Ⅲ 冰雨的风暴 Chapter13 艾莉亚

ARYA

听见歌声时，她正在死人的花园里挖菜。

She was grubbing for vegetables in a dead man’s garden when she heard the singing.

艾莉亚立时停止，不动如石，突然忘了手中那三根小萝卜。血戏班还是卢斯·波顿的人？她恐惧得发抖。这不公平，就在我们终于找到三叉戟河，就在我们认为自己差不多安全了的时候，这不公平。

Arya stiffened, still as stone, listening, the three stringy carrots in her hand suddenly forgotten. She thought of the Bloody Mummers and Roose Bolton’s men, and a shiver of fear went down her back. It’s not fair, not when we finally found the Trident, not when we thought we were almost safe.

只是……血戏子为什么要唱歌？

Only why would the Mummers be singing?

歌声从东边一个矮坡后传来，在河面飘荡。“去海鸥镇看美少女哟，嗨哟，嗨哟……”

The song came drifting up the river from somewhere beyond the little rise to the east. “Off to Gulltown to see the fair maid, heigh-ho, heigh-ho …”

艾莉亚站起身，胡萝卜在手中摇晃。唱歌的人似乎正沿河边小路走来。从表情看得出，拔白菜的热派也听见了。当然，詹德利在烧毁农舍的阴影里睡觉，毫无反应。

Arya rose, carrots dangling from her hand. It sounded like the singer was coming up the river road. Over among the cabbages, Hot Pie had heard it too, to judge by the look on his face. Gendry had gone to sleep in the shade of the burned cottage, and was past hearing anything.

“用利剑偷取甜甜一吻哟，嗨哟，嗨哟……”河流轻柔的水声中，夹着木竖琴的弹奏。

“I’ll steal a sweet kiss with the point of my blade, heigh-ho, heigh-ho.” She thought she heard a woodharp too, beneath the soft rush of the river.

“你听见没？”热派抱着一堆白菜，嘶哑地低声询问，“有人过来了。”

“Do you hear?” Hot Pie asked in a hoarse whisper, as he hugged an armful of cabbages. “Someone’s coming.”

“把詹德利叫醒，”艾莉亚吩咐他，“摇摇肩膀就好，不要大张旗鼓，弄出声响。”詹德利容易唤醒，不像热派，非得又踢又吼。

“Go wake Gendry,” Arya told him. “Just shake him by the shoulder, don’t make a lot of noise.” Gendry was easy to wake, unlike Hot Pie, who needed to be kicked and shouted at.

“我拿她做情人，一起睡在树荫底哟，嗨哟，嗨哟……”歌声越来越嘹亮。

“I’ll make her my love and we’ll rest in the shade, heigh-ho, heigh-ho.” The song swelled louder with every word.

热派不由得手一松，白菜“噌”一声轻响，落在地上。“我们得躲起来。”

Hot Pie opened his arms. The cabbages fell to the ground with soft thumps. “We have to hide.”

躲到哪里去呢？烧毁殆尽的农舍和野草疯长的花园醒目地矗立在三叉戟河边，河畔还有几棵柳树，以及芦苇丛生的烂泥浅滩，除此之外，全是讨厌的开阔地。我就知道我们不该离开树林，她心想。但他们好饿，从赫伦堡偷出来的面包与奶酪六天前就在森林里吃光了，因此花园的诱惑实在太大。“把詹德利和马带到农舍背后，”她下定决心。那堵墙还没完全垮塌，说不定能藏住两个男孩和三匹马——假如马儿不叫，歌手也不往这边走的话。

Where? The burned cottage and its overgrown garden stood hard beside the banks of the Trident. There were a few willows growing along the river’s edge and reed beds in the muddy shallows beyond, but most of the ground hereabouts was painfully open. I knew we should never have left the woods, she thought. They’d been so hungry, though, and the garden had been too much a temptation. The bread and cheese they had stolen from Harrenhal had given out six days ago, back in the thick of the woods. “Take Gendry and the horses behind the cottage,” she decided. There was part of one wall still standing, big enough, maybe, to conceal two boys and three horses. If the horses don’t whinny, and that singer doesn’t come poking around the garden.

“你呢？”

“What about you?”

“我躲树下面好了。他可能就一个人，敢来惹我的话，我杀了他。快走！”

“I’ll hide by the tree. He’s probably alone. If he bothers me, I’ll kill him. Go!”

热派听话离开，艾莉亚扔下胡萝卜，从背后拔出偷来的剑。她把剑鞘绑在背上，因为它是给成年男子打的，与她尺寸不合，佩在腰间的话，会撞到地面。它实在太重了，每次拿起这笨家伙，她便会想念“缝衣针”。好歹它可以杀人，这就够了。

Hot Pie went, and Arya dropped her carrots and drew the stolen sword from over her shoulder. She had strapped the sheath across her back; the longsword was made for a man grown, and it bumped against the ground when she wore it on her hip. It’s too heavy besides, she thought, missing Needle the way she did every time she took this clumsy thing in her hand. But it was a sword and she could kill with it, that was enough.

她蹑手蹑脚地走到那棵长在小路拐弯处的老柳树边，单膝跪在青草和泥土中，以摇曳的柳枝作为掩护。远古诸神啊，她祈祷，歌手则继续逼近，树的神，请保护我，隐藏我，让他过去，让他过去……一匹马嘶叫起来，歌声嘎然而止。他听见了，她对此不抱幻想，但或许就一个人，就算不是，说不定他们怕我们就跟我们怕他们一样呢。

Lightfoot, she moved to the big old willow that grew beside the bend in the road and went to one knee in the grass and mud, within the veil of trailing branches. You old gods, she prayed as the singer’s voice grew louder, you tree gods, hide me, and make him go past. Then a horse whickered, and the song broke off suddenly. He’s heard, she knew, but maybe he’s alone, or if he’s not, maybe they’ll be as scared of us as we are of them.

“听见了吗？”一个男人说，“我敢打赌，那堵墙后面有东西。”

“Did you hear that?” a man’s voice said. “There’s something behind that wall, I would say.”

“没错，”另一个更深沉的声音回答，“射手，你认为那里有什么？”

“Aye,” replied a second voice, deeper. “What do you think it might be, Archer?”

原来是两个人，艾莉亚咬紧嘴唇。由于柳树的关系，她看不见对方，只能听见声音。

Two, then. Arya bit her lip. She could not see them from where she knelt, on account of the willow. But she could hear.

“一头熊吧。”第三个声音参加进来，或者这就是第一个人？

“A bear.” A third voice, or the first one again?

“熊身上肉多，”那个深沉的声音说，“特别在秋天，会有许多脂肪，烤的话很好吃。”

“A lot of meat on a bear,” the deep voice said. “A lot of fat as well, in fall. Good to eat, if it’s cooked up right.”

“也可能是狼或狮子呢。”

“Could be a wolf. Maybe a lion.”

“你指四条腿的？两条腿的？”

“With four feet, you think? Or two?”

“四条腿跟两条腿的都是一丘之貉，不是吗？”

“Makes no matter. Does it?”

“那可不一样，四条腿的才能吃。射手，该你上场喽。”

“Not so I know. Archer, what do you mean to do with all them arrows?”

