"Robin McKinley - Deerskin" - читать интересную книгу автора (McKinley Robin)

her, for she was a modest girl then as she is a modest woman now; but everyone
knew that she would have chosen your father over the other six kings even had he
been a goat-boy with naught but a bell and a shepherd's stick to his name."
"Tell me about the task he was set," said the little princess.
"Ah, it was a terrible task," said the nursemaid, cuddling her close on her lap.
"Each of the seven kings-six kings and one prince-was given a task, and each task
was more difficult than the one before, as your lovely mother's father began to
comprehend the setting of tasks; for such a joy was the daily presence of your lovely
mother that her father was not eager to part with her. And so he looked to drive her
suitors away, or to lose them on topless mountains and in bottomless valleys or
upon endless seas. But who could blame him? For she is the most beautiful woman
in seven kingdoms, and he died of a broken heart eight months after she married
your father and left him, and even your uncle, who is now lord of those lands, says
the country, the earth itself, is sad without her."
"The task," said the princess.
"I was coming to it," said the nursemaid reprovingly. "So your father was the
seventh suitor after the six kings, because his father thought he was young to marry,
and had heard besides that your lovely mother's father was setting such tasks that
might lose him his only son. But in the end he did his son no favors, for his son-your
father-would go, and so it was he who had the last and hardest task."
"And what was it?" said the princess, though she had heard this story many times.
 "I am coming to it. The task was to bring a leaf plucked and unfallen from the tree
of joy, which grows at the farthest eastern edge of the world, and an apple plucked
and unfallen from the tree of sorrow, that grows at the farthest western end of the
world. "And when your lovely mother's father said the words of the task, he smiled,
for he knew that no living man could accomplish it; and so at worst his daughter had
but six suitors left.
"But he did not see the look that passed between his daughter and her seventh
suitor; the look that said, I will do this thing, and was answered, I know you will, and
I will wait for you.
"And wait she did; four of the six kings returned successfully from their
adventures, bearing what they had been ordered to bring. The word came that the
fifth king had been killed, and that the sixth had thought better of his third cousin
twice removed, and went home and married her-and I've always heard that they're
very happy," the nursemaid added, doubtfully, to herself. "And she such a plain girl,
with a heavy jaw and thick legs. They all say she's kind, and loves her husband, but
if you're king 'twould be easy to find plain girls with thick legs to love you, a penny
the dozen, and any such who was made queen would be sure to be kind from . . .
from surprise. It would be easy!" said the nursemaid, fiercely, pleating the edge of
her apron with her fingers.
The princess fidgeted. "The task!"
The nursemaid started, and smoothed her apron, and put her arm again around
the princess. "Oh, yes, my love, his task. So your lovely mother refused to choose
among the four kings who had completed their tasks, saying that she would wait for
the return of the last, which was only fair.
"The four kings grumbled-particularly since it was only a prince they were waiting
for, and his father the king young yet-but your lovely mother's father smiled and
smiled, because he began to suspect that some such a look as had passed between
his daughter and her seventh suitor must have done so, and that his daughter waited
for some reason other than fairness. He was well pleased, because he knew that no