the lion roars

when the whole party was finally awake lucy had to tell her story for the fourth time. the blank silence which followed it was as discouraging as anything could be.

"i can't see anything," said peter after he had stared his eyes sore. "can you, susan?"

"no, of course i can't," snapped susan. "because there isn't anything to see. she's been dreaming. do lie down and go to sleep, lucy."

"and i do hope," said lucy in a tremulous voice, "that you will all come with me. because - because i'll have to go with him whether anyone else does or not."

"don't talk nonsense, lucy," said susan. "of course you can't go off on your own. don't let her, peter. she's being downright naughty."

"i'll go with her, if she must go," said edmund. "she's been right before."

"i know she has," said peter. "and she may have been right this morning. we certainly had no luck going down the gorge. still - at this hour of the night. and why should aslan be invisible to us? he never used to be. it's not like him. what does the d.l.f. say?"

"oh, i say nothing at all," answered the dwarf. "if you all go, of course, i'll go with you; and if your party splits up, i'll go with the high king. that's my duty to him and king caspian. but, if you ask my private opinion, i'm a plain dwarf who doesn't think there's much chance of finding a road by night where you couldn't find one by day. and i have no use for magic lions which are talking lions and don't talk, and friendly lions though they don't do us any good, and whopping big lions though nobody can see them. it's all bilge and beanstalks as far as i can see."

"he's beating his paw on the ground for us to hurry," said lucy. "we must go now. at least i must."

"you've no right to try to force the rest of us like that. it's four to one and you're the youngest," said susan.

"oh, come on," growled edmund. "we've got to go. there'll be no peace till we do." he fully intended to back lucy up, but he was annoyed at losing his night's sleep and was making up for it by doing everything as sulkily as possible.

"on the march, then," said peter, wearily fitting his arm into his shield-strap and putting his helmet on. at any other time he would have said something nice to lucy, who was his favourite sister, for he knew how wretched she must be feeling, and he knew that, whatever had happened, it was not her fault. but he couldn't help being a little annoyed with her all the same.

susan was the worst. "supposing i started behaving like lucy," she said. "i might threaten to stay here whether the rest of you went on or not. i jolly well think i shall."

"obey the high king, your majesty," said trumpkin, "and let's be off. if i'm not to be allowed to sleep, i'd as soon march as stand here talking."

and so at last they got on the move. lucy went first, biting her lip and trying not to say all the things she thought of saying to susan. but she forgot them when she fixed her eyes on aslan. he turned and walked at a slow pace about thirty yards ahead of them. the others had only lucy's directions to guide them, for aslan was not only invisible to them but silent as well. his big cat-like paws made no noise on the grass.

he led them to the right of the dancing trees - whether they were still dancing nobody knew, for lucy had her eyes on the lion and the rest had their eyes on lucy - and nearer the edge of the gorge. "cobbles and kettledrums!" thought trumpkin. "i hope this madness isn't going to end in a moonlight climb and broken necks."

for a long way aslan went along the top of the precipices. then they came to a place where some little trees grew right on the edge. he turned and disappeared among them. lucy held her breath, for it looked as if he had plunged over the cliff; but she was too busy keeping him in sight to stop and think about this. she quickened her pace and was soon among the trees herself. looking down, she could see a steep and narrow path going slantwise down into the gorge between rocks, and aslan descending it. he turned and looked at her with his happy eyes. lucy clapped her hands and began to scramble down after him. from behind her she heard the voices of the others shouting, "hi! lucy! look out, for goodness' sake. you're right on the edge of the gorge. come back - "and then, a moment later, edmund's voice saying, "no, she's right. there is a way down."

half-way down the path edmund caught up with her.

"look!" he said in great excitement. "look! what's that shadow crawling down in front of us?"

"it's his shadow," said lucy.

"i do believe you're right, lu," said edmund. "i can't think how i didn't see it before. but where is he?"

"with his shadow, of course. can't you see him?"

"well, i almost thought i did - for a moment. it's such a rum light."

