《能言馬與男孩》第7期:道旁遇險(2)

"I can't."
"Ever tried?"
"Yes, I have. I can't get it down at all. You couldn't either if you were me."
"You're rum little creatures, you humans," remarked Bree.
When Shasta had finished his breakfast (which was by far the nicest he had ever eaten), Bree said, "I think I'll have a nice roll before we put on that saddle again." And he proceeded to do so. "That's good. That's very good," he said, rubbing his back on the turf and waving all four legs in the air. "You ought to have one too, Shasta," he snorted. "It's most refreshing."
But Shasta burst out laughing and said,"You do look funny when you're on your back!"
"I look nothing of the sort," said Bree. But then suddenly he rolled round on his side, raised his head and looked hard at Shasta, blowing a little.
"Does it really look funny?" he asked in an anxious voice.
"Yes, it does," replied Shasta. "But what does it matter?"
"You don't think, do you," said Bree, "that it might be a thing talking horses never do - a silly, clownish trick I've learned from the dumb ones? It would be dreadful to find, when I get back to Narnia, that I've picked up a lot of low, bad habits. What do you think, Shasta? Honestly, now. Don't spare my feelings. Should you think the real, free horses - the talking kind - do roll?"
"How should I know? Anyway I don't think I should bother about it if I were you. We've got to get there first. Do you know the way?"
"I know my way to Tashbaan. After that comes the desert. Oh, we'll manage the desert somehow, never fear. Why, we'll be in sight of the Northern mountains then. Think of it! To Narnia and the North! Nothing will stop us then. But I'd be glad to be past Tashbaan. You and I are safer away from cities."
"Can't we avoid it?"
"Not without going along way inland, and that would take us into cultivated land and main roads; and I wouldn't know the way. No, we'll just have to creep along the coast. Up here on the downs we'll meet nothing but sheep and rabbits and gulls and a few shepherds. And by the way, what about starting?"
Shasta's legs ached terribly as he saddled Bree and climbed into the saddle, but the Horse was kindly to him and went at a soft pace all afternoon. When evening twilight came they dropped by steep tracks into a valley and found a village. Before they got into it Shasta dismounted and entered it on foot to buy a loaf and some onions and radishes. The Horse trotted round by the fields in the dusk and met Shasta at the far side. This became their regular plan every second night.
These were great days for Shasta, and every day better than the last as his muscles hardened and he fell less often. Even at the end of his training Bree still said he sat like a bag of flour in the saddle. "And even if it was safe, young 'un, I'd be ashamed to be seen with you on the main road." But in spite of his rude words Bree was a patient teacher. No one can teach riding so well as a horse. Shasta learned to trot, to canter, to jump, and to keep his seat even when Bree pulled up suddenly or swung unexpectedly to the left or the right - which, as Bree told him, was a thing you might have to do at any moment in a battle. And then of course Shasta begged to be told of the battles and wars in which Bree had carried the Tarkaan. And Bree would tell of forced marches and the fording of swift rivers, of charges and of fierce fights between cavalry and cavalry when the war horses fought as well as the men, being all fierce stallions, trained to bite and kick, and to rear at the right moment so that the horse's weight as well as the rider's would come down on a enemy's crest in the stroke of sword or battleaxe. But Bree did not want to talk about the wars as often as Shasta wanted to hear about them. "Don't speak of them, youngster," he would say. "They were only the Tisroc's wars and I fought in them as a slave and a dumb beast. Give me the Narnian wars where I shall fight as a free Horse among my own people! Those will be wars worth talking about. Narnia and the North! Bra-ha-ha! Broo hoo!"

