's breath; but the breath had really been so gentle that she had not even noticed the moment at which she left the earth. And now, there was nothing but air for thousands upon thousands of feet below her.

She felt frightened only for a second. For one thing, the world beneath her was so very far away that it seemed to have nothing to do with her. For another, floating on the breath of the Lion was so extremely comfortable. She found she could lie on her back or on her face and twist any way she pleased, just as you can in water (if you've learned to float really well). And because she was moving at the same pace as the breath, there was no wind, and the air seemed beautifully warm. It was not in the least like being in an aeroplane, because there was no noise and no vibration. If Jill had ever been in a balloon she might have thought it more like that; only better.

When she looked back now she could take in for the first time the real size of the mountain she was leaving. She wondered why a mountain so huge as that was not covered with snow and ice—“but I suppose all that sort of thing is different in this world,” thought Jill. Then she looked below her; but she was so high that she couldn't make out whether she was floating over land or sea, nor what speed she was going at.

“By Jove! The signs!” said Jill suddenly. “I'd better repeat them.” She was in a panic for a second or two, but she found she could still say them all correctly. “So that's all right,” she said, and lay back on the air as if it was a sofa, with a sigh of contentment.

“Well, I do declare,” said Jill to herself some hours later, “I've been asleep. Fancy sleeping on air. I wonder if anyone's done it before. I don't suppose they have. Oh, bother—Scrubb probably has! On this same journey, a little bit before me. Let's see what it looks like down below.”

What it looked like was an enormous, very dark blue plain. There were no hills to be seen, but there were biggish white things moving slowly across it. “Those must be clouds,” she thought. “But far bigger than the ones we saw from the cliff. I suppose they're bigger because they're nearer. I must be getting lower. Bother this sun.”

The sun which had been high overhead when she began her journey was now getting into her eyes. This meant that it was getting lower, ahead of her. Scrubb was quite right in saying that Jill (I don't know about girls in general) didn't think much about points of the compass. Otherwise she would have known, when the sun began getting in her eyes, that she was travelling pretty nearly due west.

Staring at the blue plain below her, she presently noticed that there were little dots of brighter, paler colour in it here and there. “It's the sea!” thought Jill. “I do believe those are islands.” And so they were. She might have felt rather jealous if she had known that some of them were islands which Scrubb had seen from a ship's deck and even landed on; but she didn't know this. Then, later on, she began to see that there were little wrinkles on the blue flatness: little wrinkles which must be quite big ocean waves if you were down among them. And now, all along the horizon there was a thick dark line which grew thicker and darker so quickly that you could see it growing. That was the first sign she had had of the great speed at which she was travelling. And she knew that the thickening line must be land.

Suddenly from her left (for the wind was in the south) a great white cloud came rushing towards her, this time on the same level as herself. And before she knew where she was, she had shot right into the middle of its cold, wet fogginess. That took her breath away, but she was in it only for a moment. She came out blinking in the sunlight and found her clothes wet. (She had on a blazer and sweater and shorts and stockings and pretty thick shoes; it had been a muddy sort of day in England.) She came out lower than she had gone in; and as soon as she did so she noticed something which, I suppose, she ought to have been expecting, but which came as a surprise and a shock. It was Noises. Up till then she had travelled in total silence. Now, for the first time, she heard the noise of waves and the crying of seagulls. And now, too, she smelled the smell of the sea. There was no mistake about her speed now. She saw two waves meet with a smack and a spout of foam go up between them; but she had hardly seen it before it was a hundred yards behind her.

The land was getting nearer at a great pace. She could see mountains far inland, and other nearer mountains on her left. She could see bays and headlands, woods and fields, stretches of sandy beach. The sound of waves breaking on the shore was growing louder every second and drowning the other sea noises.

Suddenly the land opened right ahead of her. She was coming to the mouth of a river. She was very low now, only a few feet above the water. A wave-top came against her toe and a great splash of foam spurted up, drenching her nearly to the waist. Now she was losing speed. Instead of being carried up the river she was gliding in to the river bank on her left. There were so many things to notice that she could hardly take them all in; a smooth, green lawn, a ship so brightly coloured that it looked like an enormous piece of jewellery, towers and battlements, banners fluttering in the air, a crowd, gay clothes, armour, gold, swords, a sound of music. But this was all jumbled. The first thing that she knew clearly was that she had alighted and was standing under a thicket of trees close by the river side, and there, only a few feet away from her, was Scrubb.

The first thing she thought was how very grubby and untidy and generally unimpressive he looked. And the second was “How wet I am!”