"get on, king edmund, get on," came trumpkin's voice from behind and above: and then, farther behind and still nearly at the top, peter's voice saying, "oh, buck up, susan. give me your hand. why, a baby could get down here. and do stop grousing."

in a few minutes they were at the bottom and the roaring of water filled their ears. treading delicately, like a cat, aslan stepped from stone to stone across the stream. in the middle he stopped, bent down to drink, and as he raised his shaggy head, dripping from the water, he turned to face them again. this time edmund saw him. "oh, aslan!" he cried, darting forward. but the lion whisked round and began padding up the slope on the far side of the rush.

"peter, peter," cried edmund. "did you see?"

"i saw something," said peter. "but it's so tricky in this moonlight. on we go, though, and three cheers for lucy. i don't feel half so tired now, either."

aslan without hesitation led them to their left, farther up the gorge. the whole journey was odd and dream-like the roaring stream, the wet grey grass, the glimmering cliffs which they were approaching, and always the glorious, silently pacing beast ahead. everyone except susan and the dwarf could see him now.

presently they came to another steep path, up the face of the farther precipices. these were far higher than the ones they had just descended, and the journey up them was a long and tedious zig-zag. fortunately the moon shone right above the gorge so that neither side was in shadow.

lucy was nearly blown when the tail and hind legs of aslan disappeared over the top: but with one last effort she scrambled after him and came out, rather shaky-legged and breathless, on the hill they had been trying to reach ever since they left glasswater. the long gentle slope (heather and grass and a few very big rocks that shone white in the moonlight) stretched up to where it vanished in a glimmer of trees about half a mile away. she knew it. it was the hill of the stone table:

with a jingling of mail the others climbed up behind her. aslan glided on before them and they walked after him.

"lucy," said susan in a very small voice.

"yes?" said lucy.

"i see him now. i'm sorry."

"that's all right."

"but i've been far worse than you know. i really believed it was him - he, i mean - yesterday. when he warned us not to go down to the fir wood. and i really believed it was him tonight, when you woke us up. i mean, deep down inside. or i could have, if i'd let myself. but i just wanted to get out of the woods and - and - oh, i don't know. and what ever am i to say to him?"

"perhaps you won't need to say much," suggested lucy.

soon they reached the trees and through them the children could see the great mound, aslan's how, which had been raised over the table since their days.

"our side don't keep very good watch," muttered trumpkin. "we ought to have been challenged before now -"

"hush!" said the other four, for now aslan had stopped and turned and stood facing them, looking so majestic that they felt as glad as anyone can who feels afraid, and as afraid as anyone can who feels glad. the boys strode forward: lucy made way for them: susan and the dwarf shrank back.

"oh, aslan," said king peter, dropping on one knee and raising the lion's heavy paw to his face, "i'm so glad. and i'm so sorry. i've been leading them wrong ever since we started and especially yesterday morning."

"my dear son," said aslan.

then he turned and welcomed edmund. "well done," were his words.

then, after an awful pause, the deep voice said, "susan." susan made no answer but the others thought she was crying. "you have listened to fears, child," said aslan. "come, let me breathe on you. forget them. are you brave again?"

"a little, aslan," said susan.

"and now!" said aslan in a much louder voice with just a hint of roar in it, while his tail lashed his flanks. "and now, where is this little dwarf, this famous swordsman and archer, who doesn't believe in lions? come here, son of earth, come here!" - and the last word was no longer the hint of a roar but almost the real thing.

"wraiths and wreckage!" gasped trumpkin in the ghost of a voice. the children, who knew aslan well enough to see that he liked the dwarf very much, were not disturbed; but it was quite another thing for trumpkin, who had never seen a lion before, let alone this lion. he did the only sensible thing he could have done; that is, instead of bolting, he tottered towards aslan.

aslan pounced. have you ever seen a very young kitten being carried in the mother cat's mouth? it was like that. the dwarf, hunched up in a little, miserable ball, hung from aslan's mouth. the lion gave him one shake and all his armour rattled like a tinker's pack and then - heypresto - the dwarf flew up in the air. he was as safe as if he had been in bed, though he did not feel so. as he came down the huge velvety paws caught him as gently as a mother's arms and set him (right way up, too) on the ground.

"son of earth, shall we be friends?" asked aslan.