“没问题，射几箭到墙后面，管他啥东西都会跑出来，等着瞧吧。”

“Drop a few shafts over the wall. Whatever’s hiding back there will come out quick enough, watch and see.”

“如果后面是个正派人呢？如果后面是个怀抱婴儿的可怜女子呢？”

“What if it’s some honest man back there, though? Or some poor woman with a little babe at her breast?”

“正派人应该出来跟我们见面，只有歹徒才会偷偷摸摸地藏起来。”

“An honest man would come out and show us his face. Only an outlaw would skulk and hide.”

“对，正是如此。那就去吧，射手，放箭。”

“Aye, that’s so. Go on and loose your shafts, then.”

听罢此言，艾莉亚跳将起来。“站住！”她亮出长剑。原来是三个人，她看清楚了，只有三个人。西利欧一人对付三个绰绰有余，而她还有热派和詹德利做伴呢。可惜他们是男孩，对方却是成年人。

Arya sprang to her feet. “Don’t!” She showed them her sword. There were three, she saw. Only three. Syrio could fight more than three, and she had Hot Pie and Gendry to stand with her, maybe. But they’re boys, and these are men.

三人皆为徒步，身上泥斑点点，风尘仆仆。她认出那个唱歌的，因为他抱着一把木竖琴，好像母亲抱着孩子。他个子小，年纪约莫五十岁，嘴巴大，鼻子尖，棕色的头发十分稀疏，褪色的绿衣服上到处用旧皮革打着补丁。他腰间别了一圈飞刀，背后悬一把伐木工的斧头。

They were men afoot, travel-stained and mud-specked. She knew the singer by the woodharp he cradled against his jerkin, as a mother might cradle a babe. A small man, fifty from the look of him, he had a big mouth, a sharp nose, and thinning brown hair. His faded greens were mended here and there with old leather patches, and he wore a brace of throwing knives on his hip and a woodman’s axe slung across his back.

站他旁边的人比他高出一尺，外貌像个兵。镶钉皮革剑带上挂一把长剑和一把匕首，衬衫缝了排排交叠的铁环，头戴一顶锥形黑铁半盔。他牙齿很黄，还有一把浓密的黄褐胡须，最引人注目的是那身带兜帽的亮黄斗篷。它又厚又沉，沾了青草和鲜血，下沿已被磨损，右肩用鹿皮打个补丁。这顶大斗篷穿在大个子身上，使他看上去象只黄色巨鸟。

The man beside him stood a good foot taller, and had the look of a soldier. A longsword and dirk hung from his studded leather belt, rows of overlapping steel rings were sewn onto his shirt, and his head was covered by a black iron halfhelm shaped like a cone. He had bad teeth and a bushy brown beard, but it was his hooded yellow cloak that drew the eye. Thick and heavy, stained here with grass and there with blood, frayed along the bottom and patched with deerskin on the right shoulder, the greatcloak gave the big man the look of some huge yellow bird.

三人中最后一位是个青年，和他手上的长弓一样纤瘦，但个头没长弓那么高。红头发，雀斑脸，穿镶钉战甲、高筒皮靴和无指皮手套，背一个箭囊。他用的箭装着灰色鹅毛，其中六支如一道小栅栏插在他面前的地上。

The last of the three was a youth as skinny as his longbow, if not quite as tall. Red-haired and freckled, he wore a studded brigantine, high boots, fingerless leather gloves, and a quiver on his back. His arrows were fletched with grey goose feathers, and six of them stood in the ground before him, like a little fence.

三个男人瞪着她手执长剑，站在小道中央。歌手懒洋洋地拨一下琴弦。“小子，”他说，“快把剑放下，这不是孩子家的玩具。再说，你冲过来之前，安盖能射穿你三次。”

The three men looked at her, standing there in the road with her blade in hand. Then the singer idly plucked a string. “Boy,” he said, “put up that sword now, unless you’re wanting to be hurt. It’s too big for you, lad, and besides, Anguy here could put three shafts through you before you could hope to reach us.”

“才怪！”艾莉亚道，“而且我是女生。”

“He could not,” Arya said, “and I’m a girl.”

“是嘛？”歌手鞠了一躬，“请原谅。”

“So you are.” The singer bowed. “My pardons.”

“你们沿着小路继续走，往前面走，你继续唱歌，好让我知道你已经走了。走开，别来惹我们，我就不杀你。”

“You go on down the road. Just walk right past here, and you keep on singing, so we’ll know where you are. Go away and leave us be and I won’t kill you.”

雀斑脸的弓箭手哈哈大笑，“柠檬，她说不杀我们，听到了吗？”

The freckle-faced archer laughed. “Lem, she won’t kill us, did you hear?”

“听到了，”柠檬道，他就是那声音低沉的大个子士兵。

“I heard,” said Lem, the big soldier with the deep voice.

“孩子，”歌手说，“把剑放下，我们带你去安全的地方，还给你吃东西。这一带不仅有狼，有狮子，还有更可怕的东西哟，小女孩可不应该独自游荡。”

“Child,” said the singer, “put up that sword, and we’ll take you to a safe place and get some food in that belly. There are wolves in these parts, and lions, and worse things. No place for a little girl to be wandering alone.”

“她并非独自一人。”詹德利骑马冲出农舍墙壁，热派跟在后面，牵了她的马。詹德利身着链甲衫，长剑在手，雄赳赳气昂昂，看上去几乎就是个成年壮汉。热派看上去还是热派。“照她说的做，别来惹我们，”詹德利警告。

“She’s not alone.” Gendry rode out from behind the cottage wall, and behind him Hot Pie, leading her horse. In his chainmail shirt with a sword in his hand, Gendry looked almost a man grown, and dangerous. Hot Pie looked like Hot Pie. “Do like she says, and leave us be,” warned Gendry.

“两个，三个，”歌手数道，“所有人都在这儿？你们还有马，好可爱的马，从哪儿偷的呀？”

“Two and three,” the singer counted, “and is that all of you? And horses too, lovely horses. Where did you steal them?”

“这是我们的马。”艾莉亚审视着他们。歌手用谈话来分她的心，但最危险的是弓箭手。若他敢从地上拔箭……

“They’re ours.” Arya watched them carefully. The singer kept distracting her with his talk, but it was the archer who was the danger. If he should pull an arrow from the ground …

“你俩是不是正派人，愿不愿把名字告诉我们呢？”歌手问两个男孩。

“Will you give us your names like honest men?” the singer asked the boys.

“我叫热派，”热派立即回答。

“I’m Hot Pie,” Hot Pie said at once.

“取得好哇，”对方微笑，“我不是每天都能碰上这么好名字的孩子。你那两位朋友叫什么，羊排和乳鸽？”

“Aye, and good for you.” The man smiled. “It’s not every day I meet a lad with such a tasty name. And what would your friends be called, Mutton Chop and Squab?”

詹德利坐在马上，皱起眉头。“我凭什么把名字告诉你？你自己也没报上姓名。”

Gendry scowled down from his saddle. “Why should I tell you my name? I haven’t heard yours.”

