ARYA

32 艾莉亚

The one-eared black tom arched his back and hissed at her.

独耳的黑公猫拱起背朝她嘶叫。

Arya padded down the alley, balanced lightly on the balls of her bare feet, listening to the flutter of her heart, breathing slow deep breaths. Quiet as a shadow, she told herself, light as a feather. The tomcat watched her come, his eyes wary.

艾莉亚沿着小路走，赤裸的脚跟保持平衡，倾听心脏疾跳，深呼吸缓吐气。静如影，她告诉自己，轻如羽。公猫看着她渐渐逼近，眼里充满警戒。

Catching cats was hard. Her hands were covered with half-healed scratches, and both knees were scabbed over where she had scraped them raw in tumbles. At first even the cook’s huge fat kitchen cat had been able to elude her, but Syrio had kept her at it day and night. When she’d run to him with her hands bleeding, he had said, “So slow? Be quicker, girl. Your enemies will give you more than scratches.” He had dabbed her wounds with Myrish fire, which burned so bad she had had to bite her lip to keep from screaming. Then he sent her out after more cats.

抓猫难。她手上到处都是未愈的抓痕，两脚膝盖则因跌倒擦伤，结满了疤。刚开始，连厨师养的那只厨房胖猫都能躲过她，但西利欧叫她日夜不停地练习。当她满手是血找上他时，他只说：“怎么这么慢？小妹妹，动作要快。等你遇到敌人，就不只是抓伤而已了。”他为她在伤口涂上密尔火，烫极了，她咬紧嘴唇才没大声尖叫。然后他又叫她继续去抓猫。

The Red Keep was full of cats: lazy old cats dozing in the sun, cold-eyed mousers twitching their tails, quick little kittens with claws like needles, ladies’ cats all combed and trusting, ragged shadows prowling the midden heaps. One by one Arya had chased them down and snatched them up and brought them proudly to Syrio Forel?.?.?.?all but this one, this one-eared black devil of a tomcat. “That’s the real king of this castle right there,” one of the gold cloaks had told her. “Older than sin and twice as mean. One time, the king was feasting the queen’s father, and that black bastard hopped up on the table and snatched a roast quail right out of Lord Tywin’s fingers. Robert laughed so hard he like to burst. You stay away from that one, child.”

红堡到处都是猫：有在太阳下打盹的慵懒老猫、有冷眼摆尾的捕鼠猫、有爪子利如尖针的灵巧小猫、还有宫廷仕女养的猫，一身的毛梳理柔顺，乖巧听话，以及浑身脏兮兮、专门在垃圾堆里出没的黑猫。艾莉亚一只一只追踪到底，然后拎起来，得意万分地带回去给西利欧·佛瑞尔……如今就只差这只独耳的黑色小恶魔啦。“那家伙才是城堡里真正的王，”有位穿金披风的都城守卫告诉她，“不但老不死，还坏得跟什么似的。有次国王宴请他老丈人，结果那黑心肝的混球跳上桌，从泰温大人的手里大摇大摆地叼走一只烤鹌鹑。劳勃笑得快爆炸。小乖乖，你离那坏蛋远点。”

He had run her halfway across the castle; twice around the Tower of the Hand, across the inner bailey, through the stables, down the serpentine steps, past the small kitchen and the pig yard and the barracks of the gold cloaks, along the base of the river wall and up more steps and back and forth over Traitor’s Walk, and then down again and through a gate and around a well and in and out of strange buildings until Arya didn’t know where she was.

为了抓它，她跑遍半个城堡：绕了首相塔两圈，穿越内城中庭，钻进马厩，走下层层环绕的螺旋梯，经过小厨房、养猪场和都城守卫队的营房，顺着临河城墙的根基，再上楼梯，在叛徒走道上来来回回，然后又下楼，出一道门，绕过一口井，进出前方形形色色的建筑，到最后艾莉亚根本不知自己所在何处。

Now at last she had him. High walls pressed close on either side, and ahead was a blank windowless mass of stone. Quiet as a shadow, she repeated, sliding forward, light as a feather.

这下她总算逮着它了。左右两边都是高墙，前方则是大片没开窗的石壁。静如影，她滑步向前，在心中重复，轻如羽。

When she was three steps away from him, the tomcat bolted. Left, then right, he went; and right, then left, went Arya, cutting off his escape. He hissed again and tried to dart between her legs. Quick as a snake, she thought. Her hands closed around him. She hugged him to her chest, whirling and laughing aloud as his claws raked at the front of her leather jerkin. Ever so fast, she kissed him right between the eyes, and jerked her head back an instant before his claws would have found her face. The tomcat yowled and spit.

当她离它只剩三步之遥时，公猫倏地冲了出来。先往左，再往右，艾莉亚便先挡右，再挡左，切断了它逃生的路。它又发出嘶叫，试图从她两脚之间溜走。迅如蛇，她心想。她伸手抓住它，把它抱在胸前，乐得放声大笑，四处转圈，任由它的利爪撕扯她的皮上衣。她用更快的速度在它两眼之间轻吻一下，并在它伸出爪子抓她脸的前一刻缩回。公猫嘶吼着朝她吐口水。

“What’s he doing to that cat?”

“他在跟那只猫做什么？”

Startled, Arya dropped the cat and whirled toward the voice. The tom bounded off in the blink of an eye. At the end of the alley stood a girl with a mass of golden curls, dressed as pretty as a doll in blue satin. Beside her was a plump little blond boy with a prancing stag sewn in pearls across the front of his doublet and a miniature sword at his belt. Princess Myrcella and Prince Tommen, Arya thought. A septa as large as a draft horse hovered over them, and behind her two big men in crimson cloaks, Lannister house guards.

