诺贝尔文学经典:《宠儿》第2章Part 9

One-Ton Lady spit at them, but her bulk shortened her aim and they got a big kick out of thehelpless meanness in her little eyes. Arabian Nights Dancer cut her performance to three minutesinstead of the usual fifteen she normally did-earning the gratitude of the children, who couldhardly wait for Abu Snake Charmer, who followed her.
Denver bought horehound, licorice, peppermint and lemonade at table manned by a littlewhitegirl in ladies' high-topped shoes. Soothed by sugar, surrounded by (a) a crowd of people who didnot find her the main attraction, who, in fact, said, "Hey, Denver," every now and then, pleased herenough to consider the possibility that Paul D wasn't all that bad. In fact there was something abouthim — when the three of them stood together watching Midget dance — that made the stares ofother Negroes kind, gentle, something Denver did not remember seeing in their faces. Several evennodded and smiled at her mother, no one, apparently, able to withstand sharing the pleasure Paul having. He slapped his knees when Giant danced with Midget; when Two-Headed Mantalked to himself. He bought everything Denver asked for and much she did not. He teased Setheinto tents she was reluctant to enter. Stuck pieces of candy she didn't want between her lips. WhenWild African Savage shook his bars and said wa wa, Paul D told everybody he knew him back in Roanoke.
Paul D made a few acquaintances; spoke to them about what work he might find. Sethe returnedthe smiles she got. Denver was swaying with delight. And on the way home, although leadingthem now, the shadows of three people still held hands.
A FULLY DRESSED woman walked out of the water. She barely gained the dry bank of thestream before she sat down and leaned against a mulberry tree. All day and all night she sat there,her head resting on the trunk in a position abandoned enough to crack the brim in her straw ything hurt but her lungs most of all. Sopping wet and breathing shallow she spent those hourstrying to negotiate the weight of her eyelids. The day breeze blew her dress dry; the night windwrinkled it. Nobody saw her emerge or came accidentally by. If they had, chances are they wouldhave hesitated before approaching her. Not because she was wet, or dozing or had what soundedlike asthma, but because amid all that she was smiling. It took her the whole of the next morning tolift herself from the ground and make her way through the woods past a giant temple of boxwoodto the field and then the yard of the slate-gray house. Exhausted again, she sat down on the firsthandy place — a stump not far from the steps of 124. By then keeping her eyes open was less of aneffort. She could manage it for a full two minutes or more. Her neck, its circumference no widerthan a parlor-service saucer, kept bending and her chin brushed the bit of lace edging her dress.
Women who drink champagne when there is nothing to celebrate can look like that: their strawhats with broken brims are often askew; they nod in public places; their shoes are undone. Buttheir skin is not like that of the woman breathing near the steps of 124. She had new skin, linelessand smooth, including the knuckles of her hands. By late afternoon when the carnival was over,and the Negroes were hitching rides home if they were lucky — walking if they were not — thewoman had fallen asleep again. The rays of the sun struck her full in the face, so that when Sethe,Denver and Paul D rounded the curve in the road all they saw was a black dress, two unlaced shoesbelow it, and Here Boy nowhere in sight.
"Look," said Denver. "What is that?"

“一吨女士”向他们吐唾沫，可她的大块头降低了实际效果，于是她小眼睛里无能的卑劣让他们过足了瘾。“天方夜谭舞女”把通常十五分钟的表演减到三分钟———这让孩子们不胜感激，因为他们等不及她下面的那个“阿布蛇魔术师”了。
在脚蹬女式高靿鞋的白人小姑娘掌管的柜台上，丹芙要了夏至草汁、甘草汁、薄荷汁和柠檬汁。糖水进肚，神清气爽，身旁又围了一群人———那些人并不青睐她，实际上不时地称呼她“喂，丹芙”———丹芙很高兴开始觉得保罗?D或许不算太坏。说实话，他是有点特别之处———他们仨站住一起看侏儒舞的时候———使得其他黑人的目光和蔼、温柔起来，丹芙从不记得在他们脸上见到过那种表情。有几个人甚至冲她妈妈点头、微笑，显然，没有人能够抗拒同保罗?D分享他的快乐。当巨人和侏儒跳舞，还有双头人自言自语的时候，他乐得直拍大腿。他给丹芙买了她要的每一样东西，还有好多她没要的。他好说歹说把塞丝哄进她不愿进的帐篷。把她不想吃的糖果塞满她的嘴。当“非洲野人”舞着棒子哇哇乱叫时，保罗?D告诉每一个人他早在罗厄诺克时就认识这家伙了。
保罗D结识了几个人，跟他们谈了他想找什么样的工作。塞丝对她得到的微笑也回之一笑。丹芙沉醉在喜悦中。在回家的路上，尽管投到了他们前面，三个人的影子依然手牵着手。
一个穿戴齐整的女人从水中走出来。她好不容易才够到干燥的溪岸，上了岸就立即靠着一棵桑树坐下来。整整一天一夜，她就坐在那里，将头自暴自弃地歇在树干上，草帽檐都压断了。身上哪儿都疼，肺疼得最厉害。她浑身精湿，呼吸急促，一直在同自己发沉的眼皮较量。白天的轻风吹干她的衣裙；晚风又把衣裙吹皱。没有人看见她出现，也没有人碰巧从这里经过。即便有人路过，多半也会踌躇不前。不是因为她身上湿淋淋的，也不是因为她打着瞌睡或者发出哮喘似的声音，而是因为她同时一直在微笑。第二天，她花了整整一个上午从地上爬起来，穿过树林，经过一座高大的黄杨木神殿进入田野，向石板色房子的宅院走来。她再一次筋疲力尽，就近坐下———坐在离124号的台阶不远的一个树桩上。这时她睁开双眼已经不那么费劲了，能坚持整整两分钟还要多。她那周长不足一个茶碟的脖子一直弯着，下巴摩擦着她裙衣上镶的花边。
只有那些在非庆祝场合也喝香槟酒的女人才那副模样：断了檐的草帽总是歪戴着；在公共场所跟人随便点头；鞋带也不系好。但是她们的皮肤可不如这个在124号的台阶附近喘息的女人。她的皮肤是新的，没有皱纹，而且光滑，连手上的指节都一样。狂欢节结束时已临近黄昏，黑人们要是走运就搭车回家———不然就得步行。这时那个女人又睡着了。阳光直射在她整个脸颊上，所以塞丝、丹芙和保罗?D在归途中拐过弯来，只看见一条黑裙子和下边两只鞋带散开的鞋，而“来，小鬼”却无影无踪了。
“瞧，“丹芙道，”那是什么？”