Chapter 7　MAINLY ABOUT DWARFS

The two Calormene soldiers at the head of the column, seeing what they took for a Tarkaan or great lord with two armed pages, came to a halt and raised their spears in salute.

“O My Master,” said one of them, “we lead these manikins to Calormen to work in the mines of The Tisroc, may-he-live-forever.”

“By the great god Tash, they are very obedient,” said Tirian. Then suddenly he turned to the Dwarfs themselves. About one in six of them carried a torch and by that flickering light he could see their bearded faces all looking at him with grim and dogged expressions.

“Has The Tisroc fought a great battle, Dwarfs, and conquered your land?” he asked, “that thus you go patiently to die in the salt-pits of Pugrahan?”

The two soldiers glared at him in surprise but the Dwarfs all answered, “Aslan's orders, Aslan's orders. He's sold us. What can we do against him?”

“Tisroc indeed!” added one and spat. “I'd like to see him try it!”

“Silence, dogs!” said the chief soldier.

“Look!” said Tirian, pulling Puzzle forward into the light. “It has all been a lie. Aslan has not come to Narnia at all. You have been cheated by the Ape. This is the thing he brought out of the stable to show you. Look at it.”

What the Dwarfs saw, now that they could see it close, was certainly enough to make them wonder how they had ever been taken in. The lion-skin had got pretty untidy already during Puzzle's imprisonment in the stable and it had been knocked crooked during his journey through the dark wood. Most of it was in a big lump on one shoulder. The head, besides being pushed sideways, had somehow got very far back so that anyone could now see his silly, gentle, donkeyish face gazing out of it. Some grass stuck out of one corner of his mouth, for he'd been doing a little quiet nibbling as they brought him along. And he was muttering, “It wasn't my fault, I'm not clever. I never said I was.”

For one second all the Dwarfs were staring at Puzzle with wide open mouths and then one of the soldiers said sharply, “Are you mad, My Master? What are you doing to the slaves?” and the other said, “And who are you?” Neither of their spears was at the salute now—both were down and ready for action.

“Give the password,” said the chief soldier.

“This is my password,” said the King as he drew his sword. “The light is dawning, the lie broken. Now guard thee, miscreant, for I am Tirian of Narnia.”

He flew upon the chief soldier like lightning. Eustace, who had drawn his sword when he saw the King draw his, rushed at the other one: his face was deadly pale, but I wouldn't blame him for that. And he had the luck that beginners sometimes do have. He forgot all that Tirian had tried to teach him that afternoon, slashed wildly (indeed I'm not sure his eyes weren't shut) and suddenly found, to his own great surprise, that the Calormene lay dead at his feet. And though that was a great relief, it was, at the moment, rather frightening. The King's fight lasted a second or two longer: then he too had killed his man and shouted to Eustace, “'Ware the other two.”

But the Dwarfs had settled the two remaining Calormenes. There was no enemy left.

“Well struck, Eustace!” cried Tirian, clapping him on the back. “Now, Dwarfs, you are free. Tomorrow I will lead you to free all Narnia. Three cheers for Aslan!”

But the result which followed was simply wretched. There was a feeble attempt from a few Dwarfs (about five) which died away all at once: from several others there were sulky growls. Many said nothing at all.

“Don't they understand?” said Jill impatiently. “What's wrong with all you Dwarfs? Don't you hear what the King says? It's all over. The Ape isn't going to rule Narnia any longer. Everyone can go back to ordinary life. You can have fun again. Aren't you glad?”

After a pause of nearly a minute a not-very-nice-looking Dwarf with hair and beard as black as soot said: “And who might you be, Missie?”

“I'm Jill,” she said. “The same Jill who rescued King Rilian from the enchantment and this is Eustace who did it too—and we've come back from another world after hundreds of years. Aslan sent us.”

The Dwarfs all looked at one another with grins; sneering grins, not merry ones.