艾莉亚吓了一跳，松开猫，旋身面对声音的来源。公猫转瞬间便一溜烟逃走。小巷的另一端站着一个满头金卷发、穿着蓝锦缎衣服、漂亮得像个洋娃娃似的女孩。她身边有个胖嘟嘟的金发小男孩，外衣胸前用珍珠绣了一只昂首腾跃的公鹿，腰际配了把微型剑。是弥赛菈公主和托曼王子，艾莉亚心想。他们身边跟了一个块头大得像犁马的修女，她背后还有两个兰尼斯特家的贴身护卫，都是牛高马大的汉子。

“What were you doing to that cat, boy?” Myrcella asked again, sternly. To her brother she said, “He’s a ragged boy, isn’t he? Look at him.” She giggled.

“小弟弟，你在跟那只猫做什么啊？”弥赛菈口气严厉地再度发问，然后对弟弟说，“你瞧，他还真是个脏兮兮的小弟弟，对不对？”

“A ragged dirty smelly boy,” Tommen agreed.

“对，衣服破烂，又脏又臭的小弟弟。”托曼同意。

They don’t know me, Arya realized. They don’t even know I’m a girl. Small wonder; she was barefoot and dirty, her hair tangled from the long run through the castle, clad in a jerkin ripped by cat claws and brown roughspun pants hacked off above her scabby knees. You don’t wear skirts and silks when you’re catching cats. Quickly she lowered her head and dropped to one knee. Maybe they wouldn’t recognize her. If they did, she would never hear the end of it. Septa Mordane would be mortified, and Sansa would never speak to her again from the shame.

他们没认出我，艾莉亚这才明白，他们甚至不知道我是女孩。这也难怪，她光着脚丫，全身肮脏，在城堡里跑过一圈以后，头发乱成一团，身上的皮背心布满了猫的爪痕，粗布缝制的棕色裤子膝盖以下都被割掉，露出伤疤遍布的双脚——抓猫总不能穿裙子或丝衣吧。她连忙低头，单膝跪下。他们要是认不出她来，就太好了。若是被认出来，她会吃不了兜着走的。因为这不但会丢光茉丹修女的脸，连珊莎也将觉得可耻，从此再不跟她说话。

The old fat septa moved forward. “Boy, how did you come here? You have no business in this part of the castle.”

肥胖的老修女往前挪了挪。“小弟弟，你怎么跑到这里来的？你不该在城堡里到处乱跑喔。”

“You can’t keep this sort out,” one of the red cloaks said. “Like trying to keep out rats.”

“没办法，这种人赶也赶不完，”一个红袍卫士道，“跟赶老鼠一样的道理。”

“Who do you belong to, boy?” the septa demanded. “Answer me. What’s wrong with you, are you mute?”

“小弟弟，你是谁家的孩子？”修女质问，“告诉我。你怎么了？你是哑巴吗？”

Arya’s voice caught in her throat. If she answered, Tommen and Myrcella would know her for certain.

艾莉亚的话音卡在喉咙里。如果她出声回答，托曼和弥赛菈一定会认出她来。

“Godwyn, bring him here,” the septa said. The taller of the guardsmen started down the alley.

“高德温，把他带过来。”修女说。长得较高的那名卫士朝小巷的这边走来。

Panic gripped her throat like a giant’s hand. Arya could not have spoken if her life had hung on it. Calm as still water, she mouthed silently.

恐慌如巨人的手攫住她的喉咙，艾莉亚知道自己命悬于此，不发出半点声音。止如水，她在心里默念。

As Godwyn reached for her, Arya moved. Quick as a snake. She leaned to her left, letting his fingers brush her arm, spinning around him. Smooth as summer silk. By the time he got himself turned, she was sprinting down the alley. Swift as a deer. The septa was screeching at her. Arya slid between legs as thick and white as marble columns, bounded to her feet, bowled into Prince Tommen and hopped over him when he sat down hard and said “Oof,” spun away from the second guard, and then she was past them all, running full out.

就在高德温伸手的前一刻，艾莉亚采取了行动。迅如蛇。她重心左移，他的手指擦臂而过。她绕过他。柔如丝。待他转身，她已朝巷口飞奔而去。疾如鹿。修女朝她尖叫，艾莉亚从她两条粗得像白色大理石柱的腿中间钻过去，站起身，迎面撞上托曼王子，他“哎哟”一声重重坐倒。她从他身上跳过，闪开第二个侍卫，然后她便摆脱他们，全速逃走。

She heard shouts, then pounding footsteps, closing behind her. She dropped and rolled. The red cloak went careening past her, stumbling. Arya sprang back to her feet. She saw a window above her, high and narrow, scarcely more than an arrow slit. Arya leapt, caught the sill, pulled herself up. She held her breath as she wriggled through. Slippery as an eel. Dropping to the floor in front of a startled scrubwoman, she hopped up, brushed the rushes off her clothes, and was off again, out the door and along a long hall, down a stair, across a hidden courtyard, around a corner and over a wall and through a low narrow window into a pitch-dark cellar. The sounds grew more and more distant behind her.

她听见叫喊，紧接着是砰砰砰的脚步迅速朝她逼近。她身子一蹲，着地滚开。红衣卫士踉跄着冲过她身边，差点跌倒。艾莉亚一跃起身，看到头上有扇又高又窄的窗子，比城墙上的射箭孔大不了多少，便向上一跳，攀住窗台，往上拉升，闭着气往里挤。滑如鳗。待她跳下窗口，正落在一名吃惊的洗衣妇面前，她立刻翻身，拍拍尘土，继续逃跑。她穿门而出，奔过长厅，跑下楼梯，穿越一座隐蔽的庭院，绕过转角，翻过墙，挤进一扇低矮窄窗后，来到一个伸手不见五指的漆黑地窖。身后追赶的声音渐渐变小。

Arya was out of breath and quite thoroughly lost. She was in for it now if they had recognized her, but she didn’t think they had. She’d moved too fast. Swift as a deer.