"ye - he - he - hes," panted the dwarf, for it had not yet got its breath back.

"now," said aslan. "the moon is setting. look behind you: there is the dawn beginning. we have no time to lose. you three, you sons of adam and son of earth, hasten into the mound and deal with what you will find there."

the dwarf was still speechless and neither of the boys dared to ask if aslan would follow them. all three drew their swords and saluted, then turned and jingled away into the dusk. lucy noticed that there was no sign of weariness in their faces: both the high king and king edmund looked more like men than boys.

the girls watched them out of sight, standing close beside aslan. the light was changing. low down in the east, aravir, the morning star of narnia, gleamed like a little moon. aslan, who seemed larger than before, lifted his head, shook his mane, and roared.

the sound, deep and throbbing at first like an organ beginning on a low note, rose and became louder, and then far louder again, till the earth and air were shaking with it. it rose up from that hill and floated across all narnia. down in miraz's camp men woke, stared palely in one another's faces, and grasped their weapons. down below that in the great river, now at its coldest hour, the heads and shoulders of the nymphs, and the great weedy-bearded head of the river-god, rose from the water. beyond it, in every field and wood, the alert ears of rabbits rose from their holes, the sleepy heads of birds came out from under wings, owls hooted, vixens barked, hedgehogs grunted, the trees stirred. in towns and villages mothers pressed babies close to their breasts, staring with wild eyes, dogs whimpered, and men leaped up groping for lights. far away on the northern frontier the mountain giants peered from the dark gateways of their castles.

what lucy and susan saw was a dark something coming to them from almost every direction across the hills. it looked first like a black mist creeping on the ground, then like the stormy waves of a black sea rising higher and higher as it came on, and then, at last, like what it was woods on the move. all the trees of the world appeared to be rushing towards aslan. but as they drew nearer they looked less like trees; and when the whole crowd, bowing and curtsying and waving thin long arms to aslan, were all around lucy, she saw that it was a crowd of human shapes. pale birch-girls were tossing their heads, willowwomen pushed back their hair from their brooding faces to gaze on aslan, the queenly beeches stood still and adored him, shaggy oak-men, lean and melancholy elms, shockheaded hollies (dark themselves, but their wives all bright with berries) and gay rowans, all bowed and rose again, shouting, "aslan, aslan!" in their various husky or creaking or wave-like voices.

the crowd and the dance round aslan (for it had become a dance once more) grew so thick and rapid that lucy was confused. she never saw where certain other people came from who were soon capering about among the trees. one was a youth, dressed only in a fawn-skin, with vine-leaves wreathed in his curly hair. his face would have been almost too pretty for a boy's, if it had not looked, so extremely wild. you felt, as edmund said when he saw him a few days later, "there's a chap who might do anything absolutely anything." he seemed to have a great many names - bromios, bassareus, and the ram were three of them. there were a lot of girls with him, as wild as he. there was even, unexpectedly, someone on a donkey. and everybody was laughing: and everybody was shouting out, "euan, euan, eu-oi-oi-oi."

"is it a romp, aslan?" cried the youth. and apparently it was. but nearly everyone seemed to have a different idea as to what they were playing. it may have been tig, but lucy never discovered who was it. it was rather like blind man's buff, only everyone behaved as if they were blindfolded. it was not unlike hunt the slipper, but the slipper was never found. what made it more complicated was that the man on the donkey, who was old and enormously fat, began calling out at once, "refreshments! time for refreshments," and falling off his donkey and being bundled on to it again by the others, while the donkey was under the impression that the whole thing was a circus and tried to give a display of walking on its hind legs. and all the time there were more and more vine leaves everywhere. and soon not only leaves but vines. they were climbing up everything. they were running up the legs of the tree people and circling round their necks. lucy put up her hands to push back her hair and found she was pushing back vine branches. the donkey was a mass of them. his tail was completely entangled and something dark was nodding between his ears. lucy looked again and saw it was a bunch of grapes. after that it was mostly grapes overhead and underfoot and all around.