“Well,” said the Black Dwarf (whose name was Griffle), “I don't know how all you chaps feel, but I feel I've heard as much about Aslan as I want to for the rest of my life.”

“That's right, that's right,” growled the other Dwarfs. “It's all a plant, all a blooming plant.”

“What do you mean?” said Tirian. He had not been pale when he was fighting but he was pale now. He had thought this was going to be a beautiful moment, but it was turning out more like a bad dream.

“You must think we're blooming soft in the head, that you must,” said Griffle. “We've been taken in once and now you expect us to be taken in again the next minute. We've no more use for stories about Aslan, see! Look at him! An old moke with long ears!”

“By heaven, you make me mad,” said Tirian. “Which of us said that was Aslan? That is the Ape's imitation of the real Aslan. Can't you understand?”

“And you've got a better imitation, I suppose!” said Griffle. “No thanks. We've been fooled once and we're not going to be fooled again.”

“I have not,” said Tirian angrily, “I serve the real Aslan.”

“Where's he? Who's he? Show him to us!” said several Dwarfs.“Do you think I keep him in my wallet, fools?” said Tirian. “Who am I that I could make Aslan appear at my bidding? He's not a tame lion.”

The moment those words were out of his mouth he realized that he had made a false move. The Dwarfs at once began repeating “not a tame lion, not a tame lion,” in a jeering sing-song. “That's what the other lot kept on telling us,” said one.

“Do you mean you don't believe in the real Aslan?” said Jill. “But I've seen him. And he has sent us two here out of a different world.”

“Ah,” said Griffle with a broad smile. “So you say. They've taught you your stuff all right. Saying your lessons, ain't you?”

“Churl,” cried Tirian, “will you give a lady the lie to her very face?”

“You keep a civil tongue in your head, Mister,” replied the Dwarf. “I don't think we want any more Kings—if you are Tirian, which you don't look like him—no more than we want any Aslans. We're going to look after ourselves from now on and touch our caps to nobody. See?”

“That's right,” said the other Dwarfs. “We're on our own now. No more Aslan, no more Kings, no more silly stories about other worlds. The Dwarfs are for the Dwarfs.” And they began to fall into their places and to get ready for marching back to wherever they had come from.

“Little beasts!” said Eustace. “Aren't you even going to say thank you for being saved from the salt-mines?”

“Oh, we know all about that,” said Griffle over his shoulder. “You wanted to make use of us, that's why you rescued us. You're playing some game of your own. Come on you chaps.”

And the Dwarfs struck up the queer little marching song which goes with the drum-beat, and off they tramped into the darkness.

Tirian and his friends stared after them. Then he said the single word “Come,” and they continued their journey.

They were a silent party. Puzzle felt himself to be still in disgrace, and also he didn't really quite understand what had happened. Jill, besides being disgusted with the Dwarfs, was very impressed with Eustace's victory over the Calormene and felt almost shy. As for Eustace, his heart was still beating rather quickly.

Tirian and Jewel walked sadly together in the rear. The King had his arm on the Unicorn's shoulder and sometimes the Unicorn nuzzled the King's cheek with his soft nose. They did not try to comfort one another with words. It wasn't very easy to think of anything to say that would be comforting. Tirian had never dreamed that one of the results of an Ape's setting up as a false Aslan would be to stop people from believing in the real one. He had felt quite sure that the Dwarfs would rally to his side the moment he showed them how they had been deceived. And then next night he would have led them to Stable Hill and shown Puzzle to all the creatures and everyone would have turned against the Ape and, perhaps after a scuffle with the Calormenes, the whole thing would have been over. But now, it seemed, he could count on nothing. How many other Narnians might turn the same way as the Dwarfs?

“Somebody's coming after us, I think,” said Puzzle suddenly.

They stopped and listened. Sure enough, there was a thump-thump of small feet behind them.

“Who goes there!” shouted the King.