艾莉亚几乎喘不过气，完全迷失了方向。现在就算他们认出她，她也认栽了，但她觉得他们应该做不到，因为她动作太快了。疾如鹿。

She hunkered down in the dark against a damp stone wall and listened for the pursuit, but the only sound was the beating of her own heart and a distant drip of water. Quiet as a shadow, she told herself. She wondered where she was. When they had first come to King’s Landing, she used to have bad dreams about getting lost in the castle. Father said the Red Keep was smaller than Winterfell, but in her dreams it had been immense, an endless stone maze with walls that seemed to shift and change behind her. She would find herself wandering down gloomy halls past faded tapestries, descending endless circular stairs, darting through courtyards or over bridges, her shouts echoing unanswered. In some of the rooms the red stone walls would seem to drip blood, and nowhere could she find a window. Sometimes she would hear her father’s voice, but always from a long way off, and no matter how hard she ran after it, it would grow fainter and fainter, until it faded to nothing and Arya was alone in the dark.

她摸黑靠着一堵潮湿的石墙蹲下，静听追兵的响动，却只听见自己的心跳和远处的滴水声。静如影，她告诉自己。她纳闷自己究竟置身何处。初来君临时，她常做恶梦，梦见自己迷失在城堡里。父亲说红堡比临冬城要小，但在梦中它却硕大无比，活像一座无边无际的石造迷宫，而墙壁仿佛会在她身后变换形体。她发现自己常漫游在阴森的厅堂里，经过褪色的壁毡，走下无止尽的螺旋楼梯，在庭院间和吊桥上穿梭，尖声叫喊却无人回应。有些房间里，红墙似乎在滴血，而她一扇窗户也找不到。有的时候，她能听见父亲的声音，但总是从遥远的地方传来，而不论她如何努力地朝声音来源飞奔，那声音却依旧越来越微弱，直至完全消失。黑暗之中，只剩艾莉亚独自一人。

It was very dark right now, she realized. She hugged her bare knees tight against her chest and shivered. She would wait quietly and count to ten thousand. By then it would be safe for her to come creeping back out and find her way home.

她发觉这里也很暗，于是缩起裸露的膝盖，紧紧抱在胸前，发起抖来。她决定在这里默默数到一万，等那时候就可以安全地爬出去，找路回家了。

By the time she had reached eighty-seven, the room had begun to lighten as her eyes adjusted to the blackness. Slowly the shapes around her took on form. Huge empty eyes stared at her hungrily through the gloom, and dimly she saw the jagged shadows of long teeth. She had lost the count. She closed her eyes and bit her lip and sent the fear away. When she looked again, the monsters would be gone. Would never have been. She pretended that Syrio was beside her in the dark, whispering in her ear. Calm as still water, she told herself. Strong as a bear. Fierce as a wolverine. She opened her eyes again.

当她数到八十七的时候，眼睛已经习惯了黑暗，房间也似乎逐渐亮起来，身边的事物缓缓现形。昏暗之中，无数巨大而空洞的眼睛饥渴地瞪着她。她隐约看到长牙的锯齿阴影。她顿时忘了数到哪里，只敢闭上眼睛，咬住嘴唇，驱赶恐惧。等她睁眼再看，怪兽就会不见。怪兽会不存在。她假装西利欧也在黑暗中，陪在她身边，对她悄声说话。止如水，她告诉自己，壮如熊，猛如狼，然后睁开眼睛。

The monsters were still there, but the fear was gone.

怪兽还在，恐惧却消失了。

Arya got to her feet, moving warily. The heads were all around her. She touched one, curious, wondering if it was real. Her fingertips brushed a massive jaw. It felt real enough. The bone was smooth beneath her hand, cold and hard to the touch. She ran her fingers down a tooth, black and sharp, a dagger made of darkness. It made her shiver.

艾莉亚小心翼翼地站起来。四周都是头骨，她好奇地摸摸其中一个，不知到底是不是真的。她的指尖拂过一个宽大的下巴，摸起来挺像真的。骨头的感觉很平滑，既冷且硬。她的手指摸到一颗牙齿，又黑又尖，活像是由黑暗所造的匕首，她不禁打了个寒颤。

“It’s dead,” she said aloud. “It’s just a skull, it can’t hurt me.” Yet somehow the monster seemed to know she was there. She could feel its empty eyes watching her through the gloom, and there was something in that dim, cavernous room that did not love her. She edged away from the skull and backed into a second, larger than the first. For an instant she could feel its teeth digging into her shoulder, as if it wanted a bite of her flesh. Arya whirled, felt leather catch and tear as a huge fang nipped at her jerkin, and then she was running. Another skull loomed ahead, the biggest monster of all, but Arya did not even slow. She leapt over a ridge of black teeth as tall as swords, dashed through hungry jaws, and threw herself against the door.

“它死了。”她朗声道，“只是颗骷髅头，伤不了我的。”但不知怎的，那怪兽似乎知道她在这儿。她感觉得到它空洞的眼睛穿过阴暗看着她，在这个光线微弱、宽敞高大的房间里，有种不喜欢她的东西存在。她避开那个头颅，向后退开，却又碰到一个更大的骷髅。一时间她几乎可以感觉它的牙齿陷进她的肩膀，仿佛想一口咬下她的血肉。艾莉亚旋身，一颗尖牙果然已经咬住她的外衣，皮革被钩住，撕裂了一大块，她没命似的快跑。眼前又有一个头颅出现，这是最大的怪兽。艾莉亚不敢慢步，她跳过一排高得像剑、山脊似的黑牙齿，冲进一个又一个饥饿的血盆大口，然后撞上了门。

Her hands found a heavy iron ring set in the wood, and she yanked at it. The door resisted a moment, before it slowly began to swing inward, with a creak so loud Arya was certain it could be heard all through the city. She opened the door just far enough to slip through, into the hallway beyond.

她摸黑找到木门上厚重的铁环，使劲一拉，门抗拒了一会儿，方才缓缓向内打开，可是发出来的嘎吱声却大得吓人，艾莉亚心想这下全城的人都会听见了。她拉开恰好能让自己钻进去的缝隙，溜进门后的长厅。

If the room with the monsters had been dark, the hall was the blackest pit in the seven hells. Calm as still water, Arya told herself, but even when she gave her eyes a moment to adjust, there was nothing to see but the vague grey outline of the door she had come through. She wiggled her fingers in front of her face, felt the air move, saw nothing. She was blind. A water dancer sees with all her senses, she reminded herself. She closed her eyes and steadied her breathing one two three, drank in the quiet, reached out with her hands.