第二章 吉爾得到一項任務(wù)

獅子看都沒看吉爾一眼,就站起身來,又吹了最后一口氣。然后,他仿佛很滿意自己的成果,轉(zhuǎn)身悄無聲息地緩緩離開,向樹林走去。

“這肯定是一場夢,肯定是,肯定是?!奔獱枌ψ约赫f,“我很快就會醒來?!钡@并不是夢,她也沒有醒來。

“我真希望我們從沒來過這個鬼地方,”吉爾說,“我相信斯克羅布對這里的了解一點兒都不比我多。他要是了解的話,不應(yīng)該不提前警告我這里是什么樣子,就把我?guī)н^來。他摔下懸崖不是我的錯。如果他不管我,我們兩個都會好好的?!比缓螅窒肫鹆怂箍肆_布摔下去時的慘叫聲,她放聲大哭起來。

大哭一場固然痛快,但你遲早得停下來,然后還得決定該做什么。吉爾停止哭泣的時候,發(fā)現(xiàn)自己渴得要命。原來她一直臉朝下趴在地上,這時,她坐起了身子。鳥兒已經(jīng)不再唱了,此時萬籟俱寂,只有一個小小的持續(xù)不斷的聲音,那聲音似乎是從很遙遠(yuǎn)的地方傳來的。她認(rèn)真聽著,幾乎可以肯定那是流水的聲音。

吉爾站起身,非常仔細(xì)地打量了一下四周。獅子的蹤跡早已消失;不過周圍有那么多樹,他極有可能就待在附近,只是她看不到而已。根據(jù)她的知識,這里可能有好多獅子。但是她渴得厲害,只好鼓足勇氣,出發(fā)去尋找流水。她踮著腳尖走路,謹(jǐn)慎地從一棵樹悄悄挪到另一棵樹背后,每走一步都停下來觀察一下四周。

森林里非常安靜,不難判斷出水聲是從哪里傳來的。水流的聲音愈來愈清晰,她沒想到這么快就來到一片開闊的空地,看到了那道溪流,溪水明亮得像玻璃一樣,繞著草地奔流,就在距離她一步之遙的地方。盡管看到水,讓她感覺又渴了十倍,不過她并沒有急匆匆跑上前去喝。相反,她仿佛變成了石頭,一動不動地站著,嘴張得大大的。而她之所以這樣做,理由非常充分,因為獅子就臥在溪流的這一邊。

獅子臥在地上,頭抬著,兩只前爪探在身前,像特拉法爾加廣場上的獅子雕塑一樣。她立刻就知道他看到了她,因為他直直地望了她一陣,之后才轉(zhuǎn)移視線——就仿佛他非常了解她,并不太在意她。

“如果我現(xiàn)在跑開,他很快就能追上我?!奔獱栂?,“如果我向前走,就會直接跑進(jìn)他的嘴里?!笨傊?,她就算想動,也動不了,她的視線一刻也不敢從那頭獅子身上挪開。這情形到底持續(xù)了多久,她無法確定,似乎有好幾個小時。而她越來越渴,她甚至都覺得只要能夠先喝上一口水,就算被獅子吃掉也在所不惜。

“如果你渴了,你可以喝?!?/p>

這是自從斯克羅布在懸崖邊跟她說過話后,她聽到的第一句話。有一秒鐘,她看看這里,看看那里,想知道到底是誰在說話。然后那個聲音又說:“如果你渴了,過來喝吧?!彼?dāng)然想起了斯克羅布說過在另外的世界里,動物是可以說話的,然后意識到這是獅子在說話。反正,這一次,她看到了他的嘴唇在動,而且這聲音也不像人的聲音。那是一種更深沉、更野性、更有力的聲音,是一種莊重而高貴的聲音。這聲音沒有讓她變得不那么害怕,反而令她感覺到了一種完全不同的恐懼。