“Only me, Sire,” came a voice. “Me, Poggin the Dwarf. I've only just managed to get away from the others. I'm on your side, Sire: and on Aslan's. If you can put a Dwarfish sword in my fist, I'd gladly strike a blow on the right side before all's done.”

Everyone crowded round him and welcomed him and praised him and slapped him on the back. Of course one single Dwarf could not make a very great difference, but it was somehow very cheering to have even one. The whole party brightened up. But Jill and Eustace didn't stay bright for very long, for they were now yawning their heads off and too tired to think about anything but bed.

It was at the coldest hour of the night, just before dawn, that they got back to the Tower. If there had been a meal ready for them they would have been glad enough to eat, but the bother and delay of getting one was not to be thought of. They drank from a stream, splashed their faces with water, and tumbled into their bunks, except for Puzzle and Jewel who said they'd be more comfortable outside. This perhaps was just as well, for a Unicorn and a fat, full-grown Donkey indoors always make a room feel rather crowded.

Narnian Dwarfs, though less than four feet high, are for their size about the toughest and strongest creatures there are, so that Poggin, in spite of a heavy day and a late night, woke fully refreshed before any of the others. He at once took Jill's bow, went out and shot a couple of wood pigeons. Then he sat plucking them on the doorstep and chatting to Jewel and Puzzle.

Puzzle looked and felt a good deal better this morning. Jewel, being a Unicorn and therefore one of the noblest and delicatest of beasts, had been very kind to him, talking to him about things of the sort they could both understand like grass and sugar and the care of one's hoofs.

When Jill and Eustace came out of the Tower yawning and rubbing their eyes at almost half past ten, the Dwarf showed them where they could gather plenty of a Narnian weed called Wild Fresney, which looks rather like our wood-sorrel but tastes a good deal nicer when cooked. (It needs a little butter and pepper to make it perfect, but they hadn't got these.) So that what with one thing and another, they had the makings of a capital stew for their breakfast or dinner, whichever you choose to call it. Tirian went a little further off into the wood with an axe and brought back some branches for fuel.

While the meal was cooking—which seemed a very long time, especially as it smelled nicer and nicer the nearer it came to being done—the King found a complete Dwarfish outfit for Poggin: mail shirt, helmet, shield, sword, belt, and dagger. Then he inspected Eustace's sword and found that Eustace had put it back in the sheath all messy from killing the Calormene. He was scolded for that and made to clean and polish it.

All this while Jill went to and fro, sometimes stirring the pot and sometimes looking out enviously at the Donkey and the Unicorn who were contentedly grazing. How many times that morning she wished she could eat grass!

But when the meal came everyone felt it had been worth waiting for, and there were second helpings all round.

When everyone had eaten as much as he could, the three humans and the Dwarf came and sat on the doorstep, the four-footed ones lay down facing them, the Dwarf (with permission both from Jill and from Tirian) lit his pipe, and the King said:

“Now, friend Poggin, you have more news of the enemy, belike, than we. Tell us all you know. And first, what tale do they tell of my escape?”

“As cunning a tale, Sire, as ever was devised,” said Poggin. “It was the Cat, Ginger, who told it, and most likely made it up too. This Ginger, Sire—oh, he's a slyboots if ever a cat was—said he was walking past the tree to which those villains bound your Majesty. And he said (saving your reverence) that you were howling and swearing and cursing Aslan: ‘language I wouldn't like to repeat’ were the words he used, looking ever so prim and proper you know the way a Cat can when it pleases. And then, says Ginger, Aslan himself suddenly appeared in a flash of lightning and swallowed your Majesty up at one mouthful.

“All the Beasts trembled at this story and some fainted right away. And of course the Ape followed it up. There, he says, see what Aslan does to those who don't respect him. Let that be a warning to you all. And the poor creatures wailed and whined and said, it will, it will. So that in the upshot your Majesty's escape has not set them thinking whether you still have loyal friends to aid you, but only made them more afraid and more obedient to the Ape.”