如果刚刚那个充满怪兽的房间算得上黑暗，那这个大厅就是七层地狱里最伸手不见五指的黑洞。止如水，艾莉亚告诉自己，她给了眼睛足够的调适时间，但除了刚才进来的门有模糊的灰色轮廓，其余依旧什么也看不到。她伸出手指在面前摇晃，感觉到空气的移动，却没有东西。她成了瞎子。水舞者要用所有的感官去洞察周围，她提醒自己。于是她闭上眼，稳住呼吸数了一二三，静静吸口气，然后伸出双手，开始摸索。

Her fingers brushed against rough unfinished stone to her left. She followed the wall, her hand skimming along the surface, taking small gliding steps through the darkness. All halls lead somewhere. Where there is a way in, there is a way out. Fear cuts deeper than swords. Arya would not be afraid. It seemed as if she had been walking a long ways when the wall ended abruptly and a draft of cold air blew past her cheek. Loose hairs stirred faintly against her skin.

左手边，她的指头拂过未完工的粗石表面。她便沿着墙走，手在石面游移，踏着小碎步慢慢穿越黑暗。每个房间总有出路，有进必有出嘛。而且，恐惧比利剑更伤人。艾莉亚不能害怕。她仿佛走了好长一段，墙壁突然到了尽头，一团冷气吹过她的脸颊。松开的头发轻轻拍打着她的皮肤。

From somewhere far below her, she heard noises. The scrape of boots, the distant sound of voices. A flickering light brushed the wall ever so faintly, and she saw that she stood at the top of a great black well, a shaft twenty feet across plunging deep into the earth. Huge stones had been set into the curving walls as steps, circling down and down, dark as the steps to hell that Old Nan used to tell them of. And something was coming up out of the darkness, out of the bowels of the earth?.?.?.?

她听见有声音从下方很远的地方传来。靴子的磨地声，遥远的交谈声。摇曳的火光朦胧地扫过墙壁，她这才发现自己正站在一口大黑井边，井足足有二十尺宽，开口直向地心。弯曲的墙上嵌了大石头作为楼梯，向下回旋回旋，漆黑得就像老奶妈以前常跟他们说的，通往地狱的阶梯。有东西正从黑暗中爬出来，从地心深处爬出来……

Arya peered over the edge and felt the cold black breath on her face. Far below, she saw the light of a single torch, small as the flame of a candle. Two men, she made out. Their shadows writhed against the sides of the well, tall as giants. She could hear their voices, echoing up the shaft.

艾莉亚趴在井边偷偷往下看，一股冰冷的黑气迎面袭来。下方极远处，她看到一根火把的亮光，微小有如烛火。她分辨出是两个人，他们的影子交错投射在墙上，高大有如巨人。她听见他们的声音，回荡着传向井边。

“?.?.?.?found one bastard,” one said. “The rest will come soon. A day, two days, a fortnight?.?.?.?”

“……找到了一个私生子，”一个人说，“其他的也迟早会查出来。要么一两天，最迟不过两星期……”

“And when he learns the truth, what will he do?” a second voice asked in the liquid accents of the Free Cities.

“等他查出真相，他会怎么做？”第二个声音是自由贸易城邦的滑溜口音。

“The gods alone know,” the first voice said. Arya could see a wisp of grey smoke drifting up off the torch, writhing like a snake as it rose. “The fools tried to kill his son, and what’s worse, they made a mummer’s farce of it. He’s not a man to put that aside. I warn you, the wolf and lion will soon be at each other’s throats, whether we will it or no.”

“只有天上诸神知道，”第一个声音说。艾莉亚看到火把冒出一缕灰烟，一边冉冉上升，一边像蛇似的翻腾缠绕。“那群蠢蛋想杀他儿子，更糟糕的是，他们将把事情全都搞砸。他可不是这么好打发的人。我警告你，不管我们喜不喜欢，狼和狮很快就会打成一团。”

“Too soon, too soon,” the voice with the accent complained. “What good is war now? We are not ready. Delay.”

“太快，太快了，”带着口音的声音抱怨，“现在开战有什么用？我们还没准备好。想办法拖一拖。”

“As well bid me stop time. Do you take me for a wizard?”

“倒不如叫我暂停时间。你以为我是巫师？”

The other chuckled. “No less.” Flames licked at the cold air. The tall shadows were almost on top of her. An instant later the man holding the torch climbed into her sight, his companion beside him. Arya crept back away from the well, dropped to her stomach, and flattened herself against the wall. She held her breath as the men reached the top of the steps.

另一人呵呵笑道：“我以为你的能耐绝对不输巫师。”火焰舐着冷空气，高大的影子几乎就要投射到她身上。几秒之后，持火把的人顺着楼梯进入她的视线范围，他的同伴跟在他身边。艾莉亚从井边爬开，趴下来，贴紧墙壁。眼看两人踏上楼梯顶端，她屏住了呼吸。

“What would you have me do?” asked the torchbearer, a stout man in a leather half cape. Even in heavy boots, his feet seemed to glide soundlessly over the ground. A round scarred face and a stubble of dark beard showed under his steel cap, and he wore mail over boiled leather, and a dirk and shortsword at his belt. It seemed to Arya there was something oddly familiar about him.

“你要我怎么办？”拿火把的人问。他是个身材粗壮的人，披着皮制的半身斗篷。虽然穿了厚重靴子，他的脚却仿佛无声地滑过路面。在他的钢头盔下，是张带伤疤的圆脸，还有撮短须。他穿着硬皮衣，外罩盔甲，腰间则系了一把匕首和一柄短剑。艾莉亚觉得他有种古怪的熟悉感。

“If one Hand can die, why not a second?” replied the man with the accent and the forked yellow beard. “You have danced the dance before, my friend.” He was no one Arya had ever seen before, she was certain of it. Grossly fat, yet he seemed to walk lightly, carrying his weight on the balls of his feet as a water dancer might. His rings glimmered in the torchlight, red-gold and pale silver, crusted with rubies, sapphires, slitted yellow tiger eyes. Every finger wore a ring; some had two.

