《黎明踏浪号》第九章 声岛

CHAPTER NINE THE ISLAND OF THE VOICES
第九章　声岛

AND now the winds which had so long been from the north-west began to blow from the west itself and every morning when the sun rose out of the sea the curved prow of the Dawn Treader stood up right across the middle of the sun.Some thought that the sun looked larger than it looked from Narnia，but others disagreed.And they sailed and sailed before a gentle yet steady breeze and saw neither fish nor gull-nor ship nor shore.And stores began to get low again，and it crept into their hearts that perhaps they might have come to a sea which went on for ever.But when the very last day on which they thought they could risk continuing their eastward voyage dawned，it showed，right ahead between them and the sunrise，a low land lying like a cloud.
刮了好多天西北风之后开始刮西风了。每天早上太阳从海平面升起，黎明踏浪号的雕花船头就正好对着太阳。有人觉得这里的太阳看上去比纳尼亚的大，有的人不这么认为。他们就这样顺着风航行， 风虽小，风向倒也不变。看不见鱼和海鸥，看不见船，也看不见海岸。船上的食物储备又开始变少，大家心里偷偷地想，也许他们要开到一个永远都到不了岸的大海。就在最后一天，他们本以为还要继续东航， 天刚刚明亮，就看见前面有一片云层似的低矮陆地，横亘在船和日出的海平线之间。
They made harbour in a wide bay about the middle of the afternoon and landed.It was a very different country from any they had yet seen.For when they had crossed the sandy beach they found all silent and empty as if it were an uninhabited land，but before them there were level lawns in which the grass was as smooth and short as it used to be in the grounds of a great English house where ten gardeners were kept.The trees，of which there were many，all stood well apart from one another，and there were no broken branches and no leaves lying on the ground.Pigeons sometimes cooed but there was no other noise.
大约在下午三点，他们把船停靠在一个宽阔的海湾，然后上了岸。这里与他们去过的地方都不一样。当他们走过沙滩时，发现四下一片寂静，空空荡荡，像是个无人的荒岛。可是他们面前却是平坦的草地， 上面的草又短又柔滑，就像英国名门大户有十个园丁侍弄的庭院一样。好多树木，两两之间距离非常均匀，地上没有断枝残叶。除了咕咕的鸽子叫，没有别的声音。
Presently they came to a long，straight，sanded path with not a weed growing on it and trees on either hand.Far off at the other end of this avenue they now caught sight of a house—very long and grey and quiet—looking in the afternoon sun.
他们很快来到一条又长又直的由沙子铺成的林荫道。路面上没有一棵草，路的两边都栽满树。在林荫道的尽头他们看见一排房子——长长的一排，灰色的屋顶，在午后的阳光下特别安静。
Almost as soon as they entered this path Lucy noticed that she had a little stone in her shoe.In that unknown place it might have been wiser for her to ask the others to wait while she took it out. But she didn’t;she just dropped quietly behind and sat down to take off her shoe.Her lace had got into a knot.
就在他们要经过这条路的时候，露茜觉得鞋里面有颗小石头。在那种情况，她本该让其他人等着她取出石头，可是她没有。她脱下鞋，鞋带打结了，就这样不经意落在后面了。
Before she had undone the knot the others were a fair distance ahead.By the time she had got the stone out and was putting the shoe on again she could no longer hear them.But almost at once she heard something else.It was not coming from the direction of the house.
还没等她解开鞋带，别人已经走了很远了。等她掏出石头，再穿上鞋，周围已经没有了其他人的声音。然而她听到了其他的声音， 但是这声音不是从那一排房子那里传来的。
What she heard was a thumping.It sounded as if dozens of strong workmen were hitting the ground as hard as they could with great wooden mallets.And it was very quickly coming nearer. She was already sitting with her back to a tree，and as the tree was not one she could climb，there was really nothing to do but to sit dead still and press herself against the tree and hope she wouldn’t be seen.
她听到一阵“砰砰砰”的声音，像有十几个身强力壮的工人抡着大锤捶打地面，而且声音越来越近。她背靠着一棵树坐着，爬不上去，也只好一动不动地坐着，紧紧贴着树，希望那些人看不到她。
Thump，thump，thump... and whatever it was must be very close now for she could feel the ground shaking.But she could see nothing.She thought the thing-or things must be just behind her.But then there came a thump on the path right in front of her. She knew it was on the path not only by the sound but because she saw the sand scatter as if it had been struck a heavy blow.But she could see nothing that had struck it.Then all the thumping noises drew together about twenty feet away from her and suddenly ceased. Then came the Voice.
