Chapter4 布蘭??
BRAN?
?Bran preferred the hard stone of the window seat to the comforts of his featherbed and blankets. Abed, the walls pressed close and the ceiling hung heavy above him; abed, the room was his cell, and Winterfell his prison. Yet outside his window, the wide world still called. ?
布蘭喜歡窗邊堅硬的石座椅,遠勝溫暖舒適的羽床毛毯。躺在床上,四壁朝他壓迫而來,沉重的天花板懸在頭頂;躺在床上,臥室是他的牢房,臨冬城是他的監獄。然而在窗外,廣大的世界依舊呼喚著他。
He could not walk, nor climb nor hunt nor fight with a wooden sword as once he had, but he could still look. He liked to watch the windows begin to glow all over Winterfell as candles and hearth fires were lit behind the diamond-shaped panes of tower and hall, and he loved to listen to the direwolves sing to the stars. ?
雖然他不能行走,不能攀爬,不能打獵,不能像以前一樣拿木劍練習,但他可以“看”。他喜歡坐在窗前,看著遠方鉆石形玻璃窗欞里的蠟燭和爐火逐一點燃,照遍臨冬城的塔樓和廳堂;他也喜歡聽冰原狼群對著星空歌唱。
Of late, he often dreamed of wolves. They are talking to me, brother to brother, he told himself when the direwolves howled. He could almost understand them … not quite, not truly, but almost … as if they were singing in a language he had once known and somehow forgotten.
近來,他時常夢見狼。他們把我當成兄弟,在對我說話啊,每當他聽見冰原狼的叫聲,便這么告訴自己。他幾乎能聽懂它們的話……并非全懂,也非真懂,好像就差那么一點……彷佛它們歌唱的語言他曾經通曉,只是暫時遺忘。
The Walders might be scared of them, but the Starks had wolf blood. Old Nan told him so. “Though it is stronger in some than in others,” she warned.??
大小瓦德怕它們,然而史塔克家人體內流的是奔狼的血液,老奶媽說過的。“雖然每個族人身上的狼血并不等量,”她還告誡。
Summer’s howls were long and sad, full of grief and longing. Shaggydog’s were more savage. Their voices echoed through the yards and halls until the castle rang and it seemed as though some great pack of direwolves haunted Winterfell, instead of only two … two where there had once been six.
夏天的叫聲綿長而哀戚,充滿悲傷與思慕,毛毛狗則較具野性。它們的嚎叫回蕩在廣場上、廳堂里,充繞全城,好似有大群冰原狼盤據臨冬城,而不只區區兩只……原本的六只,如今只剩下這兩個。
?Do they miss their brothers and sisters too? Bran wondered. Are they calling to Grey Wind and Ghost, to Nymeria and Lady’s Shade? Do they want them to come home and be a pack together? ?
他們也在想念兄弟姐妹嗎?布蘭很想知道,他們是在呼喚灰風和白靈,呼喚娜梅莉亞和淑女的鬼魂嗎?他們是否也希望兄弟姐妹們早日回家、重新團聚呢?
“Who can know the mind of a wolf?” Ser Rodrik Cassel said when Bran asked him why they howled. Bran’s lady mother had named him castellan of Winterfell in her absence, and his duties left him little time for idle questions. ?
“誰知道狼想些什么?”當布蘭向羅德利克·凱索爵士問起狼嚎的原因時,他這么回答。布蘭的母親大人南下之前,任命羅德利克爵士為代理城主,因此他身負重任,無暇閑話。 ?
“It’s freedom they’re calling for,” declared Farlen, who was kennelmaster and had no more love for the direwolves than his hounds did. “They don’t like being walled up, and who’s to blame them? Wild things belong in the wild, not in a castle.” ?
“他們在呼喚自由。”法蘭表示,他是臨冬城的馴獸長,和他管的獵犬一樣對冰原狼沒好感。“它們不喜歡被關起來,這能怪誰呢?野東西本該待在野外,而不是圈在城里。” ?
“They want to hunt,” agreed Gage the cook as he tossed cubes of suet in a great kettle of stew. “A wolf smells better’n any man. Like as not, they’ve caught the scent o’ prey.” ?
“它們想打獵。”大廚蓋奇一邊把板油塊丟進大湯鍋,一邊說,“狼的嗅覺比人靈敏得多,他們八成是聞到獵物的氣味了。” ?
Maester Luwin did not think so. “Wolves often howl at the moon. These are howling at the comet. See how bright it is, Bran? Perchance they think it is the moon.” ?
魯溫學士卻不這么認為:“狼時常對月長嚎,他們現在是對著那顆彗星叫。布蘭,你看它有多亮?他們想必把彗星當成了月亮。”
When Bran repeated that to Osha, she laughed aloud. “Your wolves have more wit than your maester,” the wildling woman said. “They know truths the grey man has forgotten.” The way she said it made him shiver, and when he asked what the comet meant, she answered, “Blood and fire, boy, and nothing sweet.” ?