“既然死了一个首相，为什么不能死第二个？”说话带着口音，长着一撮黄色八字胡的人回答。“我的好友啊，你从前不就跳过这种舞？”艾莉亚以前没见过他，这点她很确定。他虽然臃肿不堪，却步履轻盈，重心放在脚跟，走起路来像个水舞者该有的样子。他的戒指在火光下熠熠发光，有红金、白银、镶了红宝石、蓝宝石，其中更有黄纹的老虎眼。每根指头都戴有戒指，有些还戴了两颗。

“Before is not now, and this Hand is not the other,” the scarred man said as they stepped out into the hall. Still as stone, Arya told herself, quiet as a shadow. Blinded by the blaze of their own torch, they did not see her pressed flat against the stone, only a few feet away.

“从前不比现在，如今的首相也不一样。”脸上有疤的人边说边和同伴一起走进房间。不动如石，艾莉亚告诉自己，静如影。眩目于自己带来的火光，他们没看到她平平地贴紧石头，离他们仅数尺之遥。

“Perhaps so,” the forked beard replied, pausing to catch his breath after the long climb. “Nonetheless, we must have time. The princess is with child. The khal will not bestir himself until his son is born. You know how they are, these savages.”

“或许吧，”八字胡男子回答，刚爬了这大段路，这时他停下来喘口气。“但无论如何，我们需要更多时间。公主已有了身孕，在儿子诞生之前，卡奥是不会出兵的。你也清楚这些野蛮人，知道他们什么德行。”

The man with the torch pushed at something. Arya heard a deep rumbling. A huge slab of rock, red in the torchlight, slid down out of the ceiling with a resounding crash that almost made her cry out. Where the entry to the well had been was nothing but stone, solid and unbroken.

拿火把的人推了推什么东西，艾莉亚听见一阵低沉的轰隆声。接着，一片巨大的石板从井口缓缓滑出，在火光照耀下成了艳红，它在室内发出隆隆巨响，差点害她叫出声来。等到声音平复，刚才井口所在的位置，只有一片平滑坚硬、毫无裂缝的石头。

“If he does not bestir himself soon, it may be too late,” the stout man in the steel cap said. “This is no longer a game for two players, if ever it was. Stannis Baratheon and Lysa Arryn have fled beyond my reach, and the whispers say they are gathering swords around them. The Knight of Flowers writes Highgarden, urging his lord father to send his sister to court. The girl is a maid of fourteen, sweet and beautiful and tractable, and Lord Renly and Ser Loras intend that Robert should bed her, wed her, and make a new queen. Littlefinger?.?.?.?the gods only know what game Littlefinger is playing. Yet Lord Stark’s the one who troubles my sleep. He has the bastard, he has the book, and soon enough he’ll have the truth. And now his wife has abducted Tyrion Lannister, thanks to Littlefinger’s meddling. Lord Tywin will take that for an outrage, and Jaime has a queer affection for the Imp. If the Lannisters move north, that will bring the Tullys in as well. Delay, you say. Make haste, I reply. Even the finest of jugglers cannot keep a hundred balls in the air forever.”

“若他不赶紧出兵，恐怕就来不及了。”戴着钢盔的粗胖男子说，“这已经不再是一场两人对弈的游戏了——如果以前可以称得上是的话。史坦尼斯·拜拉席恩和莱莎·艾林已逃离我的掌握范围，根据回报，他们正在囤积兵力。百花骑士写信回高庭，力劝他公爵老爸送他妹妹入宫。她是个十四岁的的黄花闺女，既漂亮又听话，蓝礼大人和洛拉斯爵士打算让劳勃上她，然后娶她，另立新后。至于小指头……天上诸神才知道小指头在玩什么把戏。但尤其让我坐立难安的却是史塔克大人。他找到了那个私生子，也拿到了那本书，迟早会猜出端倪。现在的情况倒该感谢小指头搅局，他太太绑架了提利昂·兰尼斯特，他必将无暇多顾。然而泰温公爵绝咽不下这口气，詹姆又对小恶魔怀有古怪的感情。若是兰尼斯特对北方用兵，那么徒利家也将被牵扯进来。你叫我拖一拖，我却要叫你加快行动啊。就算最厉害的杂耍戏子也没法永远把一百颗球抛在空中呐。”

“You are more than a juggler, old friend. You are a true sorcerer. All I ask is that you work your magic awhile longer.” They started down the hall in the direction Arya had come, past the room with the monsters.

“老朋友，你可不只是杂耍戏子，你是个真正的魔术师。我不过请你多变一会儿戏法罢了。”他们朝艾莉亚来时的方向走去，穿过充满怪兽的房间。

“What I can do, I will,” the one with the torch said softly. “I must have gold, and another fifty birds.”

“只要我能做的，我都会去做。”拿火把的人轻声说，“但我需要经费，还要五十只鸟儿。”

She let them get a long way ahead, then went creeping after them. Quiet as a shadow.

她等他们走远后才偷偷跟在后面。静如影。

“So many?” The voices were fainter as the light dwindled ahead of her. “The ones you need are hard to find?.?.?.?so young, to know their letters?.?.?.?perhaps older?.?.?.?not die so easy?.?.?.?”

“要那么多？”前方光线渐暗，声音也愈见微弱。“你要的这种可不好找……既要年轻，又要识字……如果年纪稍大一点……不那么容易送命……”

“No. The younger are safer?.?.?.?treat them gently?.?.?.?”

“不，年轻的比较安全……对他们好一点……”

“?.?.?.?.if they kept their tongues?.?.?.?”

“……如果他们保住口舌……”

“?.?.?.?the risk?.?.?.?”

“……冒风险……”

Long after their voices had faded away, Arya could still see the light of the torch, a smoking star that bid her follow. Twice it seemed to disappear, but she kept on straight, and both times she found herself at the top of steep, narrow stairs, the torch glimmering far below her. She hurried after it, down and down. Once she stumbled over a rock and fell against the wall, and her hand found raw earth supported by timbers, whereas before the tunnel had been dressed stone.

