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the horse and his boy_c·s·刘易斯-第13部分

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to the end of。 the grass and the  beginning of the sand; and looked (like him) to her left and saw the big; black tombs。 and  now at last; brave girl though she was; her heart quailed。 supposing the others werent  there!

supposing the ghouls were! but she stuck out her chin (and a little bit of  her tongue too)

and went straight towards them。

but before she had reached them she saw bree and hwin and the groom。

〃you can go back to your mistress now;〃 said aravis (quite forgetting that  he couldnt; until the city gates opened next morning)。 〃here is money for your pains。鈥

〃to hear is to obey;〃 said the groom; and at once set off at a remarkable  speed in the direction of the city。 there was no need to tell him to make haste: he also  had been thinking a good deal about ghouls。

for the next few seconds aravis was busy kissing the noses and patting the  necks of hwin and bree just as if they were quite ordinary horses。

〃and here es shasta! thanks be to the lion!〃 said bree。

aravis looked round; and there; right enough; was shasta who had e out  of hiding the moment he saw the groom going away。

〃and now;〃 said aravis。 〃theres not a moment to lose。〃 and in hasty words  she told them about rshs expedition。

〃treacherous hounds!〃 said bree; shaking his mane and stamping with his  hoof。 〃an attack in time of peace; without defiance sent! but well grease his oats  for him。 well be there before he is。鈥

〃can we?〃 said aravis; swinging herself into hwins saddle。 shasta wished  he could mount like that。

〃brooh…hoo!〃 snorted bree。 〃up you get; shasta。 can we! and with a good  start too!鈥

〃he said he was going to start at once;〃 said aravis。

〃thats how humans talk;〃 said bree。 〃but you dont get a pany of two  hundred horse and horsemen watered and victualled and armed and saddled and started all  in a minute。

now: whats our direction? due north?

〃no;〃 said shasta。 〃i know about that。 ive drawn a line。 ill explain  later。 bear a bit to our left; both you horses。 ah here it is!鈥

〃now;〃 said bree。 〃all that about galloping for a day and a night; like in  stories; cant really be done。 it must be walk and trot: but brisk trots and short walks。  and whenever we walk you two humans can slip off and walk too。 now。 are you ready; hwin?  off we go。 narnia and the north!鈥

at first it was delightful。 the night had now been going on for so many  hours that the sand had almost finished giving back all the sun…heat it had received  during the day; and the air was cool; fresh; and clear。 under the moonlight the sand; in every  direction and as far as they could see; gleamed as if it were smooth water or a great silver  tray。 except for the noise of brees and hwins hoofs there was not a sound to be heard。  shasta would nearly have fallen asleep if he had not had to dismount and walk every now  and then。

this seemed to last for hours。 then there came a time when there was no  longer any moon。 they seemed to ride in the dead darkness for hours and hours。 and  after that there came a moment when shasta noticed that he could see brees neck and head in  front of him a little more clearly than before; and slowly; very slowly; he began to  notice the vast grey flatness on every side。 it looked absolutely dead; like something in a  dead world; and shasta felt quite terribly tired and noticed that he was getting cold  and that his lips were dry。 and all the time the squeak of the leather; the jingle of the  bits; and the noise of the hoofs…not propputtypropputty as it would be on a hard road; but  thubbudythubbudy on the dry sand。

at last; after hours of riding; far away on his right there came a single  long streak of paler grey; low down on the horizon。 then a streak of red。 it was the morning at  last; but without a single bird to sing about it。 he was glad of the walking bits  now; for he was colder than ever。

then suddenly the sun rose and everything changed in a moment。 the grey  sand turned yellow and twinkled as if it was strewn with diamonds。 on their left the  shadows of shasta and hwin and bree and aravis; enormously long; raced beside them。  the double peak of mount pire; far ahead; flashed in the sunlight and shasta saw they  were a little out of the course。 〃a bit left; a bit left;〃 he sang out。 best of all; when  you looked back; tashbaan was already small and remote。 the tombs were quite invisible:  swallowed up in that single; jagged…edged hump which was the city of the tisroc。  everyone felt better。

but not for long。 though tashbaan looked very far away when they first saw  it; it refused to look any further away as they went on。 shasta gave up looking back at  it; for it only gave him the feeling that they were not moving at all。 then the light  became a nuisance。

the glare of the sand made his eyes ache: but he knew he mustnt shut them。  he must screw them up and keep on looking ahead at mount pire and shouting out  directions。

then came the heat。 he noticed it for the first time when he had to  dismount and walk: as he slipped down to the sand the heat from it struck up into his face as if  from the opening of an oven door。 next time it was worse。 but the third time; as his bare  feet touched the sand he screamed with pain and got one foot back in the stirrup and the  other half over brees back before you could have said knife。

〃sorry; bree;〃 he gasped。 〃i cant walk。 it burns my feet。〃 〃of course!〃  panted bree。