"refreshments! refreshments," roared the old man.

everyone began eating, and whatever hothouses your people may have, you have never tasted such grapes. really good grapes, firm and tight on the outside, but bursting into cool sweetness when you put them into your mouth, were one of the things the girls had never had quite enough of before. here, there were more than anyone could possibly want, and rib table-manners at all. one saw sticky and stained fingers everywhere, and, though mouths were full, the laughter never ceased nor the yodelling cries of euan, euan, eu-oi-oi-oi-oi, till all of a sudden everyone felt at the same moment that the game (whatever it was), and the feast, ought to be over, and everyone flopped down breathless on the ground and turned their faces to aslan to hear what he would say next.

at that moment the sun was just rising and lucy remembered something and whispered to susan,

"i say, su, i know who they are."

"who?"

"the boy with the wild face is bacchus and the old one on the donkey is silenus. don't you remember mr tumnus telling us about them long ago?"

"yes, of course. but i say, lu "

"what?"

"i wouldn't have felt safe with bacchus and all his wild girls if we'd met them without aslan."

"i should think not," said lucy.

11雄狮长啸

终于，其他四个人都醒了过来。露茜不得不第四遍重复要讲的话。随之而来的长时间沉默，使她感到很沮丧。

彼得盯着前面的树林，把眼睛都看酸了。"我什么都没看见。你呢，苏珊?"

"没有，当然什么也看不见。"苏珊说，听上去她有些不高兴。"因为那儿根本什么都没有，她是在说梦话。露，快躺下睡觉，听话。"

"我真希望你们大家和我一起去，"露茜的声音有些颤抖，"因为——因为不论你们来或不来，我必须随它而去。"

"别胡扯，露茜，"苏珊说，"毫无疑问，你不可以独自离开。彼得，别让她去，她故意胡闹！"

"假如她执意要去，我将跟她一块儿去，"爱德蒙说，"她一直是对的。"

"这我知道，"彼得说，"而且很可能她现在还是正确的。显而易见，从下游走出峡谷这条路行不通，更何况在夜里这个时候。再说，阿斯兰为什么不让我们看到它呢?它过去从来不是这样，这不像它的为人。dlf，你怎么想?"

“我没什么说的，”小矮人回答道，“要是你们都去，当然，我也一起去。要是你们分成两路，我将跟随至尊王尊敬的彼得陛下，因为这是我的本分。然而，假如你问我个人的意见，这个嘛——我不过是个头脑简单的小矮人，我以为在白天都找不着路，夜里找到它的希望更小。况且，对那法力无边的狮子，我也不喜欢——它会讲话却不肯讲话，非常友好却不给我们以帮助，战无不胜却又没人能看到它。这就是我想说的话，不起作用，请大家不要见笑。”

“瞧，它用爪子拍打着草地，是在催我们了。”露茜望着前面焦急地说，“咱们必须马上动身。你们不走，我可要走了。”

“你没有权利这样勉强我们大家听你的胡话。现在是四比一，你又年龄最小。”苏珊说。

“嗨，快些行动吧，”爱德蒙有些不耐烦了，“我们只有去一趟，别无选择，呆在这里将会是无休止的争吵。”他有心全力支持露茜，却又因为被打搅了美梦而不很高兴，结果表现得似乎在与大伙儿怄气。

“那么走吧。”彼得一边说一边懒懒地穿上盔甲。如果换个其他场合，他都会对露茜说些鼓励或安慰的话，因为她毕竟是他最喜爱的小妹妹。他心里清楚，此时露茜一定十分难过，而且不论刚才发生了什么，都不是她的过错。然而，他也不由自主地对她有点儿恼火。

最不高兴的要数苏珊了。“我要是像露茜那么蛮不讲理，我现在就赖在这里不走，不管你们上哪儿去!我真想这么做!”