“What devilish policy!” said Tirian. “This Ginger, then, is close in the Ape's counsels.”

“It's more a question by now, Sire, if the Ape is in his counsels,” replied the Dwarf. “The Ape has taken to drinking, you see. My belief is that the plot is now mostly carried on by Ginger or Rishda—that's the Calormene captain. And I think some words that Ginger has scattered among the Dwarfs are chiefly to blame for the scurvy return they made you. And I'll tell you why.

“One of those dreadful midnight meetings had just broken up the night before last and I'd gone a bit of the way home when I found I'd left my pipe behind. It was a real good 'un, an old favourite, so I went back to look for it. But before I got to the place where I'd been sitting (it was black as pitch there) I heard a cat's voice say Mew and a Calormene voice say ‘here…speak softly,’ so I just stood as still as if I was frozen. And these two were Ginger and Rishda Tarkaan as they call him.

“‘Noble Tarkaan,’ said the Cat in that silky voice of his, ‘I just wanted to know exactly what we both meant today about Aslan meaning no more than Tash.’

“‘Doubtless, most sagacious of cats,’ says the other, ‘you have perceived my meaning.’ ‘You mean,’ says Ginger, ‘that there's no such person as either.’

“‘All who are enlightened know that,’ said the Tarkaan.

“‘Then we can understand one another,’ purrs the Cat. ‘Do you, like me, grow a little weary of the Ape?’

“‘A stupid, greedy brute,’ says the other, ‘but we must use him for the present. Thou and I must provide for all things in secret and make the Ape do our will.’

“‘And it would be better, wouldn't it,’ said Ginger, ‘to let some of the more enlightened Narnians into our counsels: one by one as we find them apt. For the Beasts who really believe in Aslan may turn at any moment: and will, if the Ape's folly betrays his secret. But those who care neither for Tash nor Aslan but have only an eye to their own profit and such reward as The Tisroc may give them when Narnia is a Calormene province, will be firm.’

“‘Excellent Cat,’ said the Captain. ‘But choose which ones carefully.’”

While the Dwarf had been speaking the day seemed to have changed. It had been sunny when they sat down. Now Puzzle shivered. Jewel shifted his head uneasily. Jill looked up.

“It's clouding over,” she said.

“And it's so cold,” said Puzzle.

“Cold enough, by the Lion!” said Tirian, blowing on his hands. “And faugh! What foul smell is this?”

“Phew!” gasped Eustace. “It's like something dead. Is there a dead bird somewhere about? And why didn't we notice it before?”

With a great upheaval Jewel scrambled to his feet and pointed with his horn.

“Look!” he cried. “Look at it! Look, look!”

Then all six of them saw; and over all their faces there came an expression of uttermost dismay.

第七章　小矮人们

走在队列前面的两个卡乐门士兵看见提里安，一开始还当他是带着两个卫士的卡乐门王爷，便赶紧停下脚步，举起手中的长矛向他致敬。

“我的主人，”一个士兵说，“我们带这班小矮人去卡乐门，到提斯罗克的矿山去做工——愿提斯罗克万寿无疆。”

“我凭塔什大神发誓，他们倒真听话，”提里安说。然后他突然转向小矮人们。他们每六个人就有一人举着火炬，借着闪闪烁烁的火光，他能看见那一张张胡子拉碴的脸在盯着他看，表情严肃而固执。

“小矮人们，你们如此心甘情愿地去普格拉汉的盐坑送死，是不是提斯罗克打了一个大胜仗，征服了你们的国土？”

两个士兵惊讶地看着他。小矮人七嘴八舌地回答说：“阿斯兰的命令，阿斯兰的命令。他卖掉了我们，我们怎么能反对他啊？”

“其实是提斯罗克的命令！”其中一个小矮人一边说，一边还吐了口唾沫，“我倒要看看他是怎样骗人的。”