“是么？那好，我乃七泉地方的汤姆，人称七弦汤姆和七神汤姆。这大个子痴汉，黄板牙的，叫柠檬，柠檬斗篷的简称。你知道，柠檬是黄的，味道也很酸，和他的脾气差不多。那边的年轻小伙儿是安盖，我们叫他射手。”

“Well, as to that, I’m Tom of Sevenstreams, but Tom Sevenstrings is what they call me, or Tom o’ Sevens. This great lout with the brown teeth is Lem, short for Lemoncloak. It’s yellow, you see, and Lem’s a sour sort. And young fellow me lad over there is Anguy, or Archer as we like to call him.”

“你到底是谁？”柠檬用艾莉亚刚才听过的低沉嗓音问。

“Now who are you?” demanded Lem, in the deep voice that Arya had heard through the branches of the willow.

她可不会轻易透露真名。“愿意的话，叫乳鸽也行，”她说，“我无所谓。”

She was not about to give up her true name as easy as that. “Squab, if you want,” she said. “I don’t care.”

大个子咧嘴一笑。“拿剑的乳鸽，”他道，“希奇，真希奇。”

The big man laughed. “A squab with a sword,” he said. “Now there’s something you don’t often see.”

“我叫大牛，”詹德利边说边挡到艾莉亚前面。大牛至少比羊排好听。

“I’m the Bull,” said Gendry, taking his lead from Arya. She could not blame him for preferring Bull to Mutton Chop.

七弦汤姆拨出一个愉快的音符，“热派、乳鸽和大牛，你们是从波顿大人的厨房里逃跑的吗？”

Tom Sevenstrings strummed his harp. “Hot Pie, Squab, and the Bull. Escaped from Lord Bolton’s kitchen, did you?”

“你怎知道？”艾莉亚有些不知所措。

“How did you know?” Arya demanded, uneasy.

“小家伙，你分明戴着他的纹章。”

“You bear his sigil on your chest, little one.”

她居然忘了，她在羊毛斗篷下仍旧穿着侍酒的制服，胸口缝有恐怖堡的剥皮人。“我不是小家伙！”

She had forgotten that for an instant. Beneath her cloak, she still wore her fine page’s doublet, with the flayed man of the Dreadfort sewn on her breast. “Don’t call me little one!”

“不对吗？”柠檬说，“你就是个臭屁小孩。”

“Why not?” said Lem. “You’re little enough.”

“我比以前长大了。而且我不是孩子。”孩子不会杀人，可我会。

“I’m bigger than I was. I’m not a child.” Children didn’t kill people, and she had.

“我懂了，乳鸽，你不是寻常小孩，而是波顿家的崽。”

“I can see that, Squab. You’re none of you children, not if you were Bolton’s.”

“根本不对。”热派根本不知道闭嘴。“事实上，他到赫伦堡之前我们就在那儿了。”

“We never were.” Hot Pie never knew when to keep quiet. “We were at Harrenhal before he came, that’s all.”

“这么说，你们是小狮子，对吧？”汤姆道。

“So you’re lion cubs, is that the way of it?” said Tom.

“也不对，我们就是我们自己，不是谁的人。你们呢？”

“Not that either. We’re nobody’s men. Whose men are you?”

射手安盖说：“我们是国王的人。”

Anguy the Archer said, “We’re king’s men.”

艾莉亚皱起眉头，“哪个国王？”

Arya frowned. “Which king?”

“劳勃国王，”黄斗篷的柠檬道。

“King Robert,” said Lem, in his yellow cloak.

“那老酒鬼？”詹德利轻蔑地说，“他被野猪杀了，大家都知道。”

“That old drunk?” said Gendry scornfully. “He’s dead, some boar killed him, everyone knows that.”

“是啊，孩子，”七弦汤姆道，“真令人遗憾。”他弹出一个哀伤的音符。

“Aye, lad,” said Tom Sevenstrings, “and more’s the pity.” He plucked a sad chord from his harp.

艾莉亚不相信对方是国王的人。瞧他们穿得破破烂烂，活象一群土匪，甚至连马都没有。国王的人应该有马才对。

Arya didn’t think they were king’s men at all. They looked more like outlaws, all tattered and ragged. They didn’t even have horses to ride. King’s men would have had horses.

热派听了却很激动。“我们要去奔流城咧，”他说，“骑马得走多少天，你们知道吗？”

But Hot Pie piped up eagerly. “We’re looking for Riverrun,” he said. “How many days’ ride is it, do you know?”

艾莉亚差点想杀了他，“安静！否则我拿石头塞你的苯嘴巴。”

Arya could have killed him. “You be quiet, or I’ll stuff rocks in your big stupid mouth.”

“奔流城在上游，很远，”汤姆道，“远得会饿穿你们的肚皮。出发以前，想不想吃顿热腾腾的饭菜呢？前面不远处有家客栈，是我朋友开的。我说，咱们还是化干戈为玉帛，敬几杯酒，吃几块面包吧。”

“Riverrun is a long way upstream,” said Tom. “A long hungry way. Might be you’d like a hot meal before you set out? There’s an inn not far ahead kept by some friends of ours. We could share some ale and a bite of bread, instead of fighting one another.”

“一家客栈？”想到热腾腾的饭菜，艾莉亚的肚子打起咕噜来，但她不信任汤姆。并非说话和气的就是朋友。“前面不远处？”

“An inn?” The thought of hot food made Arya’s belly rumble, but she didn’t trust this Tom. Not everyone who spoke you friendly was really your friend. “It’s near, you say?”

“往上游走两里地，”汤姆说，“顶多一里格。”

“Two miles upstream,” said Tom. “A league at most.”

詹德利看上去跟她一样怀疑。“你说的‘朋友’是什么意思？”他谨慎地问。

Gendry looked as uncertain as she felt. “What do you mean, friends?” he asked warily.

“朋友就是朋友。没听过这个词吗？”柠檬道。

“Friends. Have you forgotten what friends are?”

“店家叫沙玛，”汤姆插嘴，“舌尖眼厉，但我向你保证，她心肠好，而且最喜欢小女孩。”

“Sharna is the innkeep’s name,” Tom put in. “She has a sharp tongue and a fierce eye, I’ll grant you that, but her heart’s a good one, and she’s fond of little girls.”

“我不是小女孩，”她气愤地说，“那儿还有谁？不止一个人吧？”

“I’m not a little girl,” she said angrily. “Who else is there? You said friends.”

“还有沙玛的丈夫，以及一个被收养的孤儿。他们不会伤害你。到时候有麦酒——如果你能喝——有面包，也许还有一点肉。”汤姆瞥瞥农舍，“外加你从老佩特的花园里偷的菜。”

“Sharna’s husband, and an orphan boy they took in. They won’t harm you. There’s ale, if you think you’re old enough. Fresh bread and maybe a bit of meat.” Tom glanced toward the cottage. “And whatever you stole from Old Pate’s garden besides.”

“我才不偷东西，”艾莉亚说。

“We never stole,” said Arya.