声音淡去后许久，艾莉亚依然能看见火把的光亮，如一颗冒烟的星星，吸引她跟随。有两次，它几乎失去了踪影，但她一径向前，两次都发现自己走到险陡窄梯的顶端，火把的光芒则在遥远的下方。她急忙追赶，不断向下。中途她曾踢到石头，失足撞上墙壁，手指所触却是粗糙的泥土，由木材所支撑，并非先前的石造甬道。

She must have crept after them for miles. Finally they were gone, but there was no place to go but forward. She found the wall again and followed, blind and lost, pretending that Nymeria was padding along beside her in the darkness. At the end she was knee-deep in foul-smelling water, wishing she could dance upon it as Syrio might have, and wondering if she’d ever see light again. It was full dark when finally Arya emerged into the night air.

她一定爬了好几里。到最后，他们俩都不见了，而这里除了往上，无处可去。她重新摸索，找到墙壁，在完全迷失方向的情况下，盲目地往前走，一边假装黑暗中娜梅莉亚正跟在自己身边。走到尽头，她发现自己身陷及膝深、散发出恶臭的水里，她一边希望自己能像西利欧一样在水面轻舞，一边心想不知何时才能重见天日。等艾莉亚走入夜空之下时，天已经全黑。

She found herself standing at the mouth of a sewer where it emptied into the river. She stank so badly that she stripped right there, dropping her soiled clothing on the riverbank as she dove into the deep black waters. She swam until she felt clean, and crawled out shivering. Some riders went past along the river road as Arya was washing her clothes, but if they saw the scrawny naked girl scrubbing her rags in the moonlight, they took no notice.

她发现自己正站在下水道与河流相连的出水口。一身臭得要命，她干脆当场脱光，把脏衣服丢在河岸，潜入深深的黑水里，游啊游，直到她觉得舒适干净，这才颤抖着爬上岸。艾莉亚洗衣服时，有几个人骑马经过河滨道路，但就算他们看到了干巴巴的小女孩赤裸着身子，就着月光搓洗破烂不堪的衣服，也没特别在意。

She was miles from the castle, but from anywhere in King’s Landing you needed only to look up to see the Red Keep high on Aegon’s Hill, so there was no danger of losing her way. Her clothes were almost dry by the time she reached the gatehouse. The portcullis was down and the gates barred, so she turned aside to a postern door. The gold cloaks who had the watch sneered when she told them to let her in. “Off with you,” one said. “The kitchen scraps are gone, and we’ll have no begging after dark.”

她离城堡有好几里之遥，但不管身在君临的何地，只需一抬头便可看见那高高端坐于伊耿丘陵上的红堡，所以她不怕迷路。等她抵达城门，身上的衣服已干得差不多。铁闸早已降下，大门也上了闩，她不得不转向边门。当她吩咐他们让她进去时，守门的金袍卫士冷笑一声。“快滚罢，”其中一人说，“厨房的剩菜已经没了，天黑后不准乞讨。”

“I’m not a beggar,” she said. “I live here.”

“我不是乞丐，”她说：“我住这里。”

“I said, off with you. Do you need a clout on the ear to help your hearing?”

“我说快滚。还是要赏你两个耳刮子才听得懂？”

“I want to see my father.”

“我要找我父亲。”

The guards exchanged a glance. “I want to fuck the queen myself, for all the good it does me,” the younger one said.

两个守卫交换了眼神。“我还要搞王后咧。”年轻的那个说。

The older scowled. “Who’s this father of yours, boy, the city ratcatcher?”

比较老的那个皱眉道：“小子，你老爸是谁？抓老鼠的么？”

“The Hand of the King,” Arya told him.

“他是御前首相。”艾莉亚告诉他们。

Both men laughed, but then the older one swung his fist at her, casually, as a man would swat a dog. Arya saw the blow coming even before it began. She danced back out of the way, untouched. “I’m not a boy,” she spat at them. “I’m Arya Stark of Winterfell, and if you lay a hand on me my lord father will have both your heads on spikes. If you don’t believe me, fetch Jory Cassel or Vayon Poole from the Tower of the Hand.” She put her hands on her hips. “Now are you going to open the gate, or do you need a clout on the ear to help your hearing?”

两人哈哈大笑，紧接着老的那个一拳挥来，随随便便，像人欺负狗一样。艾莉亚早在他动手前便看清了，她往后轻轻退开，毫发未损。“我不是小子，”她朝他们吐口水，“我是临冬城的艾莉亚·史塔克，你要是敢碰我，我老爸会把你们两个的头砍下来挂在枪上。如果你们不相信我，就去首相塔找乔里·凯索和维扬·普尔问问。”她把小手背在身后。“你们是开门，还是要赏两个耳刮子才听得懂？”

Her father was alone in the solar when Harwin and Fat Tom marched her in, an oil lamp glowing softly at his elbow. He was bent over the biggest book Arya had ever seen, a great thick tome with cracked yellow pages of crabbed script, bound between faded leather covers, but he closed it to listen to Harwin’s report. His face was stern as he sent the men away with thanks.

哈尔温和胖汤姆把她送回去时，父亲正独自一人坐在书房，肘边一盏油灯发出柔亮的光。他弯身读着艾莉亚生平所见最大的一本书，这本厚重的书有着破烂的泛黄书页，上面密密麻麻写满了字，封皮则是褪色的皮革。他一脸严肃地向手下道谢，并把他们送走。

“You realize I had half my guard out searching for you?” Eddard Stark said when they were alone. “Septa Mordane is beside herself with fear. She’s in the sept praying for your safe return. Arya, you know you are never to go beyond the castle gates without my leave.”

“你知不知道我派出一半的卫士去找你？”等他们独处后，艾德·史塔克道，“茉丹修女慌得不知如何是好，现在还在圣堂里祈祷你平安归来。艾莉亚，你明明知道没有我的许可，不可以跑到城堡外面去。”

“I didn’t go out the gates,” she blurted. “Well, I didn’t mean to. I was down in the dungeons, only they turned into this tunnel. It was all dark, and I didn’t have a torch or a candle to see by, so I had to follow. I couldn’t go back the way I came on account of the monsters. Father, they were talking about killing you! Not the monsters, the two men. They didn’t see me, I was being still as stone and quiet as a shadow, but I heard them. They said you had a book and a bastard and if one Hand could die, why not a second? Is that the book? Jon’s the bastard, I bet.”