“闭嘴，你这狗东西！”为首的士兵呵斥说。

“你们看！”提里安将帕塞尔拉到火光底下，“这全是一个骗局。阿斯兰根本没有来纳尼亚。你们都上了猿猴的当了。他从马厩里带出来让你们看的就是这头畜生。好好看看他吧。”

小矮人现在能就近看个仔细了，他们亲眼所见的景象足以使他们相信自己受到了愚弄。由于长时间被囚禁在马厩里，驴子身上的狮皮已经很不整洁；这次穿过黑暗的树林，一路上少不了磕磕碰碰，更使狮皮变得皱皱巴巴，大部分皮毛都挤到一侧的肩膀上。狮头上的皮毛不仅挤歪了，而且还往后缩了一大截，现在谁都能看见那张愚蠢而温和的驴脸从伪装中露出。他的嘴角上还挂着几根青草，因为这一路过来，他一直在偷偷地啃吃路边的青草。他现在还在一个劲地唠叨：“这不是我的错。我不聪明。我从来没说过自己是聪明的。”

小矮人们张大嘴巴注视了帕塞尔片刻。一个卡乐门士兵尖叫起来：“我的长官，你疯了吗？你对这些奴隶说了什么呀？”另一个士兵说：“你是谁？”他们的长矛不再向提里安致敬；两人都将武器从肩膀上放下，准备战斗了。

“说出口令！”为首的士兵说。

国王抽出弯刀，说：“我的口令是‘天亮了，谎言破灭了’。浑蛋，保护好你自己吧，我是纳尼亚的提里安。”

说完，他便闪电般地扑向为首的士兵。尤斯塔斯一见国王拔剑在手，也赶紧把他的剑拔出，冲向另一个士兵。他的脸苍白得像一张纸，但我们不应该因此责备他。像某些初上战场的人一样，他也是吉星高照。他完全忘记了当天下午提里安教过他的技法，只知道乱砍一气（我不敢肯定他是否闭着眼睛），但大大出乎意外的是，那个卡乐门人已经躺在地上一命呜呼了。虽然这是很大的安慰，但当时的情形，也真让人胆战心惊。国王的战斗延续了一两秒钟，最后也将那人杀了。他朝尤斯塔斯呼喊：“还有两个呢。”

剩下的两个卡乐门人被小矮人解决了。敌人已经全部毙命。

“打得好，尤斯塔斯！”提里安拍了拍他的背，欢呼说，“小矮人们，你们自由了。明天我要带你们去解放整个纳尼亚。胜利属于阿斯兰！”

但随后的情况却十分糟糕。只有少数几个小矮人（大约五个）响应他，声音微弱，很快消逝了。好几个小矮人在愤怒地吼叫。更多的小矮人保持沉默。

“他们没有听清楚吗？”吉尔不耐烦地说，“你们这班小矮人脑子有病吗？你们没有听见国王说的话吗？一切都过去了。猿猴不会再统治纳尼亚了。每个人都恢复了正常的生活。你们又可以玩了。这你们还不高兴吗？”

安静了好一会儿，随后有个长相不那么好看，头发和胡子黑得像煤烟的小矮人说：“你是什么人啊，小姐？”

“我是吉尔，”她说，“就是从巫婆手里救过瑞廉国王的那个吉尔——这是尤斯塔斯，当年我们是在一起的——几百年过去了，我们又从另一个世界回到这里。阿斯兰派我们来的。”

小矮人们你看看我，我看看你，都笑了起来，那是一种轻蔑的嘲笑，不是欢笑。

“好了，”黑胡子小矮人（他的名字叫格里佛尔）说，“我不知道你们是怎样想的，但关于阿斯兰，我已经听过太多，今生今世不想再听了。”

“说得好，说得好，”其他的小矮人呼叫起来，“这只是一个骗局，一个十足的骗局。”