砰、砰、砰……虽然她不知道这是什么声音，但是那声音越来越近，她甚至感觉地面在震动，可是她什么也看不见。她甚至觉得那东西——或者那些东西——就在她身后。但她面前的小路突然又传来“砰”的一声，她不仅听到声音还看到路面上尘土飞扬，她突然想到声音来自那条小路，可是她看不到是什么在击打地面。很快所有的“砰砰”声都集中到一起，在离她大约二十英尺的地方突然停了，只听到一些说话声。
It was really very dreadful because she could still see nobody at all.The whole of that park-like country still looked as quiet and empty as it had looked when they first landed.Nevertheless，only a few feet away from her，a voice spoke.And what it said was：“Mates，now’s our chance.”
真是太可怕了，因为她一个人也看不见。整个公园就像之前他们刚登上小岛那样寂静和空旷。尽管这样，在离她只有两三步的地方有个声音在说：“伙计们，我们的机会终于来了。”
Instantly a whole chorus of other voices replied，“Hear him. Hear him.Now ‘s our chance’，he said.Well done，Chief. You never said a truer word.”
突然，其他人齐声说：“听，你们听，他说我们的机会终于来了。你说得太好了，老大。”
“What I say，”continued the first voice，“is，get down to the shore between them and their boat，and let every mother’s son look to his weapons.Catch’em when they try to put to sea.”
“我是说，”那声音继续说，“到岸边去拦住他们，不让他们上小船，你们都拿好家伙，他们要是到海上就抓住他们。”
“Eh，that’s the way，”shouted all the other voices.“You never made a better plan，Chief.Keep it up，Chief.You couldn’t have a better plan than that.”
“对，就是这样，”其他声音非常一致，“你这办法太妙了，老大，然后呢，你这想法再妙不过了。”
“Lively，then，mates，lively，”said the first voice.“Off we go.
“伙计们，那赶紧吧，加油，”那个声音说，“出发。”
“Right again，Chief，”said the others.“Couldn’t have a better order.Just what we were going to say ourselves.Off we go.”
“太对了，老大。”其他声音说，“这决定再好不过了。我们也这么想呢，走吧。”
Immediately the thumping began again—very loud at first but soon fainter and fainter，till it died out in the direction of the sea.
“砰砰”声又响起来了——一开始很响，慢慢地越来越弱，越来越弱，然后消失在海岸边。
Lucy knew there was no time to sit puzzling as to what these invisible creatures might be.As soon as the thumping noise had died away she got up and ran along the path after the others as quickly as her legs would carry her.They must at all costs be warned.
露茜没有工夫管这些看不见的怪物是什么东西。等“砰砰”的声音一消失，她就站起来，沿着小路跑，去追大家，无论如何也要告诉他们。
While this had been happening the others had reached the house.It was a low building-only two stories high made of a beautiful mellow stone，many-windowed，and partially covered with ivy.Everything was so still that Eustace said，“I think it’s empty，”but Caspian silently pointed to the column of smoke which rose from one chimney.
这个时候，他们已经走到那座房子边。矮房子有两层——是用光滑漂亮的石块建造的，有很多窗子，墙上爬着常春藤，一切都很宁静。尤斯塔斯说：“我看这是空房。”可是凯斯宾一声不吭，指着冒烟的烟囱。
They found a wide gateway open and passed through it into a paved courtyard.And it was here that they had their first indication that there was something odd about this island.In the middle of the courtyard stood a pump，and beneath the pump a bucket.There was nothing odd about that.But the pump handle was moving up and down，though there seemed to be no one moving it.
他们看到门开着，就直接走进那个铺着石板的院子。院子里有个水泵，水泵下有个水桶，这倒是没什么稀奇，稀奇的是没有人摇动把手，水泵的把手就上下摇动。
“There’s some magic at work here，”said Caspian.
“这是魔法。”凯斯宾说。
“Machinery !”said Eustace.“I do believe we’ve come to a civilized country at last.”