“那你是老佩特的女儿喽？他妹妹？他老婆？得了，乳鸽，老佩特是我亲手埋的，就埋在你躲的那棵柳树下，你跟他长得可不像。”他又拨出一个忧伤的音符。“过去这一年来，我们埋了许多好人，但并不想埋你，我以这把竖琴的名义发誓。射手，露一手。”

“Are you Old Pate’s daughter, then? A sister? A wife? Tell me no lies, Squab. I buried Old Pate myself, right there under that willow where you were hiding, and you don’t have his look.” He drew a sad sound from his harp. “We’ve buried many a good man this past year, but we’ve no wish to bury you, I swear it on my harp. Archer, show her.”

射手的动作比艾莉亚想象的快得多。飞箭从她脑袋边呼啸而过，离耳朵只有一寸，插进柳树树干。她还没回过神来，对方已搭上第二支，引弓待发。她本以为自己能做到西利欧口中的“迅如蛇”和“柔如丝”，现在才明白实在差得远。箭只在身后如蜜蜂一样“嗡嗡”作响，抖动不休。“你没射中，”她说。

The archer’s hand moved quicker than Arya would have believed. His shaft went hissing past her head within an inch of her ear and buried itself in the trunk of the willow behind her. By then the bowman had a second arrow notched and drawn. She’d thought she understood what Syrio meant by quick as a snake and smooth as summer silk, but now she knew she hadn’t. The arrow thrummed behind her like a bee. “You missed,” she said.

“你这样想就更蠢了，”安盖道，“我指哪儿射哪儿。”

“More fool you if you think so,” said Anguy. “They go where I send them.”

“说的好，”柠檬斗篷赞同。

“That they do,” agreed Lem Lemoncloak.

射手离她足有十几步远。我们没机会，艾莉亚心想，要是我有他那把弓，并像他一样会用箭就好了。她怏怏地放低沉重的长剑，剑尖触到地面。“去瞧瞧这家客栈也罢，”她勉强让步，企图用言语隐藏心中的疑虑，“但你们得走前面，我们骑马跟在后，好看着你们。”

There were a dozen steps between the archer and the point of her sword. We have no chance, Arya realized, wishing she had a bow like his, and the skill to use it. Glumly, she lowered her heavy longsword till the point touched the ground. “We’ll come see this inn,” she conceded, trying to hide the doubt in her heart behind bold words. “You walk in front and we’ll ride behind, so we can see what you’re doing.”

七弦汤姆深深一鞠躬，“前面，后面，都没关系。来吧，孩子们，让我们带路。安盖，把箭拔起来，在这儿派不上用场了。”

Tom Sevenstrings bowed deeply and said, “Before, behind, it makes no matter. Come along, lads, let’s show them the way. Anguy, best pull up those arrows, we won’t be needing them here.”

艾莉亚收剑入鞘，走到小路对面去见朋友们。他们继续跟三个陌生人保持距离。“热派，把白菜拿上，”她边说边翻身上马，“还有我的胡萝卜。”

Arya sheathed her sword and crossed the road to where her friends sat on their horses, keeping her distance from the three strangers. “Hot Pie, get those cabbages,” she said as she vaulted into her saddle. “And the carrots too.”

这回他没争辩。出发之后，两个男孩照她吩咐的那样缓缓骑马，离三个步行者十余步，沿着印满车辙的路往前走。但过不多久，他们又不知不觉地赶了上去。七弦汤姆走得很慢，边行边弹木竖琴。“你们会唱什么歌？”他问，“和我一起来，好么？柠檬根本不入调，而这长弓小子只会他们边疆地的民谣，一首得有一百句那么长。”

For once he did not argue. They set off as she had wanted, walking their horses slowly down the rutted road a dozen paces behind the three on foot. But before very long, somehow they were riding right on top of them. Tom Sevenstrings walked slowly, and liked to strum his woodharp as he went. “Do you know any songs?” he asked them. “I’d dearly love someone to sing with, that I would. Lem can’t carry a tune, and our longbow lad only knows marcher ballads, every one of them a hundred verses long.”

“咱边疆地的歌才是真正的歌咧，”安盖温和地表示。

“We sing real songs in the marches,” Anguy said mildly.

“笨蛋才唱歌，”艾莉亚道，“唱歌是制造噪声。瞧，我们很远就听到了，可以来杀你们。”

“Singing is stupid,” said Arya. “Singing makes noise. We heard you a long way off. We could have killed you.”

汤姆的微笑表明他不以为然，“好汉子宁愿哼着歌奔赴黄泉。”

Tom’s smile said he did not think so. “There are worse things than dying with a song on your lips.”

“狼或狮子都逃不过我们的眼光，”柠檬大咧咧地说，“因为这是我们的森林。”

“If there were wolves hereabouts, we’d know it,” groused Lem. “Or lions. These are our woods.”

“但你们就没发现我们，”詹德利道。

“You never knew we were there,” said Gendry.

“噢，孩子，别那么肯定，”汤姆说，“有的人说的少，做得多。”

“Now, lad, you shouldn’t be so certain of that,” said Tom. “Sometimes a man knows more than he says.”

热派在马鞍上挪了一下。“我知道一首关于熊的歌，”他说，“会一点点。”

Hot Pie shifted his seat. “I know the song about the bear,” he said. “Some of it, anyhow.”

汤姆的手指滑过琴弦，“那我们一起来吧，热派小子。”他昂头唱道，“这只狗熊，狗熊，狗熊！全身黑棕，罩着毛绒……”

Tom ran his fingers down his strings. “Then let’s hear it, pie boy.” He threw back his head and sang, “A bear there was, a bear, a bear! All black and brown, and covered with hair …”

热派神气活现地加入，甚至在马鞍上依着节奏轻轻摇晃。艾莉亚吃惊地瞪着他：他竟有副好嗓子，唱得也好。除了烤面包，她本以为他做不好任何事。

Hot Pie joined in lustily, even bouncing in his saddle a little on the rhymes. Arya stared at him in astonishment. He had a good voice and he sang well. He never did anything well, except bake, she thought to herself.

走不多远，有条小溪注入三叉戟河，当他们涉水穿越时，歌声惊起芦苇丛中一只鸭子。安盖原地站定，弯弓搭箭，将它射了下来。鸟儿落在岸边的浅滩。柠檬脱下黄斗篷，淌入及膝深的水中去取，边走边抱怨。“沙玛的地窖里会不会有真柠檬？”安盖问汤姆，他们看柠檬溅起层层水花，粗口诅咒。“多恩的女孩曾用柠檬给我煮鸭子咧，”射手渴望地说。

A small brook flowed into the Trident a little farther on. As they waded across, their singing flushed a duck from among the reeds. Anguy stopped where he stood, unslung his bow, notched an arrow, and brought it down. The bird fell in the shallows not far from the bank. Lem took off his yellow cloak and waded in knee-deep to retrieve it, complaining all the while. “Do you think Sharna might have lemons down in that cellar of hers?” said Anguy to Tom as they watched Lem splash around, cursing. “A Dornish girl once cooked me duck with lemons.” He sounded wistful.