布蘭把這番話告訴歐莎,她聽了卻哈哈大笑。“你們家學士還沒那兩只狼聰明,”女野人說,“有些事灰老頭忘了,他們可記得很清楚。”聽她這么一說,他不禁全身發抖,連問她彗星所代表的意義,她回答道,“小子,就是血與火,沒什么好事。”
Bran asked Septon Chayle about the comet while they were sorting through some scrolls snatched from the library fire. “It is the sword that slays the season,” he replied, and soon after the white raven came from Oldtown bringing word of autumn, so doubtless he was right. ?
關于彗星的含意,先前布蘭幫柴爾修士整理從藏書塔大火中搶救出來的卷軸時,也向他問起過。“那是斬殺季節的劍。”他這么回答。沒過多久,白鴉便從舊鎮帶來秋天來臨的消息,所以他說的肯定沒錯。
Though Old Nan did not think so, and she’d lived longer than any of them. “Dragons,” she said, lifting her head and sniffing. She was near blind and could not see the comet, yet she claimed she could smell it. “It be dragons, boy,” she insisted. Bran got no princes from Nan, no more than he ever had. ?
老奶媽卻不以為然可老奶媽卻不以為然,而她的年紀比誰都大。“是龍,”她邊說邊抬頭,嗅了兩下。她的眼睛已經快瞎,無法看到彗星,然而她宣稱自己聞得到。“那是龍啊,孩子。”她堅持。老奶媽始終不曾稱呼布蘭為“王子”,過去如此,現在依然。
Hodor said only, “Hodor.” That was all he ever said. ?
阿多只說了兩個字:“阿多”,他就只會說這個。
And still the direwolves howled. The guards on the walls muttered curses, hounds in the kennels barked furiously, horses kicked at their stalls, the Walders shivered by their fire, and even Maester Luwin complained of sleepless nights. Only Bran did not mind.
冰原狼依舊日夜號叫不止。城上的守衛低聲咒罵,獸欄的獵犬怒聲狂吠,馬兒猛踢馬廄,瓦德兄弟在火邊顫抖,就連魯溫學士也抱怨晚上睡不好,唯獨布蘭不以為意。
?Ser Rodrik had confined the wolves to the godswood after Shaggydog bit Little Walder, but the stones of Winterfell played queer tricks with sound, and sometimes it sounded as if they were in the yard right below Bran’s window. Other times he would have sworn they were up on the curtain walls, loping round like sentries. He wished that he could see them. ?
自從毛毛狗咬傷小瓦德之后,羅德利克爵士便把兩只狼關在神木林里,可是臨冬城的石墻會拿聲音變戲法,有時候,他們彷佛就在布蘭窗戶下方的廣場上,有時候,他敢發誓他們有如守衛一般在城墻上來回游走。他好想看看它們。
He could see the comet hanging above the Guards Hall and the Bell Tower, and farther back the First Keep, squat and round, its gargoyles black shapes against the bruised purple dusk. Once Bran had known every stone of those buildings, inside and out; he had climbed them all, scampering up walls as easily as other boys ran down stairs. Their rooftops had been his secret places, and the crows atop the broken tower his special friends. ?
他時時注意到高掛在守衛室、鐘塔以及更遠處首堡上空的彗星,圓形的首堡十分低矮,石像鬼黑色的身形襯著遠方紫紅的天幕。曾經,布蘭對這些建筑的里里外外、一磚一瓦都了若指掌,因為他全都爬過。他爬起墻來就像別的男孩跑樓梯那么輕松自如。過去,城樓的屋頂是他的秘密基地,殘塔頂的烏鴉是他的知心朋友。
And then he had fallen. ?
然而他卻摔下樓去。
Bran did not remember falling, yet they said he had, so he supposed it must be true. He had almost died. When he saw the weather worn gargoyles atop the First Keep where it had happened, he got a queer tight feeling in his belly. And now he could not climb, nor walk nor run nor sword fight, and the dreams he’d dreamed of knighthood had soured in his head.
布蘭不記得自己墜樓,但他們都這么說,所以他想應該確有其事。他差點就沒命了呢。每當他見到意外發生的首堡塔頂那些歷經風吹雨打的石像鬼雕像,便覺腹部奇異的一緊。如今他不能攀爬、不能行走,、不能奔跑、不能練劍,曾經的騎士夢已經灰飛煙滅。
Summer had howled the day Bran had fallen, and for long after as he lay broken in his bed; Robb had told him so before he went away to war. Summer had mourned for him, and Shaggydog and Grey Wind had joined in his grief.
羅柏離城出征以前,對布蘭說過:他墜樓那天,夏天長嚎不止,之后他臥病在床期間,也依舊嚎叫不息。夏天為他哀悼,毛毛狗和灰風齊聲加入悲鳴。
And the night the bloody raven had brought word of their father’s death, the wolves had known that too. Bran had been in the maester’s turret with Rickon talking of the children of the forest when Summer and Shaggydog had drowned out Luwin with their howls. ?