〃should have thought of that myself。 stay on。 cant be helped。鈥

〃its all right for you;〃 said shasta to aravis who was walking beside  hwin。 〃youve got shoes on。鈥

aravis said nothing and looked prim。 lets hope she didnt mean to; but she  did。

on again; trot and walk and trot; jingle…jingle…jingle; squeak…squeak… squeak; smell of hot horse; smell of hot self; blinding glare; headache。 and nothing at all  different for mile after mile。 tashbaan would never look any further away。 the mountains would  never look any nearer。 you felt this had been going on for always … jingle… jingle…jingle; squeaksqueak…squeak; smell of hot horse; smell of hot self。

of course one tried all sorts of games with oneself to try to make the time  pass: and of course they were all no good。 and one tried very hard not to think of  drinks…iced sherbet in a palace in tashbaan; clear spring water tinkling with a dark earthy  sound; cold; smooth milk just creamy enough and not too creamy … and the harder you  tried not to think; the more you thought。

at last there was something different … a mass of rock sticking up out of  the sand about fifty yards long and thirty feet high。 it did not cast much shadow; for the  sun was now very high; but it cast a little。 into that shade they crowded。 there they  ate some food and drank a little water。 it is not easy giving a horse a drink out of a skin  bottle; but bree and hwin were clever with their lips。 no one had anything like enough。 no one  spoke。 the horses were flecked with foam and their breathing was noisy。 the children  were pale。

after a very short rest they went on again。 same noises; same smells; same  glare; till at last their shadows began to fall on their right; and then got longer and  longer till they seemed to stretch out to the eastern end of the world。 very slowly the sun  drew nearer to the western horizon。 and now at last he was down and; thank goodness; the  merciless glare was gone; though the heat ing up from the sand was still as bad as  ever。 four pairs of eyes were looking out eagerly for any sign of the valley that  sallowpad the raven had spoken about。 but; mile after mile; there was nothing but level  sand。 and now the day was quite definitely done; and most of the stars were out; and  still the horses thundered on and the children rose and sank in their saddles; miserable  with thirst and weariness。 not till the moon had risen did shasta … in the strange; barking  voice of someone whose mouth is perfectly dry…shout out:  〃there it is!鈥

there was no mistaking it now。 ahead; and a little to their right; there  was at last a slope: a slope downward and hummocks of rock on each side。 the horses were far too  tired to speak but they swung round towards it and in a minute or two they were  entering the gully。 at first it was worse in there than it had been out in the open  desert; for there was a breathless stuffiness between the rocky walls and less moonlight。 the slope  continued  

steeply downwards and the rocks on either hand rose to the height of  cliffs。 then they began to meet vegetation … prickly cactus…like plants and coarse grass of  the kind that would prick your fingers。 soon the horse…hoofs were falling on pebbles and  stones instead of sand。 round every bend of the valley … and it had many bends …  they looked eagerly for water。 the horses were nearly at the end of their strength now;  and hwin; stumbling and panting; was lagging behind bree。 they were almost in despair  before at last they came to a little muddiness and a tiny trickle of water through  softer and better grass。 and the trickle became a brook; and the brook became a stream with  bushes on each side; and the stream became a river and there came (after more  disappointments than i could possibly describe) …a moment when shasta; who had been in a kind of  doze; suddenly realized that bree had stopped and found himself slipping off。  before them a little cataract of water poured into a broad pool: and both the horses were  already in the pool with their heads down; drinking; drinking; drinking。 〃o…o…oh;〃 said  shasta and plunged in … it was about up to his knees … and stooped his head right into  the cataract。 it was perhaps the loveliest moment in his life。

it was about ten minutes later when all four of them (the two children wet  nearly all over)

came out and began to notice their surroundings。 the moon was now high  enough to peep down into the valley。 there was soft grass on both sides of the river; and  beyond the grass; trees and bushes sloped up to the bases of the cliffs。 there must  have been some wonderful flowering shrubs hidden in that shadowy undergrowth for the whole  glade was full of the coolest and most delicious smells。 and out of the darkest  recess among the trees there came a sound shasta had never heard beforea nightingale。

everyone was much too tired to speak or to eat。 the horses; without waiting  to be unsaddled; lay down at once。 so did aravis and shasta。

about ten minutes later the careful hwin said; 〃but we mustnt go to sleep。  weve got to keep ahead of that rsh。鈥

〃no;〃 said bree very slowly。 〃mustnt go sleep。 just a little rest。鈥

shasta knew (for a moment) that they would all go to sleep if he didnt get  up and do something about it; and felt that he ought to。 in fact he decided that he  would get up and persuade them to go on。 but presently; not yet: not just yet。。。

very soon the moon shone and the nightingale sang over two horses and two  human children; all fast asleep。

it was aravis who awoke first。 the sun was already high in the heavens and  the cool morning hours were already wasted。 〃its my fault;〃 she said to herself  furiously as she jumped up and began rousing the others。 〃one wouldnt expect horses to keep  awake after a days work like that; even if they can talk。 and of course that boy  wouldnt; hes had no decent training。 but i ought to have known better。鈥

the others were dazed and stupid with the heaviness of their sleep。

〃neigh…ho … broo…hoo;〃 said bree。 〃been sleeping in my saddle; eh? ill  never do that again。 most unfortable…鈥

〃oh e on; e on;〃 said aravis。 〃weve lost half the morning already。  there isnt a moment to spare。鈥

〃a fellows got to have a mouthful of grass;〃 said bree。

im afraid we cant wait;〃 said aravis。

〃whats the terrible hurry?〃 said bree。 〃weve crossed the desert; havent  we?鈥

〃but were not in archenland yet;〃 said aravis。 〃and weve got to get there  before rsh。鈥

〃oh; we must be miles ahead of him;〃 said bree。 〃havent we been ing a  shorter way? didnt that raven friend of yours say this was a short cut; shasta?鈥

〃he didnt say anything about shorter;〃 answered shasta。 〃he only said  better; because you got to a river this way。 if the oasis is due north of tashbaan; then  im afraid this may be longer。鈥

〃well
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