“你不渴嗎?”獅子說。

“我要渴死了?!奔獱栒f。

“那就喝吧。”獅子說。

“我可不可以……我能不能……我喝水的時候能不能請你走開一些?”吉爾問。

獅子的回答只是一個眼神和一聲非常低的輕吼。吉爾看著他一動不動的身體,感覺自己像是在要求整座高山為了方便她而挪到旁邊一樣。

溪流令人開心的潺潺聲引得她就要瘋了。

“你能保證不——不對我做任何事情嗎,如果我過去的話?”吉爾問。

“我不保證?!豹{子說。

吉爾現(xiàn)在太渴了,她竟然不知不覺地向前挪了一步。

“你吃女孩嗎?”她說。

“我曾吞過女孩和男孩,女人和男人,國王和皇帝,城市和王國。”獅子說。他說這話并不像是在吹牛,似乎也不覺得抱歉或是憤怒。他只是隨口說說而已。

“我不敢過去喝水?!奔獱栒f。

“那你會渴死?!豹{子說。

“啊,天??!”吉爾說著又走近了一步,“我覺得我必須離開這里,去尋找另一條小溪?!?/p>

“這里沒有別的小溪。”獅子說。

吉爾絲毫不懷疑獅子的話——任何人只要看過他嚴(yán)峻的臉,就不會對他心生懷疑——她突然下了決心。這可能是她做過的最糟糕的事情了,但她還是向前走到小溪邊,跪在地上,用手掬起水。這是她喝過的最冷洌、最清涼的水了。你不需要喝太多,因為它能瞬間解你的渴。在喝到水之前,她本來決定,只要一喝完水,就立刻從獅子身邊逃走。但現(xiàn)在,她意識到,那應(yīng)該會是所有事情中最危險的。她站起身,站在那里,嘴唇濕漉漉的。

“過來?!豹{子說。她不得不過去。她幾乎走到了獅子的兩個前爪中間,兩眼直直地對著他的臉。但她沒有辦法堅持太久,很快就垂下了眼簾。

“人類的孩子,”獅子說,“那個男孩去哪兒了?”

“他摔下懸崖了?!奔獱栒f,然后又補(bǔ)充道,“先生?!彼恢莱酥膺€應(yīng)該怎么稱呼獅子,可是,不加個稱呼,又顯得很沒有禮貌。

“他是怎么摔下去的,人類的孩子?”

“他想要防止我摔下去,先生。”

“你為什么距離懸崖邊緣那么近,人類的孩子?”

“我在顯擺,先生?!?/p>

“這是一個很好的回答,人類的孩子。別再那么做了。而現(xiàn)在,”這時,獅子的臉第一次顯得沒有那么嚴(yán)峻了,“男孩很安全。我把他吹去了納尼亞。但因為你剛才的所作所為,你的任務(wù)要比他困難一些?!?/p>

“請問,是什么任務(wù),先生?”吉爾說。

“正是為了這個任務(wù),我將你和他從你們自己的世界中召喚過來。”

這讓吉爾非常困惑?!八隙ㄊ前盐义e當(dāng)成別人了。”她想。但是她不敢告訴獅子這件事,不過她感覺,如果她不說出來,后面的事情就會變得一團(tuán)糟。

“說出你的想法,人類的孩子。”獅子說。

“我在想……我是說……是不是出了什么錯?因為,你瞧,沒有人召喚我和斯克羅布。是我們兩個自己要求來這里的。斯克羅布說我們要呼喚——呼喚某某——名字我不記得了……然后,可能,某某就會讓我們進(jìn)入這個世界。我們就呼喚了,然后我們發(fā)現(xiàn)那扇門開了?!?/p>

“如果我沒有召喚你們,你們是不會呼喚我的?!豹{子說。

“那么,你就是某某了,先生?”吉爾說。

“是。現(xiàn)在聽聽你的任務(wù)。在離這里很遠(yuǎn)的納尼亞的土地上,住著一位年老的國王,他非常悲傷,因為他沒有王子延續(xù)他的血脈,在他過世之后繼承王位。他之所以沒有繼承人,是因為很多年以前他唯一的兒子被人偷走了。在納尼亞沒有人知道王子去了哪里,也沒有人知道他是否還活著。但其實他還活著。我征召你們來承擔(dān)這項任務(wù),去尋找這位失蹤的王子,直到找到他將他帶回他父親的王庭,如果找不到他,你們要么會死在尋找的路上,要么會回到你們自己的世界去?!?/p>

“怎么去找,請問?”吉爾說。

“我會告訴你的,孩子?!豹{子說,“以下是我引導(dǎo)你們尋找王子的提示。第一,那個名叫尤斯塔斯的男孩一踏足納尼亞,就會遇到一個昔日的好朋友。他必須立即去和那個朋友打招呼,如果他這么做了,你們兩個就會得到很有益的幫助。第二,你們必須離開納尼亞,一直向北,直到走到古代巨人的城市遺跡。第三,你們會在那座城市遺跡中發(fā)現(xiàn)一塊石頭,上面刻著文字,你們必須按照上面的文字去做。第四,你們會據(jù)此認(rèn)出那位失蹤的王子(如果你們找到他的話):他是你們旅行中遇到的第一個請求你們以我的名義,以阿斯蘭的名義做一件事情的人。”

獅子似乎說完了,吉爾覺得自己應(yīng)該說點兒什么。于是,她說:“非常感謝,我明白了。”

“孩子,”阿斯蘭的聲音比以往都溫柔,“可能你并沒有你自己以為的那么明白。但第一步,是要記住。給我按順序復(fù)述一遍那四條提示?!?/p>

吉爾試著背了一遍,不是完全正確。于是,獅子一遍遍地糾正她,并讓她一次次地復(fù)述,直到她說得完全正確為止。在這個過程中,他非常有耐心,因此,背完之后,吉爾鼓起勇氣問了個問題:“請問,我該怎么去納尼亞?”

