PART III

She then untwined the snake from her body, and held it by the tail high above her. The hideous creature stretched up its head towards the roof of the cavern, which it was just able to reach. It then began to move its head backwards and forwards, with a slow oscillating motion, as if looking for something. At the same moment the witch began to walk round and round the cavern, coming nearer to the centre every circuit; while the head of the snake described the same path over the roof that she did over the floor, for she kept holding it up. And still it kept slowly oscillating. Round and round the cavern they went, ever lessening the circuit, till at last the snake made a sudden dart, and clung to the roof with its mouth.

"That's right, my beauty!" cried the princess; "drain it dry."

She let it go, left it hanging, and sat down on a great stone, with her black cat, which had followed her all round the cave, by her side. Then she began to knit and mutter awful words. The snake hung like a huge leech, sucking at the stone; the cat stood with his back arched, and his tail like a piece of cable, looking up at the snake; and the old woman sat and knitted and muttered. Seven days and seven nights they remained thus; when suddenly the serpent dropped from the roof as if exhausted, and shrivelled up till it was again like a piece of dried seaweed. The witch started to her feet, picked it up, put it in her pocket, and looked up at the roof. One drop of water was trembling on the spot where the snake had been sucking. As soon as she saw that, she turned and fled, followed by her cat. Shutting the door in a terrible hurry, she locked it, and having muttered some frightful words, sped to the next, which also she locked and muttered over; and so with all the hundred doors, till she arrived in her own cellar. Then she sat down on the floor ready to faint, but listening with malicious delight to the rushing of the water, which she could hear distinctly through all the hundred doors.

But this was not enough. Now that she had tasted revenge, she lost her patience. Without further measures, the lake would be too long in disappearing. So the next night, with the last shred of the dying old moon rising, she took some of the water in which she had revived the snake, put it in a bottle, and set out, accompanied by her cat. Before morning she had made the entire circuit of the lake, muttering fearful words as she crossed every stream, and casting into it some of the water out of her bottle. When she had finished the circuit she muttered yet again, and flung a handful of water towards the moon. Thereupon every spring in the country ceased to throb and bubble, dying away like the pulse of a dying man. The next day there was no sound of falling water to be heard along the borders of the lake. The very courses were dry; and the mountains showed no silvery streaks down their dark sides. And not alone had the fountains of mother Earth ceased to flow; for all the babies throughout the country were crying dreadfully—only without tears.

第3节

她把蛇从身上解下，拎着尾巴高高地举起来。可怕的怪物伸长脑袋，刚好能够触到洞窟的顶部。接着，它开始前后摆动脑袋，还慢慢地抖动着身子，似乎在找些什么。与此同时，老公主开始绕着洞窟走来走去，渐渐地一点点靠近了圆圈的中心。这时候，巨蟒的脑袋就在洞顶上留下相同的轨迹，因为她一直都举着巨蟒。巨蟒不断地微微颤动。她走呀走，走了一圈又一圈，每转一圈，圆圈就会缩小一点，最后，巨蟒突然蹿了起来，冲向洞顶，一口咬住。

“这就对了，我的美人！”老公主大叫道，“给我吸干它。”

老公主随巨蟒去折腾，就让它挂在那里，自己找了一块大石头坐了下来，抱起她的黑猫。这个小家伙一直跟着她绕着洞窟跑，此刻靠在了她的脚边。老公主接着开始皱起眉头嘀咕一些可怕的咒语。巨蟒挂在那里就像是一只巨大的水蛭，在岩石上拼命地吮吸。黑猫在一旁把背弓着，它的尾巴就好像是一根绳索，一动不动地向上指着巨蟒。老公主就这么一直坐着，皱着眉头念念有词，她们就这个样子持续了几天几夜……突然，巨蟒像是精疲力竭一样从洞顶掉了下来，不断地收缩干瘪，最后又变成一块干瘪海草的样子。老公主这才起身站起，把它拾起来，放进口袋里，然后看了看洞顶。刚才巨蟒吮吸的地方有一滴水珠在那里颤动。老公主一看到水珠，立刻带着黑猫转身就跑。她手忙脚乱地一把关上门，锁上，接着念叨起几句可怕的咒语，就冲向下一道门，再接着把门锁上，念上几句咒语……就这么穿过一百道门，最后回到了地窖。她一屁股坐在了地上，差不多要昏过去了，不过还是带着幸灾乐祸的快感听着水流的咆哮，就是隔着一百道门她还是可以清楚地听到。

不过，这还远远不够。现在既然已经享受到复仇的快感，她也就一发不可收拾了。她不能等下去了，如果不采取进一步的手段，湖水还是要等很长时间才会消失。于是就在第二天夜里，当最后一弯细细的下弦月升起的时候，她把一些用来苏醒巨蟒的药水装在一个小瓶子里，带在身上，让黑猫跟着她一起出发了。在清晨到来之前，老公主绕着湖转了整整一圈，她越过每一条溪流，念叨着可怕的咒语，并且把瓶子的药水洒几滴到水流中。当她走完一圈的时候，又念了一遍咒语，然后将一捧药水洒向月亮。于是全国每一眼泉水都不再跃动喷涌了，如同将死之人的脉搏一样停止了跳动。第二天，湖边就再也听不到山涧溪流的声音了。每一条沟渠都干涸了，山岩上、黑色的崖壁上再也不是水光粼粼的了。而且不只是大地母亲的泉眼停止了涌动，就是全国上下所有小宝宝的啼哭也都变得很可怕——光有哭声没有眼泪。