“我吃不了。”
“從前試過嗎？”
“是的，試過。我壓根兒咽不下去。如果你是我，你也咽不下去的。”
“你們是離奇古怪的小動物，你們人類。”布里評論道。
沙斯塔吃完了他的早餐(這是他所吃過的早餐中最最精美的餐)，布里說道，”在重新裝上馬鞍子以前，我想我要美美地打個滾。”它說罷就開始打滾。”舒服，舒服極了。”
它說，一面在草皮上摩擦它的背脊，四腳朝天在空中晃動。
“你應該也來打個滾兒，沙斯塔，”它噴着鼻息，”這是最最振作精神的了。”
但沙斯塔哈哈大笑道，”你四腳朝天時，瞧上去可笑極了。”
“我看起來絲毫也不可笑。”布里說道。但這當兒它卻突然翻身側臥，擡起頭來，緊瞅着沙斯塔，還稍稍有點兒氣喘。
“真的看上去可笑嗎？”它用急躁的聲音問道。
“是的，可笑。”沙斯塔答道，”但那又有什麼大不了呢？”
“你是否認爲，”布里說，”說話的馬兒可能從來不幹這種事情，那是我跟啞巴馬兒們學來的愚蠢粗魯的把戲？回到納尼亞時，如果發現我沾染了許多下賤的壞習慣，那就很可怕了。沙斯塔，你怎麼想呢，老老實實說吧，別照顧我的感情。你究竟認爲真正的自由的馬兒——說話的那種馬兒——打滾嗎，”
“我怎麼會知道呢？無論如何，假如我就是你，我想我是不會爲此煩惱的。我們首先要到達納尼亞。你認得路嗎？”
“我認識到塔什班去的路。這之後就是大沙漠。啊，我們無論如何會想辦法穿過沙漠的，別害怕。晤，然後我們就會望見北方的崇山峻嶺。想想吧！到納尼亞去，到北方去那時，什麼也阻擋不了我們。但繞過塔什班我是高興的。我和你遠離城市都是比較安全的。”
“我們能避開城市嗎？”
“那就非得朝內陸走一段路不可，那就要走進耕地走上大路而我不認識路。不，我們還是要沿着海岸悄悄走過去。從這兒往前走，在丘陵地帶上我們碰不到什麼，只會遇見羊、野兔、海鷗和幾個牧羊入。順便說句，咱們這就出發，好不好，”:
沙斯塔給馬兒裝上馬鞍並攀上去時，兩腿痛得厲害，但馬兒對他很照顧，整個下午它走的都是種柔和的步子。當暮色降臨時，他們經由陡峭的小道進入一個山谷，在那兒找到一個村莊。進山谷之前，沙斯塔先下了馬，步行到村莊裏去買個麪包，買些洋蔥和小蘿蔔。馬兒在田地附近的黑暗中溜達，在遠離村莊的一邊和沙斯塔相會。這種辦法變成了接下來幾夜的定規。
對沙斯塔說來，這幾天真是了不得的日子，而且一天好似一天，因爲他的肌肉都比較結實了，摔下馬來的次數也少了。甚至訓練已經結束了，布里還是說他坐在馬鞍子上像一袋麪粉。”哪怕你是坐穩了，小傢伙，在大路上被人看見你坐在我身上，我真是感到羞恥。”儘管布里言語粗魯生硬，它還足個有耐心的教練。沒有人教授騎馬術能像一匹馬兒那樣教得地道了。沙斯塔學會了騎馬小跑、騎馬慢跑和騎馬跳躍，即使布里突然停下或出乎意外地左右搖晃——布里告訴他，在一場戰鬥中，隨時都可能非做出這種動作不可——他仍能穩如泰山地坐在鞍座上。當然啦，沙斯塔這就懇求布里講講那些它馱着泰坎所參加的戰鬥和戰爭。布里便講起急行軍、涉水強渡激流、騎兵和騎兵之間的衝鋒與惡戰，這當兒戰馬跟士兵樣拼命戰鬥，它們都是兇猛的公馬，訓練得能咬善踢，並且在恰當的時刻用後腿站將起來，使得劍或斧向敵人猛砍過去時，馬和騎兵的全部重量都壓在對手的頭盔上。但布里不肯像沙斯塔希望的那樣時常講起打仗的事。“別提那些了，小傢伙。”它總是說，“那都是蒂斯羅克的戰爭，我只是作爲一個奴隸和匹啞巴牲口參加戰爭的。讓我參加納尼亞的戰爭，我就將在我自己的人民中間，作爲一匹自由的馬兒去作戰。這些纔是值得談論的戰爭。納尼亞和北方布拉哈一晗！布魯一胡！”