“我没有跑到城外去，”她冲口而出，“呃，我不是故意的。我本来是在地城里，后来又变成了隧道，那里好黑，我没有火把也没有蜡烛，所以只好一直走下去。我不敢从原路返回的，那样会碰到怪兽。爸爸，他们说要杀你！不是怪兽，是两个人。他们没看到我，因为我不动如石又静如影，但我听到他们说的话，他们说你找到了私生子拿到了书，还说既然一个首相可以死，为什么第二个不能死？你看的就是那本书吗？我敢打赌琼恩就是他们说的那个私生子啦。”

“Jon? Arya, what are you talking about? Who said this?”

“琼恩？艾莉亚，你在说些什么？这些话又是谁说的？”

“They did,” she told him. “There was a fat one with rings and a forked yellow beard, and another in mail and a steel cap, and the fat one said they had to delay but the other one told him he couldn’t keep juggling and the wolf and the lion were going to eat each other and it was a mummer’s farce.” She tried to remember the rest. She hadn’t quite understood everything she’d heard, and now it was all mixed up in her head. “The fat one said the princess was with child. The one in the steel cap, he had the torch, he said that they had to hurry. I think he was a wizard.”

“他们说的，”她告诉他，“一个是长着黄色开岔胡、手上戴满戒指的胖子，另一个人穿了铠甲戴着钢盔，胖的那个说要拖时间，可另外一个说自己没办法一直变戏法，还说狼和狮很快就会自相残杀，还说事情都搞砸了。”她试着回忆其他的部分。但她并不完全了解自己所听到的东西，现在又都在脑子里混成一团了。“胖的那个说公主怀了孩子，有钢盔的那个说的，他拿了火把，他说他们行动要快。我猜他是个巫师。”

“A wizard,” said Ned, unsmiling. “Did he have a long white beard and tall pointed hat speckled with stars?”

“巫师，”奈德皮笑肉不笑地说，“那他有没有长长的白胡子和镶满星星的尖帽子呢？”

“No! It wasn’t like Old Nan’s stories. He didn’t look like a wizard, but the fat one said he was.”

“没有！不像老奶妈的故事里那样。他看起来不像巫师，可胖的那个说他是。”

“I warn you, Arya, if you’re spinning this thread of air...”

“艾莉亚，我警告你，如果你这是在编故事……”

“No, I told you, it was in the dungeons, by the place with the secret wall. I was chasing cats, and well?.?.?.?” She screwed up her face. If she admitted knocking over Prince Tommen, he would be really angry with her. “?.?.?.?well, I went in this window. That’s where I found the monsters.”

“我没有，我跟你说了嘛，就是在地城那里，在秘密墙旁边。我本来在抓猫，结果……”她皱起脸，如果她说出撞倒托曼王子的事，他不气死才怪，到时候可就较真了。“……呃，反正我跑到一扇窗子边，我就是在那里发现怪兽的。”

“Monsters and wizards,” her father said. “It would seem you’ve had quite an adventure. These men you heard, you say they spoke of juggling and mummery?”

“先是巫师，现在又是怪兽，”父亲说，“看来这场冒险还真精彩。你听到这些人说什么，你说他们会变戏法和演戏？”

“Yes,” Arya admitted, “only...”

“是啊，”艾莉亚承认，“可是——”

“Arya, they were mummers,” her father told her. “There must be a dozen troupes in King’s Landing right now, come to make some coin off the tourney crowds. I’m not certain what these two were doing in the castle, but perhaps the king has asked for a show.”

“艾莉亚，他们是戏班里的人，”父亲告诉她，“这会儿君临大概有十来个戏班，想借着比武大会的人潮赚点钱呢。我不清楚这两个人在城里做什么，但说不定是国王请他们来表演的。”

“No.” She shook her head stubbornly. “They weren’t...”

“不是啦，”她固执地摇头，“他们不是——”

“You shouldn’t be following people about and spying on them in any case. Nor do I cherish the notion of my daughter climbing in strange windows after stray cats. Look at you, sweetling. Your arms are covered with scratches. This has gone on long enough. Tell Syrio Forel that I want a word with hirn...”

“更何况你一开始就不该跟踪别人、偷听他们说话，我也不喜欢自己女儿爬怪窗子抓流浪猫。亲爱的，看看你这样子，满手都是抓伤。不能再这样下去。告诉西利欧·佛瑞尔，我要跟他谈——”

He was interrupted by a short, sudden knock. “Lord Eddard, pardons,” Desmond called out, opening the door a crack, “but there’s a black brother here begging audience. He says the matter is urgent. I thought you would want to know.”

一阵短促的敲门声打断了他的话。“艾德大人，很抱歉打搅。”戴斯蒙叫道，把门打开一条小缝。“外面有个黑衣弟兄求见，说有要紧事相告。我想跟您通报一声。”

“My door is always open to the Night’s Watch,” Father said.

“我家的门永远为守夜人而开。”父亲说。

Desmond ushered the man inside. He was stooped and ugly, with an unkempt beard and unwashed clothes, yet Father greeted him pleasantly and asked his name.

戴斯蒙请那人进来。他驼着背，长相奇丑，一把未经修整的杂乱胡子，衣服也像是很久没洗了，但父亲依旧很愉快地问候他，并询问他的姓名。

“Yoren, as it please m’lord. My pardons for the hour.” He bowed to Arya. “And this must be your son. He has your look.”