过了小溪，汤姆和热派继续唱歌，鸭子则被柠檬挂在皮带。唱着唱着，似乎路途也变得不那么遥远，客栈很快出现在眼前。它耸立在三叉戟河的拐弯处，河流由此转向南方。艾莉亚怀疑地斜睨它。这不像歹徒的巢穴，她不得不承认，上层刷成白色，石板房顶，烟囱里轻烟袅袅升起。一切都很正常，甚至有几分亲切。马厩和其他建筑环绕在周围，后面有座凉亭，还有些苹果树和一个小花园。这家客栈甚至带着伸向河中的码头，以及……

Tom and Hot Pie resumed their song on the other side of the brook, with the duck hanging from Lem’s belt beneath his yellow cloak. Somehow the singing made the miles seem shorter. It was not very long at all until the inn appeared before them, rising from the riverbank where the Trident made a great bend to the north. Arya squinted at it suspiciously as they neared. It did not look like an outlaws’ lair, she had to admit; it looked friendly, even homey, with its whitewashed upper story and slate roof and the smoke curling up lazy from its chimney. Stables and other outbuildings surrounded it, and there was an arbor in back, and apple trees, a small garden. The inn even had its own dock, thrusting out into the river, and …

“詹德利，”她急切地低唤，“他们有船耶。剩下的路我们坐船，肯定比骑马快。”

“Gendry,” she called, her voice low and urgent. “They have a boat. We could sail the rest of the way up to Riverrun. It would be faster than riding, I think.”

他似乎很怀疑，“你驾过船吗？”

He looked dubious. “Did you ever sail a boat?”

“升起帆，”她说，“风就会带你走了。”

“You put up the sail,” she said, “and the wind pushes it.”

“假如风向不对呢？”

“What if the wind is blowing the wrong way?”

“还有桨呀。”

“Then there’s oars to row.”

“逆着水划？”詹德利皱起眉头，“那岂不很慢？如果船翻了，掉进水里怎么办？再说了，那不是我们的船，是这家客栈的船。”

“Against the current?” Gendry frowned. “Wouldn’t that be slow? And what if the boat tips over and we fall into the water? It’s not our boat anyway, it’s the inn’s.”

我们可以取走它，艾莉亚心想，但她咬紧嘴唇，什么也没说。他们在马厩前下马，虽然看不见别的牲畜，可是畜栏里有新鲜粪便。“得留一个人看马，”她警惕地说。

We could take it. Arya chewed her lip and said nothing. They dismounted in front of stables. There were no other horses to be seen, but Arya noticed fresh manure in many of the stalls. “One of us should watch the horses,” she said, wary.

这话被汤姆听到了，“没必要吧，乳鸽，快进来吃东西，它们没事的。”

Tom overheard her. “There’s no need for that, Squab. Come eat, they’ll be safe enough.”

“我留下，”詹德利道，毫不理会歌手。“你们吃完再来替我。”

“I’ll stay,” Gendry said, ignoring the singer. “You can come get me after you’ve had some food.”

艾莉亚点点头，转身去追热派和柠檬。长剑仍插在背上的剑鞘里，而她一只手始终没有离开从卢斯·波顿那儿偷来的匕首，以防万一。

Nodding, Arya set off after Hot Pie and Lem. Her sword was still in its sheath across her back, and she kept a hand close to the hilt of the dagger she had stolen from Roose Bolton, in case she didn’t like whatever they found within.

门边铁柱上挂着一张招牌，画了某位下跪的老国王。进去是大堂，一个又高又丑、下巴多瘤的女人叉腰站着，朝她怒目而视，“别站在那儿，小子，”她扯起嗓门喊，“你好象是女的？管你是什么，反正别堵我的门。要么进来，要么出去。柠檬，地板的事老娘跟你说过几百遍了？你浑身是泥！”

The painted sign above the door showed a picture of some old king on his knees. Inside was the common room, where a very tall ugly woman with a knobby chin stood with her hands on her hips, glaring. “Don’t just stand there, boy,” she snapped. “Or are you a girl? Either one, you’re blocking my door. Get in or get out. Lem, what did I tell you about my floor? You’re all mud.”

“我们打下一只鸭子。”柠檬像举白旗般把它举起来。

“We shot a duck.” Lem held it out like a peace banner.

女人一把抓过，“安盖射下一只鸭子。快把靴子脱掉，你聋了还是傻了？”她转身叫道，“老公！上来，臭小子们回来了。老公！”

The woman snatched it from his hand. “Anguy shot a duck, is what you’re meaning. Get your boots off, are you deaf or just stupid?” She turned away. “Husband!” she called loudly. “Get up here, the lads are back. Husband!”

从地窖里咕哝着走上来一个男人，身穿沾有污渍的围裙。他比那女人矮一头，脸胖胖的，松垮的黄皮肤上看得到疱疹的痕迹。“来了来了，老婆，别叫唤。到底什么事啊？”

Up the cellar steps came a man in a stained apron, grumbling. He was a head shorter than the woman, with a lumpy face and loose yellowish skin that still showed the marks of some pox. “I’m here, woman, quit your bellowing. What is it now?”

“把它挂起来，”她边说边把鸭子塞给他。

“Hang this,” she said, handing him the duck.

安盖蹭蹭脚。“我们以为能吃它咧，沙玛，如果你有柠檬的话，可以煮着吃。”

Anguy shuffled his feet. “We were thinking we might eat it, Sharna. With lemons. If you had some.”

“柠檬？我上哪儿去弄柠檬？你把这里当多恩吗，长雀斑的傻瓜？你为什么不跳上柠檬树为我们摘一箩筐，外加可口的橄榄和石榴呢？”她朝他晃晃手指。“老娘没有柠檬，你实在想吃的话，可以把鸭子跟柠檬的斗篷一起煮，但得先挂上几天。这顿要么吃兔子，要么就别吃。饿的话，叉上就烤；不急呢，就用麦酒和洋葱炖。”

“Lemons. And where would we get lemons? Does this look like Dorne to you, you freckled fool? Why don’t you hop out back to the lemon trees and pick us a bushel, and some nice olives and pomegranates too.” She shook a finger at him. “Now, I suppose I could cook it with Lem’s cloak, if you like, but not till it’s hung for a few days. You’ll eat rabbit, or you won’t eat. Roast rabbit on a spit would be quickest, if you’ve got a hunger. Or might be you’d like it stewed, with ale and onions.”

听她这么说，艾莉亚流下口水。“我们没钱，但带了些萝卜和白菜，可以跟你换。”

Arya could almost taste the rabbit. “We have no coin, but we brought some carrots and cabbages we could trade you.”

“是吗？它们在哪儿？”

“Did you now? And where would they be?”

“热派，把白菜给她，”艾莉亚道。他照办了，尽管行动小心翼翼，仿佛当她是罗尔杰、尖牙或者瓦格·赫特。

“Hot Pie, give her the cabbages,” Arya said, and he did, though he approached the old woman as gingerly as if she were Rorge or Biter or Vargo Hoat.

那女人仔细看了看蔬菜，又仔细打量男孩。“热派在哪儿？”

The woman gave the vegetables a close inspection, and the boy a closer one. “Where is this hot pie?”

“在这儿。我，我就叫热派。她是……呃……乳鸽。”

“Here. Me. It’s my name. And she’s … ah … Squab.”

“老娘屋檐下你们得换个名儿，菜和人可不能混在一起。老公！”

“Not under my roof. I give my diners and my dishes different names, so as to tell them apart. Husband!”