而渾身浴血的信鴉捎來父親死訊的那天夜里,狼群彷佛也知道了。當時布蘭和瑞肯正在學士的塔樓上,討論森林之子的種種故事,夏天和毛毛狗卻突然仰天長嚎,淹沒了魯溫的聲音。
Who are they mourning now? Had some enemy slain the King in the North, who used to be his brother Robb? Had his bastard brother Jon Snow fallen from the Wall? Had his mother died, or one of his sisters? Or was this something else, as maester and septon and Old Nan seemed to think?
而今,它們又為誰哀悼呢?莫非有人殺了那個曾是他哥哥羅柏的北境之王?莫非他私生子哥哥瓊恩失足跌落長城?莫非母親或兩個姐姐出了意外?甚或別的事,就如學士、修士和老奶媽想的那些?
If I were truly a direwolf, I would understand the song, he thought wistfully. In his wolf dreams, he could race up the sides of mountains, jagged icy mountains taller than any tower, and stand at the summit beneath the full moon with all the world below him, the way it used to be. ?
假如我變成冰原狼,我就能懂得他們的歌唱,他滿心期盼地想。在他的狼夢里,他總會飛奔登上比任何塔樓都要陡峭的冰雪峰巒,昂首立于山巔,滿月臨空,俯瞰一切,每次都是這樣。
“Oooo,” Bran cried tentatively. He cupped his hands around his mouth and lifted his head to the comet. “Ooooooooooooooooooo, ahooooooooooooooo,” he howled. It sounded stupid, high and hollow and quavering, a little boy’s howl, not a wolf’s. Yet Summer gave answer, his deep voice drowning out Bran’s thin one, and Shaggydog made it a chorus. Bran haroooed again. They howled together, last of their pack. ?
“嗚嗚嗚~”布蘭試著雙手圍住嘴巴,舉頭朝彗星呼叫,“嗚嗚嗚嗚嗚嗚嗚嗚嗚嗚嗚嗚嗚嗚嗚嗚嗚嗚嗚嗚嗚嗚嗚嗚~”他嚎道,聲音是那么笨拙,尖銳、空洞而顫抖,這只是小男孩的號叫,絕非狼吼。然而夏天卻遙相應和,渾厚的聲音蓋過布蘭的細微吶喊,接著,毛毛狗也加入進來。布蘭再度開口,與之齊聲高喊,好似一群伙伴。 ?
The noise brought a guard to his door, Hayhead with the wen on his nose. He peered in, saw Bran howling out the window, and said, “What’s this, my prince?” ?
喊聲引來鼻子長瘤的守衛“稻草頭”,他探頭進房,看見布蘭朝窗外怪叫,忙問:“王子殿下,出了什么事?”
It made Bran feel queer when they called him prince, though he was Robb’s heir, and Robb was King in the North now. He turned his head to howl at the guard. “Oooooooo. Oo-oo-oooooooooooo.” ?
聽他們稱呼自己為“王子殿下”,布蘭總覺有些不對勁,但他確是羅柏的繼承人,而羅柏是當今北境之王。他轉頭對守衛嚎叫:“嗚嗚嗚嗚。嗚嗚嗚-嗚嗚嗚-嗚嗚嗚嗚嗚嗚嗚嗚~”
Hayhead screwed up his face. “Now you stop that there.” ?
稻草頭板起臉,“你別叫了。”
“Ooo-ooo-oooooo. Ooo-ooo-ooooooooooooooooo.” ?
The guardsman retreated. When he came back, Maester Luwin was with him, all in grey, his chain tight about his neck. “Bran, those beasts make sufficient noise without your help.” He crossed the room and put his hand on the boy’s brow. “The hour grows late, you ought to be fast asleep.”
守衛退下,把全身灰衣、脖子掛著頸鏈的魯溫師傅給找了來。“布蘭,那兩只野東西還不夠吵?你就別再火上澆油了。”他穿過房間,摸摸男孩的額頭。“這么晚了,你快睡吧。”
“I’m talking to the wolves.” Bran brushed the hand away. ?
“我在跟他們說話。”布蘭撥開他的手。
“Shall I have Hayhead carry you to your bed?” ?
“要不我叫稻草頭抱你上床?” ?
“I can get to bed myself.” Mikken had hammered a row of iron bars into the wall, so Bran could pull himself about the room with his arms. It was slow and hard and it made his shoulders ache, but he hated being carried. “Anyway, I don’t have to sleep if I don’t want to.” ?
“我自己能上床。”密肯在墻上釘了一排鐵把手,好讓布蘭可以用手在房間里活動。雖然行動遲緩又辛苦,而且使肩膀痛得要命,但他討厭被人抱來抱去。“而且,我現在不想睡。” ?
“All men must sleep, Bran. Even princes.” ?
“布蘭,人都要睡覺的,即便王子也不例外。” ?
“When I sleep I turn into a wolf.” Bran turned his face away and looked back out into the night. “Do wolves dream?” ?