“请服从至尊王，尊敬的女王陛下，”杜鲁普金说，“我们这就上路吧。如果不能继续睡觉，我宁愿少讲话，多走路。”

一行人终于出发了。露茜走在最前面，她咬紧嘴唇，把一肚子想对苏珊说的话咽了下去。说也奇怪，她抬眼看到阿斯兰，便一下子把那些抱怨的话忘到九霄云外去了，阿斯兰在他们前面大约二十米开外，不慌不忙地领路。其他人只有跟着露茜。他们不仅看不到阿斯兰，也听不到它的声音。它那猫爪一样的巨爪落在草地上，悄然无声。

孩子们在阿斯兰的引导下，从舞蹈树林的右侧走过。谁也不知道那些树神是否仍在翩翩起舞，因为露茜紧盯着阿斯兰，其他人又紧盯着露茜，加上峡谷近在咫尺，谁也不敢大意。“上帝保佑，上帝保佑!”杜鲁普金嘴里不停地嘟哝着，“但愿这疯狂的举动不要以跌下悬崖粉身碎骨而告结束!”-

阿斯兰领他们沿着悬崖峭壁走了很长一段路，然后来到一个地方。崖边长着一些小树。它转个弯，消失在小树丛中。露茜一下屏住了呼吸。怎么，要从这悬崖跳下去?可是她必须跟紧阿斯兰，不能失去它的踪迹。来不及停下来细想，她加快脚步，一下子也消失在小树丛中。朝下望去，她看到一条陡直的羊肠小道，通向那夹在黑压压巨大岩石之间的峡谷底部，阿斯兰正沿着小路往下走。它忽然转过身来，用满意和鼓励的目光看着她。露茜拍拍手，随它而下。这时身后传来其他人的喊声：“喂，露茜，当心！上帝呀!你就在悬崖的边缘!快回来——”可是紧接着又传来爱德蒙的声音：“不，她没错，这儿是有一条往下去的小路。”

爱德蒙在半道追上了露茜。他激动地大声说：“看!在咱们前面的那个黑影是谁?”

那就是它的身影。”

“我们相信你是正确的，露。可奇怪的是，原先我怎么就看不见那身影呢?现在它在什么地方?”

“当然和影子在一起啰。你还看不见它?”

“我想刚才是看见了一下。光线太暗了。”

“快走畦，爱德蒙国王，快走。”身后传来杜鲁普金的催促声。接着，再往后，在靠近崖顶的地方，传来彼得的声音：“苏珊，勇敢些，把手伸给我。瞧你，小娃娃也能走到这里来，别吓成那个样子。”

没有多久，他们便都来到了峡谷的底部，湍急的河水发出很大的响声。阿斯兰在露出水面的大石头上猫一般灵巧地跳跃着，几下便跳到小河中部。它停住脚步，低头喝水。当它昂起那粗毛蓬松的头时，又转过脸来看一看孩子们。这下爱德蒙看见它了。“噢，阿斯兰!”他一边大声叫着，一边向前扑去。可阿斯兰倏地转过身，纵身跃到彼岸，沿着河开始向上游走去。

“彼得，彼得，”爱德蒙喊道，“你看到了吗?”

“我看见了什么?”彼得说，“在月光下，什么也看不清楚。继续走吧，我这会儿并不感到怎么累。现在，让我们向露茜欢呼致敬。多亏了她。”

阿斯兰毫不迟疑地领他们向左边上游的方向走去。一路上大家都有种奇怪的感觉，仿佛在做梦——那奔流的河水、湿润的草地、隐约的峭壁，还有走在前面那威严却一直默默无语的雄狮。此刻，除了苏珊和小矮人，别人都可以清楚地看到阿斯兰了。

不久，他们来到另一条陡峭的小路前。这条小路一直通向崖项。与刚刚走下来的河对岸的山崖相比，这边高多了，也险多了。值得庆幸的是，这时月亮恰好悬挂在峡谷的上方，把两岸山崖都照得雪亮。

当阿斯兰的身影在崖顶上消失之后，露茜差点儿泄了气。她鼓足最后的勇气，奋力登上崖项。这时她已是两腿发颤，上气不接下气了。自从离开清水湾以来，他们历尽了千辛万苦。这时她狂喜地看到，目的地就在眼前。一段不陡的坡地从容地向前延伸，直到数百米以外的一个小山丘，山丘上覆盖着绿色的树。露茜知道，那就是石桌所在地。

随着盔甲的丁当声，其他人一个接一个登上了崖顶。阿斯兰仍然默默地走在前面，领大家向小山丘走去。

“露茜。”苏珊轻声唤道。

“哎，什么事?”