丈夫刚想溜出去，被她一叫，赶紧回来。“鸭子挂好了，还有什么事，老婆？”

Husband had stepped outside, but at her shout he hurried back. “The duck’s hung. What is it now, woman?”

“洗菜！”她命令，“我去弄饭，你们都给我坐着别动，让我家小子来张罗喝的。”她顺着长鼻子看看艾莉亚和热派。“我不给孩子提供麦酒，但果酒喝光了，又没奶牛可以挤奶，河水尝起来都是战争的味道。顺流飘下那么多死人，我给你一杯满是死苍蝇的汤，你会喝吗？”

“Wash these vegetables,” she commanded. “The rest of you, sit down while I start the rabbits. The boy will bring you drink.” She looked down her long nose at Arya and Hot Pie. “I am not in the habit of serving ale to children, but the cider’s run out, there’s no cows for milk, and the river water tastes of war, with all the dead men drifting downstream. If I served you a cup of soup full of dead flies, would you drink it?”

“阿利会，”热派道，“我是说，乳鸽会。”

“Arry would,” said Hot Pie. “I mean, Squab.”

“柠檬也会，”安盖不怀好意地笑笑。

“So would Lem,” offered Anguy with a sly smile.

“你少管柠檬，”沙玛道，“大家都喝麦酒。”她急惊风一样地扫向厨房。

“Never you mind about Lem,” Sharna said. “It’s ale for all.” She swept off toward the kitchen.

安盖和七弦汤姆挑了靠近壁炉的桌子坐下，柠檬找地方挂他的黄色大斗篷。热派“扑通”一声坐到门边板凳，艾莉亚挤到他旁边。

Anguy and Tom Sevenstrings took the table near the hearth while Lem was hanging his big yellow cloak on a peg. Hot Pie plopped down heavily on a bench at the table by the door, and Arya wedged herself in beside him.

汤姆卸下竖琴。“有家孤独客栈在林间小路上哟，”他唱道，曲调奏得缓慢，以配合歌词。“店家的老婆象蛤蟆一样难看……”

Tom unslung his harp. “A lonely inn on a forest road,” he sang, slowly picking out a tune to go with the words. “The innkeep’s wife was plain as a toad.”

“换首歌，否则就吃不到兔子了，”柠檬警告他，“你知道她什么德性。”

“Shut up with that now or we won’t be getting no rabbit,” Lem warned him. “You know how she is.”

艾莉亚倾身靠近热派。“你会驾船吗？”她问。他还不及回答，只见一个约莫十五六岁的矮胖男孩端着几杯麦酒出现。热派虔诚地双手接住，啜了一口，露出艾莉亚从未见过的灿烂笑容。“麦酒耶，”他轻声叹道，“还有兔子。”

Arya leaned close to Hot Pie. “Can you sail a boat?” she asked. Before he could answer, a thickset boy of fifteen or sixteen appeared with tankards of ale. Hot Pie took his reverently in both hands, and when he sipped he smiled wider than Arya had ever seen him smile. “Ale,” he whispered, “and rabbit.”

“嗷，为陛下干杯！”射手安盖举起杯子，兴高采烈地喊，“七神保佑国王！”

“Well, here’s to His Grace,” Anguy the Archer called out cheerfully, lifting a toast. “Seven save the king!”

“保佑所有的国王，”柠檬斗篷咕哝着。他喝了一口，用手背抹去嘴边的泡沫。

“All twelve o’ them,” Lem Lemoncloak muttered. He drank, and wiped the foam from his mouth with the back of his hand.

老板娘的丈夫急匆匆地从前门赶来，围裙里兜了一大堆洗好的蔬菜。“马厩里有马！”他宣布，当他们还不知道一样。

Husband came bustling in through the front door, with an apron full of washed vegetables. “There’s strange horses in the stable,” he announced, as if they hadn’t known.

“是啊，”汤姆边说边放下木竖琴，“比你送出去的三匹要好。”

“Aye,” said Tom, setting the woodharp aside, “and better horses than the three you gave away.”

那丈夫恼怒地将蔬菜扔到桌子上。“不是送，是卖的！卖了个好价钱，还搞到一艘小船。不管怎么说，把马弄回来是你们这帮家伙的责任。”

Husband dropped the vegetables on a table, annoyed. “I never gave them away. I sold them for a good price, and got us a skiff as well. Anyways, you lot were supposed to get them back.”

我就知道他们是土匪，艾莉亚边听边想。她伸手到桌子底下，摸摸匕首柄，确认它还在。敢来打劫的话，我会让他们后悔的。

I knew they were outlaws, Arya thought, listening. Her hand went under the table to touch the hilt of her dagger, and make sure it was still there. If they try to rob us, they’ll be sorry.

“根本没人往这边过，”柠檬说。

“They never came our way,” said Lem.

“呃，我明明叫他们朝这边走。你们一定喝醉了，要么就是睡过头。”

“Well, I sent them. You must have been drunk, or asleep.”

“我们？喝醉了？”汤姆深吸一大口麦酒，“从来不会。”

“Us? Drunk?” Tom drank a long draught of ale. “Never.”

“你们可以自己干，”柠檬告诉老板娘的丈夫。

“You could have taken them yourself,” Lem told Husband.

“凭什么，凭这孩子？我再说一遍，我家老婆子当时去羊肠镇帮芬穆生崽了，多半就是你们这帮家伙让那可怜的女孩怀上的。”他酸溜溜地看了汤姆一眼。“看什么？就是你！我敢打赌，是你用那把竖琴，弹些个悲伤曲子，好让可怜的芬穆脱衣服。”

“What, with only the boy here? I told you twice, the old woman was up to Lambswold helping that Fern birth her babe. And like as not it was one o’ you planted the bastard in the poor girl’s belly.” He gave Tom a sour look. “You, I’d wager, with that harp o’ yours, singing all them sad songs just to get poor Fern out of her smallclothes.”

“如果唱歌弹琴能使姑娘脱下衣服，感受温暖明媚的阳光，这难道是歌手的错吗？”汤姆反问。“此外，她看上的是安盖。‘我能摸摸你的弓吗？’我听她问，‘噢噢噢，它又滑又硬，拉一拉成不成？’”

“If a song makes a maid want to slip off her clothes and feel the good warm sun kiss her skin, why, is that the singer’s fault?” asked Tom. “And ’twas Anguy she fancied, besides. ‘Can I touch your bow?’ I heard her ask him. ‘Ooohh, it feels so smooth and hard. Could I give it a little pull, do you think?’ ”

那丈夫哼了一声，“是你还是安盖，都没差，反正跟我一样该为丢马负责。我说，他们有三个，我一个怎么对付得了三个？”

Husband snorted. “You and Anguy, makes no matter which. You’re as much to blame as me for them horses. They was three, you know. What can one man do against three?”

“三个？”柠檬嗤之以鼻，“一个是女人，一个戴铁链，你自己说的。”

“Three,” said Lem scornfully, “but one a woman and t’other in chains, you said so yourself.”