“乘著我的呼吸。”獅子說,“我會把你吹到這個世界的西方,就像我吹尤斯塔斯一樣。”

“我可以及時追上他告訴他第一條提示嗎?但我覺得這沒關(guān)系。如果他見到了老朋友,肯定會過去和朋友說話的,是不是?”

“你沒有時間了?!豹{子說,“因此,我要立即把你送去。來吧。走在我前面,到懸崖邊上去?!?/p>

吉爾很清楚地意識到,如果說沒有時間了,那也全是她自己的錯?!叭绻冶憩F(xiàn)得沒有那么蠢,斯克羅布和我就已經(jīng)一起去了那里了。而他也會像我一樣聽到所有的提示?!彼搿K爮莫{子的話。但走回懸崖邊的這一路還是很令人心驚膽戰(zhàn)的,特別是獅子不是和她走在一起,而是走在她后面——他柔軟的爪子沒有發(fā)出一點兒聲音。

然而,離懸崖邊還有一段不小的距離時,她身后的聲音就說:“站好,我馬上就會吹了。但是,首先,要牢記,牢記,牢記那些提示。每天早上醒來,對自己說一遍;每天晚上躺下,對自己說一遍;半夜醒來,對自己說一遍。無論你遇到什么奇怪的事情,都不要忘記那些提示。第二,我給你一個警告。在這座山上,我能清楚地和你交談,在納尼亞我不會經(jīng)常這么做。在這座山上,空氣很清新,你的頭腦很清醒,但當(dāng)你落到納尼亞,空氣會變得渾濁。一定要小心,不要讓它使你的腦子變糊涂了。你在這里獲得的那些提示,在那里遇到時,看上去會跟你想象中的完全不一樣。所以,你必須要用心去認(rèn)識它們,不要只看外表,這一點非常重要。記住那些提示,相信那些提示。其他一切都不重要?,F(xiàn)在,夏娃之女,再見了……”

到了這席話結(jié)尾的時候獅子的聲音變得更輕柔了,現(xiàn)在,那聲音已經(jīng)徹底消失了。吉爾看了看身后。令她吃驚的是,她看到懸崖已經(jīng)離她至少有一百碼遠(yuǎn)了,而獅子也變成了懸崖邊一個金光閃閃的小點。她本來一直咬緊牙關(guān),緊緊握著拳頭,準(zhǔn)備迎接獅子呼吸帶來的猛風(fēng),但沒想到那呼吸非常輕柔,她在離開地面之時甚至都沒有感覺。而現(xiàn)在,在她身下,向下幾千尺又幾千尺,除了空氣別無其他。

她只害怕了一秒鐘。一來,下面那個世界離她是那么遙遠(yuǎn),似乎和她沒有什么關(guān)系。二來,飄在獅子呼出的空氣上極其舒服。她發(fā)現(xiàn)自己可以躺下,可以趴著,可以隨心所欲地動來動去,就像在水中一樣(如果你的漂浮學(xué)得很好的話)。因為她移動的速度和獅子的呼吸一樣,所以并沒有風(fēng),空氣也似乎格外的溫暖宜人。這和在飛機(jī)里的感覺完全不同,因為既沒有任何噪音,也沒有任何震顫。如果吉爾坐過氣球的話,她會覺得這更像是在氣球里,只是比乘氣球更舒服些。

回頭望去時,她才第一次發(fā)現(xiàn)她剛剛離開的山到底有多大。她很好奇為什么這么巨大的一座山會沒有冰雪覆蓋——“不過,我猜,這個世界的一切都是與眾不同的?!奔獱栂搿H缓笏窒蛳驴?,不過她距離地面太遠(yuǎn)了,根本分辨不出自己是在陸地上方飄移還是在海洋上空浮動,更看不出她在以多快的速度移動。

“天啊!那些提示!”吉爾突然說,“我最好背一遍?!彼帕艘粌擅耄l(fā)現(xiàn)依然能完全正確地說出來。“那就沒什么問題了。”她說,心滿意足地長出一口氣,背向后靠著空氣,仿佛靠著沙發(fā)一樣。