“你们说什么？”提里安说。刚才作战时，他的脸色没有发白，这会却发白了。他原以为现在该是无比美好的时刻，结果却像一场噩梦。

“你一定以为我们都是十足的笨蛋，你一定是这样想的，”格里佛尔说，“我们已经上当过一次，现在你又想让我们上第二次当。听我说，关于阿斯兰的故事，对我们已经没有用处。看看他吧！一头长耳朵的老驴！”

“天哪，你把我气疯了，”提里安说，“我们谁说过他就是阿斯兰？那是猿猴想冒充阿斯兰。这你都不明白吗？”

“你们冒充得更高明，我觉得！”格里佛尔说，“不谢了。我们已经被愚弄了一次，不想再被你们愚弄。”

“我没有愚弄你们，”提里安说，“我听从真正的阿斯兰的召唤。”

“那他在哪里？他是谁？让我们看看他！”好几个小矮人说。

“你们以为我可以把他藏在口袋里吗，你们这班傻瓜？”提里安说，“如果阿斯兰能按我的吩咐现身，那我成了什么人？他不是一只温驯的狮子。”

这话一出口，他便意识到自己说了一句没用的话。小矮人即刻以嘲笑的怪腔怪调重复着这句话：“不是一只温驯的狮子，不是一只温驯的狮子。早就有人跟我们反复说过这句话了。”

“你们这是说，你们并不相信真正的阿斯兰？”吉尔说，“但我见过他。是他派我们两人从另一个世界到这儿来的。”

“哈哈，”格里佛尔狂笑起来，“你是这样说的吗？他们教了你这一切。你是给我们上课，是不是？”

“混账东西！”提里安呵斥着，“你竟敢当着一个高贵女子的面胡说八道！”

“把你的礼貌留在你自己的脑子里吧，先生，”小矮人回答，“我觉得，我们并不需要太多的国王——如果你是提里安，但我总觉得你并不像他——我们也不需要什么阿斯兰。从今往后，我们要照顾好自己，再不向别人脱帽致敬。你懂我的意思吗？”

“说得好，”其他的小矮人说，“我们现在只相信自己。不再相信阿斯兰，不再相信国王，不再相信有关其他世界的愚蠢故事。小矮人拥护小矮人。”他们开始回到队列之中，准备返回自己的居地。

“小畜生！”尤斯塔斯说，“把你们从盐矿救出来，你们连句‘谢谢’也不说吗？”

“我们全知道的，”格里佛尔回过头来说，“你们想利用我们，这就是你们救我们的原因。你们在玩你们的把戏。伙计们，走啊。”

小矮人们伴随着鼓声唱起怪腔怪调的进行曲，很快踏进夜色之中。

提里安和他的朋友们看着他们远去，随后他只简单地说了一个字：“走。”大家便继续上路了。

谁都一言不发。帕塞尔依然觉得自己很丢人，但他同时也弄不懂究竟发生了什么事。吉尔厌恶那班小矮人，尤斯塔斯战胜卡乐门人取得胜利令她感动，同时也令她惭愧。至于尤斯塔斯，他的心仍在怦怦地跳。

提里安和珠厄儿心情沉重地走在后面。国王将自己的手臂搁在独角兽的肩膀上，独角兽则时不时地用鼻子温柔地擦碰国王的脸。他们没有用语言安慰对方；他们一时也想不出什么样的话能安慰对方。提里安做梦也没有想到猿猴假冒阿斯兰最后会导致他的子民怀疑起真正的阿斯兰。他原以为，只要他向小矮人们说清楚他们如何受了骗，他们一定会站在他这一边。这样，明天晚上他就可以带领他们回到马厩山，向所有的动物揭示帕塞尔的本来面目。到那时，人人都会转而反对猿猴，也许还会再跟卡乐门人打上一仗，所有的事情就一了百了。但现在，他的如意算盘显然落空了。还有多少纳尼亚的子民会像小矮人那样对待他呢？