“是机器!”尤斯塔斯说，“我相信我们到了一个文明的国度。”
At that moment Lucy，hot and breathless，rushed into the courtyard behind them.In a low voice she tried to make them understand what she had overheard.And when they had partly understood it even the bravest of them did not look very happy.
这个时候，露茜风风火火，气喘吁吁地跑进院子。她压低声音跟他们说她听到的消息，等到他们听明白怎么回事，连最勇敢的人脸色都变了。
“Invisible enemies，”muttered Caspian.“And cutting us off from the boat.This is an ugly furrow to plough.”
“看不见的敌人，”凯斯宾嘀咕，“切断我们上船的路，这一关不好过啊。”
“You’ve no idea what sort of creatures they are，Lu ?”asked Edmund.
“你不知道他们是什么怪物吗，露茜?”爱德蒙问。
“How can I，Ed，when I couldn’t see them ?”
“我怎么能知道呢，爱德蒙，我又看不见他们。”
“Did they sound like humans from their footsteps ?”
“你听着他们的脚步声像人类吗?”
“I didn’t hear any noise of feet—only voices and this frightful thudding and thumping-like a mallet.”
“我没听到脚步声——只听到‘砰砰砰’这样的声音——像用木槌捶打的一样。”
“I wonder，”said Reepicheep，“do they become visible when you drive a sword into them ?”
“我倒是想知道，”雷佩契普说，“如果把剑刺进他们的身体， 不知道他们会不会露出原形。”
“It looks as if we shall find out，”said Caspian.“But let’s get out of this gateway.There’s one of these gentry at that pump listening to all we say.”
“看来我们必须要弄明白，”凯斯宾说，“不过我们还是先出去吧。水泵旁边有一个家伙在听我们说话。”
They came out and went back on to the path where the trees might possibly make them less conspicuous.“Not that it’s any good really，”said Eustace，“trying to hide from people you can’t see.They may be all round us.”
他们走出大门，回到那条小路，路边有树可以隐蔽。“其实想躲开你看不见的人，一点用也没有。因为他可能已经在我们周围了。” 尤斯塔斯说。
“Now，Drinian，”said Caspian.“How would it be if we gave up the boat for lost，went down to another part of the bay，and signalled to the Dawn Treader to stand in and take us aboard ?”
“好吧，德里宁，”凯斯宾说，“如果我们确定回小船没有可能的话，不如到海湾那边给黎明踏浪号发信号，让他们把船开到海岸边来接我们上船，你觉得怎么样?”
“Not depth for her，Sire，”said Drinian.
“这边水太浅，容易抛锚，陛下。”德里宁回答。
“We could swim，”said Lucy.
“我们也可以游过去。”露茜说。
“Your Majesties all，”said Reepicheep，“hear me.It is folly to think of avoiding an invisible enemy by any amount of creeping and skulking.If these creatures mean to bring us to battle，be sure they will succeed.And whatever comes of it I’d sooner meet them face to face than be caught by the tail.”
“三位陛下听我说，”雷佩契普说，“想偷偷摸摸，避开看不见的敌人，简直就是妄想。如果这些怪物等着跟我们打一场，肯定能得逞。无论如何，我认为与其让他们牵着我们走，不如正面交锋。”
“I really think Reep is in the right this time，”said Edmund.
“我认为雷佩这次说得很对。”爱德蒙说。
“Surely，”said Lucy，“if Rhince and the others on the Dawn Treader see us fighting on the shore they’ll be able to do something.”
“那是当然，”露茜说，“如果赖因斯和黎明踏浪号上的人看见我们在岸上打仗，肯定会采取行动。”
“But they won’t see us fighting if they can’t see any enemy，”said Eustace miserably.“They’ll think we’re just swinging our swords in the air for fun.”
“万一他们看不见敌人，就看不出来我们在打仗。”尤斯塔斯发愁地说，“他们会以为我们对着空气舞剑呢。”
There was an uncomfortable pause.
大家都沉默了好久。
“Well，”said Caspian at last，“let’s get on with it.We must go and face them.Shake hands all round—arrow on the string， Lucy—swords out，everyone else—and now for it.Perhaps they’ll parley.”