“老爷，我叫尤伦。这么晚来打扰，真对不住。”他向艾莉亚鞠躬。“这一定是您的公子，长得跟您真像。”

“I’m a girl,” Arya said, exasperated. If the old man was down from the Wall, he must have come by way of Winterfell. “Do you know my brothers?” she asked excitedly. “Robb and Bran are at Winterfell, and Jon’s on the Wall. Jon Snow, he’s in the Night’s Watch too, you must know him, he has a direwolf, a white one with red eyes. Is Jon a ranger yet? I’m Arya Stark.” The old man in his smelly black clothes was looking at her oddly, but Arya could not seem to stop talking. “When you ride back to the Wall, would you bring Jon a letter if I wrote one?” She wished Jon were here right now. He’d believe her about the dungeons and the fat man with the forked beard and the wizard in the steel cap.

“我是女孩。”艾莉亚气急败坏地说。假如这老头是从长城来的，那他一定会经过临冬城。“你认识我哥哥和弟弟吗？”她兴奋地问，“罗柏和布兰在临冬城，琼恩在长城。琼恩·雪诺，他也是守夜人，你一定认识的，他有只冰原狼，白色的毛，红色的眼睛。琼恩当上游骑兵了吗？”穿臭衣服的老人一直用古怪的眼神看着她，但艾莉亚停不下来。“如果我写封信，你回长城去的时候，可不可以帮我带给琼恩？”她好希望琼恩此刻就在这里，他一定会相信她的，不管是地城、长八字胡的胖子，还是戴钢盔的巫师。

“My daughter often forgets her courtesies,” Eddard Stark said with a faint smile that softened his words. “I beg your forgiveness, Yoren. Did my brother Benjen send you?”

“小女时常忘记应有的礼数，”艾德·史塔克道。他挂着一抹淡淡的微笑，舒缓了他的口气。“尤伦，还请你见谅。是我弟弟班扬派你来的么？”

“No one sent me, m’lord, saving old Mormont. I’m here to find men for the Wall, and when Robert next holds court, I’ll bend the knee and cry our need, see if the king and his Hand have some scum in the dungeons they’d be well rid of. You might say as Benjen Stark is why we’re talking, though. His blood ran black. Made him my brother as much as yours. It’s for his sake I’m come. Rode hard, I did, near killed my horse the way I drove her, but I left the others well behind.”

“大人，派我来的不是别人，是老莫尔蒙。我是来寻找把守长城的人手，等下次劳勃上朝，我就要去卑躬屈膝，跟他说明我们的需要，看看国王和他的首相在他们的地牢里有没有想处理掉的人渣。不过我赶来这儿跟他也有关系。他是黑衫军的一员，我和您一样把他当成兄弟。我正是为了他才飞速赶来，拼了老命，差点把我的马都给累死了，好在也把其他人甩在后面。”

“The others?”

“其他人？”

Yoren spat. “Sellswords and freeriders and like trash. That inn was full o’ them, and I saw them take the scent. The scent of blood or the scent of gold, they smell the same in the end. Not all o’ them made for King’s Landing, either. Some went galloping for Casterly Rock, and the Rock lies closer. Lord Tywin will have gotten the word by now, you can count on it.”

尤伦吐了口口水。“还不就是流浪武士、自由骑手这路货色。整间旅店都是这号人，我看他们是嗅到了好味道。血和黄金的味道，这类人到死都追逐不放。他们没有都往君临来，有些朝凯岩城冲去，而凯岩城比较近，可以想见，如今泰温大人肯定得到了消息。”

Father frowned. “What word is this?”

父亲皱眉。“什么消息？”

Yoren eyed Arya. “One best spoken in private, m’lord, begging your pardons.”

尤伦看了艾莉亚一眼。“大人，请您原谅，这事咱们最好私下谈。”

“As you say. Desmond, see my daughter to her chambers.” He kissed her on the brow. “We’ll finish our talk on the morrow.”

“好吧，戴斯蒙，带我女儿回房。”他吻了她的额头。“我们明天再把话说完。”

Arya stood rooted to the spot. “Nothing bad’s happened to Jon, has it?” she asked Yoren. “Or Uncle Benjen?”

艾莉亚脚像生了根似地赖在原地。“琼恩没事吧？”她问尤伦，“班扬叔叔呢？”

“Well, as to Stark, I can’t say. The Snow boy was well enough when I left the Wall. It’s not them as concerns me.”

“唉，史塔克他怎么样我说不准，不过我从长城出发时，雪诺那小子倒是活得挺自在。我要说的不是他们的事。”

Desmond took her hand. “Come along, milady. You heard your lord father.”

戴斯蒙拉起她的手。“小姐，我们走罢，您也听见您父亲的吩咐了。”

Arya had no choice but to go with him, wishing it had been Fat Tom. With Tom, she might have been able to linger at the door on some excuse and hear what Yoren was saying, but Desmond was too single-minded to trick. “How many guards does my father have?” she asked him as they descended to her bedchamber.

艾莉亚别无选择，只好跟他走，心里好希望他变成胖汤姆。如果是汤姆，她或许就可以找借口在门口多逗留一会儿，然后偷听尤伦要说什么，可戴斯蒙脑筋太直，骗不过的。“我爸爸有多少守卫？”他们走下楼梯，去她卧房时，她问他。

“Here at King’s Landing? Fifty.”

“在君临这儿吗？有五十个。”

“You wouldn’t let anyone kill him, would you?” she asked.

“你不会让别人有机会杀他，对不对？”她问。

Desmond laughed. “No fear on that count, little lady. Lord Eddard’s guarded night and day. He’ll come to no harm.”

戴斯蒙笑道：“小姐您别担心，艾德大人他日夜都有人守着，谁也动不了他的。”

“The Lannisters have more than fifty men,” Arya pointed out.

“可兰尼斯特家的人不只五十个。”艾莉亚指出。

“So they do, but every northerner is worth ten of these southron swords, so you can sleep easy.”

“多是多，可咱北方人一个人抵得上南方人十个，所以你就安心地睡吧。”

“What if a wizard was sent to kill him?”

“如果他们叫巫师来杀他呢？”

“Well, as to that,” Desmond replied, drawing his longsword, “wizards die the same as other men, once you cut their heads off.”

“唉，这个嘛，”戴斯蒙边说边抽出长剑。“只要砍掉脑袋，巫师一样会没命。”