“我现在看见它了。我向你道歉。”

“没关系。”

“你不知道，我比你想像的更糟。昨天，就在你第一次提醒大家，说阿斯兰警告我们不要到下游杉树林去的时候，我就相信你准是见到阿斯兰了。而且今天夜里你把我们唤醒时，我内心深处也是相信你的。可我一心想尽快离开树林，而且……唉，我也说不清楚是怎么搞的。现在，让我怎么向阿斯兰说呢?”

“你不必说这么许多。”露茜建议道。

不久，他们便来到树林跟前。透过树木的间隙，孩子们看到了阿斯兰堡垒，那是在他们统治的时代之后建筑在石桌上方的。

“我们的人警戒并不十分严密，”小矮人低声说，“否则早就该向我们进攻了。”

“嘘!”孩子们立刻制止了他。他们看到阿斯兰停下脚步，转过身来，默默地望着他们。那目光仿佛有种强大的魔力，使他们又高兴，又有些胆怯。两个男孩率先向它走去，露茜紧随其后，苏珊和小矮人走在最后面。

“阿斯兰!”国王彼得第一次走到雄狮面前，单腿下跪，拿起一只巨大的狮爪在脸颊上亲了一下，“见到你我高兴万分。我很抱歉，领大家走了这么多弯路，耽误了很多时间——尤其是从昨天早晨以来。”

“我亲爱的儿子，”阿斯兰亲切地说道，转身迎向爱德蒙，“你干得不错。”它夸奖道：沉默了一会，它又用那深沉的声音呼唤道：“苏珊。”苏珊没有回答，别的孩子都感觉到她在哭泣。“你几乎被恐惧所征服，孩子。过来，让我帮助你。”阿斯兰说着，向走近身边的苏珊吹了口气。“忘记过去吧。现在，你是否又恢复了勇气?”

“有一些了，阿斯兰。”苏珊答道。

“现在!”阿斯兰转而提高了声音，尾巴拍打着自己的身体，“现在，请你们告诉我，那位矮小的小矮人，著名的剑手和骑士，那位不相信我阿斯兰的朋友，他在哪里?到这儿来，大地的儿子，过来!”最后两个字简直就是吼出来的，带着撼人的威力。

“上帝保佑，上帝保佑，唷嗬嗬……”由于极度的敬畏和紧张，那小矮人叽里咕噜，嘴里不停地念叨着什么。孩子们都很熟悉阿斯兰，看得出它十分喜欢杜鲁普金，所以都让到一边，饶有兴趣地看着。杜鲁普金此刻的心情却大不一样。他从未见过狮子，更不曾单独与一头狮子呆在一起。好在他没有慌忙逃走，而是战战兢兢地向狮子挪过去，这倒是明智的。

阿斯兰猛地一扑，一口把他咬住，翻身又是一跃。你可曾见过猫妈妈衔着小宝宝跳跃的情景?现在就是那样的场面。

杜鲁普金被阿斯兰衔在嘴里，吓得缩作一团，一副可怜的样子。阿斯兰把头一摆，小矮人身上的盔甲便发出丁丁当当的响声，十分悦耳。接着，只听狮子嘿的一声，眨眼间小矮人已被抛到空中。大家都明白小矮人像躺在家里一样安全，惟独他本人在心里说：“完了!”当他从空中落下来时，阿斯兰用它巨大柔软的爪子轻轻地一接，再稳稳当当地把他放在地上。

“大地的儿子，让我们做个朋友，好吗?”阿斯兰问。

“好……好吧。”小矮人大口喘着气，惊魂未定。

“孩子们，”阿斯兰说，“月亮就要下去了，看看身后，东方已经露出晨曦。我们不能浪费时间了。你们三个，亚当和大地的儿子们，立即进入堡垒，看看那里面是怎样的情形。”

小矮人仍然一言不发，两个男孩谁也不敢开口问阿斯兰是否随后就来。三个人抽出宝剑，一齐向阿斯兰行个礼，然后转过身去，很快便消失在夜色中。露茜注意到他们脸上毫无倦意，只有男子汉一往直前的坚毅和果敢。