“算了，”凯斯宾最后说，“豁出去了，我们必须要面对他们。大家把手握在一起——露茜，箭上弦……其余人都把剑出鞘……准备好。没准，他们愿意谈判。”
It was strange to see the lawns and the great trees looking so peaceful as they marched back to the beach.And when they arrived there，and saw the boat lying where they had left her，and the smooth sand with no one to be seen on it，more than one doubted whether Lucy had not merely imagined all she had told them.But before they reached the sand，a voice spoke out of the air.
说来奇怪，他们齐步回到海滩的时候，竟然是一片太平景象。小船还停在之前扔下的地方，光溜溜的沙地上一个人也没有。大家都开始怀疑露茜说的事是不是她想象出来的，不料他们还没走到沙地， 半空中就有个声音说话了。
“No further，masters，no further now，”it said.“We’ve got to talk with you first.There’s fifty of us and more here with weapons in our fists.”
“别走了，伙计，别走了，”那个声音说，“我们先谈谈，我们有五十多人，而且手里都有武器。”
“Hear him，hear him，”came the chorus.“That’s our Chief. You can depend on what he says.He’s telling you the truth，he is.”
“听他的，听他的，”众人齐声说，“他是我们老大，他说话算话。他说的是实话，真的。”
“I do not see these fifty warriors，”observed Reepicheep.
“我看不见你们的五十个勇士。”雷佩契普说。
“That’s right，that’s right，”said the Chief Voice.“You don’t see us.And why not ? Because we’re invisible.”
“没错，当然没错。”他们老大的声音说，“你们看不见我们的。为什么呢?因为我们是隐形人。”
“Keep it up，Chief，keep it up，”said the Other Voices.“You’re talking like a book.They couldn’t ask for a better answer than that.”
“继续说，老大，”其他声音说，“你说得很对，再也没有更好的回答了。”
“Be quiet，Reep，”said Caspian，and then added in a louder voice，“You invisible people，what do you want with us ?And what have we done to earn your enmity ?”
“安静，雷佩契普，”凯斯宾说，接着又提高声音说，“你们隐形人找我们干什么?我们做了什么得罪你们了?”
“We want something that little girl can do for us，”said the Chief Voice.(The others explained that this was just what they would have said themselves.)
“我们需要你们的小姑娘为我们办件事。”那个为首的人说。( 其他人就说，这话正是他们都要说的。)
“Little girl !”said Reepicheep.“The lady is a queen.”
“小姑娘!”雷佩契普说，“这位小姐是女王陛下。”
“We don’t know about queens，”said the Chief Voice. (“No more we do，no more we do，”chimed in the others.)“But we want something she can do.”
“我们可没听过什么女王，”那个为首的声音说，( “我们没听说过， 我们没听说过。”其他人随声附和，“我们没听说过什么女王。”)“不过我们要做的事她能完成。”
“What is it ?”said Lucy.
“要我做什么事呢?”露茜问。
“And if it is anything against her Majesty’s honour or safety，”added Reepicheep，“you will wonder to see how many we can kill before we die.”
“如果是有损女王陛下荣誉或安全的事，”雷佩契普又说，“在我们临死之前，我们会奋力一战，看你们有多少人会被我们杀掉。”
“Well，”said the Chief Voice.“It’s a long story.Suppose we all sit down ?”，
“好吧，”那个为首的声音说，“说来话长，我们都坐下吧。”
The proposal was warmly approved by the other voices but the Narnians remained standing.
