Алиса в зазеркалье
The Lion and the Unicorn
‘Does—theone—thatwins—getthecrown?’sheasked,aswellasshecould,fortherunwasputtingherquiteoutofbreath.
‘Dearme,no!’saidtheKing.‘Whatanidea!’
‘Wouldyou—begoodenough,’Alicepantedout,afterrunningalittlefurther,‘tostopaminute—justtoget—one’sbreathagain?’
‘I’mgoodenough,’theKingsaid,‘onlyI’mnotstrongenough.Yousee,aminutegoesbysofearfullyquick.YoumightaswelltrytostopaBandersnatch!’
Alicehadnomorebreathfortalking,sotheytrottedoninsilence,tilltheycameinsightofagreatcrowd,inthemiddleofwhichtheLionandUnicornwerefighting.Theywereinsuchacloudofdust,thatatfirstAlicecouldnotmakeoutwhichwaswhich:butshesoonmanagedtodistinguishtheUnicornbyhishorn.
TheyplacedthemselvesclosetowhereHatta,theothermessenger,wasstandingwatchingthefight,withacupofteainonehandandapieceofbread-and-butterintheother.
‘He’sonlyjustoutofprison,andhehadn’tfinishedhisteawhenhewassentin,’HaighawhisperedtoAlice:‘andtheyonlygivethemoyster-shellsinthere—soyouseehe’sveryhungryandthirsty.Howareyou,dearchild?’hewenton,puttinghisarmaffectionatelyroundHatta’sneck.
Hattalookedroundandnodded,andwentonwithhisbreadandbutter.
‘Wereyouhappyinprison,dearchild?’saidHaigha.
Hattalookedroundoncemore,andthistimeatearortwotrickleddownhischeek:butnotawordwouldhesay.