“我一睡覺就變成狼,”布蘭別過頭,望向窗外的夜色。“狼會作夢嗎?” ?
“All creatures dream, I think, yet not as men do.” ?
“我想,所有動物都會作夢,可他們和人作的夢不一樣。”
“Do dead men dream?” Bran asked, thinking of his father. In the dark crypts below Winterfell, a stonemason was chiseling out his father’s likeness in granite. ?
“死人會作夢嗎?”布蘭問,心里想著父親。在臨冬城下的陰暗墓窖,一名石匠正在大理石上鑿刻父親的容貌。 艾莉亞憤恨不平地照辦后,他又說:“站到那里,靠著那棵橡樹。對,就這樣。”她雙臂環住樹干,臉頰緊貼粗糙的樹皮。“你叫吧,你給我大聲叫。” ?
“Some say yes, some no,” the maester answered. “The dead themselves are silent on the matter.” ?
“有人說會,有人說不會。”學士回答,“死人則無法表示意見。”
“Do trees dream?” ?“那樹呢?” ?
“Trees? No …” ?“樹?不會……” ?
“They do,” Bran said with sudden certainty. “They dream tree dreams. I dream of a tree sometimes. A weirwood, like the one in the godswood. It calls to me. The wolf dreams are better. I smell things, and sometimes I can taste the blood.” ?
“它們會的!”布蘭突然肯定地說,“它們會作樹的夢。我有時候會夢見一棵樹,一棵魚梁木,就和神木林里那棵一樣,它在呼喚我。狼夢比較好,我可以聞到東西,有時還會嘗到血的味道。” ?
Maester Luwin tugged at his chain where it chafed his neck. “If you would only spend more time with the other children—” ?
魯溫學士拉拉磨傷脖子的頸鏈。“你該花點時間陪陪其他孩子——”
“I hate the other children,” Bran said, meaning the Walders. “I commanded you to send them away.” ?
“我討厭他們,”布蘭指的是大小瓦德。“我命令你送他們走!” ?
Luwin grew stern. “The Freys are your lady mother’s wards, sent here to be fostered at her express command. It is not for you to expel them, nor is it kind. If we turned them out, where would they go?”
魯溫臉色凝重,“佛雷家兄弟是你母親大人的養子,她特地送來這里,你不能趕走他們,況且這樣做也不對,若我們把他們趕走,他們該去哪里呢?”
“Home. It’s their fault you won’t let me have Summer.” ?
“回家去啊!就因為他們,你才不讓夏天跟我在一起。” ?
“The Frey boy did not ask to be attacked,” the maester said, “no more than I did.” ?
“佛雷家那孩子可沒主動申請被咬,”學士道,“我也沒有。”
“That was Shaggydog.” Rickon’s big black wolf was so wild he even frightened Bran at times. “Summer never bit anyone.” ?
“是毛毛狗!”瑞肯的大黑狼性子很野,有時連布蘭都怕。“夏天從不咬人!” ?
“Summer ripped out a man’s throat in this very chamber, or have you forgotten? The truth is, those sweet pups you and your brothers found in the snow have grown into dangerous beasts. The Frey boys are wise to be wary of them.” ?
“你忘了嗎?夏天硬生生咬掉一個人的喉嚨,就在這個房間!你必須面對現實,你們兄弟在雪地里找到的可愛小狼,如今已變成危險的野獸。佛雷家那兩個小孩避開它們是明智的舉動。” ?
“We should put the Walders in the godswood. They could play lord of the crossing all they want, and Summer could sleep with me again. If I’m the prince, why won’t you heed me? I wanted to ride Dancer, but Alebelly wouldn’t let me past the gate.” ?
“我們該把大小瓦德丟進神木林,他們愛怎么當河渡口領主隨便他們,這樣夏天就可以回來跟我睡了。既然我是王子,為什么沒人聽我的話?我想騎小舞,可酒肚子根本不放我出門。” ?
“And rightly so. The wolfswood is full of danger; your last ride should have taught you that. Would you want some outlaw to take you captive and sell you to the Lannisters?”
“他做得很對,狼林里危險四伏,莫非你上次還沒汲取教訓?難道你想被強盜抓去,賣給蘭尼斯特家嗎?” ?
“Summer would save me,” Bran insisted stubbornly. “Princes should be allowed to sail the sea and hunt boar in the wolfswood and joust with lances.” ?
“夏天會救我,”布蘭倔強地堅持,“作王子的應該有權出海航行、在狼林里獵野豬和參加長槍比武才對!” ?
“Bran, child, why do you torment yourself so? One day you may do some of these things, but now you are only a boy of eight.” ?
“布蘭,好孩子,你何苦如此折磨自己呢?有朝一日,你或許可以做這些,但現在你只是個八歲的孩子啊。” ?
“I’d sooner be a wolf. Then I could live in the wood and sleep when I wanted, and I could find Arya and Sansa. I’d smell where they were and go save them, and when Robb went to battle I’d fight beside him like Grey Wind. I’d tear out the Kingslayer’s throat with my teeth, rip, and then the war would be over and everyone would come back to Winterfell. If I was a wolf …” He howled. “Ooo-ooo-oooooooooooo.” ?