其他声音都非常热情地附和这个建议，可是所有的纳尼亚人都还站着。
“Well，”said the Chief Voice.“It’s like this.This island has been the property of a great magician time out of mind.And we all are-or perhaps in a manner of speaking，I might say，we were-his servants.Well，to cut a long story short，this magician that I was speaking about，he told us to do something we didn’t like. And why not ? Because we didn’t want to.Well，then，this same magician he fell into a great rage;for I ought to tell you he owned the island and he wasn’t used to being crossed.He was terribly downright，you know.But let me see，where am I ? Oh yes，this magician then，he goes upstairs(for you must know he kept all his magic things up there and we all lived down below)， I say he goes upstairs and puts a spell on us.An uglifying spell.If you saw us now，which in my opinion you may thank your stars you can’t，you wouldn’t believe what we looked like before we were uglified. You wouldn’t really.So there we all were so ugly we couldn’t bear to look at one another.So then what did we do ? Well，I’ll tell you what we did.We waited till we thought this same magician would be asleep in the afternoon and we creep upstairs and go to his magic book，as bold as brass，to see if we can do anything about this uglification.But we were all of a sweat and a tremble，so I won’t deceive you.But，believe me or believe me not，I do assure you that we couldn’t find any thing in the way of a spell for taking off the ugliness.And what with time getting on and being afraid that the old gentleman might wake up any minute—I was all of a muck sweat，so I won’t deceive you— well，to cut a long story short，whether we did right or whether we did wrong，in the end we see a spell for making people invisible. And we thought we’d rather be invisible than go on being as ugly as all that.And why ? Because we’d like it better.So my little girl，who’s just about your little girl’s age，and a sweet child she was before she was uglified，though now—but least said soonest mended—I say，my little girl she says the spell，for it’s got to be a little girl or else the magician himself，if you see my meaning， for otherwise it won’t work.And why not ?Because nothing happens.So my Clipsie says the spell，for I ought to have told you she reads beautifully，and there we all were as invisible as you could wish to see.And I do assure you it was a relief not to see one another’s faces.At first，anyway.But the long and the short of it is we’re mortal tired of being invisible.And there’s another thing.We never reckoned on this magician(the one I was telling you about before)going invisible too.But we haven’t ever seen him since.So we don’t know if he’s dead，or gone.away， or whether he’s just sitting upstairs being invisible，and perhaps coming down and being invisible there.And，believe me，it’s no manner of use listening because he always did go about with his bare feet on，making no more noise than a great big cat.And I’ll tell all you gentlemen straight，it’s getting more than what our nerves can stand.”
"“说起来，”那个为首的声音说，“事情是这样的。很多年以前， 这个岛本来属于一个大魔法师。我们都是……或者说，我们以前都是他的奴仆。总的说起来，这个魔法师，一直让我们做我们不喜欢做的事。为什么不喜欢?因为我们不愿做。唉，这样一来，这个魔法师就大发雷霆。还有，要知道，他是这个岛的主人，不喜欢别人跟他抬杠。要知道，他这人其实直爽得不得了。
“我想想我说到哪儿了?啊，对了，说到这个魔法师，他当时上了楼。他把所有的魔法玩意全放在楼上，我们都住在楼下。我的意思是，他上了楼，对我们施了一种丑化的魔法。依我看，你们看不见我们应该谢天谢地，如果你们现在看见我们这模样，根本没法想象我们以前长什么样呢。你们真的不会相信，我们现在丑得彼此都受不了。

“那我们该怎么办呢?好吧，我告诉你我们怎么办。等到这个魔法师睡午觉了，我们就壮着胆子偷偷上楼去找他的魔法书，看看有什么办法能破解这个丑化魔法。可是我们全都累得浑身大汗，直打哆嗦，我不骗你，信不信由你，我们确实找不到可以消除丑相的魔法。时间过得很快，我们怕这位老头儿随时都会醒来——绝不骗人，那时我浑身臭极了——好吧，就这样吧，不管我们做对了也好，做错了也罢!最后我们看到一种隐形魔法。心想，与其这么丑下去还不如隐形的好。

“为什么呢?因为我们更喜欢这样。于是我家的小姑娘，她跟这位小姑娘的年龄差不多，她没变丑之前非常可爱，可如今……啊，不能再说了。啊呀，我家的小姑娘念了这个咒语，所以必须是个小姑娘，或由魔法师本人再来念。你们明白吗，否则就不灵了。

“为什么会不灵呢?因为什么都变不了。我家的小姑娘克莉普西念了咒语，我应当告诉你们，她做得很好，咒语念完，我们就都遂了心愿，变成隐形人了。是的，大家彼此看不见真的轻松了很多。不管怎样，一开始是轻松的。后来，我们都对隐形感到无比厌烦。

“还有一件令人意想不到的事。我们绝没料到这个魔法师，居然也成了隐形人。我们从此就没看见过他。所以我们不知道他是死了还是走掉了，或者就坐在楼上却看不见他，也许下楼来了，只是看不见他。真的，听动静一点也听不出来，因为他老是光着脚走来走去， 像只猫一样无声无息。我对你们直说了吧，这一切让我们的神经更加崩溃。”
"
Such was the Chief Voice’s story，but very much shortened， because I have left out what the Other Voices said.Actually he never got out more than six or seven words without being interrupted by their agreements and encouragements，which drove the Narnians nearly out of their minds with impatience.When it was over there was a very long silence.