那丈夫扮个鬼脸，“大个子女人，穿得象男子。而那戴铁链的……我讨厌他的眼睛。”

Husband made a face. “A big woman, dressed like a man. And the one in chains … I didn’t fancy the look of his eyes.”

喝酒的安盖笑道：“我不喜欢谁的眼睛，就射穿它。”

Anguy smiled over his ale. “When I don’t fancy a man’s eyes, I put an arrow through one.”

艾莉亚忆起擦过耳边那支箭，忽然很想拜他为师。

Arya remembered the shaft that had brushed by her ear. She wished she knew how to shoot arrows.

那丈夫却不为所动，“长辈说话时安静点！喝酒就是，管住舌头，否则我让我家老婆子给你一勺子。”

Husband was not impressed. “You be quiet when your elders are talking. Drink your ale and mind your tongue, or I’ll have the old woman take a spoon to you.”

“哈，老大爷，怕大嫂的该是你吧。好啦，至少喝酒不要你教。”他边说边咽下一大口，以兹证明。

“My elders talk too much, and I don’t need you to tell me to drink my ale.” He took a big swallow, to show that it was so.

艾莉亚也喝了一大口。这些天来，他们一直喝溪水和坑洞里的水，还有混浊的三叉戟河水，而今麦酒就象以前父亲在特殊场合才准她啜饮一杯的葡萄酒般可口。厨房飘出的香气让她垂涎欲滴，她强迫自己思考那艘小船。驾船比偷船难。只等他们睡着……

Arya did the same. After days of drinking from brooks and puddles, and then the muddy Trident, the ale tasted as good as the little sips of wine her father used to allow her. A smell was drifting out from the kitchen that made her mouth water, but her thoughts were still full of that boat. Sailing it will be harder than stealing it. If we wait until they’re all asleep …

小男孩拿着几大轮面包出现。艾莉亚忙不迭地扯下一大块，咬将下去。又粗又硬，不好吃，底部还烤焦了。

The serving boy reappeared with big round loaves of bread. Arya broke off a chunk hungrily and tore into it. It was hard to chew, though, sort of thick and lumpy, and burned on the bottom.

热派尝了一口，做个鬼脸。“这面包太糟糕，”他说，“不仅烤糊了，里面还是硬的。”

Hot Pie made a face as soon as he tasted it. “That’s bad bread,” he said. “It’s burned, and tough besides.”

“蘸点肉汤会好一点，”柠檬道。

“It’s better when there’s stew to sop up,” said Lem.

“见鬼，才不会咧，”安盖说，“蘸点水只能保你的牙不被嘣掉。”

“No, it isn’t,” said Anguy, “but you’re less like to break your teeth.”

“妈的，小子，你要么吃了它，要么继续饿肚子，”那丈夫道，“我他妈看起来像面包师吗？你来就能做好啦？”

“You can eat it or go hungry,” said Husband. “Do I look like some bloody baker? I’d like to see you make better.”

“我当然行，”热派说，“这很容易。你捏面团捏得过头了，所以嚼起来才这么硬。”他又喝下一口麦酒，开始大谈特谈面包、馅饼和烘饼——这些他最钟爱的东西。艾莉亚翻翻白眼。

“I could,” said Hot Pie. “It’s easy. You kneaded the dough too much, that’s why it’s so hard to chew.” He took another sip of ale, and began talking lovingly of breads and pies and tarts, all the things he loved. Arya rolled her eyes.

汤姆坐到她对面。“乳鸽，”他说，“阿利，不管你真名叫什么，这个给你。”他将一片肮脏的羊皮纸放在他们之间的木桌面上。

Tom sat down across from her. “Squab,” he said, “or Arry, or whatever your true name might be, this is for you.” He placed a dirty scrap of parchment on the wooden tabletop between them.

她怀疑地看看它。“这是什么？”

She looked at it suspiciously. “What is it?”

“三枚金龙币。用来买马。”

“Three golden dragons. We need to buy those horses.”

艾莉亚警觉起来，“那是我们的马。”

Arya looked at him warily. “They’re our horses.”

“你们偷的马，对吧？没什么好羞耻的，孩子，可恨的战争让正派人变成了盗贼。”汤姆敲敲折叠好的羊皮纸。“我们出的是高价，说实话，那三匹马不值这么多。”

“Meaning you stole them yourselves, is that it? No shame in that, girl. War makes thieves of many honest folk.” Tom tapped the folded parchment with his finger. “I’m paying you a handsome price. More than any horse is worth, if truth be told.”

热派抓起羊皮纸，打开来看。“没有金币，”他大声抱怨，“只有几个字。”

Hot Pie grabbed the parchment and unfolded it. “There’s no gold,” he complained loudly. “It’s only writing.”

“是的，”汤姆说，“对此我很抱歉。但战争结束之后，我们便会兑现，我是国王的人，以国王的名义向你担保。”

“Aye,” said Tom, “and I’m sorry for that. But after the war, we mean to make that good, you have my word as a king’s man.”

艾莉亚推开桌子，站起身来，“你们不是国王的人，你们是强盗！”

Arya pushed back from the table and got to her feet. “You’re no king’s men, you’re robbers.”

“等哪天你碰到真正的强盗，就会发现之间的区别。他们决不会付钱补偿，即便欠条也不给。孩子，我们要马不是为自己，而是为国家，为了来去方便，好及时赶去打仗。为国王打仗。你要拒绝国王吗？”

“If you’d ever met a true robber, you’d know they do not pay, not even in paper. It’s not for us we take your horses, child, it’s for the good of the realm, so we can get about more quickly and fight the fights that need fighting. The king’s fights. Would you deny the king?”

他们一齐看着她；射手安盖，大个子柠檬，还有那面如菜色、眼神游移的丈夫。甚至站在厨房门口的沙玛也斜睨着。不管我说什么，他们都会抢走我们的马，她意识到，只好走着去奔流城，除非……“我们不要纸，”艾莉亚拍掉热派手中那张羊皮纸，“我们要外面那条船，还要你们教怎么用。”

They were all watching her; the Archer, big Lem, Husband with his sallow face and shifty eyes. Even Sharna, who stood in the door to the kitchen squinting. They are going to take our horses no matter what I say, she realized. We’ll need to walk to Riverrun, unless … “We don’t want paper.” Arya slapped the parchment out of Hot Pie’s hand. “You can have our horses for that boat outside. But only if you show us how to work it.”

七弦汤姆瞪了她一会儿，然后他那张大嘴仿佛突然憋不住，大笑失声。安盖也笑，大家都在笑，柠檬斗篷，沙玛，那个丈夫，甚至伺候的男孩……他从木桶后走出来，胳膊夹着一把十字弓。艾莉亚想朝他们尖叫，她强迫自己微笑……

Tom Sevenstrings stared at her a moment, and then his wide homely mouth quirked into a rueful grin. He laughed aloud. Anguy joined in, and then they were all laughing, Lem Lemoncloak, Sharna and Husband, even the serving boy, who had stepped out from behind the casks with a crossbow under one arm. Arya wanted to scream at them, but instead she started to smile …

“有骑兵！”詹德利的尖叫中充满警惕，他踢门闯进来。“有骑兵！”他喘着气道，“沿着河边小路过来，有十几个。”

“Riders!” Gendry’s shout was shrill with alarm. The door burst open and there he was. “Soldiers,” he panted. “Coming down the river road, a dozen of them.”