“我寧愿變成狼,那樣我就可以住在森林,想睡就睡,還可以去找艾莉亞和珊莎,我能聞到她們的氣味,然后去救她們。羅柏打仗時我可以跟在他身邊,就和灰風一樣。我會用牙咬掉弒君者的喉嚨,用力一撕,然后戰爭就結束了,大家都會回臨冬城來。如果我是狼……”他嚎叫起來,“嗚嗚嗚-嗚嗚嗚-嗚嗚嗚嗚~” ?
Luwin raised his voice. “A true prince would welcome—” ?
魯溫提高音量,“要當真正的王子,就該學會接受……”
“AAHOOOOOOO,” Bran howled, louder. “OOOO-OOOO-OOOO.”
“啊嗚嗚嗚嗚~”布蘭更大聲地嚎叫,“啊嗚嗚嗚嗚~” ??
The maester surrendered. “As you will, child.” With a look that was part grief and part disgust, he left the bedchamber. ?
老學士投降了,“隨便你吧,孩子。”他露出既悲傷又嫌惡的神情離開了臥室。
Howling lost its savor once Bran was alone. After a time he quieted. I did welcome them, he told himself, resentful. I was the lord in Winterfell, a true lord, he can’t say I wasn’t.
剩下布蘭一人,學狼叫反而沒意思了。過了一會兒,他平靜下來。誰說我沒歡迎他們?他忿忿不平地自言自語。我是臨冬城的城主,名副其實的城主,誰都不能否認。
When the Walders had arrived from the Twins, it had been Rickon who wanted them gone. A baby of four, he had screamed that he wanted Mother and Father and Robb, not these strangers. It had been up to Bran to soothe him and bid the Freys welcome. He had offered them meat and mead and a seat by the fire, and even Maester Luwin had said afterward that he’d done well.
大小瓦德剛從孿河城來這里的時候,原本吵著要他們離開的是瑞肯。他只是個四歲的小嬰孩,哭鬧著要爸爸媽媽,要羅柏,不要這兩個陌生人。當時布蘭還得負責安撫他,并歡迎佛雷家那對堂兄弟。他請他們在火爐邊坐下,與大家一起用餐喝酒,事后就連魯溫師傅也稱贊他表現很好。
Only that was before the game. ?
但那是作游戲之前的事了。
The game was played with a log, a staff, a body of water, and a great deal of shouting. The water was the most important, Walder and Walder assured Bran. You could use a plank or even a series of stones, and a branch could be your staff. You didn’t have to shout. But without water, there was no game.
這種游戲需要樹干和棍棒各一,還要流水,也要大家一起喧鬧。水是最重要的,兩個瓦德向布蘭強調,樹干可以換用木板或幾個石頭,找樹枝來代替棍棒也行,也不一定非得大呼小叫,可若沒有水源,游戲便玩不成了。
?As Maester Luwin and Ser Rodrik were not about to let the children go wandering off into the wolfswood in search of a stream, they made do with one of the murky pools in the godswood. Walder and Walder had never seen hot water bubbling from the ground before, but they both allowed how it would make the game even better. ?
因為魯溫學士和羅德利克爵士說什么也不會讓這群孩子跑進狼林找小溪,他們便拿神木林中的黑水池當替代。兩個瓦德從沒見過會冒泡的天然熱水池,但他們都同意這樣玩起來更有意思。
Both of them were called Walder Frey. Big Walder said there were bunches of Walders at the Twins, all named after the boys’ grandfather, Lord Walder Frey. “We have our own names at Winterfell,” Rickon told them haughtily when he heard that. ?
他們倆都叫瓦德·佛雷。大瓦德說孿河城中叫瓦德的人有一大批,通通是跟著他們祖父瓦德·佛雷侯爵取的名字。“在臨冬城,我們每個人都有自己的名字。”瑞肯聽他們這么說,便驕傲地回嘴。
The way their game was played, you laid the log across the water, and one player stood in the middle with the stick. He was the lord of the crossing, and when one of the other players came up, he had to say, “I am the lord of the crossing, who goes there?” And the other player had to make up a speech about who they were and why they should be allowed to cross. The lord could make them swear oaths and answer questions. They didn’t have to tell the truth, but the oaths were binding unless they said “Mayhaps,”
游戲進行的方式是把樹干放在水面上,然后一個玩家手持木棍站在上面,扮作河渡口領主,每當其他玩家靠近,他就說:“我乃河渡口領主,來者何人?”被問的玩家得編出一套說詞,說明自己的來歷,以及為什么該讓他過河。領主可以命令他們賭咒發誓或回答問題,但他們不一定得說實話,只有所發的誓具有約束力,除非他們在誓言中說:“也許”。
so the trick was to say “Mayhaps” so the lord of the crossing didn’t notice. Then you could try and knock the lord into the water and you got to be lord of the crossing, but only if you’d said “Mayhaps.” Otherwise you were out of the game. The lord got to knock anyone in the water anytime he pleased, and he was the only one who got to use a stick. ?