以上就是为首的那个隐形人说的故事，被我简单地概括了，我把他手下的那些声音都略去了。实际上他说的话每六七句不到，他们就会插嘴，要么表示同意，或者怂恿他说下去。纳尼亚人听得很不耐烦，简直听不下去。好不容易等他说完了，大家却沉默了。
“But，”said Lucy at last，“what’s all this got to do with us ? I don’t understand.”
“不过，”露茜说，“这些跟我们有什么关系呢?我想不通。”
“Why，bless me，if I haven’t gone and left out the whole point，”said the Chief Voice.
“哎呀，老天保佑，我该不会糊里糊涂地把这件事的关键给说漏了吧?”那个为首的隐形人说。
“That you have，that you have，”roared the Other Voices with great enthusiasm.“No one couldn’t have left it out cleaner and better.Keep it up，Chief，keep it up.”
“是漏了，漏掉了，”其他声音一起附和着，“大家都会说漏， 不过说得越清楚越明白就越好。老大，你接着说吧。”
“Well，I needn’t go over the whole story again，”began the Chief Voice.
“好吧，我用不着把整个事情再说一遍。”那个为首的隐形人继续说。
“No.Certainly not，”said Caspian and Edmund.
“是的，当然用不着。”凯斯宾和爱德蒙说。
“Well，then，to put it in a nutshell，”said the Chief Voice， “we’ve been waiting for ever so long for a nice little girl from foreign parts，like it might be you，Missie-that would go upstairs and go to the magic book and find the spell that takes off the invisibleness，and say it.And we all swore that the first strangers as landed on this island(having a nice little girl with them，I mean，for if they hadn’t it’d be another matter)we wouldn’t let them go away alive unless they’d done the needful for us.And that’s why，gentlemen，if your little girl doesn’t come up to scratch，it will be our painful duty to cut all your throats.Merely in the way of business，as you might say，and no offence，I hope.”
“好吧，一句话概括，”他说，“我们一直在等外边来个漂亮的小姑娘。等了好久好久，才等到像这位小姐这样的漂亮姑娘替我们上楼去找到那本魔法书中破解隐形法的咒语，并念上一遍。我们发誓， 碰到踏上本岛的第一批人，决不放他们生还，除非他们替我们办好这件大事。我是说，如果他们有漂亮的小姑娘的话。如果没有，那就是另一回事了。各位，正因为如此，如果你们的小姑娘做不到，我们就要忍痛把你们杀了。不妨直说，这只是作为交易而已，希望你们谅解。”
“I don’t see all your weapons，”said Reepicheep.“Are they invisible too ?”The words were scarcely out of his mouth before they heard a whizzing sound and next moment a spear had stuck， quivering，in one of the trees behind them.
“我看不见你们的武器在哪里。”雷佩契普说，“你们的武器也隐形吗?”话音刚落，就听见“嗖”的一声，一支长矛就颤巍巍地刺进了他们身后的一棵树上。
“That’s a spear，that is，”said the Chief Voice.
“给你们一支长矛。”那个为首的隐形人说。
“That it is，Chief，that it is，”said the others.“You couldn’t have put it better.”
“是的，老大，是长矛，”其他声音说，“你说得太对了。”
“And it came from my hand，”the Chief Voice continued.“They get visible when they leave us.”
“这支长矛是从我手里扔出去的，”他接着说，“一离手你就能看见了。”
“But why do you want me to do this ?”asked Lucy.“Why can’t one of your own people ?Haven’t you got any girls ?”
“可是你们为什么让我做这件事呢?”露茜问，“不能让你们自己的人去做吗?你们没有小姑娘吗?”
“We dursen’t，we dursen’t，”said all the Voices.“We’re not going upstairs again.”
“我们不干，我们不干，”众声说，“我们再也不要上楼了。”
“In other words，”said Caspian，“you are asking this lady to face some danger which you daren’t ask your own sisters and daughters to face !”