热派一跃而起，打翻酒杯，但汤姆等人泰然自若。“把顶好的麦酒洒在老娘地板上可不对，”沙玛说，“乖乖坐下，小子，兔子肉来了。还有你，女孩儿，不管有过什么遭遇，都已经结束，已经过去了。你现在跟国王的人在一起，我们会保护你的安全。”

Hot Pie leapt up, knocking over his tankard, but Tom and the others were unperturbed. “There’s no cause for spilling good ale on my floor,” said Sharna. “Sit back down and calm yourself, boy, there’s rabbit coming. You too, girl. Whatever harm’s been done you, it’s over and it’s done and you’re with king’s men now. We’ll keep you safe as best we can.”

艾莉亚惟一的反应就是伸手过肩去拔剑，刚拔出一半，手腕就被柠檬扣住。“够了！你想干嘛！”他扭她的胳膊，直到她松手。他的指头坚硬而布满老茧，十分有力。来了！艾莉亚心想，又来了！我又要回到湖边的仓库，又要见到奇斯威克、甜嘴拉夫和魔山。他们要偷走我的剑，让我变回老鼠！她左手握住酒杯，朝柠檬的脸砸去。麦酒涌出来，溅入他的眼睛，接着是鼻子断裂声和喷射的鲜血。他吼叫着双手去捂，她则获得了自由。“大家快跑！”她一边尖叫，一边飞箭般跑开。

Arya’s only answer was to reach over her shoulder for her sword, but before she had it halfway drawn Lem grabbed her wrist. “We’ll have no more of that, now.” He twisted her arm until her hand opened. His fingers were hard with callus and fearsomely strong. Again! Arya thought. It’s happening again, like it happened in the village, with Chiswyck and Raff and the Mountain That Rides. They were going to steal her sword and turn her back into a mouse. Her free hand closed around her tankard, and she swung it at Lem’s face. The ale sloshed over the rim and splashed into his eyes, and she heard his nose break and saw the spurt of blood. When he roared his hands went to his face, and she was free. “Run!” she screamed, bolting.

柠檬立即赶上，他的长腿一步当她三步。虽然她又扭又踢，却依旧被他轻松提离地面，在空中挣扎摇晃。血从他脸上流下来。

But Lem was on her again at once, with his long legs that made one of his steps equal to three of hers. She twisted and kicked, but he yanked her off her feet effortlessly and held her dangling while the blood ran down his face.

“停下，你这小笨蛋，”他边喊边晃她，“快停下！”詹德利要过来帮她，但七弦汤姆掏出匕首挡在前面。

“Stop it, you little fool,” he shouted, shaking her back and forth. “Stop it now!” Gendry moved to help her, until Tom Sevenstrings stepped in front of him with a dagger.

要逃来不及了。外面传来马嘶和人声，片刻之后，一个泰洛西人昂首阔步地走进门来。他比柠檬更高大，浓密的大胡子末端是亮绿色，新长出来的却是灰色。后面跟着两名十字弓兵，扶一个伤员，然后是其他人……

By then it was too late to flee. She could hear horses outside, and the sound of men’s voices. A moment later a man came swaggering through the open door, a Tyroshi even bigger than Lem with a great thick beard, bright green at the ends but growing out grey. Behind came a pair of crossbowmen helping a wounded man between them, and then others …

艾莉亚没见过如此衣杉褴褛的队伍，但他们手中的长剑、战斧和弓箭很精良。有两人进门时好奇地瞥了她几眼，但没有说话。一个戴生锈半盔的独眼人嗅嗅空气，咧嘴微笑，一个满头僵硬黄发的弓箭手大叫着要麦酒。队伍末尾是一个戴狮冠盔的长矛兵，一个跛腿老人，一个布拉佛斯雇佣兵和……

A more ragged band Arya had never seen, but there was nothing ragged about the swords, axes, and bows they carried. One or two gave her curious glances as they entered, but no one said a word. A one-eyed man in a rusty pothelm sniffed the air and grinned, while an archer with a head of stiff yellow hair was shouting for ale. After them came a spearman in a lion-crested helm, an older man with a limp, a Braavosi sellsword, a …

“哈尔温？”艾莉亚轻声道。是他！真的是他！透过胡子和纠结的头发，她看见胡伦儿子的脸，他从前常牵她的小马在院里走动，常跟琼恩和罗柏一起练习长枪冲刺，在宴会上他酒量惊人。而今他虽瘦了，却变得强壮，还留起了以前从未留过的胡子。真的是他——她父亲的人！“哈尔温！”她挣扎着向前去，试图挣脱柠檬铁一般的抓握。“是我啊，”她喊，“哈尔温，是我，你不认识我了吗，不认识了吗？”泪水涌出来，她发现自己像婴儿一样哭泣，又变回从前那个苯女孩。“哈尔温，是我啊！”

“Harwin?” Arya whispered. It was! Under the beard and the tangled hair was the face of Hullen’s son, who used to lead her pony around the yard, ride at quintain with Jon and Robb, and drink too much on feast days. He was thinner, harder somehow, and at Winterfell he had never worn a beard, but it was him—her father’s man. “Harwin!” Squirming, she threw herself forward, trying to wrench free of Lem’s iron grip. “It’s me,” she shouted, “Harwin, it’s me, don’t you know me, don’t you?” The tears came, and she found herself weeping like a baby, just like some stupid little girl. “Harwin, it’s me!”

哈尔温看看她的脸，又看看她衣服上的剥皮人。“你认识我？”他怀疑地皱起眉头，“剥皮人纹章……伺候水蛭大人的小厮怎会认识我？”

Harwin’s eyes went from her face to the flayed man on her doublet. “How do you know me?” he said, frowning suspiciously. “The flayed man … who are you, some serving boy to Lord Leech?”

一时她不知如何回答。她有过那么多名字，她真的还是艾莉亚·史塔克吗？“我是女生，”她抽泣着，“我是波顿大人的侍酒，但他要把我交给山羊，所以我跟詹德利和热派一起逃了。你一定认识我的！我小时候，你牵过我的小马。”

For a moment she did not know how to answer. She’d had so many names. Had she only dreamed Arya Stark? “I’m a girl,” she sniffed. “I was Lord Bolton’s cupbearer but he was going to leave me for the goat, so I ran off with Gendry and Hot Pie. You have to know me! You used to lead my pony, when I was little.”

他瞪大眼睛。“诸神在上，”他的声音噎住了，“捣蛋鬼艾莉亚？柠檬，快把她放开。”

His eyes went wide, “Gods be good,” he said in a choked voice. “Arya Underfoot? Lem, let go of her.”

“这家伙打断了我的鼻子。”柠檬随手把她扔在地上。“七层地狱，她究竟是什么人？”

“She broke my nose.” Lem dumped her unceremoniously to the floor. “Who in seven hells is she supposed to be?”

“她是首相之女。”哈尔温单膝跪下。“临冬城的艾莉亚·史塔克。”

“The Hand’s daughter.” Harwin went to one knee before her. “Arya Stark, of Winterfell.”