所以這游戲的訣竅就是趁河渡口領主沒注意的情況下說“也許”,然后就可以試著把領主打進河里,自己來當掌管河渡口,可一定要說了“也許”才行,否則就判犯規出局。而當領主的人只要高興,隨時可以把人打進水中,也只有他能用棍子。
In practice, the game seemed to come down to mostly shoving, hitting, and falling into the water, along with a lot of loud arguments about whether or not someone had said “Mayhaps.” Little Walder was lord of the crossing more often than not. ?
實際玩起來,大家幾乎不停地在推擠、扭打和落水,以及大聲爭吵某人到底有沒有說“也許”。大部分時間,小瓦德都是河渡口領主。
He was Little Walder even though he was tall and stout, with a red face and a big round belly. Big Walder was sharp-faced and skinny and half a foot shorter. “He’s fifty-two days older than me,” Little Walder explained, “so he was bigger at first, but I grew faster.” ?
他雖是小瓦德,可長得又高又壯,生了一張紅臉和一個圓滾滾的大肚子。大瓦德臉尖,身材瘦小,比他矮了足足半尺。“他比我大五十二天,”小瓦德解釋,“剛出生時長得比我大,可我長得快。”
“We’re cousins, not brothers,” added Big Walder, the little one. “I’m Walder son of Jammos. My father was Lord Walder’s son by his fourth wife. He’s Walder son of Merrett. His grandmother was Lord Walder’s third wife, the Crakehall. He’s ahead of me in the line of succession even though I’m older.” ?
“我們是堂兄弟,不是親兄弟。”小個子的大瓦德補上一句,“我是杰莫斯之子瓦德,我父親是瓦德大人第四任夫人所生的兒子。他是梅里之子瓦德,他的祖母是瓦德大人的第三任夫人,克雷赫家的。所以雖然我年紀比較大,可在繼承順位上他排我前面。” ?
“Only by fifty-two days,” Little Walder objected. “And neither of us will ever hold the Twins, stupid.”
“你只比我大五十二天而已,”小瓦德不服氣,“況且孿河城根本就沒我倆的份啦,笨蛋。” ?
“I will,” Big Walder declared. “We’re not the only Walders either. Ser Stevron has a grandson, Black Walder, he’s fourth in line of succession, and there’s Red Walder, Ser Emmon’s son, and Bastard Walder, who isn’t in the line at all. He’s called Walder Rivers not Walder Frey. Plus there’s girls named Walda.” ?
“誰說沒有?”大瓦德宣稱,“不過叫瓦德的可不只我們兩個,史提夫倫爵士有個孫子叫黑瓦德,繼承順位排行第四。還有個紅瓦德,那是艾蒙爵士的兒子。還有個私生子也叫瓦德,但他根本沒資格繼承封地,他是瓦德·河文,不是瓦德·佛雷。此外還有幾個女生叫瓦妲。” ?
“And Tyr. You always forget Tyr.” ?
“還有提爾啦,你每次都忘記提爾!” ?
“He’s Waltyr, not Walder,” Big Walder said airily. “And he’s after us, so he doesn’t matter. Anyhow, I never liked him.” ?
“他姓‘瓦提爾’,不是瓦德。”大瓦德輕快地說,“而且他排我們后面,所以無關緊要。反正我本來就不喜歡他。” ?
Ser Rodrik decreed that they would share Jon Snow’s old bedchamber, since Jon was in the Night’s Watch and never coming back. Bran hated that; it made him feel as if the Freys were trying to steal Jon’s place.
羅德利克爵士安排他們住進瓊恩·雪諾以前的房間,因為瓊恩進了守夜人軍團,再也不會回來了。布蘭很生氣,因為這讓他覺得佛雷兩兄弟彷佛要占據瓊恩的位置。
He had watched wistfully while the Walders contested with Turnip the cook’s boy and Joseth’s girls Bandy and Shyra. The Walders had decreed that Bran should be the judge and decide whether or not people had said “Mayhaps,” but as soon as they started playing they forgot all about him. ?
玩游戲時,他在旁邊羨慕地看著大小瓦德與廚房小弟“蕪箐”,以及喬賽斯的兩個女兒班蒂和席拉爭鬧。大小瓦德要布蘭當裁判,負責判定他們有沒有說“也許”,可他們一開始玩,就完全把他丟在了一邊。
The shouts and splashes soon drew others: Palla the kennel girl, Cayn’s boy Calon, TomToo whose father Fat Tom had died with Bran’s father at King’s Landing. Before very long, every one of them was soaked and muddy.