“换句话说，”凯斯宾说，“你们要这位小姐去面对危险，却不愿意让自己的姐妹和女儿去冒险!”
“That’s right，that’s right ，”said all the Voices cheerfully. “You couldn’t have said it better.Eh，you’ve had some education，you have.Anyone can see that.”
“对，对，”众人一起欢呼说，“说得太对了。果然是受过教育的人， 不错，这都能看出来。”
“Well，of all the outrageous—”began Edmund，but Lucy interrupted.
“唉，竟然如此嚣张……”爱德蒙开口说，可露茜打断了他的话。
“Would I have to go upstairs at night，or would it do in daylight ?”
“你们是让我晚上还是白天上楼?”
“Oh，daylight，daylight，to be sure，”said the Chief Voice. “Not at night.No one’s asking you to do that.Go upstairs in the dark ? Ugh.”
“噢，白天，当然是白天，”那个为首的隐形人说，“不是晚上， 没人要你晚上摸黑上楼啊。”
“All right，then，I’ll do it，”said Lucy.“No，”she said， turning to the others，“don’t try to stop me.Can’t you see it’s no use ? There are dozens of them there.We can’t fight them.And the other way there is a chance.”
“那好吧，我愿意做，”露茜说，“别劝我，”她转过身来对其他人说，“你们不要阻拦我。难道你们不明白这没用吗?他们有几十个人，我们不能硬拼。或许，按照他们说的做，是条活路。”
“But a magician !”said Caspian.
“那里有个魔法师在啊。”凯斯宾说。
“I know，”said Lucy.“But he mayn’t be as bad as they make out.Don’t you get the idea that these people are not very brave ?”
“我知道，”露茜说，“不过他也许不像他们说的那么坏。难道你们没发现这些人不够勇敢吗?”
“They’re certainly not very clever，”said Eustace.
“他们是不够聪明。”尤斯塔斯说。
“Look here，Lu，”said Edmund.“We really can’t let you do a thing like this.Ask Reep，I’m sure he’ll say just the same.”
“听我说，露茜，”爱德蒙说，“我们真的不能让你这么做。问问雷佩契普，也许它也会这么说。”
“But it’s to save my own life as well as yours，”said Lucy.“I don’t want to be cut to bits with invisible swords any more than anyone else.”
“可是这样才能救你们，还有我自己，”露茜说，“我跟大家一样， 不愿被看不见的刀剑砍成肉泥。”
“Her Majesty is in the right，”said Reepicheep.“If we had any assurance of saving her by battle，our duty would be very-plain. It appears to me that we have none.And the service they ask of her is in no way contrary to her Majesty’s honour，but a noble and heroical act.If the Queen’s heart moves her to risk the magician， I will not speak against it.”
“女王陛下说得对，”雷佩契普说，“如果我们有一点把握可以通过打赢仗来保全她，我们义不容辞。在我看来，我们没有一点把握。再说了，他们的要求并不损害女王陛下的尊严，还可以说这是一个高尚英勇的举动。如果女王愿意冒险去见魔法师，我不阻拦。”
As no one had ever known Reepicheep to be afraid of anything，he could say this without feeling at all awkward.But the boys，who had all been afraid quite often，grew very red. None the less，it was such obvious sense that they had to give in. Loud cheers broke from the invisible people when their decision was announced，and the Chief Voice(warmly supported by all the others)invited the Narnians to come to supper and spend the night.Eustace didn’t want to accept，but Lucy said，“I’m sure they’re not treacherous.They’re not like that at all，”and the others agreed.And so，accompanied by an enormous noise of thumpings(which became louder when they reached the flagged and echoing courtyard)they all went back to the house.
人人都知道雷佩契普向来天不怕地不怕，说这些话也在情理之中。那些前怕狼后怕虎的小伙子们的脸被他的话羞得通红，于是他们只好让步。隐形人听到事情就这么定了，顿时大声欢呼，他们的老大提出请纳尼亚人共进晚餐，玩上一夜，其他人都一致热烈拥护。尤斯塔斯不愿接受，可是露茜说：“我相信他们也不是坏人，根本不像。” 其他人也都同意了。就这样，他们在一片砰砰砰的声音里，回到那所房子。他们走到那个铺着石板、发出回声的院子里时，声音就更大了。