"David Eddings - The Dreamers 01 - The Elder gods" - читать интересную книгу автора (Eddings David)

to him that Old-BearтАЩs use of the word тАШguestтАЩ had been his way to
carefully manipulate the thinking of the two children in his lodge. The
ultimate goal of the clever chief had been fairly obvious, but as Misty-
Water had matured, Longbow had seen no reason to complain. Misty-
Water had grown up to be the sort of girl who made men stop breathing
as she walked by. Her long hair was as black as ravenтАЩs wings, and her
skin was as pale as the moon. Her eyes were large, and her lips were full.
She was quite tall and slender, and as she began to mature, other
interesting aspects emerged as well. Longbow had found it difficult to
take his eyes from her.
The fathers of attractive girls are frequently edgy as young men begin
to gather in large numbers about their daughters, but Old-Bear remained
tranquil, because Longbow was attending to the matter. Even as a young
man scarcely past his boyhood, Longbow was quite tall and well-
muscled, and he could be very persuasive. After only a few incidents, the
other young men of Old-BearтАЩs tribe came to understand that the pursuit
of Misty-Water could be most hazardous.
Misty-Water appreciated LongbowтАЩs actions, since she had concerns of
her own that required her undivided attention. She had observed that
several of the other young women of the tribe viewed Longbow with a
great deal of interest, and it seemed to her that it might be prudent to
encourage disinterest. It didnтАЩt take Misty-Water long to persuade those
other young women that Longbow wasnтАЩt really available. In most cases,
she had accomplished this with a few hints, but a couple of the young
women of the tribe had required a more direct approach. There had been a
few bruises involved, but very few serious injuries.
Old-Bear had watched their little games. He hadnтАЩt said anything, but
he had frequently smiled.


The other young men of the tribe viewed Longbow with a kind of awe.
He had taken up his bow very early, and he had never been able to
explain exactly how it was that every arrow he loosed from his long,
curved bow went precisely where he wanted it to go, even at incredible
distances. He had tried to explain the sense of oneness he felt with every
target that his arrows unerringly found. The unity of hand and eye and
thought lies at the center of every archerтАЩs skill, of course, but Longbow
had realized very early that the target must be included in that unification.
It was that sense of joining that lay at the core of LongbowтАЩs unerring
accuracy. He believed that his target seemed almost to draw his arrow,
and that is a very difficult concept to explain.
Misty-Water, however, had no difficulty understanding LongbowтАЩs
point. She had been unified with her target since early childhood.
Everyone in Old-BearтАЩs tribe knew by now that it wouldnтАЩt be too long
before a certain ceremony would take place, but exactly when was
entirely up to Chief Old-Bear, and the chief didnтАЩt seem to be in any great
hurry.
Longbow and Misty-Water were fairly certain that the chiefтАЩs delay
was no more than his way of teasing them. They didnтАЩt think it was funny
at all.