叫喊和水聲很快引來了更多小孩:狗舍小妹帕拉,凱恩的兒子卡倫,以及二湯姆,他父親胖湯姆與布蘭的父親都死于君臨。過不多久,他們便都全身濕透,沾滿泥濘了。
Palla was brown from head to heel, with moss in her hair, breathless from laughter. Bran had not heard so much laughing since the night the bloody raven came. If I had my legs, I’d knock all of them into the water, he thought bitterly. No one would ever be lord of the crossing but me.
帕拉從頭到腳都是褐泥,發際還有青苔,笑得喘不過氣。自從渾身浴血的信鴉帶來父親死訊,布蘭便沒聽過這么多歡笑。要是我兩腳完好,一定把他們通通打落水中,他苦澀地想,有我在,誰都別想當河渡口領主。
Finally Rickon came running into the godswood, Shaggydog at his heels. He watched Turnip and Little Walder struggle for the stick until Turnip lost his footing and went in with a huge splash, arms waving. Rickon yelled, “Me! Me now! I want to play!” Little Walder beckoned him on, and Shaggydog started to follow. “No, Shaggy,” his brother commanded. “Wolves can’t play. You stay with Bran.” And he did … ?
最后,瑞肯也聞聲跑進神木林,毛毛狗緊隨其后。他看到蕪箐和小瓦德扭打著爭搶木棍,結果蕪箐腳一滑,噗通一聲摔進水里,雙手亂揮。瑞肯隨后大喊:“換我!換我了!我要玩!”小瓦德揮手讓他過去,毛毛狗也準備跟上。“毛毛別去,”弟弟命令,“這游戲狼不能玩,你跟布蘭待在一起。”狼乖乖照辦……
… until Little Walder had smacked Rickon with the stick, square across his belly. Before Bran could blink, the black wolf was flying over the plank, there was blood in the water, the Walders were shrieking red murder, Rickon sat in the mud laughing, and Hodor came lumbering in shouting “Hodor! Hodor! Hodor!” ?
……沒想到小瓦德木棍一揮,結結實實打中瑞肯的肚子。布蘭還不及眨眼,黑狼便一躍撲過木板,水中隨即泛起血色,大小瓦德慘叫著要鬧人命,瑞肯坐在泥濘中大笑,阿多則跌跌撞撞地跑過來叫道:“阿多!阿多!阿多!” ?
After that, oddly, Rickon decided he liked the Walders. They never played lord of the crossing again, but they played other games—monsters and maidens, rats and cats, come-into-my-castle, all sorts of things. With Rickon by their side, the Walders plundered the kitchens for pies and honeycombs, raced round the walls, tossed bones to the pups in the kennels, and trained with wooden swords under Ser Rodrik’s sharp eye.
奇怪的是,從那之后瑞肯卻喜歡上了大小瓦德。他們沒再玩河渡口領主的游戲,但玩了很多別的——美女與怪獸、貓捉老鼠、進我的城堡等等。瑞肯帶著大小瓦德一起去廚房掠奪餡餅和蜂蜜,繞著城墻瘋跑,丟骨頭喂狗舍的小狗吃,并在羅德利克爵士銳利的目光監視下一同練習木劍。
?Rickon even showed them the deep vaults under the earth where the stonemason was carving father’s tomb. “You had no right!” Bran screamed at his brother when he heard. “That was our place, a Stark place!” But Rickon never cared. ?
瑞肯甚至還帶他們去過地底的墓窖,石匠正在那里雕刻父親的塑像。“你沒這個權利!”布蘭聽說以后,朝弟弟尖叫。“那是我們家的地方!史塔克家的地方!”可瑞肯根本不理。
The door to his bedchamber opened. Maester Luwin was carrying a green jar, and this time Osha and Hayhead came with him. “I’ve made you a sleeping draught, Bran.”
臥房的門突然打開,魯溫師傅手拿一個綠罐子走進來,歐莎和稻草頭跟他一道。“布蘭,我幫你調了一帖安眠藥。”
Osha scooped him up in her bony arms. She was very tall for a woman, and wiry strong. She bore him effortlessly to his bed. ?
歐莎伸出削瘦的雙手抱起他,以女人來說,她個子算是很高,而且力氣極大,毫不費力地就把他抱上了床。
“This will give you dreamless sleep,” Maester Luwin said as he pulled the stopper from the jar. “Sweet, dreamless sleep.”
“喝下這個,你就不會作夢了。”魯溫學士一邊取出塞子,一邊說,“它會讓你睡得香甜,一夜無夢。” ?
“It will?” Bran said, wanting to believe. ?
“真的?”布蘭好希望是真的。 ?
“Yes. Drink.” ?
“真的,快喝吧。” ?
Bran drank. The potion was thick and chalky, but there was honey in it, so it went down easy. ?
布蘭喝了。藥水濃濁,但加了蜂蜜,所以容易吞咽。
“Come the morn, you’ll feel better.” Luwin gave Bran a smile and a pat as he took his leave. ?
“明天早上,你就會覺得好多了。”魯溫朝布蘭微笑,拍拍他肩膀,離開了。 ?
Osha lingered behind. “Is it the wolf dreams again?”
歐莎留了一會兒,“又作狼夢了?”