“好像有人在追赶我们，陛下，”帕塞尔突然说。

他们停下脚步听了听。确实，他们的背后响起了小小的脚步声。

“那边是谁？”国王大声喝问。

“是我，陛下，”一个声音说，“我是小矮人波金。我刚刚想办法脱离了他们。我站在您和阿斯兰这一边，陛下。只要你给我一把小矮人的刀，我一定乐意为正义的一方血战到底。”

大家都围住他，向他表示欢迎，称赞他，拍了拍他的肩膀。当然，仅一个小矮人对局势不会有多大改观，但毕竟是件开心的事。大伙都振奋起来。但吉尔和尤斯塔斯并没有高兴多久，因为他们打起了哈欠，脑袋耷拉下来：他们太累了，只想早点儿上床睡觉。

黎明前是晚上最寒冷的时刻，他们终于回到堡垒。如果这时有一顿现成的饭，他们一定会吃得很开心；但没有想到的是，要想吃到这一顿饭，既费力又费时。他们喝的是小溪里的水，还用水拍了拍脸，然后便倒在床上睡了。帕塞尔和珠厄儿却说待在室外比室内更舒服。这倒也好，因为让独角兽和一只长得肥肥胖胖的驴子留在室内，确实会有拥挤不堪的感觉。

纳尼亚的小矮人虽然身高不到四英尺，却是最能吃苦耐劳、最强壮有力的，波金就是这样的小矮人。尽管劳累了一整天，晚上又睡得晚，但第二天他比谁都起得早，而且精神十分饱满。他拿了吉尔的弓出去，射杀了两只鸽子。然后他在门口坐下来，一边给鸽子拔毛，一边跟珠厄儿和帕塞尔闲谈。

那天早上，帕塞尔的情绪比以前好多了。珠厄儿身为独角兽，是最高贵优雅的一种动物，他对驴子十分友好。他们所谈的话题也是双方都能理解的，如青草啦，糖啦，蹄子的保养啦，等等。

上午十点半左右，吉尔和尤斯塔斯才打着哈欠、揉着眼睛从堡垒出来。小矮人指给他们看什么地方能采集到一种叫弗雷斯尼的纳尼亚野草，它的形状很像我们英格兰的酢浆草，但煮熟后吃起来比酢浆草的味道好得多（要想烹调得美味可口，最好放一点儿黄油和胡椒，可惜这些配料他们没有）。他们就这样东拼西凑，在忙着做一顿丰盛的饭食，你可以叫它早餐，也可以叫它午餐，随你怎么叫都行，就看你高兴。提里安还带了斧子进入树林，砍了一些树枝回来当柴火。

在饭做好以前——做饭的时间显得很长，尤其是闻上去越来越香，接近做好时，时间就显得更漫长了——国王为波金找来了一套适合小矮人用的装备：一副锁子甲、一个头盔、一面盾、一把剑、一根皮带和一把匕首。然后他检查了尤斯塔斯的宝剑，发现他没有擦去卡乐门人留下的血污就将剑插回鞘里，便批评了他，责成他揩干血迹，擦亮剑面。

吉尔一直在走来走去，她时而搅搅锅里煮着的食物，时而羡慕地朝外面正在心满意足地吃着草的驴子和独角兽看看。那天上午，不知有多少回，她真恨不得自己也能那样惬意地吃草！

但当食物终于上来时，人人都觉得这漫长的等待是值得的；吃完了一份，每人还能再续一份。

等到吃饱喝足，三个人类和一个小矮人便在门口坐了下来，两只四足动物则在他们对面躺下；小矮人得到吉尔和提里安的允许，还点上了他的烟斗。这时国王对小矮人说：“波金朋友，有关敌人的情况，你比我们了解。请你详细通报一下。先说说关于我脱险以后的谣言吧。”