“呃,我得說,”幾個小時后,吉爾自言自語地說,“我剛才睡著了。睡在空中,可真是奇怪啊。真想知道還有沒有人這么做過。我猜沒有吧。噢,討厭——斯克羅布可能這么睡過!就在這同一段旅途中,他比我提前一些。讓我看看下面是什么樣子吧。”

下面看起來像是一片廣闊的湛藍(lán)色平原。看不到山,但平原上方有白色的龐然大物在緩緩移動?!澳强隙ㄊ窃屏恕!彼耄暗@些云朵比我們從懸崖上看到的那些大太多了。我猜,云變大了,是因為我離得近了。我肯定是飄得低些了。這太陽真討厭?!?/p>

她的旅程剛開始的時候,太陽是當(dāng)頭照的,而現(xiàn)在,陽光射入了她的眼中。這說明,太陽在她前面,落山了。斯克羅布有一點說得很對,吉爾(我不知道一般的女孩子怎么樣)沒什么方向感。否則,在太陽開始照射她的眼睛時,她就會知道自己基本上是朝著正西方向而去的。

她凝望著身下的藍(lán)色平原,很快便注意到上面零星地散落著一些顏色淺些亮些的小點?!斑@是海!”吉爾想,“我相信那些小點是島嶼?!钡拇_如此。如果她知道斯克羅布曾經(jīng)在一艘船的甲板上眺望過那些島嶼,甚至還登上了其中的一座島嶼,她應(yīng)該會非常嫉妒,不過她并不知道這些。然后,過了一會兒,她才開始看清楚那藍(lán)色而平靜的海面上掀起了微微的褶皺:如果你身處那些褶皺之間,你就會發(fā)現(xiàn)這些微微的褶皺是非常大的海浪。而現(xiàn)在,在海天相接的地方出現(xiàn)了一道粗粗的暗黑色的線,那條線以極快的速度變得越來越粗,越來越黑,快得你可以看到它在不斷地擴(kuò)張。這是她正飛速行進(jìn)的第一個跡象。另外,她知道,那越來越粗的線肯定就是陸地。

突然間,從她左邊(現(xiàn)在正吹南風(fēng))急速地飄來一大片白云,這時,云和她在同一高度。她還沒有意識到自己身在何方,就直接飛進(jìn)了云的中心,那里又冷又濕,霧氣蒙蒙。這令她透不過氣來,不過她只在云里待了一小會兒。出來后,陽光照過來,她眨了眨眼睛,發(fā)現(xiàn)衣服都濕了。(她穿著運(yùn)動衫、毛衣、短褲、短襪和一雙很厚的鞋子;英國的今天是個泥濘的日子。)她從云里出來的時候飄浮的高度比進(jìn)去的時候又低了一些,她一出來,就注意到了一些事情,我猜這應(yīng)該是她一直都期待著的,不過,她還是大為震驚。是聲音。直到這一刻之前,她都是在一片徹底的靜寂中旅行。而現(xiàn)在,第一次,她聽到了海浪聲和海鷗的鳴叫聲。同時,她還聞到了大海的氣息。她可以確定,自己的確是在快速移動。她看到兩個海浪撞在一起,啪的一聲巨響,一團(tuán)泡沫從中間升起,但還沒等她看清楚,這些泡沫就已經(jīng)消失在她身后一百碼遠(yuǎn)的地方了。陸地正以飛快的速度向她靠近。她能看到遠(yuǎn)在內(nèi)陸的高山,也能看到左邊一些離得比較近的山。她能看到海灣和海岬,森林和田地,還有一片片的沙灘。海浪拍岸的聲音越來越大,漸漸淹沒了海洋上的其他聲音。

突然之間,陸地呈現(xiàn)在了她的眼前。她直接面向一條河的入海處。她現(xiàn)在飄得很低了,距離水面只有幾英尺。一個海浪的浪峰觸到了她的腳趾,濺起一大團(tuán)泡沫,幾乎把她腰部以下都打濕了?,F(xiàn)在,她的速度慢了下來。她沒有被吹到河面上,而是滑到了左側(cè)的河岸上。這里有太多值得看的東西了,她真的目不暇接:一片平滑的綠草地,一艘色澤明亮耀眼得仿佛巨大寶石的大船,塔樓,城垛,迎風(fēng)招展的旗幟,人群,漂亮的衣服,鎧甲,黃金,寶劍。她還聽到了音樂。但這一切都顯得雜亂無章。她清楚地意識到的第一件事情是她降落了,正站在河岸附近的一片樹叢下面。而在離她只有幾英尺的地方站著的正是斯克羅布。

她最先想到的是,他多么邋遢啊,看起來多不起眼啊,其次才想到“我簡直濕透了呀”!

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