两个女孩紧靠在阿斯兰身边，默默地注视着他们三个人的背影。这时光线起了变化，在低垂的东方，阿罗维尔，那颗纳尼亚的晨星像一轮小小的月亮，发出明亮、柔和的光芒。星光下的阿斯兰显得特别高大。它昂起头，摆动着鬣毛，放声长啸起来。

那声音深沉、有力，仿佛风琴从低音奏起，音调越来越高，音量越来越大，直到大地和空气都随之震颤。那吼声从他们脚下的小山上发出，很快向四面八方传去，震撼了整个纳尼亚。弥若兹的军队被惊醒了，士兵们一个个面无血色，茫然不知所措，老半天才想起去抓自己的武器；大河的下游，在这清晨最寒冷的时刻，树神扬起了头，水神也从河里探起身来。更远的地方，在每一块田野上，每一片树林里，窝里的兔子竖起了耳朵，熟睡的小鸟儿也把脑袋从翅膀下面伸了出来；各种动物的叫声汇成一支奇妙的交响乐。在城镇，在乡村，母亲们把孩子更紧地抱在怀里，睁大了眼睛聆听着。男人们则跳下床来，伸手去抓猎枪。连院子里的狗也忍不住汪汪叫个不停。在北部边陲的山上，巨人们揉着惺忪的睡眼，走出黑黑的山洞，想看看究竟发生了什么事。

露茜和苏珊看到大片黑乎乎的什么东西从四面八方向她们拥来。猛一看像是掠过地面的黑影，再看又像风暴中的黑色海浪，一浪压过一浪，滚滚而来，势不可挡。眨眼再去看时，又好像整片的树林在朝她们移动，似乎全世界的树都朝阿斯兰拥来。可是当它们来到跟前，树形居然渐渐消失，那些摆臂欢腾的，竟都是些人!秀美白皙的白桦姑娘高高扬起了头；杨柳姑娘们把长发束在脑后，以便更清楚地看到阿斯兰；有着皇后般尊严的山毛榉姑娘亭亭玉立，向阿斯兰行注目礼；须发丛生的栎树老人也用它们的最高礼节，俯首以示敬意。所有树神都高声呼唤着“阿斯兰!阿斯兰!”喊声此起彼伏，像大海的波涛，久久不息。-

聚集在阿斯兰身边的人越来越多，欢乐的舞蹈也更加热烈，这使露茜感到有点儿不可理解。她从未经历过如此激动人心的场面。一个年轻人，身穿树皮，鬈发之上戴着一只树叶编织的草环，要不是脸上充满了野性，就会漂亮得简直不像个男孩了。你从这张脸上可以看出，正如爱德蒙几天后见到他时说的那样：“这个人什么事都干得出来。”他身边有许多女孩子，和他一样充满了野性的活力。每个人都在欢呼，在雀跃。最出人意料也最引人注目的是位极其肥胖的矮个子老人。他骑着一头毛驴。那毛驴确信这是大显身手的最好时机，决定给大家表演后腿行走。结果胖老人一次又一次给摔下来，马上又被身边快乐的人们扶上去。老人高兴地在驴背上扭摆着，嘴里不停地喊：“来点儿喝的!来点儿点心!”不知谁送来许多好吃的东西，大家也顾不得礼仪，下手就抓。一边吃，一边跳，一边嬉笑，一边高声喊叫着：“呜依——呜，呜依……依……依呜!”

突然，大家同时意识到狂欢和宴会该结束了。于是纷纷坐到草地上，仰望着阿斯兰，听它将要说些什么。

这时太阳刚刚升起。露茜忽然眼睛一亮，悄悄地对苏珊说：

“听我说，苏，我知道他们是什么人了。”

“谁?”

“一脸野性的那个青年人是巴库斯，骑毛驴的老人就是塞利努斯。你记不记得，图姆纳斯先生很久以前给我们讲过他们的故事。”

“当然记得。可是，露——”

“什么?”

“要不是有阿斯兰在，我会觉得和巴库斯以及他的那些野性姑娘们在一起是不安全的。”

“我并不这么想。”露茜回答道。