“陛下，他们所编的谣言，是再狡猾不过了，”波金说，“都是那只大黄猫，谣言都是他说的，很可能就是他编的。这只大黄猫，陛下——他是滑头的猫当中最滑头的一只——他说他当时正好从那些恶棍绑陛下的那棵树旁边走过。他说（恕我直言相告）您正在骂骂咧咧，诅咒着阿斯兰。‘原话我就不重复了’，这是他使用的措辞，神态一本正经，煞有介事——您知道，猫是能玩这样的花招的，只要他愿意。大黄猫然后说，阿斯兰这时突然在闪电中现身，一口吞下了陛下您。

“所有的动物听了大黄猫的故事都瑟瑟发抖，有的当场晕倒。当然，猿猴也在帮腔。猿猴说：‘看看阿斯兰是怎样对待不尊敬他的动物的吧；让这件事成为对大家的警告吧。’可怜的动物们哭哭啼啼地说：‘是啊，是啊。’就这样，陛下这次脱险，谁都没有想过是由于贵人相助，而是让大家对猿猴更害怕，更俯首帖耳。”

“多可恶的诡计！”提里安说，“看来这只大黄猫是猿猴的同谋了。”

“现在的情况是倒过来了，陛下，可以说猿猴是大黄猫的同谋，”小矮人回答，“你知道，猿猴酗酒。我相信，他们的阴谋现在主要由大黄猫和卡乐门人的头领利什达来实行。大黄猫散布的谣言针对的就是他们强加于您的不体面的逃离。我可以把其中的原因告诉您。

“前天晚上的深夜，那个可怕的会议刚刚开完，我正走在回家的路上，突然想起我把烟斗遗忘在开会的地方了。这是一个很好的烟斗，多年的心爱之物，我于是回去寻找。还没有走到刚才坐过的地方（当时一团漆黑），我便听见一声猫叫，随后是一个卡乐门人在说：‘这儿——声音轻点。’我当时就一动不动地站住了。这两个家伙就是大黄猫和那个称作‘王爷’的利什达。

“‘高贵的王爷，’大黄猫以奉承的口吻说，‘今天我们说到阿斯兰并不强于塔什，我很想知道我们双方的真实意思。’

“‘众猫中最有悟性的猫啊，’另一个声音说，‘你显然已经懂得我的意思了。’

“‘你的意思是，’大黄猫说，‘无论阿斯兰或塔什，两者都不存在。’

“‘只要是有觉悟的人，谁都知道这一点。’王爷说。

“‘那我们就是知己了，’大黄猫喵喵地叫起来，‘你是否跟我一样，也有点讨厌那只猿猴呢？’

“‘一只愚蠢而贪婪的野兽，’另一个说，‘但眼下我们还得利用他。我们必须暗中布置一切，让猿猴按我们的意志去做。’

“‘让更多有觉悟的纳尼亚人参与我们的计划，’大黄猫说，‘岂不更好吗？我们应该一个一个去争取。真正相信阿斯兰的动物是靠不住的：猿猴一旦因愚蠢暴露了自己的机密，他们随时会转变立场。只有那些既不关心塔什也不关心阿斯兰的动物，即那些眼睛只盯着自己的利益，只关心当纳尼亚成为卡乐门的一个省份时，提斯罗克会给他们什么好处的动物，才是靠得住的。”

“‘说得好，老猫，’利什达说，‘我们确实应该谨慎行事。’”

小矮人回顾了他所听到的一切，这时，天色似乎忽然变了。他们刚才坐下时，天还是晴朗的。现在帕塞尔感到冷了。珠厄儿不安地晃动着脑袋。吉尔抬头看了看天。

“乌云密布起来了，”她说。

“天真冷，”帕塞尔说。

“狮王在上，确实有点冷，”提里安一边说，一边呵了呵手，“呸！这是什么气味啊？太难闻了。”

“咦！”尤斯塔斯喘着气说，“好像是死了什么东西。什么地方有鸟的尸体？刚才我们为什么没有注意到呢？”

独角兽忽地从地上站起，向前举起他的独角。

“看！”他惊叫起来，“看那里！看，快看！”

他们都看见了；他们的脸上都露出惊愕的神情。