Bran nodded. ?
布蘭點點頭。
“You should not fight so hard, boy. I see you talking to the heart tree. Might be the gods are trying to talk back.” ?
“小子,你用不著勉強自己。我看過你跟心樹講話,說不定這是諸神想要回答呢。” ?
“The gods?” he murmured, drowsy already. Osha’s face grew blurry and grey. Sweet, dreamless sleep, Bran thought.
“真的嗎?”他喃喃道,覺得有點昏沉。歐莎的臉越來越模糊,變成灰色。睡得香甜,一夜無夢,布蘭想。 ?
Yet when the darkness closed over him, he found himself in the godswood, moving silently beneath green-grey sentinels and gnarled oaks as old as time. I am walking, he thought, exulting. Part of him knew that it was only a dream, but even the dream of walking was better than the truth of his bedchamber, walls and ceiling and door. ?
然而當黑暗覆罩他時,他又回到了神木林,正在青灰色的哨兵樹和古老扭曲的橡樹下無聲游走。我又能走了!他興奮地想。他隱約知道這是一場夢,但即便在夢里行走,也比現實中的臥室、墻壁、天花板和房門好得多。
It was dark amongst the trees, but the comet lit his way, and his feet were sure. He was moving on four good legs, strong and swift, and he could feel the ground underfoot, the soft crackling of fallen leaves, thick roots and hard stones, the deep layers of humus. It was a good feeling.
林間很暗,但彗星在為他引路,所以他的步履踏實。他用四只完好而矯健的腳走著,感覺到腳下的大地,落葉的輕響,厚重的樹根和堅硬的磐石,還有層層的腐殖質。這樣的感覺真棒。
The smells filled his head, alive and intoxicating; the green muddy stink of the hot pools, the perfume of rich rotting earth beneath his paws, the squirrels in the oaks. The scent of squirrel made him remember the taste of hot blood and the way the bones would crack between his teeth. Slaver filled his mouth.
他的腦中是各種氣味,充滿生命,令人陶醉:溫泉池中綠色爛泥的臭味,腳掌下腐壤的濃郁香氣,還有橡樹上的松鼠。聞到松鼠,他想起了鮮血溫熱的味道,想起了骨頭在齒間碎裂,滿嘴唾液的感覺。
He had eaten no more than half a day past, but there was no joy in dead meat, even deer. He could hear the squirrels chittering and rustling above him, safe among their leaves, but they knew better than to come down to where his brother and he were prowling.
不到半天前,他才吃過東西,然而死肉不過癮,即便那是鹿肉。他可以聽見松鼠在頭頂吱吱喳喳,飛速快跑,安全地藏在樹梢,他們兄弟所到之處,它們不敢下來。
He could smell his brother too, a familiar scent, strong and earthy, his scent as black as his coat. His brother was loping around the walls, full of fury. Round and round he went, night after day after night, tireless, searching … for prey, for a way out, for his mother, his littermates, his pack … searching, searching, and never finding. ?
他也能聞到弟弟的氣味,熟悉的氣味,和他那一身黑毛一樣,濃烈而樸實。弟弟正充滿怒意地繞著高墻跑跳。他繞啊繞,白天也繞晚上也繞,從不疲累,不斷尋找……尋找獵物,尋找出路,尋找母親,尋找他的兄弟姐妹……他找啊找,卻怎么也找不到。
Behind the trees the walls rose, piles of dead man-rock that loomed all about this speck of living wood. Speckled grey they rose, and moss-spotted, yet thick and strong and higher than any wolf could hope to leap. Cold iron and splintery wood closed off the only holes through the piled stones that hemmed them in. His brother would stop at every hole and bare his fangs in rage, but the ways stayed closed. ?
樹林后面就是高墻,用沒有生命的人類巖石堆疊而成,圍繞著這片小樹林。高墻雖然灰紋斑駁,遍布青苔,卻堅實而高峻,再大的狼也無法跳過。石山中唯一的幾個洞被冰冷的鐵條和碎木堵住,弟弟每經過一個洞,就會停下來怒露尖牙,但阻隔依舊。
He had done the same the first night, and learned that it was no good. Snarls would open no paths here. Circling the walls would not push them back. Lifting a leg and marking the trees would keep no men away.
被關進來的頭一天晚上,他也做過同樣的事,但他發現這沒用。咆哮開不了路,繞著墻跑無法把墻推走,抬腳在樹上作記號也不能把人趕開。
The world had tightened around them, but beyond the walled wood still stood the great grey caves of man-rock. Winterfell, he remembered, the sound coming to him suddenly. Beyond its sky-tall man-cliffs the true world was calling, and he knew he must answer or die. ?
世界縮小到只剩這一小塊被高墻圍繞的樹林,可在那之外,人類巖石所筑成的巨大灰洞依舊聳立。臨冬城,一個聲音突然傳來,使他想了起來。在高如天空的人造絕壁之外,真正的世界在呼喚。他必須回應,否則必死無疑。??